I woke up the next morning, and for once I was excited for the day. There was a tingle in my stomach when I thought of Daryl. I grinned. Today was going to be a good day. My body was still stiff, but it didn't burn and ache like yesterday.
Daryl, of course, had already left the tent. He had come back to the tent after I'd gone to sleep, even though I had tried to wait up for him. I had the feeling he was avoiding me, but it didn't bother me in the slightest. I would have been more worried if Daryl were acting normal. I still had his shirt on, and it smelled like him.
Unfortunately I had to change it for one of my own. I had gotten away with it once, but purposely grabbing another one of his shirt might be pushing it. So I put on a black tank top and a pair of shorts I had made out of jeans. It was too hot out here to be wearing much. All I had in the way of shoes was a pair of hiking boots. Nothing sexy… but it would have to do.
I exited the tent with a small grin on my face. I was able to find Daryl the moment I looked up. He was just finishing up his breakfast, his bow slung across his back. Feeling bold, I walked over to him, stepping just a little closer than I normally would have.
Looking up at him through my lashes I asked, "Can I come with you today?"
Daryl didn't look at me at first, "Naw, I do betta' alone."
I leaned in closer, just barely touching his elbow, "Please, I would like to learn how to hunt."
Daryl finally looked towards me, his eyes briefly dropping down to the hint of cleavage peeking out of my top, "Uhh… fine. But ya ain't shootin' my bow. I'll teach ya ta track."
I grinned, "Just let me grab something to eat."
I grabbed a can of peach slices, a spring in my step. I ate my breakfast with my fingers as Daryl and I walked into the woods. We walked in silence. Our pace was fast, and I struggled not to waste any of the peaches. The peaches were delicious.
I hadn't eaten anything but fish and any berries I could find since I left civilization. When I finished the peaches I tossed the can aside, who cared about littering anyway? We walked for hours without talking. At first I enjoyed the scenery, but eventually I got bored.
"Soooo, what are we doing?" I asked.
"Walking," was Daryl's short reply.
I rolled my eyes, "I can see that. Why?"
Daryl threw me an irritated look over his shoulder, "I hunted the woods near camp clean. Gotta walk a ways ta find any game."
Grinning, I couldn't help but throw Daryl a hint, "Ohhhhh, I think there is still some game there."
Daryl's eyebrows rose, but he said nothing. So we walked further into the woods. After hours of walking, Daryl took the crossbow off his back. I took that as my cue to quiet my footsteps.
After months of living in the woods, I'd learned how to be as quiet as possible. At one point, Daryl actually looked over my shoulder, seemingly checking to see if I was still there. I grinned at him, taking that as a compliment.
After another hour of walking, and no hint of any animals, Daryl spoke up, "Ain't no game here anymore ether."
"Well I don't want to go back empty handed. Somehow I just know I'll get blamed." I joked.
Daryl looked around, "We can go farther, but we would be staying the night in the woods."
Taking a stepping in front of Daryl, I peered up at him through my lashes, "Will you keep me safe?"
Daryl looked down at me, his blue eyes watching me closely, "I got a feelin'… that you can protect yourself."
The smiled so hard I thought my face would split in two, "Right you are, Daryl Dixon."
Then I twirled and started walking. I really was feeling daring today.
"Rose…" Daryl called.
"Yeah?" I asked, looking back at him over my shoulder.
"This way," he said, pointing his crossbow in the opposite direction.
I frowned, thinking 'there went my sexy walk off move'. As I walked past Daryl, I saw a small lopsided grin grace his features. We walked for a few more hours, and I was starting to feel my legs burn again. There was a film of sweat covering my entire body.
That was when I started day-dreaming about a shower. I thought about the strawberry shampoo set I always used. My hair would smell like strawberries all day long. Back then I had been obsessed with my hair. I always loved my long hair. I'd gotten the dark color from my dad, but the curls were definitely from my mother.
My parents hadn't actually wanted any kids. They had wanted to break rules and never grow up. When my mom found out she was pregnant, she had almost gotten an abortion. In the end, she couldn't do it. My father had taken off after hearing the news. He hadn't been ready to give up the adventures. He had come back though, just before I was born.
They had both loved me, but they didn't stay together long after I was born. Their parenting styles, or lack thereof, had driven them apart. I had loved my parents, but it hadn't been hard to drive us apart.
Daryl came to a sudden stop, and with me not paying attention, I ran straight into him. I fell on my butt with a girlie squeal. I leaned back on my arms, giving Daryl the best affronted look I could muster.
He grunted, "Ain't my fault ya ain't looking where ya going."
I raised a brow, "Well could you help me up?"
Daryl gave me another one of those half smiles, "Naw… You're good. Were gonna stop here fer now."
"Well in that case…" I started, before dramatically laying down.
Daryl just sat down beside me. He started rummaging through his bag, pulling out to sandwiches. He handed me one, silently eating his own. I couldn't eat much of the sandwich, my stomach used to such small portions from before. What I didn't finish, I offered back to Daryl, who finished it off quickly.
I looked at Daryl suspiciously, "Did you know I would come with you today?"
Daryl narrowed his eyes at me, "What ya say that for?"
"Two sandwiches? I know Shane is rationing the food."
Daryl looked at me for a minute, but never answered. Instead he pulled a blanket out of his pack and laid it out on the ground. Looking around I realized the sun was setting. I hadn't realized it had gotten so late.
"Here, you can take the blanket." Daryl told me.
I let out a short laugh, "Nope, I'm not moving. Any way you have pillows in that bag?"
Daryl just rolled his eyes at me. The longer I lay there, the more uncomfortable I got. There was a crick in my neck, and the ground I was lying on wasn't level. In fact, I think I as laying on a tree root. Trying to be as subtle as possible, I crawled closer to Daryl and rested my head on his stomach.
"What the hell ya think yer doin'? I thought ya said ya wasn't movin'."
I looked over to him, "I lied. Are you complaining?"
Daryl laid back down, muttering something about women, but not making a move to push me away. I grinned, impressed by my own forwardness. I fell asleep that night without a problem.
The next morning, I woke up way more comfortable than I remembered being when I fell asleep. As I opened my eyes and looked around, I found myself cuddled up to Daryl. To be specific, I was lying halfway on top of Daryl, with his arm curled around me.
Daryl seemed to still be asleep, so I started to carefully untangled myself from him. Daryl's eyes were open when I looked back at him. I was still leaning over him at that point, but his arm was no longer around my waist.
"Umm… Good morning." I whispered.
"Mornin'," Daryl mumbled.
When he didn't say anything else, I pulled away. It was then I heard a faint rustling in the trees. Looking up, I saw a squirrel leaping from tree to tree. Then I heard a snap, and the squirrel nearly fell in my lap. Eyes wide, I turned to Daryl.
"First catch of the day," Daryl stated.
I just shook my head, picking up the impaled squirrel, and tossing it to Daryl. We started out the day on a good note, and Daryl caught a slew of squirrels before we started heading back towards camp. We only talked when Daryl was showing me how to track.
Suddenly, Daryl motioned me to get down. Thinking that it was a walker, I was as quiet and still as possible. But it wasn't a walker that walked through the trees ahead of us, it was a doe. Daryl raised his bow as the deer came to a stop. The doe was alert and looking around. Daryl held his arm steady, and when he was ready, he shoot.
I couldn't see where the arrow had hit, but the deer took off running. Daryl didn't seem upset though. He nodded to himself and walked in the direction the deer ran.
"Did you get it?" I asked.
"Yeah. She's gotta fatal wound, but she's gonna have ta bleed out first." He stated, "Why don't you track 'er? It'll be good practice."
"Ok." I said nervously.
Hesitantly, I followed the trail. I could easily follow it for a ways, until the tracks ran out. Then I was stuck looking for blood. When I couldn't find the next splattering of blood, I stopped. Looking around I couldn't find a sign of the deer anymore.
I turned back to Daryl, "Ok, I'm stuck."
"Do you know how long you were able to follow that trail? Almost two hours." He said, pride in his voice.
I pursed my lips, "So… I did well?"
Daryl shook his head, "Ya did damn good."
Daryl took over from there, explaining that I needed to start looking for disturbed branches or under brush. I listened to his teachings with undivided attention. It was amazing, the way he could spot the smallest signs of disruption.
Eventually Daryl stopped talking, running out of tracking pointers. I started thinking about what would happen when Merle got back. I had enjoyed waking up with Daryl this morning, but I knew that Daryl and I wouldn't be getting that close again with Merle sharing the tent. Looking up, I realized I had fallen behind Daryl. I quickly ran to catch up.
"Hey Daryl?" I asked, hesitantly.
"Yeah?" he answered, not really paying attention.
"Do you think there is an extra tent? I think I want my own tent."
Daryl turned around at that, "What? Merle make ya uncomfortable?"
I laughed, "No. Merle doesn't bother me. I just… I want some privacy."
Daryl's face was unreadable, "Privacy… like with someone?"
The corners of my mouth lifted, "Yeah. I've got someone in mind, maybe."
Daryl turned around and stomped off at that. I was confused. Did that mean he wasn't interested? I shook my head; I knew Daryl was attracted to me. Maybe he thought I was talking about wanting someone else.
I started to call out to Daryl, but I was cut off by a scream. Daryl glanced back at me, and then ran forward. I was fast on his heels. We found the source of the scream in a clearing. I saw Shane and a few of the other men standing around the walker. Carl and Lori were also there.
The deer Daryl had shot was dead, and her neck was ripped open. Next to the deer was a decapitated walker. Daryl was livid, he let everyone know it. I didn't bother listening, but I had a feeling he was more upset by what I had said earlier than the deer.
I did hear him when he mentioned cutting around the damaged part. I rolled my eyes at that. The man standing by Shane caught my eye. I didn't recognize him. Sure I hadn't been there long, but I knew faces, and this one was new.
Daryl started walking towards camp, which I realized must be close, hollering for Merle. Looking around I saw T-Dog, so I assumed the group was back. My eyes narrowed on Shane when he started trying to get Daryl's attention. Both Shane and the new guy looked nervous.
Looking around, I noticed everyone had come out of their tents, and looked like they were waiting for a show. I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Something was very wrong. When the new guy, Rick, announced that Merle had been handcuffed to the roof and left for dead, all hell broke loose. Daryl's temper finally broke, and he took a swing at Rick.
I jumped forward to help and came face to face with Lori, "Get out of my way Lori. I don't want to hurt you." I growled.
Lori's eyes widened with fear, and she stepped away. I surged forward to help Daryl, who was trying to beat off both Shane and Rick at that point, but T-Dog grabbed my arm. I didn't give T-Dog the same warning I gave Lori. Instead I punched him right in the face, but his grip didn't loosen. The skinny guy, Jim, grabbed my punching arm.
I saw Daryl glance over at me, and his anger turned to rage. Daryl ripped his knife out of it's holster. I turned my attention back to the men holding me. I leaned back against their holds, then sent a practiced kick straight into Jim's face. Before I could do anything else, T-Dog used his weight to drag me to the ground and pin me down.
I struggled, but I was completely pinned. Looking up to Daryl again, I saw he was in a similar position. Shane had put him in a choke hold. I couldn't hear what Rick was saying, but I had heard enough. Merle had endangered the group, and Rick had done what he did to protect the group.
When T-Dog got up to confess his part in leaving Merle, I was able to wiggle free. Lori offered me a hand, but I ignored her. I jumped to my feet, and stomped over to Rick and Shane. Shane seemed to be enjoying himself a little too much.
I growled at Shane through gritted teeth, "Let him go, Shane. You've made your point."
Shane looked back at me, surprised by my anger, but let Daryl go. Daryl was walking back and forth, and I knew that if I didn't do something, Daryl was going to take a swing at someone again.
Looking to the man who had handcuffed Merle to the roof, I nearly spat at him, "So you're just going to leave him there?"
T-Dog spoke up, "I chained the door. Nothing could get past it."
"So just tell me where he is. I'll go get'em myself." Daryl said.
Lori spoke up at that, "He'll show you. Won't you?"
Lori stared down Rick, and I could see betrayal in her eyes. I raised an eyebrow, what had I missed? I watched as T-Dog volunteered to go back for Merle, and Rick asked Glenn to go back again. Daryl was still pacing, and he didn't look like he was going to calm down soon.
I stepped onto his path, "Daryl, I want to go."
Daryl kept his distance, but looked me in the eye, "No."
I stepped closer to him, "I want to help. Merle was my friend."
"No."
I scoffed, "Daryl come on. You know I could help."
Daryl brought his face so close to mine I could feel his breath, "You aren't coming. I'll bring ya back a new tent. While I'm gone, don't have no one in my fucking tent." Then he walked back to the tent.
Well now I understood why Daryl was mad at me. He HAD thought I was talking about someone else. I rolled my eyes. Why couldn't Daryl take a hint? I had practically been on top of him this morning, and he thought I was interested in someone else.
When Daryl came back out of the tent, he headed straight towards the van. Rick and the others who were going were already loaded up in the van. If I had learned anything since the apocalypse started, it was that you never knew which moment was your last.
So I gathered my courage and stepped in front of Daryl. He tried to walk past me, but wasn't going to have any of that. I stepped back in his way, and grabbed his shirt, pulling him close.
He started to talk, "Rose, yer not-"
"Shut up," I told him, "You are going to listen to me. That someone I wanted privacy with was you. And if you weren't so thick headed-"
I was cut short when Daryl slid a hand behind my head and pulled me forward into a short hard kiss. When he pulled back, my mouth fell open in surprise. He stared intently at me for a second, then turned around and walked away without a word. He jumped up on the van and turned back to look at me.
All I could think as the van started to pull away was 'Damn'.
Okay so Rose is getting very brave with Daryl. Hope ya'll liked it.
