❛ I'm just a problem that doesn't want to be solved. So could please hold your applause. ❜

SEASON 1, EPISODE 3
tell it to the frogs

━━━━━━ July 28, 2010

RICK LOOKED PALE. SWEAT beaded on his forehead, and his eyes were dull and dazed as he drove toward the camp on the outskirts of Atlanta. He hadn't made the call to leave Merle behind, but it was him who handcuffed him to the roof in the first place. The dread of telling the rest of their group was getting to him, and it seemed the rest of them felt the same as they sat in silence.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca played out what she imagined Daryl's reaction in her head. He screamed, yelled, fought, then left. He would go to find Merle on his own with nothing but his crossbow. He would die, and Bianca would be alone again. The others at camp would handle the news fine. Hardly anyone liked the Dixon's anyway, but at least Daryl pulled his weight by hunting. They would miss that. 

⠀⠀⠀Bianca wanted to say she wouldn't have done the same. That she would've gone up and saved Merle despite all the vile and terrible things he'd done. However much she tried to imagine herself as the hero, she knew she was lying.

⠀⠀⠀"Best not to dwell on it," Morales said after a while. "Merle got left behind. Nobody's gonna be sad he didn't come back," he said, then paused to consider his words. "Except, maybe Daryl."

⠀⠀⠀"Daryl?" Rick asked, voice gravelly.

⠀⠀⠀"His brother," Bianca muttered. Her words haunted the air, and they all returned to the silence.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca turned to the side mirror where a cherry red Mustang sped behind them. Glenn's beaming face was crystal clear in the driver's seat as he gained on them before he whipped past, and the alarm echoed behind him.

⠀⠀⠀"At least somebody's havin' a good day," Morales sighed.

⠀⠀⠀The truck made it into the valley not long after Glenn, but still far enough behind that someone had cut off his alarm.

⠀⠀⠀The camp swarmed the truck as the trunk opened for the scavenging group to step out. Morales invited Rick to follow into the fanfare. Rick smiled faintly, grateful for their kindness, but stayed behind to regain his bearings.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca took a minute to step out, too. No one was waiting for her return, unlike Morales' family or Amy's sister. So, she sat in her seat as her stomach felt uneasy. She opened the truck door and turned to look at the ground. The back of Bianca's mouth tingled, and she managed to stumble out before she puked on the side of the truck. Not much came out, just water, then a dry heave.

⠀⠀⠀"You alright?" Rick asked when she stood up. He looked from the corner of his eye, his fingers pressed into the sides of his nose to relieve the stress.

⠀⠀⠀"I'm alright," Bianca assured him, but he didn't look convinced.

⠀⠀⠀Rick turned to give her a disapproving stare. She recognized it as one her mom would give her when called to the principal's office. Bianca gave Rick an unconvincingly right smile before she shut the door to give him his moment.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca walked over to Glenn, where he bounced around his new car. Shane, the camp's de facto leader, stood off to the side. His razor-sharp jaw was set where Bianca was convinced she could see the muscles about to explode from the pressure. A frown that was ever-present directed towards her. His beady black eyes followed her as he raised a thick brow. Shane was about a foot taller than her and half as wide in muscle. He was intimidating, but that didn't stop Bianca from acting like she was someone his size.

⠀⠀⠀"What happened to you?" Shane asked unsympathetically.

⠀⠀⠀"A giant pigeon hit me in the face," Bianca snapped. Then she regretted it as the bile rose to her throat, and her head grew dizzy. She shut her eyes and tried to regain herself. She wondered if it was the head trauma or Shane who had the effect on her this time.

⠀⠀⠀"Merle hit her with his gun when she kicked him in the back of the head," Glenn explained.

⠀⠀⠀Shane scoffed and shook his head with a light smile.

⠀⠀⠀"Not surprisin'," he chuckled. He glanced at Morales, who hugged Dale. "How'd y'all get out of there anyway?"

⠀⠀⠀"New guy. He got us out," Glenn said.

⠀⠀⠀Shane's brows furrowed together until they were one. Anxiety coursed through his expression as he turned to look at the others. Shane was arrogant, stubborn, and hot-headed with a mind of his own, but Bianca knew he was protective of the camp.

⠀⠀⠀"New guy?" he asked.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, crazy vato just got into town," Morales said with a wide smile. He turned to the truck and shouted, "Hey, helicopter boy! Come say hello!"

⠀⠀⠀Rick opened the door and looked more exhausted than moments ago. He looked down at his leather boots, an expression of despair fell over him before he looked up again. His blue eyes scanned the crowd before they locked onto Shane. Something passed between them, a familiarity.

⠀⠀⠀Rick's eyes floated across the camp, and his expression escaped him as unadulterated relief flooded him. He lifted his hands to his face, turned blotchy red, and his eyes welled with tears.

⠀⠀⠀A broken 'Oh, my God' left Rick's lips.

⠀⠀⠀Carl Grimes, one of the youngest in the camp, was what caught Rick off guard. He was pale white with dark brown freckles and hair to match but wildly bright blue eyes. His chubby cheeks were bright red from crying, and his lips quivered. His mother, Lori, held onto him tightly. She whispered softly to him, and Bianca knew she was trying to be gentle but realistic with him. His father was gone, possibly dead, and yet—

⠀⠀⠀Carl turned, snotty-nosed and wet-faced, and he noticed the stranger in the middle of the crowd. His face transformed entirely into an expression unrecognizable in the weeks sitting out in the hot sun.

⠀⠀⠀He was happy.

⠀⠀⠀A smile sprouted across his face, and his eyes turned bluer than the sky above. His feet kicked up dirt as he sprinted across the camp, screaming, "Dad! Dad!"

⠀⠀⠀The heartwarming sight filled the camp with hope. Smiles popped up on nearly everyone's faces. Everyone but Bianca, for it only left her with pain.

━━━━━━ May 31, 2010

BIANCA AND EUGENE WENT to see their mom first. Mainly because Bianca insisted—not threatened—that if she saw their dad and his new wife, she would shave Eugene's head while he slept.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca and her dad had a rocky relationship. She knew he would push her off if she stood on the edge of a cliff with him behind her.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca wanted Eugene to go on his own to see their dad. Eugene was upset by that idea, however. He always tried to get them to understand one another. Their family was splintered after the divorce, and Eugene always wanted to fix it. He bounced between the three of them, the peacekeeper, but his attempts failed miserably every time. Bianca felt terrible for her behavior (for Eugene's sake). She wanted to make amends, and they would then it would end worse than how it had started.

⠀⠀⠀At least at her mom's, Bianca could be at peace. They had woken up early after their late-night arrival to have a movie marathon like when they were kids. Bianca sat on one side of the couch, and Eugene was on the other. Their mom sat between them with a bucket of popcorn in her lap.

⠀⠀⠀They were halfway through Ten Things I Hate About You when a loud BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! hit against the front door. The popcorn in her mom's lap spilled to the floor in fright. The three stilled to listen while Kat and Patrick argued faintly in the background.

⠀⠀⠀Another BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! echoed through the room. Eugene stood and walked on the sides of his feet to the door. Bianca grabbed her mom's hand, squeezing tightly as they waited. Eugene looked through the peephole before his shoulders relaxed, and he opened the door.

⠀⠀⠀"Dad?"

⠀⠀⠀Their dad slammed the door open the rest of the way. He stormed inside without answering Eugene, looking worse for wear. His dark eyes were sunken, salt-and-pepper hair matted against his neck and face... His face was covered in dried blood. There was a sledgehammer thrown over his shoulder. Past him, Bianca could see his truck parked halfway in the grass.

⠀⠀⠀"Henrik?" her mom asked. She stood with Bianca following. Her mom's eyebrows knit together in confusion. Then, her worry started to pepper her features, and a tremor infected her words. "What—what is this?"

⠀⠀⠀Henrik ignored her and headed to the kitchen. He unzipped an empty backpack and shoveled cans of food into the bag.

⠀⠀⠀"You need to get out before I call the police," her mom claimed.

⠀⠀⠀"We need to get out of here," her dad snapped back. His wild eyes turned toward them as he pulled a knife from the block and pointed it at her. Her mom stepped back, threatened.

⠀⠀⠀"We're not goin' anywhere, Henrik," her mom insisted. She waved Eugene over to her, and he came. The three stood cornered in the living room. Bianca found the window to their right they could use as a last-minute escape.

⠀⠀⠀"What—?" her dad asked, balking at them. His expression was initially confused like he didn't understand why they acted so frightened. Then, it fell on him like a ton of bricks. His lips formed a deep frown behind his beard, and his eyes became something so sad. An expression Bianca had never seen on him before. "Turn on the news."

⠀⠀⠀They didn't move. Bianca glanced at her mom, waiting for her direction, but she said nothing. Instead, she could only stare at her ex-husband.

⠀⠀⠀"Henrik, please, if—if this is about somethin' you did—"

⠀⠀⠀"Jesus Christ, Laura!" he screamed, blowing up like always. He threw his hands up in the air, exasperated. "Turn on the damn news and get your head out of your ass for once!"

⠀⠀⠀"Fuck off, Dad! You can't just talk to her like that!" Bianca screamed back, just as she always did. She could feel the heat on her face as her dad started muttering to himself. He glared at Bianca, stormed across the room, and picked up the remote.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca left her mom's grip and crossed the room to greet him. She stood on the couch cushions and towered over her dad, where he stood behind it. She snatched the remote from his hand, but he wrestled her down and yanked it back. His hand pinned her shoulder down as he flipped inputs to the cable.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca tried to squirm her way out of her dad's grip until the news appeared on screen.

⠀⠀⠀"The CDC has announced that the cases breaking out during the past few weeks is, indeed, a deadly outbreak. It is like nothing we have ever seen before. The dead can walk. Many have reported their loved ones dying from this disease and returning to kill them. Unfortunately, there is no cure at this time, but authorities have asked for everyone to find shelter. There are places all over the country to take shelter. Just call the number below on the screen to find the closest to you. However, some may have to settle to board up their homes until help arrives.

⠀⠀⠀"The CDC has explained that the virus will kill within 48 hours, and the person will be resurrected not long after. If you are on the roads, note that these persons have bite marks or scratches and are unable to form speech other than groaning. They will attack and are deadly. If you are trying to make it to a shelter, try to travel during the day, as they seem to be more active at night.

⠀⠀⠀"Be safe out there. My name is Shannon Daughtery, and this is Channel 2 News. This will be my last sign-off. Thank you, and good night."

⠀⠀⠀The TV went dark, and then a blue screen illuminated the room as an automated voice repeated what Shannon had just told them in shorter strides.

⠀⠀⠀"We have to go," her dad said again, his face pale. "Now."

━━━━━━ July 28, 2010

NIGHT FELL A FEW hours later, and a chill settled over the valley. They made a fire of only embers and ash to not attract the walkers. The warmth it emitted only came when the breeze picked up and pushed it just right.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca sat on the ground between T-Dog and Glenn. Opposite her were Dale, Andrea, and Amy. Shane sat on her right, and Rick sat opposite him with his wife and kid.

⠀⠀⠀The Grimes family looked... right. That was the only word Bianca could think of for them. A small family fit for each other. Carl laid back on his dad's lap, staring up at him as if he were the only thing that mattered. Lori was on her husband's side, happy he was back, but Bianca noticed a subtle nervousness. She was stiff and awkward, but it could easily be pushed aside. Lori thought her husband was dead all this time. She was allowed to be in shock.

⠀⠀⠀"Disoriented," Rick started out. He looked around the group and nodded softly at the word. "I guess that comes closest. Disoriented. Fear, confusion—all those things but..." he paused, eyes glazed over as he considered his words. "Disoriented comes closest."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca thought it was damn near impossible how he stumbled across them. Rick was in a coma for the first months of this tragedy. He had no idea where to start looking if they weren't locked up in their house. How could he have guessed some rag-tag group would lead him back to his family. If not for Glenn, Rick would be on the other side of the state trying to find a refugee camp.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca wanted this dream. She wanted to find everything she had lost so easily. She wanted to stumble across Cal with nothing else but fate. From what she knew, he was the only thing left living in this world, and even that was a fantasy. Cal was supposed to come to her, but he was likely dead after those first two weeks. The only comfort she could find now was that maybe Elena and Peter were alive. She had no idea of knowing, so she lived in a world where they were.

⠀⠀⠀"Words can be meager things," Dale mused to break up the somber mood. He set his mug down on the ground. "Sometimes, they fall short."

⠀⠀⠀"I'd felt like I'd been ripped out of my life and put somewhere else," Rick said. He paused and contemplated the idea. Lori shut her eyes in a similar state. "For a while, I thought I was trapped in some coma dream. Somethin' I might not wake up from ever."

⠀⠀⠀"Mom said you died," Carl's quiet voice spoke up. It wasn't said to accuse his mom or guilt either of them. He just wanted to understand.

⠀⠀⠀Lori turned quickly, reassuringly petting her son's hair. No words passed from her lips, however. Rick turned to her for a moment, taking in his son's words, then smiled down at him.

⠀⠀⠀"She had every reason to believe that," Rick assured him without a breath of hesitation. "Don't you ever doubt it."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca frowned at them. Rick seemed like a genuine man with good intentions and a kind heart. Bianca wished her own father—

⠀⠀⠀No.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca forced the thoughts out of her head to focus on Rick.

⠀⠀⠀Rick seemed so understanding as he caressed his son's cheek. He smiled as he was glad to be back with them. Bianca didn't believe many other people would've been able to handle it the same.

⠀⠀⠀"When things started to get really bad," Lori said. Her voice was soft with a slight stutter as she recounted what happened. "They told me at the hospital that they were gonna medevac you and the other patients to Atlanta. And it never happened."

⠀⠀⠀"Well, I'm not surprised after Atlanta fell," Rick said. He looked around the fire to the other faces while Lori nodded absently. "And from the look of that hospital, it got overrun."

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, looks don't deceive," Shane spoke up. He looked out of it, too. Similar to Lori. However, there was something behind his eyes. "I barely got them out, you know?"

⠀⠀⠀"I can't tell you how grateful I am to you, Shane. I can't begin to express it," Rick thanked him. The look on his face was so sincere that it forced Shane to look away.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca thought it might be odd if she wasn't blind. The two had been tripping over each other and sneaking away after the first week in camp.

⠀⠀⠀"There go those words again falling short," Dale said. "Paltry things."

⠀⠀⠀The fire seemed to dim as their words did.

⠀⠀⠀Bianca stared past Andrea and Amy and looked at the Peletier family around a different fire. Ed was a tall, stocky man with a salt-and-pepper buzz cut and sharp blue eyes. His wife, Carol, was slim and meek with a similar haircut and an unease to her. Their child, Sophia, was a year older than Carl, with bright blonde hair, freckles, and a shyness that combated against her desire to enjoy the outdoors. Ed stood and leaned down to pick up a log for his ember and ash fire. Bianca glanced at Shane, who was consumed by the Grimes family and kicked his boot.

⠀⠀⠀Shane glanced at her, eyes wild as he did. Bianca hadn't seen that look since she first arrived at camp but let it brush by her. Bianca knew it wasn't directed at her and didn't want to question things she wasn't a part of. She nodded her head toward the Peletiers, and Shane followed.

⠀⠀⠀He watched as Ed threw the log into the embers and created a fire. Then, he sat back in his chair without a care in the world. He breathed in the smoke and brought them an inch closer to destruction.

⠀⠀⠀Shane let out an annoyed sigh, turned back to Bianca, and rolled his eyes.

⠀⠀⠀"Hey, Ed, you wanna rethink that log?" Shane asked, his eyes resting on the fire in front of him.

⠀⠀⠀"It's cold, man," Ed replied.

⠀⠀⠀"The cold don't change the rules, does it?" Shane retorted, growing agitated. "Keep our fires low, just embers, so we can't be seen from a distance, right?"

⠀⠀⠀"I said it's cold," Ed snapped back. "You should mind your own business for once."

⠀⠀⠀Shane stood with a locked jaw as he walked over to Ed. T-Dog reached out to pull Shane back but hesitated when he moved out of his reach. The others watched on with knotted stomachs.

⠀⠀⠀"Hey, Ed," Shane greeted. Long shadows ran down the length of his face. "Are you sure you wanna have this conversation, man?"

⠀⠀⠀Ed took a second to consider his options before he lowered his head and nervously picked at his ear.

⠀⠀⠀"Go on. Pull the damn thing out," Ed called to his wife. "Go on!"

⠀⠀⠀Carol stood, readjusted the blanket around her shoulders, and pulled the log out the best she could. Shane shook his head, muttering under his breath as he did, then stomped the flames out under his boot.

⠀⠀⠀If someone asked Bianca what she thought of Shane, she'd tell them she didn't like him all that much. He seemed a little off to her, like he'd been dropped on his head as a baby. However, that didn't mean she didn't respect him. Shane brought order to the chaos. He kept people alive and gave them a sense of normalcy. There was routine and meals and jobs to do. Bianca was sure they'd have been killed by now if there wasn't.

⠀⠀⠀After speaking quietly to Carol and Sophia, Shane made his way back over to their fire, his words too soft to make out. He sat back down, gave Bianca a short nod to thank her—he didn't like her either, but he could respect her... a little less than she could him—then returned to staring at the flicker of flames.

⠀⠀⠀"Have you given any thought to Daryl Dixon?" Dale asked Shane, forcing the man to look his way. "He won't be happy to hear his brother was left behind."

⠀⠀⠀"I'll tell him," T-Dog said, interrupting Shane. "I dropped the key. It's on me."

⠀⠀⠀"I cuffed him," Rick argued and shook his head. "That makes it mine."

⠀⠀⠀"Guys, it's not a competition," Glenn said before they spun the blame game until the morning. "I don't mean to bring race into this, but it might sound better comin' from a white guy."

⠀⠀⠀"I did what I did," T-Dog said with no room for argument. "Hell, if I'm gonna hide from him."

⠀⠀⠀"We could lie," Amy suggested with raised brows.

⠀⠀⠀"Or tell the truth," Andrea retorted. "Merle was out of control. Something had to be done, or he'd gotten us killed. Your husband did what was necessary," she said, leaning forward to look at Lori. "And if Merle got left behind, it is nobody's fault but Merle's."

⠀⠀⠀"And that's what we tell Daryl?" Dale asked, unconvinced. "I don't see a rational discussion to be had from that, do you?"

⠀⠀⠀Dale turned to Andrea and asked her silently if she did. Andrea didn't respond and bowed her head, recognizing that he was right.

⠀⠀⠀"Word to the wise—we're gonna have our hands full when he gets back from his hunt," Dale claimed. Then, he paused and turned to Bianca with a thoughtful haze that made her wary. "Maybe Bianca should break the news to him. You two are friends, aren't you? Maybe he'll take it better from a friendly face."

⠀⠀⠀Bianca knew he meant well, but she wasn't keen on accepting their issues as her own. Her frown, that'd been glued to her face since they arrived, turned to a scowl.

⠀⠀⠀"I didn't have anything to do with Merle being left behind," Bianca said.

⠀⠀⠀"You were there!" Dale retorted dramatically. His voice rose, and he threw his hands out towards her.

⠀⠀⠀"Knocked out and slung over Morales' back," Bianca snapped. She tapped her finger against the bandage on her forehead. "I didn't do shit for Merle either way. Daryl's gonna start askin' questions, and I won't have answers!"

⠀⠀⠀T-Dog looked up with determination across his expression.

⠀⠀⠀"I was scared, and I ran," he said. "I'm not ashamed of it."

⠀⠀⠀"We were all scared. We all ran," Andrea retorted. "What's your point?"

⠀⠀⠀"I stopped long enough to chain that door," T-Dog explained. He paused and let that fact sink in. Not just for them but for himself, too. He hadn't said it out loud yet, and it seemed to shock him as much as they did for everyone else. He gulped, Adam's apple bobbing before he continued, "The staircase is narrow. Maybe half a dozen geeks can squeeze against it at any one time. It's not enough to break through that... Not that chain, not that padlock."

⠀⠀⠀He paused and turned to Andrea again.

⠀⠀⠀"My point: Dixon's alive. And he's still up there, handcuffed on that roof. That's on us."

⠀⠀⠀T-Dog didn't wait around to hear anything else. He just stood with a grunt and left for his tent.

AUTHOR'S NOTE —

I feel like this chapter is a little boring but it does set up a few things in the dynamic of Bianca's family.

Next chapter will be fun because Daryl is introduced! I hope everyone likes how he acts towards Bianca, I'm very worried about making him out of character where I normally don't.

SONG: Novocaine by Fall Out Boy

Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you'd like, they keep me motivated! 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.

(EDITED! 9/3/2023)