Author's Note: The song I included is "Slow and Steady" by Of Monsters and Men, it sadly is not mine. I highly recommend giving it a listen! I know the lovely Emily Kinney is a singer/songwriter but I felt like this song really ties into Caryl and my story so I chose not to use any of her music. The Walking Dead and its characters are also not mine! As always, a giant thank you to everyone that has stuck with me! I love reading your reviews and appreciate every single one of them!

"When I was a kid, we had a dog that would always bring dead birds in the house."

"Glenn!" Maggie swatted at his arm, shooting him a deadly glare.

"What?! Seriously? The guy brought her dead rabbits! Why am I the only one that is weirded out by that?" he rubbed at his arm, gave Carol an apologetic look, "I'm sorry Carol, I just wanna know that this guy isn't a total creep."

Carol laughed at the young couple across the table, "It's fine, I appreciate the concern. And he's not a creep. He's just a little shy…And a bit different. He comes across as a little rough but he's actually very sweet, so would you please try to control yourself when he gets here. If he gets here," Carol had been trying to act casual but deep down she was worried he wouldn't show, she knew he was skittish around people, he still got uncomfortable when it was just the two of them sometimes. She had been glancing toward the door every few minutes, she told Daryl that they were getting to the bar around seven but it was now nearly eight.

She had been nursing the same beer for over an hour, putting on a brave smile for Maggie and Glenn, trying not to seem disappointed. Carol eventually gave up on the idea of him showing and resigned herself to just enjoy being out with friends, even though a bit of sadness had crept up at the thought of being stood up. She listened to Glenn ramble on about something, feigning interest, sipping on the same beer.

"Uhh…Carol…" Maggie was looking to the door of the busy Atlanta bar, a small smile on her face.

Carol followed the young woman's eyes, and there he was. He was franticly scanning the crowd, eyes darting about, seeking out her face. He was still lingering near the door, as if he would bolt any second. Carol slid off the stool that surrounded the small pub table they sat at, she craned her neck to see over the people lining the bar, and gave a quick wave to catch his attention.

Daryl briefly considered leaving when he didn't see her, maybe she had left, he was over an hour late and she would probably be pissed anyways, not even want him there. He caught a brief wave from the corner of the bar and looked toward it, and there she was.

Carol finally caught his eye and gave him a bright smile, never happier to see him. He was still near the entrance of the bar, looking uneasy, he gave an awkward wave and a brief smile before finally making his way toward her.

After a few minutes of shuffling through the crowd, he shyly approached her, relief visible on his face, "Hi."

"Hi," Carol gave him that warm smile that always helped soothe the tension in his chest, relaxing him.

"Hi," Glenn had his arm around Maggie's shoulder, trying not to laugh at the awkward display in front of him, Maggie let out a quiet giggle at her friend who was obviously smitten with the shy man.

Carol almost forgot they were there and quickly made the introductions, "Oh right! Uh Daryl, this is Maggie and her fiancé Glenn. Guys, this is Daryl."

Daryl looked at the couple quickly, giving a silent nod, and then back to Carol, hoping she would indicate what he should be doing.

Glenn gave a nod and a smile, and a quick, "Hey."

Maggie looked from Carol to Daryl, gave a warm smile, "Hi, it's so nice to meet ya! Heard a lot about you."

Daryl shot Carol a concerned glance, unsure of the girl's comment. Carol had talked about him? What did she say? Did she mention the scars? Did she say how he'd gotten drunk and passed out on her couch? Should he be worried? He knew from experience that women could be cruel when they were together. He needed to get a grip, this was Carol, she wasn't like that.

He grunted at the girl and then quickly turned his attention back to Carol, "You want a beer or somethin?"

Carol smiled at him again, "Yeah, that would be great."

Daryl stood in front of her, tightening and relaxing his fists, he looked at her face briefly, nodded his head and took off toward the bar.

She took her seat again, watching him as he walked away, she turned to face her friends and gave an excited smile.

"He's a real charmer, Carol."

The comment warranted another slap from Maggie, "Glenn you promised to be nice! Sorry Carol, I'm sure he's real nice once ya get to know 'im," the younger woman sent her friend an apologetic smile.

Carol just rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Daryl, he was making his way back to the table, a young blonde woman bumped into him, he shot her a dirty look and continued through the crowd, looking annoyed by all the people.

He slid the beer on to the table in front her and took the only available seat, directly next to her, and took a long pull from his own bottle, gulping down almost half the beer. His eyes rested on her for a moment before he looked down at his hand wrapped around the beer bottle. The quick glance had been enough for him to take in her appearance, she wore an emerald green top that complimented the creamy skin of her chest and showed off the curve of each clavicle, the shape of her breasts visible through the fitted material. Her short hair held a slight curl at the ends, turning up around her ears that held their usual gold studs, he noticed she had on a touch of makeup, but nothing like the other heavily painted women at the bar, he'd never found that look appealing, seen it stumble out of Merle's bedroom too many times. He was hit by a wave of mortification and guilt when he felt himself harden.

Carol caught his eye and smiled, "Maggie works with me at St. Joe's," she was oblivious to his problem under the table.

He cleared his throat, "Yeah, I remember seein' her," took another sip of beer.

"Oh god, that was an awful night. I had a kid come in that had swallowed twenty marbles!," Maggie hoped the story would lift some of the tension and get a group conversation going.

Daryl didn't respond, just observed the younger couple, the way Glenn's arm was effortlessly wrapped around Maggie's shoulder, tipping the beer bottle back with the other. The girl was leaning into him as she and Carol jabbered about work. It always looked so easy when other people did it. That type of casual contact made him nervous though, he didn't like to be touched, touching was associated with pain and shame. But somehow, in the course of the last couple of weeks, Carol had lessened his discomfort with human contact, she rarely touched him but when she did it was always cautious and gentle, he was beginning to find the experience less distressing.

It was Glenn's turn to attempt engaging the hunter, "Really great of you to come, Beth appreciates everyone that comes to see her and the guys play, there's a lot more people here then we had expected."

Daryl was shook from his thoughts , "Huh?"

Carol clarified, "Beth is Maggie's sister, it's her band that's playing tonight. I try to make it to all of her shows, they're really good, starting to get big locally."

Daryl looked from Carol to Maggie and Glenn, "Oh right, yeah, no problem."

As if on cue, the band walked out onto the stage at the back of the bar, cheers rang out as the wispy blonde pulled the acoustic guitar over her shoulder and thanked everyone for coming. The house lights dimmed, leaving the band illuminated by bright spot lights, the crowd continued with the clapping and shouts. Maggie whistled loudly and Glenn stood up on the rungs of the stool, clapping above his head, Carol gave a loud yell, directed at Beth.

Carol turned to Daryl, laughing, "Sorry, we get a little carried away sometimes."

He couldn't stop the smile that formed while watching her excitement, "Hell, don't let me stop ya, woman."

Everyone's attention was directed at the stage as Beth's quiet voice piped through the large speakers, "Wow, this is crazy! Thank you so much to everyone for coming out tonight! We're gonna start off with a new song, hope y'all like it!"

Daryl was barely paying attention to the band playing, he was watching Carol while her focus was on the stage, a few verses managed to reach his ears as he observed the smile crossing her face, she was swaying lightly on the bar stool, in time with the song.

The lights go out, I am all alone
All the trees outside are buried in the snow
I spend my night dancing with my own shadow
And it holds me and it never lets me go

I move slow and steady
But I feel like a waterfall
Yeah, I move slow and steady
Past the ones that I used to know

Sitting in a darkened bar, surrounded by strangers, Daryl Dixon was pondering what he had done to deserve this woman's attention. She was beautiful and kind, and for some odd reason, tolerated him. A rare smile crossed his lips.

My dear old friend, take me for a spin
Two wolves in the dark, running in the wind
I'm letting go, but I've never felt better
Passing by all the monsters in my head

I move slow and steady
But I feel like a waterfall
Yeah, I move slow and steady
Past the ones that I used to know

And I'm never ready
'Cause I know, I know, I know
That time won't let me
Show what I want to show

Carol felt his eyes on her, she felt the familiar swell of excitement, felt heat rush to her face and chest, felt the ripple of yearning low in her abdomen. She turned to meet his eyes, only to have him quickly look away, he cleared his throat, eyes intent on the stage, embarrassed at being caught. She directed her attention back to the stage, not wanting him to feel self- conscious.

I move slow and steady
But I feel like a waterfall
Yeah, I move slow and steady
Past the ones that I used to know

And I'm never ready
'Cause I know, I know, I know
That time won't let me
Show what I want to show

Daryl once more returned his gaze to her face, this time he didn't look away when she sought out his eyes. He gave a crooked, sheepish smile and ducked his head. Carol smiled at the fleeting moment of eye contact and once again let her focus return to the band.

After they finished their set, another group took the stage while the table turned back to their conversation, Daryl would occasionally join in, eliciting a luminous smile from Carol. He mostly listened though, he liked to hear her loud laugh and watch her hands gesture wildly while talking to Maggie.

The house lights shined brightly, indicating it was time for everyone to vacate the crowded bar. The foursome made their way toward the exit, Maggie hanging on Glenn, declaring she was unfit to drive. Daryl followed Carol closely, a palm hovering over her lower back, silently guiding her through the throng of people, not daring to actually touch her so intimately.

Once in the gravel parking lot, the group stopped at Glenn's green Hyundai , Carol lingering near Daryl. Glenn opened the driver side door, "You coming Carol?"

Carol heard a quietly muttered offer from Daryl to drive her home, she smiled and looked to the younger man, "No thanks, Daryl said he'll drive me."

Glenn looked between the two, hesitation in his eyes, "Are you sure…?"

"LET'S GO GLENN!" Maggie yelled from inside the car, sending a wink toward Carol, "Have a good night y'all!"

Carol finally looked toward Daryl, who had begun shifting from foot to foot, "Ready?"

He grunted out a short, "Yeah," and walked off toward his old pickup.

The drive to Carol's house was filled with a comfortable silence, Daryl liked that she didn't feel the need to talk just for the sake of talking, she could just let them be.

Once he parked in her driveway, Carol turned to face him on the bench seat of the old Ford, "I'm really glad you came, thank you."

Daryl was studying his knuckles that still gripped the steering wheel, "Welcome," he felt entirely at a loss as to what he should do, should he get out and walk her to the door? He decided against it, this hadn't been a date, he didn't want to make an ass of himself or seem presumptuous.

"I have to admit, I was a little shocked when I first saw you tonight…I didn't think you owned anything with sleeves," Carol let out a giggle.

He gave his usual shy, breathy chuckle, "Figured I should dress up for yer friends," he gave a sideways smirk.

Carol grinned widely at his response, recognizing the light teasing that was slowly becoming part of their routine, "I will say, you clean up pretty good Dixon. You look very handsome."

Daryl's head was ducked once more in an attempt to hide his reddening cheeks, he was a bit shocked by her comment, no one ever complimented him, he felt a little pride, even if she had been joking. He was also pleased with his choice of shirt, it was a blue, plaid button up that he almost never wore, he'd even managed to dig out a pair of jeans that weren't full of holes. He was glad she had noticed the effort.

"Well…I'm pulling doubles the next couple of days at the hospital. But I'm gonna be off on Wednesday and Thursday, would you wanna maybe come over on one of those days?" Carol chewed her lower lip, a little anxious to hear his answer.

"What's wrong now? Squeaky door hinges?"

Carol gave a quiet chuckle and looked at the man beside her, still worrying her bottom lip, "No…no squeaky door hinges. Just dinner."

Daryl's head whipped around to face her again, "OH."

She was looking down at her thin hands resting in her lap, worried he would now rush her out of his truck, she looked up to give him a small, hopeful smile.

He would swear that her skin was glowing in the soft moonlight that came through the windshield, she was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, and for some reason she wanted his dumb ass around, "Alright," the shock from her offer still clear in his voice, she had never asked him to come over just for dinner, it was always to fix something. Without the pretense of something needing a repair it felt alarmingly close to a date, he shook his head at the thought, it wasn't a date, it would never be a date.

Carol smiled over at him warmly, "Ok. Good. I'll call you."

He gave a swift nod and returned his hands to the steering wheel, clearly ready to leave.

Carol climbed out of the blue pickup, mildly disappointed that he hadn't opened the door for her or offered to walk her the porch, but that wouldn't have been Daryl, the thought to do those things probably never even crossed his mind. She waved him off from the top step of her front porch, smiling, she thought about her evening with the guarded man.

She knew it had been a big step for him to show up at that bar, even bigger step for him to utter a few quick words to Maggie and Glenn. He certainly did things at his own pace, slow and steady. But that was alright with Carol, she was a patient woman.