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XVI

"The store with all the baby shit is just around the corner. I've been scoping it out for awhile." Morgan explained, leading me and Dale away from the traps and around the corner. It wasn't the same way I came to get here. It was further away from the hospital, not closer, and I couldn't be more grateful for that. Less likely they'd come over here. They wouldn't want to get anywhere near the traps. 

Honestly, if they saw it, they'd probably run for the hills. 

"Great." I simply said, checking my clip while making sure the gun didn't hit Dale in the head. He is thankfully still small enough to be strapped to my chest, but soon he's going to be too big, and he'll need to be strapped to my back, and that terrifies me. I won't be able to see him, he'll be almost impossible to get out without help, and he'd be easy bait for walkers or people who wanted to grab me. 

"Alright. Here we are." Morgan said, moving up next to the glass door leading into the small boutique, 'Apple Blossoms' was written over the door, and there was a knocked over chalk-board next to my feet. This probably used to be a really adorable place, and I would've probably shopped somewhere just like this in Maine, but now it just looks... haunted. Morgan rapped on the glass, and stepped back, listening and waiting for any walkers that could have been trapped inside, but nothing came forward, so after four long minutes of waiting, he used the crowbar he was carrying to break the lock, and then we were through the door. 

It was untouched. No one had been in here since the owner locked up. They probably did what I did, ran home to find their family, and never had cause to come back. And I bet there weren't a lot of people with babies who survived and needed these things. But I'm grateful. There were car seats, toys, clothes in all sizes, and the motherlode. Canned baby food. They weren't the refrigerated kind, so they probably weren't the most popular in a store like this, because it means the food had to undergo some kind of processing, but for me, this is heaven. 

"Oh Morgan. Look at all those cans." I cried, moving forward towards the aisle, not even bothering to check the store. There wasn't going to be anyone in here. Nothing was disturbed, there was nothing on the ground, and it didn't smell bad in here. It was fine, and there were hundreds of cans stacked right in front of my face. 

"Wow. Honestly, I didn't expect it to look this nice. Here, give me your backpack. We'll fill up what we can and come back for the rest. We'll need a few trips I think though. I bet you there are some boxes in the back with more too." He said, moving forward to grab my backpack and within minutes it was full, as well as his, and the duffel bag he brought with him. 

"We probably won't need more canned food after we finish all this Morgan! I mean, I bet he'll be ready for real food by the time we run out." I said excitedly, turning to look at him, but when I did, I could see the door, and what I saw there made me want to simultaneously fall to the ground, run, shoot something, and scream. 

It was him. 

Daryl. 

"Riley?" Daryl whispered, but before he, or I could say anything else, something shoved him aside and launched at me. 

"Riley!" It was Carl, and he was sobbing into my chest, well, into Dale's head, which was laying on my chest. 

"Who the fuck are you?" I could hear come from Merle's mouth from somewhere behind Daryl (who was still staring at me), and before I could defend Morgan, he stood up and pointed that long, big scary rifle at my best friend. Ready to pull the trigger. 

"No! Morgan don't! This is... this was my family."