Still breathing | Carl Grimes TWD

Prologue

When I was seven, my grandfather brought me out to the lake behind his house. He deemed it time that I learned to swim, so he threw me into the lake. He watched as I struggled. I kicked and kicked, but only went under.
I grew tired and unwilling to go under. After a couple of minutes, my head was screaming at me to just inhale. To let the water fill my lungs and let me stop suffering. Then I felt someone grab me and pull me up, my mother. She screamed at my grandfather as she held me in her arms.
That night, my mother was going to get us out of there. She packed all her things along with mine. We were going to take a bus to a few cities over. But my grandfather had other plans, I was in my room as they yelled at each other. Then suddenly a gun went off.
I ran to my window and saw my grandfather dragging a body away, my mother... He killed her.

From that day forward, I never went back to the lake, or even went outback. When my Father and Uncle got back from their hunting trip, my Grandfather told my dad that mom left us. All of her things were out of the house by then.
I never told my dad what happened, mostly because I wanted to believe the cover-up story. I wanted to believe that she just left us and was alive somewhere living her left without us. It was easier than the ladder.

That's why it was so easy to let those things rip him apart.

I stood on the last step and watched as those things ripped my grandfather apart. I could hear him screaming out. He begged for help but, I didn't provide it. Instead, I grabbed my school bag and headed to the kitchen.
I cleaned out the bag before grabbing cans of food and a knife. Now heading to my room and grabbed whatever I'd need.
My bedroom was trashed after getting everything.

My mind went to my breathing, it was unsteady, and my hands shook a bit. Fear, that's what this feeling was. The only thing I could do is keep going and take the next step.
I got on my knees and reached under the bed. Reaching around under the bed until I finally felt the handle of something. I pulled it out. There it was, my 10th birthday present: A katana. My dad got it for me.

My door is closed and locked as I wait for Uncle Merle and dad to come. They have to be coming for me if the worlds going to shit.
I waited and waited. But then the walkers started banging on my door, trying to get to me. The last straw was when it busted a hole in the door. That made me grab my shit and rush to the window, opening it and jumping out without hesitation.
I ran away from the house and into the forest, not looking back...

☢︎︎☢︎︎☢︎︎

A blue truck pulled up in the driveway of the old house. A man jumped out of the passenger's side before the truck could even stop. He had a crossbow in hand as he ran into the house, kicking the door in.

He looked around and yelled, "Clare!"

He made his way further into the house when he got no response. When he got to the stairs two walkers were eating a body, an old man. His Father.
The man looking for Clare was Daryl Dixon, the girl's father. After finding out what was happening to the world he and his brother rushed back home to get the girl.

Daryl shot a bolt each in the walker's head before he headed upstairs. His heart dropped when he saw Clare's bedroom door destroyed.
He went in, looking around to see the room a mess. Then he noticed the window was open. The bedroom had things missing. Daryl checked under the girl's bed and saw the Katana missing. She was alive.