Poison [Rick Grimes]

0.7

     "Well, it's not that bad." Jenner told her in the most soothing voice he could muster. "Just a small pinch and it'll be over before you know, okay?"

     She nodded. The two held eye contact as the needle entered her skin and allowed blood to flow into the small tube in Jenner's hand.

      "There. All done."

     Gonzalez smiled. "Why are we whispering?"

         Jenner blinked out of his small daze. He hadn't even noticed they were doing that. Chuckling, he whispered again. "I'm not entirely sure." He put a pink bandaid where the needle was and allowed her to stand up. The two joined the group in the hallway. Jenner cleared his throat and began to speak to the group.

     As per usual, Gonzalez paid no mind to the discussion. That is, until Jenner mention a shower.

     "I'm sorry, did he just say hot water?" Glenn asked excitedly.

     T-Dog grinned at him. "That's what the man said."

     Gonzalez whizzed passed the group in a hurry. "Dibs on the first shower!"

     By the time she came out of the shower, which she definitely took her time in, she walked into a rather morbid conversation. The rest of the staff of the CDC opted out. Mass suicides. Edwin Jenner was all there was left.

    His eyes found hers as she walked in and he immediately stood. Gonzalez held her breath for a moment, just one millisecond, before continuing as if nothing was wrong. Jenner still stared. His mouth opened and closed repeatedly. This was it. He knew. He was going to rat her out. Any moment now.

       "Someone here," he started. "Someone in this very room has been bitten, and I know for a fact that it was not me."

      The group shared a look of panic. Shane stood up from his seat and reached for the gun. Gonzalez stood alone a few feet away from the group. Her and Jenner remained in a heated staring contest. She smirked at him. The corners of is lips perked up a bit.

     "Woah!" T-Dog yelled out. "What the hell are you doing?"

    All eyes turned to Gonzalez who was slowly pulling her long sleeved shirt off, leaving herself in a black Calvin Klein sports bra. The bandage on her arm was in full display. Guns were immediately pointed in her direction.

      "Oh my god," came Lori's surprised voice.

        Rick intervened before Shane could fully comprehend what was happening and pull the trigger. It was obvious that he wanted to. "Everyone just... Just calm down, okay!"

    Rick turned to Gonzalez who never let her eyes leave Jenner's. "When did this happen?"

     The smirk on her face grew. "In Atalanta. When we left the tank."

       "That was, like, a week ago!" Glenn exclaimed. "Eight days if you want to be accurate!"

     "Why didn't you say anything?" Andrea yelled.

    "Why should I?" Gonzalez scoffed. "I've known you for like eight days. We aren't friends."

       "Bullshit!"

      "Well, I haven't eaten any of you yet," she said with a shrug.

    Daryl gawked at her nonchalance. "You were strutting around talking all that big talk at the camp and this whole you've been a danger to us all!" He yelled.

      "You killed my sister!" Andrea piped in.

    "Yikes," Gonzalez said while making a face. "Yeah, a walker killed your sister. She was already dead before I pulled the trigger."

    She paused for a second and pulled a knife out of her pocket. Raising an eyebrow, she held out to Andrea. "You can kill me of you think it'll make you feel better."

    "No one's killing anyone!" Rick intervened.

    "Like hell we aren't!"

   "I'd rather not let these crazy people shoot me in the face."

   "The infection works different for everyone," Jenner said. His voice was strong and firm. "For some, it takes over in a matter of minutes. It might be days for others. In Ms. Gonzalez's case, the infection is spreading incredibly slow. It's like stabbing someone with a safety pin and waiting for them to bleed out."

    "Well is there anything we can do?" Dale asked taking a concerned glance at Gonzalez. Shane was pacing back and forth and having a silent mental break down.

     Jenner purses his lips for a moment. "We'd need to stop the disease from spreading any further."

    "How do we do that?" Gonzalez asked.

    Glenn stood up from where he sat. "I may have an idea, but you're probably not gonna like it."

     Everyone looked at him and waited for him to elaborate. " Well something similar happened in a comic book I read once. The main character's brother was bitten by a zombie, and to survive," he paused. "He, uh. He cut his own hand off."

    The group grimaced at the idea. Rick seemed to oppose the most. Gonzalez, on the other hand, was on board with the idea.

    "Alright!" She said with forced enthusiasm. "Let's cut my arm off!"

     "We are not cutting your arm off!" Rick argued. "Dammit, Glenn. Why would you even suggest that?"

    Gonzalez rolled her eyes. "And why the hell not? It would stop the infection from spreading, wouldn't it?" She asked turning to Jenner who nodded hesitantly in return.

     "Great! Let's get 'er done!"

    
    "You're one crazy bitch," Daryl exclaimed with a look of disbelief.

     Rick, again, argued with the idea. "Cutting your entire arm off is nothing to take lightly."

     "My arm, my rules." Gonzalez let a goofy smile set on her face. "Worst case scenario, I die."

      "Exactly my point! You could die!"

    "Then I die either way. This way is a lot faster, though. We're doing it."

     Jenner watched the exchange with both a hint of amusement and dread. "If it's decided, then I can prep the lab for the, uh, surgery." He said in a grim tone. "But, I must worn you. Supplies are limited, which means I have nothing to numb your arm or knock you out. You'd feel everything. There are many risks to consider."

    Gonzalez pursed her lips and thought of backing out for a moment. "Nah, it's okay. I have marijuana in my back pack. Just give me a few minutes to smoke a joint and I'll be good to go."

    Jenner nodded and left the room. Lori and Carol took the kids into the play room. T- Dog and Glenn gave Gonzalez wary smiles as they left too. Shane was still packing like an idiot.

    Rick stood very close to Gonzalez as he spoke to her. "I don't like this. I really don't like this, but if this is happening then I'm going to be there every step of the way. I'm not leaving your side, you got that?" She nodded.

    Daryl walked up to the two. "You mind if I watch?" He asked. Gonzalez immediately agreed. Rick rolled his eyes as the two shared goofy grins.

An hour and a half later, the group flinched as the sound of her screamed echoed throughout the facility.

___________

I changed some shit. And I finally felt like writing.

I actually had this version in my drama for a while, I just never had the motivation to post it until this morning. Feel free to point out any and every error bc this is most definitely not edited.

What do you think will happen next?