November 3rd, 2010

Winter woke up to growling noises. It was dark outside and Lori was unconscious. The car was on its side, which led to Winter's current uncomfortable position. She looked at the windshield to see a walker trying to get through. Winter quickly dove her hand into her pocket to grab her pocket knife. Lori woke up and began to breathe heavily as the walker's face got through the glass

"Stay calm" Winter said. She realized that she hadn't sustained any major injuries from the crash and she was grateful. Though, she knew she probably had some small cuts from the glass, however that wasn't a concern for her right now. She used her pocket knife and dug it into the walker's skull causing it to go limp

"We need to get out of here" Winter said as she popped the passenger door open. She unbuckled her seatbelt and then got out. Lori followed behind her

"Are you okay?" Winter asked her

"Yeah, I'm fine. A-Are you?" Lori asked. Winter saw a walker approaching behind Lori, and she quickly took it out

"We should keep moving" Winter said. Lori quickly nodded and grabbed the gun from the car, before the two continued their journey on foot. Winter was limping as her foot hadn't fully healed yet

Sam had gathered with the others for dinner, however he noticed that not only were Rick, Glenn, and Hershel were missing but so were Lori and Winter. He was hoping that it was nothing, but he felt rather uneasy. Andrea and Shane walked in

"They should've been back by now" Andrea said

"Yeah. They just got holed up somewhere. We'll- we'll head out first thing in the morning. Thank you" Shane told Patricia as everyone got ready to eat. Sam looked around, waiting for Winter to arrive, but she didn't

"Carl, I want you to keep your head up, okay? Your old man, he's the toughest son of a-" Shane was cut off

"No cussing in the house" Patricia said

"Sorry" Shane said

"Lori, Winter, dinner" Carol called out

"Neither of them are in there" Maggie said

"Where are they?" Dale asked. Now, Sam was getting really worried

"Carl, when's the last time you saw your mom?" Shane asked

"This afternoon" Carl responded

"She was worried about Rick, asked me to look in on Carl" Andrea said

"You know I saw Winter go to the back door. Do you think they went after him?" Dale asked. Sam looked at him

"I don't know" Andrea said

"Nobody panic. Gonna be around here somewhere" Shane said as he got up. Sam got up and went to the back door. His eyes widened as he realized a car was missing

"Guys!" Sam yelled, getting them all to rush over

"Son of a bitch" Shane said

"Why would Winter go as well? She's injured. It doesn't make much sense" Andrea spoke up. Sam sighed as it clicked for him

"No, it makes perfect sense. She probably caught Lori trying to leave by herself, and ended up going with her so she wouldn't be alone" Sam said

"Well, I'm going after them" Shane said as he pulled a pair of keys out of his pocket and unlocked a car

"I'm coming with" Sam said. Shane turned and looked at him

"I don't need your help" Shane said. Sam was rather annoyed

"This isn't about you. They could be injured! We don't have time for this!" Sam yelled. Shane didn't respond and the two got into the car and left. After a couple minutes, they found the missing car. It was wrecked. Shane stopped the car and tossed Sam a gun. Sam caught it and they both got out of the car. Sam felt sick to his stomach. What if she was dead? What would he do? Would he have to put her down?

"They're not here" Shane said as he looked around. Sam was relieved by that news. He knew that they might still be alive. That she might still be alive

"They must've kept going" Sam said. So, the two got back in the car and they continued driving. Maybe twenty minutes later, they had caught up with the girls. The car's headlights had gotten their attention. They stopped and turned. Sam was so happy to see Winter's face. Shane parked the car, and Sam practically jumped out of the car. He rushed to Winter almost tripping on his own two feet

"A-Are you okay? God, I thought you might've died" Sam said as he began checking Winter for any wounds. Shane did the same to Lori. Sam noticed Winter had some small cuts

"God, that wreck scared the shit out of me. I don't know what I would've done if I lost you" Sam said as he began to breath happily. He put his hands on his knees, relieved

"I'm sorry I worried you, I didn't mean to. It's just, you know I couldn't let Lori go by herself" Winter said

"Why didn't you stop her?" Shane asked Winter

"What the hell am I gonna do? Pull a gun on her and ask her to not leave?" Winter asked as she crossed her arms. Shane was fuming

"What the hell even happened?" Shane asked

"I looked down at the map and I hit a walker" Lori said

"You were driving and reading the map? What the hell were you even there for Winter?" Shane asked

"I'm bad with directions, okay?! And she hit the walker dead on instead of swerving" Winter defended

"Come on, I gotta get you guys back" Shane said as he grabbed Lori's wrist

"No, we gotta find Rick" Lori said

"Wait, I thought we were looking for Hershel?" Winter asked

"We're looking for both" Lori said

"He's back. They're all back. They're all safe and sound" Shane said. Sam couldn't believe he was lying

"Really?" Lori asked

"Yeah" Shane said

"Oh, I'm so happy. Beth will finally get the help she needs" Winter said. Sam wanted to tell her the truth, but for some reason he didn't

"Well come on, let's not waste anymore time" Shane said. The four got into the car and went back to the farm. Sam sat in the back with Winter. He wrapped his arms around her. Winter was becoming uncomfortable

"Sam, you know how I feel about PD-" Winter was cut off as Sam moved away

"Sorry, I just.. I really thought you could be dead.." Sam said. Winter thought for a moment before hugging Sam. He hugged her back

"I'm sorry for making you worry, but don't worry. I don't die that easily" She told him, which made him feel better

"Okay, you two had enough yet?" Shane asked causing them both to break apart, embarrassed. He shook his head annoyed

"You know, it's cute, Shane. Not that you'd understand" Lori muttered as she crossed her arms and looked out the window. Eventually they had made it back to the farm. The others had surrounded the car as they got out

"Are you two okay? What happened?" Andrea asked them

"We were in an accident. We're okay. We're okay. Where's Rick?" Lori asked. Andrea just stared at her

"Why are you just staring? Hershel and them came back, right?" Winter asked before looking at Sam. He bit his lip nervously before looking away. He could feel Winter's eyes on him

"They're not back?" Lori asked. All she got back was silence

"Where are they?" Lori asked

"Look, I had to get you back here" Shane said

"You lied to me?" Winter asked Sam

"Well, technically I didn't lie.. I mean I didn't t-tell you they were here.." Sam said as he became rather uncomfortable by the current anger in his direction. Lori and Shane began to fight however that was the least of Sam's worries

"Look, I panicked.. I didn't know what to do.. so I just followed along.. okay?" Sam said. Winter sighed

"I'm tired, I'm gonna go to sleep. We can talk about this tomorrow" Winter told him. Sam watched her limp off. He wanted to go after her, but didn't

"I gotta make sure the baby's all right, okay?" Shane said causing Sam's head to snap in his direction. A look of pure horror was on his face. The thought of having a baby in the apocalypse was one that truly terrified him. What if the baby died in the stomach? Would it eat you alive? The thought made him shiver

"You're having a baby? Why didn't you tell me?" Carl asked his mother. All eyes were on Lori. Lori couldn't speak

"She wanted it to be a surprise. I mean, being a big brother is a huge role" Sam said with a grin. Carl looked at Sam and seemed to be okay with that answer

"Come on. Let's make sure you're all right" Dale told Lori

November 4th, 2010

Winter had woken up to Sam holding a plate of food in his hands. He had a guilty look on his face. Winter wasn't upset that Sam had lied about a particular thing in specific, but rather that he lied at all. Trust was everything in this world, and if Winter couldn't trust Sam, then she wouldn't know what to do. Winter was waiting for him to speak. He cleared his throat

"Look, I-I.. I should've told you. I wish I had a reason for why I didn't tell you, but there wasn't. There wasn't one, and I'm sorry" Sam said. Winter could hear the guilt in his voice. Both of them knew just how fragile trust was, and even if it was something small, it could easily cause that trust to shatter into pieces, which is why they had been so open with each other. They wanted communication, so these things wouldn't happen

"Sam, I know it was something small, but.. in this world even small things ca-" Winter was cut off

"I know, I know. I don't want secrets or us lying to each other to become a thing either.. Which is why I think I need to come clean about something" Sam said. Winter looked at him confused

"What are you talking about?" Winter asked. Sam looked at her with a serious look

"What I'm about to tell you.. you cannot tell anyone.. and I mean anyone" Sam told her. Winter nodded

"I won't tell" Winter said. So, Sam explained the reason why Michael had left and his relation to Maggie. Winter was in complete shock

"You can't tell anyone, I'm serious" Sam said

"I promise I won't tell anyone. Okay, but since we're spilling deep dark secrets, I have to admit something as well" Winter began. She began to play with her fingers

"What is it?" Sam asked

"So.. you know your brother's friend Cam?" Winter asked. Sam's jaw dropped

"No.. no.." Sam said in shock

"The rumors are true" Winter said as she hung her head low

"You guys fucked? Like seriously?" Sam asked. Winter covered her face embarrassed

"Look, we both got hammered. It's why I'll never drink again" Winter said

"I can't believe this" Sam said shocked

"No more secrets" Winter said

"Honestly, you should've kept that a secret.." Sam said as he covered his face. The two had heard a car approaching. Sam handed Winter her plate of food, and the two exited the tent. She began to eat. Sam was still rather disturbed by what he had heard. Rick and the others had returned

"Hey, can you give me a piggy back ride over while I eat?" Winter asked. Sam looked at her unamused

"I'm being serious. Maybe if you're really good I'll let you hit it, too" Winter said. Sam's face turned red

"Look, you can't bribe me with your bod- you know what, there's no point. Just get on" Sam said as he refused to make eye contact. Winter cheered happily as she got onto Sam's back. He put his hands on her lower thighs to help keep her up. He began walking towards the others

"Weren't these two fighting last night?" Andrea asked

"It's amazing what communication can do for a couple" Dale spoke up

"Who the hell is that?" T-Dog asked as he pointed. They all turned in the direction he was pointing in

"That's Randall" Glenn said referring to the blindfolded boy in the back on the truck. About an hour later the entire group went inside to talk about Randall. Hershel had gone to give him medical help. They were in the living room. Sam had let Winter down, and she took a seat in one of the chairs

"We couldn't just leave him behind. He would've bled out, if he lived that long" Rick stated

"It's gotten bad in town" Glenn said

"What do we do with him?" Andrea asked

"I replied his calf muscle as best I can, but he'll probably have nerve damage. Won't be on his feet for at least a week" Hershel said as he walked in

"When he is, we give him a canteen, take him out to the main road, send him on his way" Rick said as Daryl entered the room

"Isn't that the same as leaving him for the walkers?" Andrea asked

"He'll have a fighting chance" Rick said

"Just gonna let him go? He knows where we are" Shane said

"He was blindfolded the whole way here. He's not a threat" Rick said

"Just because he was blindfolded doesn't mean he wouldn't be able to figure out how to get back here" Sam spoke up

"Sam's right. How many of them were there? You killed three of their men, you took one of them hostage, but they just ain't gonna come looking?" Shane asked

"They left him for dead. No one is looking" Rick said

"We should still post a guard" T-Dog said

"Just to be safe" Winter said

"He's out cold right now, will be for hours" Hershel said

"You know what? I'm gonna go get him some flowers and candy. Look at this, folks- we back in Fantasyland" Shane said as he began to walk out. Winter had really gotten tired of Shane's attitude

"You know, we haven't even dealt with what you did at my barn yet. This is my farm. Now I wanted you gone. Rick talked me out of it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. So do us both a favor- keep your mouth shut" Hershel told Shane. Shane didn't respond. He then walked out as he sighed. Rick approached Hershel

"We're not gonna do anything about it today. Let's just cool off" Rick said

(2455 words)
12/2/22