Different||The Walking Dead

Arrow on the Doorpost

"Carl, come here." Evan said as everyone except for Rick, Daryl, Hershel, and Katherine stood in the main room.  The others went to have a meeting with the governor.

Carl walked over to Evan who handed him boxes of bullets.

"You stash these at the loading dock. All right?" Evan told him. Carl nodded. "Beth, put more up on the catwalk." Beth took the boxes and put them in a bag.

"If anyone gets pinned down, we need to make sure that they have plenty of ammo." Adelaine said.

"I'll go work on the cage outside." Evan picked up some stuff and went for the door.

"What we should be doing is loading some of this firepower in a truck and paying a visit to the Governor." Merle spoke up. "We know where he is right now."

"What you should be doing is shutting the hell up." Adelaine snapped.

"Are you suggesting that we just go in and kill him?" Evan asked Merle.

"Yeah, I am."

"We told Rick and Daryl that we'd stay put." Michonne said.

"I've changed my mind sweetheart. Being on the sideline with my brother out there ain't sitting right with me." Merle said.

"And you think I feel fine with my sister being out there?" Adelaine looked at him. "Just shut the hell up and let us do what we need to do. We wouldn't even be in this mess if it wasn't for you. A thousand things could go wrong."

"And they will."

"My dad can take care of himself." Carl told him.

"Sorry, son, but your dad's head could be on a pike real soon." Merle said.

Adelaine lunged at him only for Evan and Glenn to hold her back.

"Don't say that to him." Maggie told Merle. Adelaine fought against Evan and Glenn. She pushed them off of her and hopped over to Merle.

"You say one more thing like that and I swear to god I'll beat your ass into the ground." she gritted out as she got in his face. Merle narrowed his eyes at her.

"With one leg?"

"I'll beat your ass with no legs if that's what you want." She grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. "Don't say anything to him like that again." she pushed him away and he stumbled. "We're not putting any of our people in the crossfire. That's my decision and it's final."

Adelaine grabbed her crutches and went back into the cell block.

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Adelaine sat in her cell putting together her brace. She was almost done with it but she didn't know how well it would work. She could only hope that it would because she was sick of using crutches.

She was almost done when she heard a gunshot go off.

"The hell!?" she stood up and grabbed her crutches. She rushed into the main room and saw Beth holding a gun to the ceiling and Evan had Merle in a headlock.

"Let me go!" Merle shouted. "Let me go!"

Evan let go of him and stood up with his chest heaving up and down. Adelaine looked at him as he stormed out of the room.

"I got him." she muttered before using her crutches to follow after him.

She found him at one of the watchpoints leaning against the fence with a rifle in his hand. He was just looking out into the field as she approached.

"What are you doing?" Adelaine asked as she got closer. She leaned her crutches against the fence and moved next to him. "Why are you so mad?"

"He just--" Evan took a deep breath. "If it wasn't for him we wouldn't have been taken and now he thinks he was the right to make decisions."

"Ev, look at me." Adelaine put a hand on his cheek and made him look at her. "What else is going on? You're just so angry." Evan looked down at her leg. "Do you blame yourself for me getting shot?"

"No." Evan shook his head. Adelaine gave him a look. "It is my fault."

"No it--"

"If I had gone with Rick instead of staying at the car I could have got to you in time! I could have got you, Katherine, and Mia out and none of you would have been hurt. But instead you got shot and now you can't even walk." He stood up straight.

"Evan you could barely walk!" Adelaine reminded him. "Stop blaming yourself. I'm fine. Yes, I'm upset that my leg won't be the same but there is nothing we can do about that. So just stop. Please, because I hate seeing you angry. I hate seeing you beating yourself up over something that you couldn't control."

"I'm sorry." Evan whispered and looked down. Adelaine cupped his face in her hands.

"Don't be." she kissed him gently and he put a hand on the side of her face. She caressed his cheek with her thumb as their lips moved in sync. They pulled apart but kept their faces close. "Now how about we go inside and wait for Rick. I think Mia wanted to show you her drawing."

"I heard you guys talking the other day." Evan said quietly. Adelaine furrowed her brows.

"About what?"

"About me." he looked into her eyes. "I meant what I said before. I want to be there for the both of you. If she's okay with it then so am I."

Adelaine smiled at him. "Talk to her." she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I think she's a little worried that you'll say no and she's shy."

"I will." Evan nodded. "I'll talk to her."

------

The group stood around the cellblock as Rick and the others returned.

"So, I met this Governor." Rick started. "Sat with him for quite a while."

"Just the two of you?" Merle asked.

"Yeah."

"Should have gone when we had the chance, bro." Merle muttered as he walked past Evan and Glenn.

"He wants the prison." Rick spoke. "He wants us gone. Dead. He wants us dead for what we did to Woodbury."

Everyone shared looks before Rick spoke again.

"We're going to war."

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