The men had gone to the shed with Randell to finish what everyone had started. Natalie ducked out of the tent after calming herself down from the argument with Shane earlier. Sniffling her eyes adjusted to the darkness around the area.
Lori noticed Natalie looking away from the water boiling; "Iris." Gaining her attention; She walked over joining the older women. "Shane told you," Standing up and wiping the sides of her clothing.
Taking a second, Natalie eyed Lori furrowing her eyebrows not knowing that her mom knew about this. "You knew?"
"Dale told me..." Lori crossed her arms standing in front of Natalie who chuckled shaking her head. "Me and Rick thought he should be the one who told you, instead of us."
"When you and Dad fought..." Natalie started.
Quickly Lori shook her head along with her hand. "You and Shane are nothing like me and Dad, you'll find someone else, Natalie, he isn't the only one to ever love you."
"I'm pregnant with his child." Her words were more prominite. "I'm not going to move on-..."
Lori stared at Natalie crossing her arms and rubbing the side of her arm as if it iched. The young woman stared at her waiting for an answer. Even Lori knew she couldn't explain the situation to Natalie knowing that the girl would return.
"I at least want this baby to have a normal Mom and Dad." Natalie tried to explain it from her perspective. Lori knew that her daughter was still young, twenty was a young age to be pregnant and say you're in love with someone.
Natalie was still naive and there was no controlling that. Wanting to tell her about what happened in the rec room of the CDC just so Natalie could have more of a perspective. She bit her lip silencing herself knowing it was wrong. "I'm going to talk to him...after awhile."
"He cheated on you," Lori stunned eyeing her daughter. "Natalie, he killed Otis." Moving her hands to cup her face, "You have to see this, you can't look past this, Iris."
"I talked to him about Andrea," Natalie shortened. "Handled it mature, like you would do...But even you said you can't just give up on someone after mistakes."
Her eyes searched Natalie's worried about the things she was saying. Kissing the top of her head trying to take a deep breath. "Mom, I can make this decision myself..." Walking away to go over and join Maggie and Glenn sitting with them not joining their conversation.
Natalie waited a second looking and staring off into the distance if felt like ten hours had passed until they heard the sounds of footsteps turning to Rick walking over with Carl by his side, Natalie furrowed her eyebrows at her little brother there. Knowing that he has no reason to be with Rick at the moment.
"We're keeping him in custody for now." Rick had mentioned causing Natalie to take a deep breath and lower her head, Glenn stood up from the seat wanting more information. Thankful that Rick had listened to her rather than what Shane would've wanted.
Maggie walked away with Andrea smiling and standing up; "I'm gonna find Dale," Telling Carl before walking away.
"Carl go inside," Lori warned him not looking away from her husband.
Wanting to get her mind off of this Shane thing, "Come on, Carl-" Natalie nodded her head towards the other tents motioning for the two of them to go on a small walk letting their parents talk.
Carl went over to Natalie without an argument with the two of them walking away, Natalie placing her hand on his shoulder. "Convinced Dad?" Questioning him wondering what had happened to change Rick's mind.
"I wanted him to do it," Carl confessed looking at his feet while they walked. "But he couldn't...I wanted to watch it happen."
Sighing and stopping looking at Carl, "You can-....You can't put that on Dad..." The little boy had stopped turning to her. "You know he'll never forgive himself for letting you watch something like that happen."
"Bu-"
"Not Buts, again...I'm not Mom..." Natalie reminded him, Carl nodded before Natalie continued on the two of them walking side by side. Shane was in the distance.
Natalie watched this with furrowed eyebrows trying to not run towards him making sure he was okay. Instead her stomach was telling her to walk the other way. Quickly the sounds of screaming had gained her attention. She and Carl didn't waste any time running towards the noise. "What was that?"
"Carl, Stay back-" Lori grabbed onto her son. "Natalie, go with your dad!"
Listening to her, Natalie chased after the direction that Rick and T-Dog had run in, the shouting becoming more and more blood-driven. It sounded like Dale causing her heart to drop at the image she was faced with when meeting her match.
Daryl was on top of someone who was a Walker, stabbing him in the head. "Help! Over here!" Daryl shouted waving his arms. Gaining Natalie's attention.
"Dad!" Natalie shouted for Rick who turned his attention to his daughter, Grabbing onto Natalie's hand Rick ran fully towards Daryl.
When they had run up, Shuttering backwards she was met with the site of Dale, his stomach was ripped open. Rick had quickly let go of her hand and ducked down cupping the man's face. He moaned and groaned in pain, "Natalie don't look," Shane warned her, the woman didn't listen looking and wiping her hand on her mouth trying to keep the feeling inside of her stomach.
"Get Hershel!" Rick shouted to someone. No one moved, they knew there was nothing that could be done.
Andrea ducked down falling to her knees beside's Dale. "Hang on. Hang on, Dale." She had tried to get him to hold on, with the man panting and moaning loudly trying to keep himself alive.
Glenn finally ran over joining them, with Natalie grabbing onto him. "Jesus" Cursing under her breath rushing towards him. Glenn didn't wait a second grabbing onto Natalie's head and shielding her.
Everyone was panicking in their way looking at Dale slowly dying on the floor. Hershel had run over and joined the group, ducking down and looking at him. "Can we move him?" Rick had questioned searching the eyes of Hershel who seemed sorry about the whole thing.
"He won't make the trip." He confessed to the Grimes man.
Rick quickly went into panic mode. "We have to do it here," Standing up with Hershel trying to stop him. "Glenn, get back to the house."
Glenn looked at this not knowing if that's what he should do, still holding onto Natalie who calmed herself down turning and looking at the fear that was in Dale's face. "Rick,"
"NO!" Rick shouted, everyone around was stressing and crying in their way. Natalie felt like loving people became way too normal for someone young like her, that she shouldn't feel this numbness towards it.
Glenn cried into Natalie's arm as they were still holding onto one another. Carl looked at the scene going over and hugging Lori tightly who just stared at the body stunned about the whole thing. Dale was suffering he was in pain at the moment hearing the sounds of his grunting and moaning sent chills down Natalie's spine.
Feeling a hand on her back, she turned to see Shane trying to comfort her. For some reason, he looked saddened by this. But she knew he was only sad because she was feeling that way. "Do something," Andrea pleaded to one of the people standing around, Shane let go of Natalie rubbing his head with stress.
Rick took out his gun ready to get the job done. Raising his gun and pointing it towards him, Daryl put his hand on Rick's grabbing the gun himself. "Sorry Brother," The words of Daryl came out into the air.
Natalie turned away closing her eyes and holding onto Glenn tightly. When she heard nothing but a gunshot it was filled with silence.
𓇻
Right after what had happened to Dale everyone was silent, the words being spoken to one another were barely to the minimum. Almost everyone had gone inside their tents, and in the house so that they could get a moment to themselves along with wanting to dim down on the fact Dale was gone.
After everything that had happened, he was now gone. Natalie sat outside, with the fire cracking in front of her a little bit. Her arms were wrapped around her legs staring into it wishing that she could have a drink in the moment. Her mind was only on the fact, that Dale had told her everything that he was hiding, and now he was gone.
He was truthful and the only person who was not even Rick or Lori had said something to her about the whole Shane thing. Dale knew that she could talk and get her way through things, the same with Rick did. But she needed to get her voice out.
Dale had thought it was the best idea for her to keep this baby knowing that the world was messed up as it is. This baby could be the one thing that brings her light in such a time like this.
The sounds of a branch breaking had gained her attention causing her to turn her head and look it's direction and grab her pistol that was next to her pointing it towards Daryl walking into the site. "Jesus." Muttering and putting the gun down.
"You Grimes' are always pointing a gun at me." He pointed out joining the young women sitting down at the fire as well.
Natalie smiled a little bit looking back at the fire, Daryl had been hiding from the group for the past couple of days since finding Sophia. "You've decided to join the group again?" Turning her head and eyeing the man staring into the fire seeming to have a lot on his mind.
"I didn't leave, I distanced." Daryl pointed out as she shook her head a little bit. "You leaving the group?"
"Not at the moment," Natalie answered. "But could sure use a drink right now."
Daryl couldn't help but smile at this. "I would offer the one I have in my tent if you weren't pregnant." Confessing causing her to sigh loudly rubbing the side of her left eye.
The silence between the two of them was comfortable with Natalie wanting to get rid of one of the ghosts that were in between them. "You did what you had to do." Finishing and looking at her hands. "I don't think any of us could've done it, Daryl."
"He knew there was nothing mean against it," He confirmed nodding his head a little bit. "Dale was too good for how everything changed. So are you, so you wouldn't have done it...."
Her gaze turned to Daryl knowing that what he was saying was true. She didn't want to do that much for this world. Knowing that this new world was already doomed of some sort. "It would be for this baby...Dale thought that would bring light to the group..."
"After Sophia...Maybe it's needed." He put his two senses on it. Natalie didn't know she and Daryl would wind up having this kind of conversation.
Since the two of them never had a separate conversation between just the two of them that didn't have to do with the rest of the group. "It's getting late, you need the rest." He confessed standing up; "I'll do the lookout if that's what you're worried about."
Seeing right through her, Natalie nodded towards Daryl silently and tiredly thanking him. But honestly, she didn't know where to go not wanting to sleep in her family tent, and knowing Shane was waiting up for her to walk through the tent.
But after the time had passed she was able to think about everything knowing her words would come out more calmly than they would've earlier. Biting her lip a little bit, Natalie stood up from the chair and exchanged her goodnight between her and Daryl.
Going towards the tent she had ducked getting into it and removing her shirt right away since it was dirty. "You're okay" Shane grabbed her attention. Trying to ignore him and remove her pants as well, before getting into the bed causing him to move over and hold her hip a little bit making himself comfortable.
Once her head had hit the bed, her eyes started to water feeling the burning coming from her nose trying to hold it in. Ducking her head down and silencing her sniffle. "Natalie," Shane said quietly, grabbing onto her and pulling her into him rubbing the back of her head.
Not saying anything she had cried into his arms trying to calm herself down. The huffing had caused him to hold onto her tighter than he was before.
Pulling away from him for a moment she had cupped his face and kissed his lips softly. Natalie knew there was one thing that she was able to do. For the comfortability of herself, and wanting Shane to be there when she raised the baby.
Multiple times she had pressed her lips into his; lips were soft and tender. Trying to make sure she had felt safe each time. Shane tried to hold it longer just for her to pull away a little bit. "Leave me alone, until this baby comes." Confessing and looking into his darkened eyes. "I'm tired of the lying"
"Nata-"
Cutting him off; "Shane." Demanding him rather than just telling him. Silently she had let go of him and turned back around closing her eyes and trying to go to sleep since she had gotten it off of her mind.