June Summerfield

Chapter 5

The group made their way into Atlanta. The sound of the dead became much louder now, so they had to hang low as they made their way through the once-busy city. The deeper they got, the more dead they ran into. They decided it would be best to find shelter as a group instead of splitting up this time.

They went from building to building, through old restaurants, bookstores, music shops, and clothing stores, looking for anything useful and scoping out areas for shelter. They found some food, bottles of water and a couple of notebooks. They found an old thrift store with only a couple of busted windows and posters along with the others.

“We’ll stay here tonight. It seems as safe as we’re gonna get. Two people will have to stand guard at all times though. Just to be a little safer.” Rufus instructed everyone once they got inside and in the back of the store. “Alexia, Daisy, you’re on first tonight.” They both nodded that they understood the assignment.

They all spread out closely and laid out their beds for the night. June looked over Montana. His bed looked so comfy. He had at least two fluffy blankets and a camping mat. She wished she could join him as he crawled under one of the covers and turned his back towards the rest of the group. June pushed the longing feeling in her chest down as far as she could.

As people were laying down one by one, Alexia and Daisy got ready for the first half of the night. They had decided to have the girls do the first half while Tobias and Eli do the last portion of the night.

Alexia looked over at Daisy as she was getting prepared. She noticed that despite not having a bath in a while, her curly, golden blonde hair still looked soft as feathers. Her light blue eyes which were as deep as the ocean just captivated Alexia. Drawing her in. Brightening her dark days. She looked at her soft pink lips and wanted nothing more than to just kiss her. Tell her how badly she wants to be with her.

She shook the thought out of her mind and walked to one side of the room while Daisy took the other. They pulled out two old chairs and sat down, facing each other.

Halfway through their first shift, Daisy raised her head and saw Alexia dozing off. She started to get up and wake her but then, for the first time, she noticed her. Her dark hair hung just past her shoulders, which she almost always had pulled back. It framed her face so... beautifully. Her light brown eyes fluttered shut. She was using her hand as a pillow so her face was all scrunched. Daisy smiled to herself before walking over to wake her.

Maybe one day. Once this is all over. She thought to herself as she snuggled in her bed and watched Eli and Tobias setting up for the rest of the night.

The next day Daisy ran over to Alexia’s bed, rocking her awake. “Good morning sleepyhead!!” She sang. Alexia hates mornings, but something about Daisy waking her up made her heart flutter a bit, which took everything she had to hide.

Everyone got ready to travel more and headed out the back door. They carefully made their way through Atlanta, with only having to kill a few dead. They were about to make it off the main road when they heard someone calling for help. They all ran to the scene, trying to figure out a plan to save the man that was currently standing in a car and full of fear. They split up into groups of two and carefully killed each one off, this not being the time they’ve had to save someone trapped in this position.

“What’s your name?” Montana asked the new guy after they had finished dealing with the situation.

The man’s eyes went straight to June. “Zoran. And you guys?” They went around the room introducing themselves.

“Can I please join you guys? I just got kicked out of my old group for a big misunderstanding!”

They all looked at each other.

“What kind of misunderstanding?” Montana asked, taking a step forward.

“Well, they thought I was stealing food. But I wasn’t! I Promise! We were hiding a small child from this other group and I was bringing her food so she wouldn’t starve.”

“What other group? Why did you need to hide her?”

“You’re not gonna believe me. But.. a group of vampires hunted her down and killed everyone associated with her. I found her running through the woods and brought her back to my group. We took her in and kept her safe. That is.. until the vampires found us. They killed everyone and took the girl.”

“Why did you survive?”

“I managed to break away from the fight and I ran. We were in Marietta, but I ran all the way here and got trapped. I’m so lucky you guys found me when you did.” Zoran thanked the others, taking a deep breath.

Montana looked at Rufus, waiting for him to make a decision. Rufus nodded in agreement: Zoran would be joining their group. Montana didn’t like the new guy. Not at all. Something wasn’t right about him and he was determined to find out what it was.

Unknown POV

Finally, I found her. This whole mission was taking way too long. Too bad she’s with a group. I’ll just have to deal with that when the time comes.

June walked next to Montana as they headed out of Atlanta.

“So, Monty,” June was trying desperately to make conversation but her mind just fell blank. “Tell me more about your life before this all happened.”

“Well, I had just gotten out of the Marines when I met this girl. Her name was Devyn. We hit it off and were a couple for a little bit before the outbreak. I did everything I could to protect her, but she had a hard time following my orders. So one day, she got bit.” he left it at that and June knew better than to press.

“I’m sorry..” she began, unsure of how to respond.

“Don’t be. It sucked at the time, but I’ve found someone else now.” he simply stated as June’s heart sank.

“Can I ask who?” she couldn’t hide the disappointment in her voice.

Montana just shot her a sideways glance as they continued walking, filling June’s heart with a type of hope she had never felt before.

“Where are y’all headed?” Zoran asked, trying to make conversation.

“Savannah,” Rufus answered.

“Really? Well, I got someplace a lot better.” Zoran promised.

“And where’s that?” Rufus asked, tired of this conversation.

“I don’t know who it belongs to, exactly. But there’s a mansion not too far from here. In the middle of the woods. The whole thing is fenced in and once the world practically ended, they reinforced everything. Boarded windows, and a strong lock on the door that will keep anything out. It’s fully stocked with plenty of food, too!”

“And where is this supposed haven?” Alice rolled her eyes.

“It’s in the woods. I can take you there. It’ll be hidden from everyone and everything so we’ll be able to light the fireplace and everything.”

Zoran went on to explain starting to walk backward, hoping they would follow.

“Rufus-” Montana started but Rufus held his hand up to silence him.

“We’ll check it out. But just for a few days. Ultimately, we’re going to Savannah.” He said sternly as the group turned around and followed Zoran back the way they came. Rufus knew they were all a bit desperate for some rest, and if Zoran was telling the truth, it’d be the perfect opportunity.