A/N: this takes place at the farm, shortly after Sophia died. It will continue to take place at the farm for some time, therefore making it quite AU. I hope you enjoy this.

"Where were you?" Rick demanded as he saw Daryl return empty handed.

"Out." Daryl never was a man of many words.

"Did you find her?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Carol. We need to account for everyone, but I haven't seen her."

"Wouldn't you want to be alone after your kid died?" Daryl hadn't meant to sound that harsh, but he sure as hell didn't want Rick or anyone to know what had just happened between himself and Carol.

"Look, if you know something you need to tell me...now!" Rick demanded, getting in Daryl's face.

Daryl was not one to back down from a challenge. He stood face to face with the unofficial group leader. "She'll be back."

Rick thought about it for a minute. Daryl was one of the few he could depend on. If he said that Carol was safe, that was good enough for him. He had enough to worry about with Lori, the baby, Carl, and even Hershel, so for now it felt a somewhat relief not to worry about yet another person.

Rick nodded his head, then slowly made his way back into the farm.

Of course Daryl knew that Carol was safe. There was no way he'd let anything happen to her, not after Sophia. He hadn't been particularly fond of the kid- he wasn't exactly a natural born babysitter- but even he knew that Sophia didn't deserve what had happened to her. He was just glad that he wasn't the one to pull the trigger on the Walker Sophia. Carol may not have forgiven him for that. Why he cared so much about what she thought of him, he didn't know, but he just knew that was one shot he couldn't have made.

He tried to put thoughts about what had just happened between himself and Carol out of his mind. It was no big deal, he rationalized. It was a one time thing. It would never happen again. He'd let his guard down, and for that he kind of hated himself. But she brought out something in him that he couldn't quite figure out. It all started once he figured out what that asshole husband of hers had been doing.

He'd seen it all too often. His daddy was a mean one, all right. After a night of drinking, which was nearly every night, he'd come home and take it out on his and Merle's mother. She tried to hide, the same way Carol did, but she couldn't explain the bruises. Then there were the awful cries that happened at night. At the time he was too young to realize it, but after growing up he knew what his father had done to his mother. Maybe he was scared of turning into his father- that could have been why he tended to shy away from the opposite sex. But Carol- she was different. She wasn't like other women. She was okay, he decided, although he'd never admit it to anyone. He had a hard enough time admitting it to himself.

About an hour later, Carol returned to the farm. She looked for one person only,. And she knew where she'd find him.

"Hey," she smiled softly as she attempted to touch Daryl's arm. He pulled back.

"Don't you ever sneak up on me like that again! Don't you know I could have killed you?"

"I'm sorry...I just..." she took a deep breath. "Never mind."

"Tell me," he ordered.

"You want me to be honest with you? I will. I will never lie to you. It's just that Sophia was my last comfort. I could touch her, brush her hair, hold her, feel safe when I was with her. And after what happened...after everything that's happened...I never thought I would ever let myself be touched again. And I'm not just talking about what happened between us. I mean, I never thought I would find comfort in a human being. I'm tired, Daryl. I'm so tired."

He studied her closely. Damn it. Why did she have to be so honest? If she lied to him, manipulated him, she could be dismissed as one of his father's other women- the bitches. But he knew that Carol was being honest with him, and it made him uncomfortable.

"Don't get used to it," he finally spoke up.

"It doesn't have to be that way. We could...we could have an understanding."

Very few things shocked him, but this statement had. "I told you it can't happen again. What part of that don't you understand?"

"I just thought..."

"What, you thought rainbows would appear from the sky and it would start raining puppy dogs and kittens from above? This changes nothing, Carol. Nothing."

He shook his head as he stormed off. Carol watched him leave, wondering if she would ever feel the same kind of comfort and peace that she had momentarily experienced with Daryl again.