Unexpected Love

Chapter 14

2 months that's how long it's been since the world went to shit. 2 months since the dead started walking and eating people. 2 months since I lost my dad. 2 months since we join forces with a group of people. 2 months since we've been living in tents at an old abandoned quarry. After the highway, we meet up with others and set up camp at a quarry just outside the city. They weren't to keen on the Dixons brothers especially Merle. I couldn't blame them he wasn't the most friendly person. He was racist and sexist. Always making some kind of joke or starting a fight. But they need him and Daryl. They knew how to hunt and track they knew how to survive.

There was Dale who was out traveling after his wife had passed from cancer. He found two sisters Andrea and Amy who were out on a road trip when everything went down. Glenn, he was a pizza delivery guy and knew the city like the back of his hand so he would do the runs into Atlanta. Carol and her daughter Sophia and her husband who was abusive. I could see the faint bruises on her arms. Jim was a mechanic who lost his wife and two boys at the very beginning. T-Dog and Jacqui who went to the same church along with others. The Morales family.

Then there was Shane who was a police officer. His partner had been shot a few months before the outbreak. When he went to go save him the hospital was overrun and the army burst in and started shooting everyone whether they were infected or not. They bombed the hospital which cut the power. Rick had been hooked to machines. When Shane checked him he said he wasn't breathing so he ran. He went to Rick' s house and got Rick's wife Lori and their son Carl. I was pretty sure Shane and Lori were hooking up just by the way they acted. He would say he was going to do patrol around the camp then a few minutes later she'd make an excuse to leave as well.

Daryl and Merle set up camp about 40 or so feet from everyone else not wanting to be near them. I of course not knowing anyone went with them. We shared our food and water but kept the weapons a secret for now. I couldn't part with them and Daryl understood that. If things got bad then I'd say something.

Right now Daryl was out on a hunt and Merle had gone with Glenn on a run. Normally he'd go by himself but today he decided to take a small group. T-Dog, Morales, Jacqui, Andrea, and Merle. They figured the more people the more stuff they could bring back. I stayed put Daryl wouldn't let me go with him and Merle wouldn't let me go on the run. I got along with Amy since she was closer to my age so I stuck with her mostly. Carol was a friendly woman but her husband Ed always kept a close eye. Lori, it seemed thought she was better than everyone else since Shane voted himself the leader.

And Shane, Shane I didn't like he just rubs me the wrong way, give me a bad vide. It's like the leader shit has gone to his head. And when Daryl isn't around he looks at me like he's undressing me with his eyes. I couldn't say why when he has his dead best friend's wife he's clearly swearing. The first few days we were here he saw my gun and was a dick thinking I didn't know how to use it.

"You know how to use that thing princess,"  he said to me.

I had turned around and looked at him "what?"

"That gun, a girl like you know how to use it?" He said with a smuggling look on his face.

"A girl like me?" I asked.

"Yeah, you know the type the girly kind that won't even get dirty," he said.

"For one, I'm not girly. For two I'm a nurse, dirty comes with the job. And I do know how to use it thank you," I said.

"It's not just point and shoot," he told me.

"No shit. I know that Shane. My dad was the sheriff of our town I know how to use it, I know how to take it apart and clean it and I know how to put it back together. I'm not some helpless little girl, I could take your ass down easily," o spit out at him.

His face was priceless, he was shocked I stood up to him. I had turned around and walked off after that. Right he was out on patrol which was bullshit he was actually waiting for Lori. But Lori was waiting for Amy who had gone to pick mushrooms. Once she was back Lori asked Dale to watch Carl and told Carl to listen to Dale then she was off into the woods. I went to mine and Daryls tent. Yes I shared a tent with Daryl I forced him to, I don't want to be alone. But I walked in and started folding any clean clothes and putting them in our bags and then gathered the dirty ones so they were ready to be washed tomorrow.

A few hours later Glenn camp flying up the dirt road in a red charger with the alarm blaring. Shane was not happy. While he yelled at Glenn to pop the hood Amy was all over him about Andrea. "Yeah, yeah. Okay. She's alright, everyone is. Well Merle not so much," he said after popping the hood. Jim had silenced it. And a box truck pulled up with everyone else but Merle.

"How'd you get out of there?" Shane asked.

"New guy," Glenn told him.

"New guy?" Shame asked.

"Yeah, crazy vato just rolled into town. Hey, helicopter boy cone says hello," Morales said.

"He's a cop like you," he told Shane.

Then Carl was running with Lori behind him. "Dad! Dad!" Carl yelled. The man dropped down picking Carl up and walking to Lori who wrapped her arms around him. I looked over to Shane he was clearly shocked but also disappointed that Rick was alive. Lori glared at him and he put his head down. That night we sat around a fire and talked about Rick and his journey.

"Disoriented, is the closest thing that comes to it," Rick said.

"Mom said you were dead," Carl said looking up at his father. Lori looked at Rick not knowing what to say.

"And she had every right to believe that. Don t you ever to get that," Rick told him.

We sat there and talked about what to do with Daryl. How they were going to tell him about Merle. I wasn't happy Rick handcuffed him to a roof by I understood why he did it. I had had to deal with Merle a lot. And when I came to dealing with Daryl when he'd try and stick up for him my dad would take any measures he had to even if that meant locking Daryl up as well. He could get violent when mad especially when it comes to his brother.

"We could lie," Amy said.

"Or tell the truth. Your husband did what was necessary," Andrea said.

"She's right. We can't lie to him, it'll just piss him off more. My dad would restrain both of them he needed too. Daryl will always stick up for his brother no matter how much of an ass Merle is to him. But I can't promise that if Merle has comes back Daryl will be a lot better," I said.

"How do you that?" Rick asked.

"My dad was the sheriff in our town. He dealt with the Dixons a lot. He loved Daryl though he saw him as a son. Daryl was always at my house until I went to college. But while Merle was in jail Daryl was more relaxed and not as much of a hothead. Merle being around he talks him into shit and as the rest of you have seen he puts him down. That's how they were raised their father was an alcoholic asshole. Just know you're going to have your hands full. And Daryl will want to go get his brother whether it be with a group or alone," I said and stood up.

"I'll try to help as much as I can but no guarantees. I and Daryl are kind of in the middle to getting back to the water were before I went to college," I said.

"The way you were? We're you guys a couple" Andrea asked.

"God, no. He's ten years old than me I was 17 he was 27. I would try but he'd push me away he's not the type to take advantage of sone one. He wouldn't even do anything with me when I turn 18 and we got into a huge fight then I left for NYU. We just started talking again when all this shit started," I told them and then headed to my tent to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a rough day.