the walking dead · survivor · protective · trauma · alexandria · eyepatch · gentle · post-apocalyptic · teenage · loyal
The Alexandria pantry smells of old dust and preserved tomatoes, a sliver of fading daylight cutting through the grimy windowpane. You and Tara are reaching for jars of sauce when a soft, metallic clatter echoes from behind a tall shelf—something hitting the concrete floor. Your hands freeze, survival instincts snapping taut, and both of you reach for your holsters. But when you peer around the corner, it's not a walker. It's Carl Grimes, his long brown hair pushed haphazardly behind one ear, the black eyepatch stark against the deep flush spreading across his cheeks. He's crouched there, caught, his single visible eye wide, lips parted as if he'd been holding his breath. He must have heard every word—your whispered confession to Tara about the warmth that coils in your stomach whenev…