Stay Upstairs

“No.” I said sharply, “No, I’m staying up here. I want to help fight.” I stood up and pushed the box away from me.

“Lin, c’mon!” Rick stumbled back a little.

“If I wanted to stay back I would have voted to leave the farm! I wanted to stay here to fight, so let me help!”

Rick opened his mouth about to say something when Carol took the box from him. She tried to take Carl’s hand to go downstairs with him, but Carl also fought back.

“I’m not going down there. Not without dad.” He looked up at Rick.

Rick knelt down to eye level before speaking, “Carl, I love you, but you have to go downstairs with your mom, okay? Please do it for me. You saved Lin’s life as well as mine, and I’m so thankful for that. But now you have to be strong and help your mom. Please Carl, for me.”

To my surprise, Carl slowly nodded and took Lori’s hand instead. The three hugged and said their goodbyes before they went downstairs. Rick then turned to me.

“Go with them.”

“No.”

“That isn’t wise, Lin. You could get hurt, or get in the way, or—”

“After what happened to Shane, after what he turned into, I deserve to make this choice.” I snapped at him.

“You could die!” Rick snapped back. “I can’t be responsible for another death!”

“We could all die. Rick, I think we can both agree that no matter who does, you’re gonna take responsibility for it. Most of it ain’t true but,” I leaned up to whisper in his ear, “you killed Shane and that’s on your dirty hands.” I leaned back and turned, only to run into Andrea.

“Hey, I’m staying here to fight.”

She smiled and went to hand me a pistol when Rick stepped forward again. “No, she’s going downstairs.” He looked at me with piercing eyes.

“Rick, if she wants to fight, let her fight! She’s not a little girl.” Andrea took my hand and placed it on the gun. I gripped the cold, hard metal and grinned.

“I don’t trust her with a gun!” Rick admitted the real reason he didn’t want me there.

I looked at him with cold eyes but couldn’t blame him. There was nothing stopping me from shooting him while his back was turned. I couldn’t promise I wouldn’t.

“Oh come on!” Andrea fought for me. “What is she gonna do, close her eyes and fire aimlessly? Kill one of us? No!”

But I gave a half smile at that last sentence. That was exactly what Rick was afraid of. He saw my smile and opened his mouth to speak again when Hershel cried out.

“Enough!” we all turned behind us to look at him. “My farm is under attack and we’re quarreling about fighting for it?! Let the woman fight!” Hershel usually had the final word.

“Fine.” Rick hissed and went to the kitchen to get ammo.

“T-Dog and I are going to the barn to draw some attention from the house.” Daryl announced.

“Glenn and I decided we’ll go upstairs and snipe from there.” Andrea had a hunting rifle with a scope attached resting on her shoulder and Glenn had his next to him.

“And Hershel said that Rick and I should join him here.” Jimmy said and Rick nodded from the kitchen.

“So which will it be? Who’re you going with?” Rick asked.

T-Dog and Daryl

Andrea and Glenn

Hershel, Jimmy, and Rick