it almost worked

.009

IT ALMOST WORKED !
the walking dead !
.009   -   on your left !

   FAITH WAS AT AN ALL TIME LOW.  the group was tired, exhausted to the bone. dark bags beneath their eyes, sun burnt, and tired from the long trek that hadnt come to an end. they'd been running since the CDC went up in flames, deciding to do what shane wanted to do, which was going to fort benning. it was the only plan they truly had. no one got their hopes up this time around, not wanting to be let down once again like with the CDC, where they had lost friends and lost any hope they had remaining for a cure to be made. yet shane held hope, he believed with everything in him that fort benning would be good. natalia couldn't bring herself to think that way, especially not after the CDC, it had given everyone a false sense of hope. it had made everyone truly believe that they'd be okay, that they were gonna be safe. then it blew up, and forced the group to attempt to make their way to fort benning. it was a miracle that the group had made it out of the CDC alive. now it'd be a miracle if they survived. the road was dangerous, and they were lacking supplies. natalia couldn't remember the last time they'd all had a proper meal. the last time she wasn't helping search old cars and vehicles for gas and supplies. the group was tired, their strength dropping with each passing day, many finding it difficult to get themselves up. knowing the day would only bring scavenging and avoiding the dead, nothing more then the routine they'd created. it was not living, merely surviving . sleep had proved to be more difficult then anything, keeping the grimes girl awake each night. her mind plagued with the nightmares of what her mind had been scared with, with what her mind came up with. the road they drove in seemed to be never ending, it felt like fort benning was mocking them as they struggled. natalia sat in the backseat, the third row of the vehicle they'd found, switching between vehicles as needed, anything with fuel. lee sat beside her, opting out of being anywhere near his father, a new bruise resting on his cheek. lee had lied and said he'd fallen down the steps when they'd searched an old house a few days prior. though he had spilled the truth to natalia late one night, he didn't keep much from the girl, he never could.

   she had wanted to go to her father about it, like she had each time he showed up with a bruise. each time it had become apparent it was getting worse. lee had shut that idea down as quick as it had showed up, telling her he'd tell rick about what happened at the CDC. so she stayed quiet, with guilt in her bones. she'd been searching for a proper time to tell her father about shane and lori, wanting to tell him away from the others. yet each time she found a time to, something had happened which resulted in her not being able to tell rick the truth. her head rested against the window, her legs resting in lees lap, and a content expression on her face. chills running up her spine as his fingers gently traced up and down her calf. the caravan had slowed, the sea of abandoned cars, clothes and trash spewed onto the ground. the camper van had come to a complete stop in the middle of the sea of cars. smoke coming from under the hood, rick slowed the car to a stop pulling the keys from the ignition. lee gently patted the girls calf, motioning to where everyone had already began to climb out. natalia let out a soft groan as lee lowered the seats in front of them, the two climbed out of the vehicle. a frown was on natalia's lips as she trailed close behind lee, the two looked around at everyone who looked to dale. shane stood guard, his shot gun over his shoulder as he looked around for the dead. "we can find a whole bunch of stuff here." daryl spoke, his back to the group as he pulled a can of corn out of the back of an SUV.