REMEMBER ME HAPPY | r. grimes

EPILOGUE NO. 2

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— "BABY, BABY. . . BABY! WHEN YOU TOUCH ME LIKE THIS, BUT WHEN YOU HOLD ME LIKE THAT!" Emerson and Carl belted out in the car.

"Make it stop. . ." Rick mumbled as she shook his head. "Do you two ever listen to anything else?"

Emerson turned the CD down, "How dare you even ask that?"

"Oh look, we're here." Rick announced, pulling into the prison.

"Thank goodness." Maggie and Glenn both said together. "We can only take so much of Celine Dion."

"Celine Dion is superior. You guys are just jealous." Carl replied. "Can I help carry the crib?"

"Sure, bud." Rick replied as him and Glenn went to the trunk.

Maggie and Emerson grabbed the four bags of baby items and made their way inside the prison.

"In your room?" Maggie asked.

Suddenly, Emerson felt a sharp pain coming from her stomach. "Oh, dear god." She groaned.

"Are you okay?" Maggie asked, immediately.

"I-I'm not sure." Emerson groaned. "What's happening?"

"Let me go get Dad." Maggie said as she left Emerson in her and Rick's cell.

Just then, Rick appeared with Carl and Glenn.

"What's goin' on?" Rick asked. "Baby, you okay?"

"Do I look okay?" Emerson asked, grabbing her stomach in agony.

When Hershel appeared, he both shooed everyone out of the room. Upon examining her, Hershel deemed she was in labor.

"What? But it's too early!" Emerson panicked.

"Well, it seems the little one is just ready to come out." Hershel said, smiling. "Let's the drape put up. Rick, help her get her pants off."

"No. There will be no drapes and no pants being taken off. This baby is not coming today." Emerson snapped.

Hershel sighed and looked to Rick.

Rick turned to Emerson and grabbed her hand, "Hey, we got this okay?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I miss the part where you're the one that has to push a baby out of their vagina? No, Rick, I got this. You just get to stand there and look pretty." She retorted.

Rick held his laugh in. "Okay, fine. You got this. But I'll be here every step of the way."

"Oh god, what if I crap my pants? Don't tell anyone if that happens, okay? Promise?"

Hershel laughed. "That's not gonna happen. Now, I need to see how dilated you are."

Emerson reluctantly let Rick help her take her pants off and even more reluctantly let Hershel do his exam.

"He's a doctor, Emmy. He's seen this before." Rick said, attempting to calm her down.

"He was a vet, Rick. Are you comparing me to a cow?" Emerson scoffed.

"Of course not, darlin'." Rick said, rolling his eyes.

Another hour or two passed until Emerson was ready. When she reached the full ten centimeters, she began to cry. "I can't do this. I changed my mind." She sobbed.

"You're about nine months too late for that." Hershel told her. "I need you to push, Emerson."

"Now?"

Rick grabbed her hand. "We've got this, okay? You and me, we got this. Everything's gonna be okay."

"I-I. . ." She cried. "Promise?"

"I promise."

"Wait, stop. . . Stop pushing!"

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"She was smart, she was funny. . . She–She was Emerson." Maggie said as she wiped her eyes.

Carl stood in front of the grave, crying as he watched his dad lower Emerson into the grave.

Emerson was unable to give birth to her child in the way it was intended. Instead, due to complications from the miscarriage, Emerson needed an emergency C-Section if she wanted the baby to live.

It wasn't a hard decision for Emerson to make.

She wanted, no needed, for this baby to survive.

Unfortunately, without the right equipment, Emerson knew she wouldn't survive and that was okay with her. She made Maggie promise to take care of Carl and the baby. She also made her promise to take care of Rick, as the man was already broken just knowing the love of his life was going to die.

"Maybe we can do something." Rick said, sniffling. "There's gotta be something we can do."

"Oh baby. . ." Emerson sobbed. "There's nothing anyone can do. This is the way it's supposed to be. N-Now promise me that you'll remember that Carl is just a kid. He needs you to keep him on track. He has a really bad potty mouth sometimes, but it makes him feel grown up. Let him be a kid.

And with this baby, tell them about me. Please, Rick, don't let them forget me."

"I won't, I promise." He sobbed, grabbing her hand to put on his cheek. He kissed her hand and cried.

"I love you, Rick. I love you so much. Promise me that you will always remember me happy, okay?

"I promise. . . I love you." He sobbed.

With that, Emerson took a deep breath and told Hershel she was ready.

Now, as the group gathered around her grave, not even a day later, Rick looked out in the prison yard.

In the distance, he saw a woman in a white dress.

It was Emerson.

END