Impregnable {A Walking Dead Fanfiction}

Thirty-Seven

     I awoke next to Shane, tangled in his arms. I didn't move, listening to him breathe deeply. I felt it on the back of my neck, making my hair move slightly with each exhale. I shifted slowly so I faced him, and his eyes fluttered open. "This is the first day in a long ass time that we haven't had a full schedule." He said, smiling and stretching. "I know, right?" I said, sitting up and looking out at Daryl and Merle as they set off on foot for their search for Sophia. Shane reached out and yanked down the zipper of his jacket that I was wearing. "Stop it, the guys are right there!" I squealed, smacking his hand away. "Oh, they are?" He said sarcastically, leaning up and looking out the window while I pulled the zipper back up. I climbed out of the Wrangler and yawned, stretching my arms over my head before walking into the house to the beautiful smell of coffee. 

     "Mable's still asleep in my room upstairs. Anything y'all need from town? We're heading out soon," Maggie called from the kitchen. "I think I'm okay, just keep an eye out for anything Mable would like please," I said, walking over and grabbing a coffee mug from the cabinet. I put down the mug and turned towards the bedroom after hearing Carl's voice. "Good morning, it's really good to see you!" I said, stepping inside of his room. "Good to see you, too. Hi, Shane." Carl said, smiling weakly. His color had returned and his cheeks looked fuller; he was starting to look like himself again. "Hey there, Bud," Shane said, walking over and grabbing his hand. 

    Shane stayed with Carl while I headed up towards Maggie's bedroom. "How are you doing, Theo?" I asked, seeing him on the couch on my way towards the stairs. "Never better," He said, laughing then sighing, "At least we're in good hands here." I wished him well before walking up the stairs, pausing for a moment before knocking on Maggie's bedroom door. I heard a grunt, but there was no movement. "I'm coming in," I said, opening the door after another moment of silence. Beth and Mable were snuggled side by side in Maggie's bed as the cool breeze blew through the windows. Beth was always beautiful, but she wasn't the prettiest sleeper. Her hair was in a messy bun and there was a pool of drool on the pillow below her. "Good morning," I said quietly, rubbing Mable's back and picking her up. She stirred for a moment before falling back asleep on my shoulder. Beth opened her eyes and looked at us for a moment before pulling the covers over her head. I heard an old engine rumbling and looked outside to see Glenn and Maggie heading down the driveway in the blue truck. I prayed they wouldn't run into the same things Shane had the day before.  

    I walked outside after pouring a cup of coffee, finding Carol in a rocking chair by herself on the front porch. "Good morning," I said, sitting in the rocking chair next to her while Mable explored the porch. "Mornin'," She said, looking out over the field. "How are you?" I asked, looking over at her. "I did everything I could to protect her...and it wasn't enough." She said, her voice emotionless. "I'm so sorry," I said, shaking my head. "The night the walkers attacked us on the mountain... Ed thought that it was one of you knocking on our tent door. He opened it and it...wasn't. He tried to feed me to it so he could escape. The last thing he cared about was protecting her...anything he could do to save himself." She said, breaking for a moment before taking in a deep breath. "Oh my God," I said, covering my mouth with my hands. "Carol I'm..." I said, kneeling down and grabbing her shaking hands. "Hollie, you don't have to say anything,"  She said, smiling weakly. "Nothing except seeing her again will help."  

    Later that day, I heard the same rumbling of the old engine in the distance, Maggie and Glenn were back. I walked outside, seeing Maggie glance over at Glenn as they approached the house. Something happened, and I was going to find out what it was. "Welcome home!" I said as our eyes met. "Hey there!" Maggie called out as Glenn waved. "Did you run into any trouble?" I asked, taking one of Maggie's bags from her. "Nothing we couldn't handle," Maggie said before saying hello to Carol and walking inside. I followed her in, letting Mable down once we got inside. "Hollie, would you be a dear and help me within the kitchen?" Maggie asked. "Listen, I'm willing to help as long as no one makes fun of me if it doesn't taste good. I haven't cooked like this in a long time." I said, laughing with her. "Don't worry, Beth, and I will be your taste tester." She said. Maggie brought out the young girl in me, the one who was just a few years out of high school. "So...tell me what happened with you an..." She elbowed me in the side and gave me a look that said 'Shut up or I'll kill you.' "How are you ladies doing?" Hershel said behind us, making me jump and drop the potato I was peeling. "Just fine, Daddy, how are you?" Maggie asked, turning to him. I smiled at him before returning to peeling. "It's a beautiful day. Nice to see the garden's working out well, these look great!" He said, holding up a large carrot. They went on small talking for a few minutes as I cut vegetables and added them to a large pot that was beginning to boil. "I help?" Mable asked at my feet. "Only if you promise to be careful," I said, scooping her off the floor and handing her the stirring spoon. "Promise," She said, slowly stirring the boiling pot while I held her close. 

    Mable returned to playing in the living room and the house grew quiet again. "We might've had sex on the pharmacy counter," Maggie whispered, my nervous laughter breaking the silence. "I knew something happened!" I said, covering my mouth. "Was it just a spur-of-the-moment thing, or do you think there's something there?" I asked, adding another bowl of cut potatoes and carrots to the pot. "I'm...still deciding that," She said, "Here that should be good for now." She walked away from the stove, leaving the large pot to boil. 

    "We cleared out the general store. You're welcome to take anything out of my bag that you want." Maggie said, setting her backpack down on the counter and unzipping it. "Here, Mable should like these," She said, handing me a stack of VeggieTales DVDs. "Perfect, thank you so much. ... Wait what is that?" I asked picking up the small pink box of pregnancy tests. "Shh...no," She said, pushing the box down and looking around to make sure we were still alone before speaking. "Swear you won't tell anyone?" She said, looking at me and raising her eyebrow. "Promise." "Lori asked me to get them." She whispered, pushing the box to the bottom of the bag and covering it. "Oh my god." I breathed, panic rushing through me. "Something wrong?" She asked, looking up at me.