Long Way Home (A Carl Grimes Fanfic)

37: Goodbye My Friend

James Blunt - "Goodbye My Lover"

"Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.

And I still hold your hand in mine.
In mine when I'm asleep.
And I will bare my soul in time,
When I'm kneeling at your feet."

•

Lauren's POV;

This was it. The end. As I walked through the doors of the factory. I remember the prison, the prison that was once filled with inmates, murderers, peadophiles, shoplifters, but all I could see was the shadows of those who were inside, going about there daily business. I could just see the figures of us.

Carol collecting water, Daryl sharpening arrows, Carl aiming and shooting at tin cans, Sophia planting some flowers humming along gently to herself, Rick and Hershel attending the crops, Glenn and Maggie, holding hands, talking about a future they may or may not get.

I could even see Shane, and Merle, Lori and Alexa too. I could even remember seeing Beth's dead body, down at the bottom. As I progress further and further away from the factory, I venture deep into the forest, my feet cracking the twigs below the soles of my shoes.

I was completely unarmed, and unaware of what could happen next. I mean, The Governor was still out there, still hungry for revenge.

The woods always use to scare me as a little child, the ideas of monsters, creeping and luring the prey Into the darkness, for them to never be seen again. And the woods was a bit like that now, the walkers were the monsters, luring people in, biting them, only for them to renanimate once again.

As I venture deeper into the woods, I notice the camp, me and Sophia stayed at months back, when we parted from the rest of the group. I remember me, sitting there, gutting that poor boy like a fish, and I couldn't control it, I couldn't control myself.

As I search through the tents that were still pegged deep into the hard ground, I retrieve a pistol and a blunt dagger. Not my first choice of weapons, but it'll have to do.

"Run down camp ahead, beware of walkers." A mans voice says, and it brought an imagine into my head. Merle.

But it didn't worry me, in fact I didn't care whether he found me.

I had no one left, no one to look after, and I wasn't on anyone's agenda of importance right now.

"Merle." I say.

"Put your hands up!" He shouts, his voice booming through the forest, causing birds to shoo from the trees, shaking the branches.

"it's Lauren." I say, sighing deeply.

"Who's with you?" He asks, appearing ever closer.

"No one. They hate me. Apparently, I'm psychotic." I say.

"Come 'ere." He says, holding out his knife replacement job of an arm, indicating for me to join him.

"What?" I say.

"Join us. Let's give 'me what they fucking deserve." Merle says, a smirk forming on his splattered face.

"I'm in." I say.

"I want them to pay." We both say, in sync as a twisted look exchanges from our eyes, and I feel a grin form across my pale face.