Hopeless

Chapter 12

Glenn walks silently to the van, his mouth still hanging slightly open. Rick walks up to me. I hug him, holding him tight. I savor this moment, because in this world, it could be the last time I ever see him.

"Promise you'll come back?" I whisper sadly as he pulls away.

"I always do." He says with that warm smile of his. Daryl honks the horn and yells for Rick to hurry up. I cross my arms and bite at my thumb nail as I watch him walk away. Shane wraps his arms around me from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder. We stand in silence and watch them drive away. I turn to him after the van is no longer in sight.

"Hey, you know they're gonna be fine right?" He asks me as he rubs his thumb over my cheek. I nod silently even though I'm worried out of my mind.

"It's gonna be ok baby." He says, as he leans in to kiss me. I kiss him, losing myself in him. His smell, his lips, his warm breath on my face, like I can't get enough. We pull away abruptly, as Carl walks up to us. I laugh a little.

"Hey Shane? Can we go catch frogs like you promised?" He asks. Shane looks at me, a wide grin on his face. His eyes pleading.I know exactly what he wants me to say. But instead I nod.

"Of course he can buddy. I have to go down to the quarry to do laundry anyway." I laugh as Shane's grin fades away. I grab a bin of dirty clothes and head down to the quarry, where Andrea, Amy, Jacqui, and Carol are already washing. I sit Next to Andrea and start chilling away at the pile of dirty clothes.

"Sorry I was..uh..busy" I say smiling. We all laugh. Ed sits a few feet behind us, watching us clean as he smokes a cigarette. I smile, watching Shane and Carl flail around in the water trying to catch frogs. He'd be such a good father. I watch him stab at the water with the bucket he's holding, his white shirt soaked from the splash. My stomach flutters at the sight of him.

"I'm starting to question the division of labor around here." Jacqui says, keeping my mind from wandering. I nod, looking back at Ed, who just started smoking another cigarette.

"It's just the way it is." Carol says quietly. We all sit in silence, our minds wandering in our own thoughts.

"I miss my maytag." Carol says, placing a clean wet shirt in a basket.

"I miss my coffee maker with that dual drip filter and built in grinder, honey. Mhm." Jacqui says. We all laugh.

"How about you?" She asks me.

"I miss plumbing." I answer, laughing a little.

"I miss my vibrater." Andrea says seriously. We all burst into uncontrollable laughter.

"Me too." Carol adds between breaths. Ed walks up to us and tosses his cigarette onto the ground right next to me. He stomps it out, glaring at us. We all get really quiet.

"What's so funny?" He snarls.

"Just swapping war stories Ed." Andrea says. We all nod. He stays put, watching our every move.

"Do we have a problem Ed?" I ask him.

"Nothin' that concerns you. You ladies ought to focus on your work. This ain't no comedy club." I roll my eyes.

"I'll tell you what Ed. You don't like the way your laundry's being done, do it yourself." I toss a shirt at him. He whips it back.

"It ain't my job missy." I scoff at him, getting to my feet.

"Katie don't." Carol begs quietly.

"What is your job, Ed? Sitting on your ass smoking cigarettes all day?" I ask, sick of his crap.

"Well, it sure as hell ain't listening to some uppity smart-mouthed bitch. Tell you what..." He turns to Carol. "Come on. Let's go."

"I don't think she needs to go anywhere with you, Ed." I say stepping in front of him.

"And I say it's none of your business. Come on now. You heard me." He yells at Carol, who looks like a deer in headlights.

"Carol..." I beg her not to go.

"Katie, please. It doesn't matter." She replies as she starts to walk toward him.

"Hey, don't think I won't knock you on your ass just 'cause you're some college-educated cooze, All right?" He says to me before grabbing Carol's arm.

"Now you come on now or you're gonna regret it later." Ed says angrily.

"So she can show up with fresh bruises later, Ed? Yeah, we've seen them." Andrea pipes in.

"Stay out of this. Now come on! You know what? This ain't none of y'all's business. You don't want to keep prodding the bull here, okay? Now I am done talking. Come on!" He grabs Carol's arm and tries to pull her away, but I step in between them.

"No Ed. She doesn't have to go with you." He leans in close to my face, his eyes narrow, his teeth clenched.

"You don't tell me what to do!" He screams like a child, his face bright red with anger. He tries to pull her again, but I stand firmly in my place.

"Katie please. Just move. Please." Carol begs from behind me. I stand firm until Ed pulls his arm back, back handing me square in the jaw. I stumble sideways, trying to catch myself. The girls try to defend me, but it's too late. He uses his foot to swipe my legs out from under me. I fall flat on my back, the air knocked right out of my chest. In a matter of seconds he's on top of me, all of his weight seemingly crushing me. His fist connects with my eye and the side of my head. I whimper, begging him to stop as blood dribbles down my chin. My head erupts with pain like i've never felt before. I hear the other women screaming around me. They try to pull him off, but he's too strong. Then suddenly as sleep tries to pull me down, he's ripped away from me. My head falls to the side, my vision blurry. I see Shane pumbling Ed's face, as he screams at him. My eyes begin to flutter shut when Jacqui takes my face in her hands. She turns my head toward her, leaning it on her lap. She brushes the hair from my face. Sleep pulls heavily at my eyelids.

"Stay with me Katie." She says softly as she gently taps my face. My stomach is aching. I lean away and throw up into the grass. A tear runs down my bruised face. I try to fight the sleep, but it's to much to handle...I let myself drift deep into the darkness.