𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 // 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘺𝘭 𝘋𝘪𝘹𝘰𝘯

ɪ ᴘʀᴏᴍɪꜱᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ ʏᴏᴜ

The sheets cling onto our bodies snuggly as we make our way off the front porch and into the busy street. Carl walks in front of me, slowly trying to mimic the motions of a walker. I silently praise him in my head for the man that he has become. Rick walks in front of him, leading the way for us as we pass by the dead, all unaware that we aren't one of them. 

I walk slowly as well, Daryl's breath fanning the back of my neck as he stays close. I don't blame him for being scared, Judith rests beneath my sheet, clutching onto my torso. One wrong move and Judith, sweet innocent Judith, will be revealed to the hundreds of starving walkers lurking all around us. 

 A walker cuts in front of Rick and he comes to a halt, letting out a sharp breath. Suddenly all the walkers around us seem to halt, their ears picking up a familiar sound, a kid is screaming somewhere not too far from us. Daryl taps my shoulder, pointing towards the noise as he slowly starts to follow the sound. I give him a hazardous look, frantically looking at Rick. I know Daryl isn't one to play hero but when it comes to kids, he's just like me, willing to sacrifice everything. 

 Rick notices my frantic look and watches Daryl closely for a second before Rick nods, following Daryl as well. Letting out a deep sigh knowing we will get to stick together, we make our way towards the sound, trying our hardest not to attract attention. We don't know if it's due to the walkers or if the threat is still lurking within our walls. They proved to not be shy with killing kids earlier tonight, what would stop them now?

Turning the street corner, a blonde boy is screaming while he clutches onto his mom. Jessie, the woman I had "helped" looks down at her son in horror. The right side of him is being pulled by a walker, it's mouth latched onto the kids tiny rib cage. Jessie stands motionless, trying to get away while also watching the terrifying sight in front of her. Rick suddenly springs into action, leaping with his axe pulled out to unlink the boy from her. It slices through the boys arm and the walkers around us feast on the little one, only making Jessie cry harder. 

Her eldest son stands behind her, a strange look in his eyes. It's as if he's shocked but something more seems to be consuming him. Shane had a similar look in his eyes at the farm. This boy isn't sad, he's angry. I look him up and down, cautiously watching him. But it seems my eyes aren't quick enough as he quickly reaches into his brown dress shirt, pulling out a pistol he had shoved in his waist band. 

I let out a yell, watching as the bullet comes straight towards me. But everything slows down as the back of Carl's body presses against me, jumping slightly when something hard hits him and both of us shake. My eye grow wide and I watch as Carl slowly turns towards me, pale and sickly looking. A bullet hole sits in his right eye. "Carl?" I scream, grabbing onto his shoulders as his knees buckle under him, catching him before he can fall. "Scar?" He cries out, reaching up and placing his hand on my face. 

Rick stops what he's doing and turns to look at me, his eyes also growing wide, his mouth hanging open. Rick takes two fast steps towards me, not hesitating before lifting his son from my arms with shaky hands and into his own. Judith cries loudly, still pressed against me. Daryl doesn't move, looking the boy with the gun in his hand up and down. 

"Wat did ya just do?" He grumbles, pointing at the teen. He just stands there wordless, still looking at me before he opens his mouth. 

"It was supposed to be her, for my father." I go teary eyed at his words, gulping loudly. My mouth is suddenly dry and a lump forms in the back of my throat. I want to run and hide, go back to the living room when everything was normal. When Carl was ok not dying because of something I had done.