Carl and I were standing near the horse's pen and talking when Rick walked up to us. I stood and petted one of the horses when Rick talked to Carl.
"You going to check the snares?" Carl asks.
"I am, you're not. Do chores, read some comics, maybe even books. Hang out with Emma and Patrick. Maybe even go to story time." says Rick.
"That's for kids." Carl retorts. "Yeah," Rick simply says. Usually during story time, Carl and me will go around a roam to the parts of the prison we aren't allowed. We never get hurt, so it's become a tradition, now. Lizzy asked me to come with her to the next one, so I promised I would. She wanted to show me that it 'isn't just little kid stuff,' whatever that means.
Rick walked off to go talk with Hershel, and I kiss Carl on the cheek before saying goodbye to him to go and find Lizzy.
Lizzy, Patrick, me and some of the other kids are all sitting around Carol in the library, listening to her read from a book. If I would have known that there was a library in this place, I would have spent all my hours in here. Now that I know it exists, I'm in here whenever I'm not with Carl. I love books, and I've always loved libraries. They make the world disappear so that you can live in a new one.
My arm is around Lizzy and her head is on my shoulder as we listen to Carol go on.
She pauses and shuts the book, Lizzy sitting up and bouncing up and down a little. What?
Carol reaches behind her and pulls out a big black suitcase, and opens it to reveal knives. A lot of knives. What the hell does she think she's doing?
"Today, we're going to be learning how to hold a knife." she says. I straighten my back, feeling like this isn't right, like I should leave. "How to use them. How to be safe with them, and how they can save your life." says Carol.
"Ma'am, may I be dismissed?" asks Patrick. "What is it?" asks Carol.
"I'm not feeling very well." he says back.
"Sometimes you're gonna have to fight through it. What if you're out there? Alone? You just give up because you're feeling bad?"
"No... It's just... I don't wanna yack on somebody." he says. Well that's a pleasant thought.
"Go." I wave goodbye to Patrick as I wait for Carol to keep going, Lizzie grabbing my hand.
"Today, we're gonna learn how to hold a knife. How to stab and slash-" Carol cuts herself off, looking over to the side. I see Carl. Oh, man. "Please don't tell your father." she says. Carl takes off out of the library, and Carol just looks at me. I sigh, standing up and running after him.
I'm catching up with him down the dark hallway. "Carl! Hey, Carl, wait up!" He turns around at me and shoves his hands through his hair in frustration. "What the hell does she think she's doing?" he yells at me.
"Hey, calm down. She's just doing what she thinks is right." I say, trying to calm him down.
"It doesn't matter what she thinks is right! Just because she thinks it doesn't mean it's automatically true!" he yells at me.
"What exactly are you so upset about?" I say, placing my hands on his arms.
"I just... I don't even know. I just don't think she should be teaching them how to do things like that without, like, my dad's consent. Who does she think she is? She isn't their mother's. She doesn't get to decide whether or not they learn how to use knives and guns and things. God! Some of them are like, five! They can't learn how to do something as important as that so young! They'll hurt themselves!" he yells. He just breathes for a moment, placing his hands on my hips.
"It's gonna be alright. At least Carol knows what she's doing if she's teaching them that stuff. I can't say I agree with it, but I can very well say that she's teaching them good skills." He just looks at me and nods, kissing my forehead. "I'm gonna go... think for a while," he says, squeezing my hips and letting go, walking down the hallway by himself, leaving me standing by myself.