I stared out the window of my room, my mind focused on the people who were still outside in the world suffering and unable to have four walls and a roof over their heads to keep them safe like I did. My eyes were unintentionally fixed on the mess that rested over the barricade: dead bodies littered everywhere, the majority of them slowly melting into the concrete from the sun's heat. The familiar feeling of tears stung my eyes and made me tear my gaze away from the window.

I grabbed the lone picture that sat on top of my dresser. I studied the two happy girls captured in the photo: my sister and I, smiling with our arms wrapped around each other. I fondly remembered the day we took that picture; the leaves were finally turning their autumn colors, the cool breezes sending chills coursing through our bodies. We tossed leaves at each other and were scolded every time we did so, the leaves so crunchy they would crumble in our hair and stick to our clothes. I stood there, wishing I could go back and relive that moment to escape this world.

My sister, Penny, died during the outbreak. When she caught the virus, what was left of our family collapsed. I was completely heartbroken and felt as if I suddenly had no purpose. I had no one to lean on anymore. My dad isolated himself for months, but that was something I was already used to from him; he was never really mentally there. I learned to acclimate, but I struggled knowing that I would never amount to the place that Penny had in his heart. I often think about what life would've been like if we were seen as equals, but that's just a daydream.

Almost every morning I wake up expecting to see Penny sleeping on the floor on a mattress next to my bed, but I'm soon met with the sight of an empty room. If she was still alive, I swear I'd do everything I could to protect her. It would be my job to keep her safe and her mind off the certain things this horrible world has now to offer. She already knew about the biters, but all the other things that could've happened to her were kept a secret. She was too young to know, too innocent. I think that's why she's gone now... the good people never last.

"Aften," a voice called out, snapping me out of my thoughts. I spun around to face the doorway. Andrea stood before me. "Hurry up. He's waiting and getting impatient. You know how he is..."

"Yeah, I'm almost ready." I placed the picture back in its original spot on my dresser.

"Is everything okay? Have you been crying," she questioned after looking me up and down. "Your cheek's wet." Andrea stepped closer to try and get a better look at my face. I quickly wiped a stray tear away.

"I'm fine," I ensured her with a small smile, grabbing my sword and squeezing past her. I hustled out of my apartment building into the blistering Georgia heat. I heard a low chuckle and came to a stop, turning my head towards the sudden noise.

"Well if it isn't little Miss Red," Merle drawled with a smirk on his face. "I'm glad you decided to show up." He stood up from the picnic table he was sitting on top of.

"Let's just go, please," I sighed anxiously as I began to walk over to one of the trucks. This was gonna be hell.

"Hey, I ain't in that much of a hurry," he called after me while he tried to catch up. My whole being was panicking at the looming task at hand that I could barely pay attention to anything. After this town was built, I haven't dared stepped foot outside the walls because of the punishments that could await me. I've definitely thought about it, but the risks were too high. But now my dad is suddenly thrusting me out into the real world with Merle, of all people, and I almost can feel the seconds on my life clock ticking away. Lord knows what he was gonna get us into; he's got a troublemaker reputation and everyone knows it.

The gates of Woodbury creaked open for Merle and I as I hoisted myself up into the passenger seat and slammed the door shut. Merle revved the engine once he sat down. I knew he was doing that on purpose to freak me out. As we began to roll through the gates I could feel my hands begin to quiver.

"Christ, calm down, kid," Merle said with legitimate concern. "I can see you shakin' from over here."

"Sorry," I looked out the window in embarrassment. "You know I've never been out before, okay," I mumbled, tucking a loose piece of my wavy red hair behind my ear. "Don't make fun of me."

"Now why would you think I'd do that," he wondered, glancing over at me.

"You do it all the time to everyone else," I said. "And I've barely done anything outside so..." Merle smirked and began to laugh.

"C'mon now, girl. You don't have to worry 'bout me pickin' at ya. Your shit's different. Trust me, yer ol' pal Merle knows a thing or two 'bout livin' in this cesspool," he paused for a minute before continuing. "I always thought your daddy woulda helped ya with that shit though."

"Hell no," I spat a little too quickly, catching Merle somewhat off-guard. "He's too busy fucking around back home and playing God."

"So Woodbury's home to you, huh," Merle genuinely asked. I was slightly taken back by the sincerity of his voice.

"Well, yeah, I don't really have any other choice. I don't got anywhere else to go," I looked over at him after hesitating with what I was about to say next. "But if I ever got the chance to leave, I'd take it," I admitted. I cussed myself out in my head for letting my nervous truth spill outta my mouth. Why in God's name was I suddenly confiding in Merle; Merle goddamn Dixon, one of my dad's right-hand men? I was getting too comfortable way too fast. Maybe I'm going crazy from my new surroundings. "I'm sorry. Please don't tell anybody that, especially my dad. Please," I began to beg.

"Why would I tell anybody? You doubt me, don't ya," Merle snickered while he pulled into the parking lot of a convenience store.

"You work for him, of course I do," I muttered as the truck was put into park. "I don't know what he'd do to me if he found out." I hopped out of the truck in shame that I even said anything in the first place. Was he actually gonna keep this a secret? Would he blackmail me with this information? What if tried to help me escape? Nah, he wouldn't do that... would he? Merle was quiet as I drew my sword and cautiously held it out in front of me.

"My old man was the same way with me," Merle said, sauntering up to the door. "I know what he'd do, Red." He interrupted himself by whistling into the darkness of the store. Nothing moved. I followed him inside, him turning around to hand me a backpack. "Fill this up with any pills you find. We're runnin' low." I glanced down at it in confusion. "If you need any help, just holler. I'm gonna have a look around," he grinned before wandering off. My anxiety began to bubble in my stomach as I put my sword back in its sheath and started to brush bottles into the backpack. I prayed my dad wouldn't discover later that I was only getting things that I thought looked important. There'd probably be hell to pay if he did. After filling up the backpack, I quickly zipped it shut and slung it over my shoulder.

Outta the corner of my eye, a door that happened to be ajar caught my attention. I cautiously walked over to it, slowly pulling it open even further. A pungent smell spilled out into the air like water breaking through a dam. My hand flew up to my face to block the repulsive smell. I haven't smelled anything like this.

A low snarl rang out from the depths of the room, a biter suddenly stumbling towards me. I fumbled for my sword, my heart beating out of my chest. I clumsily swung my sword through the air and brought it down on the biter's head. Blood squirted onto my clothes and my stomach violently churned. I hunched over, throwing up all over the floor; the sounds of me gagging rang throughout the store almost as an alarm to Merle. Urgent footsteps came up from behind me.

"You alright, Red?" Merle slid the backpack off me to give me some relief. I coughed in response, wiping my mouth on my sleeve. "You need to get out more," he said, examining me. "Ya know you can ask me to take you any time if ya want." He pushed the entrance open, stepping outside. I could feel my anxiety fade away the tiniest bit; he seemed genuine, like he almost forgot he was supposed to be working for my dad... hopefully it stayed that way. I smiled faintly at the offer before hustling over to catch up with him. I hoisted myself up into the truck again, Merle soon pulling out into the road. I stared down at his arm; his hand was missing, a metal cast covering the stump.

"How did you lose your hand?" I wondered aloud. That really was all I've known him as. Merle sighed deeply.

"Got handcuffed to a roof in Atlanta. Sheriff and the rest of them went on their merry way, leavin' some lowlife piece o' shit behind to watch me. The dumb motherfucker dropped the damn key to my cuffs down the drain and got the hell outta there. There were plenty of walkers itchin' to get through that damn rooftop door. Didn't have much time left so I did what I had to do: cut off my hand."

"He still alive?"

"Not sure," he sighed. "But if he ain't, I hope he went nice and slow." I stayed quiet, something that I wanted to say creeping up my throat. I knew things about Merle that the average person in Woodbury wouldn't know and I wanted him to know that. If he knew that I wanted to escape, I wanted him to know that I knew about his family so we'd both have something to hold against each other if things happened to go bad.

"What about your brother," I asked, focusing on his face for his reaction. He tensed. I began to speak before he could say anything. "I heard Andrea telling my dad about how y'all were in the same group. I was pretending not to listen, but I couldn't help it. I was surprised y'all found each other again," I admitted. I twisted a strand of hair between my fingers, thinking. "Daryl," I blurted out. "Daryl and you were in it, back in Atlanta and everything." Merle was silent for a hot minute while he gathered his thoughts.

"His pussy ass probably managed to survive somehow." He sounded bitter. I was confused as to why he was, but I guessed this might've been a sensitive subject for him. I turned my head towards the window, staring out at the passing trees. I smirked a little bit, knowing that we both had information on each other; the smirk was as sly as it was content.

"By the way she described you two, you sounded like real assholes." I started to grin like I was about to laugh. "That's what my sister and I were kinda like though; we were always messing around everywhere we went." I pondered back on the thoughts of her, sadness suddenly washing over me. I quickly switched the subject, but realized we were similar in that way. The realization made me feel as if I was a little safer with him. I'd always been around Merle and talked to him in passing, but we hadn't ever been together in this way. My dad probably thought he was punishing me by putting me with someone as hard-headed as Merle, but I was starting to peel back the curtain on the real Merle and I was enjoying talking to him; he's a no bullshit type of dude but for a deeper reason that I couldn't see yet. "People always talk so bad about you around Woodbury. I thought I knew why, but now I don't. I can hear them talk about me a lot though too and I don't know why either... I haven't done anything to anyone."

"See, Red, the other people don't get people like us," he told me as he pulled back into Woodbury territory. "They don't know what we know." I wasn't exactly sure what he was referring to, but I went along with it and his kindness and nodded in agreement.