❛ All her organs coming from inside her slashed up skin. Sliced up hide, that's when I realized she was dead! ❜

SEASON 1, EPISODE 5
wildfire

━━━━━━ day 63.

AFTER THE FUNERALS, the group headed out of their camp and headed for the faint hope of the CDC. However, not everyone joined. Morales and his family announced that they wanted to try their luck on the road to Birmingham.

⠀⠀⠀Now, they were slim pickings, Bianca riding with Daryl in his truck with a rolling silence between them. Bianca didn't mind the quiet. She liked to be left alone with no expectation to hold up a conversation. But this silence was palpable with Daryl, an unusual mess of angry, distraught, and frustrated with everything that happened in the past few days. Especially about his brother. For once, Bianca would rather be in the RV with Glenn talking non-stop, Andrea in her comatose shock, and Dale spewing random facts from the driver's seat.

⠀⠀⠀They made it a few miles out of camp when the RV let out one loud honk. Shane had earlier told them that if there was any trouble, sound the horn, only once, so everyone knew to stop.

⠀⠀⠀"I told you we'd never get far on that hose," Dale told Rick with a shrug as they all crowded around the RV that was fuming. "I said I needed the one from the cube van."

⠀⠀⠀"Can you jury-rig it?" Rick asked, setting his hat back on his head and squinted his eyes shut from the glare of the sun.

⠀⠀⠀"That's all it's been so far," Dale sighed with a tight frown. "It's more duct tape than hose, and I'm all out of duct tape."

⠀⠀⠀"You got any ideas, Bianca?" Lori asked, her arms crossed over her chest, but she held an encouraging smile towards her.

⠀⠀⠀"Bianca? What could she do that I haven't already?" Dale asked, not trying to sound rude, but it still came off harsh. Bianca didn't take it offensively. Dale was asking an honest question since she'd never stepped forward to help with cars or the like before.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca didn't respond, so Lori continued.

⠀⠀⠀"She nearly graduated as a mechanical engineer," Lori explained, turning to Dale. "Didn't get to because of the outbreak."

⠀⠀⠀"You—?" Dale started, turning to Bianca with eyes as big as dinner plates, as did the rest of the men that didn't sit down at the quarry doing laundry with them. "And you didn't say anything?!"

⠀⠀⠀"I don't like dealing with cars," Bianca explained with a shrug, turning to look at her feet then back up again. "There's not much else we could do without parts, anyway."

⠀⠀⠀"I see somethin' up ahead," Shane called, lowering his binoculars and turning back to the group. "Gas station if we're lucky."

⠀⠀⠀"Y'all! Jim!" Jacqui shouted, running out of the RV with sweat beading down her face. "It's bad. I don't think he can take anymore."

⠀⠀⠀Jacqui didn't stick around for them to discuss the situation. Instead, she rushed back into the RV to keep close to Jim.

⠀⠀⠀"Hey, Rick," Shane called. "You wanna hold down the fort? I'll drive ahead, see what I can bring back."

⠀⠀⠀Rick nodded, stepping away from the front of the RV to join Jacqui and Jim.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, I'll come along, too," T-Dog told Shane, peering through the binoculars after him. "And I'll back you up."

⠀⠀⠀"I'll go if you want some help finding parts," Bianca offered, seeing that there was no backtracking from her experience now.

⠀⠀⠀Shane eyed her, then nodded, "Yeah, alright."

⠀⠀⠀"Lemme get my sledgehammer," Bianca told them, turning to Daryl. He still had a scowl on his face but not one directed at her.

⠀⠀⠀"Get on," he muttered, nodding his head back toward the truck.

SHANE PARKED DOWN the road from the store, keeping them out of sight and hearing range. Bianca gripped her sledgehammer between two white-knuckled fists, eyes skittering across the parking lot waiting for walkers. T-Dog walked beside her, his gun at the ready and Shane on his other side with his weapon raised in one hand and Dale's toolbox in the other.

⠀⠀⠀T-Dog scoped the perimeter of the building, making a lap around the mom and pop store—not a gas station like Shane had hoped for—then came back around calling the all-clear.

⠀⠀⠀There were two cars parked outside the store, and the store was ransacked. Windows busted in, glass lining the sidewalk led to the front, and the shelves inside were all clear. Nothing was left except screwed-in shelves.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca made her way to the car near the street rather than the one up by the store. If a walker was lingering around, she'd rather have distance from the store where it could be hiding than the street where they could see in all directions.

⠀⠀⠀"Either of you know how to pick a lot without a hanger?" Bianca asked, pointing her thumb toward the worn-down car. She didn't want someone else yelling at her for making the alarm go off. "Or, at least, get the door open?"

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah," Shane muttered, nodding his head as he walked over.

⠀⠀⠀Shane unlocked the door in no time at all, mumbling about learning how to pick locks in the Police Academy. Bianca didn't really care. She was just happy to have the hood of the car open.

⠀⠀⠀"You know what you're doin'?" Shane asked, leaning over the car's hood with her, then looked over at Bianca with a raised brow.

⠀⠀⠀"Uh, not really," Bianca admitted, trying to remember the auto mechanics class she had slept through.

⠀⠀⠀"Alright, move," Shane told her, laughing for once rather than getting upset. "I've messed around with cars longer than you've been alive."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca rolled her eyes, but Shane seemed to know what he was looking for. He hadn't needed Bianca to come out with him, but she was glad she did in case this had to be done again, and Shane was...

⠀⠀⠀Well, no need to jinx anything.

⠀⠀⠀Shane pulled a pair of pliers out of the toolbox, loosening the clamps around the hose connected to the radiator and the engine. He pulled out the side closer to the headlights first, then used a flathead to lift the hose connected to the engine and pulled the first radiator hose out. He held it in his hand, looking it over with a frown, then turned to Bianca.

⠀⠀⠀"Thing's worn, might not last as long, but it'll do," Shane explained, then nodded at her. "You're skinny, know how to take off the splashguard?" he asked.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, yeah, I at least remember that from my stupid auto mechanics class," she muttered in annoyance. She sat down on the ground and squirmed her way under the car. Shane handed her a screwdriver to get the splash guard off. When she did, she held it out, and Shane took it from her, setting it on the side of the car.

⠀⠀⠀"Alright, all you gotta do now is get the hose," Shane explained, his voice booming under the car as he held down a pair of pliers, trading them for the screwdriver. "Can you handle it?"

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, I got it," Bianca yelled back up.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca did the same as Shane did up top, using the pliers to loosen the clamps. The side connected to the water pump loosened and pulled it off. Murky yellow liquid fell from the pipe, splashing onto her.

⠀⠀⠀"Oh, god dammit!" Bianca yelled, kicking her foot against the front end of the car.

⠀⠀⠀"Forget about the radiator fluid?" Shane called teasingly.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca looked down her chest to see where Shane was standing. He's an idiot, Bianca thought as she swung her foot to the side then back at him, catching his shin. He let out a surprised should but held back with only a few curses, stepping away from her.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, smart one, man," T-Dog laughed, amused but kept himself far from both of them.

⠀⠀⠀Now covered in radiator fluid, Bianca scowled, releasing the other end of the hose, thankful nothing came pouring out on that end.

⠀⠀⠀With the hose in hand, Bianca scooted from underneath the car and slammed the bottom radiator hose into Shane's chest, and stormed back to the caravan.

⠀⠀⠀"This is why I don't mess around with cars!" Bianca yelled back at the two, shaking her arms out as the radiator fluid flew off her skin. At least she didn't smell like gas or oil.

⠀⠀⠀When the three returned, Bianca was about to change in Daryl's truck when Rick stopped her from calling a quick meeting. However, Bianca couldn't complain as Rick explained what happened between him and Jim.

⠀⠀⠀The infection was getting worse. Every second inside the RV made Jim hurt worse. He was burning up, and they still had another twenty-minute drive to the CDC, a drive Jim didn't think he could last. Jim wanted to be left behind, to die in peace knowing they were headed toward safety.

⠀⠀⠀"It's what he says he wants," Rick finished, words dripping with exhaustion.

⠀⠀⠀"And he's lucid?" Carol asked.

⠀⠀⠀"He seems to be," Rick assured her. "I would say yes."

⠀⠀⠀"Back in the camp, when I said Daryl might be right, and you shut me down, you misunderstood," Dale spoke up before he could be cut off again. "I would never go along with callously killing a man. I was just gonna suggest that we ask Jim what he wants, and I think we have an answer."

⠀⠀⠀"We just leave him here? We take off?" Shane asked, his brows drawn together to crease in the middle of his forehead. "Man, I'm not sure I could live with that."

⠀⠀⠀"It's not your call," Lori said, her words sharp as if she'd thought long and hard about a situation like this arising. "Either one of you."

━━━━━━ day 15.

BIANCA WAS ASLEEP but not deep enough that she hadn't heard the growl. For a second, she thought it was another nightmare as the sounds of the freshly dead echoed inside... but the noise was too close. It ruptured through the room again.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca sat up straight in bed like she'd slept past her alarm and scrambled for the flashlight on her nightstand. She shined the light on the walker staring back at her between shaky fingers. His jaw ground as he stood in the doorway like he was waiting for her to make the first move.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca reached down as the abomination moved toward her. She reached down to the side of her bed and grabbed the sledgehammer her dad had given her for protection. He had one gun in the whole house, which he held onto, having a license and knowing how to use it. Bianca knew how to swing and hard.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca stood from her bed. The hot Georgia summer had her sleeping in cotton shorts and a tank top. Her knees were about to give out from fear, and the sledgehammer swung over her shoulder, ready to swing when it got in her vicinity. She was seconds from swinging, but as the thing got closer, the flashlight illuminating the room with shadows ceased, and his face became clear.

⠀⠀⠀The tan skin, the long, dark brown hair tied into a bun, the necklace she'd made him in the third grade that he swore to never take off. The image of her brother like this let a shaky breath pass her lips.

⠀⠀⠀His face, once bright and full of life, was nearly unrecognizable. Instead, he was pale and clammy, eyes drooped, and his feet scraped against the floor as he inched closer. His hands raised, his mouth opened with a snarl, and he was an inch away when she realized what he was close to doing.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca scrambled over her bed, putting distance between them but not enough. She skirted the wall to her windows, hands shaking as she tried to pry the nailed board over the window with her bare hands. She huffed in irritation, the board unmoving. Eugene was behind her now, breathing down her neck.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca turned, his arms outstretched towards her, and he nearly clawed the bare skin of her shoulder before she ducked under his arm and darted across the room.

⠀⠀⠀Despite thinking it was a bad idea, Bianca shoved her feet into a pair of boots she'd left in the middle of her room. If she had to run out of her house to escape Eugene, she'd rather not be slowed down from going barefoot.

⠀⠀⠀Eugene was still at the window, staring at the painted landscape they'd done together before he turned. He'd allowed her enough time, and Bianca thought to herself that maybe Eugene's soul had helped her even after death.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca then ran out of her room, down the hall, and collided with something else. She nearly let out a scream when her dad slapped his hand over her mouth.

⠀⠀⠀"Shut up, shut up," he whispered, wild-eyed and frantic as he held her. "Where's your brother? We have to go."

⠀⠀⠀Henrik removed his hand when tears fell down Bianca's face, cheeks flushed, and it was the first time he'd ever seen his daughter cry since the wedding. She couldn't manage words, so she just pointed behind her as Eugene appeared in the doorway of her room.

⠀⠀⠀"Fuck," Henrik muttered sharply, looking devastated but quickly composed himself. "Come on."

⠀⠀⠀He took Bianca's hand in his, dragging her down the stairs. They stomped their way down, creating too much noise, but Eugene already knew where they were.

⠀⠀⠀"Don't look!" Henrik suddenly shouted, and she might not have if he said nothing.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca turned to look in the living room where her mom had taken a cot. One of the dead hovering over her. She was covered in red smears, her organs strewn out like a buffet as the thing consumed everything it could. Her face was intact for now, horror-struck and lifeless.

⠀⠀⠀"Bianca, we have to go!" Henrik screamed, pulling her away.

⠀⠀⠀The dead that had found its way into the house stood as well, inspired by the fresh meat running through the room like bait.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca stumbled, tripping over untied laces as Eugene made it to the top of the stairs. He managed a couple of them, but his weak legs gave out, and he crumpled. He fell like a rag doll until he hit the bottom with a loud thud.

⠀⠀⠀Henrik pulled Bianca up by the armpits, dragging her with him. Eugene wasn't far behind the other dead, his head now turned ninety degrees off its axis.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca really wanted to throw up, but her dad dragged her towards the door. They paused, assessing that it too was boarded up, more than the windows.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca spotted a window that had been pried open. Most likely by the one that had gotten into their house. Bianca stumbled over her feet, grabbed the sledgehammer she had dropped, and rushed to the window in the dining room. It sat in a small alcove, low enough for her to sit inside. She pried the already pulled out nails, throwing the board behind her. The window was smashed open behind the panel.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca threw her sledgehammer outside first then followed the best she could. Her dad was behind her, holding his hands out for her to hold as she climbed through the window. The alcove to ground distance was marginally different. Shards of glass poked from the window frame, so Bianca struggled to balance the ground.

⠀⠀⠀Then, as they were nearly home free, Eugene came in behind their dad and sunk his teeth into his neck. Henrik screamed in pain, Bianca following after, begging for him to get up. Instead, her hands moved to the ledge, palms digging into the glass.

⠀⠀⠀The other dead had come for her while Eugene followed down with their dad. The dead on her held onto her leg, forcing her forward. Her bare thigh scrapped against the glass, and Bianca panicked. Her sledgehammer was far from reach, all of her family was dead, and there were no other means of escape.

━━━━━━ day 63.

LEAVING JIM BEHIND might have been the hardest decision any of them had to make so far. It wasn't like leaving Atlanta without Merle because they were in a life or death situation or debating on putting a bullet in Amy's brain before she woke up. Instead, this was active, knowing they would leave someone behind without danger forcing their hand.

⠀⠀⠀They said their goodbyes to Jim like they did at the graves of those who fell at camp. Then, finally, some of them were able to say a few kind words to Jim. Bianca and Glenn tried to manage something to say, but all they could do was stutter out breaths of thoughts before giving weak smiles and heading back for the caravan.

⠀⠀⠀Now, dusk settled, and they couldn't worry about the dying man. However selfish it might be. They needed to worry about protecting themselves because the CDC was within walking distance. The cars parked on the sidewalk leading into the front doors, and they stepped out.

⠀⠀⠀The inside was pitch black, nothing moved inside or out, and bodies littered the lawn. Hundreds of them, civilians and doctors alike, with skin rotting away and bones showing through.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca and Daryl approached the others with their weapons at the ready. The corpses were most likely hungry with how they lay unmoving, no food since the beginning.

⠀⠀⠀Rick took the front, rushing them across the front lawn where the rancor smell and buzzing flies became overwhelming. Bianca wasn't sure which to plug, her nose or her ears. She settled with her nose.

⠀⠀⠀The CDC was fortified and unfriendly, with the building stretching out for miles on either side. Gray shutters locked over the doors and windows, keeping everything out, living or dead. The message the place radiated did not fill Bianca with hope but rather a shattered sense of doom.

⠀⠀⠀Rick rushed to a panel on the wall beside the doors, smashing buttons, but the power was out, and nothing happened. Shane followed behind him, pulling up the shutters, but they locked when lifted a centimeter off the ground.

⠀⠀⠀"There's nobody here," T-Dog finally said for everyone.

⠀⠀⠀"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick hissed, hope still filled to the brim within him.

⠀⠀⠀"Automated response to the outbreak," Bianca retorted in a low voice, sensing the stir behind her. "Even if people are in there, they could be dead or quarantined because they're the reason for the outbreak."

⠀⠀⠀"WALKERS!" Daryl shouted, no longer need to keep their voices down. The walkers already knew they were there.

⠀⠀⠀Daryl knocked one back with his crossbow while everyone scattered back, getting closer to the building.

⠀⠀⠀"You led us into a graveyard!" Daryl yelled, turning to Rick.

⠀⠀⠀"He made a call!" Shane snapped at him, walking from the other side of the group and towards Daryl.

⠀⠀⠀"It was the wrong damn call!" Daryl claimed.

⠀⠀⠀Shane cut Daryl off from Rick, stepping in his way, and forced Daryl back.

⠀⠀⠀"Just shut up!" Shane screamed, pressing his finger into Daryl's chest. "You hear me? Shut up. Shut up!"

⠀⠀⠀Daryl didn't start again, but he kept close, crossbow raised and ready to shoot on an oncoming walker.

⠀⠀⠀"Rick, this is a dead-end," Shane said in the same tone of voice. "Do you hear me? No blame."

⠀⠀⠀"Where are we gonna go?" Jacqui asked, her words shaking.

⠀⠀⠀"She's right," Lori agreed nervously, holding Carl close to her side as she looked to her husband. "We can't be this close to the city after dark."

⠀⠀⠀"Fort Benning—Rick, still an option," Shane suggested.

⠀⠀⠀"On what?" Andrea asked, stepping into the conversation. "No food, no fuel. That's a hundred miles!"

⠀⠀⠀"Hundred and twenty-five," Glenn corrected her. "I checked the map."

⠀⠀⠀"Forget Fort Benning," Lori snapped at them. "We need answers tonight, now!"

⠀⠀⠀"We'll think of something," Rick surmised, holding his hand up to Lori.

⠀⠀⠀"Come on, let's go. Let's get out of here," Shane yelled at the group, leading them back to the caravan.

⠀⠀⠀Daryl kept close to Bianca, knocking his elbow into her back to get her moving, but they didn't get far when Rick's desperation stopped them again.

⠀⠀⠀"The camera! It moved!" Rick yelled.

⠀⠀⠀Shane rushed over to him and said, "You imagined it."

⠀⠀⠀"It moved. It moved!"

⠀⠀⠀"Rick, it is dead, man," Shane told him sternly, punctuating each word in hopes Rick would listen. "It's an automated device, like Bianca said. It's gears, okay? They're just windin' down. Now, come on."

⠀⠀⠀Rick didn't listen, running forward and slamming his hands against the shutters.

⠀⠀⠀"Rick, there's nobody here!" Lori exclaimed, leaving Carl with the others and standing in front of her husband.

⠀⠀⠀"I know you're in there!" Rick screamed at the camera. "I know you can hear me!"

⠀⠀⠀"Everybody, get back to the cars! Now!" Shane yelled at the rest of them.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca and Daryl cautiously took a few steps back with the others, but if Rick wanted to get himself killed, he wasn't going to drag the others with him. They headed off, Rick and Shane's words haunting behind them.

⠀⠀⠀"Please, we're desperate!" Rick continued to plead. "Please, help us! We have women, children, no food, hardly any gas left!"

⠀⠀⠀"Rick, there's nobody here."

⠀⠀⠀"We have nowhere else to go! If you don't let us in, you're killing us! Please!"

⠀⠀⠀"Come on, buddy," Shane said to Rick. When Bianca looked back for a second, she could see Shane dragging Rick with him. "Let's go. Let's go."

⠀⠀⠀"Please, help us!" Rick continued to scream at the camera. "You're killing us! You're killing us! You're killing us!"

⠀⠀⠀Somehow, Rick knew.

⠀⠀⠀The shutters screeched open, and Bianca paused along with the rest of them. As she turned, a white light drowned her, both inviting and sterile. Bianca grew nauseous, staring into the last piece of hope opening its doors for them to run into.

AUTHOR'S NOTE —

Is the song too on the nose? Yeah, maybe, but I think it's funny so suck it.

I love this chapter!!! Mainly the flashback portion but you guys might not agree ahahahaha. Only one more week and we'll be onto season 2 which I have some good plans for the next season >:) 

Also, this book hit #3 in the TWD tag already? Wtf...

SONG: I Saw Your Mommy... by Suicidal Tendencies

Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you'd like. However, this is an all kind of reader safe space. So even if you ghost read or comment every chapter, I hope you know it means the world to me that you've come into this fic ♡ I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and until the next one.