ELEANOR . NEGAN

059.

Dust of dirt scattered across her face, seeping into the gash down her face and blinding her like hot searing lava was poured directly on her. Bones once strong were crushed under the hefty weight of rocks, squeezing against her body - her ribs, her fingers, her feet and legs.

It was a feeling like no other. Nothing positive out of the situation but only bone-crushing pain that left her physically impaired. The pain voided her brain and she couldn't decide if it was too dark or if the dirt blinded her.

But the pain and the heavy squeeze of rocks made her believe she was floating, mid-sky like she was some angel with wings.

Hold on...

Why did she feel like she was floating?

The cramped pressure on her lungs was lifted and the darkness hiding over her irises cleared in seconds. The warm sun fell down upon her bruised skin, and she never felt so relieved before.

"Ellie?" Someone mustered into the air, pushing through her choked sobs. "Eleanor!"

Another feeling took over her body when two large hands cupped her cheeks as they wiped away the dirt in her eyes. Everything became clearer after that and her green eyes soon met Aaron's blue ones, tainted red with tears swelling at the bottom of his waterline.

Instantly, Aaron was pushed to the side as Maya crouched down and hugged Eleanor like there was no tomorrow. "I was so scared... so scared." Maya sobbed into her skin. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry-"

"Maya..." Her voice was hoarse and rough and so unlike her and it brought deep concern on everyone's faces. "Maya," she said again, hissing and wincing when Maya hugged tighter.

"Kid," Aaron  cleared his throat. He sounded croaky and hurt. "Give her space."

"Yeah, yeah..." 'Maya wiped the sadness from her own face and scrambled backwards. "'m sorry."

Elle tried to smile but it was physically impossible. Her whole body felt like its been twisted and turned through a washing machine that was sucked up by a tornado and spat out into a volcano. She tried to ignore her pain by doing a headcount until she was filled with an unsettling buzz in her chest.

"Where's Daryl?"

-

The pain never stopped and she didn't know how to feel. She was sprawled across the arms of Aaron, the man careful of the sharp edges of his stump while he trudged quickly through the gates of Alexandria. Maya was running beside Eleanor and clutched her hand tighter as they went straight for the centre of the town.

"Aaron?" Gabriel gasped, running to tend for the woman. "What happened? What's going on?"

"We need a doctor — she needs a doctor."

"What happened?!"

Gabriel was left unanswered, but he took her injuries and Aaron's urgent words with caution and quickly got Eleanor in the back of a carriage with Rosita beside her. Beta attacked last night — they all knew Elle would go ape if she found out.

They also knew she would've lost her shit if she knew a Whisperer was currently sharing the carriage with them.

Nonetheless, the ride to Hilltop was jagged and painful. It accentuated every bump in the road that shook the whole cart and it also made Eleanor's head clash up against the side of the ride.

She shot up with a loud gasp.

"What the fuck had happened?"

"Language."