A/N: I don't own TWD or anything else. If you want to use JJ (I don't know why you would want to) go right ahead.
"Don't cry."
Like it was ever that easy.
Jessica James, more commonly known as JJ, was a skinny, pretty, blonde, shy, smart teenager who once would have though she would have a bright future.
And now she was huddled against the base of a tree in the middle of nowhere cowering against a girl who couldn't have been older than ten, who had a gun, who was covered with blood and guts just like JJ was, who wasn't crying even though she was alone.
Alone. JJ was alone. Her only companion had gotten bit and she'd shot him, point-blank, right between the eyebrows. Adam Tennison, her former science teacher, wasn't coming back from the dead.
And now she was sobbing like there was no tomorrow – and, really, there wasn't – at a little girl.
But wasn't JJ a little girl herself?
"No, don't cry," the girl said, falling to her knees and putting the gun down. "It's – I'll cry too."
And the little girl's lip wobbled as tears poured out of her eyes, through the muck on her cheeks, into the collar of her little yellow dress.
Pull yourself together, JJ told herself, wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her dark blue sweatshirt. She rubbed her hand over her face, something she'd always do when she cried in the old world to check for makeup stains. And there were always makeup stains.
It was JJ's turn to console the kid. "It'll – it'll be okay," she said lamely, her voice wavering too much for it to be helpful. "My name's JJ. What's yours?"
"Cl-Clementine," she cried, burying her face in her hands.
"How old are you, Clementine?" JJ asked, kneeling next to her.
"Nine."
So there were still kids around. All hope was not lost.
"I'm sixteen," JJ said, plastering a smile on her face. "Did you know that smiling, even when you're not happy, makes you feel better?"
Looking up, the little girl wiped her eyes too. At least if everything's shit we can cry together, JJ thought.
"Really?"
"Yeah," JJ smiled. "It releases endorphins or some science thing." She almost wished she didn't mention it because Adam had explained it all to her, but it was too late anyway. Besides, it would probably help something. "Come on, try and smile."
The girl bit her lip. JJ rocked back on the balls of her feet, alleviating some of the pressure on her knees, and waited.
She slowly curled her lips back into a smile, her eyebrows arched as if to ask if she was a doing a good job. They both awkwardly smiled at each other for a few seconds.
JJ was the first to laugh, shortly followed by Clementine.
"Where are you going, Clementine?" JJ asked, standing up and dusting her knees off. The little girl shrugged, following suit, even dusting her own knees off.
"I don't know. I just came from Atlanta, from the Marsh house," she said, her smile falling. "I don't know what to do."
"You – you got out of Atlanta all by yourself?"
Clementine nodded.
"With your gun or…?"
"The walkers don't pay attention to you if you smell like them," she said, gesturing to her clothes.
That explains so much, JJ thought, looking down at her own disgusting clothing. Getting out of Atlanta had been tough, even with Adam at her side, and it had probably been more difficult than it needed to be.
"Where are you going?" Clementine asked JJ.
"Right now?" The girl nodded. "I don't know."
"Do you think that, maybe, we can do something together?" Clementine asked.
JJ grinned. "I think I'd like that, Clementine. I'd like that very much." The storm clouds rumbled overhead. "We should get moving, find shelter for the night."
Clementine nodded. "That sounds like a good idea, JJ." She reached up and caught JJ's hand. "Let's go."