"And then?"
Lee pondered the question intently. For such a simply worded question the scope was huge and complex. This would require a lot of thought, especially since anything he said could have unforeseen consequences. Unconsciously raising a calloused hand to his chin and stroking the stubble that had appeared there over the past two weeks, Lee thought hard about what he wanted to say. Far better to do that than let just anything tumble out of his mouth. With every stroke of his finger, a soft scraping noise emanated from his goatee. A chuckle followed.
"It's a hard question, I get it. No need to turn into some kind of philosopher though." Carley laughed again, her voice light and bright compared to Lee's own deep, gravelly tone but there was a bitterness behind the ordinarily joyous sound. It had been a question that had been floating around camp for a while causing rifts and arguments day after day. Wrapping the big, purple jacket tighter around her body as another gust of wind burst into camp, Carley's small smile was wiped clean from her frozen face. She shuffled closer on the bench atop the RV.
Night watch duty was probably one of the least fun things about staying at the motel. Every night brought a bitter cold with it; one that would chill you down to the bone. Underneath her jacket, Carley was apparently wearing two t-shirts and three jumpers, one of which was Lily's. Lee hadn't checked of course, he'd just taken her word for it. He relied on his trusty blue shirt and a thick blanket he'd taken from his room, although Carley had quickly claimed half of that too.
It was her turn on watch tonight, but ever since Lee had stumbled from his room being unable to sleep, they'd engaged in chat that had whiled away the past three hours. Strange how that happened sometimes... At first it had been your everyday small talk. "Oh, what're you doing up, Lee?"
"Couldn't sleep. Keep having flashbacks to earlier," he'd replied solemnly. A Walker had grabbed him while he was making a run into Macon for food. Kenny had quickly taken care of it, but close calls like that stayed with you for a while. Eventually the barriers broke down and the formalities were forgotten. Over the past three and a half months, Lee had found himself getting closer and closer to the girl he now shared a bench with. He'd saved her life, way back when, but that wasn't the only reason they got along so well. Something about Carley just clicked with Lee. He'd thought about it for a long time but he'd never been able to put his finger on it, there was just something about her.
"C'mon. We don't have all night." Carley nudged the big guy with her shoulder playfully, rousing him from his thoughts. Again, the question had been simple but it needed to be the right answer. "It'll be Kenny's turn in an hour and I'm not staying out here any longer than I have to."
"We'd have to move, of course. Lily might want to stay here as long as possible, but if there's no food left whatsoever, then what's the point? As long as we stick together and Kenny has the RV running we'll be fine." It had been an opinion he'd kept to himself for a long time. It was like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulder. Confiding in Carley was easy and comforting. She wouldn't judge, she'd tell you if she agreed or disagreed but would understand the reasoning anyway. Lilly and Kenny on the other hand... Those two were the reason he'd kept quiet for so long. They'd been bickering since they first met. But with what happened at the St. John's Dairy two weeks ago, things had really been amping up. Lee had tried to stay impartial, broker the peace whenever he could, but sometimes Lilly was just impossible to deal with. She'd flare up for no reason at all and those dirty looks of hers could almost kill. Holding her back while Kenny smashed her Dad's head in hadn't made things any easier. She really didn't want to leave.
With a sigh, Carley slumped over. "I knew you'd say that. Imagine how she'd react though? Not sure we could deal with that." She was resigned to that course of action, but she wasn't happy about it. Mainly because there would be the Lilly trouble, yes, but the motel had become a home to them. It protected them, kept them safe and warm. Mostly.
