(UNDER HEAVY EDITING) lost cause ⋙ Carl Grimes

Chapter 33

Chapter 33
18 Miles Out : S2 E10
Part : 1

|3rd Person|

Rick and Shane got out the car, and walked a bit away from the car. They were taking Randall 18 Miles Out.

"I thought we were going further." Shane said.

"We are." Rick nodded. "18 Miles Out."

Shane looked around, but when he saw they were safe, he turned towards Rick. "So, why are we stopping?"

"I wanted to talk. Been waiting a week, 'till we were gonna do this."

Shane understood, and Rick continued. "I just wanna talk." He shrugged.

"We don't need to."

"We do."

Back at the farm, Haley was angry, furious. They had took Randall, before she was awake, and left.

"Didn't you see them leave?!" She angrily asked Carl.

"They left before I woke up, too. Look, Haley.. I think- I think this is for the best." Carl (who had volunteered to calm Haley) said, cautiously.

Haley stared at him, like he was out of his mind. "You think, that, that was for the best?! Carl, did they brainwash you? He's a kid!"

"I'm perfectly fine, but we don't know what he's capable of."

"Exactly. We don't know if he's capable of surviving out there!"

"No man, we don't." Shane said putting a hand on his hip. "We're doing this. I get it. He was passed out when y'all brought him back to the farm, doesn't know where the farm is."

"That isn't what I need to talk to you about."

Shane was shocked, and there was a moment of silence. So, Rick continued, "I heard, what really happened at the school." He sighed and asked. "Was it to survive?"

[3:21 secs in 239 words. THE CARL PART DOESN'T HAPPEN IN THE EPISODE THOUGH.]

"He was a kid, Carl....what if that was you or me or-or...Sophia?"

"Well, our group wouldn't have left us behind."

"They wouldn't have left you behind. They wouldn't have left Sophia behind. I'm just a helpless orphan. You know, how to shoot, you're brave. All I do, is cry. I'm weak. I don't know how to adapt to this world. You already have. You're doing what you need to survive, you're strong. Here I am, stressing over a stranger! Here I am, not letting go of the past!"

[apologies for the frickin cliché talk]

"....Yeah. One of us wasn't gonna make it out, it had to be him. One shot to the leg...Carl lives. Reality is, he had no business being here-- There. Whatever."

Rick nodded. "You don't think I would've done it?"

"No, man, I know you wouldn't have."

"You don't think I can keep Lori or Carl safe?"

"I didn't say that."

"Or my baby? Is it gonna have to be me, too?"

"Rick, you can't just be the good guy and expect to live. Okay? Not anymore." Shane shook his head.

"I'm not the good guy anymore." Rick shrugged.

"Do you still want to play that game, where we ask questions to each other?"

Haley nodded.

"Okay, I start." Carl sighed. He looked down, and looked back up. "What's your favorite color?"

"It was red...but with all the blood I see these days... Violet. What about you?"

"Green." He smiled. "What were your dreams?"

"Working at the CDC. Having a dog, getting happily married, with the right guy, and getting old with him. Having kids... I mean wasn't that everyone's dream? Getting happily married, kids, pets, a nice job...?"

Carl chuckled. "It was."

"Where did you live?" Haley asked.

"Kings County, Atlanta, Georgia. Did you have any siblings?"

"Uhm....kinda?"

"Kinda?" Carl laughed. "Here, let's sit on the grass."

Haley nodded, and sat down next to Carl. "What is...your average girl?"

Carl shrugged. "I never though about it really. What did, Peter look like?"

"Blonde hair, hazel eyes. He was a lot taller than me, he was sporty, and I really liked his little nose."

"Did you get over, him?"

Haley sighed. "I'm getting there. I mean we weren't like a 'couple' kind of couple. We just hugged and I kissed his cheek once. We didn't even know what a real relationship was– not that I know now. So, we were pretty much friends, who had crushes on each other, and told other people that they were dating." She shrugged. "I kind of forgot about him until we talked. I guess you can say...we broke up? I mean I can't say I'm stuck with a dead guy."

"To save Carl's life, I would've done anything. Anything. Now Lori says you're dangerous, but you're not gonna be dangerous. Not to us, not to me, not anymore." Shane was looking down, so Rick got angry. "How about you look at me?" After Shane looked up, Rick continued. "You and Lori-- I get what happened. When I figured it out- and I figured it out pretty quickly- I wanted to break your jaw, let you choke on your teeth. But I didn't. And that isn't weakness. It took everything. That is my wife. That is my son. That is my unborn child. I will stay alive, to keep them alive."

[826 Words- 5:40 Mins]

Shane looked down so Rick continued. "You don't love her. You think you do, but you don't. And the only way you and me keep on, is that you accept everything I just said, right here, right now, and we move forward with that understanding." Rick said, and when he didn't get a reply from Shane, he started to slowly walk back to the car.