Hope everyone is having a good weekend. First off...OMG...the season 4 trailer was AMAZING! I so cannot wait for October now. Granted, it created alot of questions, but at the same time it let us see some pretty good action along with a bit of CARYL in there too! And did anyone else notice that Carol was wearing a bandanna in the trailer too? I was busy pausing it in places when I noticed. Wonder why she was wearing it and the girl with her wasn't? See, one of my many unanswered questions that I have to wait til October to be answered, LOL.
This story will start off AU...not sure if it will stay that way or not yet...we shall see where my imagination takes it. The characters here are younger then they are on the show with the exception of Beth Greene...she is 23 in this fanfic.
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own any of The Walking Dead characters and I'm NOT making any money off of them! I only claim the OC characters I created for this story.
**Please leave reviews. They are what keep me wanting to write! IF you are trolling and don't like CARYL or METH pairing...then don't read this story. And if you trolls do, then know I have very tough skin and WILL NOT be scared off easily with your high school bullshit drama that you've been sending to other CARYL writers on this site.**
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CARYL ON!
Almost two weeks had passed since Carol had been released from the hospital. In that time, she'd thought long and hard about what she wanted to do with her life. Ed was still on the loose and no one had seen or heard from him. That thought alone scared Carol into making a tuff decision. She would put the house up for sale and move out of Gainesville, hopefully putting some distance between herself and her abusive ex-husband.
The decision to move on also spurred Carol to start looking around not only for a new town to live in, but also for a job. With Jacqui's encouragement, Carol had decided to apply for the receptionist position at Sunford Steel's sister plant, Southern Manufacturing in Clayton. Jacqui had explained that the plant specialized in the manufacturing of steel buildings for Sunford, but that they also had a central call center there as well. Carol would be able to make a fresh start if she could just get hired on.
Often her mind also wondered back to the man she'd met in the hospital. She'd not seen or heard from him since that visit and Carol had all but pushed aside the thought she'd ever see him again. She just told herself that he'd been a concerned stranger that had saved her life. Sometimes though she would see him in her dream's, his piercing blue eyes and tone body causing her to wake with a smile. At least she could dream about the man.
Getting out of her car and smoothing out the navy blue skirt she wore, Carol then closed and locked her car before turning back and looking around to face the facility. She'd only been in town for two days now looking for work and a new life for herself. Even the bruises from the last time she'd had an encounter with Ed were almost faded, the light make-up she was wearing covering them. She was healing physically, mentally and emotionally, now she just needed to find the life she'd always wanted and the new town she hoped would give her that.
Heading towards the brick office building, she opened the door and went inside. The cooler air of the office was welcoming to her heated skin and she looked at the empty desk to the right of the door. Not seeing anyone, she cleared her throat when she heard a voice from the back, hoping to gain their attention. When no one came out, she shifted nervously and called out, "Hello?"
Hearing a female's voice coming from the front, Tamera Evens heading back, her cell phone to her ear and made her way around his desk, "Kathy, let me call you back, sweetie. We'll talk more about this when I get home...okay, love you too." Smiling at the woman, Tamera smiled, "Can I help ya, ma'am?"
Holding her resume in her hand, Carol stepped forward, "Yes, I'm Carol Peletier, I uh, I have an appointment with David Craven."
Looking at the appointment book and seeing the woman's name, Tamera nodded, reaching for the receiver of the phone, "Please, have a seat. Mr. Craven will be with you shortly."
Carol went over to the chair, sitting down and looking around some. The office was spacious, inviting and rather quiet. Listening as the woman informed someone she was there, she looked over her resume once more as she tried to settle down her nerves. Within a few minutes, the door to the far left opened, a short pudgy man coming out and heading towards her with his hand extended to her.
"David Craven...you must be Carol...correct?"
Standing and shaking the man's hand, Carol smiled, "Yes...nice to meet you."
Releasing her hand, David motioned towards the door he'd come through, "If you'll follow me please. We'll go back and talk for a few minutes."
Following the man back to his office, Carol was impressed with the laid back feel of the place. The few people they passed were dressed in casual clothes, mostly jeans with nice shirts with a tie while the women wore a nice blouse. Going into his office, he offered her a seat and Carol sat down as he went behind his desk to sit in the high back leather chair.
Pulling out a notepad, David then got his pen and the application that had been faxed to him, "I talked with Jacqui and I must say she had some good things to say about you."
"Thank you," Carol said shyly with a slight blush as he looked over her application.
"Do you have a resume?"
Handing over her resume, Carol gave him a shy smile, "It's not much. I've been a housewife for the last ten years, but, before that I did secretarial work along with payroll for Rockford Manufacturing in Gainesville."
Looking over the resume, David released a long breath as he read. He'd been looking for help for the past week and most of the applicants were either young girls looking to try to hook up with his workers or just not qualified to even answer the phones. Taking note that she had a degree in accounting, he nodded, pursing his lips, "Graduate of Georgia State...accounting degree..." Looking up at her and sitting back in the chair, he raised his brow, "Would you have any problem with working eight to five Monday thru Friday?"
Shaking her head and looking around the office, she looked back at him, "No, I don't, as long as you don't mind some organization." Smirking some, she shrugged, "Helps with the work environment."
Chuckling, David nodded towards her, "I like you, Carol. Jacqui said you have a good sense of humor to ya. The job only pays nine eighty an hour plus we have holiday's off with pay, and medical and dental. Now the guys in the factory sometimes do work weekends if we got deadlines to met for certain projects, but you're not required to be here then. Think you'd be interested?"
Raising her brow, Carol starred at him for a moment before nodding her head and letting a small smile break through, "Yeah, I think I would be. When would you need me to start?"
Opening one of the drawers, David pulled out some papers and slide them over to her, "Just need you to fill out these and then...say start first thing next Monday morning? Eight am? You'll be working with Tamera so she can get you trained."
Carol's smile grew and she took the paperwork and held her hand out to him, "I'll be here."
"Good. If you want, just bring those back with you. Oh, and we really don't have a dress code here, just as long as it's something decent and your comfortable. Jeans are fine if you want. We're not too formal round unless the owners are in town. Then we're all expected to look professional."
"Sounds good to me." Carol stood as he did, her smile remaining, "Thank you, Mr. Craven..."
"David...please. Mr. Craven is my father," he chuckled. Going around, he moved to the door, opening it for her, "It's been a pleasure meeting you, Carol."
"Thank you," she said, leaving out. Heading back through the office, Carol couldn't help the smile on her face. Taking in a deep breath as the heat of the day seemed to engulf her once she was outside, she couldn't help the little bounce to her step she now had. For the first time in years, she finally felt as if she was making something of her life, a step in the right direction after so many wrong ones.
**Next chapter I promise you'll get some interaction with Merle and Beth! Already almost done with it too!
