𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝 ➵ (𝐓𝐖𝐃)

𝐈

𝐀𝐝𝐚

♪

I've been running for so long. I'm dizzy, and I can barely feel my legs. But I can't stop. Not until we're safe.

The sun is finally up, and after running away all night, I collapse on the ground. My exhaustion finally caught up to me, and I basked in the feeling of leaves beneath my body. They were cold, which helped immensely.

"Ada!" I heard my brother call.

I was still lying on the ground, eyes closed and breathing heavily, struggling to catch my breath. My brother was bent over next to me with his hands on his knees, also attempting to catch his breath.

"I-I can't go anymore," I manage to sputter out after a moment. Scott nodded and sat on the ground next to me. "Fine by me." He says, followed by a heavy sigh as he lays his down next to mine. I stared at the sky and focused on the noises all around the forest, a feeble attempt at calming myself.

I sat up as Scott handed me a water bottle from his bag. I took it immediately and downed half the bottle. "Do you think everyone else made it out?" I asked him as I gave him the water bottle. We went to the gas station earlier in the night, hoping to be reunited with Jane and Mom, but it was flooded with the dead. There was no way we could have waited, but we checked the surrounding area and they were nowhere to be found.

Scott held his hand up, declining the water bottle. His chest moved up and down at an unhealthy pace and his breathing was still heavy. It was obvious he needed it, but I let it go and set the bottle down next to him. "I hope they did, but it's no use worrying. We aren't going back." He answered, breathlessly.

I squint, trying to hold my temper. "What about Jane? And Mom?" I ask, annoyed by his flippant answer. "Shouldn't we go check just in case?"

"No, we can't risk it."

I stare at him in disbelief. "So, you're just gonna let them go? They could be alive, Scott!" He sat up and softly put his hand on my shoulder.

"Look, I feel the same way you do, I want to get them back, but the camp is probably still crawling with those things. They either made it out alive when we weren't looking, or they're dead." He pulled me closer, wrapping his arms around me in comfort. "Let's just hope it isn't the latter."

"Okay," I say softly. As much as I longed to run back, screaming their names, begging for them to come back to me, I knew Scott was hurting just as much as I was, and I couldn't leave him alone. We were all each other had now.

He pulled away and stood up from the ground, wiping leaves from his pants as he did. He then gathered the things we had dropped. "C'mon, we can't stay here." He says, holding out his hand. I take it, and he pulls me up swiftly. I pick up my knife, put my backpack on, and we start our long trek through the woods. The walk is aimless, with no goal in mind, except to find shelter and stay alive.

—

I can't remember the last time I ate anything. We ran out of water hours ago. My mouth is dry and my face is sticky with sweat. The sun beating down on our frail bodies wasn't helping the dehydration. I walk slowly in front of my brother, slapping flies out of my face. They seemed to be attracted to the dried blood I wasn't able to clean. I've made sure not to make any sudden movements, save for smacking flies, as I could pass out at any moment. Scott seems to be worse than me, he's been breathing heavily and walking slower than me for hours.

He gave me most of the water we had, which I'm grateful for, but not at the risk of his health and life. We don't walk much farther when a low moan interrupts the silence of the forest. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a lone walker steer towards us.

"I got it," Scott states. He pulls out his knife slowly as he walks towards it, but meer seconds later he stumbles and falls to the ground.

"Scott!" I yell as he hits the ground. I pull out my knife and run towards the walker making its way towards my brother. It had already bent down, making it easier for me to stab it. I stab it in the head and it falls to the ground. I've never done that before. How did I do it so easily? Shaking the thoughts from my head, I turned around and bent down next to my brother. I roll him onto his back.

His shirt is covered in blood, his blood. He stabbed himself when he fell. "Oh- Oh god." I stammer. "What do I do?" Beginning to panic, I put my head to his chest, and fortunately, I heard his heartbeat. It was faint, but it was there. "Please wake up! You can't leave me like this!" I cry, hitting his cheek softly.

I was interrupted by a sudden growl. I swerve my head at the sound, and I'm met with a walker coming closer to me. Closer and closer by the second. My knife was still on the ground beside my leg, so I grabbed it and stood up, tripping over my feet as I did. By the time I got up again, the walker was standing over me, and I fell to the ground again, letting out a shriek. I crawl backward, but the walker falls on top of me before I manage to get away.

I push up on its chest with one hand as I try to grab my knife with my other. I was getting weaker by the second, and the walker inches closer to my face as I struggled to grab hold of my weapon. Its jaw snaps and bites at me. As I continue to fumble for my knife in the leaves, an arrow goes through the walker's head, stopping near the bridge of my nose.

I scream and push the walker off of me. Pure adrenaline kept me alive in that moment, without a doubt. I finally find my knife and whirl around to see who has shot the walker.

A man with a crossbow, an Asian man, and another man with a gun stood in front of me.

"Th-thank you..." I stutter still holding my knife up in fear. I was still in shock from the attack, but as I turned to look at my brother and his unmoving chest, I was brought out of my state of panic. I quickly crawl to him and put my hands on his face. His cheeks were cold, and his face had lost most color. "Scott?" I whisper.

"Hey!" I turn around. "What the hell are you doin'?" The man with the crossbow asks. Or rather, demands.

"Daryl." The Asian man speaks to his friend sternly. The man with the gun bends down next to me and puts a hand up as if he were saying he wasn't a threat to me. "Are you alright?" He asks.

I nod. "I am, b-but my brother." I look at Scott again, and he hasn't moved a muscle.

"Okay, we can help you. You and your brother." The man says calmly. "We can't do anything here, but we have a doctor back where we're staying, he can help your brother."

I stare at him, studying his face. It was easy to spot a liar, and I didn't see any signs of cruel intentions in his face. Despite my intuition, I don't know what to do. How am I supposed to trust random strangers? "I-" I begin to speak but am interrupted by branches snapping and leaves crunching near us. Multiple walkers emerge into view, too many to take on.

"Rick, we gotta hurry." The Asian man says. The man, Rick, looks at me once again.

"Do you trust me?" He asks.

I don't have much of a choice now, do I? I nod quickly, trusting my gut, and stand up. Two of the men pick up my brother and run forward. The man with the crossbow edges me forward. "C'mon kid!"

I wasn't sure if it was a good choice to trust them, but all I care about right now is helping my last surviving family member.