Allison Owen was 13 when she had no choice but to take a desperate deal with the Governor, a choice she made for the safety of her friends. Three years later, still haunted by those memories, she finds herself on the run, seeking refuge within the w...
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~Allison's POV~
The cafeteria was quiet except for the occasional clinking of spoons against metal trays. The remaining tension from the meeting still lingered in the air. I shifted uncomfortably on the bench, watching Nina poke at her food with little interest.
"You're angry about us lying to them, aren't you?" I asked, keeping my voice low.
Nina glanced up at me, her eyes holding a blank stare. "I just... what if they find out, Ali? If they knew what the Governor did-- if they knew it was happening so close, and we were a part of it-- what if they think we brought that kind of danger here? What if they turn us away?"
I sighed, leaning back against the stone wall behind me. "We didn't have a choice Nin, think about it. If they knew Woodbury was in their backyard, we'd immediately be seen as a threat. I don't know about you, but I'm not ready to be out there again-- not yet."
Nina frowned, her fingers tracing the rim of her tray. "But if something happens now-- if they find out we lied after something goes wrong-- it could be worse. They might not just kick us out... Ali, it could be something were not ready for."
I let her words hang in the air for a while, the weight of them feeling like bricks over my shoulders. I tried to find the words to respond, but Jackson sat down beside us, the heavy thud of his tray hitting the table breaking the silence.
"You two still going over it?" he asked, eyeing the both of us. After not receiving an answer from either of us, he sighed. "Look, what's done is done. Worrying about it now won't change anything."
Nina shook her head, but before she could argue, Glenn appeared at the other end of the table, clearing his throat as he approached. He nodded in our direction, offering a small smile as he took a seat.
"Hey, y'all ready for tomorrow?" Glenn asked, his tone casual, but his eyes held a bit of concern.
Jackson shrugged. "As ready as we can be, I guess. You've done these runs before, right? What should we expect?"
Glenn leaned back slightly, his expression wavering. "It's always a mixed bag. We've had some good runs, but you never know out there. Like back in Atlanta... we thought we had it all figured out. It was a quick in and out for supplies, but then Rick came along. We got surrounded and everything just fell apart." He paused, looking off into the distance as if he was replaying the memory. "We made it out but the loss that followed..." he cut himself off and cleared his throat, it was clear he couldn't bring himself to explain more.
Glenn shook his head, a hint of regret in his eyes. "Just goes to show that no matter how much you plan, things can change in an instant. So, we've got to stick together no matter what. It's life or death out there."
