𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

          𝐋𝐎𝐑𝐈 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐋 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 couch together that night. Lori let Rick have the bed with Casey since he had lost so much blood. He was tired and pale. He tried to go out with Lori, stay with her, but he didn't. One reason was that he couldn't muster up the strength to get up. Lori made sure he stayed there and just took Carl on the couch with her.

That morning, Lori was quick to wake up and walk into the room. Rick was lying on his stomach and Casey was still on her back. She walked over to her daughter and bent down to kiss her head. She pinched her cheek, and sat on the edge of the bed.

She did look a bit better. Her temperature wasn't as warm as last night's. She had more color in her face. She didn't look great, but she looked better. Much better than yesterday.

Lori patted her husband's ankle. His eyes opened as he faced the pillow. He slowly turned onto his side facing Casey. He looked at her, seeing the same as Lori. She looked better.

She was peaceful. Her chest was rising up and down slowly and content. Her freckles cheeks looked less pale, and more of her warm skin tone.

He slowly brought the covers up to cover her more. He didn't want her to wake up cold or anything to like that. He slowly pressed a kiss on her cheek and pushed himself up.

Lori got to his side, her hand going into her arm to make sure he was stable. "Careful, Honey." She warned, rubbing his arms up and down.

He pulled his white shirt on, and then his sheriff's button down shirt. The Greene's cleaned it up for him, getting rid of any blood or dirt that had gotten on it. He put on the pants that went with his uniform as well.

There was a knock on the door, and he turned his head. It opened up, and Hershel walked inside. "I've come to check on your girl," He told them, stepping inside the room. He closed the door behind him and walked inside. He pulled the covers down slightly to reveal her white bandage. There was no red spot on it, which was good since she was all stitched up. He changed the bandage, just to be safe. Her stomach had deflated from the swelling and it was no longer a purple splotchy color beneath. He put a hand to her forehead, checking for a fever. She still had a slight one, just not as bad as before.

"Fever's gone down." He checked her pulse again, and when he did, she began to stir. She let out a soft groan. Lori had immediately sat in the side of her bed, placing her hand on her shoulder. "Baby?" She called out. Her baby blue eyes fluttered open and looked around the room.

"Casey?" Rick asked. She looked at her parents, blinking a few times as she adjusted to the lights. She looked down not seeing a shirt on her. She got kinda embarrassed since everyone kinda saw her without one.

"I need a shirt." She mumbled, they both chuckled and Lori pushed the covers up for her. Her hand weakly rubbed at her eyes as she still looked around. "The shark one." she mumbled, taking a deep breath. Her head rested on the pillow, and she stared up at the ceiling.

What's been happening. She got lost in the woods, she got shot. Was Sophia still lost? She looked at them, a slight look of worry.
"Did you find Sophia? Is she okay?" Her voice was small. It was quiet. She was still weak from everything.

Nobody knew how to answer. They didn't want to break how they never found her, but they also didn't wanna say she was still lost. Rick did the only thing he could. He lied. He rarely lied to Casey, sometimes he bent the truth just a little bit, or didn't tell her things, but he rarely lied.

"Fine. She's fine." Rick reassured her through a lie. Casey took a deep breath, now feeling the pain of her stomach.

She let out a small whimper, squinting her eyes shut. "It hurts," She cried. Rick wiped her tears with his thumb.

"I know, baby. I know." Lori comforted her as much as she could, trying to be soft and kind when all she wanted to do was cry for her baby. "You're gonna be all better soon, though." She smiled, Casey swallowed down more of her tears, taking a deep breath.

She looked around again, then spotting Hershel sitting on the bed. "Mr. Hershel?" She questioned, looking over at him. He didn't know what she was asking for or anything, but, he was ready to answer any questions he had.

"Yes?"

"Thank you for not letting me die. Means a lot." The way she spoke was strained. She was in a world of pain, everyone knew trust.

The adults grinned hearing her. Hershel looked up at them, patting her hand. "Looks as though you raised her right." He chuckled, adoring her manners.

It meant a lot to Lori and Rick to hear that. Especially since they've been feeling like real shitty parents ever since this happened. Lori smiled, and looked back down at Casey.

"Rest, Baby."

"I just was." She murmured, closing her eyes again. "I want my new shark shirt, and Walter..." She whispered, shutting her eyes again. She ended up falling asleep, even though she didn't want to. Rick fell back in his chair weakly. He was still recovering from the blood he lost.

The door swung open to reveal T-Dog panting there. "They're here."

Rick and Lori slowly walked out. Lori had to make sure he paced himself so he didn't end up passing out on their front porch. Everyone who wasn't at the Greene house the night before was now there. So, that was Dale, Andrea, Carol, and Daryl.

Dale was the first to speak up. Everyone was worried since they hadn't heard anything. They didn't know if Casey was dead or alive. "How is she?" Dale broke the silence.

"She'll pull through, thanks to Hershel and his people," Lori told him, nodding her head up and down.

"And Shane. We'd have lost Casey if it weren't for him." Rick told everyone, looking over to Shane who now had a buzz cut. For some reason he just shaved all of his hair off yesterday...

Dale quickly brought Rick in, happy that the man's daughter was okay. "And Carl, how is he handling this?" The boy was still asleep on the couch. Nobody blamed him.

"Better than I would expect."

Now Dale was just asking rapid fire questions. They were just spewing out of his mouth. "How'd it happen?" Lori was hugging the others, and talking to them. Daryl was kinda just standing there. He wasn't exactly the hug type.

"Hunting accident. That's all just a stupid accident." Rick told him.

Later there was a funeral for Otis, one which Casey did not attend since she was on a strict bed rest. Carl had woken up for it, though. Well, Rick and Lori pulled him out of bed. They got a set of laughs out of him as he tried to stay on the couch.

It was probably around noon when Casey had woken up for a while. Lori was by her side. Carl was outside helping the Greenes with yard work.

Daryl was getting ready to leave to look for Sophia again. T-Dog and Dale were getting water from the well. Maggie and Glenn were getting ready for a run. Rick was mapping out where to find Sophia with Hershel. Everyone had a full schedule (minus Casey who was on full bed rest.)

Later there was a funeral for Otis, one which Casey did not attend since she was on a strict bed rest. Carl had woken up for it, though. Well, Rick and Lori pulled him out of bed. They got a set of laughs out of him as he tried to stay on the couch.

First, Carl walked into Casey's room. He stood in the doorway with Rick and Lori behind him. "How come you didn't wake me up when she was awake?" He asked his parents. Rick smiled, letting out a small chuckle.

"Judging by how you didn't wanna get up then, I didn't think you'd want to." He joked, Carl looked up at him.

"If you told me Casey was up I'd go. Instead you told me that there was a funeral for the guy who shot her." Rick looked behind him, making sure nobody was around ti hear what Carl said.

"He also helped get that respirator to save her." He scolded , Carl looked back at Casey, raising his eyebrows.

"Bet she wouldn't need it if he didn't shoot her." He pushed through his parents, and stepped outside for the funeral.

That was...shocking.

Lori looked at Rick, a shocked look on her face. "He can't talk like that, especially not around Hershel and his people." Rick nodded him agreement.

"I know, I know. He's probably just...angry." He tried to make an excuse for him so he didn't seem like an awful kid...Because he wasn't, he just was mad and upset about Casey. He had the right to be.

He went to the funeral and showed respect like he should. Everyone showed respect, Otis deserved it.

When the funeral ended it was still early morning. Casey was still asleep. She woke up for a minute and Lori helped change her into a clean top. She knew she was probably uncomfortable since she only had a pair of shorts on. She put a clean tank-top over her. She fell asleep once again after that.

Everyone was doing stuff around the Greene's. They were mapping out areas to find Sophia, going over the major places in the area where she could be. Hershel ended up saying Rick and Shane couldn't look. Shane's ankle was injured and Rick was still weak from all the blood he gave. The only one fit for travel was Daryl.

So, everyone just had a job. Daryl was getting ready to leave to look for Sophia again. T-Dog and Dale were getting water from the well. Maggie and Glenn were preparing for a run. Rick was mapping out where to find Sophia with Hershel. Carl was outside helping the Greenes with yard work. Everyone had a full schedule (minus Casey who was on full bed rest and Lori who was with her, or doing anything else to help the Greene's.)

So as she lay asleep, flat on her back. A person no one expected to walk in stepped inside her room. The door creaked open and when it did, her eyes opened. She looked over, seeing a surprising face...a very surprising one.

She rubbed her eyes slowly, trying to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. After rubbing her eyes, she realized she definitely wasn't hallucinating.

It was Daryl Dixon.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" She cursed. Daryl nodded his head, walking further into the room. He knew Rick and Lori wouldn't like how she spoke, but, he didn't care. He had much worse mouth than she did.

"Nice," He sarcastically said, referring to her strong language. Casey smiled a bit, still confused as of why he was here.

The two weren't exactly friends or anything. She didn't like Daryl. "What're you doing here?" She asked once again. He pulled something out of his pocket, revealing a small, light blue and gray stuffed shark.

"I got your shark or whatever..." He trailed off, walking over and handing it to her. He kinda just put it next to her arm. She took it in her hand, looking down at it with a small smile. She really wanted Walter, real bad.  "Don't mean I like you, though. Just didn't want ya to be cryin' over it." She let out a small cough, then wincing slightly. He knelt down next to her, his hand going on her shoulder.

"Ya alright?" She nodded, taking a deep breath.

"Just hurts." She took a deep breath, trying to ignore the pain she had. "And I don't like you much either, but thanks for bringing Walter." She looked down at her stuffed animal and then back at Daryl.

"Ya named it?"

"Got a problem?" She questioned him, her eyebrow raised at him.

"Yeah, ya named a stuffed animal." She sneered at him, bringing the covers to her chin.

She mocked him once more and he stood up straight. "How's Sophia?" Daryl furrowed his eyebrows. What did she mean by that? How's Sophia? Sophia is lost!

"Hell do you mean, how's Sophia? Sophia's lost."

Casey felt like everything stopped for a second. Tears came into her eyes and Daryl became even more confused. "I thought you found her. Daddy said she was fine." She sniffled grabbing her shark and clutching it close to her.

"Well, she ain't. But I'm gonna find her. Don't worry. Alright?" She nodded her head, shakily wiping her tears away. "Go back ta sleep or somethin'."

She didn't do as he said. She just stayed awake. She was worried once again for Sophia. What if she wasn't okay? What if she was lost and alone? She was probably starving.

Casey felt more tears emerge inside of her eyes, and she sniffled. She let out a small sob, her small body shaking as she did. Her and Sophia weren't very close, but, she did feel real bad for her.

The door opened again, and Lori walked inside. She saw her sobbing child, and immediately walked over to the bed. "Sophia's not here." She whispered. Lori's heart broke for her.

She got in the bed with her, placing her daughter's head on her chest. "They're gonna find her, baby. She'll be back soon." Casey let out a cough, feeling a strike of pain go through her. She whimpered, and Lori placed a kiss on her head again. "Just rest. I'm right here." Lori told her, Casey let hot tears just keep falling down like waterfalls.

"Where's Daddy? And Carl?" She tried to push herself up to look around. Lori quickly but carefully brought her back down.

She couldn't have her hurting herself more. That would be bad. She could rip her stitches, or get up too fast and pass out. There were endless amounts of things that could happen if she got up right then and there. "Honey, you have to lay down." Lori told her softly.

Casey didn't know that doing simple things would hurt. Simple things like sitting up, or doing anything would hurt. So, she felt a sharp pain in her stomach where she was shot after doing that.

"It hurts, Mommy." She gasped. Lori lifted the blankets, and pulled up her tank top. Everything still looked normal. Her stomach wasn't swollen, her skin wasn't discolored. There was no blood. She was probably just sore. That's exactly what she was.

"I know, I know." She mumbled into her hair, rubbing her back. "Close your eyes, okay? I'm right here." She told her, pushing back her baby hairs.

Casey let out another soft cry, leaning her head on Lori's chest. Everything was hurting. Her stomach hurt, and her head. Her feelings. She felt like everything was falling apart and she couldn't fix anything.

When she finally fell back asleep, Lori fell asleep along with her. Well, she was resting her eyes. She woke up when she heard footsteps coming toward the room. At first she assumed sit was Carl, but, she made sure he helped the Greene's, and none of them were inside yet. So, it was someone else then. It was Rick. He walked in with his hat off.

He looked at her, seeing the dried up streaks in her cheeks. He looked down, sighing. Poor kid.

"I'll sit with her." He told Lori, placing himself in the chair. He did. need a bit of a break, he was kind of tired from all the stuff he was doing.

"She was awake earlier when you were gone. She asked for you and Carl." Rick nodded his head.

Lori let it at that. She placed her lips on her head, then slowly removed her head form her chest. Rick stood up, slowly putting her head on the pillow. Lori could've done it but Rick just wanted to help. She pressed a kiss on her husband's lips, then walked out of the room.

Rick stayed on that chair for the rest of the day. Carl joined him later, where the two just sat looking at the girl. "How come she won't wake up? Is she in a coma? She's been asleep all day!" Carl told Rick, who had a light smile on his face as his son spoke.

"Her body needs to rest." If doing little things didn't give her a world of pain, she'd be up and running around. She'd probably be fascinated by the trees and be climbing up them. She'd be wreaking havoc on everyone, and probably make fun of her god-father's haircut. Thankfully, she hadn't seen him yet.

It was quiet again. Rick was listening to Casey's breathing and Carl had about a thousand thoughts going through his head. "Dad?" Rick hummed, looking toward him. "Do you think we'll find Sophia?" He asked. Rick nodded his head.

"I know we will. Well...I don't know, but I believe it." Carl nodded his head, looking at Casey again.

He thought she was really brave. She went into the woods, stole a knife, stayed alone for a night, and killed three walkers. On top of all of that, she got shot and stayed alive. That was cool.

Casey was always the cooler sibling. She had more friends at school, and everyone liked her. Carl had friends too, but he was usually known as Casey's big brother. Except to teacher's, that was when Casey was known as Carl's little sister, but that wasn't the point.

Carl compared himself to his little sister, a lot. So, when he met Sophia and the Morales, he felt like he could be the cool one for once. And he was. Now he couldn't help but feel bad, now he was back to comparing himself.

The difference between Casey and Carl was that Casey probably wouldn't do that to him...

Carl now knew that.

So, Casey was cooler. She stayed a night in the woods, stole a knife, she has three walkers under her belt, and she survived a gunshot. How could she get any cooler?

"Casey's really brave." He told Rick, he nodded in agreement. But he didn't stop there, he spoke to Carl.

"I think you get that award too." Carl didn't get how he got that award. Rick looked at him, seeing the confused look on his face. "Don't act so surprised." He chuckled, toying with the rim of his hat.

"Casey's a lot braver than I am."

"I'd say you guys are both brave." Carl didn't get why he said that. Rick sat up straight, now facing Carl. "You managed to go through hearing about her gettin' shot, kept your cool. You made mom and I's jobs real easy." He told him, Carl smiled a bit. "All while Casey was hurting like this, I think that takes a lot of bravery." He told him with a grin.

"Really?"

"Really."

Rick sighed, showing Carl the hat. "Brave man gets to wear that hat." He said, handing it to him. Carl smiled, taking it into his hands.

"We'll pad the rim tomorrow so it sits better." Carl smiled, fixing the hat on top of his head. He was really excited to have his dad's hat.

"Won't you miss it?"

"Maybe you'll let me borrow it from time to time." He offered, Carl nodded his head.

"We can share it." He put the rim of his hat down, still trying to conceal his smile.

"Okay." He whispered, hearing a small movement from Casey. Their heads shot over to the little girl, seeing her eyes open. "Think you can give us two a minute?" He asked Carl. He nodded his head, standing up from his seat. He wanted Carl to talk to her for a minute, but he also thought he had to break the news about Sophia...

"Hey, Carl." Casey greeted tiredly. Carl looked over, grinning still.

"I would hug you right now, but Mom and Dad told me I'd probably hit your bandaid." She nodded her head at her brother's kindness, now kinda wanting a hug since all she'd gotten was kisses on the forehead and stuff.

"That's okay. Don't want your germs anyway." She laughed, feeling a sharp pain. Her hand went to her stomach, but before she could press down on it to stop her pain, or attempt to, Rick lightly took her wrist away from it. He didn't want her to pop a stitch or anything, if that could even happen by pressing down on a wound.

Carl stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Casey looked a Rick, tired eyes staring at each other. "Hi, Daddy."

"Hey, baby." He whispered, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. He sighed, looking down. He cleared his throat, knowing he now had to have a conversation about Sophia. "I told you something earlier today about Sophia—"

"I know. Daryl told me." Rick didn't know why Daryl was in here, but, he didn't expect for her to say that.

Rick lightly grinned, "And here I was ready to confess. I didn't mean to lie. I just didn't want to worry you." Casey understood that. She nodded her head.

"I get it."

"Like how you put a hole in the wall and blamed your brother so you didn't get into trouble." She grinned, stifling her laugh.

"I had James's birthday party that weekend, I couldn't get grounded." Rick shook his head, looking down at the ground again. Poor Carl was grounded for a week. Casey had put the hole in the wall when she threw a baseball inside of the house. She was pretending to play golf with her baseball bat and she had swung back and got her bat stuck in the wall. It was easy to blame Carl...

It was quiet again before Casey spoke again. "Did you know that we've both gotten shot? I'm more like you now." Rick chuckled, putting his head in his hand.

"Yeah, I think your mother would rather hear we got the same eyes. So let's keep that between us." Casey laughed, looking down at her tank top. Her hand was playing with the bandage now, it was snuck beneath the fabric of her tank top.

"Don't play with that." He whispered to her, removing her hand from the bandage again.

"Are you tired?" Rick nodded his head. "I can tell."

"Thanks." He said to the brutally honest child, who just smiled and laughed a little bit.

He was still worried about what she was gonna say to Shane when she saw his haircut...

"I think it's time you get back to bed." He whispered, she groaned, pulling the covers up.

"I think it's time you get to bed." She countered. Rick nodded in agreement.

"Can you stay with me again tonight? I don't like stayin' in here alone." Rick nodded his head.

"If you fall asleep now, I'll be right in." She nodded her head, holding out her pinky for him. He interlaced it with hers, and the two kissed their thumbs.

"I love you, Daddy." He smiled.

"I love you too, Casey."

                       𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

a/n:

guys i was listening to the gold by phoebe bridgers and the beginning is literally so shane and casey coded i can't-