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CHAPTER THIRTY: IT ISN'T ENOUGH
( tw! mentions of self-harm )
🥀🖤
THE LETTER CAME a couple of days later. A few people had come back to Alexandria. A battle had been fought and lives had been lost, but the plan was working. The Sanctuary was now surrounded by walkers, all the Saviors trapped inside. They're cut off from their supplies, so each hour that went by was making them weaker. Alexandria's snipers were standing guard to make sure nobody escaped. Rick explained in the letter that he was on his way to execute the next stage of the plan and would meet everyone back at the Sanctuary in a couple of days.
Everyone was preparing for what would hopefully be the final battle. Margot had gone with the Hilltop group, so Melanie was unsure if she had even survived the initial fight, but she was trying to stay hopeful. Her sister was strong, and she could handle herself. She knew she would see her sister again when everything was over.
Melanie wished she could help with anything, but she was still confined to the couch. Her leg was getting better, but it still caused her a great deal of pain if she put too much pressure on her leg. Carl had been helping her with almost everything, but lately, he had been disappearing. Every day, usually when Melanie was napping, Carl would slip out and be gone for hours. When he returned, he would tell Melanie that he was helping the group or that he had gone on a run. Melanie knew Carl very well, and she could tell that he wasn't telling her the whole truth.
That morning, after receiving the letters from the surviving Alexandrians, Carl returned home to Melanie. He grabbed clean gauze to change Melanie's bandages as he informed her of what the letters had said. Melanie slowly pulled down her sweatpants to reveal her wound. Carl gently unwrapped the wound and observed it, "It's starting to look better."
Melanie looked at it. She tried not to sigh, but she couldn't stop herself. When it healed, it would be another scar on her body. She had enough scars that had been self-inflicted. White scars surrounded the gunshot wound. Melanie had grown used to showing Carl her scars, but she still felt self-conscious about them sometimes.
Carl noticed her expression as she stared at the scars. He placed a hand over them and looked at Melanie. Melanie locked eyes with him as he smiled softly at her, "Those scars aren't ugly, Mel. Your scars mean you survived. They show how strong you are."
Melanie nodded and forced a small smile. Carl removed his hand and placed it on the side of Melanie's thigh. He leaned down slowly and pressed a soft kiss on her thigh, right over her scars. Melanie couldn't help but smile at the gesture. Carl leaned forward and placed a short but sweet kiss on Melanie's lips before bandaging up her thigh.
