Future Ghosts • TWD

10. Splinters.

The next morning, all of the kids were gathered around a small table, coloring in their activity books- except for Rosie. Rosie was sitting by the quarry and coloring in her dinosaurs all by herself. She was at the table with the other kids for a little bit, sitting silently, but Carl kept asking her questions. She didn't feel like talking so she just left to go color in peace.

While Rosie was coloring, Shane was watching from up on the hill, standing next to Lori with his arms crossed. They were both concerned.

"I'll bring her something to eat," Shane tried.

Lori gave him a pitiful look. "She doesn't want to talk to anyone. I already tried," Lori said.

"Well, she's gotta eat somethin'," Shane said, grabbing a bowl of dried cereal to bring to Rosie, despite Lori warning him not to. He started walking down the hill until he reached where Rosie was sitting, by the water. She looked at him and then back at her coloring book, not saying anything. She did not want to talk to Deputy Dipshit. He held the bowl of cereal out in front of her. "Breakfast," was all he said.

After giving Shane a dirty look, Rosie took the bowl and started munching on the cereal. Shane still had not convinced her to like him even in the slightest bit. She hated him because, one, he was a cop, two, he got her in trouble with her dad when she punched Carl, three, he forced her to leave her dad dead in the woods, and four, he always thought he was the big man in charge.

Shane stayed there with her, watching her eat. She glanced up at him with a judgmental look. "You just gon' keep starin' at me or what?" she asked, glaring at him.

He looked away with a small laugh. "You alright? Down here by yourself?" he asked her.

"Yes," Rosie said, poking at her cereal. Her face went back to it's normal, serious look and Shane sighed.

"I'm worried about you," Shane admitted, studying her face and hoping to catch some glimpse of emotion out of her. She didn't show any other emotion aside from annoyed.

"Don't gotta be," was all Rosie said in response. She didn't understand why everyone was so worried. They barely knew her. Why weren't they just leaving her alone like they did before?

Shane stared at her, his brows furrowed with concern.

"An' stop starin' at me! Jesus Christ!" Rosie snapped, using the phrase she'd heard Daryl say when he was annoyed.

She tossed the bowl back into his lap and stood up, quickly walking off with her coloring book and crayons. Shane watched her stomp off, confused and a little annoyed.

In his eyes, he was only trying to help. In Rosie's eyes, he was just being nosy.

Rosie went back to the car seat couch and grabbed her backpack before heading off to the woods. She needed more rocks for her slingshot, anyway.

When she got far enough into the woods, she stopped and put her bag down. She dug through the bag and pulled out her new crocodile shirt. She took off the blood-soaked Black Sabbath shirt she had been wearing since she got there and switched it with her new shirt.

Once she was done switching out her shirt, she sat down on a log. She picked at a small stick she had found, and began mindlessly whittling away at it with her pocket knife. She was scared she'd lost the knife in Atlanta the other day, but it was in her bag when Daryl gave it to her at the vatos' base.

As she was carving the end of the stick, her finger suddenly started stinging. She lifted it up to her eyes and pinched at where it stung, noticing a small piece of wood stuck under the skin. She picked at it and tried to pull it out, but it was really lodged under her skin. More of a sliver than a splinter, really.