CHAPTER ONE: LEFT BEHIND
Carol never went to University. She did try one day to talk Ed into it but he brushed her off saying it wasn't important. He never believed in school. He never believed in the education system. He thought it was a waste of time and that she should not try to avoid her responsibilities at home. "What would you be doing at school, huh? Learning some stupid crap while you could be doing something useful for a change? You're a housewife, your job is to stay at home, make dinners, do the chores and watch for the baby. The rest doesn't matter. Don't try to be someone you're not." Carol nodded and didn't bother to argue with him. She knew it was going to turn that way.
Ed never cared for her future. He just cared about his job and the money that came from it. Sophia never had a chance to spend some quality time with her own daddy. He was always somewhere else, doing something for the job or spending time drinking with his friends. Carol learned through all those years that she wasn't going to get the future she wanted. Ed would always be there stopping her or trying to ruin her plans. She wasn't allowed to make her own decisions. With years, she slowly became numb and she just gave up on her goals and dreams. She wasn't even strong enough to divorce him and to run away with her daughter. She just gave up on life. She gave up on anything that ever mattered to her. She gave up on her daughter's future. But mostly, she gave up on herself.
Her breath was short as she ran through the long dark hallway, her hands squeezing desperately on her rifle. She heard the gunshots in a near distance but tried not to think about it. It wasn't the time nor the place to start thinking about the possibility of dying today. Carol got separated from the group but she knew they would go back for her sooner or later if she got lost along the way. She heard loud footsteps from the other side of the hallway but didn't dare turning around, fearing who might be following her.
As she heard a shot passing right through a wall beside her, she knew she had to hurry finding a shelter. She opened the first door at her reach and entered it without giving it any second thought. She didn't care about walkers anymore; the truth is there was worst out there than the living dead. Before closing the door, she saw a man dressed in black aiming at her with his gun but she shot him in the head right before he could pull the trigger. She looked around, hesitated a moment but finally took the weapon out of his hand and closed the door behind her.
Finally able to catch her breath, she realized it was yet another close call for her. I can't keep running like this. I'll run out of luck eventually. Her back was sweaty and her navy blue jacket had a few blood stains on it. She grimaced as she stretched the burning muscles in her legs. Her boots never felt heavier on her feet. She quickly looked around and understood she was in a classroom. A room that used to be a place full of life where students could learn and develop their knowledge. Her heart sank at that thought. It was ironic how it took the apocalypse for her to finally get a chance to enter a classroom. I guess things went full circle for me on that one.
She disposed the new gun on a table and visualized what could be done to barricade the door and gain more time to come up with a plan. Obviously, she went for the desks almost immediately. They had a solid structure that could certainly hold up for a while. She stacked a few of them against the door and concluded it was probably the best she could do at the moment. She then backed off and wondered what she could do next. The classroom seemed pretty deserted and harmless from her point of view. No walkers or humans in sight.
A thin ray of light came from the windows and offered a quite reassuring feeling that Carol welcomed more than ever. She instinctively decided to open those windows to get some fresh air. As she inhaled deeply, she couldn't help peeking outside in case someone from her group might have been waiting down there. They were a few cars parked in the street and four guards standing near the entrance of the University. They were probably waiting for their chief to give the signal to come inside. One of them was looting the back of Rick's car, the same car that got them all here in the first place. He loaded his bag with the few things that still remained inside. I can't believe an ordinary supply run could finish like this…What am I supposed to do now?
As she barely processed what was going on, a guy came out of the building and reunited the guards before him. She focused on them and tried to overhear their conversation. Luckily, her position on the second floor gave her the opportunity to spy on them without getting noticed.
"So, what's going on Bill?" asked one of the guards who wore a green cap on his head.
"They killed a lot of our people. There's a guy with a crossbow who's really taking no shit and a black woman who swings a katana with no mercy. I barely made it back here. There are six or seven of them. I can't tell."
"What's our next move then?" asked another guard while scratching his beard.
"We wait for Dan's signal. He's probably gonna need us soon enough for reinforcement. Prepare your weapons and make sure they are fully loaded. They won't escape us. "
"Do you think they are a big threat?"
"Nah, we'll be fine. We will outnumber them fast enough. Anyway, we're gonna blow this place up once we find what we're looking for. You know how Dan likes to destroy every single place we visit to make sure no one comes after us. There's no way they are gonna make it out alive."
"Where did he put the explosives?"
"Hmm…he told me he had four sets of explosives that he installed in the cafeteria, on the first floor. It's hidden somewhere under a table. When it explodes, the main building will be gone and you can be sure there will be not much left."
"How much time do we have before it blows up?" asked the youngest guard in the group.
"He set it up to explode in approximately an hour or so." Bill took a look at his watch to make sure he was right. "We'll have enough time to get rid of these people and gather everything we can to the cars."
Seeing that no one had any more question to ask, Bill gave them a single nod and each guard went back to their initial position, waiting for Dan's signal that might come any minute now.
Carol suddenly felt very anxious with the conversation she overheard. She couldn't believe they were trapped into this giant mess with little to no chance to make it out alive. It felt like living the CDC all over again with the pressure of this countdown leading to a big blow up. We barely made it the first time, back at the CDC. If it wasn't for that grenade in my purse, we'd be all dead today. But now what? If it isn't the explosion that destroys us, it will be their group that kills us. Carol slowly wiped the tear that dropped on her left cheek. She felt powerless in that classroom all by herself. What could she do to protect her friends from here? There was simply no way she was going to wait for those people to kill her family. And Daryl, god…Daryl.
On the same token, it was really too dangerous to go out there and risk her life. She had to think fast and minimize the damages around her. She crouched on the floor, took out her weapons and put them all in front of her to come up with a strategy. She had a rifle, the gun she stole earlier and a knife. She looked at the ammunition left in both guns. There were only six rounds left in the stolen gun and ten rounds left in her rifle. Alright, I guess I'll have to make each bullet count from now on.
The storage room was small and plunged into darkness but it was the best they could find to escape their new enemies. Michonne didn't pronounce a single word but she kept peeking outside the door to prevent any sort of danger. Daryl grumbled loudly as Rick tried to calm him down by putting his firm hand on his shoulder. They were only three of them sharing this little room together. Glenn, Maggie and Carl ran off in a different direction before they could do anything about it. On the other hand, Carol had to make her way on her own as she got a man chasing her down. Daryl wanted to follow him but Rick and Michonne needed assistance immediately and he simply couldn't leave them behind.
"Relax, we'll find her, Daryl." whispered Rick in a soft tone.
"I should have killed that jackass when I had the chance."
"She'll be fine. She knows how to defend herself. You thought her all she needed to know. "
"We gotta get outta here. Ain't gonna waste my time in this shithole. You know like me we can't keep hidin' like this. We gotta fight and find our people."
"I know but we have to do this the right way. We can't even tell how many they are and we're struggling on ammo. There's gotta be a plan to support us or else, we're screwed."
Daryl finally went silent as he knew Rick was right. There was no way they could go out there without thinking this through. He had no idea where Carol was hiding and they simply couldn't take their chances without making sure it was safe. Rick took out the few bullets left in his ammunition box and began loading his rifle knowing they were his last. He tried to remain calm but his shaky hands betrayed him as some bullets clumsily fell on the floor. The metallic noise rang into the room and Rick immediately suppressed a curse between his lips. His forehead was sweating heavily and he tried to wipe it with the back of his hand.
Michonne didn't move but she arched her eyebrows as she sensed Rick was probably stressed out at the moment for not having Carl near him.
"You a'right?" asked Daryl with a concerned look.
"Yeah, I just…" Rick stopped, took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I worry about Carl, that's all."
"He is one tough kid, he'll get through this. Glenn and Maggie won't let anythin' happen to him."
"I can't afford to lose my son. Not after losing Lori and Judith at the prison. It would be too much for me to handle. "
Daryl flinched as he remembered way too clearly how the Governor's assault destroyed everything they had built at the prison. Michonne was the one to take out the Governor's life but the damages were already done. So many lives were taken in the process and Judith was along the numerous victims. They had to evacuate the prison and find a new place to stay but Rick had a lot of difficulty to keep up with everybody else. "No! No!" had been screaming Rick as he tried to go back in the prison. "C'mon! We gotta go!" had responded Daryl while grabbing firmly his upper arm. Rick had tried to push Daryl away but the hunter's determination to get him out of here finally made his way through. It was too late and there was nothing Rick could have done to prevent what happened to Judith. Everything went down so fast and Rick wasn't at the right spot at the right moment to protect her from the imminent danger. He was in the middle of a war that had to end the proper way and he was needed pretty much everywhere. In the end, they won the war against the Governor but they had to pay the cost that came along with this victory.
"Let's come up with a plan." pursued Rick after recollecting his mind. "Do you see anything, Michonne?"
Michonne hesitated a few seconds, making sure she was giving the right information. "It's all clear. Most of them ran towards the opposite block. "
"Okay, I think it's time to give it a shot. We have to keep moving and find the others. "
"But there's no way to tell where the rest of our group is. In fact, they could be anywhere right now." responded Michonne.
"We gotta take a chance. It's risky but it's worth it. Ain't gonna leave anyone behind." mumbled Daryl while adjusting his crossbow.
"Daryl is right. We'll look everywhere before leaving this place. We can't afford to lose anyone else; especially after all we've been through. Let's go out and don't forget: we stick together."
Michonne nodded and began opening the door, her katana close to her side.
She stood there not quite knowing what she was doing. She had the rifle in her hands but she was hesitant, as if she wasn't sure if it was a good idea. After all, a simple mistake and she was done. There was no turning back for her. They would see she is up there, pointing a gun at them and it would take no time for them to capture her. On the other hand, she had the perfect spot to aim at them and she was practically sure she could take out one or two guards before they would run up to her. The real question was: where could she go after they acknowledged she is up there? Was it really that easy to just run off and wish they would forget about her? Of course not. There's gotta be a way to get out of this mess alive and safe. There has to be!
The time was ticking away and Carol knew it too well. Soon enough, she would lose the last people she cares about in this world. She never had people rely on her so much before, except her own daughter. It broke her heart to have to give up on this imperfect life that gave her the chance to embrace life as it was. She still found beauty in this world even if death was surrounding their every move. She found beauty in her group, the way everyone embraced each other as if they were family. The way they could enjoy the little things that life provided every now and then. The way Glenn and Maggie loved each other and defied all the odds against them. The way Rick cared for Carl and always made sure he was safe. The way Hershel still found hope and faith after losing his farm, friends and family. The way Beth kept her innocence even when she had all the reasons to break apart. The way Carl got so strong after experiencing the most traumatic event a child could ever have to go through. The way Michonne earned her place and proved her loyalty in so many different ways. And mostly, the way Daryl looked after her since the very beginning of their journey.
Daryl, the most amazing thing that ever happened to her after Sophia. The man of honor she had always wished for. The man she respected and loved with all her heart. He was the first one to really understand her while everyone in the group pitied her and tried to avoid her. He could feel her pain and he wanted to help the best he could, even though he didn't owe her anything. Losing him would be her deepest regret, especially since she never told him how much she loved him.
She had a few chances to do it back at the prison but she preferred not to rush stuff like that. They were doing great and he was obviously warming up to the idea of spending some quality time with her but they never were quite there yet. There was always something else going on around the prison and they had their own tasks to care about. It ended up that despite being in a safe sanctuary; they never really had the time to take care of themselves. And although Carol knew too well their world could crash at any moment, she had settled for whatever kind of relationship she was having with Daryl. No intimacy involved but mostly companionship.
She could live with that as long as she could keep talking to him and knowing him on a deeper level. The rest was optional but it was no shocker that she secretly wished for more. And right now, she felt stupid for not having done anything when she still had the chance. If she had known better, she would have at least kissed him once or said something more meaningful than asking him how his day had been. She felt foolish, standing there in front of that window, thinking about missed opportunities while she was moments away from making a risky move. But she couldn't help herself. She felt her heart pumping fast through her chest and she still had no idea where her friends were. For all she knew, it could already be too late for them.
But somehow, she was confident Daryl would make it out alive. She knew he would find a way. He always found a way to put a situation at his advantage. She liked to believe they were both survivors and that they were the ones built to survive this world. They had been struggling all their lives and adapting themselves to whatever shitty situation was thrown their way. She had realized they were the most equipped to deal with that kind of pressure. And she was confident enough that he wouldn't die today. She wasn't so sure about her own fate or if she would be able to join him but at least, she could be relieved that Daryl was probably ahead of the game and fighting his way through the exit.
She tried to remain hopeful she would get out of there too but it wasn't that easy. She knew she was a survivor at her core but she was also realistic and her odds weren't that good right now. Escaping without stumbling upon one of them was practically impossible even if the school looked a bit like a labyrinth with so many floors and corridors. She could be lucky and find just the right path to make it without being seen but she felt like she had used all her luck for the day. After all, it was quite an achievement to have survived the crazy man who had been chasing her down the corridors with a weapon. And she wasn't too sure how she managed to do that in the first place. She had just kept running and running, holding onto life like she had been doing all those times she was put in danger.
And somehow, it worked. She was still there, breathing, feeling the pain from her sore legs and the sweat running down her skin. Life won't get rid of me so easily. I'm not done yet. She picked up the rifle and slowly positioned herself in front of the window. She knew she had become a good shot and there was no denying that. Maybe that skill could save someone down the line and she had to take that risk. She just had to.
Hi guys! This is an experimental story I have in mind and I think it has the potential to turn out into something really great! I enjoy reviews so don't be shy to let me know what you think of the story so far. I also want to point out that I have changed a few things from the current storylines on the show but it will still makes sense down the line. I also want to mention that it will be heavily Caryl related as I love their relationship and I can't just skip it.
I think that's about it so thank you for reading!
