Jessamine Dixon lives in the apocalypse

Bloodletting

The man that shot Carl gave us directions to a man that would save Carl. We had no reason to believe him. Yet it was the only chance that we had left. 

Rick was running with Carl in his arms, but he was growing tired. If he fell then there would be no getting back up. I could see a fence and a house, it wasn't that far. I'd be able to do it.

"Rick!" He looked back at me and I held my arms out. Rick knew what I was motioning for and put Carl in my arms. Rick slowed down to catch his breath but all I found myself doing was going faster. 

I pulled the fence door open and let it swing behind me. I continued to run until I got to the front porch and everybody was staring at me. There was a small group of people, a family. 

"Hershal! Where's Hershal!" I screamed and an older man stepped forward.

"He was shot! By your man, Otis! He told us to come here! He was shot and we need your help!" I heard Rick stand next to me due to his panting.

He told us to bring him inside. He started demanding orders and everybody was moving around and I had a dying child in my arms. Hershal threw a blanket away and told me to set Carl down on the bed. 

Rick was right next to me. I wanted to stay in that room. I wanted with everything in my body to stay next to Carl. But the feeling in the bottom of my stomach told me otherwise. It told me to run outside as fast as I could.

I ran out of the house and started running down the road. I stopped and doubled over, I hadn't felt like this in forever. I don't know why I was now. Before I could think or do anything all the food that I didn't have in my system was now in the road. 

I looked at the pile for a second and everything came back for more. Why was this happening? I should be in there with Carl. But instead I'm throwing up everything I don't have in the middle of some driveway. 

I should have just shot the deer. We wouldn't even be here in the first place. I was always the first one to shoot the animals. Why was this time any different?

I started to rock back and forth on my heels. It only took one glance at the sun before I fell backwards and sat there laying on my back with my arms laid out. 

It's still the end of the world. It's what I would need to do to survive. I let a little girl go and her mother made that very clear, but now I'm the reason that Carl got shot.

I looked down at my shirt and upper torso. It was all covered in blood, Carl's blood. For a second I thought I was going to puke again, but nothing came up. It would just be another reminder if he dies in that bed.

I was being pulled up by my shoulders. Was I the one dying? I was put back on my feet when I turned to see Shane. Oh. 

"Come on, let's get you inside." I know he saw the pile of puke. Anybody would have, but at least it was outside. 

Shane gave me a hand all the way back to the house. One of the girls grabbed me at the stairs, she was a brunette, pretty.

"Let me take her from you." Shane looked at the girl and I nodded my head. The girl put her arm around my waist and we ended up in the kitchen.

"Let me get you a glass of water." She grabbed a cup and turned on the faucet. I used my arm to wipe the excess off my face. The girl turned towards me and handed me the cup.

"Is he okay?" I asked her with a shaky voice. She looked like she was gonna sit down but then she remembered something.

"Yeah, there's fragments in him from the bullet. Six of them. My daddy's gonna do everything he can. I'm going back in there right now. Your the same blood type, too, right?" I nodded and the girl started to walk out.