A Long Way From Home//Carl Grimes

Chapter 15 - The Accidents

"Hey Cass! We're going on a run! Wanna come?" I hear Daryl ask.
"Yeah sure!" I say back. I look to see Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, Beth, and Carl. I run over to them and hop in the car.
"What are we getting?" I ask.
"We're going to a Walmart, for food and other random stuff." Glenn says. Sounds pretty easy.

-

"Alright. Beth come with me. Glenn and Maggie. Carl and Cass. Don't split up. Get what we need and get out." Daryl says. We all get our weapons ready for anything that may try and kill us. Daryl pushes the doors open and looks around. We all split off into our groups and start to get supplies.
"Oh my gosh!" I hear Carl gasp. He has a huge smile on his face as he grabs a package of oreos off of the shelf.
"You're such a kid." I say laughing.
"Fine then, I'll make sure not to share with you." He says.
"No! I take it back! I want oreos!" I say laughing. Our laughing fit finally stops after we hear a gunshot. I sprint after the sound. We never use our guns. It attracts walkers. I sprint and find Daryl laying on the ground. I run over to him. He was shot in the shoulder.
"You'll be okay. Don't move." I say ripping off a part of my shirt to wrap around the wound. I check his back for an exit wound and there is one.
"The bullet isn't in you. You'll be okay. Just stay with me." I say trying to calm him down. He's trying his hardest not to scream from pain.
"Glenn! Maggie!" I yell. Beth is already by my side trying to stop the bleeding. Glenn and Maggie run over and try to help. Wait. Who shot him? I stand up and look around. I hear a sound in the aisle next to mine. I slowly creep around the corner to see who made the noise. Suddenly someone grabs me.
"Carl he-" I manage to scream before a hand goes over my mouth. Carl comes running over and pushes the guy off of me. He tackles the stranger and tries to pry his gun out of his hands. Carl gets thrown off of him and the stranger points the gun at me. I flinch a little. Memories of getting shot back at the prison fill my mind.
"If you move an inch, I'll shoot her." The stranger said. Now Glenn and Maggie are standing. Beth is still trying to help Daryl.
"Don't shoot. We won't hurt you." Glenn says putting his hands up showing that he isn't carrying a weapon. We all drop our weapons and do the same. The stranger looks around.
"You're all evil." The stranger say. His finger goes on the trigger and I hear Carl yell,
"No!" Carl dives in front of me just as the gun goes off. Another gun goes off and the stranger falls to the ground...but so does Carl.
"Carl, No!" I scream. I drop to the ground at his side and see the bullet went into his collar bone.
"Stay with me! Don't leave me!" I scream with tears spilling out of my eyes. His eyes start closing and I start to scream louder.
"I love you." He chokes out quickly.
"Carl!" I yell as his eyelids close. I put my ear against his chest and still hear a heartbeat. He's just unconscious. "Get in the car!" Maggie yells. Glenn and I lift Carl up and set him in the backseat. Daryl can still stand, but we help him walk.
"Hurry! Drive!" I scream as I sit by Carl's side.
"Come on Carl! Don't leave me!" I scream again.
"Wake up!" I scream so loud I'm pretty sure every walker in the state of Georgia can hear me. Suddenly, a huge group of walkers comes around the side of Walmart. Beth is still trying to help Glenn put Daryl in the car.
"Beth! Walkers!" I yell, but just as I do, one takes a bite out of her forearm.
"Beth!" Maggie screams.
"Get in!" I scream. Everyone jumps in fast. Beth is holding her arm in pain.
"We have to cut it off!" I yell to Maggie. Glenn is trying to drive as fast as he can. Beth is screaming. Daryl is screaming. Everything is happening so fast. Maggie grabs a big machete from her waistband and swings it at Beth's arm. Beth starts screaming in even more pain. She passes out. I throw Maggie my flannel to try and stop Beth's arm from bleeding. We finally arrive at Alexandria.
"Help! Quick! Someone!" I scream. Rick and a few others come sprinting over.
"My boy!" Rick yells trying to help me get Carl out of the car. More people come to help. We all carry the three bodies over to the infirmary.
"Beth got bit! Daryl and Carl got shot!" I say to Rick. Rick grabs my hand and drags me out of the infirmary.
"I need to help!" I yell to him.
"No. We need to wait. We can't do anything." Rick says to me. He pulls me into a big hug.
"C-Carl, h-he took a bullet for me." I manage to choke out. Rick just hugs me tighter. I can hear his quiet sobs.
"Cass! Hey! Where's Beth?" I hear Jason ask as he runs over to me. Oh gosh. What do I say? She was bit by a walker, but don't worry she'll be fine?
"Uh, I-she-uh.." I try and say. The tears start to fall again and my knees get weak. I fall to the ground and sit there crying into my hands.
"Is she-?" He asks Rick.
"She was bit. They cut off the bite, but we don't know if she'll make it." Rick says.
"Can I see her?" I hear Jason ask. He's crying.
"She's in surgery. You probably shouldn't." Rick says. I look up and look straight into Jason's dark brown eyes. They're like my dad's..
"Was anyone else hurt?" Jason asks.
"Daryl and Carl were shot." I say. My voice cracks and I start to cry even harder. Alexandria's surgeon, Jack is his name, comes outside to talk to us.
"Daryl will be okay. He's recovering right now. Beth has lost a lot of blood. We're not sure if she'll make it. We don't know if the infection spread or not. And Carl, we got the bullet out, but he also lost a lot of blood. We don't know if he'll make it." Jack says. I start to cry as the news of Carl hits me.
"I need air." I say as I stand up and run outside. I sprint over to the hill. Once I get to the top, I collapse. Exhaustion washes over my body as I sob into my hands. The boy I love might die. I can't stop crying. If he dies, I don't want to be here anymore. He's the only reason I never gave up.
"Cassie! He's awake!" Jason yells to me. I automatically stand up and sprint towards the infirmary.
"Carl!" I yell running over to his bed.
"Hey." He says letting out a tired laugh. I start crying tears of joy.
"Don't cry." He says wiping away my tears. He looks so tired and weak.
"I would ask you if you're okay, but that's a stupid question." I say laughing a little bit.
"I'm okay." He says grabbing my hand and squeezing it.
"What were you thinking? You didn't have to jump in front of me." I say letting tears fall again.
"It was either you or me. What did you think I was going to choose?" He asks me. He looks into my eyes and smiles.
"Your eyes are really comforting." He says. I laugh a little and then kiss his cheek.
"That's comforting too." He adds laughing a little. Suddenly, his eyes go wide and they shut.
"Carl!" I scream, but he won't budge.
"Help!" I scream to anyone that can hear. A couple of doctors come running in and start doing CPR. I start to cry again and get rushed out of the room. Rick pulls me into his arms and I sob into his chest. How can we be just fine one minute sharing laughs and then switch in an instant?

-

I wake up. I'm laying in my bed. I must have fallen asleep in Rick's arms. I quickly slip on my boots and run out the door to go by Carl's side. I walk over to the infirmary and see Carl laying asleep in the bed. I grab a chair and slide it over next to him. I grab his hand and let a tear fall from my eyes.
"You wanted me to promise you that I'd never leave you, but now you're leaving me. Carl, please stay. You can't leave me here, you can't leave us. Judith needs a brother, Rick needs his son, the group needs Carl. Please. Don't leave me." I say. I start to cry again. Tears won't stop falling.
"I love you. I don't show that very often and I'm sorry. I've been so busy and stressed, I've been shutting you out. I love you more than anything." I say in almost a whisper. I put my head in my hands.
"C-Ca-" I hear. My head whips up as I see Carl's eyes fluttering open.
"Carl? I'm right here." I say grabbing his hand. I can see the color in his face start to come back.
"Cass. Don't leave again." He says quietly.
"I won't. I definitely won't." I say smiling. He gives me a weak smile.
"I actually feel better." He says.
"Well, you need to rest." I say.
"I missed you."
"I was just here last night."
"I still missed you."
"I missed you too.
"I heard everything you said. About you shutting me out. I know how tough it is running a town at your age. I know you still love me, hopefully." He says laughing.
"Of course I still love you. I'll always love you." I say smiling.
"Can you just kiss me already? I'm dying here." He says laughing a little.
"Of course." I say leaning in. Our lips meet and I get that same feeling that I got when our eyes first met back at the prison.
"I love you...like, a lot." Carl says after we pull away.
"I love you a lot too." I say laughing. He gives me that adorable smirk of his.
"I'm going to let you rest." I say starting to stand up. He grabs my hand and says,
"Come back soon."
"I will. Don't worry." I say giving him a reassuring smile. He nods and I watch his eyes close. I let go of his hand and walk out the door with a smile on my face. He's going to be okay. We're all going to be okay.

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I HAVE AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT LATER TODAY SO STAY TUNED. -Lilly