A/N: So, here's the deal. If I get 60 reviews, then I'll post a question about the life of one of the characters. This could be one I'll make up later, one that dies in the show, or just one of the many of the show. The sooner I get the reviews, the more important the question will be. Their fate is up to you : )
"Um…" The soft voice came from the door, and I turned at my position on the bed. Mom one. "I was just bringing you two your dinners." She put the tray down on the side table, and wrapped her arms around her self.
We both gave her a slight nod, neither of us ones to say thanks.
She stood there, looking at her feet for a few moments. Sighing, I turned farther away from Daryl, but felt his hand tighten around my wrist. "Is there something you need to say?" Usually I would have snapped this, but I was just too damn happy. Damn that man for breaking down my walls.
She lifted her head, closed her eyes, and nodded. After a few breaths, she opened her eyes and looked at Daryl. "Thank you…for going out there and looking for my little girl…You almost got yourself killed, but thank you for looking." She dipped her head, then was gone.
"That was weird." I muttered, turning back towards Daryl. I was perched on the side of the bed, making sure not to touch him. "I have a question."
He groaned and pulled him farther into a sitting position. I didn't miss his thumb making light circles over my wrist. It was making me loose my train of thought.
"What the hell happened to you?"
"Got shot in the head by a trigger happy bitch." He grumbled.
"Before then." My free hand reached up and pulled back the blanket, revealing the white gauze wrapped around his abs.
He quickly pulled the blanket back up, giving me a look. I'd have to figure out what that was about later. "Got an arrow through the side."
A breath slipped through my lips, startling even me. "What the fuck did you do?"
"Damn horse bucked me off. Fell down, arrow through the side." He shrugged, but didn't meet my eyes. He was hiding something, but I let it go. I was hiding a shit load of stuff from him.
"I should go." I stood up, pulling my wrist from his grasp.
"Why?" He struggled to throw his feet over the side of the bed, but winced as he did, hand flying to his side. "Fuck."
"Stay." I put my hands on his chest, guiding him back to the bed. "I just need to think…" Leaving it at that, I grabbed my bowl off the table, then hurried off.
Getting to the porch, I sat on the steps, slowly eating my dinner. My thoughts wandered, and I wish I could reign them in. It wasn't Daryl, it was everything I was feeling.
Did I care for him? Yes. But that wasn't something that was good. Lately, that has been the kiss of death.
"Red?" Asian sat down next to me, giving me a look.
"Yeah?" I put the bowl next to me, not able to eat anything else.
"You okay?"
Laughing softly to myself, I reached over and took his baseball cap. Slipping it onto my head, I nodded. "Whatever the hell okay is in this new world."
"How's the redneck?'
I stiffened and gave him a look from the corner of my eye. "Fine."
"Okay…touchy subject, got it." He leaned forward, elbows on knees. "Gotta ask you a question though."
Groaning, I leaned back on the stairs looking at the sky. "Fantastic."
"Can't you just call me by my name?"
"No." I smirked at him slightly, and added, "But I guess you can help me make a better nickname for you." Yeah, not something I usually do, but hey, the kid's been nice to me. At this point him, old man, and Blondie would be allowed to pick their own nicknames. As close to their real names I would go. But I still liked the nickname for Blondie…
"Wow." He chuckled and leaned next to me, copy my position.
"Yeah, I don't usually do it though, so use the power wisely."
He reached over and took the cap off my head and placed it on his. "I'll let ya know as soon as I think of one."
Standing up, I nodded. "You better." I took my hair down and put it into a fresh pony, keeping all of the hair out of my eyes. Scanning the camp, I rolled my shoulders. "It's getting cold…I'm ganna change, then walk the perimeter."
"Red, you've done a lot today. Take it easy." He stood, looking worried for me.
"I haven't done shit for the little girl. I'll make sure I'm careful." I walked down the stairs and made my way towards the clump of cars.
"Hey, Red!" Couldn't deny that the name was growing on me. I didn't miss that Daryl was the only one who called me Little Red…damn it, why did I have butterflies when I thought about him? I needed to stab something.
"Hey." I gave the old man a weak wave, moving over to Daryl's truck. Opening the cab's door, pulling open one of my two bags. Pulling out a new pair of jeans, I also tugged out a long sleeved Pitt T-shirt which I brought from home. Walking to the other side of the car, out of the old man's sight.
I changed quickly, then threw the dirty clothes into the truck. It's not like Daryl would be in it anytime soon, I'd clean it up later. I grabbed the flashlight out of the black bag, checking the strength of the batteries, then shut the door. Walking back around, I repositioned all of my weapons.
"I'm going to do a perimeter check." I called up to him, already making my way past the RV.
"Be careful! Holler if you need help." Lifting my hand to show him I heard, I kept walking. Turning on the flashlight, I held my knife in my right hand, and flashlight in my left. Making a slow sweep with the beam, I checked the fence around the farm. I almost hoped to pass a Walker, just to get my anger out. Okay, I wasn't really angry, just so confused. Damn it, I was such a girl.
I heard a twig snap, and I jerked, making a 360 sweep, trying to locate the origin of noise. Another snap, but I still didn't see anything moving. On the flip side of the coin, I hadn't heard any moaning yet. Maybe it was someone who was alive.
Then there was shuffling behind me, and I turned, knife raised. "Hello, Red."
Lowering my knife, I tried to calm myself. "Damn it, what the hell are you doing out here?" I glared at Scowl.
He walked towards me, hands on hips, a creepy smirk on his face. "Looking for you." Oh damn, this wasn't going to end well.
"Yeah, well I'm not some bitch who needs saving." I changed my grip on the knife, but suddenly the weight of the gun in my waistband seemed to increase. I tried to walk past him, but he grabbed my shoulder, turning me to face him.
"I didn't say you could leave, now did I?"
"I didn't ask." I spat back, jerking my arm from his grip.
I walked away, but I could hear his footsteps behind me. I swallowed thickly but kept walking. I should have turned back towards the old man, but I didn't want to have to double back past Scowl.
My heart started to speed up when I realized how truly massive the farm was. I was so much farther away from Old Man than I meant to be.
Finally, I decided that flight wasn't working, so might as well try fight. Turning, I was going to tell Scowl to fuck off, but never got that far.
As soon as I faced him, he lunged at me. I hit the ground with a thud, and my knife fell from my grasp.
Struggling, I tried to flip him off of me, but he was too big. He planted a knee on each side of my hips, hands pinned above my head. He placed his face close to mine, brushing our noses together. "I always loved a girl with…" His eyes scanned my body and he licked his lips. "Spunk."
"Get off of me, you piece of shit!" I struggled under him, but barely moved. My head turned to the side so not to touch his. There was my knife. So close, but yet so far from being useful.
"Now, let's get this straight." He placed a rough kiss on my cheek, and I started to squirm again. I wanted to throw up. "I haven't had any…fun in a while. So, since you are all nice an cozy with the redneck, I don't see why you can't help me as well."
"I'm not a slut. I haven't slept with him."
"Oh, so you say. But why else would he be nice to you. You know that's why he spends time with you." He jerked my head so I was forced to look at him. "You are a slut." He crushed his mouth to mine, and forced his tongue into my mouth. I bit down, hard, onto his tongue. The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth and he pulled back, letting out a growl of pain.
In that moment, his grip on my hands loosened. I pulled my arms away grabbed the knife. I was about to place it to his neck when he reared back, his hand meeting my face.
Yelping, I felt the warm blood start to trickle down my face from my eyebrow. Great, he must have tore up my face.
"Bitch." He spat out, and I felt drips of blood hit my face.
He took the knife and threw it into the darkness. I was screwed.
Then, something hit me. "Help!" I screamed out, as loud as I could. Maybe the old man would hear me.
His hand clamped over my mouth, stifling my scream. "You'll pay for that."
"Get off of her!" My eyes flickered past Scowl, seeing Asian and Old Man run up towards us. Officer was right behind.
"Shane, get off of her." Officer ordered, and when he didn't, he yanked him off of me.
"Red!" Asian and Old Man ran towards me, and helped me stand. I shook them off and wiped my face with my arm.
"Kill that son of a bitch." I spat out his blood from my mouth and glared at Officer. "He's worse than a fucking herd of Walkers."
I walked back to camp, Asian hurrying up next to me. "What did he do?"
I gave him a look a sighed. "Called me a slut. Tried to rape me." I kept walking, turning my gaze towards Daryl's car. Getting to it, I pulled out the shirt I wore earlier today and pressed it against my eyebrow, feeling the sting of the cut.
"Let me see." He tugged at my hand until I lowered the shirt. "Damn." he sighed. "Doesn't look too bad, just a few butterfly stitches."
Pressing the shirt back to my cut, I gave him a look. "Stitches?"
"Not really. They're just strips to hold a cut together." He looked towards the RV then sighed. "Except I don't think we have any anymore…"
"You know what they are?" I asked. When he nodded, I pulled out the black bag, putting it on the hood of the truck. "I found a first aid kit earlier." Pulling it out, I handed it to him. "Didn't realize the group was running low on supplies."
He opened it, and pulled out something, placing the kit back on the hood. "Sit." I slid onto the hood as I was told.
Opening the packet in his hand, I saw him pull out a wipe. Clenching my jaw, I gave a slight nod. He cleaned the wound quickly, and I let out a soft hiss. Didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would, but still hurt all the same. Then he pulled out what I guessed was the butterfly strips and used his other hand to pull the cut together, then put the strips on, sealing the cut close.
"There, good as new." He said, smiling at me, then closed the kit.
"Thanks." I smiled weakly then looked around. "Now if we could only kill that son of a bitch, the world would be better." I shook my head and jumped off the hood. "I'm going to go to bed."
He nodded, then gave me a look. "Me and Dale will keep watch." I nodded, but he looked me over. "I'll make sure no one comes near the car tonight, okay?"
Looking him over, I nodded. "Thanks."
With one last nod, he moved over to the RV, only a stone throw away from the truck, and moved to the top with the old man.
Getting into the cab of the car, I locked the doors and threw my bags and clothes onto the floor of the truck, then laid down. Eventually I slipped into sleep, but not without feeling Scowl's lips on mine, and the taste of him…it made me sick.
"Becca, I'm hungry." Lucy whispered from the back of the SUV. We'd been driving for about two hours. Mother was asleep with Henry, but we were running out of gas. We'd have to change over to another car soon. Shouldn't be too hard, there were enough of them sitting off to the side of the road. I just didn't want to stop.
"Alright sweetie. We'll get food soon." The car beeped at me, and I knew that w would have to change cars now. There weren't any creatures near by, so it should be an easy transition.
"When?"
Pulling over, I looked back at her, forcing a smile. "Now. Can you wake them up?" I was still mad that my mother decided to shut down instead of fight. We needed her, and she just checked out. Now I'm the one stuck playing savior.
She nodded and started to nudge them. They woke up, and I looked them all over. "Alright, I'm going to get all of you food. We can wait here for five minutes, then we need to get a new car. We're out of gas."
They nodded, and my mother started to cry again, not able to bare the fact that her husband and eldest son were dead.
Getting out of the car, I pulled my knife out, pressing my back into the car as I shut my door. Once everything looked clear, I moved to the trunk, opened it, and grabbed a few bags of food, and a bottle of water for everyone. As a last thought, I tucked the pistol into my waistband, even though I didn't know how to use it. Couldn't be too hard, point and pull the trigger. I quickly shut the trunk then got back behind the wheel.
Relocking the door, I turned and passed out the water, then the bags of food. "Five minutes." Reminded them as I started to drink my water, trying to figure out what to do. We would run out of food quickly, I was sure of that. The CDC was in Atlanta, and we had driven about two hours in the opposite direction, plus four for when Brain was driving. Since Atlanta was only an hour away from Cumming, Georgia, we could double back, taking back roads, and get to the CDC in about seven hours, give or take.
"What now?" My mother whispered, voice hoarse from crying.
"We take another car, then head for Atlanta."
"No. That's probably where it started."
"Then what do you suggest?" I crossed my arms over my chest, eying her down.
"Back up north."
"Why?"
"If it started down here, it hasn't made it up there yet. We should go home."
No a terrible point. Nodding, I looked around at the cars at our disposal. "Fine. We'll head up north." I didn't tell her that it would mean we would have to change cars every few hours, meaning more chance of getting attacked.
"Alright, five minutes are up." I chewed on my lip, scanning the area. "That black Trailblazer look good to you?" I asked, nodding towards the car two in front of us.
"We can't steal a car, Rebecca!" My mother gasped, throwing a hand to her chest.
"Mother, the world has ended. I don't think anyone is going to care if we take someone's car."
"But what if they come back and need their car?" I gave her a look, trying to urge her to stop it. We both knew they were probably dead.
"I'll go and check it out. Make sure its got gas and…clear."
"Wait, what if something comes after us?"
Rolling my eyes, I pulled out the gun and gave it to her. "Don't use it if you don't have to." I ordered her, and saw how scared she was. "Only in case you need it. Just yell if anything happens. I'll be back quickly."
She nodded, and I got out of the car. She was too scared to be much of a help. But I couldn't blame here. When someone dies, you can go a lot of ways, but as for extremes, it's one of two. Shut down, like her, or put up a wall and try to avenge them, like me.
Pulling out my knife, I relocked the car door, shut it, and shuffled my way towards the large car. I didn't know a lot about cars, but my first car was a Trailblazer. Four wheel drive was a plus, and it was big enough to fit all of our supplies and us comfortably. Which was good since we had two little kids with us.
Opening the door, I peeked in the back. Thankfully there wasn't anyone in it. Jumping behind the wheel, I locked the door, panting. I was so scared that those creatures would attack us again.
Looking at the ignition, I saw that the keys were still in it. Thank god! Turning the keys, I watched as the car rumbled to life, and looked at the gas gauge. Three-fourths tank full. We could get pretty far on that much gas.
Turning, I looked into the back. There wasn't really anything back there. Good and bad. Bad because it didn't help us with any supplies, but good because I wouldn't need to get rid of anything.
Pulling the keys from the ignition, I got out of the car and looked around. No creatures.
Moving to the trunk, I opened it and looked inside. A few water bottles, and a few rolls of toilet paper. Guess they either weren't prepared, or they took everything else with them.
Closing it, I heard a scream.
"Dang it." I muttered. Still wasn't used to being able to curse, and I turned around. This wasn't good.
Lucy and Mother were huddled together on the one side of the car, clutching each other and screaming. There was a creature sticking its head through the broken window on the other side of the car.
But I didn't see Henry.
"Where's Henry?" I screamed running up to them.
Lucy pointed a trembling hand towards the car, and I let out a cry. Snatching the gun from my mother's hand, I ran to the other side of the car.
"Hey ugly!" I screamed, trying to get it's attention.
He backed up and looked at me, tilting his head and gurgling. Flesh was ripped from his face, showing his teeth. The rest of his flesh was a sickly gray. Blood trickled from his open mouth, down the front of him. The stench was nearly unbearable, and I wanted to throw up.
Except, he was stumbling towards me.
Why didn't I ask my father to teach me how to shoot when he tough Brian? Too late for that, I raised my gun, pulled back the hammer, and squeezed. My arm flew back with the kickback, and I winced at the sound of the bullet hitting the rotting flesh.
There was a thump, and I looked to see the creature on the ground. Kicking it with my sneaker, it didn't move. Dead enough for me.
Running to the car, I threw the door open, now unlocked since my mother unlocked the car to get out herself.
Pulling Henry out of the car, I pulled him into a hug, trying to sooth his cries of fear. Except…he wasn't crying, he was sobbing, screaming even. Looking down, I saw a large chunk of flesh torn from his throat.
"No!" I screamed, clamping my hand over the wound, urging the blood to stop. "No!" Why was this happening? First my father, then Brian, now Henry? It wasn't right!
"Becca." He gurgled out, and I looked at him. Blood trickled out the corner of his mouth and his head rolled side to side. "Make it stop."
Looking at him, my vision blurred with tears. "What?"
"It hurts. Make it stop." His voice was weak, but his eyes flew to the gun, then back at my face.
A small bloody hand reach up and swiped my cheek. "Don't cry." He whispered, and I quickly sniffled back the tears. He was right. "Please, end it."
I didn't want to shoot my brother! That was murder! But, he wanted it. He was in pain. My mind flew to euthanasia. Doctors would help patients kill themselves, so why couldn't I do this?
Drawing the gun up, I places the barrel onto his chest, right over his chest. "I love you, Henry."
"I love you too Becca." He smiled. "Don't let them get Lucy."
"I won't Henry. I promise." I pulled the trigger, and closed my eyes as his blood splattered on my face.
Lowering him to the ground, I kissed him on the forehead and swiped at my face, struggling to get the feeling of blood off.
Standing up, I stormed over to my mother. "I told you to use the gun to protect them!"
"I don't know how to shoot. Now where is my boy?"
"Dead, because you couldn't stand to shoot that creature." Shaking my head, I roughly grabbed Lucy's hand. Glaring at my mother, I added, "Get in the car. We're leaving."
She started to wail, but I ignored her. Putting Lucy into the car, I buckled her, and she looked at my hands. "He'll have fun up there with Brian and God." She smiled to herself.
I just nodded, then got behind the wheel. Whatever made her feel better, but I knew that wasn't true. The only thing that made me feel better was the fact that he wouldn't turn into that creature. I had put him down before he got a chance to change.
Like it? Sorry it's so long, but I had to put everything in. She had this dream because Shane's blood on her face reminded him of Henry's. And curve ball at the end. Did you pick up on it? Do you see the set up? Let's find out! : ) Love you all!
Question of the day:
What should Glenn's nickname be? (Let you have some say in the nicknames)