Chapter Summary:
Daryl finds and uses his words to ask Carol to marry him.
Bertie was watching the med trailer from behind the hen shed. Sure enough, Jesus was walking out the door. He stopped and threw a comment over his shoulder about a porcupine. He wouldn't have done that to Siddiq, so that meant that Carol was there. As soon as Jesus left, she went to find Daryl. He was inside the house arms crossed listening to Maggie read him the riot act again.
She pulled him aside and whispered "You didn't hear it from me, but I'm pretty sure Carol's holed up in the med trailer." She then walked away and joined Maggie in cleaning up after Baby Gracie's lunch. She didn't see that the redneck hadn't went outside to the trailer. Instead he had went up to his room and shut the door.
Daryl hadn't brought back a ring for Maggie. He couldn't do it. The more he thought about it, he wouldn't want Glenn's ring to be off Maggie's finger anyways. That thought had come to him while he was still at the strip mall's jewelry store, so his earlier proposal had been sans ring. He had found to his embarassment that the only rings he could look at were ones that he would have looked at for Carol. He hadn't been able to help himself. He had brought one back for her. He hadn't thought he would ever have the chance to give it to her – and he had supposed he would look at it in the years of duty-marriage he was committing himself to with Maggie. Instead, he found that he wanted Carol to have the ring he had chosen for her. He wanted her to have it, and he wanted her to be his wife. He had even picked up the matching men's ring for himself. He hadn't thought to get a men's ring for when he proposed to Maggie. He chuckled. How he had gotten himself into that mess had been funny for the others. The fact that he had been willing for forgo love and happiness never occuring to him.
Now was his chance at everything he's never had – love and happiness. Love? His love waited in the med trailer. Happiness? That would be his if she said yes. He only hoped he could explain how he felt to her. Explain the difference between how he felt love for her and obligation to Maggie. Daryl had never prayed in his life, but now he did. He hoped the big man upstairs was listening as he grabbed the box and headed to the med trailer.
He opened the door with his cover story in place. "Siddiq, Jesus is looking for ya. He's back at the house. I just need to grab some tweezers and a couple band aids, ok?"
"Sure thing Daryl. They're on the wash basin table already. No need to dig through the supply closet. I'll be back in a few" he announced loudly for Carol's benefit, then left.
Daryl immediately locked and jammed the door and looked around for Carol. Not seeing her anyplace obvious, only left one place. The supply closet. He shook his head as he inched over there, now certain that is where Siddiq must have stashed her earlier too. He opened the door and grinned down at Carol hunkered in the bottom corner.
"Well now, Siddiq sure as hell don't be needin' no woman. Would disrupt his hard on for Jesus. So, why's you in here Carol?"
She didn't say anything. Just got up out of the closet and headed toward the door that he had already locked and jammed. She wasn't leaving until he had said what he had come to say.
"Carol. Ya gotta know why I asked Maggie to marry me. It ain't no love story. It was all about-"
"Honoring Glenn. Jesus told me.
"You saw Jesus?"
"Yep. He told me what happened. Heard Maggie, Rick and Jerry all took a swing at you."
"Yeah – Maggie and Rick I can handle. It was Jerry's punch that had me pukin' in the bushes though woman."
"Daryl, I know now you didn't love Maggie, but I need to tell you just how much it hurt for me to see that proposal."
"Didn't want to hurt ya Carol. Honestly, until today I thought I would just love you forever in silence. Didn't think you would ever want me. I went ring shopping today, but I didn't get a ring for Maggie. Just couldn't force myself to do it. Thought Maggie should wear Glenn's ring anyways. Got one for you, and one for me. Never thought you would want to ever see them. Thought they would just be something to kick myself with. But today I got schooled Carol. I got schooled in reasons why you would love me. Turns out they are all the same reasons why I love you. You know I proposed to Maggie, but I ain't EVER proposed a marriage of love."
He picked her up by the waist and deposited her on one of the med tables. He took a deep breath and touched her cheek. "I ain't never loved no one in the old world Carol. Screwin' bar flys is bout the closest to dating as I ever got. There weren't nobody special. Every. When the world turned to shit, I followed Merle like a dumb ass, just like in life. Plan was to go from camp to camp robbing people. Quarry was supposed to be just another camp. It weren't. Not for me. Before Merle left on that run, I told him no more. I told him I's staying with the quarry group whether he did or not. He knew my head got turned round by you. Figured out I was losing my heart to ya too. I think if he would have come back from that run, we would have come to blows. But he didn't. So I got to continue to get my head turned by you. Lost my heart to ya too by the time we left the CDC. Lookin' for Sophia was a way for me to prove to ya how much I wanted your love. But I failed ya Carol. Knew then that ya wouldn't ever want nobody like me. Almost left at the farm, after Sophia. Couldn't do it. Couldn't leave ya woman. Figured if friends was all we ever was, then that would have to be enough for me. But it's not enough any more Carol. I love ya woman. I will love ya even if you break my heart today. I will love ya till the day I die, and I's not plannin' on dying any time soon."
He got down on both knees, took a deep breath, and continued. "I know a man is supposed to get down on one knee to propose. I gotta get down on both before ya woman, because me wantin' to marry ya means that I'm askin ya to make me your man. I ain't much of a man Carol, but I will love you forever woman."
He opened the box that he had chosen specifically for her. The diamond in the engagement ring was in a floral design setting. One that he though reminded him of her beloved Cherokee Rose. He hoped her mind went there as well as he presented it to her. He put the box in her hands, looked up into her eyes and said "I love ya Carol. I've loved ya for years. Took two jabs and an uppercut to get me to listen to our family when they said you might love me too. Please say they were right Carol. Please say you love me to? That ya love me enough to make me the happiest man alive and marry me? Will ya marry me Carol?
Carol just stared at Daryl, then looked back at the ring. She smiled a teary smile and said "I would only ever want to marry one man Daryl. There is so much I want for us, but the first thing is to be your wife, and you to be mine. Yes I'll happily, gleefully, tearfully marry you."
He jumped up and grabbed, pulling her tight to him. "Won't ever love anybody else Carol. You are where it begins and where it ends for me. My one love in life. Don't think there could every be any feircer love though woman. I love you." He put the ring on her finger and pulled her in for their first kiss. He kissed her, oh did he kiss her, and then he kissed her more."
"I'm not a young woman Daryl, but I want a family with you. Is that ok?"
"Better than ok baby. Now, I will wait as long as you want to get married . . . "
"I don't wanna wait Daryl. Let's get married now."
"With Gabriel gone, who can marry us?"
"Let's ask Jesus himself. Figure enough people pray to his namesake, it's gotta mean something in an apocolypse."
Chapter notes:
Next chapter – Jesus will provide.
