The Other Dixon || c.g

•seventeen• tragedy

*Addison POV*

It was mid-afternoon when we decided to set traps to catch something to eat while we rested, as we were about to walk into the forest from the train tracks Rick stopped us.

"Look at this" He indicated to a fabric sign tied up on a truck a couple of metres down the track.
'Sanctuary for all. Community for all. Those who arrive, survive.'
The sign read, with a little map glued to the truck underneath it. It was a map of the area with all the train tracks highlighted in red leading to one place.

"Terminus?" I thought aloud.

Carl looked at me with a smile on his face and it's the first time in day's I've seen a proper smile. He was happy for the same reason I am, a safe place. Maybe it won't be as good as the prison but we could make it work.

"What do you think?" Michonne asked Rick concerned.

"Let's go" He mumbled.

Rick started walking in the direction of the forest again looking at the floor with a smile on his face, I look at Michonne and she looks a little more cheery as well. This could be our second chance at happiness, what if people from the prison are there?

~~

After we followed Rick as he set the traps we sat down under a tree and haven't really said anything to each other since we found the terminus sign, we've been sitting here for a while now. Carl sat playing with my fingers in his hands. Michonne used a rock to sharpen her sword and Rick was playing with a stick and a rock, trying to make a fire. I sat against the tree staring at the sky, enjoying the feel of Carl's fingers caressing mine.

"Do you think it's real?" I spoke up.

"Is what real?" Michonne asked.

"Terminus. What if that sign was made years ago when the world first turned to shit and everyone that was there is dead now?"

"It could be a trap, someone that is luring us to them to steal our stuff" Carl said staring at my hands.

"It could be anything and more. But it's all we got right now, I don't know about you guys but I'm getting bored just walking hour's nonstop" Michonne stated.

"If we don't have faith then what do we have?" Rick said sounding like Hershel.

"What if there are others going they're too?" I said with a smile on my face.

"Maggie, Glenn, Beth, Daryl and Carol. If Michonne found us we can find them." Carl said and started to smile with me. Michonne and Rick shared happy glances and everyone's mood has improved since now we feel like we have a purpose, something to do now.

"I hope they cook good food like Carol did back home" Carl said with a sigh.

"Speaking of food lets go check those traps" Rick said as he got up.

~~

They were all empty except for one which had a small rabbit in it, after Rick took it from the trap he explained to Carl how it worked and the best place to set the traps.
A scream for help came from ahead of us and before anyone had the chance to say anything, Carl was already sprinting towards the cry for help and we chased after him. Rick was calling his name and trying to make him stop while Michonne and I raced after them.
We came to an opening in the forest where a man was about to be ripped open by a herd of walkers surrounding him, Rick held Carl back.

"We can't help him Carl, it's too late." Rick said.

Before we had a chance to do anything else the man was being torn apart and eaten alive by the walkers. A few stragglers on the outside of the herd saw us and turned walking to us which attracted the attention from more of the biters. Michonne started pulling me away from the horrific sight and the walkers coming to us while Rick did the same with Carl; we all turned and ran after we pulled our eyes away from the scene that just unfolded in front of us. When we got far enough away and we knew no walkers followed us we stopped running, I looked over at Carl and I can tell he's shaken up about what we just saw. I grabbed his hand and we all started walking in the direction of Terminus once we reached the train tracks.
Silence. We were all quiet from what just happened. No more talking, no happy atmosphere anymore, just silence as we walked. I know what we all just saw reminded us of the people we lost.
Innocence and purity has completely left this world for us, I know it left a long time ago but only now am I realizing just how much we've all changed over the past week and a half.
I remember when I was little, after my mum left; Daryl did everything he could to make sure my innocence and happiness stayed intact. My dad was abusive and alcoholic and I didn't know that until I was eleven years old. Daryl and Merle took a majority of the beatings but Daryl always made sure I didn't see it. Until that one night when I was eleven, Daryl was out with Merle and dad came home early from the pub. I was sitting on the couch watching Kim Possible on our little TV when he came banging through the door stumbling. I jumped at the loud noise he made coming through the door which drew attention to me. He took one look at me and his drunken face filled with hatred, I remember hearing him say my name with such venom and I froze in my seat. He came for me, picking me up by the neck and throwing me against the wall while he screamed about me being the reason why mum left us. In that moment I understood why Daryl never wanted to leave me alone and why he was so protective of me, he came home through the door just as dad gave me a black eye and Daryl beat the crap out of him; tucking me into bed afterwards and told me try and forget it ever happened, that he's always going to be there protecting me. He was always the only one who cared and never left me.
The apocalypse happened a month later from that night when I was at school and that's how I got separated from Daryl for the next four years up until many weeks ago when Rick found me in that store; it's good he found me because I was on the brink of killing myself. Not because of the zombies, or always having an empty stomach, not from the cruelty that's in this world but from being alone. For being so god damn alone; I've been alone my whole life with Daryl being the only one I could trust.
Then I met Carl and my world changed, he's my anchor, my everything. Just as my mind wondered to him I felt his hand squeeze mine, bringing me out of my daze as Rick told us we would be camping here for the night. I looked at the sky and saw it was almost pitch black; I didn't even take notice as my mind trailed off into a bit of my past I don't ever want to think of again. There was a broken old car parked on the side of the tracks and I guess that's where we'll be sleeping.