Shane and Lilli crept their way into the local bookstore. There were only ten walkers that anyone in their group of four could see. This time, T-Dog accompanied them as well as Daryl. The two men were outside, distracting the walkers allowing Shane and Lilli to enter the store.
Both Shane and Lilli held their machetes ready to attack, neither wanted to use loud weapons like guns since they could avoid it. Still, Shane had his shotgun slung behind his back and Lilli had a handgun. Both had backpacks to put the books and other material in.
Lilli stopped next to a door and looked through the little window. There didn't appear to be anything inside. Shane went to kick the door open, but she stopped him. She twisted the handle then smiled as the door opened.
"Huh," Shane whispered in surprise.
"I thought it was worth a try," she giggled.
The two entered the store and looked around. There was dust in the large room; clearly no one had been in there in a long time.
"What we need to do is find survival books," Shane said.
Lilli nodded as she went toward the outdoor and nature books. Shane followed her.
It had been five days since they decided to stay in the inn. The back of the inn took longer to put up the fence than they realized. They had to make a wider fence and had to return to town to get more materials.
On the third day, the mothers decided that the best way to occupy the children was to have them start helping with the new vegetable garden. It was more because no one was free to get books for the children. The fence came first, then the books.
Lilli grabbed a random book and looked at the title. She snorted, shaking her head. "Interesting the stuff people publish and would get read," she said as she put the book away.
"Any idea which one of these is good?" Shane asked as he pulled a book out. He wasn't much of a reader, but he knew enough that not all survival guides were accurate or very good.
Lilli shrugged her shoulders. "Ironically, I usually read garbage like that book," she said. "Let's get one of each."
Shane nodded as they quickly put the books in their bags.
"Maroon," she said.
Shane looked confused at first then laughed. "Brown," he stated.
"Really?" she asked with a chuckle.
Shane shrugged and gave her his best smile. "Not much into colors. Might have to make another trip," Shane changed the subject as he lifted his bag. It was heavy and he was sure Lilli's was as well.
She nodded. "At least we're not going anywhere anytime soon," she giggled. The two made their way outside and Lilli closed the door. "Don't want walkers creeping in there since we'll probably come back," she said.
Shane agreed with her. They both headed in the direction of the inn. There was one walker in the area. The thing saw them and started toward them. The sounds of a truck caught there attention and Daryl slammed his truck into the walker. It was sent flying through the streets.
"Plan on walking all the way back?" Daryl teased as the two dumped their bags in the back and jumped into the backseat.
"Circle around so they don't come to the inn," Lilli said.
"I ain't no 'tard?" Daryl snapped as he ran over the walker that was slowly getting to its feet. It didn't take them that long to return to the inn, but from a less direct route.
Andrea, Rick, Lucy and Glenn were already waiting for them when they arrived.
"Guess I owe you ten bucks, Lilli," Lucy shouted.
Rick looked at her in surprise.
The Latina shrugged. "She bet me that they would get back here before noon. I lost," she gave him a wolfish smile, making Rick laugh.
"Looks like you got some good stuff," Rick said as he started to help unload the back. The books weren't the only thing that the group of four got. They had also raided the local grocery store for more food and other items. They weren't in immediate need of the food, but they wanted to have it on hand for emergencies.
"Safe to say that all the vegetables and fruit are no longer any good," Shane said to his friend as the two handed boxes of canned food to the others.
"I was thinking," Lilli said as she handed one of the backpacks of books down to Andrea. "We should search the farms that are around here. There can be trees with fruit that are still good. Also make a good backup in case we get overrun here or something. A place we can go." She jumped out of the truck and looked at Shane and Rick who seemed surprise by her suggestion.
"That's a great idea," said Rick with a nod of his head.
"Maybe," Lucy said somewhat skeptical. The three looked at her as if she were crazy. "I mean, I'm sure that other people have thought of using a farmhouse as their home. Not all groups of people are the…" she paused. "Friendliest," she continued. "We have to be careful when we go there. I'm sure that other people will have the same idea. A farm house usually has a fence and gate that surrounds it. And not to mention the farming ability, maybe even farm animals. But I'm sure other people have thought of that. They could try to shoot us on sight. So I'm just saying we have to be careful."
Rick nodded. "Makes sense," he said. His mind went back to the group that took care of elderly folks in Atlanta. They had nearly killed each other because of the mistrust. He would not be surprised if they found themselves in the same situation.
"We can always send out a recon team to see…" Lilli started but Shane interrupted her.
"Why don't we just relax for a day or two?" he asked. "We got plenty of food, water, books and other items. We kind of need to relax. Seeing as how we barely finished putting up that fence yesterday. And didn't Lori have the kids start a garden already?"
Lilli blushed and Rick laughed.
"You're right, Shane," he said as he clapped his friend on his back. "How about we rest the rest of today and tomorrow." He didn't wait for his friend to answer as he turned and walked away.
Lucy winked at Lilli as she dropped some keys into Shane's hands. "I do believe that your schedule has been cleared for the rest of the day."
Lilli frowned as she watched her friend go over to the gate then she looked at Shane. He looked nervous as he cleared his throat. "Lilli," he said firmly as he looked at her. "Would you like to go on a date?"
She blinked in surprise. "What?" she asked. "Where?"
He gave her a half smile as he tilted his head toward her. He held out his hand to her and she grabbed it. The two walked toward a Sedan and he opened the door for her. She seemed surprise but got in. He closed the door behind her and got into the passenger seat. Lucy waved goodbye to them as she opened the gate.
"What is this, Shane?" Lilli quietly asked. She didn't know why, but she was nervous.
"I figured that it's only proper if we went out on a date or two," Shane said as he stared at the road. "Just cuz the world has changed for the worst don't mean that certain traditions shouldn't stand."
Lilli bit her lip to keep from giggling and looked out the window. They didn't drive far and he pulled into a deserted road then after a minute there was a small clearing. He stopped the car in the middle. She waited as he exited the car and allowed him to open the door for her.
"And they said that chivalry was dead," she cooed.
Shane smiled as he opened the trunk.
"How did you arrange this?" she asked in surprise as he pulled out a backpack.
"Lucy heard me saying how I wanted to take you out. Rick went out and found this clearing yesterday. Perfect spot to picnic, far enough away from the few people and yet we can see if anyone sneak up on us," he said as he set the pack down. "And Georgia made the food."
Lilli nodded. "You can see everything from here," she said.
Shane smiled as he pulled out a sheet.
"I can't believe Lucy was able to keep this a secret," she mused as she helped him place the sheet down. "And to get Georgia in on it too?"
"What can I say?" Shane said as he smiled. "I can be very persuasive."
Lilli leaned in and kissed him. "Thank you," she said.
He sat back. "For what?"
She waved her arms at her surroundings. "Everything. It's perfect."
He smiled and unpacked the rest of the food. "Wine?" he asked her.
"Don't mind if I do," she said as she grabbed both plastic cups for him to fill. "A toast?" she asked as he put some in his cup.
He nodded.
"To our group," Lilli said with a smile. "May they continue to surprise us with these little pleasures."
Shane smiled as they tapped their cups together.
"We're going to have to repay them somehow," Lilli said as she thought.
Shane crawled over to her, shaking his head. "Lucy said you might be thinking ahead again. Told me to tell you that you are forbidden and must think about this moment," his voice dropped as he started to breath in deeper.
Lilli's eyes glistened as she set her cup down, then she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. He happily returned her kiss then pulled back. "Now there is a way these things are to properly go," he stated then winked.
"Oh my god!" Lilli said with a laugh. "You're such a tease."
Shane turned and pulled out the food. It wasn't much. Just some sandwiches, small bag of chips and two packs of pudding. Lilli's smile didn't fade as she took a bite out of her sandwich and looked around. Shane stretched his body across the ground and rested on his right side as he looked at her.
"A marine biologist," she said then looked at him.
"What?" he asked her.
"When I was younger I had dreams of becoming a marine biologist," she continued.
Shane laughed. "Always an officer of the law," he told her.
"Seems to me that you would have been a very mischievous boy from a young age," Lilli commented. Her eyes glistened with laughter. "Why an officer?"
Shane shrugged. "So I can get away with my pranks," he told her.
She laughed a real laugh and he smiled. No one laughed real hard anymore, just chuckles or small laughs. "You must have some great stories from High School," she said.
Shane smiled impishly. "And you? Bet you were the most popular girl in High School," he told her.
Lilli shook her head. "Not exactly," she said. "Gabby and Jess were. I was always more of the outsider." She laughed and Shane shook his head.
"Can't believe that about you," he said. "You're too pretty. But I do bet you and your siblings knew how to do pull mean pranks," he said.
Lilli smiled and nodded.
"You tell me one and I'll tell you one," Shane told her.
"Let's see," she said as she thought. "Okay," she nodded and turned, sat Indian style and looked at him. "One Halloween the three of us and our friends went trick or treating. There were about twenty of us and I think we were maybe thirteen. We lived kind of in the suburbs, very nice, lots of houses that looked similar. So as a prank, my brother convinced all of us to move the cars around. One thing about my brother is that he knew how to talk eloquently. We all thought it was a fantastic idea. For the cars belonging to strangers we only moved them just enough to confuse the people. For the dad of one of our friends, we turned his car completely around."
Shane laughed. "Did you get caught?" he asked.
She shook her head. "I'm sure that they figured it was us, but we never got in trouble. I wish I had seen the looks on their faces when they came out the next day and saw their cars parked in such a strange way."
Shane smiled and she leaned in closer to him. They kissed.
"Your turn," she said as she pulled away.
Shane sighed. "I was a saint," he said.
"Bullshit!" Her eyes danced with mirth
"Alright," he sat up and rested both arms on a propped knee. "I really liked playing pranks on our principal." He smiled at the memory. "Rick was a little bit more hesitant. He never ratted on me, but he always liked to caution me. But I got 'im and a bunch of the boys in on this prank. It was before an assembly, me and a bunch of the boys completely dismantled the man's car and brought it into the gym. We didn't have a big school and it would have been noticed, but a couple of the teachers helped us. We got the car assembled inside of the gym."
The two laughed.
"The look on his face was priceless," he said, shaking his head. "The Notebook," he said after a moment of silence.
"What?" she asked in surprise.
"Best romantic film," he replied.
She laughed, shaking her head. "An Affair to Remember," she said.
He tilted his head. "Never saw it," he replied.
Lilli smiled. "Long story short, two people meet on a cruise. They fall in love, but are dating other people. They decide that if they still loved each other then they would meet again in the Empire State Building six months later. But she doesn't show."
"Kind of a bummer isn't it?" he asked her.
Lilli shook her head. "They both continue their lives, but the ending is the best. He finds her again after a little bit of time. But she doesn't tell him why she wasn't there. He was a painter and had a painting of her, but a woman in a wheelchair wanted it. Then he realized that the woman in the wheelchair was her and the reason why she didn't appear was because she had an accident." She leaned against him. "Best film ever. I'm going to find it and make you watch it."
He laughed.
"Have to get some tissues. I always cry at the end," she chuckled and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She placed her head on his shoulder and he ran his fingers up and down her arm. She looked up at him and kissed him. "Thank you," she said.
"For what?"
"This is perfect," she replied. "I think you deserve a reward for making a perfect moment in this crazy ass world."
He smiled as they kissed. She straddled him and pushed him to the ground as they kissed. Their tongues danced together as his hands ran up her shirt. She raised her arms, allowing him to take it off. Her hands found his pants and started to unbutton them as he unbuttoned hers. She tugged his pants down to his knees before she stopped.
He reached up to kiss her, but she pushed him down. "Whoa," he said in surprise. He looked at her and frowned. She was completely pale and looking into the woods.
"What's wrong?" he asked as he looked around. There wasn't any sign of a walker or anything.
"Jess!" she shouted as she jumped to her feet and sprinted toward the woods.
"Fuck, Lilli!" Shane shouted as he quickly pulled on his pants. He started toward her, then cursed as he ran back to the car and grabbed his shotgun. Why had he left it there? Lilli was already in the woods by the time he started after her. "LillI!" he shouted as soon as he entered the woods. He held his shotgun ready to use.
Finally, he spotted her. She had her hands in her hair as she paced near a tree. She was clearly upset. He rushed over to her and quickly hugged her. She seemed surprise by his move. "Don't do that again!" he nearly shouted at her. "What if there were more than one of those things out here? Ya don't even have a proper weapon."
"Sorry," she whispered.
Slowly, the two made their way back to the car. Shane quickly wrapped everything inside of the blanket and put it in the car. The moment was gone and he didn't want to stay in the area anymore. Lilli didn't protest as they pulled away. Instead, she let out a long drawn out sigh.
"Is it possible that you saw your sister?" he finally asked her. "Do you think she could have been alive all this time? But she got scared?" He couldn't help but sound somewhat hopeful. She had mentioned previously that her siblings could be alive. And the moment that Rick was reunited with his family was priceless. Shane let out a small smile at the memory.
Lilli reached out and grabbed his hand, but didn't look at him or answer. "I'm sorry I ruined our date," she finally whispered.
Shane sighed and shook his head. "You or the geeks," he said. "Something was going to happen. You still owe me."
Lilli chuckled and nodded. "I'll make it up to you," she said as she leaned over and kissed his cheek.
A/N: Think I'm going to start putting these on the bottom so you can skip them if you want. I don't know why but I really love cock blocking Shane. Thanks everyone for continuing to read my story and reviewing/alerts/favs. Granted, I would love more reviews. Anyway, hope you continue to enjoy my story.
Shippolove844 – Yeah, poor Lilli. But can't have her entire family living now can I?
Padme4000 – Thank you. I hope this chapter impresses you as well.
TrustMeI'mTheDoctor – I've loved Shane since season 1. I love watching what his character does. And yes, he is hot.(: