Walking Dead Game Collection 2

"She's Just A Little Girl"

「 TWDG: Clementine and Kenny 」

Summary: Reunited with Kenny once again, Clementine can feel like a scared child again, even if for a moment.

Words: 1.4k [ ⏱︎ 9 mins ]

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"Well, you don't need to worry about that anymore."

How long had it been? How long since Clementine heard those words? More importantly, how long had it been since she heard those words and knew the person saying them meant it? When it came to Kenny, there was no doubt, but the feeling was still foreign. Wrong, almost.

"Once those guys pack up and leave tomorrow, you can stay with us."

Clementine snapped back to reality. Her head wobbled as if coming out of a daze, as she looked at Kenny across the table. The cabin crew had only arrived hours ago, and now she was faced with the idea of abandoning them altogether.

Was it worth it? Clementine didn't know. On one hand, they'd already threatened to kill her, locked her in a shed to die, and constantly reiterated how little they trusted her. The only exception was Luke, and even then, if he was the only one standing on her side, she knew there wasn't much hope for her to stay.

However, she had gotten them here - to safety within the ski lodge - and she felt hazy about whether she should abandon them when Matthew, Sarita, and Kenny sent them on their way.

"You're always welcome here, Clementine," Sarita assured, breaking into the conversation. Occasionally, Clementine would snap back into reality to catch a snippet, but she wasn't paying attention. How could she? They were discussing change—even more of it. As if she hadn't had enough of that over the last week.

Everything felt distant and foggy. How could so many options be swirling in front of her? How did she know who she could lean on? Rely on? Trust? If the cabin crew had done what they did to her before, could they do it again? Would they? Had they developed some form of trust, or was it one-sided? Did Clementine even fully trust them yet? How was she to know?

"She's staying for good."

Was Kenny trustworthy? Was he stable enough to remain trustworthy? Had anything changed in the years since they'd been separated? Since his life had been ripped away, and he was messily trying to reconstruct the pieces? Was there room in his broken soul for her to return there? Was it too damaged for her to seek refuge in?

"Right, Clem?"

Her name fully brought her back. Why was there so much happening all at once? Why couldn't they let her catch her breath? Why couldn't she breathe? Why couldn't the world stop, for one evening, so she could feel like everything was 'normal' - whatever that meant.

Kenny furrowed his brow. He saw that her bottom lip was twitching. "Clem?" He asked, voice gentle. Luke turned, confused as to the sudden tone shift at the table behind him. While intuitive, Luke was nowhere near as keen on reading Clementine as Kenny was. Kenny could analyze Clementine like a book.

Clementine's eyes, vulnerable and meek, met Kenny's. His heart dropped. He switched topics, noting the shift in her demeanour. "After dinner, we'll have to show you around the place. A proper tour."

Sarita smiled. "I think you'd love to explore one of the storage closets we found. There are so many knick-knacks in there. I'm sure you can find something you'd want to keep."

As Sarita and Matthew continued to rave about the safety and luxury the lodge provided, Kenny gave Clementine a tender stare. It was like he was silently squeezing her hand through a gaze - a way to tell her, 'It's okay'. That he understood, and that she could rely on him.