THE WORLD BEFORE

"Siddiq?" I asked

"Hey, Y/n, what are you doing here?" A voice asked. I turned to see Rosita holding Coco

"Siddiq left the carrier at the infirmary, so I brought it back, and I also want to talk to him about his mental state, is he home?" I asked

"Yeah, here" She said as she took the lead. She knocked on a close door before opening it. We both entered and I closed it behind me

"Siddiq, are you awake?" Rosita asked. A door opened and Dante was behind it. He was blocking the way into Siddiq's room. I was getting a very bad feeling. I subtly stood in front of Rosita as he smiled at us

"Hola" Dante said

"Bueno" Rosita said

"¿Todo bien?" Dante asked

"Si, si todo bien. Vi la luz encendida" Rosita responded

"Siddiq and I were talking about how he's not sleeping much, and Y/n came by to drop off some stuff and to check on him" Rosita said as I put down the carrier. Though, Dante was still in the way

"¿Qué esta pasando?" Rosita asked. Dante smiled

"We're having a hot romance. Didn't you know? Nah, we were just hanging, and he got called out. Something about, uh, Andy and Donna's kid throwing up. I didn't ask for details" Dante said

"Yeah, um, about that I was just at the infirmary. Siddiq wasn't there" I told him. Rosita was on guard, too now

"That's weird. ¿Puedo ayudarte?" Dante asked. We heard wheezing in the back. Rosita began backing up

"No" She said. I followed in her steps. Coco began crying

"Rosita, Y/n" Dante said as he revealed his knife

"Rosita, take Coco and go" I told her as  I got into a defensive stance

"Y/n-" I cut her off

"Get Coco to safety" I told her

"I'm afraid, I can't let you do that" Dante said. He ran at me with his knife. I grabbed his hand and slammed it against the counter, making him drop the knife

"Rosita, go!" I yelled at her. She ran out as fast as she could as I fought Dante. He slammed me to the ground and got on top of me. I struggled to get him off of me. He then put his hands around my throat as I scratched his face. I kept struggling beneath him

"It's okay" He said

"No" I told him as I scratched his shoulder. I could hear growling. I threw him off of me and got up. I went to grab the knife when he grabbed my leg. I turned around and stabbed him in the shoulder

"No!" He yelled in pain. I removed the knife from him as he fell to the ground, clutching his shoulder. I looked and saw Siddiq approaching us, he was a walker. That's when Rosita ran back in and killed him. I dropped the knife and punched Dante in the face, over and over again. His nose bled onto my hands. I would've killed him, but he could be interrogated for intel. I knocked him out cold. I then got up and looked at my bloody hand. I turned and looked at Rosita was watching

"Is Coco okay?" I asked

"Yeah" She said

—————

We were in the infirmary. Dante was tied up as he sat on one of the beds. Daryl had just punched him. Carl was looking at my hand. I had some abrasions from punching Dante

"Hope that hurts" Daryl muttered

"It doesn't matter. None of this matters. Watch enough people get incinerated, devoured alive, you see how ridiculous it is getting attached to ourselves. But knowing that sets you free" Dante said as Daryl pulled out a cigarette. Carl helped me clean my hand and bandage it

"Is that what you're doing? Setting us free?" Carol asked

"If you learn that lesson, it'll only help you" Dante said as Daryl clicked his lighter

"What, so we can be more like you?" Daryl asked before he lit his cigarette

"Accept the future" Dante said

"Siddiq depended on you. Why put him through all that hell in the barn just to kill him months later? I-I can't see an ideology behind that" Gabriel said

"I liked Siddiq" Dante said

"Oh, you liked him?" Rosita asked

"Is that why you killed him, because you're a wannabe walker?" I asked

"He wasn't apart of the plan. But he found out who I was, so I had no choice" Dante said

"What plan?" Carol asked

"Encourage your paranoia about us.. which will push you into bad decisions. Places like this are cruel promises to their people, and they crumble at the smallest nick. Hell, I'm gonna enjoy watching you rip each other apart over what to do with me. Just like with Negan' Dante said

"Who said anything about that?" I asked

"Is that what you want? A public reckoning? A chance to be heard?" Gabriel asked

"That's what you'll give me. Because it's right" Dante said

"We helped you" Rosita said

"Why? 'Cause you wanted another doctor around? You got something from me, too. Don't pretend you didn't" Dante said. Rosita muttered something in Spanish

"No one is actually kind. We are selfish. We are brutal. Come on. Even seeing all those heads on spikes didn't teach you what people are?" Dante asked. Rosita kicked him, causing him to fall off the bed. Aaron walked in

"Just say the word" I said as Rosita walked out upset

—————

We were having a funeral for Siddiq. I rested my head onto Daryl's chest as his arm was around me. Lyra was in front of us. I ran my fingers through her curly red hair

"I remember this passage from my studies. Written by a scholar centuries ago who was trying to understand the impossible. 'Let me live if life is better for me and take my life if death is better for me.' He had surrendered himself to fate because his world defied logic. Defied justice" Gabriel said before he walked over to Siddiq's grave and squatted. He grabbed some dirt

"We created you from it.." Gabriel began as he tossed the dirt onto the grave. He grabbed more dirt

"And return you into it.." Gabriel said as he tossed more dirt. He grabbed another handful of dirt

"And from it we will raise you a second time" Gabriel said as he dropped the dirt onto the grave. Gabriel then intertwined his hands together. Rosita walked over and put some dirt on the grave, but she just sat beside it as the funeral ended

————–

I looked at Dante through the bars of his cell

"Did you really think you could kill me?" I asked him

"Doesn't matter, the rest of you will end up like Siddiq in the end" Dante said as I stared at him with a knife in my hand

"You're probably, right, but the thing is, I don't really care. I'm just waiting for them to give me the go because then I can cut off your fingers, one by one. Then, I'll make you eat your fingers. Then, I'll cut off your toes, one by one. Don't worry, you'll eat those two, and then just when you believe it'll be over, I'll walk behind you and cut your ears. I'll watch you scream in agony as you bleed, and then I'm gonna-" I was cut off as I got progressively louder and more riled up. A smile was on my face as the door opened. It was Gabriel who entered. He closed the door behind him

"Man, you have shitty timing. I was just getting to the good part of me telling him how I was gonna torture him" I said. Gabriel gave me a look as if to shut up, so I did. Gabriel approached the bars and looked at Dante

"Did you even have a son?" Gabriel asked

"Why does that matter?" Dante asked

"I guess it doesn't. It was one of the things I liked about you" Gabriel said as Dante got up and approached the bars

"That my son was killed?" Dante asked

"That you had a family. I suppose you'd like me to never trust anyone again" Gabriel said which made Dante chuckle

"It's a meaningless idea" Dante said as he sat down. He sighed. Gabriel then took out the keys and opened the cell. Gabriel walked in, and so did I

"Is that what you're here to show us?" Gabriel asked

"Look around you. Look what people did to the world. And you think we can be good? You think we deserve a second chance?" Dante asked

"I loved Siddiq like a brother. My family will never be the same now. His daughter will never know him. Maybe Rosita will blame me, and maybe she's right to. I didn't protect them enough. I.. I haven't always been brave. Do we deserve a second chance? I don't know. But sometimes we get one, anyway" Gabriel said before he stabbed Dante in the chest. I was shocked, I was half expecting him to tell me to do it, but him. Did not see that one coming. Dante grunted as he slammed Gabriel into the wall. I was gonna help but Gabriel kept stabbing Dante, over and over again, even after he had stopped moving. Gabriel yelled at Dante as he stabbed him. I was in utter shock. Gabriel threw the knife

"Gabe.." I muttered. He looked up at me as he began to cry. I rushed over and wrapped my arms around him. Dante was going to come back, but I made sure to stab him in the head before he got a chance

(1624 words)
07/13/22