Something To Fear | Glenn Rhee

[스물 하나] Two Steps From Hell

"Make sure you've got something worth dying for."

~Rosita Espinosa

No one wanted to acknowledge what was presented on the table.

As soon as Rick had laid the objects down, their eyes shifted up, down, left, and right; just anywhere but at the table.

"Why did you bring these here?" Rosita had her hand to her mouth and her head turned away from Rick.

"Netanya had these. She stole them from Glenn..." He answered, looking around the room, digesting each response his friends gave him. They continued to look away, feeling as though if they even made eye-contact with the bats, a horrible truth would be revealed. They wanted to deny the ominous air that had been brought in with the January winds.

"I know you've heard the whispers," Rick looked deeply at Michonne, but was addressing this to everyone in the room.

"He would never do that," Michonne finally lifted her head towards the table.

"Yeah, these women are just looking for a scapegoat," Tara quipped.

"Then why can't you all bring yourselves to look at me...or the table?" Rick's question made everyone tense up even more.

"You sound like you believe those women," Rosita spat, turning to face Rick. "What do they know about Glenn-about us?"

"I think it's worth looking into. See what Glenn has to say about all this," Rick continued, searching within him to find why exactly he wanted to partake in this. Why investigate the claims of a murderous and strange group of women who have wanted to kill his people at one point?

"These women... they've done nothin' but stir up trouble," Abraham thought aloud. "They shouldn't stay a minute longer here."

"We can't just kick them out," Gabriel glanced worriedly at Rick. "Even if they are doing all this, that isn't who we are, Rick."

Rosita scowled; the memory of what happened that night at Oceanside overwhelming her. She had tried so hard to forget the scent of blood and smoke, finding this solution in a bottle and destroying her liver in the process. She hated the Oceanside women and wanted them out of Alexandria. But she hated herself for being the reason they were here, and for keeping what she knew since that night a secret from Rick.

"Glenn didn't do anything," She firmly lied. At that moment, she didn't believe she was lying. She firmly wanted to believe Glenn was not the monster the women painted him out to be; that what she saw that night was all a dream. A terrible, deceitful dream. "I was there that night and he was with me the whole time. Why aren't they accusing me then? Why just Glenn?" Rosita strode over to Rick slowly. "You know why. You know how they are. They already have something against men, thinking they're all evil. They can't be trusted."

"What do you propose we do then?" Aaron asked, wanting to get past these ridiculous rumors. "Have a trial or something? Prove he's guilty or not." He only meant this jokingly, but Rick thought otherwise.

"...Yeah, I think that we should." Immediately everyone started shouting at Rick's response.

"Are you pulling my leg?!" Abraham exclaimed.

"Dad, you're not a sheriff anymore!" Carl crossed his arms over his chest.

"We couldn't do that to him, Rick!" Michonne pleaded.

"I didn't mean that! I was-I wasn't serious," Aaron startled.

"It's not right!" Gabriel raised his voice for once in his life.

"Is he some kind of war criminal now?!" Rosita couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Then we would have to have trials for all of us!" Tara proclaimed.