We Deserve Better (SLOW UPDATES)

Chapter Seven

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Elyza's POV
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When we're far enough away from the horde of Walkers and have slowed down, I immediately turn to Madi, silently thanking Gabriel and Alicia for keeping our two horses next to each other the whole time.

   "Madi, are you okay? What happened? Where are the others?"

   "Too many questions," she replies, and I immediately apologise, paying attention to her face scrunching up in pain and the way she leans against Gabriel because she can't hold herself up anymore. Madi must have been on the verge of collapse before we found her. Sympathy for her floods through me at her condition.

I've just accepted that I need to wait until she's more rested before asking her any questions when she starts to talk.

   "I don't... I don't know where the others are," she starts. Before I can ask someone for a water bottle upon hearing the pain and dryness in her throat from trying to talk, there's already one in my hand. I thank Alicia who turns back around, and I carefully hand the water bottle to Gabriel. She starts to help Madi drink but doesn't get far.

   "Should we stop briefly just to rest? It would make it easier to do this and we can make sure she isn't too injured or that she isn't..." Al trails off at the end, and I nod, fear making me hesitant to check anything. It never occurred to me, but if Madi was bitten and didn't even know...

I refuse to think of what would happen to the young girl, and focus on stopping to rest first. We're still surrounded by houses, though slowly getting sparser the closer we get to the long roads that eventually lead to the road to The Gulch. Alicia quickly leads our horse over to a small house with a deck at the front. My feet hit the ground as I get off the horse first, and start plunging my knife into the few walkers in the area. I go as far as I can right now to be safe, only going back to the group helping Madi down from the horse when I'm sure we'll be okay.

Grabbing the water bottle Gabriel still has, I sit down next to Madi, who's leaning against the side of the deck. She shakes her head when I hold the water bottle up to her face trying to grab it herself. Her hands barely move, however, the heavy exhaustion making it hard for her to move her aching limbs.

   "Madi, I know you don't want help cause you don't think you ever need any being 15, but age has nothing to do with the condition you're in right now okay? Please let me help you drink some water so we can check you for any injuries and get you back so you can sleep."

I'm as quick but careful as I can be with helping her, her movements rapidly becoming more slow as her body goes from struggling to stay moving to being still. I know she's fighting to stay awake with the way her eyelids keep shutting but she keeps them open.

Alicia and Al come back over from typing up the horses so they don't wander off, when I'm done helping Madi drink.

   "Okay, we're just gonna make sure you don't have any bad injuries right now that we could help with, alright Madi?" Alicia says, kneeling in front of Madi with me still by her side.

   "We're also just gonna make sure you weren't... bitten," I add. "You probably aren't but can't be too careful can we?" I chuckle, to make sure Madi doesn't panic. I don't need to worry about her panicking, though, as she's so exhausted that all she does is say 'mhm' in agreement and lets us check.

My whole body is tense as we check her for wounds, dreading what would happen if we find a walker bite. When we've made certain that she doesn't have any noticeable wounds besides a few grazes from falling I assume, it feels as though all the stress leaves my body immediately and I relax again. She's still exhausted and in pain from aching limbs but nothing bad as far as we can tell and certainly no bites to worry about. I don't know what I would have done if we found a bite on her but I'm just glad I don't have to think about that.