𝐏𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐔𝐌 (𝐷𝑎𝑟𝑦𝑙 𝐷𝑖𝑥𝑜𝑛)

𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑛

I climbed up the ladder on the back of the RV until I reached the top, where Glenn sat in a foldable chair with a sniper rifle in his arms. He had been assigned the night watch to give Dale a break.

"Hey," I called out quietly. He whipped his head in my direction, his panicked look subsiding once he saw that it was me.

"Hey. You scared me," he chuckled nervously, "Shouldn't you be asleep?"

I crawled over to a spot next to his chair and set my backpack down beside me. Everyone had gone to sleep in either the motorhome or the yellow car that Rick was driving, with the exception of Daryl who decided to crash inside a silver Honda by himself. Shane decided to sleep in the RV. That was the only vehicle that still had space for me.

"I wanted to keep you company," I shrugged casually and leaned back against my backpack, using it as a pillow. The night had gotten cooler than I had expected. I only had a light grey zip-up to keep me warm.

"Right," Glenn said sarcastically.

If I did end up leaving, he would be the one I'd miss the most. I never expected to get along so well with someone in the group. We had only known each other a short while, yet it felt like we had been friends for years. We stayed there in silence for a moment, before he turned to look at me seriously.

"Do you think we'll find Sophia?"

Carol was heartbroken when the four men had come back without her daughter, becoming more distraught at the thought of her little girl spending the night alone in the woods.

"I don't know," I gazed up at the stars and looked for the big dipper. Without the busy lights from cities, the stars shone brightly in the night sky.

"I don't know how I would be like if it were my kid out there," Glenn gazed at the thick forest next to the highway. A certain kind of sadness was present in his voice.

"The worst part is not knowing, not knowing if she's safe. Not knowing if she's scared and alone," I felt my chest constrict as I let my words flow out, "It's one of the worst feelings a parent can have."

It was a feeling that I knew all too well.

✯✯✯

Rick put down a large set of knives on the hood of a white car that stood next to the RV. Everyone was circled around it, awaiting his instructions. It was decided that we would go out to search for Sophia that day. The sun had only been up for a couple of hours and it was already beating down violently on our necks.

"Everybody takes a weapon," Rick said to the group. Daryl peered curiously at the knives laid out before him.

"These aren't the kind of weapons we need," Andrea scoffed. She had been bitching about her gun for days and frankly, it was getting on my nerves. I still wasn't allowed to have my gun, yet I wasn't complaining to Dale or Rick about it every second of the day.

"What about the guns?" She continued.

"We've been over that," Shane answered. He was leaning against the motorhome next to T-Dog.

"Daryl, Rick, and I are carrying. We can't have people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles."

"It's not the trees I'm worried about," Andrea folded her arms and glared at Shane.

My right hand clenched tightly around my baton, I'd decided that it would be my primary weapon for today's trek. Every time Shane spoke, it felt like a stab in the gut. I constantly felt overwhelmed by the urge to get as far away from him as humanly possible. 

Glenn picked up a long, hooked blade and examined it under the sunlight.

"Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, a herd happens to be passing by. See, then it's game over for all of us," Shane drifted his gaze over to me and a tiny smirk tugged at the corner of his lips, "If Charlotte can manage without a gun, so can you. You need to get over it."

"Yikes," Glenn muttered under his breath as I felt Andrea avert her glare over to me. I openly ignored her and brought my focus back to the knives.

"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles," Daryl spoke up, "Turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark."

Rick nodded in agreement as Daryl walked off.

"Stay quiet and stay sharp. Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other," Rick said to us before turning away.

A moment of silence surrounded us before everyone started trickling off to gather what they needed.

"You ready?" Glenn nudged my arm. I grimly smiled and sent him a short nod. I had all I needed hanging off my back.

✯✯✯

(𝑷𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒏 6/11/20)