𝐑𝐞𝐛𝐞𝐥《 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘺𝘭 𝘋𝘪𝘹𝘰𝘯 》

e i g h t// W I R E

Bend like wire. Snap like wire.

Silence was over. Her eyes opened and her brain woke slowly, unlocking function after function.
Once she was fully awake, Smith remembered the previous events. And it felt weird to say... she didn't feel sorry. Not one bit. And, after crying her eyes out in the bathroom, the hopelessness and heartache she felt soon turned into anger. Whether it was good or not, was debatable. Besides, she could never ever let him see what he had done to her. The way she cried like she had back in Atlanta; more than a year before that.

"Smith." Carol called out. Nova turned her head and got the car keys the other woman threw right in the middle of her two palms. "You ready?"
"Ready. Let's go." She smiled and they made their way outside.
"You'll be okay just the two of you?" Rick walked towards them, cleaning his hands with a cloth.
"Yeah. You could come along. Nothing's stopping you." She shielded her eyes from the sun and watch as Grimes's face folded and unfolded, options running through his head.
"Ahh... I got things to do here."
"Your crops can wait. Days won't kill 'em, let alone a couple hours." She used a soft tone, in hopes to get him to give in.
"Gotta check the snares." He looked down at his plainly failed attempt of cleaning the dirt off his hands.
Smith understood his message and gave up.
"Alright."
"Got the walkies?"
"Don't think we need 'em." Carol explained. "Won't be long and it's just gonna be a run into town."

As Smith drove the car past the gates she saw a familiar vulture on the rear view. The familiar, easy sway. Enough to get anyone crazy in the most beautiful, frustrating way.
It felt weird going on runs without Daryl but she still wasn't sorry about the whole thing.
"You know, I gotta ask you." Carol turned the radio down and Smith's eyes slightly widen. What could be so serious? "It's been three days." Oh. "I heard the shouting. Was it bad?"
Smith sighed and tried focusing on the road ahead. It certainly wasn't worth lying to her. She had heard it, she knew.
"It wasn't horrendous. I mean, it was worse than any of the other times but... You don't need to worry."
"Are you gonna talk to him?"
"Me?" She scoffed. "No. That was part of the reason it happened. But I want you to know I'm not sorry. Neither is he. If this is how he wants it to go down, that's how it will."
Carol hadn't heard Smith be that assertive before. That's how she knew.
"What, are you just never gonna speak again?" She laughed incredulous.
Smith shrugged and left not one drop of regret on her face.
"Is that how he feels?"
"It's what he says he does. I won't contradict him anymore. Even if is he's lying to himself and others, I'm sick of telling him otherwise. Anyway, that's not important right now. You got the map?"
Carol sighed to herself and got the map from the glove compartment.
"I don't believe you." She murmured.
Smith's head turned slowly.
"Don't believe what?"
"That you won't talk to him. Or that he won't talk to you." She had a hidden smirk that anxiously wanted to come out and shine.
"Oh, believe me, he won't."
"Things will solve themselves, I know. He can't be without you and you can't be without him."
"It's not that serious, Carol. And he can be without me; that he can."
"You just wait. It's deeper than you think."
"Where did you get all those ideas from?!"
"Oh, please." She sighed, stretching her arms above her head as if the conversation was a physical struggle. "You two... I swear, you sound more and more like him everyday..."
"What?!" She screech and Carol laughed wholeheartedly, enjoying what she was doing.
"You just wait."
"Oh, I will."
By now, it just sounded like they were making fun of the situation.

"I'm missing some pieces, aren't I?"
Smith sighed, lowering her flashlight. "Please Carol. Don't push it."
"Alright, alright..."
They both focused their eyes on the near empty shelves of medicine, but it didn't take more than thirty seconds for Carol to get back at what she wanted. Information.
"I need the whole story, I can't just live with a part of it.
"Carol! What is this now? This has happened before, you never showed interest.
"Ahh, it's different now..."
"...Why?"
"Oh, c'mon. I know, it's fine."
"Wow, wow. Know... what?"
"Yes, I know. Doesn't take an Einstein."
Smith's brows were almost one as they stood severely frowned. "You're confusing the shit out of me."
Carol snorted and shook her head. "You're unbelievable."
"What?!" Smith urged, lost in translation.
"Oh, don't tell me you don't know!"
"Know what?!"
"He's at your feet, Smith!" There was silence as she stood surprised. "Goddamn it."
"He's at my feet?" She scoffed. "Yeah and I'm at his."
"I know there's something there too. You're both so proud of yourselves for denying it."
"I'm not denying anything. There's nothing to deny." She said quietly, knowing deep down she had something there. She felt it but it hurt to much to feel it again.
"There you go."
She sighed. "Alright, look. Merle said the same thing but... I don't think so. But looks like it's just me who thinks that way."
"Ah, so I'm not making stuff up."
"I don't know." She mumbled.
"Daryl didn't deny it. Not completely..."
Smith looked up, shocked at what her ears had caught. "Daryl?" She would expect anything but that from him.
"Uh huh." Carol smirked.
Nova noticed herself almost giving into the idea, for just the thought of it was incredible. But she couldn't. Not after what happened.
She shook her head, making two little strings of hair fall softly from her pinned up hair onto her face.
"No. Don't do that."
"Do what?! I'm simply telling you."
"Yeah but..." She sighed, defeated as her mask of strength and defence fell. "It really doesn't matter, cause it's Daryl. He's right, maybe I did parade him around. I should just let him and his brother be. They live their way, who am I to change them? I don't have that right. Right?"
Smith was, at this point, having a monologue whilst Carol stood lost at her words.
"Hum... Right." Carol agreed, not moving too many muscles of her face, keeping the dumbfounded expression over what she had heard and thought of how little sense it all made. Parade Daryl around?