A/N: I wrote a little bit about Rick's group in this chapter. I always wanted to know what happened when they got out of the farm, if they were okay, if they were scared, so I decided to write my own version of it. It's just a little bit though. Anyway, let me know if you liked the fast-forward on the last chapter. Send me your reviews and PM's, your opinion is very important to me (:
~oOo~
Rick sighed, rubbing his face and sitting between Beth and Carol, on the small campfire. Everyone was tired from another day running from the dead and searching for a new place to stay. The air was cold and the sky was growing dark fast. T-Dog was keeping watch as always, Daryl was cooking a few squirrels on the fire, Hershel was hugging Beth and comforting her as always, Lori was staring at the fire, with a hand on her belly. Rick stared at her and then to her belly. It was starting to show more and more each day. He thought about Shane; he thought horrible things about him and Lori together. Part of him knew they had an affair, but the other part didn't want to accept it. And then she told him.
"Shane and I."
Only the memory of that moment made him mad. Made him confused. He felt like he was going to lose it; he could feel the insanity coming. When Lori's green eyes met his, he looked away to the fire. He tried to think of anything else; the overrun farm, Andrea staying behind, Sophia coming out of the barn. Then, Lena crossed his mind. The girl he hadn't thought about in months entered his mind without invitation. He thought about her in the first days after the roof. He thought about her after the CDC. But then he stopped thinking about her. He stopped caring about what happened to her. He wasn't sure when, but he did at some point.
Coincidentally, Glenn was also thinking about the girl. He thought about how stupid he was for having a crush on a girl he saw for one or two hours. He wondered if she were alright; if she were alone.
"What you're thinking about?" Maggie asked, looking at his boyfriend and making everyone look at them.
The Asian boy looked at her and grabbed her hand, lacing them together before answering.
"I was remembering the day I met Lena."
Rick was the only one who looked up at him. Maggie and the others frowned in silence, wondering who Lena was.
"Who's Lena?" Glenn's girlfriend asked, a little jealous.
"A girl who slapped me in the face to make me save Rick." He laughed.
"Wasn't the girl who stayed with Merle in Atlanta?" Lori asked and everyone went silent.
"Who's Merle?" Beth asked, innocently.
Rick could hear T-Dog snorting from distance.
"My brother." Daryl replied the girl, taking the squirrels off the fire.
"What happened to them?" The blonde girl spoke again, after a while.
Everybody was silent. Rick didn't want Daryl to start another fight over his brother. He wasn't afraid of the redneck; he was just tired and didn't want to deal with fights at the moment. But for his surprise, Daryl spoke when nobody did.
"They stayed behind, in a roof, back in Atlanta." He said.
Beth widened her eyes. "Why?!" She asked incredulous.
Daryl looked at Rick, who eyed the redneck back. The former deputy opened his mouth to answer the teenage girl, but Daryl spoke before him.
"He was bein' a jackass." He looked to the girl. "Rick did the right thing and handcuffed him there. The girl… She had enough heart to stay with him. When we got back, they were gone."
The group fell silent again. Beth thought about "the girl". She wondered how old was she, noticing that both Glenn and Daryl had called her girl and not woman. She wondered how much of a jackass this Merle was, and wondered if she would stay with him. She wondered how she looked like; she imagined a strong, beautiful tall girl, with perfect hair, taking care of a man looked like Daryl handcuffed on a roof. She let her imagination flow; she didn't care if she looked like a child.
Rick mentally thanked Daryl for understanding. He didn't mean to let them both there. He really didn't. He hoped that someday, if he met her again, he hoped that she'd understand. He hoped that she was safe. He hoped that she found a place to stay and that she was safe. He was truly sorry for what he did.
But if he met Merle again, then it would be a different story.
~oOo~
Lena opened her eyes and felt a really uncomfortable pain on her back. She blinked a few times, facing the pillow and realized where she was. Slowly, the memories of the last night started to get in her mind and she smiled. She took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of Merle's bedroom.
Smells like shaving cream and soap.
She turned on her back, looking at her ceiling and stretching. She let out a loud yawn and only then, saw Merle sitting on the edge of the bed, already dressed, and trying to lace his shoes on his own. She remembered the way she felt in the night before. She remembered the touches, the kisses, the moans. She remembered every single detail of that night. She smiled when he looked over his shoulder, looking first at her face, and then to her exposed chest.
"Good, you're awake." He said, looking back to his shoes. "We're late." He didn't look at her. He didn't want to look at her; he didn't want to remember what he did to her, he was embarrassed.
Jesus Christ, it's just another girl, like any other. Man up.
She sat on her bed, smirking at him in silence. He looked over his shoulder; she was smiling at him, wanting him to say something, anything about the night before. The man swallowed and turned his torso to face her. Without saying a word, she leaned towards him, approaching him. Once she was near him, inches from his face, he put his hand on her shoulder, making her sit down again.
"Look, Cherry." He said, sighing. "I appreciate what you did for me last night." He paused and she smiled, opening her mouth to say something, but he kept talking.
"But I was kinda drunk. Don't remember most of it." Lena's smile disappeared from her face. There was an awkward silence, while she felt her heart drop inside her chest. Her eyes wanted to shed tears, but she didn't allow herself to cry in front of him.
"Yeah, I-" She said, with a soft voice, shrugging and trying to smile. "I was… I was drunk too."
Merle smiled. "Alright." He quickly put his hand on the side of her face and stood up. "Now dress up, will ya?" He grinned at her. She smiled lightly and watched him leave the room.
She fought the tears and stood up, also leaving the room. Merle was in the kitchen, so walked quickly toward the living room, where her robe lay on the floor.
"I- I'm gonna be a little late!" She said, putting the robe on and fighting the lump that was forming on her throat. "Can you tell the Governor, please?"
"Sure, darlin'!" She heard Merle's voice, coming from the kitchen and left his apartment.
He sighed, pinching his nose and closing his eyes. Of course he remembered last night. He remembered everything, he wasn't that drunk. He remembered every single detail, including the way he felt with her. He had never felt like that with any other woman. It wasn't just sex, it was something more. More than just pleasure.
Shit, girl's gonna hate me now.
But he couldn't. He couldn't get soft for her, for anyone. Dixons weren't soft, they were tough guys. He didn't want to accept the fact that he cared about her.
In the moment Lena closed the door behind her, at her apartment, she didn't fight anymore. She let the tears fall from her eyes, leaning against the door and sliding down, sitting on the floor.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
She didn't know how long she sat there, crying her eyes out. Her heart ached. For the first time, since her parents' death, she could felt happy again, but only to be completely shattered. By one thing. By something so stupid. She hugged her arms, feeling a little sore. She rubbed the light purple bruises on them and remembered the cold of his metal arm, hurting her a little, but nothing compared to what she was feeling in that moment. She closed her eyes, feeling the tears streaming down her face, and took a deep breath.
Should've had stayed quiet on my corner.
She stood up and went to her bedroom, avoiding looking in the mirror; she was sure there were more marks on her body. She opened the wardrobe door, taking a pair of leggings, sports bra and a fitness shirt. She didn't grab her leather jacket, but the sweater she use to wear when jogging and her sneakers. Putting her hair in a high ponytail, she tried to look in the mirror. The clothes were covering the marks on her body, but she eyes still looked a little red. She sighed, trying not to cry again and left her apartment.
The air was even colder than before. Lena saw the children already playing in the park; a smile on the face of each one of them. She walked through the town, trying to forget about her situation for a moment.
It was clear now. Clear as crystal; she was in love with Merle Dixon.
~oOo~
"There you go, princess." Philip said, after making a bow with the ribbon in his daughter's hair. Penny struggled to get rid of the strait jacket she was in and growled in response. "I know it's not like your mom used to do, but I tried my best."
He was sitting in his arm chair, on his "special room"; Penny's corpse was starting to stink and decompose. The skin around its lips was starting to peel, with black blood dripping of it. Philip insisted in wiping it every time. Its nails were growing faster, but her father cut them too. There were a few red marks around its eyes, and he didn't understand why, but he decided to ignore them.
Philip turned Penny around to her face her. He tried to ignore the smell and the skin peeling; he smiled at her daughter's corpse. The undead tried to reach for him, moving its arms, trying to get rid of the strait jacket, but the Governor was stronger than her.
"Penny, what we talked about trying to bite daddy?"
The walker growled in response, still trying to get a piece of flesh of the human staring her.
"Penny!" Philip exclaimed. "I said no biting daddy!"
He turned her around and walked her to the cage which was in the corner of the room.
"I'm sick and tired of your ingratitude!" He raised his voice. "Look what I did for you!" He pointed to the heads on the fish tanks. He picked up the chain from the floor and chained her to the wall. After covering her head with the white sack, he closed the cage door and left the room, making sure to lock it after closing the door.
He sat on his chair, in front of his desk and opened his notebook, picking up his pen and drawing little lines on each line on the paper. In a diagonal way, from the right to the left, four lines. Then again, in a diagonal way, from the left to the right, four lines. It helped him. It helped him to keep him sane. He had to. In a world like that, anyone could succumb to madness, it wasn't rare. He blamed it on the loneliness. Not on the walkers, not the on others threatening groups, but on the loneliness. Even being surrounded by people at Woodbury, sometimes he felt lonely. With his wife gone and Penny being… "Out of herself", he felt lonely. Before the outbreak, he always used to travel to business; he had visited a lot of places. There wasn't one state on America that he didn't know. He even had visited the United Kingdom and a few other places in Europe. His favorite place was France. He remembered he went with his wife before Penny was born. Now, he wasn't able to travel the world like he always wanted. He had to stay in that stupid town, dealing with people that didn't even know how to defend themselves.
He turned the page of his notebook, and kept drawing the lines.
~oOo~
"You're quiet." Karen said from the driver's seat. "You usually talk on the car."
Lena shrugged. "Just thinking." She replied.
"Hangover?" The older woman looked at her, smiling a bit.
"Yeah." She lied.
There was a silence before Lena spoke again.
"Karen, you're..." She interrupted herself, almost making the mistake of calling her old. "Experienced."
Karen frowned, looking at the road. "Yeah... Why?"
"Have you ever... Had sex with a guy and he dumped you?"
"Yeah, of course." Karen shrugged. "Who didn't?" She laughed a bit.
"Well, how did you deal with it?"
Karen made a pause to think in what to say. "Usually, they were all men I didn't know-"
"What if you sex with someone that you're really close." Lena interrupted the woman. "And you realize that you have feelings for him... But he doesn't feel the same about you. How would you deal with it?"
Karen frowned, looking at the girl. "Lena." She said, looking back at the road and smiling. "Do you have boy problems?"
"What- No!" Lena lied once more. "I'm just curious."
Karen busted into laugh, making Lena a little uncomfortable with the situation. Karen was the last person the girl wanted to know about the night she had with Merle. The woman laughed until a small tear join the corner of each eye and then sighed, still smiling.
"Who'd fuck last night?" She asked, without even looking at Lena.
The girl widened her eyes in surprise; she never heard Karen talk like that. The kids loved her and they were always around her, so she had to watch her language. But there weren't any kids with her right now, so she could say what she wanted.
"No one!" Lena exclaimed, with a little high pitched voice.
"Oh, come on, you can tell me!"
"I didn't hook up with anyone, okay?!" Lena raised her voice, done with the conversation. Why the hell did I agree with coming with her?
"Okay, calm down." Karen shrugged. "Whoever it is, he's not worth your time."
Lena frowned and looked at the woman. "What do you mean?"
"I mean you're a strong woman. You can fight the dead and even the alive ones. I mean, come on! You knocked out that boy on the last fight."
"Victor?" Lena asked, remembering the night where she and the blonde kid had to fight at the arena. She ended up with one or two broken fingers but knocked him out compensate. "He's just a seventeen year old kid, he wouldn't stand a chance with me."
"And he will forever be mocked by the fact he lost to a girl- To a woman in a fight." Karen smiled, then shook her head. "The point is, you don't need a man right now. You're our leader, the woman we all wanna be. You don't need no man, he will just get in the way of who you are."
Lena looked at Karen, thinking about her words. She was surprise that the woman looked at her in that way. The girl thought Karen only looked at her as some messed up girl.
But then again, Merle helped her. Saved her. Taught her many things. He helped her finding herself again and he didn't even know that. He was worth her time. It didn't matter if he didn't feel the same thing. She couldn't give up on him. She couldn't.
But what if he helped me to become who I am?
~oOo~
Merle smoked his cigarette in silence while he watched the others pull the walkers off the hole. It had been so much time since he smoked a cigarette that he had forgotten how good it felt. He sighed trying to think of something else than Lena. The girl didn't leave his mind since last night. He felt a stung on his heart when remembering the look on her face when he dumped her. Sadness. It was all he could think of. Lena was usually the one who cheered him up; it didn't matter how many times he called her stupid, crazy or even the nice nicknames like Sugar Cube, or Cherry, she didn't care. She always put a smile on her face and laughed like he had just told her a joke.
"Merle!" Martinez yelled. "Get over here!"
Merle threw his cigarette away and walked toward them, in silence. He helped them to remove the nails and teeth from the walkers. After putting them on the van, Merle sat on the passenger seat and stared at the field. The rest of the group was sharing a bottle of water and a pot cigarette, but Merle wasn't paying attention to them. He didn't even realize they were smoking weed until Martinez appeared to offer it to him. He, obviously, accepted it.
"You seem weird today." Martinez commented taking the pot from Merle's hands once the older man gave it back to him. Merle didn't answer. "What, you're worried I'm gonna kick your ass tonight?"
Merle chuckled lightly. "Ya wish." He said. "Just had a hard night."
Martinez also chuckled and stared at field in silence. "You know I got lay last night?" he said with a smile on his face. This time, Merle actually looked at him raising his eyebrows.
You and I both, pal.
"Really?" he said, chuckling. "And how was the crazy one this time?"
"You know Karen, Lena's partner?"
Merle stared at Martinez for a few seconds, frowning and giving him an incredulous look. "No shit!" he exclaimed. "The Cougar?"
Martinez laughed, passing the weed to the redneck. "Y'know, she's not so old in the bed."
Merle snorted. "Yeah, right."
"It's true!" Both men laughed.
Eventually, all of them packed up and got back to the town. After putting the walkers on their place, they came back to the headquarters, where Lena and Karen were unloading the truck from the run they had.
For a brief moment, Merle's eyes met Lena's and for slip of second they stared at each other; a part of him, his gut, which he always trusted, was telling him to turn around and leave the girl alone. But the other part- The bigger part of him wanted to go over she was and apologize. He didn't know how to do it, he never did. When he use to fuck up with Daryl (the only person worth of an apologize) a simple nod, or a nudge on the shoulder was enough for him. Not for Daryl, of course, but it was enough for Merle. And he was 110% sure that a nod wasn't going to be enough for Lena. The way he dumped her in that morning… He wasn't even sure if she was going to forgive him.
"Come on, man, get your ass over there."
Daryl's voice echoed in his mind and he slightly frowned. He was never influenced by his brother's words or acts. And now, he was hearing things. He didn't know why. Maybe it was the weed.
"Yeah, blame it on the weed." He heard Daryl's voice once more. "It doesn't change the fact you have to apologize to her."
Get out of my head, baby brother.
But then, Lena's lips formed a tiny smile. Just the corner of the right side of her mouth curved a little and Merle's heart skipped a beat.
Well, shit.
He could feel it. He really was getting soft for her. The way she looked at him, like if he hasn't just broke her heart just that morning; that smile, a tiny one, but still. His heart filled with joy when he looked at her like that. Or in any way. Even when his gut was telling him to get away from her, he found himself approaching her, with a grin on his face. The feeling of guilt had now abandoned him and all he could feel was the beats of his heart, pumping inside his chest. It was like he needed her, like he needed to have a moment of conversation with her or something. Maybe he was high.
"Cherry." He heard the sound of his own voice calling her.
Lena grinned. "Merle." She replied, trying to pick up a heavy box from the truck.
"Need any help?"
"Nope." Lena replied, trying to lift a box, which was too heavy for her, from the truck. Seeing her struggle, Merle walked over the truck and pulled the box easily, like it was nothing to him, putting it on the floor. Lena couldn't deny she was impressed; the guy only had one hand.
"See?" She said, looking at box and panting. "Easy as pie."
Merle chuckled and she laughed, forgetting for just a moment her broken heart. But then she looked at him again. And she felt a twinge of pain on her heart. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't. Not in front of him, not in front of anyone. Merle opened his mouth to say something, but Karen showed up to pick more stuff from the truck.
"Do you mind getting these inside and getting started?" Lena asked, in a quiet voice. Karen just nodded and picked the box from the floor and took it inside the headquarters.
"Cherry, I-" Merle started to say, once they were alone again.
"Well." She interrupted him, trying not to look at his face. "I'm going to hit the gym." She looked to the streets, toward the gym. "Get ready for next week." Then she finally looked at him and tried to smile. Tried. And then he saw it on her eyes. Broken. "You should get ready too. Big fight tonight."
Giving him a forced smile, she turned around and walked quickly toward the gym. Merle thought about going after her, but he just didn't. He just stood there, watching her leave and he didn't know why.
"You lost your chance, man."
"Shut up, Daryl." He mumbled to himself.
~oOo~
Lena was running in the treadmill for over an hour now. Whenever she got tired, she would slow down, but never stopped. She knew it wasn't allowed to walk on it for more than half an hour, but no one was there to expel her. She just needed a distraction. She sounds of her footsteps echoed the place while she breathed heavily and were covered in sweat. Once in a while, a few tears were shed, but it was okay for her as long as no one saw them.
She'd run on the device, until her legs hurt and then she'd kept running. When she'd felt like she was going to fall, she'd slow the machine and walk quickly on it. She kept making this ritual losing count of how many times she slowed down.
"Hey." She heard a voice from behind her and pressed the buttons on the treadmill to slow the velocity down. Martinez showed up in front of her, showing her a bottle of water.
"Thought you might want this." He said, giving the water to her. She grabbed the bottle and opened it, not realizing how thirsty she was.
"Thanks." She said. "Aren't you supposed to be on training now?"
"I already trained." He replied, leaning on the treadmill and pushing a button to stop it. Lena opened her mouth to complain, but Martinez spoke before her. "An hour ago."
Lena frowned, panting from the run; sweat dripping down her face, neck and back. "What?" She asked confused.
"You're running for two hours, Lena."
She shook her head, still frowning and trying to think straight. "No…" She said quietly.
"Yes." He sighed. "And it better be the last time, or you're gonna end up hurting yourself."
"I'm sorry, I just-" She took a deep breath. "I didn't see the time."
He chuckled. "Been distracted?"
Lena looked down and nodded, answering really quietly. "Yeah."
"You okay?" Martinez frowned.
"Yeah." Lena answered too quickly, grabbing her coat and stepping out of the treadmill. "I'm fine." She tried to smile, walking to the door, but Martinez held her arm, holding her in place.
"Hey." He said. "You're not okay."
Martinez knew Lena really well at this point. He knew when she was happy, angry, frustrated or sad. He spent too much time training her to know when she's lying. The girl just shrugged and then sighed, feeling the tears fill her eyes.
"You don't really care." She said, with a lump on her throat.
"You're my best fighter." He smiled. "Of course I care."
Lena just stared at man for a moment, deciding if she would tell him about Merle and her feelings, about he dumped her like it easy just to have sex with a girl and toss her out after. A single tear trickled down her face and she knew she had to go, or she'd start crying in front of him. Gently, she grabbed Martinez's hand and took it off her arm.
"But he doesn't." She whispered, turning around and running to the door.
Martinez called her and tried to catch her again, but she was already in her building. She ran up the stairs, jumping the steps as fast as possible. She heard someone call her name again, but she didn't turn around.
She was getting tired of crying her eyes out for Merle. So, as soon as she closed her apartment door, she held her tears and marched to the bathroom. She turned the bath tub tap on and started to strip; the sweat of her workout made the clothes sticky and hard to take it off. Lena looked herself in the mirror and her eyes got filled with tears.
She ran her fingertips through the marks on her arms, the bites on her neck, the little purple spots on her cleavage. The tears streamed down her cheeks and she closed her eyes; the memories invading her mind, bringing back the sensation of his skin against hers, the sound of his breathing, his sweaty body pressed against hers.
Lena put her hair down and stepped into the bathtub, turning the tap down. She let herself relax in the warm water and closed her eyes, trying to forget. But she simply couldn't. She couldn't forget the way she felt. She remembered Merle's touch. She remembered the feeling.
And she knew. She was 100% sure that Merle felt the same way. She didn't know how, she just did. She felt the tears filling her eyes again and dove in the warm water of the tub.
~oOo~
Merle took a seat on the male's dressing room of the arena. It was already dark and everybody was outside, waiting for the fighters. But his head wasn't on the fight. He was thinking of Lena again.
"You're feeling guilty." Daryl echoed on his mind. Merle just shook his head. "You are. It's called a feeling, y'know."
Merle let out a low growl and shook his head again, pinching his nose.
"I'm surprise you even have feelings for her-"
"I don't have feelings for her." Merle mumbled.
"I mean I didn't know you capable of feeling somethin'-"
"Shut the fuck up!" Merle exclaimed getting up and looking at the room. He was getting nuts. The feeling of guilt was driving him crazy. He had to apologize to Lena. He took a deep breath, feeling a little dizzy and sat again.
It didn't take long until Martinez and the others boys came in the dressing room. He pretended everything was fine with him.
In the moment he entered the arena, all the people started to chant his name. He smiled and raised his arms, hearing they scream even louder. Lena was at the front row as always; watching the fighters pretending they were celebrities for a little. She didn't blame them, everyone was looking for a little bit of attention those days. She tried to focus on the others fighters when Merle showed up smiling and raising his arms.
~oOo~
"Hey, where are you going?" Karen asked when Lena got up from her seat and started to get away from her. "We're halfway the second time, Merle is winning!"
"Gotta pee." She replied without looking at her.
She didn't wait for a reply and got out of the row, trying to pass the kids and other people who seemed to be enjoying the show. She just wanted to be alone. Tucking her hands in her pockets, she walked quickly around the arena, trying to leave. Merle noticed the girl with a serious look in the face, going away.
"You're going to miss her."
Merle growled and turned his back to the fight again. Lena left the arena and walked through the silent streets at Woodbury. She passed the gym, her building and the infirmary, until she finally reached her destiny: the headquarters. The door was open, like always, and she easily entered the house. It seemed so weird, so empty and quiet without the guys inside. She entered the kitchen and walked towards the liquor cabinet, already taking her baseball bat from the corner where she always left when she heard a rough voice coming from behind her.
"You're going to rob this place, Cherry?"
Then she froze in her place. Her heart skipped a beat and she almost dropped the bat. She didn't turn around, she didn't want to face him. She couldn't pretend everything was fine once more.
"Maybe." She replied really quietly.
He approached her, slowly; only the sounds of his boot hitting the floor on the place. Lena stood still and Merle got closer to her; so close that she could feel his breath on her neck. She instantly closed her eyes, waiting for a scolding, but he didn't say anything. He just grabbed her shoulder and made her turn around to face him. Her brown eyes met his blue ones and he took a deep breath.
"Just breathe, big brother."
Now's not the time, Darlena.
"Hey, I'm just trying to help ya."
"Did you win the fight?" Lena asked seeing the sweat on his skin, interrupting Merle's mental battle with his "brother".
"Guess I just lost it." He shrugged a bit.
"Why?"
"Had to leave. Wanted to say somethin' to ya."
Lena looked at his chest, feeling her heart explode inside her own. Would he…?
"Am I that important?" She whispered, with her eyes still on his chest. "Couldn't it wait?"
His fingers tips touched her chin, lifting her face to look at him. "It couldn't."
He suddenly closed the space between them, pressing his lips against hers. She dropped her baseball bat, making a loud thud in the place. He placed his hand on her waist, pulling her closer to him. He needed that, he needed her close to him. She hooked her arms behind his neck, getting on tiptoe, not really minding about the moist on his skin and kissing him back.
"Been thinking about last night." He breathed on her mouth.
"Me too." She replied, after a while, still with her mouth on hers. The feeling both had felt on the night before came back and hit them like a train. Merle's heart started to beat faster; he felt like it was going to explode. It wasn't like last night. Last night he had a sexual hunger for her, he craved her body with his; but this night… This night was different. He just wanted to be with her, it didn't matter how.
"Never thought you could have feelings, brother."
Daryl's voice echoed once more in his mind and he immediately froze. Lena separated their mouths and frowned at him; her heart still beating hard.
"What?" She asked a little afraid.
Merle let go of her waist and tried not to look at her. He grabbed her hand, making her let go of his neck. He cleaned his throat and looked at her; tears already filling her eyes.
"I uh… Came to apologize." He managed to say. He looked at her mouth which was forming a thin line and he knew it was coming. She was going to say something he wouldn't like. Looking down at her, he just waited for the moment he would regret for a long time.
"What are you so afraid of, Merle?" She whispered, a crack on her voice, a lump forming on her throat.
He just looked at her, trying to keep the serious expression he always had.
"Attachment."
"Just go away." She said, bending over to grab her baseball bat.
He turned around to go, but stopped walking. "You do what you want to." He said. "I won't tell anyone." Then, he started walking again, ignoring the sound of glass breaking when he left the house.
