Beginning of the End

XVI

(Devin's point of view)

We all pile into the van and make our way to town. It's a good 30-45 minute drive. I look toward the front, where Aysa and Lamar are. Lamar was taking the turns like a professional, but he knows these roads like the back of his hand. William looks over at me.

    "What did you do before all this?" He asked me, sparking up conversation.

    "Well," I cleared my throat, "I was, kind of, one of those spoiled rotten rich kids." I chuckled.

    "Sperry's and all?" Aysa asked, turning to look at me. I laughed.

    "Yep. Pastel colored shorts, everything."

    "Did you, uh, know Lucas before this?" Tyler asked. We all sat silently for a moment.

    "I did, yeah... He went to school with me. Played lacrosse. He was a douche. I don't know why I paired with him in the beginning. Maybe because I was scared and alone?" I shook my head, "I'm not sure. My dad was a doctor, he never made it home. My mom killed herself. So, I just went out on my own. I had to."

    "Damn..." William sighed, "Tanner's like my brother. So, we came to Roanoke, because we knew it would be better than Radford. We kinda stumbled upon Jade by luck. We were walking down the road, saw the fence and walked up. We heard people and next thing I see, Jade's walking towards us. It was a relief, that's for sure." He smiled.

    "Lamar, Nick, Khalil, and I made our way up from Texas. We picked up Brittany from Florida first. That was a crazy ass trip." Tyler chuckled.

    "Yeah it was, good god." Lamar laughed.

    "What about you, Aysa?" I asked. He shrugged.

    "I worked at a Kroger. My brothers, Elyas and Cymon, came to get me. Elyas' wife, Shannon was with us at first, but we got attacked on our way to Community. She got bit. Elyas put her down... Then we buried her." Aysa was looking out the window. He sighed.

    "What's on your mind?" Lamar asked, glancing over to him, then back at the road.

    "I just, really regret a lot of things before this happened, you know?" He answered. He sounded hurt. Like he's been holding onto a lot of negative feelings.

    "I know what you mean," Tyler sighed. We turned into town, and Lamar slowed down.

    "Where do we stop by first?" He asked.

    "We haven't hit the Bonsack Walmart, or that Kroger." William spoke up.

    "I was thinking Sam's Club." Aysa said.

    "We'll hit all three." Lamar smiled.

We drove to our destinations and spoke of our random lives now, compared to before. We told jokes, asked what if's. Then we pulled into the Walmart parking lot. There was a fence around the inner lot.

    "Looks like this was a FEMA meeting spot at the beginning." Tyler said. We parked and all got out the van. Everyone had their weapons drawn and ready. We made our way, slowly and carefully, to the edge of the fence. Lamar stopped us and picked up a rock, throwing it over the fence. It hit something, making a loud sound. We waited for a minute or two. No walkers. I sighed with relief. We found a whole in the fence, and walked through.

    "They must've all left?" Tyler shrugged. We made our way into Walmart, and it looked almost untouched.

    "Beautiful." William smiled.

    "Be careful, guys," Lamar looked back, "Devin and William, with me. Aysa and Tyler go the other way." We all nodded. Aysa and Tyler walked off towards the Home and Entertainment. We made our way to the clothes and food. We grabbed bags and stuffed whatever we could in them.

We all met up in the entertainment section. Aysa was looking through the books which was next to the gaming aisle.

    "You read a lot?" I asked, walking up to him.

    "Nah, but Jade does. She has a bookshelf." He smiles as he sticks a few books in his bag.

    "Alright, guys," Lamar walks up, "Got everything we need?"

    "Yep." I nod. Then we hear something fall in the distance. We all draw our weapons, looking around at each other. We slowly walk to the end of the aisle, William and I facing the opposite direction in case of ambush. Lamar shakes his head.

    "I don't see anyone." He turns around and nods at us. We all walk out, making our way back to the van. We each had a few backpacks full of stuff.

    "Jade will be proud." I smile.