Friends or Foes? (2)

Lynn was dumbfounded. Would these people be his friends or foes? The girl looked aggressive. She somehow emitted an aura that scared Lynn more than the zombies. She looked as if she could rip his head out with her bare hands. On the contrary, the guy looked friendly. But Sasha had seemed as the one for him also, before she dumped him for another guy.

"Looks are deceptive, Lynn."

"Um… who are you guys?" He was not letting loose the axe in his hands. Lynn was already in stance ready to chop those two off if they came to harm him. He could not believe what a paranoid he had become in the last 24 hours.

"Hey, calm down, mate! We come in peace," the golden boy said as he took a step towards Lynn, "I'm Tyson and the little minion there is Samantha. You may call her Sam by the way."

"I have already told you many times I'm not a minion!" Tyson then fell to the floor as Sam hit him in the shin. She then walked forward; she had a metal bat in her hands. Was she going to harm Lynn with it? The bat clearly had traces of blood in it.

"Hey, can you put that axe down? I'm really tired from all that hiking and zombie smashing. It would be nice if I don't have to also deal with you."

Lynn was definitely sure that this girl, Sam, was dangerous.

"Then… then… put your bat down first!" Lynn's words come out stuttered. He took a few steps back, as Sam continued walking toward him. Tyson was still lying on the floor muttering something inaudible. He was probably complaining about Sam's violent act.

"Stop! Don't come nearer! I'm not scared of hurting you!"

"Sam! Stop provoking him!"

Sam then scratched her head, and groaned, "Ugh… Seriously, did the zombie apocalypse also make all men stupid or what? Fine, I will put my bat down. Can we talk like normal human beings after that?" She finished her sentence by rolling her eyes.

Lynn then noticed that she had stormy grey eyes. They just popped out with all the black eyeliner. Tyson was clearly scared that Lynn could harm them, yet Sam has not flinched even once. She was really going to go with her word. She will really harm Lynn if she considered it needed.

"Do it! Now! Put your bat down!"

Sam slowly put her bat down and raised both of her hands. "Done… So, are you going to stand there panicking all day or can we talk?"

Lynn then lowered his axe and put it on the floor, "How did you discover this place?"

"So, this place is yours?"

"Yes. It's my family's cabin. Now, answer me, how did you get here?"

Tyson then stood up again, this made Lynn take a few more steps back. Apparently, this action made Sam more annoyed.

"Ugh… Can you PLEASE stop being so paranoid! We got here by coincidence, our car broke down in the middle of the forest, so we thought that the safest place to stay was on top of the mountain. Let me guess, the other paths we saw were fake? Let me tell you something brain box, it isn't so hard finding the top of the mountain if you know where you are, and you have a compass." Sam then took out of her shorts pocket a small compass and waved it to Lynn.

"Sam…" Tyson warned.

"Come on, Tyson, we barely escaped those zombies, we managed to drive all the way here, and instead of meeting an ally we meet a paranoid guy who can't even hold a basic conversation before flipping!"

Lynn was starting to feel offended by Sam's constant insults. It was true that he was being paranoid by any small thing, but who would not be. His life was not perfect, but at least was a calm and safe one 24 hours ago! Now he is running from zombies!

Lynn's face clearly showed his distaste. Tyson then tried to smooth out the situation.

"Hey, mate, sorry if Sam's words came out a bit harsh. We are just really tired of all the hiking. I really don't think anyone will be able to survive this zombie apocalypse alone or in two. Why don't we forge an alliance?" He then extended his hand and offered Lynn a smile.

Tyson was clearly one of those that would not give up till the other party conceded. Lynn then carefully walked toward Tyson.

"Why would I want more people living with me?"

"You don't seem like someone who knows about botany. You clearly did not notice that on the way to the cabin, there are a lot of spices and shrooms that are edible. If my calculations are correct, it may be able to feed at least fifty people for a year if rationed correctly. Maybe there are even more edible fruits and plants inside the forest," Sam said.

"How did you know all this?"

"The little minion here loves camping! She also knows how to fight pretty well, and she is also a pre-med student!" Tyson said hugging Sam.

"Get off me! You reek of sweat!" She hit Tyson again on the shin. Lynn was starting to think that one day, Sam would fracture Tyson's leg if she continued hitting him so constantly.

"Just as Tyson said, I'm well versed in surviving in nature. So, how about we make sure that our food resource is always good and in exchange you let us live here with you. Also, I think you will need a bit of help fighting zombies in case they come here since it doesn't look as if you know how to hold an axe correctly."

Lynn then thought for a second. What Sam had said was true. From the food he had in the pantry plus the one he brought from his house; it would last long. He will need to forage food soon, but he did not how. Also, if Sam clearly was a good fighter, Lynn would be safer, especially in times like this where he could not summon a cannon fodder to defend him. The only bad thing from this was that he would need to constantly bear with Sam's insults.

"Fine. You've got yourselves a deal!" Lynn said.

"Great! Now, what's your name, mate, cause it's weird only calling you mate."

"Lynn Carter. That's my name."

"Nice to meet you then, Lynn!" Tyson gave him a wide smile. He somehow seemed so airhead sometimes.