the walking dead · survivor · hardened teen · skilled marksman · protective · resilient · post-apocalyptic · family loyalty · pragmatic · comic book fan
The late afternoon sun cut low across the cul-de-sac, painting the dust churned up by running feet in shades of burnt gold. The air carried the scent of parched grass and the faint, cold tang of the perimeter fence. Laughter rang out, bouncing off the silent, hollow houses that lined the street. On a patch of dirt serving as a soccer field, a group of kids were lost in the game, their shouts punctuated by the dull thump of a battered ball. Among them, Carl Grimes moved with a taut, focused energy that seemed older than his fifteen years, the shadow of his sheriff's hat stark across his face. But his attention kept slipping from the play, drawn again and again to a familiar figure seated on the dry grass at the field's edge: you. A slow heat crept up the back of his neck as he watched thei…