Reunited Version 1
Daryl is back.
He's come back to them. To her.
She could only stare from her place behind Maggie as he stepped through the gates at Hilltop without his vest and crossbow. It was a strange sight to behold. There he was without pieces of himself, yet as he made his way toward her, he seemed to walk taller with purpose. Yes. He knew what he needed to get back to. He knew who he needed to return to.
"Daryl!" Maggie cried first and launched herself into his arms. He was very happy to see her and to know she was recovering and stronger than he last saw her. He held her and could only tell her how sorry he was and how glad he was to see her.
They pulled away from each other and he shifted on his feet, slowly starting to lose his nerve to greet the woman behind Maggie. His eyes shifted from his worn boots to her almond eyes.
The other woman noticed the change in the atmosphere and politely excused herself.
They stood there, finding anything to say to erase the feeling that this moment wasn't real.
"Hey." Sasha finally managed.
He still couldn't say anything. When he met her eyes, he saw just how much his absence affected her. She lost weight. The light in her eyes were gone. The glow in her skin was barely noticeable anymore. She stood before him broken and weak. His heart hurt for her.
He stepped forward to meet her where she stood and simply could not resist the urge to pull her into his arms and hold on tight. She slid her hands up his hips, his back, and curled her arms around his shoulders. She had not lost him forever like she previously thought. He survived the Saviors and he came back to her.
"Ah'm here." He whispered gruffly against the soft skin of her neck. "Ah'm here Sash."
She could only cry and hold onto him as she grieved for Abraham, Glenn, and the trauma of seeing their group poisoned by fear. Still, even her heavy tears were mixed with ones of relief. Daryl was here and alive with her. Bruises and all, he was here and he was in her arms.
"Ah'm still here witchu." He reached up to cup her face in his hands and wiped her tears away.
In this moment, they were more than best friends. They became what the other needed, and what the other fought for; she was his now, and he would never let her go. They were soul mates.
She pulled back and with tears still falling down her cheeks, she graced him with a genuine watery smile. "Welcome to Hilltop."
He nodded and kissed her forehead, and kept kissing her wherever he could. "Welcome indeed." He murmured against her skin.
They were something close to happy in that moment.