Don't let go: Joel Miller x OC

If you still want me

A gentle breeze rustled through the green of the acreage of woodland that surrounded them. Joel wasn't opposed to being on patrol in the day time. Even going as far as to say that he almost enjoyed it. The fresh air and wilderness engulfing him as he leisurely rode through the summer scenery. It was less daunting in the daylight compared to his usual evening route. Over the weeks he had gradually picked up a few more shifts. It helped break the week up nicely and the serenity of the enveloping flora and fauna embraced a sense of solace. Yes, there may be the odd infected here and there but it was mostly quiet. He liked quiet.

The brothers rode side by side as they carefully scanned their surroundings for any potential threats. For a long while it was just the therapeutic padding of hooves thudding gently upon the dusty terrain that could be heard.

That was before a familiar shrill shriek echoed between the trunks in the not so far distance. Something had sensed their presence. The siblings ground their mounts to a halt and each took hold of their retrospective firearms. What sensed them would find it's way to them. There was no need to go searching. They just needed to bide their time and for it to show itself.

It was only a matter of minutes before it did. A singular runner threw itself through the abundance of trees towards them, all limbs erratically flailing as it's grunts and croaks became frantic. The once human but now dead behind the eyes fixed its first target on Tommy, launching itself towards him in a fit of gargled hisses.

Of course Tommy was well prepared and a single but precise bullet to the brain neutralised the threat within an instant as it fell to the ground in a limp heap. Once just dead behind the eyes, now ridded from the earth entirely to rest peacefully in the afterlife. It was almost poetic. There was no tension or reaction whatsoever as both brothers nonchalantly watched the body hit the floor. An unfazed huff escaping the eldest brothers lungs as he slung his rifle back over his shoulder.

Joel jumped off his horse with a strained grunt, using the toe of his boot to kick the body onto its back, hands scaling its corpse to check if it still had anything of use. He searched its pockets and pulled a fix blade hunting knife which he quickly stashed in his rucksack before hauling himself back onto his ride, taking a second to readjust the saddle that had slipped with his weight before glancing back expectantly to his brother.

Tommy could sense his siblings awaiting eyes urging for them to make a move and yet he still found himself staring down at the body they would leave behind, particularly at the small circular bullet hole that had torn through its skull. 'It'... She was a conscious human just like himself not all that long ago... maybe even as recent as hours ago... The body belonging to a young woman, possibly still in her twenties. Her strong human resemblance with a head full of chocolate hair and skin with still a tinge of pink indicating that her infection had only taken place very recently. What a waste of a precious life.

"It's always harder when they still look human..." He murmured solemnly as he took a moment to mourn the young woman's life. His more empathetic nature coming into play as he considered the backstory of the events that must have lead to this. Was she alone? Did she have any loved ones to miss and mourn her loss? The fear she must have felt as the tendrils slowly mapped her body and took control of her humanity...

Joel took another sharp glance at the corpse, just a fleeting glimpse before emitting a quiet sigh to himself. He had become numb to it over the years, to him it was just another infected. He no longer saw it as human, especially when he didn't know the person before hand. He chose not to dwell on the story behind the being. It no longer mattered after all. They were gone long before Tommys bullet disabled its already decaying form. It's humanity had died the moment it's skin was perforated by another set of gnashing contaminated teeth.