» Time Is Dancing « | » Carl Grimes «

» TIME FOR AFTER «

Well, At Least It's Safe

I never expected to find myself in the sewers of Alexandria, especially not to set up a bed and candles to create a small living space for Siddiq.

"Listen, this is a whole lot more comfortable than a sleeping bag on the floor." I assured him with a smile, unfolding a knitted blanket and spreading it to the corners of the cot.

"Probably more comfortable than leaves and sticks, too, right?" He replied, his tone light. It felt so easy to talk to him now I apologised, even making a few jokes here and there. "How long have you lived here?"

"Not long." I shrugged. "We were out there for a long time. I started in Tennessee, then I went to Atlanta. That's where I met Carl. We were only, what, twelve years old?"

Siddiq quirked an eyebrow up. "You've known him a while, then."

I nodded sweetly, my lips automatically peeking up at the mention of him. "It feels like forever."

I held a tea light in my fingers delicately, the lighter in my other hand flicking until a tiny orange flame appeared. I repeated the action until the area was illuminated with a warm glow.

The clang of metal bars startled me, causing my finger to slip and catch on the hot spark of fire. "Shit." I brought it to my lips in an attempt to cool it down.

"Sorry." Carl reached the bottom of the ladder, a brown paper bag clasped in his fist as he sat down beside me. I shrugged off his apology, squinting a the small charred portion of my finger.

"It's nothing." He reached into the bag, pulling out various cans and packets of food. My eyes held a certain amusement when I saw Siddiq's amazed expression.

He dug into a tin of corn, his plastic fork scraping the bottom in seconds as he sighed with content. I wondered how long it had been since he last ate.

My eyebrows turned down as I glanced at him. "Why are you building walker traps?" I had been wondering since we came across the sticks stabbed into the soil.

He cast his gaze down, the empty tin slipping between his fingers and clattering to the damp floor. "My mom thought that killing them would...free their souls. You know, maybe she was right."

My heart filled with a softness that spread to my lips, my smile conveying as much warmth as it could. "I hope it's true."

I learnt a lot about the new resident during our deep conversations, and he learnt a lot about us. About our journey from the camp to the farm, to the prison and then finally to Alexandria. Our families and friends and the people we loved most.

I found out he had been alone for a long time, that his parents passed in the most horrible ways. He appeared close with them, his eyes distancing when he mentioned them.

"We should probably go back up." I suggested to Carl, who nodded in agreement. "We'll be back soon."

Part of me felt bad for leaving Siddiq alone, but he seemed to understand as he rested back on his cot, the appreciation clear in his features as he blew out some candles.

My hands gripped each wrung of the ladder as I made my way to ground level, the sun finally reappearing after the shelter in the sewers.

Carl dragged the metal grate back into place, scraping across the concrete as he sighed heavily.

"How about that picnic?" He smiled widely at me, my confusion evident in my frown.

"Now?" I peered around the community, seeing the familiar people go about their normal days. It was a nice day out, not a single cloud in the bright blue sky.

"Yeah. Maybe it's about time."