Request: Could you do a Carl imagine after Carl gets shot and the reader is trying to break down Carlâs walls again as heâs recovering. Carl is steel feeling very insecure and unsure trying to adjust to losing his eye and the reader helps him. Maybe with a lot of fluff? Btw youâre amazing!!
Warnings: wounds? a little gore I guess
A/N: I cried writing this because I miss Carl so much but I love this request! All the requests you guys send are so amazing but the Carl ones give me so much motivation and emotion. thank you so much !!
Please donât steal, plagiarize or repost my writing. I work really hard on my writing as I imagine all writers do and it would suck to find out someone else is trying to claim it as theirs
âCarl, open the door.â You say standing outside of the bathroom door patiently.
Itâd been like this every single morning since the accident, since Carl lost his eye that night when everything that could possibly go wrong, went wrong.
Heâd lock himself in the bathroom, change his bandages like Michonne told him to, clean up, and go right back to his room for hours on end. Youâd hardly seen him these past few days, he hid away in his room and kept the door locked for most of the time keeping to himself and refusing to see anyone, even you. You doubted heâd seen the outside of the house in days. He wouldnât even eat with everyone for dinner anymore, Rick had to bring it to his room every night otherwise he just wouldnât eat. It was torture for everyone but it was especially hard for you because youâd always helped Carl. You never let him take things on alone and right now he wouldnât let anyone help. He was dealing with this alone and it drove you to feel useless.
Youâd been trying so hard to break down the newly formed walls separating the two of you but he was so distant it was like he was hardly there at all. It was painful and felt like salt on a fresh wound. Carl rarely distanced himself from you and the situation was so unfamiliar. You felt lost.
âCarl, please.â You plead trying a little harder to get him to just let you in, you knew you could get through to him if he just saw you.
Carl was never good at shutting you out or pushing you away when you were face to face with him, he always caved. Every single time. He could never stay that far away from you, even when he was distant he was always close by, just in case.
You heard shuffling on the other side of the door but it stayed locked. You tried to twist the handle one more time just to see if maybe it wasnât locked this time but it was the same reaction youâd gotten every single time to your disappointment. You lean against the door and rest your forehead against the painted white wood trying to think how you could get through to him. You couldnât take seeing him like this anymore. You just wanted to help him, show him that just because something changed in his appearance didnât mean it had to chance everything else.
A few more noises come from the bathroom and you feel a little hope rise in your chest. You listen to the noises coming from the other side of the door and hear a few creaks and footsteps but thatâs all. After a few seconds silence falls over the atmosphere and you canât hear anything.
âCarl, please, Iâm begging you. Open the door, itâs just me.â You try one last time.
You close your eyes and press your palm flat against the door taking a deep shaky breath. You wait a few seconds but the door stays shut and you feel the hope that was once in your chest disintegrate, he wasnât going to open the door today. You didnât know if he ever would anytime soon.
âCarl.â Your voice is softer now and you sigh in hopeless defeat.
You give up for the day and go to move away from the position you were in against the door before the handle jiggles and the bathroom door cracks open slowly. A few strips of sunlight shine onto the wooden floor beside you as the sunlight from the bathroom window hits your skin and the walls surrounding you as well.
Your eyes widen in surprise at the action and you can feel your heart rate speed up in your chest. Your mind races with messy thoughts but you just prepare yourself for what youâre about to see. You try to prepare yourself to keep your reaction subtle, as if itâs nothing, as if itâs the same Carl itâs always been. You didnât want to make him feel any worse when he was giving you a chance.
You press the door open a little further, just enough for you to squeeze through, and step inside quietly shutting and locking it behind you so nobody would walk in on the two of you. You knew just you being here with him was probably already putting him on edge, you didnât want to push him too far.
Carlâs back was turned towards you and you didnât know what to do so you did the only thing knew would make him feel safe. You step closer to him and wrap your arms around his torso. You feel him tense up underneath you as you rest your head against his back. You can feel his breathing and your grip on him tightens. You hadnât been this close to him since he was unconscious and unaware of what was happening after his surgery nights ago. Itâd been so long it felt like.
God, you missed him so much.
You stay like that for a second or two savoring the feeling, you missed this. Eventually you move your arms from around him and place them on his shoulders before slowly beginning to turn him around. The wait was making you anxious and it felt like it was like a big reveal. Time was slow and your chest was heavy but you knew you had to say calm, keep your face expressionless. You couldnât react badly, it would break him and you couldnât do that, not to him.
The white bandage was wrapped around his head covering his eye so you couldnât see the actual wound. It was still shocking though, he looked different. The two piercing blue eyes youâd stared into so many times werenât the same as they were before. Still, Carl was staring down at you anxiously awaiting your reaction, any sign of emotion hiding in your expression, anything to tell him how you felt right now.
âYouâre so handsome.â Is all you say at first which took Carl by surprise.
He wasnât expecting that, his mind had conjured up so many horrible scenarios he was certain he was going to turn off everyone heâd come across after this. He shouldâve known better though. Youâd seen him covered in blood and guts and still thought he looked as breathtaking as ever. This wasnât going to change anything.
You watch as his lips twitch into a smile but it quickly disappears as soon as it came, his gaze shoots down to the floor and he refuses to look you in the eyes after your comment. His hair was falling in his face preventing the right half of his face to be seen and it broke your heart into two.
âStop that, look at me.â You whisper moving your hand to his chin to tilt it up towards you so you can see his face.
He fights it a little but finally makes the avoided eye contact and you notice the tears brimming his eyes. Your heart breaks for him and you move your hand to his cheek. Your thumb strokes his face softly and you watch him as you wonder whatâs going through his head.
âI look horrible.â He confesses.
âYou look handsome.â You correct watching his lips twitch before the smile disappears again just like it did before.
âI mean it.â You say a little sterner than before trying to prove to him that your words were filled with nothing but truth.
He moves his hand to grab your wrist and soon tries to pull your hand away from his cheek but you tense underneath his touch to stop him. His grip on your wrist loosens as your thumb continues to stroke his cheek even after he had tried to get you to stop. He couldnât push you away any longer without potential consequences and he knew that.
You slowly and hesitatingly move your hand to the back of his head and grasp the edge of the bandage wrapped around his head tightly. He flinches a little and you can see the uncertainty in his eyes but he doesnât attempt to move or prevent you from going further. Your fingertips grip onto the white fabric and begin to undo it as it the bandage loosens. You were hesitant and careful getting ready to stop with just a few words.
âTell me when to stop.â
Eventually youâre down to the final wrap and your hands are shaking as you take it off. His hair was covering most of his face but you notice the wound almost instantly. The skin by his nose and under where the bags of his eye used to be was ripples and scarred tissue which caused your gaze to shift upwards a little focusing on the fresh wound youâd never seen before.
âYou canât tell me I donât look disgusting.â Carl confesses at your loss of words moving his head to turn away from you.
You quickly react and move your hand to his chin again to keep him from looking away from you. Your grip was tight to keep him from budging but still gentle. Your eyes scan the scar where his right eye used to be and you take it in. It was different, but youâd seen worse. Scars and wounds wasnât anything new to either of you. You werenât intimidated or grossed out like Carl mustâve thought youâd be.
âIt looks cool.â You whisper which catches his attention immediately.
You werenât lying, the wound looked badass and you knew it was going to give him a new edge. It was going to take awhile for him to get used to but you knew one day eventually heâd become comfortable with the scar and would wear it proudly. You wanted nothing more than to help him but you knew better than to rush it. He had to do it in his own time.
âYou think so?â He questions with furrowed eyebrows.
You nod without hesitation and brush some of his hair out of his face with your freehand. Your fingertips brush his forehead and you run them around the soft skin by his eye being careful not to touch the wound before a slow smile creeps onto your face.
His expression changes from uncertain and uncomfortable to light hearted slowly and you feel your heart skip at the sight of the Carl you were familiar with, the easy going Carl. You both smile and a quiet laugh leaves your lips as you continue to let your fingertips caress his face to keep him calm.
You push yourself on your tiptoes before letting your lips hover over his cheek pressing them to the scarred skin softly. You kept your lips pressed against his cheek for a few seconds until you pull away and rest your forehead against his own. The kiss wasnât on his wound but just below it.
You stare at his face trying to figure out whatâs going through his mind but before you can figure it out Carl is pressing his lips against yours. He wanted to do that for days but the insecurities in the back of his mind kept him far away from you. He couldnât deny he missed you though, you were his partner in crime and one of his favorite people. This had been killing him.
Your eyes flutter shut as your lips move in sync with his. The kiss was slow and full of desperation and emotion. Carl moves his hands to your waist wrapping them around your torso pulling you closer to his slim body in attempt to feel closer to you.
After what felt like forever you part your lips away from his but keep your face close to his. You can feel his hot breath fanning over your lips but you didnât mind, he mustâve just freshly brushed his teeth because the smell of mint was coating his breath.
âIt looks badass.â You mumble earning a genuine laugh from the boy in front of you.
The two of you stayed like that in the bathroom for awhile and although you knew itâd take awhile, maybe even years, one day Carl would be standing tall and proud with himself, scars and all, hopefully with you right beside him.
