So this chapter kind of exploded. It literally took on a mind of its own and before I knew it I had written a lot more than I originally planned. I just hope you guys enjoy it! I've already gotten a review and some PM's, and I'm literally in a state of disbelief! I can't thank you guys enough! I literally don't know how to process all the wonderful compliments I've received. I just can't help but to be a little anxious now since I hope the future chapters I post will meet your guy's expectations.


After Coach effectively shut everyone up, it didn't take long for the sounds of the infected to fill the silence. As the group rounded the corner of the motel, a few zombies were already waiting to greet them. Eva had her gun ready, and was tempted to shoot, but it seemed no bullets would be necessary just yet. She watched, at first concerned, as Coach stepped in front of everyone, flipping the shotgun in his hands so the butt was facing up. He then proceeded to beat the shit out of the three zombies that were stupid enough to come running at him.

Eva could only stare incredulously, not expecting the large man to bash in the face of a zombie with a perfectly functional weapon. He does realize he can shoot with that thing too, right?

She took a quick glance at the other survivors, noticing their nonchalant behavior. Okay, so apparently this was normal. And she could see how such tactics could conserve ammo, but it still caused concern for the woman. Unfortunately, Eva couldn't risk coming that close to a zombie at the moment.

The group continued to carry on to the back of the motel, Coach suddenly calling out to Eva over his shoulder. It seemed she wasn't the only one thinking about her current condition.

"Are you sure you gonna be alright little one? You don't look like you could handle another hit from one of those infected." Coach proclaimed, a concerned glint in his eye. Eva went to respond, but was distracted as the group finally reached the back of the motel. The azure-eyed woman wanted to groan instead. Of course there was a steep fucking hill. And to top it off, it seemed the woods were no less better than the streets when it came to being infested with the undead. Her answer would have to wait as the familiar screams of the zombies suddenly erupted, the small group of infected that had gathered behind the building rushing towards them.

Eva didn't wait for the zombies to be close enough for Coach to use his shotgun again, finally deciding to team up with Rochelle as the two of them picked off the zombies before they could come near the group. Everyone watched as Eva didn't skip a beat, hitting her target every time. Rochelle honestly wasn't that bad with her handgun, but it could be clearly seen that she was a beginner next to the brunette. It didn't take long to figure out that this wasn't Eva's first time shooting a gun.

"Well goddamn Annie Oakley! Where'd you learn ta shoot like that?" Ellis shouted, a giddy smile on his face as he looked excitedly at the new girl. Being put in the spotlight, Eva couldn't help but feel uncomfortable as everyone stared at her, especially Nick. The man didn't look impressed; instead, it looked like he was analyzing her.

"Uh, well, in my family, if you don't know how to shoot a gun, it would be considered a sin, honestly. And, I also lived in Texas for a few years…" Eva explained with a shrug. Both of her parents had taken her to the shooting range multiple times in her life, and when she had come of age, her father had even bought her one of her very own handguns. In fact, it was the same handgun she was currently using, for it had been in her car at the time the infection hit. The other pistol she had merely grabbed off the ground, as the military would consistently leave behind weapons once they got overrun. It was a life skill her father was insistent on her learning, and at the moment, she couldn't have been more grateful for his judgment. Before anybody could respond, she looked directly at Coach, hoping that he would believe her now when she answered his previous question.

"Also, as long as the infected don't get a chance to grab at me, I should be fine." Eva finished, a reassuring smile lighting up her features. Coach merely gave a laugh.

"Well, alright then. I guess-" The large man began, but was cut off by the sound of a deafening roar. Eva couldn't help but pale as everybody's eyes widened in alarm.

"Charger!" Ellis suddenly yelled, spotting the large one-armed beast emerge from the tree line. Immediately everyone began to disperse, knowing that the special infected could easily knock them all over like bowling pins if they stood too close. With the sudden commotion, the general infected were also quickly drawn from the woods, the stragglers emerging right beside the charger. Eva was almost at a loss for words at how rapid their situation went to shit.

She instantly became preoccupied with dealing with the common infected while it seemed everyone else focused their attention on the incoming creature. The thing bellowed once more before Eva noticed it finally charge out of the corner of her eye, the beast having picked its prey. She turned just in time to see that she had been that prey, the large mass making a beeline straight to her form. It was almost as if her legs had suddenly turned to lead, her body scrambling to get out of its path. Due to not being in the best shape from falling down a hill earlier that day, she was nowhere near as nimble as she usually was.

At the same time, Nick was backing up towards Eva, trying to shoot at the raging charger. He quickly stopped his actions, knowing he wouldn't be able to kill the creature before it reached him. Instead, he opted to get out of the way as he looked behind him. His eyes instantaneously widened in alarm.

"Aw shit!" the conman shouted, simultaneously taking a leap towards Eva and grasping her backpack. With his fist full of the leather material he yanked her back towards him, the force from his tug effectively moving Eva out of the way as barely a split second later, the charger came rushing past the both of them. The force that could be felt from nearly missing the monster caused the two survivors to crash into one another and stumble a few feet back. A tingle went up Eva's spine at feeling the familiar 'whoosh' of air that could be similarly felt if you stood too close to a moving car, and as she collided with Nick's hard chest her left hand instantly clung to his white suit as her right arm came to wrap around his waist.

Nick's left arm subconsciously wrapped itself around Eva's form as she clung to his front, both survivors finally coming to a stop as Nick managed to gain enough balance to firmly stand on his own two feet, successfully stopping the both of them.

To say Eva was downright mortified would be an understatement. Her face was completely buried in Nick's chest, and she dully acknowledged the arm that was wrapped around her midsection. It would probably be the only time she would ever think to be happy to be surrounded by flesh eating monsters, for they provided one hell of a distraction from their predicament. The most she could manage was a confused and surprised expression as she mustered up the courage to finally turn her head upwards to see her savior's face. She would have pushed herself away from him by now, but apparently he had forgotten the arm wrapped around her torso as the man practically had her in an iron grip.

Thankfully, in the seconds it had taken for the pair to come to their bearings, the rest of their team had made quick work of any remaining undead. Ellis and Coach worked together to kill the charger that had instead slammed into a nearby tree, while Rochelle made sure to kill the rest of the common infected. Seeing as there was no present danger, Nick clenched his jaw as he looked down at the woman currently wrapped around him. He tried to ignore the relief he felt upon knowing she had missed the charger's grasp by a hair, and instead focused on the anger he felt at risking his own life to save her ass.

"You need to be more aware of your surroundings, cupcake. What are you trying to do? Get yourself or somebody else killed?!" Nick lectured. He then shifted the one hand he had around her waist to her shoulder, considering she could stand upright now without the threat of falling over.

Seeing as he let go, Eva quickly let go of the man as she stood erect, trying to hide her flustered state behind her anger at Nick's words. His reprimanding voice immediately prompted an eye roll from Eva. If it caused him so much trouble, why would he bother saving her in the first place? Despite the anger that she could clearly see burn in his eyes, there was definitely something else. She almost wanted to say it could have been worry, but her eyes had to have been playing tricks on her. From the moment she had met this man she could tell he was one of those 'tough guy' types, especially with his wise-guy attitude and prideful ego. She couldn't help but to level a glare at him.

"Hey, you're the one who decided to jump out and rescue me! If it was such a hassle for you then why'd you do it in the first place?!" Eva retorted, prodding his chest with her finger. With their close proximity, Eva couldn't help but notice their difference in size. She was definitely nowhere near threatened, but she couldn't help but to admire that Nick was at least a good head taller than her, and his broad chest completely towered over her form. Her glare still didn't waver as she defiantly looked up at his face.

"Because if you think I was about to carry your broken ass the rest of the way to Whispering Oaks then you're wrong, sweet cheeks! I was doing the rest of us a favor!" Nick stated, only further igniting Eva's spite. So he thought she was just one big liability then, huh? It was only then that she noticed the hand still on her shoulder, and she quickly knocked it off as she shot daggers at Nick.

"If that was honestly the reason why you saved me I can assure you I would not have Colonel Sanders be the one to carry me-" Eva began, but Rochelle suddenly came out of nowhere and cut her off as she came between the two. It was probably a good thing she did too, because Eva was suddenly aware at how much Nick had allowed her to lose control of her anger.

"Hey, hey, hey! We're on the same team here, alright?! There's no need to fight!" Rochelle quipped, pushing the two apart. The words suddenly brought Eva back to reality as she realized the situation she was in. Despite the glare that Nick was giving her, the anger that had flared up inside her had instantly begun to die down. They were in a damn apocalypse- there was no time to fight, never mind not needing to. Then again, Rochelle was right as Eva reeled in her irritation. She pinched the bridge of her nose, shutting her eyes for a second. There was a whole world full of bloodthirsty zombies that would love to tear each and every one of them apart, they didn't need each other to do that. It was either you or them- and if a person was stupid enough to pick a fight with the only comrades they could come across, then you may as well chose them. Besides, Eva just met these people- she refused to get on their bad side so quickly. She snapped open her eyes, and looked much more calmly up at Nick.

"Okay, I'm sorry. Thanks, for… saving me, I do appreciate what you did, but next time, don't risk coming to my rescue if you're just going to complain about it afterwards." Eva managed to say, her voice laced with attitude as she placed her hands on her hips. It honestly wasn't that great of an apology, even she knew that. But she was still pretty pissed at the audacity Nick had at getting mad at her. It was his own decision to come to her rescue.

She wasn't surprised when he didn't decide to give in and make up like she was, and instead she watched as Nick gave an irritated sigh as he rolled his eyes. Without a word he shook his head as he walked towards Coach and Ellis, mumbling a few words under his breath as he went. Eva couldn't help but to give him the evil eye as he did so.

"Don't worry about Nick, he can be a little… difficult at times." The brunette suddenly heard, turning to Rochelle. Her words couldn't help but to cause a laugh out of Eva.

"I think a little is a bit of an understatement. He's a total dick." Eva stated, causing Rochelle to smile. The journalist quickly looked over at her teammates before turning back to Eva. Coach and Ellis were ultimately taking care of Nick, so she thought it would be a good idea to stay a bit behind the men, hoping to do the same with Eva and further calm her down. Besides, she wasn't going to lie, it was just nice to finally have another girl to talk to. Being constantly surrounded by testosterone had worn her down rather quickly these past few days. And other than Zoey, she honestly thought she was the only woman left alive- completely outnumbered by the men.

"Well, you're not wrong, but I promise he grows on you." Rochelle reassured. Eva couldn't help herself as she gave the brown-eyed woman a doubtful look. Before she could properly respond, the sound of Coach's voice made the pair glance in the direction of the men.

"All a y'all need to be careful now! This gulley looks pretty steep!" Coach shouted, unfortunately not allowing the woman some alone time as they realized the rest of their group had decided to move forward. The pair begrudgingly joined the men, and as Eva neared the edge of the drop off she couldn't help but look down the slope with disdain. The ledges created from some of the earth jutting out from the hillside provided her with little relief. It didn't help that nothing but an apparently dirty creek was also the only thing waiting for them at the bottom. Ugh, this is bullshit.

"This is bullshit." She suddenly heard, and she was glad Nick hadn't been looking in her direction as she couldn't help but glance at said man. She might have said something about how she literally thought the same thing if it weren't for their little spat. Instead, she tried not to think about the coincidence as she instead focused her attention on getting down the hill. She refused to let herself fall and become further injured, basically already on her butt as she slid down the loose dirt. Her plan worked as she effectively landed on one of the ledges. Everyone else did the same, Rochelle landing next to her while Coach and Nick landed on the ledge next to her own.

"Okay, as long as everybody takes it slow down this hill, we'll be alrig-"

"Woah, woah, WOAH!"

Coach unfortunately never got to finish as Ellis suddenly yelled out, sliding out of control as he came tumbling down in front of everyone. He made a rough stop at the bottom, letting out a grunt of pain as his back connected with solid ground. At first Eva was concerned, worried that Ellis really hurt himself, but as he was quick to sit up, rubbing his back, it was clear he was fine. Eva then couldn't help herself as she had to cover her mouth, laughter threatening to escape her lips.

"Oh, ouch." Rochelle commented, failing in hiding a smile of her own, instead vainly trying to play it off as a grimace. Nick was the only one so far who could care less if anyone saw his mirth as he openly cackled. Ellis couldn't help but to frown up at him, but oddly enough, Coach shortly joined Nick as a chuckle could be heard from the large man.

"It's not funny, you could really hurt your-" Coach tried to say, but he was cut off by the sound of his own laughter.

"N-naw! It is funny!" the leader finally said in-between his own chuckling. Apparently everyone but Rochelle agreed.

"Ellis, you ok?" Rochelle couldn't help but ask, unable to help herself as a concerned look lined her features as she stared down at the young man. She was honestly the only one able to ask the question anyway, considering she was the single person not laughing.

"Aw yeah, I'm fine. This hill ain't shit!" Ellis shouted up to her, signaling he truly hadn't suffered from any sort of injury. Eva removed her hand, but bit her lip as she was finally able to contain her giggling. The little distraction was nice, but she knew the group needed to keep moving. That was why once everyone was able, they slid the rest of the way down to meet Ellis.

Despite the close call earlier with all the infected, the little incident provided by the redneck seemed to give everyone a much needed distraction as the survivor's spirits had perked up a bit. With the last of his laughter dying on his lips, Coach came up to Ellis and patted his shoulder as he shook his head.

"You gotta watch that first step, baby" he advised, a smirk on his lips as he then began to trek down the river. Nobody wasted any time as they followed Coach. Other than the sound of sloshing water and steps sinking into mud, it was briefly evident that silence would once again keep the survivors company.

Unsurprisingly, that silence never got the chance to take root as the young mechanic's voice cut through the darkness.

"Heh, that was actually kinda fun. I wouldn' mind doin' it again." Ellis mentioned as the group continued to head down the creek. Of course, it immediately prompted a response from Nick. Sliding down such a steep hill was honestly rather dangerous, so Ellis was lucky to not suffer from any sort of injury. It seemed Nick was more than ready to ensure the young boy was aware of this.

"Falling and breaking my neck is not a fun time, Ellis." Everyone could clearly hear. Eva nearly snorted at the response. Once again she couldn't help but notice that this entire time the two acted like little kids, or more specifically, like a pair of little brothers. Between Nick laughing at Ellis's misfortunes and his consistent attempts at bringing down his good mood, she could see the comparison of him acting like the stereotypical douchebag older brother. She also couldn't help but notice that even though she was definitely not a big fan of him, she would be lying if she didn't think Nick was damn funny. Her pride still dictated she needed to hide her amusement if it had anything to do with the white suite-wearing man though, so once again she curled her lips inwards in a successful attempt to keep quiet.

Fortunately, nothing else happened as the survivors made their way down the creek. Other than a manageable number of zombies that Eva and a few others picked off with their pistols, the creek gave them a small break from the usual bout of special and general infected. With nothing else better to do, Eva couldn't help but finally decide it was time to learn a bit more about her new group.

"So, other than Coach, who I'm pretty sure was a Coach, what did you guys do before everything went to hell?" Eva asked. Ellis practically instantaneously answered her question.

"I was a mechanic! Man, I had it made, doin' what I love, always a full keg a beer at hand- then those damn zombies had ta come and ruin it all… I will admit, they provide fer one helluva shootin' range, though!" Ellis quickly explained. It had not gone unnoticed by Eva how Nick looked completely exasperated during the response from the redneck. Did he really annoy Nick that much?

"I was actually a news journalist before all this. I was working on a story about the evacuation center in Savannah, but before we even got the cameras set up the infection had gotten completely out of hand." Rochelle responded next. At hearing her story Eva couldn't help but to give the woman next to her a reassuring smile.

"Well, at least now you'll have one hell of a story to give them once we make it out of here." Eva hopefully said. Her smile quickly turned into a frown at the sound of Nick's voice, though.

"That's if we make it out of here." The dark haired man pessimistically stated, instantly causing everybody else to furrow their brow.

"And what was it exactly that you do again…?" Eva finally couldn't help but ask, honestly wondering with his behavioral issues what kind of job he had that hadn't fired him already. By the time she asked the question the group had made it to the end of the creek, an incline coming into view that would bring them to the street. Nick purposely avoided Eva's question as he pointed it out.

"Everybody up that hill! It'll take us straight to Whispering Oaks." Nick proclaimed. Eva knew for a fact that he was ignoring her, and was about to call Nick out on it if Ellis hadn't beat her to it.

"Nick don't like to talk about his past, and I'm pretty sure it's 'cause he mentioned somethin' about bein' a conman." If looks could kill, Ellis would be dead in the dirt from the glare Nick produced as he whipped his head around to face the hillbilly.

"Ellis, I hope you have a body bag." Nick threatened, his tone deathly quiet. Before he could pounce on the poor kid, since from what Eva saw, she was actually concerned he might have truly done so, she quickly piped up her thoughts.

"It's nice to know you still have some humanity left in you, considering you're embarrassed to be labeled with a completely illegal occupation." Eva commented with a smile on her face. She wholeheartedly expected his heated glare to reign its fury upon her instead, but was surprised when his face faded into a cocky smirk the second he looked at her.

"Don't kid yourself, it's a completely inappropriate name for what I do, sweetheart." Nick rebounded, once again causing Eva's brow to furrow. What the hell did that mean? And she couldn't help it as she fully acknowledge him using the pet name. The man was truly testing her limits. She was surprised to find, however, that she felt a bit of relief at wondering if his playful tone meant he was no longer pissed at her. She had no idea where that came from, especially since she honestly didn't care that much for what Nick felt about her. She surmised it was probably due to her knowing that if the both of them were on good terms, then it meant less drama.

By that time, the group had made it towards the top of the hill, and Eva planned on also telling the group her occupation, but it would apparently have to wait since as the survivors saw the street, the multiple zombies littering the area also became evident.

"Well ain't that a load a shit." Ellis spoke, practically speaking the minds of his teammates.

Before the wandering infected could clearly process there was fresh meat, Coach decide to start off the brawl with the sounds of his shotgun firing. The group immediately sprung into action, taking down the undead as all of them slowly became alert to the sound of the survivors.

As the team pushed their way across the street, several things simultaneously happened all at once. In the open lot just after the road, Ellis had managed to spot a safe room, already beginning to run towards it as he called out behind him to alert everyone of his find. Sadly, nobody had noticed the beaten up red car that had been left in said lot, whose lights were ominously blinking, as if to signal not to go near it.

The sound of a hunter paired with a smoker was swiftly heard, the general infected no longer the greatest enemy to the group of survivors. Eva could barely make out Coach's voice as he tried warning everyone in the group of the two monsters, but it was too late as the all too familiar screech of the hunter could be heard.

"Ellis!" Eva screamed. Up ahead by the safe room, Eva saw it before she could say anything. She could only watch as the hunter just about came out of nowhere and pounced unexpectedly on the mechanic, for he was unable to hear any of their warnings. That would have been bad enough, if it weren't for the fact that the action caused his body to land on the nearby red car, which proceeded to blare a horribly loud alarm.

"Goddammit!"

"Ellis!"

Eva could barely hear the concerned shouts coming from Coach and Rochelle, only able to watch as they raced to help their fallen friend. The number of zombies they currently were dealing with was fortunately dwindling, but Eva was still trying to hold her own as she continued to fire her pistol, finishing off the last of the zombies coming at her.

"Everybody get into the safe room now!" Eva roughly heard behind her, only to find Nick shooting the last of the zombies that had decided to come after them. It was only seconds before the next horde would be upon them, and Eva looked back to her front to see that Ellis was thankfully no longer pinned by the hunter, the creature lying dead at his feet as Coach began helping the boy towards the safe room. Eva was about to run over and join them, if it weren't for the sound of the nearly forgotten smoker. She heard the sound of its tongue before she could see it, turning towards where she heard the cringing howl come from.

She was genuinely surprised to find the tongue had not wrapped around her, but instead found Nick suddenly the one to become wrapped in a slimy looking rope. Her eyes widened in panic as she watched Nick scream, for not only had he become completely incapacitated, but right behind the location of the smoker, who was situated at the top of the hill across the street, was a seemingly endless flood of zombies coming right for them. Nick was not ignorant to the fact that he was royally fucked. The other survivors were too far ahead for them to do anything, and they were already preoccupied with Ellis- it was up to Eva. If she didn't act now, she was going to watch a man die right in front of her.

No. Not today.

"Fuck this!" Eva shouted, running at Nick's dragging form. She unsheathed her second pistol, showing no mercy as she unloaded her clips into the smoker. As expected, the thing went up into a puff of smoke, both of her guns still with bullets to spare. She had milliseconds to get Nick on his feet and to haul ass, the smoker having dragged him to the edge of the lot. She practically ripped the tongue off him, simultaneously killing a few zombies that were ahead of the pack. She abandoned one of her pistols as she grabbed Nick's arm, pulling him up with her. With all the adrenaline running through her body, she was easily able to ignore the burning sensation that suddenly shot all the way up her right arm. He was quickly on his feet, Eva picking off a few more zombies that were too close for comfort as the pair basically ran for their lives to the safe room. Any wounds her body had previously suffered from were momentarily forgotten with the sound of the terrifying amount of infected right at the back of their heels.

The rest of their team was already inside, so when Eva and Nick entered the room he slammed the door shut behind them, and not a second later the sound of the undead banging on the door could be heard. The both of them were leaning forward onto their knees, panting heavily from the sprinting they just did. It left Coach and Rochelle to place some aimless furniture in the room up against the heavily reinforced door to ensure the infected couldn't get in.

"I think- I think we're even, now…" Eva managed to say between her panting, perking her head up to look straight at Nick. When he did the same, she couldn't help but to give him a genuine smile.

"Shut... shut up." He barely managed to respond back, failing at trying to hide the smile that threatened to fall upon his own lips. Despite his airy voice, the brunette could hear his teasing tone, no hint towards being a malicious response at all.

At that moment, she could care less as she let relief take over her at knowing the man before her was safe. Unbeknownst to Eva, that relief was only the start of the emotions that she was about to experience.

It must have been a coincidence that she was at Whispering Oaks Amusement Park, for she was about to be in for one hell of a ride.


I wanted to note that I was hoping to try and tie in a lot of in-game dialogue, since most of it is completely priceless! I'm honestly a little worried for this chapter though, especially with the ending. Let me know if you think it was a hit or miss.