A COUPLE OF other people joined Y/N outside of the walls of Woodbury to be given some firearm training. For the young man, his mentor for the last two days was an older one-handed redneck named Merle.
BANG!
Y/N aimed his M1911 pistol and tried hitting a bottle that hung from a string on a tree branch. He ended up missing.
"Jesus Christ, kid." Merle scoffed. "You've hit 1 outta 5 targets."
"I know. Sorry."
"Ain't no sorry."
Merle pulled out his pistol and shot the bottle while aiming with his only hand. He walked over to Y/N.
"Sorry was for the days then when you'd strike out, when you forget to tip your damn driver. Sorry nowadays doesn't save your life."
Y/N nodded. Merle gestured toward the other hanging bottles.
"Try again. Remember, don't shake too much. It's just a thing it won't bite your dick off."
The young man took a breath and aimed at the other bottles. He calmed himself down before firing, hitting one of them.
BANG!
"Good." Merle complimented.
BANG!
BANG!
Y/N kept shooting and ended up hitting two other bottles. Merle nodded and was rather impressed at how fast he improved.
"See? Ain't nothing but thing and that thing will keep your ass safe."
He nodded and looked at his now empty gun. Before he can load it again, they heard growling nearby.
A walker stumbled upon their training area and went for another trainee nearby. In fear, the man tried shooting it but couldn't get a hit at its head. Merle was about to deal with it, but Y/N stopped him.
"I got it."
He handed Merle his empty gun and ran at the walker. A large branch was beneath some leaves and he immediately picked it up. With a strong swing, he hit it over the head and knocked it down.
THONK!
Y/N finished it off with a couple of stomps to its head, splitting it open. He stepped back, panting and giving a nod to the other trainee.
Merle whistled. "Got the job done even without needing this."
"Sometimes what you improvise can be just as efficient." Y/N replied.
The redneck laughed. "I'm liking you more and more as the day goes by."
Suddenly, Merle got a transmission on his radio. Martinez's voice came out of it.
"Merle?"
He put walkie to his face. "What's up, Tapatio?"
Martinez ignored the usual racist remark and replied.
"Philip wants to move out soon. He'll meet us at the gate."
"All right."
He clipped his radio back on his belt and spoke to the trainees.
"Fun's over, fellas. I'll have to scream at y'all another day."
Y/N sat on one of the benches in the middle of Woodbury's Main Street. He looked at the several people coming in and out of buildings and taking a stroll down the sidewalks.
He was lost in his thoughts for the time being. That was until he heard a voice that snapped him out of it.
"Hey, Forrest."
Y/N turned to his right and saw Liliana. The sun above caused him to squint but smiled at the site of her nonetheless.
"What?" He asked about the name.
"Like Forrest Gump. The way you've been sitting here and staring out."
"Oh." He laughed. "I hate to admit it but...I haven't seen that movie yet."
"You're kidding."
"I know. I'm a terrible person."
"No wonder you looked at me like I said something stupid."
Y/N and her laughed. She put her hands in her pockets and gestured down the road with a bob of her head.
"Walk with me?"
He nodded and got up from the bench. Y/N and Liliana started walking side by side down the street.
"Training got done early?" She asked, knowing that he had chosen to be taught some firearm lessons.
"Yeah. That's why I was just sitting there. Had a routine the last couple of days and the early dismissal threw me off." He replied. "I've followed them for years now. Routines are what made my day."
"You had a checklist and everything?"
Y/N snickered as he thought back at life before the outbreak.
"You could say that. Wake up. Work out. Shower. Eat. Train. And those were often off days. Did other things when it was game day."
"And how would you say it changed after...you know...the dead started rising?"
"Nowadays, simply waking up is already a win. I still work out. Showering was kinda up in the air until recently. Eating as well. Man...I miss omelets."
Liliana chucked. "Shouldn't be that hard to make. Erica and I have a stove. We can get the right ingredients."
He looked at her. "Are you offering to make me breakfast, Lili?"
For a second, Y/N feared that she would scold him for calling her by the nickname, but she didn't. It was the first time she was comfortable with him doing so.
"If cooking is one of the other things you're bad at doing, then sure." She replied.
Y/N scoffed but laughed afterward. He put his hands in his pockets.
"I can cook. It won't be Michelin star worthy but it'll pass."
The two continued walking and talking, sharing laughs with one another. In the distance from the sidewalk, a man stared at them. It was Philip.
Moments later, the Governor turned around and started making his way to the front gates to meet with his men.
• • •
Y/N COULDN'T PINPOINT exactly what helped change the aura between Liliana and him. Maybe it was the security of Woodbury, the fact of not having to sleep with one eye open, the feeling of being well-maintained.
Or maybe it was that night when they had that heart-to-heart talk. Being able to comfort each other after such an emotional moment very likely helped break down that barrier between them and allowed them to build a friendship.
And that was all Y/N could ask for. He didn't expect anything more from her unless she was willing. And as days went on, that would be the case.
At another training session, Liliana joined the young man. Her excuse was that she had a few things to teach Y/N since her father, Alan, was a police sergeant.
Immediately, Y/N thought about how Merle would act. He figured he'd be the one to make remarks and hit on her out of the blue. But to his surprise, there was none of that. It was a far cry from how Philip would act.
"Lil' Bo Peep here is a crack shot." He remarked after the blonde had hit her targets. "Can't let you come back or else I'd lose my fucking job."
He walked away to be with the other trainees and left Liliana with Y/N. The young man aimed for his gun but missed the bottle.
BANG!
"Come on. What happened?" Liliana asked. "You were doing just fine earlier."
He shrugged. "I don't know. Uh..."
"Here."
She holstered her gun and went up to Y/N, getting behind him and helping him adjust his arms.
"Elbows are too straight. Gotta bend them a bit. And stop shaking."
Liliana got beside him and continued moving his arms. She grabbed his hands and adjusted his grip too, leaving hers touching his for a moment as they stood still.
Y/N looked down at the blonde and they locked eyes. After a few seconds, she smiled and stepped back.
"That feel good?"
"Yeah, it did." He abruptly said but realized she meant his current form. "Yeah! It's good. Feels all right."
She chuckled and stepped away, signaling him to shoot the targets. Y/N did and did so precisely.
POW! POW!
"Good job." Liliana complimented. "Fast learner."
"Well...I had a couple of good teachers." He replied, mentioning her and Merle. "One is more pleasing to work with than the other."
She simply hummed in intrigue. Y/N smiled.
"I'll have to give Merle a five-star review." He joked.
Liliana nudged his arm. "Haha."
The two decided to spend the day together. There was a garden behind an apartment that was often visited by Woodbury inhabitants. Y/N was there with Liliana as they walked around.
They talked for a while with Liliana explaining her life before the outbreak. How her mother passed away a year after she was and how her father raised her. She even talked about how she was studying to be a pediatrician.
Y/N also told more about his own life, most of when he was growing up. They involved some stories involving his mother and brother.
There was a brief pause as they looked at the plants ahead. Y/N broke the silence with a single word.
"Smith."
She turned to him. "What?"
"That was my last name. Smith." He clarified. "Before I legally changed it."
Liliana nodded, appreciating that he was willing to tell her that.
"What made you choose L/N?"
Y/N sighed. "It was my mom's maiden name. I...you know...wanted to keep a part of her with me."
Liliana stayed quiet for a moment before smiling. She wanted to lighten the mood.
"Y/N L/N rolls off the tongue a little better, to be honest. And it probably helped sell more merchandise."
The young man laughed. Liliana kept smiling and spoke in a soft tone.
"You didn't have to tell me. But, I thank you for doing so. For trusting me."
Y/N nodded. He thought back from about two weeks ago when he told her, in a heated moment, that all he wanted was a friend and some time to get to know better. That's what he has now with her.
The blonde's walkie chirped and she got a transmission from a colleague at the hospital. It was the place she started volunteering at.
"I got to go." She told him. "I—I had a great time."
"Me too." Y/N replied with a smile.
Liliana looked at him. There was a slight hesitation, but she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. It caught Y/N by surprise.
She smiled again and walked away, with Y/N watching her as she did. He quietly chuckled before continuing down the path.
The Governor had told Y/N, Liliana, Erica, and Ramon about an event they were going to have at the arena they had in town. They didn't know exactly what it was going to be but went nonetheless, expecting some sort of entertainment.
It was behind an abandoned factory building. There were bleachers filled with people on both sides of a plot of sand. What caught their attention was the few posts with walkers chained to them.
"Friends." Philip greeted them.
"What is all this?" Erica first questioned.
"These are where we have pit fights."
"Pit fights?" Ramon asked.
"Man versus man. Man versus walker. There's a variety."
Liliana looked into the arena. A soldier had gone in with another and started to fight. The chained-up walkers growled and flailed their hands whenever they got close.
"This is...something." She remarked.
"People need their entertainment. And in a way, it preps my people for the atrocities of the world. They don't need to fear these rotting corpses."
He looked back at the fight going on before turning around and facing the four again.
"I do hope you all have fun." Philip looked at Liliana and smiled. "If you'll excuse me."
The man walked away. They moved toward the bleachers and stood beside them, watching the fight going on. Surprisingly, Ramon was really into it.
"Oh, shit!" He cheered with the crowd. "Homie got knocked on his ass!"
Erica laughed with her brother, enjoying it a bit as well. It brought her back to seeing boxing matches with her family in the past.
On the other hand, Liliana wasn't enjoying it. She glanced at her best friend and noticed that she seemed to be enjoying the match with her brother. She turned to Y/N, who had no reaction and was just looking on.
"This is sick." She admitted. "And not that good kind of sick..."
"Yeah, I get it. People like it, though. See what a world with no televised sports does?"
She grabbed the side of his arm. "Can we leave?"
He turned to her, seeing the expression on her face. The young man nodded.
"Yeah. Let's go."
They didn't bother letting their friends know of their departure. But Ramon had turned around and saw that they were leaving the area. He wasn't disappointed, but happy that the two of them had gotten close.
At the bleachers on the other side, Philip watched them too. He stared ahead as Y/N and Liliana made the corner and left the arena.
They both decided to go back to the apartment. Y/N opened the door and let Liliana in before going in and closing it behind her.
"I could see why they liked it." He mentioned Ramon and Erica. "Ramon always talked about how he misses watching Floyd Mayweather."
"They're both huge boxing fans." Liliana replied as she made her way to her room.
Y/N took off the vest that he'd often wear, displaying his worn out black shirt underneath.
He put it down on the chair and stretched his muscles, looking to his left and seeing the blonde staring at him.
"Yeah?" He asked as he rolled his shoulder.
"Remember when you said you never watched Forrest Gump?" She asked.
"Uh-huh."
"Well, the library had it." She looked at her hands. "They even let me borrow a VHS player."
"For real?"
Liliana nodded. Y/N rubbed his hands together.
"Wow. Can't wait to see what all the hype was about."
The blonde laughed as they entered her and Erica's room. The setup was quick and they were watching the movie. A usual movie night had snacks, but they were okay with just laying down and seeing the film with nothing to eat.
"Why is Jenny so mean?" Y/N asked in the middle of the movie. "Can't he give poor Tom Hanks a chance?"
"She's trying!" She replied. "He's so innocent. She doesn't want to hurt him."
"He is, but he's also tough. She has to understand that nothing she does can hurt him."
The movie kept going and another scene of a talking Forrest sitting on the bench came up. Y/N chuckled as he recalled Liliana comparing him to that days ago.
"That's not like me."
It was as if she knew he was going to bring that up. "That's how you looked."
"Nah."
"Yes."
"You know what? Fine. I'm happy being compared to such an awesome guy like Forrest Gump."
Liliana nodded. "I can see it."
He turned to her. The blonde did as well.
"You both have a good heart. You're someone everyone wants to be around." She added. "And I know that. Dozens of faces in the town and it's yours I look forward to seeing."
There was a moment of silence between them as the scene went on. Their hands brushed against each other...and Y/N took the plunge and intertwined them. He held them up.
"And just like him...I..." He inhaled. "I have that one person who gives me the strength to keep going."
Liliana's heart skipped a beat upon hearing his words. Her body along with hers seemed to heat up as they looked into each other's eyes.
And like Y/N did before...she took the plunge.
(A/N: This is where it begins *Plays Careless Whisper*)
The blonde leaned in and kissed her friend on the lips. He reciprocated the act and seconds later he decided to deepen it. A part of him feared that Liliana would be deterred by the sudden intensity, but she went along with it and palmed the back of his head.
She leaned in closer with the help of the man, who brought his other hand to her back and brought her flush against his chest.
Liliana parted from his lips and straddled him, then went back to making out with Y/N. It became more feverish. The young man moved from her lips to her neck, leaving open-mouth kisses over it and her collarbone. The blonde let out shuddered breaths.
She gripped his loose shirt with her hands and tried to pull it off, but the task was harder than she expected.
"Take it off. Take it off." She breathed out.
"Yea—yeah."
He obliged, sitting up and taking off his shirt. Liliana removed her own top. Y/N went back to kissing her as he quickly undid the blonde's bra. She was surprised by how swift he was.
"Had that mastered with all the others you've been with?" She joked.
"Fuck them." He quickly said. "All that's on my mind right now is you."
Liliana smirked and pulled him back into the kiss. He parted moments later and moved to her chest where he attacked her breasts with his mouth.
She moaned his name, holding the back of his head as he continued to kiss and suck on her breasts.
"Oh, my God."
Y/N ended up getting on his knees, still holding Liliana before laying her on her back. He leaned over and continued making out with her.
He rose and looked down at the blonde who was beginning to undo her jean shorts. Y/N helped out and took them off along with her underwear.
The girl was already wet. The moisture on his fingers after touching her was evidence of that. Liliana let out another shuddered breath as he did it again.
Y/N placed his mouth on her vagina and went straight to pleasuring her. The blonde gasped at the sudden act and whipped her head back.
"Fuck! Oh, my God!"
It had been a while since she had sex and the same went for Y/N. Being able to feel what she was feeling had her world spinning. Being able to hear her moans were music to Y/N's ears.
After some time, Y/N got up and undid his pants. He took them off and knelt back on the bed over Liliana. She eyed her erect member with darkened eyes.
"Poor thing." She fake pouted. "How long has it been since it's been taken care of?"
Y/N had lubricated his penis with his saliva along with the juices that had come from Liliana. He chuckled as he lined up with her.
"Too long."
He inserted his dick into her vagina, the immense sensation causing the both of them to let out a gasp. Y/N continued to thrust in and out as she looked up at him from their missionary position.
There were no more words exchanged between them, just their breaths and the sounds coming from their mouths. He went flush against her body as he kissed her again, still thrusting into his lover.
Two weeks ago it seemed as if there'd be nothing to build between them. But with time...with more understanding...and shared experiences...it lead to their eventual union.
They not only found a friend in each other amidst this cruel world...but a partner.