— Flashback
Feeling the drop of sweat slide down his forehead, Jude took a deep breath, feeling the build of exhaustion catch up to him. The Georgia heat stuck to his skin like a layer of honey glazed over the back of his neck. With the sun beating down, and the boy's chest rising frantically, Jude pierced the ground with his shovel one more time. He wanted nothing more than to be sitting in the saftey of his cell where he could freely take a nap.
God, a nap sounded so good right now.
"You okay over there?" The southern voice of Rick Grimes brought Jude out of his fantasy.
"Yeah, you're sweatin' like a pig!"
Jude huffed a scoff. Rolling his eyes, the brunette straightened, bringing the shovel with him.
"I know you aren't over there talking, little man," wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, he pointed towards where young Carl was sat in the grass. The boy's chuckle could be heard from across the field, causing a small smile to expand on Jude's chapped lips. "How bout' you get off your ass and give it a go." His tone was playful, but nonetheless, Carl took it as a challenge — as a boy his age would with everything.
"Oh yeah? I bet a hundred bucks I could!" He hopped up from where he was sat and skipped over towards Jude. The brunette, with a challenging smirk, handed the shovel over to him gracefully — happy to finally take a break after Rick dragged him to the garden early dawn.
"Let's see what you got." Pulling the gardening gloves off of his hands, Jude shoved them into his back pocket before he dusted his palms together.
He took a step back, hands on his hips, and watched Carl hold the shovel — posture totally wrong, before he shoved the tip of the metal into the ground. A loud clang! bounced off of the hard floor as the metal hit the dirt harshly and jotted backwards, sending an uncomfortable vibration up Carl's arms. With a surprised groan, the determined boy readied up to do it again. Watching his form, Jude rolled his eyes.
"Hold up." Carl paused and looked up towards the elder with a raised eyebrow. "You gotta go at more of an angle." His brows dropped to a furrow. Huffing, Jude moved towards him. "Look," he grabbed the boy's smaller hands. He placed one on the shaft of the shovel, and his other at the grip. "Hold it here — and when you go to shove it into the ground, put your foot here," Jude demonstrated by putting the tip of his boot on the step. Dropping his foot, Carl mimicked his stance and obliged. Jude stepped back. "Don't go straight into the dirt, do it at an angle."
From a few feet away, Rick watched the interaction. He stood, leaning against his own shovel with pride in his chest.
"Go for it."
Upon his permission, Carl readied himself in the correct stance. On the count of three, he successfully shoved the tip of the shovel into the dirt, using his foot to push it in and his hands to control the movement. He lit up.
"I did it!"
"That's my boy," Rick grinned proudly, clapping his gloved hands together in celebration.
"Where's my hundred bucks?" Carl turned towards Jude with his arms crossed and a cocky smirk on his lips.
Rick whistled. "He got you there."
Jude laughed — something he didn't do quite often. "Oh yeah, let me just get that for you," with his words, he moved towards Carl and pretended to search through the pockets of his rugged jeans. "Oh, there it is, here —" he playfully pounced at the young boy. Carl yelped as Jude's arm wrapped around his neck, feigning a chokehold as his other hand raised towards the top of his hair and he brought his knuckles against his scalp.
"No! Don't mess up my hair — Jude!"
The boys wrestled a moment longer before the sound of a horse trotting caught their attention. Jude dropped Carl and they whipped around towards the gate that allowed access in and out of the prison.
"Michonne!" Carl immediately ran towards the gate upon seeing the woman narrowing in on hera horse. Sharing a quick, hopeful look, Jude and Rick followed.
Arriving, the two worked together to help Carl pull the rope that was used to open it, allowing Michonne to gallop in untouched by the walkers before they hurriedly closed it just in time.
"We're glad to see you." Rick and Carl ran up towards the woman as she hopped off of her horse.
"Glad to see you, too."
Jude could see the quick look they shared as he walked up towards them and he pinpointed the expression on Rick's face instantly. It was one he would often times use when he looked at his late wife, Lori, back on the farm. The boy decided to leave it unnoticed as he walked up to them. Instead, he placed his hand on Michonne's shoulder, giving her a small squeeze in a way of telling her that he was happy she made it back safe.
Michonne sent him a nod of appreciation. "Somebody hit the jackpot," she pulled out a couple of comic books from her pouch. Carl's face lit up.
"No way, awesome! Thank you."
"I get to read 'em when you're done." Michonne replied with her own gratitude.
"Not before I do," Jude snuck and stole one out of Carl's hands.
"Hold on there pretty boy." He watched the woman walk around the horse. In mild curiosity, he followed, eyes furrowing as she searched through her pouch. "Ah, there we go." Michonne pulled out a small tin and handed it to the boy.
He took it, somewhat confused, and opened it up to reveal a pile of craft yarn. "What's this?" Jude was not a creative kid — hell, he couldn't remember the last time he drew in a coloring book. Nonetheless, he knew that Michonne had strategized some kind of task for him. She was his wingman after all.
"I overheard Beth talking about making bracelets as a kid. Thought she might teach you a thing or two," Michonne's words made Jude catch on quick. The boy hummed a thank you. Excitement bubbled in his chest — Beth would be so happy.
The rev of Daryl's bike brought their attention to the archer. He rolled up on his motorcycle, sunglasses and a bandana wrapped around his face. Coming to a stop, his fingers pulled down the fabric.
"What you got there?" Without warning, he grabbed the tin from Jude's hand — immediately sending the boy into an embarrassed frenzy. He was surprised when Daryl didn't say some comment that would most definitely bruise his ego, but instead simply nodded silently and handed him the tin back. "She's been looking for ya," he nodded behind him. Jude's eyes followed to see Beth standing not too far away with baby Judith in her hands. His heart warmed and skipped a beat.
"Go get 'em boy," Rick's hand pushed his shoulder, sending Jude towards a waiting Beth.
Putting the lid back on the tin, the flustered boy neared her. Beth's bright smile almost caused him to trip over his own feet but he somehow made it to her without any accidents — barely.
"I've been looking for you." She smiled up at him as he pinched Judith's cheek as a way of saying hi. Making sure Beth felt included as well, the boy used the tip of his fingers to brush a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Yeah . ." he cleared his throat. "Deputy Rick's been putting me to work." He rattled the tin in his hands.
"What do you got there?" Her southern accent made the boy's cheeks fall into dimples as he handed her the tin. In return, the blonde handed him baby Judith who had been reaching out for him. Jude took her instantly and steadied the baby on his hip. Her small hand fell into hers and he waved them around, making Judith coo a laugh.
"Michonne found it on her run . ."
"I love it."
"Yeah . ." the boy cleared his throat and scratched the back of his neck. "What is it, exactly?"
Beth chuckled and stepped up to him. Using her tippy toes to reach his face, she pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. His hand immediately found the back of her head and brought her closer to him when she tried to step away.
Melting into the kiss he placed on her forehead, Beth hummed. "C'mon, I'll teach ya."
The rest of the evening the three — Jude, Beth, and Judith, the baby always at their side as their little side kick — sat in a patch of shady grass on the field. Beth attempted to teach Jude how to make bracelets out of the craft yarn but by the time she finished and looked over, he had fallen asleep with his head in his lap. Baby Judith was curled up on his chest, sleeping peacefully within the safety of his arms.
Beth smiled softly upon seeing the sight — wishing that she had a camera to capture the moment. Twirling the bracelet that she had just met between her fingers, she thought about waiting until he woke up to give it to him. Instead, she grabbed his arm softly and slid the bracelet on, tying it around his wrist so that he could wake up to it. Leaning down, she gently kissed his forehead, thanking God for the miracle he was.
Little did she know that that was the last normal day they would have together. And little did she know she would be ripped from him in a blink of an eye.
And that bracelet would forever be the only thing left of her.
Jude couldn't recall the exact moment that the world stopped tilting beneath his rugged boots. He wasn't sure if it had been the slow, somber paces of his family as they walked, hand in hand, beyond those hospital doors. Perhaps it was when the agonizing screams of Maggie Greene sunk into his ear drums as she collapsed to her knees, unable to stand with her own strength as everything she had ever lived for — had survived for, had been stripped from beneath her once perfect skin. Now, she was exposed raw — pink fish and rotting bones instead as she fell against the asphalt with her husband clinging to her shoulders in the most heartbreaking dread he had ever felt.
He couldn't pin point the single moment, but right then, when Jude Dixon's eyes met the identical twins of his brother, he knew.
With one, soft, gentle breeze, the world around him crumbled. A sink hole opened beneath his boots and swallowed him whole as he screamed for mercy all the way down until the thud of his body hitting the end could be heard by every walker within a five mile radius. As the earth caved in, leaving nothing left to die, his breath halted. Everything around the young boy seemed to pause and disappear into thin air. Feeling as though he dropped dead himself, his feet still scraped dreadfully against the stone cold pavement. The space between him and his brother grew smaller and smaller — heavier and heavier.
Daryl held the beautiful, young body of Beth Greene safely in his arms. His shoulders were low and his steps slowed painfully as he neared Jude. With gentle cracks piercing his heart, he watched Jude's eyes gradually fall from his own and to the blonde. Every part of the archer screamed at him to turn away. His heart begged Jude to stop. He couldn't see this — couldn't see his Beth in the arms that held nothing but a dead girl. He was too young to be exposed to this pain — to this loss.
But Daryl knew, deep down, that this was the only way that he could bring his baby brother even the smallest amount of peace.
With a heavy heart of both regret and guilt, Daryl marched out of the hospital with Beth pressed against his chest so tight that he could almost feel her ghostly heartbeat. He carried her out, beyond those doors, with one thought on his mind — to bring her home to Jude, her lover, just like he had promised and nothing would stand in his way.
That was until the pale frame of Jude Dixon now stood in front of him.
All ounce of strength, all determination, and all of the anger in his body simply disappeared into the spring air as Jude's hands fell beneath Beth and his arms snaked around her lifeless body. With no hesitation, Daryl allowed the young boy to take his past lover into his arms for the last time.
Removing his grasp from Beth once and for all, Daryl's hand fell to the back of Jude's head. With a small tug, his lips pressed against his forehead and a million words were shared within one brotherly kiss.
And Jude broke.
A sob so painful it sent him faltering to his knees bursted out of his chest. In one slow, heartbreaking movement, his knees touched the pavement beneath him and his head fell into the crook of Beth's neck. The world ticked by silently as his people watched in agony and witnessed the soft trembles of his shoulders as he cried.
Around him, his family stood.
Teddy, who stood hand in hand with Rosita, could feel cold, blue eyes burning into her skin. She could practically hear the thoughts in Prim's head as the brunette stared into her soul, begging her to come to her. But right now, as Teddy couldn't even look at Prim, she only had one thought on her own, youthful, mind — to comfort Jude Dixon the way he had comforted her.
Silently, with nothing to be heard but the cries of Jude, and the wails of Maggie, and the sobs of the people around her who mourned the life of Beth Greene, Teddy let go of Rosita's hand.
Prim stepped forward, heart beating rapidly against her chest — anticipation rising as she could no longer breath without her sister in her arms.
Yet, that rapid beat of her heart paused when Teddy didn't run to her side and collapse into her arms, but instead, the blonde stepped besides Jude. Her hand fell onto his shoulder and she slowly kneeled besides him.
Feeling her temple fall against the vibration of his shoulder, he then knew that that was the moment the world stopped tilting. The moment that the sink hole closed and spat him out. The moment that he could finally breath again.
There was a piece of Jude that accepted this fate a long, long time ago. Falling in love with her, he understood the sacrifices that would be made one day. He knew the day he looked into those pretty eyes of hers, that she would be the worst heartbreak of his life. He was prepared to lose her one day. But right now, at this very moment, when her pale skin was cold beneath is fingertips as he ran his thumb over her closed eyelids, he didn't understand.
Beth was once everything to him. And now she was nothing but a dead girl that he once loved.
How could a person walk away from that?
How could someone so easily understand.
That was a question he was afraid would never be answered.
Richmond, Virginia.
Their next stop, and hopefully, their last for a long, long time.
"It was secure." The voice of Rick Grimes brought Prim away from her daydreaming. With raw, sandpaper eyes, she glanced up from her previous focus and looked at the man with so much dread, it made him shutter. "It has a wall, homes, twenty people." She stood besides a trembling Noah whose bouncing knee made the anxiety in her chest swell. "Beth wanted to go with him. She wanted to get him there." At the mention of her name, Prim's gaze gently landed on the lonely boy. He was sat on the tailgate of a truck they had found and called home for the past few days. His eyes were planted on his ripped jeans but she could see the perk of his ears when Rick spoke of his lost lover. "It's a long tip, but if it works out, it's the last long trip we have to make."
The birds chirped in the trees that surrounded them.
The air was warm and somber with a gentle breeze that came and went.
Shuffling around them marked the actions of their people slowly packing up the few belongings they had.
A small group of them including Rick, Eugene, Glenn, Noah, and Michonne — with the additions of Jude and Prim, spoke about their next moves in attempt to make a plan to get Noah back home to his own family. The young boy told them that Beth, if she had made it out alive, promised to take help him find his way home. In honor of her promise, Rick rallied together a few of them to do what she couldn't.
"And what if it isn't around anymore?" Glenn's voice brought hesitance onto the group.
"Then we keep going."
"Then we find a new place."
Stepping out of the van, Prim had a horrible feeling .
It was the same wave of emotion she had when she stepped into the hallway before Beth Greene was killed.
Hand to her stomach, she took a deep breath and perked her ears for any suspicious behavior that could be lurking in the trees around them.
They were about a two mile walk from Noah's community. Rick thought it was best if they pulled over and completed the journey on foot, in case anything went south. Prim was starting to think that this group simply had bad luck because south was the direction they had found themselves in consecutively. But she kept her shoulders high and she returned the hopeful smile that Noah shot her as he closed the passenger door. She was here, doing this for him — that's what kept her up to plan. Within the small time that Noah had been with them, he had been practically glued to her side. Despite the fact that she had a gun to his face and his head hanging over the edge of a building, he seemed to put the majority of his trust into her so in return, she decided to do the same.
Prim was grateful for Noah. He had kept her from sinking into the horrific voices in her head since the night that Beth was killed — it had been about three days since. It had also been three days since Teddy walked out of that fire truck with the rest of them after thinking she was lost for good. She hadn't muttered even a word to Prim and it ate the older girl alive.
"Hey," it was Noah's voice that brought her out of her thoughts, just as he had been doing every time he noticed her fade into her void of nothingness. She blinked up at him, feeling the weight of his hand fall to her shoulder. Giving it a soft squeeze, he dropped it to his pocket and pulled out a half empty water bottle. "Here." Prim shook her head to turn down the offer but he had already shoved it into her chest with a crinkle. "I haven't seen you drink anything in two days. Keep it on you for the walk." Obliging, she reluctantly took it from his grasp and shoved it into the back pocket of her cargos.
"This is good." They returned their attention back to Rick as the rest of the group exited the van. "Through the trees, it might just look like part of the wreck," he spoke in regards to the small junk yard of cars hidden beneath the woods that Tyreese parked in. A thud and a snarl behind the sheriff announced the presence of a walker stuck in one of the vehicles.
"It's this way," Noah brought them away from the dead one.
Two miles into the woods, they neared a group of trees bounded in barbed wire.
"Your people do this?" Michonne asked Noah.
"They must've."
Being careful not to cut herself, Prim followed suite in climbing through the wire slowly.
However, being not so cautious, Noah's forehead was sliced by the wire, causing him to hiss in pain.
Prim grabbed his elbow. "Are you okay?" The boy nodded with a grimace and pulled his arm out of her grasp.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"They have spotters? Snipers?" Rick questioned as they narrowed in on the community. It was a gated housing track — that much they could see from the saftey of the trees.
"We built a perch on a truck. Sometimes it's out front," the boy informed. Using this, Prim stepped up besides Glenn. Looking for a perch on a truck, the two fell short and shared a glance of hesitance. This doesn't feel right.
"Not today."
The seven reached for their weapons and followed Glenn down the road where they came across the large gate that should've welcomed them into the community with open arms — as Noah once told them.
Stepping up to the metal gate, Jude perked his ears, carefully listening for what could be on the other side. With furrowed eyebrows, he took a small step back. His eyes met Prim's. He shook his head.
Nothing but silence.
"Wait, let me try and look," Glenn hopped up onto the fence. Prim could feel the fear radiating off of Noah. With heavy breathing, the boy paced back and forth, shifting from one foot to the other. Feeling a slight beat of panic, Prim stepped up behind him and grabbed his hand. She squeezed it as hard as she could in attempt to try and ease his anxiety, knowing that whatever comes next on their journey wasn't going to be good.
This was the moment in which the bad feeling from before made sense. She felt it sink in deep as she waited for Glenn to say something — anything. She knew it would break Noah's heart. She knew it would tear them all apart the moment he confirmed what they all felt.
Glenn's body seemed to shrink into a huddle of disappointment. You could quite literally see the hope seep out of his pores. He didn't say anything but the look he sent towards Noah was one that held a million words. The boy shook in delusion. He shoved Prim's hand off and took it upon himself to climb up the fence and get a look at what he had once called home.
One by one, hands fell from their weapons. Shoulder's dropped in silence. Heads dipped in heartache.
Once again, their hard work ended in nothing but sorrow.
Noah climbed up the fence and hopped over to the other side with a grunt. With knowing glances, the rest followed. Prim landed after him and she watched as he limped down the road, head on a swivel as he searched for any sign of life. But there was nothing left.
"No, no, no."
"Noah, wait," she called after him. The boy disregarded her reach and ran forward, causing her to race after him. "Noah!"
They chased him into the middle where each road met, revealing bodies upon bodies that were sprawled out on the asphalt. Noah came to a halt. With his hands in his hair, he broke down into a mess of sobs upon seeing what was left of his home — of his family.
He fell to a cradle, resting his forehead against his knees as he rocked back in forth. Not knowing what to do, Prim watched Tyreese grab the boy by his shoulders.
"Come on, it's alright. You're gonna be with us now."
The boy cried. Prim could feel the pain radiating of off him. She crouched besides him and wrapped her arm around his shoulder, allowing him to collapse into her hold as he trembled.
"I'm so sorry, Noah. I'm so sorry." She felt a tear fan over her cheek and she angrily wiped it away.
Everyone was so . . defeated. She could see it in Glenn's face as his hopes of a new home was clearly given up. She could hear it in the shuffled steps that Michonne took towards a dead one that walked their way. She could feel the anger that radiated off of Rick and when she looked towards a crouching Jude who was inspecting one of the many lifeless bodies around them, she could tell that he was disappointed, but not in the slightest surprised.
The younger Dixon stood and wiped a beat of sweat off of his forehead with the back of his hand. "We should see if there's anything we can use and head back." Prim's eyes dilated in irritation. She scoffed.
When he saw the shake of her head, Jude raised his eyebrow. "What? Look around us — it's a ghost town. There's nothing here for us."
"Jude." Rick warned.
"You know I'm right. We're all thinking —"
"— Jude, shut it." Michonne's voice quieted him down. The boy scoffed and rolled his eyes but obliged and kept his mouth closed.
Ignoring him, Rick crouched in front of Noah and placed a fatherly hand onto his shoulder. "I'm sorry Noah, I truly am. But he's right. I say we scavenge a bit and head out 'fore sunset."
"Then what?" Michonne's expression was one that showcased nothing but anger and frustration. She was so damn tired of being let down, over and over again. She was beginning to lose hope in ever finding somewhere safe with her people and Prim could understand why.
"Then we keep going." Glenn repeated Rick's words from before but they were pushed aside and stomped on with the rest of his optimism.
"My . ." Prim snapped her head towards Noah as the boy struggled to mutter out his words.
"What is it Noah?"
With a trembling lip, he looked up at her — big brown eyes dipped in sadness. "My family. I need to see if they are . ." he paused. "If they're dead, I need to know." He began to stand up. Wincing at the pain in his leg, he attempted to step forward, however, as weak as he was, he only fell once more. Prim caught him as he faltered.
"Okay, okay, let's just sit down for a second. Take it in." She helped him sit back down on the pavement.
"I need to see them Prim." His finger nails dug into her shoulders as he pulled her close. "I need to know."
Prim's bottom lip pulled into a quiver. "Noah," she whispered softly. "You can't even walk."
There was a loud, impatient sigh behind her.
"I'll go." Prim looked over her shoulder towards Jude who pulled the handgun out of his waistband.
Noah's eyebrows furrowed as he looked up at the boy.
"Prim and I," Jude motioned towards her. "We'll go look for you. The others can do a quick sweep and then we get the hell out of here. We shouldn't have come, anyway." Without any sign of disagreement — despite their disappointment with the words he used, Jude marched past them and towards the houses.
The group shared quick looks, all concerned for not only Noah but the mental state that Jude was currently in. Since Beth's death, he had been extra ill-tempered, leaving everyone on the tips of their toes as they stepped around the shattered remains of the teenage boy.
"I'll stay with him," Tyreese joined in, attempting to take Noah's mind off of what Jude had said.
Semi hesitant, Prim thought it over. She wasn't sure what she would find if she went with Jude to Noah's home — former home, but she knew if it could give her friend closure, it was something she had to do. She looked towards the boy for permission and stared into those big brown, sad, eyes of his that looked at her with so much pain it sent a shiver down her spine as she stood.
"What house is it?"
"Blue house, white framing, black mailbox."
"It's his."
"This is his house."
Primrose and Jude stood at the end of the driveway, staring up at the abandoned house surrounded by many — this one belonging to Noah. The door was wide opened and barely covered with a torn screen, proving that no body was going to be home — no body alive that was.
"You can stay out here," Jude spoke. If he were being completely honest, he was irritated and upset. He knew that this journey was going to end in nothing. He knew it was a bad idea. But hell, no body ever listened to him. No one ever paid any mind to his reluctance.
In every situation, Jude tried so hard to be the voice of reason — to smack a bit of reality in their faces and get them to stop and think. To stop and breath before they followed Rick into another bloodbath. Jude was known to question the sheriff's orders, his plans. Everyone expected his voice to add in a doubt or two whenever Rick would announce the next moves. And every single time, he was shot down.
Do you have a better idea?
What do you suggest?
He didn't know what to suggest. All he knew was that every time his gut feeling told him to turn around and run, they walked head first into loss.
First it was Terminus.
He told Rick it was a bad idea. He begged the man to find another way, but the Sheriff didn't listen. He led them into a trap where innocence was stolen and people were taken from them.
Then it was Gareth and the church. Where his words were ignored again, and he watched his people slaughter others as every sense of humanity disappeared from the church and into the night sky. Where, because of they were blood thirsty, a nine year old little girl was forever scarred.
Jude knew deep down that it wasn't Rick's fault. The boy loved the man like a brother. He trusted him in a way he trusted no one else. He knew that Rick took the spot as leader because no body else could ever muster that responsibility.
He knew he was just trying to find someone to blame for the shit he has lost.
Because blaming someone else felt better than blaming himself.
So yeah, Jude was angry.
He was tired.
The empty, hollow, hole in his chest ached and it drove him mad.
And day by day, journey by journey — the hole grew bigger and bigger until one day, he would be left with nothing but bone in his body.
That's why he was here right now, standing next to a girl who was simply a stranger just a few days prior, about to step into the home of a boy she cared deeply for. He didn't know what would be hidden within, and quite frankly, he was terrified of how it would make him feel considering he had been slumping around like the dead — empty and hollow. Whatever it was, he knew it would be better than sitting back at camp, listening to the terrific cries that Maggie Greene laid out. The sounds of her heartbreak drove him mad. Reason one onto why he jumped into help at the first sign of escape when Rick gathered the group together to join Noah.
"Whatever is in there — it's not gon' be pretty." He continued. Prim could hear the hesitance in his tone and she figured, despite how much he seemed to dislike her presence, that joining him would be better than letting him step into that home alone.
Prim shrugged. "Pretty doesn't exist anymore."
"Welcome to the apocalypse."
Her stomach churned.
Prim's eyes stared after him for a short moment before she followed him up the driveway and to the front door. He paused and readied his gun. Taking that as a hint, Prim took a step back and loaded an arrow into the quiver. Sharing a look, Jude kicked the screen opened.
"Anyone home?" He hollered into the clearly empty house.
Biting her lip to keep her comments at bay, Prim decided the best thing to do was ignore him as her patience was weighing thin and her chest began to swell in anger.
He was so . . inconsiderate.
It drove her crazy.
The quick joke disappeared into the room as soon as they stepped in and observed the bloody mess in the house. Furniture was tipped over. Glass littered the floor from shattered windows and picture frames. In the middle of the room held the rotted, lifeless body of a woman they could only guess to be Noah's mother. Prim's feet paused. Uncontrollably, her hand covered her mouth as the smell hit her nostrils — it was so bad she could taste it on her tongue. The image was horrific.
Swallowing the sickness coming up her throat, Prim forced her watery eyes to clear up with a few frantic blinks. She couldn't be weak right now — especially not in front of Jude. She slowly looked towards the boy but he didn't return her glance, but instead, simply stared at the rotting corpse with not a single thought behind his eyes.
She could feel her cheeks heat up.
Forcing the image to the back of her mind, she stepped over the dismantled mess and crouched over the body. Grabbing the corner of a blanket that was bundled up near by, she pulled it over the dead one, covering the scene up in hopes it would be forgotten.
She took a moment to recover and fell to her knees, staring lifelessly down at what once was her friend's mother. Apart from the sound of Jude's footsteps disappearing into the hallway and out of the family room, Prim swore that she could hear the rustling of memories breeze past her. She could see the image of Noah chasing his little brothers around the room, tackling them onto the couch where the only sound that bounced off the walls were not the screams of terror they cried but the wholesome laughs that belonged to the children. She could smell the homemade dinner that wafted through the halls and the clank of his mother's heels as the woman prepared supper.
A tear fell down her cheek and this time, Prim didn't attempt to hide it away.
God, she felt horrible.