( then )
ROSE WAS AGGRESSIVELY pulled from her sleep as glass shattered onto her smooth skin. The sound of the break startled her to the core. She screamed in surprise as her car door whipped open, and two arms scooped her up. Her eyes finally landed on the familiar face of Joel, his features etched in fear and worry.
"Rose!" He ensured her feet were firmly on the ground before cupping her face in his hands.
"Jesus, Joel." That was all she could say as she tried to slow her heart rate.
"C'mon, baby. We gotta go." He looked her over one more time before grabbing her hand and pulling her to the truck.
She quickly opened the door and jumped inside, her eyes landing on a scared-looking Sarah. The brunette quickly pulled the girl into her arms as she shut the door behind her. Tommy, who was sat in the driver's seat, wasted no time and sped off down the lonely back roads.
Rose looked to the dark haired girl beside her, who was now safely tucked into her arms. The silence was deafening and there was so much she wanted to say, but couldn't find the words. After a few moments, the brunette spoke up.
"What is happening?" Her voice was barely a whisper, but both men heard her perfectly.
"Not sure." Tommy replied as his brother stayed silent, focusing on everything that they passed.
Tommy turned down a road and slammed the breaks as they were met with a very long line of cars backed up. In the distance, a fire was ablaze.
"Fuck. Everyone had the same fuckin idea." Joel muttered as he gripped the dashboard, trying to think of another way.
"Go through the field. We cut across and we pick up on the - on the west side." Joel pointed to the large open field up ahead. He glanced back to the women, worry still present on his face.
"Yeah, yeah. Alright." Tommy nodded his head and quickly reversed the car before heading for the field.
Suddenly, over the hill large military grade vehicles began approaching. Tommy slammed the breaks yet again and let out a string of curses as he watched them fill up the hill.
"Fuckin army!"
"Isn't that good?" Sarah asked in a small voice as she peeked out the window.
"Only for them." Rose told her as she squeezed her small hands.
"It's alright baby. Tommy head north." Joel assured his daughter before commanding his brother, who simply nodded.
Joel reached back and set his hand on Rose's knee, attempting to comfort her during the madness. The warmth of his large palm was comforting but it didn't stop the dread that was pumping through her with every beat of her heart.
"We go through town, golf course by the river, straight across. We'll pick up on the highway on the other side of the blockade. Then, we're out" Joel assured them.
Tommy sped through the streets, approaching the town that seemed to be collapsing in on itself. People were running and screaming, trying to escape the people that had turned. Stores were on fire and cars were crushed against eachother, their alarms blaring through the air. Groups of people rushed out into the road and Tommy swerved in attempts to avoid hitting any.
"Keep goin, keep goin!" Joel pressed on just as his brother stopped the car, people stumbling across the hood of the vehicle.
"Shit, Tommy. You can't stop here!" His brother bellowed.
"I can't drive through em all!" He argued, but Joel only motioned onward as he surveyed their surroundings.
"Tommy, back up, back up!" Rose told him from behind as she pointed to the sea of people approaching.
"Back, back, back!" Joel added on.
"Find an alley, Tommy. Anything else." The brunette pointed to back further up the road.
"We're gonna be okay. Just keep drivin."
Sarah turned in her seat and looked out the back window, watching an object hurtling towards them. She let out a cry and she scrambled to her knees and pushed Rose to look.
"Dad!" She screamed just as Rose let out a cry.
A loud boom erupted from behind before it went dark.
☓
Rose's ears were ringing as she slowly regained consciousness. She let out a groan as she opened her heavy eyes, her vision doubling for a few moments. An orange hue engulfed her as she groggily looked around at the now broken truck she was lying in. She slowly rolled over, pieces of glass pressing into her skin and threatening to slice her open.
"Rose! Rose!" Joel's voice sounded far away, yet the brunette spotted him only a few feet outside of the vehicle.
He gently moved Sarah out of his way as she held up her injured leg, resting near her uncle. Joel got onto his knees and reached into the car, grasping onto Rose's arms. He gently pulled her, stopping momentarily when she let out a cry of pain.
"C'mon, baby. C'mon. I got ya." He assured her as he pulled her the rest of the way out, freeing her from the truck rubble.
She held onto the man as she regained herself, slowly getting to her knees. He wiped away some of the soot and blood that was smeared across her face, noticing the deep gash above her brow.
"You're gonna be okay, c'mon. We gotta go." He pulled her to her feet and she shook her head to let him know she was okay. He looked to his daughter who was cradling her injured ankle.
"We gotta get off the street!" Tommy yelled at the group as people began emerging from the disaster behind them.
"My ankle." Sarah reminded them as she tried to put weight on it.
Without missing a beat, Joel scooped his daughter up and jerked his head towards a side road, beckoning the other two to follow. Rose looked back to the rubble and grabbed her now beaten up bag before hobbling after them.
They rounded a corner, noticing a group of things heading their way. Rose looked around in panic before rushing over to an old looking restaurant, gesturing them to follow. Her and Tommy slammed the door behind them and held it in place as bodies piled up against it from the other side.
"We can't stay here. Tommy!" Joel looked to his brother in desperation.
"Get to the river! I'll find a way. Get them out of here!" He pushed Rose off the door and towards Joel.
"I can't leave you alone!" Rose argued.
"Rose, please" Sarah's tiny voice brought her gaze back as she reached out her hand.
"Okay. okay. C'mon. Tommy becareful." She told the dark haired man before the other three ran off out the back of the building.
"Keep your eyes on me. Don't look at anything else." Joel told his daughter as he held her face up against his chest.
They ran down different alleys, weaving in and out of anything in their way. Up ahead, a creature was aggressively tearing into a body. Rose flung her hand out and stopped Joel, who looked between them and the creature. The brunette looked around, trying to find another way out - but didn't see an alternate route.
"Alright. You're not gonna like this but you need to get her out of her." Rose told him as she looked around, finding an old broom handle lying against a dumpster.
"What? No. Not happening." He growled, realizing what she was suggesting.
"Joel, we don't have a choice. I'll distract it. Ill meet you after I take care of it." She told him confidently - although she had no idea how to take this thing down.
"Rose, no!' Sarah protested.
Her shrill cry brought the creatures attention to them. It's head snapped up, blood dripping from its gnarly face. It got to its feet as quickly as it could, stumbling its way over.
Rose wasted no time and pushed Joel out of the way and threw herself at the thing, hitting it with the end of the broom. It stumbled back before heading after her.
"Go!" She screamed.
Joel hesitated for just another moment, his eyes glossy as he thought of what to do. He took off down the alley after a second, taking the opportunity. He glanced back and watched as Rose bashed the things head in and stumbled. His heart ached but he kept on running, determined to get his daughter to safety.