Everybody was glad that Hershel woke up. It gave them one less thing to worry about. They decided to let him rest after they fed him, while they had dinner. Carol was in charge of cooking, since everybody else had jobs already; Daryl's was hunting, Maggie and Glenn did supply runs, Rick was the leader of course, Lori looked after Carl, Hershel and Ellie were the medics and T helped out whenever it was needed. Carol handed Ellie her plate of food and she sat down next to Maggie.

"This is school cafeteria food," she commented, slightly disgusted, but it was better than nothing. She raised the spoon to her mouth and tasted. "Not that bad, actually." She didn't lie. It wasn't that bad at all. She looked over at Glenn, who was smiling to himself strangely. She raised her brow and grinned. "What's with the smile, Glenn? Have a good night?" she teased, causing Maggie to butt her with her elbow. Glenn shook his head.

"Nah, just thinking back to when I was in high school." Another grin appeared on the Korean's face. Ellie thought back to when she was in high school. She hated it. It wasn't because she had no friends or anything; it was just the bitchy girls and the dumb guys. She distinctly remembered being pushed around by the 'popular's'. She was never the 'pretty girl' who got all the guys; no, she was the girl at the back of the class, that no one paid any attention to. Carl sighed, causing everybody to look at him.

"What's the matter?" Lori asked and put her hand on his shoulder. He didn't look up at her.

"I never got the chance to go to high school," he complained. Lori and Ellie laughed.

"Trust me, ain't a bad thing," Ellie told him, flashing back. Maggie giggled, knowing why Ellie said what she did. Ellie shot her a dirty look and sighed. Carl looked at her strangely.

"How come?" he asked. Ellie bit her lip and became very interested in the spoon she was holding. Everybody waited for an answer, and when she looked up, she sighed.

"Cos it's the worst thing ever," she said and stuffed a spoonful of food in her mouth. Daryl piped up from where he was sitting.

"Amen to that!" he agreed and raised his bowl as a toast. Carol sat down next to Rick and T and smiled.

"Wasn't that bad. What about 'Prom'?" she asked. Ellie swallowed the food that was in her mouth and looked at Rick, who had a very amused look on his face. Her eyes drifted towards Carol.

"Prom? I remember that. Yep; long dress, sweet ride, hotel rooms," she said, remembering her prom. She went with some guy; Norman was his name. She remembered what happened in that hotel room like it happened the day before. That was before she went to college and met Jared, of course.

"Hey, let's keep this conversation PG rated," Lori said strictly. Rick nodded in agreement. Glenn spoke up.

"I remember my 'Prom', alright; took this girl Helen. She was pretty cute but dumb as lamppost. She tripped ten times that night before she got drunk," he shared his story. Maggie laughed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Well, I loved my 'Prom'! I remember wearin' this green dress with these high, high heels. Nearly, tripped, but I didn't," she said proudly. Ellie smiled. She remembered that day, too. She thought back to her own prom.

"Oh I remember my dress!" she exclaimed and thought a bit more. "It was purple strapless dress. It was tight and I wore these shoes that were about as high as this," she said and used her thumb and finger to show them the size. An image popped into Daryl's head; Ellie in her prom dress. She probably looked amazing, he wasn't about lie. He shook his head to get himself to stop thinking about it. While, everybody talked about 'Prom', Daryl tried not to think of his. Hell, he didn't even go to his. That was only because no girl wanted to go with him. He never had any real girlfriends; he thought of himself as 'lucky' if one of the girls got drunk at a party or bar and spent a night with him. Besides, who wanted to spend the best night of their lives with 'white trash'? He played with the rip in his jeans and tried not to get involved.

"Daryl!" Ellie yelled again. She'd called his name three times already. His head shot up and his green eyes looked at her. She smiled. "How was your 'Prom'?"

Oh shit. He looked at everyone and shrugged. "Didn't go."

"Why not?" she asked puzzled as to why he never went to Prom. But then again, she couldn't exactly picture Daryl Dixon in a suit and tie. He looked down at his jeans and back at her.

"Uhm…Dunno. Guess no girl wanted to go with me," he mumbled and started fiddling with his jeans again. This was awkward for him; he never really opened up to anyone about those kinds of things. Ellie's face dropped. She felt weak.

"That was their loss, then," her voice croaked. He looked up at her, confused. Why would she say that? Daryl sighed and broke the eye contact. Ellie could feel the awkwardness, so she changed the subject.

"Point is, high school sucked," she told Carl. He smiled and nodded. At that point, everybody was done eating. After Ellie, Lori, Carol and Maggie did the dishes; everybody called it a day, except for Daryl, who was on duty that night.

"Night!" everybody said to each other. Ellie lay on her bed and looked up at the old mattress that was above her. The cell reeked of dirty socks, sweat and some other unidentified odors. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but something was bugging her; she couldn't get her mind off something…rather someone. She thought about the Farm, and when Rick and the group came along. She remembered waking up to the sound of Daryl's bike and seeing him for the first time. Then she realized something; he'd been there for her every single time something went wrong; when Shane opened the barn, he restrained her. Not Rick, or Glenn or Maggie. Him. And when Jared was buried, he was there. When she sang the song, when she broke the mirror, he broke down the door. He saved her from the farm. He was her shoulder to cry on. He reunited her with Maggie and Hershel and he comforted her when Lori saved Hershel. She felt sick just thing about it. Oh shit. She tossed and turned for quite a while but it was no use; she couldn't sleep.

Nope. She was in love with Daryl Dixon, and has been for a long time.

She reached for her knife torch under her pillow and got up to go outside to clear her head. Ellie looked up at the sky; it was beautiful. The moon was the only other source of light, besides her torch. She went up to the catwalk and switched her torch off, so she could enjoy the amazing night sky. A few minutes later, she started hearing noises. She immediately drew her knife out and waited for another sign that something was there. She heard it again. She took a step back and held her torch up. She took a deep breath and switched it on, only to see Daryl standing there, giving her a confused look. She lowered the knife.

"Dammit!" she muttered. He held out his hand, blocking the bright light.

"Get that damn thing outta my face!" he complained. She instantly lowered the torch.

"S-sorry." She put her knife back into its sheath and folded her arms, trying to avoid eye contact.

"Whatcha doin' out here? Should be sleepin'," he said. She shrugged and looked down.

"Couldn't sleep," she muttered. He adjusted the strap of his crossbow.

"Hmm."

"Shouldn't you be on watch?" she inquired. Daryl smirked.

"Was s'posed to be in the guard tower, but then your sister and Glenn kicked me out," he explained. She nodded. "How come you can't sleep?"

Ellie's eyes went wide. She couldn't tell him why she couldn't sleep. No way. She thought quickly, trying to come up with the best excuse. "I-I don't know. I, ah…needed to clear my head" She stuttered. She could punch herself. He smirked.

"Oh," he said. She felt her eyebrows come together to form a frown.

"So," she tried to start a conversation, "Where'd you learn how to shoot?" she asked. He smirked again.

"In mah family, this shit comes naturally," he joked. She smiled and nodded.

"Wish I could say the same 'bout my family." There was a moment of silence. Both Daryl and Ellie couldn't keep their eyes off the significant moonlit sky. Finally Ellie cleared her throat. He instantly looked at her. She was shorter than him, so she had to slightly tilt her head up in order to look at him. "I would've gone with you."

He frowned. "Huh?"

"I would've gone to Prom with you," she admitted. She didn't know why she said that, but a part of her hungered for a reaction from the redneck. She bit her lip.

"Hmm." She frowned. Hmm? That was it? She basically told him how she felt about him and 'Hmm' is all he had to say? He practically slapped her in the face. What she didn't know, though, was that he was speechless. Did she mean it? No fucking way in hell. She sighed and nodded disappointedly before turning around to head back. A hand grabbed her arm. She looked back up at him, and they stayed in that position for a while. The only thing they could hear was breathing. Ellie gulped. He smiled and pulled her closer, now holding her face. He leaned in slowly and she stood up on her tip toes, leaning in too. Their tongues played for a while before they broke apart for air.

"Goodnight," she simply told him and turned around with a big, cheeky smile across her face. She made real sure not to let him see, though, and headed back the cellblock. Daryl stood there, completely, utterly speechless. Screw duties, he thought to himself, I'm goin' to bed, too. Besides, Glenn said he'd keep an eye out.

As soon as he got inside, he checked to if Ellie was sleeping. Surprisingly, she had already drifted off. She looked so peaceful and happy. Now that she knew how he felt about her, he felt that it was his obligation to say goodnight properly. He leaned down and kissed her forehead gently. She opened her eyes instantly and pulled the collar of his shirt closer. She kissed him again, trying to tell him how she felt about him. When they broke apart, she moved over and invited him to sleep with her for the night. He agreed and kicked off his shoes before sliding in next to her. She lay on her side, with her back against him and his arm wrapped around her. God, she thought to herself, this feels amazing!

In the morning, when Ellie woke up, Daryl was nowhere to be seen. The cell smelt like dirty socks, sweat and something else that she couldn't quite make out. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. Her eyes studied the cell for a while; it was small and there was a small sink and a toilet, which obviously didn't work anymore. She sat up and stretched while a groan escaped her mouth. Ellie got up and exchanged the shirt she was wearing for a clean one and put on her black skinny jeans with the new black boots she found. She put her brown hair into a high ponytail and went down to breakfast. Everyone was there, except for Glenn and Maggie.

"Mornin'!" she sang and walked over to Carol to get some food. Everyone was silent as they watched her every move. She turned around and noticed. They knew. She bit her lip and sat down, digging in immediately and trying to ignore them. Suddenly, she felt someone kiss her head. She turned around and saw Daryl. A smile appeared on her face. He smiled, too.

"Good mornin'," he said. It took some time for everyone to process what they were seeing; Daryl Dixon in love? No way. Lori was the first to break the silence.

"About damn time!" she smiled and looked at the two. Everyone nodded in agreement. "Jesus, Daryl all the signs were there and it took you this damn long?" she went one. Daryl snorted.

"Sorry, jeez," he joked and sat down next to Ellie. This was the first time in a long time that he had sat with them at the table while eating. Normally he'd just go outside or sit on the steps, but this time he sat with them.

"We gotta move the vehicles today. If we get in a mess, we're gonna have to have a quick escape," Rick said as he handed Lori his dirty bowl. She and Ellie washed up. When they were done, T, Ellie, Rick and Daryl went outside.

"Hey where are Glenn and Maggie?" Ellie asked and put her hands on her hips. Daryl pointed to the guard tower.

"Up there," he said with a mischievous grin. Everybody looked up at it.

Rick sighed. "The guard tower? They were just up there last night!"

Daryl stepped forward and called out. "GLENN! MAGGIE!" They waited for a reply. Soon, the balcony door opened and Glenn stepped out shirtless and putting on his jeans. A disgusted look filled Ellie's face.

"Hey! What's up, guys!" Glenn greeted. Rick, T and Daryl giggled impishly like 8th graders. Ellie was just completely shocked and disgusted.

"You comin'?" Daryl yelled. Ellie looked away. She couldn't stand it anymore. Glenn looked confused.

"HUH?" he yelled down. Daryl laughed again before repeating himself.

"You comin?" he asked again. "C'mon, we could use a hand!"

"That's so gross!" Ellie said disgustedly and went back to work. Daryl snorted and followed. Suddenly, T-Dog called out to Rick. All of them looked confusedly at what he was looking at. When they saw Andrew and Axel, Rick's smile faded and turned into an angry frown. He immediately marched towards them.

"Come with me," he told them. They instantly followed.

"That's close enough," Rick warned as Oscar and Axel stepped forward. They stopped and looked at Rick. "We had an agreement."

"Please, mister. We know that," Axel said. "We made a deal, but you gotta understand. We can't live in that place another minute. You followin' me? Old bodies, people we knew. Blood, brains everywhere. There're ghosts."

"Move the bodies out," Daryl suggested. Ellie kept quiet. She assumed these guys were the prisoners, since they were wearing blue prison outfits.

"You should be burning them," T-Dog said.

"We tried. We did," Axel said. Oscar stepped forward.

"The fence is down on the far side of the prison. Every time we drag the bodies out, those things just line up. We end up dropping the bodies and running inside," he explained.

"Look, we had nothing to do with Tomas and Andrew. Nothing. You trying to prove a point, you proved it, bro. We'll do whatever it takes, just please don't make us go back in that place," Axel pleaded. Rick thought about it for a while then looked over at Daryl, who shook his head. Everybody then went behind the nearby bus to discuss the matter. Apparently T-Dog wanted to let the prisoners into their cellblock.

"Are you serious? You want them living in the cell next to you? They'll just be waiting for a chance to grab our weapons. You wanna go back to sleepin' with one eye open?" Rick asked T-Dog.

"I never stopped. Bring them into the cellblock, if we send them off, we might as well execute them ourselves," T-Dog replied. Rick and Maggie sighed.

"I don't know, Axel seems a little unstable," Glenn said uneasily.

"They're strangers. It feels weird all of a sudden havin' other people around," Maggie whispered.

"You brought us in," T-Dog said to her.

"Yeah but you rocked up with a shot boy in your arms. You didn't give us a choice," Ellie replied on behalf of Maggie.

"They can't even kill walkers," Glenn agreed.

"They might have less blood on our hands then we do," T-Dog said and looked at Rick.

"I knew guys like this. Hell, I grew up with 'em. They ain't psychos. I could've been in there with them just as easily as I'm out here with you guys," Daryl said. T-Dog looked at him.

"So you're with me?" he asked Daryl.

"Hell no," he replied. "Let 'em take their chances out on the road, just like we did."

"When I was a rookie, I arrested this kid, 19 years old. Wanted for stabbin' his girlfriend. The kid blubbered like a baby during the interrogation, during the trial. He was acquitted due to insufficient evidence. Two weeks later, shot another girl. We've been through too much. Our deal with them stands," Rick said and ended the discussion. Daryl, Glenn and Rick locked the prisoners in at the entrance gates for the time being.

"Move the cars to the upper yard," Rick told Maggie, Ellie and T. Daryl, Rick and Glenn went down to patch up the fence. When Ellie parked the car, she got out and was surprised to see Lori, Carol and Carl helping Hershel to walk. She couldn't believe it. She looked at Maggie and the two couldn't help but smile. Ellie looked down at Daryl, Rick and Glenn and all of them were smiling, too.

"Walkers!" Carl yelled to everyone's dismay. Without hesitating, Ellie, Maggie, Carl, T and Lori started shooting.

"Carol, Maggie! Get 'im outta here!" Ellie yelled, referring to Hershel. They obeyed and led him to a raised platform. They locked the gate and started shooting, too. Meanwhile, Rick, Glenn and Daryl sprinted to towards them. As Ellie shot, she noticed an open door and thought about Lori and Carl. "Lori! Here!" she yelled. Lori grabbed Carl's hand and followed Ellie. They closed the door behind them and continued to walk. Soon, the found themselves on another cellblock. Ellie went inside, but turned around as soon as she saw walkers. They made their way through the corridors, trying to find a way out. It felt like they were going through an endless maze. As they were walking, an ear piercing alarm suddenly went off. Lori stopped and took deep breathes.

"Keep up," Ellie told her and put her hand on Lori's back. Lori shook her head.

"Somethin's not right," she cried and turned around. Carl stepped forward.

"You bit?!" he asked, worriedly. Lori shook her head.

"I think the baby's comin'!" All of a sudden, Ellie spotted a few walkers coming towards them. She helped Lori walk while Carl led the way. All of the corridors were blocked by walkers, so their only alternative was the boiler-room. Carl locked the door while Lori clutched the wall in pain.

"What are those alarms?" Lori asked in between breathes. Ellie led her further into the room.

"Don't worry about it," she said soothingly. Carl looked around the room and his hands gripped his gun even tighter.

"What if it attracts them?" he panicked. Ellie tried to remain calm and ignored him. Her main focus now was Lori and the baby.

"Let's lay you down," she told Lori. She shook her head.

"No, the baby's comin'," she argued. Carl was panicking.

"W-we gotta go back. Hershel has to-"

"No. We can't risk being caught out there. You're gonna need to give birth to this baby here," Ellie argued. Lori nodded in agreement and started breathing heavily.

"What's going on? Can't she breathe?!" Carl asked.

"She's fine. C'mon let's get your pants off," she said and took Lori's pants off for her. Then she laid her down on the floor. She looked up at Carl. "You gonna need to help deliver your li'l brother or sister, you up for the job?" she asked. He nodded and crouched down beside Lori. "I need to see if you're fully dilated."

"You know how?" Carl asked. Ellie inspected Lori.

"Dad taught me, but trust me; it's my first time…I can't tell."

"I gotta push," Lori said. Ellie nodded and helped her up. Lori held onto a pipe and pushed with all her might. She hissed in pain.

"SOMEBODY!" she cried. "Okay, I'm okay."

"You're doin' great Lori. Just keep doin' it; you're body knows what it's doing, let it do all the work," Ellie assured her. Truth be told, she had no idea what she was doing. Lori took a deep breath, then pushed again. It didn't take long for Ellie to realize that something was wrong. "Lori, stop! Somethin's wrong!" she yelled and inspected her hand. It was dripping with Lori's blood. Lori screamed in pain. When she calmed down, Ellie laid her on the floor again.

"Mom, look at me. Keep your eyes open," Carl told her and grabbed her hand.

"We gotta get to back to dad," Ellie said. Now she started panicking.

"No, we won't make it," Lori breathed. Ellie sighed.

"Lori, I don't even think you're fully dilated. No amount of pushin' is gonna help," she panicked.

"I know what it means… and I'm not losin' my baby. You've gotta cut me open."

Ellie shook her head. "No."

"You don't have a choice," Lori protested. Carl got up.

"I'll go get help-" he said. Ellie grabbed his arm.

"NO!" Both Lori and Ellie yelled. He stopped and looked down at Lori.

"Carol's the one that practiced that, not me. I don't know how! I have no equipment, no antistatic-" Ellie argued.

"Carl has a knife," Lori cut her off. Ellie felt a warm tear roll down her cheek. She wiped it off before Carl noticed.

"You won't survive," her voice croaked.

"My baby has to survive. Please. For all of us. Please, Ellie!" Lori sobbed. Ellie shook her head again. Another tear rolled down her cheek. She didn't bother to wipe it off. "Please," Lori pleaded. "Lift up my shirt. See my old c-section scar?" Ellie saw it but shook her head.

"I-I can't."

"You can and you have to." She breathed then turned to Carl. "Carl, baby I don't want you to be scared, okay? This is what I want; this is right. Now, y-you take care of your daddy for me, alright? And you're little brother or sister. You take care of 'em."

"You don't have to do this," Carl cried. Tears ran down his face.

"You're gonna be fine," Lori assured him, "You are gonna beat this world, I know you will. You are smart, you are strong and you are so brave. And I love you."

"I love you, too." At this point, Ellie was in tears, too. She sat aside and watched the two say their final goodbyes.

"You gotta do what's right, baby. You promise me you'll always do what's right. It's so easy to do the wrong thing in this world. So, if it feels wrong, don't do it, alright? If it feels easy, don't do it. Don't let the world spoil you. You're so good. My sweet boy. The best thing I ever did. I love you!" she sobbed and pulled him into an embrace. Ellie wiped her face, but it was no use; the tears just kept on coming. Lori broke the hug and looked at Ellie. Carl sat up. "Ellie, when this is over, you have to do it. It can't be Rick," she told her. Ellie nodded. "Please, look after Carl and my baby. Look after yourself and Maggie. Daryl and Hershel. You've been so good to us. Thank you."

Ellie nodded. "I promise." Lori smiled and nodded, too.

"Okay. It's alright," Lori said to herself as Carl handed Ellie his knife. "Goodnight, baby boy."