We're All Infected

*Ava's POV*

Screaming. Ripping. Tearing. Fire. The smell.

I can't breathe. Am I even alive at this moment?

Darkness and death. Hunger and sadness.
I feel like I'm falling. Screaming my lungs out, it feels like it's all for naught.

But wait. There's a break in the darkness. A light and a smell that doesn't smell like burning flesh and iron.

I take a deep breath. It smells like warmth and strength. Like the forest and love.
It feels safe. It feels like home.

Looking into the light, I see a dark figure standing there with its hand stretched out. A rough voice breaks through the screaming and chaos "Ava. C'mon. You gotta wake. Just grab my hand and don't let me go. C'mon darlin'. You can't leave me now."

Placing my hands on either side of my head, I moved my head from side to side, trying to clear out all of the horror. I soon heard my voice, though it sounded like it was a million miles away, mumbling "Daryl… please help me."

He closed and opened his hand, his voice firm "I will Ava. All you have to do is grab my hand and wake up." I nodded and took a breath, the foul air stinging my throat and lungs. Standing up, I slipped my hand into his.

As he wrapped his hand around mine, I saw him smile before he yelled "Now Ava, WAKE UP!"

I woke up with a start, my heart feeling like it was about to beat out of my chest. Blinking my eyes, I looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. As I took a few deep breaths to settle my heart, I figured out that I was in the back of Hershel's car. Looking down, I saw a clean pair of jeans on my legs and a clean sweatshirt on my torso.

Slowly, I sat myself up, feeling stiff in all sorts of places I didn't even know that could become stiff. Taking a breath, I gently swung my legs to rest on the floorboard, only to receive a jolt of pain through my left ankle. That must've been where I sprained my ankle.

As I looked around the car and out the windows, I noticed that the group seemed to be having a meeting in the middle of the road. Sighing, I quietly opened the door and swung my legs outside, gently placing them on the asphalt. I placed my hands on the door, bracing myself as I slowly stood up, leaning on my good foot.

Taking a deep breath, I kept one hand on the car as I shuffled forwards towards the group. As I got closer, I heard Rick announce "We're all infected."

Hearing those three words come out of Rick's mouth caused my whole world to stop in its rotation. As everyone stood there, speechless, I spoke up "What the hell do you mean we're all infected?!" At my outburst, everyone turned on the balls of their feet and shouted my name. Daryl and Carol came over to my side, asking if I was okay and saying that I should probably go lie back down. Waving my hand in front of my face, I mumbled "I'm fine, I'm fine."

Limping, I made my way to stand in front of Rick with Daryl by my side. As I caught Rick's eye, I asked again, this time with more strength in my voice "Rick, I'm askin' you again. What the hell do you mean we're all infected?" Rick held my gaze for a few seconds before pulling his gaze away and focusing on the ground. Taking a breath, he started "Back at the CDC, Jenner, the doctor we met, told me that whatever this is, this virus or disease, we've all got it. There's no way to get away from it."

Curling my hands into fists at my sides, I took a breath and cocked my head to the side "Uhm, and when were you going to tell us Rick? When one of us got really sick and there was no medicine?" As he took a step back, he shrugged "You don't understand how crazy that motherfu-" Raising his voice, Glenn stepped in "That doesn't matter! When I found out about the walkers in the barn, I told. For the good of everyone, I told!"

"Well, I thought it best that no one should know at the time", Rick barked back.

Everyone stood there, staying silent as they let the news sink in. Keeping my gaze on Rick, I spoke over my shoulder as my fists curled and uncurled "Carl, I want you to cover your ears for me, bub. Can you do that?" Glancing over my shoulder, I saw a confused look on the boy's face as he slowly lifted his hands over his ears.

"Ava…" I heard the rough growl beside me. Ignoring my better judgment and the man standing beside me, I closed the gap between Rick and I.

Everyone gasped as they heard the crack of my hand against Rick's cheek. Seeing the red mark on his face, I snapped at him "How dare you?! How fuckin' dare you keep something like this away from everyone! Who the hell decided that you become our fuckin' governor?! Or worse, our dictator!"

Suddenly, I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist as I felt my feet separate from the ground. I continued my rant as I pounded a fist against the defined bicep around me "What about Carl?! What about your son, ya' dipshit!"

"Ava! Shut yer mouth girl!" Daryl hissed as he carried me towards the stone barrier next to the small waterfall. As he placed me down in one of the corners, I crossed my arms across my chest and shook my head "No! How could he Daryl? How could he keep somethin' like this away from us?" Daryl shrugged as he stood up "I dunno A. He must've thought he was doing something right."

I was silent for a minute before sighing "I want to leave." Daryl straightened up from clearing a space for a fire and looked at me, his eyebrow arched "Whad'd'ya mean you wanna leave? We ain't goin' nowhere!" Looking down at my lap, I could see my fingers twisting over each other "I don't trust Rick anymore. I don't want to be here."

Hearing Daryl's silence, I looked up at him as I slowly stood up, leaning against the stone wall. I kept my voice low "We could do it, y'know. Just the two of us. We know how to hunt, how to survive. We could find our own little place and just be together." Daryl crossed his arms "What the hell are you talkin' about Ava? We can't leave, there's other people to think about! They can't hunt! What about Lori? She's pregnant for fuck's sake!"

I reached my hand out and brushed my fingers against his arm before he pulled away "They can follow Rick. He seems to have gotten them this far. I just can't trust him right now. What if he's keepin' other secrets from the group?" Daryl took a step back as he threw his hands into the air "I can't talk to about this right now!" Picking up his crossbow, he shouldered it before walking back to the road.


Later that night, as I was sitting next to Carol by the fire, Daryl walked up and knelt down beside Carol. As he was adding some more wood, she leaned over and whispered to Daryl "We're not safe with him- keeping something like that from us." I nudged her shoulder and nodded "That's what I told him earlier. He doesn't believe it." Daryl shook his head and looked at us both "You're right. I don't believe it. Rick's done alright by me."

Carol poked at the fire "You're his henchman and I'm just a burden." I sighed and scooted closer to Carol, slipping my arm through hers "You're not a burden Carol." Daryl sighed and looked at me "What the hell do you want in a leader Ava?" I shrugged "I want a man of honor, of truth." Standing up, Daryl threw the rest of the sticks into the fire "Rick has honor."

Looking over my shoulder, I saw Rick as he stood guard at one of the entrances to our camp. As the fire flickered, casting shadows on everything, I could see his jaw clench as the rest of the group talked about leaving. Suddenly, the rustling of leaves caused everyone to stand to the feet, questioning where the sound had come from. Turning around, I saw Rick roll his eyes as he said through clenched teeth "The last thing we need is for everyone to go running around in the dark. We don't have enough supplies and no one's traveling on foot."

As branches snapped, Hershel whispered to his daughters "Don't panic." Maggie looked back at him and I could see her grip tighten on her gun "I'm not gonna sit here and wait for another herd to blow through. We need to move. Now."

Rick took a step forward and I could see the fire's reflection in his eyes "We aren't going anywhere! I'm keeping this group together. Alive! That's what I've been doing all along." As he started to pace, I could feel the rage rippling off him "I didn't ask for this. I killed my best friend for you people, for Christ's sake!" At that moment, it felt like everyone as a whole, gasped. Carl buried himself into his mother's side as he started sobbing. I looked over at the pair sitting on the ground and I could see fear and doubt in Lori's eyes as Rick continued to rant.

"You saw how he was, how he pushed me, how he compromised and threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing, leading me out in the woods only to try to put a bullet in my back. He gave me no choice! He was my friend, but he came after me." I looked up at Daryl, who stood beside me, shuffling his feet. As I looked around at our group, no one would make eye contact with Rick.

Sighing, he muttered "Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead." He turned around and pointed at the entrance "Go. There's the door. Send me a postcard. If you can do better, let's see how far ya get." I looked up as he continued, his voice growing stronger as everyone kept silent "No takers? Fine. I think there is a place for us, but you never know. Maybe it's just another pipe dream. Or maybe, I'm just fooling myself again. Let's just get one thing straight here. If you're staying, this ain't a democracy anymore."

Rick took the time to look everyone in the eye; no one could hold his gaze. By the time he reached me, I held my head up and held his gaze, my eyes speaking for myself. Giving me a slight nod, he turned and walked into the night.

As everyone settled back down into their spaces again, I looked over to my left and nudged Daryl's shoulder. Sighing, he turned his head and looked at me "What now, A?" I took a breath before answering "You're right. We should stay. But know this. The minute he keeps something like this from us again, I'm gone." Daryl kept his gaze locked with mine, his eyes searching before a tiny smirk came across his lips. Nodding, I felt his thumb gently rub the side of my thigh "Alright, A. I'll be right behind you if he does."


Hey readers! So, what d'ya think? Can y'all pick up on how Ava's accent becomes stronger as she gets angrier? If not, that's ok. I know the chapters have been short but I've tried to work on them to make them longer. Sometimes, I just feel like when I get to a certain point, that it's a good place to stop. As always, go follow me (or check me out) at .com for visuals on how I imagine things in the story to happen. Love everyone of you and thanks for the follows, reviews, and favorites! xxx :)