traded my life [TWD]

『96』

"Do you like.. want a chip?" Daniel asks.

I shoot him a look out of the corner of my eye.

"I mean.." he hesitates, motioning to the way my arms were strapped to the bed. "I can feed you."

"Daniel," I scold.

"Lady and the Tramp style," he mutters.

I rest my head against the hospital bed and puff out a breath.

I'd woken up like this. Strapped to the bed. Daniel by my side. He told me that the officers did it because I was 'endangering people'. 

"You all right?" he asks.

"Do I look all right?" I question.

"You look like you might rip my head off."

I take another breath, my chest feeling heavy. "My kids are still out there.. Lost.."

A tear springs to my eye. I swallow around nothing and try to keep my shit together.

"How old? Like.. when did you find them?" Daniel wonders. 

I note that we've never actually talked about the kids, or any of my group for that matter.

"Carl's fifteen. Judith and Woojin aren't even two yet," I whisper.

"Woojin?" Daniel repeats.

"He's the only one that's actually mine. I just care for Judith and Carl.. Known Carl since he was like six or so."

"Woojin's actually your kid?" Daniel clarifies. "For real?"

I nod stiffly. I just wanted to see his little face again.

"And his dad?"

I tried to shrug, but the restraints wouldn't let me. "One night stand before all this happened. Don't know him."

"I'm sorry," he says with a frown. "I.. I was supposed to graduate college last year.. I can't imagine what you're going through."

"College?" I repeat, if only to get my mind off my entrapment.

"Baseball. Full-ride scholarship. Thought I was gonna become something- now I'm just.. nothing."

"You're not nothing," I deny. "You just have a new path laid out. Losing one thing doesn't mean you lost everything."

He smiles a bit.

I sigh and look at the ceiling again. "The guy- Shane, is my adopted dad. He took me in before all this, too. I was like fifteen when he became my guardian."

"One hell of a reunion," Daniel tries to joke.

"We were together at the start. Then, Shane started losing it. He got some people in the group killed and packed his shit so he didn't have to take accountability for it."

"One fuck-ton of a reunion," Daniel changes his wording. "So, you ended on bad terms?"

"He left a shitty excuse of a letter and left in the middle of the night like a coward. That was about two years ago."

"So.. how do yo you wanna get out of here?" 

I smile softly. "You're still with me?"

"I mean.. yeah.. why wouldn't I be?"

"This place has people. It's a running hospital with police," I remind and glance at him. "You don't think you'll be safer with them?"

He shakes his head without hesitation. "But, I'll be happier with you."