KEAGAN'S POV:

"Keagan! Wake up!" said a whispered voice.

I opened my eyes to Daryl. He had a hard look on his face.

"RVs broken," he said shortly, hopping out of the truck's open door.

I wiped the last of my sleep from my eyes and blearily followed him over to the RV. I stumbled a little in my sleepy haze, but I still made it to the RV in one piece.

The RV's engine was letting off an awful lot of smoke. Dale announced the parts he needed and T-dog and Shane immediately took off to find any cars they could to scavenge the parts we would need. We all just kind of stood around, waiting for T-dog and Shane to come back so we could get back on the road and out of danger.

I wasn't sure about everyone else, but I felt a little exposed out in the open like this. Sure we were armed, but we were not prepared for a group of walkers like the ones back at the quarry. They had cleaned out most of our ammo and lots of our people. Sure they had brought back that big bag of guns, but even those gun's ammo was running low. That meant less people to protect us and less weapons to do it. I needed a gun. I knew how to use it, clean it, and respect it; I was from Texas. I should be allowed one. I would have to speak to Rick about that later.

I sighed and walked over to the grassy area on the side of the road and sat in the shade created by the trees.

It was too hot out here for our own good. If we ran out of deodorant anytime soon, walkers would be able to smell us from even farther away. Do walkers have body odor? I mean, I know they smell disgusting, like rot and decay, but do they sweat and get smelly from it?

I shook my head in bewilderment and idly wondered what the group would do if they knew the crazy things I think about when I have to much time on my hands.

Daryl came over. "What'chu shakin' yer head for?" he asked, lowering himself onto the grass next to me and laying back, stretched out on the ground.

"Thinking," I responded, pulling my knees up to my chest and wrapping my arms around my legs.

"'Bout?"

Did he have to question everything?

I tilted my head back to look at the clouds (or maybe cover a blush) and answered, "Whether or not walkers sweat."

He chuckled and I saw him shake his head a little out of the corner of my eye.

Then Jacqui came rushing out of the RV. Everyone looked to her, afraid the worst had happened to Jim.

"Its Jim." Oh. Great.

Rick ran into the RV, hand on his gun, just in case.

I closed my eyes and frowned. Poor Jim. He was a nice enough guy, he minded his own and was really helpful. He didn't deserve this.

"What do you think they're gonna do?" I asked, not meaning for it to really come out.

Daryl took a few seconds to answer. "I dunno." His answered was so unsure. It was weird to hear someone like Daryl admit that he didn't know something. Sure I knew there were things he didn't know, there were things none of us knew. But to hear him admit that… I was sure that anyone from his old life would have paid a pretty penny to hear that acknowledgement come from Daryl Dixon's mouth.

I didn't ponder that too long though. T-dog and Shane came rushing back, car parts galore bundled in their arms. Dale immediately set to fixing whatever was broken.

I pulled the hair tie out of my hair and shook my hair out, running my hands through it to get the knots out. I put the hair tie around my wrist and started playing with my hair the way my mom used to. My heart ached when I thought about my mom. I missed her and I wished she were here right now. At least she had died before the dead started eating the living.

Daryl lifted a hand and grabbed a strand of my hair, twirling it between his fingers. It was a little comforting, so I didn't stop him. He just continued watching the way my hair spun crazily between his fingers, looking completely at ease for the first time I had seen him (besides when he was asleep right next to me).

Rick came out of the RV looking desperate and a little disturbed. Like he was about to have to do something he never would have even thought about before.

Daryl sat straight up and I got to my feet, rushing over to the circle that was beginning to form.

"He cant take much more. He wants us to leave him," Rick said, taking his officer's cowboy hat off.

"Just leavin' him here? I don't know if I could live with that on my conscience, man." Something about Shane just got on my last nerve. I gritted my teeth to keep from yelling at him. I don't know what I would have yelled, but it would have involved lots of language unsuitable for Carl and Sophia.

I felt terrible for Jim. I couldn't imagine what he was going through. It must've been awful.

Within minutes, though, Jim had been carried out of the RV and propped up against a tree.

Rick leaned over him and tried to offer him a gun. But Jim shook his head, refusing vehemently. "You'll need it," he'd said.

When everyone had said their goodbyes, I walked forward. I grabbed his pale, thin hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

He gave me the ghost of a smile. Then his eyes flicked behind me, where Daryl was standing, ever-present crossbow in hand.

"You can change him." Jim muttered.

I frowned. What did that mean?

"He acts like he doesn't, but he cares about a lot of people here. He'll be there for everyone when they need him to be. You most of all. Be good to him."

I wanted to protest; he was making it sound like there was something romantic between Daryl and I. But he was dying and I didn't want my last conversation with him to be an argument. I just nodded and stood, walking back toward Daryl.

Daryl gave him one short nod and followed me back to the truck.

The RV was up and running and it was time to get off the side of the road.

I watched Jim fade into a small black dot as we sped away toward Atlanta.