He's Our Future

ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝔽𝕚𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕖𝕟 - 𝕋𝕖𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝔾𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕡

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Word count: 1225

I woke up that morning before everyone else. I walked out onto the porch, seeing all the residents up and moving.

"Lori and me, we used to drive through neighborhoods like this. Thinking, one day-" Rick said as he stood beside me.

"Well, we're here." I cut him off.

"Something on your mind, Rose?"

"Yeah, I'm just waiting for everyone to wake up."

"That should be soon. Why don't we take a walk? I can't find Carl, Judith, or Jacob."

"Sure."

We walked down the steps, and Rick started picking up the pace. It was like he was still on edge, not wanting anyone out of his sight. He ended up running into something as we were looking for the kids.

"Rick, you okay?" A woman asked.

"Did Carl, Jacob, and Judith walk by? We were out, and they were ahead of me."

"It's okay. I think I know where they went."

We followed her to a house that was near the walls.

"That's Natalie and Bob Miller. They had five kids and 12 grandkids. It's been a long time since anyone around here has seen a baby. She's gonna have to put up with some pinched cheeks."

"Thanks. I just, um--" Rick looked relieved as he saw the kids.

"It's okay. I get it."

"Look, I'm sorry I broke whatever that was I broke"

"It's a sculpture I'm making with the boys. It's an owl. I mean, it will be. I just can't get the eyes right."

"Right, the eyes."

"You didn't even get a good look at it."

"He was in the middle of losing his mind. Thank you." I said, grateful that Rick calmed down.

"You're welcome. Hey, Rick. Would it be okay if Carl came over now? Ron really wants to meet him."

"Yeah, sure." Rick then turned to me. "How about we go back to the house? I'm sure everyone is starting to wake up now."

"Sure." I made a motion to Jacob so that he would come back to the house with us.

He grabbed my hand and Ricks' wanting us to swing him as we walked. We laughed and Rick held the door open, we walked in and everyone was up and about getting ready to explore the town.

"Hey, guys?" Rick called. "Rose, she has something she needs to tell us."

"What is it?" Michonne asked.

We walked into the living room, everyone stopped what they were doing to pay attention to what I needed to say.

"Jacob got bit." I said. There was no point in sugar-coating such a serious matter.

A few members of the group let out gasps, Rick looked at me with sad eyes.

"Let us see," Daryl said.

I kneeled down and looked at Jacob. "Remember when I said we couldn't tell anyone until I talked to them first?"

He nodded and moved closer.

"Well, we have to show them your bite. No one will be mad at you."

"Promise, Momma?"

"I promise, pumpkin."

I took his shirt off, taking a step back so the group could see the bite mark on his stomach that had been healed over.

"Is this what you were talking about last night?" Daryl looked over at me. I simply nodded my head and looked at Rick to see what he was thinking.

"How long ago did this happen, Rose?"

"About three months now."

"And why did you wait so long to tell us?" Michonne asked.

"Is it even a walker bite?" Maggie asked.

"What do we do?" Beth spoke up.

There were a few more questions asked before Rick spoke up.

"Enough," Rick yelled. "Everyone leave. I need to talk to Rose, Jacob, and Daryl alone."

Everyone seemed to trickle out after a few minutes. I let Jacob go play with his toys while we talked.

"How long have you known?" Rick asked.

"A few weeks, he told me when we went to Richmond. Just before Tyreese died."

"Are you sure it's a walker bite?" Daryl asked. "It could just be a bite from when those fuckers ate a chunk of Bob."

"Jacob told me it was from when a walker fell on him in the woods."

Realization formed in Daryls' eyes as he looked over at his boy. "There was blood on his shirt. I ignored it because we were all dirty-" He paused. "This is my fault. I didn't try hard enough to get that walker off in time."

"What do we do?"

"We have to get him to the CDC," Rick stated.

"Is that even still standing?" I asked.

We looked at each other and knew what we had to do.

"Jacob, we're going for a walk. Put your shirt back on." Daryl said.

"We need to talk to Deanna, see if we can take one of their cars." Rick said.

We all started to walk to the leaders' house. I walked ahead with Jacob as Rick and Daryl talked. They were trying to figure out how this was possible. Upon arriving, I knocked on the door twice until it opened.

"Mrs. Dixon? What a nice surprise." The leader looked behind me, seeing Rick, Daryl, and Jacob. "What can I help you with?"

"We have something important to show you. We also need one of your cars." I said.

"Sure, we can talk about why you need it. Come in." She moved out of the way, allowing us to come into her home.

--Third Person Point of View--

After Deanna welcomed the small group into her home, she took them to the living room. Rose wasted no time getting straight into what they needed and why they needed it.

It took a moment for Deanna to believe what she was telling her until Daryl showed the older woman the bite on his son's torso. She looked at it in disbelief. Asking a bunch of questions that Rick answered.

Deanna deemed that this was very important but needed some time to think about how she would get the car and supplies they needed to get all the way back to Atlanta. Without telling the residents of Alexandria what was really going on.

After an hour of talking the small group, walked back to the house they were staying in, ready to face the group and all the questions they would have.

As soon as they walked into the house, they were bombarded with questions from the group.

Rick decided this would be a good time to form a smaller group that would make their way to Atlanta when they were able to gather the supplies they needed.

It took hours, but the plan was ready.

Jacob would go because he would possibly be the end to this madness. Rose and Daryl would go because they are his parents, they wouldn't leave their child again.

Beth wanted to go to be useful. Sasha needed to go because she was a great sniper. Tara wanted to earn her place. Eugene knew some science. Rosita and Abraham wanted to go because they wanted to see if the little boy could cure the world.

Nine people. That would take a journey with the unknown to save the world.

They all went to sleep that night, hoping that Deanna could get them what they needed.

Rose finally knew why Bob said 'he's our future'. Jacob would become the hope for humanity.