YAY! You all finally got I'm trying to make you all ship Rosel in this story. Woo! I decided to go for them two instead of Rosslington because... lets face it... I need a story without them two being the main couple in it. I decided it needed to be a couple that's boy/girl this time so I picked Ross & Rydel. I suppose Rockliff is kind of taking it's own route in this story if you end up shipping them too haha.

Anyway, enjoy!

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Tatiana: Well, it's okay to make Ross & Rydel the couple in the story if they're not related if I'm being honest. Besides, it's not like it's real is it? As I always say "as long as it's in the fanfiction and stays in the fanfiction it's okay"

Riaura Fan: One thing is for sure when they do reach their destination, Utah, something bad IS going to happen. Just pre-warning you so you can prepare yourself :)

Chapter 6
A Very, Very Old Friend

Rydel and Ratliff stood on the edge of the road beside the car, coughing as smoke poured from the front of it and Ross and Rocky tried to calm it down.

They drove for at least fifteen minutes after Ross and Rydel had their little "lovers tiff" as Rocky likes to call it, and all of a sudden the engine started to smoke from the front. Rocky pulled over to see if it would calm down but it wouldn't, so everyone got out of the car and when Rocky opened up the bonnet of the car they all choked from the smoke.

Ross and Rocky were doing whatever they could to stop the smoke all the while Ratliff and Rydel stood by and watched, not looking like they were going to help any time soon.

The smoke slowly started to die down a little, but by this point Ross and Rocky were almost covered in the dust from the smoke. Rocky stood up straight from where he was bent over the engine trying to stop it smoking, whilst Ross held up the bonnet, before making his way round to the drivers side "Hang on, I'll start the engine and see if it's okay." Rocky said, putting his hand through the window to the keys rather than just getting into the drivers seat.

Ross shook his head slightly, being unconvinced of Rocky's decision "I think we should all just get in, Rocky. I think it's-" suddenly, before Ross could finish off his sentence, Rocky started the engine where a cloud of sut spluttered from the engine, all over Ross's face and shirt, causing Rydel and Ratliff to laugh including Rocky "fine now..." Ross finished off.

As Ross shut the bonnet, the car's engine stopped fully. "Did you stop the engine?" Ross asked, Rocky shook his head "then what happened?" he asked.

Rocky shrugged "Don't know. Must've given out." he put his hand back in through the window and tried to get the car re-started again. But nothing. It wouldn't re-start. It was gone. Now their entire journey to Utah would have to rely on walking.

Ross turned and faced Rydel "What did I say the moment I saw this thing?" Ross asked, Rydel shrugged "'are you sure this thing isn't going to break down before we get to Utah?' and you replied with 'oh no, don't worry, she can handle anything'," he said, mocking Rydel's voice, Rydel glared at him "and guess what Rydel? It broke down! I hope you are going to enjoy an 8 day journey on foot now."

"Hey!" Rydel said, trying to defend herself "it's not my fault! The car hasn't been drove since the apocalypse started. Did you honestly think it was going to go as far as Utah?" She asked.

Ross and Rocky looked at Rydel in disbelief "You couldn't have told that BEFORE we got in it and started to drive?" Rocky asked.

Rydel shrugged "Hey. I just wanted to see how far the car would go."

"40 minutes. It lasted all of 40 minutes."

"And that is longer than I thought it would have."

Ross rolled his eyes. He looked down the small hill that led from the top of the road downwards, and at the bottom of it he found what they had been looking for since Rydel got zombie guts all over.

A lake.

"Well, I'm going to the lake to clean myself up. Don't know about you three." Ross said, beginning to make his way down the hill without any other consent from the others. They all watched as he done so.

Ratliff pushed Rydel by her back to go follow Ross, mainly because she needed to clean up as well due to the fact she had zombie stuff all over her. That, and he doesn't think he can be done with the pained silence between Ross and Rydel along with their arguments every so often. Rydel gave Ratliff and funny look and shoved him back, not getting the point he was trying to put across.

Rocky sighed "Go clean yourself up. Because I have the feeling we won't be finding another lake or river for a long while now."

"Alright fine," she said, turning away. As she began to walk down the hill, she realised the two boys weren't following her. She turned back round and looked at them "Are you coming?" she asked.

"Does it look like we need cleaning?" Ratliff asked.

Rydel folded her arms, not looking impressed. Even though she looked like that all the time. "We're going to get all of the stuff together, seen as though we have to walk now." Rocky said, going to the back of the truck where his and Ross's backpacks were. He wasn't sure if Ratliff had brought anything, he knows Rydel didn't.

Rydel sighed in frustration, knowing it meant she had to be alone with Ross whilst she cleaned herself up and he done the same. She turned away and practically stormed off down the hill.

"They'll make up," Rocky said, almost throwing Ross's bag into Ratliff. But instead he hit him hard in the stomach "I know they will."

Ratliff nodded, putting Ross's bag on the floor next to him and watched as Ross and Rydel walked down the hill to the lake, different distances away from one another. In fact, he was that lost in watching them that Rocky threw another backpack at him and it hit him in the side of the face. Ratliff turned his head and glared at Rocky who shrugged "Should have been watching me instead of them." He simply answered the reason for why he threw the bag.

When Rydel got to the bottom of the hill, where the lake was, she stopped a couple metres behind Ross who was knelt on the side of it washing his face. She gave him a dirty look from behind and walked a fair distance away from him and knelt down to the lake, beginning to wash herself and get rid of all the zombie guts that got all over her.

Ross watched out of the corner of his eye silently as Rydel washed her face, and splashed the parts of her hair with water where the bits were she was trying to get out. He averted his eyes back to the water and gave his face one last splash before standing back up, just happening to look back down at Rydel again "Am I clean?" Ross asked.

Rydel looked Ross up and down "Yeah, your clean. Am I?" She asked, standing up.

Ross nodded "You look pretty clean to me."

Rydel stood up straight from the floor, wiping down her legs from the dirty she'd picked up kneeling down on the floor. Ross sighed "Listen, Rydel... About before in the car..."

Rydel shook her head, going to walk back up the hill "No."

"No?" Ross questioned, staying where he was.

"Just no. Don't go there," she said, turning round to face Ross from where she stood "I know you're going to say sorry, but you don't need to. I understand you're trying to protect me to make sure I don't get myself into trouble, but you're forgetting what I told you and Rocky back at the store when we met already."

"What did you tell us?" Ross asked. Rydel told them both many things back at the store, and he lost track after about the fifth thing.

"I don't trust anybody."

"Oh yeah," he said, finally remembering "but why though? I'm sure whatever happened to make you stop trusting anybody can be overlooked now. I mean, do me and Rocky look like anybody?" He asked, making Rydel laugh a little "There we go! A smile and a laugh! Something I thought I was never going to see from you."

Rydel rolled her eyes playfully, still smiling. That smile only lasted a couple seconds before it faded. "It's just... you need to understand that... the last time someone told me they were going to look out for me and protect me to make sure I don't get hurt... they lied. I almost died but it backfired and I ended up killing them."

Ross's eyes widened slightly. He wasn't that surprised Rydel had killed anybody, he was more surprised at the fact that she did it by accident rather than on purpose. "Was it that Maia girl?" Ross asked, Rydel shook her head. He took a step towards her, getting closer "then who?"

As Rydel went to go say, she heard something rustling in the bushes. She hushed Ross. "C'mon Rydel, don't tell me you killed someone and then not tell me who." Ross said, in a sort of disbelief.

"No, no, shhh!" Rydel hushed him, putting one hand over his mouth and a finger to her lips, as she turned her body round to listen for where the rustling was coming from. She lowered her voice to a whisper "Do you hear that?" she asked.

Ross went to say 'no', but the rustling became louder and that's when he heard it. He went to reach for a gun in his pocket, soon realising he left everything at the top of the hill with Rocky and Ratliff. He cursed himself under his breath for having the brains the size of a pea. You'd have thought he would have became more wiser and smart during the apocalypse. Apparently not.

Rydel stood more in front of Ross, looking towards the bushes, in a sort of protective way that Ross rolled his eyes at "Stop acting like I'm the one who needs protecting!"

"No, I'm not trying to protect you," Rydel whispered, trying to see into the bush "I'm trying to see into the bush."

Suddenly a body dropped out of the bushes, causing Ross and Rydel to scream like little school girls. Rydel jumped back and held onto Ross for dear life, and vice versa, as they both screamed looking at the blonde haired body on the floor that was completely out of it. Or dead.

The pair continued holding onto each other and screaming until Rocky and Ratliff both came tumbling down the hill to see what all the commotion was "WHAT'S GOING ON?!" Ratliff asked, shouting seen as though they wouldn't stopped screaming.

"A DEAD BODY JUST FELL FROM THE BUSHES!" Ross shouted/screamed, still holding onto Rydel.

Rocky and Ratliff looked down to where Rydel and Ross were looking. They also screamed and jumped together, holding onto one another. Ratliff squinted his eyes, trying to see the body more clearly "Wait a minute..." he said, pulling away from Rocky and slowly walking over to it.

Rocky grabbed Ratliff by the back of his shirt collar and pulled him back "Dude! What the hell are you doing?!" he asked.

Ratliff pulled off Rocky and slowly walked towards the body, taking a good look at it to see who it was. He could have sworn he looked familiar. His eyes widened "Oh my god, I know him!"

"You do?" Rydel asked.

Ratliff nodded, bending over slightly. He turned to Rydel and Ross "You two going to let go of one another now?" Ratliff asked.

Ross and Rydel glanced at one another, completely forgetting they were still holding one another. They awkwardly pulled away and stood a little distance from each other. Ross coughed, breaking the awkward silence that fell "Um.. so... who is he?" Ross asked.

Ratliff looked back down at the body "A very... very old friend..."

And you all know who that is. The very LAST person to come into the story, I've decided Laura is just going to be in the flashbacks for now on :) So now I can start putting this story into full swing. I expect this story to be over between chapters 15 - 20 anyways.

Thanks for reading!

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