Chapter One
"Hey! Hey, Maggie wait." Tara grabbed Maggie firmly by the wrist and turned her around to face her. "Hey, we're safe now. It's okay, we got away."
Maggie collapsed into a pile on the ground, feeling breathless and utterly exhausted, she began to cry. Tears flooded her cheeks like rain falling, tears that had been held in for so long.
"I miss Glenn." She cried. "I miss Glenn and now we're separated from everyone. What if we never find them again? They're our family and I need them. We need them. "
"Yes we will, Maggie. We'll find them. I know it's hard without Glenn, I miss him too. I can't even begin to imagine the pain you feel right now, but I'm here for you. I'll protect you. I promise." Tara sat down on the damp, muddy ground, fallen leaves working as a cushion, and held maggie to her chest. Maggie gripped onto her shirt as the tears fell, now more forcefully. The warmth between their bodies comforting them both.
"Shh, it's okay. Hey, it's okay." Tara whispered softly consoling her whilst stroking her hair gently out of her face, placing the strands of hair behind her ear. Her chin resting against Maggies head as she held her in close.
After a little while, Maggie wiped her eyes roughly and got to her feet, leaving Tara unsettled by the sudden change of emotion. "It's fine, I'm okay. We need to carry on, find the others an' get back to what we were doing."
"If you need time, we can take time. We don't need to rush, we need to make sure that the group attacking us are gone anyway. Waiting might be a good idea."
"I need to keep myself busy." Maggie blurted out bluntly.
"Okay, well... we'll find a place for shelter tonight and see what we can do tomorrow. It's getting dark and we need to stay out of sight."
"Yes, shelter. Good idea." Maggie gazed into the distance whilst nodding her head slowly in agreement.
Tara took her hand and ran her thumb down the back of it, trying to comfort her in some way. She didn't know how, she had never lost someone in that way before. A partner... and so... brutally. In truth, she didn't know what to do or say to make her feel better, but she guessed that there wasn't much she could do. It had been months since Glenns passing and no one could get through to her. Not that Tara was surprised, anyone would be the same. She understood, but not enough to connect with her on the level that she needed, or... wanted.
Her hands were so soft against hers, Tara was amazed that something so entirely beautiful could exist in such a terribly ugly world. Just looking at her, feeling the soft skin of her hands on her finger tips, reminded her of the world before. The simple pleasure of holding someones hand could take her back, give her the hope and courage she needed to go on. She felt that if Maggie were always by her side, she could do anything. They could do anything together.