𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆 | 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘺𝘭 𝘋𝘪𝘹𝘰𝘯 ¹

𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒚 𝑺𝒊𝒙

Chapter Forty Six,
Aftermath

"How many more places must we discover and then lose? How many more loved ones must we witness perish before our eyes, with our hands tied? How much more of this pain must we endure?

With each step we took into the woods, my hope waned further. The very trees seemed to drain away what little optimism remained. Walkers surrounded us, an eerie echo of the time Sophia was lost. I recalled fleeing into the woods back then, grappling with the same emotions: helplessness, hopelessness, and sheer terror. This time, though, I wasn't alone in experiencing these feelings; I had three companions to share this daunting moment with.

Is this our fate? Are we destined to keep fleeing like this, to persist in living this life of perpetual escape? Lately, a new sensation has been creeping in—fear. It's tempting to surrender to that fear rather than keep battling it. I remember something Dad said just a few days ago: 'If hope is lost, what's the purpose of life?' Perhaps there's no purpose at all..."

☽

"We need to do something," Beth implored, sitting by the fire as they waited. Waiting was their routine these days. Waiting seemed endless.

"We should do something!" She reiterated. "We can't be the only ones left. Rick, Michonne, Alli, and Adam could be out here. Maggie and Glenn might've made it out of A block. They could have. You and Merle are trackers. You know how to track. Let's go. The sun will be up soon. If we leave now, we can--"

"It's too dark," Merle interrupted her.

Chloe agreed with Beth, but she wasn't in the mood to debate. She allowed Merle and Daryl to handle it.

"Fine. If you won't track, I will," Beth declared, grabbing her knife and storming off.

Chloe hesitated for a moment, then stood up and followed Beth. As expected, Merle and Daryl followed suit not long after.

"Hey, princess, what's eating at ya?" Merle asked as they walked side by side.

"Nothing."

"You've gone quiet," he noted.

"I don't feel like talking."

"Fine, whenever ya feel like it I'm here, not goin' anywhere anytime soon."

Chloe simply nodded, and then she felt a touch on her arm. She turned to find Daryl offering her some arrows. She had noticed him crafting them earlier by the fire but assumed they were for his own bow. She accepted them without a word.

Around Daryl, she felt awkward. After what happened between them, she wasn't sure how to behave. He wasn't making things any easier, but his gesture of giving her the arrows conveyed something different. Perhaps they could start anew.

Gradually.

☽

The sun began to rise as they came across footprints. It was the first sign of life they'd encountered since getting separated.

"Could be Luke's," Beth began as Daryl and Merle crouched to examine them. "Or Molly's. Whoever they are, they're alive."

"No," Daryl corrected her. "This means they were alive four or five hours ago."

"They're alive," Beth insisted, her tone frustrated.

"They sped up here," Merle disregarded her, pointing at the tracks, trying to follow them. "Rushed out in a hurry. Something went wrong." A scattering of berries on the ground suggested someone dropped them in haste. Anyone could have done that.