ch.27

infected

    we all now sat around a table in the prisons old library, discussing the precautions and steps we needed to take so this sickness didn't spread.

   "we'll have to separate everyone that's been exposed." carol stated, glancing around the group.

    "that's everyone in that cell block. that's all of us, maybe more." daryl chimed in, earning a nod as i leaned near the table, placing my hands down.

    "we know this sickness can be lethal. we don't know how easily it spreads. is anyone else showing symptoms that we don't know of?"

    carol scoffed, folding her hands, "we can't just wait and see. there's children. it isn't just an illness. if people die they become a threat."

     "we need a place for them to go. they can't stay in d. we can't risk going in there to clean it up." i stated, weirdly feeling a sickness wash over my body.

    "we can use cell block a."

   "death row? i'm not sure that's much of an upgrade." glenn murmured, glancing around.

   daryl shrugged, "it's clean. that's an upgrade. think that'll work for dr. s?"

    i nodded, "i'll help caleb get it set up, there's gonna need to be more than one doctor in there."

   glenn opened his mouth to protest, but before he could, a woman's cough from outside the room turned our attention.

   we glanced at each other before standing up, moving outside the door. "karen, you don't sound so good"

    "i'm just taking her back to my cell so she can rest." tyreese informed as him and karen turned to look at us.

   "tyreese, i don't think that's a good idea" hershel stated, standing his his hands in his pockets.

   "why? what's going on now?" karen asked, glancing around the group. glenn looked to me, soon replying, "we think it's a flu or something. that's how patrick died."

   "judith was in that cell block. she's vulnerable. anyone that may be sick or even exposed should stay away" i added, trying to protect my family.

   karen glanced around the room nervously, causing hershel to step in. "don't panic we're gonna figure this out. we'll have melanie or dr. s take a look at you."

    i nodded, sending her a smile in reassurance. "david from the decatur group, he's been coughing too."

    glenn let out a sigh, pulling his back off the wall, "i'll get him. there's some empty clean cells in the tombs, right?"

    "yeah, we'll meet you there" i replied, earning a nod before he turned, soon disappearing from my sight. ____________

   "melanie! daryl! rick!" i heard maggie call out, snapping my attention away from making herbal tea to her.

   my eyes shifted to where she was pointing, seeing the fence start to lean from the amount of walkers against it.

   "shit" i groaned, bolting to where the commotion was, grabbing a crowbar on my way down.

    "the noise drew em' out and now this parts starting to give." she stated as i joined her side, already seeing glenn popping them through the  fence.

    i hurriedly joined by his side, piercing as many brains as i could. i grunted, shifting my eyes to the ground.

    my eyebrows furrowed towards sasha, realizing she had seen the rats that laid bloodied on the ground too.

    "heads up!" daryl announced, causing me and sasha to turn back to the fence.

    i watched as the walkers started to crawl on top of the dead ones, making the fence lean even more.

   "it's gonna give! it's gonna give!" rick yelled as we forced our weight against it, trying to hold it up.

     "everybody back! come on, back, now." daryl shouted, causing us all to back away, examining the situation.

   "fence keeps bending in like that, those walkers are coming over it" sasha stated, pointing at it worriedly.

    rick glanced back at the pig pen, hesitating before he turned back around, "dary, get the truck. i have a solution."

    we all watched as daryl and rick started to lead them away, feeding the walkers the sick pigs.

     while the rest of us put up woods supports to hopefully hold the fence. "you good?" glenn questioned after we were done.

    "yeah, are you good?"

    he nodded, keeping the distance between us.____________

i slowly stepped through the tombs, feeling the same wash of sickness from early flood through my body once again.

only this time i could barley walk and my breathing was slower than normal. i quickly grabbed my handkerchief from my pocket, holding it up to my mouth as i coughed.

i slowly pulled it away from my face, seeing a rose red blood stain the cloth. "melanie?" i heard a voice question once i was outside.

my head turned from the ground to infront of me, seeing glenn and hershel looking worriedly at me.

they took a step towards me, only to be stopped as i held out my hand, warning them to not come any closer.

"i think i have it..." i mumbled, watching glenn as he shifted uneasily, looking at my once pigmented skin that was now turned grey.

"i'm gonna be okay" i assured, moving away from the two while also trying to get my breathing under control.

i slowly made my way to cell block a, only to find out dr. s was sick and people were turning faster than we thought.

"oh my god, dr. s" i uttered, running as best as i could to his side. "melanie, you gotta get out of here."

i shook my head, slinging his arm around my neck to give him some support. "it's too late, i already have it."

i helped him up the stairs and into a cell, closing the door and locking it, just in case.

i made my way back down the stairs, hearing the cell block door open. my eyes widened, seeing glenn enter the virus invaded space.

"glenn, you can't be in here. it's not safe" i stated, stopping him before he could get any closer to the cells.

when i was able to see him clearly, his skin was discolored, along with beads of sweat that continuously rolled down his face.

i shook my head, knowing he had caught the virus too. "come on, i'll help you to a cell" i informed, disappointed in myself that he'd gotten it.

once we were in the cell, he both sat on the floor, against the wall, trying to catch our breath.

"this sucks." glenn started, holding a cold cloth i gave him against his forehead, "after everything, we just get taken out by a glorified cold."

"don't say things like that." hershel stated, causing our attention to shoot to the doorway where he stood, holding a lantern and a cup.

we watched as he entered the room, handing me a cup full of pinkish red colored liquid. "herbal tea, natural flu remedy"

hershel nodded, watching me slowly scooch closer to glenn, helping him sip from the cup. "mhmm"

i chuckled at his reaction, pulling the cup to my own mouth.

   i sipped on the drink, feeling the hot liquid hit my throat. "feels good." i mumbled, causing both of them to smile.

    after, hershel led me back to my cell so me and glenn could get some rest. "i probably gave it to him, i feel awful."

    "melanie, come on now. you know glenn doesn't blame you." hershel assured, helping me into the bed.

   i nodded, huffing out a smile, "he wouldn't blame anyone, that's just who he is."

   "selfless" hershel added, earning a nod as tears began to brim my eyes, "how did i find someone like him?"

    hershel shook his head at my reaction, placing a hand on my shoulder, "you deserve someone like him. you both deserve each other." ____________

i woke up hearing growling noises in the hallway next to my cell. i stirred out of the bed grabbing my gun from the night stand.

"hershel!?" i questioned, looking at him through the cell door as he held a gun to a walkers head, contemplating on pulling the trigger

i raised my gun through the cell door hole, aiming for the walker who was closing in on him.

   "no! you could hit the bag. we need the bag for glenn."

my body trembled as the words left his mouth, but i kept my gun raised. i stood there watching the walker get closer to him.

    my finger brushed the trigger, not able to wait any longer, shooting the walker in the head.

the walkers body fell limp to hershels feet, causing me to let out a sigh in relief.

   "where is he?" i asked impatiently, just wanting to get to where glenn was.

"he's up here in cell 100." he replied, i quickly unlocked the cell door, rushing up the stairs.

i could hear hershels foot steps behind me as i knelt down beside glenn, turning him to his side so he wouldn't choke on his blood.

tears started flowing down my face seeing his face turn a light blue, "he's turning blue!" i screamed to hershel, who was making his way to me.

"hershel. help him!" i shouted, sobs taking over my body as i held glenn in my arms. hershel nodded quickly, "roll him on his back."

i did as he said, rolling glenn on his back, watching as the blood fell slowly out of his mouth.

   "hold his arms down."

i cradled his body, forcing all my weight on his arms as he seized. "come on son, you know how this works." hershel muttered, inserting the breathing tube into his mouth.

"glenn just relax." i urged, trying to get him to stop fighting me as i held his arms

   "stay with us."

glenn stopped fighting and his body relaxed as i held his face with one of my hands, trying to stay calm.

"babe, stay with us." i whimpered, fighting back tears.

when his groans stopped, i watched his chest slowly rise and fall. "you're okay, we're okay" i lightly smiled before bending down, kissing his forehead.

i heard footsteps coming up the stairs, causing me and hershels heads to turn. i sighed in relief, seeing bob with the medication.

"thank god" i breathed out, quickly standing up. i walked over to him, lightly grabbing the box of medicine out of his hands.

   "thank you."

he nodded his head, leading me back into the cell. we both sat down on the bed near glenn, preparing the medicine.

i winced a bit, feeling pain strike through my body. hershel took notice, shaking his head at me.

"you never let yourself have a break, huh?" he asked while sucking up the medicine through a syringe.

"i guess not, i would do anything for him" i smiled, looking down at glenn as i stoked his hair.

i looked over to hershel, gently taking the needle out of his hand, "everyone's back now, i can handle this."

he hesitantly nodded at me before standing up. leaving me, bob, and a passed out glenn alone.

i wiped an area on glenns arm clean, inserting the needle into his arm, injecting the medication into his body.

"here" bob started, gently grabbing my arm before rolling up my sleeve, "i'll do yours"

"go for it." i smiled, watching him clean my arm, soon inserting a new needle into it.

"good with needles, i'm not surprised." he stated, placing a bandaid on my arm.

  "i worked with them, i kinda had to be." i mumbled in a disappointed voice, missing my job at the hospital.

"nurse?" he questioned, moving his eyes to mine. i shook my head in response, "trauma surgeon"

"so you're used to this stuff, huh?" he asked, packing up the medication to give other people.

"i was just a resident, but you could say so." i started, giving him a small smile, "thanks, for helping me with the medication."

before he could leave, he turned back, giving me a nod, "you would do the same for me... for everyone at that."

i nodded, watching him turn and leave. soon my focus turned back to glenns, watching as his chest rose and fell, tracing his facial features with my eyes.

     i let out a sigh before laying down beside him, letting the sleepiness take over my body.

________________________________3/3/2021