okay so I will not be finishing this particular fic cuz it kinda got out of hand. that being said I hope you enjoy.
He was awoken to the sound of laughter and the sound of it being shushed. The sun shone in his face and Katherine was in the front seat driving. She had been talking with Rose and made her laugh. "Good morning Ghost, I hope we weren't too loud." Katherine said with a small smile.
Ghost woke up to the sound of laughter and he could also hear the sound of the female voice shushing the laughter and he also noticed the brightness of the sun on his face as he opened his eyes. He saw the woman sitting in the driver seat and she was interacting with the small kid in the back. Ghost sat up fully and he smiled back at the woman with a slight groggy feeling in his body since he had not slept for very long. "Good morning darling." Ghost greeted the woman as he spoke softly and he stretched his body in order to get rid of the sleepiness in his body. "You're awake! Did you know you snore." Rose told him, looking up at him.
"Rose love that's rude to point out." Katherine told her daughter with a small chuckle. Sometimes the young girl could be a bit much.
Ghost smiled at the young girl as he saw her looking up at him and he laughed softly as she mentioned the fact that he snored while he slept. "I guess you heard my snoring then?" Ghost asked the little girl as he laughed again. Ghost also noticed that the woman giggled slightly at what the little girl said and she also tried to make the kid realise that it is rude to point out things like that. "Yeah well I'm glad I'm awake, I needed that sleep," Ghost replied as he stretched his body some more and he saw the bright sun up in the sky. Katherine looked over at him. "We are almost there, just a few more hours." She told him looking back at the road.
"When we get there I'm gonna make lots of friends." Rose spoke up, she looked out the window watching. Her mother just smiles. "Yes you will love, I have no doubt everyone will love you."
Ghost looked over at the woman and he noticed her looking at him as she informed him that they only had a few more hours left to go until they made it to their final destination. He nodded his head in understanding and he listened on as the young girl spoke up about making lots of friends and her mother confirmed it. "Yeah if there's one thing about you, it's that you're a very sweet little girl and I'm sure everyone will love you just like how your mama said," he told the young girl with a smile on his face. Everyone fell into a comfortable silence. Katherine drove at a steady pace, her eyes on the road. She looked tired but she hid it slightly with a smile. Ghost kept a keen watch on the woman as he had noticed the subtle hints of tiredness in her body language as she drove the car. The silence was a bit of a calm environment and the steady pace of the car made him feel more relaxed despite being in a situation like this. Ghost had also noticed that the woman was hiding her tiredness with a smile and he was slightly worried about her. Eventually he spoke up in order to break the silence and check on her. "Are you okay darlin?" he asked with genuine concern about her well being. "Yeah I'm fine. Tired, but I'm fine." She answered, glancing over him as she spoke. Katherine was used to being tired all the time. "Do you want me to take over for a while?" Ghost offered to take over driving so that the woman could get some rest, he was aware that she was used to being tired all the time so she should take the chance and get some much needed rest while she could. He could drive and he would make sure they got to their destination safely as he had the stamina and energy to do so. She was touched that he was worried for her. "That would be amazing." Katherine told him as she pulled over to stop and switch. Ghost was surprised that the woman was agreeing to let him drive for a while so that she could get some rest. She seemed really tired and he wanted to make sure that she got some much needed rest so that she would be able to stay alert and focused during the rest of this journey. He waited for the woman to pull over and stop the car so that he could take over and he was ready to switch places with her once she did. She sat in the passenger side and fixed the seat to be laying down. Rose saw this opportunity to play with her mother's hair as she rested. Ghost saw that the woman adjusted the seat so that she could lay down and get some much needed rest so he knew this opportunity was the right time to take over. He climbed over to the driver's side and was ready to take the steering wheel from the woman. He then saw that Rose was playing with her mother's hair in the side view mirror as the woman rested and he just watched on with a smile on his face. Rose was such an adorable little girl and it was evident that she loved and was comfortable around her mother. It didn't take long for Katherine to fall asleep. Rose braided her mother's hair, occasionally glancing at Ghost. The young girl liked him and saw how much her mum liked him too. "You're very nice to my mama, I like that. She is the bestest mama." Rose told Ghost. Ghost watched as the woman fell asleep and he saw her sleeping soundly next to her daughter. Rose was playing with her mother's hair and he witnessed how tenderly the two of them were with each other. He smiled softly as the little girl spoke up about how she liked him being there and he replied back to her with some kindness. "Thank you darlin, that's very sweet of you to say," he said in a genuine manner as he was genuinely amused by the fact that the little girl was fond of him just like her mother. "Will you be nice to my mama and me forever?" Rose asked, looking at him with sweet hazel eyes. Ghost looked over at the little girl who was looking at him with her sweet hazel eyes and he gave the little girl a soft smile. "Yes darlin, I'm going to be good to your mama and you and you don't have to worry about that," he assured Rose with kindness in his voice as he truly didn't plan on doing anything to harm the two of them. He knew that this little girl was special to the woman he was growing a connection with as well and he didn't plan on causing the little girl any pain in any way. She smiled at his answer and continued to play with her mum's hair. "That's good. Mama was sad for a long time when papa was eaten by the zombies." Rose told him. Ghost seemed taken by surprise when the little girl mentioned that her mother was sad for a long time after her father was eaten by the zombies. He felt a sense of sadness inside of him when he heard that and he wanted to comfort her by any means. "Yeah I bet she was darlin, is she doing okay now?" he asked Rose with kindness as he was genuinely concerned for the woman. He couldn't imagine what she had gone through. "Yeah, mama is strong like that. My mama is the strongest." Rose giggled, showing how highly she saw her mother. "I love my mama, I don't like when she's sad." Ghost smiled softly when he heard how highly Rose thought of her mother and how strong she was for dealing with the loss of her father. "Yeah she is strong like you said and I bet she's glad she's got a strong girl like you to back her up," he replied with kindness as he meant what he said to the little one. Ghost also liked how kind and caring Rose was towards her mother as that was a good trait to have and it showed the love she had for her mother. "I don't like it when she's sad either," Ghost agreed. She had gotten bored braiding her mum's hair and decided to go back to staring out the window. Katherine continued to sleep soundly. "Do you ever get scared Mr Ghost?" Rose asked. Ghost saw Rose look over to the window as she seemed bored of doing her mother's hair and he couldn't blame her as he was sure that it could have gotten boring pretty quickly. Ghost looked over to the little girl who had asked him a very good question and he nodded slightly. "Sometimes I get scared just like anyone else when I'm not facing something I'm afraid of, but it's how you handle your fears that really matters," he told her as he tried to be as kind and honest with the little girl as best he could. "Are you scared of death?" She asks innocently enough, though the way she asked it did hold a weight. Even though Rose was young she had seen her share of death and was morbidly curious about it, as any child would. Ghost felt his body freeze slightly at the child's question as he was hit with a sudden sense of fear as he thought back on the deaths of his friends and the zombies he had encountered in his past. His face grew solemn as he felt the gravity of the question the little girl had asked him. "Yes you know what I am quite scared of death," he spoke softly as a small hint of a frown could be seen on his face. He was unsure how this little girl had asked him such a profound question and he couldn't lie about his fears. Her eyes looked up and watched the back of his head. "It scares me too. But I don't want to let my mama know cuz she already worries too much. I need to be a big girl." Rose told him. "Can I tell you a secret?" Ghost gave the little girl a soft smile as she spoke about her fears and how she was scared to tell her mother about the fear of death. She was right and she did have to be strong and be a big girl for her mother. "Go on, you can tell me anything and it'll stay between me and you," he told her with a comforting tone in his voice as he heard the little girl's request to tell a secret. "Sometimes I get really scary nightmares where I can't find my mama and I get eaten by zombies." Rose told him, sharing her secret with him. Ghost's face softened and he sympathised with the little girl as she told him about her recurring nightmares. They sounded horrible and he wasn't sure how she dealt with them. "That sounds really scary, does it scare you when you wake up?" he asked her in a gentle tone of voice as he was concerned for the little girl and her well being. Rose gives a nod. "Yeah, sometimes I cry. But I'm not a crybaby." She told him. She felt a little better talking about this with him. Seeing him as a father figure. Ghost just nodded his head softly and he understood what the little girl meant when she mentioned not being a crybaby but still feeling afraid when she wakes up from her dreams. "I understand what you mean little one, but sometimes it's good to let your emotions out even if it's through crying," he told her with a gentle understanding in his tone of voice. He saw himself as more of an uncle figure but he was certainly more than happy to offer her comfort when she needed it. "Do you cry?" She asks him. Rose watched the empty cars as they drove past them. Ghost was surprised by the little girl's question as he wondered if she had noticed him get emotional or crying before. He was a big tough guy after all and he did his best not to show any weaknesses to anyone. He decided to be honest with the little girl though as there was no need to lie to such innocence. "Sometimes I can cry, yes," he told her in a soft and calm manner as she watched the passing empty cars. Rose let out a little yawn getting tired. "I like you, Mr. Ghost. I want you to be my new papa." She told him sleepily. Ghost could have sworn to the universe that he felt his heart skip a beat when she said that she wanted him to be her new papa. Hearing those words come out of the mouth of this little girl had melted his heart and he felt a hint of pure joy inside him. He couldn't help but be extremely pleased with the request as he would genuinely love to play the father figure role for the little girl. He smiled softly, not knowing exactly what to say other than his heart was full of joy from her words. "I'd be more than glad to be your new papa, my sweet little darlin," he replied softly. "Promise? Promise you to be my new papa and marry my mama?" Rose asked sleepily. She was slowly nodding off. Ghost wasn't sure if he was dreaming or this was truly real as the little girl was asking him to make a promise. Her words were making him incredibly happy and he couldn't help but be overwhelmed by how much this little girl really wanted him to be a big part of her life. "Yes I promise little one, I promise I'll be your new papa and marry your mama," he told the little girl as he spoke softly and he couldn't be any more sincere in his promise. Rose gave a small smile and fell asleep. Leaving the car in silence. After an hour Katherine started to stir groaning softly as she slowly woke up. Ghost was enjoying the silence as he watched the sleeping little girl who had fallen asleep peacefully in the back seat. He looked ahead to the road as he kept his eyes focused on where he was going and he couldn't help but smile to see how peaceful the two of them looked like right now. After a while he saw the woman starting to slowly wake up and he heard her groaning softly as she was stirring. "Good morning darling," Ghost told the woman with a gentle and caring tone of voice as he remained focused on the road and he kept the car going straight. "Morning." Katherine greeted sleepily as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. She sits up and adjusts the chair back. "That was a good nap." She yawned and stretched, seeing Rose was also taking a nap. "Oh precious lamb. She is so cute." Ghost continued to keep his eyes on the road and he drove in a smooth and steady pace as he spoke back to the woman who was also now fully awake. "She's a little angel," he replied softly as he smiled at the little girl who was also sleeping peacefully. The little girl really was cute and he was thankful that she was sleeping so comfortably and she was even cuter now in her sleep. "How do you feel darlin?" he asked the woman now that she was truly awake. She grabbed her water bottle and drank from it. "Better, my back hurts a little but that's from sleeping in this seat." Katherine gave a dry chuckle. "Did Rose bother you while I was asleep?" She asked? Ghost watched as the woman grabbed her water bottle and drank from it to quench her thirst, he was thankful that she was doing better and he also understood the part about how her back hurt with how she was sleeping. "No she did not bother me at all, we were just chatting about different things until she started to become tired," he replied with kindness as he continued to keep a sharp eye on the road and he also made sure he was a steady hand on the steering wheel. "I'm glad she's talking to you." Katherine smiled as she shifted in her seat to get comfortable. She looked over at her sleeping daughter and moved to caress her leg. She did hold a lot of love for her daughter. "I'm also glad that you found us in a way. I don't like being sentimental but you have helped more than you know." Ghost could tell that the woman really loved her daughter judging by how she would gently caress her leg with such affection. The little girl truly was a lucky little one and Ghost was glad that he had been there to keep his protector's eyes on her as he knew that the woman would have not been able to find her at that point. "Thank you darlin, that's kind of you to say," he replied with an honest and genuine smile. The rest of the ride was quiet until they got to the compound, the hints of human activity was present. Soon they had to leave behind the car and finish by foot, which wasn't far. Rose was woken up from her nap and they all moved to the gate that kept the compound safe.
