Back at Alexandria, Cecelia could finally start working with the supplies she'd been able to get. Working hard nonstop kept her mind off of all her concerns about the run earlier that week. Whenever she thought about it her stomach turned, so she jumped at every opportunity to distract herself.
Negan had dropped her off at the gates, but before she exited his car, he stopped her. He placed a firm hand on her knee and gave her a grin. "I hope we can do this again, sweetheart. I'll see you in a couple weeks."
The feeling of his hand on the inside of her leg made her feel flustered, but flustered was the perfect word for how she'd been feeling that entire day. Cecelia had merely pulled away from his grip and nodded. There was a dark side of her that didn't hate him, that almost enjoyed playing along with whatever game this was. He was charming, he was handsome. Those things were objectively true, and she wasn't going to try to convince herself otherwise at this point. She just couldn't let him get inside her head. The animal in her was sex-deprived and she had to remember that.
The logical side of her knew that the game would end sometime, she wasn't sure when or why. But he'd lose interest soon enough. He had a harem of woman back at his complex that all belonged to him. He could find another community and find another woman who interested him more than she did next week. What she needed to do was continue to be valuable. Be so valuable he had to keep her around.
Cecelia didn't want to know what was going to happen when Negan came around to Alexandria next. And the more she worked, the less she'd have to do. Eventually she'd be done with the list of drugs he needed, and she wouldn't have any more distractions. She could only do so much. Jesus was in and out, and Francis spent a lot of time on perimeter duty.
She had noticed that a lot of times he was relieved from his duties he'd walk back with a pretty, brown-haired woman. Cecelia wasn't sure of her name, she thought it might be Rosita, but she wasn't sure whether to ask Francis about it. They never seemed to be talking much, and they'd split ways and he's offer her a small wave. Still, it was slightly out-of-character, despite the fact it made Cecelia happy. If he was able to grow a little more without her always by his side, it was a step in the right direction.
Francis didn't know much about the situation between her and Negan. She didn't like to keep it from him, but she knew she'd have trouble explaining everything. It was just too complicated, and she didn't fully understand it herself.
The sun was setting now, and the clouds were pink against the burning orange sky. It was beautiful. As if on cue, she heard Francis' boots clack against the wooden stairs and she watched him through the front window. She was surprised to see Daryl behind him.
"Hey," she greeted Francis with the smile she only ever reserved for him when he walked through the door, stomping off his boots.
"Hey," Francis said casually, grinning back. Cecelia enjoyed seeing the more relaxed side of him. "Daryl's here," he noted as if she hadn't seen him step in behind.
"Hey Daryl," Cecelia greeted. Daryl was the only person who didn't make her super uncomfortable here. He tended to keep to himself and appeared to be close to Rick's group, and the few times they'd spoken didn't make Cecelia feel drained or exhausted.
Daryl gave her a nod, and after observing Francis take off his shoes, reached to do the same.
"You're fine," Cecelia said, stopping him. She took off the white coat she wore when she worked and washed her hands in the sink behind her. "Why are you here?" she asked. It may have come off as rude but she was honestly surprised he was standing in front of her in their home.
"Coupla' weeks ago you said you needed to go onna run," he said, clearing his throat. Cecelia got distracted temporarily by Francis jogging down the hall to take a shower before quickly turning back to Daryl. "Obviously Negan took ya last week, but I'm goin' out tomorrow if ya need anything else."
Cecelia nodded. "Uhm...I mean I think I have everything, but it wouldn't hurt to be on the lookout."
Daryl gave a curt nod in return. "Yeah, I think I'm takin' Rosita too. We're runnin' low on food, we don't got much and Negan just keeps taking more and more."
Cecelia knew this was true. Jesus, Francis, and her had all begun taking turns making dinner at night, but there wasn't much to make, they'd been living off Ramen Noodles for the past week or so, and she was starting to have flashbacks of her first few years in New York City, poor and hungry.
Being hungry wasn't uncommon, but Alexandria had spoiled her quite a bit. Now since they were running low on supplies, the adjustment to being hungry again was rough. It was strange how normal this life was to her now. Walkers weren't even the thing to be afraid of. It was just other people, and hunger, and illness.
Cecelia responded. "Yeah. I can come along. When are you leaving?"
"Earlier tomorrow, around nine. That okay?"
"Yeah, that's fine. Should I meet you at your house?"
"Sure," he confirmed, and Cecelia nodded.
For a moment the silence was awkward between them, and Daryl looked as though he was deciding whether to speak or to leave.
"Are you okay?" Daryl asked, and the question caught her off guard. Partly because she didn't know him that well, and partly because she couldn't remember the last time someone asked her that question.
"I'm fine," she answered quickly, out of instinct. "Why?"
"The way Negan always comes and talks to ya," Daryl began. "Just kinda rubbed me the wrong way. Wanted to make sure you were fine."
It made sense. She was always well aware of the stares of the Alexandrians when Negan was around. She knew they noticed how he paid special attention to her. Daryl obviously knew they had a deal, but she could understand how it may look to others. Truthfully, she didn't give a fuck what any of the Alexandrians thought of her. A lot of the ones who would stare were the gossipy women and not the people who actually helped run the community.
"Yeah," Cecelia forced a chuckle, laughing it off. "Everything is fine. I think he has a crush on me," she raised her eyebrows.
Daryl stared back, his brows pulling together underneath the hair that hung in his eyes.
"That was a joke," Cecelia said quickly when she saw his reaction. Her admission seemed to calm him down a bit, but he still didn't crack a smile. This was the sort of thing that happened when she tried to be charming.
"Yeah," she continued. "Anyways. I guess I'll see you at nin-"
Jesus burst into the door dramatically, scaring her slightly since she hadn't been paying attention to what was going on outside, and it was nearly dark.
"Hey Cece," he said, smiling as he walked in, pulling the beanie he usually wore off his head before kicking off his shoes. "Hey Daryl, what brings you here?"
Cecelia flinched at the nickname as he brushed past her to the kitchen. Daryl didn't even have time to answer because Paul continued on as if he had.
"It's my turn to make dinner tonight right?" Jesus poured himself a glass of water and drank the entire thing in a couple quick seconds. "Daryl, do you want to stay for dinner?"
Cecelia didn't really want Daryl to stay for dinner. Partly because she was embarrassed about their uncomfortable interaction and partly because she liked eating dinner with just Francis and Paul.
Francis padded into the room in a loose t-shirt, running his fingers through his dampened copper hair. "I thought dinner was my job tonight?" he asked.
"Is it?" Paul asked.
"I don't know," Francis shrugged. "I just know you'll make Ramen and I hate Ramen."
"It's not like we can be picky."
Francis nodded before turning on his heel and moving towards the family room, where he plopped down on the couch.
"Daryl, are you staying or not?" asked Paul.
Daryl seemed a bit overwhelmed by all the commotion, and in the moment, Cecelia felt for him, so she reached out. "You should answer him so he'll stop talking," she said flatly, hoping he'd get her humor this time. Luckily, he did offering a closed-mouthed grin.
"We can go sit in here until he's done," she tilted her head towards the family room.
Because Ramen noodles didn't take much time to make, within fifteen minutes they were crowded around the table. Paul even found a bottle of wine in the back of the cupboard that he opened and they poured into their glasses. They weren't wine glasses, so it looked pretty funny, but it was wine nonetheless.
As the night went on Daryl came out of his shell a little more, and so did Francis. Paul had a way about him, Cecelia had to admit, that always seemed to bring out a more lighthearted side of people. They didn't have enough wine to get them drunk, but it was still a decent time. For a moment, Cecelia forgot about Negan and all of his bullshit. She even forget about Ari, which rarely happened. It was just nice, and it was the first time Alexandria felt like home. Or really, it was the first time any place felt like home since the epidemic began.
At the end of the evening, they all helped Jesus clean up, being careful not to disturb Cecelia's work area.
To be polite, Cecelia walked Daryl out the front door onto the porch.
"Thanks for dinner," Daryl said as they walked out.
"Oh," Cecelia began. "I didn't have much to do with it, obviously but, I'm glad you could stay," she winced inwardly at her own words.
"Yeah," Daryl responded and he walked down the porch steps. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Cecelia stepped away. "I'll see you."
Hey all! Hope you enjoyed some Daryl/OC interaction. Sorry this chapter was super short. Next up: the run with Daryl.
I was kind of feeling unmotivated to write this, this is very out of my comfort zone but I've had fun challenging myself, so let me know how I am doing.
In other news, how well do you all think I've written Negan? I've never read the comics but I know the gist of them. I feel like I've had to write him slightly out of character for the sake of this story, but I think he's not too out of character. That sneak peak they just released scared the shit out me!