❛ Emptiness is filling me to the point of agony. Growing darkness taking dawn. I was me, but now he's gone. ❜

SEASON 1, EPISODE 6
TS-19

━━━━━━ day 63.

THE LIGHT WAS stunning only for a moment before Bianca and the rest of the group remembered the threat lurking behind them. They ran inside the CDC with guns and weapons raised, ready to attack any threats as they stood, vulnerable, in the middle of the lobby. There was a moment when they were alone, confused by the lack of people inside.

⠀⠀⠀Then, a gun cocked, and all eyes darted to the man standing before them. He was tall and sandy blonde with dull blue eyes and washed-out pale skin. His expression was severe as he glared at them, keeping himself distanced from them.

⠀⠀⠀"Anybody infected?" he asked, his voice booming through the room and rattled in their bones.

⠀⠀⠀"One of our group was," Rick admitted, taking to give him the whole truth rather than hiding anything from the man. He didn't want something to bite him in the ass down the road. "He didn't make it."

⠀⠀⠀"Why are you here? What do you want?" the man continued, inching forward.

⠀⠀⠀Rick let out a shuttering breath. Bianca was feeling nervous as well. All the questions the man was asking seemed like they'd be thrown out to the walker-infested front lawn if they didn't answer one right.

⠀⠀⠀"A chance," Rick begged.

⠀⠀⠀"That's asking an awful lot these days," the man told him, continuing to move closer to them.

⠀⠀⠀Rick shook his head and said, "I know."

⠀⠀⠀The man looked at Rick for a long moment then turned to the others behind him. He looked at every one of their faces, committing them to memory, and then considered their request. It felt like a century as they stood there waiting for his response.

⠀⠀⠀"You all submit to a blood test," the man stated. "That's the price of admission."

⠀⠀⠀"We can do that," Rick assured him quickly.

⠀⠀⠀The man took his word and dropped the gun.

⠀⠀⠀"You got stuff to bring in. You do it now," he told them. "Once the door closes, it stays closed."

⠀⠀⠀A couple of the guys ran out to the caravan, picking up the bags for everyone, then brought them inside as quickly and cautiously as they could. It only took one trip between them, and no one got within inches of death. The doors shut when they all got back inside, and the man stood at another keypad inside.

⠀⠀⠀"Vi, seal the main entrance," he said into the panel. "Kill the power up here."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca stared, amazed by all the things she had missed from the world before. She missed being inside without walkers clawing at the doors, the feeling of artificial light on her skin, and the full-throttle movement of the technology age.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca stood awkwardly close to the CDC man suddenly and stared with bright, wondrous eyes as he worked at the keypad.

⠀⠀⠀"Is that an AI?" Bianca asked him curiously, her voice low as she stared at the panel she'd read about in Popular Mechanics rather than him.

⠀⠀⠀The man was about to respond to her, but Rick approached and introduced himself.

⠀⠀⠀"Dr. Edwin Jenner," the scientist replied, glancing at Bianca, then turned to the others. "Come on."

⠀⠀⠀Jenner led the group into an elevator, and a giddy feeling rose within Bianca as she stood inside. The singing of the lights hurt her ears as they always did. Jenner pressing the button to the bottom floor, the gears shifting as the elevator moved down through the floors had her feeling like all was right in the world again.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca noted that crammed in the elevator between too many people reminded her of school. She would've had her headphones on, listening to a playlist Cal had made her as she was on the way to meet him and their friends for lunch. But then, her eyes darted around the elevator, anxiety filling her as she knew this was not some paradise. She wasn't going to see her friends or her boyfriend when those doors opened.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca's eyes caught Daryl's, and he frowned. Then, seeming to notice the creep of anxiety within her, he spoke and calmed her by the familiarity of his voice.

⠀⠀⠀"Doctors always go around packin' heat like that?" Daryl asked, his eyes narrowed on Jenner as he considered the man.

⠀⠀⠀"There were plenty left lying around. I familiarized myself, but you look harmless enough," Jenner explained passively, assuring Daryl that he didn't see them as a threat now. Jenner looked over to Carl and smiled like he hadn't in years as he said to him, "Except you. I'll have to keep my eye on you."

⠀⠀⠀Carl seemed happy by Jenner telling him he was tough. A wide smile came across his cheeks, and soon enough, the elevator dinged, and the doors opened for them to exit.

⠀⠀⠀"Are we underground?" Carol asked as they walked down a narrow hallway.

⠀⠀⠀"Are you claustrophobic?" Jenner returned.

⠀⠀⠀"A little."

⠀⠀⠀"Try not to think about it," Jenner said, not very reassuring.

⠀⠀⠀Jenner led them into a large room at the end of the hall. It was pitch black inside, but he continued forward, not stopping to turn off the lights.

⠀⠀⠀"Vi! Bring up the lights in the big room," he called out.

⠀⠀⠀A ring of LED lights turned on in twos on either side of the circle until they met in the middle and illuminated the room. Ten or twenty computers sat on a circular platform in the middle of the room and steps leading down to private work stations below. There were also two exits down below to head further into the CDC.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca and the rest of them stayed just outside the room, hesitant to follow him inside. They had been accepted inside with a bit of hesitancy, but it still felt strange to be safe inside.

⠀⠀⠀"Welcome to Zone 5," Jenner introduced with a smile.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca had always hated the hum of computers, but she now missed the overwhelming sound when she looked around. Along with the smell of them overheating, the click of keys beneath her fingers, and the migraine she'd get from staring too long at a screen. A small smile spread across her face while the rest of her group seemed to grow confused.

⠀⠀⠀"Where is everybody?" Rick asked, looking around. Bianca hadn't even noticed Jenner was the only one they had seen. It feels normal now, having slim pickings of people. "The other doctors, the staff?"

⠀⠀⠀"I'm it," Jenner said.

⠀⠀⠀"What about the person you were speakin' with? Vi?" Lori asked, furrowing her brows.

⠀⠀⠀"Vi, say hello to our guests. Tell them... Welcome," Jenner commanded.

⠀⠀⠀"Hello, guests. Welcome," an automated voice greeted them. Bianca had to suppress her excitement.

⠀⠀⠀"I'm all that's left," Jenner repeated himself, giving them a half-smile, knowing it wasn't enough. "I'm sorry."

JENNER HAD GIVEN them safety with conditions: a roof over their heads, no walkers able to get inside, and more. Everything they had been begging the corrupted world to allow them when it couldn't. All he asked for was a blood sample. Maybe before, this would've been a request they would all feel uncomfortable with. They didn't know what he would do with their blood, but no one cared now. It was the end of the world.

⠀⠀⠀On top of that, Jenner came to realize how starved and exhausted they all were when Andrea nearly passed out during the blood draw. So, becoming the kind host he seemed to be, he gave them a feast fit for a king.

⠀⠀⠀It wasn't that much, really, but after living on squirrels, fish, and scraps, it was much more than they could ask for. Especially the wine.

⠀⠀⠀There were smiles and laughter and chatter around the table that hadn't been heard in a long time. The wine was being passed around that Jenner brought out for the special occasion—a cheer of excitement followed when they noticed—but when it stopped at Bianca, Daryl was quick to cut her off.

⠀⠀⠀"Oh, wait, wait! She can't drink that stuff!" Daryl exclaimed, hopping from his seat and waving his hands at Dale holding the bottle over her glass.

⠀⠀⠀"What are you talkin' about?" Bianca asked, a frown coming to her face as she turned and glared at him.

⠀⠀⠀"You're twenty, aren't you?" Daryl asked with a sneaky grin edging to the sides of his lips. "You still gotta wait a year to drink!"

⠀⠀⠀"He's right. Can't be breaking the law, now, could we?" Dale asked teasingly, removing the lip of the bottle from her glass and moving onto Glenn's beside her.

⠀⠀⠀"What law?!" Bianca exclaimed, knowing they were only messing with her, but she also didn't know how long they'd keep this up. With each pass, the alcohol poured and lessened. "Guys! Come on! Let me drink!"

⠀⠀⠀"Kid, you're gonna lose your fuckin' mind when you take a sip of it! Won't even know what hit ya!" Daryl exclaimed, swirling his finger beside his head to signal she'd go crazy. The laughter bubbled up his throat as he watched her grow red-faced and annoyed with each passing second.

⠀⠀⠀"Right, yeah, sure, because twenty and twenty-one are so different," Bianca replied sarcastically. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she glared at her empty glass.

⠀⠀⠀"Maybe when the world is ending, you can try some," Dale said, turning to her and winked, then continued on to the Grimes family.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca kept on staring at her glass then they darted to Glenn's. It was dark red, filled halfway up the wineglass and within reach. Her eyes flickered between her empty glass and his before she decided.

⠀⠀⠀"Sorry, Glenn," Bianca whispered, resting her hand on his shoulder and pushing past him to take his glass.

⠀⠀⠀"What? Now I can't drink any!" Glenn whispered back, distraught by the turn of events.

⠀⠀⠀"Don't worry," Bianca assured him. "I'll get you more."

⠀⠀⠀When Dale finished serving the wine, Bianca waved at him and pointed at Glenn's empty glass.

⠀⠀⠀"You forgot Glenn," Bianca told Dale with a smile, then took a sip of wine she had stolen. She raised her eyes to him, challenging Dale to argue with her.

⠀⠀⠀Dale narrowed his eyes, but they both knew it had just been a joke, and he'd come around, eventually.

⠀⠀⠀"Seems I did," Dale said and filled Glenn's glass an inch more than it had been before.

⠀⠀⠀They continued chatting around the table, filling their stomachs with food and alcohol. The people around the table grew from their weariness and widened with happiness and assurance that, for once, they were safe. For the first time in a long time, Bianca felt like family surrounded her. Not one she was close to, but she could see herself coming to love these people more than she had ever thought she might.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca wished it was her family around the table, but not every wish could be granted.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca and Glenn sipped their wine and talked to one another. Without Amy, they were the only ones close to each other in age. Carl and Sophia were kids nearly ten years younger than the two, and the rest were a range of ten to thirty.

⠀⠀⠀Before the outbreak, they had real jobs, families, a life of their own. So sometimes, it felt weird talking to them. They spoke about their mortgages and taking kids to school and how stressful work was. Bianca liked to talk about school and its drama, the new software she was developing for class, the Far Cry game she'd gotten halfway through.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca felt like a fish out of water talking to them.

⠀⠀⠀Glenn was easier to talk to. He didn't want to just talk about the boring stuff life handed them, but to reminisce on everything he used to do. Weird customers he'd have delivering pizzas, the new movies he wanted to see but never did, the friends and parties he used to go to.

⠀⠀⠀"What were you doin' before the apocalypse?" Bianca asked Glenn, the alcohol lightening her some and the fears plaguing her evaporated. Now, she wasn't so scared to get close to people.

⠀⠀⠀"Oh, I was going to community college and delivering pizza," Glenn explained. His eyes fluttered shut, and he rested his hand on his stomach. "Mm, pizza. What I wouldn't give for a fresh slice at two in the morning and saying I accidentally dropped it when getting out of the car."

⠀⠀⠀"No, you didn't!" Bianca exclaimed with a loud laugh.

⠀⠀⠀"I so did," Glenn told her, his eyes widening as he nodded his head with a grin. "Night shifts are rough, man. Every once in a while, you gotta just steal a whole pizza. They'd never know."

⠀⠀⠀"They might know if you did it a lot," Bianca said, shaking her head in disbelief.

⠀⠀⠀"Nah, man. My manager was the coolest. She was the one who told me to do that if I was having a really bad day at work. It was only like once a month. She was also stoned like every shift, so..."

⠀⠀⠀"That sounds like a nice job," Bianca muttered, her stomach growling despite all the food she had scarfed down. "How are you makin' be hungry when we're literally eating?"

⠀⠀⠀"It's the pizza. I'm always hungry for pizza," Glenn admitted with a small smile. He took a large gulp of his wine, then turned to Bianca and asked, "What about you? What did you do before?"

⠀⠀⠀"I was goin' to school," Bianca explained with a shrug. "I lived in a dorm with my best friend. My brother went there too, and so did... so did my boyfriend."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca quieted a second, frowning. She didn't want to bum out everyone she talked to about her boyfriend, so she decided not to.

⠀⠀⠀"Um, but, yeah. I wanted to do like development for new products or old ones that just needed to be better," Bianca explained, rolling her wrist as she explained. "Like, for my final project, I made this, uh, this little robot guy. He was really cute. He doesn't do much, just rolls around. You can talk to him, and he'll reply with beeps. I have a few kinks to work out, but other than that, I got a pretty good grade on him."

⠀⠀⠀"You made a robot?" Glenn asked, his expression blank.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah."

⠀⠀⠀"That... is... so cool!" Glenn exclaimed, throwing his arms up into the air. "Oh my god. I guess you don't have him, or else you would've shown me by now! I hope. You would've shown me, right?"

⠀⠀⠀"Yes, I would've shown you," Bianca laughed.

⠀⠀⠀"All I was doing was delivering pizzas and trying to finish my core credits," Glenn muttered, shaking his head as if question where he'd gone wrong.

⠀⠀⠀"Well, I mean, I just really liked robots and Iron-Man when I was a kid. Things turned out alright but look at it now... the world's gone to shit," Bianca explained, raising her hand and waving it over their table.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, but at least you can help the group," Glenn said with a frown. "All I do is go on runs and almost die."

⠀⠀⠀"You haven't yet. I'd say that's pretty good," Bianca told him with a small smile.

⠀⠀⠀"You know, you're, like, really cool when you're not yelling and stuff. You're actually nice and really smart! I didn't know you were that smart. Have you always been smart?"

⠀⠀⠀"What d'you mean?" Bianca asked him with a confused expression. "I wasn't born smart, Glenn. That's stupid."

⠀⠀⠀"That's not stupid. That's a question," Glenn retorted, raising his brows and pointing his finger at her.

⠀⠀⠀"You're stupid."

⠀⠀⠀"No, I'm Glenn!"

⠀⠀⠀Bianca let out a short laugh, shaking her head. She looked back at Glenn, who smiled stupidly back at her from the alcohol and the joke. His smile reminded her of Eugene's. It hurt to look at sometimes like it did now. However, she kept her gaze on him and her conversation between them.

⠀⠀⠀While the pain hurt like a black hole within her stomach sucking her in, the feeling was an old friend, and she'd rather be stuck being reminded of Eugene than forget him. Sometimes, when Bianca was around Glenn, it felt like he was the last thing she had of her brother.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca wasn't in denial or delusional. She knew Glenn wasn't her brother. She knew that, but it still felt like he was with her.

⠀⠀⠀Her hand raised, a little shaky as the table around them laughed at something in the other conversation happening around them. Bianca rested her hand on Glenn's cheek, patting it softly a couple times, and smiled warmly at Glenn. He looked back at her like he knew what she was thinking but still seemed stunned. Bianca had never been so soft. Not to anyone at camp.

⠀⠀⠀"Not you, Glenn!" Daryl suddenly shouted, pointing at Glenn forcefully from across the table.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca's hand snapped down like she'd been touching fire and turned to Daryl along with the rest of the table, staring at them.

⠀⠀⠀"What?" Glenn asked, confused.

⠀⠀⠀"Keep drinkin', little man!" Daryl exclaimed, waving his bottle around with a wide grin. "I wanna see how red your face can get. It's either from the alcohol or the pretty girl sittin' next to you!"

⠀⠀⠀The table erupted into another onset of bubbly laughter like they had seen some spark of romance between the two. However, Bianca and Glenn both grew awkward by the comment seeing as in the last day she'd confessed how much he reminded her of Eugene.

⠀⠀⠀Rick peeled the eyes off the two by clinking his knife against his glass. He stood as all eyes turned to him.

⠀⠀⠀"It seems to me we haven't thanked our host properly!" Rick called to the table, raising his glass.

⠀⠀⠀"He is more than just our host," T-Dog slurred, following suit and raising his glass.

⠀⠀⠀"Hear, hear!" the table cheered, hitting glasses together in a toast.

⠀⠀⠀When they finished, and the table settled down to a buzzing of words, Shane spoke up. Bianca didn't like the look in his eyes when she looked at him. It was wild, like a caged animal.

⠀⠀⠀"So, when are you gonna tell us what the hell happened here, doc?" Shane asked, his jaw set, so the muscles strained, and he folded his hands underneath his chin to glare at Jenner. "All the... the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened. What are they?"

⠀⠀⠀The mood in the room dropped with his words, their previous happiness nothing now as they were brought back to the reality outside. They couldn't even have one night away from it all.

⠀⠀⠀"We're celebratin', Shane," Rick complained, returning to his seat. "Don't need to do this now."

⠀⠀⠀"Woah, wait a second. This is why we're here, right? This was your move. Supposed to find all the answers. Instead, we—" Shane argued, his words falling flat as he stared at Rick in the same way he had at Jenner. He let out a soft chuckle, pointing his thumb towards the doctor. "We found him. Found one man. Why?"

⠀⠀⠀"We could've had a night to not worry about it," Bianca muttered into her glass, drinking the rest, and held it out to Dale for him to fill again. The jokes of her being underage stopped, and he gladly served hers and his own as well.

⠀⠀⠀"Well, when things got bad, a lot of people just left," Jenner answered Shane, not seeming as bothered by Shane's question as Rick or the rest of the group had. He just looked... like nothing. Like he didn't even believe it was real. "Went off to be with their families. And when things got worse... when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted."

⠀⠀⠀"Every last one?" Shane asked. He looked almost amused as if Jenner's story was spun to entice their stay.

⠀⠀⠀"No," Jenner told him bluntly, knowing what the man had been implying. "Many couldn't face walking out the door. They... opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time."

⠀⠀⠀Everyone's appetite dissolved, but their need for wine didn't. So they set aside their utensils and opted for taking large sips instead.

⠀⠀⠀"You didn't leave," Andrea noticed. "Why?"

⠀⠀⠀"I just kept working. Hoping to... do some good," Jenner explained.

⠀⠀⠀"Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man," Glenn sighed, but rather than having it directed at Jenner, who told them the disheartening news, he looked at Shane.

⠀⠀⠀And that was the end of dinner.

━━━━━━ day 15.

A LOW RUMBLE of a truck engine ran through the street before it cut off. A motorcycle followed behind, still running, but she could still hear the sour old man's voice over it.

⠀⠀⠀"Come on, bro! You really gonna risk your life for some girl who can't even hold her own!"

⠀⠀⠀Bianca could hear someone else running up behind her, ignoring the man he had left behind. Then, an arrow whizzed past her head and lodged deep into the walker's eye. The creature that snuck into her house fell back in a heap.

⠀⠀⠀Eugene stood from the floor, hearing the commotion, a few steps away from her that had Bianca panicking more.

⠀⠀⠀"Help me!" Bianca exclaimed to the man beside her. Her hands had nothing else to grip as they turned bloody. She could barely move her leg to get it out of the window frame. "Please, I'm sorry, I just—"

⠀⠀⠀The man that Bianca now knew as Daryl Dixon moved behind her, half a foot taller than her, and lifted her from under her arms.

⠀⠀⠀"Keep your leg steady," he muttered, then rushed backward.

⠀⠀⠀They stood two feet from the window, Bianca panting as the man let her go. She stared at the window where Eugene stood, leaning halfway outside with glass shards piercing into his stomach. His hands moved wildly around in an attempt to get to them.

⠀⠀⠀Daryl knocked another arrow into his crossbow, and before Bianca could protest, begging to keep Eugene alive in a perverse way, Eugene was truly dead.

⠀⠀⠀When Daryl turned to Bianca, he found her gone. His eyes looked around the house, wondering if she ran, but he was brought back when a sharp boom radiated from the front door of the house.

⠀⠀⠀Daryl ran over, grabbed her by the upper arm, and shook her.

⠀⠀⠀"Are you fuckin' nuts, kid?" Daryl exclaimed, his eyes wild as he pushed her around.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca looked up at him, unbothered by this strange man but worried about her dad inside.

⠀⠀⠀"Please, I just—my dad," she whispered.

⠀⠀⠀"He bit?" Daryl asked. Bianca didn't answer. "We have to got hen."

⠀⠀⠀"No, he's bit, but if he's alive... I gotta..." Bianca tried to say, but her words trailed off.

⠀⠀⠀"What? Save him?" Daryl spat, annoyed by her naivety. However, he'd been a fool to think that of her.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca's gaze hardened, and she glared at the man standing in front of her.

⠀⠀⠀"No, I gotta but him out of his misery," Bianca spat back.

⠀⠀⠀"With a sledgehammer?" the man tried to argue, but it was futile.

⠀⠀⠀"He has a gun."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca turned away, slamming the door once again, and broke through. A couple more hits with the adrenaline rushing through her veins allowed her a wide enough hole for her to slip through.

⠀⠀⠀Daryl followed her, which surprised Bianca. She was sure he would leave by now. But, instead, he scoped the room, noticing the woman on the couch. He launched an arrow through her skull before she could come back, slopping organs all over the floor. Bianca didn't look as he did.

⠀⠀⠀"You got less than a minute," Daryl told her simply. "We leave because of all that commotion you made. Them geeks will be on this place like high heaven."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca turned to him over her shoulder and nodded.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca made it to Eugene, then looked back at Daryl. He was by her mom, pulling the arrow from her skull.

⠀⠀⠀"Hey," Bianca called to him, and he turned his glare to her. "You want this?"

⠀⠀⠀Bianca felt numb as she asked the question. Daryl looked at her, then nodded, stomping his way over and pulling the arrow out with ease. Then, he helped her drag her brother off her dad as she wheezed.

⠀⠀⠀Blood left his neck, and part of his arm had a chunk bit out of it. Bianca's lip trembled as she stared at her dad. They'd never get their tomorrow to patch things up, she thought.

⠀⠀⠀"B-Bianca," her dad muttered, eyes narrowly closed as he looked up at her.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca squatted down so she was at eye level with him. Daryl left them to check the house and make sure they were alone. Bianca was sure it was just so he wouldn't have to watch the moment pass between them.

⠀⠀⠀"Hey, dad," Bianca said before her voice broke.

⠀⠀⠀"You gotta—"

⠀⠀⠀"I know."

⠀⠀⠀"My pants," he muttered, head lolling to the side.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca lifted his shirt and found the gun tucked between the hem of his jeans. He was too weak to kill them, too.

⠀⠀⠀"You remem... you remember how to use it?" he asked between heavy breaths.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah," she muttered, turning off the safety and cocked the gun. She wasn't good with them, but she knew how to use it. "I remember."

⠀⠀⠀"Good, good," he muttered, lifting his hands to rest on top of hers and leading them to his head. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I screwed up. Shitty father of the century award goes to me."

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, it kind of does," Bianca admitted, the tears streaming down his face forced their way to her as well. "I'm sorry, too."

⠀⠀⠀"You gotta do it, bug," he said, voice shaking, and the nickname sparked something she had missed. That relationship with her dad that had been put on hold for so long was never fixed. "You gotta do it, or you're not gonna make it. You gotta... you gotta make it. Find that boy you love, survive, make it out."

⠀⠀⠀"I don't know if I can," Bianca said, a sob breaking through her words.

⠀⠀⠀"Oh, I know you can," Henrik laughed. "Just... just think of all the times I've pissed you off, then pull the trigger."

⠀⠀⠀"No, I'm not gonna kill you like that," Bianca told him defiantly, squaring her shoulders as she stood, repositioning the gun to his head. "I'm gonna kill you because you're my dad. Because I love you and the good times we had. Like when you took me and Eugene to Disneyland, we got so sick we threw up. Like when you came back from your honeymoon and brought me hundreds of stuffed animals. All of those moments... that's why I'll kill you."

⠀⠀⠀Her dad smiled up at her, looking bliss. The pain had stopped.

⠀⠀⠀Her hand stopped shaking, and she repositioned her grip.

⠀⠀⠀"I love you, Bianca. So does your mother and brother. Don't forget that."

⠀⠀⠀Daryl came back seconds after the shot rang through the house.

⠀⠀⠀"Come on, kid," Daryl said to her. "Let's get movin'."

⠀⠀⠀"You can leave me here," Bianca muttered.

⠀⠀⠀"Nah, you got nothin' left, and I've got nothin' left to lose," Daryl shrugged, and she turned to look at him. "All we've got is survivin', and your dad just told you to survive. So, c'mon."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca stared at him, frowning as she waited for him to laugh in her face then leave her behind. Daryl's eyes were cold enough that she believed he would, but then they softened just marginally enough that she thought maybe he had meant it.

⠀⠀⠀Maybe at the end, surviving wasn't the only thing. But, maybe for this man, having something to protect, something to live for, was what he needed.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca could offer that. She wasn't good at surviving, anyway.

⠀⠀⠀She nodded, and Daryl walked out. Bianca paused, turned to Eugene, and unknotted the necklace around his neck. She stared at it in her hands before standing and pocketing it.

⠀⠀⠀"C'mon, we're losin' daylight!" Daryl yelled outside.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca rushed outside of the house, trailing after him.

⠀⠀⠀"Bianca," she said suddenly to him to introduce herself.

⠀⠀⠀He eyed her, then said, "Daryl."

⠀⠀⠀They headed back to the baby blue pickup. A man on a motorcycle waiting for them with a scowl.

⠀⠀⠀"Are you kidding me?" the man yelled at Daryl, infuriated by the sight of Bianca following Daryl. "You're bringin' some bitch along with us, man! She's a kid. What the fuck is she gonna do, huh? Hold us back?"

⠀⠀⠀"Don't mind my brother, Merle," Daryl said, waving his hand at him then getting into the truck. Bianca followed. Then, he continued, "He's alright once he warms up to you."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca looked out the window to see Merle's brother glaring back at them. When he made eye contact with Bianca, he rolled his eyes dramatically. Merle turned back to his bike and revved the engine, speeding down the road before Daryl could get his keys into the ignition.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, seems like a real sweetheart," Bianca muttered, earning a snort from Daryl before they headed out.

━━━━━━ day 63.

"MOST OF THE facility is powered down, including housing. So, you'll have to make do here," Jenner explained, leading the Atlanta group into the on-call hall. He had given them each a pillow and blanket. "The couches are comfortable, but there are cots in storage if you like."

⠀⠀⠀Jenner pointed ahead of himself then spun to look down at the kids walking directly behind him.

⠀⠀⠀"There's a rec room down the hall that you kids might enjoy. Just don't plug in the video games, okay?" Jenner said to them.

⠀⠀⠀Sophia and Carl nodded excitedly in response.

⠀⠀⠀Jenner stood back to his full height and directed his following statement to the adults, as he explained, "Or anything that draws power, the same applies. If you shower, go easy on the hot water."

⠀⠀⠀Jenner left them with that as they reeled from all the new things they had been given. Entertainment, a place to sleep and—

⠀⠀⠀"Hot water?" Glenn asked, turning back to look at everyone with a wide smile.

⠀⠀⠀"That's what the man said," T-Dog agreed with a laugh as the two rushed for the showers.

⠀⠀⠀There was a shower in every room, which wasn't very many. Maybe six. So, Bianca headed for the rec room with the kids until Lori and Carol finished. They did a lot on top of making sure their kids were safe and well-fed. They deserved the showers first more than any of them.

⠀⠀⠀Carl and Sophia ran around the room, gasping in excitement as they headed for the foosball table first. There were a couple in the TVs unplugged, like Jenner said, along with bookshelves and seating for them to relax.

⠀⠀⠀"You're okay with them?" Lori asked, eyeing Bianca just to be sure.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, I'm fine," Bianca assured Lori. She wasn't afraid of a walker walking in or anything that meant keeping the two kids alive. She was sure she could handle them.

⠀⠀⠀"Alright," Lori smiled, squeezing her arm.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca left the moms at the door and headed for the bookshelf. However, Lori and Carol lingered for a moment longer.

⠀⠀⠀"You know what, I'll stay with them until you're done," Carol whispered to Lori, trying to seem casual about her decision. "I need to get used to being here, anyway."

⠀⠀⠀"Carol, it'll be fine," Lori assured her, words caught under her breath, too. However, the room was small, and Bianca could hear them both.

⠀⠀⠀"No, no, this has nothing to do with her," Carol said quickly.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca smiled bitterly to herself where she stood at the bookshelf. She brushed her fingers over the spines of the books while she eavesdropped.

⠀⠀⠀"She's just a little unpredictable, alright?" Carol finally admitted. "I like her, I do, and I don't she'd do anything on purpose, but..."

⠀⠀⠀Lori sighed, seeing she wasn't getting anywhere with the woman, and reluctantly said, "I understand your nervousness, but we're gonna have to start trustin' one another sooner or later."

⠀⠀⠀"Go take your shower, Lori," Carol said with finality. "I'll take mine after."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca returned her focus to the books when she heard Lori leave. She was tired of all the Goodwill books bought for a dollar a piece that seemed to be stocked in Dale's RV. Bianca skimmed the titles, none interesting her until she stopped on one.

⠀⠀⠀The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca let out a scoff of surprise. There were plenty of medical texts for the doctors who wanted to brush up, along with easy reads to ease their minds for a while. But The Pillars of the Earth?

⠀⠀⠀Bianca flipped through the pages, reading the summary like she hadn't heard it a thousand times before, and headed toward the couch. Carol sat on one end, watching the kids with caring eyes and a soft smile.

⠀⠀⠀"Whatcha got there?" Carol asked curiously, raising a brow. Her words were tense like she was trying very hard to talk to Bianca and not think about when Bianca had punched her (dead) husband in the face.

⠀⠀⠀"Pillars of the Earth," Bianca replied, showing Carol the cover. "It's about a man building a medieval cathedral."

⠀⠀⠀"I'm not trying to say anything, but... is that really your style?" Carol asked with a small smile. "Because that sounds boring as hell."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca laughed in response, nodding her head but keeping her eyes on the book.

⠀⠀⠀"It is, trust me. My boyfriend begged me to read it," Bianca explained, looking over at Carol for a moment then back at the book. She read over a paragraph and rolled her eyes, bored already like Carol said. "It's one of his favorite books, but I never read it. Well, I read the first five pages then went out like a light."

⠀⠀⠀"Your boyfriend—?"

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, I was thinkin' I'd read it since I have nothin' better to do these days," Bianca explained, cutting Carol off before she could ask.

⠀⠀⠀"Maybe once you get into it, the story will be good," Carol said, moving past her previous question that she never got to finish. "He must have liked it for somethin'."

⠀⠀⠀"He must've," Bianca muttered skeptically as she narrowed her eyes at the cover.

⠀⠀⠀"Bianca! Bianca!" Carl shouted from the foosball table. He had a pout on his face, and his brows were drawn together in annoyance. "Come be the ref because Sophia is saying she won, but I know I won!"

⠀⠀⠀"You didn't!" Sophia exclaimed. "I got ten goals. That's how you win!"

⠀⠀⠀"No, I got ten goals!"

⠀⠀⠀"You were watching the wrong side, then!" Sophia claimed, stamping her foot. "My side has Rosie on it!"

⠀⠀⠀"Who's Rosie?" Carl asked, now confused.

⠀⠀⠀"The doll Eliza gave me!"

⠀⠀⠀"Alright, alright!" Bianca shouted, setting the book aside and standing. She walked over to the table with Carl running around her to get to his position. "Carl, try to hit the ball where I am. Sophia, towards Rosie. I'll ref the rest."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca grabbed the ball from the table and threw it in, shouting, "GO!"

⠀⠀⠀The kids played for as long as they could. Lori had come in to watch the kids while Carol showered, then when they were both showered, they took their kids off to shower.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca followed a few minutes later, heading to the showers. She was alone with the comforting hot water burning her skin and hoping to kill the intrusive thoughts running through her mind.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca didn't stay long despite missing the feeling of a hot shower. The longer she stayed, the more flashes of her family passed through her mind.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca scrubbed the dirt and a layer of skin along with the worry, turning her red and raw. She washed her hair, forcing mats out with her fingers. Then, as the hair spiraled down the drain with bubbles of soap, Bianca sat down beneath the showerhead. Her mind became a mix of her family dying in front of her, the constant worry if her boyfriend was dead or alive, and what was to come for the little family she had made at the end. How long could this safe haven be? Bianca wasn't sure if the CDC could be a forever thing, or at the very least they'd have to make runs into town soon.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca let herself sit under the water for ten minutes too long before she stood, turning off the water. She changed in the bathroom afterward, nearly unconscious, and walked into the room she shared with Daryl and crashed on the couch.

AUTHOR'S NOTE —

Trying something with noting times based on xsparrows which I love. I worry that the flashbacks come suddenly in the story and throw people off so I hope adding in 'dates' will help!

I really love this series because I'm never bored by an episode. There are a few that Bianca doesn't have as much to deal in but I still think they bring a lot to her character.

Only one more chapter left until season 2! I think I'm going to take a week off posting between the next chapter and beginning season 2 in order to get my graphics ready and start editing. I finally have the flashbacks I want to write for next season but haven't written them except for the first one so I also need to do that lol... Kill me.

SONG: Fade to Black by Metallica

Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you'd like. However, this is an all kind of reader safe space. So even if you ghost read or comment every chapter, I hope you know it means the world to me that you've come into this fic ♡ I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and until the next one.