I lay in my bed, staring at the ceiling and allowing myself to clear my head. It has been a rough couple of weeks, what with Rick being down my back and everyone on edge, the walkers getting a little too close for comfort. I sit up, ruffle my hair a small bit, and hop off of my bed. I go downstairs, feed myself a grain bar, and lay back down on the couch to relax. It had been a long while since I had felt this way; pressured and stressed. Nobody understands how I feel, especially not Rick. I couldn't have done anything that would have triggered his anger towards me, I don't think. He needs to get it through his stubborn head that I wasn't trying to bring any trouble back to Alexandria. I just wanted to see what the hell was going on beyond the gates. And, Carl just happens to be out there at the same time as me. Thank God for that, too. If he wasn't there, I'd be lying in a hole in the ground. Aiden quietly comes down the stairs, sighs, and goes into the kitchen. I listen to him open cupboards and cabinets, just silently paying attention to what I can hear. 'At least you don't live alone. That would be sad.' I scoff, and roll my eyes at my self conscious. He makes it a point to slam the doors of the fridge and, without looking at me, goes back to his room.
After a few more minutes of staring at the ceiling, I finally get up and fix my self. I dust my clothes off and straighten my shirt, fixing my hair in its ponytail and going towards the door. I breathe in before twisting the knob and walking outside. The door swings shut behind me and the air, crisp and cold, bites at my skin. I shiver. "It's nice out," I say to myself. "It is." I hear from the side. A soft sound, a grunt, nonetheless. And I know it's Daryl before I even look. "Hey." I smile, and I get a twitch of his lips in return. "Hey." He gruffly replies. He swings himself up onto the porch from the side, and I furrow my eyebrows. "It's not that hard to use stairs, Daryl," I comment, but he ignores it. "Why you out here by yourself?" His gravelly voice rings in my ears. "I just needed some air," I say simply. "I came to ask if you wanted to go huntin'. Thought you would need it." I nod my head, and move away from the door. "I do need it." I sigh.
We are tracking a deer, the prints in the fresh mud clearly in a zig-zag pattern. "She probably had walkers behind 'er." He whispers. I nod, and slowly I see something move in the distance. "What?" He asks. I shake my head, put a finger over my lips as if to say, "Be quiet", and look back over at the spot. A child comes from nowhere, sticks the doe with a spear, and outcomes 6 more children to finish the job. I stand, fascinated, by the sight that I don't realize Daryl inching closer. "Daryl stay still." I hush him, and one snap of a twig sends the children flying in the opposite direction. I get up, ready to go after them but Daryl yanks me back down to the ground. "It's a small group of children," I say harshly. "I know. But there couldn't just be children. You have to be careful, or you'll get yourself killed." He says seriously, his facial expression telling me that what he's saying is sensible. Why did I try to go after those kids like that?
The deer is hauled in on Daryl's bike, me on the back as well. When we finally come to a stop at the side of the gate, Glenn is standing with his hands folded, and a curious look on his face. I climb off of the bike, and walk towards him. "What's the face for?" I ask. "Carl told me what happened to you guys and I wanted to know first from you, but he beat you to it." He chuckled, and a small smile played across my lips. "Hey, Glenn," Daryl calls, and his attention goes to the deer. "I'll be in the guard tower again tonight for another shift, so if you guys need anything flag me down." I nod to Daryl and smile at Glenn before walking away to the edge of the walls of Alexandria by the entrance. I climb the ladder and hop over onto the platform for the guard tower window. "I hate how it's always the same." I sigh. I hear a rustle behind me while I'm looking out of the little window of the guard tower, and I quickly turn to find Rick climbing into the space with me.
"I may have been too harsh," Rick says, the gravel in his voice making him sound older. "I get it, Rick. But why would you go and treat me like that in front of everyone? I looked like such a child, and you know it." The sigh that follows what I say tells me he knows I'm right. And I am. "I wouldn't treat you like a fool in front of your people, Rick. Sure, I may say some things that go against what you say, but I don't make you look stupid. I looked stupid. I looked like I didn't know what I was doing. You said before that when I left, there was another group that came in and killed a bunch of our people. The "Wolves". So when I see something out of the ordinary, I try to check it out to stop danger from coming into our gates," He interrupts me. "Skylar, what you did was reckless. You do realize that if you left your station and someone snuck up there pretending to be you, their buddies coming in here would have been a lot worse," He's not done. "On the other hand, you shouldn't be risking your life like that just to go "investigate". It's not safe and you know it." He uses my phrase against me, and I visibly huff. "Carl was never in danger. He showed up to save my life-" He again puts a hand up and stops me from talking. "No, you do not get to do that," I say. "Look at me." He looks me directly in the eyes and I finish my sentence. "If your son did not show up at the time that he did, I would have been killed. Then where would we be? Carl would blame himself, you'd blame yourself, and everyone I love would be devastated." He nods. "So, I did not bring him out there with me. He came out there on his own. We helped each other and got each other back safely. You can't blame either of us for it and you need to let it go, Rick."
He breathes out and puts a hand on my shoulder, basically telling me he understands. I wrap my arms around his neck and give him a tight hug, realizing I took for granted the time I have. I could've been killed and I would never see any of them again. "You guys are my family, especially you, Rick. You are my best friend, my partner in crime. So I need us not to ever fight again. Promise?" I ask. "Promise" his soothing voice replies. "Now, I need someone to take over my shift because I am so tired and I need to check on my kids." Rick nods and tells me that he will have Maggie take it.
I return back to my house and as soon as I get to Dallas' room I smile. He and Bella are playing together. Aiden sits in the rocking chair, only noticing me when I pick Dallas up and sit down with him in my lap. I give Aiden a look that says, "Stop being so damn petty." He gets up and walks out of the room, and into his. "Bella, look after Dallas for a minute, will you?" She nods and goes back to playing with her brother.
"Aiden," I call into his room when I open the door. "I know you're in here. We really need to talk." I hear some shuffling and I hear his bathroom door open, his face red and splotchy. "Oh, Aiden." I frown, and take three steps towards him. He closes the door, and goes to sit on his bed. "Please talk to me," I say, and for the first time in too long he actually looks at my face. "I know I did something dangerous and stupid and I'm sorry. But you have to understand that I-" He cuts me off with a rough kiss on my lips, a hand on my hip and a hand in my hair. The kiss is passionate, longing, and has a sense of relief to it. "I can't lose you. Can't you see that?" Aiden says breathlessly. "Is that how you feel?" I whisper. "Yes, yes it is." Immediately after he confirms what I have suspected for quite some time, I press my lips to his and he embraces the fact that I might love him as much as he loves me.

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Life Isn't Fair
FanfictionCan Skylar survive the challenges that come along with the new post-apocalyptic world? Or will it break her to a point of no return? Even though she might have family and friends that she would die for and who keep her company, can she handle the pr...