A/N: Sorry if this one is really long. I just couldn't find a good spot to end it, so I let it go until I found one.
LadyEvil21: Thanks for the review. :) And it's good to know my cliffhanger-ish ending to chapter 2 worked.
Melissa turned around to find them surveying the ill-lit interior of the church. She suddenly felt a wave of nervousness. She'd just let three large men into her hiding place, and if they were of the mind, her being a fan wouldn't stop them from doing what they wanted.
Melissa reluctantly sat down on one of the pews, next to her backpack, feeling awkward. Even before the world went to hell, she had been extremely uncomfortable meeting new people. She fingered at a strap on her backpack, blinking as she realized she still had a death grip on the screwdriver. She loosened her grip on it, strapping it back onto the backpack. She was so engrossed in this task that she almost didn't notice when Seth Rollins approached her. She looked up as he held his hand out. "Thanks for saving us back there," he said. "I'm Seth Rollins."
Melissa shook his hand. "I'm Melissa," she murmured as she dropped her hands to her sides.
"That's Dean Ambrose," he said, pointing out the man who was leaning against one of the pews. He nodded in greeting but remained silent. Roman Reigns did the same thing when he was introduced. Melissa almost pointed out that she knew who they all were, but remained silent.
"Sooo…" Melissa started, drawing out the word. "You're not from around here."
Seth shook his head. "We're just passing through."
"Until the damned car gave out," Roman Reigns said, speaking up for the first time.
"It didn't give out," Dean Ambrose corrected him. "It ran out of gas."
"Doesn't matter," Reigns said with a shrug. "We're still stuck."
Seth rolled his eyes. "Anyway," he said, turning back to Melissa. "Do you know where we can get some gas for the car?"
"There's plenty in all of the other cars out there," she said, waving her arms in the general direction of the street. "There might be some at the gas station, but I think everyone went there and got it out before the power went down." She shrugged. "We can't find out until everything calms down out there anyway."
"You don't think they followed us?" Dean Ambrose said, looking over at her.
Melissa shrugged, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze. "They usually don't follow unless they see or hear you. They'll calm down eventually. They were all gone to the other end of town before you got here. They'll probably go back. I think there are more people over there."
As if in answer, a gunshot sounded from the other half of town. Melissa winced.
The three men ignored the sound. Ambrose started talking quietly to Reigns. Melissa, feeling awkward again, grabbed her backpack and headed towards the small office that was situated by the boarded-off front doors where she was staying. She pushed the door open, sighing in relief as she saw that none of her stuff had been taken. She was always worried that someone would come in and steal from her food and water stash while she was out scavenging.
She had barely set her backpack down on her sleeping bag when she heard someone speak behind her. "So how long have you been hiding out in here?"
Melissa, her heart pounding like mad again, turned around to find Seth Rollins leaning against the door frame. "Do you always move so quietly?" she accused before she started to unpack the food she'd gotten from the corner market. She didn't give him time to answer as she answered his question. "I've been here since it all started, so probably… a week and a half. There were more people originally, but they all left a few days ago. Said they were headed to LA."
"Why LA?" Rollins asked conversationally as he watched her unpack.
"The radio was saying it was a safe zone, that there would be food and water and safety and stuff." Melissa shrugged.
"Why didn't you go?" he asked. Melissa didn't look up. She wondered why he seemed so interested in her past.
She answered anyway. "I've watched the Walking Dead. The cities go to hell the fastest," she muttered with a bitter laugh. "I figured I'd rather try my luck in a small town. So far it's worked out alright." She wanted to cry as she remembered saying good-bye to her family, who had gone with the rest to LA. She'd begged for them to stay, and they'd begged for her to go with them. In the end, she'd stayed, and they had gone. It ate at her, not knowing how they were doing, not knowing if they were dead or not. Or… no, she refused to think about it.
Rollins, oblivious to her inner turmoil, moved closer, slowly sinking down into the chair that she had shoved into the corner of the room. "So what made you decide to save us today?" he asked her, leaning back in the chair.
Melissa twirled one of the backpack straps between her fingers, looking down at the contents of her backpack. "I couldn't just leave you to die," she mumbled. "I'd do the same thing for anyone else." That was probably a lie; she just wasn't sure. She pulled some of the squished chip bags out of her backpack, putting them under the table with the rest of her food. Some instinct told her that she shouldn't let others see where she was keeping her food, but she felt like she could trust Seth Rollins, at least more than Dean Ambrose or Roman Reigns.
Seth Rollins spoke up again. "So do you think you could help us out while we're here?" he asked. "You obviously know your way around."
Melissa considered it. She didn't like leaving the church if she didn't have to, but if she helped the trio, they'd be on their way faster and she'd be able to go back to only taking care of her. The thought of being alone again brought a pang of sadness, but she ignored it. She knew it was probably for the best. "I suppose I could," she said after a little.
Seth looked relieved. "Thanks," he said.
"No problem," Melissa murmured.
"How long do you think we should wait before going back to the car?" he asked her. "We've never stayed in a place long enough to be cornered by them before."
Melissa almost commented that he was lucky then, but instead she just shrugged. "It should be safe in a little while, if the sun doesn't go down before then. I won't go out after dark," she told him. "They'll see any lights if we try to use them, and I don't fancy bumping around in the dark. I'd probably walk right into one of the zombies or I'd break my leg. Neither are options I'm interested in," Melissa surprised herself by saying. Usually she wasn't so assertive.
"Okay, whatever you say," Seth said with a shrug.
Melissa had just finished packing away her food when she heard a throat being cleared. She looked up and found Roman Reigns in the doorway. He glanced at Melissa and then looked at Seth. "Dean says he's ready to go back out."
Seth nodded and turned to face Melissa. "Are you willing to go out there with us?" he asked her.
"I said I would, remember?" she murmured with a weak smile. Her stomach was already trying to rebel in fear. She didn't want to go back out, not really.
"Let's go then," Seth said, standing up. Melissa stood up as well. She followed the two men back out into the main part of the church.
Dean had already moved the pew out of the way and unbolted the door. Echoing Seth's words from only a moment ago, he said, "Let's go," before opening the door.