Fight or Flight

Janie’s heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest as the truck sped forward, slowly leaving the dead behind. She was clutching the man’s crossbow in her lap, where he had thrown it after jumping in the truck, as she took a few seconds to just breathe.

Then she practically threw it to the floor as she turned around in her seat.

“Hey! Careful with that!”

Janie had her knees in the seat and ass in the air so she could reach across the small gap of a backseat and wrenched open the small window in the back of the truck’s cab.

“Jake!” she yelled as she stuck her head out. “Jake are you alright?”

He was hunched down in the bed of the truck between all the men’s supplies and a hulking motorcycle. “I’m fine, Janie.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes!” Jake shouted, but Janie just brushed off the harsh tone in his voice. She was used to it; he used it whenever he thought she was being overprotective, which happened frequently.

Janie’s attention was brought back to the inside of the truck when she felt a hand on her ass.

“What the hell?” she yelled as she pulled herself back inside. The man in the passenger seat was smirking at her.

“Sorry sugar,” he said, though Janie knew he wasn’t sorry at all. “Shouldn’ve left it stickin’ out there if ya didn’ want me to touch.”

Janie turned herself to sit back in the seat normally, shifting ever so slightly away from the threatening older man, who continued to smirk at her as he ran his hand through his short grey hair. Janie started to put her feet back to the floor, landing on the crossbow.

“God dammit woman!” the other man yelled, causing Janie to jump slightly and turn to face him. “Can’t you fuckin’ hear?” He jerked the bow out from under her feet and dropped it back in her lap. “Just fuckin’ hold it.”

“Dang girlie, you got him mad now,” the other, greasy looking man said. “I’d be real nice to that bow there if I was you, ‘else my li’l brother might toss ya right back out there.”

“Sorry,” Janie apologized as she wrapped her hand around the weapon’s barrel. “Thank you,” she said to its owner, “I don’t think we would have lasted much longer if you hadn’t stopped. I’m Janie, and that’s my brother Jake back there.”

He was quiet for a while before saying, “Name’s Daryl.”

“Thank you, Daryl.”

Janie looked over the man that was her savior twice in one day. His hair was short and messy and brown, matching his goatee. She let her eyes move along; following the chiseled muscles in his arms that were left bare by the sleeveless shirt he was wearing. His blue eyes left the road for just a moment to glance at her, and noticing she was practically staring at him, Daryl shifted slightly, embarrassed. Janie looked away immediately, a light blush staining her cheeks from being caught practically ogling over him.

“Have ta ‘scuse my brother sugar, he never did know how to act ‘round the ladies,” the other one said. “I, however –” he placed his arm around the back of her seat, “– know exactly how ta treat ‘em. I’m Merle.”

Janie fidgeted, uncomfortable with the contact Merle’s hand made with her bare shoulder. She eyed the two men she sat between; they were both bigger than her and could easily overpower her, and her brother was all the way in the back of the truck, useless to help her.

Just then Daryl reached forward and turned the radio volume up.

“…food, shelter, security. The refugee center in Atlanta can provide survivors food, shelter, secur…”

He turned the dial back down. “Hasn’t changed,” he said, more to Merle than Janie.

“Are you heading to Atlanta?” Janie asked, perking up and leaning away from the seat, praying that their answer was yes. “I live there. That’s where we were going before we got a flat and then those things…” She trailed off.

“Yeah sugar,” Merle said, “we’re goin’ ta A’lanta.”

Janie relaxed back against the seat, forgetting about Merle’s arm being there. Her thoughts were just on getting home and getting to the rest of her family.

Andrew, Taylor, I’m coming.



Traffic was moving at the pace of a snail. They were on the outskirts of the city, along with thousands of other refugees, all trying to get into the safe haven.

Daryl looked down at the feel of pressure on his leg; Janie’s bare thigh was pressed up against his, making him have to turn his head away so that his eyes wouldn’t wander over her body again.

“I’m going to climb in the back with Jake,” she said as she gently laid his crossbow on the floor. She turned and started to make her climb into the back.

Daryl mistakenly glanced over and then couldn’t look away. His eyes ran up her tan and sculpted legs to the bottom of her shorts, where his eyes paused to admire her round ass, just hanging there between him and Merle. Part way through the back window, Janie pivoted, rotating onto her back to pull herself out. Daryl watched how her tank top slid up slightly, revealing her belly button, before he followed the curve of her waist and then the dip of her hips down into her shorts. She made it through the window and Daryl shook his head in an attempt to clear it from the daze she had left him in.

“Ooo weee,” Merle laughed, “I think ma baby brother’s smitten.”

Daryl continued to inch forward in traffic, ignoring Merle.

“I shoulda known,” he went on though. “Tha’s why you stopped to save ‘em. You was thinkin’ she’d be all grateful to ya and then later you’d get a piece o’ that fine li’l ass –”

“Shut up.” That wasn’t why Daryl had stopped. He was different from his brother. He couldn’t have just left them behind to die like that.

The car in front of him stopped again. “What the hell?” Daryl said as the driver got out. Looking around he noticed that most people were getting out of their cars.

Jake poked his head through the window. “I think we’re stuck here for a while guys.”

Daryl heard a thumping noise come from the roof of the truck, and then looked out the window when he saw Janie’s figure pass by as she leaped off the roof. She mad a gesture with her hands for him to roll the window down, so he did.

“It looks like it’s backed up all the way into the city,” she said. “I saw a cop car a little ways ahead. I’m going to go see if they know anything.” She turned to her brother who was standing in the bed of the truck. “Jake stay here, I’ll be right back.”

“Okay mom.”

Daryl opened his door as she started to walk away. “Wait, I’ll go with ya.”

Janie paused and waited long enough for the redneck to catch up to her, and then led the way through the parked vehicles. Daryl had brought his crossbow and was earning several stares as they passed by; Janie herself had brought along the lug wrench, but it was tucked through one of the belt loops on her shorts so it dangled against her hip

“You don’ talk much for a girl.”

Janie rolled her eyes. “So stereotypical. I’m just worried about my other brothers. They’ve been staying with me for a few weeks in the city.”

“Oh. So whatdaya do in Atlanta?”

Janie glanced at Daryl, wondering who had pushed his chatterbox button; this was probably the most he had spoken all day.

“I’m a surgeon. I just started my first year of residency. What about you?” she asked, turning the questions around on him.

“Mostly jus’ construction,” he answered. He went to ask her another question, but before he could she cut him off.

“There it is,” she said and started walking much faster, making a beeline for the cop car. There was a man and a woman standing near it, talking, whom Janie interrupted when she got near. “Excuse me; are one of you an officer?”

The man turned around at the sound of Janie’s voice. “I am. What –”

“Do you know what’s going on? Why is traffic stopped? Can’t we get in? What happened to the emergency broadcast?”

The officer looked at Janie, standing there with her hands on her hips, ready to take any bullshit he tried to give her and shove it back down his throat. He ran his hand through his dark curls. “Ma’am, I don’t know,” he sighed. “We’re from King County; we’re trying to get into the city just like everyone else.”

Daryl watched Janie’s face fall. “You don’t know anything about what’s happening?”

The officer sighed again. “No ma’am, I don’t. We were just about to go look up ahead –”

He was cut off by the sound of military helicopters flying overhead, on their way towards the city.

“What the hell?” Daryl said. Janie took off towards the woods off the highway, following the choppers. Daryl ran after her. “Janie!”

She was holding onto a tree when Daryl caught up to her. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was open in a horrified “o”. He turned to follow her gaze.

The city was in flames. The helicopters were dropping bombs in the streets. Buildings were collapsing.

Oh my God,Janie thought, Taylor…Andrew…no…