"Thanks for coming with me." Austin spoke to Enid after they had taken a car out together. "Everyone else is dealing with that big walker heard."
"Needed out of there." Enid rolled her eyes. "Tried to get Ron to come but he really doesn't like you or Carl anymore."
"I get it." he shrugged. "Loosing people we love makes us hate people that aren't always at fault."
Enid looked over. "Your girlfriend died, right?"
"Yeah." he nodded. "And my Mom."
"My Mom died too." she admitted as he glanced over at her, but she looked away. "My Dad too."
He shook his head but kept driving. "Stupid ass world."
"Stupid ass world." she agreed with him.
"So, how long where you are you girlfriend together?" Enid asked, looking out of the window as Austin drove.
"I'm not completely sure." he explained. "A while though. But, I had a thing for her since I first saw her. I know that was almost three years ago."
"How'd she die?" she looked over curiously. "Got bit?"
"Shot." he checked out the windows for anything that caught his eye. "She was the coolest. Complete different then us."
"Yeah, but Carl says you weren't always like this." Enid pointed out as he glanced over slightly. "You didn't hate everything until she died."
"I don't know why but I just feel like it's everyone fault." he shook his head. "Even though I know they didn't do anything to get her killed. I just can't help it."
"Yeah, I get it." Enid agreed. "I don't blame anyone, but it's just easier to get mad then sad."
"Exactly. I feel like when I get upset, everyone's just belittling me." Austin explained, taking a turn toward a store. "I feel like I gotta be super strong because of my dad, and Carl. I mean, shit, that kids so tough, dude. I just look like the little weak off spring."
"Not covered in walker blood." Enid pointed out. "What are we doing here?"
"Think there's cups in there?" they looked at, what seemed to once be, a super market. "Tables?"
"What if there's a lot of walkers?" Enid looked around. "It's a pretty big place."
"I'll scan it over. On my signal, drive the car toward that opening." he pointed toward the large doors. Enid got into the drivers seat as Austin got out, keeping an eye out as he pulled his knife from his waist band. The doors of the store were easy to open, making a faint sound. He was taken off guard at how empty the place sounded, granted there hadn't been much stuff either. He looked around before signaling back to Enid, zigzaging his way.
Austin laughed at her terribly driving, having to remind himself she was likely only twelve or thirteen when the apocalypse happen. He leaned into the window when she finally got to him. "Okay, press your foot hard on the break."
Enid looked under the wheel some, pressing her foot on the break as it made a screech. Austin nodded to the fear stick. "Squeeze the side and push all the way to the P."
Enid did so, letting her foot go. "That was easy."
"So much easier when you don't have to worry about other people." Austin pulled the door open. "You did better then Carl did. I tried to teach him at our last community, almost took down the gate because he refused to believe the P meant park."
"What else would mean park?" Enid gave an odd look.
"Heck if I know." he shook his head, opening the back doors and the trunk. "I think there is another community near by. The place is quiet and there's dead walkers, so someone had to put them down."
"Let's hope they aren't still here." Enid pointed out, pulling the door open. "I don't have a gun."
"Do you know how to use a gun?" he looked af her in questioning.
"Not really." she shrugged. "Doesn't seem that hard."
"You should learn first before carrying." he shook his head, she rolled her eyes at him. "You have your knife?"
She didn't answer, pulling it from one of the many bags they carried. "What are we looking for?"
"Tables." he nodded, walking down the isles. "And cups, any type of cups."
"Now are you gonna tell me what you're planning?" Enid huffed, keeping an eye out.
"What's a better time to drink then in an apocalypse?" Austin pointed out. "We can open up a bar, but keep a tab on the amount of drinks people get to keep it fair."
"Are you even twenty-one?" Enid gave a look of disbelief.
"I won't be drinking, just running it." he rolled her eyes. "And you can help. I have a Daryl, he'll know what's good."
"I always hear people say they wish they had a drink after a stressful day." Enid pointed out as Austin nodded. "Why do you wanna do this? Are you an alcoholic?"
"No, but I was thinking about how tired I got after the time I had just two shots of moonshine." Austin thought back to right before he lost Beth. "And after this past month, how I was acting because I didn't go to sleep, something like that can't happen again. I don't know if i'll be able to come back from it."
"Is it true you didn't sleep for a whole month?" she stopped when he grabbed a very rusty box with four winces glasses in it.
"Maybe an hour and a half each night." he shook his head. "I can't really remember between when we left Atlanta to the day before Aaron found us."
Enid sighed. "Is that when she died?"
"Yeah." Austin handed her the solo cups. "Open one of those bags."
"Aaron found me too." Enid spoke as he placed the cups into the bag for opened. "I was eating a turtle."
"Nah, I got that beat." he shook his head at her. "Dog."
"You ate a dog?" she gapped. "Raw?"
"Raw? No." he cringed, seeing the look on her face. "You ate your turtle raw?"
"I didn't have a fire." she shook her head with a defensive look.
"Bet your stomach was jacked up after that." he took the lead. "There will be more glasses at the bar."
"There's a bar close by?" Enid asked.
"Yeah, I saw it on the drive here." he answered, walking toward the back as he looked around. "I still wanna know what group took out these walkers."
"I think I heard a boat when I was out in the woods." she admitted as he glanced her way. "I don't know for sure."
"Like someone across the ocean?" he frowned his eyebrows. "I heard it a little deeper into the woods."
"Yeah, it's out there. Spencer goes out to get fish." she said as Austin gave a faint laugh at his name. "Heard you hit him in the face."
"He's annoying." Austin found the furniture section quickly. "What'd I tell you? Tables."
"How many do we need? Where are you even planning to put this bar? Did Deanna even approve?" Enid questioned, because she could tell he hadn't thought a single thing through.
"Two tables, there's plenty of open spaces, and no she did not." he yanked one of the large boxes, looking at the pictures in the side when he dusted it off. "What do you think?"
It was tall and round, not too big. Enid shrugged. "What about chairs?"
"Two to a table?" he suggested, Enid grabbed another table as they started to head back. "Where did you live before this?"
"Kentucky." she shrugged. "I don't wanna talk about it."
"Fine by me." he nodded, stopping as they passed the clothes. He gave her a look. "Wanna go shopping?"
"Do we have time for this?" she looked in disbelief.
"Do you honestly think we're being missed?" Austin asked as he pulled one of the white shirts with a few buttons at the top. "You should get one. I'll pay."
"Hilarious." she rolled her eyes, but he clearly found himself very funny. "Can we get out of here now?"
"Yes." he agreed as they headed back to the doors. A faint growl made them both pause. It sounded close, his eyes going to the closed staff door.
"Let's just leave it." she spoke.
"What if someone else comes here and they open it?" he looked back at her. "It'll take two seconds."
Enid huffed as he walked over, giving a yank to the door. Austin should have been able to stab it with ease, have the knife go through its skull so easily. But, he couldn't when he froze up completely. The same yellow polo Beth had from the country club. Enid panicked when he didn't do anything. "Austin!"
He shoved the walker, but he couldn't bright himself to kill it. His breath caught, stumbling back and squeezing his eyes when Enid stabbed it in the head. He knew it hadn't been her, he watched her get buried. But, it felt like her, it looked like how she would have looked if she turned. Enid looked at him in disbelief. "What the hell? Are you trying to die?"
He shook his head with a huff. "Let's get out of here. Right now."
They did, and she didn't question it.
"Why do you wanna bartend suddenly?" Enid asked when Austin took out a few walkers in the corner bar and they were filling up on alcohol now. Because it had been so far back, it was still fully stalked. "I thought you were studying to be the new doctor with Dennis."
"I can do two things." he spoke in return, carful with the bottles. "My uncle use to bartend, he taught me a lot."
"He die too?" Enid asked.
"I think so. I don't actually know." he shrugged. "He's the only reason i'm alive though. Him and my Mom were friends and that's how she met my Dad."
Enid watched him smile slightly as he grabbed the cups that they came looking for. "What if this doesn't work out?"
"Then we'll just have a lot of alcohol laying around." the Grimes boy gave a shrug. "Attending Apocalypse Medical School will be in need of alcohol breaks."
"I heard it was Glenn's idea." she spoke, helping get as many bottles as she could. "Why'd he think you'd be good at being a doctor?"
"I don't really know." he admitted. "Dora The Explorer Bandaids, I think."
Enid didn't question it. "Austin."
He turned back and saw she grab a box of markers. "What do you think they had these for?"
"Maybe to mark people that were under twenty one." she handed them to him. Enid frowned her eyebrows as he rummaged through his bag. "What are you doing?"
He ignored her, pulling out his flashlight and pulling the marker lid off with his mouth. He scribbled on the top of the flashlight for a few seconds, flipping it on to now to glow a blue shade. "We're gonna have the coolest bar ever, Enid."
She shook her head, fighting a smirk. "This is insane."
"This is the best thing Alexandria is gonna get it's hands on." he corrected her with a smile. "Be my business partner?"
"I'm fifteen." she pointed out.
"So, that's a no?" he rose an eyebrow.
This time, she did smile. "Okay, whatever."
•
kylie speaks
austin really is pulling a
steve harrington and adopting
every child he meets