The Lucky One//twd

028. Wake the Dead

Madison's POV

Pain was the first thing I felt.

Not sharp. Not screaming. Just... deep. Like something inside me had cracked and never reset properly.

I blinked.

The ceiling above me was wooden. Cracked in places. Pale beams of morning light pushed through half-open curtains and danced along the floor. Everything smelled like antiseptic and hay and blood.

I tried to move. My entire body groaned in protest.

Then I saw him.

Blake.

He was asleep in a chair beside the bed, his long legs stretched out, his arms folded across his chest. His shirt was wrinkled, stained, and he looked like he hadn't slept in a year. His jaw twitched like he was dreaming something awful.

I wanted to speak. Say his name. But my throat was raw, like I'd swallowed fire and glass.

Instead, I moved my fingers.

That was enough.

His eyes shot open. Locked on mine.

"Madison," he breathed.

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Just a hoarse croak.

He shot up, nearly tripping over the chair, and leaned over me. "You're okay. You're okay. You're—Jesus, you scared the hell out of me."

"Water," I managed, barely.

He grabbed a glass from the bedside table, lifted my head gently, and pressed it to my lips. It hurt to swallow. But it helped.

I lay back down, blinking up at him. "How long?"

"Two days," he said softly. "You've been out for two days."

I tried to think. I remembered the deer. The gunshot. The way Blake screamed my name like it was the last word he'd ever say.

"You carried me," I murmured.

His jaw tensed. "I didn't let go."

Silence stretched between us, full of everything we hadn't said. Everything we couldn't.

Before I could respond, the door creaked open.

Shane stood there.

His eyes went straight to me. He looked like hell—worse than Blake. Sleepless, raw, haunted.

"You're awake," he said.

I nodded weakly.

He crossed the room in two steps and knelt beside the bed. "Jesus, Mads..."

"I'm okay," I whispered.

"No, you're not," he said. "You almost died."

I couldn't hold his gaze. I didn't want to see the brokenness in his eyes. The rage boiling underneath.

"It was a hunting accident," Blake said quietly. "The guy thought she was a walker."

Shane stood. His body was rigid. "If you hadn't taken her out there, she wouldn't've been shot in the first damn place."

"Shane—" I croaked, but Blake stood, cutting me off.

"Are you serious right now?"

"You wanna go, man?" Shane snapped. "Right now? Let's do it."

"Do you think I wanted her to get shot?" Blake shouted. "I was holding her when it happened!"

I gritted my teeth. The pain was flaring again.

"Stop it!" I forced out. "Both of you!"

They froze.

I took a deep, shaking breath. "I'm alive. That's what matters."

Shane looked at me like he wanted to argue, but then his shoulders slumped. He looked... old. Like the world had drained every ounce of fight from him.

He turned and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

Blake exhaled slowly, running a hand down his face. "Sorry."

I shook my head, too tired to talk. The silence between us grew again, but this time, it was softer. Sadder.

⸻

Glenn didn't come until night.

I was dozing when the door creaked again.

"Can I come in?"

I opened my eyes.

"Yeah."

He looked hesitant. Like he might change his mind. Like just being near me hurt.

"I'm glad you're okay," he said.

I nodded. "Thanks."

He stood at the edge of the room. Didn't come closer.

"I thought about coming earlier," he admitted. "But I didn't know what to say."

"You still don't," I said quietly.

"I know."

More silence.

"I didn't mean for any of it to happen," I said, not looking at him. "With Blake. With the fight. With... hurting you."

He nodded slowly. "Yeah. I figured."

"That doesn't mean it didn't matter."

This time, he met my eyes. "It mattered."

And then he turned to leave.

Before he closed the door, he paused. "Rest up. You'll need your strength."

⸻

Later that night, I lay awake while the others slept.

I could hear Hershel's voice downstairs. Something about resources. Space. Safety.

Rick was talking back, calm but firm. Trying to make this place work.

The farm was so quiet it felt fake. A cruel illusion. Like the world outside wasn't still burning.

My side ached. My throat was raw. My heart felt worse.

I didn't know who I was anymore—Blake's maybe-something, Glenn's maybe-nothing, Shane's broken sister.

But for the first time in a long time, I wasn't scared of the quiet.

I closed my eyes and let it wash over me.

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