It was pitch dark when Elide next woke up. She was lying in her bed, the window wide open to let in the fresh night air. Shivering, Elide sat up, one hand on her throbbing head as her eyes tried to make out something in the darkness.

As she tried to pull back the covers to stand up, she felt something heavy beside her. Immediately she turned her head there and faltered when she saw Carl lying there. He was lying next to her, still wearing his street clothes. His face looked peaceful and was only slightly illuminated by the moon, while his chest rose and fell gently.

He was beautiful.

Elide chose not to wake him, which unfortunately did no good as Carl sensed movement and woke up. His blue eyes had to adjust to the darkness for a moment before he saw Elide beside him. Carl sat up and rubbed the tiredness from his eyes.

"You're awake," he stated with relief, now turning to face her fully.

Elide nodded and leaned back until her back touched the back of the bed. Carl did the same and then looked at her from the side. "Yes. I'm sorry I made you stay here."

Carl shook his head.

"I stayed with you by choice, El. You know how worried I was when Daryl walked in with you in his arms?" he breathed worriedly. That was true; Carl couldn't sit still for a second, knowing that someone had hurt her.

Elide was shocked for a brief moment by his honesty, but then quickly regained her composure. Her heart beat faster at his words and the thought that he really did care that much about her calmed her.

"I'm sorry," she said again, lowering her head. She had never wanted Carl or Daryl to worry. What she didn't know, however, was that it wasn't just them who were beside themselves with rage. On the contrary, Rick, Carol, Glenn and Maggie immediately confronted Carter. Even if Rick wanted to kill this guy right away, which no one knew, they needed his skills for the plans.

"You're not to blame, so don't apologize," Carl replied, looking forward again to the closet as he played with his hands.

"What exactly happened?" he wanted to know, breaking the awkward silence.

Elide beside him sank further into her blanket. "One of the men got pushy."

Carl's eyes widened as he looked at the brunette again and swallowed hard.

"What?"

Gently, Elide touched his shoulder with her hand.

"Nothing bad happened, so there's nothing to worry about," Elide soothed, forcing a small smile to her lips even though she wanted to scream out all her frustration. How she would love to just let everything around her break into shards. Scream and cry until her lungs hurt. It was so hard to stay strong all the time.

Carl snorted and rolled his eyes, as this response was so typical of Elide.

"It's absolutely not okay that the guy got too close to you and I have every reason to be concerned," Carl clarified in a firm voice, annoyed that Elide always wanted to play the strong and invulnerable.

"I'm fine."

"No, you're not fine, Elide."

Both teens turned their heads to each other and stared into each other's souls. Carl tried to make out anything in their eyes, any emotion, but nothing was visible, unlike Elide with Carl; His blue eyes were one storm in the sea and she saw them flash.

"What difference does it make? Whether I'm fine or not, I mean."

The young one moved a little closer to Elide, causing strong palpitations in both of their hearts.

"It makes a big difference. To me."

A soft gasp came from her lips and she averted her eyes. Clearing her throat, she brushed back her hair and tried to ignore Carl's burning gaze, which was almost impossible.

"Have the others gone over the plan?" Elide deftly changed the subject, which made Carl sigh in annoyance. It was so clear to Carl, that she wasn't going to answer him honestly. And that was after they had both sworn never to hide anything from each other again.

"Yes, just after you were in your bed. They start tomorrow."

Elide actually wanted to be there when they all planned how they were going to go ahead, but after what happened with Carter, it was probably best if she stayed away from him for now.

"My dad said you'd help with that," Carl said, not really sounding convinced by the suggestion.

"I volunteered to help," she replied.

"Why?"

Elide looked back at Carl and shrugged. He looked so much younger without his hat.

"I don't know. I feel like I'd owe your dad a lot. Besides, I'm good at fighting."

Elide rubbed her hands together nervously and closed her eyes. She just had to give back to rick somehow; she didn't want to be a burden anymore, so she helped as much as she could.

"You don't owe him anything. He's not like that," Carl promised her, placing his larger hand on top of hers, the small, perhaps insignificant gesture causing far too much chaos in Elide.

"I know," she smiled and gently squeezed Carl's hand, which felt so big and warm in hers that she immediately felt safe and secure.

He smiled as well.

"What did Enid want from you earlier anyway?" Elide suddenly asked, trying to push the actual jealousy to the back of her mind.

"She had only asked me to keep an eye out for Ron. Nothing more," he told her, his face slightly contorting at the mention of Ron.

"Why you of all people?"

Carl merely shrugged.

"I don't know."

It was silent again for a while; Elide looked up at the ceiling, closing her eyes every now and then, while Carl never wanted to get rid of the feeling of her hand in his.

When he decided to come into the room and lay down beside her so he could be there as soon as she woke up, he could hardly take his eyes off her. Her pale skin, her brown hair, her petite body and the many scars on her skin.

But above all, the red mark on her arm, which most likely had to come from the man, made Carl go crazy. How could a man a century older lay hands on a young girl? When Daryl told Rick downstairs what was happening, Carl barely caught a glimpse. But what he heard was completely enough to make him hate the man's guts.

"Carl," Elide started quietly, not wanting to wake the others.

"Mhm?"

"If you could have a superpower, what would it be?"

Baffled by the sudden random question, Carl turned his head questioningly to Elide, who waited patiently for his answer with a grin on her lips.

"Uhm, probably flying," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

Elide sat up jerkily and flicked on the light on her bedside table, causing Carl to squint briefly and sit up as well. He carefully examined Elide's face, but could only make out the pale skin and the circles under her eyes. Still, she was beautiful to him.

"Really? Well, I think I'd walk through walls," she said thoughtfully.

Carl couldn't help laughing.

"Walk through walls? How would that do you any good?"

Offended by his comment, Elide crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"I think it's cool. Imagine you have to leave quickly or you're at a dead end." She moved her hands as she told it, causing Carl to reluctantly let go of her hand and watch the girl in front of him with a grin. "Although, neither is really a superpower," she stated with a laugh, which made Carl laugh as well.

How could she have so much suffering inside her and yet seem happier than ever from one second to the next? However she managed it, Carl would give everything to be able to see her smile anew every day.

What he didn't know, however, was that Elide felt the same way.

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can you all see the new face claim now? It should be INDIA EISLEY.

THANK YOU -artemiskeyy FOR THE PRETTIEST GIFS I'VE EVER SEEN. LOVE YOU 💋