digging graves// rick grimes x OC//

Triggerfinger Part 3

    Lori marches further down the road. Moonlight dimly lighting her way. Hearing a car approaching she turns her head. Shane stops the car, quickly getting out, "You alright?"
   "I'm fine."
   "You're not fine. I saw the wreck. Let me look at you," he begins to check for a concussion, using a flashlight to look over her, "What happened?"
   "Looked down at the map and hit a walker."
   "Next time stay put, you won't need a map," the man sighs, "Come on, I gotta get you back."
   Lori fights against his hold, "No, we gotta find Rick."
   Shane pauses, slowly backing up,  "He's back. They're all back. They're all safe and sound."
   "Really?"
   "Yeah."
   Hearing this, Lori immediately felt comfort, "Oh thank God," she sighs out. She begins to walk to the passenger side of the car, accepting the ride from Shane.
——
    Carol walks over to Daryl's secluded campsite. She's eyes wander across the different game he caught and had strung up to prep to eat. Her brows furrowed as she catches sight of the last hanging item on the string. The severed ears of the walkers that Daryl made into a makeshift necklace the day he found Sophia's doll. A twig snaps begging the woman and she's quickly met with the redneck, "What are you doing?" his gruff voice asks.
   "Keeping an eye on you," Carol replies calmly.
   "Ain't you a peach?" Daryl responds with a glare.
   "I'm not gonna let you pull away. You've earned your place."
   Daryl becomes defensive, quickly snapping at the older woman,  "If you spent half your time minding your daughter's business instead of sticking your nose in everybody else's, she'd still be alive!"
   Carol purses her lips, "Go ahead."
   Daryl narrows his eyes, "Go ahead and what?" Before she can respond, Daryl raises his voice and waves her off, "I mean just go! I don't want you here!" Carol looks at him and says nothing, Daryl gets in her face, "You're a real piece of work, lady. What, are you gonna make this about my daddy or some crap like that?" He scoffs, "Man, you know jack. You're afraid. You're afraid 'cause you're all alone. You got no husband, no daughter. You don't know what to do with yourself. You ain't my problem! Sophia wasn't mine!" Carol continues staring at him, "All you had to do was keep an eye on her!" At the last sentence, Daryl gets in her face once again, causing her to flinch. He backs up, giving the woman some space, muttering to himself, "When the hell is Winona getting back?"
——
    Shane pulls into the farm, shutting off the car. Lori begins to get out, clutching her head. Andrea runs over, "Oh my God, are you alright? What happened?"
    "I was in an accident," Lori responds as Shane voice begins to overlap hers.
   "She was attacked," he says.
   "I'm fine. I'm fine," she brushes him off, "I really am. Where's Rick?" Shane begins to walk away as Lori begins to realize he lied. "They're not back?" she questions. No one answers, but the look they gave her was the only answer she needed. Lori, frustrated, turns her attention to Shane, "Where are they?"
   "Look, I had to get you back here," Shane shrugs nonchalantly.
   Lori marches over to him, "You asshole."
   "Lori," Shane starts.
   She shoves him, "He's my husband."
   "Lori, I will go after him. I will find him. Hey!" the woman backs away from him, "Now look, first things first— I gotta— I gotta look after you. I gotta make sure the baby's alright, okay?" Shane reveals.
    "You're having a baby?" Carl asks in shock. Everyone's mouths were agape at the events that were unfolding. "Why didn't you tell me?" the young boy feels hurt. Lori is at a loss for words as Shane sighs, shaking his head.
    Lori looks at Carl, unsure of what to say. Dale breaks the tension, "Come on. Let's make sure you're alright."
    Andrea leads Lori towards the farmhouse, "Come on."
——
    Inside, Maggie sits next to Beth, who's condition had stayed the same. In the living room, Andrea hands Lori a glass of water receiving a soft thank you from the woman. Lori pats at the cut on her forehead as she turn to face Carl, "Hey. I am so sorry. That I left without telling you."
   "It's okay," the boy responds, "I wasn't scared. When's dad and Nona getting back?"
   "Let's hope soon."
   "I wanna be there when you tell them about the baby."
   The adults in the room look at the boy. Lori begins to answer, "Oh, love, they already know. You're father and I were just trying to find the right time to tell you."
   "Why didn't Nona tell me?"
   Lori's eyes widen slightly before she relaxes, "You'll have to ask her that, okay?"
   Carl nods, "Is it a boy or a girl?"
   "Well, we won't know that until it's born."
   Carl places a hand on his moms stomach, "Will I be able to feel it?"
   "Not for awhile," Carl nods in understanding, "You must have a lot of questions, huh?" Lori turns to Andrea and Dale, whispering, "We never had the talk," she focuses back to her son, lightly chuckling, "I guess we forgot."
   Carl leans forward to look at Dale. The older man shakes his head, "Don't look at me. That's your father's job."
   The boy looks back to his mother, "If the baby's a girl can we name her Sophia?"
   Shane steps in the doorframe, gaining everyone's attention,  "Hey, dude," he greets Carl. "Hey, I'm sorry, bud. Okay? I thought you knew."
   Carl flicks the brim of his hat, "Big brother Carl. Pretty cool, huh?"
   "I say that's very cool," Shane chuckles, "You— you mind if I talk to your mom a sec? Hmm?"
   Andrea speaks up, "How about a little later after she's had some rest?"
   Shane doesn't take that for an answer, "Lori, I had to get you back here. You wouldn't have come otherwise." Silence fills the room, Shane steps closer, "How about you— how about you just hear me out, please?"
   Lori rubs Carls arm, "Give me a minute."
   Carl nods, getting off the couch. "Thanks, bud," Shane calls. This causes the others to leave as well. Dale shares one last glance with Lori before leaving her with Shane. The man begins to explain, "Okay, Lori, it was a lie. It was one little white lie. But I think that— I think you oughta be thinking about how lucky we are that your baby's safe."
   "You just can't stop lying, can you?" she says through gritted teeth, "My husband is back safe and sound. My husband and best friend are dead in some hospital."
    "Oh, when are you gonna— when are you gonna stop throwing that in my face, huh? Winona told me to leave—" Shane reveals, Lori's eyes widen.
   "She told you? Then why didn't you— Why did you say they were getting evacuated—"
   He cuts her off, massaging his head, "That's not the point. The point here, Lor, is that you cannot keep running off like that. What were you thinking?"
   "I was thinking we needed Rick here to keep us safe."
   "Rick? I keep you safe," Shane scoffs.
   "Like you did with Otis?" Shane looks away and Lori whispers, "What happened that night? You haven't been the same since."
   His jaw clenches, "You wanna know what happened with Otis? What happened with Otis happened because I love you," he confesses. Lori rolls her eyes as he continues to profess his love for her, "I love you and I love Cake. That's right."
   "I told Rick."
   Shane's face drops, "You told— you told him what?" Lori looks down, "Did you tell him you thought you were a widow? That you were grieving and that the world was coming to an end? That— that you needed comforting? Did you tell him it was a mistake?"
   Lori quickly nods to that, "Mm-hmm."
   Shane rubles his temples, anger starting to boil, "You know, Lori, that ain't true. What we had, it was real."
   "It was not."
   "It was a long time coming. It was real."
   "It was not," Lori looks at him in disbelief.
   "It was you and it was me and Carl, and it was real. It was real and don't say it wasn't."
   "It wasn't."
   "Yeah?" Shane scoffs, shaking his head, "If I could go back in time, I would've gone for you instead of Winona. I wanted you, Lori. Always have," the woman looks at him with disgust, "Winona, man, Winona was a distraction from you. She was a good fuck, that's about it," he laughs a bitter chuckle, shaking his head, "God, she was so annoying and so naïve. She really thought I wanted to marry her. When she told me to leave and protect you and Carl, man, I felt relieved I wouldn't have to see her. I only wanted you, Lori. I—I made Winona get close with you, so I could see you. I couldn't have you, I needed to stay close to you somehow. Just think about what you felt, just for a second. What you felt. Everything falling apart all around us, but it— it was the one good thing. And you know it's true. I waited for that moment for so long." Lori's whole body shakes and she says nothing as she tries to process what Shane had exposed. The man gets up, walking away, acting as if his words wouldn't seep through to her bones.
——
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