Chapter 2- Luke

"Clem?!"

"Clem, are you out there?!" Luke shouted into the trees. No answer. Luke could no longer expect an answer, because he knew he was alone. There was no life anymore. Even he couldn't consider himself life anymore. He was an emotional wreck, just trying to get through with life, but he couldn't. He could not do it alone.

Everyone Luke knew and loved are all gone. One by one they had their turn. They faced death in painful ways or quick and painless ways. But this did not mean they didn't suffer. They did. Everyone did.

How it happened so quickly? Luke didn't even know. The apocalypse was still ongoing but the only survivor left seemed to be him. But something in Luke's mind made him question whether he was alone or not. He could sense somebody's presence. There was life here, and it seemed to be making it's way to him fast!

"Could it be Clem?!"

"No, it couldn't be…" Luke thought.

Clem couldn't possibly believe he was still alive. But the truth was; he was still alive. Luke was still alive. Clem was still alive. However, they weren't the same Luke and Clem without each other.

They needed each other.

It was early morning and the hot sun was making its way out. God knows what time, day or month it was…

Luke woke up giving one of his huge and dramatic stretches. (Along with a huge and dramatic yawn) His back ached like hell as he tried to find the last bit of strength to get him on his feet again. His jeans were tattered and worn and his jumper's colour was fading into a paler and ugly looking orange. (Due to things like mud, blood and sweat) Luke then realised that he had left his machete strapped around his torso causing his back muscles to be extremely restricted and to feel painful every time he moved.

But right now, an achy back was the least of Luke's problems. Travelling further up north to reach the mountains was the problem. It could take Luke days to get there, but he remembered Clem telling him that walkers get slow when in the cold, which means they stay away from those areas, which then goes on to meaning that there will be less of the dead to deal with, which then means, well, not getting chewed up by a herd of flesh eating monsters. Then slowly dying ..etc etc…

The mountains are going to be Luke's next destination. Who knows? Maybe Clem could already be up there. Waiting. Waiting for that day when Luke will arrive safely and she could jump into his tired but muscular arms and hug and kiss him like there is no tomorrow… Maybe that could happen…

Minutes of intense thinking (and fantasizing) passed when Luke heard a low groaning sound. Startled by the sudden noise thinking it was a walker, Luke realised it was his very empty stomach. He sighed remembering that he has been searching for food for 2 days now…

Luke casually savaged around some bushes with some hope of finding at least some berries to live on… Minutes later… Success! Juicy, plump red-ish pink berries caught Luke's eye and he breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't sure what type of berries these were but firstly, he knew any food would do him good. And secondly, these berries weren't poisonous. After living on a farm with his best friend Nick, Luke knew what berries were good to eat and what ones were not…

"Nick" Luke thought. He missed that asshole, but instead of grieving about the painful things in life, like how Nick died, Luke simply just smiled and reminisced on the times Nick didn't feel pain, and how good life was with his pal before all shit went down…

It was only after a few more berries were picked that Luke noticed something moving in the corner of his eye. He slowly and gradually turned around to face up at the large cliff, almost like a large hill, in front of him, where he then saw a faint figure.

"Walker" Luke thought, he stepped forward slightly, squinting at the same time to realise that this was no walker. This figure was a person. Luke could see how the person kept on stepping backwards and forwards as if it was debating whether it should get any closer to the edge of the cliff or not… He didn't know who the person was, but he was sure now that it was not a walker. Was it Clem? Luke couldn't tell. He didn't even know if this 'person' had spotted him already…

The figure then quickly turned on its heel and sprinted away. Or maybe it was finding a way closer to Luke.

"It can't be my Clem" Luke thought.

"I can't risk waiting"

And with that, Luke took hold of all his beloved berries, placing one in his mouth and made his way slowly venturing deeper into the forest, heading in the same direction of the mountains. Luckily, so far, no walkers were to be seen, but who says there will be none later on?

As Luke continued walking, berries in his hands and machete firmly in place on his back, he kept on asking himself the same question. And this question did not seem to want to leave him…

"Am I walking away from my Clem?"