How could life be so peaceful? Crutches are taking some getting used to though, it's better than being a walker. Clem allows herself a snail's pace towards the greenhouse mewling from the sun's unfettered ministrations. She didn't have to get the jump on anything. So, she was left to her slow walking and long musings.

Garden duty with Ruby was peaceful. Ruby was a peacemaker. And a bit of a Firestarter if you upset her. Clementine was mixing fertilizer with regular soil to make the perfect blend for plants. Feed the plants and they feed you. That was one of the few legible things on the old sack of dirt. Well, easy enough. For all the layers of grime you could expect on Clementine at any point in her life, she wasn't entirely fond of dirt.

The 40-pound bag of Nitrogen, Carbon and Phosphorus had the feel of slippery plastic even when bone dry. It was as heavy and as unwieldy as AJ when he was a tantrum throwing toddler. Those were fond memories. Especially now that he was no longer throwing them.

The tools were more trouble than they were worth, she wouldn't risk a cut from a rusty trowel. She squatted low to the floor so she could manually mix the soil and fertilizer in a large white bucket.

Mucking around may not have been her favorite task but there was something soothing about gardening. Maybe it was human instinct to feel peace when breaking clods of dirt into granules that would eventually yield life. Perhaps it was the structure of the see-through walls. The way they capitalized on the teensiest fragment of sunlight in the interest of warmth and life. Clem took a moment to hold herself. Her arms in her hands, head tilted backwards, embracing the sunbeams that glimmered across her chest.

Ruby held up two packets of seeds "Whaddya think Clem? Zucchini or collard greens?"

Did Clem forget to mention how peaceful everything was? She might have to ask Louis for a thesaurus so she can learn another word for 'peace'.

She knew hundreds of words for

'don't die',

and 'this sucks' and unfortunately for

'RUN!'.

"Can't we do both?" Clem questions.

"Well shoot, why not?. Good thing we can't waste dirt. We got plenty of that".

"Do we have enough seeds?"

Ruby brings up her hand to whisper to Clem "Can I tell you a secret?"

Clem nods, "Yeah, what is it Ruby?"

"Well" Ruby makes sure the coast is clear before lifting a small linen pouch "I took some of Omarr's potatoes. The sweet potatoes and the white ones. He'll be pissed if he knew. None of the other kids know squat about gardening. So I had to take some initiative".

Clem widens her eyes in mock shock. "Ruby, how will they ever forgive you?"

"Right? They'll thank me when we're up to our eyeballs in potatoes. Potato stew, potato pie, potato casserole".

Ruby lists recipes and meanders into storytelling about how she picked up gardening. Clementine is at rapt attention. Slowly Ruby's easygoing words ease Clem's mind into its personal labyrinth.

Clem prunes a plant. She couldn't tell it from a weed to the most poisonous flora ever but, she could tell when a leaf was dead.

Up in the greenhouse she didn't know what she was pruning. She knew it wasn't safe. She had to escape. Sarah was panicking and it couldn't be helped. She had to help the girl. Reggie was a tool. Kenny seemed to be the only one who was thinking clearly. So if Kenny thought Reggie was off. . then Carter . . . he and Rebecca. Sarita . . Kenny,

KENNY, KENNY KENNY. Don't be mad, Kenny STOP. JANE.

bang.

Someone shot off a gun directly beside her ear. Didn't they? Her hearing was muffled and ears were burning.

With open eyes her vision vanished. She blinked furiously only for funky colors or splotches of black to appear.

Something caustic was ripping through Clementine. Bubbling up her throat like ice cubes rocketing out of a pot of boiling oil. Her lips were numb yet spiders were racing on them. She opened her mouth as wide as she could and expected something thicker,

"AJ!" than names to come out of her mouth

"Clem!" Ruby shouted, stomping towards her. She crouched in front of Clem, grabbed her shoulders firmly, no shaking, to bring the panicked girl back to here and now. Clementine clenched two white knuckled fists of dirt, pressing her arms to her chest

"Clem? Clementine? What is going on, are you okay!?"

Clementine starts breathing again. It's erratic.

"You were screaming for AJ Clem". Clem couldn't recall when she stopped breathing. Realizing that didn't make breathing any easier. She forced the words out, and it was evident with how gritty she sounded

"Is he okay? Where's AJ? AJ?!".

"Clementine-" Ruby was scared for her. If Clementine was having symptoms of- no. She didn't want to consider it. Ruby would focus on the task in front of her. Her comrade was merely spazzing out, that's all!

"Clem, you called for AJ. AJ is fine, Clem. AJ is okay, remember? He's off with Louis probably doing something for team fun". Ruby delivered the last line with a fist pump.

Clem slows down her breathing and closes her eyes. Slowly Clementine breathing steadies, her vision ceases to be a pinhole's width and expands to her normal field of vision. She feels the dirt spill as her hands relax. The dirt hisses like a sand timer. It descends onto her jeans and between her legs. Ruby's radiant warmth brushes her clammy hands. Clammy everything. At some point she fully sank to the ground. When the hell had happened?

"Oh god, sorry Ruby".

"Clem, Was it something I said?"

"Oh no, no no, I just got lost in thought". Clem holds her head. She is clammy from cold sweat. Clementine prayed it wasn't an infection. It had been months since her leg amputation. There was no possible way, if she was infected it would have taken her out by now. Still, what was the explanation for what just happened? Clementine had to stop ruminating. Come on Clem, say something

"I just" . . .

"CLEM are you okay?". AJ scampers into the greenhouse "AJ, AJ i'm fine i'm sorry I-"

"Clementine, AJ, Ruby? Hey?!" Clementine sees Louis checking the perimeter of the greenhouse with 'chairles'.

"Everything okay in there ladies?"

"Hey!" AJ says in protest.

"Sorry. Ladies and little dude". Louis saunters into the greenhouse.

"No need to fear Louis is here". He toothily grins as if he's performing. Clementine would love to oblige him with applause, adoration even attention but she is feeling too crappy. Louis realizes it, something is wrong with Clementine. He tucks chairles in a corner so it's no tripping hazard to a girl with crutches and moves towards Clementine's side.

AJ asks Louis "Is the area clear?".

"Yeah, the only thing that could hurt us out here are the vegetables". Louis says lamely. There's no smile in the joke. AJ doesn't laugh either. Good, Louis needed the camaraderie. Because Clementine needed help.

Louis positions himself on Clem's inspects Clementine. Louis does too. AJ stands behind them close, but not crowding.

Louis starts wracking his brain.

Her eyes are bright, normal. That's normal right? She looks a little sallow. Why is that? It could just be excessive sun exposure, making her yellow undertones burst forward. Or was it sickness? Then why the screaming? It was blood-chilling. He expected the whole school to show up had they not been out in the safe zones or if the greenhouse hadn't dulled the sound.

Clementine looks at Louis. It's an effort for her. She smiles, always so tough. Then looks down to collect herself. She is breathing but only to her chest. The breaths seem erratic too. Louis feels so helpless and confused. He knows that joking isn't the answer. Right now Clementine just needs quiet and time to get her breathing regulated. One of her hands is pressed to the ground. Gently, like he is reaching out for a wild rabbit, he rolls his fingers under hers, seamlessly moving his palm into hers. Clem takes an audible breath. It's not to her chest. Good. That was the first full bellied breath he and AJ had seen since her take since they damn near broke the door off this place.

Clementine closes her eyes, she licks her lips and sighs hoarsely. With eyes lightly closed she says "I'm okay". She opens her eyes to give a heartfelt look to AJ, it broke her heart to worry him.

"I'm fine AJ, I swear".

"Then what's wrong Clem?"

Ruby says "I don't want to jump to conclusions but, I may have an idea. Just need to talk to our sweet little Clementine after she's feeling better".

Clementine's vigor returns to her so quickly now that she feels nauseous. Going from thinking you were dead to a full state of health in the span of a few minutes was making her feel sick again. Fantastic.

Louis clasped her hand. The pressure helped her remain present, the comfort made her feel grateful for all the love she had collected since she was born into this fucked up world. Clementine opened her eyes to Louis. She wondered how he would look at her now. Ahh yes, she had seen that look before. Those dashing dark brown eyes, shrinking with worry. His eyes were the color of wet mahogany bark.

Right after a rain's end, the tree absorbs the liquid deep within itself. Saving the universal solvent forever. Not as a practice of frugality, but an act of worship of the rain. Even if the mahogany tree would be sliced through with lightning or toppled from centuries of intentional and careless hacks, it would keep something vital of themselves. Its roots burrowing through the hot hot earth. Its roots gossiping to themself, to the olms and earthworms, to the badgers, to the molecules within the dirt itself gossiping of the rain; the wet rains, the hot rains, the scant ones the torrid and orgasmic rains that let themselves drown in the pleasure of themselves.

How unfair. Clementine desired those glistening brown eyes and the world that was surely within them.

Looking at his dazed girlfriend, Louis used his telepathic powers to ask his girlfriend a dozen questions. "Are you okay? What do you need? What happened?". His sharp eyes so

Soothed her. But what was going on? How could everything be normal one minute then raggedy and panicky the next?

Ruby interrupts the couple "Guys guys it's fine, ain't nothing happen. Clementine just, . ."

They look at Clementine, concerned. That's her cue to explain herself

"I just- I don't really know what happened".

"Let's not take any chances. AJ , Lou can you take Clementine outta here? Maybe the humidity is getting to her. It gets real swampy in a greenhouse and today sure is sunny".

AJ nods obediently. He dashes to Clementine's free side now that she has calmed. He grabs her hand only to have a lump of sweat drenched dirt plop onto his palm.

AJ looks at Clem.

Clem looks at AJ.

Rubs looks at Clem's dirty hand then at the mound in AJ's hand.

Ruby looks at Clem, at Louis finally, at AJ".

"I can bring it with us if you want!". AJ beams.

Light smiles and chuckles are passed throughout the greenhouse. All thanks to the one and only goofball.