- So, how did you get this injury?
Aasim asked after a while of walking. The boy had decided to stay a little closer to her, in case she fainted.
Clementine looked at him for a moment... it was hard to think of having a normal conversation with someone after so long, after all the attempted assault and murder she had suffered.
-We ran into a guy in that abandoned train station, he pointed a gun at AJ, shot me, and I killed him.
She said vaguely, ignoring the surprised looks from the boys beside her, concentrating on facing the forest, mentally remembering the path she had to follow to get back to the train station.
Luckily, that grenade hadn't destroyed all the food there.
- Gee, and why did he want to kill you?
Marlon asked, glancing at AJ with a certain curiosity.
Maybe he wasn't used to seeing such a young child carrying a gun around.
Clementine noticed the discomfort Marlon felt at the mention of the man, as if he had been nervous about something.
- He wanted to steal what we had.
She answered, and AJ looked at her with a certain twinkle in his eye, wondering why she had lied, but he soon turned his attention back to the path, remaining quiet.
- You know, if you bring me some tweezers, I can remove this bullet and continue on my way. You don't have to waste supplies on me, and we won't take up any more of your time.
She said, not trusting them, not knowing where she was being taken, and although they didn't seem like bad people, appearances can be deceiving...
And although they hadn't done anything bad to her so far, that could change later. She had met too many assholes to know that one's attitudes could change at a blink of an eye.
- Don't worry, we want to help you. Besides, I wouldn't feel too good about myself knowing that I left a wounded girl alone in the forest with a boy.
Marlon said with a friendly smile on his face, looking at Clementine, who just stared at him for a while with a neutral, though suspicious, face. Friendly smiles only hid someone's true intentions.
After a few more minutes of walking, Clementine observed the large gates ahead, with high walls surrounding the place.
It looked abandoned, from the state of things, but maybe it was better that way.
- Hey, they're back with people!
Her eyes focused on a boy, a little taller than AJ, who turned back after shouting at someone in the courtyard ahead.
She watched as another boy, with a burn scar on his face, opened the gate for them to pass through.
- You got back pretty fast.
The boy said, looking at Clementine and then at AJ, focusing his eyes for a moment on the girl's wound.
- We didn't even start hunting properly and we found her, where's Ruby? The girl here has been shot.
Aasim said, walking past the boy and looking around, speaking in a somewhat casual tone.
"A girl has been shot," almost as if it was nothing.
The boy looked startled at Clementine, who walked past him normally, as if the hole in her abdomen didn't bother her.
- I'll go get her, she's in her usual place.
The boy said after closing the gate, walking at a brisk pace towards the building ahead.
Clementine looked around, scanning the place with her eyes. The place really did look abandoned, even with so many people scattered around the courtyard.
She felt slightly uncomfortable to have so many eyes staring at her, as if she were a celebrity or something. But, she understood, it wasn't every day that someone with a gunshot wound walked calmly into her house like that.
Her eyes focused for a moment on a girl lying on the wall next to her, who was staring at her with curiosity and interest.
- Well, for security reasons, I will have to confiscate your weapons... don't worry, you will get them back as soon as Ruby takes a look at you.
Marlon said, looking at the rather disgusted expressions on both their faces.
Clementine didn't like that, being unarmed in an unknown place. But she also knew how to recognize when a situation was not in her favor.
She took the pistol from her waistband and handed it to Marlon, nodding for AJ to do the same.
Clementine took the sheath of her machete and stared at it for a while, hesitating.
- Don't mess with her machete.
AJ said, causing Marlon to look at him curiously.
- She gets really mad. She said she got it from someone very special.
AJ explained, and Marlon looked at Clementine with a soft face.
- You have my word that I will not touch your machete. Your weapons will stay with me, and I guarantee that no one will touch them.
He said, and Clementine sighed, handing him the machete.
- You can follow me, I'll take you to the infirmary... well, the place we use as an infirmary.
Marlon said, pointing to the building behind him as he looked at her.
She didn't really like the idea of going into that building, she would be in a closed place with unknown people in an unknown environment, completely vulnerable.
However, in case they tried to do something, and the whole community was made up of just those "kids" she would be fine.
She would get out of there before they could call for help.
She followed Marlon, glancing at AJ, who looked around curiously and somewhat in awe. Probably excited to see so many people who hadn't tried to kill him yet.
Besides, some of those people didn't seem that much older than him.
They entered the building, and Clementine memorized every corner of the place, as well as all the corridors.
The windows were open, which was great in case she had to get out of there in a hurry. Maybe there was a way to get over that wall to the back of the place.
The wall was big, but, she could manage, the place seemed to be pretty big too. Which meant that she had several places to run and hide in case she needed to.
The problem was that they had more knowledge of the terrain, but they didn't seem very well equipped, since Marlon and Aasim, the only ones she saw armed, only had bows and arrows with them.
No firearms, as far as she could tell.
Maybe she was being a little paranoid there, maybe those people were good, and really only want to help her, but she couldn't tell.
If she was alone, fine, she would take more risks. However, it was a completely different story with AJ by her side.
So, caution was never too much, better safe than sorry.
She had been through too much, met too many people, it wasn't her fault that she was so distrustful.
Probably that was why she was still alive.
They climbed the stairs, and Clementine looked around all the time, making sure that they weren't attacked from behind by someone she hadn't seen in the courtyard.
A bark echoed through the empty hallway as they went up the stairs, and Clementine looked with an arched eyebrow at the dog that walked with its tail wagging toward Marlon.
It was a big fucking dog, that's for sure, he could do a lot of damage to anyone he bit.
- Hey, girl. Miss me?
Marlon said softly, patting the dog's head, and as soon as it saw Clementine, it became alert and growled at her.
The girl couldn't help but feel intimidated. That dog was too big, it could even kill her if she wasn't careful.
But she continued with her face unchanged, just staring at the dog.
- Shhh, easy girl. She's a friend. Don't be intimidated by her, she's only aggressive with strangers, but in fact, she's sweet when she gets to know you.
He said, looking with a slight expression at Clementine.
- Here, hold out your hand for her to smell you, to get used to your scent... ah hand that isn't dirty with blood, please.
Marlon said, standing between the dog and Clementine. The girl arched an eyebrow, but did as he said, holding out her hand calmly.
The dog walked over to her and sniffed her hand a few times, relaxing her body and wagging her tail again after a few moments.
AJ did the same, thinking that it was really cool to make friends with a dog... he had never seen a dog that hadn't already died.
- See, she is sweet. Her name is Rosie.
Marlon said, turning and walking to a door at the end of the hall.
Clementine took one last look at the dog before walking over to Marlon and entering the infirmary shortly thereafter.
There were a few shelves and racks scattered around the room, with a few bottles of medicine on the tables, and a few beds in the corner.
There didn't seem to be much supplies there, which only made Clementine a little more suspicious about all this "kindness"... they wanted something in return, for sure.
Well, if they really helped her, she would repay them somehow, not like the assholes she had met.
If the food at the abandoned station hasn't been completely destroyed, she could share some with them.
With luck, she would have enough food for them to make a feast, so her debt will have been paid.
At least, she hoped it would be.
Clementine sat down in a chair, still observing the place.
They were on the second floor, somewhat high off the ground. She would hurt her leg if she jumped out the window and there was nothing for her to land on, plus the room had only one exit.
The front door.
- Well, I'm going to take care of a few things, Ruby should be along shortly to help you. It was a pleasure to meet you, Clementine and AJ.
Marlon said, leaving the room.
Clementine stared at the door for a while, one eyebrow arched in confusion.
"He left me alone where they keep the meds? Really?" She thought incredulously, it was almost obvious that they hadn't had many visitors before her. But still.
After a while, a redheaded girl, not too tall, with a few freckles on her face and clear eyes came through the door, looking at Clementine with a certain curiosity.
- It's a pleasure to meet you, Clementine, right? I'm Ruby.
she said, somewhat friendly. Clementine was not used to being greeted with smiles like that. Or friendly greetings.
- And you must be AJ. You're a cutie, you know that?
She said with a small smile at AJ, who was even a little startled by the compliment, switching his gaze frantically between Ruby and Clementine.
- AJ, how do you say?
Clementine asked, watching AJ bow her head slightly, unamused by the compliment he had received. He was not used to compliments, especially coming from someone other than Clementine.
- Thank you...
he said softly, causing Ruby to smile sympathetically and look back at Clementine.
- Jesus... how can you be so calm with an injury like that?
The girl said, walking over to a nearby cabinet and grabbing some supplies.
Clementine lifted her blouse slightly after removing the part she had tied, exposing the bullet hole, which had already stopped bleeding.
She was used to large wounds. Cuts, bruises, and now she would even have a gunshot scar.
Scars... were nicer than people thought. She had several scars all over her body.
- It's not that bad, it just hurts like hell. Once I get the bullet out I'll be fine, I can do it myself, you don't have to bother.
She said, the sooner she could get it over with, the sooner she could get her guns back, get out of there, and go after the food that was left in the abandoned train station.
- Oh no dear, it won't take a second. And I like to do things like... holy shit, this is the first time I've ever removed a bullet from someone's body.
She said, somewhat excitedly as she ran a gauze pad with some water over Clementine's wound, cleaning the surrounding blood.
Ruby moved the tweezers closer to the wound, and Clementine groaned in pain as she felt the metal object make its way through her flesh.
AJ was right next to her, grimacing in pain as she watched the whole thing.
- Good thing I'm not you.
AJ said in an attempt to get Clementine to think of something else.
The girl looked at him, in a mixture of amusement and pain.
- Oh you little...
She tried to say, but another groan of pain escaped her throat as she felt the forceps move a little further inside her abdomen.
After a while in that excruciating pain, her eyes focused on the small bullet Ruby was holding with the forceps, stained with her own blood.
She sighed with relief, the wound still ached, but the pain went away with each moment.
- Okay, that was one of the coolest fucking things I've ever fucking done! Holy shit!
Ruby said with an excited smile, looking at the bullet she had placed on the table beside her.
She took a bandage from a first aid kit and approached Clementine's abdomen.
- No need, don't waste valuable supplies on me. Now that the bullet has been removed, I can...
She tried to say, but Ruby just ignored her, draping the bandages over her wound.
Clementine just sighed in defeat, now she would have to find a way to pay back for the bandages.
Where the fuck would she find medical supplies?
- Okay, all fucking ready. You'll be brand new in no fucking time.
She said nicely, getting up and putting away the things she had picked up, taking advantage of it and throwing the bullet in the trash.
-Thank you.
Clementine said in a defeated tone, looking at her bandaged belly as she stood up.
In a few days she would be as if nothing had happened.
AJ looked at Clementine and Ruby in a strange way, he seemed as surprised as she was that Ruby cursed so much.
Or get excited about taking a bullet out of someone's body.
- Come on, come meet the group.
Ruby said, turning and looking at Clementine with a smile.
- I appreciate that, but...
She tried to say, but the redhead just ignored her again, and practically pulled her out of the room.
- You have beautiful eyes, you know that? How do you get that pretty face in the outside world?
the girl said/asked in an excited tone, even more excited than Clementine thought possible.
She looked with a confused expression at AJ, who looked just as confused as she was.
- You... don't get many people here, do you?
Clementine asked, looking at the back of the boy who had just left the building as she came down the stairs.
- No, we' ve never really met someone like you. Even more walking around with a bullet wound like it was no big deal, just another normal day.
Ruby said, walking further ahead and exiting the building.
Clementine sighed and looked at AJ. These people seemed too friendly, and she didn't know if that was a good thing, or a bad thing.
But either way, it looked like she would be there for a while longer.
"Well, in a way, being the target of gunfire really is something normal for me" she thought, opening the door and observing the people in the courtyard ahead.
Some were sitting in a few chairs and armchairs spread out. The girl she had stared at earlier was talking about something with Marlon, and the boy she saw leaving the building.
The place seemed peaceful.
The people there were either very friendly to strangers, or they were just silly, they didn't seem to be like the assholes she had already met.
Although she felt something bad coming from Marlon... she had met enough liars to know when someone was trying to trick her.
- They seem nice.
AJ's voice brought her out of her thoughts, and she looked at the boy next to her.
- Appearances...
- Can be deceiving, I know. They took our guns, but, they haven't tried to kill us so far, and they even let us walk around here alone. That means they are nice... right?
AJ said, and Clementine sighed. It was a bit complex to know when to trust someone, or someone's actions.
And though it seemed very friendly and kind, with no hidden thoughts, she just couldn't trust those actions, or those people.
Trust was a hard thing to come by, especially with a person who had spent her whole life fighting people, and the zombies outside those walls.
- Let's... try to get to know them a little bit before we draw any conclusions, okay?
She said, walking down the steps of the small staircase, and again feeling uncomfortable with all the stares that were turned in her direction.
They walked towards Marlon, who waved to her when he saw them.
A boy with braided hair, just beside Marlon, looked at her with a friendly smile on his face.
- So you're the tough girl Marlon mentioned. Nice to meet you, I'm Louis.
He introduced himself, extending his hand toward Clementine, who shook it after a while.
- Clementine. This is AJ.
She said, and AJ nodded shyly to Louis, also not used to such friendly relationships.
- Louis is a little dumb, but he's a nice guy. He's my best friend, so I have a free pass to call him that.
He said amused, looking at AJ, who laughed lightly at Louis's face.
- That beautiful lady next to me is Violet. She is a lovely person. Although a little grumpy.
Louis said a bit dramatically, receiving a middle finger in response.
- Go fuck yourself.
The girl said, turning to Clementine and waving to her in greeting.
- See? Lovely.
Louis said again, smiling at AJ, who was amused by the scene.
- It's ... nice to meet you guys. Can I take my guns back?
Clementine asked, looking at Marlon, who raised his eyebrow slightly.
- Sure, but I thought you' d stay a little longer, you know? Since you've been shot and all, even though you look fine.
he said gently, pointing to the guns on the table behind him.
- I'm not leaving yet, I can't. You helped me, so I have to return the favor. There's food, lots of food, in the abandoned train station where I was shot.
She said, walking towards her weapons and equipping them, ignoring the surprised looks behind her. Both for what she said, and for seeing AJ pick up a gun and a knife as if they were nothing.
- At the train station? Marlon, this is outside the safe zone. Weren't you the one who always warned us not to go there?
Violet asked in a mocking tone, crossing her arms and looking amused at Marlon, who was scratching the back of his head.
- We've never had such a disturbance around here before. We went to investigate and found them. But with an explosion like that, that place must be full of zombies. And maybe the food they had there was destroyed in the explosion.
He said, looking at Clementine, who put the machete back on his back.
- Zombies are easy to deal with. If there's anything in there, AJ and I will be sure to bring it here.
She said, not sure if it was better to leave AJ there, or take him with her.
It would be dangerous at the train station, but at least he would be in her field of vision, right next to her.
But on the other hand, that place seemed safe enough from the zombies, they wouldn't get through those high walls. But she didn't trust those people, not enough to leave AJ with them.
- Ahm... you know the place will be infested with dead people, right? And you want to take the boy with you? Does he even know how to use that thing? Besides, you've been shot.
Marlon asked, somewhat incredulously, causing Clementine to sigh slightly.
- I've been on the road for years, I know how to handle them. AJ does too, he gained my trust with a gun. And he knows how to be discreet.
She explained, looking at AJ. It was amazing to think how quickly he learned the things she taught him. He was quite possibly the toughest little boy in the whole world.
-Okay, I won't argue about this, as you said yourself, you have been on the road for a long time. But still, it's too risky, don't you think? And why put the boy at unnecessary risk, he can stay here. Tenn would love to have some company to play with, or, just talk to.
Marlon said/questioned, still uncertain, putting his hands on his waist as he looked at Clementine.
Clementine sighed and looked at AJ, who seemed torn.
He had been tempted by the idea of playing with someone his own age, but he didn't seem to want to let Clementine go out there alone, even more so, being injured.
- I'm going after that food. It's too much food to just leave there. Like I said, I know how to deal with the dead... What do you want to do, buddy?
She asked AJ, turning to the boy, who was somewhat uncertain about his choice.
- I... want to go with you, but...
he began, still uncertain.
- It's okay, kiddo. I can go alone, I've done it many times before, remember?
Clementine said, comforting him.
- We're actually listening to a girl say that she's going to a place full of zombies all by herself and we're not going to say anything?
Louis asked, alternating his gaze between Marlon and Violet.
- What do you have to say? She seems quite obstinate. Besides, Marlon, I think we should go with her. We need food.
Violet said, looking at Marlon.
- What? It's going to be dangerous, the place will be packed.
- I agree with Violet, I never thought I would say this. We need food, it's getting harder and harder to hunt within the safe zone.
Louis said, crossing his arms and looking at Marlon, who sighed defeated.
- You don't have to go, like I said, if there's anything left over there, I'll be sure to bring it here.
Clementine said, crossing her arms. But she regretted saying that. If she left AJ there and they took him hostage, she could use one of them as a hostage as well.
- No way I would let a cute little face like that walk alone toward death.
Louis said dramatically, picking up a table leg with some nails all over it and leaning it over his shoulder.
- You said you found someone... was he with someone else?
Marlon asked.
- Yes, and the person stole my car. I doubt that he will go back there, as we know, the place is infested.
She said, already becoming impatient with the delay. She would have been on her way there by now, if it hadn't been for that meaningless conversation.
- Did he steal your car? Do you drive? Oh, my heart can't take so many surprises.
Louis said dramatically.
- If you keep this up I swear I'll shove this piece of wood up your ass.
Violet said.
- Ouch, that hurts my feelings.
Violet rolled her eyes.
-I don't like it, but, if there's as much food as she says... I think it's worth a look.
Marlon said, looking seriously at Violet and Louis, who nodded at him.
- Things will be pretty smooth, as I said, zombies are easy to deal with.
Clementine said, walking through the gate, taking one last look at AJ, before walking through the forest with Louis and Violet right behind her.
