My readers CAN be patient after all! xD Hullo again, everybody!

We are finally here! They've finally reached The Fireflies!

I've been planning this one for WEEKS, before I've even PUBLISHED this story, really..

I hope you guys like it, since this section has been the main focus of this fan fic, and believe me, I have been looking forward to writing this part for a LONG time ;)

As always… ENJOY! :D

4 weeks later…

"Damn it. Are we there yet?" I ask Uncle Tommy tiredly as we continue trudging along the road.

Coming back to Atlanta was one hell of a trip, especially after 'The Cabin Incident'. Uncle Tommy ended up with this huge blue-black bruise covering the left side of his rib area after the punches Dad provided him with. He had trouble walking for about a week or so. He's better now, compared to our first week on the road.

Seeing the number of abandoned cars makes me want to laugh, a dry and humorless laugh. Luckily there aren't any corpses, but if there were, they would've either been dragged out by Infected for their dinner or just lying lifelessly in a mass decaying flesh. Most ran out the moment the Cordyceps hit. No one wanted to get Infected, then again, who did?

My shoes brush against clumps of weeds growing from the cracks in the road. Soon, it'll be much more than just weeds. Nature's taking over, with or without us.

"We're almost there, Mel. Just another mile or two." Uncle Tommy says to me without turning around.

"You've been saying that for the past hour or so. At least I think it's been an hour." I say to him quietly.

Looking up at Uncle Tommy's back, I see that he's stopped walking. What the hell's he doing?

"Uh.. Uncle Tommy? Why'd you stop?" I ask him as I slowly walk over beside him; only then I see why. A sign that leads to a dirt path going off road is hanging from one of the street lamps in front of us.

"FIREFLIES CAMP. FOLLOW DIRT ROAD." Uncle Tommy reads aloud. Smirking, he looks over at me and says, "Well, whaddaya know? We found 'em."

Rolling my eyes, I pull my beanie off my head and stuff it into my pocket. I whip my hair several times to get it out of my face. I attempt to pull the excess hair into my ponytail and fail, soI tuck the loose strands behind my ear then turn to Uncle Tommy and ask, "Should we get going?"

Looking ahead of us, he replies, "Hell yeah. Let's do this."

Walking along the dirt road, I choose this time to observe my surroundings. Since walking along it, all sunlight has been blocked out because of the number of trees concealing the light. The oaks' leaves provide shade, granted, but it's hard to see anything else other than the trees' bases and the dirt road.

It's too quiet. We can't even hear any forest animals. No birds. No squirrels; I mean, I get that there'll be no squirrels since the Infected will need something to eat that's within reach, but come on. What happened to the rest of them? The only sounds that can be heard are our breathing and the sound of our shoes crunching against the baked earth. It must've been a while since others have shown up. This silence is so eerie, that it's ending shivers both up and down my spine, and only then I realize why.

I pale as soon as I see Uncle Tommy stretch his arm out to his side in front of me, ordering me to freeze. I hold my breath and pray for the worst not to happen.

"We know you're here. You're watchin' us. Trying to creep the fuck out of us. We've come here to join you, so show yourselves." Uncle Tommy says to the trees.

"Shit. Are we even in the right place? What if it's a trap or something?" I whisper to Uncle Tommy, questioningly.

Silence. Nothing but the sounds of our breathing, up until 'they' emerge from the shadows. About three armed men in yellow uniforms with the Firefly armband on their jackets emerge from behind the trees, either to greet us or kill us. Hopefully, it's Option 1. One of them looks to be in his mid-forties, the other two look slightly older than me.

One of the younger ones glances at me then turns to Uncle Tommy asking, "Hey, old man. This shrimp here with you?" Did that piece of shit just call me 'shrimp'? I'm not that small! I'm only a couple inches shorter than Uncle Tommy!

Before I can open my mouth to throw the best insult I can to the jackass that called me shrimp, the older one says to him still facing us, "Keep your shit to yourself, Mark. Cut them some slack, they just got here."

"Jeez. I was only kidding, Pops." Mark mutters under his breath. I can see his dirty blond hair sticking out from underneath his baseball cap.

Rolling his eyes, the older one speaks up. "Sorry about that. He's just been having trouble with taking a shit these past few days. Soo he's been taking it out on everyone he can." I frown at him and turn to Uncle Tommy for reassurance, giving him a dumbfounded look on my face.

I see that he is about to protest when the third Firefly gives him a look which immediately gets him to stop all together.

"Name's Gary", the older one says, pointing at the two younger ones, he continues, "You just met constipated Mark. This here's John."

John nods his head to both of us. His clean shave is the first thing I notice about him, so is the green army camo boonie hat at the top of his head.

Gary's features are the standard for a man from Atlanta; brown hair, brown eyes, brown beard. I'm just happy to know that he acknowledges my presence, but I don't like the way Uncle Tommy and him are looking at each other. Did something happen between the two of them before this?

Smirking, Gary asks Uncle Tommy, "So, you still capable of throwing me over your shoulder? I could attack you again if you want to demonstrate to the kids."

Snorting, I reply, "We aren't interested in fighting here. We came to join the Fireflies and here we are now. Are you taking us to Marlene or not?"

John looks over at Gary and whispers to him. Judging by Gary's laugh, I'm guessing we've already been accepted. "Alright, you two. Come on over. Let's head for camp."

Crossing my arms, I turn my head at an angle and give Uncle Tommy the best smirk that I can come up with. He snorts in reply as I remove one arm and offer him my fist. Fist bumps, one of my favorite features in a relationship, whether it's friend or family.

After walking for about 10-15 minutes, we approach a faded wooden sign just below the trees. The writing that used to be on it has been spray painted over with multiple Firefly logos. I can only make out the last two words: Summer Camp.

As we enter the Fireflies-only domain, Gary announces to us, "This is it. I'll call Marlene over. John and Mark, you can go now." Turning to Uncle Tommy and I, he says, "You two stay put. I'll be right back."

Looking around, I see multiple wooden cabins lying around. Judging by the activities that they've all chosen to proceed with, The Fireflies all together look to be about 100 or so people all together. Not bad for a three year old anti-government militia.

About five abandoned pick-up buses are scattered around, untouched since the Cordyceps hit. It was in the beginning of the school year when it happened, so I'm pretty sure the camp advisors and staff left just before school started.

I look up at the sky and notice how pretty it looks today. Streaks of rosy pink and baby blue are painted along the clouds, making an announcement for the coming fall. We've walked all the way to Atlanta but it was totally worth it. We made it. We found the Fireflies.

I look over to my left and see a hand-to-hand combat training session going on at a small patch of grass which I assume was an old fencing.. 'arena'. Abandoned fencing gear had been stuffed into a basket at old tree nearby.

The shouts of encouragement and jeering coming from the training area can be heard all the way from the Warden's office, the biggest cabin in camp, which is about a 100 meters away from where we are. I'm guessing Marlene and the other leaders stay there because I see Gary pop out from the main entrance with who I assumed was Marlene. I'd only seen a couple of WANTED posters to know what she looks like. Judging by the cringes of disgust on their faces, I'm guessing they can hear the cheering all the way from there. I purse my lips to keep from cracking up.

I look to my right and about 15 meters away; I see a small dug up pit with ash and burnt wood. An abandoned campfire. Large logs are surrounding it, which I'm guessing are supposed to be 'lounging chairs' for the night. I notice several teenagers approaching carrying about 4 logs each, for the campfire I suppose, laughing. Telling each other jokes. It all seems so.. surreal.

Farther away, I see a practice dummy leaning against a tree equipped with a fencing helmet. Rocks are being thrown at it by a few young men, target practice, I guess.

It's quite a comfort for me to see so many people relaxed in such a small settlement, the porches of the cabins tempt me for a moment as I see a couple reading. Candles in lanterns are being used to light up the camp now that it's getting dark. A nearby Firefly approaches Uncle Tommy and offers him a lantern; he accepts it.

Marlene finally approaches us, smiling warmly at us, she says, "Well, it's good to see you again-" she pauses. I think she wants to know Uncle Tommy's name.

An awkward silence hangs in the air. I turn my head to face Uncle Tommy. Is he in a daze or something? I elbow him gently and gesture to him using my head at Marlene. "Huh? Oh. Yeah, name's Tommy. This here's my niece, Melanie." I raise an eyebrow at him before I give Marlene a small wave and a half-smile.

Marlene starts informing us about curfew and camp regulations, but I'm not paying any attention to her. My gaze falls upon three teenagers sitting under a tree a meter or two from the campfire to my right; they're looking at me. Two boys and a girl about my age, maybe older. I tilt my head slightly to the left and pretend to look at something else. I look back after a few seconds and find them still staring at me. Pretty soon it's a stare-off. A silent stare-off in a bustling area full of loud adults and teens alike.

I notice the girl trying to hold in a smile. After a couple of minutes, the girl gives up, throwing her head back and bursting out laughing. One of the boys grin then joins her. Pretty soon, it becomes a laughter chain, spreading to the adults at the training area to the people by the camp's lake. I give the trio a small smile, not that they noticed, or so I thought. The boy who didn't join in the laughter chain is still looking at me, a huge grin on his face.

I raise both my eyebrows at him in surprise and give out a small laugh, more of a nervous chuckle really, not that it mattered.

Let me just say this: He's actually pretty cute, which is a pleasant surprise in a time as depressing as this. I never planned on hooking up with anyone, or more importantly falling for anyone in the first place. I may sound guilty for saying this, but yes, I did find Andy pretty attractive, despite his being my best friend. This boy made me want to like someone all over again, to feel like a normal teenage girl again.

His chocolate brown hair is the first thing I manage to pick up from him, short cropped and messy, with side bangs swept towards the right side of his head. His gray eyes are a gentle shade of gray, not the sort that's piercing and stares right into your soul, but the feature that stands out the most is his smile. It could light up the whole world for all I know, and we need that kind of light in a world like this. I do know that he's somehow lit up my heart, which sounds pretty cheesy coming from me. This guy is super hot and I just can't stop looking at him.

I snap back to reality when Marlene calls my name. "Melanie, since you and Tommy are pretty new to camp, I'm gonna assign you both with someone to accompany you around camp for about a couple of weeks. It's kind of like the student buddy system in high school. You don't mind who I choose, right?"

"Huh? Oh no, I don't mind." I reply. Truth is, I really want.. 'him' to be my camp buddy. How embarrassing. I don't even know his name. Hopefully, if I don't get him as a guide, I'll at least get one of the other two sitting with him.

Marlene briefly browses around camp before calling out "Haley! Get over here!"

The girl from the trio, Haley, looks at Marlene in surprise and walks over to us sheepishly. I see the other boy snickering, as if she's about to get in trouble or something.

"Alright then. Hope you don't mind me asking you to do this, but could you take Melanie over here around camp for the next couple of weeks? Do it as a favor for me, if you don't mind. Guide her around, introduce her to the others, the usual for the newbies. That okay, Haley?" Marlene asks, with a touch of hope in her voice. She must've seen me laughing at their direction to pick out Haley. I'm grateful.

Smiling brightly at me, Haley says, "It's cool, Marlene. It'd be nice to have her as a member of our group."

Sighing with relief, Marlene bids farewell to me as she strolls off with Uncle Tommy. I silently wave goodbye to him before walking towards the boys with Haley.

We stop midway as she turns towards, introducing herself. "Hey, there! Since the Queen already introduced me to you, I'm sure you already know my name, but for the sake of this conversation, name's Haley. Haley Grace." She's a ginger with shoulder length hair. Her hair, parted down the middle, covers her right blue eye, exposing her left. A bobby pin is the only thing keeping her hair in place on her left side.

Pointing back at the boys with her thumb, she continues, "I've been here for about a year now, and I've only got Tony and Logan there for company half the time. Yay for me. I totally know how to make friends." She ends her introduction with a sarcastic round of applause for herself. I like her! She's got the same lame and sarcastic humor that I've got! I somehow have this inkling that we'll end up becoming the closest of friends…

"Miller. Melanie Miller. Uh, I've been on the road with my Da- Uncle for the past three years. We haven't exactly done much all this time really, other than killing Infected and eating canned peaches." I tell Haley hesitantly. She cracks a huge grin and chuckles the moment I mention the canned peaches.

"Alrighty then, newbie. Should I call you Melanie, Mel, or Miller? Oh wait! How about MM? Yeah! It actually has quite a nice ring to it." Haley exclaims, placing a hand on her chin. Before I know it, I crack up. It's nice having someone with the same sense of humor as you, it's easily relatable.

After taking several deep breaths, I finally say, "I'm fine with Melanie or Mel. Don't call me Miller or MM. It's like calling you by a dog name instead of your own."

Putting her arm across my shoulder, she drags me over to their tree, putting my half a meter across from the boys. "Well, this is us. Let's get to the intros while I pick up our dinner, shall we?"

For once in a very long time, I finally feel like I belong.

Hooray! Mel's found friends AND she found a hottie at the Fireflies!

Hmm.. I WONDER what's gonna be going on between Tommy and Marlene.. *wink wink* ;D (Note: I didn't even know this ship EXISTED until BlueSky509 suggested it.. xD I'm really sorry for not even giving credit to you for this fantastic idea! D:)

My apologies for writing such a short-ish chapter! Procrastination is just.. :/

Bye then, people! See you next chapter! :D