AN: I really like this chapter but I do apologize in advance for the conversation about crossbows because I absolutely know nothing about different crossbows and just wrote down a couple names that I had found online. So if anyone reading this does know the different types of crossbows, I apologize. Enjoy! :)

Chapter 4:

"So what's your name?" Rick asked as they began to drive. "Desiree. Desiree Welkins." "Well it's nice to meet you, Desiree." "How many are in your group?" She asked after a couple minutes of silence. "9." She nodded, leaning back against the seat.

It was very uncommon to have such a big group, but she didn't question him any further. She could tell neither one of them were into small talk so, instead, she leaned back against the head rest, enjoying being in a car for the first time in over a month.

About 10 minutes later, they arrived at their camp, which was in front of a white farmhouse and a barn. "Hershel owns the house. He's been kind enough to let us camp here until my boy heals. His farmhand accidentally shot him when he was out hunting."

"Is he alright?" She asked, concerned. He nodded, "He'll be all healed up in a week or two." He parked in front of a cluster of tents. A couple people walked up to the car, obviously wondering who Desiree was and what she was doing here. Rick got out and opened up her door.

"Thanks," She said getting out. "Who's this, Rick?" A tall, slender woman with long black hair asked walking up to them. "Everyone, this is Desiree. Saved Daryl's ass, but she got cut up pretty bad, so we thought we'd have Hershel take a look at her."

"I'm Lori," The woman said walking up to Desiree, shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you," Desiree answered, hesitantly. On all her months on the road, she never met such kind people. Not many were left in this world. Rick introduced her to the rest of his group, and she noticed that Daryl had left.

"Rick, I see you brought back a guest," An older man with snow white hair said walking up to them. "She's got a pretty bad cut on her leg, we were wondering if you could take a look at it," Rick said as he pointed to Desiree's leg. "Sure," He answered, smiling warmly at her.

He led her into the farm house. The house reminded her of all the summers she spent working on her uncle's farm, it even smelled similar. He took her into a smaller bedroom and had her lay on the bed with her leg propped up with a couple pillows and blankets. He put on a pair of glasses and looked at the cut.

"Well, the good news is it isn't too deep. But you're probably going to need a few stitches." She nodded and Hershel went to get his first aid kit. "Were you a doctor?" She asked as he began cleaning her leg. "No," He said with a chuckle, "I was a veterinarian. A lot of my training just seems to cross over." She nodded and smiled at his kindness. After he cleaned the wound, he took out some thread. "This may hurt a little," He said, preparing me. She nodded and bit her lip.

She looked away as he stitched up her leg, trying to ignore the pain. "All done," He said a couple minutes later. He wrapped the cut in bandage and helped her to her feet. "Thank you, Hershel," She said quietly. "No problem." She limped her way outside and back towards Rick.

"You okay?" He asked when she reached him, Lori, and a woman named Carol. "Yep. I needed a few stitched but nothing major," She said. "Well, why don't you rest, we have an extra tent at the edge of camp." She shook my head, "I've already imposed way too much. I can just grab my stuff and be on my way."

"Please," Lori said running up behind me. "You just saved one of our friends, plus, looks like you haven't had a full meal in a while. Just stay for the night, then you can leave tomorrow." She couldn't believe they were being this nice, and actually offering her food. "Alright," She said with a small sigh. "Good," Lori said smiling at her. She and Carol helped her to the tent and gave her a couple pain killers for her leg. "We usually have supper around 7 if you want to join us," Carol said before leaving the tent.

Throughout the next couple hours, the rest of Rick's group came to introduced themselves. Out of all of them, Andrea and Glenn were her favorites. Andrea was a lot like her, she didn't take crap from anyone, and Glenn was just an all-around nice guy and really easy to talk to.

But every time she let her guard down or got too comfortable, she had to remind herself that this was temporary and she couldn't stay. She was a loner, and she didn't trust people so easily, which was why she was afraid of these people.

Around 7, she got up and limped her way over to the fireplace, where everyone was huddled around, talking quietly. "There she is," Carol said happily, waving at her. "Hi," Desiree said quietly, sitting on a log between Andrea and Daryl. Andrea passed a bottle of water with a smile, and she took it graciously. She drank a third of it in one swallow, even though she was trying to ration it.

"So Desiree, where were you when the world ended," A man named Shane asked from across the fire. "I was a senior at a college in Omaha," She answered, "Started hearing about the virus and decided to bug out for a couple days. Best decision I ever made."

Everyone nodded and Rick began passing out pieces of meat, which she guesses was squirrel. "What weapon do you use?" Carl, Rick's son, piped up from his place next to Lori. "I have a crossbow. Barnett Ghost 350 CRT, to be exact, best crossbow out there." She heard Daryl scoff from besides her. "Is something funny?" She asked turning towards him. "Nothing," He answered, trying to cover his smile, "I just don't think it's the best…" He explained. "Oh really? So which one is the 'best' in your opinion, then?" "The Carbon Express." She rolled her eyes at his answer, "That thing is nowhere near the best. A little girl could operate that thing!" She retorted. "Whatever," He said trying to look upset, but she could see a smile playing on his lips.

She moved her focus back to the fire. "You guys are a lot alike," Carl said with a small smile, "Except Desiree is funnier, and prettier, and cleaner…" This made the whole group burst into laughter, including Daryl. "She may be cleaner, little man," Daryl said loudly over the laughter, "But I am definitely prettier!" This made everyone laugh even harder, and for the first time in a long time Desiree didn't feel like she was just surviving, she felt like she was living again.