Oh Norman Reedus… why are you so damn gorgeous? This is my first Walking Dead story so please be gentle, and forgive my atrocious grammar. I have been completely buried with my school work so am pretty frazzled but in two years it will be so worth it when I graduate as a pharmacist! So I am not following the same timeline as the series exactly, I guess it would be a slightly AU….. they are on the farm, Andrea and Shane have already slept together, Glen and Maggie are already involved in a relationship, Carol harbors feelings for Daryl, Daryl is attracted to Andrea…jeez it's complicated but hopefully I do an okay job on writing this. Please be gentle on reviews and once again forgive my grammar.
So Daryl and Andrea are going on a supply run…together. My BFF and I are total dorks and like giving theme songs to each character or choose a song that fits with the situation so random music will be used throughout the story….we do not own the rights to any of the music used or The Walking Dead series or comic…or any of the characters…if I did I guarantee Daryl would be required to wear nothing but a loin cloth.
Chapter one:
"No one knows what it's like to be mistreated, to be defeated….. behind blue eyes" –The Who
Daryl mounted Merle's motorcycle and started the ignition, the engine roared ferociously; damn thing was in desperate need of a tune up. He hoped he'd get lucky and find a hex key while on his supply run so he could give it a little sprucin' up. Just then Andrea and Shane came around the side of Dale's Winnebago locked in a heated argument, "I can take care of myself" she hissed angrily before stomping off, Shane just shook his head in frustration. Daryl kept his eyes trained on her as she hoisted her battered leather backpack onto her shoulder, cursing Shane under her breath. For some reason unbeknown to him, she volunteered to come along as backup and apparently Shane didn't approve.
Daryl chuckled inwardly; that woman was a complete mystery to him….. hell who was he kiddin', all women were, but there was something about Andrea that drove him to distraction. He pulled up alongside her and revved the engine a few times to get her attention, startling her. "Ya comin' blondie?" he called out as he let the bike quiet to an idle. She tightened the straps on her backpack so it hung snuggly against her body, "patience is a virtue Daryl" she taunted playfully, a coy expression on her face. He rolled his eyes in annoyance, "will ya' shake a leg woman?" he snapped impatiently "we're burnin' daylight". She sighed, holding back her laughter at his aggravated expression, and slowly made her way towards him. She placed her hand on his shoulder to steady herself, and in one fluid motion she swung her leg over the bike so she was straddling it behind him. Out of the corner of his eye, Daryl caught the icy stare Shane shot him as Andrea Shifted herself upward slightly and took her seat, wrapping her slender arms around his waist, gripping the folds of his weathered denim vest. Iflooks could killhe definitely would have been dead. Daryl stared back at him, smiling scornfully, and gave him the finger. Shane didn't seem to notice and stormed off, "good riddance jackass" Daryl mumbled.
Rick came out of his tent and approached them with Glen, Maggie, and Carol following close behind. "I'd feel a lot better if you took one of the vehicles" he said firmly, his eyes looking up at the sky which had turned an eerie grey. Daryl smirked as he shifted his gaze to the darkening clouds, "looks like that's one huge ass storm blowin' in". Rick nodded in agreement, "I don't want you two out there on this thing if and when the rain hits". Carol fixated her gaze on Daryl, "maybe they should just wait until it passes" she suggested, her brows knitted in concern. Daryl clenched his jaw in annoyance, Damn woman, why'd she have to worry so much about him?
"They should be fine" Rick continued, "hell the rain might even slow whatever walkers they run into." Andrea let out an exasperated sigh as she released her grip on Daryl and hopped off the motorcycle, he immediately missed the feel of her against him. Killing the engine, he dismounted and gathered the supplies he had tucked away in the saddle bags of the bike, trying to conceal the disappointment on his face. Damn shame he thought bitterly as he joined the rest of the group, still reeling from the loss of her touch.
Maggie handed Andrea a set of keys, "you're welcome to take my car" she offered motioning towards her silver Taurus. Daryl shook his head in disgust "ain't no way in hell I'm drivin' a sedan," he grumbled "we can take my ole pick-up." Before anyone could protest he ran off to his tent and retrieved his keys, Andrea giggled "you think that hunk of junk will make it to town?" she called out to him as he hurried over to his old grey '73 Ford. Ignoring her taunting Daryl slid behind the wheel, rubbing his hand over the faded, cracked blue dashboard. It seemed like an eternity since he sat in his truck, it was the one possession he had left that had any link to his life before the world turned to shit, not like his life was all peaches and cream beforehand. He had to laugh at himself; it took a fuckin' apocalypse to take him far away from the painful memories, from all the wounds that will forever scar him and all the ghosts that will always haunt him. Shaking his head to clear the downward spiral he was heading towards he shoved the key in the ignition and it started right up, "hunk of junk my ass" he snickered.
As he pulled up beside the group Andrea playfully held out her thumb as if she were hitchhiking, "going my way?" she asked seductively. Daryl chuckled, "Didn't ya' learn not to take rides from strangers?" he teased as stretched his arm out across the bench seat to unlock the passenger door. Andrea pulled at the handle, the door clunked and slowly swung open, creaking on its hinges. The floor of the truck was littered with fast food wrappers and cigarette butts, the slight musty smell of dust and sweat coming off the old Indian blanket he used as a seat cover invaded her senses. "Well it's pretty much what I expected" she joked as she tossed her backpack onto the seat. "Well excuse the hell out of me that my truck ain't good enough for ya' princess" he shot back as he climbed out of the cab.
Glen smirked as he approached Daryl, "she was sure impressed with your bucket of rust" he said sarcastically. Daryl's lips curled in disdain, "don't fuck with my truck" he growled. Glen quickly held up his hands as if calling a truce, "I was just teasing, lighten up". He reached into the pocket of his olive green cargo shorts and pulled out a crumpled piece of notebook paper, "I made you a list" he explained as he held it up, Daryl snatched it out of his hand and looked it over, his eyes widened in surprise at the last item that was crudely scribbled on the paper. "Well, well, well, what do we got here lover boy?" he taunted, an evil smirk on his face. A scarlet flush crept across Glen's cheeks and he hung his head in embarrassment, "Maggie and I would appreciate it if you didn't mention the last item on the list to anybody else" he mumbled. Daryl's brow furrowed in annoyance as he stuffed the list in his back pocket, "yea okay Romeo" he snapped bitterly "but ya' owe me one".
Rick had taken it upon himself to load up Daryl's crossbow and bag into the truck, Andrea approached him, watching intently as he tucked everything neatly behind the driver's seat. "Do you think it's a good idea to use his truck?" she asked, "I doubt it is the most reliable of the vehicles". Rick nodded, motioning to the large mudding tires Daryl had on the truck, "if it rains hard enough, roads might flood, the smaller vehicles would get stuck, leavin' you stranded and if need be it, you can take this truck off road" he explained as he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Seemingly satisfied with the answer he gave, she walked back around to the passenger side, tightly wrapping her frayed, faded cardigan sweater around her body and gracefully pulled herself up into the cab. Daryl spoke with Rick and Glen a while longer before pulling open the driver's side door, as he was climbing up into the cab Carol grabbed him gently by the arm and pulled him aside.
He made no effort to hide his annoyance, "We gotta get goin'" he snapped impatiently, "make it quick". "I just want you to take care of yourself out there… for me" she pleaded softly, her eyes welling up with tears, his expression softened as he slid a protective arm around her frail shoulders, pulling her into an embrace. "You ain't gotta worry" he assured her, "we rednecks are built to survive". Carol raised a hand to his face and stroked his cheek gently before planting a kiss on it; she studied his face, trying to gauge his possible reaction before slowly pulling away. Andrea watched in stunned silence, as Daryl tried to conceal the faint blush that spread across his face, she had a growing suspicion that Carol was harboring feelings for Daryl, but chalked that up to the fact that she was thankful for his efforts in looking for Sophia. Now she couldn't help but wonder if there was something more going on between them, and she couldn't ignore the slight twinge of jealousy she felt. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Rick's voice, "guess you better get a move on" he instructed as he gave Daryl a pat on the back, "watch out for each other and be careful." Daryl pulled himself up into the cab and slid behind the wheel, turning to Andrea. " Ya' ready to go?" he asked, she smiled at him, playfully rolling her eyes as she twirled his pink fur dice that hung from the rearview mirror and nodded her head. He started the truck and with a final wave goodbye they drove off pulling out on the small dirt road.