Tears filled my eyes immediately and I covered my eyes with my hands, hoping that when I opened them that everything would be okay. But when I opened my eyes the only thing that was different was that Rick was holding Carl and a big man with a shotgun appeared out of nowhere, his eyes bugging out in shock. "I-i didn't see him.." He whispered.

I went up to him, machete out, and started yelling as I pointed the machete right at him, ready to swing. "LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!" I swung at him, but he moved just in time. "YOU SHOT THIS YOUNG, INNOCENT, CHILD. AND HE MIGHT DIE BECAUSE OF YOU." I swung at him again, missing. His mouth was gaping open and then finally words came out, "I- I know how to help! I live on a farm, it's a little while away but we have a doctor! He might be able to patch up your boy!" I lowered the machete, "Where is this farm?" He said nothing but pointed. I looked at Rick and he started running and we all followed.

We ran for what seemed like forever, my legs felt like rubber as I ran and I just wanted to quit, not just running but everything. I felt as though Carl was like a brother to me or even a son and I don't know if I could bare another death of someone close to me. The fat man started slowing down and I grabbed him by the collar and yelled, "Move, fatass! We have to go!"

"How far!? HOW FAR?!" Rick yelled at him.

The fat man wheezed and pointed, "That way! Talk to Hershel! He'll help your boy!"

Shane grabbed the fat man while I caught up to Rick. When the farmhouse came into view I was hoping they were actually going to help us and not some weird cannibals. My eyes jerked to Rick when I saw that he started having trouble carrying Carl but I knew he wouldn't let go of him, not yet. When we got to the farmhouse there were a few people standing on the porch, "Was he bit?" The old man called out. Rick was out of breath so I decided to talk for him, "He got shot.. shot by your man." I puffed out. One of the women sounded shocked, "Otis?"

"He said we needed to find a man named Hershel, are you him?" I asked, catching my breath.

He nodded, "Get the boy in the house!"

We followed him inside and he started instructing his people on what to do while he led us to a bedroom for Carl to lay down in. Rick laid him down, he seemed dazed so I made him sit on the chair near the bed and waited for Hershel's instructions. "Pillowcase," he said simply. I grabbed the pillowcase. "Fold it like a pad." I folded it like a pad, I could hear Rick keep asking 'Is he alive?' and every time I heard him ask it broke my heart a little more each time.

"Put pressure on the wound," Hershel said, breaking my train of thought. I did as he said and watched as he put a stethoscope and listened for a heartbeat. "I've got a heartbeat," he informed. I sighed heavily in relief and it felt like a bunch of weight was lifted off, but we still didn't know if he would survive so I couldn't find a lot relief anytime soon. "We need some space," Maggie said. "Names?" Hershel asked. "J-jade and this is Rick," I said. "Well, Jade and Rick we're gonna' do everything we can, okay?" I nodded and grabbed Rick, who was right next to me, and left the room.

When we stepped out of the room we saw Shane and Otis approaching the house, Shane kept yelling at Otis to move it. We walked out onto the porch to meet them, our minds still in a daze. Rick took off his hat when the approached, Otis was the first to speak. "Is he alive? Is he still alive?" He asked. Rick said nothing in response and wiped his face with the back of his hand, causing blood to cover his face. Shane pulled out a pink cloth and was about to start wiping his face clean of blood but I offered to do it so he gave me the cloth. I turned to face Rick and started wiping his face off gently. As I was wiping his face clean I murmured to him that everything was going to be okay, even though I didn't believe it myself. Rick looked pained and took the pink cloth in his hands and went inside. Before Shane could follow him I pulled him back for a second and whisper in his ear, "They found his pulse, b-but we don't know a lot right now. ." Shane nodded and we entered the house as we followed Rick back into the room Carl was in. "Do you know his blood type?" Hershel asked as soon as we came in the room.

"A positive" Rick replied, "Same as mine."

Hershel looked back at Rick but kept his pressure on Carls wound, "That's fortunate, don't wander too far I'm going to need you." Hershel then looked at Otis, "What happened."

Otis looked dumbfounded and was trying to look for the right words to say, "I. . . was tracking a buck. . . Bullet went through it. . Went clean through. . ."

Hershel lifted up the pillowcase he was using to apply the pressure for to examine the wound, "The deer slowed down the bullet, which certainly saved his life." He paused for a moment, "But it did not go through clean. It broke up into pieces, if I can get the bullet pieces out, I'm counting six"

Otis went over to his wife and kept whispering to her about how he didn't know that anybody else was out there and how he didn't mean to shoot Carl or hurt anybody. Rick looked like he was about to cry again and it looked like it pained him to even speak but he did it anyways, "Lori doesn't know. . . My wife doesn't know. ." He started to weep so I gave him a hug and he put his head in my neck. "We'll find a way to tell her and the others, I promise," I said, rubbing his back softly. After a few moments of hugging him, I lead him into the kitchen and he sat down at a chair between me and Shane. "Why'd I let him come with us. . ?" Rick said, breaking the silence, "I should've set him with Lori."

"If you start like that, you'll never get that monkey off your back," Shane warned.

I placed my hand on his and squeezed it, "Rick. . you will never know what is going to happen next and who knows maybe something would've happened to him still even if he was with Lori. Let's just hope for the best and be glad that we have a doctor helping us with him. Otis could've ended up not knowing a doctor and we would've been in an even worse situation. So please, Rick, don't blame yourself."

"Little girl goes missing, you look for her, simple," Rick said. "You said to call it and head back."

"Forget what I said-" Shane started to speak but was cut off my Rick.

"Carl got shot because I didn't agree to head back. . . He shouldn't be in there. . I should be the one in there."

Rick was looking down at the table and I lowered my face near the table so he could see my face, "It's not your fault, Rick. . ."

"You've already been there, partner," Shane said to Rick. "You pulled through and so will he."

"Is that why I got out of that hospital? Found my family? For it to end here like this? Is this some sort of sick joke?" Rick was starting to sound angry so I gently rubbed the hand I was holding with my thumb, in an effort to calm him down.

I looked Rick in the eyes, "Please. . Stop blaming yourself."

"Little girl goes missing. You look for her! It's plain and simple! We shouldn't. . ." Rick stopped talking and his lip quivered.

The door to the room Carl is in and it's Maggie, "Rick!" Rick quickly gets up from the chair and enters the room Carl is in, Shane and I follow behind him. "He needs blood," Maggie informed when Rick entered the room. "You! Hold him down," Hershel instructed Shane. I leaned against the door frame as I watched numbly as Carl was groaning and screaming in pain and tears fell down my cheeks. I shook my head slowly, in an effort to get back to reality, and started walking away from the room to find a bathroom. I stopped dead in my tracks when I heard Rick scream, "You're killing him!" Hershel said something in response but it wasn't loud enough for me to hear.

When I found a bathroom I splashed some water on my face and place my hands on the sink to steady myself. "Why am I so pathetic?" I muttered to myself. "Why do I cry all the time? Why can't I be strong? Why does my temper just snap? Am I going crazy. . ?" I slowly lifted my head up and looked at my reflection and I snorted and rolled my eyes. I looked like crap, I had bags under my eyes, dried blood on my face and my hair was all tangled. I didn't care about my appearance anymore. "Stop being so pathetic and be strong," I whispered to my reflection. I breathed in and out a few times to keep myself calm and collective and I walked out of the bathroom.

When I entered the living room I saw that Rick, Shane, Otis and his wife were outside. I walked out onto the porch, "What's going on?" I asked Rick.

"They are going to go to the high-school to find a respirator for Carl. He's alright for now, but one of the fragments has nicked one of his blood vessels and Hershel needs to get in there and stitch him up."

"It's a good thing he's alright right now and that they're going to go look for it. ." I looked over at Rick and he looked at me. "Hershel's doing good. . I think Carl is going to be okay. ."

Rick nodded slowly in response and gave me a weak smile.

"I'm going to say goodbye to them," I told Rick, walking down the porch steps and towards the truck. Shane's window was down so I placed both of my hands on the truck's door, "Good luck out there and be safe."

They both nodded at me. "Thanks, Jade," Shane said.

I bit my bottom lip and looked at Otis, "Otis. . uh I. . I am so sorry for the way I acted back there, you didn't mean to do that and I should've listened."

"It's okay," Otis said, "it's my fault things are like this and I'm going to do my best to make sure that boy is up and well again."

I smiled at them, "I really appreciate that you are doing all of this. . . Again, please be safe."

I watched as they drove off, sighing. I looked back at the porch to see if Rick was there, but he was gone. I went back into the house and into Carl's room. Rick was sitting right next to the bed as he held Carl's hand. I went to the other side of the bed and bent down to kiss his forehead. Rick and I just sat there, knowing that neither one of us wanted to talk, in silence until Hershel came to talk to Rick outside in the balcony. When they both left I looked back down at Carl and put his hand in one of mine and started stroking his hair with the other and I layed my head down on the bed as I did.

After a while of this I heard footsteps and them stopping in the room, I looked up to see Lori and Rick. Lori, mouth gaping wide open and tears coming out of her eyes, hugged Rick tightly and he hugged her right back. I got up, figuring they'd want time alone with their son and not wanting somebody like me in there anyways, and left the room. I went out onto the porch and sat on a rocking chair, the cool breeze made me feel at ease. I looked out into the scenery and it looks like all of the chaos I have seen before never even existed. I could feel my eyes getting heavier and heavier each time I rocked back and forth and I drifted into sleep.

When I opened my eyes I was surprised to see that it was pretty much dark outside, rubbing my eyes I walked into the house. When I opened the door my eyes widened when I heard arguing, it was in Carl room. I peeked my head in to see what was going on. "No!" Lori said in a half yelling half whisper tone, "Your place is here. If Shane said he'll be back, he'll be back. He's like you."

"I can't just sit here!" Rick argued.

"That's exactly what you do!" Lori snapped back. "If you need to pray or cry or tell God he's cruel you go right ahead! But you are not leaving, Rick. Carl needs you here. . . And I can't do this by myself. . Not this one. . . I can't."

I inhale and exhale deeply and open the door more and they both look at me, "I'll go."