It's Complicated

The next morning, I was woken up to faint whispers outside my door. I hated to eavesdrop, but maybe I could find out some more about these people without actually having to make an effort. I suddenly heard my name mentioned, and my ears perked up. Why were these people talking about me?

"We barely even know her!" I heard a woman say.

"Let's just give the girl some time, she doesn't have a group. Who knows how long she's been on her own." Rick's voice jumped in.

"Ever think maybe she don't wanna be in a group? Yer the one who said she could go if she wanted. Ya weren't gon' force 'er ta stay." I rolled my eyes.

I blocked out the voices after that. I was just a burden for them like I was for everyone else.

----

"Get your fat ass up, you dumb bitch!" My mom hollered at me from down the hall.

I walked towards her, terrified of her obnoxious state. She was an alcoholic, a bad one at that. Ever since my dad was thrown in jail, her drinking had escalated. Her drinking often turned into physical abuse, which was the cause of the many bruises covering my body.

"What the fuck took you so long, Riley?!" She smacked me across the face.

"I-I'm sorry, mom."

"Fucking better be, you piece of shit."

The verbal and physical abuse carried on throughout the day. Once she had passed out, I had pulled out my packed bag, ready to leave the place where I was completely unwanted. My mother wasn't loving and open anymore; she was cold and harsh. It was time to leave. I snuck out of my window, throwing my bag onto the ground below the tree, while climbing onto the branches.

-----

I knew I needed to leave, but the man who owned this land, Hershel, he wasn't going to let me leave until I was one hundred percent better, and who knows how long that could take.

I washed up in the bathroom connected to my room, staring at myself in the mirror.

"They don't need you here, they made that perfectly clear. Just get out as soon as possible." I whispered to myself.

Once I was washed up, I decided to make an appearance to the rest of the group. Slowly, I made my way out of the house. I looked around at all the people whom were scattered around the farm. These people looked so put together. As if they knew what they were doing. How could I barge in and force them to trust me, when I couldn't even trust myself.

I saw the mother of the young boy turn her eyes up to my direction. She quickly excused herself from her son and made her way over to me.

'Great. Another "friendly" introduction.' I sarcastically thought to myself.

"Hi there, Darlin'. I'm Lori, Rick's wife. That's my son over there, Carl." She smiled politely at me.

I nodded at the woman, acknowledging what she was telling me.

"Riley," I shook her hand.

The dark haired woman offered to introduce me to everyone in the group, clearly trying to make me feel at home. I didn't want to be rude, so I reluctantly accepted her offer.

She introduced me to the blonde woman, Andrea, and the older man, Dale, first. She then introduced me to T-Dog, Carl, Glenn, Maggie, and Beth. We then walked over to a barn that was being guarded by a strongly built man. She introduced him as Shane. He watched me with a glare, showing me that he didn't trust me at all.

When she didn't introduce me to the short haired woman, I got confused.

"Who's she?"

"Oh, that's Carol. I wanted to leave her alone for a bit, she's been going through some stuff recently."

I scoffed, haven't we all?

I watched the woman walk over to Carol, talking to her sweetly. Carol nodded at her, and made her way over to me.

"I'm sorry, where are my manners? I'm Carol." She smiled genuinely.

I smiled back at her. It was nice having someone be nice to me for once. Maybe I could develop some friendships here.

After talking with Carol for a while, I came to learn that her daughter had gotten lost while running from a couple walkers in the woods. I really felt for the woman. It couldn't be easy losing your little girl in a world like this. To both of our surprise, I gave her a hug. Carol was a great woman; she didn't deserve to go through this hell.

She smiled at me, gratefully. "Thank you."

I nodded at her, smiling in return. I knew it was time to change the subject, so I took the opportunity to ask about Daryl.

"So what's Daryl's deal?" A frown suddenly appearing on my face.

I didn't know how to feel about Daryl. We were similar in many ways, yet so different. I watched him from across the yard. He was so rugged and independent.

Carol laughed lightly, "Daryl's someone who takes time. The more time you spend with him, the more he'll want to protect you. We're like family here."

My frown deepened slightly, "And I'm the girl that barges in and screws things up."

"Hey now, nobody thinks that," I heard Lori's voice pop up from behind us, "You're new here, and it'll take time for us all to get used to each other. Everyone's still a bit on edge about Sophia as well. Just give it some time." She smiled at me.

Lori walked away to talk to Rick, leaving Carol and I alone once again.

"You have to show them that you're trustworthy. Go on some runs, stand watch, those kinds of things."

I thought for a minute. Did I really want to be tied down to these people?

"I just, I think I need to go for a walk."

Carol's smile faltered a bit, but nodded. "Stay safe."

I walked towards the woods I came from. Would anyone really care if I came back? Lost in my thoughts, I continued walking deeper into the forest. I must've been gone a few hours, but I didn't care. I was so focused on myself, that I didn't hear the low growls of the walkers coming towards me until an arrow shot right past my head, landing straight into the undead's skull, causing a cracking sound to escape into the air. I didn't have to turn around to know just who it was that shot the arrow.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me." I sighed.