waiting for the light that never comes »» #wattys2018

34

SURVIVE

"Open the gates!" It was heard through all of Alexandria. Carl and Karen ran towards the gates and opened the second set of the fence. Karen almost smiled when she saw Rick, but her eyes went wide when she saw Rick running from a herd of walkers. A HUGE herd.

"Rick, hurry!" Karen shouted as she cracked the gate slightly, only big enough for him to fit through.

There were two gaining on him and Karen took out her six shooter, popping two caps at them before closing the gates.

Just as it locked, the walkers slammed their dead forms onto the gates. The force knocking Karen off her feet.

"You okay?" Rick asked as he helped her up. She nodded before she picked up her six shooter. "You shouldn't be out here. You should be bed. With your baby and all..."

"Wow, thanks, Dad. But I did just save your ass." She retorted with a smirk. Rick was the only person besides Carl and Enid who knew Karen was pregnant. He was actually the first person to know before Carl. He found out by accident when he found the pregnancy test in their room and was literally cursing up a storm. But after a while he calmed down and started to feel concerned for her health.

Rick chuckled softly before he ruffled her hair.

"Are you okay?" Karen asked as he nodded.

"Is Daryl, Sasha, Abraham, or Glenn back yet?" Karen shook her head before Rick sighed. Rick was then met with a big bear hug.

"Dad! You're back!" Carl exclaimed as him and Natalie slammed into their father, hugging him tightly as they did.

He chuckled before he hugged them back. Karen smiled and watched, remembering when she was like that when her sister came back from the army before all this started.

Then something made her look up at the guard tower. She heard a creak and saw it tilting over.

"RUN! GO!" She screamed as Rick, Carl, Natalie, and other Alexandrians looked up at the tower. They all began to run when they saw it falling. Karen saw the tower falling towards her and she rolled out of the way before running quickly as it was a mere inch from the ground.

Walkers began to swarm the gates, strolling into Alexandria. Karen shot at the closest walkers coming towards her while heading towards the Grimes' home.

"KAREN! HURRY!" Carl yelled as Karen ran and ran, punching at the walkers that came near her and entered the home.

~

"Guys, something's going on." Karen said as she shouted in pain, holding her stomach while dropping on her knees.

Immediately Carl, Natalie, Michonne, and Rick came to her side, helping her stand and checking for anything.

"I'm fine. I think...it's the baby." She admitted as Carl sighed and held her close. She began to shed tears as she held her stomach gently. "I can't have my baby in this. I can't."

Carl shushed her softly as she cried into his chest. Michonne sighed; standing up and looking out the window at the crowd of walkers.

"Rick, we can't do this. Not with Karen and her baby. It will attention to the walkers. One sound out of her and they'll be barging through that door." Michonne finally stated as Rick sighed softly, looking down at Karen and Carl.

"I can make it. I can. I'll be fine." Rick, not wanting to take it any farther, grabbed some walker guts while Karen threw the holed blanket over her head and over her belly.

Rick then began to submerge the guts onto the blanket, making Karen hold her breathe as she tried not to breath in the horrible smell. Carl watched, noticing the faces she was giving as she was being covered.

"Rick, are you sure it's a good idea to bring her along? What if she gets us caught?" Ron asked as Karen glared over at him. "I mean, seriously. She's about to have her kid and she is a danger to all of us."

"You know, Ron, you're right. I am having my child and I am a danger to you all. But that was in the past. I got over that shit when all of this started. Now you can either throw yourself at the mercy of the walkers or you can shut the fuck up and stick together for your mother and brother's sake." Karen snapped causing Carl to cough on his own laugh and Natalie, Rick, and Michonne to smirk.

"Pregnancy nerves. I saw that coming." Rick said with amusement as he chuckled softly.

"Okay, everyone ready?" Rick asked as he checked on Jessie, Sam, and Gabriel before checking Michonne, Carl, Karen, Judith, and himself.

"Alright. Let's go."

Rick grabbed Karen's hand with his left hand and the right held Judith, Karen grabbed Carl's hand, Carl grabbed Jessie's, Jessie grabbed Sam's, Sam grabbed Ron's, Rin grabbed Michonne's, and Michonne grabbed Gabriel's, and Gabriel grabbed Natalie's.

Rick slowing opened the door and saw the crowd of walkers at the door. Rick walked out, a walker approached him. Sniffing the air and continued walking, passing Rick with no hesitation.

Rick sighed in relief before they continued walking out of the house, one by one.

All they had to do was survive. And all Karen wanted was to make it through without her baby wanting to be birthed at the wrong time.

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