Till Kingdom Come

It was a sullen and rainy day in Georgia the morning Noelle found her father. A week had passed since her dad lay quietly on the mattress, forced to bed rest as his fever only worsened. The hallucinations had grown stronger and Noelle couldn’t bare to be at his side anymore. From the second her father got sick, Noelle did everything for him, bringing him food and water, medicine and all the attention he needed. Noelle’s sister occasionally came up and read to him, but he remained unresponsive to any of their voices. It was a difficult situation for Noelle; having lost her mother at a young age and being the oldest sibling, she always felt the need to look after her family. But when it was time to go to college, she decided to move as far away as possible, creating a life of her own in California. Her sister, Sandy, never forgave her and her father looked at her with sad eyes, but it was something Noelle needed to do. She needed to find herself, but she felt she lost her family along the way. When she found out of her fathers illness, she flew out almost immediately and took on her role once again. Sandy, sixteen years of age now, rebelled against Noelle in every situation, but stood along her side, caring for their father. After a week had passed, others in town began to get sick as well and Noelle could only desperately hope that this would soon pass. On that stormy morning, Noelle had woken up early to take a glass of milk to her father, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. But the second she opened the door to her fathers bedroom, she could feel the eeriness wash over her. The faint pitter patter of rain could gently be heard against the window, but her fathers breathing wasn’t audible at all. Worried eyes and lips slightly parted, she leaned her ear down to his mouth and heard nothing. Her fingers traced over his neck, but she felt no pulse. All of a sudden, looking down, her father seemed like a corpse. His skin was pale, almost translucent, and his bones were easily visible through his clothes. His collar bone almost popped out of his skin and his eyes were two sunken holes in his skull. How could she tell her sister that her father was dead? Noelle didn’t know what to do, how to handle the situation, but she didn’t cry. She sat in the chair beside him and stared intently, hoping that at any moment he would gasp for air and be just fine. But that wasn’t the case, her dad did rise once more, but that was no longer her father. The moans that came from his mouth were inhumane and completely disturbing, his body rising and contorting awkwardly. Noelle could do nothing but stare in awe as this creature reached out for her.
“Daddy?” she asked, stunned. But her father was no longer there as he lunged at her, teeth desperately trying to gnaw at her flesh. She yelped and fought back, pushing off his decaying body and running for the door. She slammed the door shut and could hear finger nails scratching against the wood as her body fell down to the floor, her back leaning against the door.
“Noe? Noelle?! Where are you, is everythin‘ ok?!” Her little sister ran up the stairs, panic evident in her eyes as she waited for an answer.

“Daddy’s gone little one, don’t you dare open that door.”

Noelle blinked her eyes furiously, adapting to the setting sun in the horizon. Daryl and her had walked in silence for miles, having finally reached the interstate and walking alongside the railing on the highway. Daryl was far ahead of her, walking in a quick pace as she slowly trailed behind him, both keeping her distance and trying her hardest to not strain her already swollen ankle. Noelle hadn’t really seen much of the world since it had fallen apart, and taking a look around, she could only imagine the chaos and panic that had ensued.
Hundreds of cars lined the highway, bumper to bumper, and corpses still remained in several cars. Everyone had desperately tried to get away at the same time, head to the city, and every car had been filled with the supplies that were deemed necessary. It was evident that wanderers had taken advantage and pillaged anything they could find of use; clothing, food, gas. Noelle hung her head in shame and shook it gently. What was the world coming to?

“Here we go, this us right here.”
Daryl’s voice broke her out of her thoughts and she looked up quickly, coming face to face with a massive and intimidating motorcycle. Grabbing the bundle of squirrels from her hands, he swiftly slung everything onto the bike and tied it down before swinging his leg over and balancing over the bike as he placed his crossbow in front of him. For the first time since the outbreak, Noelle was truly excited. She always had a need for adventure, wandering off and getting into trouble, and she was always attracted to bikes for some reason.
“You getting on or what?” Daryl asked impatiently.
Without further hesitation, Noelle swung her leg over and lowered herself down behind Daryl, but kept her arms hanging awkwardly at her side. Turning on the bike and revving the engine, Daryl glanced back one last time.
“You might wanna hold on sunshine.” and with one last smirk, he lunged the bike forward catching Noelle off guard. She gasped lightly and frantically wrapped her arms tightly around Daryl’s waist, her heart pounding with both anxiousness, fear, and excitement.
After getting used to the noise and having her hair whipped about, Noelle took in a deep breath and momentarily forgot everything that was happening around them. She no longer saw the cars, the wrecks, the walkers, or the chaos around her. Instead, she saw the beauty in her surroundings; the landscape, the sun slowly setting in the horizon. Feeling the wind on her face, she led her head down and leaned her cheek against Daryl’s shoulder. Daryl tensed of for an instant, feeling her contact, but his muscles quickly loosened, and he slowly sighed into her touch. During that moment, all Noelle could feel was pure bliss. Once again, everything was innocent.
But just as quickly as it started, she was dragged back into the real world again as the bike slowly came to a halt.
“Hey Glenn! Open up the gate for me will ya?!”

Raising her head slowly and loosening her grip, Noelle anxiously studied her surroundings before the fear came back.
They were pulling into a prison.