Chapter 3

It was early morning and Shane had taken a few members of the group out into a paddock to practise some gun training. Back with her old group, Sam had never held a gun before or dealt with any of the hard labour of helping to protect the others, she had always been protected. But after that close call the night the Atlanta survivors saved Sam, she knew it was time to learn how to protect herself.
"Here, your holding it wrong" Shane spoke softly into Sams ear as he moved in closer to her body from behind, adjusting her hands to hold the gun properly. The touch of Shanes hand on hers made Sam's heart skip a beat and the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as she felt his breath on her. Shane stepped back a few inches as Sam re positioned the gun, and fired at the target. Sam smiled triumphantly to herself as Shane gave her an approvingly nod and half smile as she had hit the target.
"Now that's the way girly!" Shane yelled excitingly so the others heard and looked over. Daryl rolled his eyes and tutted at the way Sam and Shane were looking at each noticed Daryl's eyes on them and decided to ask him a question she'd been wanting to ask for a while.

"Hey Daryl" she said so he turned around to face her, with Shane and the others listening in "I've been wondering why you use a cross bow all the time instead of a gun?"
Daryl scoffed, as if she should have known the answer "It's quiet. if you haven't had noticed, noise attracts Walkers". He stated and turned his back on her, beginning to walk away.
Sam thought for a second and called out after him "But you ride a motorbike... what could make more noise than that?"
Daryl stopped in his tracks as the others in the group spoke amongst themselves. It had never occurred to the others of the group that this was true and Carl even giggled a little bit, at all of their stupidness.
Daryl walked over to Sam, looking her dead in the eye and with one movement, turned and shot the target with how bow right in the middle and walked off. Sam's heart was pounding against her chest from the confrontation with Daryl and now saw the side of Daryl which everyone had told her about.

Later that day, the men were starting to round up some cars to go back into town to try and scavenge more supplies when Sam volunteered to tag along
"Nah you ain't comin with us. You don't know what your doin' ...you'd be more of a liability"
Sam felt like like a stubborn child when she stomped her foot down on the ground and folded her arms.
"Why the hell can't I? Shane's been teaching me how to shoot! I can help!" Sam turned to look at Shane for help but he seemed to be enjoying the show and put his hands up as to say he had nothing to do with swung his cross bow over his shoulder when no one stuck up for Sam and headed back over to his bike waiting for the others to be ready.

Sam had noticed how hostile Daryl had been to her in the last couple of days, and she thought she had gotten through to him when she opened up about her father and motorbikes. Daryl turned his head as he heard Sam yell out his name who was following him
"What is your problem Daryl? Got something against women? Don't think we can do just as good as job as men?!"
Sam screamed at him, but he just smirked and shook his head as she continued to rant "You have no idea if I could be useful or not, that's not your call to make... you haven't seen how much I have learnt..."
Daryl half laughed, dropping his cross bow to the ground and moved in closer to Sam so their bodies were inches apart
"Oh yeah?" he said sarcastically and with one swift movement, Daryl had Sam's arm curled up behind her
"Why don't you show me?" he whispered in her ear as he grip tightened on her arm. Sam's heart was pounding once again, adrenaline with rushing through her body. Sam swivelled out of his grip, and took a step back trying to catch her breath.
Daryl scoffed as he leant down, picking up his cross bow "You don't have any skill. If you were to come out wit' us, you'd probably put us in more danger cause' we'd be to worried tryin' to look after ya".
Sam let that sink in, she didn't want to admit it but the redneck had a point.

Once the men had come back from scavenging, the women had whipped up a meal which was ready around the campfire. Sam watched as Rick and Lori embraced each other with a hug while Glenn and Maggie shared a moment of kisses. Daryl glanced over at Sam with his usual facial expression, not showing any emotion as he headed back over to his bike and tent. Sam was still pissed off at the way Daryl had spoken to her before, and even more angry that Shane hadn't had stuck up for her so when he approached her, she was not a happy camper.
"Did you find the kitchen alright?" Shane said smugly, as he took off his blue cap with the word Police written on it.
Sam got up, ignoring his rude comment "How come you didn't stick up for me earlier today?". Shane rubbed the sweat from his forehead, looking around at the faces also watching him and he lowered his voice
"Dixon had a point. We would have been preoccupied looking after your ass, instead of concentrating on the task".
Sam rolled her eyes; she had heard the same thing over and over again in one day and was sick of it. She took the spare plate of food, and headed away from the campfire.

Daryl's head shot up when a plate of food fell half onto his lap, and he looked up into her face. Sam was looking down at him, still looking pissed off.
"Here's your dinner, is this what we women are good for?" She shook her head, and began walking back. Daryl could see what he had said to her earlier was really effecting her, he didn't think what he said would really matter to her but apparently it meant more than he realised. He usually didn't feel bad about being rude to other people and didn't care what anyone thought of him, but for some reason he wanted to make it okay with Sam.
"You don't remember do ya?" He yelled, grabbing her attention back "We've met before". Sam turned on her heels, looking at him with utter confusion.
Daryl scratched the back of his head, wondering what to say now that Sam was waiting for him to explain
"Uhhh..." he mumbled "When this thing broke out.. on the highway going towards the City..." he stated, trying to use hand movements, thinking it might help but Sam still stood silent.
Daryl threw one hand up, giving up "Oh what the hell... you wouldn't remember someone like me..."
Sam called out back after him, a memory coming back to her...

*** "You girls stay here and us boys will go see what the hell is going on" Sam and her two friends were stranded on the highway trying to make their way to Atlantic City where it was supposably safe.
Sam's friends were treating this as a joke where her mind kept flashing back to her family who were still in Philadelphia when she noticed some guy standing across from her. He was different to the guys she hung around with. He was rough, but good looking, which for some reason Sam found herself drawn to. Their eyes met and she looked away quickly, embarrassed that she had been caught staring at this stranger. She looked up again and he was looking back at her. Sam decided to flirt with him, so she gave him a light smile and he nodded back. Sam wanted to know who this guy was, so she headed over to him... but before anything could happen... her friends had come back and the last time she saw the mysterious man, he was heading in the opposite direction...***

"I was coming to talk to you" Sam blurted out, so Daryl would turn back and listen to her "But then the world crumbled over and we went in opposite directions, I remember that..." Daryl nodded, not saying a word. They both remembered the connection they had shared, even though it had only been for a split second.

Sam locked eyes with him yet again, a lot like the first time they had met "Imagine what would've happened if we had talked and maybe gone the same way..." her imagination got the best of her until her train of thought was back down to earth from Shane yelling at her
"Blondie, let's go hunting".

Shane had taken Sam down to the swamps to "hunt" because she thought she was ready to help the men
"So you think you're ready to come play with the big boys now?" He asked as they got further down into the swamps while Sam tried not to fall over in the mud.
"Now girly, its no game out there" he said pointing in no particular direction "Its life or death and sometimes it only takes a split second to change it"
Sam's mind quickly flashed back to the talk she'd just had with Daryl, about their 'split second' encounter.
"Now you think you're ready..." Sam shook her head, concentrating on what Shane was babbling about "You need to prove it".
Shane handed Sam a small silver handgun, making sure the safety was off. Sam looked at it was if were something she had never seen before, then looked back up at Shane
"What are you going on about?"
Shane lips turned up into a small smile, as some bushes snapped behind Sam making her instinctively turn around.

Two walkers appeared, one a man and the other a woman who were snarling at her. Sam's mouth dropped wide open when it occurred to her what Shane had done.
"Now c'mon girly" HE said, giving her a little shove towards the Walkers "Show them who's boss". As they got closer, Sam's nerves set in and mooshed together with the adrenaline, so her hands weren't working properly. As she tried to turn the safety off, she walked backwards looking from her gun to the hungry monsters coming at her.
The man lunged at her, and she fell on her back "Shane help!" she squealed out, but he didn't. Sam rummaged her hand on the ground, trying to get the gun as the two Walkers came at her again. Just as the two were pretty much on top of her, Sam felt the gun in her hand, picked it up and shot twice. Straight in their melons. Sam was panting at the two walkers fell to the ground, making a huge thump noise. It wasn't until Shane's clapping had caught her attention, that she had really just taken it what had happened. Sam had shot and killed two walker, all on her lonesome. She stood up triumphantly, looking at her kill but then when Shane spoke, her joy turned to fury
"What the hell was that! You could have gotten me killed! And you just sat there and did nothing"
Sam pushed past him, placing the gun hard on his chest.

Shane sped up to catch Sam's pace, her anger making her faster as she climbed her way back from the swamp "You said you were ready Sam, I was testing you! You wanted this".
He said as he finally caught up to her, as she slid and lost her balance on a moss filled rock. Shane helped her up from the ground, not trying to stop himself from chuckling at her clumsiness
"I had your back if it got out of control Sam, don't worry".
Shane spoke softly, as he looked into her eyes. When she looked into his eyes, she knew what he was saying was the truth. If it had gotten way worst, he would have stepped in.
"So I'm ready then?" Sam asked, changing her tune. Shane laughed at her mood change, and put his hands on his hips as he looked back at her, grinning widely.
While Sam waited for an answer, she got something she wasn't expecting. Shane moved in close, wrapped a hand behind her head and kissed her. Sam pulled him away, taken back by the sudden embrace but he wouldn't give in that easy.
"What was that..." She questioned him, but his lips were on top of hers again and this time, she wasn't resiting. Shane then had her up against a tree, with her legs around his waist, unbuttoning her top as fast as he could.

Next time...

Sam figures out Shane & Lori's secret, what will she do with that information?
Sam pyschoanalyses Daryl, how will he react to this?
Will it bring them closer? or will what she says drive him off?

Authors note - I had heaps of fun writing that chapter!

what was your favourite part? does any prefer Sam with any of the guys yet?

Let me know what you think! :)