Jessica

A/N: Dedicated to @_amnesia for the amazing cover. :)

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The smell of decaying flesh hung low in the air. My nose had become accustomed to the scent, and I no longer cringed when it dominated in the air supply. My rifle rested between my shoulder blades and the machete in my hands grew dull with every tree branch or vine that I hacked at. My boots crunched over twigs and dead leaves as the mosquitos made Braydon and I their breakfast. I couldn't see the sun through the tree branches, but I knew it couldn't be any later than 7 a.m.

The trees and vines began to clear and I sighed in relief when they disappeared completely. The sounds and smells of fresh running water greeted my ears and nostrils. A grin spread across my face as I turned to Braydon. His unkempt hair hung low in his eyes in sweaty clumps and I knew that my matted auburn locks could have looked no better. It had been a week since we had last bathed, and the sweat and dirt on our skin and in our hair was next to unbearable.

He smiled to me and we both rushed forward. We quickly I unstrapped and placed our guns and knives next to the backpacks that we had been carrying. We turned from each other as I pulled off my tank top and he removed his shirt. I finished undressing and removed my ponytail, releasing the grease ball I called hair. I took a moment to enjoy the gentle beauty I the water. The early morning light glinted off of the water. I cannonballed gratefully into the water.

My teeth began chattering almost immediately as the cold water held its vice grip on my nearly naked body. I gritted my teeth to reduce the chatter and swam my way toward the middle of the lake.

"I'm in!" I yelled to Braydon from my position in the water. He turned to face the river and busied himself cleaning out his shirt. I worked at removing most of the dirt from my skin and hair with the freezing water. Braydon finished scrubbing his shirt and lay it out to dry, then moved on to his pants. I finished cleaning myself and took the extra time to enjoy the clarity the water brought, even in this dire situation.

I wondered how deep the lake was. Hopefully no more than 15 feet. I'll try it. I took a deep breath and plunged underneath the water. I didn't open my eyes and I concentrated on the movement of my muscles and the numbing sensations the water caused on my body. Moments later my hand brides the sandy lake bed and I kicked off from the bottom, swimming leisurely back to the top until my lungs began to burn. I swam faster and gulped in lung fulls of air once I reached the surface. I cleared water out of my eyes and glanced toward the shore. I couldn't see Braydon anywhere, but his pants and shirt rested on a rock with the sun drying them out. My eyes scanned the shore, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Figuring he had just left to use the restroom, I paddled to the shore and began washing out my old clothes. I slipped on my only other clean T-shirt, and pair of shorts.

After I had lay my clothes on the rock next to Braydons to dry. I rested my eyes and let the sun soak into my skin and dry my hair.

I had dozed off slightly when I heard a groan come from the woods behind me. My eyes shot open and I rolled toward the blade next to me. Snatching the handle, I scanned the woods for signs of movement.

An older man came stumbling through the brush and I froze. His skin hung in tatters around his face and neck, like his clothes. Endless days in the sun had leathered is skin to a disgusting brown. His eyes were dead, but lived with a vicious hunger that set me on edge. His jacket sleeve was torn, and exposed to the air was a telltale bite mark. The reason he was in this situation. The skin had puckered around the edges, his bodies last efforts at saving him before the disease claimed his life, then reanimated him.