Two months earlier.
"Francis. Francis, listen to me, you can't just leave!"
My best friend since college storms out of his 2 bedroom home with two duffel bags in hand. I follow behind him shortly after. He can't leave. He can't leave me. Not now. Not like this.
What is wrong with me?
"I have to, Will. This is my life. This is my husband's life!" Francis drops his bags next to his minivan, glaring down at me. He points a shaky hand at his husband, Greg Lopez, who stood by the entrance of their home. "This thing is real!"
Standing before him, I stare at him with disbelief. My heart aches. If he were to leave, he'd be leaving with a part of me. And if this pandemic is real, he'd be leaving Jodie and me alone. We can barely take care of ourselves. I can't bear it.
But what of his own safety? What if this will be my last time seeing Francis and Greg ever again? The world could be ending and they are putting their lives in danger. Atlanta doesn't make much sense. In history, the public was always warned to stay far away from other humans. For the fear that the sickness of that time could spread. This is just the same. Why would we put more humans in one place?
"Atlanta is crowded as it is. Do you think you'll be safe in a city filled with people? If what you claim is true, you will die. Both of you will die!" I shouted, closing the driver's side door as he attempts to open it. Francis slams the palm of his hand against the roof of his van, aggravated.
"Dammit, Will. Either get in the car or don't! This isn't about you! It isn't always about you!"
Greg hurries over, squeezing in between us.
"Yelling won't help anyone," spoke the tall slender black man. One hand on Francis' chest, the other on my shoulder.
My hands shake beside me as my bottom lip quiver. "I know it isn't about me, but I can't - you're my family. Please. I don't feel good about Atlanta."
Francis shook his head, picking up his belongings from the ground. His expression clear as day, Francis made his decision and there is nothing I can say or do to change his mind. This is what he wants to do. Greg isn't going to argue because, in the back of his mind, he agrees.
Earlier, Francis told me he and Greg were leaving, but I didn't think he would actually leave.
"Greg...please," I turn my attention onto Greg, holding onto his lengthy arm as Francis threw the bags into his car. "You can't, this isn't going to end well if this is real. You can't."
Tears fall down my cheeks as Greg looks down at me with pity. Francis opens the driver side door with anger, pausing for only a moment to shout;
"Greg, get in the car."
Greg hesitates for a second but in the end, hurries to the passenger side.
"Find us when you're done. See you soon," Francis says to me for the last time. The two slip into their van and I watch in sadness as the minivan backs up out of the driveway and drives away without looking back.
Present.
I warned them both. Atlanta made my stomach turn. The idea of it made my head spin. Jodie was the one who pushed the idea to head to Atlanta when the time was right. Shit went down quickly in our city and we ran. I had hoped my gut feeling was wrong. Anthony, Francis, and Greg would be there waiting for us. I put my hopes on my sleeves and gave it a shot, only for it shows that I was right.
So many questions pound my brain; Did they make it? How far did they drive before being cut off if they didn't? Did they see Anthony and his family? Did they all burn into ashes during the explosions?
I can't stop myself. Why am I thinking of them? Just why?
Swatting a few gnats away from my face, the sound of a single gunshot rings through the quiet air. Breaking my thoughts of Francis and Greg Lopez.
Everyone snaps their heads towards the direction we just came from. I search the trees with my knife in hand, stepping behind Lori who also took a few steps forward with concern. She grips the straps of her pack, frantically watching the birds fly from the same direction.
"What was that?" Lori questions, mouth open with fear.
"A single gunshot - maybe they took down a walker?" I speak, still searching the wooded area. Rick has a code; Don't waste a bullet on a single walker. There was one gunshot, nothing more. It could be for any reason.
"Ain' no use in wondering. We need to keep movin'," Daryl grunts. "Come on."
Daryl is right. We can't slow down now. I reach out to gently tap Lori's upper shoulder to get get her attention. She does a double-take at the direction but follows me anyway. Knowing she can't just stray from the group over single gunfire.
The sun slowly dips south. We follow the creek as Shane suggests. The highway is close. We should make it back before dusk if we continue at this pace. I walk behind Daryl with my knife in hand.
"You shouldn't be so harsh on these people," I say to Daryl. "Lori is worried about the others is all. Show some compassion."
Daryl doesn't take the time of day to look back at me. He instead shrugs, "Don't gotta always hold their hands either, Lawyer. I think we balance each other out nicely."
"I have a name you know," I hiss. Growing tired of this.
"Yeah. It's Lawyer. Wait, no. Wha' they call it? Condescending or somethin' like that? The Condescending Lawyer." Daryl says over his shoulder.
Jodie sniggers beside me, covering her mouth to hide the fact but it is too late. I roll my eyes, stepping over tall grass and a single fallen tree. Never in my life would I have guessed things would be like this. In the middle of the woods, searching for a little girl, listening to an ass during the apocalypse.
Not only is he an ass, but he also prefers to hunt down squirrels for dinner.
Taking a look over my shoulder, I take notice of Lori still curious about what happened back there. There's no telling what is going through her head. With her son and husband out there, I can't quite blame her for being concerned.
"Still thinking about it?" Andrea questions. She stood a few steps from me, keeping her attention on Lori.
"It was a gunshot." Lori reminds us, shaking her head whilst looking over the tree lines and hazy blue sky.
"We all heard it," Daryl responds.
Lori shuffles around to face the rest of us, her expression hostile." why one? Why just one gunshot?" Lori questioned Daryl.
Daryl shrugs his shoulders, crossbow resting in his hands as always. "Probably took down a walker as Condescending Lawyer said."
I groan at Daryl who only flicks his eyes at me to show that he knew that I knew his nickname annoyed me.
"Please don't patronize me. You know Rick wouldn't risk a single bullet on one walker or Shane. They'd do it quietly."
Taking a few glances at the other, Carol shifts her purse, pressing her thin lips together .."shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?"
"There's nothin' we can do about it anyway," Daryl says, stepping in the middle of our small group. "Can't run around these woods chasing echoes."
"So, what do we do?" Lori sighs.
"Same as we've been doin'. Beat the bush for Sophia, work our way back to the highway."
"I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the R.V.," Andrea cooed, shaking a confident nod at the worried mothers.
Lori gives in, accepting her defeat by lowering her head and trotting forward, squeezing her hands together tightly. Jodie joins Lori. The two talk together for a while but nothing in particular. Anything to keep her mind off of Carl and Rick.
I dig my hand into Jodie's pack to find our canteen of water and I overhear Andrea speak to Carol. My head raises as the blonde approach Carol with ease.
"I'm sorry for what you're going through," Andrea apologized. As if this is all her fault. "I know how it feels."
Carol sizes Andrea up and flashes her a small smile. "I suppose you do," she says behind her smile. "Thank you." Carol's head turns to face me, tears threatened to escape her already cried out eyes. "The thought of her out here by herself -" Carol paused, letting out a soft sniffle. "It's the not knowing that's killing me. I just keep hoping and praying she doesn't wind up like, Amy."
Andrea's face twists into a frown once the mention of Amy flows from out of Carol's mouth. Carol stood in silence, mouth ajar, regretting what she had just said. Her eyes grew wide, and her cheeks flush in embarrassment.
"Oh, God." Carol sobbed, taking a step towards Andrea. She places one trembling hand onto Andrea's shoulder. "That's the worst thing I ever said."
Andrea's eyes flutter shut. Squeezing them tightly. After a moment of silence, her eyelids open slowly, and a hurt smile forms across her lips. "We're all hoping and praying with you, for what it is worth."
"I tell ya' what it's worth. Not a damn thing," Daryl spat, moving past me. I watch him with caution. ready to tap the back of his head with my canteen if he tries anything funny. "It's a waste of time all this hopin' and prayin'. We gonna locate that little girl, and she's gonna be just fine."
Carol and Andrea both stand in their place with shocked expressions.
Whilst others spoke as Sophia is gone or something bad is happening, Daryl keeps his peace. The light at the end of the tunnel. He is the only one among us that truly believes she is alive.
I wished I shared that optimism.
Shaking his head, he gives the two women a look judgmental glare before turning to me and the others.
"Am I the only one zen around here? Good lord."
Daryl huffs off, mumbling choice words underneath his breath as he always does. Finding his last comment hilarious, Jodie smirks at me, chuckling a little once I shook my head of disapproval.
We spend most of our hunt for Sophia in silence. Watching Daryl kneel to search for prints at least after twelve steps apiece. Listening to Jodie go on about gossip from before that did not matter is mind-numbing. My legs ache and my cheek still throbs every so often. The curs going across my nose and forehead stings underneath the band-aids Dale found while searching the cars settled across the highway.
The sun continues to beam onto the earth, causing thick beads of sweat to cover my skin once more. Brushing my brow, I watch as Dixon search the trees for squirrels.
Every now and again, he squints his eyes, seeing something worth catching. His lips would part, and his muscles would tense as he raised his crossbow. Only to lower the heavy weapon; deciding whatever he found wasn't that important after all. Every detail about Dixon, I store deep into my brain. As if the emotions he displayed would come in handy one day or another. I've never actually studied someone before. Not like this.
I continue to tilt my head he moves forward ahead. He is flawed but not to the point of attraction?
Stop.
A faint voice whisper inside my head and my cheeks flush deeply. I pull my gaze away from Dixon, rubbing the bottom of my shirt between my thumb and index finger.
"We'll lose the light before too long," Daryl says up ahead moments later, looking into tangled trees. We stop far behind him, examining our leader with tired expressions. "I think we should call it quits."
"Let's head back," I agree, running my fingers across my sore cheek.
"We'll pick up again tomorrow?" Carol questions. With her silver eyes, she hugs herself, a supportive smile replacing her permanent frown since the news of Sophia's disappearance
I am taken aback by her pleasant gesture, I pause. Looking on at the mother who blamed me 18 hours ago for the failed attempt to bring back her daughter. Nodding my head, I smile back at Carol.
"Yeah, we'll find her tomorrow."
The others look at me as if my words are false, but Carol held a hopeful face. Daryl blows out a single long whistle, telling us to follow in the nicest way Daryl could muster.
Turning back to the high way, we fall back to following behind Dixon. The wilderness is quiet. The world is quiet, but something about this is peaceful. Soothing to the soul. Behind me, Jodie continues with her 'I spy' game with Glenn. The two are hitting it off. Close in age, they surely have much in common. It is cute. Though, I am not so sure if I would want Glenn sniffing around my little sister.
Carol, Andrea, and Lori keep to themselves, trying their best to make it back to the highway without injury. I, on the other hand, attempt to ignore Jodie and Glenn's conversation. My mind wanders. Visions of the beginning, Francis, the CDC, Jodie's want for death, and Sophia's large blue eyes flash through my brain. All of these events happened so quickly and in a matter of weeks, my head is spinning. My whole body is heavy.
Andrea's scream made my visions crumble. My hands pull away from my head as the other shout for Andrea. Before I could even come to, the others dart the other direction, for our group members. She wandered too far. Too far. Disoriented and confused, I stumble forward, tugging my bow from off my shoulders. Jumping over a stump, my hand reaches over my shoulder, snatching an arrow from within it's home.
The view of Andrea screaming, falling back, and the walker towering over her slows down. My breathing becomes heavy as I place the arrow onto the bowstring. Raising my bow, I tremble - my gaze unsteady. There is no time to correct me, Andrea is near death. My lungs suck in. Aim and fire; for all that, my arrow miss the walker by inches. The monster continues to reach out for a kicking Andrea. She scrambles backward, her feet slipping underneath her.
Now panicked, I reach for another arrow, rushing to attach. The arrow slips from between my fingers. Daryl is nowhere in sight. Wandering too far, he won't make it in time to fix my mess up.
The ground vibrates as I kneel to reach for the fallen arrow. My body flinches to my left as a horse sped past me. The horse, rather large and strong, moves forward without acknowledging the danger in front of it. A woman with short brunette hair grips a baseball bat and with a single swing, the tip of the bat crash against the walkers' head. It falls to the ground with a low groan.
Real-time slowly makes its way back to me. My mouth opens at the horsewoman and her horse who trots before us. She places her bat into the loop of the saddle.
"Lori?!" The unknown woman calls out in a thick southern accent. "Lori Grimes?"
We all stand before this amazing woman with blank expressions. With my arrow in hand, I turn my body sideways just as Daryl ran up alongside me. The two of us breathe heavily, inspecting her carefully. She rode in with a horse, saving the day like Xena: The Warrior Princess. Stunning and all.
"She knows Lori's name.." I whisper to Daryl. We look at each other briefly. I slip my arrow in place whilst Daryl took a stance for a good clear shot at the women's head. We are not losing anyone else today.
"I'm Lori!" Lori steps forward.
"Rick sent me. You've got to come now!"
"What?" Lori breathes.
"There's been an accident. Carl's been shot," she explains quickly. "He's still alive, but you've got to come now." The horsewoman grows impatient with Lori for she just stood there in disbelief. Needing a moment to let the news sink in. "Rick needs you now! We can't waste any more time."
Lori shrugs off her pack from off of her shoulders and hustled towards the horse. She awkwardly places her hands against the saddle of the horse.
"Whoa, whoa. We don't know this girl!" Daryl hollered, breaking our eerie silence.
Ignoring Daryl, Lori thrust herself from off of the ground and mounts onto the horse. Wrapping her arms around the warrior princess with trust.
"You can't get on that horse!" Daryl protest. "Get yer ass down!" He raises his crossbow, however, I am quick to lower it. The chances of hitting Lori is high.
"Rick said you had others on the highway, that big traffic snarl?" The horsewoman says towards Glenn. "Uh, huh -" Glenn nods his head, mouth wide open. His eyes twinkle with admiration.
"Backtrack to Fairburn Road. Two miles down is our farm. You'll see the mailbox. The name is Greene."
"HIYA!"
Greene kicks the side of her horse, speeding away just as she came in. This time with Lori.
Watching the brown animal rush away, I look over the others, searching for answers. Daryl fixes his gaze onto me, biting the inside of his cheek. A low wheeze escape from the walker Greene momentarily knocked down. Slowly sitting upward, brains slightly hang out of the opening if it's skull.
With frustration, Daryl raises his bow and releases an arrow into the walkers' right temple. Not missing or taking chances.
"Shut up," Daryl barked soon after, sulking back to the highway. "Let's go!"