Episode 2: The Perils Ahead- Gone Awry
A/N- Another long chapter for you guys, enjoy.
After maybe fifteen minutes, Michael was the first to approach the table. He'd had a change of clothes: he was now adorning some black pants and a blue-ish green sweater. He looked a lot better as well as he had some color in his cheeks, and the faintest of smiles on his face.
"You're lookin' better." Kenny commented as Michael sat down beside Clementine.
Michael narrowed his eyes, he smile disappearing from his face "What are you saying?"
"Nothing, I'm just sayin' that you look better than you did this morning."
"Leave it, Kenny, Michael doesn't want to talk about it." Clementine told him sternly.
(?) Kenny will remember that.
"Right, sorry." He then addressed the boy. "I'm sorry kid, that ain't really my place."
"It's fine." Michael grumbled, picking up his bottle of water and taking light sips.
Clementine looked over her shoulder to see Dusty, Maree, and Hazen coming over all at once, with Wayne and Helga close behind. The group of five came to join the occupied table, and they all sat together.
"It's good to have you all here." Kenny stated. "So, as some of you may know, there's a flu going around-"
"No shit." Wayne interrupted sarcastically.
Kenny ignored him, although he seemed a little irritated "...And Xavier turned out to be a double crosser, he was only ever looking for power. He's the reason Vaughn is dead, and I don't know about you folks but I can't just stay in a place with someone like that in charge."
"So what do you suggest?" Maree piped up in curiosity.
Kenny answered her. "We get the fuck outta here, that's what I suggest."
"Really? And where would we go?" She questioned further.
"I ain't sure yet, but once we're someplace else, someplace safe, we'll figure something out."
"So you don't actually have a plan?" Helga scoffed. "Why am I not surprised?"
"Alright Kenny, when do you think would be a good time to leave?" Dusty asked.
"Soon as possible, before we get infected with the flu... or everyone else does." Kenny replied grimly.
"That sounds doable. There's just one small problem." Michael chimed himself in.
"What do you mean? What problem?" Dusty inquired.
"Xavier said there were reports of a cluster of walkers outside the wall. How are we going to get through those?" He questioned.
"Me and Clem know a little trick, right Clem?" Kenny responded, turning his head towards her for support.
"I don't know Kenny, that didn't really... workout last time." Clementine replied worryingly.
"Well, we can plow right through them. We have enough weapons here at Wellington, and I doubt there's that many outside. The guards probably sniped a few. We can get out, I'm sure of it." Kenny encouraged them.
"What was this little 'trick' of yours?" Wayne asked.
Kenny turned towards Clementine again. "You've done it a few times Clem, you know more than me."
Clementine adjusted AJ in her arms and glanced at the group as they waited for an answer. "When you rubbed walker guts on you, they can't smell that you're really alive, so they think you're one of them. Just stay calm, walk, and don't do anything stupid."
(?) They will remember that.
"Sounds nasty I'm sure, but that could really come in handy when you're trying to get by walkers without drawing attention." Dusty defended Clem's gutsy trick.
"That's fucking gross. I'm not doing that." Helga mumbled in protest.
"Well, if the walkers are already taken care of outside the wall, we might not have to." Kenny asserted them. "Look, I know what I'm sayin' ain't what you were expectin'. I'm sure you were expectin' some big fuckin' plan, but I don't got one right now. But I promise ya, we'll be better off outside those walls. We'll take care of each other, and most importantly, we'll survive. Just trust me, okay? It's gonna be a lot easier out there than it will be in here. So who's with me?"
Clementine stayed silent, Kenny already knew where she stood on the matter. "I am." Michael was the first to speak up.
"Me too." Dusty stated confidently, glancing at Maree, who nodded.
"Yeah, me as well." She said quietly.
"And us." Wayne said, speaking for both himself and Helga, although his sibling looked unhappy with his decision.
"What about you, kid?" Kenny asked, his words directed at Hazen, who had been sitting deathly silent for some time.
Hazen lifted his head, his eyes clouded and dark. "Yeah, I'm in, I guess." He muttered, before lowering his head sadly.
"Good, I'm glad we're all on the same page. Now that that's settled, we'll come back here tomorrow and discuss it more then. We shouldn't talk about our plans tonight, people might get suspicious of us all gathering together. Just go back to your jobs and don't breath a word of this to anyone."
"Hey! You lot, break period is over, get back to your jobs!" One of Xavier's men, who was carrying a pistol and looking very menacing, ordered. It was the end of lunchtime, and the group had been busy talking so they hadn't noticed.
They silently departed, each going in different directions, and making brief eye contact with members of the group. Clementine was about to follow Kenny, when Hazen grabbed her arm, and squeezed it gently. "What is it?" She asked.
"Are you sure we'll be better off outside the wall?" He questioned. "My sister, she... How could we survive out there?"
"It'll be different. We'll look out for each other. Strength in numbers after all, right?"
"I don't want to see anymore people die..." Hazen mumbled. "I think I've seen too much... I just want it to stop." He confided in her.
"I'm afraid that's just not possible, Hazen. But things will work out, you'll see. You'll get through it. Your sister may have died but you can keep on living, for her sake. Make her proud."
(?) Hazen will remember that.
Hazen blinked back tears. "Yeah... I will. I'll try."
Clementine had joined Kenny at his place of work for most of the day. The two had a post where they could lookout over the wall and at the cluster of walkers outside. The sun was still fairly high in the sky, but evening was fast approaching.
"Not as big as the one we saw at Carver's camp..." Kenny murmured, watching them through binoculars. "We could probably shoot our way right through them." He stated, handing the binoculars to Clementine "Here, take a look."
"Do you think it will work?" She questioned, observing the walkers through the binoculars. "I mean, after what happened last time..."
"We learned from our mistakes, what happened in the herd at Howe's won't happen again, don't you even speak on it no more..." Kenny's radio buzzed. The one-eyes man turned and picked it up, holding down the button and speaking into it "Yeah?"
"Kenny, hey, I need you to get down to the sickbay. Couple of patients reanimated before the bodies could be disposed of. They need to be dealt with like five minutes ago." Edith talked to him.
"Me and Clem are on it." Kenny replied, turning the radio off and attaching it to his belt. He turned towards Clementine, picking up a sniper rifle and handing a glock pistol to the twelve-year old. "Come on, Clem." He ordered, quickly leaving their post.
Clementine followed, and together they raced to the sickbay to deal with the walker-patients. They hadn't even arrived at the sickbay when they saw another free lurker come staggering out of the sickbay, chasing after a defenseless community member. "Someone! Someone help me!"
Clementine and Kenny raised their guns, only for the walker to tackle the man, and already chow down on his face. Clementine put a bullet in the walkers head, and quickly rolled it off of him.
Kenny approached the bitten stranger, pressing the barrel in the side of the man's head and pulling the trigger, putting him down without a second thought. He proceeded to leave the corpse lying limply on the ground and marched up to the sickbay.
Clementine stared wide-eyed at the body, then quickly joined him. Kenny gave her a brief nod, before throwing the door open to reveal a large cluster of reanimated patients within the building! Kenny's one eye widened at the sight of all those walkers as the undead turned towards them with their arms outstretched.
"Fuck!" Kenny exclaimed, slamming the door shut. "It ain't gonna hold!" He growled, forcing his weight against it and trying to keep it closed.
"There could be people inside!" Clementine cried.
"Fuck that, we're not going in there!"
Screaming came from behind them, Clementine turned around to see a walker attack a woman and maul her seconds later. Michael suddenly came into view and stabbed the walker in the back of the head. He then lifted the blade and stabbed the woman, putting her down.
"Jesus Christ!" Kenny breathed, still clutching the entrance to the sickbay. "There're other ways out of the sickbay, there're going to get out soon. Clem, we gotta get out of Wellington. NOW!" He bellowed as he readied himself. "On 3, I'll let go of the door and we'll run for it, okay? 1... 2... 3!" He let go of the door and ran, Clementine following from behind.
"Michael, come on!" She called to him as they ran past, and Michael ran after them.
"Clem, I'm gonna go find AJ, he's probably with Maree and Dusty. You go to the gate, I'll round up everyone else!" Kenny told her as he ran in another direction.
She and Michael continued to run past tents and towards the gate. "Kenny's going in the wrong direction if he wants to find some of the group." Michael commented breathlessly.
"What do you mean?" Clementine asked.
"He won't find Hazen where he's going."
"Then we have to go find him, do you know where he is?"
"Yeah, follow me." Michael stated, leading her past several rows of tents towards what she believed was Hazen's.
"Hazen!" Clementine cried as they both ran into the tent.
"Clementine? What is it? I heard screaming." Hazen responded as he stood up from his bed roll.
"Walkers." Clementine told him simply.
"Oh no... Not again." He mumbled. "Already?"
"We have to go, now, come on." Clementine declared, gesturing for him to follow her yet again. He stayed where he was however. "What's the matter?"
"I don't know about this..." He murmured fearfully. "Maybe it'll get better if we wait it out or-!"
"It'll be fine, Hazen." Michael told him encouragingly.
"Trust us." Clementine said warmly, holding out her hand. Hazen stared for a moment, lost in thought. He then reached out and took Clementine's hand, allowing himself to be dragged out of the tent and towards the Wellington gate.
Kenny, Dusty, Maree who had AJ in her arms, Wayne, and Helga were already there waiting for them. A few of them were luckily carrying backpacks, hopefully full of supplies. As they slowed their run and walked at a quick pace, Clementine gave Hazen's hand a comforting squeeze and then let go.
"Thank god your okay!" Kenny sighed with relief. "The others weren't too far away, they were already makin' their way to the gate, smart bunch." He stated. "But the goddamn doors are fuckin' shut, and we gotta get it open."
Michael turned to look at the gate and grimaced. "There're controls up top." He told Kenny. "I'll go get it open." He volunteered.
"I'll go too." Clementine volunteered herself as well.
Kenny nodded. "Okay, but you two hurry! And Clem?"
Clementine watched as Kenny held out a backpack to her. "It's got some of your stuff in it. Your old coat too."
Clementine took the backpack and put it on her shoulders. "Thanks, Kenny."
Clementine and Michael entered what Edith used as her lookout station. And there was said Edith, in the flesh, staring at the walkers outside the wall, walkie-talkie in hand. "It's happening, isn't it?" She asked, turning towards them. "I just talked to Xavier and... I don't think he made it. I heard some walkers on his end, he screamed and then... It all went quiet."
"Wellington has fallen, Edith!" Clementine declared to her.
Edith sighed. "I knew this would happen. After Vaughn died... I knew things would get shitty."
"Edith, could you open the gate, please?" Michael asked, quickly getting to the point.
Edith stared at the controls and then at the two children. "There isn't much left for you here." She murmured. "Yeah, I'll open the gates for you." She responded with a nod. "That'll probably help whoever's still alive to escape."
"Come with us." Clementine suggested, taking a step forward.
(?) You asked Edith to come with you.
"No dear, my place is here." She replied firmly. "But thanks, really, I appreciate that." She stated gratefully. "Listen, I'll stay up here and help clear a path for you and your friends, till my gun clicks empty."
Michael nodded. "Thanks Edith." He turned away as he picked up a discarded sniper rifle and climbed down.
Clementine remained rooted to the spot. "Go on." Edith told her. "Go!"
Clementine left. She climbed down from the lookout station and stood with the group, waiting for the gates to open. Michael threw the sniper rifle to Dusty, who caught it and prepared himself for the walkers outside.
"If things turn ugly and we get split up, we'll all meet up at the Bed 'N' Breakfast on the outskirts of the woods. Me and Clem know where it is, and I'm sure some of you have seen it on supply runs." Kenny told them. "It's called Ruthie's. Got it?"
The twelve year old lifted her glock, aiming at the gate as it screeched and clunked and then it swung open, to reveal the cluster of walkers blocking their path. Kenny was the first to fire a shot, killing the nearest walker and marching out into the herd. The group followed. From above, Edith rained some bullets down on the small herd.
Clementine shot several walkers in her path, moving forward and making her way towards the woods. As she became engulfed by the herd, she began to get separated from the others. Soon enough unfortunately, she was alone, with walkers closing in on either side.
Clementine put as many as she could down, with Edith helping from above. Clementine turned to face a walker and backed away, shooting it in the head. She ended up bumping into something, so she quickly turned around and pressed the barrel of her gun into... Michael's head.
"Whoa, easy Clem, it's me." He held his hands up in his defense.
"Michael." She hissed, lowering her gun. "Where did everyone else go?" She asked.
"I don't know, lets just keep moving." He ordered, slashing the back of a walkers head open and moving towards the woods, cutting up more walkers in the process. When they reached the trees, they ended up running into more.
"Shit." Michael cursed, raising his knife above his head. "Clem, I'm going to keep pushing forward, you have my back, okay?"
"Sure." Clementine replied with a nod, aiming at the walkers that were staggering through the trees towards them. Edith's gunshots were distant now.
Michael pushed forward like he had said, stabbing walkers with his knife and moving through the clearing, pushing deeper and deeper into the woods. Clementine shot several walkers that were closing in on Michael from all sides when a walker attacked her from behind. She gasped and whirled around, instinctively squeezing the trigger and putting it down instantly.
She turned back to Michael to see him with his blade stuck in a walkers forehead, with another approaching from the side.
"Michael, look out!" Clementine cried, aiming her gun at the walker and pulling the trigger. *Click.*
Michael ripped his knife from his current kill's head and twisted round, the walker lunging at him and knocking the knife from his left hand. "Shit!" he exclaimed as he was forced to the ground. He raised his hands and caught the walker before it could land on him, but his right hand was dangerously close to its mouth.
Clementine sprinted over, planning on bashing the walker's skull in with the barrel of her gun.
But it was too late. When she got there, the walker snapped at Michael's right hand, it's teeth making contact with his thumb. It then bit down... hard.
"AHHH!" Michael cried out in pain as Clementine raised her gun and smashed it against the walkers head. The walker became stunned as she hit it again and again until it's skull opened up and it stopped struggling.
It's jaw went slack, releasing Michael's thumb as Clementine kicked the body off of him. Michael staggered to his feet whilst shivering and clutching his hand. "Fuck..." He exhaled.
Clementine stared at him before kneeling down and scooping up his knife. "How bad is it?" She asked as she handed him his knife.
Michael let go of his wrist and took hold of the handle of the blade. He proceeded to lift his hand and show her. There wasn't much left of his thumb. The flesh was shredded and she could even see bone.
"We'll figure something out, okay? We will." She told him encouragingly.
(?) Michael will remember that.
More walkers were approaching. Clementine glanced around before turning back to him. "Lets get someplace safe. Then we'll find the others." She grabbed his left hand and tugged him through the trees. Michael stumbled before shrugging off Clementine's grip and running on his own.
The two sprinted for what seemed like only of few seconds before reaching a small clear stream. Michael paused, glancing around "Are we good?" He asked.
Clementine looked over her shoulder, breathing heavily. "I think we put enough distance between them and us." She replied through a pant.
Michael wandered towards a rock by the stream. He gazed at it for a brief moment before turning towards Clementine and holding out his knife. "Could you wash this for me?" He asked. "Please?"
Clementine took the lurker blood-soaked blade and walked over to the stream while Michael knelt down by the rock and rested his arm on it. Clementine lowered herself down by the stream and let the rushing water wash the knife. Once it was clean, and she felt a bit satisfied, she straightened herself up and wiped the knife on her trouser leg.
"We have to hurry." Michael pointed out as Clementine returned with the knife and handed it to him.
"I know..." She muttered, glancing at his right hand. "Are you going to..." Her voice trailed off.
"Cut it off? Yeah."
Clementine recalled the last time someone had amputated a limb. Sarita. Kenny's girlfriend. That hadn't worked out, and she grimaced at the thought.
"You ever seen it work?" He asked.
Clementine paused, thinking back to Carver's camp "There was a man I knew a long time ago named Reggie. I didn't see him lose his arm but... He was bit, and he lived." She told him.
"How much did he cut off?" Michael asked, putting the flat side of his blade on his arm, trying to decide where he should cut.
"Near his shoulder."
"Shit..." He cursed again. "I'm not cutting off that much." He placed the flat of his knife between his thumb and index finger. "Maybe I could cut off this much?" He commented, showing her that he planned to cut off part of his hand, namely two of his most important fingers.
"Are you sure that's enough? She should cut off more to be safe." She suggested.
"No way. I don't want to lose my whole hand." He insisted.
Michael lifted his knife above his hand and froze. "Let me do it." Clementine offered.
"I can do it!" He curtly replied. "Just... Give me a minute."
"You don't have a minute!" The twelve year old exclaimed, glancing round in case there were any advancing walkers.
Michael screamed. "AHHH!" Clementine whirled around to see his knife stabbed directly through his hand, pinning him to the rock. She stared in disbelief as he knelt there, his face buried in his right arms sleeve. Crimson red liquid was beginning to soak the rock as Michael lifted his head and grabbed hold of the knife, ripping it out of his hand and then crying out in agony.
"Let me help you!" Clementine cried.
Michael spluttered something that she didn't quite hear or understood. The teenager scowled and waved her off with his left hand. He then proceeded to slice his hand several times, the grinding and cracking of bones eminent throughout the clearing along with his grunts and screams.
And then it was over. Michael pulled away from the rock, leaving half of his hand behind while he clutched to what was left of it. He staggered back and fell into the stream. "Michael!" Clementine exclaimed, running over to his limp body. "Wake up!" She shouted, shaking him violently. The sounds of undead groans came from the trees around them.
She shook him again, jolting the fourteen year old awake. Clementine smiled with relief and helped him up. "That fucking hurt..." Michael muttered, wincing with pain.
"I could see that." Clementine responded, leading him out of the clearing at a steady pace, but quick enough to avoid the fast approaching walkers. "Do you think that was enough?" She questioned, glancing at the bloody mess Michael was clutching. The same bloody mess that used to be his hand.
Michael grunted and shrugged. "I don't know..."
"I guess we'll find out."
A cluster of walkers threw themselves against the RV door, each one trying their luck to break in. Clementine watched as the locked door rattled and creaked under pressure. She waited, wondering if it would hold.
When the locked door seemed secure enough, she decided she could now go about her business. Michael was slumped down in the kitchen area, still clutching his right hand tightly and staring distantly at the floor.
"You should lie down." She commented, gesturing at the bed behind her.
Michael lifted his head, sunlight from the evening sun shining on his face through the gaps in the curtains. In what little light they had, she could see that his face had lost all color, leaving him with a pale, almost grey, complexion.
"I... I'm fine..." His chest heaved. "Just... Find me something to close the wound, stop the bleeding..."
Clementine nodded. "Sure, I'll see what I can do."
Apart from the walkers groaning, the rattling of Michael's chest was the only sound to accompany her search. Clementine scanned the kitchen drawers for any make-shift medical supplies only to find nothing.
Realizing that most of the RV had been picked clean she moved towards the front, where the driver and passenger seat was. To her surprise, the keys were in the ignition.
(o) Look at keys.
"The keys are still here." She noted, calling over to Michael. "Should I try the engine?" She asked him.
"Knock yourself out." He replied, his tone low and uncaring. "Bet it doesn't work anyway..." He muttered to himself.
(o) Turn keys.
Clementine leaned over the drivers seat and turned the keys. Nothing happened. Not even the engine started up. Just silence.
"I knew it." Michael grumbled, not exactly happy that his prediction was right. "It probably ran out of gas. Or the engine broke. Or both."
Clementine moved away from the front and turned towards the hunched over teen. "My mom studied to be a mechanic, y'know?" He told her, the corner of his lips twitching into a small smile as he recalled old times.
"Really?" The twelve year old asked, intrigued by his statement.
"Yeah. Well, she worked as a mechanic for work experience at collage. I'm not sure if she wanted to be one. But then I came along and I put a stop to all that for her..." He muttered sadly, lowering his head.
"Come on, you know that's not true." Clementine told him encouragingly.
"She had to drop out of collage when I was born. She gave up everything for me, and she was still pretty much a kid herself back then... Raising me must have been hell for her..." His voice trailed off as he fell into silence. "...I miss her."
"She uh... Taught you anything? About cars and stuff?" She asked.
Michael shook his head silently. Clementine thought it was best if she left him alone, since he had already expressed that he was done talking by the fact that he had muted himself.
Clementine walked over to the bed at the back of the RV and stared at the sheets.
(o) Look at sheets.
"These could probably be used for bandages." She imagined them as wrappings if she could rip them.
Michael lifted his head once again and studied the bed sheets "Too thin." He replied bluntly. "We need something thick, like a piece of clothing or somethin'."
"I have my old coat." Clementine stated, shrugging off her backpack and unzipping it. She then proceeded to pull her old, blue puffy coat out of her backpack and showed it to him "Would this work?" She asked.
"I guess." He replied weakly.
At least there was progress. Clementine laid the coat out on the table and began to rip some of the material apart. She felt a little saddened, since this was the same coat Bonnie had given her. Bonnie may have betrayed the group, but she had still gone out of her way to get this coat for Clementine at the ski lodge, so she felt guilty for ripping it up.
She picked up a few shreds of the material and stuffed it into her back pocket. "Now we just need to seal the wound." She murmured.
"I have a lighter." Michael told her.
"What can that do?" She questioned.
"Cauterize it. It's where you burn the skin, it blisters over, and stops the bleeding." He informed her, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a white lighter and handed it to Clementine.
"My dad gave it to me. He used to say that a lighter is never not useful. Unless you wanted to put out a fire and not start one." He joked, even though he seemed more unhappy than amused. "He gave it to me the day I got accepted into Wellington, but he got turned away... He pressed it into my palm... It hurt a little... And he told me to look after it, that it might come in handy some day. I didn't know that would be the last time I'd see him..." He said, clearly grief stricken.
"Let's just fix you up." Clementine told him, drastically changing the depressing subject.
"Yeah, okay..."
Clementine knelt down in front of Michael and took hold of his right hand. It was still very bloody, and looking closer she could she a bit of bone sticking out of the side. "This might sting a little."
"Sting? Hmph." Michael grunted "It's gonna hurt like hell."
"Yeah, but no matter how much it hurts, try not to squirm or else I might end up burning you... I mean, more than I need to."
Clementine flicked on the lighter, the bright glow of the flame lighting up their faces in the darkness. She noticed Michael's soulless eyes and empty gaze as she moved the lighter towards his gaping wound.
Michael winced in pain and bit down on his lower lip, any harder and he would have drew blood. The smell of burnt flesh filled the air in the RV, the oder beginning to waft up Clementine's nostrils. Her eyes watered, and she desperately wanted to turn her nose up in disgust, but she knew she couldn't take her eyes off what she was doing.
A layer of blistered skin covered the wound as Clementine turned the lighter off and handed it back to Michael, who tucked it into his pocket. Clementine then took out the material from her coat and wrapped it around Michael's hand as a make-shift bandage.
"There." She stated, after completing the bandage wrapping. She patted Michael's hand gently and smiled "All fixed."
"Thanks Clem." Michael said gratefully, trying to smile but failed miserably. But from his expression, Clementine knew that he appreciated it.
She slumped down beside him, pulling her legs up to her chest and resting her arms on her knees "You should get some rest." She told him sternly.
"You should too." He responded. "It's been another long day."
"Yeah." She agreed with a brief nod.
"Wake me up when the others find us." And with that, Michael shut his eyes and leaned his head back against the kitchen cabinets.
Clementine blinked sleepily before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep as well.
When Clementine woke up, it was the middle of the night. The sliver moonlight shone through the cracks in the curtains, bathing the floor in front of her in it's pale glow. She rubbed her eyes sleepily and looked next to her, expecting Michael to be there. He wasn't.
Her heart thumped in her chest. What if he was still infected? What if... He'd become a walker?
Fearing the worst, Clementine stood up and left the kitchen area to see Michael sitting at the small dining table. The teen was currently eyeballing what Clementine assumed was a bottle of alcohol. It seemed that he hadn't drunk any since the cap was still screwed on tight.
Michael's gaze shifted from the bottle to Clementine and he gave her a brief smile before his face became expressionless once again.
"Hey." He greeted softly.
"You're up." Clementine stated simply. "Couldn't sleep?" She questioned him.
"No." He replied sleepily. "Y'know, I'm a little surprised that you slept longer the I did." He paused and then gestured to the seat across from him "Come here, sit with me."
Clementine didn't protest, so she sat down opposite Michael. Michael sighed deeply and slid his knife across the table "Would you mind sharpening that for me? I was having trouble."
"Sure." Clementine replied, picking up the ragged looking knife and sharpening it.
"You see, this is why I didn't want to cut off my whole hand. So that I could still do the stuff I used to. I probably should've cut off the whole thing, it would've been a lot easier. ...At least it wasn't my good hand." He grumbled.
"You'll adjust." Clementine assured him.
"Yeah, I better." He muttered.
Michael's gaze shifted to the bottle of alcohol, and in one swoop he snatched it up and began to wrestle with the cap, trying his best to unscrew it.
"Where did you get that?" She asked.
Michael paused from his struggle "In one of the cabinets. I hope it tastes as good as it looks. I could really use a drink right now."
"What about the one at Wellington? Where did you get that?" She inquired further.
"They had alcohol lying around at Wellington. Sometimes the guards at the gate would share a bottle."
"How long have you been drinking?" The questions just kept rolling off her tongue.
"Since yesterday, when I found that note from my dad and reading he didn't want me, and when the group finds out that I'm a cripple, they won't want me either. I can't even sharpen my own knife. ...I'm just worthless."
And that's when Clementine realized. Michael was leaning forwards now, and she could see that his eyes were red and puffy, and old tears had stained his cheeks.
"Drinking won't help, Michael. You'll just make it worse. And you're not even supposed to be drinking, you're just a kid."
"So what? You think I'm afraid I'll get into trouble, Clem."
"What are you going to do?" She asked, wondering how much of the alcohol he was going to drink.
"I see why adults would want to do this all the time... it felt so good for a while, it made me forget about everything for just a little bit..."
"Give me the bottle, Michael." Clementine hissed. This was not going to happen. He wasn't going to get drunk. She wouldn't let him.
"No. It helps... With the pain." He murmured, glancing at his hand but ultimately just making an excuse.
"You and me both know it's not for your hand!" Clementine snapped suddenly. Maybe not the pain in his hand... But the pain in his heart.
A silence washed over them. Michael placed the bottle on the table and stared distantly. His eyes began to fill with tears and he quickly lifted his good arm and rubbed his eyes on his sleeve. He choked up a sob.
"Take it." He whimpered, sliding the bottle across the table.
Clementine gave him a look of pity before picking the bottle up and moving towards the kitchen area, opening up one of the cabinets and... instead she placed the bottle in her backpack. Maybe in the future, she could pull it out for everyone for a special occasion?
"I don't even know how my mom died." Michael blurted suddenly.
Clementine turned around to see him peaking through the curtains, observing the walkers no doubt. He let the curtain drop and invited her over to the table a second time. The twelve year old did so silently, prepared to listen to what Michael had to say.
"Before it all started, she was diagnosed... With cancer. There was a tumor, in her brain and she was going to start treatment but then... Everything turned to shit. She took medicine, she hoped to keep herself in good health until we found a doctor but... We never did. She was protective of me... Sometimes she crossed the line and did terrible things. Everyday I watched as she got worse, but she always had a soft spot for me, she never... She never hurt me."
Michael paused and let out a shaky sigh "We came across an outpost a few months in and that's where we ran into my dad. She was... Bitter at first. And I made things worse. I had no fucking clue that he was my dad. And when I found out... I wanted to know him. Lucas. I wasn't angry or upset... I didn't realize how much he had ruined our lives back then. We traveled with him for a while until... My mom couldn't go on. One day, she made a decision. She was going to part ways with us. She didn't want me to see her get worse and... Eventually have to watch her die. My dad tried to stop her, said she wasn't thinking straight, but she made it perfectly clear that it was what she wanted. So she left... Walked off into the woods, never to be seen again."
His puffy, red eyes locked with her eyes. "To this day, I don't know what happened to her. I never got closure. I try to imagine that she just... Lied down somewhere and drifted off to sleep. Peacefully. But when I think of that, I see... I see a walking corpse." He let out a small sob. "... Everyone I cared about and love they all just... Walk away, and leave me behind. I know my mom had good intentions... Maybe my dad did too... But I needed them. And now they're gone. And I'll never see them again..."
Clementine consoled him. "I know how you feel, and it's the worse feeling in the world. I lost my mom and dad in the first few days, but I didn't know about it until a few months later. Me and my friend Lee, we went to Savannah to find them but... they were already dead."
(?) Michael will remember that.
"I'm sorry. At least you got closure. It's a better feeling than not knowing at all." Michael peeked through the curtains and sighed "Well, if the group isn't going to find us, we should go find them." He suggested, heaving his frail body from the seat.
"Maybe we should wait a bit longer?" Clementine commented.
"It's been like, what, half a day? I'm done waiting. You know where the Bed 'N' Breakfast is, right?"
"Yeah, me and Kenny stayed there for a few months, I know the way."
Michael nodded briefly. "There're some walkers outside, and there're probably more out in the woods. What weapons do we got?" He ordered, picking up his newly sharpened knife.
Clementine reached into her waistband and took out her glock, placing it down on the table. "It loaded?" He questioned.
"No, it ran out. I would've shot that walker that bit you if I still had bullets."
Michael rubbed his right hand "Don't remind me... So, we got a empty gun and a knife. That's not good, is it?"
The teenage boy proceeded to reach into his back pocket "I think I might have some left over bullets..." He murmured, and he spoke the truth. He lifted his hand and tipped a small amount of bullets into her own. "That's three, hopefully they'll fit your gun."
Sure enough, they did. She loaded her glock and adjusted her grip. Michael held onto his knife and grimaced. "I don't think I'm up to it... Y'know, swinging this thing around."
"Maybe we could trade?" Clementine suggested.
Michael glanced at her glock and nodded. "Sounds good." He handed her his knife and she gave him her hand gun. "I'll have your back. I could put at least three down with a couple of head shots. If I run out then... I'll try and help as best I can."
"Yeah, just don't strain yourself, okay?"
"I'll try not too. Just... Look after my knife. It was my mom's, it's all I have left of her. She gave me and my dad her weapons when she left so we would have a better chance..."
"It's important to you, I get it. My hat's important to me, because it used to be my dad's. He let me borrow it when he went away." Clementine told him, recalling the day her parents left and the last time she ever received a call from them.
"It's a nice hat." He replied dryly.
Clementine adjusted the hat on her head and smiled. "Thanks."
Michael turned towards the door and waited for Clementine to follow. "You first."
Clementine reached for the lock and paused. "Ready?" She asked him.
Michael nodded. "Let's do this."
Clementine unlocked the RV door and then slowly pushed it open. The walkers had lost interest, but some still remain, wandering around aimlessly in search of a new meal. A walker staggered close to the RV door, it's attention slowly being drawn to the two children standing in the door way.
Clementine quickly stabbed the walker in the back of the head, kicking the body off the blade. When the walker hit the ground, the others became aware of their presence and began to stagger towards them, arms out stretched and clawing hungrily at the air.
Michael and Clementine stood their ground as the walkers approached. Michael aimed Clementine's gun at the walkers while Clementine raised his knife and prepared herself. "If things get ugly, make a run for it." Michael whispered.
Clementine stabbed a walker through the forehead while Michael put one down with a bullet to the head. One bullet down, two to go.
They both pushed forwards, Michael shot at another walker that tried to attack from behind while Clementine killed a leg less walker. One bullet left.
They made there way towards the trees, Clementine led the way since she knew where they were going, cutting up a few walkers that got too close. Michael shot at a walker that tried to take a chunk out of her shoulder.
No bullets left.
Michael smacked a walker across the face with the glock, it's nose cracked in the process of being stunned as it fell back. It tried to get up, only to have it's head stamped on with his boot.
"Leg it." He ordered, grabbing Clementine's arm and pulling her on ahead.
A/N- With Wellington now overrun and the odds against them, will Clementine and her friends survive back out in the hell-ridden wild? Stay tuned for next time. :)