you drew stars around my scars
and now i'm bleeding.
><
carl never used to believe that everything
happened for a reason. but he now knows
that sofia espinosa came into his life for
one reason. she made him feel alive again.
after his mother died...
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————✧⋆✧————
SOFIA HADN'T LEFT Carl's embrace all night. As the sun rises above them, she's still lay on her side, curled up slightly with her head resting on his lap and her eyes closed. She's now wearing Carl's flannel shirt with the top couple of buttons open but she's just grateful that she's finally covered.
Michonne is sat in the passenger seat of the truck, her body twisted slightly as she watched Carl, who's head is leant back on the seat, run his fingers gently through the Latina girl's dark hair. Her eyes are closed and it seems as though she's sleeping, yet her body is still slightly tense and her hand occasionally grips Carl's knee gently.
Rick and Daryl are sat outside the truck and Carl can hear their conversation, about how Rick just wants to protect Carl and that Daryl understands why he did what he did to those men. They speak about how Daryl wanted to —— and would have —— done the same thing to the plump man on top of Sofia. Carl just hopes that they aren't losing themselves to protect them, as he also hopes that Sofia understands how much they would do for her because she is one of them now.
"Will she be okay?" The Grimes boy asks and Michonne purses her lips, glancing from Carl's tired face to the sleeping one of Sofia.
"Yeah." Michonne offers him a reassuring smile, her eyes holding emotion much beyond his understanding. "Yeah, she's gonna be fine."
"I tried, Michonne." Carl mutters, shaking his head slightly. "I tried to fight them—they were too strong—"
"Hey." Michonne says firmly, leaning through the gap between the seats and grabbing Carl's hand tightly. "It was not your fault. It was nobody's fault other than those men, and they're gone. Don't ever think for a second that it was, or that she'll blame you."
Sofia shifts slightly before sitting up quickly and frantically, Carl's eyes going wide as she scrambled around.
"Hey! Sof!" Carl says quickly, grabbing her arms and forcing her to look at him. "It's me. It's just me." He whispers and notices her trembling lip, pulling her into a tight hug. "You're okay, no one's gonna hurt you anymore."
Sofia's breathing trembles slightly as she wraps her arms around Carl's shoulders. Despite their initial distaste for one and other, Sofia knows that he would keep her safe in his arms. That he would protect her from anyone like those men and the ones she'd came across before, she knows that he meant what he said about wanting them to take him instead of her.
Carl rubs his hand up and down her back gently as she relaxes in his embrace, looking to Michonne who nods at him softly. He knows now what he wants to do, what he has to. He knows he has to be this person for her, that he has to be there to comfort her and protect her for the rest of their time.
