A/N: Hey, I guess I'm breaking my hiatus now, but I've decided that my earlier stories, especially this one and AFSTAA, needed a re-write. So here you go, the beginning of AFTOIL re-written. The stories content and dialogue will pretty much remain the same, I'm just rewriting mostly the format of the story and fixing as many mistakes as I can. I will keep the original stories up, but at some point I might take them down. So until I need another A/N, I hope you enjoy, and let's get on with the chapter.

What a way to go. Vanquished on a crumbling street in a ruined city. The cracked pavement seemed like a fitting resting place, grass pushing its way up through the cracks. The only way the scene could be improved if it weren't littered with zombie corpses. When I think of the last 10 minutes of my life, I realized how badly I had failed. My family, mother, father, brother, they had all sacrificed themselves for my survival, and here I was, dying, without accomplishing anything in my pitiful and useless life. Knowing how hopeless it was to hold on, I began to submit myself to the dark void that would finally be the end of my story.

Unfortunately for me, the void suddenly filled with light, I could feel life being breathed back into my body. After a few seconds, I was to be shocked.

"Please say I'm not too late." Through the pain, I heard her soft and sincere voice.

"I don't think you are." I managed to groan through the pain.

"Oh thank goodness. You know, I would call you an idiot for thinking you could take on 50 zombies by yourself, but seeing as you're injured, I'll save it for later." I was not impressed and she must have sensed it. "You fought amazingly by the way. Oh, the names Alison." Opening my eyes for the first time since being vanquished, I was shocked, the literally 'hottest' sunflower I had ever seen was leaning over my battered body, trying to heal it.

"Uh, umm, the-the names Pete. Has anyone told you you're hot?" Realizing what I said, I immediately felt embarrassed. Alison on the other was dying of laughter. Getting a better look at her, I realized Alison was smaller than most sunflowers I'd meet. She wore a crooked pair of aviators and her petals, they were actual fire! Soon, Alison began to calm.

"Yes Pete, they have." To my surprise, her tone turned sombre. "But they're all gone now, sent far away or dead." She began to cry. Pushing through the pain, I sat up and hugged her.

"Don't be sad Alison, my entire family, friends, neighbours, all the plants I knew in my short childhood were killed during a nighttime raid we weren't prepared for, I barely escaped." The horrible memories triggered something in the back of my head and I began to tear up a little.

"Oh Pete, I'm really sorry." Her tone and expression showed she wasn't lying.

"It's fine, they still live in here." I pointed to my chest, "And, as long as you and I, remember them here, then they never truly die."

"That's really did help, thank you Pete. Look, I want you to promise me something." This came as a surprise to me, as I had only just met her, but I looked into her eyes.

"Anything." I said in a voice loaded with conviction.

"I want you to promise me, you won't die or desert me, promise me that please." I wiped away my tears.

"Alison, I promise." She immediately cried in joy and hugged me.

"Thank you Pete, thank you so much." I returned the hug.

"No Alison, thank you for saving my life, without you, I would be dead." And with that, we set out into the crumbling city, my arm around her for support.