Edited 12/29/16
Carl showed us to our rooms, well cells actually. I'm so thankful Mr. Grimes let us stay here. We were almost out there for too long. It's safe here Aiden and I might actually be able to have lives here. It won't ever be how it was but for now I'm good just where I am.
Just thinking about being safe makes me feel guilty. If we didn't go to that store Asher would still be alive, we wouldn't have been chased into the woods and he wouldn't have died. Maybe Carl would have found us and we all could have come back here.
No stop thinking like that.
Asher told us to leave him, we had no other choice.
"Hey Ava." Carl spoke as he walked into my cell, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"Hey." I stood from my uncomfortable mattress and walked towards my cell door where he was standing.
"You ready to meet everyone?" Carl asked. I immediately started smiling. I just couldn't help myself, being around more biters than people can really do somethin' to ya. Carl grabbed my hand and dragged me down the stairs. "I already introduced your brother to everyone, he already asked to help at the fences." Carl said with a smile plastered on his face.
"That sounds like him." I said laughing at the fact that my brother already wants to help this group. He always does stuff like this, he just always ready to help people.
"Everyone I'd like ya to meet Ava." Carl announced. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked to where we stood. "Come on Ava don't be shy." Carl said, pushing me closer to everyone.
"Uh... hi I'm Ava." I waved to everyone and most of them waved back and a few just smiled. I saw Carl smile and shake his head out of the corner of my eye. He took my arm and again dragged me towards the somewhat friendly looking strangers.
"Ava this is Beth, Maggie, and Hershel Greene." He told me. I smiled at them. They all seem pretty nice. He took me over to another group of people. "This is Glenn, He was the one by the gates earlier."
"Nice to see you again." Glenn told me.
"This is Daryl and Carol." Carl continued. I smiled but only the woman, Carol smiled back. Daryl just looked away. "You already know my dad." Carl said pointing at Rick. Rick waved to me and I waved back. "And this is Michonne." Michonne smiled slightly. "There are others in the D' and B' block too." Carl told me. "Oh, yeah and I almost forgot." Carl walked off into a cell. When he came back he held a baby girl in his arms. "This is my little sister Judith."
"Oh, my gosh can I hold her?" I've seen this baby once and I already love her.
"Sure." Carl said handing Judith over to me.
"How old is she?" I asked.
"A few months." Rick told me. He walked over to where I was standing with Judith. Rick leaned down and kissed her on her little head.
"She's adorable." I told Rick. He smiled at me then he left the cell block. I rocked little Judith in my arms. It's probably obvious that I never want to put her down. Everyone that was standing around to cell block went back to what they were doing before including Carl.
"She likes you." A blonde girl told me, I think her name was Beth. I smiled.
"You think so?" I asked.
"Yeah, usually she's not good with new people but she hasn't made a peep." Beth said.
"Well knock on wood." I told her. She laughed and looked around.
"I don't think there is any to knock on!" She exclaimed. I started laughing along with her. "Do you want to feed her for me?" Beth asked.
"Yes!" I was super excited I haven't even held a baby since this whole thing started. Beth gave me a bottle and I begin to feed the little baby.
"Little Ass kicker givin' you any trouble?" A man asked me. I laughed and the nickname he gave Judith.
"No, I'm fine." I assured him. A small almost unnoticeable smile formed on his face before he walked out the door. "What was his name again?" I asked Beth.
"Oh him? He's Daryl. Rick was a bit out of it when she was born and Carl couldn't come up with a name so Daryl started calling her Little Ass Kicker." Beth told me.
"That sounds like something my brother would have done." I said laughing slightly.
"Really? I know I just met Aiden but he doesn't look like someone who would call an infant 'little ass kicker'." Beth said before laughing a little too.
"Oh, not Aiden, my brother, Asher." I told her. The smile that was on my face quickly disappeared at the thought of Asher. I thought I forgot, I almost let myself, but every little thing reminds me of him no matter what I do.
"I'm sorry." Beth said. I looked to her and smiled.
"Thank you." I told her. I went back to feeding Judith while Beth started singing.
"When I'm lying in my bed at night,
I don't wanna grow up.
Nothing ever seems to turn out right.
I don't wanna grow up.
How do you move in a world of fog that's always changing things?
Makes me wish that I could be a dog.
When I see the price that you pay,
I don't wanna grow up.
Nothing ever seems to go my way.
I don't wanna grow up.
The only thing to live for is today." She sang.
"That was beautiful." I told her.
"Thank you." She said smiling. "So..."
"So?" I asked.
"You and Carl huh?" She said with a little smirk on her face. I rolled my eyes at Beth. How could she think I could be so childish and like a guy when people are dying and there are creatures roaming the earth killing and eating people.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"He obviously likes you. Why else would he have brought you back?" Beth questioned.
"He knew I needed help. Aiden and I weren't doing too well on our own anymore, we couldn't find food or water, he saw that and he helped us." I told her. She shook her head at me.
"Carl hasn't been the same since his momma died. He's a good kid but he hasn't shown it in a while, not until he found you I guess. I haven't seen Carl this way in months, I'm glad your here." Beth told me. I could feel my face burning without a doubt my cheeks are bright red from me blushing so much. "I see you blushing you like him too. Don't you?"
"Beth, I just met him like today." I told her. It's true you can't like someone you just met and I just met Carl today there's no way he likes me.
"But you think he's good looking right?"
"Okay yes I think Carl is attractive but-"
"Don't say anything else you two are going to be together!" She squealed.
"Shhh he might hear you." Beth laughed. Even through all this commotion Judith was still asleep in my arms.
"Okay, okay just promise me you'll be his friend?" I laughed and shook my head. I never planned on not being his friend.
"Yes, but in a world like this I don't have time for boys and romance." Beth laughed at my answer and we hung out the rest of the day, even in the end of the world everyone needs a best friend.
~*~*~*~
(The Next Day)
I got up early today, if my watch is correct then I woke up at 5:24. It might be an hour or so off but I don't really know anymore. I lost track of the days a long time ago. I walked out of cell block C' the sun was up and it was another warm day in Georgia. I walked along the fences closest to the cell block door. I can see Rick in the vegetable garden from here. I walked through the gates and closer to rick.
"Hey Mr. Grimes, do you need any help?" I asked once I was close enough to him. Rick turned around and smiled.
"Can you grab me that shovel over there?" He asked me. I nodded my head and started walking to get the shovel. "And Ava?" Rick called. I quickly turned around.
"Yeah?"
"You can call me Rick." I smiled at him and continued over to the pigs pen to get the shovel. I grabbed it and walked back to him. "Thanks." He said after I handed him the shovel. He began digging more holes and planting small seeds inside.
"So, what are you planting?" I asked. Rick smiled up at me.
"Peas." He simply stated. "Will you help me?" He asked.
"Sure." I said kneeling down next to him. "What do you want me to do?" I asked him.
"After I dig a hole put this in and bury it." He told me after giving me and hand full of seeds. After each small hole, he dug I buried more of the plants that would one day be food. We did this for a few minutes in comfortable silence.
"Was Carl up when you came out?" Rick asked breaking the silence between us.
"No, but no one was, it's pretty early." I told him.
"Then why are you up?" He asked, emphasizing the 'you'.
"I don't know it was just hard to sleep. I guess when you're so used to waking up in the middle of the night because bit-- I mean walkers are banging on your door, you learn to wake up to any little noise."
"You can call them Biters if you want I'll know what you're talkin' about and you don't need to worry anymore its safe here, you and your brother, you're both safe." Rick told me.
"Thank you, Mr. Grimes."
"Rick." He said causing me to laugh. I don't think I'd be able to call him Rick it's just weird. We continued to garden for the next hour and a half until Carl came outside.
"Why didn't you guys wake me if you were having a party?" Carl acted hurt and upset.
"You are more than welcome to join in on the fun." I threw a shovel at him, luckily for him he caught it. Carl and I pulled some weeds while Rick continued to plant more of the seeds. Rick told me one day all this will be a garden full of many different kinds of fruits and vegetables.
"Carl, Ava why don't you two go feed the pigs?" Rick asked.
"Okay Mr. Grimes." Rick gave me that 'I told you to call me Rick' look that only made me laugh and shake my head at him. Carl and I walked to the pigs' pen and grabbed some of the worms that Rick had already left here. The piglets were adorable. "We should name them." I told Carl.
"My dad said not to name them, they're just food." I frowned at his words. As much as I love bacon these adorable little pigs shouldn't be slaughtered, they are alive even though the world went down they are still here just like us.
"Can't we just name one?" I asked Carl.
"No."
"Please." I asked giving him my best puppy dog eyes. He rolled his eyes at me.
"Oh, fine." Carl said, caving in. "Which one?'' He asked a slight smile forming on his face.
"That one." I said, pointing to the smallest pig there. Carl smiled at me.
"What are you going to name her?"
"Oh, I don't know, how about Violet?"
"Violet sounds perfect." Carl told me.
"Then Violet it is."