A/N- Okay, so were here (the penultimate chapter) I'll keep this author's note short and (once again) thank everyone who has reviewed/Favorited/followed and read this story. I hope these closing "happy" chapters do the story justice and that you'll enjoy!
Thanks again!
The Next Morning.
"Clementine, Kenny, Sarita, Lilly, Nick, Sarah, Rebecca, Alvin, Vince, Wyatt, Eddie, Bonnie, Mike, Stephanie, Kelly and... ah, me" Luke muttered ticking off the names of everyone currently alive and present within the hardware store. He glanced around Carver's office, feeling a bit to big for his boots in this massive chair of Carver's. Although the bodies had been moved (and the floor scrubbed) Carver and Tavia's scarlet slashes of blood still hung in the office. On the floor or on the wall.
Trying to distract himself from the eerie atmosphere of the room, Luke tried calm his nerves by brushing his fingers through his straggly chestnut hair. Yet it was knotty and unwashed and bits of god knows what still fell from his hair. He was still sitting in his crumpled jumpsuit, he had barely gotten any sleep last night. He was still too numb and pumped full or adrenaline to simply lie down and sleep. He was also still grieving...
He buried these thoughts quickly, throwing himself back into his work. He gazed at the piece of paper in front of him, the pen in his fingers quaking, as Luke grunted and pushed the pen down to meet the paper. Next to where he had placed the names of everyone alive in the pen, he began to scribble the jobs they had been assigned...
"Sarita, Sarah and Wyatt, training doctors in the sick bay..." Luke muttered, as he continued to check the names to see that everyone had an occupation.
"Kelly, Kenny, Vince and Eddie guards on the roof, also responsible for clearing the trenches once there full.."
"Mike, Bonnie and Lilly construction workers and working in the armoury on ammo..."
"Stephanie, on perimeter defence with the watchdogs... could also help with cleaning..."
"Nick, up in the greenhouse harvesting food, also could work in the armoury..."
"Rebecca, working on salvaging, also cleaner of the store. "
"Clementine and Luke, leader and co leader... other jobs... Luke harvesting food with Nick. Clementine, roof guard or harvester"
Luke smiled down proudly at the list, placing a small star next to the names, who could have more than one job. Everyone had a purpose here, he was playing to everyone's strengths. He and Nick had once previously been farmhands so it seemed best that they could harvest foods and fruits from the greenhouse. Besides he needed to talk to Nick about all that had happened. He felt lost without Jane.
He and Jane both made love for the first time in the main greenhouse.
Luke gasped aloud when he realised this, he quickly composed himself and snarled "God damn Luke man, you're losing it. Just keep it cool. For them" he spat out to thin air. Shaking his head violently he tried to lie back in the Carver's chair. Trying to place his feet on Carver's desk with the posture of the confident leader.
"Too big for your boots?"
Luke's eyes rapidly swept over the empty office, he was certain for a second. That he had heard Carver's gravelly voice taunt him once again. Yet there was no Carver to be seen, but his voice was as clear as day. Luke blinked a few times. Nervously he tried to lie back into Carver's snugly black seat yet again, the chair was comfortable but Luke didn't know why he felt so uncomfortable in such a seat.
"It's because you're not worthy to be leader" a warped harsh hiss came from an invisible Jane. Luke now looked around wildly, his heart racing, he couldn't see them.
But he could hear them. The voices of regret and what he did to Carver. The voices of grief and guilt that spoke to him through Jane.
After what he did last night, was he losing it?
His train of inner thoughts were broken as the door creaked open slightly. Regaining himself, he arched his back straight up like a board, as Clementine walked into the office. She could tell almost instantly that he was disturbed, because his method of hiding it. (pretending to look pokerfaced while staring at her, with a rigid body posture) if he was truly relaxed, he would have been bent over his worksheets, with a more relaxed body posture.
"Ah, Clem!" Luke seemed to gasp in surprise, as Clementine walked in slowly (the gasp only furthering her point, that Luke was in silent distress) she took her seat next to Luke, as Luke pushed the sheet towards her, that he had just been writing on.
"Here, it's the official list of the jobs I've assigned too everyone. You can go around and spread the news" Luke informed her as Clementine's eyebrows seemingly vanished up into her growing strands of black curls.
"What's a matter?" he asked, feeling a bit cautious.
"I have to harvest plants, with you and Nick?" She asked in horror, as Luke grinned.
"S'matter with that?"
"You both smell funny" she responded dryly.
"Well you could always go and move the walkers from the trenches" Luke offered.
This shut Clementine up, as she sat herself down on chair opposite to Luke's.
"I was joking, I'm fine with all these jobs. I'm sure everyone else will be too" She told him, a reassured Luke was able to lie back on his seat, in Clementine's presence he was able to relax slightly more. Yet the silence between them grew a little too dense after a while.
"Luke?" Clementine finally spoke up.
"Yeah" he responded staring at the celling.
"This leader stuff... what are we actually meant to do?"
Luke muttered his response like the natural leader he was... "Well, we help out with the jobs. If something happens we deicide what to do next. We give advice to others, we make sure everyone's working. We keep everyone safe... it's kinda simple really" Luke was speaking, knowing that (somehow) Clementine was merely his morale support. Because right now he was truly the leader, as he was giving Clementine advice and support. As Clementine slowly nodded at his words.
"It's just, I'm only a kid and everyone else is an adult. If something happens. I don't think I could control it" Clementine muttered sadly, as Luke stood up and walked over to her.
"Don't doubt yourself Clem, you have no idea how much people here respect you. You made the deals with Carver, you've done things that an 11 year old should never have to do. But throughout it all, you kept your head on your shoulders and you played those mind games with Carver and you won. If you can handle all that, than you're the leader in many people's eyes. Age don't mean nothing Clem"
Clementine beamed up at Luke, she could see the drawing of his parents (she had drawn for him) was pinned up on the wall behind his desk.
"You kept that?" She asked gazing at it, as Luke looked at her, as if she grew two heads.
"Of course I did... and this..." he murmured sadly gazing at his golden locket. The thing that Jane had returned to him. Too him it now reminded him off her, the locket stank of her unique scent... he had hugged her for the first time after regaining this locket and the romance had blossomed from there. Clementine could feel the mood in the room sink into sadness, as Luke's gaze remained fixed on the locket.
"I liked Jane, I'm sorry" Clementine told him, as he shook his head.
"Nah, don't blame yourself. It's my fault she died... if I wasn't such a damn fucking pansy..." he seemed to be muttering angrily at himself now, a concerned Clementine cut off his muttering, with a curt cough. Yet other than the cough, she couldn't think of anything else to say to him. Because it was his fault Jane had died.
"Do you reckon I went too far with Carver?" Luke suddenly asked at her. His wide pupils, had now switched to the bloodstains on the floor, as Clementine shook her head so hard, her world began to spin.
"No, you did what had to be done Luke" She said softly to him, as Luke returned back to his desk as he muttered "Okay Clem, you can go now. Thanks for checking up on me"
"The showers are working again. Bonnie says you could use a shower and a clothing change, everyone else got themselves cleaned up" Clementine offered in hopes of snapping Luke out of his cycles of grief. Yet he remained non- responsive.
"You know... we could talk"
This gained Luke's attention, the young man looked up at Clementine. The eleven year old continued.
"I blame myself for a lot of my friend's deaths too. Maybe if we spoke about it, too each other it would be easier to deal with. I just don't want you too deal with this alone anymore Luke" Clementine voice was becoming raw now (although she had no idea why) Luke didn't seem to respond for a full minute, before his face finally softened, as his eyes glistened.
"Thanks Clem, I'd like that" he almost whispered.
"Hey, were co leaders we need to help each other" She mused, before flying out of the door. Placing herself and Luke into a better mood.
As A New Day dawned.
Kenny, Sarita and Eddie laid propped up in the comfortable beds in the sick bay. Wyatt was filling in Eddie on the chaotic events of the previous night. As Eddie nodded like a bell, the information ringing in his brain as he had to process all the deaths that had occurred.
"So Clem's old friend turns up, more bandits, walkers and... ah my head hurts. I'm just going to accept the fact that we won and that's all there is too it" Eddie summarised, as Wyatt rolled his eyes, his detailed hour long recap of the previous nights, obviously wasted on his dim witted friend.
A few make-shift beds away Sarah was rapidly telling her tale to Kenny, Sarita, Rebecca who were listening in eagerly...
"A cult in body bags!?" Kenny asked the teenager in doubt, as she nodded vigorously.
"Yeah, you can ask Nick, or even Lilly I bet she knows about them!" Sarah mused, her eyes lightened behind her glasses. As Kenny growled "Uh... Lilly..."
"Kenny... whatever rivalry you had with her, should end. She saved our lives" Sarita reminded him. Kenny merely grunted.
"Okay so I owe her one. Doesn't mean I have to like her" Kenny growled, but his grumpy demeanour faded when he turned back to his girlfriend, "Besides, I also owe you too Sarita, last night when we surrounded by those guys. I thought that was it..."
Sarita remembered it vividly, Kenny was going full rambo, shooting down guards left right and centre, before he suddenly found himself surrounded, with guards about to fire. Whatever sort of empathy Sarita had for those people disappeared in that second. As something inside of her snapped and she found herself openly shooting those guards with no hesitation. That was until Troy leapt on a beaten Kenny and Sarita felt something bite her arm...
"I'm proud of you" Kenny told her warmly, bringing her back to present and breaking her chilling recount of the night before.
Sarita didn't know if it was a good or bad thing, that the only thing she felt bad about losing that night was her arm.
She held the stump up too the light as she uttered "It's strange though Kenny. I thought I'd feel something, some sort of guilt after killing those guards. But I don't feel anything"
"That's a good thing, those people didn't deserve you sympathy Sarita. They had to be taken out for all our sake's" Rebecca told her sternly, baby Alvin fast asleep in her arms.
"Yeah, we still have each other. That's the main thing hon" Kenny said pulling her closer, as Sarah timidly asked "So... how do your injures feel?"
"A lot better, thanks to you doctor Sarah" Sarita told the teenager, causing Sarah to flush in embarrassed pride.
"Well... I did learn a lot from Nick and I have a book I brought from the cabin that can help, and..."
She didn't get any further as Clementine entered the sick bay, she quickly checked up on an injured Wyatt and Eddie. Wyatt was delighted to learn he'd be working as a medic. While Clementine openly laughed at Eddie's reaction, when he discovered he'd be one of the one's clearing the walkers from the trenches "I WAKE UP TO THIS...!?" he shouted for the whole of the sick bay to laugh at. After breaking the news to them, she approached Kenny and Sarita's besides.
"Hey Clem, so I see Luke's got the jobs down for us?" Was Rebecca's greeting, she looked at her job on the list and scoffed "Cleaner my ass" she moaned, but humorously, she seemed fine with the job otherwise. As Kenny murmured "Clearin' out the trenches, figures" as Sarita's eyes nearly popped out of her head at her job.
"Medic,with Wyatt and Sarah... but my arm..." she muttered, gazing at the stump (to her, losing an arm still hadn't sunk in yet), but she finally sighed and seemed to accept him "Well...at least I still have my good hand" she muttered flexing her right arm and hand. When her arm wound fully healed she reckoned she would be ready to deal with injured people. She, Wyatt and Sarah would be trained (from a book, but still) and she was determined to learn. She was a maternal type and would help those in need.
Wyatt had previous knowledge of "medicines" that seemed to grow with each passing day, and although Sarah was still somewhat shy. Her trek outside the store had done her wonders, leaving her more confident than ever before (although, she could still be observed, shaking or twitching when Lilly walked by. Then again you can hardly expect to get comfortable around the person who shot you, for quite a while) she may not have known much about medicine or being a doctor. But Carlos' skills had defiantly passed onto his daughter. When Sarah patched someone up, you could tell she was in her element.
She didn't want to hurt people. She wanted to help and was so far growing fast ,as one of the group's main medics. Finally able to serve a purpose.
And no longer be the dreaded liability.
"Hey Clem, we made a pinkie promise. So tonight you can tell me the rest of your story! and I'll tell you all of mine...!" Sarah was speaking at a million miles an hour. Clementine couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm, it was a hard thing to come by in this world of the living dead. Clementine had to applaud Sarah for retaining her optimism despite all the stuff she had seen outside of the store, and give credit too Nick as well, for protecting her without ridding her of her entirely of her innocence.
"Yeah, that sounds great Sarah" Clementine mused, as she walked off to her next job. A smile still playing on her face, as she heard Sarah rabble on about all the books she was going to read with Clementine. Oh and she had the camera from the cabin as well. They could take a few photos and have a slumber party and...
Clementine left the sick bay at that moment. Looking forward to tonight. Where she would be taking photos and sharing stories with her best friend.
Vince legs swung over the edge of the hardware store, smoking a long drag on a cigarette, he looked at the peaceful violet morning sky.
Thinking about Russell.
The young man's death still hit Vince hard and may him rethink his role as a leader. Here he was dwarfed by Luke and an eleven year old girl! He felt cheated, he felt ridiculous, he felt... jealous of them.
But Vince was always one to control these rampant thoughts. He kept them to himself, as he blew out another cloud of whitish smoke from his mouth to relieve the stress of it all. Yet with each breath he took, he felt the stress leave his system. There was no more Carver too worry about. Luke and Clementine would do what he couldn't, they would save and protect everyone. He was safe here. They were all safe here.
He was glad he had helped, he was glad he had killed Steve in vengeance for Russell. He wasn't suicidal, knowing full well the group needed him in the future (and Vince was one who would never give up, no matter what the circumstance) but Russell's death had crushed his gut and made life that little bit more difficult to live and enjoy.
"Hey, you got a spare" a woman asked approaching Vince from behind.
"Here" he said handing her one. He used the lighter he borrowed from Mike, to light the end of the woman's cigarette, as she inhaled and then exhaled the smoke, as she sat herself besides Vince.
"You're Kelly right?" Vince inquired, as the Asian woman nodded. This was the same woman who had survived the incident at the trenches and was now the sole survivor of Carver's guards who weren't in the pen beforehand, she stared off into the horizon for a while, before uttering "Must have been hard on you, losing the boy"
Vince merely shrugged "Been hard on us all" he commented, his eyes finding the gravel beneath his swaying feet.
"Anyway, apparently were cleaning up the trenches, with that Eddie guy and Kenny. Hell, that will be awkward because I already feel like an outsider in this group, so I thought I'd try and get to know you better. Eddie's too loud and that Kenny guy seems bonkers" Kelly said sadly, brushing the strands of her dark hair from her eyes.
"I seem okay to you?" Vince asked, his eyebrows rising.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, you're just better than those two" Kelly shot him down, as Vince pulled a face of mock sadness.
"Aw... I thought you were starting to like me" He murmured, as the pair laughed, before he continued seriously "Nah, don't worry. Were nothing like Carver. You'll fit into our group in no time. Hell, we have to try and create a better community here"
Vince spoke on with hope, hope he wasn't even aware he still had in the wake of Russell's death. Yet the more he thought of the future the more apparent it became.
"I'm just glad those damn bodies are off the wall, they freaked everyone out" Kelly told him, looking at the place where Carver had slung 12 executed rebels to their deaths. Vince didn't say anything, but once again nodded in agreement.
"I can't believe I'm still alive you know?" Kelly began, as she looked up, "All my family, friends and everyone here died and I survived? It Doesn't make sense, doesn't feel like I earned it, or deserved it. It's weird how the world works you know?" she asked of Vince for reassurance. As Vince looked her over once again, what she was saying related to him. He had murdered someone at the start of this to help his brother. He wasn't a good person, yet he was alive. So stubbornly alive but Russell was dead. He probably didn't deserve to be alive and hell he didn't feel like earned it. But...
"That's just the way it is, you just gotta try and make the best of it" Vince said.
"In the pines...
In the pines...
Where the sun, never shines..."
"Hey"
Stephanie stopped strumming the strings on her retrieved guitar, as the older woman with her dark brown hair, and darker eyes, gazed down at her.
"Hey" Stephanie replied back.
It had been a weird morning for the raven haired young woman. From watching Shel die, to brutally murdering Steve, to brutally seeing Carver getting killed and then the bandits and then more walkers... and BAM! Sudden victory. Stephanie didn't feel like celebrating, it still far too much for the young woman to take in. Instead she kept quiet that morning, taking a shower for the first time in months didn't even improve her mood. After her shower, she simply used some walkers from the trench and (using the chains kept in the armoury...) made the "watchdogs" once again.
She had been working all morning, the walkers snarled and hissed, about 10 of them were spread around the store. From this, Stephanie knew the group would be safe from bandits and least (and if what Nick and Sarah was saying was true, crazy religious zombie cults as well) with the trench and now the watchdogs in place. The store, was without a doubt a safe haven.
This comforting fact, seemed to still fly over Stephanie's head. Shel should have been here, not her. Shel wanted those watchdogs to stand guard, it was her plan all along, her plan to get William Carver as a "watchdog" so he could "defend the community". Which Stephanie saw as a fitting end for Carver (and Shel must have seen it, as the perfect revenge on Carver, for the death of Becca) yet she had simply watched Luke mash Carver inside out. Not saying a word.
His brains were destroyed, so Carver wouldn't be coming back. After Stephanie had finished her work with the watchdogs, she proceeded to drag a chair from inside and finally get her old guitar back (Carver had confiscated it upon her and Roman's arrival to the Hardware Store, she simply guessed he didn't like music). Yet all the stuff she so badly wanted while in that Pen (a shower and her guitar back) meant nothing anymore. Shel's friendship was what she craved. She didn't realise how good it was, until it was gone.
So, right now she was grieving. Use the pine trees in front of her, as she hummed the old folk song, singing softly to the watchdogs to the left and right of her.
"I've never heard that song before" Lilly told her, sitting crossed leg on the floor, as Stephanie lay back in her chair.
"It's an old folk song. My parents used to sing it too me" Stephanie explained.
"So... were you in a band or something before all this?" Lilly ventured.
"I was, I was just finishing off high school when... everyone happened. To think I was only 18 then... feels like I've aged 50 years" Stephanie told Lilly, who chuckled slightly "I know what that feels like" she told the younger woman lightly, as Lilly eventually sighed and the two women fell back into a lapse of silence.
"So... this watchdog method, you tried it before?" Lilly asked once again, probing more answers from this younger female.
"Yep" Stephanie replied simply, her tone somewhat annoyed by quizzing Lilly was giving her.
"I used to work at an air base before all this, you know in terms of defence I can't believe I didn't think of this method" Lilly told her, as she thought about the long lost motor inn. Rather than that tiny barricade, they could have had a trench as well as the "watchdogs" maybe then, things would have transpired differently and Lee wouldn't be dead...
"It didn't matter, the pit stop we were at fell eventually" Stephanie recalled sadly.
"I suppose everywhere does, I got so stressed about losing the inn my group was staying at, that..." she sighed before continuing "You probably heard from motor mouth Kenny already, but I shot an innocent woman. Because I thought she was stealing our supplies..." she trailed off there, her eyes slightly watery. The rage on Lee's face after she shot Carley...
"I got caught stealing supplies and I would have been shot too, if it weren't for Shel" Stephanie said, this only made Lilly feel worse about herself.
"I suppose Shel was a better woman than me?" she dared to ask. Stephanie remained silent, unsure of what too say before Lilly threw another question at her.
"Why are you out here alone?"
"I'm on guard"
"But I've noticed you've been quiet, not really talking to people" Lilly noted.
Stephanie licked her dry lips, before answering "Well, I'm really not in the mood to talk, Shel, Becca, Roman, my baby. All gone, I'm... in a dark place right now" Stephanie told Lilly clearly. Stephanie could almost imagine herself holding a bundle like Alvin Junior. She could see herself laughing with Shel and Becca, as Roman made another bad joke. But when she opened her eyes she was alone. and gazing at a grimy pine forest.
"Sorry. I know you're in a bad place. But..." Lilly began awkwardly.
"Not really making friends, after what happened last night?" Stephanie spoke for her, as Lilly nodded. Stephanie let out the ghost of a smile "Well, I wouldn't expect them to welcome you with open arms after what happened. But if you're looking for company, hell we can always keep talking" Stephanie told Lilly, whose face crumpled in doubt.
"Wait, you just said you weren't the mood to talk" Lilly pointed out.
"I'm sure Shel wasn't the mood to die. I'm sure no one was in the mood, for an apocalypse. But hell, as Carver always used to say. We do what we need, not what we want" Stephanie summarised, as Lilly inspected her fingers.
"Then why do you feel the need, to talk to me? If you were in my group, I'd have shot you for stealing our stuff" Lilly admitted.
Stephanie looked back at her "Well, if Shel didn't forgive me, I know I'd be dead. I might not be the best person to have around. But... after what Shel did for me. I promised, I'd do the same for others" Stephanie explained, as she and Lilly spoke on through the morning. Stephanie found it helped her too. Both her and Lilly shared a lot of guilt for what they had previously done.
Stephanie felt as if she wasn't a good person. But then again was anyone, really? Stephanie would have to simply have to overcome her guilt and grief and try her hardest to be a "good person". Because trying is what won them the rebellion. Trying is what kept them alive. and trying is what kept their humanity intact.
Bonnie and Mike sat side by side, the truck to engine was rearing, as the truck they were in crossed over the wide dirt path in the forest. The two had just dropped off (and burnt) the bodies of several walkers who were clogging up the trench. By using the WLS as Mike nicknamed it (Walker Landfill Site) which was a large ditch in the forest. Luke had pointed it out on a map of the forest and instructed Bonnie and Mike to drive up there and burn the bodies.
"There could be worse jobs" Bonnie joked.
The cracking of the flames only drew more walkers to the site. Hence they did it away from the store. To avoid a possible second herd. Bonnie had memorized the route in her head. Both her and Mike seemed to throw themselves back into their work to recover from the previous nights events.
But that was hard when Mike started another fire with his lighter.
"Bet you've had enough of fire's for a lifetime" Bonnie joked, after they had finished the job and were driving back to the store.
Mike chuckled lightly, his hands on the wheel, his eyes peeled on the road ahead of him. "Yeah, after last night I think I'm done with rebellions too" he mused, as Bonnie let out another laugh, before they both settled down.
"But seriously last night, You were amazin' fighting that fire Mike" Bonnie complimented him in a sweeter voice. Mike felt a layer of sweat begin to coat his forehead.
"Hell... it was my job. Nothin' much. Besides I freaked out before the fire" Mike told her modestly.
"Nah, Mike you were brilliant. If it weren't for you the store would have gone up in flames" Bonnie said once again, in that southern drawl of her's that Mike liked. Mike coughed as he felt his heart start to beat faster. Was it getting hot in here?
"Well, what about you? If you didn't find that flare. We'd have all died" Mike complimented her, Mike pretended not too notice how visible her flush of red was.
"Oh stop it you!" she said, playfully slapping him, as he laughed slightly "Anyone could have found that flare, even me, the junkie of the group. But only you could have taken out that fire" Bonnie was saying, as Mike eyes struggled to remain on the road, he wanted to turn around to Bonnie and... ah! No, he was working, what he admired about Bonnie was despite everything. She kept a level head and remained focused on the task.
Maybe Bonnie liked him back for the same reason.
With that in mind, he continued to drive on. "Well that's real nice Bonnie. But don't act you didn't do anything. You got the flare, you kept your shit together the whole way through this rebellion. You're cool" Mike last compliment sounded like an awkward afterthought, as he abruptly stopped and felt his cheeks burn. Barely able to believe he had said such an embarrassing, cheesy thing.
Bonnie once again, chuckled at him. "You're cool too fire-fighter" she told him back.
Well, they both had each other's company to look forward too.
As for Bonnie, she was discovering she could be happy again, first Leland then Luke... she rushed into relationships with them. She was dependant on them, but during this rebellion she had gained her independence. Free of drugs and men, Bonnie had proven to herself she could function without them.
She would take it slow with Mike, she obviously still felt bad for Luke and would help him. But she found (too her surprise) she was able to move on.
Nick slowly plucked at the plants, alone in the warm greenhouse as he felt the crisp sun burn the back of his neck. Ruffling a hand through his short, newly washed hair. He proceeded to drop another berry into the bowl below him. He had stacked quite a few berries in the corner as of now and had been working alone for quite a while.
He had spoken to Sarah earlier, the two shared a short hug, congratulating each other and getting back alive and helping each other too survive. In short Nick had realised he and Sarah had empowered each other. They were an odd duo, but a duo that worked together well. Sarah had promoted him too "My Best Friend whose a boy" (in which Nick was flattered) while Nick could now consider Sarah a very good friend too. He wouldn't let the girl he had grown close too leave his sights any time soon. No, he and Sarah shared a unique bond now that had been through that trek together.
He wanted to stick around now. To live. To see her flourish as the medic she was born to be. He still had so much more to teach her and she had much more to learn. She was still developing and so was he.
He worked on, determined to prove that he was longer a liability. Feeling as if he had a purpose now, something to work for that would help others. Added to the fact Carver was no longer leader and that Luke was... well Nick was happy to be involved.
He cut away for a short while longer, before he heard the greenhouse door creak open, he peered behind him and caught Luke's form enter the greenhouse.
"Hey" Nick greeted him with, approaching his burly friend.
"Hey" Luke greeted back in a much sadder tone.
Nick stood there in silence, suddenly unsure of what to say to make Luke feel better. Instead he could only offer his condolences "Man, I'm sorry about Jane" he told his best friend. Knowing full well, the pair had hooked up. Luke was always good with girls...
"Yeah" Luke dimly acknowledged, Nick's words.
"So..." Nick began, unable to finish his sentence, as Luke's mere presence dampened Nick's good mood. But he'd be dammed if he was going to leave his friend for 20 years in such a state. After everything Luke went through to encourage him, Nick felt like it was time to repay the favour.
"Before I left the store, you told me to come back. Luke... I fought every day to do that. Now I'm here, you can speak to me man" Nick told his friend, as Luke looked up. Nick was still here. Nick was his sole surviving link to the past and during his absence Luke had realised how much he had missed his friend.
"I'm sorry" Luke blurted out.
"For what?" Nick asked.
"For leaving you behind. I treated you like shit Nick. Back in the pen I didn't even back you up. It's just... this whole apocalypse changes people. I just went on at you, when all you were trying to do, was protect the group" Luke explained, as Nick smiled up at him.
"It's nothing... were still friends right?" Nick asked.
Luke grinned at him "We never stopped being friends Nick. I was just being an asshole" Luke mused.
"Hey, I was an asshole too you know" Nick commented back.
"Well then, maybe that explains it"
"Or maybe you are the bigger asshole"
"Oh, so now you get defensive?"
Luke found himself (for a few moments) forgetting about Jane as he shared familiar friendly banter with Nick. Yet despite this banter (and the fact his friend was back) Nick knew Luke wasn't the same man he was before. Something about him had completely changed, after he lost Jane and slaughtered Carver, his friend was different. There was No Going Back for Luke now.
They were practically like brothers, Nick would help his brother, no matter what.
All over the store, everyone had a job. A purpose, and a motive to keep going and surviving.
Clementine's second chance. Had worked.