.:Raelyn | Age 27 *Present*:.

The way Rick drove that big ass truck through the streets of Atlanta, it was pretty damn obvious he was a cop... Or used to be. All his moves were smooth and safely executed (for the most part), and he knew just the right evasive maneuvers to use with both walkers and objects blockin' our path.

Still, Glenn and I had no clue as to what his plan was... All we knew was 'noise'. So, we sat next to each other, tense and quiet, just starin' out the windshield and swayin' with every turn of the wheel.

Finally, Rick whipped into a side street which was surprisingly completely clear of any walkin' corpses... Maybe that's 'cause all of 'em were either back at the department store, or still followin' us from that construction site. There were dozens of broken down cars and trucks linin' the street and sidewalk, but one of 'em stood out in particular.

We all laid eyes on it at once, and Rick slammed on the brakes, peelin' out the truck's tires and makin' us all lurch forward in the cab.

It was a beautiful cherry red Dodge Challenger, my favorite car, with the most perfect set of black racin' stripes and the shiniest chrome rims I'd seen in a while... Well, as shiny as they coulda been, for sittin' here for months.

Rick didn't waste any time after tryin' to pull on the door, seein' it was locked. He picked up a convenient screw driver layin' near the car's tire and jabbed it into the glass of the driver's side window, shatterin' it into a million pieces. Immediately, a piercin' alarm started blarin' into the air. Glenn and I flinched at the sudden loud sound, even though we were expectin' it.

Rick hastily cleared away most of the jagged glass from the car's window, then reached in and popped the door open from the inside. I glanced around the other abandoned cars near us, scannin' my radar for any geeks sneakin' up in our blind spot. We were clear, for the time bein'.

I watched as the sheriff patted around the cab in search for keys, but quickly gave that up and just jammed the screwdriver into the ignition. All it took was a good crank to make the engine come to life.

Chills ran down my spine at the sound of the powerful, roarin' motor... If there was one thing I missed about the old world, it was drivin'. Daryl used to work at this old mechanic shop back home, and his boss had a little crush on me so he never minded me hangin' around on slow days... I got to see a lot of cars, even test drove a few, but muscle cars were always my favorite. That's where my automobile obsession blossomed, and now it was forever intertwined in my veins.

Back in reality, Rick turned to Glenn and nodded for him to hop in the driver's seat. Glenn reluctantly followed orders, lookin' like he might pass out at any moment as he gripped the wheel.

"Hey, I'm goin' with him!" I projected my voice to Rick over the alarm as I jogged around to the passenger side door, which was conveniently unlocked, "Never know if I'll ever get a chance to ride in a nice car again."

For a second, the police officer stared at me skeptically. But there was no time for arguin', we had to move. So Rick just gave me a stern nod, and yelled out for Glenn to follow the truck until he gave him the signal to start leadin' the geeks away.

I popped open the passenger side door and dropped into the seat with barely enough time to shut the door before Glenn was peelin' off behind the truck.

We followed Rick at high speeds, at least 60 or 70 miles per hour, through the mostly empty, ransacked streets of Atlanta. With every turn that Glenn whipped around, fishtailing the rear end of the Challenger and growin' closer to the department store, I noticed more and more geeks trailin' up from alleyways and inside abandoned stores, attracted to the screechin' tires and blarin' alarm.

"Truck's about to roll up to the doors facing the street," Glenn frantically rambled into his CB unit, takin' my attention away from the road and puttin' it somewhere in my mind, thinkin' of everyone still trapped on the roof... Thinkin' of Merle... "Meet us there and be ready."

Rick's arm suddenly shot out from the driver's side window of the truck, urgently wavin' us around him. That had to have been the signal... Shit was about to get real.

Glenn dropped the CB in his lap and gripped the wheel with both hands. I felt a smirk curve my lips as he pressed hard on the gas, propellin' the car forward, passin' the box truck and violently whippin' into an alleyway close to the department store. Even when my life literally depended on it, I loved a fast, excitin' car ride.

I gripped the handle on the door as we dashed in a straight line down the narrow alleyway, burstin' out into the street on the other side where the geeks were still makin' it a mission to smash through those glass doors. When I looked at the size of the undead crowd as we zipped by, my heart sank to the floor... Those motherfuckers had to be at least seventeen deep.

A few of them from the outer rim of the mob took notice in us screamin' through and decided to abandon the rest of the crowd, followin' along behind us as Glenn whipped around another corner, straight into a gigantic herd.

"Oh, my dear Lord..." I gasped breathlessly, bracin' myself as Glenn slammed on the brakes in the middle of the street.

"C'mon, get closer!" He shouted at the geeks out his open window, honkin' the horn and pulsin' his foot on the throttle, lurchin' the car forward a few inches. "C'mon!"

My eyes darted around at all the different faces, each of them equally decomposed and horrifying. Their hands slapped against the bright red hood and against the windshield, and I could hear their terrible screams from Glenn's window. There had to be at least fifty walkers surroundin' the car now, tryin' with all their might to rip through the metal and get to us on the inside.

"Hold on." Glenn growled to me, yankin' the transmission back into reverse.

The next thing I knew, the pedal was on the floor and we were screamin' backwards, bustin' through the mob of undead. A strange mixture of adrenaline and excitement made a loud cheer escape from my throat as Glenn cranked the wheel sharply, swingin' us around in a drift to face forward again, still screechin' against the pavement and zippin' away down the abandoned and ransacked streets of Atlanta.

"YEA! That's what I'm talkin' about!" I yelled out to Glenn, reachin' out to lightly nudge his shoulder as I bounced around in my seat in excitement, "Man, what were you before this, a stunt driver or somethin'?"

"Nah," The young Asian man sittin' next to me replied with a quick glance to the side in my direction, my grin startin' to become contagious to him, "Pizza delivery boy."

I raised my eyebrows in an impressed way, noddin' my head and sittin' back in the seat. "Close enough."

I couldn't tell ya how long we just drove around the streets, stoppin' every now and then to let the walkers build up in a crowd around us before takin' off and leadin' them somewhere else.

Finally, I caught sight of the truck in the distance, fleein' the city on an empty stretch of backroad.

"There! They got out!" I called out to Glenn as I pointed in the direction that I could see the truck, "Let's get the hell outta here!"

My partner in this escape nodded his head frantically, takin' an unexpected right turn underneath a sign that read: To Interstate 93. "That's an idea I can work with."

For the moment we had lost sight of the truck, and I could only hope and pray that everyone had gotten out all right. The thought of Merle bein' handcuffed up on that roof plagued my mind, and I desperately wanted to know if he was okay and if he made it out alive, but I didn't want to bother Glenn in this moment, as we turned onto a completely empty stretch of highway leadin' out of the dead infested city. In fact, I wanted to enjoy this moment with him.

"WOOOOO HOOOOO!" He cheered with both hands on the wheel, jumpin' up and down as the speedometer crept to seventy, then eighty, then ninety, "YEA!"

I smiled one of the biggest smiles I had in a long time as I laughed and rolled my window down, feelin' the summer air tear through my long blonde hair. The alarm was still carryin' on, but by now I'd learned to tune it out. I could only hope that none of those freaks would follow the sound all the way to where ever we were goin', but there was really only one way to figure that out I guess...

"This car is a fuckin' beast!" I hollered to Glenn over the sound of the air rushin' through the cab.

"I know," He agreed with a smile from ear to ear, "I've never driven a car this nice before! All I ever had was an old beat up Nissan."

Suddenly, the CB buzzed from Glenn's lap, "Hello, Glenn? Rae?"

I recognized it as Morales's voice comin' in over the static. Glenn gripped the wheel with one hand and eagerly held the CB up as he spoke into it, "Morales?! Are you guys okay, did everyone get out alive?"

"Yea, we're all here..." Morales replied again, but his voice sounded a little hesitant from the other end, "...Except Merle."

Glenn immediately gulped and his eyes snapped to me. I felt my heart sink, my eyes blank and locked on the glossy black glove box.

"... Is he dead?" I said just loud enough for Glenn to hear me, turnin' to look at him with a dreadful expression.

Glenn licked his lips and took in a sharp breath before he spoke into the CB again, "... Did the geeks get him?"

"No. Well, we don't know." Morales said back, and I felt my anger boilin' over.

"How the hell can ya not know?!" I snapped as I snatched the CB from Glenn and yelled into it myself.

There was a pause before a response came, this time from T-Dog, "I dropped the damn handcuff key."

I was about to explode again, wantin' to rattle off some awful names and blame him for possibly killin' one of my best friends, but I controlled myself. I closed my eyes and let out a tense exhale, leanin' my head back against the seat as T-Dog started talkin' again, "I'm sorry, Rae. Everyone was rushin', I-I went back for 'im, but... I fell, and I dropped it, I-"

"T-Dog." I stopped him in his tracks, my voice much calmer now, "... It's all right. It ain't your fault he decided to be an asshole and get himself handcuffed to that pipe."

I could almost feel the relief from T-Dog on the other end, and from Glenn as his tense shoulders sagged. T-Dog apologized one more time before I handed the CB back to Glenn, and mindlessly gazed out the window.

He exchanged a few more words with his friends before the CB silenced, and he dropped it back into his lap. For a few minutes, neither of said anything, until finally Glenn spoke up over the car's alarm. "Hey... You okay?"

"Yea," I sighed as I flashed him a weak smile, "I'm fine... This shit just sucks. But I can't blame T-Dog or anyone else for Merle's actions. If he woulda just been a reasonable, civil human bein' for once he wouldn't have got left behind..."

Glenn nodded in understanding, before his eyebrows suddenly raised, "Wait, if you know Merle, then you must know Daryl, too... Right?"

Instantly my stomach fluttered and my cheeks flushed. "Y-yea... I do," I replied as I glanced over at Glenn, who was smirkin' a little now, and turned his eyes back to the road.

"Ah, so it's like that, huh?" He teased me, his smirk growin' into a grin.

"What?!" I yelped defensively, "He's my best friend, I've known him since I was seven years old. That's all. Nothin' else."

I cut my words into pieces firmly to get my point across, even though it was a total lie. I felt for Daryl as more than a friend, pretty sure I always had... I just never knew it until a few months ago, perfect timin' for the world to end and for us to get completely separated.

"Yea, yea." Glenn chuckled, "Okay."

I rolled my eyes, knowin' he didn't believe me. I crossed my arms and flopped back into my seat in a huff, givin' him a glare, "All right, all right. So I'm not good at lyin'. But this stays between you and me, Glenn, don't you go tellin' him or nothin'."

"I won't, don't worry." He assured me, "He's on edge so much that no one ever really goes near him, including me, anyway."

"Yea, that sounds like Daryl..." I sighed, "He ain't gonna be too happy about Merle."

Glenn didn't say anything, seemin' like he was imaginin' what was gonna happen when Daryl found out his brother got left behind in the city crawlin' with walkers.

The tension was so thick inside the Challenger, I could cut it with a knife. So, I decided to change the subject.

"Hey, can I drive?'

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After another half hour of driving and some careful direction from Glenn, I drove the car down on a road carved from a stoney hillside toward what looked to be a campsite... We were still at a distance so I couldn't quite see anything yet but tall, bushy trees, and an RV parked at the top of the hill. There was a red umbrella shadin' a short man with binoculars peerin' our way up on top of the roof, and I could only assume he was a member of Glenn's group.

"Everyone at camp is really nice." He assured me when he noticed I was nervously chewin' my bottom lip, "They're all still pretty freaked out, though, so just be patient with them."

"Ya know, that started out really comfortin', but now I'm not so sure..." I grumbled to Glenn as I kept my eyes on the road, a line of vehicles comin' into my view. There was a silver jeep, an old white and yellow van...

My stomach flipped around and twisted into knots when I saw two vehicles that I recognized... Daryl's old blue and white truck he'd bought off Merle when he was 18, and Merle's sleek black motor cycle.

My heart pounded and my breath hitched as I noticed a small group of people chargin' at the car while I pulled up and parked, the alarm that I'd almost forgotten about still piercin' the air. There was a thin, blonde teenage girl who raced straight up to Glenn as we popped the doors open and stepped out. Along with her came a middle aged man in a baseball cap with a dark, scruffy beard, a tall, wiry woman with dark hair and her young son who hung back just a little bit, and leadin' them all was a younger, well built man with dark hair, dark eyes, and a shotgun gripped firmly in front of him. I could see a few more people in the camp, mostly women and children, but they stayed near the tents and kept their distance.

I searched every single face a million times over, searchin' for Daryl, but he was no where to be seen...

Everyone seemed to be yellin' all at the same time, demandin' different things, but the first voice I focused on was the teen girl yammerin' in Glenn's ear.

"Where's Andrea?!" She asked frantically, "Is she okay?! Why isn't she with you?! Glenn!"

But Glenn couldn't answer, because the man with the shotgun was too busy commandin' him to pop the hood, slammin' his palm over and over onto the red paint.

"HOLY CRAP, TURN THAT DAMN THING OFF!" Another new voice hollered, the short man with a white beard who had been watchin' us drive up from the top of the RV. He, too, had some sort of shot gun or huntin' rifle slung over his shoulder.

"I don't know how!" Glenn yelled back while throwin' his arms over his head in exasperation.

"POP. THE. GOD. DAMN. HOOD. PLEASE." The dark haired man screamed sharply, now poundin' on the car with a clenched fist to gain some sort of attention.

"OKAY, ALL RIGHT!" Glenn screamed back just as loud, his face gettin' red as he ducked into the cab and popped the hood of the car.

Meanwhile, I stood back and watched all this frantic chaos as the blonde teenager kept at Glenn, buzzin' in his ear like a desperate fly, "Is Andrea okay?! Where is she?! Is she alive?! Why isn't she back?! Is she okay?!"

"Yea, yea, she's okay!" Glenn barked at her, just as the man with the dark beard yanked a plug from the Challenger's engine which silenced the alarm. He turned and glared at Glenn over his shoulder, but he didn't see it. "Everyone is. Well... Merle not so much..."

It was suddenly quiet as Glenn finished talkin', and I noticed everyone starin'... Mostly at me. It was a really uncomfortable feelin'...

Suddenly, there was a shotgun in my face, and I was starin' straight down the barrel. I flicked my eyes upward to meet those of the dark haired man, and he was scowlin' somethin' awful at me.

"Who the hell are you?" He growled, his eyebrows scrunchin' together.

The wiry woman gasped from behind him, tuckin' her son behind her and glarin' at the back of the man's head.

"Shane!" She hissed, but she was just ignored.

"Whoa, hey!" Glenn cried out as he stepped in front of me, his hands raised defensively, "She's cool! Her name's Rae. We found her in the city."

Shane paused, narrowin' his eyes at me, then Glenn, before startin' to growl angrily again, "What, so you think it's okay to just pick up strangers in the city and bring 'em back to camp?!"

"Dude, she's fine!" Glenn insisted, and I just stood back and kept my mouth shut. I'd never felt so unwelcome somewhere in my entire life, "She helped us all get outta there... Plus, she knows Daryl. She's been looking for him."

There was a brief moment of silence as the dark haired man known as Shane seemed to debate whether or not to just shoot me on the spot, despite Glenn's good word. Finally, he reluctantly lowered his gun, and huffed his way over to the Challenger.

"Do you have any idea how stupid it was, drivin' this damn thing up here with that alarm blarin' like that?" Shane scolded, leanin' under the popped hood and examinin' the engine of the car.

"I don't know," The older man from the top of the RV spoke up with an optimistic shrug, "We're so far up in these hills, it'd probably be hard to pinpoint..."

Shane immediately shot the bearded man a glare, so he quickly defended himself, "What? I'm not trying to argue, I'm just saying..." Then, he turned to Glenn and I, "Would it kill ya to be a little more careful next time?"

"Sorry..." Glenn apologized flatly before smilin' and lightenin' his tone, gesturin' toward the cherry red automobile, "Buuuuut I got a cool car...?"

"It is a pretty bitchin' ride." I agreed with a nod, then remembered there were moms with little kids standin' just to my left. I glanced over to see them glarin' at me a little. "Sorry..."

Just then, the sound of tires rollin' across the gravel caught my attention, and everyone turned to see the giant white box truck pullin' up to camp. I could see that Rick was still drivin', and he put it in park just as Andrea leapt out of the back, racin' around the corner.

"Andrea!" The blonde teen cried out as she dashed toward her.

"Amy!" Andrea said in a relived tone, and the two crashed into an embrace, cryin' and tellin' each other how they thought they'd never see the other again.

Judgin' by their age difference and how similar they looked, I assumed they were sisters. I smiled a little at their happiness, but felt a pang of jealousy in the pit of my stomach... I wanted that, too. I wanted my reunion with Daryl, but as I took one final scan of all the visible faces, I couldn't find him...

Morales then appeared from the passenger side, his young daughter and son racin' up to him. They giggled and threw their arms around his neck, and he laughed as he scooped both of their frail little bodies up with ease. He spun them around once, givin' them each a kiss before settin' them down and embracin' his wife, a short, stout woman with dark, curly hair and a pretty face.

I noticed the tall, dark haired woman's face fall as she watched all the families reunite, her hands graspin' her son's shoulders as she led him away. She then crouched down in front of him and spoke to him softly, reachin' her hand up to gingerly stroke his cheek. The little boy nodded with his mother's words, starin' into her eyes with trust.

"You are a sight!" A voice from behind me chuckled, and I turned to see the man from the RV reachin' up to pat Morales's thick shoulder, "I thought we lost you folks for sure." Morales nodded to him with a smile, and then the older man turned to me, grinnin' and extendin' his hand. "Hello, Rae, was it? Is that short for something?"

I nodded and hesitantly extended my own hand, forcin' a smile, "Raelyn."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Raelyn. I'm Dale." He paused to swing his arm out, gesturin' to the tents and the thick forest around them, "Welcome to our home."

"Hi, Dale." I greeted the friendly man, not quite sure how to socialize with people after months of no human interaction, "Thank you, that's very kind of ya."

"How'd ya'll get back here, anyway?" Shane asked as he leaned against the now silent Challenger, his shotgun propped at his side, "Couldn't have been all 'cause of little miss sunshine over there."

I lightly scowled at the man with my arms crossed over my chest, just as Glenn spoke up to respond, "Oh, yea! New guy. It was his plan that saved our asses."

"New guy?" Shane repeated with his eyebrows raised, "You got more strays?"

"Yea, some crazy vato who just got into town," Morales piped up from a few feet away, his wife tucked under his arm. He lifted his other hand up to his mouth, projectin' his voice as he called out toward the white truck, "Hey, helicopter boy! Come say hello!"

All of our eyes drifted toward Rick, who was hesitantly makin' his way toward us with his head down and his hands on his sides. He seemed real uncomfortable.

"Guy's a cop, just like you, Shane." Morales added in, but Shane seemed to already be starin' with wide eyes of disbelief, as if Rick was someone he'd seen before...

When the police officer I'd come to know looked up, his face instantly mimicked Shane's. His mouth fell open slightly, and his steel blue eyes widened as he first looked to Shane, then turned to the dark haired woman and the young boy near the back of the group.

They each stared at Rick, their eyes wide and misty, like they were lookin' at a ghost. Suddenly, the young boy broke into a sprint in Rick's direction, the woman close behind.

"Dad!" He cried out in glee, "Dad!"

Rick's eyes filled with tears as he dropped to his knees, scoopin' the little boy into his arms and squeezin' him into his chest. He quickly stood back up, just in time to extend his arm and bring the woman into the embrace, sobbin' into her long dark hair.

Everyone was smilin' at them, and I had to hold back tears at the emotional sight we were all witnessin'... It was unbelievable. I mean, what were the chances?

I was happy for Rick. He had actually found his wife and son, after months of bein' separated, their home town miles and miles away... But that was sort of the same case for Daryl and I. I was startin' to get impatient... I could see his truck, but where was he?

I desperately needed our reunion... I just had a feelin' I was gonna have to wait a little longer.

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To be continued...

An:: yay, I finally got Raelyn to camp! Hahah. We will have Daryl in the next chapter, lovelies!

It should be up within the next week (: toodle-loo! ❤