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theapocalypseisonlythebeginning · 1 year

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Bad People or Good People? - Chapter 7: We're the Good Guys, Clem (Part 2)

chapter summary:

Worried about Daryl as he goes after Ylva's group, Clementine finds herself stuck in her emotions until she cannot keep it together anymore...

previous chapter: We're the Good Guys, Clem (Part 1) word count: 4663

Carol’s choices in her past life had made her acutely aware of the signs a traumatized child would give when feeling upset. Sophia had never quite reached the stage where she clammed up fully to the outside world. Daryl Dixon, however, had.

His glares, his silence to questions thrown his way by Rick, his jerky movements as he threw supplies into the car… It looked like anger. But Carol saw through it; repressed emotions surfacing as anger. Perhaps she was the only one who saw it out of the entire group. That meant it was her job to fix this (though perhaps that was partially her own trauma reaction from her ex husband’s actions toward her).

Perhaps part of Daryl’s emotions was anger too. It was just that Daryl had no way of showing other emotions around people as he most likely had never seen anyone express things in any other way but anger as a child. Carol knew this was a truth because of Daryl’s surprised and curious looks whenever someone in the group showed emotions in a different way than anger.

He was slowly learning, but it was difficult to teach an old dog new tricks.

Done moving equipment into the car (or throwing it, rather), Daryl shifted to lean against the car, arms crossed over his chest tightly - as tightly as he was attempting to repress his emotions. Clementine, who normally would jump at being able to help Daryl in some way, had glued herself to a spot a bit further away, staring at Daryl with wide, sad eyes.

Approaching Daryl with her heart clenching in pain for Clementine, hoping and praying that the little girl didn’t think Daryl was upset because of her, Carol planted herself in front of Daryl. He avoided looking at her, but she remained stood where she was, hand on her hip. “Hey you,” she greeted. “What’s got you looking so sour, pookie?”

Daryl scoffed. “Missing an arrow,” Daryl grunted in a reply.

Doubtful this was all that was riling him up, Carol pursed her lips. “You’ll find it. Or some new ones on a run.”

Silence. Daryl did nothing but stare down at the ground.

“You should say goodbye to Clem,” she suggested curiously. Her words sparked a reaction in Daryl’s body language. A shift, nothing more. Slowly nodding her head at his response, Carol understood what was happening. “What did Merle say about Clem?”

Daryl gave no response. Not a single shift. Not a single blink. Carol, however, also noted that he wasn’t breathing. A survival instinct that this big, strong man had adapted from a childhood in fear of his family. “Whatever it was-“

“I ain’t her dad,” Daryl snapped in a breath.

It was a way to get rid of Carol. Yes. But it was also a hint; close to an explanation.

Unfortunately, Daryl’s words didn’t go unnoticed by the group. Nor Clementine.

Carol nodded her head. “No, you’re not. And you’ll never be,” she voiced harshly. “Doesn’t mean she can’t lean on you. Family is more than blood.”

With those words, Carol turned and left to stand next to Clementine. Daryl watched her, her words having hit him hard. As she crouched down next to Clementine, a stone faced look being her mask as she spoke to Clementine in hushed voices to make her feel better, to make her understand, Daryl let out a breath through which his anger dissipated.

Family being more than blood was exactly his struggle at the moment.

As the rest of the group stood and said farewell, worried that this was a dangerous mission (what if Clementine’s old group would attack on sight?), Rick gestured for Daryl and Glenn to get in the car.

Seated in the front next to Rick in the driving seat, Daryl hoisted a leg up against the airbag sign, trying to act normal… But he had been so occupied with his own thoughts that he had not noticed Rick staying put, not turning the engine on. Glenn in the backseat was waiting curiously too.

“What are yah doing?” Daryl asked.

Then, a little tap on the window next to him - he turned his head to see Clementine balancing on her tip toes to see him. She was waving a walkie talkie at him.

Rick pushed a button to lower Daryl’s window.

Staring at the little girl who, despite his previous ugly behaviour, was smiling at him (Carol smiling proudly in the background), Daryl nodded his head in a silent greeting.

He took the walkie talkie with hesitant fingers.

“Please be careful. They’re not all bad people. Dwight is nice,” Clementine said to him.

Daryl nodded his head, tucking the walkie talkie in his pocket.

This little girl would be as shunned and lonely as he was if she wanted him to be her family. That was the ugliness of society - one look at Daryl and they’d only see the racist, homophobic, drugged up redneck family that he came from.

But…

Society didn’t exist anymore.

Family was more than blood.

He nodded his head back at her. “Stay safe.”

“Yep!”

Clementine walked back to Carol, waving at Glenn too once Rick turned the engine on.

“Adorable,” Rick said teasingly, but lovingly.

“I ain’t her dad.” Daryl said this with less hostility, more as a question.

“You don’t gotta be,” Rick replied with a calming smile, then put his foot on the gas to head off.

In the mirror, Daryl saw Clementine be surrounded by the rest of the group.

She wouldn’t be alone.

Nor would Daryl…

But Merle…

***

Clementine had stolen one of Daryl’s arrows.

She knew it was wrong to steal. If nothing, Lee had taught her that. But it had just… happened.

If she had stayed put where she had been with those raiders, if she had stayed working for them, then no one might get hurt trying to fix things for her. She was a child and incapable of going with, of course, to deal with Ylva’s group - she knew that, she understood that…

But when Lee had died, all Clementine had of him was a stolen photograph from his parent’s shop, and his gun.

She had no photographs to steal of Daryl, so she took the closest thing to a gun that Daryl used.

Just in case.

Not realising she had been isolating herself, Clementine was surprised to see Maggie approach her. She had been sitting outside in the shade of the prison block’s tall walls. In the distance, the sounds of undead roaming was now the same natural background to her as cicadas in the summer.

“Heya,” was Maggie’s greeting once she was close enough. A rifle was slung over her shoulder: she had just finished a guard shift. “What are you doing out here all alone?”

Joining her on the dirt, Maggie let out a relieved sigh. It was hot outside and shade was sparse around the prison with no trees around. A drop of sweat slowly made its way down Maggie’s temple.

Clementine shrugged, twirling the arrow around in her fingers. It was hard to form words. If she did express something, it would all come hurdling out of her like vomit. And as much as the little girl trusted Glenn, and so understood Maggie could be trusted too, she… just didn’t know the woman too much yet.

Hershel was different. Hershel had talked to Clementine and easily wormed his way into her heart. Maggie had avoided her much more, a bit like Beth had.

“You worried ‘bout Daryl?” deduced Maggie. “He’s a strong fighter. One of the strongest we got.”

Clementine nodded her head absentmindedly.

Her walkie talkie was tucked safely into her belt, ears always listening for the faint crackle that would indicate someone was trying to talk to her.

“I’m worried too. ‘Bout Glenn,” Maggie admitted. Clementine turned to watch her, catching Maggie smiling at the little girl.

Clementine smiled back.

“But I remind myself Glenn’s got Rick. Rick is tough. He’s tougher than we all thought. Done things no man should have to do to keep the group safe.” Clementine listened intently. “And he’s got Daryl.” Maggie smiled again. “Daryl’s the type a’ guy to search for a missing girl for weeks on end in the scorchin’ sun, just ‘cause it’s an innocent life needing help. He’s not gonna get hurt.”

Clementine lowered her eyes, letting a bit more of her worry seep out into her eyes.

Maggie took note, and smiled another gentle smile. “That’s why I know Glenn’s gonna come back. He’s got Rick and Daryl.”

“And Daryl has Rick and Glenn,” voiced Clementine ever so quietly.

Nodding her head, Maggie smiled in relief that the girl had voiced something. Her eyes flickered down to the arrow, but she made no comment about how bad it was to steal.

Instead, Maggie reached out to tuck a stray curl back into Clementine’s hat: “You wanna come inside? Beth’s gonna feed Judith, that’s always cute.”

Clementine smiled and nodded her head.

As the two stood up, Clementine grabbed Maggie’s hand as they started making their way toward the door: “I wanted to come with.”

Maggie nodded her head: “I know.”

“I can use a gun,” Clementine voiced determinedly, one hand clutching the arrow, the other clutching Maggie’s hand for safety.

“I know…”

***

A nasty sloshing noise accompanied every step they took. Being stealthy was out of the question for a while, the mud reaching far along the path. They’d been forced to abandon their car, ensuring that their trip would take longer than expected - but luckily, Daryl had the walkie talkie to let the group know if they were going to be late.

Rick and Glenn both followed Daryl. He had said few words, but had been in the lead the entire time, guiding them toward the spot Clementine had pointed out despite both the other males knowing exactly where it was too. His hand kept reaching back to check the walkie talkie was still right there, attached to his back pocket, every other minute.

Both men noticed it, silently exchanging looks and smiles at it.

They had known Daryl and kids were a good match from his interactions with Sophia, Carl and Judith - they hadn’t seen this side of Daryl though, but it wasn’t too surprising.

Walkers were sprawled out throughout the mud, stuck and unable to get to them as their rotting muscles weakened them… But they did try, growling at them, clacking teeth as they bit the air in their direction. It was a haunting sight. These monsters would rip their legs off just to get to them and bite…

The walkers’ presence made none of the men sure what was buried beneath the mud. Each step could be a fatal one if a walker was there to bite at their ankles.

By some kind of sheer dumb lock, the three of them made it through the mud without incident. Heading into a forest, they walked about a mile before crouching down behind some bushes, their destination ahead.

Daryl squinted at the location: a tall building, chimneys reaching high up into the sky, barred windows, wide doors… Some sort of factory, long since abandoned. It still looked fine, time had not taken its toll on it yet aside from a few busted windows and overgrown greenery outside. An abandoned truck stood parked in the parking lot, doors open and the old decaying body, close to a skeleton, of a driver lying dead by its side: a haunting hint at what had happened here when the apocalypse had washed over it.

The parking lot was not interesting to them though. The inside of the factory was.

“It looks empty,” whispered Glenn.

“No guards,” agreed Rick.

Daryl raised his crossbow, glancing to Rick for guidance on what to do.

With a nod from their leader, the three men started inching closer…

***

"Do babies really only drink milk?”

The girl’s question was not strange, and so Carol and Maggie simply smiled and nodded their heads in a silent answer. Nevertheless, Beth had looked up at the innocent girl, eyes darting between Clementine’s naive eyes, and the gun strapped to her waist.

Focusing back on feeding Judith, a smile returned to Beth’s lips. The baby fussed a bit, not too keen on her bottle in that very moment despite her hungry screams earlier.

The gray cement walls of the prison’s dining area was slowly starting to become their home. Safely capable of letting Judith fuss and coo without the fear of anyone or anything hearing them, the group was getting fond of the place’s dull colors and bare settings. It was starting to become their own with Clementine’s drawings adding color to some of the walls. A red couch had even been found in the Warden’s office, brought down there for some extra comfort.

No one had used it yet though, standing in a corner as the foreign object which comfort was to them nowadays.

Getting this comfortable was a dangerous thing. Despite how young this apocalypse was, the group seemed to be aware of it already.

Michonne watched the group from a solitary corner of her own. Her excuse to herself was that she was waiting for Carl to be finished with his guard duty. Considering this trust was difficult to get from any group, Michonne was eager to show just how good she could help out.

The actual reason was that she was scared of getting close to anyone in this world. She had lost too much… And that baby…

“Formula, milk… that sort of thing,” Carol explained to Clementine.

“What’s formula?”

“It’s a…” Carol thought for a second on how to reply properly: “It’s dried milk, of a sort, and when you add water it becomes ready for the baby to drink. It has all the necessary nutritions for a baby in need of growing.” Carol gently grabbed Judith’s tiny foot, cooing a bit over the small human as she spoke.

“I once petted a cow.”

Both Carol and Maggie were taken aback a bit by this bit of information which seemed to come out of nowhere. Hershel laughed quietly to himself.

“What - That’s… that’s great, Clem,” Maggie awkwardly added.

“They also give milk,” Clementine helpfully added.

“Yes,” agreed Carol with a fond smile.

Sophia would have loved Clementine…

Carol’s smile faded.

“Have we heard anything from Rick yet?” Hershel asked, foot propped up on a wooden box.

Clementine was the one to turn around and shake her head in response. She, after all, was the one clutching the walkie talkie like her life depended on it.

That, and the arrow she had stolen from Daryl.

“It’s been half a day, they should be there by now,” said Hershel, before quickly adding: “I am sure we’ll hear something from them soon.” As the calm, level headed grandfather of the group that Hershel had become, the group calmed upon his reassurance almost immediately. It was a bit like the flight attendant phenomena: if Hershel panicked, there was reason to panic.

By luck, only five minutes later, Clementine’s walkie walkie went off. The rough, southern accent of Daryl awkwardly chiming in with a “yeh there?” seemed to be as joyful to Clementine as getting new coloring pens from the group.

“Here,” Clementine quickly said, pushing the right button expertly to talk back.

“Mm…” There was a pause before Daryl continued to speak, the entire group waiting impatiently for some more information. “Four plus four?”

Only Maggie and Clementine knew what this meant, so when the rest of the group looked mildly confused, Maggie smiled in amusement.

“Two.”

“Right…” Daryl awkwardly continued. “Ain’t nothin’ here. ‘S empty.”

Left slightly in shock at those words, Clementine replied only after a beat: ��Nothing?”

“Nothin’. Got some leftover cans o’ food. Been people ‘ere. Not anymore.”

Maggie let out a little breath of relief. “At least that’s an enemy less to worry ‘bout.”

Whilst the group let out a shared breath of relief at the fact Ylva’s group was seemingly gone, Clementine was left staring into space.

Taking the walkie talkie gingerly from the girl, Hershel took over instead: “And we’re sure they won’t come back?”

“No idea. But…” There was a pause. Then Daryl’s voice came back more hushed: “Tracks lead away from the prison. Not sure, but I think they left when that woman didn’t return.”

Hershel nodded his head. “Let’s hope that’s the case. I assume you’re heading back now?”

“Yeah.”

“Be careful,” replied Hershel, to which Daryl didn’t respond again.

When Hershel handed the walkie talkie back to Clementine, the girl didn’t take it. Left stunned in her seat, the group watched her carefully.

“Are you alright?” Hershel asked.

“I froze…” she whispered as a reply.

“Because the group wasn’t there anymore?” Carol asked.

Only capable of silently nodding her head, Clementine solemnly replied.

“You had friends there, didn’t you?” Maggie deduced. “It’s perfectly alright to feel upset about that.”

“I’ll miss them,” Clementine whispered ever so quietly. Normally, she would remain silent when speaking about something from her past. Either this meant Clementine was extremely upset and needed to talk in order to make sense of things, or the girl was finally, truly, beginning to trust them.

Gently, the group listened to her.

“Sherry… Dwight… They were workers, like me. Some new people joined that’s…. That’s why I could…” Clementine shook her head. “I’ll miss them.”

Carol was the one to move closer and gently grab Clementine’s free hand. Squeezing it, Carol showed her without words that she, at least, was safe. “They’re safe,” Carol gingerly said, before her voice turned a little colder: “If Rick and the others had found them there could have been a fight. People could have gotten hurt. If they left, they’re fine.”

Clementine nodded her head at Carol, agreeing painfully to those words.

Did they mean that Rick would have just… attacked?

Why could people not talk anymore?

Were Rick and his group not the good guys?

“Can I go to my room?” Clementine asked.

Carol nodded her head, slowly letting go of the child’s hand.

Silently, Clementine left, her feet carrying her ever so slightly quicker than normal.

No one noticed, except for Michonne who followed.

***

Daryl tucked the walkie talkie back into his pocket. Having moved a little further away from Rick and Glenn stood inspecting what they had found in the hallway, Daryl could speak in private to Hershel and Clementine.

The factory had been empty. Daryl hadn’t lied. Not really.

But he hadn’t mentioned the three bodies laid out in strange positions in the very first hallway they’d entered. Rick had said not to mention those bodies to anyone. He had also said not to mention the tracks that led away from the facility.

Clearly, a fight had broken out. Whoever had survived had left in a direction away from the prison, yes, but….

These people could be Clementine’s friends, and she would never know…

Without Clementine capable of identifying whether these were the people that had forced people into slavery for them, or whether they were the good guys Clementine had been friends with, there were no deductions capable of happening.

The only thing that was obvious was that Walkers were not the culprit. No Walkers would beat a person to death only to leave them un-eaten.

“Ready?” Rick called. Turning around, Daryl tucked the walkie talkie back into his back pocket and nodded silently at Rick.

Clenching his jaw, Daryl stayed behind his two friends as they returned to the mud. His mind reeled with memories of Rick before Shane’s death… and the moment Rick announced that their group no longer was a democracy. Forcing Daryl to lie to the rest of the group…

Why?

As they moved through the mud, avoiding the Walkers snarling and breaking legs just to try and get to them, Glenn turned his head to glance at Daryl.

Daryl didn’t like what Rick was forcing the group to become. Shane’s death had reeled him into a different person. Lori’s death had created an insane version of that different person...

Glenn’s eyes, sympathetic for Daryl’s situation, showed he, too, was feeling uncomfortable with Rick’s decision. Daryl didn’t give anything away, but simply snapped his gaze away from Glenn’s eyes…

Though, he knew that only made it more obvious.

***

“Clementine.”

Michonne’s voice stopped Clementine in her tracks. She turned, head still hung low and hand tightly holding on to her arm. She was uncomfortable - sad - a look that was all too familiar on Clementine as of late.

“What’s wrong?” Michonne approached her slowly. Despite her staying away from the rest of the group, she didn’t want to stay away from Clementine. She and Daryl were the only ones in the group to treat her normally and truthfully, Michonne had almost immediately felt fond of them both. So to see Clementine so upset, it was hurtful.

Clementine quietly stood there for a bit, avoiding Michonne. The two were on the first floor of the cells, unknowingly being watched by Merle who had been leaning over the railing of the catwalk up above.

“Clementine, you’re too young to deal with these things all on your own,” Michonne gently prodded.

Relief surged through Clementine at those words. She was being understood - because truthfully, Clementine wasn’t sure of what she was feeling about it all aside from guilt. “Those people… They were with the group because of me.” Clementine gently looked up at Michonne, daring a little sad frown to show just how upset she was.

Michonne responded with a gentle look of sympathy.

“I had to lure them in.”

“What do you mean?” Michonne asked.

“There were three people in charge. They… They forced us to work for them and to find more people. Ylva was the one to find me, to… to bring me in. She said she had food and I was so hungry and so tired after Lee…” Clementine’s eyes watered. “They said because I was a kid I could lure more people in and I had to pretend that someone was hurt and that I needed help and - and Dwight and Sherry went to help me, they and their friends and I - I’m the reason they became stuck too! A-And now I can’t help them anymore…”

At this point, Clementine sounded a little hysterical, prompting Michonne to move over and crouch down by her. Gently, she placed a hand over the one clutching Clementine’s hand, ever so carefully prying the hand free so Clementine could cling onto Michonne instead.

She was not alone anymore after all. Clementine did not have deal with these things on her own.

“Sherry didn’t want to be stuck there and so when we traveled she tried finding ways to get us free and… and they made a plan and a few weeks ago we settled in that old factory and - and Sherry convinced everyone to make a distraction so we could run away from them but it went bad… Ylva didn’t follow the plan, she didn’t give them all the beer so they would fall asleep and - and they were awake and were shooting…” Clementine took a deep breath, Michonne gently wiping away a tear. It seemed once Clementine had admitted to one thing, everything came spilling out. “I didn’t know what to do. Dwight told me to run but I didn’t know where so I hesitated - I froze again! - and… and he got shot in the arm and I… I ran. I ran and I found the town-“

“Okay,” Michonne interrupted. “Take a deep breath, Clem. You’re safe now.”

“But I hurt them!” Clementine all but shouted. “I-I’m a bad person.”

“No.” Michonne tilted her head and furrowed her brow, “Please don’t think that. You tried to survive. Dwight wanted you to go because that’s what decent people do; they protect children.”

“I was alone again…” Clementine murmured.

“I know…”

From up above, Merle watched with a mellowed facial expression - it mirrored the feelings he had too. Perhaps he was a little rougher around the edges than his brother, but it wasn’t like he enjoyed seeing a child in pain. He’d never enjoyed his baby brother being in pain after all.

“But if you’d stayed, their distraction - their attempt would have been for nothing. We don’t know what happened, but we can only imagine that they were punished, but not killed, and that they moved on once they realised they couldn’t get to you.”

“I just…” Clementine sniffled whilst she attempted to find the right words to express what she was feeling. “I just miss Lee… If he didn’t have to find me, he would still be alive and so would Ben, and Kenny, and Omid and Christa- I don’t even know where they are! And I wouldn’t have joined that group and Dwi-“ Everything came pouring out at once. All the things Clementine had felt since Lee’s death which she had to keep to herself and avoid feeling in order to stay focused on surviving…. All of it suddenly just escaped her like water freed from a dam.

And there were plenty of waterworks too - tears rolling down her cheeks as she wiped at them with her hand in a fist…

“Stop it, Clementine,” Michonne urged, both her hands holding onto Clementine’s arms to try and stabilise her. “Don’t say those things.”

“And now Daryl had to go and what if he doesn’t come back-“

To try and stop the spiraling thoughts, Michonne pulled her in for a hug. Despite the two having almost never talked before, Clementine didn’t mind the hug. If anything, the person who she had just accidentally told all of that to was the only person she wanted to get a hug from now - at least that way it made it obvious that Michonne didn’t hate her for all of that.

Hate was the last thing on Michonne’s mind though. If anything, Michonne was hating the world. The things this girl had gone through should not have happened to her. And the hateful thoughts and the guilt and the fear that this girl was feeling? She was nine. What nine year old girl thought like that…?

No nine year old should have to think like that.

And oh… did Michonne wish she could tell the girl she wouldn’t lose anyone ever again. But that was already a lie in the old world… Nowadays…?

Clementine held onto Michonne as she quietly cried. There had been no controlling the thoughts or emotions. So much bad had happened…

By the entrance to the cell block, Carl stood, back from his guard duty and clearly there to fetch Michonne. But he stayed silent and watched. How much Carl had heard, Clementine had no idea of. The only thing she knew was that this was one of those rare moments when Carl wasn’t glaring at her.

Nor would he ever again having heard that…

Merle looked away as Michonne attempted to calm the girl down. His thoughts were a puzzle. But something clicked in Merle that he had already thought about before: he had to find a way for this group, for Daryl, to not die to the Governor. Daryl had a family now. And as Daryl’s big brother, it was Merle’s duty to ensure that those Daryl chose for his family was kept as safe as possible.

This was nothing the Dixon’s parents had taught them… That was just something Merle had learned from a young age when Daryl’s first friends had come over that one time… and Merle had watched his father ruin Daryl’s friendships.

Merle just didn’t know how he was going to save Daryl’s family yet. But he’d risk a lot if necessary... Anything for his baby brother.

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read it on Ao3 too (closed to only those with AO3 accounts, send an ask if you want an invite)

Reblogs are welcome <3

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the-dumpster-fire-of-life · 2 years

Note

Ok I loooved the Louis fic and after reading it I had the most amazing yet angsty(ish) idea!

What if there was a large group of zombies like a hoard of em to the school and Louis was in danger (the others are seeing this go down) and the reader (who is covered in bites) runs in to save him and the others don't know what to do and Louis has to plead with the group not to throw out / kill reader and says he saw a bite before didn't tell anyone and nothing will happen

Sorry if it's kinda long and thank you 💖💖👍

(Hey! Sorry one took a bit but I had time! Here ya go, Lazuli!)

BITE MARKS

After everything happened with Louis finding out about your bite, everything simmered down for a while. Well, the most it could do for the apocalyptic world.

But everything was good, until it wasn't. A group of walkers was near the school, wearing down its fences a hefty bit and you all were left with the mess.

So which brings us to today.

"Why can't the world be normal for one fucking day?" Mitch asked, your brother , groaning and he was tired.

It was quite early in the morning, Clem and Vi had taken it upon themselves to wake everyone up to help with the walkers.

"There's walkers on the fence, Mitch." Louis yawned, holding you up as you leaned on his shoulder, already falling back asleep.

"Not our fault that Clem and Vi are two grade-A psychopathic women." Mitch rolled his eyes, his knives in his hand as Vi punched his shoulder.

"Okay, everyone watch your backs! There's a lot of 'em out there!" You all looked up, seeing Willy yelling down to you all.

You all glanced at each other, a bit confused. Yeah there was a lot but none you all hadn't handled before.

You glanced out the fence, doing a double take at all the walkers out there. You hadn't seen that many before, especially outside the school.

"Fuck." You heard Vi cuss under her breath, you felt Louis wrap him around your shoulder as he watched worried with his friends.

"It's gonna be okay guys. Just stick together." Clem said, nodding her head at you all as you all nodded back, some more hesitant than others but a nod nonetheless.

"Okay, let's fuck shit up out there." You state, less worried than the others with your immunity but still worried, immunity was cool and all but you still could be killed by them.

You walked to the gate, opening it as Vi followed you out. You could hear the running steps of the others, immediately your mind was taken away by the walker attacking you already.

You stabbed it in the head, it fell to the ground before you spun around and narrowly avoided getting hit by Vi's cleaver.

"Vi!" You yelled, looking at her shocked as she gave a shrug and a sorta guilty look.

"Shit! Sorry, Y/n!"

You shook your head, taking out another dead head.

Clem was with Mitch, killing walkers left and right as the others helped from the school walls. Shooting arries, throwing knives or setting more traps.

You bumped into a tree, seeing a walker under the giant rocks you cut the rope and watched as the walker was crushed by them.

You sighed, relieved until you felt something grab you and then you around.

You immediately reacted, pulling up your knife but it seemed as if you were too late as the walker had already sunk its teeth into your arm.

You gave a small yell, stabbing the walker in the head as it fell. You look down at your arm, putting your hand over it and applying pressure to stop the bleeding and the pain.

You turned your head, freezing when you made eye contact with Mitch. You shook your head, your brother looked heart broken while he watched your hand.

He didn't know what you and Louis did, all he knew was that you were bit and what always happened to people that were bit.

He came running over to you, holding your arm in his hand.

"Shit! We gotta get you back to the school." He panicked, looking around at all the walkers and your guys' friends. He started ushering you back to the school, you didn't put up much of a fight.

Until a walker came at you guys, Mitch didn't see it coming but you did. It got closer, almost biting Mitch as you acted on instinct.

You put your arm in the way, the walker biting onto it as you kicked it down and Mitch looking at you with wide eyes.

You were about to speak, but stopped when you felt pain in your leg. You looked down, the walker you kicked biting into your ankle.

You bit down on your lip, the pain unbearable but you were running in adrenaline. You lifted up your foot, looking away as the walker left a gruesome mark and bringing down your boot to stomp on its skull.

Once it was down and dead, you looked at Mitch. Your brother didn't know what to do, he was close to tears but he wouldn't admit it.

All he knew was that he had to get you out of there.

He grabbed your arm, ushering you the fastest back to the school before you heard a yell.

Louis' yell.

You whipped around, looking with wide eyes as Louis was being grabbed through a tree by a walker, one trying to bite him on his neck as he fought it off and one coming at him.

You yanked your arm away from Mitch. "Y/n!" He yelled, running after you as you ran towards Louis.

The walker grabbed Louis' arm, trying to bite him until you kicked him off, the walker somehow managing to scratch a jagged line across your arm.

You pulled Louis out of the walker's grasp, stabbing it in the head as Louis looked at you relieved. The relief soon turned ro horror when he saw the bites and scratches.

He may have known but he didn't want to see you in pain.

"Shit, are you okay?" Be asked, grabbing your arm as you weakly nodded your head.

"No, you're not okay! We have to get you back! Now!" Mitch demanded, grabbing your arm and throwing it over his shoulder as you limped on your ankle.

Louis nodded, Clem and Vi running back over as they finished off the rest. "What happened?!" Vi asked, frantic as she saw th bites on your arm.

"Holy hell…" Clem trailed off, Louis and Mitch rushing you back to the school as your conscience began to abandon you.

All you saw was blurs, Louis yelling as Mitch called over for Ruby. Ruby's face in front of you was the last thing you saw before passing out from shock.

…

When you woke up you saw the top bunk above you, groaning in pain as you sat up and threw your legs over the side of the bed.

You looked down, seeing the bandage over your ankle as you checked it. Yeah, the bite seemed pretty deep but clean as of now.

'So…what now?' You looked around the room, your hearing clearing up enough to hear the muffled yelling outside your door.

"They're gonna be fine!" You heard Louis yell. "How are they gonna be fine, Louis?! They were scratched and bit!" Ruby asked, her voice confused and yet scared at the same time for you.

"They've been been before-"

"What?" Clem cut in, shocked as she learned about this. "Yeah! And they were fine, Ruby saw it! It was scarred over!"

"It was probably a dog bite." Vi's voice was heard, sorta small but loud at the same time. "Dog bites don't look like that." Clem stated, you winced as you knew she saw it too while you were out.

"Well, we're not killing them or making them leave." Your breath hitched, Mitch was outside there. "We can't just do nothing." Assim stated, you could already tell Mitch was in his face.

You were all he had left except for Willy. And he would be damned if they took his sibling away.

"No! Fuck you, Assim! Louis said they're gonna be fine. If it was you in there would you wanna just be thrown out by everyone you knew?!"

"I would rather leave instead so I wouldn't hurt anyone when I turned!" Assim yelled back, you knew how their arguments went.

Both yelling, Mitch in his face as Assim poked his chest.

"They're not gonna turn!" Louis yelled, everyone arguing as Louis begged them not to kick you out. Mitch was straight up threatening people.

"Touch them and I'll fucking kill you!" He yelled, you sighed.

All this was because of you. Were they gonna make you leave? Kill you before when they thought you were gonna turn?

All you could do now was wait.

#louis twdg #twdg louis x reader #twdg louis #twdg clementine #mitch twdg #twdg violet #twdg x reader #twdg assim #twdg ruby #twdg imagine

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unluckyhoneybee · 2 years

Note

so can i request 10 <pulling them closer by the waist in crowds> and 16 <letting them cry on ur shoulder> for ur love language prompt list w marcus 🥺

i was out the last night w some friends at a club idek why i went tbh i hate crowds i can’t dance and alcohol is legit my anxiety trigger point???

anyways so yesterday i had gone to the washroom n the booth we were at was at the other end of the room and i had to walk all the way there it was HORRIFIC

anyways so yah maybe like a club scene w bf!marcus where y’all r in the club and u get super overwhelmed n he just takes u home n u cry and it leads to some soft sex 🥺🥺

u don’t have to have the seggsy bit i kinda just wanna read him consoling y/n cozy mental health needs it negl 👉👈

anyhoo thx amorcita no se porque yo escribi esto en ingles yo se que eres española 😭😭😭

Love Language. As a really introverted person with some social anxiety too, I'm using my own knowledge to write this.

10. Pulling them closer by the waist in big crowds

16. Letting them cry on ur shoulder

"I will be fine" That's what you had told Marcus. He wanted go out with the guys and had told you that there was no problem if you wanted to stay at home. He was very comprehensive and he understood that partying wasn't your thing. But you wanted to go out with him for once. You wanted to spend some time doing things he enjoyed. Wrong idea.

The music was so loud. You couldn't even concentrate in the conversations around you. Clem was trying to tell you something, he was already a bit drunk and was tapping your arm with each word. Someone walked behind you and pushed you to make space. You whined. The lights were blinding you and so distracting. You could focus on anywhere. The sounds were amplified and your heart was beating so fast. You needed to get away from that.

"I'm going to the toilet" You told Clem so he could tell Marcus once he was back with the drink.

The way to the toilet was easy. You refreshed yourself and stayed for a bit in the cabin. The muffled sound of the music outside was kind of comforting, like a white sound to sleep. You needed some good time to recover from the crowd out. But when you thought you were ready to leave and opened the door, you found even more people dancing to some pop music. It was so hard to reach the table again. You were pushed and got stuck in the crowd a couple of times. Your breath was unsteady and tears clouded your eyes. And when you finally reached Marcus, he turned to you smiling and dancing a bit. But he stopped the moment he saw you.

"YN"

You grabbed him because he was your safe place. And he hugged your shoulders because he knew it.

"Are you okay? Did someone do something to you?" He was really worried.

"I can't..." That was all you managed to say.

"Okay, okay. No problem. Let's go home"

You felt bad because he was leaving so soon because of you. But you couldn't stand the noise and lights anymore. Marcus wrapped his coat around you and then said goodbye to everyone. Knowing that probably the big crowd was triggering the attack, he made you walk with him, keeping his hand on your waist and pushing people if it was necessary.

Once in the uber, you cuddle on his side and leaned on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around you.

"It's okay. You will be okay."

You cried in silence on the way back home, feeling too exhausted to even sob. He held you tight, kissing your forehead once in a while. He knew well how he had to treat you when you were like this.

Once the cab arrived to your flat and you were outside the building, he made you stop, he cupped your cheeks and kissed your forehead so gentle. "Think about this... About what surrounds you"

You didn't move, you just obeyed adn waited there on his arms. Your thouhgt about the cold Novemeber air, the wind moving the threes, Marcus's warm hands on your cheeks... And slowly, you calmed down. You felt like you could breath again. You opened your eyes and found him looking at you.

Your only reaction was to stand on your tip toes and kiss him softly, which he gladly accepted.

"I love you" You whispered on his lips.

"I love you too"

"Thank you"

He kissed your forehead and guided you inside.

You slowly took your clothes off, they smelled weird from the club.

"What was the problem?" HE soflty asked when you sat on the bed with him wearing nothing more than your underwear. He ran the tip of his finger over your spine and you found it quite comforting.

"The noise... the lights... the people..." You started but couldn't finshish because the tears were back. He hugged you again and you his on his shoulder.

"It's fine." He whispered and caressed your hair. "I'm so glad you told me"

You nodded. At the beginning you wouldn't tell him so he wouldn't feel bad. You didn't want him to think you were weird. But now that you had been dating for long he couldn't read you perfectly, so it wasn't worth it hiding.

Marcus ran his finger on the side of your face and you looked up. He carefully dried your tears and pressed a kiss in your lips.

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course, Marcus" You whispered back.

"Can I distract you for a bit?"

You blushed deeply because by the grin on his lips you knew what he meant.

"I want you to take your mind away from all of that"

You nodded slowly and melted on his kiss. Marcus was so gentle when he laid you on the bed and climbed over your body His own felt warm on you and his hands were carefully tracing patterns on your sides.

Marcus left kisses everywhere he could, knowing how much you loved when he treated you like this. And then, he pulled your panties down your legs. With soft bites on your thighs and leaving a couple of marks that made you moan, he reached your centre.

"Oh fuck" You gasped when you felt the first touch of his tongue and pulled his hair. He groaned and dive deeper. Marcus loved this, he loved how quickly you got lost in the feeling and how your whole body and mind relaxed.

He made you come like that first, smiling when you, in the middle of an amazing high, pulled him for a kiss and devoured his mouth. He simply loved it.

Then, he put the condom on and slid in you. The slow movements and his intense graze on you made you shiver and whimper. You grabbed into him, wrapped your legs around his hips and pulled him close.

"I love you" He whispered on your lips before kissing you.

"I love you too" You cupped his cheeks and kissed him again.

Between kisses, Marcus moved slowly. Slow sex was something you were pretty used to, it kind of fit well for you two and you loved the intimacy and closeness you could feel.

At some point, desperate for more but not wanting to go faster, he lifted your legs higher and you moaned. It felt so good, you could only focus on him. And it was just what you needed. His hands on your hips and hair, his body on yours and him carefully showing you how much he loved you.

Once you finished, you grabbed into him and he rested his head on your chest. You needed a minute to recover before you could actually speak.

"Marcus?"

"Yes, baby?"

"Thank you"

"For this? It was a pleasure, baby" He said with a cheeky smile and dropped a kiss on your chest.

"No, idiot" You smiled and caressed his face. "For understanding me"

"That's also a pleasure, my love. I want you to be happy"

"You make me happy"

#marcus armstrong #ma #fluff #smut #blurb #from prompt list

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juno-box · 9 months

Text

BTSing my Fic w/Juno: DoTWD Chapters 6-9

Hey howdy! So I wanted to share a bunch of behind the scenes things with my fanfic, this time around there's A LOT. namely deleted scenes, added scenes and scrapped content! Let’s begin!

Lee’s would’ve told Ben about the messages on the answering machine

This was leftover from the original messages on the answering machine, from B.T.Sing Chapter 3. It would’ve come up in a now scrapped version of Chapter 9.

Travis would’ve attended dinner with the group.

Travis would’ve attended the infamous dinner with the group, but when I gave him Doug/Carley’s role of traveling with Lee I had him stay back with Doug, Ben and Carley.

Mark and Lee would’ve met Alfred in Episode 2

Alfred is a scrapped character that I mentioned in B.T.Sing Chapter 1-2. Alfred was originally a friend of Clementine mentioned in Episode 1, and was planned to make an appearance in a scrapped version of chapter 1. But when I scrapped that version of Chapter 1, Alfred was left in limbo.

At that point, I didn’t want to introduce Alfred from that old version of Ch.1, but as a different character (with the same name lol). So I’d written an entire introductory chapter for him. But the problem again, like with Debbie and Oliver (see B.T.Sing Chapter 1-2) was that I had no real role for him going forward, but I was so obsessed with his chapter that I tried to make it work before I started the artwork for Chapter 6, but just couldn’t.

Only other person I let read this version was @thecrusadercomrade lol, but if you want to see it for what it turned out to be here: [🪓]

Maybe I’ll get the chance to use him one day.

The dinner scene was extended recently

The dinner scene was originally way shorter than it is in the final draft. I extended it, inspired by cut background dialogue from Episode 2, so it feels more from the perspective of the guests rather than everyone hovering around until Lee came barrelling in.

Scrapped moment from the dinner scene:

Clementine originally went into vent instead of Rachel, and the locker room would’ve went down differently

Just as it says. Rachel was more disturbed than Clem was, visibly it appeared.

In a scrapped version of Chapter 9, Rachel would’ve managed to get away from the St. John’s before they reached the locker

Rachel would’ve freaked out and bit Andy’s hand, then rushed out of the barn, slamming the door shut. Since it was dark and raining, he couldn’t find her.

When Lee would awake, Clem would tell him that Rachel made a run for it and was out there somewhere. Lee would’ve been much more urged to escape the locker room. So when Larry had his heart attack, he would’ve helped Kenny kill him.

Meanwhile, with Rachel, she would’ve made her way up a haystack, over the fence and through the cornfield by the barn, and over a toppled over fence and made a cut through the dirt path they took to the dairy. There she would’ve run into Travis and company. We actually wouldn’t see them again until Lee escaped the barn and dealt with Danny.

The group originally took a vote to go to the dairy.

In a scrapped version of Chapter 6, the group would’ve taken a vote to go to the dairy. They would vote to go, and Lee, Travis, Ben and Mark would go. Lee was apprehensive on going. That version is missing.

However, when they meet Brenda and Mark offers for their whole group to come, Lee would interject and say they have to talk to their group first. That version of Chapter 7 is here: [🪓]

Travis and Ben had a cut argument on the way to the dairy

Instead of clicking his teeth and ignoring it, Travis would’ve turned around and asked Ben what his problem was. It was due to him thinking about what Lee had said about the answering machine earlier, along with scrapped dialogue with Travis about traveling and finding his parents. It was clunky, and once those messages were scrapped, so was this scene.

Instead of pencils it was Halloween candy

Rachel mentions Ben making her return stolen pencils, but the line was originally about Halloween candy. Not a big change, but I didn’t feel like Ben would rat her out on her birthday lol.

Margeret/Pidge, the fourth St. John

Now this I’m excited to share with y’all because it’s been MONTHS. Get ready because this is long:

Back in early pre-DoTWD ‘production’, like I’m talking before DoTWD was even called “Dawn of The Walking Dead” (it used to be something more ‘poetic’ before being changed to ‘Dawn of the Dead’ ,and finally ‘Dawn of The Walking Dead) , characters were being drummed up in my mind and written down before being fully modeled. Yes, every original character has a biography sheet saved on my writing laptop. Most outdated but still there, nonetheless. A lot of characters were written, but most were scrapped (about 10, iirc). One 2 made it to the sketch and model stages before being cut.

One of these characters was a girl named “Margaret St. John”.

As her name implied, Margaret (nicknamed Peggy) would’ve been a member of the St. John family. She was about 14-15, and was the niece of Terry, Brenda’s late husband.

Margaret moved to her uncle’s farm years before the apocalypse, and her dream was to become a horseback rider. After the apocalypse, and her uncle’s death, Brenda would’ve been extremely protective of her and kept her on the farm at all times.

Margaret would’ve been introduced in Chapter 7, when Lee and company arrive at the farm. Margaret head’s out the house with her aunt carrying a jug of water. Brenda introduces her as her niece, and Margaret tells them that her friends call her Peggy so go ahead and call her that. Brenda offers them the basket of bread, and Margaret accidentally mentions taking one before letting out a squeak (she had a speaking quirk, something along the lines of letting out a ‘hm!’ Whenever she was flustered, it was funny).

She mentions Maybelle’s sickness, to which Mark blurts out they have a vet. Brenda excitedly tells them to bring their group. Margaret asks to help, and Brenda tells her to show Lee and Mark around the dairy, much to Margaret’s chagrin.

Andy asks Lee and Mark to help secure the perimeter, and warns Margaret to stay away from the fence before leaving to go fuel the generator.

Before Ben and Travis head back, Margaret tip-toes around Lee and stops in front of them. She’d ask their names and then tell them to follow her down the drive. Confused, Lee would state that Andy asked her to stay. To which Margaret would reply that Andy ain’t her dad, and wasn’t the boss of her.

He’d ask about the tour and she’d quickly point at the barn, the generator and the fence around them before stating that there was nothing interesting to do around there and how she never gets to walk in the woods anymore.

Mark tries to say he doesn’t want her to get in trouble but she shrugs him off and tells them to cover for her if they ask. She picked up and skipped down the driveway with Ben and Travis in tow.

We would then get a perspective of them going to the inn from Ben. He has an inner dialogue about the events so far when Margaret interrupts him and asks if he was local. Ben tells her he’s from Stone Mountain, and she asks if he’d visit Macon to which he’d say sometimes but it wasn’t very interesting. Margaret mentions the woods were her favorite part out there. She’d then mentioned how she used to come out and feed the raccoons and play the guitar. But after the walkers came, she wasn’t allowed to go back into the woods or play the guitar outside.

And that was as far as I wrote for Margaret St. John.

Now here’s Pidge St. John:

Pidge (short for something else) was the second version of Margaret. Here the introduction was the same, saved for the bubbly lines, which were replaced with more mellowed ones. Pidge wasn’t as happy and energetic as Margaret, but more of a chill teenager.

Pidge had headphones instead of a headscarf, because picking up where we left off with Margaret, since Pidge could no longer play guitar like she used to, she started listening to tapes on a walkman she claimed from the lost and found.

Ben asks if raccoons had rabies, to which Pidge shrugs and nonchalantly replies that they never bit her so she wouldn’t know. Ben would say she reminded him of Rachel, and mention that she’s obsessed with animals that can easily kill you.

They arrive at the inn and Travis happily presents the biscuits. Pidge introduces herself as everyone digs in and would invite them for dinner, where they’d accept.

Scrapped because oh my God.

I have written and rewritten roles and characters for this project for so many months. But this character by far has had the MOST amount of back-and-forth I’ve ever seen. Ever.

First and foremost, Margaret/Pidge isn’t like Alfred 1 & 2, or Debbie and Oliver. No, Margaret actually had a bigger role in DoTWD. What had happened was that her role kept changing because moments in the story down the line kept changing. And for her to keep that role I’d written for her, I’d have to find a way to keep her with the group until the end of Season 1.

Thing is, she didn’t have a role with them in this season. If anything Pidge would’ve been an extra body until Season 2.

I can’t say what her role was because it spoils things planned for Season 2, but it did involve her being an antagonist.

Traveling back to Margaret/Pidge in Season 1 however, both of their versions were different, but the better version in my opinion was definitely Margaret.

See, Margaret was an energetic and friendly girl. But true to her namesake, Peggy was a St. John to her soul.

In the barn, where Lee opens the kill room door, Margaret would come up behind him and shut it. Lee asks her what the hell was all that blood, and she (albeit annoyed) tells him that her cousins clean their kills since aunt Brenda doesn’t like the mess, and sometimes she has to clean the room. She mentions that she’d “Really not clean anything else for a while, so just leave it be.”

At dinner, when Lee reveals the truth. She feigns terrified about her family’s cannibalism. When her cousin Andy comes back from escorting the prisoners to the meat locker, she’s seen continuing her meal as if nothing happened. He says she got sloppy. It’s then when Margaret's facade would finally drop. She snaps back at him and says that at least she tried playing dumb, unlike his stupid ass. Andy replies that none of this would’ve happened had she just locked the door upstairs after she was done doping up Mark with morphine. She shrugs him off and says she’s still hungry and won’t let something stupid like this ruin her meal she worked hard on.

Brenda comes down and tells her (a bit nicer) that she should’ve locked the door. Margaret says “That Lee fella broke the lock to the back room before, how the hell was a lock gonna stop him anyways? If he wanted to find out, he was gonna find out. It’s done. I’m taking a walk.”

We continue the story from the motor inn group POV. But in this version, Lee would’ve killed the St. John’s (Danny and Andy).

Clementine would tell Lee to look behind him as an enraged Margaret comes charging at the man at full speed with that pitchfork from earlier. Lilly shoots the girl in the stomach and she falls. Margaret curses Lee, screaming that everything was his fault and if he’d just minded his own business none of this would’ve happened.

Lee wouldn't bring himself to kill a child, so as she demands Lee come back so she could kill him he walks away.

Pidge, however, wasn't an antagonist. At least not immediately. She had no clue about her family's cannibalism and would’ve escaped with the motor inn group. More on that as the chapters go on, because as I said, Margaret/Pidge was written out beyond what I write here but then we’d be getting into actual spoilers, and I don’t want to do that just yet. Besides, her role was just recycled anyway.

So when the time comes, I’ll make a B.T.Sing for JUST this character.

And here’s where you can read Margaret’s introduction: [🪓]

And here’s Pidge’s introduction: [🪓]

#twdg #dotwd au #fanfiction #the walking dead game #the walking dead telltale #telltale the walking dead #BTSing w/Juno

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olsenmyolsen · 1 year

Text

The Future

Part 22 of On The Inside With Elizabeth Olsen

Word Count: ~6.5K

masterlist

Liz POV

"Mommy! Mommy! Get up!"

I hear the quiet yells from my daughter Clementine begging for me to wake up before she does what she does every Saturday.

WHAM! She launches herself onto the bed. "Time to get up!" Every Saturday, I regret having this stinker. Just a little bit. I flutter my eyes open to see my little bed headed child staring at me. She has piercing green eyes like me but a ridged nose like her momma. Every time I look at her face, I smile.

I scrunch my nose up to my daughter. "Did you really just wake me up?" I ask as I pull her tiny body into mine. "Did you wake me up at-" I shift my eyes to my child's Avengers watch. It's her favorite thing that she owns, even though most of the characters on it never interacted with Wanda. "9:45! Are you crazy? Is my child crazy?" I ask as I begin to tickle her for waking me. "Yes, I'm crazy! I'm Crazy Clem, Mommy!" Clementine giggles at me.

"Crazy, just like your momma," I say as I relinquish the child from my grasp. Her giggle fit comes to a slow end as the frown on both of our faces returns. I sit up as Clementine brings herself closer to me.

"What do you say I get dressed, and then we can head out for breakfast. Does that sound like a good idea?" Clem nods her head as she lays down into my bed. I can see she's thinking and trying to form the words before she speaks, just like her momma.

"What is it, bug?"

"Is momma really gone?"

It's as if someone is playing a cruel joke on me as I slowly open my eyes and wake up from what started as a dream but deteriorated into a nightmare.

But that didn't feel like either of them. It felt like a vision of the future.

I don't even remember falling asleep.

As I rise from the bed and it's as if all the color from the world became a mix of dark grays again.

I look around the room, but she never came home.

Why would she after what I did?

"Liz?" Y/N asks, more concerned.

"Sorry, I'm catching up on a lot. The HBO show. Some WandaVision stuff. My team is asking me to do Hot Ones next month. Sorry. Let me do this stuff, and then I'm all yours!"

At least, that's how it started.

But now my team is reaching out with a whole bunch of shit about Y/N.

She's been doxed.

Someone put most, if not all, of her information on the internet.

Videos of her at work.

Pictures of her and I are tagged in almost everything.

"Is there anything I can help with?" I hear her ask, unaware of what I'm looking at.

"Not at the moment. But thank you." I respond in an almost robot-like fashion. I don't know what's happening, but it terrifies me.

I was going to have us go public within the coming months. I reached out to Robbie and his team last night. On Monday, we were going to announce our separation. But now stories are already running about Y/N and I. I'm being called a cheater, and Y/N is being labeled a multitude of things.

Nobody. Wannabe. Slut.

This is what is being pushed on gossip sites, and it's spreading like wildfire. I feel my body start to turn cold as thoughts of what next steps and actions to take start rushing in.

One thought comes to mind, and it breaks my heart.

Before I can even look at Y/N, my phone starts buzzing in my hand. It's Marla.

I answer the phone.

"How bad is it really?" I ask before Marla can fire off a hello.

"It's not looking good."

I let out a frustrated sigh and look out the window.

"However, we can get Robbie and his team to make a statement regarding your relationship."

"Okay. How soon?"

"Within the hour, but there is still the matter of Y/N's safety-"

The matter of her safety... she's unsafe because of me... I still listen to Marla go on to say that whoever doxxed Y/N had to be close to her. But it's clear this was a targeted attack, maybe due to her being in a relationship with a high-profile person. Me. Marla isn't blaming me, but everyone else will. I know it. Marla also mentioned that a legal team represented here in NY has reached out already. How they knew so quick, I'm not sure.

Slowly the phone call starts to become drowned out as one thing keeps running through my mind.

If Y/N and I were never together, this wouldn't be happening.

"Liz?" Y/N calls out to me.

I turn to my Coffee Girl, and I see her eyes are laced with fear. I bite my bottom lip in a last-ditch effort to stop the tears from falling. I don't even realize it, but I end my phone call.

"Lizard, please, what's going on?" I swallow and put my head into my hands. I'm trying not to cry as flashes of my Y/N fly through my mind. Y/N with Rose. Her taking her mom and I around the city. "I'm sorry," I mumble to myself. A flash of Y/N and I over FaceTime. Her making lunch at my apartment. "I'm sorry." Our first date. When I saw her at the park. "I'm sorry."

The coffee shop I should've never entered.

The day I met her.

She was annoyed with my giant apology order, but her eyes looked into me. I was stunned by her beauty. Her galaxy eyes pulling me. Her freckles that made her face glow. Her ridged nose that is imperfectly perfect.

I feel Y/N lean into me. When did she get into the middle seat?

I lift my head to her. She's on the verge of breaking. I gently place my shaky hands into hers.

"Liz?"

My phone interrupts the uneasy air, but it doesn't stop. The phone keeps ringing.

The more it rings, the more I second-guess every decision I've made with Y/N. Was it right? Should I have done more?

I look at Y/N, and the look I'm receiving back grows in worry.

I close my eyes feeling a single tear roll down my cheek.

"I- I'm... we've been outed..."

"Oka-"

"They-"

I stop myself.

I know what I must do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it.

I didn't do it with Robbie. I ran like a fucking coward. But now? I can't. I couldn't do that to her.

I slowly open my eyes to see Y/N's fucking gorgeous eyes.

"We can't be together."

When the end of the sentence falls from my mouth, I feel my body slow down. I turn my head back towards the window while I pull my hands out from hers.

Oh, God.

No. This can't be right.

I silently let the tears fall from me, and aside from the hum of the car, there is no other noise present. It's like Y/N vanished.

With each block we pass, my anger grows.

The tears falling from my face are slowly morphing into liquid-filled hate.

Why the fuck would someone do this? What do they gain? The first person since Robbie, and this is what happens??

I whip my head around, yelling these thoughts to Y/N. Not at her but to her. I want her to hear my anger. I want her to listen to these reasons. It's not too long before my rambling goes on.

"Stop the car."

What?

I look at Y/N's face. She looks like she's in shock. I turn my head confused.

"Stop the car!" Y/N yells out at Mr. Bronson. I turn to see him gesture to the road ahead of us. Traffic.

I'm mentally kicking myself. I didn't mean to start dumping all of this onto her.

I try to calm the pissed-off nerves in my body. I close my eyes and take a deep breath before I turn myself to my Y/N. I calmly place my hands on her cheeks, but to my surprise, Y/N reacts and jumps away at the contact.

What have I done to her?

I watch her close her eyes as she leans herself back against the car door. I want to do everything in my power to hold her close and not let her go.

But I can't do that. I have to lose her...

"STOP THE FUCKING CAR!"

I cover my mouth in shock. The tone and urgency was scary. I glance to Mr. Bronson, who finds a place to pull off. The second the wheels stop, Y/N looks at me and dashes out her car door, slamming it behind her. I follow her as she walks around the car before stopping to hunch over the sidewalk.

"Oh my Goodness," I whisper as I throw myself out of the car running to my puking girlfriend(?)

"Y/N!" Oh my god, are you okay? What's wrong?" I rest my right hand on her back and pull myself closer to her. She wipes her chin and turns her eyes to meet my own.

I don't think she realizes herself becoming off-center as her body begins to fall backwards. I latch onto her and hold her body up.

"Why don't you tell me what's wrong?" I look at her red puffy eyes. They're breaking my heart even more than I already did myself. "Y/N... I-" "You what? You don't want to be with me anymore. I get it. The love was fake. This was a phase. I knew it was too good to be true. The real world came knocking at the front door, and you left out the back. Just like I was afraid of... I should've listened to my stupid thoughts when it came to us. I didn't with Naomi, and look at what happened..."

After saying that, Y/N doesn't stop.

She's wrong. She doesn't know what's she talking about.

Right?

I'm not even listening to her words. Instead, I watch her face crumble and break as the tears don't stop.

The sun has now reached high noon, and a small crowd has gathered around us.

I try multiple times to interject, but to no avail. I dart my eyes at the people around us, and it causes more pain. No one should be watching this moment.

"Y/N, stop!" I finally manage to yell out. "Y/N, I didn't mean it like that!"

"Then how did you mean in it?"

"How about you let me talk, and you'll find out?!"

Fuck.

My tone was all wrong.

I look at Y/N as she stares back at me.

I regret everything now.

I take a step forward, but she turns her body away, causing me to stop. I watch as she wipes her tears away before she runs her hand through her hair.

The crowd that gathered around appears to be bored with how our lives are toppling down that they walk away.

We're only a few feet apart, but it might as well feel like I'm across the world. I start to fidget with my hands; it's subconscious at first, but I stop once I realize, just as Y/N steps forward and pulls me into a hug.

The floodgate holding my remaining emotions collapses as I feel her body press into mine. At that point, I can't stop the tears from flying down my cheek, landing on her shoulders.

I open my mouth several times, but nothing makes sense. I feel Y/N tightly wrap herself around my body. I'm sure to hold me up and for any amount of comfort.

Her lips place gently kisses on my forehead.

Kisses I don't deserve strung along with words I should be saying. Not her.

"I'm sorry."

This causes my breakdown only to escalate.

I keep hold of Y/N, afraid that the moment she's out of my touch is the moment that she'll listen to my words. That's the moment we won't be together. So I hold her. I keep our touch. I keep it like that until I'm returned to the backseat of the car. A water bottle lands in my lap, and then she starts to pull away.

So I grab hold of her and plead for her not to leave.

"Please, I'm sorry, Y/N. Let me explain." Is being said again and again amongst other phrases of apologies. I'm not even looking into her eyes but instead at her right hand that's in my grasp. I'm memorizing all its small details.

It's only when I feel her left hand touch my chin that I look up into her eyes. Her puffy red soft eyes. Eyes that used to be filled with love and admiration.

In a blink, I felt her lips kiss my head one final time and her hand slip from my own.

"No." I weakly say to the air in the car.

My eyes find themselves on Y/N as she walks to the front of the car. Mr. Bronson rolls down the window for her and says, "She'll be safe."

Is he talking about me? I watch Y/N nod at his words before the doors lock around me.

I have to get out. I have to yell to her. Let her know how sorry I am.

As the window rolls up, the impact of this morning comes crashing onto me. This is it. This is the end of her and I.

This is for her, and it kills me.

I look up to see the color drained from her eyes. I don't think she realized it, but she gave me a slight smile, almost of reassurance. I go to call out, but the window closes on me.

In an instant, Mr. Bronson pulls the car away from the last person I loved.

Numb.

That's what I felt the whole ride back to my apartment. That's all I still feel.

I didn't look up once the whole ride. I didn't bother checking my phone anymore, either.

I'm now standing outside my apartment door. I don't know how long I've been standing here, but my legs are starting to hurt. Hell, I don't even remember bringing up all this shit with me. My water, phone, and tote.

Wait.

Fuck.

A tote. Full of Y/N's stuff...

I rest my forehead against my apartment door. I don't think I have any more tears to shed, so instead, I whimper against the cold door. The image of Y/N looking at me in the backseat not leaving my head. Each time I close my eyes, I see her hurting.

I swallow whatever I have left in my mouth and pull myself up and away from the door. I pull my phone out, looking at the million notifications to see that more time has passed than I thought.

A part of me knows I should go inside my apartment, call my team, have them go over everything with me. Get myself cleaned up and never think about Y/N again.

But that's wrong. I was wrong.

What was I thinking?

Opting for a cab instead of my driver was new. The truth is I didn't want to see Mr. Bronson after everything he witnessed this morning. I'm going to have to remind myself to give him a big bonus when the time comes.

Over the course of the ride, I've tried texting and calling Y/N multiple times to no answer. My team has tried reaching out to me as well, but deep down, Rhonda knows I will be out of commission today.

It's almost two now, and after a silent cab ride, I'm in front of Y/N's building. No, I don't expect her to be there when I build up the courage to head up, but I'm still scared.

With Y/N's keys in my hand, I slide the key into the lock and turn it slowly until I hear the door click. I take the key out and push the door open, allowing myself to enter.

I first notice how all the curtains are drawn back, allowing light in. I don't think we left it like that.

I go to call out, but another voice stops me.

"Y/N?"

It's a familiar voice coming from the bedroom. I shut the front door behind me.

"Y/N?"

I hear the voice begin to walk out from the back, and my heart stops when I see who it is.

She's dressed down in a casual fit. Black sweats and a black graphic tee to match. She'd never be caught wearing this out. So my guess is she saw the news and came straight here.

Here, huh?

"Mary-Kate, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, Lizzie? Where's Y/N?" My older sister rebuttals. I ignore the soft tone she just used.

MK takes a step forward. I try to keep my face strong, but she looks at me, and for a second, I see the disappointment on my sister's face. She's connecting the dots.

I turn away from MK and start dumping Y/N's stuff on her small dining room table. I can feel MK's eyes on me as I try to focus.

"Lizzie?"

"What?" I bite back as I feel her presence getting closer to me.

"What happened?"

I let the tote fall from my hand as I close my eyes and turn around. I open them to see MK's face. She was watching me with such intensity. It's the same look she has when I visit her and Ash at The Row. But instead of fabrics and materials to look over, it's me—her little sister.

MK moves forward and wraps her arms wound me. Like me, MK needs physical touch sometimes. It's our love language. So this tiny gesture means more. I'm led to the couch with help from MK before she sits down next to me.

I haven't broken down yet- well, since earlier but MK sees my face. She sees how exhausting it is. She knows I've cried off and on since it happened. So before I open my mouth, MK stops me.

"Are you okay?"

I shake my head no.

"Lizzie, I-"

"We're done."

MK looks at me, slightly confused, so with a clear throat, I give her more.

"It's all my fault."

"Lizzie, what do you mean?"

I turn to my sister, slightly frustrated. With her, but mainly at the guy who thought it was cool enough to do this to Y/N. Through the texts and calls I've been dodging, I saw that the legal team that reached out earlier found out who the guy was and is working with my team and the FBI.

"MK. People know more about her than ever before, and it's all because of me. All because she was dating Elizabeth Olsen. I couldn't protect her. I can't have her be with me."

I start to feel my cheeks burning up.

MK nods along but not knowing what to say. I look into her eyes, which have now become slightly glossed over. "Where is Y/N?"

"I-I don't know..."

MK lets out a frustrated sigh before turning away from me.

"You're gonna need to tell me more."

"I broke up with her-" MK looks a little pissed off at me. "You left her." I furrow my eyebrows. "I didn't leave her. She put me in the car and-" "Why?"

"Why what?" I once again can feel my annoyance working up. There's a certain kind that only siblings can get out of you.

"Why did you break up with her?" I sigh and put my head in my hands before scoffing as I face MK. "Have you not been listening to me? Hell, I'm sure you saw the news! That's why you're here, isn't it? To be here for her?!"

MK shakes her head at me. "All I hear is you making excuses, Lizzie." MK gets up and starts walking to the kitchen. I probably shouldn't, but I get up and follow her, continuing our spat.

"What's my excuse then?" MK closes the fridge she just opened and turns to me.

"Your excuse is that you think you're protecting her, but you're not! What you think breaking up with the person you love is going to make everything easier suddenly and everyone forget? You're smarter than that, Lizzie."

I go to open my mouth, but MK steps closer stopping me as she keeps going.

"So you're using those reasons as an excuse just to get out of a good relationship again."

Everything she says hurts me in ways I haven't thought about in a long time.

"What the fuck do you mean 'again'?" I watch my older sister roll her eyes. "First, Robbie. Now Y/N." She states as she walks past me thinking she's won.

"Pretty convenient you left out Boyd, huh." I spit out as I turn my body to see her stop in the middle of the apartment.

"You're not serious right now." She lifts her left hand with her index finger extended. I step out from the kitchen to get closer to her.

"No, I am. Boyd and I were doing well until Mary-Kate Olsen came along."

"You were too good for Boyd. He cheated on you. All I did was simply deliver the news. I never slept with Boyd, Lizzie. How many times do I have to convince you of that." Her voice goes wary at the end. Shit, I knew this would hit a nerve. But it's too late.

"Isn't that why you're here?"

MK lifts her eyes to meet mine.

"Jesus, Lizzie." MK scoffs. "No. I came here hoping to see a friend. Someone that I actually love and care about instead of pretending to do those things."

"I never pretended!" I yell before MK fires back, "Then where the fuck is she!" MK runs a hand through her hair before walking away towards the window.

She's right. I still have no idea where she is.

"No one's heard from her." I hear MK's broken voice. She turns her eyes to me as she leans against the wall near the window.

"Did you even think about how she feels?"

"I didn't have time." I close my eyes and sigh, hearing how tag sounds, but surprisingly, Mary-Kate doesn't stop me. I open my eyes to see her waiting for me to continue. Her stance has gotten softer, and my sister is coming back.

"I mean.. it all happened so fast. One minute we were having the morning of our lives, and the next, it was like I was being torn apart." MK brings herself off the wall as she pays close attention. "I hadn't looked at my phone all morning except for one time, so we had some time to kill as we were on the way to my place. I start checking messages and emails from my team about some upcoming interviews and projects. But in an instant, it changed. All of this shit started coming out about Y/N. Parts of her phone number, videos, and pics of her from work. Pics of us together."

I move myself to the couch as my mind relives the events of this morning.

"I got a phone call from Marla." MK has now sat down next to me.

"She told me that they could have Robbie and his team put out a statement saying how we haven't been together in over a month but that there was still the matter of Y/N's safety..." I calm my breathing before continuing. "I still listened to Marla go on to say that whoever doxxed Y/N had to be close to her. I now have a legal team working on the case. They know who did it."

MK nods at me. "At a certain point, I couldn't focus on the call. All I could think about was that none of this would have happened if Y/N and I weren't together. My mind was spiraling, but I got snapped out of it when Y/N called my name." I can feel my eyes start to water as I turn to MK, but my mind sees Y/N in the backseat of the car.

"She looked so scared." I feel my body start to give out, so thankfully, my sister is here to put her arms around me.

"I tried to explain it to her, but it happened quickly. We went from the car to the street to us crying together, and then I was in the car by myself as it was pulling away from her." I give my best summary of the situation, knowing she'll fill in the blanks. "I regret it," I mumble.

"Lizzie," MK says as she moves away from me. "I understand that what you think you did was right at the time. But since you couldn't explain it to her, she must've felt so blindsided and hurt. And I know you're hurting too.. but what now? What's your next step?"

I shrug and let my body fall into the couch.

"I knew she wasn't going to be here, but a small part of me hoped," I say without looking at MK. "Me too."

With the awkward air clouding us, MK decided to get some tea going for us while we waited for any news.

By the time MK places our teas on the coffee table, her phone goes off. I lean up on the couch as MK looks at the caller ID.

"Ash." She says as the phone still rings. "Do you want to..?" I shake my head no as MK nods and takes the phone to Y/N's bedroom to answer the call.

I hear a bit of the conversation, and I'm pretty sure I heard MK cry, reminding me that I need to apologize for the awful things I said. But that's for later. Right now, I'm texting Y/N and calling everyone I think could help.

I give the majority of them a shorthand version of today's events and just hope that they can help.

It's after 3 now, and of course, Max doesn't answer me back. No surprise. I texted Chris E hoping he could put some of that Cap charm to good use. I even have Marla try and reach out.

I'm about to scroll through to see what the world thinks of me at the moment when my phone starts ringing. I immediately hit the green button without thinking about who it is.

"Lizzie! Oh my God. Are you two okay?"

I lift my phone to see who I'm talking to: Scarlett🕷️

I open my mouth to say yes, but that's a lie. Instead, I sigh. Scarlett must've heard because before I speak, she does. "Where are you?"

"Y/N's."

"Okay, good. Yeah, going back to your place might not be a good idea. I bet the paparazzi are just waiting. If you two need a place to stay, you know you're always more than welcome-"

"Scarlett." I cut her off. "I ended it with Y/N."

For a second, it felt like Scarlett hung up. There was no noise coming from her end until I heard a very calm Scarlett. "Honey, could you watch Rose for a minute? I'll be right back."

Oh no. I knew what was coming. Scarlett's angered breaths came through the phone before I heard a door close.

"Elizabeth Olsen, what the fuck are you talking about?"

This is just the start.

"What do you mean you ended things? Before or after the news broke?!"

"After bu-"

"LIZZIE!" I pull the phone slightly away from my ear. "You are so lucky I'm pregnant right now!"

"But Scarlett-"

"Where is she?!" My eyes go wide as Scarlett just did her best Bat-Growl. "I- I don't know..."

I hear Scar let out a shaky breath like I've done all day.

"Do you think she's safe?"

"I can only hope.. she is not answering anyone's messages or returning anyone's calls."

"I can try my best, but Lizzie, why?"

"Did you not see my messages?"

"No, I just got back from my spa day. I only saw the news of Y/N's leak. One sec."

I hear Scarlett start shuffling her phone around. I don't know if Scarlett forgot I could hear her, but I hear a lot of tsks and huffs. After what feels like forever, I hear The Black Widow breathe again.

"Oh, Liz..."

"I know. I keep trying, but I get nothing."

"Does she know the real reason-" "I tried. But no."

"Maybe just give her space and-"

"I'm not leaving her, Scar."

Even though I literally did.

"I didn't say that. Just give her some space to try and process it all. It would be best if you had it too. Who knows, maybe she'll figure out your true intentions and meet you halfway. But for now, ease off and focus on the tasks that you have now. Are you seeking legal action?"

Scarlett's right. Man, I'm not too fond of it when she's right.

"Yeah, we had some firm reach the second the news broke. Marla and Rhonda are dealing with it. I also have them try and reach out to Y/N since she'll more than likely have to appear in court, but I don't know..."

Scarlett doesn't immediately pipe up, so I guess she's taking all of it in.

"Lizzie, can I ask you something?"

"Okay," I say with an unsure tone.

"If Y/N was right before you, would you fight for her or let her go?"

"If I'm being honest with you, Scar, I regret telling her we couldn't be together. But at the same time, none of this would've happened if she wasn't with me. I would want to fight for her, but I don't know who that would end up hurting the most.."

I swallow another pool of guilt.

"Damn. Okay. Way not to answer my question, but I understand. Your mind is probably spinning, thinking one thing is better than the next."

I nod to her words. She knows me so well.

I hear Scarlett turn away from the phone. I'm guessing her little spawn is missing her mom.

"Well, as I said, focus on you right now. While I am very upset with you for how it all happened, I know you meant well, Lizzie. I love you. The offer still stands if you need a place to crash."

For the first time in a long line of hours, I smile.

"Thank you, Scarlett. I love you too. Please give my Rosie a big hug for me." Scarlett chuckles at that.

"Oh, and Lizzie. Maybe work on an apology."

"My minds been reeling already thinking of the million things I'd want to say."

"Bye, Lizzie!"

"Bye, Scarlett."

I end the call and drop the phone onto my lap. I close my eyes and let out a large breath I was holding in. I run my hands over my exhausted face and try to listen to Scarlett's words about focusing on the next thing.

"Well-" I jump at the sudden words coming from my sister. "Ash ain't exactly on team Lizzie."

I shut my eyes to her words. "There's no teams."

"I know.. I just.." I open one of my eyes to her and wait.

"Never mind." MK now is standing at the entryway to the living room awkwardly, even though it's neither of our place. I watch my sister's fingers start picking at her own hands.

"Did you quit?" I raise an eyebrow.

MK stops picking now that she knows I noticed.

"Trying to." I lift my body from the couch as we're having a normal conversation for the first time today. "Since when?"

"It'll be a month tomorrow. If I don't break by then." If I was MK, I would've.

I move off of the couch and bring myself to my sister to wrap her into a hug. "I'm proud of you," I say when her ear lines up to me. MK has always struggled with addiction. Ash for a while, too, but MK was the twin that never could stop. It took a toll on her and many relationships, but the fact that she's gone this long without killing her lungs with another puff means more.

But we both know this hug between us isn't just about that.

"I'm sorry."

"Me too."

We end up squeezing each other for longer, and by the time we're done, I see that both our eyes have become a little glossy.

"Lizzie, I don't want to worsen your day, but you smell. You need a shower bad."

I laugh as I wipe my eyes free from emotions.

"How about you hop into the shower, and I can order us something? We both need food in our stomachs."

MKs, right I haven't eaten since this morning, and it's now late afternoon. I wonder if Y/N's eaten- "Already, what do you want?" MK pulls me from my depressing thoughts as she holds out numerous take-out menus.

I skim over the options before I land on an Italian place. "You would," MK says as she pulls her phone out to dial them. "Usual?" She looks back at me as I nod.

While Mary-Kate orders, I head into the bedroom and start grabbing a comfortable pair of clothes to wear post-shower. I smile to myself when I find Y/N's Elizabeth Olsen collage shirt on the floor. I think about it before deciding that this will be my fit for tonight.

Before my body pulls me to the bathroom to shower, I quickly stop at Y/N's desk. On top, I see her journals. I grab the 2019 one that she let me read the day I met her mom. The first day we said 'I love you' in person. I flip through the pages before finding the same song that caught my eye previously.

All Eyes On Me

Are you feeling nervous?

It's just begun Don't overthink this Look in my eye

Come on in, the water's fine

We're goin' to go where everybody knows Everybody knows, everybody, We're goin' to go where everybody knows Everybody knows

Get your fuckin' hands up

All eyes on me, all eyes on me

Y/N mentioned how this one is still a work in progress. Years long by now. I told her it could be updated, but I doubt that's happening anytime soon.

I flip through some more. With each word I read, I get sad at the thought of Y/N writing this based on what's happening in her life, but at the same time, it's like she's telling us that it's okay. That we can laugh. Strange, I know.

After wasting who knows how long, I finally managed to move my feet to the shower.

"Thank you once again for getting dinner," I say as I swallow my last bit of pasta. "It's no worries." MK shrugs it off.

Once we're both satisfied enough, I bring our dishes to the kitchen and start to get to work while MK checks her phone, hoping to see anything new. With a simple shake of the head, I know my answer. I'm not shocked, but it sucks. I ask her to check my phone, and I haven't received anything from Y/N either. I get messages from just about everyone else on the planet telling me they reach out to Y/N but have come up empty-handed.

As I finish up the dishes, I watch MK go into Y/N's room and come back with two jackets. Wait..

"Going somewhere?" I ask, drying the final glass.

"We are." I dry my hands and join MK in the living room.

"Where?" MK slips on her coat and just looks at me. "Remember your freshman year at NYU?" I smile as I think back. "Yeah."

"Then let's go," MK says as I follow behind her as we walk out. I made sure to grab Y/N's keys and lock up.

I open the door to the roof as the nighttime early summer air breezes past me.

I make my way toward the middle of the roof and stand there looking out in all directions before finally looking up at the sky.

MK walks up next to me and comforts me. At the same time, I wrap an arm around her to comfort my older sister.

We stand there for a couple of minutes, letting the city speak for us.

"The views are definitely different," I say, earning a soft laugh from MK. "Yeah, it is. But you're not spending a shit load on getting it."

I nod. "True."

I released myself from MK and take a seat on a smaller, higher rooftop before closing my eyes and letting my back lay against the cool rooftop.

When my eyes open, I'm in awe at the small number of stars I can see. A tiny part of me is wondering if Y/N is doing the same.

I wonder how she feels. Is it regret for meeting me? Guilt? Pain? Love?

"What did Scarlett say earlier?"

Of course, she heard.

"Just that I should give her some space and work up an apology."

"Do you disagree?" I shake my head no. "But I want to let her know what I really mean and want."

"In time, Lizzie."

We sit in silence for what feels like an hour but honestly was probably fifteen minutes.

"Ready?" I tilt my head to see MK standing to my left, ready to go.

I lightly nod and join MK near the roof access door.

I'd love to say that because of how exhausted I am, my mind would be the same, but it's still replaying the day's events and making me feel worse with each hour that passes.

I'm reasonably certain MK was about to ask to stay the night, but after a movie that neither of us paid attention to, she decided against it.

MK and I told each other that the second we heard anything from Y/N, we would let the other person know; however, I have a sneaky suspicion that MK already heard back.

And that hurts.

I begin locking up Y/N's place. Windows. Check. Doors Check. Making sure the oven is off even though I didn't touch it. Check.

With my mind still not shutting off, I choose to find something to occupy my time. I debate whether to text Y/N about a dozen times but untimely choose against it. So without realizing it, I once again find myself in front of Y/N's desk. However, I don't have the 2019 journal in my hand. I found an empty one.

I have no one else on my mind except the last person I loved. So I decided to do what she's done many times over. I begin writing. Lyrics? Letter? A poem or a note, I don't know.

I hope she's safe. I hope she comes back.

I want to see her, even if it's one last time.

Part 23

A/N

So here's what was going on with Liz!

22 notes · View notes

the-delta-42 · 2 months

Text

The Walking Dead Game What Ifs: What if The Stranger and his family joined the Motel Group?

[First] [Previous] [Next]

Provisions

What if The Stranger and his family joined the Motel Group?

Adam sat in the back of his dad’s car, Lizzie nervously watching as their parents argued.

“We’re doing fine on our own.” Argued their dad, Mitch.

“But for how much longer?” Demanded their mother, Tess, “We had a near miss with Adam going missing, I swear, it’s as if you’re trying to get us killed!”

“I’m trying to keep us alive!” Retorted Mitch, as a stick broke behind him. Whirling around, the parents found themselves staring at a group of people.

“Hey.” Waved a black man, looking sick and tired.

“Hello.” Greeted Mitch, glancing around the group, counting three women, two men, a teenager and two children, “Can I help you?”

“We’re, er,” the man looked around, “on our way back to our place.”

“You’ve got a place?” Asked Tess, throwing a quick glance at her husband, “We’ve been looking for a place to settle down.”

“Absolutely not.” Snapped a woman with long hair, disgust on her face, “We don’t have enough for ourselves, let alone you.”

“We’ve got supplies.” Said Tess, nervously looking at the woman, “And, Mitch is an experienced hunter.”

“I’m convinced.” Said the other man, white with a moustache.

The woman with long hair gave him a disgusted look.

“Sorry, if we seem on edge.” Apologised the first man, “I’m Lee, she’s Lilly,” her pointed at the disgusted looking woman, “Carley,” he pointed at a woman with a short bob, “Kenny,” the other man, “his wife, Katjaa,” a woman with dark blonde hair gave them a small wave, “their son, Du- Kenny Jr, we just call him Duck,” a boy around ten, who waved and smiled brightly, “Ben,” the teenager, “and, Clementine.” A girl with a baseball cap, who waved shyly.

“I’m Tess,” Tess gestured at Mitch, “My husband, Mitch, and our two kids, Adam and Elizabeth, are in the car.”

Lee gave them a nod, “Sorry, for intruding, we’ve just left a bunch of cannibals.”

Tess and Mitch glanced at each other, “R-really?”

“Yeah, we lost a couple of our people.” Grimaced Lee, “We left ‘em for the Walkers.”

Tess gave a hesitant nod, before noticing Kenny was bleeding, “You’re hurt.”

“Yeah,” Kenny glanced down, “one of the fuckers shot me.”

“Kenny!” Reprimanded Katjaa, frowning at him.

“Sorry.”

“If we get back to your place,” Tess looked around them, “I could take a look at it, I’m a doctor.”

“That could help us.” Carley murmured to Lee, “and it might help Clem and Duck to have some kids their own age around.”

Lee nodded, glancing at Mitch, before glancing at Clementine, “I don’t see a problem.”

“You wouldn’t.” Muttered Lilly, scowling.

“Ben, why don’t you run ahead and open the gates for them?” Suggested Lee, looking at Ben.

“I’ll go with him.” Said Carley, grabbing Ben’s shoulder and vanished into the night.

“I’ll drive ahead,” Sighed Mitch, before glancing at Clementine and Duck, “I can take them with me, if you’d like.”

Kenny and Lee glanced at each other, before the former nodded, “It’ll be safer than walking through the dark.”

Lee ushered the kids into the station wagon, with Clementine noticing that they had a radio. They watched the car drive off, leaving Tess with Lee, Kenny, Katjaa and Lilly.

“What happened at the cannibals?” Asked Tess, as they started walking.

“They fed some of us one guys legs.” Answered Lee, his mind going back to the meat locker, “Then, another one had a heart attack while we were in the meat locker.”

Tess thought she heard Lilly scoff, but ignored her, “They had a heart condition?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m surprised he survived this long.” Remarked Tess, “I had a patient with a heart condition, ignored everything I suggested to help alleviate it, so I had to prescribe him nitro-glycerin tablets. Ooh, you should’ve seen the shade of red his face went.”

“I doubt he had his head crushed.” Spat Lilly, glaring at Lee and Kenny.

“We had to stop him from turning.” Retorted Kenny, sounding tired, “How long would you have let it go on before putting him down?”

“He could’ve been saved.” Snarled Lilly, getting a sigh from Lee.

“Lilly, he turned.” Lee looked back at her, “I checked his eyes.”

Lilly trembled, before looking down. The group continued the rest of their journey in silence, with Katjaa glancing at Kenny.

Lee frowned, Mitch had taken Clementine’s radio, saying something about fixing it. Checking the rooms, he found Mitch frowning as he looked at the radio.

“You alright?” Mitch looked up at the sound of Lee’s voice.

“I’ve checked the insides of it, the batteries and the antenna,” Said Mitch, “I know this model, I’ve fixed it hundreds of times, and do you think I can get it to work?”

“Clem mentioned dropping while we were escaping the drug store.” Said Lee, making Mitch freeze.

“It was dropped?” Asked Mitch, getting up.

“Yeah, she said she dropped it.” Answered Lee, as Mitch suddenly struck it against the wall. Lee watched Mitch press the 'on' button, hearing the telltale click of it activating.

“Sorry, did you need something?” Asked Mitch, looking at Lee.

“Um, yeah,” Lee rubbed the back of his neck, “er, before all this went down, I, er, I was…”

“A convicted murderer?” Asked Mitch, “We know. Personally, I’m certain you would’ve been acquitted if it went to trial.”

“Doesn’t change the fact I kill him.” Answered Lee, “It’s just, with how things have been going, I thought people should know.”

Mitch nodded, “Have you told anyone else?”

“Most of the group, excluding Lilly and the kids,” Answered Lee, “Lilly probably already knows, and I told Clem, because she was with me when Carley confronted me about it, back when all this started.”

Mitch nodded, “I’ve heard Kenny talking about moving on. I’ve planned on going to Savannah, see if I could locate a boat.” Mitch gave Lee a piercing look, “Clementine mentioned that her parents were in Savannah.”

“Yeah.” Sighed Lee, knowing where Mitch was going.

“And, since you’ve not mentioned them,” Continued Mitch, “you know something Clementine doesn’t.”

Lee sighed, “The day I met her, the police car I was in crashed, I climbed her house’s fence to get away from some Walkers. I let myself into the house, after yelling that I was coming in, there were messages on the answering machine. Her mom said that her dad had been bit.”

“So, it’s safe to assume that she was bitten not long after.” Finished Mitch, crossing his arms, “Why haven’t you told her?”

“I don’t want to break the hope she has.” Shrugged Lee, looking lost.

“Lee,” Sighed Mitch, “sometimes it’s better to break someone’s hope, than for it to be broken and them to find out you knew the entire time.”

Lee sighed, running a hand down his face, “I’ll… I’ll talk to her about it.”

Mitch nodded, “I’m going to take some of the supplies, head to Savannah, and case the place. If Clementine’s parents are alive, I’ll find them and bring them here.” He looked at Lee, “If anything happens in the meantime, head there.”

Lee nodded, going back out to the others. A couple of hours later, after wishing him luck, the group watched Mitch drive away.

“I need you two to go on a supply run.” Said Lilly, getting Lee and Kenny’s attention.

The two men shared a glance, before nodding.

“Well, things went to shit real fast.” Said Lizzie, looking up at the adults.

“Thank god we had the foresight to stick the supplies in the RV.” said Kenny, as Tess checked everyone over.

“Lizzie,” Tess looked at her daughter, “why don’t you play with the others?”

Lizzie scowled, but stomped over to Duck, Clementine and Adam.

“Carley,” Tess got the other woman’s attention, “I need you to check Katjaa’s shoulder, it’s bleeding a bit too much for my liking.”

Glancing around, Tess sighed, “Ben, you need to apply more pressure, I don’t want Lee to bleed out because you were squeamish.”

Lee groaned as Ben pressed the balled-up fabric against his shoulder, “Of all the places to get shot, it had to be my good arm.”

“I’m more concerned about the bullet still being in there, Lilly, don’t stand, you’ve got a concussion,” Tess looked at the front, “Carley, how’s Katjaa’s shoulder?”

Carley was silent, before looking at Kenny. The man looked over and gawked, “Son of a bitch!”

The RV swerved, hitting a Walker, “Shit!”

“What is it?” Asked Lilly, as Tess made her way towards Katjaa.

“Oh, fuck.” Tess softly swore, seeing the bite on Katjaa’s shoulder, “Katjaa’s been bitten.”

The RV was silent, getting a sigh from Lilly, “So, what are we gonna do?” Part of Lilly wanted to find out who made the deal with the Bandits, but Tess had taken control as the doctor of the group.

Tess was silent, making Lee pipe up, “We’re gonna want to deal with that Walker Kenny hit.” The man groaned, “We can decide from there.”

“What if she turns?” Asked Lilly, “We all heard what Ben said, the bite kills, and we turn anyway.”

“I hate to say it,” Carley looked at Kenny, “but, it might help us if we know how long it actually takes.”

Kenny didn’t say a word, getting out of the RV and checking on the Walker. Lee groaned, getting up, taking the fabric from Ben and stumbled up to Carley, “Kenny!”

“Lizzie,” Tess looked at her daughter, “take the others to the end of the RV.”

Lizzie looked up at her, before doing as she was told. The group heard Kenny kill the Walker, before he re-entered the RV. The man growled, before hitting the steering wheel.

“What do we do?” Asked Lee, looking between the others.

“We’ve got a couple of guns.” Said Lilly, propping herself up, “So, we can put her down when she turns.”

Kenny remained silent.

“How do we tell the kids?” Asked Carley, glancing at the back, “I mean, none of them were presence when we lost Mark and Larry.”

“Clementine was.” Muttered Lilly, giving Lee a glare.

“He’s already started turning.” Sighed Lee, giving Lilly a tried look, “Kenny, we need your input with this.”

Kenny, again, remained silent.

“Kenny, why don’t you let Lilly or Lee take over driving?” Asked Ben, getting a glare from Tess, “What?”

“Lee’s got a fucked-up arm and Lilly’s got a concussion.” Said Tess, glaring at Ben.

“…sorry.” Muttered Ben, before Tess told Lee and Lilly to go and sit back down. Lee was vaguely aware of himself falling asleep, as Tess and Carley discussing their options at Kenny.

Lee groaned as the light hit him.

“Oh, you’re alive.” Said Lilly, getting a dull glare from Lee.

“Has anything happened?” Asked Lee, standing up.

“Well,” Lilly followed him, “Kenny’s refusing to talk about Katjaa, the kids don’t know what’s going on, Ben’s being useless, Carley’s keeping watch for Walkers and Tess is watching Katjaa. And, no, she hasn’t turned yet.”

Lee nodded, before shakily getting off the RV and stopping at the sight of the train.

“And there’s a train blocking the road.”

Lee sighed, before looking around, “Where are the kids?”

“Over there.” Lilly pointed at a tree, “Adam said he needed to shit.”

“His words or yours?”

“His.”

Lee nodded, walking towards the train, frowning as he spotted Ben crouching by the driver’s cabin, “You alright up there, Ben?”

“Not so loud!” Whispered Ben, “I think there’s a walker in there.”

Lee sighed, he had a feeling he was going to be sighing a lot, “Get back to the others.”

Tess sighed, Clementine’s radio was giving intermittent buzzes. After Lee sent Ben back to them, they were greeted by an old man. He gave his name as Chuck, saying he was living in the train. He’d introduced himself to the whole group, and Lee and Kenny got the train working and Lee found some food for the kids. So, here they were, on a train with Lilly guarding the supplies, Kenny driving the train, Ben watching the scenery go by and Lee and Carley teaching the kids how to defend themselves.

Tess heard the pop of a gunshot and the sound of a bottle shattering, looking up, she saw Clementine beaming up at Lee and Carley.

“I guess Clem’s got the ‘dead eye’ huh?” Tess gave them a small smile, before looking down at Katjaa, “She’s not progressing well.”

“You looked at Chuck as if you knew him.” Said Lilly, diverting Tess’s attention away from Katjaa.

Tess sighed, “He’s a doctor, his full name is Charles John Marston. I trained under him when I first started practicing.”

Katjaa let out a violent cough, making the group freeze.

“We have to stop the train.” Said Tess, looking at Lee, “I think we’ve reached the end.”

Lee sighed, they’d stopped the train and put Katjaa down. Part of him was disgusted at the phrase, put her down, like she was some dog or animal. Duck had closed off for a while, the boy hadn’t left the train when they were forced to stop. So, he didn’t meet Christa and Omid until they were getting away from the horde of the undead.

“Who’s he?” Asked Christa, looking down at Duck.

“He’s recently lost his mother.” Answered Tess, “She was bitten.”

“Ouch.” Grumbled Omid, as Chuck prodded his leg, “Couldn’t been a bit gentler?”

“Well,” Chuck looked at him, “I could, but we need to figure out what’s wrong with it first.”

“Oh, how I could do with an MRI or X-Ray machine right about now.” Moaned Tess, as she checked Omid’s foot.

Their conversation was interrupted by Lee quietly entering the compartment.

“What’s wrong?” Asked Lilly, straightening up.

“Mitch’s been in contact.” Said Lee, “He ran into another survivor, said her name was Molly, he…thinks he’s found Clementine’s parents.”

“That’s a good thing…right?” Christa eyed Lee suspiciously.

“They’re dead.” Said Lee, “He’s holed up in the Marsh House, he suggested we meet up with him there.”

Tess frowned but nodded. Hopefully thing wouldn’t go pear shaped.

“Are we there yet?” Whined Adam, as the group walked through the streets. They’d stuffed all their supplies into some rucksacks they found, with Lee and Kenny carrying the bulk of it.

“Almost.” Said Tess, looking at Lee, “It should be the next left.”

Lee nodded and they turned down at street. Lee paused at the sight of a blonde girl leaning against a wall watching a couple of restrained Walkers. He heard Clementine let out a terrified gasp, getting a deep sigh from Lee.

“Those are…” Carley looked at Lee.

“Clem’s parents.” Nodded Lee, before gently ushering the group forwards.

“You Mitch’s people?” Asked the girl, looking each of them over, “I’m Molly.”

“Lee.” He pointed at the others and introduced them.

Molly nodded, “Mitch is looking for a boat, said something about you guys wanting one.”

Lee nodded, before looking around, as Mitch’s car drove up to them, with a boat hitched to the back of it. Stopping, Mitch stepped out, “It’s got no gas and is missing it’s battery, but it should work.”

Lee nodded, as Kenny looked the boat over.

“Are you sure about this?” Asked Carley, as Lee looked over the group.

“We should be fine,” Said Lee, “Molly knows the place, so we can go through the place and avoid their patrols.”

Carley nodded, before looking over at Tess, Lilly, Chuck and the kids, “You sure about leaving me behind?”

“Car,” Chided Lee, softly, “what’s the worst that could happen?”

Lee was kicking himself. Crawford had fallen, so things were slightly easier for them. Clementine had followed them, with Ben only noticing when he saw her climbing up the ladder out of the sewer. They’d split up, Christa and Mitch went to get the drugs, Kenny had gone to get fuel, he and Molly went to get the battery and Clementine was watching over Ben in an old Geography classroom.

Then Kenny got back with the fuel and took over trying to get a door open, Lee helped Mitch and Christa get the drugs and they ran into Molly on the way back to the group, only to find Ben had removed a hatchet from a door that they were using to keep the Walkers out, which led to them bursting in and Clementine nailing a Walker wrestling with Molly in the head.

So, now they were holding a door shut, while Kenny tried to kick their escape plan open. Then Ben decided now was the best time to come clean about something.

“I was the one making the deal with the Bandits.”

Lee froze, just as the glass on the door broke and he felt a pain in his left arm. Assuming it was from the glass, Lee moved out of the way, as Mitch shoved a bunch of tables against the door.

Kenny, after taking the information in, turned and looked at Ben, “You…”

“Kenny,” Said Lee, “we can deal with him later, but right now, we gotta move.”

The group rushed to the top of the tower, with a horde of the dead chasing after them. Ben got caught by the reanimated remains of Crawford, with Lee pulling him free and getting bit on the hand. Deciding to deal with it later, Lee shoved Ben towards the ladder, “Climb down.” He growled.

“It hasn’t been long, maybe we could cut it off?” Suggested Tess, “Katjaa’s bite was on her shoulder, too close to the arteries to safely amputate, and, from the time of her bite, she lasted about a day before succumbing to it.”

“How’re we gonna stop the bleeding?” Asked Carley, “A tourniquet can only do so much.”

“Well, you could cauterise the wound.” Said Chuck, “We got the needed stuff for it.”

“Lee?” Lilly got his attention, “Are you willing to do this?”

Lee sighed, before looking at them, “Fuck it. Let’s cut it off.”

An hour later, Lee was kicking himself, why did he have to be an idiot and refuse the pain killers? It was odd, seeing his arm contort, even more so, when it fell to the floor and Mitch hurriedly pressed the bleeding stump against the heated metal of a pot that they’d stuck in a fire until it started to glow.

Then Lee saw darkness.

“Is…is Lee okay?” Asked Clementine, looking up at Carley.

Carley sighed, before sitting next to Clementine and pulled her to her, “Hopefully, Clem.”

“Well,” Tess and Chuck stepped out of the hotel room Lee was in, “The bleeding’s stopped, so we don’t have to worry about him bleeding to death.”

“And given the herd outside,” Kenny folded his arms, “We’re gonna be sat here for a while.”

“Which gives us the opportunity to decide what to do with him.” Lilly glared at Ben, “He stole from us and gave to those bandits.”

“Maybe he was under duress.” Remarked Carley, not really believing it.

“T-they said they had one of my friends.” Said Ben.

The group stared at him.

“Did, did you get confirmation?” Asked Tess, folding her arms.

“N-no—”

“My wife died because of you,” Snarled Kenny, “I don’t know why Lee bothered to save you, ‘cause your as useful as burnt-out truck!”

“And the shit he pulled back a Crawford,” Spat Mitch, “Letting all those Walkers in, almost killing Lee.”

Clementine buried her face in Carley’s shoulder, as Lilly looked over at the other woman, “You’re being surprisingly quiet.”

Carley sighed, levelling Ben with a look, “I defended you when Lilly was throwing accusations around in the RV. You could’ve owned up to it and we would’ve acting accordingly.”

The group was prevented from continuing by the door opening and Lee stumbling out.

“Lee!” Clementine rushed towards him and hugging him, getting a grunt from the man, “You’re okay!”

Lilly placed her hand on her pistol, as Carley stood up, “Lee?”

Her looked at her, “I know I shouldn’t ask this, but does anyone have any bourbon?”

The group watched the street outside the hotel. Mitch had gone to get the car, after Kenny and Christa managed to find an van that was still in working order.

“If we’re lucky,” Said Lilly, “the RV could be where we left it.”

“Hopefully.” Said Carley, as she helped Lee with the rucksack of supplies.

“He should be here by now.” Muttered Tess, nervously fiddling with her ring.

Lee frowned, looking for Mitch’s car, before grabbing the radio, “Kenny, are you near Mitch?”

“I saw him get in his car and start heading back.” Said Kenny, “He might be trying to avoid the Walkers.”

Lee frowned, before looking at Ben, “Ben, go check outside.”

“W-what?” Ben looked around, “W-why me?”

The group stared at him.

“You cannot be asking that.” Lee’s voice was flat, “If there are Walkers out there, just run back here.”

Ben nodded, before heading out of the lobby. Lee winced and looked at his stump, “Man, I can still feel my fingers.”

“Phantom limb syndrome.” Said Tess, “It’s common for amputees.”

“Still hurts.”

Ben reappeared outside the hotel, “I’ve seen Mitch’s car but…Mitch isn’t the one driving.”

Lee frowned, “What?”

“It’s some old guy and there are four others with him.” Said Ben, just as Mitch’s car sped past.

“Shit.” Swore Lee, as the car vanished around a corner, before Lee grabbed with radio, “Kenny, Mitch’s been carjacked.”

“Shit.” Said Kenny, “I see him. Fuck. Guys, I think he’s turned.”

“You serious?” Asked Lee, as Tess froze.

“That or he’s stumbling around with a bullet wound in his back.” Said Christa, before a thumping sound was heard on the radio, “No, he’s turned.”

“Shit.” Lee looked around the group, “Get back here.”

“Already on our way.” Said Christa, “Kenny’s putting Mitch down.”

Lee nodded, but he had a feeling something was off, “Christa, how’s Kenny coming along?”

Christa was silent, making Lee frown, a moment later, Christa pulled up in front of the hotel, without Kenny.

“Where’s Kenny?” Asked Lilly, frowning at her.

“He got swarmed.” Said Christa, “He dealt with Mitch, but, fuck. They came out of nowhere.”

Lee sighed, “There ain’t much we can do now.” He looked at the others, “Get in.”

They were lucky, extremely lucky. They found a car stocked with more supplies on the way back to the RV, and the RV was where they left it. Keys still in the ignition. Sighing, Lee looked over at the kids, Lizzie was curled up with her leg stuck out, Adam was sprawling on the floor and Duck and Clementine were slumped against each other, before looking at Carley. Lilly was driving the Van behind them, and Tess was in the car in front of them.

“You okay, Lee?” Carley glanced at him.

“Yeah,” Lee sighed, glancing back at the rest of their group in the back, “we will be.”

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uraveragelonelyhuman · 2 years

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Louis x Immune S/O