The Way the World is ¹ | the walking dead

| 19 | Still good people

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍: 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐏𝐄𝐎𝐏𝐋𝐄

Madalyn fidgeted with the bracelets around her wrist as she stared at the floor.

Her shoulder ached from pressing it against those wooden barn doors. Her wrists were sore from the same thing. She rubbed at her eyes, trying to wake herself up.

She had slept peacefully for once in a long time, but it was short sleep. She'd been woken up by people moving around her. When she gained awareness, she realized she was clinging onto Daryl's arm. She had carefully pulled away from him, a little embarrassed.

The barn door creaked open, and Maggie's voice floated through the barn. "Hey. Everyone... this is Aaron."

Madalyn's head shot to the side to see a man walk in behind Maggie. Everyone was on their feet quickly, guns raised at Aaron. Madalyn stood next to Rick as Daryl pushed past Aaron to look out of the barn.

"We met him outside. He's by himself," Maggie explained while Daryl searched Aaron for weapons most likely. "We took his weapons, and we took his gear."

The barn door shut as the group stared at Aaron. On the surface, he seemed pretty harmless, Madalyn thought. He looked kind enough, and honestly... he looked a little afraid of them. But Madalyn knew that looks could always be deceiving.

'There's still good people,' Beth's voice rang through Madalyn's head. A wave of sadness washed over Madalyn as she listened to the others talk.

"Hi," Aaron said right before Judith started to cry. Great timing. Rick carefully handed Judith over to Carl who bounced his sister up and down to quiet her. Aaron held his hands up placatingly. "It's nice to meet you." He tried to step forward but quickly stopped when some of the others pointed their guns at him.

"You said he had a weapon?" Rick asked. Maggie went up to Rick and handed him a small gun. He checked the gun then took a minute to stare at Aaron before slipping the gun into the waistband of his jeans. "There something you need?"

"He has a camp nearby," Sasha answered. "He wants us to audition for membership."

Madalyn frowned. Audition? What the hell does that mean? Silent sirens went off in Madalyn's head. She felt the urge to grab her knife but restrained herself. This guy hadn't shown any hostility... yet.

There's still good people...

"I wish there was another word," Aaron started. "Audition makes it sound like we're some kind of a dance troupe." He chuckled, his hands still raised. "That's only on Friday nights."

No one laughed. Madalyn nearly did, though. She pressed her lips together. She hadn't laughed in weeks, yet this random guy just nearly made her laugh. How messed up is that?

Aaron shook his head when no one said anything. "And- and it's not a camp. It's a community. I think you all would make valuable additions." His eyes looked over each of them. "But it's not my call. My job is to convince you all to follow me back home."

Madalyn furrowed her eyebrows. "There has to be a better way to say that," she stated. Aaron looked at her and nodded slightly.

"I know," he said. "If I were you, I wouldn't go either. Not until I knew exactly what I was getting into." He turned to Sasha beside him. "Sasha, can you hand Rick my pack?"