I opened the front door to the house after I heard knocking, while I was in the kitchen, only to see Carol standing outside of it, holding another Tupperware container.
"Carol.." I laughed at the gesture before she shoved it towards me, the expression on her face not being one of kindness.
"Rick said you might be hungry," she said, walking into the house and closing the door behind herself, "But if it were up to me, I wouldn't be bringing you a damn thing after what you did."
I swallowed harshly, "I'm sorry-"
"No you're not, you're stupid, Elizabeth." She cut me off, "What you did was stupid and not only could you have gotten yourself killed, but you could've gotten Daryl killed and then who knows who else."
I nodded quietly, receiving the scolding I had been anticipating.
"You were only thinking about yourself and how you felt and that's not the type of person I took you for," she continued, "You've disappointed me and lost my trust."
"I know-" I let out, my voice weak as I stared at the floorboards beneath my feet.
"You don't know, Liz, because if you did, you wouldn't have left and made Daryl chase after you." She stopped me again.
"I didn't think he would, I- I thought he'd just-" I stuttered.
"You thought he'd just let you walk out of here and not give a crap?" She asked sarcastically, "He cares so much about you that he's willing to risk life and limb to go out in the middle of the night and look for you."
I wiped away a tear that had slipped down my cheek before shrugging, not knowing what to say anymore.
She sighed, heading to the door before turning around, "It's mac and cheese; drop the container off when you're done."
***
I sat alone in my kitchen, picking through the mac and cheese as I went over everything Carol had said; tears brimming my lash line.
I knew that every word that came out of her mouth was correct; I was stupid and I was only thinking about myself. I knew that at some point, someone would come looking for me, but I just hoped they'd never be able to find me and eventually give up.
My attention was then pulled when I heard the front door open and close, as I leaned over to see who it was.
Immediately I wiped my eyes as I saw a sweaty, dirt covered Daryl walk in, concern on his face as we made eye contact.
"Just wanted to check on ya," He mumbled, walking over to where I sat before grabbing a fork out of the drawer and poking it into the mac and cheese, "We're 'bout to finish that piece of wall."
"That's good," I weakly smiled, "Sorry I'm not out there to help."
"Ain't no big deal," He shook his head, taking another bite, "Just don't wanna see ya cryin' no more."
"I know," I nodded, wiping at my eyes again, "I'm working on it."
He nodded back, quietly studying my face before tossing the fork in the sink, "I gotta get back out there; find me if ya need me."
I then got up, stopping him before he left the kitchen by placing my lips on his and savoring the comfort that he brought me.
***
Right as I stepped out the front door, I immediately heard my name being called.
"Liz, you think you could come give me a hand with this?" Maggie asked from across the road, a wheelbarrow filled with soil in front of her.
I nodded, closing the door behind me before quickly jogging over to her, "What's this for?" I asked, beginning to push it in the direction she pointed.
"The garden," she smiled, "I got Enid over there helping me right now but I could really use another pair of hands."
I chuckled, "Well, I don't know much about gardening, but I'll help with whatever you need."
"I'd really appreciate that; I think you'll catch on pretty fast."
"I don't know about that, every little pet cactus I used to have met the same untimely doom." I joked.
She snickered before soon becoming quiet, the sound of our footsteps filling the space, "So, did you find what you needed out there?"
I looked over at her, confusion on my face as I tried to decipher what she was talking about.
"Outside the wall," she flicked her head in its direction, "Whatever you were looking for-- did you find what you needed to keep going?"
I shrugged, "I think I already knew what I needed before I went out there.. I just didn't want to believe it." I sighed before looking over to her, "But I do now."
She smiled, "Well, that's all that matters."
_____
Kind of a short chapter, also kind of a late chapter but I've been super busy so I apologize
I really wanted to show the changes in certain relationships and also the contrast in how differently people are reacting to Liz's disappearance; Rick was loving, Carol was upset/angry, and Carl and Maggie were more understanding.
*I also have nothing against Carol and this isn't gonna turn into them being enemies or something, Carol is just more practical and logical about these situations.