I found it hard to fake a pleasant attitude as we got back in the car and were on our way.

Jacob kept glancing over at me as if he was thinking about something, worrying over it. I wanted to glare at him and say knock it off, but I figured that would just make it worse.

We'd be in the car for hours without break. It was sweltering and the sun was strong out today. I could tell that Nicole and Callie were starting to get antsy, cooped up for so long.

We were getting close to Anaconda, I knew. I recognized the road. My uncles had taken me here before. That meant we were just a few hours away from Aurora Hills.

We'd need a break before then. Anaconda would be a good place to rest. Philipsburg might be better, but I felt the chances of zombies were stronger there. Besides, I wasn't sure the girls could wait that long.

It was odd how overly protective I had become of them. We'd begun to care for each other as some sort of weird family. That was going to make it hard for us to go our separate ways.

For now, I didn't have to worry about it. I was going to, as worrying was my forte, but I didn't have to make that hard decision now.

"Hey, Jacob, think we should pull over soon? Take a break to stretch our legs? What do you say?" I said as Callie began absentmindedly kicking my chair.

We were in Anaconda now, a town that if you hadn't been there before you would have thought had been stricken hard by the apocalypse.

Truth be told it was simply always like that. Dirty, empty, a total wasteland. Nothing had really changed since I had last been here.

"That's probably a good idea." Jacob said as he took off his leather jacket. He must have been melting inside. It was far too warm out for it to be October in Montana.

He pulled over near a baseball field and a large slide. Dandelions grew along the field and around a picnic table that sat right outside the field, next to the slide. Scraps of cardboard sat near the slide.

I got a few snacks out of the back, tossing a bag of chips at Nicole. I handed Callie some of my trail mix as I hopped up on the picnic table.

She popped a handful of the snack in her mouth before looking around as she began to gather dandelions. I smiled, remembered doing that same thing when I was in middle school.

Jacob found an abandoned bat and a baseball near the field and waved Nicole over to him. The two went off into the field where he began to pitch for her.

I smiled. It almost felt like a normal summer day.

Callie spread out her findings across the table and began attempting to twist them into a circle.

"Dandelion crown?" I asked as I watched her begin to get frustrated.

She nodded.

I showed her how I had done it when I was younger, picking up some of the dandelions she had set down next to me. I weaved them into a circle, making a much stronger wreath. I placed it on her head with a smile.

She beamed at me. She redid the one she had started and while it was still a little floppy and some of the dandelions stuck out quite a bit it was mostly structurally secure. It was far too big for her, so she placed it on my head.

I liked how the yellow stuck out against my red hair.

"FORE!" The warning was a bit late as the baseball came whooshing between us. My heart practically stopped for a second.

Jacob jogged over to us yelling at Nicole. "That's golf, Nic! Not baseball!"

"Were you trying to hit us?" I asked. "You're supposed to hit it into the field, not this way!"

He shrugged sheepishly. "I know."

Callie shook her head. "The ball's over there."

Jacob grabbed it over by the slide, before looking carefully at the two of us. "You guys look cute."

"I think Jacob wants a dandelion crown." I grinned at Callie.

She laughed.

"Heck yeah I do! That yellow matches my shirt." Jacob stretched out his shirt as if we couldn't already see it.

Callie began weaving more dandelions together.

"Hey, grandpa, you get the ball or not?" Nicole yelled at Jacob, teasingly.

"Sorry, I can't hear you! I'm too slow and old!" He rolled his eyes.

I snickered. "Jacob is always either five years old or a thousand. There's no in between."

Jacob stuck his tongue out at me. Nicole crosses her arms.

"You're one to talk. You're old too. Seventeen, jeez, more like seventy."

"You think anyone older than you is ancient." Jacob responded.

"Yup." Nicole popped the p as she spoke.

"Eighteen actually." I said, softly, looking down at my hands.

"What?"

"It's October 7th. My birthday. I'm eighteen." I brushed some hair out of my eyes, tucking it behind my ear. "Not that it matters. What am I gonna vote for?" I laughed.

They all looked awkwardly at me, unsure what to say to that. Jacob patted me awkwardly on the back.

"It's fine. It's strange, but I'm actually doing okay." It wasn't a lie. I hopped off the table. "And you know what? I think it's a real crime none of us have tried out that epic slide."

Jacob nodded, his usual smile spreading far across his face. "Now you're talking, red."

In the distance a group of zombies stumbled towards us. Not a large horde, but a sizable one, a noticeable one. Only I didn't notice quite yet.

In a few minutes I would realize it was there, stumbling it's way ever closer to us.

But in that moment, in the blissful warmth of the sunshine and company, closer than ever to my goal, I was unaware.

The crowd crept closer.

Sorry that took me so long. I really liked this chapter! I thought it was warm, an attempt to balance things after the last one. It's probably a bit of a mess. Still... I hope you liked it!
~Oz