Chapter 38 "Walnuts"
Day 97; Group B
The group arrived in Ellington, quiet and depressed, grieving the loss of another of their people and feeling the pain Robert was in.
They drove into a road that appeared to be quite safe, Walnut Street; quite an accurate name, as well, since there were many walnut trees along the street, which were quickly picked by the capable members of the group.
Seth, the workhorse he is, began clearing out houses, and never stopped until late in the morning, despite his body feeling weak, and that he now has a limp.
Selenis felt scared of him. It was clear he wasn't a very emotional man; he covered his emotions well. When he felt sad or angry or negative in any way, he would do something to take his mind off of it. He would work endlessly, until he either dropped from exhaustion or forgot about the pain.
Normally, he would go and chop wood, or work on a fire, or practice shooting. Now, he was doing something much more dangerous: clearing out houses, alone.
"We have to get him to quit," Selenis stated.
"Do we, though?" Shawn asked, seeming to almost not care at all.
"Yes," she gestured to the strong man visible through the window in the house across the street, chopping furiously into a walker with an ax. "If he keeps working like that, he'll be exhausted. We can't have people incapable of work. Anything could happen, and you know that just as well as I do."
Shawn sighed. "Well, what about Robert?" he asked, referring to how he was basically now incompetent, currently too damaged to be very useful.
Selenis glared. "That's different. The kid got beat up. He'll recover soon enough; he'll have to. Just give him a few days. It's not like we have a doctor here to help him out. With this, Seth is doing it on purpose. He needs to express his emotions in a healthy way. Savagely beating up biters and tearing through houses isn't a healthy way to do that."
Shawn seemed almost unfazed. "I mean," he began, scratching his head. "He's not hurtin' nobody."
"For now," the strong woman said. "If we lose someone else anytime soon, who knows what he'll do. If he loses, let's say, you, his closest friend. Who's to say he won't go blind with rage and kill us all?"
The young man gave the older companion a glare. "He wouldn't," he threatened. "You just don't get men. He's fine."
Selenis sighed and knew she was getting nowhere with Shawn. She turned, heading out the door to go to Seth herself. The farmboy was just a big ball of anger and rage, and he couldn't see when the people around him were in pain. Selenis wasn't quite sure Shawn even knew what pain was. All he had ever done was yell and scream when things went bad.
Shawn let out a loud groan as he watched her walk across the street through the window. Stupid woman, he thought. Stickin' her nose in other people's business, actin' like she knows everything. She just wants to be in charge or feel like she's important.
Surprisingly, though, her method worked. She put an arm on the larger, muscled man's shoulder and comforted him, and Shawn could see him lean down onto the short, now quite shapely woman, giving her a hug and letting out a few tears.
Shawn was wearing a very confused expression, surprised that she was right. He began to feel a bit guilty. He walked down the hall to check on Robert and Greyson, and could hear the younger boy sobbing softly. Shawn peeked through the door, seeing the distraught brunet crying over Robert's chest, who was asleep; his whole face was like one big bruise. The farmer boy made a gesture that he was leaving, to which Greyson nodded as he wiped away tears and held up his gun.
The Greene made it across the street, and the three continued clearing out houses until late in the afternoon, when they decided the city was clear. The only remaining houses were considerably smaller and the group was exhausted, so there was very little encouragement continue.
"I'm sorry," Robert said a few hours after Shawn had left, startling Greyson. "About what happened with Daniel." Greyson looked down dejectedly, clearly upset about the whole situation. "If you don't trust me, or want to break up...I," Robert choked, holding back tears, "I understand."
The freckled boy looked up to his boyfriend. "No," he said. "I think I understand."
"I didn't mean to hurt anybody," he sniffled, his voice taught with guilt. "Especially not you — ah!" Robert cried, pain striking through his face as he spoke. "I love you more than you might think."
"I know," Greyson said quietly, absent-mindedly eyeing his gun and continually looking out into the hallway.
"I mean it," Robert said. "I wasn't thinking when I — ouch — slept with him. I was just...desperate. I didn't know he would flip like that. I also didn't know he'd be so non-committal."
"Robert," Greyson interrupted, "it's fine. You don't have to explain yourself. I love you, and I know you love me. What happened...it's fine. I'll get over it. We'll get over it." The two shared a smile, and Greyson tenderly kissed his boyfriend on the lips. "Now get some rest."
When Shawn, Selenis, and Seth returned, they all slept through the night, sad and tired, vowing to leave for another town when the sun rose the next day. Things were beginning to look grim, and they could only hope and pray for a much-needed change.