The wind blew, the harsh cold air stood the bodies of the dead. It took them longer to walk and roam then in regular temperatures. The leaves were gone from the trees, falling to the ground like they would've been picked right back up for spring, but that was never the case. They wore away, wore them selfs down from being blown around and crushed to where they showed holes or were in pieces. They were as dead as the walkers. They were worn and out of touch, losing limbs and clothing torn to shreds by the previous blood dirty hands before. The stares of the living that witness this will probably never be able to have their true selfs restored back, endless this was who they actually were to begin with.
It's been days since the sun had made an appearance with the slowly aching world. The dark clouds make it as if day light never came, it was just dying light if there was a proper word.
Hungry thoughts with empty stomachs never were a good match. It eats away at the mentality of someone and most of the time physical power because that withered power is being chewed apart instead of living human teeth chowing down on some left over squirrel or raccoon, whatever hasn't been scavenged yet.
A large vehicle rumbles through the freezing weather, the exhaust bleeding through the crisp air, it was easy to tell when something hot met the cold.
Months after the affair with Dag and his safe haven, the ones that survived just drove, drove until they needed gas, finding a station and continuing on. They didn't know exactly where they were thinking or wanting to go to, but they made sure it was north, north of where ever they were previously.
The first to show his face from the reflection of the windshield in the Hummer was Bailey. Next to him, Mark, which was quieter then usual, it was better that way. He picked them up after the walkers got wandered away from the house. In the back, Dylan on the right window, Jake on the left and Maddie in the middle. In the extra space in the very back was Rob, Zane, and Grayson. Taking shifts, Rob and Bailey would drive because no one else would try to come up with a better system. They don't talk about that day back at the strong hold, but somehow they managed to break free and gain as much supplies as the place stored. They were fine for the few moments, but surly someone wanted more than the life like this.
"Still don't know where we're going?", Bailey looks back at everyone from the rear view mirror.
"Just keep driving...", Dylan snarls.
Bailey sighs and looks away. Mark finally gets annoyed enough to talk.
"Stop the car!", Mark asks.
Dylan lifts his head off the window and listens for a moment, everyone else tuning in also.
"What?", Bailey is confused.
"Stop the damn Hummer!"
"No, Bailey, don't listen to this prick!", Dylan snaps.
"What did you say to me, faggot?!", Mark turns his head.
"You heard me!"
"Stop the damn Hummer, I'm tired of this shit!", Mark grabs Bailey's wrist.
"Stop Mark, the damn road is slick!", Bailey pulls his arm away.
"Then listen to me goddamn it!", Mark shouts.
"Guys!", Rob tries to come in.
"This isn't your place, so shut-up!", Dylan quiets Rob.
"You don't get to talk to them like that?!", Zane snarls.
"Fuck you, what do you know?", Dylan looks out the window.
From behind him, he sees the reflection of Zane coming over the seat. Dylan turns and before he knew it, his head was bashed in to the window and his vision goes to a blur.
Bailey brings the car to a halt. Mark and him hop out and come to Dylan's side. Zane lifts the back door and everyone else hops out with him. Maddie and Jake stay in the car, watching Mark and Zane angrily come to Dylan's door. Maddie looks over at Jake, giving him a hint that he needs to help stop them because they'd probably have their way with his brother.
"Goddamn it", Jake gets out and goes over to assist Bailey.
"Guys, I know you're pissed off, but we can't do this shit right now...it's freezing out here!", Bailey tries to hold the two of them back.
"Bailey, move before I take care of you also, this shut-bird had it coming!", Mark exclaims.
"Yeah, move!", Dylan adds.
"Jesus, someone help me!", Bailey cries out.
Rob gets out now, blowing past Grayson who is watching distantly, holding his arms. Jake comes around the Hummer too and pulls Mark while Rob pulls Zane back. Someone grabs the handle of the door and swings it open, letting Dylan fall out on to the icy road. He holds himself on four's while everyone tries to get at him.
"I've had it with this guy!", Mark shouts, his hot breath mixing with the bitter cold winds.
Bailey and Jake are able to push him away, Rob picks up Zane and carries him to the back of the Hummer.
"And again he gets the benefit of the doubt!", Zane yells out.
"Can you guys be any louder?! I swear", Maddie says aloud, looking at the scene from within the Hummer.
Maddie crosses her arms and she hears nothing but the wind now, she shakes her head and then looks down. She feels a slight move of the Hummer, she looks up thinking it was Jake or something, but she was wrong, very wrong.
"Holy shit, someone help!", She cries.
A walker from the woods around them trying to claw at her, she gets stuck in her seat belt, so she can't move.
"Maddie!", Jake yells, running to the Hummer.
Rob and Zane come also, soon able to get the walker away from her just in time. They pull it out of the backseat and throw it to the side of the road.
"You piece of...", Zane kicks the monster in the head.
Rob takes his knife out and stabs it repeatedly in the head. Jake then smashes it's head in, kicking it off farther to the side of the road.
"Can we go, please?", Maddie suggests, scared to death.
They nod and wave Mark and Bailey over.
"Are you okay?", Mark asks, a nervous tone in his voice.
"What do we do about, him?", Zane asks.
"Nothing, we're not going to do anything", Jake answers.
"It's happened more than once now, he can't just keep doing this", Rob explains.
"I have to agree", Bailey pitches in.
"He's a fucking teenager and thinks he can rule all over us, no offense to you of course Zane", Mark bites his lip.
"I'm the youngest out of all you guys, I get it. I've fucked a lot, more than you guys will ever know, but you've gotta trust me or else worse shit is gonna happen...", Jake pleads.
"Like what?", Rob asks.
"Doesn't matter, what matters is that he's over done his welcome, we aren't taking this shit anymore", Mark concludes.
Grayson runs from the other side of the Hummer, a terrifying look across his face.
"More walkers coming up the road!", he yells.
Everyone looks over and sees a large horde of walkers, probably the biggest they've seen since this began.
"Holy--"
"We need to move!", Mark shouts.
"I'll drive this time, I know what this baby can do!", Rob pats his Hummer.
"Be my guest, lets just get the hell outta here!", Bailey's eyes wide.
"Does anyone else realize that's the way we're going?", Maddie explains.
"Crap, what should we do?", Zane asks.
"We could run over the bastards!", Mark smashes his hands together.
"That's probably the worst idea you've come up with, Mark!", Zane shakes his head.
"Think it'd be too long of a horde to wait out till they pass?", Bailey suggests.
"Yeah, way longer than last time, one of them would be bound to see us"
"Why the hell do they keep coming in packs like this?", Jake questions.
"The cold is keeping them bunched up together, so they can stay moving!", Bailey instructs.
"Guys, we need to think of something!", Maddie keeps them focused.
"Fucking hell, alright Mark, guess your plan is all we got, there's no way I'm turning back now, the last turn was hours ago!", Zane sighs, knowing this was going to get ugly.
"Let's get these bitches", Rob and Mark high five.
"This is a terrible idea?!", Bailey announces.
Jake runs to the other side of the Hummer and picks up Dylan, helping him to his seat and getting in on the other side of Maddie again. Bailey gets in the back with Zane and Grayson, shutting the back trunk door. Rob gets in the driver seat while Mark is in the passenger.
"Alright, if shit goes south, we roll down the windows and blast these fuckers till I get a good path again, got it?", Rob turns to see everyone, then staring at Dylan. "Get him back there with Grayson...Zane, get up here"
"Right", Zane helps move Dylan to the very back and sitting next to Maddie, who rubs up against her, which she doesn't mind all too much. Mark catches wind of that and gets more angry.
"Alright, step on it!", Mark grips the oh shit handle as they zoom off.
The sounds of the thuds of the walkers hitting the Hummer, they stare out the windows, some flinching as they hit the glass. Some ended up underneath, getting smashed to about as flat as a piece of paper. There became so many under the Hummer, it was beginning to slow down, the tires turned along guts and bodies.
"Alright, you guys ready?", Rob says to the rest of the group. "Only about halfway down!"
There was no response.
"Guess that's a yes...roll down your windows!", he says aloud.
Mark is the first to roll down his window and stab walkers left and right. Rob rolls his down and does the same. Maddie grips on to her seatbelt as Jake and Zane give one another a look before rolling down theirs, both only going about half way.
"I don't know how long my glass will hold", Zane begins. "It's already cracked pretty good", he says before stabbing another walker in the eye.
"Just hang in there, just a little bit longer, I've got my foot on the gas...trying to push through!", Rob says, his voice give off he was struggling a little.
Jake rolls up his window, blood sprinkled on his face and the window's dripping in blood. He takes a big deep breath before looking over at Zane, who rolls up his window next. Suddenly, the Rob's glass breaks and he is holding a walker in his hands, fending for his life as it snaps it's half handing jaw. Mark isn't paying attention as he continues on his killing spree. Jake begins to reach for Rob as Zane's glass cracks a little bit more.
"Fucking go, hurry!", Zane knows what was about to happen. "Maddie move over!"
"I can't, my belt's stuck!"
"Are you kidding me?!"
Jake moves to help Rob. He comes up to him and knifes the walkers wrists off. Rob is disgusted as he relieves the dead hands off his arms, but as he did that more walkers moved in after him. The Hummer was beginning to shake, they were getting on top, but falling to the front hood.
"Hit the damn gas!", Jake yells to Rob.
Rob pounds the gas peddle and before long the bodies give and the tires began to topple over.
"Good, keep going!"
Just then, Zane's window shatters and walkers move in on him now.
"Grayson!", Maddie yells for help.
"Get them off!", Zane squirms.
Grayson comes over, but before long he gets pulled in and out the window.
"Holy god!", Bailey grabs on to Grayson's legs. "Dylan, we need you, Grayson needs you right now, your damn brother needs you!"
Dylan looks at Bailey. His vision is blurry, he can barely see anyone's expressions. He sees Jake to his very right, barking in his ear and in front of him, Bailey holding on for dear life on to Grayson's legs.
For once his sight comes clearer and he is able to get off his ass. He goes up to Bailey and helps pull. Zane is able to get free and help Rob as well as Mark, surprisingly.
Grayson screams as his flesh is getting torn off. As he is pulled away, his skin was between teeth of a walker and as he was coming away, the skin never left and it just tore right off. Blood squirting on to Maddie's face and clothing as he lands on her lap. Grayson grips his neck while he begins to lose himself. His eyes beginning to go to the back of his head and he lets up the pressure he was putting on the bite.
"God, he's dying...he's going to turn!", Maddie screams. Dylan sits back as does Zane.
"Goddamn it that hurt, go damn it!", Rob shouts out his pain from the front.
Zane has a worried look, but is frightened at the sight of Grayson.
"Go, go, go!", Bailey shouts.
Rob pounds away at the petal again and this time they get free and begin to find a leeway through the horde, soon breaking away.
Mark looks over at Rob as his eyes widen.
"Are you okay?", he asks Rob.
"Ye-yeah, I'll be fine", he responds, his voice broken up.
Rob looks up at the rear view mirror and sees Grayson and sighs, looking away.
"How much time do you think we have?", Dylan looks over the seat.
"I don't know, but I don't wanna be the first to find out, his blood...it's--"
"I know, we'll pull over", Jake looks up at Rob. "It's more than past the time"
"By the way, Dylan...since when did you start caring, after it took you to get your head almost busted in?", Zane's anger hasn't left.
"Enough!", Bailey stops it before it begins. "We just need to be here for Grayson right now"
"He's right, but I think this prick should stay in the car--"
"Screw you, Zane", Dylan announces.
"You don't think I don't know who you are?", he stares up at Dylan with his dark brown eyes.
"What?", Dylan is clueless.
"You're the asshole, who cheated with my girlfriend...Rachel"
"What the hell?", Jake stares at Zane.
"Is that really the matter right now?", Maddie questions. "Because the last time I checked, you don't have a turing walker in your lap!"
"Pull over!", Zane yells.
"It's not safe yet?", Rob instructs.
"I don't give a rats ass if the original Queen Elizabeth risen from dead next, pull over!"
Rob pulls over, Zane getting out, carrying Grayson. Jake cuts Maddie's belt so she can stretch for a minute. Dylan opens the trunk door and Bailey and him walk behind Zane. Jake comes and stands at a distance from Dylan and the others. Maddie was the only one to stand with him. Mark staring at Maddie with Jake and Rob standing with Bailey, leaving Dylan alone. They sit Grayson on the hillside, up it was nothing but woods.
"Does anyone have anything...they'd wanna say?", Rob begins.
"We've done this too many times, I'm going back to the Hummer", Mark puts his hands in his pockets, walking away.
Jake shakes his head.
"Anybody?"
Everyone's in silence.
"He was quiet...plus he shared a lot of blood with me", Maddie looks at herself.
Some people chuckle, dark humor. They were used too it now.
"He saved my life...more than once, he was a good friend to me...", Zane bows his head.
There was no more words spoken, slowly people got too cold to stay, so they went to the Hummer. Soon, it was only Rob, Zane, and Dylan. Zane had been staring down at Rob with Grayson for awhile not caring about Dylan's existence for the moment. He finally had the courage to come up to him and begin to say something.
"About earlier, I haven't forgot what you said", Dylan pauses.
Zane looks up at him.
"Did you see her before all this?", He asked.
"Yes...", Dylan couldn't look at him.
"How many times did you do it?"
"Do what--"
"Don't play stupid with me...", he walks up to Dylan. "How many...times did you...were you with her?"
"I-I--"
"you know damn well you did, so spit it!"
"I was with Skyler at the time...she was there for me...that was it"
"Did you see her...die?"
Dylan thinks back to that day.
"Yes, I did"
Zane's eyes became glassy.
"I looked for her for the longest and to know she was with you the whole time anyway..."
"We found her running from walkers, I saved her life"
"Shut-up, just shut-up!"
Dylan sees Zane's knife on his side.
"What happened to Skyler?", He asked again.
"Died the same way Rachel did, the way everyone does"
"Oh...I'm sure that must've been hard for you", Zane says in a sarcastic tone.
"She-she...we weren't together anymore then, before this happened, we had ended things", Dylan tries to plead.
"So, you use your little break up and all that bullshit to where y'all feel sorry for one another and then you added to the number of times you fucked her, is that it?", Zane corners Dylan with questions.
"It wasn't meant to be...like that...we were friends, Zane", Dylan begins to sweat beneath his jacket. "Skyler was seeing someone else, had nothing to do with me"
Zane chuckles to Dylan's response.
"You can't hide the truth, my friend...it always comes up to where it belongs, out in the open. We'll see if you really are or not"
"Zane...I-I--"
"I'm done talking here, I think from now on, you better be real nice to me, so I don't end up doing something your brother wouldn't wanna see"
"Zane, it's really not--"
"Like I said, I'm done talking here!", he turns and walks back.
Jake is staring at him from the Hummer, but Dylan just turns his back and watches as Rob waits for the right moment with Grayson. Rob cocks his gun back and within seconds, fires two shots in to Grayson's skull, so he couldn't come back. He then looks over at Dylan, taking a deep breath in and then blowing his hot air into the cold. He walks over to Dylan, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Still think you made the right choice?", he asks.
"I never made the right choice, with anything..", Dylan feels the stares still.
"I'm happy you finally realized that, but I must ask. Is there something I need to know?"
"What're you saying?"
"Your brother said he was sorry for what he did, what happened? What did he do? I know it's caused a lot of stress on you by the way you're acting"
Dylan knows exactly what he's talking about.
"It's not the right time...", he instructs.
They begin to walk and move on as the sky begins to give out another night with the harsh cold.