Changing To Adapt ➵ TWD

➵ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ꜱɪxᴛᴇᴇɴ

Lucas stares brazenly into her eyes and shakes his head, short and resigned.

She does nothing he prepares himself for. Doesn't lash out, doesn't demand he leave. She just. . . drags her feet across the grass to gather comfort from Lori, sniffling into the sleeve of her shirt.

His shoulders droop.

He wanted her to scream, yell, hit him, anything. He can take it. He has before.

"But I did see her." Lucas hesitates. "I think? I think I saw her. Out of the corner of my eye, and then she was gone, I don't know-"

"She's a child, how could she possibly get away from you?" Carol cries out, covering her trembling lips.

She has an extremely valid point.

He's always been fast. Faster than the kids at school. He won tag, succeeded - far too often - in picking pockets, escaped when he eventually failed. But Sophia? She's a kid. A scared, twelve-year-old kid.

Lucas swallows thickly, removing his eyes from hers.

What's he supposed to say?

"I'm. . . I'm sorry."

"I thought you said their tracks diverged?" Glenn asks, turning to Daryl.

Lucas frowns, "What?"

But Rick makes him pause, a steady hand landing on his shoulder.

Something so comforting, yet instead of bathing in the warmth of skin on skin contact, Lucas freezes up. He feels the hairs on his skin rise, and his stomach clench, dropping his eyes to the grass.

"We'll find her. She can't be far off." Rick squeezes his shoulder.

Lucas unravels.

oh.

His breath comes out in a shaky withdrawal.

He steps away from Rick to swipe his lost beanie from the dirt and to distract his glistening - he's tired - eyes.

"There's walkers in the church, three of them. Sophia wasn't there, I made sure."

Daryl lifts his crossbow, "Well, what the hell are we waiting for? Come on." He spins around and darts up the steps without another word.

Rick and Shane aren't far behind.

Lucas hesitates, watching Carol from the corner of his eyes. He leaves after a second of contemplation, stepping up instead to the entrance of the church.

Daryl, Rick and Shane had chosen their respective corpses and swapped out their weapons for hand tools.

Daryl's crossbow looks awkward in Glenn's lanky arms.

Rick sneaks up behind the distracted walker, slamming his machete into its head. It drops and lands askew on the pew. But he doesn't stop dealing blows. A shadow falls over his eyes.

Lucas can't find it in him to pull his eyes away.

Rick has shut down, the reality of their situation catching up to him.

But then he stops, and the wall crumbles. He lowers his weapon and pushes away from the pews, shaking himself out of it.

Everyone has their moment. The breaking point.

"Sophia!" Rick screams, shoving open the side door.

Lucas steps past the threshold. He never really believed in God, or any other deity, but standing under the roof of the church feels invading. Like standing under several pairs of watching eyes.