Living Like You're Dead

Several things happened that night that everyone was asleep. It had been twenty-four hours since the terrible ordeal and everyone was now sound asleep, sleeping off the fighting, the pain, or the anger. Many people lay awake thinking of the rapist in the next room, theirs wife and her indiscretions, or the fact that the world was still a hopeless shit hole.

It was easy for most to forget that the world was now filled with zombies while in such a nice hide out. It was easy to forget that there were perfectly healthy humans that wished to eat other perfectly healthy humans. It wasn’t easy to forget about family members that were missing from their lives, but it was easy to replace them with the figures they shared this home with.
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The first curious thing that occurred that night was Rick Grimes. He was asleep next to his wife, and he had noticed her growing belly. And for the first time since those nights in the school house he thought about what Daryl had said:

“Shane and I were partners. But he had issues.”

“What like screwin’ your wife?” Daryl asked.

“Daryl shut the fuck up.” T said.

These words kept him awake, and angry. He had never thought of it to be true – never. But he couldn’t help but wonder if that child would look like him when it came out. Why would Daryl had said such a thing anyway? It was possible that before he got there… He shook the thought from his mind, it wasn’t possible, but he wondered.
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Merle lay awake that night as well. His thoughts raced about the people in the next room that hated him. He knew they wanted him dead, or at least wished him gone. He hated them too, every one of them. He hated Rick for chaining him to that rooftop in Atlanta. Merle hated his wife, always giving him a terrible look, as a matter of fact all the women in this house gave him that too. He may deserve it for what he has done, but Merle was sick of the alienation he had received, and as soon as Addie was better he decided he would leave once again.
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Daryl was awake as well, but he pretended to sleep. His thoughts kept him awake as he thought of Addie, and Merle. He thought about her face. He felt so badly that he had to stitch something ugly into it. He loved her smile, and the way her face was. It didn’t change how he felt about her, but it changed how sorry he felt for her. She had saved his life and gotten stuck with a scar. He didn’t even think that his life was worth scarring such a beautiful thing.

He rolled over and tucked his arm underneath her, and with his other he pulled her closer. That night Daryl fell asleep clutching Addie in his arms, even though he would only wake soon after – he still fell asleep happy.
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Another happening occurred in Addie’s mind. She was having a dream: one that quite frightened her. She was once again alone at her home in France. Only this time her house was burning.

She could hear people, people she new screaming for help she wasn’t close enough to help them, she couldn’t get any closer than she already was she could feel the flames licking her arms, the heat leaving marls. Her friends were lost to her, she was the only one left.

She started to head for the fire department, she had no phone, but she felt that she could run and still find help. She soon realized the entire town was deserted and that no one had set fire to the house but her. She didn’t remember doing it, but she saw no one else that could be responsible.
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It started with a child. One who knew his father was still awake. He glanced up at him and looked at each other for a moment before Carl got out of his small bed for a glass of water. Rick quickly followed him to join. Although he noticed Carl was quite distracted once he got to the hallway.

Carl lead himself to Shane’s old bedroom, the door was closed, the knob twisted under his fingers, it was warm to the touch and then he pushed the door open feeding the fire growing on the other side. The back draft knocked him back onto the ground. And before Carl grasped what was happening to him, Rick had him in his arms as he banged on each and every door in the hallway. Several people awoke from their slumber quite groggy until they saw the fire, they grabbed only the mere essentials and found themselves running down the stairs.

Glenn had it in his right mind to gather everything he could from the cellar, it started with the fuel tanks seeing as it was the most essential resource as well as the thing that would most likely cause the house to explode rather than burn slowly in a fire.

After only one trip outside, T Dog followed Glenn back in to gather anything else helpful. Mostly medical supplies as well as food. They left pointless things, and grabbed what would be important.

Rick was on his own mission to try and extinguish the fire. Andrea and Dale helped him carry buckets into the house to try and douse the fire with water. It seemed that the house was made of dry wood and flammable paint, and Rick gave up quickly.
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The final peculiar thing that occurred that night was the orange glow that radiated from the house. Everyone near the house felt the incredible heat. They watched as the home they once knew went up in flames.