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WITH BLOODSHOT EYES, Aria raises from her bed, her head stinging. She didn't sleep at all, her mind was racing too much. Pulling her gun and knives from the bedside table, she shoves them in their designated holsters. Tying her hair up, she avoids the stitches on her cheek before stepping out of the cell, her converse clicking against the ground. Walking down the creaky stairs, Aria gently holds onto the rail, her hand sliding down.
Peeking her head into Hershel's cell, delight fills her features as she watches him stand, crutches supporting his body. "Look at you!" She exclaims, a small smile on her face. Her eyes trail down to the stump on his leg before meeting his blue eyes. "What happened?" He asks, his eyes studying the stitches on her cheek worry on his face. "I took a machete to the head." And rejection from a guy. She thinks to herself, a gloomy feeling washing over her.
"That's a good start. Want to take a rest?" Lori speaks up, noticing the sad look on Aria's face. Hershel chuckles, looking at the soon-to-be mother. "Rest? No—lets go for a little stroll." The smile appears back on Aria's face at the older man's persistence.
Aria slides open the red door, sunlight hitting her skin. Moving out of the way, she lets the others walk out first before slowly following behind them, keeping an eye on Hershel. As he leans back, Aria gently sats a hand on his upper back, helping him stay upright. Once he reaches the concrete, Aria removes her hand, Beth and Carl sticking behind him. Lori slows down, walking beside the female. "You okay?" She asks and Aria raises her head, nodding slowly.
"Usually, you and Daryl are side by side. What happened?" Aria presses her lips in a line, her eyes drifting off towards the man mentioned. This ain't ever gonna happen. Shaking her head, Aria lowers her eyes to the ground, her hands fiddling with each other. "You told him, didn't you?" Letting out a small sigh, Aria takes a deep breath before nodding. Lori rubs the young girls shoulders, looking down at her. "You'll be alright." Lori mutters, Aria sending her a smile.
"All right, Hershel!" Glenn's voice echoes through the wind, snapping Lori and Aria out of their little moment, their heads turning towards them. Her eyes connect with Daryl's before she turns away, her head pointing up towards the light blue sky. "Ready to race, Hershel?" Carl asks, a joking smile on his face. Aria chuckles, her head lowering. "Give me another day. I'll take you on." Hershel teases, a little bit breathless. Aria stands between Hershel and Lori, her hands tucked away in her back pockets.
The group shared a small exchange between each other as the older man lightens the group's mood. "Walkers—look out!" Carl alerts everyone, the mood dying. Aria swings around, swiftly pulling her gun out of the holster. Motioning for Hershel and Beth to leave, she aims her gun before pulling the trigger, a walker falling to the ground. "Aria—come on!" T-Dog yells for her. Shooting down another one, she runs after T-Dog and Carol. Gunfire going off as they run towards the open gate, walkers stumbling out of it.
Carol and Aria stand by the red door, waiting for T-Dog. As Aria raises her gun to shoot down the walker behind him, her gun clicks and she lets out a few curse words, shoving it in her pocket. Fumbling to get a knife out, she shakes her head. "T! Behind you!" Just as the words leave her mouth, the walker sinks it's teeth down in his shoulder, a scream leaving T-Dog's mouth. Aria rushes over, rage pulsing through her veins. Shoving the walker to the ground, she pulls her knife out, plunging the knife into its head over and over again.
T-Dog weakly pulls the raging girl off of the walker, dragging her over towards the building, shoving her inside. The door slams close behind them and Aria slides her knife in her holster, her hand raising towards her mouth. "Don't." T-Dog utters, pushing her along. Her lip trembles as she follows behind Carol, her mind and heart racing. "There's a set of double doors that will lead to a corridor. That'll get you back to our cell block." T-Dog says, frantically, walking to the front, his hand holding the bite tightly.
"T—stop!" Aria says, her and Carol trying to stop the frantic man. "I'm getting y'all there!" He growls, falling against the wall. Aria stands beside him, her eyes searching him bite. "Stop!" The two women yell in unison as he begins to walk again. "Why? Sit here and wait to die?" Aria shakes her head violently, tears wanting to fall down her face. "I'll do what I have to. You're not becoming one of those things." Carol tells him, the two women rushing behind him as he stumbles away, wanting to get the two to safety.
"This is God's plan. He'll take care of me. Always has. He's gonna help me lead you out of these tunnels." The trio turn a corner and Aria feels tears fall down her cheeks as she thinks about the man who had accepted her from the start dying.
Aria and Carol wrap their arms around T-Dog, supporting him as he becomes weaker. "We're almost there." He grunts, his voice filled with pain. The lights in the hallway flicker and growls fill the air, alerting the trio of nearby walkers. Two walkers appear and T-Dog shrugs out from under their arms, a nervous look on his face. Clicking of a gun sounds through the hall and Aria shakes her head, on the verge of tears. "Go back!" Carol screeches and as they begin to back away, T-Dog stops them. "No. We're close—we're close!" Aria grabs the back of his shirt as he begins to run forward. Her fingers slip away from his shirt and she watches in terror as he shoves the two walkers against the wall, holding them back.
"Go—go!" T-Dog yells at the two, struggling against the walkers. Aria shakes her head, her breathing quickening. A hand grabs her and begins to drag her across the corridor, rounding the corridor. Aria looks back, looking into her friends eyes. "I'm sorry.." She whimpers, tears falling down her pale cheeks. "Go! I'm dead!" Carol pulls the sobbing girl through the door, gripping her hand tightly.
