Carl was driving the van while you sat beside him, staring out the window that definitely needed cleaning. Honestly, you had no idea why he brought you along to meet Rick at the intersection. The last time you asked to go somewhere, he’d flat-out refused.

Despite the hum of the engine, it was quiet enough to hear insects chirping outside. Carl began easing down on the brake pedal, and the van started to slow. When you turned your head, you saw one car flipped upside down while the other remained upright.

Carl got out of the vehicle, and you followed soon after. He opened the back of the van, grabbed a container of gasoline, and started walking.

——————-

After a while — long enough to spot some abandoned cars — you came across several dusty, weathered vehicles. Each one looked like it had been parked there for ages.

“They look like they were parked here… I wonder if people fled or not?” You said aloud. It really was a mystery.

Carl approached one of the cars and crouched down, but quickly recoiled when he saw a body inside—mostly skeletal now. He looked away, clearly not wanting to see more.

Eventually, you both reached a gas station. Carl was about to set the gasoline container down when you both heard a voice say, “Hi.” Whether it was nearby or distant wasn’t clear, but Carl immediately spun around, drawing his gun, causing a nearby can to clatter to the ground.

The man kept talking, which prompted Carl to grab you and push you behind him protectively as he moved to get a better view of where the voice was coming from.

He began moving forward cautiously, still scanning for the source, then crouched and took off his hat to look under a nearby car. You weren’t sure why.

But then Carl spotted something—and suddenly took off running toward the man.

The man raised his hands immediately. Then, gunshots rang out—fired by Rick—but none of them hit the man. They were warning shots, just enough to make him run.