Eyes Closed [TWD]

°•one•°

Opening the door to the RV, I cringe as it squeaks loudly. Stepping inside, I see no one else. Sighing, I make my way to the back, picking up my bag that laid on the bed.

As I turn and begin back out, I stumble as the door opens.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," Carol smiles apologetically.

"It's okay," I say, picking nervously at the strap of my bag.

"You busy?" she asks, grabbing a bottle of water from the counter.

"No, I was just grabbing my bag," I point.

"Good, come on out. There's someone you should meet," she waves.

Stepping to her, she sets her hand on my back, helping me back down the stairs.

"This one nearly slipped away," Carol chuckles.

The two men smile, one shaking his head, "Couldn't miss out on this one."

"This is Jade," Carol introduces.

The man that spoke steps closer, offering his large hand out to me, "I'm T-Dog."

Hesitantly, I take his hand that he gently shakes.

"This is Glenn," he says, holding his arm to the other man.

"Hi," Glenn smiles, his face ridden with sweat that told me the two had been through something recently.

"Hi," I wave, looking up to Carol.

"Daryl and Merle stumbled upon them," she explains, "It's a miracle they made it here."

"We're thankful for you letting us in," T-Dog says graciously.

"It's no problem. People need to stick together now more than ever," Carol says.

"I agree," he says.

"Jade, honey, I was looking for your dad. He hasn't met them yet. Do you know where he may be?" Carol asks, rubbing my shoulder.

"I haven't seen him since this morning," I answer, frowning to the ground.

"Oh, we'll find him. You must be worried," T-Dog says with sympathy.

"Her dad's kind of our leader right now. He's always running around trying to maintain things," Carol sighs.

She turns to me with another smile, "But, I'm sure your dad's close, right?"

Nodding, I force a smile, "Yeah."

"Is there anything we can do to help? Just jump in and start pulling our weight?" T-Dog asks.

Carol hums, looking around. As she spots Ed, she sighs, "Um, I think it'd be best to wait for Shane. Excuse me.."

Without another word, she walks quickly to where her husband stood with an angry expectant look on his face.

"Dale said he needed people to help with firewood.. Maybe you could ask him?" I offer, looking up to the two men.

"Lead the way," T-Dog smiles.

We make our way to the fire pit where Dale stood. Once spotting us, he waves with a friendly smile.

"I see you've met the baby of the camp," Dale laughs, "Did you get your bag?"

I nod, smiling to him and sitting on one of the logs to retrieve my bag.

"She said we could help you out. We're here for whatever you need," T-Dog tells Dale.

"Ah, I was falling a bit behind on the wood. My age is catching up to the environment, I do believe," Dale says, "Really, it would only be a one man job."

"I'll be that one man," T-Dog assures.

"Hey, why can't I?" Glenn speaks up.

T-Dog turns to him with a teasing smile, reaching over and pinching his arm, "Come on, man. It's a strong man's work."

"I could do it," Glenn argues.

"I wouldn't want you straining yourself," T-Dog tells him, taking the axe from Dale.

"Well, what can I do?" Glenn asks.

"Sit still and look pretty," T-Dog offers.

Glenn scoffs, sitting on the log beside me as Dale and T-Dog move onto the wood pile. After a few seconds, Glenn peeks over to me.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" he questions.

"Me?" I ask, pointing to myself.

"The grown ups are making me feel like.. not a grown up. You look like better company," he explains.

"I.. I'm just reading," I say, holding up the book then placing it back in my lap.

"Oh, yeah? What's it about?" Glenn asks, scooting closer.

"It's a fairytale," I say, showing him the cover.

He hums as he reads the title, "Are those your favorite?"

With a smile, I nod and return the book to my lap.

"May I?" he asks, holding his hand out.

Though confused, I still hand the book to him, looking up at him with curiosity.

"You know, my parents were strict on me. I had to read 'real books'. They would freak out if they knew I was holding this even now," he says.

"My dad doesn't really notice if I'm beside him. Don't think he'd pay much attention to what book I was reading," I shrug.

"What about your mom?" he asks.

"If she were here, she still wouldn't care," I tell him and a sad look washes over his face.

He nods to himself a couple times before opening the book to where I left off. Clearing his throat, he begins to read the words on the paper aloud, glancing over at me to see my reactions to certain parts of the story.

"Can we do this more?" I ask as he's moving to the next chapter.

"As long as you like. We'll do this every day if you want," he offers.

"Really?" I excitedly ask.

Carol and Sophia stayed to themselves, Ed lingering over them if they got too far. Dale was busy a lot keeping watch or working. Morales and his family kept to themselves, the siblings finding their playtime better together than with anyone else.

Carl still wasn't okay after Rick. So, Lori kept him close to her at all times.

And dad.. 

I wasn't sure where he was most of the time.

So, having someone offer to spend their time with me made me happier than ever.

"Sure," Glenn smiles at my reaction, "You just tell me when and I'll be there for you."

--

"Jade," Aaron says, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I look to him seeing his bated breath as he pants. He'd been running, that much was clear.

"I was looking for you everywhere," he breathes, resting his hand on the doorway.

"Is everything all right?" I ask, setting Glenn's coat down on he and Maggie's bed.

Aaron shakes his head, looking with a morbid face.

"It's time," he says.

"Time?" I ask, raising up from the bed.

"He's here."

Inhaling through my nose, my jaw clenches.

"Now?" I ask and he nods with sorrow.

"Negan's here."

--

here we go 🥺🥺

❤❤