Anything recognizable is the property of the appropriate owners. I do not make any claim to ownership, nor do I make any money from this.
Note: I have not seen past Season 4, Episode 9: After.
The thing that irritated him so much about the former Woodbury residents was how much they asked for. They asked for food and water, they asked for heat and lights, they asked for superfluous things that had no place after the fall of society. There was always something that they wanted, grown too soft under the Governor's twisted leadership and it always seemed to be one of their group that did the work. Rick pushed himself through exhaustion in the gardens, Glenn was away from the prison on runs more than he was there, same with the others, but Carol was everywhere. She always had her arms full of the Woodie's laundry or was sweating over a massive pot of stew, then she was playing Schoolmarm to the younger ones in the evening, all with a smile on her face and without a sound of complaint. It just infuriated him when no one else offered to help even carry the heavy baskets of clothes down the hill.
Daryl would have helped out more, but their increased population meant he was needed in the forest hunting up enough game to keep them fed until Rick's pigs grew up. He always made a point of seeking out the short haired woman, however, doing whatever he could to help at the moment, even if it meant portioning out food to the ungrateful residents or counting inventory. It was so normal for him to stop and lend a hand to the petite woman that he had to do a double take when she caught him in their cell before a run.
"Can I ask you a big favor?" Carol twisted her hands nervously, abhorring to ask for anything for herself.
"Somethin' ya need on tha run?" The hunter shoved his freshly sharpened knife in his sheath at his thigh. Carol never asked for anything and he tried to think of anything she could need that wasn't usually on the list.
"Well, I was hoping you could find me something." She shuffled her feet.
He wanted to tell her to just spit it out already, starting to picture impossible things that the others requested, like tempurpedic mattresses and silk underwear, but this was Carol. Whatever she wanted, he knew he wouldn't rest until he found it, just as long as she eventually told him what it was.
"Chapstick." The short haired woman answered, blushing across her collarbone at daring to actually ask for something.
That was it? All that dancing around for something as easily found as chapstick? He snorted in amusement. "I'll bring ya all tha chapstick ya want." Daryl couldn't help darting his eyes to her mouth and he was surprised to realize she had already chewed her bottom lip bloody, proving the necessity of the requested item.
"Any kind is fine, I'll make do." Carol smiled up at him, splitting her dry lip and causing a ruby drop to well to the surface.
His eyes caught on the tiny drop of blood and before he really gave himself permission, his rough hand came up to cup her jaw and he wiped the blood away with thumb. "Don't ever gotta worry about askin' me fer anythin'."
The short haired woman blushed again, at his touch and the softness of his words, lacking his usual snap of impatientness. She allowed herself to lean just a little into the warm palm still resting against her cheek before pulling away with a smile. "Stay safe."
"Always." He withdrew his hand, feeling like it was empty in a way that had nothing to do with the tight grip he laid on the hilt of his knife to keep from reaching out again.
Daryl refused to think there was anything different about that run, but he couldn't help rubbing at his palm trying to shake off the feeling of her peach soft skin. Yet he couldn't bring himself to wipe away the barest smear of dried blood on the pad of his thumb. He liked the idea of having a piece of her with him on the run, even if he almost slipped up more than once due to distraction. The hunter was well aware that everyone seemed to think that they were already together, and he wasn't opposed to the idea, he just needed to figure out how to get from here to there. Merle had made it look so easy all the times he picked up women, but Carol wasn't anything like them and he knew a cheesy line wasn't going to cut it. Better to just leave things as they were.
Which was why he resolutely did not silently thank whatever deity may be listening for the vision that was Carol sighing happily as she smeared blistex still warm from his pocket across her chapped lips. "Oh thank you Daryl!" She gushed, rubbing her lips together and humming, letting the balm revitalize her abused skin.
"Weren't nothing. Only found tha one kind though." The hunter scuffed his toe on the concrete floor of her cell bashfully. It was practically pornographic the way she moaned at applying the chapstick.
"It's so much better than nothing." Carol smiled blissfully, prodding at the split in her bottom lip with her tongue before wrinkling her nose at the taste.
Daryl couldn't help the smile that quirked one side of his mouth up at her actions. The medicated balm never tasted very good, but it would help her heal, and buy him some time to find her another flavor. In the meantime, he couldn't help watching every time the steely haired woman applied the chapstick. He found himself wanting to know just how soft her lips were by the end of the week and he even found himself a tube of blistex, imagining he was tasting Carol's lips. It also had the side effect of reminding him of her every time he chewed on his lip, reinforcing the bad habit with memories of her teeth pressed into the cushion of her lips. Not to mention it fanned the desire to kiss the older woman.
And that was all over some nasty medicated shit. Daryl scoured every store he came across for lip products, gifting them to Carol whenever they got a moment to themselves. She always thanked him as if he had given her something more precious than a novelty flavored gloss and she would put it on, pursing her lips and watching him watch her. He lived for those moments where he would catch a whiff of her newest flavor and he could practically taste her. The hunter finally admitted when he couldn't look away from Carol licking a glob of oatmeal from her finger that he might have a bit of a fixation. All he could think about was kissing her and it drove him to distraction.
So when their schedules lined up for watch together, Daryl resolutely stuck to his side of the tower and did everything he could think of not to look at the short haired woman. But when she joined him to lean against the railing looking out into the darkness, he couldn't bring himself to pull away. It was comfortable feeling the warmth of her skin across the tiny gap that separated them, and Daryl flexed his arm just enough to touch hers. Carol gradually leaned into the contact, slow enough that he couldn't tell if it was on purpose or the natural response given she was a social creature. The uncertainty finally was too much for the hunter and he turned to address the smaller woman at the same time she did.
Carol laughed easily when they realized they were going to speak at the same time. "You go first." She graciously offered.
Only, he wasn't sure what he was going to say in the first place. Probably something stupid and juvenile along the lines of 'Do you like me?' so he snapped his mouth shut and tried to think of anything else to say that wouldn't make him look like more of an idiot than standing there mute did. But all words abandoned him as she waited expectantly. After what seemed like an eternity, Carol rolled her eyes while smiling fondly and she raised her hands to his vest, lightly running her fingers up the abused leather before gripping the lapels. She used the vest to keep him from pulling back and to balance herself as she leaned up to press their lips together.
Daryl quickly realized he wasn't dreaming and he kissed her back eagerly, amazed that the smaller woman had actually made such a brazen move. Not that he was complaining. This was exactly what he had wanted for quite a while now and he took advantage of the situation, bringing his arms around her waist and leaning down so she didn't have to stand on her toes. The hunter chased her lips when she pulled back grinning.
"What were you going to ask?" Her eyes were bright despite the low light and he would have happily drowned in the blue-grey pools.
"I was gonna ask fer some of yer chapstick." Daryl was proud of himself for coming up with that one on the fly, even if it was rather corny.
Carol laughed delightedly, flexing her fingers against the leather vest before kissing him again. "Sorry, I don't have any on me."
"Guess I'll have ta get some later." The hunter adjusted his hand on her back, memorizing the feel of her in his arms despite somehow knowing that this wasn't going to be a one time thing.
Author's Commentary: I realized at one point that I had 13 different chapsticks in my bag and that I could never live without them so of course I had to write about chapstick.