Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead, only Samantha.

Everyone at the camp was very welcoming, except for Shane and Ed. As it turns out, Shane is not married to Lori. She was married to his best friend, and he was shot in the line of duty, leaving her and her young son Carl behind. Ed was Carol's husband, and he was an asshole. He leered at me when I walked past, along with every other woman in the camp.

Merle was a pervert, but I actually didn't mind being around him. And I sure as hell didn't mind being around Daryl, because even though he would never talk to me, he was sure nice to look at.

The women were all very accepting of me, and I enjoyed their company. Amy was my favorite to be around. She was so young and easy going. I related well to her considering I was only twenty one. Her sister, Andrea, was very high strung, but I still liked her. Carl and Sophia were very sweet kids, and I liked to play with them near the water during the day and then color with them at night.

After staying at the camp for almost a month, I became very attached to almost everyone, but mostly the Dixon brothers. Merle stopped being so sleazy around me, and he almost seemed to respect me. Daryl made my poor heart pound every time I came near him. I had such a crush on him.

He was strong and gruff. I loved his cut off shirts so I could see his delicious arm muscles. He wasn't the type of guy that most girls would be attracted to, but he drove me insane. He still didn't talk to me very much, but he would sit beside me during meals.

"What are they talking about?" I asked Carol, gesturing towards the men standing over by the van.

"They're planning a trip to Atlanta." I grimaced. It was so unsafe in Atlanta, it was overrun with walkers. I didn't want anyone to endanger themselves, especially Merle or Daryl.

"It's set then. I say we leave now." Shane decided, and the others agreed. They all dispersed so they could prepare, and I walked over to the Dixon brothers.

"I don't want you to go. It's not safe." I whispered. Merle laughed and wrapped his arm around my shoulder.

"We'll be alrigh', doll face." He assured me.

"I'm not goin' with them. I'm goin' huntin', and I'll be back tomorrow." Daryl said, and I hugged him tightly. I kissed the underside of his chin, and I could feel shivers rack his body. I was scared that I was being too forward, but I figured if I didn't start making the first moves, then it would never happen.

"I'll be fine." His voice was gruff and he pushed past me. I felt rejected. I looked up at Merle, my lower lip sticking out in a pout.

"Baby doll, don't you worry about us. Darylina will be fine, he's just being a bitch. And you know better than to worry about me, I'm tough as nails." Merle said, hugging me to his warm body. "Don't worry that pretty little head. We'll both be back tomorrow for you. Promise." He kissed me hair and strolled to the van where everyone else was waiting.

"C'mon Samantha, you can come do laundry with me." Carol suggested, smiling at me. I obliged and watched her scrub the clothes and then I would hang them up. We made small talk, but I was still worrying about my boys.

A few hours later, the group came back. Minus my Merle Dixon. Lori was reunited with her husband, and that was sweet. Everything was just hunky dory, except my best friend was missing. "Excuse me, where the hell is Merle?" I demanded, and everyone looked at me.

"Samantha .." Andrea started. She may have not liked Merle, but she knew how I felt about those boys.

"It was his own fault. He was a danger to himself and all of us." Lori's husband, Rick Grimes, butted in and said. I gave him a sharp look.

"Merle may seem threatening, but he wouldn't hurt anyone. It's not how he is." T-Dog chuckled darkly, but I decided to ignore it. I stomped off, super pissed at everyone, and went and sat in my tent that was beside the Dixon brother's.

That night at dinner, it was pretty silent.

Amy sat beside me, her head on my shoulder. "Samantha, are you in love with Merle?" I gasped and covered me face.

"Ewh, no! I could never like him that like. He's .. Merle. I love him like a best friend, because that's all he is to me." She gave me a sly grin.

"What about Daryl?" I felt my cheeks burn, and I turned my head to the side. "You like Daryl!" She squealed, shaking my arm.

"So what if I do? It's not like he ever notices me." I tried to play it off, but it did hurt my feelings. I just wanted his attention, even if that did sound pitiful.

"Are you kidding me? He's always staring at you. He watches you all the time. It's obvious that he likes you!" I scoffed. Daryl wasn't the type to really like anyway. He was so withdrawn and he seemed awkward around women. He was nothing like his brother. I decided not to comment. "I saw you kiss his neck earlier." She continued.

"Amy! Why were you watching us?" I exclaimed, making her giggle.

"I don't have anything interesting going on in my life, watching you all is like a soap opera." I rolled my eyes and picked at the rest of the beans on my plate. I wonder how Daryl is doing. And Merle, poor Merle.

"Speaking of Daryl Dixon, has anyone thought about how we were going to tell him that you left his brother handcuffed to the roof of a building, left to be walker bait?" Dale asked, and most people looked at me.

"No, it's not going to be me. I didn't handcuff my best damn friend to a roof and leave him to be eaten alive." I said. I wasn't going to be the one to piss him off, but I wouldn't mind being the one to comfort him. "You all are going to have to deal with that. I'm going to go to bed." I said, scooping the last bit of my beans in my mouth and throwing the paper plate in the fire.

I laid in my tent that night feeling very alone. I had always felt so safe with the Dixon brothers laying in the tents beside me, I knew that they wouldn't let anything hurt me. But that night, I felt so vulnerable. I hoped Daryl would get home early in the morning, and I hoped that poor Merle would be okay.

I snuck out of my tent and went over to the empty one that belonged to the rednecks. I grabbed Daryl's pillow off of his bed and one of Merle's shirts as well. I needed this to feel safe.

I laid my head on Daryl's bed and wrapped myself in Merle's shirt, and I cried myself to sleep that night.