In a world taken over by walkers, ten-year-old Elodie fights to survive each day. But she's not just any survivor-she's a girl who happens to be hard of hearing. Her older brother Jamie isn't exactly supportive. In fact, he's downright cold, leaving...
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The sun bathed Elodie's face in warmth, gently kissing her pale skin as she sat on the ground, leaning against Sophia's back. She really wanted to hang out with Elodie, but Elodie wasn't feeling it. As a compromise, Sophia suggested they sit back to back while Elodie did her own thing. Elodie thought it was a solid plan, so here they were, nestled on the dirty ground beside Carol's feet, their backs supporting each other.
Elodie leaned her head back against Sophia's, exhaling softly. Things had been pretty awkward since Daryl's return. He seemed to be keeping his distance from most people. Carol was busy folding laundry, Ed lounging on the couch behind her with his feet propped on the rocks of the firepit. Elodie figured that Daryl didn't seem to mind the Peletier family's presence much, because he sat across from them, tinkering with his crossbow.
Curiosity got the better of her and Elodie craned her neck slightly to catch a glimpse of what Daryl was up to. His crossbow looked intimidating, though she figured the man wielding it probably made it seem scarier than it actually was. She had seen Daryl aim it at people in camp multiple times, and sometimes she worried he might aim it at her one day. But he had never threatened the kids or tried to harm or scare them, so that helped ease Elodie's concerns.
Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment as Daryl lifted his head and caught her gaze. Quickly averting her eyes, she scolded herself internally for always staring at people. She remembered what Jamie had said about finding it weird that she was always staring. Elodie wasn't sure if only Jamie found it weird or if everyone did. Either way, she figured it probably was strange. If any of the adults stared at her for too long, she'd likely feel uncomfortable, too.
Oh no, she thought, her face contorting into a cringe. Making people uncomfortable was the last thing she wanted. She stared because she was curious about what people were doing, but she realized it was definitely weird and awkward.
She stretched out her legs, watching as the loose threads from her jeans spread out over the dirt. Frowning, she reached out to pluck a thread from the denim fabric. But as she pulled, the thread only seemed to grow, stretching longer and longer-
"No, no, no," Carol interjected quickly, hurrying over to Elodie and gently guiding her hand away from the thread. "You'll ruin your clothes if you keep doing that, honey. We can't just find you new ones, so you have to be careful with what you have."
Elodie looked up at Carol, then back down at the now considerably lengthy thread dangling from her pant leg. "Oh," she murmured, biting her lip as she frowned. "Sorry."
"It's okay," Carol reassured, releasing Elodie's hand. "Go ask your mom if she has a pair of scissors so we can cut that off for you."
"Okay," Elodie replied, a hint of hesitation in her voice. She nudged Sophia gently as she got to her feet, mumbling that she was going to see her mother for a moment. She purposely avoided Daryl's gaze as she passed him.
