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trigger warning: mentions of cannibalism
The first time Carl had a crush was when he was in the fifth grade. A girl named Felicity. She was two grades above him but they shared the same lunch period. He thought she was pretty. The first time she smiled at him in the lunch line, Carl went home and told his mom that he thought he was in love. Lori Grimes just laughed. She didn't try to talk him down. He was a boy. Crushes would come naturally.
When he thought of Felicity, his stomach would twist in knots and he would smile. He never spoke a word to her and yet he felt that way. But he eventually forgot about her as he got older. Carl didn't know anything about love or what it felt like. He only ever saw the love between his parents.
With Mia, it was like he couldn't breathe. Like when she was around, he forgot he was a person. It was like he was constantly in a dream. Amelia Jones was more than just a crush. She was someone he would kill for. She was his best friend. A girl who knew his secrets. Someone who he wanted to take on the world with. Carl knew what made her happy and what made her sad. He knew how to make her laugh and to make her feel better. Mia knew how to bring him back to Earth when he felt like he was disappearing.
It was more than a crush. Maybe at the prison but now, after everything they'd been through, Carl knew exactly what he felt.
As the party in the Church continued, Carl stood from his spot on the pew. His father watched him make his way to the doors. "Carl, where're you going?" He voiced.
"I was gonna check on Mia." He told him, pointing to the door.
"Is she okay?" Asked Rick.
"I'm really not sure." Carl responded. He put his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "I'm kinda afraid to ask her, but, I need to."
His father smiled slightly. He patted his back. "Don't be too long, ya hear?"
His son smiled back. He opened the church doors. "Mia." He spoke but saw that she wasn't there. Carl looked around. "Mia?" He said again and closed the door behind him. He didn't get a response. Cautiously, he walked down the steps of the church. He stopped and looked around him again, still not seeing or hearing the girl. "Mia, where are you? Amelia!" He hollered again. His stomach tightened painfully when he still didn't get a response. He thought the absolute worse. "Mia, stop messing around. Where are you?"
"Carl?"
He spun around and Sasha was outside. Her eyebrows furrowed together. "What's going on?" She voiced.
