Chapter 7 - Just Rest

A/N One new fanart drew by me. You can find it on my page if you want to :D

(the thing didn't work properly... sorry)

This is what rainy days are good for. They make everything clean again… Even though outside it was still pouring in my heart the storm ended. All the trees were uprooted and all that I've build crumbled to bits but the wind hushed and the rain stopped. The sky cleared almost instantly as I accepted him, in those quiet moments when only the small drops of rain crashed to the ground I realized that I was still strong enough to survive…. Strong enough to forget and/or accept my past. Some would think that without history, our lives would mean nothing… at some point we turn our way and choose a road… is it good? Is it bad? That is irrelevant… what matters is if we step forward and accept the new. It's hard not to be haunted by our past. Our history shapes us, mutilates us… but there comes that point were we make a decision. What little did I learned from this is that boundaries don't keep people out, they didn't keep Luke away from me, they fenced me in only for I to escape without realizing it. I wasted years drawing lines when I could had lived crossing them.

As Adeline felt Luke's wet palm on her abdomen she realized just what he had in mind.

"On the floor of a pharmacy… with walkers sure to come?"

"There is no lurker and the place is nailed shut."

"What about Carver?"

"As we planned, we'll rest for a day."

"What about the others?"

"I'll feel bad later."

Love… or passion is a potent and dreaded force that remains in our hearts long after the true feeling faded away. It's something that can push us into the arms of an unexpected lover. After Tom, I never expected to feel anyone else yet Luke got under my skin. He fed me a sensation so overwhelming that it knocked all the walls I so desperately build. He offered me a feeling so intense that after I said 'no!' it resurfaced in my weakest moments only to lead me to this point… where Luke became my reason to live, my reason to step on Tom and on everything I believed this far. But why is that? Well I guess they both share one thing… my Gratitude.

Soon enough Adeline was lost in Wonderland drinking tea with the mad Hatter wishing for Time to let it be forever 6 o'clock and let her and Luke be lost in one another for as long as they'll live. As their body moved they felt their control slowly slipping away, their hearts pounded hard almost breaking from their chest but their lips never parted, their gaze never fell from one another. It wasn't like in the forest next to that river where they simply answered their needs not once looking in to the other ones eyes, not once caressing their scared skin, not once kissing their bruises, not once did they felt that beautiful innocents of the simple act itself, the shyness and the compromises. He was willing to give her control as she was willing to give it up and at the end they just stayed like that one in the arms of the other simply side by side staring at the moldy dusty ceiling. Adeline, with her head on the man's chest, was listening to his heart beats as his hand caressed her side, occasionally her breast.

"I feel like saying something."

"Nobody stops you, Luke."

"I don't really know what." With a peaceful smile on her lips she shifted to stay on top of him, with her head on top of her crossed arms on his chest. She gave him a small and quick playful kiss.

"Then don't say anything."

"Hmm… we are on a floor completely naked while all the others are kind of fucked with Carver…"

"You feel guilty?"

"I told you that I'll feel bad later." He rose from the ground slowly taking her with him. "You should get dressed…"

"I guess I should." Both of them recuperating their, still, wet clothes soon were ready to move on until Adeline told Luke she can hear something. After carefully searching the place they found a small room with a walker inside. Luke easily killed the thing by simply stomping his foot on to his head.

The dead, escaping one last moan, stopped moving forever. After retreating his leg Adeline could see the poor woman clearly, because of Luke half of her face had been smashed in and her skull was clearly split wide open letting a thick reddish brown fluid flow but everything else besides that was gruesome. The lurker died in an old puddle of blood filled with chunks of meat which by looking at her body definitely came from her. She didn't die normally and neither did a lurker do this to her… she has been murdered a long time ago. Her legs were cut and her arms were tied behind her by a radiator… Adeline couldn't say if one of the hands was ripped by the same person or if she ripped it from his arm but it was right next to its naked body now.

"This is ironic."

"Kind of."

"And this- this was right next to us as we…"

"Kind of."

"Well, this ruined the mood."

"Kind of." This was the only thing the woman could say at the whole picture.

Finally, both of them stopped staring as they made their way out of the building. It stopped raining which was good so they went for Howe's Hardware where Carver has made a "SAFE HAVEN" as he called it to the strangers he wanted to trick.

"Do you hear that?" The woman could clearly hear a muffled something, something worrying.

"What? I can't hear anything."

"Shh… Sh-Shh." They both stopped in their tracks just to listen. In time, as the sound came to them it became clearly what it was.

"Lurkers."

"A lot of them."

Running in to a house nearby and going to the rooftop they could finally hear the horde.

"They must be hundreds."

"Fuck!"

"We just have to get all the others out." The man was clearly panicking, his eyes moving around surveying the horde as his lips simply moved letting everything he thinks out. "… and fast…otherwise we are kind of fucked… really fucked! Dammit!"

"Luke… LUKE! Settle down."

"How?! Look at that! Just…look at that! DAMMIT!"

"Hey... Hey… Look… isn't that Howe's Hardware?"

"Yup… so damn close to the horde. Fuck… This is so fucked."

"That's unimportant… or maybe just a bit important… anyhow… they are there and we are just so close. There is still hope." I still remember those stupid quotes you could easily find on the internet. Some of them seemed genius at the moment but one of them in particular touched me since those days 'In reality, hope is the worst of all evils, because it prolongs the torments of man.". If that engraved itself in to my mind why did I tell Luke that there is still hope I don't know. Maybe I just lied to him; maybe I actually believed my words… That I don't know either. It was an empty word if you think of it but then it strikes me. "Luke. Before you give up… think of the reason why we are here."

"I didn't say I give up… I just said we are fucked."

"Well, we are always fucked, what is the difference now."

"Point taken." Let's go.

"Ok... ok… you'll have to go over this fence… and see if there is anyone around… I'll give you boost." Adeline pressed her foot on to Luke's hands as he pushed her up. Grabbing the fence with her fingers she managed to raise her eyes just enough to look over it.

"So? See anything?"

"Hmm… no…"

"See… I told you..." As Luke talked a lurker almost got the best of him but, letting go to Adeline who simply remained grabbed by the fence, he managed to put it down. "Sorry… I didn't' hear it. You can jump, I'll catch you."

"Ok… now what, Luke?"

"Well. We need to find some…weak point in their structure. "

"Ok… let's go. "

Soon they found a moving board on the side of the building. Slowly loosening the nails they managed to get in to the place.

"Ok… if it is as I remember it. The comic store is a safe place to stay in… "

"Comic store?"

"Follow me." They met up with some of Carver's people but they managed to remain silent and unseen. Entering the place Luke talked about they both managed to relax a little. The place was pretty empty and as both of them remained with no supplies whatsoever that was a bummer.

"God, Luke." The woman kept on scratching her eyes. "How are we going to talk with the others?"

"I don't… I don't know… maybe we'll get lucky and they will simply pass around."

"What?"

"This place is quite… is quite used… maybe they will send one of them around to fix the wall that we just pluck out… or, fuck if I know."

"Luke."

"We can't go out… they have guards everywhere... you've seen them…"

"We need to check the place."

"I know... trust me I know. I just wanted… to…"

"Luke!"

"S-Sorry! I'm so tired." He crashed to the floor with his hand on to his face. "I don't know how we are going to do this."

"Shh… shh."

A few lights could be seen through the gaps in the door. Luke grabbed her hand and pulled her behind some boxes. With their breath held they waited for the guards to pass the place.

"I heard something here."

"Fine Wyatt... let's look it up."

"Weren't you supposed to guard the other wing, Vince?"

"Yeah… but that asshole Troy took my shift… Carver wanted him to look out at our new friends "They continued their talk but the couple couldn't hear it anymore.

"They'll be back so keep silent." Luke walked towards the door to take a quick peek. "It seems they found the board… our exit is done."

"We can find another one if we really need one."

"They are coming… "

Again the two passed the comic store. The couple panicked for a bit when one of the flashlights fell on to the door.

"What is it?"

"Last time I found here a Green Lantern 1st edition from 1941 Origin of the Green Lantern retold…"

"We don't have the time! Come on, the others are waiting."

"Come on, dude."

"No!"

"Fine!" And so the light was gone.

"God dammit… I thought we were fucked."

"We are kind of fucked, Luke."

"I know." Again he took the same position; his back hunched his legs simply laid in front of him and his head in his hands. Adeline hated to see him like that; he didn't feel like the Luke she knew.

"Hey… we'll find a way."

"Yeah… with that horde coming towards us where will we go?"

"I don't know… but we'll find a way. Let's take this step by step… first thing first let's look around for a bit no?"

"Fine let's go."

They looked around for a bit but enough for Luke to make a plan so returning to the Comic store they talked on some ways to get a message to the group until the morning when Bonnie answered their prayers. "Hey Troy! Clem's just gonna take them boys some nails."

"Did I hear that right?"

"Good… this is good. Somehow we have to attract Clem's attention." Both of them listened closely to what happened, the whole walker breach 'till Troy's outburst. "This is our opening." Taking a peek through the small; gaps in the door he reached out and pulled Clementine in, which was fighting like hell.

"Aaargh! Stop! Hey! It's me!"

"Clem, it's us."

"Luke! Adeline!"

"Yes! Man… bit the hell outa me. Think you drew blood. I come all this way…and this is- this is the welcoming I get?" Before Luke could whine some more Clementine took him in to her arms in one big hug.

"None for me… I guess I know who's your favorite… I will go feel sorry in the corner now." The little girl grabbed Adeline's waste as well with a little smile on her cute dusty face.

"I was worried. We all were."

"It's good to see you too, kid. All right, listen, we ain't got much time, okey?" And so Luke told her about everything, the girl was a bit worried about their pathetic state but after he explained her the fact that no sleep and no food would lead to this she seemed even worried now… Good job Luke! The girl soon left after an annoyed Troy called her out. Poor Clementine.

"Dammit! What now Luke?"

"Nothing really. All depends on Clem from this point."

"I hate this plan."

"It's all we've got."

"I hate it anyway."

Once again Luke almost feel asleep standing so after some arguing, Adeline managed to get him to rest for a bit.