Disclaimer: I don't own Left 4 Dead 2 or its characters. I only own my OCs.

A/N: Hi, everyone! I hope you're all continuing to enjoy this story so far. I'm so thankful to all of you for supporting me so far. I really do appreciate it. Chapter twenty-four is now in progress, and I'm not sure that we actually have that far to go from there before the end of the story. Or maybe we do. Who knows? Anyway, I really hope you all like this chapter and I hope that when I get around to releasing the sequel which may come out a considerable amount of time after this ends, that you enjoy that too. I'll give more details about that when we're on the final chapter of this story.

Happy reading!

~ Not So Forsaken ~

- Chapter Eighteen -

Nick awoke a few hours later to find Julia still sleeping in his arms, peaceful and serene.

He studied her for a moment, her full lips parted slightly as she released slow and steady breaths, her copper curls framing her face as her dainty fingers remained curled into a loose fist, laying still against his chest. He couldn't help but smile, moving to run a finger through her hair while trying to be careful not to wake her. She let out a contented sigh at the action and seemed to snuggle further into his arms, burrowing her face into his chest. He felt somewhat sad. She was so peaceful right now, and this could've been the most peaceful night's sleep she'd had in God only knew how long, so to wake up to the hell that they were living could be absolutely awful for her.

He heard footsteps approaching the curtain that separated their space and their little bubble of peace from the main area of the store, and his eyes narrowed in irritation. He could almost guarantee that this was either Coach or Rochelle, and he didn't want whichever nosey asshole it was to have the satisfaction of an interrogation, so he closed his eyes, pulled Julia as close to him as he could, and pretended to be asleep. He heard the curtain being pulled back, and he heard the three of them gasp almost in unison.

"Damn..." Coach whispered harshly, "I knew somethin' was goin' on!"

"Guys, this ain't right." Ellis was now whispering also, "It's their business, not ours. Just leave 'em."

"He's right, you know."

Nick opened one eye in shock when he heard Julia speaking next to him, her voice slightly muffled by his body, which she was pressed closely to for warmth. She was groggy from sleep, and as she rubbed at her eyes with them still closed, easing herself up a little to press a soft kiss to Nick's stubbled jaw, she slid her hand up to the nape of his neck to hold him gently and lovingly.

"It's not your business. So go away and let us sleep a little longer, please." She said, not even gracing them with a look as settled back down and moved her fingers to play with Nick's hair, "We're both still tired."

Coach and Rochelle slipped away silently, while Ellis remained for a second longer, clearing his throat quietly. While it was a bit of a shock to find Nick and Julia cuddled up together, clearly half-naked, he wasn't concerned or worried about it like Coach and Rochelle seemed to be. He was quite pleased that Nick had found someone to care about and that Julia had found a little happiness in this mess as well. He felt very guilty that he, Rochelle and Coach had interrupted them and spied on them like this because he knew it hadn't been the right thing to do, so the very least he could do was apologise.

"I asked 'em to leave ya both be, Jules, I'm sorry." He murmured, slipping back behind the curtain and out of sight.

Once he'd gone, Nick and Julia both opened their eyes to look at each other, and Nick smiled at her proudly, moving to kiss her forehead while trying to make out what was being said in the next room as sharp whispers filled the silence of the store. Julia eased herself up slightly and turned over so that he was spooning her, smiling as he moved her short curls out of the way to kiss her neck.

"I thought you were asleep." He whispered to her, "Thanks for handling that."

"That's okay." She sighed softly, allowing him to slip his arms around her before squeezing one of his hands, "It's time for me to be more assertive."

Nick chuckled, nuzzling the back of her neck briefly in response to her comment. Kissing her bare shoulder, he felt her sigh again as she then turned onto her back to look at him, brushing her fingers through his hair. She smiled so warmly, and it was simply because she loved how gorgeous he looked with his slightly tousled hair and his sleepy eyes, indicating how tired he still was.

"Did you get any sleep?" She asked him, moving her touch to his jaw which she stroked with her thumb in a soft, tender fashion.

"Yeah, a few hours." Nick murmured, "What about you?"

"I slept pretty well, all things considered." Julia said with a smile, rubbing her eyes with the back of her dainty hand, "Apart from, of course, our rather rude awakening."

"Yeah, but you handled that like a boss." He told her, leaning down to kiss her gently on the lips, "Come on... We'd better get dressed and get the interrogation over with."

Trying to explain their situation to three people who had very little chance of understanding it was difficult. Rochelle was clearly concerned because of the relationship that Julia had just come out of and she didn't hold back when telling Nick that his track record wasn't exactly doing him any favours, which earned her some rather disdainful glares from Nick. Coach, like they thought he would be, was concerned that Julia and Nick would be distracted because their focus would be on nothing but each other. Ellis, however, was the only one who seemed to share a little bit of their happiness. He did threaten Nick with kicking his ass if he hurt Julia, though, but that was the only negativity they received from the young mechanic.

It was clear from their tones of voices and their facial expressions, not to mention their body language, that Julia and Nick weren't too happy about having their privacy invaded in the way that it had been that morning. They explained that they wanted to take things at their own pace and that if they had the opportunity for privacy, they'd take it. They also wanted to be left alone to work things out by themselves without everyone else feeling the need to offer their input.

After this conversation, the group gathered their now mostly dry clothes from the store restrooms and packed up their belongings, ready to make a move into the swampy village ahead. Already, it was apparent that several infected had gathered around the nearby area and as the group went to check a garage across the way, they each took it in turns to either beat the zombies to death or shoot them. Both still in pain from their previous rib injuries, Rochelle and Julia had already popped some pain pills and were both still moving a little more slowly than the guys would like, but it wasn't too much of an issue at this point.

Waiting outside the garage, Rochelle and Julia stood on guard, their rifles held tightly in their hands while the guys searched around for any supplies inside. Rochelle glanced across at the younger woman, whose gaze was trained on something moving through the tall grass, shrubberies and trees ahead.

"What do you see?" Rochelle asked, concerned.

"I don't know..." Julia whispered back, raising her rifle, "I don't hear anything, do you?"

"No." Rochelle replied, also raising her rifle, "Let's move a little closer..."

The girls took a few steps forward, both gazing slightly to the right near the foliage that surrounded a nearby fence. Growling then started to hit their ears. The growls of not one, but multiple Hunters. Julia's heart rose into her throat as she remembered what had happened to her and Nick back at Whispering Oaks. Being cornered by three Hunters at once wasn't in any way pleasant.

"They did this at the amusement park..." She breathed out, both women starting to retreat, "They're hunting in packs now."

"Jesus Christ..." Rochelle gasped, hurrying their retreat, "Get back..."

"Girls?!" Ellis' voice rang out from the garage, and that was when the Hunters chose to strike.

Shrieking, they leapt out from their hiding spot. Four of them, almost as if they were simply displaying themselves. The sound was loud enough to draw the three men out of the garage, and as soon as they saw the Hunters, they broke into a run in the direction that they'd last seen both women. Rochelle was in sight, hitting one of them away with her AK-47, but Julia was nowhere to be seen. Everyone rushed to take out three of the four Hunters that were in sight, but then a blood-curdling scream echoed through the now silent grassland.

Julia had been dodging the leaps of a Hunter for the last minute or so, leading her further and further away from her group. The whole time she'd been ducking and diving, she'd been shaking with fear and adrenaline. All she could hear and see in her head was that woman being torn apart outside the hotel back in Savannah, and her helpless husband screaming for her but being powerless to do anything. She had a chance to save herself. But, just as she turned around to shoot and kill her pursuer, she was pounced.

Now she was pinned down in the grass, her M16 pressed against the throat of the Hunter, adrenaline fuelling the strength she needed to hold it off before it could harm her. She was vaguely aware that she was screaming. Her shocked, dark eyes were locked on the Hunter's face, staring into its emptiness while everything around her seemed to fade away. She could hear the way she was screaming; the sounds were fearful, frantic, full of terror. It was probably going to attract infected from all over the place, but she couldn't stop it. She was struck with fright, her heart hammering in her chest, blood racing through her veins, her eyes wide and tearful. She was sure she was going to pass out... She could feel a sudden wave of nausea hit her like a brick wall and her grip on her weapon faltered for just a second.

"JULIA!"

Nick... That was Nick... He sounded frantic. She'd never heard him sound so panicked before... And she knew it was because she was in danger. He was scared for her, terrified that she was being mauled to death. He cared for her. He wanted to protect her... All she'd known before was a man who'd wanted to hurt her, but now she had a man who wanted to protect her and keep her safe... That gave her the strength she needed to keep holding that rifle in place, and she was able to give it a harsh shove, knocking the Hunter back a little before locking the gun back under its jaw.

The sound of pounding feet made her panic momentarily, but she saw a flash of blue and yellow, and Ellis had the Hunter off of her in an instant, blasting it to pieces with his shotgun. She was laying in the grass now, between two houses she realised, her M16 now on the ground still held limply in her hand. She couldn't move... She was shaking violently, trying to regain her breath. She was no longer screaming...

"Julia?!" She heard a collective call of her name above the sounds of Ellis' shotgun.

They couldn't find her. They couldn't see her. She couldn't move... Oh, God...

"She's over there!" Ellis was yelling, probably pointing the others in her direction, "Down there, in the grass!"

She heard more pounding footsteps through the grass, and she heard the sound of someone falling to their knees beside her, panting for breath as though they'd just run a marathon. Two strong hands grabbed her by the arms and heaved her upwards, and she was crushed against a soft, warm blue dress-shirt, a familiar scent bringing her back to reality where she realised now, she was safe and she was with Nick. Then, she proceeded to burst into tears.

"It's okay, sweetheart..."

That familiar voice...

Nick had his arms so tightly around Julia that he thought he'd crush her. He was shaking almost as much as she was. Rochelle had seen her sprinting away from a Hunter but hadn't been able to help since the other three had her cornered. Nick had been so frightened, and he hadn't felt like that for over twenty years, which felt both alarming but also somewhat comforting. He cared, and that's all this was. He'd been so scared because she had real, true, deep meaning to him, and that was nothing to feel afraid of, not really. He was now trying to console her, cupping her head with his hand and gently running his fingers through her short hair, kissing her tenderly on the side of her head, even hushing her.

"It's alright, baby, I've got you... I've got you, I promise." He whispered to her, almost wincing as he felt her fingers curl and then tighten, twisting the fabric of his shirt, "Shhh... You're safe."

The others watched helplessly, realising that Nick was trying to soothe himself as much as he was trying to soothe Julia. They couldn't believe how frantic he'd been when he'd realised that she was missing, and even though the whole event had lasted for more than a few minutes, it had been utterly terrifying. He clearly did really care about her and that was more validation for both Coach and Rochelle that maybe Julia's feelings weren't in any danger here.

She seemed to be calming now, her shoulders no longer heaving with her sobs but instead, rising and falling with deep breaths, only to bounce occasionally with the odd hiccup from her crying fit. Nick was continuing to whisper to her that she was safe, he had her now, nothing was going to take her from him, and that she needed to try and calm down. He was rubbing her back in slow, methodical and gentle circles. It seemed to be working, thankfully, and she was steadily relaxing in his hold, slumping against him while safe in the knowledge that his strong body would keep her upright.

"Let's get you back on your feet." He whispered to her, looking up at Ellis who moved to help him pick her up.

Once she was stood, the others could see the terror still on her face, her eyes now swollen and red as tears continued to fall down her face. She wasn't really making any sound now, but the positive in the situation was that she was on her feet and she seemed steady enough. Rochelle nervously handed Nick a bottle of water, which he removed the cap from before handing it to Julia. She was shaking still, but not so badly that she couldn't drink from the bottle. It didn't seem to take her more than a minute or two to gather her nerves again, maybe not fully, but enough to continue. She explained why she'd been so frightened about what had just happened, and about what she'd seen back in Georgia outside that damn hotel.

Now, her reaction in the amusement park made much more sense when she and Nick had been surrounded. She was deathly afraid of Hunters, and no matter how frightened she was of Tanks, or Witches, or any of the other special infected, the Hunters frightened her the most. Within a couple of minutes, she was able to walk again. Nick made it clear to everyone else that she wasn't to team up with anyone but him. If he'd been out there with her instead of Rochelle, that attack wouldn't have happened. He wouldn't have given it the chance to.

Coach was reluctant, but he agreed with Nick in the end. It seemed pointless to argue with him considering the fact that he was stupidly determined to get his own way on this one. During the discussion, Ellis had his arm around Julia to support her and reassure her, not exactly feeling too keen on leaving her side either. She was like a little sister to him now, just as Nick was like a big brother, Rochelle was like an older sister, and Coach was like a father. He'd do anything to keep them safe.

"Alright..." Coach sighed, biting his lip nervously, "Take Jules that way..."

He pointed to a series of rickety-looking buildings ahead which were slightly obscured by the fog that was slowly rolling in from God only knew where. There were infected wandering around the area, but not so many that Julia and Nick couldn't handle them on their own. She looked better now with more colour in her cheeks, but Nick could tell that she was still shaken by what had happened and he knew he'd need to keep an eye on her.

"We'll search these houses here and we'll rejoin ya both down there." Coach continued, "Be safe."

Nick nodded to him, turned to Julia and gently encouraged her to start moving, and all that the others could do was watch worriedly as the couple headed towards their given location, weapons at the ready. Coach beckoned Rochelle and Ellis to follow him, casting one last look over his shoulder at the pair walking away from their group.

The second that Nick could see that the others had disappeared, he took a hold of Julia's arm, stopping her in her tracks. She looked up at him, those big eyes of hers making her seem so vulnerable as she frowned up at him in confusion, her lips parted in the shock of being grabbed by him like that. He then leant down and kissed her, capturing her lips in his own in a deep, heated kiss to try and convey to her just how fucking relieved he was that she hadn't been hurt, and boy, had they all been lucky that she'd not been hurt. Breaking away from her, he took her arm again and led her on, not saying another word to her.

The few infected that were wandering nearby were quickly taken out with Nick's sniper rifle, and they moved into a store on their left, quickly scanning the place for anything useful, only to find nothing but a pair of pistols. Nick didn't see the harm in them taking an extra sidearm each just in case their Magnums ran out of ammo, so the pistols were slipped into their bags alongside all the other things they were carrying.

All five of them had now become accustomed to the extra weight they were bearing when on the move, and Julia had started to feel herself growing stronger each day which made the weight easier and easier for her to carry. They moved silently to the next building which appeared to be some kind of restaurant, killing the infected that were inside, once again methodically searching to see if they could find anything useful. Once again, they found nothing.

"Damnit." Nick cursed as he stood from his current position by an open counter, looking to Julia, who was standing awkwardly by the door of the building with her gaze trained on a garage opposite, "Sweetie, are you okay?"

No. Julia wasn't okay. Her inability to kill that Hunter out there was weighing heavily on her brain. What if she couldn't help the team out when they needed her to? What if her inability cost someone their life? What if she got Nick killed? Her four friends didn't need her to be incapable and in these moments, she was feeling incapable, and weak... and frightened.

"Maybe I'm not cut out for this." She breathed out, not daring to look at him, "If I can't take out a Hunter, how am I gonna...? I can't protect any of you."

"Listen to me, right now." Nick said, walking across to her and taking her by the arms, forcing her gaze to his, "You're getting tougher and tougher every day. You've taken out a hell of a lot of zombies already and those specials? They're no match for you. You know they're not."

"What if I can't protect you?" She whispered, her eyes wide and full of fear, "What if something happens to you? I don't know if I can handle that."

Wow. Nick really hadn't expected that from her. She didn't know if she could handle it if something happened to him...? Did she really care that much? A lump suddenly threatened to fill his throat at the realisation that someone actually gave a shit about him. And she cared so much that the very thought of him getting hurt because she couldn't protect him, for whatever reason, caused her upset and even a little panic.

"Nothing's gonna happen to me." He told her firmly, despite knowing that he really shouldn't be promising her that, "Okay? Don't worry."

God, was she worrying... Her brow was knotted into a tight frown, those big eyes were full of concern, she was chewing on her lower lip and she was huddled up in her own space like she was trying to protect herself. Swallowing hard, Nick leant forward and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead, holding the back of her head so he could keep her there.

"Don't worry, darlin'." He said as he broke the kiss, murmuring the sentiment into her hair which earned him what he felt was a sigh of relief, "We'll be okay. All of us."

"Listen to you being the optimist for once." She smiled weakly, clearly still very worried.

"Exactly." Nick answered with a smirk, "If I'm being optimistic then..."

A gurgle echoed across the open space outside. A high pitched one. Nick and Julia's interaction was halted as they both exited the building to look for the threat which was no doubt oncoming. Julia caught a glimpse of a shape waddling through the mist, disappearing behind a store at the far end of the street as more high pitched gargling filled the air, echoing around them.

"It's a female Boomer..." She murmured, pointing towards the building where the vomiting zombie had disappeared behind, "She'll be coming this way."

"No problem." Nick said with a grin, "Cover me, babe."

He knelt down with his sniper rifle and looked through the scope at the building. Sure enough, out came the female Boomer, her stomach wobbling with the force of her movements as she started to make her way towards them, gurgling and belching to herself in that high pitched voice. Nick aimed, waited until the beam of his laser sight was hovering over her stomach, and he fired, causing her to explode which left her bottom half rolling along the floor.

"Good shot." Julia praised him, offering him a weak smile.

The sound of footfalls filled the pair's ears as Coach, Rochelle and Ellis approached, their clothes now somewhat bloodied and dirty after their encounters with infected. Ellis had a pipe bomb and Coach had a Molotov cocktail, which was more than Nick and Julia had been able to find.

"Find anything?" Coach asked them as they approached.

"Not a damn thing apart from a couple of pistols." Nick said quietly, "There aren't even many infected up here... I dunno if that's a good sign or not."

"Keep moving. And be careful." Coach instructed them quietly, "Let's go."

The group moved forward, taking out the small number of zombies that were wandering around nearby. After searching the nearby garages only to come out empty handed, the five survivors found themselves standing in front of a body of water, with their only way across being a cable ferry which, of course, was on the opposite shoreline to theirs. Fantastic.

"Okay... We set this thing going and it's gonna bring us some unwanted attention." Nick muttered, "I don't want any of us near this water until the cable ferry gets here. If a Charger shows up..."

"I agree." Rochelle said with a nod, "Is there anywhere we can wait that's above ground?"

"There." Julia said, pointing to the store behind them, "There's a ladder leading to that roof."

"Good thinkin', young 'un." Coach laughed, "Okay... Ellis, you wait down here and set the cable ferry goin', and then join us on that roof."

"Why me?" Ellis asked with a grimace.

"You're the fastest runner here." Nick said before anyone else had the chance to answer, "You're capable of handling yourself down here, too, right?"

"Sure." Ellis said, taking a deep breath as he seemed to fill with a new-found confidence, "Okay... Alright, I'll do it."

The second that everyone was in position, Ellis hit the switch for the cable ferry and raced to the ladder to get to safety with the others. Once the ferry started moving, the sound of pounding feet soon accompanied it, and zombies slowly started to pour in from every direction, snarling, biting, shouting and grunting in their attempts to reach their prey. Rochelle and Julia were pressed back to back with the others, their weapons aimed at the doorway that led to the small apartment above the store which, of course, led to their little platform of safety on the roof. Sure enough, infected began to come that way too and as they became swarmed with zombies, Ellis threw his pipe bomb in an attempt to give them some breathing room.

After what felt like hours, the ferry had arrived, but just when everyone had almost gotten on board after a frantic dash for it, a long tongue flew out, wrapping around Ellis' middle. When he cried out, the girls rushed to grab him and pull him forward to keep him still, while Nick tried to aim at the Smoker who was hiding amongst the foliage next to the water, desperately trying to pull Ellis towards it. A look of determination was plastered on both women's faces as they pulled Ellis towards them as hard as they could, despite the fact that the tongue around his middle was tightening and causing him pain.

"Hold on, Ellis!" Julia cried out, trying to keep a hold of the mechanic, "Just a little longer!"

The shot from Nick's sniper rifle rang out above the snarling infected, and thankfully, the Smoker took a fatal hit, releasing Ellis instantly. He fell forwards, taking the girls with him as they all tumbled down on the floor of the ferry. Hitting the switch to get the ferry actually moving, Coach and Nick rushed to get everyone back on their feet, and with the brief break that they had, the group took the chance to catch their breaths. Nick gave Julia a rather reassuring smile and leant towards her, whispering in her ear.

"See how you held onto Ellis then? You fought with a Smoker to keep your friend from being dragged and beaten to death." He told her with a grin, "You've totally got this."

"Earl's Gator Village?" Rochelle asked incredulously, drawing the couple's attention to a sign they were approaching, "Don't feed the gators?"

"Oh, well I think you'll find I don't intend to feed the gators, thank you very much." Julia said with a huff, "As if they have to put up signs to tell people that."

"Listen at you gettin' all sassy." Rochelle said with a grin, "It's a good look on you, girl."

"Really?" Julia chuckled with a blush, "That was sassy?"

Nick nodded to her in reassurance as a bright smile made its way onto her face. She was so proud of herself that finally some of her old self was coming back that it was impossible not to revel in that joy with her. Unfortunately, the cable ferry coming to a stop was enough to bring them out of their reverie and as the gate opened, they carefully stepped out into the murky, misty swamp.

"Oh, this is just a dump." Nick groaned, looking down at his formerly-white dress pants, "Ugh... These are gonna be ruined."

"They're already ruined, Nick." Coach murmured, looking the conman over.

"Whatever." Nick shrugged, "Let's keep out of the water. I'd rather not be snapped up by a gator, y'know?"

When everyone had taken a few moments to reload their weapons, they set off into the murkiness of the swamp, ready for whatever hell was waiting for them amongst trees.

~ To Be Continued ~

Thanks for reading this chapter!

I hope you're enjoying this so far!