Everyone was on high alert as the sound of a blaring car alarm came closer and closer to their camp near the quarry. A red sports car that certainly didn't belong to anyone in the group pulled up to the edge of the clearing. Glenn opened the door with a wide grin on his face. Rushing to stop the noise, Shane quickly disarmed the alarm by disconnecting the battery. An instant feeling of relief spread throughout the camp. Once he told them everybody was alive and on their way back, the commotion died down. A few moments later the big white delivery truck pulled up and everyone got out of the cargo area.

Amy almost jumped into her sister's arms, only slightly wondering about her split lip. Morales was soon wrapped in a hug by his wife and kids. The only one not happy was Carl. He watched everyone hugging their loved ones close, feeling sadness creep up. His father wasn't going to come back, he knew that. Still it made the boy cry at the hurt that filled his little heart. His mother got down in front of him, trying to somehow comfort him while Shane stood by the sports car and watched them.
He knew it was wrong in more than one way. Lori had been his best friend's wife and Carl was Rick's son. He felt bad for having fallen in love. He felt bad for sometimes being glad his friend died in that hospital. He knew it was wrong but they were his family now and one day Carl might even call him dad…

Shane flinched when Carl suddenly ran off with a loud scream, towards a man he hadn't thought he would ever see again. Sure, T-Dog and Morales had mentioned that they had found two people that helped get them out of Atlanta, but he wasn't prepared for this.
Rick. His best friend was alive. He violently shook off the feeling of loss as he watched the former cop embrace his wife and son, both still not sure this was really happening. This changed everything, and for him it wouldn't be for the better as it seemed. His best friend was alive and completely oblivious to what had transpired between Lori and Shane.

"Didn't you say something about two people?" Dale asked and Glenn seemed to remember something.
"Hey, Rachel! Come on over!" he shouted towards the truck. Shane was taken a little aback by the person that stood awkwardly next to the vehicle. A woman - short, maybe around 5'4", with long and curly dark blonde hair that was pulled into a loose ponytail. She was clad in army pants and a dark tank top, a sniper rifle strapped over her back and a compound bow in her right hand. He didn't know what to think as his eyes traveled over her body. She had something intriguing about her, her very feminine body standing in stark contrast to her general appearance.
"Come on, army girl. Nobody's going to try and take a bite out of you."

"Come on, army girl. Nobody's going to try and take a bite out of you."
Still feeling a little awkward I looked towards Glenn, who was waving me over to where he was standing with two other men. I slowly walked over, very aware of everyone staring at me. It made me anxious; I hated all attention being on me. Glenn gave me a big smile and pointed at the older man to his right.
"Meet Dale…" Dale gave me a heartwarming smile and I shook his hand and nodded politely at him. "And this is…"
"Shane."
Before Glenn was able to finish introductions he was interrupted by the second man with the black curly hair. I hesitated taking his hand, for whatever reason he made me feel uneasy. Even more so than Dixon had. Merle I was able to handle, but the way Shane looked at me had me feeling like a deer caught in the headlights of a car.
"Rachel," was my short reply. I wanted to end this conversation as fast as possible. I turned slightly as Rick and his family approached us. He passed by me with a soft smile and embraced Shane. So they know each other… This is going to be interesting. My thoughts were put to a stop by Rick now turning his attention back on me.
"Rachel, I want you to meet my wife Lori and my son Carl." With a shy smile I looked at both of them and was a little surprised as Lori pulled me into a hug.
"Thank you. Thank you for bringing him back to me." Hesitantly, I returned her embrace and smiled down at the boy.

Two hours later darkness had fallen and all living in the camp had gathered around a small fire. Rick had his son lying across his lap and an arm around his wife. I was sitting across the fire next to T-Dog, whose company I greatly enjoyed. He was calm, funny at times but never prying too much with his questions. I absentmindedly played with the thin chain around my neck while Rick was talking to Dale and Shane about Atlanta. I had tuned it out a little, not wanting to think about when the city fell.
I silently watched as Shane suddenly got up and walked towards a second campfire a few feet away from us and started lecturing the bald shaven guy about keeping the fire low. I had briefly spoken to the guy's wife earlier. Carol, a shy and somehow even jumpy woman. From what I could tell she was sweet, or would have been if not for that husband of hers. From the way she acted and held herself around him, it wasn't that hard to make out their kind of relationship. Abusive. Controlling. And their daughter wouldn't be much better off than her mother once she reached womanhood, I feared.
"Have you given any thought to Daryl Dixon? He won't be happy to hear his brother was left behind."
I looked up at Dale, only subconsciously registering that Shane had sat down next to me now instead of next to Rick and his family again.
"Dixon? You mean to tell me there is another Dixon and we just left behind his brother? You gotta be kidding me…"
T-Dog looked at me for a second. "It's not like it was your fault… I was the one to drop the damn keys."
"Yeah. And does that make me any better? I still didn't go back for him like I said we should. He might be a racist and an asshole, still he didn't deserve something like that. And if his brother is anything like him, what do you expect him to do should you choose to tell him it was your fault? You want a bullet in your head?" Everyone was now looking at me and I nervously pushed the log in front of me further into the low flames with my boot.
"Sorry. I don't suppose I am in any position to question the dynamic in this group or the decisions you make. I'm just saying. Even if I don't always get along with my brother, I'd still want to have the person responsible for leaving him to die to pay for it…" After that I kind of spaced out a little while the others kept going on about whether or not and how to tell the other Dixon. Thinking about my own family left a bitter taste in my mouth and I started playing with my necklace again.

"Whose dog-tags are those? Your father's?" I looked at Shane a little confused and shook my head.
"Your brother's then? Or your boyfriend's?" I was getting a little annoyed with the other ex-cop assuming those were someone else's tags.
"No. They are mine. Glenn doesn't call me an army girl just because I dress the part." I noticed other's looking at us out of the corner of my eyes. Shane held up both hands in surrender.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. You just seem a bit young and fragile for being in the army." I raised my eyebrows.
"Believe me, I am a lot tougher than I look. I was a combat paramedic, just came home from my first tour in Afghanistan a few days before the world went to shit. And 27 isn't that young."
"Tough doesn't even begin to cover it. You survived Atlanta for weeks and helped get us all out in one piece. In my book that is something a lot of men wouldn't have been able to pull off," Rick cut in from the other side of the fire and silenced his best friend before he even opened his mouth again. Lori looked at me with wide eyes.
"You were there when they set the city on fire?" It was more of a statement than a question and I nodded.
"Yes, I was there. I was there to see my comrades and friends get eaten alive or burned by our own men. The things I saw… I'm sorry…" I jumped to my feet and quickly walked away from the light and warmth. I needed air.

I stopped at the tree lines and leaned against the rough bark with labored breathing. This was the first time I felt the full weight of the past weeks wash over me. The loss, the panic, the anxiety and the exhaustion. I felt hot tears run over my cheeks as I stared up at the stars.
"Hey, kid. You okay?" Dale had followed me and crouched down in front of me. I brushed over my face and nodded at the older man.
"Yes. Reality just finally caught up with me I guess. I saw so much death when I was overseas, but this, here…it's just different." My voice was raw and I felt exhausted.
"What is happening now doesn't compare to anything we have ever seen. It seems this is just the first time since the outbreak for you to be able to really relax. You can sleep in my van tonight, until we can set up a better spot for you. If you like that is." He gave me another soft smile and got back up. He held out his hand to me and I took it after a second or so.
"I would like that if it really doesn't bother you."
"Ah, nonsense. There is more than enough space for you." I was grateful towards the old man for offering me a place to lay my head. Together we walked back to camp without further words being exchanged. When Dale sat back down with the others I continued towards the large van, not feeling like spending more time with the rest of the group. Inside the back of the van I quickly undressed and fell asleep before my head even hit the pillow.

I woke up to the sound of birds and sunlight on my face. It took me a few moments to actually remember that it was still the middle of the apocalypse instead of some family camping vacation. As I slowly pushed back the blanket, my eyes fell on a neatly folded stack of clothes that weren't mine. On top was a short note.

I took the liberty to wash your clothes. Until they are dry I left you with some of mine, I hope they fit you. ~ Lori

I shook my head. She really didn't have to do that. I put on the tight fitting blue jeans and a red tank top. At least Lori had left me my combat boots. After slipping my knives back into my boots and grabbing my bow I exited the van. I stopped for a moment and took a look around the camp. Lori and Carol were taking care of the laundry. Glenn stood next to the red sports car with a pained face, watching Morales and T-Dog take the car apart while Dale clapped his hand on the boy's shoulder. Andrea and her sister were working on something together and Ed, Carol's husband, was again lounging in his camping chair, occasionally giving his wife orders on how to hang his shirts. At the sound of a car arriving I looked up and decided I didn't care, when Shane got out of the car. I just couldn't help feeling wary of that guy.
Instead of helping to unload the water Shane had brought, I made my way towards Lori. She was talking to Rick and apparently she wasn't happy.
"Hey Lori. Rick."
The cop nodded at me and his wife gave me a soft but faked smile. "Good morning, dear. Sorry for not waking you up for breakfast. There is still some left and you looked like you could use the proper rest."
"Thank you for letting me sleep. I don't eat before noon, anyways. I wanted to thank you for washing my clothes. You really didn't need to do…" A piercing scream cut off my sentence. A second later another scream disrupted the calm and without thinking or waiting for anybody else I took off between the trees. A screaming child was never a good thing. Only a few seconds later Carl and Sophia, Carol's daughter, came running towards me. I heard footsteps behind me, nonetheless I stopped Carl from running past me.

"What happened Carl?" He looked at me with wide and fearful eyes.
"W-Walker. Th-There…" He pointed towards the direction both children had come from. I looked at Rick who had stopped next to us and he gave me a short nod.
Cautiously we made our way around the group of bushes to where the kid had pointed out to us. There on a small clearing one of the dead, or walkers, as Carl had called them, was feeding on a lifeless deer. A snapping twig had me whirling around and pointing my arrow right into Andrea's face. With a gasp she held up her hands and I lowered my bow.
I turned around to see the walker had switched its attention on us now and as it slowly stood up the men around us started to beat at it. Amy let out a shocked noise and at least Dale had the benevolence to chop off its head and put an end to this.
"It's the first one we've had up here. They never come this far up the mountain," the elder man stated. I whirled around and again raised my bow when something snapped behind me and shuffled through the brush.
"The fuck?!" I stared at the man who just emerged from the green with the same indifference as he looked at me and the arrow in his face. Dale's low voice had him shifting his attention from me to the group and then the dead walker and the deer.
"Son of a bitch. That's my deer! Look at it. All gnawed on by this… filthy, disease-bearing, motherless poxy bastard!" Each of his words was accentuated by a hard kick against the rotten corpse. Again Dale, the apparent voice of reason, told him to calm down, which only resulted in the hunter lashing out at him verbally. When he asked if we could maybe still eat the deer if we cut out the section where the walker had been taking bites, it was Shane who told him that that might not be the best idea.
"Oh god…" Amy looked down at the disembodied head that started biting into nothing when the voices around it were raised. Everyone just stared at the moving head. Except for the hunter who raised his crossbow, ready to fire a bolt into the skull.
"Jesus… How did you survive so long?" I muttered and brought my boot down with enough force to immediately crush the skull beneath it. Amy instantly turned away and vomited into the nearest bush when the mixture of coagulated blood, smashed brain and some bone fragments hit her leg.
"At least someone knows what they're doin'..." His blue eyes held mine for a moment before the hunter turned and started walking towards the camp.

"Was that really necessary?" Andrea got into my face and I raised my eyebrows at her.
"Excuse me?" I had absolutely no idea what I did to make her come at me like that.
"You couldn't just let Daryl handle that? Did you really need to crush that head under your boot like you are some badass G.I. Jane?"
I was slowly getting annoyed with the blonde and her attitude. "Sorry, I didn't realize we were back to women fainting at the sight of blood and men doing all the dirty business. Let me just change back into my Sunday dress and get behind the stove to make us all some fancy dinner!" Me snapping at her didn't go unnoticed by T-Dog and Shane but both decided to stay out of it for now.
"I don't know who you think you are, but things are different now. You are no longer in the army." I felt tempted to slap her across the face again.
"I don't know who you think you are, but you better stop that attitude, Andrea. I am sorry if it is hard for you to accept a woman being actually tougher than you act to be. Yes! I can see right through you. All that tough talk and attitude you give, just so nobody can see how insecure and scared you really are. You might be strong, but I bet you weren't like that before this horror show started. A word of advice: as long as you don't want me to put you in your place again, you better stay out of my way unless you want to talk to me like a normal person!" I pushed past the blonde and quickened my steps to catch up to the rest of the group.

Up ahead I could make out Daryl with some squirrels slung over his shoulder walking just a few steps ahead of Shane.
"Care to tell me what that was about?"
I looked at Shane and then back forward. "Nothing. Just making my point."
He snorted at that. "Yeah, I could hear that much. Look, she is difficult when it comes to her sister…"
"Not only then… Whatever. So who is he?" I nodded towards the hunter in front of us.
"Daryl Dixon. Merle's baby brother." So this was the other Dixon. Boy, this is going to be fun when they tell him about leaving behind his brother…

I don't hate Andrea per se, I just never liked the attitude she was throwing sometimes. So I am sorry if someone isn't content with how my OC is acting around her but maybe some of you can understand and agree with me that Andrea is mostly acting like that out of insecurity.