Sweet Dreams #Wattys 2018

I'll Take His Other Eye

Lexi, Sasha, Carl's and Summer's POV:

Lexi touched baby Judith's face. "She's adorable."

Summer smiled as Carl held her. "We think so. Yes, we do. You can't look at that face and tell me there's not some hope in this world."

Carl nodded. "We forget sometime.....but holding Judith makes it right."

"How long have your parents been together?" Sasha asked.

"They met a few weeks after the outbreak at the quarry," Summer answered.

"They didn't know each other before this?" Lexi asked.

"They just seem...." Sasha said as she searched for the world.

"In sync?" Both Summer and Carl questioned.

"Yeah, guess that's the word I'd use," Sasha answered.

"My mom and dad were separated for a while before the outbreak, dad got shot, was in a coma. Mom started seeing Judith's father, my dad's friend. We thought dad had died....but he came out of a coma and found his way to Atlanta," Carl explained as he shifted Judy.

"That's where he met Glenn, my loud mouth uncle and people who aren't with us anymore. He handcuffed Uncle Merle to a roof cause he was endangering the group, gave the key to T Dog...we lost him the same day Ladybug was born. But T dropped the key, down a drain. It wasn't on purpose, T wasn't like that. The first time mom met him was when he told us he had handcuffed Uncle Merle on the roof. We were mad, he's family. Rude, obnoxious, bigot, but still blood," Summer said.

"As they got to know each other, it was obvious they were pretty good for each other, don't think I saw dad ever smile like that with mom," Carl said sadly.

"Mom never let herself get to close to anyone, so it was a slow building....as slow building as it can be when you don't know if you are going to live one day to the next," Summer said.

"It's surprising that you two are taking it so well," Lexi said.

"We're all family, Summer and I were there when Judy was born. Mom died giving birth to her, but she told both us we were family, that she was proud of us," Carl said sadly.

"And, we know how hard it is to do anything alone, we can't," Summer said. "I'm sorry that you guys are part of this battle with the Governor, it's not your fight."

"I'd rather be here then there," Sasha said. "Woodbury might have had more guards, real town, but it didn't have people who would do anything for you. We haven't been here for long, but it's already clear that you people aren't like the Governor. That you all care for each other," she said.

Summer smiled. "It's not you and them anymore, Sasha. It's us. You, Lexi and Tyresse you're part of our family now."

Lexi smiled. "Can I hold her?" she asked Carl as she nodded toward the baby.

"Hey Judy, want to get to know Lexi huh? Yeah, there you are baby sister," Carl said as he handed her over.

"Hi Judy, hello," Lexi said with a grin.

Mar and Merle's POV:

Mar leaned against the door of Merle's cell. "You're still an ass aren't you Merle?"

Merle leaned back on cot and grinned. "A leopard don't change it's stripes, Mar. You and little brother got together last night huh? Bout time. But Daryl's not as stupid as Jewel, he won't let himself get tied down."

"You don't know anything about Daryl or Jewel, Merle," Mar informed him. "What you did to Glenn...I can't forgive you for that."

"So I went a little overboard," Merle answered. "I did what I had to do to survive. The Governor found me, I wouldn't be alive right now if it wasn't for him. Hell, I didn't like the man, I personally think he's a pompous ass, but in this world you got to do what you got to do to survive."