Chapter Fourteen

Daryl was still looking out the window, shoulder leaning against the wall, when Carol emerged from the bathroom, hair wrapped in a towel from her shower. "I was thinking," she said, coming to sit at the edge of the bed closest to the window. "Tomorrow, for lunch, we could have a picnic on the beach and do some swimming afterwards." She poked his leg with her toes. "You did bring a swimsuit, right?"

"Yeah," he answered. He hadn't thought they'd go to the ocean, but he knew that at least one of the hotels they'd stay at would have a pool.

"Awesome," she smiled. "I can't wait." She unwrapped her hair, then, and started to brush the damp strands. The scent of strawberries wafted Daryl's way and finally brought him from the window. That smell always lingered on Carol and sometimes, his truck would smell like her for days after a drive.

"Well, uh, I'm goin' to go shower." He needed to get out of there before he did something embarrassing. He'd have to learn how to keep himself under control, though. He couldn't run to the shower every time he became overwhelmed by Carol.

"All right." Carol continued to be focused on her task of brushing her hair, but for some reason there was a slight pink tinge to her cheeks that hadn't been there earlier.

When Daryl walked out of the bathroom, freshly showered and dressed in his pajamas of sweats and a t-shirt, he found Carol under the covers and curled towards the other bed, asleep. The day had been a long, exciting and exhausting one. Tiptoeing, Daryl sat on the other bed, slid under the covers and turned of the light.

Day one of their adventure was officially over.

"The seaweed is always greener

In somebody else's lake..."

Daryl was jolted awake when music started blaring from Carol's phone. "What the hell?" He muttered and watched as Carol groped around for the device.

"Under the sea, under the sea. Darling, it's better down where it's wet-"

"S'time is it?" With narrowed eyes, she glanced at the screen of her phone. "Eight-thirty."

"Too early," Daryl grumbled and flopped back on his pillow. Last night had been a late night for both of them and they deserved to sleep in a little longer.

"I know," she sighed. "But the free breakfast ends at nine. I thought we'd grab some food and then, go right back to bed."

Daryl smiled and flung off his blankets as Carol did the same. "I like the way you think."

"Figured you might." She nudged him with an elbow.

The pair didn't even bother with shoes as they made their way down to the first floor via the elevator. Carol's hair was unbrushed and ruly, while one side of Daryl's stuck to his face. They didn't care, especially as they got closer to breakfast, the more food they could smell. And coffee.

"What was with the song earlier?" Daryl asked as they stepped up to a counter that had several different food items laid out for them.

Carol shrugged. "It's from a movie I loved as a kid. I thought it was fitting since we're going to the ocean today."

He snorted. "Don't tell me you woke up to 'Take Me Out To The Ballgame' yesterday."

When Carol didn't say anything, he nudged her with his elbow. "Nerd," he teased.

"Well, what does that make you, since you're friends with one?"

"Uh, a nerd's best friend?" He shrugged and piled some sausages on his plate. "Nothing wrong with that." Carol rolled her eyes and took her full plate to an empty table in the corner. Daryl knew he hadn't made her mad, but brought her a cup of coffee with her favorite flavored creamer, anyway.

"Thanks." Carol took the cup gratefully and took a tentative sip. "Perfect."

"Course it is," Daryl replied, a little smugly. "I know how you like it."

"Oh." With her cup in hand, she leaned over the table, getting close to him. "Do you?"

An elderly woman sitting near them snorted in disapproval and Daryl's face flamed hot when he realized exactly what Carol had meant by what she said. He opened his mouth to say something, but she beat him to it. "That's what you get for calling me a nerd." She took a smug sip of her coffee while Daryl grumbled.

The elderly woman continued to shoot glares their way the whole time they ate.

When they returned to their room, it was a little past nine. Carol set her alarm for eleven and crawled back under the covers. Daryl did the same.

"We ain't goin' to wake up to the song again, are we?"

"Maybe..."

"And it also looks like we're goin' to be wakin' up just to eat again."

"Is there any other way to wake up?" Her voice was muffled as it was smashed into her pillow.

"Hell no."

They woke to a generic melody a few hours later.

"Waking up at eleven," Carol said as she stretched. "Much better." She slid from the bed and started to get ready. Passing Daryl's bed, with Daryl still huddled under the blankets on his stomach, she almost took a pinch at his ass, but instead ran a few fingers down the foot that was sticking out over the edge of the bed.

"I'm up," he mumbled.

"Yeah, you sure look like it."

Daryl flung the covers off, then and sat up. "You know, I could probably sleep for another half hour before getting ready and still beat you at getting dressed."

"Oh, hush. I'll be quick, then we can head down to the car. You can carry the cooler."

It took Carol fifteen minutes to get ready, and that was getting her swimsuit on and getting dressed, along with brushing her hair, teeth and putting a little makeup on. Daryl had just finished putting his shirt on when she walked from the bathroom.

"It's a tie," she said.

"This time."

On the way out the door, Daryl grabbed the cooler (a smaller one Carol had brought for occasions like this) and made their way to the elevator. Before they stepped outside, they put more ice in the cooler, knowing that the hot Georgia sun would melt half of it while it sat in the car.

When they reached the beach and Carol parked, Daryl was glad to see that there weren't many people out swimming or sunbathing. He supposed that it was because it was a weekday.

Carol placed his baseball cap on his head as they walked and put a hat on her own head, a floppy white one that looked good on her. "I couldn't fit an umbrella in the trunk, so this is all we have to block the sun until you put sunscreen on us."

"Me? Us?"

"Of course." She winked saucily. "I can't reach my back."

Daryl knew, right then, that without a shadow out of a doubt that Carol was trying to kill him.

Daryl was introduced to the ocean by getting a mouth full of salt water.

They had waded up to their waist and Daryl, trying to avoid staring at Carol in her emerald green bikini, hadn't seen the wave coming their way. Carol had turned her head to avoid the brunt of it, but Daryl had caught it all in the face and mouth.

It was like the saltiest thing he'd ever eaten...times ten.

Spluttering, he spat and wiped his mouth. Carol, who had seen the whole thing, was laughing uncontrollable and was bent at the waist. No longer distracted by all of her exposed skin, Daryl reached over and ducked Carol's whole head under the water.

She came back up spitting and coughing.

"Daryl Dixon!" She nearly screamed. "I am so going to kill you!"

After playing around, splashing and dunking one another, their rumbling stomachs told them it was time for lunch. Carol got to work making sandwiches while Daryl rolled out their towels to sit on.

"I should have filled yours with sand," Carol commented when she handed him a paper plate with chips and a sandwich. "For getting my hair wet."

"Did you really think you'd be able to go all day without getting it wet?" Daryl laughed and took a bite.

"Hmph. I guess not with you as a friend, anyway." She pouted and took a seat next to him. They ate in companionable silence.

Daryl reached over to grab a handful of chips when a feather-like touch on his back caused him to jump and tense. In all of the excitement of finally seeing the ocean, he had forgotten about his back. Fortunately, no one else had been around and Carol knew all about them.

"This one is new," she said softly and traced the circle shaped scar of a cigarette burn in his shoulder.

"Happened a few weeks ago," he mumbled. "Was eatin' at the table when he came in and..." The rest was self-explanatory.

Carol wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face into his shoulder. "I am so glad you're here and not there, Daryl. That asshole can't hurt you."

Daryl placed a hand over one of hers. The tears Carol had shed over his scars could fill buckets. They weren't pity tears. Never those. It just deeply hurt her that someone would hurt her best friend like that.

"Well, Merle is there now. If the old man tries anything on him, Merle will kick his ass." There was a bitter and shameful tone in his voice. Merle was always the strong one. Their dad could never hurt him, while Daryl was the whipping boy, who never fought back because he knew if he did, things would only get worse.

"Your brother should just make himself useful by doing it anyway, without getting provoked."

Daryl grunted in agreement and wiped the crumbs from his hands. "Uh, we goin' to get back in the water." The subject wasn't making him feel uncomfortable, but he didn't want to put a damper on their day.

"You know we have to wait two hours before swimming, right?"

"That's such bullshit and you know it."

"Really?" She asked in a tone that told Daryl that she had known it was bullshit. "Well, then..." She jumped to her feet and took off. "Race you!"

It was nearing sunset when they made their way to Carol's car, more than a little pink from the sun and exhausted. They ordered burgers and fries to go from some diner and took it to their room. Once there, they quickly changed into their pajamas and ate on Carol's bed as they watched some movie on the tv.

Daryl was engrossed in the film, some B level horror movie, when he felt a weight on his right arm. Looking down, he saw that Carol was fast asleep and it wasn't even nine yet.

However, if he was honest with himself, he was seconds away from passing out himself. It would have been so easy just to do it right there. To fall asleep with Carol pressed to his side, but he remembered Mr. Spencer's rule.

"Separate beds," he muttered, slowly getting up and heading to his own bed.

Totally know I was super cheesy for using "Under the Sea" in this fic but I don't care lol

Thanks for reading!