Chapter 10

He was the only one left inside the huge building. As they rode the high-tech elevator in a tense silence, Leah studied Dr. Edwin Jenner. He was dressed in sweatpants and carrying a military rifle, no doubt picked off from one of the dead outside. Daryl made a comment about it and Jenner confirmed Leah's suspicions about where the gun had been acquired. The doctor had greeted them somewhat kindly, but was mostly wary of the travelers and he seemed to have his thoughts elsewhere. Leah wondered how long he had been alone in this underground cave. She couldn't imagine the toll that would take on someone's emotional well-being.

Jenner had asked the group to submit to a blood test as the price of admission into the CDC. As Leah sat in the lecture hall waiting her turn, her thoughts flashed back to the last time she had a blood test. The circumstances of that blood test had been almost as dire as their circumstances now. Nervously, her foot bounced up and down as she waited.

Daryl was leaning against the wall and watching Leah as she waited for her turn with the doctor. She looked practically green. He wondered if she realized her whole body was shaking. Without really thinking, he stuck his boot-clad foot out to give her a light kick. Leah's eyes met his when she felt him tap her.

"Sorry," she whispered. "I just don't really like needles. Or blood. Or doctors for that matter really."

He leaned his rifle against the wall and shrugged, "Maybe the Doc'll give ya a lollipop afterwards if you're good."

Leah gave a snort and rolled her eyes. "I'd rather have a drink."

"That makes two of us," he crossed his arms over his chest and looked to where Jacqui was helping Andrea sit down. "Need me ta hold yer hand up there?"

"No!" She hissed loudly.

Daryl quirked his lips at her and moved down the low steps. "Suit yerself," he said over his shoulder while making his way over to Jenner for his turn with the needle.

/

"Leah, can you make cookies in that kitchen?" Sophia's eyes were wide as she asked her question.

"And then some, I bet! If Dr. Jenner is okay with that?" She looked at their host who raised his eyebrows in interest.

"Kitchen's all yours," he answered.

Sophia clapped her hands and Carl smiled wide. "Can we help?"

"Sure, after we eat we'll bake! I'll teach you some tricks of the trade." Leah gave Sophia a wink and took another sip of wine.

After learning that they hadn't eaten in days, Jenner had taken them into the kitchen and created a feast out of pasta and booze. It was a celebration. Everyone was happy and Leah was slightly buzzed from the wine. It seemed as though everyone around the table was drinking with the intent of getting hammered, but Leah wasn't sold on the idea. She was enjoying her slight buzz just fine and covered the top of her wine glass when Daryl slyly tried to refill it.

For the first time in practically months, everyone was smiling. Even Andrea, who hadn't smiled since Amy's death, cracked a grin over her glass of wine. Thanks to Jenner's hospitality they felt safe. Walking around a corner wasn't terrifying anymore as there were no surprises inside the building. They could sleep in real beds tonight and they even had access to hot water. There was a flicker of hope. It was heavenly. Almost perfect, and still felt too good to be true. In the back of her mind, she was waiting for the catch.

After eating, Shane broke the spell by bringing them back to reality with challenging questions about the obvious lack of other CDC staff. Jenner calmly explained that many people had left and when he talked about the suicides, both Jacqui and Leah raised their glass to their lips and downed more wine. The look on the doctor's face held no hope.

Leah felt her heart sink.

The mood over the group quickly changed from joyful to apprehensive as they left dinner and retreated to the showers. Leah tried to push the thoughts away as she stood under the stream of hot water and instead concentrate on the next step. Putting one foot in front of the other. If she let the big picture overwhelm her, she might crumble. The reality was hitting of the new world was hitting her hard tonight.

She hadn't had the luxury of a mirror for weeks and the reflection that stared back at her was disturbing. What once used to be a full and shiny head of dark waves was now greasy and lack luster. There were a few gray hairs popping up around her temples, which wasn't surprising. Leah felt like she had aged 10 years over the past month.

She looked exhausted. Dark circles had settled permanently under her eyes and her face was gaunt. Her round face had always kept her looking younger than her 31 years, but now that was gone and her cheeks were looking oddly sunken in.

Leah rummaged through her bag and reached to the bottom, pulling out a case that she hadn't touched in over a month. Inside was the meager supply of makeup that she had packed for the road trip. After getting clean, the idea of a little foundation and mascara seemed heavenly, even if it was a little unnecessary. She was beyond tired of feeling grimy and disgusting and was willing to do anything to feel just a bit better.

After applying a very little amount of the makeup, Leah went to bury the case back in the bottom of her bag. As she did, her hands hit something hard and cold. Gingerly, she pulled out the gun that Daryl had shoved into her hands just a few short nights ago. It seemed like ages ago that the walkers had chased her into the woods and destroyed their camp. She felt the weight of the weapon in her hand as she stared down at it.

Her mind drifted to Daryl. Rugged. Handsome. Protector. Sexy….

What was wrong with her? She was supposed to be repulsed by him. Yet, there was something about Daryl that felt right. Or was it the 2 glasses of wine that she had downed at dinner? No, no. She was no longer repulsed when she was sober either.

Damn. She needed to get a grip.

The kids were probably waiting for her in the kitchen anyway. They would make a great distraction. Leah put the gun back in her bag, making a mental note to give it back to Daryl later, and wound her way back through the hall and into the kitchen. It was empty for the moment, but she knew that soon it would be filled with kids, laughter and the whir of a mixer.

She took a long, hard glance around the industrial kitchen. Powdered eggs and milk were not exactly her ingredients of choice, but Leah made do and gathered up supplies while she waited for the kids.

Footsteps sounded in the dining area and made their way towards her, she looked up expecting Carl and Sophia. Or even Glenn. But instead saw the person she least expected.

Daryl strode into the kitchen wordlessly and hopped up on one of the stainless steel countertops. He looked at her and took a casual sip from a bottle of whiskey.

"You wanna help, Dixon? Or are you just planning on sitting there?"

He snorted and took another drag from the bottle. "Don't bake."

"Suit yourself," she turned in search of a large mixing bowl.

"You really gonna teach these kids how to bake?"

"Sure, why not? I started learning when I was their age."

"Ain't really much of a survival skill."

Leah just shrugged, not caring to tell him why she enjoyed being around the kids so much. It was healing for her and gave her a sense of purpose, but Daryl didn't need to know that.

Daryl hopped off the counter, poured her a shot of whiskey from his bottle and set it down in front of her.

"Uh no. I'm still working on this," Leah held up her third glass of wine for him to see.

"C'mon. We're celebrating tonight. Drink the good stuff." He was moving closer to her now and Leah could smell the whiskey on his breath. It was oddly comforting.

Leah didn't realize that Daryl was also taking stock of how she smelled. He wasn't used to women not smelling like cigarettes and cheap perfume. Leah possessed a scent all her own. Clean and fresh, with just a hint of vanilla. Or maybe that was just the cookie ingredients. He couldn't be sure, but didn't care. She smelled amazing.

She turned to face him. "That stuff is gross."

He pushed the glass closer to her, slightly annoyed. "Whu? Bet ya just can't hold your liquor."

She shook her head, feeling the sensation from the wine creeping into her movements. "No, thanks. That's redneck juice. I'll stick to the wine," her words came out in one breathy, slow sentence. His close proximity was making her entirely too excited. Her heart beat so fast, that she wondered if Daryl could hear it. The hair on her arms stood at attention and butterflies danced in her stomach.

The man in front her steadied himself by leaning one hip against the counter, "Yer missing out. This is good shit." He felt it too, the heightened awareness of being so close to her. Although he wasn't one to let people into his personal space, Daryl couldn't stop the feeling of wanting to surround himself with Leah. The aching his body was experiencing was more than just physical desire. It held something more. Damn if he knew what it was. He couldn't name it, he was just responding to it.

"I guess. If you like your good shit to taste like piss," she leaned in closer while taking another sip of her own glass. "Besides, drinking out of this fancy glass makes me look cute."

"Whiskey's more manly," Daryl grinned and met her in the middle, his head ducking down closer towards Leah's. They were touching now, just barely, but enough to feel the heat radiating off the other's skin. When Leah took a breath, her breasts barely grazed Daryl's chest. It sent a waved of pleasure through his body.

"Really, I didn't realize you wanted me to be more manly." Leah let the tip of her tongue run over her lip, unconsciously.

It was that tiny movement, which lasted less than a half a second, that made Daryl want to duck his head closer to her and just go for it. Instead, he picked up the shot glass and held it in front of her face. "Didn't say that. Just try it."

Leah sighed and grabbed the glass out of his hand, their fingers brushing and put the glass to her lips. "Happy now?" she asked after taking a small sip that made her grimace.

"Nuh uh. Keep going, girly."

"I'm not getting drunk," she said quietly, face close to his. "What kind of role model would that make me? Drunken Leah cooks with kids? No, thanks."

"That's too bad," he wanted to do it, just duck down another few inches and meet her pink lips.

The sound of laughter drifted in from the dining room and the pair quickly put distance between them. Daryl went back to his perch on the counter, while Leah tried to look busy by re-arranging the ingredients on the counter.

"We're ready!" Carl announced as he skipped into the kitchen with Sophia.

Leah ignored the pounding of her chest and smiled at the pure joy on their faces. It was the first time either of them had been completely uninhibited. "Well, c'mon then! I'm ready for you guys!"

Twenty minutes later, the smell of melting chocolate and pure decadence brought the rest of the survivors to the kitchen in droves. As they ate again and chatted, Leah noticed that Daryl had grabbed his own cookies and quietly disappeared from the festivities. She downed her cookie and the last of the wine. That bastard didn't even say thank you.