MAKNAE [twd]

【39】

Surprisingly, it was Hershel that I woke up to.

"Hey there, little one," he smiles, "About time you woke up."

"You shouldn't be in here," I frown, raising my head from Glenn's chest.

It was then that I realized how bad Glenn was shaking. When I look up to him, I see the tears.

Catching my confused face, Hershel lays his hand on my head, caressing softly.

"You slipped out on us for a bit," he explains.

"Slipped out?" I repeat, my voice raw.

"Glenn said you fell asleep listening to music. Then, you weren't waking up. When I came through, you were still unresponsive. Glenn did CPR for awhile, but nothing was coming of it. You had us scared."

Glenn nods, sniffling through more tears, "Thought you were gone for a bit."

"But, she isn't now is she?" Hershel questions, "I've said it a hundred times. My little one is a warrior."

My brain could hardly process the thought. I was just listening to music with Glenn. We'd even spoken a bit just for the sake of keeping conversation. And yet, there I was on the brink of death. So easy. So quick.

"You should rest up for awhile. Daryl's group should be back any second now," Hershel nods.

"No, no.. I've got to get up. Move around and-"

"You do that, you'll just exhaust yourself more and drain all of your energy. Best you stay close by where we can keep an eye on you," Hershel says.

"I think I'm too scared to fall asleep now," I admit.

"You don't have to sleep," Glenn says, "Just rest."

"Sasha is right next door. She had a pretty close call, too. If you two need anything, we're close by," Hershel adds.

He reaches over to the table, grabbing a metallic cup, "Drink this. It'll help."

Hershel never even handed me the cup, instead holding it to my mouth with one hand while the other lingered by my chin in case some spilled out.

"There we go," he nods, reaching to the floor and retrieving something else, "And keep this on your head."

Glenn scoots off the bed, easing me to lay back down just as Hershel places the wet cloth to my forehead.

"Rest up. If you don't want to sleep, that's fine. The others will be back soon, so just rest," Hershel orders.

I nod, placing one of my hands on the cloth to keep it centered. Hershel gives another smile before walking to the door, leaving to do more work.

"Julie came by again. She brought Sasha a book and you.." Glenn says, pointing to the table.

My eyes follow, landing on the stand that held the cup Hershel had refilled as well as a glass cup. A glass cup with a flower in it.

"She said you needed something pretty to look at and found it in your cell. So, she thought you might want it," Glenn explains.

With my free hand, I reach to it, my fingertip tracing alongside the glass like I did the other night.

"Taeyang gave it to me," I whisper.

"So, you're on that level now?" Glenn asks, kneeling beside the bed.

"Hmm?"

"I'm just saying.. You're Maggie and I's go to therapist for our issues. I could be that for you," he shrugs with a light grin.