Whispers (Carl Grimes AU)

Chapter 2

We must've been walking for quite a few minutes, just talking. Carl was a very interesting person. He had many stories to tell, and I was extremely fascinated by him. I never seemed to get tired of him talking, and I constantly wanted to know more.
"You really got shot in the stomach?" I asked, amazed.
"Oh, yeah," he said, as if it was nothing. "I was probably around eleven... the apocalypse started when I was ten, and it wasn't long after that." I was staring at him, admiring his features, but still listening to every word. "And I was out in the woods with my dad and his best friend, Shane, who ended up dying some time later." He said this like it was nothing, too, and sympathy for him stabbed at my chest.
In the same moment, I looked up, stopping in my tracks. Ahead, in the distance, staring at us, was a man. He wasn't an ordinary man, though. He was one of the dead.
His head was shaved, and he had big ear lobes. His mouth and abdomen were covered in blood, and he looked at us with sad eyes.
"You okay?" Carl asked me, but he sounded far away. I felt dizzy, and my eyes fluttered shut, blinking rapidly. "Woah, woah, woah." A pair of warm, soft hands on my waist brought me back to reality. I looked around me, realizing quickly that I had almost fallen over, and Carl had apparently caught me before I could. The man was nowhere in sight, but that didn't matter, because I was lost in Carl's eyes. He smirked.
"Don't fall," he teased. A blush heated up my cheeks, but I didn't break eye contact with him.
Now that I was able to study him up close, I realized just how beautiful he really was. His skin was pale, a nice porcelain color, but his cheeks had color in them now that we were standing so close. The ends of his long, brown hair tickled my neck and face, and his eyes were piercing through my soul again.
He bit his lip, looking down at my lips for a moment before looking back up at my eyes.
"Come on, we're not far from Alexandria." He pulled away from me, walking past me with a small grin. Realizing I was getting in over my head, I huffed, following after him.
It only took a few more minutes before I noticed a giant metal gate. It was huge, and I had never seen it before, despite being so close, all this time. I looked over it in awe.
"Wow. I can't believe I never came across this." Carl scratched the back of his neck, suddenly looking uncomfortable.
"Uh, yeah..." I looked at him with a puzzled gaze.
"What's wrong?" He sighed, running his hand through his messy hair.
"Nothing's wrong. I just have to get my dad, which is going to be awkward." I furrowed my brows.
"Why?" He shook his head.
"We don't exactly talk..." I caught the sadness hidden in his tone, but I left it alone. "Just stay here." He started to leave, but I stopped him.
"Wait, stay here, stay here by myself?" He just grinned.
"Don't worry, you'll see me again."

Drip... Drip... Drip... Drip...
It's been minutes now. I don't know how many, but if I had to estimate, I would say around fifteen minutes. No one had shown up, and no one has made a sound.
I huffed. I had been waiting long enough, and I was growing tired of watching blood drip from my knee.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
More minutes pass, and eventually, I start to count the drops. I get to 100 before I finally decide to take matters into my own hands. Rising to my feet, I started banging on the wall, yelling for someone, anyone.
"Hello?! Is anyone in there?!" No response. Complete silence. "Hello?" I tried again.
Nothing. I huffed.
"What do you want?" A female voice caught my attention, and I looked up, blinded by the sun, but able to make out a figure standing at the top of the wall.
I stood with just a little bit of attitude, but to be fair, I had been waiting a long time just for some stitches.
"I was told there was help here, a doctor, maybe." I almost mentioned Carl, but I was kind of angry with him. He obviously never went to get anyone.
"There is," she responded, but still seemed to look at me with suspicious eyes. "What's your name? What group are you from?" I sighed.
"I'm not from a group." There was a small silence as I looked away, the light from the sun too much for my eyes to handle, now. "Look, can you let me in? My knee has been bleeding at least an hour out here." She turned her head, blocking the sun enough for me to get a decent look at her. Her hair was dark brown, and short.
"Yeah, I'll let you in," she said, looking at me again. "But the gate is over here, so you're gonna have to walk some." She dropped down to the ground with a small thud, her footsteps walking sounding in the direction she had pointed. I attempted to keep up, eventually reaching the gate just in time to see it open, revealing the same young woman.
"I'm Maggie." Her name somewhat surprised me, I guess I thought people stopped naming their babies Maggie a while ago. Still, it fit her look, and I suddenly realized I hadn't told her my name when she asked.
"I'm Ellie," I responded, trying to avoid her gaze. I didn't know why, her stare was just kind of intense, I guess.
Maggie nodded.
"Come on, I'll stitch you up," she said, turning and walking off. I limped after her.
"You're the doctor?"

On the inside of the walls, there were houses everywhere. It seemed like a really peaceful, safe place.
"This is the Alexandria Safe-Zone," Maggie told me. I looked around me in awe. People everywhere were working. Mostly farming, but not all.
I couldn't help but look for Carl, even though I was angry. I looked, but I didn't see him anywhere, and I sighed, slightly disappointed.
Maggie brought me to a big, white house, with tons of space and medical supplies. She left me in a room and came back with a bottle, a first aid kit, and a needle.
"My father was a veterinarian," she finally answered my question as she examined my wound. "After the apocalypse, there were less animals that needed his help. And more people." I winced as she touched the reddened area surrounding my gash. "Yep, you see that? Infection. It's already starting. When did this happen?" I bit my lip.
"I don't know, an hour and a half ago, maybe? I tripped over a tree root." She nodded.
"Yeah, well the tree root definitely isn't what cut you. Too clean and deep of a cut. Maybe a nearby rock did it. Theres lots of dirt in it, so I'm going to have to clean it." She grabbed the bottle containing a clear liquid. My eyebrows creased.
"What is that, water?" She sighed as she turned the cap.
"No sweetheart, this is alcohol-"
"AHH, SHIT!" I cursed as she poured the cold, burning liquid into my gash. "Coulda told me it would burn!" She chuckled.
"You wouldn't have let me do it." I huffed. I didn't find any of this funny.
"Yeah, you're probably right!" She just smiled.
"Well, you needed it. Trust me, infection would have hurt a lot worse." She took a wet rag that I hadn't even noticed her prepping, dabbing my bloody wound and cleaning it out the best she could. As she worked, concentration furrowed her brows, and I sighed softly, trying to distract myself from the pain.
"You said your father was a vet," I spoke, trying to focus on anything but my knee. "He taught you how to treat people based on that?" She nodded.
"Me and my sister." Her brows still furrowed. I bit my lip. "But, they're both dead now, so it's just me." I nodded.
"I found my mom dead outside the first day," I confided. I wasn't sure why I was talking to her, I had never talked about it before. I guess I never had anyone to talk to.
"How old were you?" Her question brought me back to reality, and I met her eyes for the first time since I'd met her. They were green, and there was compassion and empathy in her gaze.
"Eleven," I stated numbly. She suddenly looked serious.
"You've been alone, on your own, since you were eleven?" I looked away as she prepared the needle, feeling extremely uncomfortable. I closed my eyes, focusing on her question.
"Yeah, I, uh.. I guess I had to grow up fast, for Jamie." I could hear her prepping everything for my stitches, and I began to feel very on-edge.
"Who's Jamie?" I bit my lip, knowing it was coming.
"My brother," I mumbled. There was a short silence.
"This is going to hurt," was all she said before sticking the needle into my gash, causing me to yelp. She stuck me numerous times, pulling the needle through quickly, and each time hurt more and more like a bitch. When it was finally over, I had tears running down my face.
"Okay, you did good, but you have to stay off of it for a few days. Maybe a week." My eyes widened.
"A week?!" Her expression didn't change. I huffed. "Stay off of it, where? Here?" I snorted.
"Well, you can't very well run from walkers with stitches in your knee. It's one of the worst places to have stitches, chances are they'll pop, and then we'll have to go through that painful process again, is that what you want?" she snapped. I sighed.
"No." She nodded.
"There's a house with a red roof. I'll walk you there, and you can stay there until it heals up and I can cut the stitches off.
"That could take more than a week," I groaned. Maggie shrugged.
"You know, everybody needs help sometimes, Ellie." I softened my gaze. "You know, you might actually like it here. There's food, water, hot water." This caught my attention. She chuckled. "No bubble baths yet, showers only." I groaned.
"Come on!"