Inside These Prison Walls(TWD fanfic)

Chapter Seven

 I walk into the cell block, feeling slightly alone and dejected. I see Maggie and Glenn, both sitting together, laughing. Beth with the baby, and Rick, Carol, and Hershel all together laughing and talking as if they've known each other their whole lives. I guess in this new world, with the other lifetime dead, everybody has. A feeling of forlornness settles upon me.

"Hey, Taylor, you okay?" Rick asks.

"I'm fine." I answer absentmindedly.

"Poor girl, just had to spend almost an hour alone with Daryl." Carol whispers, not too well, laughing.

"You sure?" Rick asks again.

"Yes, I'm fine." I begin climbing the stairs, suddenly weary and sore. The memories brought on by talking to Daryl, bear down on the mental wall I built, making me tired.

 I walk into my cell and sit down on the bunk. I lean my hands on my knees, my head resting in them. A long sigh escapes me.

"Are you sure you're fine?" Rick says, standing in the doorway. "You look really tired."

I give a weary smile. "I am, but I'll be fine."

"Did you run into any problems?"

"No not really. It's not a physical tired, more like mentally and emotionally tired. Tired of all this." I wave my hand around.

"I know what you mean." Rick sighs. It's then that I notice how tired he looks. Even when he is relaxing, worry lines constantly furrow on his brow.

"Are you okay?"

He also gives a weary smile. "I'll be fine."

"That secret, that you mentioned to Daryl yesterday, are you ready to tell me now? I could help, you know."

"I know. I've seen how capable you are, but I don't want to add another burden."

"Rick, it's the end of the world, in case you didn't get the memo, you don't need to spare my feelings." I smile at him.

"I know I don't need to, but I want to. Everyone each has enough to worry about."

"Okay then."

 I lean back into the bunk and cross my legs on the bed, sitting Indian style.

"You know, for someone who's been alone for three months out there, you seem pretty sane."

I laugh. "Thank you?"

He gives a short laugh too. "I mean, we've met people who were completely insane. Like screaming, kicking, knife lunging insane."

I laugh. "I've met my share of crazy people too. Take my old neighbor for instance. Had a bunker stocked with food and weapons." my smile falters a little. "Who would have though that the people we ridiculed, we're right all along? They had the right idea the entire time, and just laughed at them."

"There's no way." Rick says, all serious again. "There's no way we could have ever known. We could have never know they were right."

"Do you think someone did?" He looks at me questionably. "I mean, do you think there's some psychopath sitting in a bunker somewhere controlling all of this? Someone who could end it all with a push of a button?"

Rick just stares at me. I laugh. "Listen to me. Now I sound like the crazy person."

"No, you don't sound crazy. You just want answers. The same as all of us."

I give another short laugh. "I think I'm going to go check on Carl. Make sure my patient is doing okay."

"You miss it don't you?" Rick asks.