My Life is Over - TWD Fanfic

the before

Word Count : 1548

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My name is Leighton. Leighton, however, was usually shorted to Levi, though my brother Patrick, with a thing for formalities, would always call me Leighton. He was the only person who ever would, and I hated it, because it made me sound old and antiquated, but after he.. Well, lets just say I didn't hate it as much as I thought I did. 

Back to my name, first, though. My name is Leighton Rosalie Vincent. My life had been normal, I was an everyday seven year old, and then.. Then the world ended. You might think I'm being dramatic, but I'm not. After all, its not every day you lose your entire family and the dead starts walking, right? I'm nine now, though, and our small neighborhood was spared anymore grief by a man, called the Govenor, who built walls around our small community. We lived, albeit boringly, with an elder couple, seeing as nobody wanted two children to live on their own. Patrick would always whine about how he was fifteen and could take care of himself, but then the woman, Mrs Gene, would gesture towards me, making me feel stupid and weak, and he would duck his head. 

Regardless of how little the adults thought Patrick could take care of me, he tried his best-which albeit wasn't amazing, but was all I needed. While more people flooded into our town, seeking safety from the monsters, everyone tiptoed around talking about our lack of parents, thinking one wrong move and the two of us would break. Patrick and I, on the other hand, would hold each other when we cried, and reminisce. We never got to say goodbye, our mother rushing our father to the hospital when he was bit in the very beginning, leaving us with the neighbor. She didn't know how bad things would have got, or I don't think she ever would have left us. But she did, and now they were both gone, leaving myself and Patrick. We went to school, we came home, and spent hours doing our own things-we didn't tend to bond much with other children. Patrick was too awkward and geeky, and I was an intorvert who just wanted my mom and dad back. It was too hard for me to be around all the happy families, living, thriving, when it should have been my family-our family of four. But it wasn't, and so I couldn't bear to suffer through watching them. 

The only girls I tended to talk to were Lizzie and Mika, their mother having passed a long time ago. Their dad, who made me call him Ryan, was glad when I came over, as Lizzie and Mika didn't have many friends either. Mika was two years my elder, Lizzie four, but they were as immature as I was mature, and we seemed to get along. None of us liked going out and talking to the other kids, albeit there were none really our age, so we stayed inside and colored, played pretend, and just talked. I would always go home to Patrick every night though, and make my way to his room, curling up in his bed next to him. Every night, before doing that, I would pick up our framed family photo, and I would place a kiss on the glass above my mother and father's faces, tearing up as I imagined them tucking me in. 

As much peace as Woodbury was, with its occasional rowdy nights that the Genes would keep us inside for, it soon ended. 'Terrorists' attacked, and killed a lot of the guards on the wall, leading to the Govenor taking up soldiers-the word Mr Gene would scoff at and call children-and he tried to convince the Genes to recruit Patrick, but fortunately, they wouldn't allow him to go. He was petrified, and I was too. I couldn't lose the one bit of family I have left. And within that week, they were gone. There was barely anyone left, as a bunch of people had fled after the terrorist attack, and the streets were empty, everyone cowering in fear inside their homes. Patrick was in his room playing with legos, and I was staring out the window, waiting for them to come back. I was going to go over to Lizzie and Mika's, but Mrs Gene wanted me to stay home, as Mr Gene was out fighting, one of the many 'soldiers'. Eventually, I gave up, and just collected our framed family photo once more, and just stared at it. I wasn't sure how long it lasted for, and was shaken out of my reminiscing by a panicked Patrick, who demanded I pack a bag or two of things I would need.

"Patrick, are we leaving?"

I asked, thoroughly shaken to lose our safe haven, as he nodded quickly, just as I was about to plead for an answer. He left as fast as he came in, and I grabbed my old school bag and stuffed my family photo in first-it was most important. I put one or two of my Nancy Drew books in, she was my role model, and my stuffed lion my dad had won for me at a carnival years ago. I pushed my jacket and beanie in, as it was going to get cold soon, and Patrick burst back in, with a larger duffel, that he quickly dumped a pair or two of my jeans and dungarees in along with t-shirts, socks, and undergarments. I would have shouted at him for touching my undies in a normal situation, but he seemed stiff, robotic, and worried, so I let him do the packing to ease his mind. He shoved my shoes at me, and I put them on without talking, and he turned around to tie them when he was done, quickly stuffing my blanket inside my pillowcase. 

He picked up his bag he had left at my door, the duffel stuffed with both our clothing slung over his shoulder as he glanced at me, as if telling me to hurry up, before jogging downstairs, where I could here him talking to someone-Ryan was my guess. I stuffed my hairbrush, toothbrush, and other toiletries into my bag, alongside my asthma pumps. The run crew had made sure to grab them whenever they saw them, just in case, and I kept three or four in my bathroom, besides the one constantly on me, and they had more in the infirmary. I zipped up my bag, turning to survey what had been my room for so long, before stooping to dig under my bed, finding my diary I wouldn't even let Patrick read, alongside a knife from the kitchen. It was small, and probably useless as it was so dull, but I was forever scared, and with my nightmares, it provided a small shade of comfort. I crammed them into the top of my bag before zipping it, and clutching my stuffed pillow to my chest, I left my room, for the last time, without turning back. 

Ryan was downstairs, Lizzie and Mika with him, talking quietly to Patrick, as Mrs Gene sobbed. Something had happened, apparently. Maybe we were to stay with Ryan until she was better? But alas, all hopes of remaining in my hometown were crushed as we four children were ushered outside by Ryan, nudging us towards a bus, where the remnants of Woodbury were loading on. Nobody would tell me anything, so when I spotted Tyreese, who was always nice to the kids, I shot over to him, tugging on his sleeve as he stopped talking to a man I didn't know. When he glanced down at me, I asked,

"What's happening? Mrs Gene's cryin' in the house and Patrick's gone quiet."

I informed him of the last bit solemnly, and he sighed, before crouching in front of me.

"Levi, we're having to leave Woodbury. We're going to somewhere safer, a prison."

I furrowed my brows, eyeing the man who was watching us suspiciously.

"We didn't do anything wrong though, why do we have to go to a prison?"

Tyreese chuckled wearily before patting my shoulder.

"Its safer there-for all of us. Why don't you go get on the bus with your brother? I bet he's wondering where you are."

I nodded, casting one last glance to the stranger, before turning and climbing into the bus, quickly finding my brother and flopping down, both of us crammed in with our bags. When the bus eventually started moving, I leaned against Patrick's shoulder, and watched as Woodbury, and the only home I'd even known, faded from view. I had one final, thought before drifting into the dark confines of my mind-

Goodbye mom, dad.

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* NOTE  * This is a shorter chapter, as it is almost a Prologue to the mains story, a little bit of what Leighton's life was like before the prison. Her character is going to undergo a lot of pain, and some happiness, in the chapters to come, so her personality will change a lot. I can't wait to see what this story has in store for it as I figure out where exactly I want it to go! Remember to comment any suggestions, and vote!

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