Sage ? Carl Grimes

{ To Build a Home by The Cinematic Orchestra }

Carl

That night after the shower, Sage and I excused ourselves from the rest of the family and stayed inside our bedroom.

She talked to me briefly of her Dad, and explained all the things they used to do when she was younger. Sage told me that she was close to her Dad when she was very little, but lost him as she got older into his career as a doctor.

I gained this little information before Sage had drifted to sleep. That night, I stayed awake by the window and reconciled my thoughts. I had to align where we were, and make the deepest decision that I have needed to decide:

If we would stay in this Farm.

I was trying to think like a leader: think like my Father would've. Trusting strangers was always a skeptical debate in my life. I grew up in a world of putrid and remorse. I couldn't think of the few, I had to think of the many.

I stood in the bathroom, my palms clenching the cold sink. I was leaning over the bathroom counter, and hanging parallel to me was a mirror.

I switched the faucet on, and the satisfying sound of running water drizzled through my ears. I closed my eyes, taking a moment to count my blessings as I heard such a foreign noise. Running water was my blessing.

I swiped a hand under the water, cupping it between my fingers and splashing it onto my face. Relief has stricken me, and I got my hands wet while running it through my hair. I wiped the drowsiness clean from my blue eyes, trying to wake up.

I didn't get any sleep the night before.

You couldn't sleep, I thought. You laid awake through the night because you sit in a home that is not yours. Sage Riley slept soundly in a stranger's bed, while you remained a skeptic and reconciled your trust to the Bishop's.

I gritted my teeth, turning off the faucet and sighing. I still kept ahold of the sink's edges, and I glanced up to capture a glimpse of my reflection.

My dark, brown hair was clean and shiny. It was falling down my forehead and tickling my ears. My blue eyes were lively and kind: reminding me of my baby sister's. My complexion was soft and bright and refreshing. I was looking over at a cleansed, happier Carl Grimes. He stared back at me, and almost taunted me with the surreality.

Carl Grimes was a boy that couldn't fathom his emotions. He would lash out, scream, and pity the ones that he couldn't protect. Carl Grimes was a boy who lost his family, and met a girl who lost her mind. But now...this boy has seemed to have vanished behind him. You are now staring at a lively boy with sudden hope. And all you're left to thank is the lovely Sage Riley.

I blinked away my thoughts, waking myself up. I sighed, playing with my hair for a few moments. I tried to style it to the side with water on my hands, but my hair just flopped down at my ears. I gritted my teeth, helpless.

What? You're worrying about your hair, at a time like this? I wondered. You're trying to impress the pretty girl. You want to give her what she deserves. And maybe a safe place like this is the best you can give her.

I tucked down on my shirt, emerging from the bathroom, and into the bedroom connected to it. My feet lazily shuffled inward, and I scratched my head, accompanied by a throaty yawn.

Once I entered the bedroom, my eyes quickly averted to the bed. The sheets and blankets were pulled back, though the right side was empty. I could see the ruffles from the missing body, and my blue eyes searched for such. I narrowed my eyes into slits, confused as to where Sage Riley was.