Didn't See That Coming | The Walking Dead(1)

Part 11 (Sophia Runs Away)

CJ's body flailed around uncontrollably as the car flipped over and over again.

The edges of the seatbelt were trying their best to slice into her skin. She heard glass shattering and metal scrapping. She smelt the burning rubber of the tires.

The back of her head was whacking the headrest behind her repeatedly. She lost control of her movements before the most indescribable pain hit her.

She couldn't even scream.

The movements of the car finally seized. She slowly and painfully looked down her front to see where the broken glass and metal from the car had ripped through her tank top and penetrated the flesh of her stomach, deeply. Blood was pouring and bruises were already forming from where he body and been pushed into the steering wheel.

She could hear the faint echoes of sirens getting louder as they approached. She could hear the muffled voices of various bystanders as they watched the scene from afar.

The pain from her lower abdomen radiated through her entire body, leaving her barely any energy to breathe or even move.

Her eyes were filled with shock, fear and tears. She just about managed to look to her right, turning her head slightly.

Through her blurred eyes she could see thick, red blood pouring out of a gash on the top of his head.

His face was pale, his body was limp and unmoving. His eyes were open but empty.

She let out a pained scream but got no answer.

Her father was dead.

*****

CJ woke up in a cold sweat, gasping for air with her hand on her chest and tears in her tired eyes. As she scanned her surroundings she was relieved to see that she hadn't woken anyone up.

It was still pitch black outside the RV. She guessed it must've been 2, maybe 3am which meant in a few hours the group would continue their journey to Fort Benning.

The redhead slowly and quietly headed over to the front of the RV and sat down in the driver's seat. There was no way she was going to even try and get back to sleep after that nightmare, no matter how tired she was. So she decided to stay on watch. Even though due to the dark she could see fuck-all.

After a couple of hours it started to get brighter. She looked back and saw that everyone was, unsurprisingly, still asleep so she decided to leave the RV and climb the ladder to sit on the roof. She sat down and brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. She watched through the treeline as the sun rose and the sky turned from grey to bright orange, her favourite colour.

Just for a while, she felt peaceful.

CJ completely lost track of time as she gazed at and admired the beautiful horizon before her. As the morning sky grew brighter, she could hear movements and voices coming from inside the RV and she saw some of the group leave their cars and gearing up to move out.

She sighed before standing up and making her way down the ladder.

"Morning," Dale greeted her with a smile. "What were you doing up there?"

CJ shrugged her shoulders. "Just keeping watch."

"Were you up there all night?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows in concern.

"Nah, just an hour or so," she lied with a smile. Before Dale could respond, she turned on her heel and headed into the RV.

They had to ditch a couple of cars on the road. Rick, Lori, Carl, Carol and Sophia were in one car whilst CJ and the rest rode in the RV. Except for Daryl who was on his bike.