The Walking Dead: Emperor of Flames

Season 4/Chapter 12: Leave

Y/N Pov. 

Sitting back in the dorm after all the stuff from earlier, Clem is beside me while AJ is kicking a wall. He does it over and over again until Clementine finally gets irritated and calls his name.

Clementine: AJ, stop. You'll break your toe or something. Come here, sit down.

AJ continues kicking the wall.

AJ: No! I-It didn't work! I did what you said, and they didn't even care! Marlon was bad. I tried to tell them, but they wouldn't even listen at all!

Y/n: (Sigh) Calm down, AJ. Kicking a wall isn't going to make you feel better. Just breathe. 

Clementine: Remember what we do when we're mad? C'mon. You don't wanna be loud, do you? What do we do when we're mad?

AJ stops kicking the wall. 

AJ: We stop, and think, and, um... I'm still really, really mad. I know that I'm not supposed to get mad. Or sad. Because then I do dumb things.

Y/n: AJ, you're allowed to feel those emotions, but you shouldn't let them control you as a person. You've got every reason to be upset, but we'll deal with it together like we always have, Okay? 

AJ: Okay... 

Slowly starting to calm down, AJ stops being loud and starts listening to us. 

Clementine: We stop, we think, and we... Breathe.

AJ: Breathe. 

AJ takes several deep breaths.

Y/n: Feel better yet?

He shakes his head. 

Y/n: Ah, still pissed. 

AJ: And, uh, I think I'm sad, too.

AJ sniffles and sits in between Clem and I; we give him a hug.

AJ: I did what you guys told me to.

Clementine: I know. 

Y/n: You're a good listener.

He looks up at us. 

AJ: I wanted to show them I was right. Like you said. It didn't work. Why'd you tell me to do that, if it didn't work?

I shrug. 

Y/n: It's not that simple, AJ. People aren't. We can be objectively right and still be seen as wrong. 

Clementine: We thought they would listen to us. We didn't realize... We didn't know how bad it would be. 

Y/n: It's my fault they got angry.

AJ: But they hate me. They don't hate you guys.

I pat his head. 

Clementine: Pretty sure they hate all of us. 

Y/n: Well, minus Aasim, Violet, and Tennessee. I think they're cool with us. Though three isn't going to be able to out vote the others. 

AJ: I don't wanna go.

Clementine: I know you don't.

AJ: I like knowing where we are all the time. The bed, the food. I like the other kids. Not all of them, but Tenn, and Louis, and Violet.

There's a knock at the door, and Violet and Louis enter. From the looks on their faces, at least Violet's, we lost. 

Violet: We took the vote. You have to leave.

AJ: Don't we get to vote? I vote that we stay.

Louis: That's not how it works.

Violet: Maybe it should be.