it wasn't even a minute later that he had people pulling him into Carl's room. he rolled his sleeve up, slightly flinching when the needle pierced through his skin. he felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked up to see Rick.
"thank you," he sounded on the verge of crying. he was beyond pale, and his whole body was obviously shaking. he nodded, and looked down at Carl. he really hoped he would be alright; at least he had a doctor. he learned his name to be Hershel.
he sat there for awhile, letting Hershel take as much blood as he needed. the same girl that had stitched up T-Dogs arm had brought him water and some crackers. he offered some to Rick, but he shook his head, denying it as he already had some. Dallas shrugged, and ate.
Carl was unconscious again, and Hershel had told him he had a seizure almost the minute he walked out. it was a good thing he hadn't gone far, because another drawing from Rick could have landed him with cardiac arrest.
he was told he could leave, and as soon as he stood, he felt himself become slightly lightheaded. he gave Rick another nod, and walked out of the room to give the couple some privacy. Hershel followed him out, and glanced out the window with worry.
he had become aware that Shane and Hershels man, Otis, had gone to a nearby high school to gain supplies to help with the operation Carl had to have. apparently Otis had shot him, accidentally, after hitting a deer. the bullet had broken into seven pieces, and the other six were in deep. he had taken Shane to the school in search of a certain tool to up Carl's survival rate. without it, Carl's odds were low.
soon again, he was asked to draw blood. this time though, he felt himself getting shaky. he glanced up at Hershel as he sighed. he took the needle out of Dallas' arm, and he almost fell when standing. Rick helped him sit back down.
"he's still loosing blood faster than we can replace it," he spoke. Rick sighed, looking down as Lori turned to look at Carl. "and with the swelling in his abdomen, we can't wait any longer."
"you can take more," Dallas pushed his arm back out. "whatever it takes to get us more time."
"there's no time left to give. look, i need to know right now if you want me to do this," he looked at the couple as Rick stood. "i think your boy is out of time. you have to make a choice."
"a choice?" Lori crossed her arms and a distressed look appeared on her face. she looked at him, and back at Rick.
"you have to make a choice," Rick turned to her. "whatever it is, you have to tell me what it is."
he looked at her with a heartbreaking expression. his eyes searched hers as his watered. she looked slightly taken aback by the decision, but looked past her husband and at Hershel.
"we do it," she chose, raising a hand to rest against Rick's cheek. he nodded and pulled her closer to his body.
a moment later, Patricia and Hershel brought out a metal table. he started to order everyone to grab a corner of the sheet, getting ready to lift and carry him onto the table. Dallas reaches for a corner, knowing he'd have to slightly push himself to be able to pick the boy up.
the lifted him onto the metal, and Patricia brought over tools. Hershel uncovered them, and Lori backed away. Patricia brought a lamp in, plugging it in and placing it close to the table. Hershel looked up, a small knife in hand.
"Rick, Lori, you two may want to step out," he told them, glancing at Dallas as well. Rick held Lori, and as Dallas was about to leave, his attention turned to the window. everyone turned, surprised to hear a car. he stood, following Rick and looking outside. it definitely wasn't the car Glenn had been in.
"oh god," Rick let out a sigh of relief, and practically ran out. Dallas and Lori followed, as did Hershel moments later. he ordered Patricia to stay with Carl as he did so.
a blue truck rolled up, and out stepped Shane with two full bags of medical supplies.
"Carl," Shane demanded as he came closer. something about him looked different. he looked scared. his eyes were wide, and he was visibly shaking.
"still a chance," Rick took the bags from him, and Hershel looked behind Shane, back to the car. he glanced around, then back to Shane.
"Otis?" he asked. Shane turned to him, mouth slightly opened. that fear on his face, grew even more as he made eye contact. his breathing was hard and his eyes darted around.
"no," he whispered, looking at Rick and then back to Hershel. his gaze dropped, like he physically couldn't maintain eye contact for more than a few seconds.
Rick, still pale and also shaking, looked down. Hershel looked shocked, and despite opening his mouth, had nothing to reply with. Shane, still looking horrified and shaken up, stared at him.
Maggie, who had also came out, looked just as hurt. her eyes watered, and she stared at Hershel as he turned to look at everybody.
"we say nothing to Patricia. not till after. i need her," he spoke sternly. he then turned and walked off to the house. Maggie watched him go, but turned back to Shane as he looked to Rick again.
he looked down and back up, mouth open as he tried to find the words to say. Rick pulled him into a hug, one hand on the back of his neck as the other grasped his back. Shane instantly held his arms up, loosely hugging Rick back. his eyes scanned the ground, until Rick pulled away and looked him directly in the face.
"they kept blocking us, man. it was every turn. we had nothing left, down to ten rounds, that's it," Shane started to speak. his face contorted into some sort of pain as he described the event. "he said he'd cover me. that i should keep going. so that's what i did. i kept going."
he stopped again, facial features tightening as he prepared himself to speak again.
"i looked back, and he-" he stopped again, shaking his head and looking down.
Lori stepped closer behind Maggie, placing a hand on the girls shoulder. she was clearly crying, mouth open in astonishment.
"i tried," Shane spoke again. Rick stepped closer, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving him a knowing look.
"he wanted to make it right," Rick stated. Shane, still making eye contact, ran a hand over his face as he gave his friend a look of a type of gratitude for his words. he nodded shortly, and looked beyond him at Maggie. she was staring at him, eyes wide and teary.
he looked back at Rick, and Dallas couldn't help but notice the twitch on his lip when they made eye contact again. he stared into the man's eyes before they all turned to go back inside with no words left to speak.
