This chapter was supposed to be much longer but I'm posting this at a McDonalds because where I will be at for the weekend doesn't have wifi and I really wanted to get this out now, so you all wouldn't have to wait until Monday for an update. I really really like this chapter and I hope you all think the same! :)

Chapter Ten

September 4th 1982

Carol wasn't in her backyard waiting for him like she usually did every Saturday since they had started school two weeks ago. Daryl still went to the local elementary school and Carol was now at the middle school, so they were hardly able to see each other during the week anymore. He'd never admit it aloud, but Daryl missed hanging out with his best friend everyday like they had in the summer. Why couldn't he be just like Merle and quit school? Because Carol would be still in school, that's why and she'd be disappointed if he'd quit. Daryl never wanted Carol to ever be disappointed in him.

Walking over to Carol's swing set, Daryl sat down on one of the swings and used his foot to gently swing him. Hopefully, Carol would come out soon. It wasn't like they had anything planned for the day, he just felt a tad bit awkward sitting by himself in her yard. There were no cars in the driveway, which meant Carol's parents weren't home, so they wouldn't know he was there. Daryl wondered if she had ever told her parents about him. How would they react of they knew their daughter was playing with a Dixon? Probably forbid her from seeing him again. There wasn't much love for the Dixons around there. He had his daddy and pa to thank for that.

When Carol still hadn't appeared after several minutes, Daryl decided that he'd knock on the door. Maybe she was still sleeping. It was well after noon, but Daryl knew that Carol liked to sleep in whenever she could. More often than not, they wouldn't hang out until after eleven during the summer. Daryl was an early riser and would always wait for Carol by their tree.

A few minutes after he knocked, the door was flung open and Carol stood there with a large smile on her pretty face. "Happy birthday, Daryl!" She exclaimed.
Daryl was shocked. He had completely forgotten that he had told her about when his birthday was and he never thought she'd actually remember it. No one in his family, not even his mother, had remembered his date of birth.

"Come in," Carol stepped to the side and motioned for him to step into the house. When he hesitated, she sighed, wrapped a hand around his, and tugged him in. Daryl stumbled with the unexpectedness of it and Carol giggled. "Finally, got you inside." She let go.

"Yeah," he mumbled. "Against my will."

"I guess you don't want your present, then." Carol said flippantly and crossed her arms over her chest.

Daryl's head snapped up. Carol had gotten him a present. "What?"

"You heard me. Now, take off your boots and follow me." Daryl quickly did as he was told and was soon following Carol into what looked to be her kitchen.

Something smelled good and his mouth began to water. All he had for breakfast that morning had been a stale piece of toast and now, his stomach was starting to protest its emptiness.

"Smells good," he said and stood in the doorway. Carol had gone to the stove and began scooping something on to two plates.

"I made grilled cheese." She turned with a plate in each hand. "Is that okay? I mean, it is your birthday lunch, after all."

"'S'fine." It was more than fine, actually.

"Good," she gave him another bright smile and set one of the plates down. Daryl quickly took the seat and Carol sat across from him. He didn't waste any time digging into his meal. That was when he found out how much he loved grilled cheeses.

"Do you like them?" Carol had only taken two bites of her sandwich and he was almost done with his.

"Yeah. They're really good. Thanks."

Carol smiled triumphantly and continued to eat her lunch. When Daryl was finished with his meal, he sat and looked over at his friend. Was this all a dream? Was he still asleep on his shitty mattress at home? Because everything Carol had done for him today had been something no one else had ever done. How had he gotten so lucky to have met someone like her? Nothing good had happened to him in all of his ten years, except for her. Instead of cursing the day he got lost in the woods, Daryl thanked God, or whoever was in charge, for it.

Crumbs were all that was left on their plates when Carol stood up and gathered the dishes. "Are you ready for your cake?"

"Cake?" Daryl asked, trying to remember the last time he had ever had cake. Probably never.

"Yeah, silly," Carol giggled. "Are you ready?"

"Uh, yeah."

Carol did a little dance and moved to the corner of the kitchen. She stood there for a couple minutes and fiddled with something. Daryl waited patiently, which was actually proving to be difficult, for Carol to come back with the cake.

When she turned, Daryl was surprised to ser face illuminated by candlelight. The small, circular, slightly lopsided cake in her hands had ten glowing candles stuck in it. Carol moved slowly to the table and cautiously placed the cake down in front of him, all the while singing 'Happy Birthday' to him. Daryl flushed red and kept his eyes on the flickering flames in front of him.

"Okay," Carol said after she finished her song. "Blow them out and make a wish."

Daryl thought for a moment, closed his eyes and with one breath, blew out all ten of the candles.

"Now," Carol clapped her hands. "Before we dig in, how about you open your present?"

There was no way Daryl was going to object to that and he watched Carol leave the kitchen to return a few minutes later with a small, wrapped package in her hands. The wrapping paper was covered in multi colored balloons and 'Happy Birthday's all over it. He wanted to save the paper, so he could have something to always remember this day, but he knew if he were to bring it home it would be ruined.

"Open it already!" Carol said with an impatient huff and took the seat next to him. Daryl shot her an annoyed look and moved to rip the paper to reveal his gift.

"A book?" He asked, lifting the object in his hands and read the title. Adventure of Tom Sawyer.

Carol's face fell. "If you don't like it, I can take it back and get you something else. I just say it and thought of you. I'm-" Daryl covered her hand with his.

"Shut up," he said with a grin. "I like it." His school had its own library, but he was always too chicken shit to actually check out something. Now, he had a book of his own. Opening it, Daryl smiled at the slight resistance the flap had at being open for the first time.

"Okay, good," Carol said with relief. "I've read it before, so I think you'll like it."

"I think I will, too." Daryl flipped through the pages and Carol watched him.

"Okay," she stood up. "Time for cake!"

A couple hours later, Daryl decided that it was time to head home. Carol's parents would be home, soon, and he didn't want them to see him. After putting his boots on, he turned towards his friend and gave her a hug. It was the first hug he had ever given anyone and Carol must have known this because she gave a little squeak of surprise when he wrapped his arms around her. She hugged him back.

"Thank you," he said. "This was the best birthday I've ever had."

"You're welcome, Daryl. Just remember, though, that you'll have to do the same when it's my birthday." She winked.

"Deal."

"Well, have a goodnight and I'll see you later."

"Okay." Daryl left Carol's house with a smile plastered on his face.

Less than three weeks later, he was in the truck with Merle driving away from the town he and Carol lived in and with a sinking heart, he realized that his wish was never going to come true, now.

~C-D~

Everyone had gone their separate ways to various vehicles to call it a night except for Daryl and Carol. Daryl sat on the hood of the truck nearest the rail and Carol was still standing in the exact same spot she had been in when they returned without Sophia. Daryl could barely keep his eyes open and he knew that Carol had to be just as exhausted as him, especially with everything that had happened today.

"Carol, come here," he said, his voice sounding hoarse with misuse. Carol looked over her shoulder and in the moonlight, he could see them shining with unshed tears. Not having Sophia there was really tearing her up inside and the guilt festering inside Daryl grew.

"What is it, Daryl?" Carol asked when she stopped to stand in front of him. Thoughts of his guilt were forgotten, for now, and he felt his mouth go dry when he saw how beautiful Carol looked in the moonlight. The light was making her pale skin glow and her eyes looked silver. Kissing her was the only thing he could think of doing right now, but knew that probably wouldn't be a good thing. Not until Sophia was found.

"Y-You need to get some rest," Daryl finally managed to choke out. "I can still keep watch, if you want." Truth was, he was dead on his feet but he would keep a vigilant eye on the woods if Carol wanted to sleep.

"I can't," Carol sighed. "Not even if I wanted, too. My mind is going a million miles an hour."

"Well, at least, hop up here and get off your feet." Daryl patted the metal of the hood.

"All right." Carol braced herself on the hood and hefted herself up. Daryl wrapped a hand gently around her bicep for support and soon, she was sitting close to him. So close that their shoulders brushed and he was reminding of the night before at the nursing home. It seemed like so long ago, now, when really it been barely twenty-four hours.

"You should really try to get some rest, though. Tomorrow is goin' to be a long day." Daryl nudged her gently with his shoulder.

"I need something to get my mind of...Sophia. Like a book or something." Carol's mouth tipped up in a slight smile. "There's no way I'm going to read the God awful books Dale has, though. So, it looks like I'm going to be up for awhile."

An idea came to Daryl's mind and he hopped off the truck, leaving his crossbow beside Carol. "I'll be right back, all right?" Carol nodded and watched him leave with wide eyes.

Daryl used to the moonlight to pick his way through the tangle of vehicles that led to where his truck was still parked. Luckily, no one had decided to use the vehicle as a place to sleep and he opened to the door to grab his pack from the back. Climbing into the truck, he reached for the glove department and grabbed the small flashlight he kept there.

When he walked back to Carol, he dug around in his back and handed something to her. "Here," he said. "Maybe readin' this will help you get some sleep."

Carol took the book and squinted in the moonlight to try to read the title. Daryl clicked the flashlight on and handed it to her. "Adventures of Tom Sawyer?" She smiled. "I haven't read this in forever." She looked back at him, eyes shining with tears again, but Daryl suspected that they were of the happy kind. "Thank you, Daryl."

Daryl hopped back next to her and chewed his thumbnail. "No problem."

~C-D~

Carol side-eyed the man who was laid back on the windshield next to her with his hands behind his head and eyes on the sky above them. This man had showed her more kindness than her worthless husband hand in the fourteen years they had been married and the thing was...he didn't have to be. Daryl Dixon didn't owe her a thing.

When his gaze shifted to her, she quickly went back to the book in her hands. The tattered, well-read book that sparked something in her mind. Carol knew she had read the book before but she couldn't explain the familiarity she felt with this particular copy. It was like she had held it before and she knew that couldn't be true because this was the first time she had ever seen it before. Right?

"Is it helpin'?" Daryl's voice startled her.

"W-What?"

"The readin'. Is it gettin' your mind off..." He trailed off, probably not wanting to bring up Sophia.

Carol knew that nothing would ever get her lost daughter completely off her mind but reading about Tom Sawyer was helping and she felt her eyes start to droop silently. "Yeah," she answered. "It is."

"Good." Daryl looked back up at the sky. "And when you're ready to sleep, go ahead. I'll keep watch."

"Okay," Carol closed the book and slid forward enough so that she was leaning against the windshield, as well. "This won't break with both of us on it, right?" She turned her head to look at him.

He looked back at her with a smirk. "It shouldn't. Just don't move around too much, though." The flashlight, which she had set beside her after turning it off, rolled off the hood and crashed to the pavement below. Carol winced at the sound but didn't make a move to get it. Neither did Daryl.

"Sorry," she whispered and made sure that his book was secure in its spot underneath her leg.

"'s all right."

They fell into a comfortable silence, but Carol was determined to break it. At least, for a few more minutes. "Can I keep your book until I finish it?" Reading the book was making her think of her childhood and she enjoyed it.

"Course. Keep it as long as you like. Probably read it at least five times since the world went to shit, anyways."

"Wow, that many times, already? Most have have been pretty bored, huh?" She flipped lightly through the pages. "Maybe Sophia can read it when we find her." Carol made sure to say when because in her heart she knew that if anyone could find her little girl it was the man beside her. Maybe after she finished the book, Carol would figure out why it seemed familiar.

Curling on her side, she settled down to sleep, when something was practically shoved in her face. "Here." Daryl was handing him his pack. "It only has some of my clothes in so it should make a good pillow."

She took it with a smile. "Thank you." She placed it underneath her head and closed her eyes. "Goodnight, Daryl."

"Night, Carol."

First of all, I want to apologize if there is any editing mistakes. I didn't have the time to go over it like I wanted to. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this and thank you for taking the time to read! I, also, hope that you all have a wonderful weekend. The weather is going to be nice here, so I know I will! :)