A Second Chance

Chapter 10

"Come on, guys! You can do this!" I encouraged, pacing behind the two young children. It had been three months since we arrived in Savannah. Not much had changed. Lilly was being…well… Lilly. Kenny was still trying to find a boat, even though we had searched the city with no results. Carley, however was getting bigger by the day; so was Christa, meaning they could no longer go on supply runs. Omid and I had turned into over-protective fathers to be, not allowing either of them to leave further than the garden. Duck and Clementine were starting to realize and understand the danger of our situation and insisted on learning to shoot.

The warehouse we found was spacious, giving us plenty of space to practice. One person (usually Ben) was on watch at all times when we were using it, allowing us plenty of notice if a threat rose. Kenny and I stayed with our own kid, giving them tips and pointers when they were needed.

"Lee, my hands hurt. Can't we stop?" Clementine moped, turning to stare at me.

"No. You need to learn how to defend yourself, sweet-pea. Don't worry about your hands, you'll get stronger. I promise." I assured, putting my hands on her shoulders and loosening her elbows. "Okay, try now."

"Okay…" She replied hesitantly. She held her breath and pulled the trigger:

Direct hit.

"Great shot, Clem!" I praised, ruffling her hair. Truthfully, Clementine had took to shooting better than Duck; taking only two shots before hitting the target in her first lesson. Kenny even went as far as asking Carley if she was sure that she didn't have a daughter.

"No. I can assure you, she doesn't." I hastily replied, making the woman blush.

"How're we doin' for time, pal?" Kenny shouted, looking up from his sons practice. I looked down to my slightly battered watch, squinting in the dark. It was quarter past three.

"Shit. We're fifteen minutes late!" I responded, grabbing Clementines gun and putting it into the back of my pants. We ran to the entrance, making sure Ben was with us. I stuffed the heavy padlock into the bars and sprinted after the group. I grabbed Clem's little, warm hand in mine and continued running.

Ten minutes of running later, we hurled through the rusty gates that led to the garden.

"Phew…" Kenny panted, taking his cap off and wiping his forehead of sweat. "Close call."

"Yeah." I agreed, leaning against the moss-covered wall. All we could hear was the sound of our own breathing. Man, I was getting unfit. "I'm not as young as I used to be, Ken." I added, hearing the other man chuckle.

"Welcome to my world, buddy. You get used to it." He assured, straightening up and putting his cap back onto his head.

"Not likely…" I muttered, throwing a random twig at him.

"All right. We'd better head in or we'll be sleeping in there tonight." He said, inclining his head towards the dog house in the corner of the garden.

"You're right. Let's face the fire, man." I laughed, opening the door to the kitchen, hearing laughter and talking from the front room.

"Hey! We're home!" I called, putting my duffel bag on the table.

"Hey, honey." Carley greeted, walking into the kitchen carrying wet clothing. She leaned up and kissed my cheek.

"How's the bump?" I asked gently, taking the tin cans out and laying them down. I looked over to her and a smile graced my face.

"It's great. Actually, I have news." She replied, humming to herself as she hung the garments on the clothes horse.

"What's up?" I asked, worry consuming me. What had happened? Was she okay? Did someone get in?

"Come here." She said, gesturing for me to walk over. I did just that. She took my large hand and laid it on her slight bulge.

"What are you-" I asked, confused.

"Come on, baby. Do it for Daddy." She cooed. I was about to ask what was happening when I felt it. A faint flutter beneath my fingertips.

"Holy fuck!" I exclaimed excitedly, keeping my hand stationary. I turned my head, looking her in the eyes. "What's happening?"

"That, Lee, is your son or daughter kicking." She informed, a grin forming on her face. My entire world turned. My child was alive and well, just beneath my fingers.

"Wow…" I breathed, laughing in awe. "It's… It's growing inside you!"

"No shit." She chuckled, rolling her eyes. I loved the way she did that. Taking the initiative, I brought her in for a kiss. I felt her tense in surprise and worried for a moment. Then, she relaxed into it, allowing me to glide my hands to her waist. I eventually pulled away, taking a calming breath.

"Wh-what was that for?" She breathed, her eyes still closed.

"No reason. I just wanted to kiss you." I answered, smiling down at her. I heard footsteps behind me but I didn't care. I was lost in my girlfriend.

"Well… we'd better get back to it, or people would think we're up to something else." She laughed, disappointment evident in her eyes. She turned back to the washing, smiling faintly. I wrapped my arms around her waist from behind, kissing her neck softly.

"I love you." I muttered, resting my chin on top of her head.

"I love you too." She replied, brushing me away. "Now, away with you. You tall git."

"Git? Are you suddenly British?" I teased, laughing at her mock anger.

"I said get out of my kitchen." She teased back, swatting me with a towel.

"Okay. I'm going!" I said, holding my hands up in a mock surrender. I strode from the room, whistling as I did so.

"Hey Lee!" Clementine greeted, looking up from her game of go fish with Duck.

"Hey sweet-pea." I acknowledged, plopping down into the large, grey armchair.

"How's the missus?" Kenny asked, advising his son in the game.

"Fine. The baby started kicking today." I announced, smiling broadly. Clementine gasped, my smile mirrored back to me.

"Woah! Congratulations,dude!" Omid exclaimed, shaking my hand happily. Christa nodded too, smiling widely.

"Yeah, congratulations Lee." She agreed, cuddling into her boyfriend.

Suddenly, static came through Clementine's radio.

"I'm still waiting for you, Clementine. Your parents are looking forward to seeing you. Make sure to find me, whether Lee wants you to or not." A voice suggested, making my eyes widen with fear. I looked at Clementine who had started to blush. I snatched the radio up off of the floor, and raised it to my mouth.

"You listen to me, motherfucker. Stay away from her. Do you understand?" I growled, clicking off. Earning no reply, I tried again. "I said, do you hear me?!"

"Lee, no!" Clementine intervened, trying to grab it off me.

"Shush, Clementine." I whispered, walking to the window. Looking out, I saw nothing but street. I turned back. "Clementine… Who was that?"