Once Gabry was over her fatigue, Bexley had her on the red pony and then they were on the move. In the time they had been together, Gabry had learned an excess of things about her heroine:
She was nineteen and originally from Oklahoma, having only come East for college.
She had been heading to Washington DC on a hunch that things were better there, because afterall, "That's where the President is."
The first place she had raided out on her own was a Victoria Secret, saying that "You cannot go through the apocalypse with the wrong support." She even gave Gabry a new bra, and a spare. (She had raided more than just her size to "be safe".)
She had agreed to take Gabry as far south as Chattanooga, but would not go back through Georgia.
Gabry learned that the dead heads on her saddle and the blood smeared on her and the horses disguised her from the creepers (that is until it was sweated off).
She never used a gun, only the throwing knives and a machete she had on her saddle. "Gunfire attracts the living, too." It had taken four hours for Gabry to get one to stick into a tree.
She liked nearly every type of music (with the exception of 90's) and would sing any random lyric that came to mind, ranging from AC/DC to Taylor Swift. She wasn't all that bad of a singer, but with Gabry's head feeling like it could explode any minute, she was ready to throttle her if it meant getting just a moment of silence.
Gabry still felt like she had the flu, less drowsy, but still sore all over. Riding for ten hours a day wasn't really helping her either, and even if she wanted to walk, she couldn't keep up with the pace of the horses. Even when Bexley offered to walk with her, she had become dizzy.
"What's your favorite type of music?"
Gabry snapped to attention, holding onto the saddle horn to steady herself. "Huh?"
Bexley had been babbling all afternoon to the point that Gabry had eventually tuned her out. She twisted around in the saddle so Gabry could hear her better. "Favorite music genre?"
"I don't know...country." That had been the only genre she and Daryl could agree upon in the truck, and even still sometimes they got so frustrated with each other they'd just turn the radio off and sit in silence.
"Country, eh? I didn't really take you for country. You know, truth is, I don't know all that much about you. It's been, what? Two and a half weeks? Come on, twenty questions and I'll shut up for the rest of the day."
Gabry snorted. "Deal." She had come to like Bexley, not matter how annoying she might have been. She was someone who hadn't changed much after the outbreak, and her chipper-spirit lifted the mood.
"Okay, um...where are you from? No, wait, you told me Blue Ridge. Um...what was your career before all of this?"
Gabry shrugged. "I didn't really have one. I gave horseback riding lessons."
"What a coincidence. Er, biggest fear? Other than the creepers."
"I really hate sharks."
"Ugh, same. I hate the ocean. One thing you miss before all of this?"
Him. The smell of his t-shirt when she'd steal them. They way he looked at her. The way he touched her, kissed her, held her. The way he'd laugh or smile. She missed the little things, like when he got the hiccups, the way he glared at her when she was poking fun at him, or the way his arms looked when he was driving. She missed her family, but knowing they weren't alive and that maybe he was still somewhere out there made her miss him more. "I miss the smell of barbecue."
"Well put. Were you ever married before this?"
She cringed. She should have been. It should have been with Daryl. They would have been married in the church, and he would have hated standing infront of everyone, but then they'd honeymoon at the beach somewhere, or maybe the mountains, or maybe they would have stayed home under the covers. Geez, how she missed him. "No."
"Did you have a boyfriend?"
"Can we changed the subject?"
"What? It's a yes or no question."
"Yeah, but-"
"Well obviously you did. What was his name?"
"Bex..." She warned.
"Come on, let me guess."
"Bexley, just drop it!"
"It's a damn question."
"Stop it. He's dead and it doesn't matter." She blurted.
The brunette seemed taken back by her outburst, a little hurt, too. "Okay...sorry," And then she turned around and didn't ask anymore questions. And she was unpleasantly quiet for the rest of the day, making Gabry feel even worse than she already did.
* * *
Gabry huddled under an eighteen-wheeler that had been driven into the ditch. She watched Bexley unsaddle the horses and hobble their legs so that they could graze without wandering too far, and then she observed as Bexley took out a light and started a small fire. She cringed as she pulled out another can of beenie-weenies. She put the can near the fire, and then sat down on one of the saddles to overlook it. All of this she did in silence.
"Bexley, I'm-"
"Save it." She bluntly cut her off. "If anyone in the world says 'sorry' to you, it's because they're about to do a bad thing. So save it." The brunette didn't even look up at her.
"Bex, I didn't mean to snap at you."
"No, I get it. You don't want to talk about it, because neither do I." Bexley rubbed her nose, and prodded the can with the toe of her boot. "Did you at least see it when it happened?"
"I saw it happen to my sister. I don't know if it happened to him."
Bexley nodded, her eyes still focused on the fire. "When I saw them force that rope around his neck, that's when I knew." She cast her unsettling gaze on Gabry. "I knew it was safer to be out here with the creepers than with anyone else. They're black and white, humans are in the gray. Creepers will let you know they want to eat you. Humans will smile to your face while they figure out the easiest way to kill you."
Gabry said nothing at all to this. Bexley kicked the can of beans away from the fire and opened them. She spooned what she wanted into her mouth, and then handed it over to Gabry. She had lost the ability to taste beans by now.
"You never told me why you were going back to Georgia." Bexley said as she licked her thumb. "I'm just going to assume the this he fellow isn't dead."
"I'm hoping not."
"Me too." She stretched out on the grass, using the saddle as a pillow. "It'd suck to come all this way for nothing." She shifted and tossed to get comfortable, muttering, "You have first watch," before turning away from her companion.
Tomorrow would be their departure. She refused to take Gabry and further than Chattanooga, even though she was still weak. She tried to convince Gabry to come with her, and Gabry had done the same. Bexley at least wanted her to wait another week to regain her strength, but Gabry wouldn't have it. She couldn't put off finding him. She couldn't bear the anxiety of not knowing anymore.
* * *
When Gabry was finally able to sleep, she had nightmares. They were reoccurring, and had plagued her like the dead plagued the Earth. Some nights she dreamed she were wearing white, walking down the aisle and all she could see was him. But the closer she drew towards him, the further away he stood. Other night she was dressed in black, and again she walked down a long aisle. She always reached her destination in this one, and ended up looking into a six foot hole and there he would be. Sometimes dead and reanimated and sometimes dead for good.
She would always jolt awake like she was falling and had caught herself. This hadn't gone unnoticed by Bexley, either.
"Nightmare again?" She asked as she tightened the girth on the white horse.
"Yeah." Gabry grumbled, feeling as if she hadn't gotten but five minutes of sleep.
"That's good. Once you start dreaming about the good stuff, that means you've given up." Bexley turned to face her. "I think that's from a book."
"Yeah," Gabry chuckled. "The Road."
* * *
They reached the edge of the city that afternoon. Bexley had made Gabry cover herself in blood and intestines of the dead as a precaution. Just by the looks of the outskirts, the city was going to be packed.
"Here, take these. You were getting pretty good with them." Bexley said as she handed Gabry her two throwing knives.
"I can't take these." Gabry tried to pushed them away. "They're yours and you're better with them anyway."
"Yeah, but it's tiring having to get off and on a horse to retrieve them. I've got a machete. I'll probably find more along the way." She shrugged. "Keep them to remember me."
Gabry looked at Bexley, completely stunned. "Why are you so nice to me? I'm still practically a stranger, you said so yourself."
Bexley laughed under her breath. "The world ends when humanity ends." She put a hand on Gabry's sticky, blood-covered shoulder and for a moment she looked older than nineteen. "Don't let it end." Gabry was about to say something, but of course, Bexley interrupted her, "My advice to you is to steer clear of any groups you find along the way. If Georgia doesn't work out for you, come find me in DC."
Gabry pulled her into a hug, causing her to gag from the stench, but that only made her laugh. "I will miss you. You're like the annoying little sister I never had."
"Gee, thanks." Bexley said, and hugged her back. "Please take care of yourself. You need to take a sip of water every fifteen minutes." She instructed.
Gabry pulled away from her, wondering if she'd every see this girl again. Maybe she should stick with the one good thing she had found, and forget her efforts in finding Daryl. It was a shot in the dark, and if he were still living, he'd be long gone from where she had last seen him.
"Once I find him, I'll come find you."
"So it is for a boy." Bexley smirked, and then patted her shoulder. "You better get going if you want to make it through the city by nightfall. Keep your fires low, alright. Try and sleep as little as you need, but when you do sleep somewhere high."
"Yeah, yeah I know." Gabry said. "Thanks again. For saving me, really."
Bexley shrugged and turned to head back to where she had left the horses tied up. Gabry looked over the path ahead of her, dappled with creepers and blotted with wreckage. She took in a deep breath, trying not the wobble as she walked.
"Hey Gabry!" She turned to see where Bexley had walked about twenty yards away and now stood with her hands cupped around her mouth. "I wish you all the luck that's left in this world!"
Gabry yelled back, "Save some for yourself!"
The exchanged a laugh, and then waved goodbye to each other. Bexley disappeared into the woods, and Gabry began her expedition through the city.