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Luke mentions Nick

TeamKennyW00TTeamKennyW00T
in The Walking Dead

Hey, so I am writing the walking dead game into a novel for a few of my friends who decided they don't want it in game format. (I know right?) Right now, I'm in the middle of Amid the Ruins, and up to this point, I haven't had to change many aspects of the story. I decided to give Luke a little bit of something to say about Nick, since it's weird he didn't say anything. In my version of the book, I had Nick get killed in episode 2, since he really didn't do anything afterwards, and I thought it made more sense for Walter's character. But, instead of Walter just lowering his gun, he shot Nick and tried to pass it off like he was aiming for the walker.

This section is just after they rescue Sarah from the trailer park, when Clem, Jane, Luke and Sarah are all walking back to Parker's Run together, after they have the talk about Jane's sister. This is the first completely original conversation I've written into the book, so I don't know how it fits into the rest of the story.

*We walked in silence for a little bit, until I heard Luke taking deep breaths behind me and I realize he had started to fall behind, even past Sarah. I slowed down to talk to him. "Are you okay?" I asked.

"What? Besides the multiple bruised ribs in my side?" He replied. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"That's good." I said. "Do you think you need help keeping up?"

"Nah, I got it." He said. "Hey Clem, I know what you guys been keeping secret from me."

The statement threw me off guard a bit. "What's that?"

"How long?" He asked.

"How long what?"

"How long has Nick been dead?" The question made my blood run cold. It never occurred to me that Luke wasn't there when it happened. In my silence, he continued. "I know Nick's dead." He told me. "After I left to help Kenny, I talked to him about our plan. Carlos and I had discussed how I would leave just in case you guys got captured by Carver. He told me I was the key to getting them out. 'Make sure you stay hidden.' He said. 'You may be our only hope.' But Kenny...he got real pissed at me, you see? Thought I was gonna hightail it out of there...save my own skin... When Carver captured me and beat the hell out of me, that was the first time I realized Nick wasn't there with you guys. Then when nobody said anything about him that night, I just kind of came to terms with it you know? I'm not an idiot. I know he's dead."

I didn't know what to say. It hadn't occurred to me what Luke might be going through. "I'm sorry, Luke..."

"Nick was a good guy..." He breathed, rubbing his side from the pain. "He was misguided...The guys at our school treated him like sh**. I always tried to help him...blocking punches and taking hits for him whenever I could...but I could never stop the words they were saying from reaching his ears. When I first met him in elementary school, he was so full of life. I watched the world pick away at him over and over until all that was left was the bone... Guess that kinda guy couldn't have survived in a world like this... Could you...tell me how he died?"

I shrugged and looked up to meet his eyes, sensing the bottled up emotion inside him. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Clem, don't be like the rest of them, okay? My best friend of twenty years just died, and you're going to tell me how it happened."

I sighed. "Nick was being grabbed by a walker... When he called for help, the only one with a gun around was Walter. He... He shot him... Tried to pass it off like he was aiming for the walker, but I knew better..."

Luke looked up at the path ahead, choking down a large swallow. I could see the reflection in his eyes. He didn't want to let it be true. "Didn't even get to say goodbye..." He whispered. "I didn't even get to f***ing say goodbye..."

"Maybe...you'll see him again one day?" I tried to reassure him. "You can tell him then."

Luke leaned against a tree with his hand on his forehead, wiping the sweat and forming tears from his face. I decided he needed a little bit of time alone, and I caught up with Jane and Sarah.*

How do you guys think I handled the conversation? Do you think it would have made the game better? Thanks.

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