Hi there! This is a fic that I submitted for the Caryl BYOB fanfic challenge back in November, in honour of the Caryl bottle episode. There will be one more chapter following this one. It is rated M because chapter 2 is very much not for little ones ; )
...aaand the obligatory disclaimer that I own nothing : )
I hope you enjoy, and thank you for reading!
"Oh…oh, God."
"Oh my God."
He heard the moans loud and clear from a few cells down, and rolled his eyes on instinct at the fact that Glenn and Maggie hadn't taken their little tryst into the guard tower like they usually did.
"Mmmmm…" The girl was moaning, and he almost ran right over to tell them to keep it the hell down, but was instantly stopped in his tracks when it hit him.
That was definitely not Maggie.
What the fuck?
He stopped dead in his tracks and his heart nearly stopped completely when he realized…
It was Carol.
What the fuck?
"We should stop. Maggie's gonna kill me."
Glenn.
What the fuck?
"Oh, come on," she moaned. "Just don't tell her."
"I can't do that," he hissed. "This isn't fair to her."
"But just…oh, God," she moaned once more.
"I feel bad," Glenn whispered.
"Just shut up and enjoy this. Live in the moment, Glenn. We could be dead tomorrow. Jesus…" she finished off in another moan of intense gratification.
"Carol, stop. Just…stop for a second. Jesus Christ…oh my god…"
"See? It's good, isn't it? Just let it happen," she trailed off in a whisper.
Her voice had taken on a teasing little giggle, and Daryl felt his blood boiling dangerously beneath his skin.
"I should tell Maggie. I should, right? I mean, don't you think she'd wanna be in on this?"
And Daryl was blindsided yet again, Glenn's words stopping him dead in his tracks.
"The hell is goin' on in here," Daryl bellowed, his tense form looming suddenly in the cell doorway.
Carol and Glenn jumped in sheer terror at the sound of his booming voice, their faces whipping towards the individual who'd appeared abruptly and without any warning at all.
But what Daryl saw there was the absolute last thing he'd expected to see, and his anger dissipated in the briefest of instances as he almost dissolved into a fit of laughter.
Because they weren't scrambling to put their clothes back on or cover themselves up with a threadbare blanket.
Daryl would argue that they looked as though what they were doing was far worse than something like that.
His eyes raked over the two of them as he took in the sight before him. Glenn and Carol sat on the bottom bunk facing one another with legs crossed. Both looked as though they were about to suffer the gravest of punishments for the sin they were committing, and Daryl almost laughed at the expression of shock on Carol's face as she peeked over her shoulder at him, spoon hanging precariously out of her mouth.
"Um," Glenn started, his eyes darting from Daryl to the giant tub of peanut butter between them on the bed and back again.
And so Daryl played along.
"What the hell is that?" he asked with an even, angry tone.
Glenn gulped, and glanced at Carol to take the lead on this one. He'd listen to her…right?
"It's, um…" she searched her mind frantically for something to tell him. "We were going to tell you," she said quickly, her words now spilling out so fast she was stumbling over them. "We were. I swear. It's just…it was my fault. Don't blame him, it was all me, I swear."
"No, Carol, don't," Glenn interrupted.
"No, it was. It was me. Glenn wanted to share with everyone, he really did. But I didn't let him. It was me. All me. I'm the…bad influence here."
Daryl arched an eyebrow at her, still leaning against the doorway and watching with a mock fury that she had mistook for being genuine in her state of unadulterated remorse.
"Are you mad?" She whispered.
But he only looked at her. Shook his head slowly in disappointment as he glanced at Glenn and back at her.
"Daryl, I'm sorry," she pleaded. "I didn't mean to keep this from you. I know how much you…love…peanut butter."
He pushed himself off the door frame then, and stalked slowly over to the bedside, crouching down as he kept his gaze locked on Carol's. He took the spoon out of her hand gently and dipped it into the jar before bringing it to his lips.
And he felt a jolt of pure something as her eyes darted down to his lips when he licked the spoon clean.
He held the spoon out to her and she took it, staring slack jawed as he stood once more.
"Y'all should be ashamed 'a yourselves," he muttered as he strutted out of the cell, leaving the two of them in a state of confusion and nearly traumatized from their racing heartbeats.
The following afternoon, Daryl had settled himself at a picnic table in the prison courtyard, preparing his kills for the supper preparations, and looked up when a figure approached and cast a shadow over his work.
He looked up and squinted against the sun that was shining bright, directly behind Carol's head.
"What can I do for you?" he asked.
She lifted the flap of her bag and tilted it towards him, revealing the contents just barely. Daryl craned his neck only slightly until he could see the very tip of a bottle and knew full well what she was hiding in there for him.
He smirked up at her and she smiled back with a mischievous glint in her eye, bringing a finger up to her mouth to convey to him that he should keep quiet about this.
Daryl snickered and shook his head as she walked away, glancing back at him over her shoulder with a wink. The sunlight had cast something of a halo around her when she all but boasted of her bounty, the irony not lost on him as she'd seemed to be making a habit of sneaking around in the last few days.
Later that evening, after Carol had cooked the rabbit and rationed some into bowls and plates for everyone, Daryl swooped by and picked up their bowls, jerking his head towards the overturned bus.
She smiled and wiped her hands on her pants as she followed him eagerly, grabbing her bag from the chair nearby in one fluid motion.
He gave her a boost and she climbed up first, taking their bowls from him when she reached the top and offering her hand to help him up.
They settled quickly side by side, their knees touching and bowls sitting in front of them as he reached for her bag.
"You're bad, you know that?" he teased as he grasped the bottle inside.
She giggled in return. "Yeah, but you like me like this."
"After that stunt you pulled yesterday, you owe me this, woman."
She scoffed in mock annoyance and smacked his arm with the back of her hand. "Just open it already."
And he was so excited, so he did just that, and moved the open bottle of barbeque sauce in front of them as they each leaned in and took in the heavenly scent. Carol groaned in appreciation and bounced in her seat in anticipation of what was to come.
He poured some over her meat and then did the same to his, pausing for a moment before pouring himself a little bit extra as she giggled.
"Cheers," they mumbled as they tapped their fingerfuls of saucy meat together and popped them promptly into their mouths.
And then the moaning started.
"Mmmm…"
"Fuck…"
"Oh my God…"
Conversation ceased entirely as they savoured each bite of their supper with breathy moans and explicit whispers, and they eyed one another when they were done as they each licked the remaining sauce off their fingers.
They put their bowls down beside them and lay back on the bus in unison, staring up at the stars, happy and sated.
"Damn," Daryl mumbled. "That was fuckin' amazing."
"Yeah," she breathed in agreement.
"Hey!" Glenn called suddenly from below. "You guys gonna share any of that?"
"No!" they called out, and Carol's burst of laughter echoed through the starry night.
Daryl watched her face as she laughed, a grin of his own lingering on his lips as she quieted and enjoyed the clear sky above them.
And maybe it was just the barbeque sauce working its magic – or the soft breeze, or the twinkling stars – but Daryl's hand found its way to hers, and he smiled at the heavens when she let him weave his fingers into hers.
His free hand blindly found the bottle of remaining sauce sitting idly beside him and he tossed it over the edge of the bus, hearing Glenn's cry of victory when it landed.
"I'll find us something good for next time," she whispered.
He squeezed her hand, and she squeezed his.