(A/N:) Lookie here my children- I have brought to you another chapter :)

This one's gonna be neat (albeit a bit overdue)

I hope you enjoy ;)

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3rd POV:

"I see it!" Evan exclaimed, pointing his finger dramatically ahead as if he were Christopher Columbus discovering a new land.

It had been an entire day and another night of walking and the sun was quite literally rising on the third day as the jagged silhouette of Ridgefield could be seen on the horizon. It's shadowed buildings sat like the sharp and foreboding fangs of a rabid dog baring it's teeth in warning to stay away or you might get bitten. Go figure.

To Tyler and Evan, this was a sign of hope- and more specifically food, but for Jon and Craig, those abandoned buildings held the ghosts of events that they would much rather forget.

Soon enough, sparse houses started to crop up, indicating that civilization was close- or at least something to eat. That was quite literally all that Tyler could think about as he permanently fixed a hand over his stomach in anticipation.

Evan was just as excited, but his attention was captured by something else. Just a few paces ahead, Craig and Jon were walking, their heads angled sharply down  as if avoiding the sight of the approaching town. This worried him slightly, considering the fact that they were so close to salvation, yet the pair seemed to reek of nerves and sorrow. "I'm gonna go ahead a bit." Evan stated, giving Tyler's a light pat on the arm to let him know that he was heading off. With a nod of acknowledgement from his friend, Evan quickened his pace and began to catch up with Craig and Jon, who hardly seemed to notice him. Clearing his throat, Evan managed to get Jon to look up at him. He was slightly taken aback by the expression on his face. It was completely placid as if he had no emotion within him. There wasn't even a hint of light to be found in his usual fiery cerulean stare. "Uhm," Evan looked at the pavement that passed under his feet as he walked, now unsure of how to phrase what he wanted to say. "What is it exactly?.... About this town I mean..." He questioned quietly and Jon looked up at the skyline then back to the path before them.

His eyes shut momentarily as he let out an exasperated sigh, "Ridgefield was the last place our group stayed before we met you guys." He stated and Evan nodded slowly, remembering something Craig had said about there being more of them in the past. It clicked in his brain that something horrible must have happened there and he gulped.

Without even thinking, he continued to press on, "...How many?" It only came out as two words, but Jon seemed to understand what he meant.

"There were five of us all together," The shorter male said. Evan expected him to stop there, but he didn't. Rather, he kept talking. "It was Craig, Marcel, Scotty and I...." Jon seemed to trail off and a placid look of no emotion returned as he stared ahead.

Evan thought for a second, running a hand through his slick black hair, "But-" he began, clicking his tongue, "That's only four." Confused, he raised a brow at Jon.

After a moment of silence, the blank look on Jon's face morphed into one of distress and what seemed to be anger. "We had another member... He was like my brother... my best friend..." That was all Evan was able to make out through Jon's mumbling.

Part of him wanted to comfort Jon, place a hand on his back and rub soothing circles, but instead, his hand laid limp and numb at his side, unable to move. An awkward, heavy silence fell over the pair as Evan reflected upon Jon's explanation. It took him a moment to come up with what he wanted to say, but he finally gave a firm nod. "Okay. I can tell you're not ready to disclose everything to me yet, but if you ever want to talk, you know where to find me." He stated in a friendly, almost boarder line guidance counselor, therapist sort of way.

Jon felt grateful for Evan's kind gesture, but his body and soul seemed too heavy to really show it. He figured that he would let Evan know his appreciation later, when they could finally leave Ridgefield in their dust for good. He almost smiled at the idea of looting the place for everything it had and then burning it to the ground.

A sudden burst of energy from Tyler pulled him back to reality and he watched as the tall man lumbered past him. "Guys look! A McDanndy's! He exclaimed, pointing to a looming sign adorned with a giant yellow M. It was really hard to miss considering it stood out like a sore thumb compared to the plain green trees that it poked out from. "Oh boy, what I wouldn't do for some of those salty fries right about now." As he said this, he licked his lips, mouth clearly watering at the thought of a hot deep fried treat. They used to be cheap, greasy- disgusting even- but now they seemed like a luxury of great value. The fillet mignon of the apocalypse.

"It's worth a check," Evan smiled and they set off toward the abandoned restaurant.

Tyler, ready to put something in his belly, practically sprinted ahead, the other three groaning as they began to chase after him. The excited man rounded a corner and disappeared from sight.

There was a moment of calm before Tyler let out a shout. Craig, Evan and Jon all exchanged glances before full on sprinting toward Tyler's distressed yell. Evan was the first to round the corner and stopped dead in his tracks, taking in the scene.

There Tyler stood amongst the rubble of the building that once stood in its place, angrily kicking a weathered chunk of drywall. Evan face palmed and walked over to his friend. "What the hell man- we thought something happened to you." he said, his tone almost like a mother scolding her child.

Tyler spinned around to face him, arms folded over his chest. "Something did happen to me," he sipped back, "I got hit by a truck and it's license plate read: D I S S A P O I N T M E N T."

Evan rolled his eyes and looked over at Jon and Craig who were standing a ways back, both looking confused as they stared at the rubble. "What is it?" Evan questioned, walking over to them.

"It's just...." Craig started, scratching the stubble on his chin, "I could've sworn that this was standing last time we were here."

"It definitely was." Jon confirmed, shouldering past Evan to get a closer look at the wreckage. He leaned down and picked up a corner piece of a brick, palming it in examination. "It looks fresh..."

"So what exactly are you two getting at?" Evan was beyond confused, in his mind, buildings got destroyed all the time, it was the apocalypse after all.

Jon stood up and spun around, brick still in hand, "It means that someone's been here recently," he tossed the chipped stone to Evan who caught it with ease, gripping it in his fist, "and whoever it was has one hell of an artillery."