Junebug • TWD

41. All of Us.

"Merle, where are they-" I cut myself off, looking over at Merle only to see that he's not even listening. He's talking to someone else. So, I go over to him and pull on his sleeve. "Merle," I say again. 

He lets out this big, dramatic sigh and turns his head to look at me. "What?" he asks me, his eyebrows raised and his head bobbing. 

"Where are those guys takin' 'em?" I ask, pointing over to the two men who are pulling Maggie and Glenn by their arms. Maggie's looking back at me, and she's saying something, but I can't quite make out what it is. I look back at Merle. "Are they okay?" I ask him. 

"Those guys are just takin' 'em where they're gonna stay for a lil' while. They're fine," Merle tells me, waving his hand like it doesn't matter.

"Well, what about me? Where am I gonna stay?" I ask him. I don't really want to stay with him, even though I'm glad he's okay. He can just be a real jerk sometimes. I like him and all, because he's my uncle, but I don't want to stay with him. 

"You're gon' be stayin' with that surprise I told you 'bout," Merle answers, shaking my shoulder like annoying uncles always do. 

My heart jumps at his words. I'm kind of scared of the surprise, but I'm also excited about it. I wish he would just tell me. "Well, can we go see the surprise then? Pretty please?" I ask, bouncing on my toes. 

"Jesus, girl. Forgot how obnoxious you are," Merle says. That's rude. But he makes up for it by turning me toward the sidewalk. "Let's go. I'm sick a' bein' your babysitter." Well, that's rude, too, but at least he's bringing me to my surprise. 

"You didn't babysit me; ya kidnapped me, plus Glenn and Maggie," I remind him. 

"How 'bout we play the quiet game 'til we get there, huh?" he suggests. 

"I'm eleven years old, Uncle Merle. I ain't fallin' for the quiet game no more," I tell him.

"Well, damn."

I follow Merle all along the sidewalks. This place is very, very strange. It's like normal. Or, like before. It's not normal anymore. It's what used to be normal. Now it's weird because no one lives like this anymore- or at least, that's what I thought. 

There are houses and apartments and shops and everything. There are kids playing soccer together, like some kids at recess would before. There's someone barbequing. I can smell it, I think. I hope they don't try and make me have some. There are people walking around like there ain't dead people who are alive, just outside these big, old walls. I wish that I could go back home and get everyone else so that maybe we can all live here. 

"Hey, Merle?"

"What?" Merle grumbles, rolling his eyes. Jeez. I forgot how easy to irritate he is. 

"Could we bring everyone else here, too, and we call all live here? 'Cause we ain't exactly doin' good, back where we're stayin'," I ask, raising my eyebrows hopefully. I think Judith and Carl could do better here than they could at the prison. It's too dark and gloomy in there. Sometimes it makes me feel like dyin'.

"That depends, Juni. Could ya tell me where the hell y'all are stayin'?" Merle asks me. He pauses his walking and I do, too. He looks down at me expectantly. 

"Uh..." I murmur. I spin around a little bit and point my arm out. "That way, maybe? Or, maybe that's the wrong way. But maybe it's this way." I turn and point the other way. 

"Christ. You're useless," Merle sighs, shaking his head. We start walking again. 

"Well, how am I s'posed ta know?! I'm a kid and I ain't got no compass!"