Hello! A small update to further the story really. Let me know what you think? :)

Chapter Three - Confusing What is Real

"Oh bobbins.."

"It's okay, JJ."

"Yes, I know. They're not human anymore, at least, they function only to-"

"JJ-"

"-drain the blood of- oh, locked on? Right, yes, stop, I have to stop.. I..." The guy with the dark hair places his hand on the curly haired guy's shoulder, which seems to comfort him. I remain sitting in the car, looking at them through murky windows, trying to decipher whether what I just saw happen is real. The tall guy turns his body towards the car and indicates with his hand for me to come out. I stay where I am.

"Hey.. Look, we don't bite, clearly." He says as if it's funny. He places his gun into the back of trousers and looks around.

"I'm Freddie.. This is JJ…. And this could go a lot better if you got out of the car."

"Nope.. I'm fine right here, thanks." He frowns at this as I look to the other guy who is notably very out of it, I feel the same.

"Look, we have a place, a safe place you can come…"

"Freddie, we can't-"

"JJ."

"She's a stranger; she could hurt us and take our supplies – at least what's left. The girls rely on us; we need to support each other. We shouldn't invite people into the group without weighing the pros and cons, or at least discussing this over with everybody else."

"I know, but look at her, Jay."

"We're struggling as it is.. Statistically speaking, taking on yet another person with the amount of storage that we have left guarantees that several of us will be left to starve and-"

"What the fuck is going on?!" I can't help the outburst, I really can't. I'm so scared to move, to breathe, to leave this car, to even fucking listen to their conversation. They turn to me in anger, and yet looking slightly confused by my admission. I finally get out of the car, feeling that it is time. I look at the bodies that surround the car, and I try to contain my stomach as I move by them, sidestepping and just generally trying to stand up straight. I feel very much like how they were moving not five minutes ago, roaming around with heavy footsteps.

"What do you mean, do you not…?"

"I woke up in hospital yesterday…I had an accident.. And now I swear I've woken up to some sort of fucking strange place filled with nightmarish shit… My family have gone and Jesus fucking Christ, you killed a kid and two guys.. I just…. I just want to know whether this is really happening. What the fuck is happening?" The tall lanky guy takes a step forward, Freddie, and raises his hands to my shoulders.

"First, you have to stop raising your voice.. There might be more around." I look to him in earnest, before looking to the curly haired guy, JJ, who seems to be investigating the area with his eyes.

"More? More of what.. What are they? Jesus, if I didn't know any better, I'd say they were-"

"-zombies? Yeah, the thought has crossed our minds.. Look, what's your name?" He withdraws his hands from my shoulders after I stiffen and clench my jaw.

"Naomi." Freddie stares through me for a moment, as if debating something, before he nods his head and finally looks at me.

"Okay, Naomi. There's a lot of questions that will remain unanswered, but we can explain some stuff to you, if you let us.. We have a place, it's not much but it keeps us alive. There's a group of us.. You can come with us, we won't force you, but it seems to be your only option at this point."

"No it's not." I say sternly, moving away from him. Freddie seems to pick up on my hostile behaviour and gestures sheepishly with his hands, raising them as if to docile me.

"Okay, wrong choice of words there… What I meant is, is if there are more of us, we'll be stronger. We work as a unit; strength in numbers, yeah? And trust me when I say, we really are your best option. You don't know what this world has become; it's not the one you left behind. And for that, I am sorry, Naomi." I allow my body to collide with the bonnet of the car, trying with all my might to understand it all.

"We need to be going, Freddie, it's never a good decision to be out in the open for this long – the risks are too high." Freddie's nods while his eyes remain firmly on me.

"Jay, get what we have, yeah. Head back."

"But-"

"Do it. I'll catch you up. We're nearly there anyway."

"Rule number 3: never split up."

"Well this is an exception, yeah. Trust me, JJ. Get those goods back to the girls, god knows Katie will be happy about the hair dye." After a beat of silence, JJ reluctantly shuffles away and collects some bags that are stacked on the side of the pavement – a sight I have only come to realise just now.

"Be safe."

"I always am." With an awkward nod in our direction, JJ seems to sprint down the road and turn around the corner, all the while carrying a ridiculous amount of bags on his back and arms.

"We really should get out of the road like he said." I nod my head and open the back doors, picking up my lousy supply in comparison. I turn to Freddie who smiles at me softly, yet warily.

"I'm not the bad guy, Naomi. I really am just trying to help you. God knows the commotion it's gonna stir back at the shed."

"Shed?" I frown slightly and follow Freddie, who picks up the remaining bags on the ground. My eyes, as if subconsciously fleet back to the bodies that are on the road. We begin to move away from the sight, but it imprints. It will remain with me now. It's something I don't think I will ever be okay with living with. My eyes linger on the girl, and I feel my eyes well up.

"I really am sorry.. It sucks."

"Yeah, it does." We fall into silence as we walk; it's a steady pace, one that Freddie maintains with drive. We round the same corner as JJ before Freddie initiates conversation again.

"You should really consider my offer, Naomi. I know things are muddled right now; shit has been for a while now. But we make it through, together. You can be a part of it. We can survive together."

"Why are you being so kind to me? You don't even know me. I'm a stranger. Maybe JJ is right; I'm just going to hurt you and get supplies." Freddie merely laughs lightly at this, which causes me to roll my eyes and ask dryly:

"What?"

"If that's true, you would have done it already.. And you certainly wouldn't be walking with me right now. We're here." I stop as he does before a house; it looks ordinary, like all the others on this street. He surveys the area before walking down the side of the house, but stops when he notices that I haven't moved an inch.

"You don't have to join us. I get that your family is out there, and hopefully they're okay.. You can stay here, for however long, as long as you pull your weight. We can be an asset to you as you can to us. We're all about give and take.. And maybe, just maybe, I'm doing this because I am a nice guy, and I truly think that we can help each other out." He moves further away before stopping again and mumbling softly, enough for me to hear, but not too loud for me to strain my ears.

"And maybe because I'd hate to think what this world may do to you, what both the living and the dead may do to you.. So I am giving you a choice: God knows I pray someone has done the same for my sister out there." His head dips at this while his body slacks, and it makes him look like a small boy, if only for a moment. I tug my lip between my teeth and consider my options, and before I have even officially made a choice, my feet tread forward. I send a gentle nod in his direction and divert my eyes to the ground, yet my last glance is of his face, which conveys his delight with a warm smile.

"Good choice, Naomi. Good choice."

Reckon I'll update again sometime this week. Thanks for reading!