Alyssa Chávez has felt alone for most of her life. She was never good at making friends. She always felt a distance between her and her family. So when the apocalypse happened, her social life didn't take much of a hit. After losing her family, Alys...
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Chapter Eighteen Still Standing
Beth was gone. The woman that held her captive in the hospital had shot her after Beth stabbed her. Maggie was distraught over it. She'd lost her entire family. First Hershel, now Beth too. But she still had Glenn, who stayed by her side to comfort her. And she also had Alyssa, who did what she could. She wasn't very good with emotions, but she knew a thing or two about losing people.
They had a new addition to their group: Noah, Beth's friend from the hospital. He had family in Virginia. There was supposed to be a safe for them there. So the plan was they'd head over there, reunite Noah with his family and stay there for the foreseeable future.
They drove to Virginia with cars they found on the road. Rick rode in the front with Noah, Tyreese, Michonne, and Glenn, leading the rest of the group. What they hoped for was an exciting, living community. What they found was a bunch of empty houses and Walkers. They came all the way over there for nothing except maybe closure.
Noah was a wreck. Yesterday for all he knew his family was alive. Now they were all gone. What he didn't know yet was that he had a new family now. They would take him in just like they did with Alyssa. They'd take care of him.
And then Tyreese got bitten. They took him out of there. They tried their best to save him, but he bled out fast. They buried him in a peaceful place. Gabriel read a passage from the bible while they said their goodbyes. He was a good man and he would be remembered like that.
After everything they'd lost, they were still standing. They were weakened by their loss of cars, lack of food and the little amount of drinking water. They were slow and exhausted. They didn't even bother with Walkers anymore, they just avoided them as much as they could. Still, they kept going. Even without the option of saving the world, they headed for Washington. It was their best shot, but it took a lot to get there.
The group was what kept them alive. They depended on each other more than ever. Even if the morale was low, they still had each other. They had something to fight and stay alive for.
"Close your eyes," Carl instructed as he walked next to Alyssa. Alyssa simply raised an eyebrow in response, making him roll his eyes. "Just trust me."
Reluctantly, the girl closed her eyes. She could hear Carl fumbling around with his bag before feeling his arms around her neck. He was putting a necklace around her. A small smile grew on her face, excited to see what it looked like. It was so strange how close they'd gotten after the prison. They were friends before, but now they were inseparable. Every time they sat side by side or their arms brushed against each other Alyssa felt a sense of comfort. Each time she looked into his eyes they felt so familiar. When he smiled at her, she could feel butterflies in her stomach.
Alyssa had never liked someone before. She'd had crushes on TV, movie, and book characters, but that was it. She was just a child when the apocalypse started and hadn't had any boys or girls nearby until the prison. But then Carl came into her life like a wrecking ball, knocking down her walls and seeing another side of her. She always wanted to appear confident and like she knew what she was doing, but with Carl, she knew she could be more than that. She'd seen him at a low point and he'd seen her at one. She trusted him more than anyone else. He was her best friend, but sometimes when she looked at him, she saw more.
