Sage ? Carl Grimes

CONTROL BY HALSEY

CARL

"I'm so sorry—"

"Sage..."

"I didn't..."

There stood a girl, her hair the color of a dying fire's dull and fallen embers. Eyes the color of metal, yet shimmered like sunrise after a day of pouring rain. Her fingers patched inside this dying fired hair, those metallic eyes with the shimmer of a sunrise recollecting dried tears as she cried for the stranger standing before.

And then there stood a boy. A boy with skin the color of fallen ash, and eyes as genuine as innocence had felt into the seams of silk. In his hands was gun, a weapon righteous to accompany him in his hands. The girl with the dead fire and the boy with the fallen ash were both standing, face to face, teary-eyed and regretful. 

You never know that people could invade your bones and ache your every vein until you face them again after the layers of betrayal.

Karma was on ricochet, and the lovely Sage Riley was met with the aching reminder of her runaway.

"Noah," she breathed.

Time and time again, Sage whispered his name in a shaken and fearful tone. Perhaps if she said his name just enough, her explanation and sorries would make sense to him. I knew Sage had an explanation for leaving him behind, but did it justify?

"I should've..." She tried again.

Her words began to stutter, and instead of listening to the struggle, I decided upon studying Noah with earnest intent. I started at the facial construction; his hair was buzzed short, dark hair to match the skin over his body. His eyes were big, glistened and noticeable, I figured right then that he couldn't tell a lie, because his eyes would speak their truths. His clothing was shagged and wrinkled, but appeared clean and new. Khaki pants were loose on his legs, his tall figure intimidating, but his body thin. He wore a patterned tee with a brown coat over his shoulders. A small trickle of blood was on his cheeks, but I had the strangest assumption that this young man didn't kill much.

Noah stared down at my girlfriend with a prolonged expression. At first you would assume he'd seen a ghost, but his eyes were so kind and glossed with the tears that you didn't know what to make out of him.

Daryl grumbled from beside me; words I knew I didn't want to comprehend the clarity of. I looked down at my hands, realizing my gun was still pointed for the head of Noah. My hands trembled in the slightest as I lowered my weapon, unexplainably trusting this righteous stranger.

"I should've said goodbye," Sage whispered, hushed and distant.

Noah instantly shook his head, but in protest, so did Sage. "Listen to me, Noah," Sage begged. Tears stopped hitting her cheeks, I assumed she'd dried herself out of them. "I promised I wouldn't leave you behind, but I did, and I'm allowed to be sorry for being such a fucking coward—"

Noah was silent, but didn't hesitate to shut her up by pulling her in for such a prolonged embrace. Sage gripped his shoulder, her eyes sealing shut and her weakened guilt forcing her to choke out a soundless sob.

Noah was respectful, holding her by the upper back and embracing her like a brother. He touched the dying fire of her hair, smoothing it down as he let a single tear roll down his face and on the top of her head; but only one. After that, he was silent.