Chapter 1 – Best Intentions
Gabe couldn't remember the last time he'd been this nervous. Or this excited. For weeks now he'd been practically begging Javi for this opportunity, and now the day had finally come. His first time on perimeter patrol. This was his chance to step up and really participate in ensuring the continued safety of Richmond. To prove that he could contribute just as much as anyone else. The fact that Javi had made sure he was assigned to Clementine's patrol group was just an added bonus. (And yeah okay, so maybe he'd asked Javi to make sure he and Clem were in the same group, what of it?) If he was lucky, maybe he'd finally get the chance to impress her for a change, instead of always fumbling around and saying dumb shit. As exciting as that prospect may have been however, Gabe was fully aware of just how important this job really was, and he was determined not to screw it up.
About a month ago, he'd cornered Clementine, expressing his interest in volunteering for one of the patrol groups, and asked if she'd be willing to teach him some things. The proper way to handle a gun, the best aiming techniques, tracking and navigating tips, survival strategies. He was always amazed by all the things she seemed to know. At this point, he was convinced that there was nothing Clementine couldn't do. At first he'd been worried she'd tell him that it wasn't a good idea. That maybe he wasn't cut out for this kind of thing. Or worse, that he'd just be in the way. But to his surprise, she'd been more than happy to help him out.
"I think it's great that you wanna get involved. Bout time you got off your ass and did something productive."
"I'll have you know that my ass is very productive."
"That's... the kinda thing you might wanna keep to yourself, Gabe."
"What? Why would I… That's not what I meant!"
If there ever came a day when he didn't embarrass himself in front of Clementine, the world just might come to an end. Again.
Since then, the two of them had been practicing nearly every day and honestly, Gabe was pretty pleased with his own progress. But even with all his hard work, it had still taken Clementine vouching for him to convince Javi to let him join the patrol volunteers. Not that he wasn't grateful to Clem for sticking up for him, but sometimes he just wished Javi would stop treating him like some stupid little kid. Yeah it's just cause Javi cares about him, he knows. Doesn't make the situation any less obnoxious.
Kate, on the other hand, was still not on board with the idea. Javi had overrode her on this one, and boy had he been getting an earful for the last few nights about it. But none of that mattered now because today was the day. And after this, there'd never have to be any debate about whether or not he was good enough to help out ever again.
The sun shone brightly in a clear sky as Gabe made his way from the apartment building his family now called home, down to the barracks where a patrol briefing was to take place. Javi had offered to accompany him, but Gabe didn't think it would look too good to show up for his first mission escorted by his 'dad.' He didn't want to give the people with whom he'd soon be working any reason to think he couldn't pull his weight. Some small part of him recognized how hard he was obsessing over this, but he just couldn't help it. This was his moment, and if he screwed it up, it may very well be his only moment. He couldn't even imagine what he'd have to do to convince Javi to give him another chance if he didn't get this right. And Kate? There wouldn't be any chance with her at all.
That's okay though, cause I've totally got this. No worries. No pressure. No problem.
Yeah, right.
Shrugging off any negative thoughts as best he could, Gabe rounded a now familiar street corner, fully bringing his destination into view. A two-story structure used to house weapons and supplies for Richmond's militia, runners, and most recently, perimeter patrol. Drawing nearer to the building, he was met with the sight of a few dozen or so people milling about, preparing for the day's runs. Perimeter patrol was a relatively new concept, introduced not too long after Javi had officially settled into position as Richmond's new leader. An offshoot of the town's overall militia and composed entirely of volunteers, all of whom were trained before being assigned their first missions, the goal of the patrol was to bolster security by periodically scouting the surrounding area for signs of potential dangers. Hostile groups, herds of muertos, that kinda thing. While the previous militia, under his father's leadership, had been gradually clearing more and more of the surrounding city before all this, it apparently hadn't been enough to properly prepare the town when a herd came bearing down on them. Javi was determined that nothing like that ever happened again.
So far, it was proving to be a successful experiment. Since its inception, 'Double P', as it was sometimes called, had managed to redirect two smaller herds, and even discovered a warehouse several miles out that hadn't been raided yet. They'd gradually been venturing out further and further from the city's walls, with the eventual goal of setting up security outposts at various locations. Recently though, patrols had reported contact with an unknown group on the outskirts of the city, and that contact had not been friendly. Two militia groups were being sent out today to deal with the problem, and although the main goal was only to drive this group out of Richmond's territory, some kind of violent altercation was pretty much inevitable. Even though his group was not one of the two who would have any contact with these unknowns, just the knowledge that they were out there was the main reason Kate was so against this, he knew. Gabe could admit that he was a little nervous about it as well, but he'd been preparing for this for too long to let some assholes come along and disrupt his plans. Besides, if things got rough, he'd have Clementine by his side.
When she'd first returned to Richmond three months ago, joining the patrol was one of the first things she had done. Clementine was apparently never content unless she was actively engaged in something dangerous. Or at least, that's how it seemed to him sometimes. But he supposed when you're as badass as Clem, it just kinda comes naturally. He'd been hoping he could catch her earlier this morning and walk to the barracks with her, but by the time he'd woke up, she had already dropped off AJ with Javi and Kate and left, saying she needed to show up early to help with the route planning. Not too surprising. In the short time she'd been back, Clem had already made quite an impression on the militia. So much so that they frequently called upon her to help out with various tasks. She was well on her way to becoming a patrol leader at this point. He couldn't be more proud of her, but sometimes he found himself wishing that she had a little more time to spend with him. He consistently ignored the annoyingly persistent part of his brain that suggested perhaps she didn't spend more time with him because she just didn't want to.
The sound of his name being called from a short distance away snapped him out of his musings. Looking up he was greeted with the welcome sight of Clementine waving him over to her from inside the building. Smiling, Gabe picked up his pace and quickly crossed the distance between them, entering the barracks through the open double doors. Her smile was practically beaming as she greeted him. He thinks he could die happy if only she'd look at him like that every single day.
"Hey, dork. You finally decide to get up this morning?" she teased as he came within easy earshot.
"Ya know, some people actually like to get a decent amount of sleep. I happen to be one of them." he quipped in reply.
The easy camaraderie between them had only increased since her return. A fact Gabe was immensely grateful for. He'd worried that whatever spark of friendship that had sprung up between them would dissipate while she was out there doing who knows what. But they'd picked up right where they left off, almost as if she'd never been gone at all. Minus the part were he spent all that time missing her and worrying himself to death.
"You mean some people just like to be lazy." Clementine responded with a smirk. Poking him lightly in the chest. "And by some people I mean you."
"Oh, thanks for clearing that up, cause I was so sure you were talking about someone else."
Laughing outright at that, Clementine momentarily returned her attention to the table of weapons she'd been inspecting before she had spotted Gabe. Satisfied for now, she holstered her own pistol, turning back to him with a sincere smile. She could tell by the way he was standing that he was nervous. Hands shoved in the pockets of his coat to keep them from fidgeting, eyes roaming over everything around him but unable to focus on any one thing. And it wasn't nearly hot enough for him to be sweating as much as he was.
"So, you ready for this?" she asked.
Her questioned startled him slightly, so caught up in trying to settle his nerves. After a few seconds spent staring dumbly at her (which earned him an amused smile), he fumbled through a response.
"Uh… yeah! Sure! Totally. I am… more than ready."
"Oh yeah, that was convincing."
"Shut up."
Taking a step toward him, Clementine reached out a hand and rested it on his shoulder, and pretended not to notice when he jumped slightly at the contact.
"Don't worry about it. You're gonna do fine, I know it."
She sounded so sincere when she said it. Like she really believed it. And despite the rolling ball of anxiety in his gut, Gabe found that it was impossible to stay in a bad mood when she was smiling at him like that.
"Thanks. I appreciate it. For everything, I mean. I wouldn't even be getting this chance if it weren't for you."
"Sure you would. You wouldn't have the first clue what you were doing without my guidance, but you'd still get a chance."
His only response was to send her an unimpressed look.
"Alright, alright. I'm stop ribbing you. For now. But seriously, Gabe. You're gonna do just fine. And I'll be right there with you..." She trailed off slightly at the end of her sentence, seemingly uncharacteristically unsure of herself for a moment, before continuing. "I mean, if that helps you any."
"Of course it helps! I'd probably be pissing my pants right now if I had to do this without you!" he exclaimed, baffled as to how she could possibly think anything else.
"Well alright then. That settles it. You have nothing to worry about. Trust me. Patrol duty is actually kinda boring most of the time. Just a lot of walking and a lot of searching for things that usually aren't actually there."
He nodded at her statement, but otherwise didn't respond. Frowning slightly and crossing her arms, Clementine decided to get straight to the root of the matter.
"You're still worried about that unknown group from the other day."
Looking up at her, Gabe couldn't hide the sting of shame he felt at her statement. Scuffing his shoe against a worn spot on the floor, he sighed.
"Yeah. I know it's stupid… I mean, we're not gonna be anywhere near them but-"
"It's not stupid. They've proven themselves to be dangerous, and there's definitely gonna be a fight of some kind today. It's good that you're being cautious. Caution is the first step to being prepared. But, if you don't wanna do this now, you can always try again later. It's not a big deal."
"No. I'm definitely doing this. If I back out now…" he hesitated for a moment, struggling to form his thoughts into coherent sentences. Clementine waited patiently for him to find his words. "I just really wanna do this. I need to do this. Even if it turns out that patrol duty isn't for me. I can't really explain it, this is just something I really need to do. For myself."
"I get it. I really do. And hey," she paused for a second until he was looking at her before continuing. "I just want you to know that I'm really proud of you."
Immediately he felt his face heat up, hoping for a moment that maybe she wouldn't notice. No such luck if the expression on her face was anything to go by. Clearing his throat awkwardly, he mumbled his thanks.
Relaxing her pose and uncrossing her arms, Clementine lightly bumped his shoulder with hers.
"Just keep your guard up, do what the patrol leader says, and stay close to me. You'll be fine."
Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Gabe finally relaxed his stiff posture and removed his hands from his coat pockets. If Clementine could have confidence in his abilities, then the least he could do was muster up some of his own.
"You're right. As usual. So, what happens first?"
The briefing had been short and to the point, but it did give Gabe an opportunity to see all the people he'd be working with, as well as the patrol leaders. Standing amongst the crowd listening to a rundown of what each subgroup would be doing that day, he'd never felt so unprepared. He was easily the youngest person in the entire room. Well, except for Clementine. Sometimes he forgot she was younger than him. But he was most definitely the most inexperienced. The patrol volunteers ranged in age from young adult to middle age, and even a few that may have been older, it was hard to tell. Most would be relying solely on their own individual experiences out in the world to combat the dangers outside the wall, but quite a few had been members of his father's militia. Those who hadn't know about what Joan had been doing. Gabe felt intimidated by the whole lot of them, but it was these ex-militia that he was most uncomfortable around. Whether it was their past association with the people who'd tried to kill him and his family, or just the fact that out of everyone else, these people really knew what they were doing, he didn't know. He'd found himself stepping closer to Clementine unconsciously throughout the briefing, until he accidentally brushed his hand against hers. She didn't seem to pay any attention to the contact, and why should she, they were surrounded by people on all sides. Gabe on the other hand, had spent the rest of the meeting desperately fighting down a blush, which succeeded in distracting him from how uncomfortable he'd felt. So he supposed it all worked out.
After the briefing, everyone had been instructed to pick up their weapons and head for the main gate. Gabe found it best to just follow Clementine's lead for now. Or maybe forever, she always seemed to know what she was doing. Minutes later Gabe found himself exiting the main gate with a much smaller group heading north, navigating around the various obstructions littering the street. The group gradually spread out as the confinement of the city streets eventually gave way to more open space. Leaving the cover of the tall city buildings sent a shiver of unease down his back. The rifle felt unnatural in his hands, despite how much time he'd spent holding one these last few weeks. He'd thought he was ready for this, but now that he was actually here, he just couldn't shake the feeling that something awful was going to happen. A quick glance around revealed that while everyone else was on their guard, nobody looked the least bit nervous. Clementine walked just slightly ahead of him to his left, her stride confident and her eyes alert for danger.
He tried to emulate her calm, only for his concentration to be ruined when his foot snagged on a rock sending him pitching forward awkwardly. He didn't fall, but he may as well have for how stupid he felt afterwards. His fumbling earned him a few chuckles from the people who'd been walking closest to him, and although he knew they hadn't meant anything by it, at the moment Gabe wanted nothing more than to crawl in a hole and die. Such a childish thought only served to make him feel worse which just increased his desire to find that hole.
Shooting a glare at a man to their right who apparently found this situation just hilarious, Clementine turned back to Gabe, reaching out a hand to help him right himself. He gratefully accepted her hand, but couldn't bear to look her in the eye. So much for his plans of impressing her.
"Hey, you okay?"
"Yeah. My pride may never recover, though."
Her reply, whatever it may have been, was interrupted by the continued heckling of the guy to their right. Good-natured ribbing or not, Gabe was really beginning to dislike the guy. Worse yet, the man's amusement was encouraging others to join him in mocking the boy's clumsiness. Gabe felt his face heat up, a combination of embarrassment and anger mixing with his lingering anxiety to form a heady concoction. He wanted nothing more than to yell at the guy, but somehow he knew if he opened him mouth in such a state he'd only embarrass himself further. Luckily for him, Clementine came to his rescue, as she so often did.
"Can it, Rogers!" she yelled. Voice loud enough to reach the ears of everyone in their group. "Don't think I've forgot about the time you thought you saw a snake out here. Tripped over your own stupid feet in a panic, ripped your pants on a tree root trying to get away from it, and then had to spend the rest of patrol with your ass hanging out for the whole world to see. And it wasn't even really a snake. It was a stick."
Clementine's outburst had the desired effect, sending the entire patrol group into roars of laughter, and successfully cowing the obnoxious man known as Rogers. Satisfied, she lightly bumped her shoulder against Gabe's, smiling triumphantly at him when he turned to face her. And just like that, the tension that had been plaguing him since the briefing that morning was broken. He smiled back enthusiastically, mouthing a thank you. Nodding to him, Clementine repositioned her grip on her rifle and resumed walking, Gabe following on her heels.