Status: Work in progress
Antichrist
Six.
The ride back from the trip was dead silent. I felt pretty bad about what I had said earlier. I never put 2 and 2 together that his mom had died. I didn’t try to on purpose, but it must’ve struck a nerve. I’ve only been here 3 days, and I probably lost the only friend I made… Way to go Dana.
I managed the awkward silence by talking to Maggie and Glenn about horror stories along the way and about the farm they were at before. This group had been through a hell of a lot. The stories seemed to flow back and forth until we got back inside the gate. Carl didn’t say anything, but instead unloaded his portion of Sno-Balls from the box we were going to share, then headed straight for the barn. The sky was darker toward the east, so I knew a storm was coming. I helped put all the food away in kitchen, and then meds in the infirmary.
“Where’s Carl?” Hershel asked. I stopped stocking shelves and sat down on the counter.
“I’m not sure… I think he’s at the barn.”
“Well in that case, can you tell him to tell Rick that we’ve got a bit of formula for the baby? It should last us a few weeks, but they should look out for some.”
Of course. Of course I had to talk to him.
I nodded and got up to head out, but hershel stopped me. He tossed me a bottle.
“Take one before bed every day for a week,” he smiled. I thanked him and headed off to my cell.
I could hear the rainfall on the inside of the halls as I walked. I used to love rain. Now it reminded me of the night I lost my sister. She had been scratched a week earlier. We were in the woods, and we came up on 2 walkers who’d just killed a deer. I shot one, and she stabbed another, but they’d scratched her neck. We thought It’d be fine…. but then she got feverish. She stopped eating. She tried killing Jordon. Then I killed her. I killed my own sister.
I felt a warmth on my cheek when I realized I was crying. “Suck it up,” I whispered to myself as I opened up my door and threw my antibiotics on the bed. I wiped my eyes with my sleeve and then reached into my bag for my picture of Chelsea. I grabbed a stick of chewing gum I had got from the convenience store and chewed for a bit before using it to stick my picture up above my bed.
“Who’s that?”
I turned around and saw Carl looking at my picture.
“My sister Chelsea… before all this.”
He took a step inside, but still kept his distance. Its almost like the air got thicker when he did.
“You lost her?”
“Shot her myself. She got scratched.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” I said. “You can’t save everyone… Survival of the fittest. That’s life now.” I sniffled a bit as I said it. Carl looked like he didn’t know what to say.
“Did you want something?” I asked.
He cleared his throat.
“There’s food out there,” He said. “You might want to go now or you’ll miss it.”
“I’ll be out in a minute, I just- I need a sec.”
I let out a small sigh and put the rest of the gum back into my bag.
I touched my picture one last time and headed toward the kitchen where everyone else was. They were in the middle of a meeting about how the day went when I took my seat.
“Dana, glad you could make it,” Rick said.
“I heard you did good today.”
I smiled. “It was the least I could do. Honestly. I owe you my life.”
“I think you’d be ready for regular duties in a few days… unless…. you still plan on leaving?”
I was surprised he even remembered that. Or that the wasn’t trying to stop me. Leaving a bed and a roof over my head would be hard, but I did plan on it.
“Until I’m fully healed- I’d love to help out in any way possible,” I began. “That way I won’t feel like I’ve taken advantage of you all when it is time for me to go.”
“Great! You’ll be on garden duty with Carl. I’m sure he can explain it to you.”
I felt my stomach sink further down. I honestly dreaded spending all my time with someone who probably hates me. But I had to. And what was worse was that I started tomorrow.
I managed the awkward silence by talking to Maggie and Glenn about horror stories along the way and about the farm they were at before. This group had been through a hell of a lot. The stories seemed to flow back and forth until we got back inside the gate. Carl didn’t say anything, but instead unloaded his portion of Sno-Balls from the box we were going to share, then headed straight for the barn. The sky was darker toward the east, so I knew a storm was coming. I helped put all the food away in kitchen, and then meds in the infirmary.
“Where’s Carl?” Hershel asked. I stopped stocking shelves and sat down on the counter.
“I’m not sure… I think he’s at the barn.”
“Well in that case, can you tell him to tell Rick that we’ve got a bit of formula for the baby? It should last us a few weeks, but they should look out for some.”
Of course. Of course I had to talk to him.
I nodded and got up to head out, but hershel stopped me. He tossed me a bottle.
“Take one before bed every day for a week,” he smiled. I thanked him and headed off to my cell.
I could hear the rainfall on the inside of the halls as I walked. I used to love rain. Now it reminded me of the night I lost my sister. She had been scratched a week earlier. We were in the woods, and we came up on 2 walkers who’d just killed a deer. I shot one, and she stabbed another, but they’d scratched her neck. We thought It’d be fine…. but then she got feverish. She stopped eating. She tried killing Jordon. Then I killed her. I killed my own sister.
I felt a warmth on my cheek when I realized I was crying. “Suck it up,” I whispered to myself as I opened up my door and threw my antibiotics on the bed. I wiped my eyes with my sleeve and then reached into my bag for my picture of Chelsea. I grabbed a stick of chewing gum I had got from the convenience store and chewed for a bit before using it to stick my picture up above my bed.
“Who’s that?”
I turned around and saw Carl looking at my picture.
“My sister Chelsea… before all this.”
He took a step inside, but still kept his distance. Its almost like the air got thicker when he did.
“You lost her?”
“Shot her myself. She got scratched.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” I said. “You can’t save everyone… Survival of the fittest. That’s life now.” I sniffled a bit as I said it. Carl looked like he didn’t know what to say.
“Did you want something?” I asked.
He cleared his throat.
“There’s food out there,” He said. “You might want to go now or you’ll miss it.”
“I’ll be out in a minute, I just- I need a sec.”
I let out a small sigh and put the rest of the gum back into my bag.
I touched my picture one last time and headed toward the kitchen where everyone else was. They were in the middle of a meeting about how the day went when I took my seat.
“Dana, glad you could make it,” Rick said.
“I heard you did good today.”
I smiled. “It was the least I could do. Honestly. I owe you my life.”
“I think you’d be ready for regular duties in a few days… unless…. you still plan on leaving?”
I was surprised he even remembered that. Or that the wasn’t trying to stop me. Leaving a bed and a roof over my head would be hard, but I did plan on it.
“Until I’m fully healed- I’d love to help out in any way possible,” I began. “That way I won’t feel like I’ve taken advantage of you all when it is time for me to go.”
“Great! You’ll be on garden duty with Carl. I’m sure he can explain it to you.”
I felt my stomach sink further down. I honestly dreaded spending all my time with someone who probably hates me. But I had to. And what was worse was that I started tomorrow.