All of Us (The Walking Dead)

Chapter 18

I woke up to my alarm and looked around. It was still dark out; the sun was just starting to rise. I braided my hair into two french braids to keep it out of my face. That way it wouldn't get tangled on the ride to Hilltop as my hair was seriously getting long. The braids fell to my mid back.

I opened the door to my room and headed out into the hallway. I started to walk quietly down the stairs. Every morning when I went down for breakfast, Daryl had already left for the day. But it was early in the morning, so I wasn't sure if he would be up yet or still asleep. If he was still here, I didn't want to wake him because I wasn't sure that I was ready to face him after embarrassing myself last night.

When I got down to the first floor, I peeked into the living room. It was still a little dark, but there was just enough light from the sun rising for me to make out Daryl fast asleep on the couch. I walked a few steps towards him, careful to be quiet and not wake him. I was just curious. He looked calm, which was something I never saw on him. He usually had a hard look on his face. I smiled and then tiptoed back to the kitchen to grab a granola bar. I put it in the pocket of my jeans and made my way to the front door. I sat down and tried to put on my boots as quietly as possible not to wake Daryl. I guess he was a light sleeper, because I heard him move around.

"Hey," I heard Daryl say in a gravelly voice. I looked over at him sitting up on the couch, his hair a mess having just woken up. I bit back a smile.

"Morning," I said, focusing on tying my boots and using that as an excuse to why I wouldn't look at him.

He was silent as I got my things together. When I stood up and put on my backpack, I couldn't help but look at him. He was sitting there, biting his fingernail and watching me silently. I didn't know what to do. There was nothing really to say, as there was apparently nothing between us and would never be by the way he had acted last night. And did I really want there to be? The way I felt last night could have been some fluke. I needed to get over it.

"I'll see you in a few days," I said.

I waited for a response. He stayed still for a moment, chewing on his lip. He looked like he wanted to say something, but instead, he just nodded his head, I guess not having anything to say to me after all.

Fine then. I turned to leave, but then heard him speak quietly behind me in a deep voice. "Be safe, Sloane," he said. Those words and his tone made it sound like he cared for me, which confused me because sometimes he acted like he didn't care at all and I was only an inconvenience. This time, it was me who didn't say anything. I didn't turn around, not wanting to look him in the eyes again. I just nodded and left, closing the door behind me.

~~

I felt like royalty, I thought as the doors to Alexandria closed behind us and Michonne and I started on our journey to the Hilltop. We were in a sort of carriage being pulled by two horses, and it made me feel like I was the Queen. I laughed to myself.

A bunch of people had actually woken up and came to send us off. It had felt like I was saying bye to my family, but I was happy that I would be back within a week to see them again.

The ride was going faster than I thought it would. I felt like I was getting to know Michonne better. She told me the whole story of how she had met Rick, Daryl, Glenn, Maggie and Carol, as well as the people they had lost along the way. Hearing their story and all they had to overcome was inspiring. She hadn't mentioned that story everyone had been alluding to about the Saviours and their recent past, but I was sure I'd hear it soon enough.

The day was passing by, and soon it was late afternoon. I was just telling her a story about my family when we heard screaming.

"Help!" A voice yelled from the woods to our right. We couldn't see anyone, but I could tell by the voice that it was a girl. Michonne and I looked at each other. Hysterical screaming came again from just past the tree line. I heard Michonne mutter under her breath and she stopped the horses.

"Let's go," she said, jumping out onto the pavement.

"Stay low and stay aware," she whispered as we both rain into the woods towards the crying. I tried to keep up with her, ignoring the pain in my knee as I ran on it for the first time.

Michonne took out her katana and I took out my knife, prepared in case it was a trick or an ambush. It could be someone in need of help, or it could be a set up. We needed to be ready for anything.

Up ahead, we saw a girl, probably in her mid teens, surrounded by a group of walkers. She tried to fight them off, but looked worn down and defeated. They were closing in on her.

We ran up and took them out. The girl was fighting off one. The walker had pushed her up against a tree and was clawing at her.

"Help!" Her cry was desperate.

I ran up to her and stabbed the walker in the skull, silencing it. I pushed it out of the way, and then the girl collapsed into my arms. Her breathing was coming out erratically as she was so overcome with tears.

"Thank... Thank... yo-" She tried to speak, but couldn't get her sentence out.

"Shh, it's okay," I said as I steadied her. "You're safe now."

I didn't know what to do. I held her up in my arms as she sobbed into my shoulder. After a few minutes, she started to calm down and stood up.

Michonne spoke softly to her. "Are you with a group?"

The girl shook her head and started to cry again. "They got my mom," she gasped. "I was trying to run, but they were everywhere. I didn't know what to do," she cried harder. I sighed and looked at Michonne. The girl had just lost her mom from these walkers, and they had almost gotten her. She looked frightened.

Michinne studied the girl for a moment, and then looked at me and nodded.

I turned to the girl and tried to speak softly. "What's your name?"

She looked at me and hiccuped. "Emily," she said. Her eyes were bloodshot and her nose was running. I couldn't imagine what this girl had just been through. She lost her mom in front of her eyes, probably saw her get torn apart, and now she was on her own. I was so glad we had found her. Michonne had given me the signal that we could take her with us. I promised myself to make sure I helped her get settled in at Alexandria and I would take care of her. I felt encouraged that the people at Alexandria would welcome her like they had welcomed me, and that she could be happy again.

"Hi Emily," I spoke softly. "My name is Sloane, and this is Michonne. I'm really sorry about your mom. I know you must be really scared right now, but we live in a community with walls. It's safe...," I said, and she looked at me with wide eyes. I was sure she hadn't felt safe in a long time. "Would you like to come back with us?"

Emily looked back and forth between Michonne and me, and then she slowly nodded her head.

"Um... I'd like that," she said with a small smile. She sniffled and wiped the tears off her face.

"Good," I smiled at her. I knew I had just met her, but I felt protective of Emily. She had gone through so much, just like I had. I wanted her to know that she could feel safe again, that she could feel like she was part of a family again. I knew it would take her time to adjust, but I wanted to help her.

We guided her back in the direction of our horses. She held my hand the whole time. When we walked out onto the road, her eyes lit up at the sight of the horses.

"You like horses?" I smiled at her.

"I used to ride horses, before..." she trailed off, but I understood what she meant.

"You can pet them," Michonne said.

She walked up to the horse, and reached her hand up to pet one. For a moment, it looked like she forgot the horrible things that had just happened to her, that she had just lost her mom and her only family. For a moment, she looked happy again, and it made me happy. Everything felt right. Yes, the world that we once knew had ended. Yes, I had lost my family too. But there was still hope. There could still be happiness in this world. 

Then, her face contorted with pain.

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