He smelled. It wasn't a bad smell. He smelled like a man. He smelled like Musk and Earth. It was a smell She loved. Well, Only loved it on him because if Luke smelled like this she may have lost her lunch. She stared at him eating the meat off the bone like a savage, grease dripping all over his fingers. He licked each finger and Connie frowned.
"What?" He looked at her. She wrinkled her nose slightly.
You eat like an animal, She wrote on her note pad. Daryl scoffed.
"We're all animals now." He told her. Connie rolled her eyes at him. "I don't need no manners when we're not at the table." Connie motioned behind her indicating they in fact were in the dining room and there was a table behind them. Daryl grinned. "Dixons have no manners."
Connie shook her head with a smile. Daryl was definatly one of a kind. She have met a lot of people in her life, pre-walkers and post-walkers, but Daryl was for sure one of a kind. He reminded her of some of her informants she used when she was trying to dig up information on some of her CEO crackdown stories. He didn't give a fuck. Connie felt a heavy thump against the floor. She turned to see King Ezekiel enter the room. She gave him a nod and he returned it.
"Thank you for offering, Daryl." The King said. Daryl grunted. "This has been a long winter. We cannot keep up."
"I'm not doing it for you." Daryl responded.
"I understand." Ezekiel said making sure he was in Connie's line of view. "I don't have much to offer, but if you'd like horses to help haul anything you may catch, you're welcome to them." Connie looked at Daryl.
"She can have one if she want, but I don't need one." He told him. Ezekiel nodded, "Ill have one ready for you by the gate." He wanted to say more to Daryl, but he decided against it. Hilltop needed food. He didn't want to risk Daryl just walking away from them. At least Connie was going with him. She wouldn't let him forget them, especially with her sister here.
"Stay safe." He said as he left the room. Connie shoved her notebook into Daryl's face.
Stop brooding. I'm going to say goodbye to Kelly. I'll meet you by the gate in twenty. Daryl nodded at her.
Kelly sat there with her arms crossed staring at her sister. She glared at her. Connie rolled her eyes.
Stop acting like a baby. She signed.
I want to go with you, Kelly signed, I want to help.
You are helping. You're helping here. Kelly narrowed her eyes, You're strong. They need strong people here. If Alpha comes, they will need help.
We haven't heard from Alpha for months, Kelly signed to her sister, but fine. Go live your life without me. Connie couldn't help but to laugh at her.
I'm hunting. Not exactly going to Disney World, She told her sister. The Sisters were silent for a few minutes.
Do you think Disney World is fucking creepy as hell now?, Kelly asked
Walker Mickey and Princesses stumbling around, Connie smiled flinging her arms around her sister, I love you.
I love you too, Kelly signed, bring back a lot of meat to make this worth it.
Connie flung the scarf around her neck two more times as she walked through the slush towards the gate. Seven years ago, if Virginia had a terrible snow storm, it'd be cleaned up in a couple days, but now with no plows or even electricity, it took weeks. It had been over a month until someone could trek to Alexandria. It was times like these when Connie realized how far back they slid. Connie gave a small wave to the group at the gate.
"Here." Dianne handed her a bag of supplies and a bow, "This should last you for a couple weeks if anything should happened." Connie nodded.
Thank you, She signed. Dianne gave her a friendly pat on the back. Daryl extended his hand as he steadied the horse. Connie wrinkled her nose. Without his help, She mounted the horse. Playfully she stuck out her tongue. He couldn't help but to smile.
The winds were to their backs. The snow blow back wasn't as bad as it had been in days past. The sun was warm when the winds took a break. Their eyes grew tired of the white scenery. Connie now understood what snow blindness was. Daryl held up his hand telling her to stop. Connie clicked her tongue, tugging at the horse to stop.
"We'll camp over there in the clearing. A deer or something might be at that stream at dawn." He told her. Connie nodded dismounting from the horse. The trees would protect them from any bad winds. There was plenty of wood for a warm fire. Connie flung their survival bag down as Daryl tied up the tarp he brought.
Fire, Connie signed to him.
"Fire?" he asked her. Connie rolled her eyes at him and signed closer to his face. "all right. All right. I'll start one."
Thank you, she signed with a smug smile.
"Whatever." Connie began to gather all the dry wood she could find. She glanced back at him. He already had a small fire going. She sucked at building fire. Whenever her group needed one, It was either Kelly or Yumiko. She had other skills that were useful. She chuckled to herself.
Eat? Daryl signed to her. She took out her notepad. It was getting low on paper. She should have brought a new one.
You're getting better at signing.
"Eat doesn't take a genius." He said. Connie took a can of beans out of the bag Dianne gave her. Not the most glamorous food, but beggars couldn't be choosers in the apocalypse. Was it still the apocalypse? They were rebuilding and growing again. She shook her head. She over thought a lot these days.
The sun was setting and the temperature was dropping fast. It would be a long night. But Connie hoped they could trap enough heat in their makeshift shelter so it wouldn't be too miserable. Careful, Daryl took the beans off of the fire.
"Be careful. It's hot." He said.
Hot, Connie signed. He stared at her. She signed the away face movement slowly while exhaling into her hand. Hot.
"Hot?" He asked her. Connie smiled brightly and nodded.
Hot, he signed and then shrugged. The two of them sat there sharing the can of beans in silence. Daryl was one of the most quiet person Connie had ever come across. She talked more than him. He looked at her sideways.
"Why do you always stare at me like that?" He asked her. Connie gave him a questioning look. "Like you're studying me."
I am. She wrote to him. I find you interesting. He gave her a look then went back to eating his portion of the beans. Why do you always request me to come help you hunt? He glanced at the paper and then looked into the fire. He sat silent for a little bit.
"You're quiet." He said. Connie rolled her eyes and playful slapped his shoulder.
I like coming so always ask, she wrote to him.
"Why do you like coming?" Daryl asked.
You smell nice, Connie wrote. He looked at her like she had three heads. Its true. Its been a long time since, she thought about what she wanted to write for a little bit, I've been close to anyone and it just brings back fond memories. I miss men.
"Oh." He mumbled looking at the paper. She snatched it from him and began to write fast. It made his head hurt slightly watching her.
I didn't mean to be so forward, but you asked. Don't let my hormones come in between whatever this hunting party is. I swear, I'll stop. Saying whatever is on my mind has always been my down fall. It got me into a lot of trouble back in the day. She shoved it back to him and turned away. She always seemed to stick her foot in her mouth. She didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable. Connie jumped out of her skin when he finally tapped her on her shoulder.
"What do I smell like?" He asked. Connie grinned from ear to ear. Good, she didn't fuck anything up.
Daryl sat there, letting the warmth of the fire take away the chill eh always seemed to have now. It would be dawn in a few hours and he hoped he would be able to catch something. He was not going to go back to Hilltop empty handed.
He glanced over at Connie. She tightened her jacket inching a bit closer to the fire. He watched at the light from the fire sparkled against her skin. He shook his head. He didn't have time for women. He didn't have time for the drama that women brought along with them.
He sighed. Connie seemed to be different than any woman he had been with in the past. She was smart. She was a lot smarter than him. She was funny. She was good with a bow and arrow. She cared about her family. And She was gorgeous.
Daryl poked at the fire. Nope. He would stay away from that one. Women brought trouble no matter how nice they were. Not paying attention, Daryl poked the fire further than he intended and burnt his hand. He jumped back.
"God damn it." He hissed looking at the bubbling red patch on his hand. Connie rushed over, looking at him with concern, "I'm just an idiot." She pushed him back down and put up her index finger to make him wait. He watched as she rummaged through her bag and pulled out some bandages and a piece of an aloe plant. "You brought aloe?"
She tapped the side of her head with a smile. He nodded as she knelt down in front of him. Carefully she squeezed some aloe onto her finger. She looked at him with a sorry look on her face. Daryl nodded. He winced as She applied the goo. Carefully she began to wrap his hand with the bandages. An Infection was the last thing he needed. He watched how careful she was with his hand.
She smelled. Why hadn't he ever noticed that before? She smelled like Earth and Flowers. It was an intoxicating smell. He couldn't tell if that was just her smell or she was wearing a perfume. Surely, she wasn't wearing anything. Nobody had time for that anymore. But this smell….It made his heart race. A feeling he hadn't felt in a very long time.
She looked up at him with a smile. She was finished and he hadn't even noticed. He just stared at her. Stared into her dark eyes. He had no more pain from the burn. It was either the aloe or something else. She arched her eye brow at him.
Between the glow from the fire and her smell making his head fuzzy, he couldn't help himself. Without any warning to her, he slipped his rough calloused hand behind her head and pulled her against him. She inhaled with surprise as he pressed her lips against hers, but soon She seemed to melt against him.
It had been a very long time since Daryl had been this close to a woman. But her lips upon his made his heart race. Her lips were soft like rose petals. She was more playful than he had expected. He wasn't going to complain as she deepened the kiss. Every nerve ending in his body was on fire. He felt alive. Their breathing got heavy when Daryl pulled away.
"I'm sorry." He murmured. Connie shook her head trying to catch her breath. "I need to stop." Connie sat down next to him trying to breath properly again. She licked her lips glancing at him. This wasn't exactly how either of them thought this hunting party was going to go, But neither of them were going to complain.