Decimation

Chapter 14:

Lauren's POV:

"You genius." I narrowed my eyes towards the Cuban who was now staring at me worriedly.

"Now what do we do?" I glanced out the window at the numerous walkers heading in our direction.

The pair of us jumped when there was one large bang on the window followed by a few quieter ones from where they were throwing themselves at the vehicle.

"What the hell do we do!?" Camila panicked and reached into the back seat to grab the weapon bag which we now shared.

I rubbed stressfully at my temple before getting myself a weapon from the bag, a butterfly knife, and lowering the window just enough to stab one of them in the head. "I have no idea."

We were practically surrounded now and the only way we could get out would be to heave the doors open and be ready to fight almost instantly – which was a massive risk considering there were so many of them; one little slip could cost us our lives.

Five minutes past with the two of us bowing our heads in thought and trying to ignore the grunting and scratching of the walkers, who were pressed against the perimeter of the car. We were forced to improvise our next move when the driver's seat window smashed, bringing Camila face to face with a walker who was launching its arms and teeth at her.

"Lauren!" She shouted and I watched as she threw the back of her head into my lap and attempted to kick the walker's arms. In her frenzy, she dropped her pistol on the floor and quickly scrambled to get it – shooting at him when she finally got it. The corpse fell limb, his arms dangling over the car door whilst another two of the dead continued to try and reach us. "We need to get out of here." Camila said breathlessly as she held her position in my lap.

I looked behind me and noticed the walkers that were originally at my window making their way around to Camila's side. "They're moving." I told her. "When they're at your window, I'll open my door."

We waited a few more minutes before I reached behind myself and opened up the door. Camila was in a rush to get out and tried to push past me, causing me to tumble out the car and land on the ground with a thud.

"Quick!" The younger woman shouted as she opened up the rear door to get the weapon bag.

I'd taken quite a knock to the head and had my hands aiding to it when I heard the other woman. I looked up at her with squinted eyes and saw the silhouette of a figure next to her which she hadn't. "Camila!"

She quickly spun to her left just as the walker grabbed her by the shoulders. Our shouting had caught the attention of the herd still trying to get into the passenger side, and they were now making their way around to us. It was a lot of effort for me to get back on my feet, especially after glancing at my hands and noticing a little bit of blood on them from my head injury.

With the bag still being on the backseat, I had to launch forward in order to stab the walker harassing my friend and whilst it hit the floor – quickly grab a hold of the bag before the next one came.

"Let's get out of here." I threw the bag over my shoulder and the two of us ran as quickly as we could down the country road.

-

"You took quite the hit back there." Camila chuckled nervously. We were walking now considering we had left the busy area a good thirty minutes ago. We'd been fairly silent since then as we recovered from the light trauma and breathlessness.

"Yeah, thanks to you." I complained, rubbing my head again with my hand.

"Why weren't you in a hurry to get out of that death trap?"

I rolled my eyes playfully. "I wanted to do it quietly and subtly – they go off movement and smells and shit."

"Well, sorry for not taking that into account during my near death experience." Camila ran her hand through her hair with a laugh.

The woods were a safe yet dangerous place - but when you didn't have a shelter of your own, the woods where your only shelter so we had to make it work.

Midway through putting our belongings down at a bald patch of land, we remembered that we left all our camping gear back at the other area. So, we had to settle for our backpacks as pillows.

"What were your first impressions of me?" Camila suddenly blurted out from 'her side' of the leaves between us. I furrowed my eyebrows in thought for a minute, readjusting my backpack.

"That you were a thief." I chuckled to myself. "A pretty shitty one."

The brunette rolled her eyes and pouted her lips at me. "Answer properly."

I glanced over to examine her full lips and dark brown eyes, feeling a little pit of butterflies in my stomach when I did so. That feeling still scared me a little, even though it was a feeling I associated with Camila now.

"I thought you were a badass – I guess I was wrong." I shrugged playfully.

"Really?" She replied with a slightly quirked eyebrow. "I thought you were a know-it-all; I still do."

I took in her words for a moment before narrowing my eyes, her light chuckle blessing my ears as she covered her mouth shyly. "Watch it, Cabello."

The Cuban opened her mouth into a circular shape and raised her hands. "I'm terrified." She mocked.

Tilting my chin up highly, I draped my arm around my head and faced the sky again. "You are not worth my time."

The conversation ended with Camila throwing a stick at me and resting again; she fell asleep not long after the exchange but for some reason I couldn't ease my mind. I didn't necessarily feel safe in the open area we had chosen and that was definitely keeping me awake – not only that but where we could go from here. The apocalypse meant consistent movement from area to area, and that was something I wasn't a fan of. I wanted to pick a shelter, and stick to it.

Eventually, my racing thoughts sent me to sleep and I woke up to Camila gathering our things. "What are you doing?" I groaned, rubbing at my eyes.

"We've got to keep moving, right? That's what you always say." Camila pulled out two empty cans of tinned food. "And we need more supplies."

Next thing I knew, we were on the road again – walking it of course. We even walked past the spot where I picked Lisa up all those weeks ago. The sight sent a chill down my spine and I felt emptiness in my chest for a moment; emptiness that put a stop to my tracks.

"Are you okay?" Camila asked after realising I was no longer walking beside her.

"This is where I met Lisa." I told her, gesturing to the spot with my hand and a faint smile.

Camila's mouth fell open as she followed my gaze, walking closer to stand beside me. We respectfully stood there for a few minutes, remembering her. I thought about those few weeks I spent with the twins and how much the little memories, like Lisa spilling the pot of tea she made after we all waited so long, meant to me now.

"I can't believe she's gone." I caught myself sniffling and wiping briefly at my nose. The sound caught Camila's attention and she almost instantly aided to me, draping her arm around my waist. "She was stood right there."

"I know." Camila appeased quickly and pulled me into a tight hug. I'd never done this before, but I cried into her. I stuck my head right in the crook of her neck and I let it all out. I hadn't mourned Lisa properly yet – I never got the time to until now, until this intimate moment.

-
A/N: hey dudes!! I tried to proofread this but I've been a little distracted so I apologise (I suck)

I noticed the other day that these chapters aren't numbered properly, I numbered chapter 9 chapter 10 and never fixed it..oops.

how cute is this little moment between camila & lauren?? lauren is finally showing a little more emotion.

pls feel free to give me some feedback. I love reading the comments you guys leave as it reminds me that people actually read this stuff ... which is insane. thanks so much for doing that.

I'll see you guys next week!!

- fay.