BITE ME ➼ C. G. 〖 #wattys2016 〗

Chapter 1

A/N 6-10-16: I'm just going to warn you guys ahead of time that these first few chapters have a different feel and writing style than the ones after them. This chapter is crap compared to the rest.

SOTC: Burn by Ellie Goulding
• We've got the fire, and we're gonna let it burn •

"What the fuck!" I yelled, pounding my fists on the bloodstained train car door, tears tracking their ways down my face like rust after a rain.

There was a clang-thud as the door was bolted shut. I dug my fingernails into the gap between the door and the wall, trying in obvious vain to pry it open.

Nothing budged.

My brother's  body was somewhere out there, being carted off to wherever these people cook their meat. My breath caught in my throat as I struggled to keep the bad thoughts at bay.

I curled up into the corner in defeat, screaming between my teeth. My face buried itself into my knees. Don't think about it. Shove it away.

Not like I was going to live long enough anyway.

•••

I woke to the sound of an explosion, rocking the train car like a boat. Then came the gunshots, crackling through the air, and so I stood up, trying to make voices out in the noise.

I heard machine gun bullets pound against the side of the train car, and then the scraping of walkers going past. Since when were there walkers here?

And then the door cracked open, and the sounds began to echo around the metal walls.

"Come on!" Somebody yelled, and I stumbled out, blinking in the unwelcome sunlight. When my vision cleared, I could make out an Asian dude with a rifle, who was gunning down a herd of walkers coming towards us. He wove through the maze of buildings, and I thanked the fact that I can run fast.

I felt bare without my knives. A machete would've been very helpful in this situation, but they'd taken away the one I had with me when they shoved me in the train car. I had to resort to simply dodging the hordes of walkers hobbling towards me.

We came into a clearing, and I scanned my surroundings. The Asian dude was gone, but I was close to the wire fence. Without looking back to check how many walkers were on my tail, I hooked my sneaker toes into the holes, hauling myself over it with a final push.

I rolled up into a standing position and sprinted off into the woods. Dirt flew up at my heels as the woods grew denser. I passed a tree that had a mark, the mark that I had carved into it earlier. Reaching my arms into the hole in the trunk, I grappled at air before finding the strap of my bag.

"Hey!" I whipped around to find the Asian dude, knitting his eyebrows at me. A crowd of other people stood behind him.

My eyes widened to the size of softballs. I whipped my bag out of the tree and sprinted away from them. I had to be alone. Alone means I can't hurt anybody.

Somebody caught me by the straps of my duffel. I strained against them, picking up my knife and trying to sever the strap in their hands.

"We're not the enemies!" I looked up from the strap, at a woman with bright green eyes and brown hair that was short and jagged.

I stopped struggling, but backed up. The woman let the strap slip out of her hands. "We're good people, you can trust us."

I narrowed my eyes at their group. A boy carrying a baby stood towards the back, with a shocked expression fixed on his face.

They can't be all that bad if they have a baby, right?

But I had to be careful.

I nodded, stepping forward again. "Uh... Hi. I'm Keira. I was in Terminus too."

A man with a thick, intertwined beard raised his head, walking towards me. "How many walkers have you killed?" His voice was raspy.

I shivered. "A lot."

"How many people have you killed?"

I let my gaze slip over to the side. "Zero," I said confidently. But it wasn't that easy to say anymore.

The man nodded. "Are you bit?" And after he saw me shake my head, he smiled grimly. "Welcome to the group."

My eyes widened again. "Really?"

"Yes. And we need to get going." He started walking in the direction that they were walking in before, and pretty soon the group followed him.

I felt the adrenaline coursing through my body, like something had gone wrong.

Shouldn't have done that! Go back!
But I didn't. It had been a long time since I had trusted people, but I had to try. I didn't want to make any more Terminus-sized mistakes.

"Hey," The boy who was holding the baby came up to my side, though now he was baby-less. I nodded in his direction with a slight smile, but then turned back to the front before I could look at him.

"What's your name?"

I looked at him full on, and damn. He was definitely attractive. His eyes were the color of polished diamonds, sparkling in the bright sunlight. He had an angular face, which was shadowed by his hair which came in swoops from under his cowboy hat. He was tall and handsome, and he smelled like honey and campfires.

"Keira," I said quickly, after realizing how long I had spent staring at him.

"I like that name." He smiled and laughed, adjusting his shoulder straps. "Very exotic. Me however, I'm Carl." He said it like a frenchie, which sounded hilarious with his slight southern accent.

I smiled, my eyes on the front of the group, putting one foot in front of the other as fall leaves crinkled under my ripped and muddy burgundy converse.

He turned back towards me. "So, what's your story? Everybody has one."

Don't think about it. Shove it away. "You don't want to hear my story."

Chuckling, he set his eyes on mine again. "Why would that be?"

I decided his voice was somewhere between husky and adorable.

"I dunno," I covered hastily. "I'm boring as dirt."

"Nobody is boring. It's just how you look at it."

I looked at my dirt-caked shoes.

"Oh come on. You must have some hobbies."

I gave a weak laugh. "Useless stuff."

"Not back then."

I watched a man with long, sweaty hair shoot a walker with tight precision. He pulled the arrow out and put it back in its quiver, loading a second. He didn't even flinch.

"I liked to read." I gave, crossing my arms over my chest.

The sunlight cast a shadow over his gaze. He thought, then murmured, "I guess I liked pineapple. And playing guitar. Dad took me to lessons every other week on Thursdays."

I smiled against my will. "Can totally see that."

He could be somebody to talk to. I knew that I should probably take off and run, but instead I stayed. You won't fuck this up, I reassured myself.

But I might be mistaken. This could turn out to be just as bad as Terminus.

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A/N from 12-30-15: I swear this book gets more mysterious, badass and intriguing. This chapter is pretty shitty... So plez read on for better stuff :)

•••

Word count:
1259

Edited 12-30-15
Edited 1-7-16
Edited 2-18-16
Edited 8-3-16