Lydia (TWD-Carl Grimes)

four

"Nothing!" Yelled Alexis' older sister over her shoulder.

What was left of the original bunker group scavenged, looking around an old house for anything they could use. Anything.

"I found a can," Alexis showed her sister, "but its expired."

Her sister took it, "Its food."

Alexis sat on a wooden chair of the small kitchen as her sister looked for a can opener.

The small kitchen reminded her of her grandma's back in Florida.

It was mostly wood, except for the ancient refrigerator and oven. A small window overlooking the drive way outside was adorned with plastic apples and the walls had pictures of different fruits.

Even now, Alexis' mouth watered.

"Find anything?" Their father asked.

"A can of beans,"Alexis sighed.

"Just one?"

She nodded,"-and its expired."

Her father waved the last part off.

Meanwhile, her sister found a can opener and dug her dirty fingers into the mushy beans.

She sighed when she returned her fingers to her mouth.

"Ava," Alexis scolded her sister, "there's hungry people out there."

"There's hungry children in here."her sister replied although she knew they couldn't be considered children anymore. Not in this world.

Alexis sighed and took the can.

Before, Ava would've told her bossy little sister something, but she noticed Alexis was the most changed since their mother's death. She had grown up. Now she acted like the mother, and Ava needed a gap to fill the missing space, so she selfishly let her.

Instead, Ava leaned back on the counter and licked the beans off her fingers.

Alexis walked over to the living room, where Shellie's father, Jon, sat, laying on the sofa.

He was running a fever and while he still smiled, he felt like a mess.

The other pair of neighbors, Michael and Sarah, newlyweds at the time everything began, resided to wiping their blades on the sofa. They occasionally stopped to smile at each other.

"Hands," Alexis called.

Jon cheered, "What we get this time?"

Alexis presented the can.

The adults held out their hands or frame for her to pour beans on.

"You're kidding me, not a single plate?" Michael asked.

Ava come from the kitchen, leaning on the door way and shook her head.

"You're sure none of you lived in this house? Took the dishes to the bunker?" Alexis looked at the unsure faces.

"Babe, it's been so long. I can hardly remember." Sarah answered.

"Well the pictures aren't any of us," she paused, "I don't see Paul in any of these faces."

"No," Jon answered with his head hung low, "It's gotta be someone else. Sometime who survived the initial wave, but died later."

Everyone accepted the scenario.

"But, they-they can still be out there, right?" Ava childishly asked, "A bunker isn't the only way to survive. We're not the last of them."

Them, since when did the human race become "them"? Alexis thought.

Nobody responded.

Alexis smiled at her sister. Standing next to her, she was now almost taller.

"Of course we're not," she lied.

.
.
.
-Xx