Didn't See That Coming | The Walking Dead(1)

Part 5 (We're Here)

The group had been on the road for a couple of hours now but had to stop when they there was a problem with the RV. Jim was done. He knew he wouldn't make it much further, he definitely wouldn't make it to the CDC. Despite his awful fever, he was lucid. He said he just wanted to be with his family. So after a short discussion, the group agreed to grant Jim's dying wish and leave him. Shane and Rick practically carried the incredibly frail man over to sit by a tree, facing the road where the vehicles had pulled over. Everyone came to say their final goodbyes.

"Jim, do you want this?" Rick asked him, holding out a small pistol to Jim.

"No, you'll need it. I'm okay," Jim replied in a whisper quiet voice with a small smile.

CJ was stood a few metres away next to Glenn. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders to comfort him. She looked over briefly at Daryl. Even he seemed affected by the situation. That whole 'unbothered' attitude from before was all an act. But CJ knew that already.

It pained her and everyone else in the group to leave Jim to turn, but it's what he wanted. Everyone turned to walk back to their vehicles after saying their final farewells to their friend. CJ sent Jim a small apologetic smile which he returned before she turned away too, heading back to the blue truck and taking her seat in the blue truck again. She leant her tired head against the window and closed her eyes. The engines all hummed to life and the group continued their journey toward what they hoped would be their salvation. The CDC.

***

CJ was walking down the dark isle of the small pharmacy in the store, picking up pretty much everything that could be of any use to her and Tony. They could hear the distant moans of some of the dead outside so they had to be very qui- "

Hey CJ come on we should head out!" Tony called out, a bit too loudly.

"Shhhhh! Are you kidding me?!" CJ responded in a loud whisper as she walked towards her idiot brother. "Have you forgotten where we are?" she added sarcastically.

"Sorry, sorry you're right," he whispered, holding his hands up. "But look at this." He nodded his head toward the window of back of the shop. The alley behind the pharmacy, which was empty when they entered the store, was now littered with the walking dead.

"Well, I'm hardly surprised what with all your god damn yellin'," CJ mumbled.

That alley was their only way out as the door at the front of the store was completely locked up with chains and a padlock on the inside, as though someone had locked themselves in.

Suddenly a loud growl pulled CJ's attention away from the window as a corpse came stumbling out of the cupboard next to her and tried to grab her. She heard Tony call her name in panic as she grabbed it by its shoulders to try and push it away, but she fell backwards into a shelf and caused it to come crashing down, creating a very loud noise, alerting the dead outside to the scene. 

She continued to push the walker away from her until Tony ran over and put his knife into the back of its head. He pulled the walker off of his sister and held out his hand to hoist her up.

"You okay?" he asked her, checking her over for any bites.

"I'm good, I'm good," she breathed out.

Before CJ could catch her breath, she heard a loud smash coming from the window and the moans and groans from the walkers got louder. Tony and CJ both turned to see that the dead had got in and we're only inches away from them. Tony started firing at them and CJ shot arrows at the others. But they just kept coming. The growling was so loud and unsettling. The gunshots from Tony were ringing in her ears. She thought she heard him shout but the dead were getting too close, and she didn't have time to turn around.