Sweet Dreams #Wattys 2018

There is Always Hope

Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem-Phil Donahue"

Summer's POV:

Summer knocked on Beth's door slightly going in. "Good to see you up," she said as she sat on the bed. "Lori told us about the knife."

"What's the point anymore? There's none," Beth told Summer.

"No point? Beth, we're alive, right here right now," Summer told her.

"I asked Maggie to do it with me...she refused. But what if you and I do it? Maybe Maggie has something to live for now with Glenn. But what do we have?" Beth asked.

Summer shook her head. "No Beth. What do we have to live for? We have our families to live for. My mom is in love for the first time in her life. I want to watch it bloom, I want to tease her. I don't care if it's a day or a week, or a year, but I want to see what happens. You have Jimmy. Yeah maybe he wasn't supposed to be forever, and maybe he isn't. But we aren't the only survivors. One day, I may meet up with some guy that makes me feel alive, you too. But you do this now, how are you ever going to know?" she asked.

"We could do it real peaceful like," Beth insisted.

"No! You listen to me Beth. I'm saying this as a friend. You know your bible right? With Herschel as your dad?" Summer asked.

"Yeah....why?" Beth questioned.

"Mathew 5:5: Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the Earth. I'm not a big church goer, but Jane she read her bible to me. Some things stuck. That always struck a chord. Yeah, you got Uncle Daryl, your dad, Rick, Shane, and T but you also got people like Glenn, Maggie, my mom-who can be meek or a lion-you, Patricia, Mitch and me. We all balance each other out. Maybe some of us won't make it, maybe all of us will. But we are here now, Beth. We've survived this long," Summer told her.

"I've been on this farm," Beth told her.

"Yes and you are still alive. You think you wouldn't survive out there, but you would. We would. Doin' what you want to do, is takin' away the opportunity you are bein' given. I saw it at the CDC. The whackadoodle doctor was the only person that stayed; he let us in, the whole time knowin' the whole building was gonna explode in less than a day. Fed us, gave us beds to sleep in, and gave the adults alcohol. He didn't tell us, we had to pull it out of him. He was to chicken to do it by himself. Jaqui made her decision, she stayed. But she was thinkin' clearly, you aren't. Andrea was mournin' her sister Amy and she wanted to stay but Dale knew she wasn't thinkin' clearly, so he got her out of there. She hated him for a while. You can hate me, I don't care. Because I think in the long run you'll be amazed at how strong you are," Summer said.

"Are you sure you're only fifteen?" Maggie asked as she came in.

"Accordin' to my mom and Uncle Daryl, who both were there, yeah," Summer responded.

"She's right Beth, your stronger then you think," Maggie told her. "I'm going to stay with her for a bit," she told the other teen. "Thanks."

"No problem," Summer answered as she went out the door.

Jewel's POV:

Jewel smiled as Summer came down to the picnic area. "Alright, I know that look. You are worried bout somethin'. Same look Uncle Daryl gets. What's botherin' you?"

"Beth...did you ever think of suicide?" Summer asked curiously.

Jewel squeezed her hand. "Once, when I was about twelve, but it was just a passing thought. I was going to get out of that place, be the first Dixon to graduate highschool and I wasn't going to let my daddy have the pleasure of being right."