The sun set as shrieking screams could be heard in the distance. The zombies had invaded a camp near the prison. Daryl stood in the courtyard, listening. He felt like he should have helped those people but Rick said that it wasn't their problem. He was becoming less of a fighter lately and more of a farmer. It annoyed Daryl but he also respected Rick for it, in a way. Someone had to be the one to keep things as normal as possible. Although normalcy was thrown out the window as soon as Patient Zero contracted the virus.
He joined the others inside when the screaming stopped. Everyone was getting ready for bed. Rick and Michonne were talking to Carl about something. It looked serious so Daryl didn't want to get involved, unless it was necessary. Beth was tucking Judith in for the night. She was really good with the baby. Daryl was surprised how much Beth changed. He remembered when she was the girl who wanted to kill herself. Now she's different. Now she gets why that was a stupid move. He continued on to his room or rather, cell. Glenn and Maggie were sitting close together on one of the beds. She was giggling and whispering something into his ear. Glenn smirked and then glanced at Daryl. He nodded his head and kept walking. He reached his "cell" and found someone standing inside the doorway. Carol. "What are you doing here?" he asked, walking passed her and flopping down on the bed.
Carol had always fascinated Daryl. He didn't know what it was that he liked so much but he was drawn to her like a zombie to a burning car. She turned to face him. "Do you think we should have helped those people?" That was a question that Daryl had been asking himself all day.
"I was thinking about that earlier but I think Rick made a good call in the end. I don't think he wants us to get too involved with new folk anymore."
"I agree but it almost felt wrong to ignore it."
"A lot of things are wrong in our world now." Daryl replied.
"Yeah, you got that right." Carol sat on the edge of the bed. The two were silent for a long time. That's how it was with them. They didn't need to talk as they were both comfortable in each other's silence. Daryl felt himself drifting off….
He was suddenly running from a horde. He was out of arrows. In fact, his crossbow had snapped in a fight. Shit. The sounds of groans followed him throughout the forest. Someone was holding his hand. He recognized the feel of the soft skin. It was Carol. He was pulling her along the trail. Her face conveyed the terror he was feeling inside. The paralyzing fear of not being able to protect her gripped his heart. Then he was on the ground, having tripped on an upturned root. Carol had also fallen. She lay there, motionless. Daryl could see the zombies clearly now. They were closer than he thought. He tried to shake Carol awake but it was no use. For one brief moment his brother came into his head, telling him to leave her and save himself. Fuck off, Merle. Before he could react, a couple zombies had grabbed Carol's leg and were now biting her, tearing off her flesh. Daryl punched one in the face but more kept coming. They were surrounded. Carol's body was now being consumed as Daryl watched, tears in his eyes. "Noooo…"
He jerked awake, wide eyed. His heart was beating so fast he thought he would pass out. Slowly, he remembered where he was; the prison. There was no zombie horde eating his flesh…or Carol's. Where was she? He wondered. Panic started to set in. Was that really a dream? "Carol?" He called out. No answer. He tried yelling this time. "Carol!" He heard footsteps coming towards him.
"Why are you yelling? You're going to wake the children."
"I…was just checking."
"Checking for what?" Carol stared at him, confused. Sometimes she didn't understand him. But she always thought that was part of his charm and mystery. A quality she had always been attracted to.
"Nothing," he said, relieved. There was no way he was going to tell her about the nightmare he had just experienced. If there was one thing Merle taught him it was to never talk about your feelings. Especially his feelings for her.
