Evelyn// Daryl Dixon

01.

What didn't matter was how it started. What mattered was that she lasted a year. Running, scavenging, surviving. In hopes of finding her brother and nephew, but she hadn't gotten any leads on any of them. In hopes of keeping her and her son alive.

She didn't take anything for granted anymore. A little scratch that wasn't from a biter was a blessing. It was a relief, a prayer to God, thanking him he gave her another day. Evelyn had to adapt quick and she did so with some struggles, but she had to live, for herself and her son. Everytime she got to sleep and woke up with Greyson at her side she was relieved.

She learned a lot in a year, how to survive. She taught herself, and Greyson, how to shoot a gun. How to kill walkers, humans if needed. You'd think the walkers were the worst but it was the humans. They were sadistic, they'd find each other and take advantage of those who were female, such as Evelyn. She had Greyson but that didn't scare anyone away, even made her a bigger target. To hurt Greyson emotionally.  Greyson understood the world he was in, understood it wouldn't be easy and it hurt her to know he accepted it so well. She didn't know where she was going but she knew she'd get there somehow. She had determination and so did Greyson.

Greyson was about sixteen, he was learning to drive when the world ended. His father left him and his mother early on, he didn't know much about him other than his name, Dwight, and that he hurt his mother. They were young and it wasn't how Dwight wanted to spend his early twenties, caring for a child. He wasn't someone Evelyn wanted him to remember, leaving when he found out she was pregnant. He had helped teach her how to shoot a crossbow when he felt like it but she wasn't too good. Evelyn and Greyson made it work with the two of them, his uncle and aunt coming to help often. It was manageable, she just wished they were around when the world collapsed.

She walked through a field, it was filled with waist high plants. She ran her hands across them, as if she were a child again. Her brother running after her as they played cops and robbers. Evelyn wasn't much of an outdoors child, she much preferred to stay inside. She drew, painted and wrote music, sometimes sang it. Greyson was the same way, just like his mother. He had experimented with different hair styles and colors and she embraced it. He was left with grown out and faded silver hair now. He had it toned so light and didn't wash his hair much anymore it lasted him. It'd soon fade to blonde, or he'd cut it.

When she brought herself to reality, she saw a deer standing in a clearing. What she didn't know was that four others had seen the same exact deer. Greyson raised his crossbow towards it, aiming carefully and skillfully.

"Wait, it doesn't feel right" she whispered to him.

"If feels like food to me" he competed with his mother.

Before he could let the arrow fly, a gunshot rang through everyone's ears. The deer fell to the ground and they looked at each other. Evelyn crouched closer to the scene and saw a pale boy laying on the ground, blood at his abdomen. Two men ran up to him, both sounding very familiar. Greyson has heard it too.

"Uncle Rick?" He asked her.

"Don't go yet" she urged him to stay.

"Oh my god, man, I'm so sorry. I saw the buck, not the kid. But I-I can get him patched up for you guys" another man who rushed to the scene mumbled in a frenzy.

"Help my boy!" He screamed.

Greyson shook his head and walked out into the clearing to see his uncle holding Carl in his arms. Rick turned to see him, he was blurry through tears.

"Greyson?" Shane asked as he approached the boy.

"Two miles that way, go straight and ask for Hershel. He'll patch your boy up. Tell him Otis sent ya" the man, Otis, directed Rick.

"Your mom with ya?" Shane asked.

Shane had a thing for women his best friend was close too. Whether Lori or Evelyn, he'd flirt any chance he could. He filled a void for Lori when they thought Rick was dead. Filled a void for Evelyn after Dwight left. Evelyn was usually his go to as she was single and she trusted him. He'd offer help with Greyson as well, wanting to be someone's father figure. He wanted that, craved it and hadn't gotten it. He tried to fill that need with Carl, play his father, he was still young an impressionable. Greyson, on the other hand, had caught on to it all. His father was gone, Shane was just a family friend that came to keep his mother company. Adult companionship is what he called it.

"Yeah" she nodded and exited the bush she hid in.

"Evelyn? Y-you're Alive?" He rushed to her and
hugged her.

"We gotta go! This way!" Otis shouted, motioning for
them to follow.

"Come with us, Eve, we've an RV and supplies and people. Rick, he'd love to see you. Just, we gotta hurry. Carl is in trouble" Shane held her hand, trying to pull her with him.

She looked to Greyson for his opinion. They were a team. He nodded at her, he agreed that this was the right decision. She trusted her son, they were more like best friends more than mother and son.

"For Carl, Uncle Rick and Aunt Lori. We don't have it any better on our own with nothing. Surviving hour to hour hoping for the best. Don't know how much longer we can keep that up" Greyson defended his decision.

"Y-yeah. Sounds good" Evelyn nodded.

Her heart raced as they ran to the farmhouse behind the man. Running to see their family. Running to safety. Something she was good at, finally.

Running.