Something to Live For- The Walking Dead Fanfiction

Chapter 28 - The Book

At sunset that evening, Carl and I decided it was time for us to venture back inside the prison and accept whatever lecture we were going to receive.

"Y'know," Carl started. "You're pretty cool for an adult." I rolled my eyes playfully and nudged him in the shoulder.

"And you're pretty cool for a kid." I smirked down at him. Just as he was about to make a snide comment he tripped over something and fell to his knees in the dirt. I tried not to laugh but I couldn't help myself. "What happened?" I asked in between laughs.

Carl scowled up at me. "I tripped over something," He said getting up and wiping off his knees. "I think it was that." Carl pointed to something in the dirt and picked it up. It was a book with a sleek black cover that had no title on the front. "I tripped on a stupid book."

I laughed at him again.

"Stop laughing at me!" He frowned. "I don't read this junk anyway." Carl raised his arm to throw the book back into the forest where we'd found it until I took it from his grasp.

"You're just going to throw a book?" I asked, appalled. He nodded. I whacked him in the back of the head with the book. "I'll take it and read it when I have pass time." I turned away from Carl and walked towards the prison.

Carl rubbed the back of his head where I had hit him and continued to walk back with me.

Hershel was the first to greet us at the door.

"Where the hell were you two?" He yelled. "You had us all worried sick!"

"We just went for a little walk Hershel." I replied. "It's not a big deal."

"Oh it's a huge deal!" Carol said, appearing behind Hershel. "You could've been found by the Governor or killed by Walkers!"

"Oh please," Carl scoffed. "We know how to protect ourselves."

"Yeah and we stayed together so it's not like we were alone." I said, crossing my arms. Carol and Hershel continued to glare at Carl and I. "Fine," I scoffed. "We won't do it again. You can calm down now. Jeez." I rolled my eyes and walked past them into the cell block, leaving me and Carl to go our separate ways.

I walked to my cell to find that Daryl was not there. He's probably off scoping the perimeter with Rick, so I shrugged it off and threw the book on my bed and turned to leave. But I noticed something when the book landed.

It had flipped open to a random page in the book. I furrowed my eyebrows to make sure I wasn't tripping out. I walked back to my bed and picked up the book. I looked closely at the writing inside. It wasn't your normal printed paper. Instead, it was lined paper with words handwritten in it. There were also dates at the tops of the pages.

It was a diary.

But who's?

I turned the pages back just until I got to page one. The first entry. It was dated to about 2 months ago.

" October 2, 2013

Dear Diary,

I'm just starting to use a diary now because my Aunt Barbra thinks it will help relive my stress. But who wouldn't have stress when you're living in a world with the dead?

We had been on the road for 2 weeks until we found shelter. Right now we're living in some prison, where we've been for 3 days. My group used to be big, but now we're small. I lost both of my parents to the Walkers along with many others. Now it's just Aunt Barbra, Uncle Nick, Jack, Sabrina, and me. I'm the only kid here.

There used to be other children, but one day they wandered off and we heard screams. We ran over to them, but by then we were too late. It was hard. I cried all the time. People woke me up while I was sleeping because I was either crying or screaming.

I need more of my family with me. I feel so alone. It's a void that can't be filled unless it's with the people I love.

Stacie."

I finished reading and blinked a couple of times. I hadn't realized I had been crying and wiped my tears on my sleeve.

Something felt oddly familiar about this diary entry. I reread the writing and started putting the pieces together. Then it hit me. Aunt Barbra... Uncle Nick...

That's when I realized something that would change my life.

This wasn't just a diary.

It was a ticket to my past.