In the middle of nowhere (Jacob)

[Jeremy Willicker]

Jeremy eyed the gas hand of the old pick up truck and finally decided, after an hour of driving, that it wasn't moving. He gripped the steering wheel tightly, dragging his eyes back to the darkening streets as he weaved his way along the barren roads of Fayetteville, North Carolina. He had long since lost his way, but seeing as this was the only road for miles, he chose to stay on it. Hopefully he'd come across a house or, better yet, a gas station. Old trucks like this guzzled gas up like water. He'd be lucky to get five more miles out of it.

He traveled slowly. The engine roared, waking up every beast in the forest for miles. Driving around in a piece of crap like this in Manhattan would have been a death sentence. Walkers would have heard him coming for miles. That wasn't a problem out here. There was only trees, grass and more trees.

The monotonous view was dull and more than once his eyes drifted close. Biting the inside of his cheek to wake himself up, he shook his head, exhaling loudly. Gently he rolled down the driver's side window a few inches to let a cool breeze in. It worked wonders. He drove for another ten minutes, his mind filled with images of Emmy's face...and the others. Had they made it to Atlanta? Were they safe? He told himself countless times that he shouldn't think about them. Emmy was strong. She could handle herself...yet, he continued to be burdened by what ifs. What if...no, this wasn't the time.

Jeremy raked his dirty fingers through his disheveled hair, quietly humming to himself as he watched the darkening sky on the horizon. Everything was going well. Perhaps that was the problem. In a world filled with death and chaos, why did he deserve a moments peace. He was sure that was God's thinking when, after ten more minutes of driving, the old truck stalled in the middle of the road.

Shit!

He switched off the ignition, tried it again. Nothing. He pumped the gas a few times. He tried again. Nothing. Damn it. It was almost pitch black outside the trunk. The headlights illuminated the road ahead. Off to the right he saw the glow of a deer's eyes staring at the truck. He looked just as fucking shocked as he did to see a truck stranded in the middle of the road. After a moment, the deer slipped back into the brush and disappeared.

He had two options. Stay here or walk up the road and look for another car. Staying put seemed like the wise thing to do, but then it was getting colder by the second. He'd freeze. If he walked he could come across a house. What if he didn't though? Then he'd be stuck on the side of the road freezing his ass off. Either way he'd freeze, but he'd have a better chance of staying warm if he moved.

His decision was made.

Gathering what little he had collected during his journey, he stuffed his things into a green bookbag. He kept his hand gun out just in case he came across a walker. After making sure the coast was clear, he climbed out of the truck, closing the door gently so it wouldn't squeak so badly. Hefting his bag onto his back, he started walking down the middle of the street.

When he saw light in the distance after what seemed like forever, Jeremy thought he was hallucinating. He had barely eaten anything for almost five days and he was tired. With each step he took it dawned on him that the house in the distance wasn't a figment of his twisted, food deprived imagination. It was real. Bloody fucking hell!

If he had had the energy to run toward it he would have. Instead he kept to a steady pace. The trees opened up to fields filled with hay. There was a barn too, but he could only see its silhouette. He hoped someone 'alive' was at home cause he couldn't walk any further.

Tag: Jacob

[jacobsnyder]

Jacob was tired to say the least. When you were the only person in charge of trying to keep yourself alive, as well as the livestock it was tiring work. He had spent much of the daylight out in the barn reinforcing a sliding door that the walkers had taken out in the middle of the night before he was able to reach the animals. They had killed the last few sheep that he had managed to keep alive this entire time and it frustrated him to the point of brutally beating the now lifeless corpses until he couldn't feel his arms anymore.

So the whole day was spent feeding the horses, and the last handful of chickens while cleaning pens. He managed to pile the bodies into a wheel barrel and dumped them in a long abandoned pond that was full of dead grass now. Then night feel he put the steel pipes up around the windows and barbed wire around the doors to atleast deter the walkers long enough for him to be awoken. Since this 'sickness' Jacob had become a very light sleeper, to the point a strong gust of wind rattling the house woke him up out of a dead sleep.

Now he had just stepped out of an old water trough he had drug up from the barn full of boiled clean pond water. Granted the water was cold now, but it was still nice to get the grime of the day off his body, especially the dried blood of the walkers. Grabbing a can of mandarin oranges off the counter he pulled the tab on the lid and tossed the lid in the trash before throwing his shot gun up on his shoulder and heading to the living room in a towel.

This was his nightly routine, bathe, eat a canned food item, and watch for walkers. Flicking one light on, like he did every night incase his family happened to return and needed to find thier way, he plopped down on the couch infront of the picture window and began to eat. He had long ago finished his tin of food and moved on to the candy bowl in the center of the coffee table when he spotted something.

It was a full moon outside, and his house was in an open field. It was hard to miss movement. Scrambling up off the couch quickly, he grabbed a pair of discarded pajama pants from the night before pulling them on as he stared out the window. It was coming closer, and moving rather slow. "I hope that is a fuckin' deer," he muttered before opening the front porch door quickly, and shutting it quietly as he crept out onto the wrap around porch with his shot gun aimed.

Hiding in the shadow he crouched behind a wicker chair and just waited for the thing to get closer. It definitely wasn't a deer, it was on two legs, which meant a human unless an outbreak of intelligent monkeys broke out that he missed. Which honestly wouldn't shock him with all this other shit going on. When it got closer it was obvious it was headed toward the house, and Jacob stood up pumping his gun and raising it to fire.

But he hesitated.

The 'walker' had a bag on it's back, and something in it's hand. He hadn't seen any walker like that before. Turning his heel to observe the rest of the land he saw no others accompanying this one, which was odd because when one showed usually two or three more were with it.

Could it possibly be another 'alive' person? Or someone from his family? That thought sent his spirits soaring, but he wasn't going to hop over the railing and go running to them with open arms he had to be sure. If this wasn't a walker, or family, it could be another human that wanted his things, which was just as dangerous.

"Stop right there, or I will shoot you firs' and ask questions later," Jacob called as he stared at the figure down his barrel.

[Jeremy Willicker]

He'd never seen so much...nothingness. Growing up in New Haven and then Manhattan, he had gotten used to seeing people everyhere. Lights, noises, something other than trees, grass...and hay. Lots and lots of hay. It was easy to watch for movements though. At least there was something good about being stranded in the middle of nowhere.

He still had a long way to go, but now he could definitely see lights on ahead. Someone was in there. He was sure of it. Readjusting the straps of his bookbag on his shoulders, he sped up a bit, intent on getting to the house before his legs gave out. Plus, his head was starting to hurt. He needed food.

Barely fifty feet from the house, he heard the unmistakable sound of something akin to a cocking gun. The wind was strong so he wasn't sure it was his imagination playing games with him again. He stopped in his tracks and looked at the house. He hadn't seen anyone come out, but then he'd been admiring the hay hadn't he?

He continued on.

"Stop right there, or I will shoot you firs' and ask questions later."

Jeremy froze, his grip on his gun tightening as he raised and pointed it at the house. He didn't see anything at first, but then movement near the side of the house caught his eye and he swiveled that way. There, standing on the porch was a shirtless man. He couldn't see his face, but he could see down the barrel of the shotgun pointed directly at his head. He gulped. Blue eyes wide like a deer caught in the headlights, Jeremy cocked his gun. The cool wind caught his thread bare shirt and he shivered where he stood. Stilling his trembling arms, he stepped backward. He had to say something, but his mind was blank. His head was throbbing and he felt ill, like he was going to be sick. Too bad there wasn't much inside him to throw up.

"I...I need some where to rest," he murmured, his accent thicker than ever as fear coursed through him. He stared at the shot gun and then at his own gun. He gradually lowered his own. "I haven't slept in days...please..."

[jacobsnyder]

Jacob stared at the person standing there and quickly assessed them in the moonlight. He was a guy, probably around his age, and he was armed. He saw him raise his weapon and cock it and Jacob let his finger ghost over the trigger, twitching it ever so slightly so the small metal pick jittered in it's spot. Just a bit more pressure and this guy would be blown away, but yet he hesitated because the guy backed up looking rather frightened. A smug smile spread across Jacobs face because he had actually made this guy fearful, which meant he knew his place. This was Jacobs house, and they were going to play by his rules.

I...I need some where to rest, I haven't slept in days...please..."

Then the gun lowered, but Jacob kept his where it was, but he did move his finger to the metal barrier around the actual trigger. The guy sounded legitimately tired and scared, and from what he could see, he was worse for wear. Dropping his shotgun so it was no longer aimed at the mans face but rather his legs, Jacob moved around his porch furniture and did a quick sweep of the property with his eyes. He was hoping the guy hadn't attracted walkers on his way here, but he didn't spot any just yet.

"Unload yer weapon," Jacob said as he stared at the pistol. "You can keep the bullets, but keep it unloaded. Gives me a better advantage cause if you even try to load it back up you will dead before you can cock it," he explained with a wicked grin. Honestly, Jacob was a nice guy, but the times were dangerous and he trusted no one, the last person he had seen on his property that wasn't a walker tried to steal his horses, and his food supply.

"Hurry up, our voices carry 'round here, I'm sure walkers are already tryin' ter sniff us out," he said as he waved his gun lightly to get the guy to hurry up. "And it's cold as hell out 'ere as well," Jacob finished realizing just how cold he was now that adrenaline wasn't pumping through his veins.

[Jeremy Willicker]

Jeremy's gaze dropped down to his gun and then back up at the man on the porch. Unload his gun? Was he serious? If a walker came out he'd be shit out of luck. He wasn't too good with a gun as it already was and now he was asking him to take out all of the bullets and hope that nothing bad happened?

He knew he didn't have to do it. He could leave. But then what? Return to his truck? No, that wasn't an option. He decided that before he even climbed out of the damn thing. He would just have to suck it up and do what the man asked.

Putting the safety on, Jeremy began unloading the pistol, sliding the bullets out and stuffing them into his pockets. He glanced up at the man while he worked, eye balling the shotgun and perking his lips at his words. He hadn't seen a walker for miles, but then he'd come from the north and not from the town which he was sure was a few miles to the south. When the final bullet was out, he showed the man the clip and then slid it into his pocket. He stepped forward.

"You wouldn't have a loo around here would ya?" He asked as he stepped onto the first step of the porch.

[jacobsnyder]

Jacob watched the guy unload his gun, and once the last bullet was out of the clip, Jacob put the safety back on his shotgun and leaned it up against his shoulder. It was much too heavy and long to carry like normal, and it just rested nicely there, even if the cold metal caused him to flinch and goosebumps to appear. He would let the guy reload once trust was earned, but right now he wasn't going to allow that. Tonight was going to be another sleepless one because he would be watching this guy the whole time , just to be safe.

"Yeah, and some water to bathe," Jacob said as he noted the mans matted hair and rather dirty and ripped up clothing. "I have some extra clothes too," he finished before moving to pull open the peeling white screen door. Just because Jacob was paranoid didn't mean he was a complete ass, the guy looked ragged and cold.

Checking over his shoulder once more to make sure that nothing else was trying to come in and get warm with them, he shut the door behind them and bolted it shut. He would add the stronger barricades before he went to 'bed', which would involve him watching this new guy the whole night. Once the chain was set, Jacob turned around to the face the guy, as he set the gun down by the door jam. "Names Jacob by the way," he said to break the silence and make it a little less awkward.

Even in the end of the world, Jacob still held onto his southern hospitality.

[Jeremy Willicker]

Just thinking about a bath and warm clothing was enough to brighten Jeremy's night. He smiled softly at the other man before stepping onto the porch and slipping inside the house. He was hit by the warmth of the place and how overly decorated it was. It was clear that this was a family home. He glanced at the pictures along the walls and was struck dumb by all of the smiling faces looking back at him. The smell of perfume lingered in the air. The guy's mother's perhaps?

"Jeremy," said, as he turned to look at Jacob. His eyes darted down to his chest and then, biting the inside of his mouth, he turned and looked at the room.

"Are you alone then?" he asked as he stepped on into the room and looked around some more. There had to be other people in the house. The farm house was large like most of them seemed to be. He imagined many children running around the place and an old lady harping about breakfast and feeding the chickens. His imagination was getting the best of him. That happened a lot these days...especially since he'd been traveling on his own for almost a month.

Sliding his bag off, he stuffed his unloaded gun inside and then dropped it onto the floor. Scratching absentmindedly at an itch, he was reminded of how dirty he was.

"You mentioned bath water..." he said, looking the man in the eyes.

[jacobsnyder]

"I've been alone since this whole thing broke out," Jacob said as he grabbed an old flannel shirt of his mothers rocking recliner and pulled it over his head watching the guy as he adjusted on his body. "My family went to town when there were rumors of a sickness to get supplies to keep us alive, they never came back," he said with a small shrug trying to keep it casual so as not to let his emotions get the best of him. He only let his thoughts of despair and loneliness get to him when he was trying to sleep, but he forced them away as quickly as possible as well.

Even now he knew his family was gone he still waited for his sister to come running down the stairs with a new craft she made, or his brother tackling him off the side of the couch. That was how their family was, close, loud, hardworking, but fun. Looking away from the steps he stared at Jeremy for a second before pointing to the kitchen.

"Yeah...and old water trough the water isn't exactly piping hot, but it will clean you up, there's some soap on the counter and towels," Jacob explained as he pushed open the door to the kitchen figuring the guy would follow. "And we have a shit ton of canned soup as well in the pantry in the far corner, take yer pick."

Stepping out of the way so the guy could enter he turned and stared out the picture window. "We normally don't get too many walkers up here, but it will be nice to have shifts to trade off on watching for them."

[Jeremy Willicker]

Jeremy's heart throbbed violently in his chest as Jacob talked of his family. So his family was gone and he was left alone...how horrible, but then again, that was happening a lot lately. He didn't know if his parents were alright, but he liked to believe they were shacked up in some house in Connecticut, perhaps sharing a beer with an old friend as they waited for this chaos to end. Maybe he should have gone home after all. But then Emmy would have been alone. He couldn't have left her...

But she left you. He thought.

Jeremy followed Jacob into the kitchen, looking around as they went. His stomach growled at the mention of food. Soup at that. He hated soup, but now it was his new favorite dish. He stepped around him taking everything in.

"Yeah, I didn't see any of them on the road while I was driving down here. The streets were very barren." He had hoped to find Emmy and the others along the way, but hadn't seen a trace of them anywhere. He didn't know if that was a good thing or not.

"I'll take any shift. Just let me know when I can help." He fell silent then. Taking up a towel, he rolled it between his hands and then looked back at Jacob.

"I won't be staying for very long." He murmured, lowering his head and closing his eyes as dizziness began to settle in again. He hadn't forgotten his bladder either. Apparently he'd be spending the next twenty minutes or so bathing, stuffing his stomach and pissing.

The simple joys of life.

[jacobsnyder]

Jacob pushed out of the room and stood outside of the door to let the guy do what he needed to do. Normally he would have given him much more space, but this was the first time he had spoken to another living person in ages, and even if the conversation was minimal and short. He wanted to know more about what was going on outside his family's farm limits, he hadn't left the farm in over two weeks before all this shit had happened, and God knows how long he had been cooped up here since the walkers started popping up.

"I'll let you sleep first," he said as he stared out the picture window. Just because he didn't see any walkers in town didn't mean they weren't lurking in the woods hunting small animals and anything else they could get their hands on. Like his damn sheep.

"Where do you plan on going?" He asked the guy leaning his head against the wall behind him. "Last I heard everywhere was fucked," Jacob said with less tact that he should have. Some people were still holding onto the fact that somewhere out west was salvation, or deeper south, while those out West or in the South were probably betting on salvation in the North or East.

After a moment he stood up straight and headed to the center of the living room and pulled a book of matches off the mantel above the woodstove. It was far too dangerous to light the stove, fearing the smell of smoke would attract unwanted visitors, but he had pulled the kerosene heater from the basement, and that warmed the room plenty, which was all they needed since they would be camping in the living room.

[Jeremy Willicker]

He needed the sleep. That was for sure.

"That's fine with me." He called out. Jeremy looked around for the soap and spotted it right where Jacob said it was going to be. Kicking off his shoes, he lifted his shirt and began unbuttoning his jeans. Sliding them down, he stepped out of them, jumping a bit and almost tumbling into a wall. Looking back at the door to make sure that Jacob hadn't peeked in and saw him looking like a complete idiot, he tossed his pants and then his dirty shirt into a corner. Waddling over to the water trough, he tested the water and found that it wasn't as cold as he thought it would be. It was bloody colder. Or perhaps he was just cold in general. He decided he'd go empty his bladder before giving that a go.

"Atlanta," he called out to Jacob from the tiny bathroom. Closing his eyes, he sighed as he relieved himself. A chuckle, akin to a bark, erupted from him at Jacob's words.

"My friends were going that direction. It's safe there, or so we've heard. I was separated from the group a few miles north of here." He didn't go into detail about how fucking scared he'd been when he realized he was on his own, nor how many times he'd thought shooting himself when he'd been locked up inside of that warehouse surrounded by walkers. No, he'd keep that to himself.

Waltzing back to the trough, he wasted very little time cleaning himself; scrubbing every crevice until he was sure he'd gotten all the dirt. He also dunked his head into the water and washed his hair. When he clambered out minutes later he looked like a new man--a bit scruffy, but new. After toweling his straggly blonde hair dry, he wrapped the towel around his waist. He sifted through the pantry for something to eat. He found a can of beef soup with a pop top. Licking his dry lips, he grabbed a fork and padded over to the door leading to the living room.

When he pressed his hands against it, he could feel the heat from the other side. He pushed the door open and peered inside. His eyes moved to the heater and then to Jacob as he stepped into the room.

"I haven't seen one of those in ages," he said, smiling widely. The warm heat felt good against his damp skin as he stepped right up to the heater to get warm. After a moment he took a seat. He'd worry about clothing later. Right now he would eat.

Popping the can, he dived right into the cool chunks of beef.

"How long were you planning on staying here alone?" he asked, though it sounded rather muffled with his mouth full to the brim. His question, nor his intentions were pure. He hadn't seen another living soul in weeks. Now that Jacob was here giving him a semblance of hope, he wouldn't live unless he left with him. Tackling the journey alone wasn't an option anymore. He needed someone else to help him. He prayed Jacob would agree to tag along.

[jacobsnyder]

Jacob had been sitting with his back to the heater when Jeremy emerged from the kitchen after bathing. He turned around as he entered the room, glad he had found himself some food that was appealing in the pantry. His mother always bought non perishable food in bulk for when the winter storms rolled in, or the hurricanes in the summer. They lived a good ways off a small town, so going over a week without power was not uncommon in the least, even two weeks wasn't unheard of for him.

"We have to have different methods of heat, gets cold out here without power for long, and I don't want walkers to come to the smell of smoke," he said with a small shrug as he rose from his spot. He realized he had yet to go get Jeremy some clothes and as he turned to the stairs, he answered his question as he jogged up. "I was waiting fer my family, but I don't think they are coming back," he said trying to hide the sadness in his voice as he dug around his dresser for a pair of sweats and a shirt.

Coming back down the steps he handed the clothing to Jeremy before taking a seat in a high back chair. "Maybe they made their way down to Atlanta since it is suppose to be safe and are waiting on me," Jacob said with false cheeriness, because he still couldn't come to turns with them being dead, not yet. "I know I'll have to leave soon, I can't stay here forever."

[Jeremy Willicker]

Jeremy slowed down his eating pace and watched as Jacob stood and moved toward the stairs. His next words caught him off guard. He hadn't thought about his question before he asked it. Had he, he would have realized that the other man hadn't just been sitting around in the middle of the country waiting around for nothing. His family was important to him. He could understand that. Losing his family was something he didn't want to contemplate. Yet this infection had been going on for a while now. If they hadn't returned yet....

He'd keep those thoughts to himself. He knew Jacob had probably already thought about that. He didn't need him tossing their deaths in his face. Turning back toward the heater, Jeremy continued to eat. A bit of the juice slid down his chin and he wiped it away with the back of his hand. Beef had never tasted so good!

His ears perked up at Jacob's words and he nodded. If that's what he wanted to believe he'd let him. Everyone needed a little hope in this world. He still hoped that Emmy was okay...and his parents.

"I'll travel to the south in a day or so," he said, taking the clothes and smiling his thanks. "It would be really nice to have someone to travel with." It let that sentence linger between them. Jacob would make up his mind about going with him. There was no need to pressure the guy.

Sitting the can aside, Jeremy gathered the clothes and slipped back into the kitchen to change. When he returned, he sat back down in his chair and looked at the flaming red metal within the heater, waiting for Jacob to agree to tag along or turn his offer down.

[jacobsnyder]

Jacob looked at him quietly as he talked about traveling south in two days. Obviously he had places to go, and was hoping to meet up with the group he had lost on his way down here. It was hard for him to just say yes and pack up and leave, but at the same time, he didn't want to sit around here forever. His family would have been back by now if they were going to return, he knew that for a fact, but Jacob was paranoid. He was afraid if he left they would show up, so he stayed put, but now that was becoming out of the question. His fresh water supply was running out, and the animals were attracting walkers. Jacob already planned on just letting them run free, the horses would run in a pack, they always had, and the chickens...well they died every other week anyway from coyotes.

When Jeremy rose up, Jacob sighed and stared out the window. He knew he had to leave, maybe if he left them a note of where he was going...but what if they ended up going somewhere else? He of course would leave another word for his family to track, but what if it was an endless cat and mouse game? If they were still even alive.

As the guy returned he stared over at him, "I think leaving would be smart," Jacob admitted finally. Staying in one spot for long was dangerous in these times, you became too comfortable and let your guard down. "I have plenty of supplies to take with us," he explained, "And a truck that will get us atleast out of town until we can fill up once again." Jacob finished.

It would be hard for him to actually leave the house, because he was sure he would never be returning. Atleast not until all these walkers were gone and things reverted back to normal. If that even happened at all.

[Jeremy Willicker]

Jeremy perked up and he cut his eyes at Jacob.

"Oh yeah, that sounds good." Had he really volunteered to tag along? He sat a bit straighter and angled his body so that he was facing Jacob a bit more. "I'll help pack what we can. I was actually driving this way when my...well, someone's truck ran out of gas. There was some good stuff in the bed, but I didn't bring it along." He should have, but it was too late to think about going to get it now.

"Also, I've no idea where I am, nor how we'll get to Georgia from here, but I'm sure we can figure it out." Jeremy brought his legs up and sat on them, leaning heavily on the arm of the chair.

"We can look for your family before we really leave if you'd like. We can do that while we search for supplies in town." He didn't know much about the area, but a town in the middle of North Carolina had to have a grocery store and a gas station. If not, there were sure to be a few abandoned cars lying around down there. They could find some jugs and fill them with gas for later.

He stifled a yawn behind his hand and turned to look out the window. He could feel his eyes getting heavier and heavier. He knew he should turn in, but after being on edge for so many days, his body was refusing to shut down. Anything could happen. Even though they were miles away from civilization Jacob did say that walkers could smell them. What if they cropped up during the night?

Jeremy eyed the front door and then turned back to Jacob. "Why don't you sleep upstairs?" he asked. He looked at the bolted door and decided that it just wasn't thick enough for his liking. "Wouldn't it be safer up there?" he asked.