Their breaths were wild and ragged, legs aching. Merle was slower than Daryl and Alice but still outrunning the walkers chasing them. After another mile or so the ground gradually turned into a path under their feet, leading them into a town. They continued running and looking around frantically for somewhere to hide. Daryl and Alice, being in front, noticed that the shutters were down on every shop except one and with the last of the daylight disappearing they couldn't risk waiting for something better.
"Merle!" Daryl shouted, looking back to his brother and signalling where they should go. They all sped up to put enough space between them and the walkers before ducking inside the open drug store, hopefully unseen. Knife in hand Alice shot through the store checking for any walkers that might already be lurking in the building. Satisfied the place was safe she joined the Dixons to lay low, hoping the threat would pass by. Thirty pairs of decaying feet trampled by their hiding place before moving on, only two of them lingered by the windows but Daryl and Merle easily got rid of them and left their bodies outside to cover the scent of the living.
After barricading the door the three exhausted survivors settled down to rest amongst the mess left on the floor by whoever had already ransacked the shop. Unfortunately It was just mostly empty boxes and leaflets.
"Well that was fun." Merle said sarcastically, breaking the silence. Daryl and Alice immediately glared at him.
"We told ya it was a bad idea." Daryl's tone was calm but Alice knew that whenever he chewed on his lip he was anything but calm. She didn't blame him for being pissed, she was too. They'd only left Woodbury a few hours ago and they had already lost the car, been involved in a shootout and had to outrun a herd. No one was to blame for the first one, Merle was pretty much responsible for the second, Alice for the last but if she hadn't drawn the walkers in they might not have escaped without a few bullet wounds.
"They were askin' for a fight, little brother!" Merle got to his feet and started pacing the small space, he was still fired up, he wasn't a man that liked backing down. Alice found herself smiling despite the situation at how similar the brothers could be.
Another group had covered the woodland road they had been driving on with screws, effectively popping the tyres. Collecting the impressive collection of guns Merle had stored in the boot and the backpack of supplies they had brought along they quickly ditched the car. Alice had plodded along next to her boyfriend for the next half an hour watching him argue with his brother. Merle wanted to track through the trees for the other group that had messed with them, Daryl on the other hand thought it would be a better idea to just find another car and carry on with the run. In the end they argued long enough that they made it to a gas station, too far away to follow the tracks anyway. Ironically that's where they found another group. Without knowing if they were the same people Merle started yelling at them about his car and they got their guns out. They were outnumbered ten to one which is why Alice started a fire, sure it drew in walkers but at least they had managed to escape.
"To be fair they did have a lot of gas. It would make sense if they were the group targeting cars." Alice piped up, thinking of all the fuel containers they had lying around.
"See?" Merle helpfully pointed out Alice's remark.
"That ain't the point." Daryl replied but he had lost interest in the argument, his hand found Alice's and his eyes captured hers. Now their eyes were locked, kissing was inevitable. As soon as Merle disappeared behind the counter their lips were connected in a slow, loving kiss.
"Ya faster than ya was back in Atlanta." he said after pulling apart, their faces still only a couple of inches away. Daryl's eyes darted to the back of the shop where his brother looked like he'd found something interesting. If Merle hadn't been with them he would have had her right there. It would have been a dangerous idea but he couldn't shake the urge he always got when they made it through something bad to be with her. She made everything okay.
"I've had a lot of practice since then." she shrugged, then bit down on her lip, like she was toying with the idea of something and Daryl knew what it was. She needed him too. She had been scared too. Survival instincts getting the better of her, she put a calm smile back on her face. Daryl felt proud of her, he planted a kiss on her forehead and pulled her to her feet, leaving behind what was unspoken for now.
As they approached, Merle was holding up a photo.
"This you?" he asked Alice, looking at the photo and then at her. She snatched it from his hand, she didn't believe for a minute that she was actually going to be looking at herself but there she was, probably about eighteen years old in a photo marked 'thief'. There were a whole collection of them behind the cash register, some of them she vaguely recognised as people that used to be her friends. She made an attempt to rip it but both Dixon men were quick to stop her. Daryl in particular wanted to have a good look, it wasn't everyday that he would get a chance to see what his girlfriend looked like before they had met. Only one thing really struck him as different about her appearance and that was her expression. It was strange to see her without her smile or the warmth he was so used to seeing in her eyes. She looked hurt. He wished they had been together back then, they could have saved each other from a lot of pain.
"Ya were a bad girl, huh?" Merle teased, winking at her.
"Oh, like you never got banned for taking stuff?" she shot back defensively.
"He got banned for a lot worse than stealin'." Daryl scoffed, discreetly tucking the photo into his pocket.
"So ya know this place, right?" Merle asked. They still needed supplies and transport, if Alice knew the area it would make their job a lot easier but she shook her head.
They decided to wait for the morning then climb onto the roof for a better look at the town. Alice couldn't remember much about living there and Daryl thought he knew why. Deep down, probably so deep down that she didn't even know it, she didn't want to remember. She was different now, she didn't want anything to do with the person she used to be, not even her old name. While Merle finished picking clean the drug store, Alice and Daryl used a closed dumpster to clamber onto the low roof. The sky was a clear cloudless blue, the sunshine was bright but the day was a bitterly cold one.
Alice shielded her eyes, looking around the town for anything that struck her as familiar. Most of the streets were lined with homes, there were dozens of shops and a few small places to eat. Nothing really caught her attention until she spotted a tall house that was sitting away from the others next to a park. She could remember living there, the highest window used to be her bedroom. The attic room had always been cold.
"Before ya came along…" Daryl's voice made her jump, he had been standing next to her the whole time but she had felt completely alone for a few minutes. "Me an' Merle were gonna rob that group at the quarry an' take off on our own." Alice's face was a mixture of shock and confusion, not only at what he was telling her by why he had chosen that moment to tell her.
"I know, pretty shitty thing ta do, right?"
"That doesn't sound like you at all." she replied, shaking her head defiantly. He found himself grinning at her, even if it was coming from his own mouth she wouldn't hear anything bad about him.
"'Cos it ain't me, not anymore." Alice smiled back at him, they had both come a long way.
