"I can't do this anymore, Leo," she said. "Honestly, this has been coming for a long time. I should've done it sooner."
There was a car waiting outside with Jenna's belongings haphazardly packed into it, as if done in a rush. She stood in the doorway, clutching one arm with her other hand and looked at Leo's feet. Leo was distraught, running his fingers through his hair in disbelief. The night before, they argued and fought; Leo, to keep their life together -- and Jenna, to finally break free of all the sadness. It all culminated into this one moment, a moment that seemed to stretch on infinitely.
Leo's eyes were sunken and hollow, deep shades hanging underneath what were now glossed over irises of a greyish blue. He hadn't slept through the night; just sat on the couch in the living room, trying to figure out some way to make things alright. He knew it was too late, though. Neither of them were happy, and the piling debt didn't make things any less sufferable.
"I know," he said, his voice resonating with the tone of one who accepted defeat after a long and tiring battle. His arms hung at his sides. Jenna, a tear running down her cheek, slipped the wedding ring from her finger, slowly lifted Leo's arm, and placed it gently into his hand. It was the final nail in the coffin. Leo couldn't bare to look.
"I think Hazel would have wanted this to stay with you," Jenna choked, trying to smile as if things were ending on a good note. "But, it's best for us if we just let go. It's time to start over."
A couple of minutes later, the car was gone and Leo stood in the doorway, staring at the wedding ring. He shut the door, sealing himself inside for a time. The neighbors never bothered to ask if he was alright. After all, they watched everything play out without ever uttering a word.
Seven Years Later
Time to start over. Time to start over. Time to start over.
Leo revisited the site of his loss months before, attempting to recollect things he had to forcibly leave behind in the wake of his escape from the bandits. When the coast was clear, he walked about, scouring the road for all his possessions. He found nothing of worth, nothing of considerable value. Everything was blood-stained and ravaged, reduced to scraps and pieces that couldn't be considered salvageable. To him, this was a bad thing because there was something that was missing from his collection, something very prominent and personally valuable. He was missing Aunt Hazel's wedding ring.
He checked the bodies lying around the area. Fifteen walkers, gone. A couple of normals, too. Guess the bandits couldn't take on the horde without casualties. He checked his own gun. Six bullets in the cylinder, with another twenty-four in a holding case. He checked the tracks left behind by the survivors. They headed eastward, but Leo wasn't sure where. He deduced that if the ring wasn't here, then it had to be with them, a fact that he wasn't all too happy with.
"Well," he said, slipping the revolver into a holster he found not too far back. Stepping over the bodies, he caught sight of a shotgun and picked it up, checking for any usable shells. Finding none, he started walking with it in hand, growing angrier.
"Now, you've got a problem."