Collision

Chapter Thirty Five

~ Chapter Thirty Five ~

Carl's P.O.V.

"No. Someone stays here and watches over. Who knows when she'll come back and when she does, this'll be the only place she remembers. If we're gone, then we'll really have lost her then," Joel argued for the third time. I wanted to scream in agreement, but my dad cut me off with his disappointed sigh.

"Look, I know what you're feeling right now-"

"Like rat's shit you do! You've got your son with you healthy and alive!" Joel bellowed, birds flocked out of the trees in response.

That was when my dad's anger got cut loose, "I have got a toddler out there and I don't even know whether she's alive or not! So believe me when I say this, I know all of rat's shit that you're feeling!"

Joel's reaction was expected and his face fell, pure agony. I winced, remembering the bloodied baby seat that Judith was supposed to be in. "I'm-I'm sorry..."

"Look, Joel. We'll leave a note here, somehow, to tell her that we moved on. I'm just telling you that if we stay here, we all might as well be pronounced dead because our scent's lingered for too long. Before you know it, walkers will be coming from every angle and we won't be able to fight them off. So please, agree with me on this and let's move on our way. From what I've seen and know about Ellie, she's a fighter and she'll make it through," dad stated. Joel stayed on his knees, unable to move from grief.

In the silence that followed after dad's speech, Joel whispered in agreement, "alright." And that was it. We were going to leave and abandon this place. I got hit with the empty feeling of back then when we found Sophia as a walker in the barn. I couldn't even stomach the thought of Ellie as a walker. Ellie as one of those disgusting things that ate and murdered and never seemed to get full. I shuddered and let a tear fall from my eye. Man, I was a fucking pussy today.

No. She would live and I would see her again one day and tell her that I'd never be the one to sleep first. That I'd always watch over her and keep her safe. She had to stay alive long enough for me to be a able to tell her that. She was strong; stronger than I was and she would survive everything that hurdled her way.

I held on to my own words, hopelessly trying to convince myself that she'd be alright.

As I stuffed the last of my belongings in my bag, I took one last look over my shoulder and pressed my lips into a thin line. What if she would go back here and find that note and then just give up and not even bother to try and find us anymore?

Again, I shook off my negative thoughts and followed the group as we walked out of the camp site and into the forest of barely any trees.

Ellie's P.O.V.

While Maria and the rest were out there trying to find Joel and the group back, I was mentally exhausting myself. Joel would demand answers, but what would I tell them? That Rick and Carol were murderers and that I ran away from guilt?

Julio, a member of the fireflies came my way. He was short, just a few inches over me, and he also had a shaved head. "Give me a hand here, little lady?" He asked, his Mexican accent strong.

"Sure," I nodded and walked over to where he was taping up the car door. I was surprised to see tape, I hadn't seen it since First Night.

"Now I might be wrong, but you are sad, no?" He inquired, pulling the roll away from him and I held it down on the hood.

"I'm scared," I admitted, and he shook his head.

"Fear is with everyone, no need to feel bad."

"But how do I explain myself to people after I've abandoned them without giving them a reason?"

"You give them a reason," Julio stated matter-of-factly. I was about to complain again when we heard Maria radio in. "That's my signal. I better go, bye bye little lady!"

"Bye," I huffed, watching as he got in the truck and drove off. Now I was really running out of time. A part of me wanted to tell the truth, but the other? It was the coward that wanted to run away from my problems again.

It took them almost half an hour to get back here, and as much as the relief had set in that they were all safe, the shame had set in as well. I turned away while the two cars stopped behind me.

"Ellie!" A voice stopped me in my tracks. It was Carl, and he bolted out of the truck and enveloped me into his arms. I was too surprised for words, and just let myself melt into his arms. "Oh God, thank you so much. Thank you so much for staying alive."

A lump was forming at my throat when I saw him examine me for bite marks. "Are you hurt anywhere?" I shook my head no and the rest followed behind Carl.

"You really got me there," chuckled Joel. Backing away from Carl's grip, I lifted my head to see Joel, a relieved smile on his face.

"You're not mad?" I asked.

"Of course I'm not mad. I have no reason to be. You're found, we reunited with Maria. Rick reunited with his folks. All's well that ends well."

I stared behind Joel and saw Sasha and Bob help with the unloading, smiles reaching all the way to their eyes.

"Aaron?" A voice boomed from behind. I turned and saw Joel's eyes flash with surprise as Aaron came out of the woods. "Mother of God, it is you."

Joel gave him a quick pat on the back whilst he ran over to where Carl and I were. At first I thought I saw a pained look in his eyes, but the next moment I blinked, it was gone. "Glad to see you're all in one piece," he said to Carl.

"Same to you," Carl spoke tenderly.

"C'mon, we'll go start unwinding in the forest," Aaron informed, taking the lead and gesturing for us to follow.

As we walked, Carl whispered, "so why'd you leave?"

I almost gave the lie away when I spoke, "I-I heard something off so I went to go explore, but I forgot something to light my way so I got lost in the middle of the forest."

He nodded, believing every word. My heart almost broke at how he was avoiding my eyes to hide his tears, "I really thought you were taken, killed, at that." He raised his head after a moment and spoke, "But you're here now, and I had nothing to worry about."

We made it to an empty field, not too far from the road, and started with trapping the area around for the infected. Aaron and Carl remained silent, each busy with their job, as I made my way back to the road to call on the rest of the group.

Everyone was acting odd, and Maggie seemed to notice as well, since we shared the same look of curiosity. They were silent, but talkative enough to utter words here and there. They looked glum, but would manage to throw in a smile every few seconds. I shook my head, not bothering to wonder why. It would just eventually make my head hurt.

{Author's Note}

In case any of you are confused about some of the characters, I made a brief list of information to help:

Tommy - Joel's dead brother, a former Firefly member.

Maria - Tommy's wife, Joel's sister-in-law, now part of the Fireflies.

Beth - Maggie's sister, lost while with Daryl. In Rick's group.

Maggie - In Rick's group.

Glenn - Maggie's husband, lost during the prison attack which left Rick's group scrambled in different places.

Sasha and Bob - A couple, in Rick's group.

Julio - Still unknown in relation to the group, part of the Fireflies.

*The Fireflies are a militia group found all around North America who are fighting a war against the government. They are currently looking for ways to cure the infection, but were delayed due to Joel's actions two years ago.*