Chapter Nine
That morning Riley slowly awoke from a dreamless sleep feeling very well rested. I haven't slept so good in ages, she thought as she stretched her legs a little. As she did that she felt something press into her back and an arm wrapped itself around her waist. Suddenly she remembered what she'd done last night and her eyes widened. It was Daryl's bare chest pressed up against her back as she could feel the heat radiating from his body, enveloping her in his warmth. His arm was now leaning loosely over her waist, his fingers brushing a little against her stomach while she felt him breathing softly near her ear, giving her goosebumps. He was clearly still asleep.
She bit her lip as she felt herself flush thinking what she had done; she'd just crept into his bed without thinking of the consequences. She hoped he wouldn't be pissed off at her. The times she had touched him either by accident or deliberately he had been so tense. The particular moment where she'd merely kissed him on his cheek he couldn't seem to get away from her any faster. He was clearly a man that had some issues with physical contact. However, now that he was asleep, he didn't seem to have a problem with it though. Nevertheless, Riley had no idea how he would react to what she'd done when he would wake up.
She sighed and suddenly felt Daryl stir behind her, making her aware of the fact that he was about to wake up. He pulled back his arm and she closed her eyes, having no idea on how to explain to him what she had done. It seemed that she just didn't think about it and just went with her gut feeling. She didn't regret it though. However, she did fear his response since he was.. well, Daryl.
She was contemplating if she should just be feigning sleep to give him the opportunity to leave, but if she was being honest with herself, she wanted to confront him about it. She knew he had to at least like her company, since he'd never pushed her away during all those moments they'd spend time together. He even gave her a crossbow for her birthday. The fact that he nearly exploded yesterday when he'd heard what happened, clearly showed his concerns for her. It had to mean something, right? Riley needed to get it out somehow, to just show him that she wanted more than whatever they were having right now. However, she had no idea if he was still mad at her or not.
''I'm sorry about yesterday.'' She said in a soft voice after a few minutes of silence. ''I shouldn't have done it in the first place.'' She added while staring in front of her.
''Yeah.'' She heard him respond as she felt him sitting up behind her.
''Where did you go?'' She asked him.
''The woods; clearing my head, killed some walkers.''
She thought about what to do now, he didn't sound very upset. Perhaps he had calmed down and they could talk about it. She slowly rolled on her back seeing that he was staring in front of him. The scars on his back were clearly visible and it still made her wonder how he had gotten them. She shook her head, getting rid of those thoughts and sat up as well, their arms almost touching each other. She noticed that the knuckles of his right hand were a bit red, probably due to the fact that he had punched Shane a broken nose yesterday.
''Why'd ya come here?'' He suddenly asked as he looked at her. Her action clearly had made no sense to him at all. He honestly thought he had been dreaming when the woman that was constantly on his mind decided to show up in the middle of the night and cling onto him. To say he was surprised when he woke up a few hours later again and saw her lying in his arms was an understatement. He didn't know if he should either run out of the tent or pull her closer. Strangely to him, he chose to do the latter.
''It's stupid.'' She finally answered as she felt herself flush, looking to the side. Now when he asked her so directly, she felt embarrassed about it. She just wanted to be with him at that moment; she felt scared, alone and he was the only one with whom she felt completely safe with. But she knew that deep down, her feelings for him went a lot deeper than that.
Daryl suddenly scoffed as he thought of his own explanation for her actions. Probably got into a fight with Shane and decided to come to him instead. The entire time that he had been killing walkers in the woods, he thought about what she and that cop had been up to. Guess he was just her second choice, a back up for protection, because that was what he was right? Just a form of protection, something to use and if not needed anymore to just throw away. Well, he was having none of that.
Why else would she spend all that time with him in the first place? It's not like someone like her would actually fall for someone like him. Why in the fuck is this even botherin' the shit out of me?! He thought to himself in frustration.
''I ain't good enough huh.'' He said to her and she instantly looked back at him, noticing his defensive tone.
''What? No, that's not what I meant. I wa-'' She started but he glared at her.
''Save it for someone who gives a shit!'' He snapped and was about to get up but she grabbed his wrist, stopping him in his movements.
''Will you just let me finish without assuming things?'' She told him as he still glared at her.
''I just.. got scared after what happened yesterday. I couldn't sleep.. I just.. and you were angry.. and it..'' she started, trying not to tumble over her words but it was so difficult to do by the look he was giving her. It was the exact same look he had given her yesterday.
''So, instead of going to Shane ya come to me, why?'' He interrupted her again. He didn't want to care about what went on between those two, but he needed some sort of confirmation. It confused the hell out of him why he needed it in the first place. He was going crazy with all these questions and doubts in his head and it was pissing him off.
She frowned at him, now thoroughly confused. What did Shane have to do with any of this? ''Because you were mad at me, Daryl.'' Riley said and sighed when he looked away again. He didn't understand why she'd even give a shit about that. ''I don't want you to be mad at me. I mean, from everyone here, I can't handle that from you.'' She said in honesty and he frowned, thinking about what she was saying, not really understanding what she meant.
''Just 'cause I was the one to save ya, don't mean tha-'' he started but this time she cut him off.
''Daryl just stop! I care about what you think, okay? I care about you!'' She suddenly blurted out. Her eyes instantly widened at what she'd just said and she saw that he was rather in a state of shock at her confession. He had never heard somebody say that to him, perhaps only his brother every once in a while but Merle always said it as if he didn't mean it. Now with Riley, he had no idea how to respond to that.
She sighed, knowing she couldn't take it back, but she didn't want to either. ''Can't you just believe me?'' She asked as he frowned at her. ''I care about you.'' She said again, deciding that she had enough of this distance between them. She needed to take some sort of action to show him what she meant by it. She knew that he wasn't the type of man that would ever initiate the first move, she had to be the one to do it. She hoped that whatever she was feeling for him, he would at least feel an inch of that for her as well.
She reached over to cup his face but he flinched back a little out of habit, frowning as he was looking at her hands, trying to figure out what she was doing. She took a deep breath and leaned forward to take his face in her hands. She could just feel the tension in his jaw but didn't let go and slowly leaned closer to his face. His breath hitched when he realized what she was about to do. Closing her eyes, she gently kissed him on his lips.
Daryl's mind went blank at the feeling of her full lips pressed against his own. At first he was tense, unresponsive, staring at her face that was now so close. Riley however didn't give up, staying with her lips pressed against his, hoping he wouldn't push her away. After a moment, Daryl slowly closed his eyes, finally kissing back.
She brushed her hands along his biceps, feeling his muscles beneath the palms of her hands, gliding towards his hands to place his arms around her. She wrapped her own arms around his neck to pull him closer. He groaned at the feeling of having her pressed up against him and he slowly brought her down on her back to roll on top of her. He enjoyed the feeling of her lips moving slowly against his.
They soundly kissed each other before Daryl unconsciously brushed his tongue along her lower lip, slowly demanding access. Riley opened her mouth a little, gladly letting his tongue roam with hers. She slowly glided her hands from his neck towards his chest, her fingertips trailing over his skin. His mind suddenly went in overdrive at the feeling of her soft hands against his bare chest and he started to kiss her neck, sucking on her skin.
''Daryl..'' Riley whispered as he licked her skin while she brought her hands into his hair. His heart was pounding in his chest after he heard her whispering his name like that. All these pent-up emotions, all the times he held himself back, all those moments that he wanted to reach out to her.
Shit she tastes so good, he thought to himself in satisfaction as he nipped at her shoulder. He moved his hands underneath the back of her shirt, feeling the soft skin beneath his palms. Riley gasped as Daryl's tongue was gliding along her collarbone while the rough skin of his hands was brushing along her back.
Daryl loved her reaction towards him, liking the fact that he was making her feel good. God I want her, he thought as he pressed his fingers a little deeper into her skin. The moment that thought appeared in his head though, he instantly pulled back, breathing heavily as he stared wide-eyed at the woman lying underneath him and Riley looked at him in suprise by his sudden movement, the look he was giving her was similar to that of a wild animal.
''Shit.'' He said as he pulled away, getting off of her. He was so used to it being rough and sloppy, a simple matter of quick release and be done with it. But this felt different, which caused him to stop. She was getting to him and frankly, it scared the shit out of him.
'Take 'em and leave 'em baby brother. They ain't worth shit.' Merle's voice rang through his mind and Daryl shook his head, trying to get rid of those thoughts.
''You alright?'' He heard Riley ask and stiffened as her hand brushed the small of his back. He didn't respond and she quickly sat up. He was still looking in front of him with a wide-eyed expression on his face as he jaw was tense and she frowned in concern. ''What's wro-'' she started but was cut off by a voice from outside the tent.
''Yo, Daryl. You're on watch now.'' T-Dog's voice called out before they heard him walk off and Daryl sighed, quickly reaching for his sleeveless shirt that was laying at the end of his sleeping bag. His body was still rigid on adrenaline as he tried to button up his shirt.
'You big pussy, pushing a way a fine ass like that! You and yer sentimental bullshit, you're like a fuckin' girl, be a man and hit that!' Merle would have yelled at him.
Daryl took a deep breath, trying to calm down. His hands suddenly were pulled away from the buttons of his shirt and Riley placed herself on her knees between his legs and slowly buttoned up his shirt. He stared at her face as she worked on the buttons. This woman sure was something else.
''There, all done.'' She said and smiled at him. She could see a storm of emotions raging in his eyes but decided not to ask him about it. He quickly got up from his sleeping bag and walked towards the entrance of the tent, quickly pulling on his jeans over the boxers he was wearing and stepped into his shoes. He flung his crossbow across his back and was about to walk out of his tent, dismissing her, but something held him back, even though he couldn't comprehend what it exactly was. He sighed and looked behind him again to see Riley still sitting on his sleeping bag with a confused look on her face.
''I'll see ya later.'' He awkwardly mumbled to her and she nodded in reply. He quickly turned around and unzipped the entrance of his tent before stepping out on the grass.
Riley lie back down on Daryl's pillow and breathed in his scent. Her feeling of contentment quickly faded as she thought back on the look on Daryl's face when he had pulled back from their kiss. He went all rigid on her. Something was up and she didn't like it one bit.
After waiting for a few minutes, Riley carefully poked her head out of Daryl's tent to see if anyone was already up. In the distance she saw Dale and Glenn in a deep discussion but further than that she didn't see anyone else. She stepped back and looked around Daryl's tent. She was only wearing her top and shorts because she had just jumped out of her tent like that yesterday night. She spotted a sleeveless shirt laying near Daryl's pillow and quickly put it on, buttoning up. She hastily got out of Daryl's tent to slip into her own.
However, she didn't get that far as she bumped into someone. She looked up and saw it was Rick who was looking at her with a raised eyebrow. ''Uh, hi.'' She said and timidly smiled up at him. It felt like she was being caught doing something naughty by her father.
''What were you doing?'' He asked her while he had seen her stepping straight out of Daryl's tent. He eyed her and noticed that the flannel shirt she was wearing definitely wasn't hers.
''Uh.. just uhm..'' Riley started while trying to come up with some good excuse.
Rick shook his head at her. ''Just be careful, Riley.'' He told her and walked off. Rick hoped that she hadn't done anything stupid, as in spending the night with Daryl. The hunter didn't seem the type of man to be interested in a relationship even though he did appear to care about the young woman. Riley, on the other hand, was clearly interested in more and Rick feared that she would eventually pay the price.
Riley frowned as she watched Rick walk away. What was that about? She thought in confusion as she quickly stepped into her own tent.
That morning at breakfast, everything was feeling a bit awkward for Riley. She felt like everyone kept staring at her for some reason. She knew it was about her and Shane coming back from the woods yesterday. The fact that it led to a fight between Shane and Daryl probably spoke volumes to everyone.
''You sure you're alright?'' Lori asked Riley in concern for the fifth time while there were eating some sandwiches.
''Yes, I am Lori, really. Thanks though.'' Riley told the older woman who frowned but nodded. Rick had told her what he saw this morning and she wasn't too happy about it. She didn't know if it was that good for Riley to be involved with Daryl. The man seemed to be aggressive if he was triggered in some way, which became very clear after he had broken Shane's nose yesterday. It looked like Daryl was about to explode in rage. She had also seen the look on Riley's face yesterday, nearly on the verge of tears. She didn't know the full extent of what happened during Riley's walk with Shane yesterday but when she asked Shane about it he told her it was nothing. She told him that Riley was too young for him anyways, had said it was stupid that he even considered going after her. Shane just snapped in her face saying she was jealous. Lori frowned when she considered what he'd said but quickly pushed away that thought.
Riley didn't look at Shane when he walked into the circle of chairs while everyone was having their meal. She was thankful that Daryl was on watch because she didn't want the two men to possibly be at each other's throat again. She sort of feared that Shane would mention her feelings for Daryl towards the others since she had been angry at him when he called Daryl a dumb redneck. And also the way Daryl reacted when they came back would only fuel his suspicions. She knew that Daryl would bolt the minute everyone would be on his case about it.
After breakfast, everyone went into their daily routine as Riley collected everyone's plates. She walked over to Carol who was fixing up a plate with some scrambled eggs and chicken.
''Riley? Could you take this plate up to Daryl? The man hasn't had his breakfast yet.'' The older woman said to her, making Riley frown.
''Uh, I think it's better if you do it Carol.'' Riley replied as she placed all the plates she had in her hands into a bucket of water and soap.
Carol frowned at the young woman's reply. ''Riley, I don't think he's still mad at you, he was just worried.''
''I know. It's just that.. well..'' Riley started, contemplating if she should tell the woman what happened this morning, but quickly decided against it. This was something between her and Daryl. There was already so much gossip going around camp. She was sure that people were already talking about the incident behind her back, even though they tried to be discreet about it. She had seen Lori and Andrea talking while giving her a few glances. Even Dale had been giving her a look of concern. She had only been giving Maggie bits and pieces of her feelings for Daryl, even though she sensed that Maggie knew something more was up. However, she trusted Maggie that she wouldn't tell anyone.
''I think it's better if I just give him some space.'' She eventually told Carol who nodded in understanding and thankfully didn't press the subject.
I probably shook him up by kissing him like that, Riley thought to herself as she was washing the dishes. She didn't want it to become all awkward between them, hoping he wouldn't pull away from her now. She could still feel his arms around her and his lips on her skin. She only wanted more of those moments. The thought made her blush and she quickly looked down, seeing she had been washing the same plate for at least several minutes now.
After she was done with washing the dishes, she decided to take a break from the group and went to her usual spot in the grass near the tents. She fought the urge to look into Daryl's direction, who was sitting further away on the caravan. She'd brought one of Dale's books she borrowed and began to read while lying her stomach.
After reading a few pages, a shadow suddenly appeared above her. As she looked up, she noticed it was Shane, now with a white bandage covering his nose. ''Can we talk for a sec?'' He asked her.
She frowned but nodded and he sat cross-legged beside her, staring in front of him towards the woods. ''I guess I owe you an apology.'' Shane started while not looking at Riley. ''I was out of line and what happened afterwards was also my fault. I put us both in danger.''
''We could have been killed Shane.'' Riley said as she looked at him.
''I know.'' He replied, looking at the ground.
''But I guess.. I mean, I forgive you. It wasn't entirely your fault. I shouldn't have just gone off with you without warning the others where we were, it was stupid.'' She said to him.
''Yeah.. well I got a heck of a wakeup call yesterday.'' He mentioned, pointing at his nose.
Riley shook her head as she heard him chuckle. ''Damn, that redneck has a hard fist.'' He added and Riley let out a soft chuckle.
''Don't call him that, it's not nice.'' She told him and he frowned.
''I do wonder what you see in him though.'' He said to her and she blushed.
''I just like him, Shane. We're friends.'' She mentioned, being vague about it. It wasn't his place to know the full extent of her feelings.
He sighed but nodded. ''Alright, well.. I just hope everything will be okay between us again. I mean even.. well you know.. I still hope we can stay friends?'' He asked her.
She smiled and nodded. ''I'd like that.''
Unbeknownst to the two of them, a pair of eyes were watching them in the distance. Daryl had been keeping an eye on Riley from the moment she'd sat down on the grass near the tents. He'd noticed that she wasn't looking into his direction, which made him feel agitated for some reason. She would always give him a wave and a smile from a distance when he was on watch even though he barely nodded back in return.
His eyes narrowed when he had seen Shane approach her but he stayed put. He was still on watch duty and knew that the fight he had with Shane yesterday hadn't gone unnoticed by the group, especially Rick who had been eyeing him from time to time. He still didn't know what happened between Shane and Riley. Even though he normally stayed out of people's business since he could care less, as it involved Riley now it was nagging him in the back of his mind. Is there something goin' on between those two? His jaw tensed as he thought about it. What if she was doing the same with Shane what she had just done with him this morning?
And what the hell was that even this morning? First minute she said she cared about him and the next moment they were lip locking like their lives depended on it. The only thing that had been on his mind was to make her want him just as much as he wanted her. He never cared about that sort of thing before, he had never wanted a woman like he wanted her. Fuck me, this is seriously givin' me a fuckin' brain damage, Daryl thought as he sighed deeply.
''Hey, brought you breakfast.'' Carol's voice suddenly snapped him away from his thoughts.
''Thanks.'' He muttered as he leaned down a bit to take the plate from her hand as he was sitting on top of the caravan.
''You alright?'' She asked him and he looked down at his plate.
''I'm fine.'' He curtly replied and the older woman sighed but nodded her head, walking off again. She knew getting Daryl to talk about what was bugging him was a mission impossible.
After Shane had left Riley alone again, she was sucked right back into the book she was reading. She didn't notice that she had been lying there for at least two hours until Carl ran up to her to ask her if she wanted play some chess with him.
''So, I heard that Daryl gave you a crossbow?'' Carl said to her and she smiled as she nodded while they were laying all the pieces of the game in the right order. ''He must really like you.'' He added and she noticed the sudden frown that appeared on his face as a thought suddenly hit him.
''What's with the face?'' Riley asked and he looked up at her.
''I just hope he doesn't hurt you.'' Carl mumbled and looked back at the chessboard again.
''He doesn't hurt me. He can be nice Carl, once you get to know him.'' Riley said in Daryl's defense. She knew that the others were still a bit wary around the hunter, especially Lori, and it was brushing off on Carl as well.
''Merle was scary. I don't really know what to think about Daryl though.'' Carl said.
''Well, he did teach you some skinning right?'' She reminded him and he looked at her before nodding.
''But he was yelling at you yesterday and my mom told my dad you were really upset when you went to the house. And Beth had even seen you crying.'' Carl said and Riley inwardly sighed. The news sure spread fast around here. Even though she really liked this group, it was unbelievable how much nearly everyone seemed to be sticking each other's noses into other people's business.
''Carl, he was just worried about me. I did something stupid and he was just upset. Everything is okay between us again.'' She said. At least I hope, she added in her mind.
''He didn't hit your or anything, right? Or else I will have to tell my dad.'' Carl said and her eyes widened.
''What? No! Of course not! Daryl wouldn't do such a thing!'' Riley said in surprise by his comment. ''He's alright Carl, don't you worry.'' Riley said and winked at him, making him smile. Perhaps what Glenn said was true, and the kid was starting to become really attached to her.
After about an hour of playing chess Riley laughed. ''Wow Carl, you are really good at this!'' She exclaimed as he had beaten her again. ''I learned it from my dad.'' Carl proudly said.
''Carl, time for homework.'' Lori suddenly called out from a distance and Riley heard Carl sigh.
''Urgh, I don't know what the big deal is with homework. Schools don't even exist anymore.'' He grumbled as he got up and angrily walked away.
Riley frowned as she saw the boy storm off, not knowing what to think. It seemed the world had come to an end. She sighed as she picked up all the pieces of the game and placed them back in a box. Thoughts like that would make the situation even more worse than it already was.
~ TWD ~
A/N: First of all, a Happy New Year to you all! Secondly, thanks so much for the reviews, I'm really happy that you liked the previous chapter. Also, a huge thank you to all the new followers out there as well as the people that have been favoring my story. I hope you liked this chapter. As you might have noticed, the relationship between Daryl & Riley is probably going to change from now on, for the better or worse, who knows. Thanks for reading!
