[b]Hank - Leaving Camp[/b]

As the three vehicles started to pull onto the read, Hank's truck led the others. The pick-up tore through the terrain and found itself on the smooth road within minutes of travel. The other's soon joined him as they exited the woods. They were all leaving the camp they had once called home, a small place but full of memories. They had been able to fortify there for so long, but like always, it was merely another stop-and-go. 

For about an hour the three vehicles had continued down the road, reaching highway I-10. They were still about half-an-hour from it, but soon enough they'd reach it, or so Hank thought. Anyway, during the drive, there had been conversations - in all three vehicles. Though the situation probably called for silence, it wasn't like that at all. 

"......I'm sorry to hear that Floyd. Do you know if she got out?" Hank asked the man in the backseat. He looked at him through the rear view mirror awaiting a response. For a second, Floyd did not want to continue speaking. He had already shared so much with both passengers. But despite his desire to keep quiet, he felt that these were the only people he'd ever get to talk to again. ".....I don't know. I saw tracks, but............." he paused for a second, wiping his face with his hand. He stroked his goatee and swallowed as he gazed at the rear view mirror himself. ".......I don't know" he said again, unable to continue. It was like something clicked in his mind that locked him in place. It wasn't anger or rage, it felt more like guilt. It was his fault the entire situation had gone the way it did back then. Because he overreacted, he pushed away and lost the one person who seemed to actually accept him. If only he had remained in the house instead of wondering out to reflect on his mistakes. 

"It's alright man, if she's out there she'll be able to find you. Even though this world seems huge, it always seems so small. Next thing we know she'll pop out of nowhere, I have a feeling" Hank responded, trying to ease Floyd's worry. Honestly, Hank didn't care much about Floyd's past, he actually didn't care much for anyone's past. He understood that in this new world everyone loses people, everyone has their story, but it doesn't matter. What matters is who one becomes after their experiences, after their loses. It's how one comes back from those graves that makes them reliable or not, that makes them human or a monster. But like he does to everyone, Hank attempted to show compassion to help them get away from becoming a monster. 

Anyhow, the conversation in the other car was very different. Seth, Aiden, and Aaliyah were having a rather, [i]fun time[/i]. ".....And then, the ugly Whataburger lady brought him a fork and held it from the actual points with her bare hand. I was light 'Ugh!' and then Hank just took it and started eating without realizing. It was hilarious. Once we told him she was touching it all over with her bare hands he nearly threw up. Hahaha!" Seth laughed. The Vietnamese young adult always thought himself funny, though his jokes usually weren't the funny part. It was his delivery that was hilarious, it was just awkward and sometimes didn't make any sense. In addition to that, his English was sometimes perfect, but other times completely messed up. 

"There was time when we went bowling and I beat them badly. It was like, heck I don't remember, but I destroy them. It was strike after strike, I was amazing! But we also played basketball and I just sucked. I remember that Hank always got angry when I couldn't defend. He used to be an asshole, good thing he changed" Seth shared. He couldn't tell if Aaliyah and Aiden were listening because he kept his eyes on the road, making sure he didn't fuck up. If he did, then DeSean would never again allow him to drive, saying that Asians didn't know how to drive correctly. 

In addition to those conversations, there was also the one in the SUV. DeSean and Jennifer spoke about the hardships they may face once they get to their destination. "I really don't think we'll find any reasonable personnel once we get there. All other stations were wiped out, I'm not sure why were even trying" DeSean said. He was still angry about the decision that was made, uncertain why the others trusted Hank over him. He was the one with a Military father, not Hank. Of course, he himself had never been in the military, but thought that he knew a lot more than Hank. In his mind, he was a better leader than Hank, but didn't want to fight him over that. Jennifer also believed DeSean would be better in the lead, but of course, she only said that because it was her husband. "Don't you think so Heather, that we should go towards the Coast? I mean, c'mon! That's the Coast Guard out there, walkers don't go into the water, they can't swim. And I know you don't agree with Hank, you never do. Hahaha" he laughed as he plugged in his Iphone to the car using an AUX cable. "No, don't. It's going to run out of battery" Jennifer stated, reaching to unplug the cable. "Hey!" DeSean said, slapping his wife's wrist. "Don't touch a man's radio" he stated with a smile. Jennifer huffed and crossed her arms. "We might as well listen to some music while we ride, ain't no better trip" he said as Drake took over the stereo system. Of course, it wasn't too loud, DeSean wasn't stupid. He didn't want to call any walkers towards them via music tone. 

But suddenly all those conversations came to a halt as Hank's truck stopped. It's brakes squeaked a little and Hank's hand came out of his window to signal the rest to stop. In front of all the vehicles was a rather big town with cars parked all over the road, blocking their set destination. "Damn" Hank cursed as he put the truck in park and exited. He came up to DeSean's window and pointed at the road ahead. "It's all blocked, were not getting through that for sure. Were going to have to go back and take that other road we passed by back there" he told his brother. "Man, we passed that up like twenty-five minutes ago. We can't spare the gas nor the time. This was your decision, to go this way, no own up to it. Were not going back. It's gonna get late by the time we go back. And look, I-10 is right there just across. We can either move these cars out of the way or walk. I say we force our way through." 

"That'll make too much noise. We don't know what's out there" Hank said, turning towards Jennifer. "What do you think?" 

"I say we do whatever DeSean says" Jennifer started. "We can't go back, it'll get dark by that time" she added. Hank then turned to Heather and tapped the vehicle's window frame. "Alright, I'll be right back" he stated, going towards Seth's car. He knocked on the window, giving Seth time to roll it down. "Yup?" the guy questioned. "It'll all blocked up ahead, there's no way of getting through without making noise. DeSean says we should just do it anyway, but I don't think that's a good idea. I say we walk through, scout it out, then come back for the vehicles. It's our best bet right now." 

"Alright. Who's all going?" 

"Well. I was thinking You, Floyd and I could do it. I need DeSean to stay and keep everyone else safe just in case. If all goes wrong at least he'll be here to protect everyone. You up for it?" 

Seth turned to Aaliyah for a second, and then back to Hank. "Always" he said with his chest up, trying to impress the girl with his courageousness. The kid turned car off and handed the keys to Aiden before heading to the open trunk. He pulled out his backpack and put it over his shoulders. "Can I get a gun?" he asked Hank as he followed him to DeSean's vehicle. "No. You still haven't earned it back yet" he told the little man. "Were going to scout it out first, see what's out there if anything. You take over till we get back. Forty-five minutes tops. If were not back, head back to th-" 

"Got it" DeSean stated, exiting the SUV and going towards the back of it. He pulled out a hunting rifle and handed it to Hank. "It's loaded. Is baby getting one?" DeSean asked Hank. "I think I should" Seth said, coming out of nowhere. "No!" Hank stated. "He hasn't earned it back yet" he added. Both DeSean and Hank laughed as they fist bumped. "You better come back" DeSean stated, forgetting their differences and focusing on their friendship. "You know I will, I always do" he stated as he walked back towards the pickup. "Floyd, were going on a run, you coming?" 

Floyd went ahead and nodded in agreement, asking Imogen to pull up the seat so he could get out. Because it was a two-door truck, one had to slide the seat forward so the back passengers could get out. "Do you mind if he borrows this?" Hank asked Imogen, referring to her crossbow. The only other weapons in camp were DeSean's revolver, his semi-automatic rifle, and a couple small pistols others in the group had. Other than that, there wasn't many weapons to go around. "Alright, let's head out" Hank ordered, walking towards the menacing blockage in the road. He started the timer in his watch at the exact same time as DeSean.