» Time Is Dancing « | » Carl Grimes «

» WE ARE THE END OF THE WORLD «

One Shell, Two Shell, Three Shells More

"-and then I found a white shell, and then mom found a pink shell, and I killed three walkers all by myself." Heather bounced in her seat of the wagon, leaning forward eagerly as she told Siddiq all about Oceanside. She didn't seem to notice his distant stare as she babbled, his mind clearly on something else.

"Uh-huh, that's great." He replied, but the proud tone wasn't quite there.

I briefly glanced over from my own seat, my wrists wrapped in leather as I directed the horses home. I didn't miss the way he was slumped down in the chair, or the way his fingers nervously fumbled with his lips. I knew what it was about, but I didn't want to bring it up. I didn't want to say anything that could make it worse.

"You okay?" I mumbled, my voice reassuring as he finally snapped out of it.

"Uh, yeah. I'm just...thinking about Coco." He dismissed, straitening his position. "You know, Eugene wrote out a whole list of measurements and charts and I don't even know what else."

I breathed out a chuckle, my eyes returning to the road. "I bet Rosita loved that."

"Do you think Coco likes pink or white more?" Heather interrupted thoughtfully, the two shells resting in her hand. "Or I've got a brown one, too. And some pebbles. Did I tell you about the crab, Siddiq?"

Siddiq cast a smile over his shoulder, his attention fully on my daughter as she rambled. "No, I don't think you did." He told her, patiently listening as she propelled into another story.

I had never been very talkative, in fact I was usually reluctant to say two words in passing unless it was to someone I knew well. So it made no sense to me that Heather, someone who came directly from me, could be so bubbly and energetic. I could listen to her talk about nothing for hours, the feeling of excitement always constant even if she was simply telling me what she had for breakfast that morning. And it was always toast.

"It was so tiny and cute. I wanted to bring it home but mom said it belonged at Oceanside. Maybe I'll see it again next time." She wondered curiously, her eyebrows pulling together. "I called him Rocky because he looked like a little rock."

My heart filled with warmth as Siddiq laughed along with her, my eyes lit up with such caring and adoration. It soon faded as we arrived at the gates of Alexandria, the concerned face of Gabriel peering down at us.

"What is it?" I climbed up the ladder as soon as the wagon stopped, frowning as he passed over a pair of binoculars. I raised them to my face, squinting through the glass and scanning the area surrounding the community.

They were far away, too far to hear, but that didn't stop the dread causing my heart to plummet. I could make out at least a hundred walkers from here, spread out along the tree line and heading this way.

I lowered the binoculars with rigid fingers, my lips pursed with determination. "Get everyone ready. We don't have a lot of time."

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This is short but I just love this little family

I also want to make it clear IM NOT REPLACING CARL Belle and Siddiq have a completely separate relationship that has nothing to do with him

Q: Favourite colour?
A: Purple (I suppose you could say heather?)