Hello, and here I am with a new chapter. It might be bit boring because there isn't too much action or slashing going on and it's more of a filler, but it needs to be told so here it is. Subtle Connaryl-ing, some Darphy secret bromancing, a little future something for Murph, and further Connor question-marking. It's also all build up for some sweet Connaryl in the next chapter as well and I'm looking forward to that, so here we go.
Absolution
Chapter 36 - Brooks
A couple of days later
Murphy just sat and stared, nose wrinkled, frowning, watching Daryl gnaw at the meat. The two men were sitting across from each other around the little campfire they had made in order to cook their food, although one couldn't really call it food anyway. He'd felt like throwing up for a couple of days now, simply because he was so hungry, but now that feeling was only getting amplified by the way Daryl was eating his small ration. Murphy just wrinkled his nose even more, feeling disgusted.
Daryl was smacking his lips with each bite and chew, his face was a complete mess, all oily and dirty from the meat, with a couple of half-chewed bits sticking between his teeth, hanging from his beard. It certainly was a very unflattering image, but for some reason, Murphy couldn't help but stare, watch.
And Daryl kept gobbling it down.
Murphy eventually turned his head a little to eye Connor curiously, wondering how the fuck his twin had managed to grow to like the guy so much that he was actually willing to freaking kiss him, hug him, love him or whatever.
Yikes.
Connor didn't seem to care about his friend's manners though, in fact, he wasn't even paying attention to him because he was busy figuring shit out again, with his map and scribblings and all the stuff he wrote down ever since they had lost Woodbury. "I'd say we should go further south-west" Connor eventually said, leaning forward a bit and then raising his head to look at both Daryl and Murphy. "We've covered Atlanta, Peachtree, Sharpsburg, Griffin and Greenville. Maybe we should check out the area around Macon. I mean ye've already been ta Fort Valley and found lotsa useful stuff. Maybe there's more supplies down there."
Daryl was looking at Connor, but kept eating. Murphy rubbed his mouth and chin a little as he tried to read what was on the map, although it was hard both because of his troubles with reading and the fact that his sight wasn't exactly best. But he still tried it, frowning.
"Why does it have ta be south? Why does it even have ta be Georgia? Maybe we should just go double back up North. Maybe we should check out Canada. Less dense population, more forest and 's colder. Cold slows walkers down, and most looter fucks don' bother goin up there cos they don't wanna freeze their asses off…"
"We ain't going north cos our people are 'round here, emo kid. And we're gonna find them" Daryl growled and stared at Murphy, who narrowed his eyes right back at him. "We can't exactly travel cross half the continent these days, Murph. Don't be ridiculous. We gotta stay smart and realistic 'bout everything. Safe our strength and resources. Maybe we should…" Connor joined in.
"We did it before, didn' we? We travelled all the way down here from Massachusetts. You did and I did and here we are" Murphy immediately argued, but Connor huffed and waved it off.
"That was during the early days of the outbreak when we still had enough cars 'n fuel. 'n now look at it. 's all going downhill. And even if we do find a car, I'd not exactly waste it on maybe a week's worth of driving. And we're not going ta freakin Canada when winter's so close by. We gotta stop wasting our resources now or we're gonna fuckin starve ta death. "
As if to stress this, a loud grumbling noise emerged from Connor's stomach, reminding them exactly why not being smart about anything could get them killed way sooner than they wanted. Daryl chewed a little slower and looked at his friend, swallowing. He then quickly looked down at the small remnants that were left of the snake meat he'd been eating, chewing even slower, until he handed it over with his one hand while he used the other to clean it on his dirty jeans.
"Here. 'm full anyways" he lied, but Connor shook his head angrily and waved that off as well.
"Ye didn't get anything the last two days, so fuck it. Ye know the fuckin rules about taking turns…" Connor growled, rubbing his belly a little as he continued to study his map. Daryl tried to get rid of a piece of meat that was stuck between his teeth by using his tongue as leverage, still watching Connor cautiously, a bit worried. He then frowned and took the rest of the meat back to eat it, because it was well true that he hadn't had anything in two days and was just as hungry.
It was still rather early in the morning so he really hoped he could catch something more than just a snake today, or find at least something so Connor didn't have to go hungry for too long. They had set up that silent rule of taking turns eating, and evened each other out fairly well with their little protective habits. What Connor refused to eat to keep Murphy well fed he did get from Daryl because he didn't want to see his friend hungry, and what Daryl lacked he actually got back from Murphy because he was all about evenly split meals and sharing. But even with that kind of system they couldn't exactly deny the fact that it wouldn't keep working for too long if they didn't come up with a proper plan or proper destination or new home soon.
"Maybe we should stop relying on redneck Joe's huntin skills then and get outta the woods and check out te towns again. They can't just all be wiped clean. It can't be that hard ta find a fuckin can of peaches or shit like that" Murphy muttered, turning his head a little to let his gaze wander across the surrounding woods.
"Brooks is nat too far, actually" Connor muttered, scratching his chin a little as well. "I mean, if we are where I think we are."
Daryl threw the bones of his meal into the fire and shifted, so he could move over to Connor and grab his map to yank it out of his hand.
He turned it around twice and then licked his dirty fingers, trying to get rid of the rest of his food, and then pointed at the map.
"Hmhm. We're 'round here somewhere. But we've already been close t'Brooks during one of our supply runs."
Connor leaned in a little, moving closer to Daryl as well, enjoying his near and warmth. It was a subtle move really, but Murphy saw it right away and rolled his eyes a little, shaking his head, looking down to grab a stick and start fumbling with the bone Daryl had thrown into the fire.
"Did ye check it out then?" Connor asked, looking at the map.
"Nah, we wanted to, but never got the chance."
"Well, looks like this might be worth a shot then. Murph's right. Ye always find something. There's so many towns and villages and farmhouses around here, they just can't all be wiped clean."
He gave Daryl a quick side glance, trying to smirk a bit although he was tired, hungry and cold. Daryl looked back at him, the both of them thinking the same – that they really wanted to share some calm early morning intimacy, but since Murphy was sitting right opposite them they of course decided to not do anything like that at all. Connor bit his lip instead and looked back at the map.
"Maybe Rick'n the others thought the same" he said to Daryl, to stay on topic, although he had stopped believing in it days ago. If he was honest the whole 'trying to find the others' task was getting rather tiresome to him, no matter how cruel it sounded, looking for decent shelter and food was actually way more important to him right now. But he didn't want to say that out loud because he could see and feel the change in Daryl, the one that had been there ever since they had found each other.
He knew that the sheer impossibility of finding each other again although he'd been captured and injured had had a major impact on Daryl's optimism, like he'd finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel and just wanted to do something good. As if a tiny part inside of him was still about Sophia and trying to set that right now, by finding the others. Daryl seemed calmer, gentler, and happier now, the optimism keeping him right on track. Connor didn't want to destroy that now, so just like Daryl was constantly trying to do him good by giving him food, he was now constantly trying to do him good by letting him keep that optimism.
Daryl let out a little sigh and shrugged, maybe a bit pissed about the fact that he couldn't be intimate and loving with Connor because Murphy was there , although he really liked the kid by now.
"All right, whatever. But if we don't find shit by noon, 'm gonna head back into the woods and try to shoot us something bigger this time" he just said and moved away again. He got up to get his stuff ready, and Murphy copied his actions by getting up and grabbing his own things as well.
Connor let out a little sigh as well and stared at the campfire that Murphy was trying to kill by putting dirt on it, quickly getting lost in worrying thoughts again. He was really starting to wonder if this was all there was to it now. Camping, leaving, looking for food each day, feeling hungrier each day. That, and feeling colder, too, because fall was coming with the nights getting colder and more uncomfortable.
He remembered that he'd been all about his trigger happy killing madness with his big speech about normal white-picket fence life not being right for them just a couple of days ago. How they were supposed to be out here and survive and kill walkers and bad guys each day because it was so much realer. But now that they actually were out here for a couple of days, he was certainly starting to freaking miss Woodbury, the warm, comfortable beds and large stock of food and Rick's stupid gardening.
His stomach growled once more just thinking about that.
Connor shook his head angrily and got up as well to help his friend and brother, once again wincing at the stabbing pain he felt in his torso and lungs because even now, all his bruises and cuts from the kidnapping and the flu were healing awfully slowly.
It was really freaking nice to see that this small town was pretty much abandoned. Just like any other town that hadn't been occupied in months maybe even for more than a year, the undead had left the settlement ages ago. Driven out by the lack of food, into the woods or good knows where, because just like living people they still felt the constant subconscious urge to move, to change their location, to go look for food if it wasn't to be found here. It was nice because it meant less fighting the undead, more saving their energy they really needed now because of the lack of food.
Maybe it was creepy, just like always, because well, the town happened to be another ghost town, but they were actually getting more and more used to that. The silence. The decay. The howling of the wind inside empty houses and stores. Connor even wondered if he'd ever really be able to remember their old life again, what the lively streets of Boston had looked like, felt like, with living people all around them, the noise of busy streets and car horns and jumbo jets and street music.
There was an echo inside his head, but it was just that, an old echo, ringing in the back of his mind, sounding feeling and looking like it was just part of a movie, not the real world. No. He couldn't really remember it anymore.
They walked down main street but on the sidewalk, close to the buildings, so they weren't exactly that much in plain sight because walkers were the least of their problems right now. Part of Connor even kind of wanted some looters or gang bastards to try and shoot them up, start a fight, just so it wasn't so freaking boring and depressing. Killing would certainly take the edge of, maybe they could even get some new ammo this way, because they'd run out of that pretty much two days after the Woodbury incident, unable to find any new clips.
This was another reason why it was so hard to hunt, all they had was Daryl's crossbow with his handmade arrows because he had lost his proper sports arrows as well, lost them to walkers or animals because of them breaking in two. And his handmade arrows were, although good and impressive, still not exactly perfect, causing Daryl to miss occasionally, missing possible food. So they didn't just need some food, they also needed some decent hunting goods, maybe some new weapons, like a rifle or god knows what, things looters and bad guys usually had with them.
Connor's stomach growled once again, sounding dangerously loud, almost like it could echo throughout the entire abandoned town.
An old newspaper was flying across main street, rattling in the wind, other than that, there was nothing. Daryl had slowed down to shoot his friend a warning glare, although he knew it wasn't even like Connor had done it on purpose. He then quickly got back to his scanning the surrounding small houses and shops like a hawk, looking for any sort of movement.
Murphy was lazily following them, and although he was on the lookout as well, he was already getting impatient. Both Daryl and Connor wanted to walk down main street in its entirety at first before checking out any of the buildings, to make sure there were no surprises before they got to looting, but Murphy already started checking out the display windows anyway.
Most of the stores had been looted of course, with their furniture scattered across the floor, with glass splinters and trash everywhere. Most of the good stuff had been taken and the interiors looked pretty much empty, which frustrated the younger MacManus even more, but he still kept looking, still kept searching, his stomach clenching once again.
"I feel like some guy in Once upon a time in the west, man" Connor said after a while, when they had almost reached the end of main street and it looked more and more like they were indeed alone in this ghost town. "Only thing missing is some loose hay bale and a buncha horses…"he said and then started humming the famous theme tune, making Daryl roll his eyes a bit, but then the hunter soon started smirking. He loved to hate his friend's stupid movie geekiness.
"Shame ye lost te poncho I gave ye. If we do find Rick'n the others again, we gotta steal his Python and Carl's hat and do some serious Western-ing 'round here.
And I so get ta be Charlie Bronson. Ye get ta be te chick, Darylena."
"Fuck you."
Daryl really wanted to say something that would hit home way below his friend's belt, how he truly wondered who the chick was in their relationship and when they were fucking, but decided not to do that, only smirking to himself instead. Murphy snorted behind them, and for a moment Daryl thought he'd read his mind, but Murphy was actually talking to Connor.
"Ye've lost it now, haven'tche."
"'m just saying. Maybe we should go further south instead. Texas, baby. Some of those motherfuckers must've survived this craziness, right?
All wild wild west and guns."
Daryl snorted as well.
"Right, 'n why not plan a trip to freakin Disneyland while yah at it, leprechaun. Focus."
Connor chuckled a little, as he tried to picture a zombified Mickey mouse and Disney princess.
"Maybe. 'm pretty sure ye'd make a pretty princess down…"
A loud scream suddenly startled all three of them, making them turn around, grabbing their weapons tighter.
"NO…NO NO DON'T TOUCH HER YOU….OW! AHH LET ME GO YOU…."
There was the crashing of glass and other furniture, and the screams were undoubtedly coming from a woman.
"NOO! LET ME GO! DON'T YOU DARE…"
Before anyone could even really register what was going on, Murphy suddenly started running, crossing a lawn, running towards the house the screaming was coming from. Connor eyes widened in surprise and horror. "MURPH! ARE YE…." he whisper-shouted, not willing to let whoever was screaming and fighting know that they were here as well, but desperate to get his twin to stop running away from them. Connor immediately ran after him, getting closer and closer to the house and screaming that was getting louder and more bone-chilling by the second. Even worse.
There was a child crying along with her now.
Fuck fuck fuck.
And Murphy, his stupid whirlwind of a brother was running right at the house, storming inside. Fair enough, that's what they'd been doing back in the old days. Take attackers by surprise by storming right inside and crashing their parties. But this right here, this was nothing like that anymore. Not when they were just three people, not when they didn't know the house's layout or how many people were in there.
Even worse, Connor already thought about the worst case scenario, that this was a trap, that this were people trying to lure them inside to ambush them, but it wasn't like he could do much to stop it anyway, because he was too close to the house now to really speak up, because this would most certainly give away their location. So he tried to run as fast as possible, trying to catch up with his twin to tackle him down and stop him from going in there and possibly run right into an ambush or an attacker with a gun, but no matter how fast he ran, Murphy was faster.
It was almost freaky how fast his sibling really could sprint, like he'd been working out and practicing a whole lot more than what he'd done before the apocalypse. It also didn't exactly help that Connor was aching from just this little run, because of his bruises and flu recovery, but he kept going, running and running, even when Murphy was already inside the house.
The loud screaming from both the woman and the child as well as the fighting noises, the falling of furniture and other things, was getting more and more violent. It seemed to come from the living room or whatever kind of room it was, and when Connor finally did storm inside the house and found himself inside the hallway he could already see his sibling standing there in a door, the sunlight from the room he was looking at illuminating his serious, deadly face.
Murphy had drawn the bowie knife he'd gotten from Daryl, holding it ready to throw, threatening whoever was inside the room, whoever was trying to do something to the screaming woman and her child. For just a moment Murphy's eyes widened and panic rushed over Connor, his crazed and fearful mind already playing tricks on him. He imagined the attacker standing there with a gun that was now pointed at his sibling, which had caused Murphy to widen his eyes like that.
Connor immediately scanned the hallway in horror, his mind actually running, adrenaline pumping through his veins, making him work out everything faster, almost subconsciously. He saw the other door around the corner. A door that just had to lead to the same room, right next to the stairs there. He tried to be as quiet but fast as possible, grabbing his thick stick he'd taken from their campsite inside the woods, his improvised weapon until he found a decent one. He had one last scared and furious look at Murphy who was just standing there in the door, staring at the attacker with deadly eyes.
"Drop te fuckin knife and let her go" the younger MacManus snarled, trying to engage the attacker in a conversation, not even realizing that his brother was trying to reach out for him in his mind, trying to tell him to cut the shit out and not put himself in the line of fire. Murphy didn't do anything but stand his ground, trying to help this stranger woman they'd heard screaming for help. Connor grabbed his stick tighter and tiptoed over to the other door, as fast as possible, grasping the stick tighter and tighter to a point where he feared he was going to break it before he even got to use it.
The guy who was obviously holding the woman hostage began talking to Murphy, sounding like an old confused man with bad teeth, judging from the sound of his words.
"You….you got nothing t'do with this son" the man said, chuckling between the words. "Just hand over everything you got missy, now now, where is it, huh? I want er'ything."
"LET ME GO! I don't even know what you're talking about, we don't have anything we could give you!" the woman shouted, and when Connor finally did round the corner, he was almost relieved to see that there was indeed just on old man standing behind the young woman, holding her in a headlock, knife pressed to her throat. He looked dirty and certainly smelled it, almost like he was and always had been some sort of hobo. There was a small girl sitting in the corner crying her lungs out as she watched the scenario unfold, too young to really understand it, but terrified still. The man was completely caught up trying to keep the woman in place and talking to Murphy, who did see Connor turn up behind the man, but would not let his gaze betray him. Murphy just kept standing his ground and kept talking to the man, trying anything to keep his eyes fixed on him.
"Just let te fuckin woman go ye old bastard, she's got a kid fer fuck's sake!" he shouted, slowly trying to get closer to the man who immediately took a few steps back, yanking the woman along with him, getting closer to Connor who was approaching him from behind. The woman just started screaming and fighting even more, kicking and trying to punch, taking up all the strength and concentration the man needed to keep her in place.
He didn't see or even hear Connor sneak up behind him, with a deadly expression on his face, stick in the air, ready to strike.
"This place's been my town the whole winter…so…so everything you bring here belongs..belongs to me…tehe..and I say…"
An incredibly hard blow to his head interrupted him mid sentence, making it impossible for him to keep going. The old man didn't even get a chance to react or do anything because then Connor hit his head for a second time, even harder this time, a deadly almost scary murderous look on his face. The wood connected very hard with the back of the man's head, making both the bone and the stick crack a bit. The man let out just a short abrupt loud grunt, then his head was thrown forward again, making him release the woman almost immediately, with the old man tumbling to the ground. The woman let out another little terrified scream and stumbled forward, feeling a spray of blood rain down on the back of her leg and shoe when Connor hit the man again.
For a moment she turned around in pure horror to see what was going on, but the sight of it quickly made her turn around again. Connor had not only hit the old man once but actually kept bashing his head in, almost straddling the man as he let a short couple of incredibly brutal hard blows rain down on him, killing the attacker, turning his head into an unrecognizable, bloody mess. Then he grabbed the knife the man had used to threaten the woman and stabbed his chest, the heart there, just to make sure he was really dead.
Murphy watched the scenario equally surprised and shocked, but just a short moment later he suddenly found himself stumbling a bit backwards because the woman ran right into him to tackle him into a shaky hard hug. "I can't believe it's you, oh my god" she breathed, into Murphy's shoulder, and although the younger MacManus just couldn't stop himself from watching his brother, he soon found himself responding to the hug, rubbing her back and then turning his head a little to look at the screaming girl. When he turned his head again he could see that Daryl was suddenly there, too, pulling Connor away from the dirty mess he'd created.
Murphy felt a little relieved then and there, knowing that his brother was being looked after right now, so he finally allowed himself to relax, and he finally really let that realization kick in.
"Sam? Te fuck are ye doing here? Where's Mike?!" he asked, grabbing the woman by both her arms to pull her away a bit so he could look at her.
But it was her without a doubt. Samantha and her little daughter Suzie, the woman and her family he'd made friends with last year at Quabbin Park, the reservoir there, where he'd stayed with Simmons.
Connor almost mechanically brought the stick down to the man's head three to five times, applying all the force and pressure he could gather to make sure the guy got killed by it. He wasn't even really angry or aggressive about it although he could if he wanted to, because this guy was a scumbag, because he could've hurt Murphy or the woman, but the truth was that he felt almost indifferent to the act of killing itself, there was almost nothing remotely interesting going on inside him as he did it, as he grabbed the knife and stabbed the man once and that hard, just to make sure.
It was all about getting it done, killing, eliminating yet another threat to make sure that no scumbag like him could get to stay on this earth to eat the food they needed, to shoot the bullets they could use, it was all about survival of the better now. He was aware of how Daryl placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him back, away from the dead man before he could make it any worse, although just those very few hard hits had already turned his head into an unrecognizable mess anyway.
Connor stumbled back a little and then calmly wiped his face, letting go of the stick and then cleaning the knife on the old man's shirt because he wanted to keep it. Then he just let Daryl help him up, not really listening to what his friend was saying to him. He just stared at the mess he'd created and then lazily kicked at the man's lifeless body to make sure he wasn't moving anymore, pleased with himself because it was more than obvious that the fucker was dead indeed. Then, he just leaned down again to grab his stick, too, and it was almost like that simple leaning down motion immediately did bring his emotions back, rushing into his head along with his blood, right after the act of killing.
The pounding of his heart, and most of all, the rage.
"She alright?" Daryl asked, hand still gently placed on Connor's lower back as he tried to keep him steady and close after whatever the hell had just happened, but he was looking at Murphy and the woman who were still holding each other, talking to each other as if they knew each other already.
"Yeah, yeah I'm okay" the woman said, quickly grabbing a stray strand of hair to put it back behind her ear. They didn't get to keep talking because then Connor suddenly interrupted them. "Te fuck did ye think you were doing?!" he said, starting to walk so he could get closer to his brother. "Storming in here like that without cover or fuckin reason, it could've been a fuckin ambush!" he shouted, giving Murphy an incredibly angry glare. Murphy finally and properly let go of Samantha and frowned angrily at Connor, quite taken aback by the fact that he was suddenly being yelled at, although he had considered this whole thing an act of heroism.
"Oh fuck ye, what was I sapposed ta do. I couldn't exactly just let a woman scream fer help and get killed when we're right around the fuckin corner! I thought this is what we fuckin do!"
"And ye couldn't have thought this shit through before ye started running like a fuckin headless chicken? Te fucker could've had a gun and he could've shot ye the moment ye stepped through that fuckin door! You fancy that, huh? You wanna get fuckin shot again just cos yer not…"
"Well then fuckin go ahead, considering yer the one who did it last time, without hesitating I might add, so stop patronizing me ye fuckin dick!"
Connor immediately shut up, staring at his sibling. Murphy pressed his lips together a little, regretting his choice of words, but right now he was too angry with Connor for yelling at him like that. In the end he still let out a little sigh, ducked his head a little and swallowed.
"Look, 'm sorry Con, but I did what I thought was fuckin right. If we'd waited any longer to plan shit, the fucker could've killed her and she obviously sounded like she needed help."
Connor shot the woman a little glare and then let out a sigh as well, looking down, using his right hand to rub his forehead.
Then he shook his head angrily, and turned on his heels.
"All right. Fine. Fuck it…'m gonna check if he had a couple 'a friends with 'im" he muttered after a while and then left the living room, leaving a surprised Murphy, Daryl and Samantha behind. The latter was actually the first one to speak up, still staring at the door they had seen Connor exit the room through.
"Connor..you…you found him?" she asked, turning her head to look at Murphy. "Your brother?"
"Aye" Murphy said, still looking confused and a bit lost because everything had happened within the blink of an eye. Daryl turned his head after watching Connor leave and then eyed his lookalike and the woman, frowning. "Wait, yah know each other?" he asked, curious, but still worried. Both nodded, but it was Sam who spoke up simply because Murphy was too lost in thoughts about his brother, brooding, wondering if he should be angry with him or apologize.
"Hmhm, we met up North last winter. They helped us fortify our camp and….speaking of which, where's Keith?" she asked, looking at Murphy, whose look on his face visibly changed. Got a bit more upset for different reasons. "He didn't make it" Murphy muttered, looking at Samantha, remembering their friend. "Got shot by a buncha scumbags when we arrived in Augusta" he explained, and although it had been a couple of months now, remembering that still hurt, now more than ever because Samantha was a physical actual reminder of that past.
He still remembered the imagery of the car crash by the shopping center vividly, remembered the bullet hole between Simmons eyes after that sniper had managed to take him out. He quickly closed his eyes for a second and then looked back at Samantha who was now holding her daughter in her arms, kissing her, shushing her, trying to calm her down.
"What about Mike?" he asked and Samantha stilled, looking at him, looking just as lost and sad.
"Two months ago" she managed to say and looked down at her daughter, to kiss her, mumbling against her head " He got bit. I had to end it."
"'m sorry" Murphy muttered, and Samantha gave him a sad smile, reaching out to rub his upper arm.
"Me, too" they shared a little private intimate look, sharing past times, then Samantha sniffed once, getting herself back together, turning her head a little.
"But hey, you found your brother again, so that's nice that's…" when she looked at Daryl again she suddenly half frowned half smirked. "No offence but….you two look freakishly alike. How come the other one is your brother when it's…."
"Fucker stole my face."
"I ain't lookin nothing like this freak."
Daryl and Murphy growled at the same time, frowning at each other but then giving in to almost invisible smirks because they kind of enjoyed denying the obvious at the same time, all the time.
"'m gonna go look for your bro. Give y'all some time to catch up" Daryl then said, giving Murphy a small nod. Murphy nodded back and Samantha moved a little, looking thankful.
"Thank you…what's your name again?"
"Daryl" the hunter mumbled, slurring the name so that Samantha had trouble understanding him. But he'd already turned around and was leaving the room to go after Connor, so it was up to Murphy to keep talking. "'s just Daryl. He's yer typical illiterate redneck hillbilly…" he explained, looking right back at the door, still smiling because of his explanation, but the smile soon vanished when he remembered Connor, saw the bloody body on the ground. "Just kiddin, he's a good friend 'f ours" he muttered, rubbing Samantha's back a little, really wanting to follow his friend and brother now, too, but he needed to talk first.
"Hey, have ye been here all by yerself? How long?"
"Not too long, we only just got here looking for supplies. It was kind of a mess, really" Samantha said, letting out a breathy little laugh. "I tried to find you and Keith after we lost Mike. Keith had left us the coordinates and information about Augusta, but there was nothing there, just….awful people. Probably the same who… well. On our way out, we found those signs by those train tracks that supposedly lead to this place called Terminus…and this right here was just supposed to be a short stop along the way. And now look at us."
Murphy frowned a little.
"Terminus?"
Samantha nodded, kissing and cuddling her baby girl once more, with a happier smile, now that she obviously felt a whole lot safer with three more men to help her protect her child.
"Yeah. They offer sanctuary and community. The deal is…" she said and let out a little sigh, now looking tired and just plain honest about it. "Me and Suzie, we're not made for this world. We can't keep going like this. Out here in the open. We need to find some place safe. Some place with…fences and supplies, community, shelter. So that's where we're going now."
"Yer right…" Murphy muttered, frowning a little as he let that bit of information sink in. He then grabbed Sam by both her arms again and looked at her. "All right. 'm gonna go help Daryl 'n Conn check te place out, and as soon as we've made sure everything's alright and as soon as we found some food and supplies, we can sit down and talk about tha. I think they'd like ta know more about this, cos we're lookin fer people of our own. Maybe they saw that, too. As fer now just….sit down and let us do the work. Yer safe now, okay?"
Samantha nodded, looking relieved.
"Okay" she said and smiled a little when Murphy placed a gentle hand on her daughter's cheek to pinch it affectionately, which made the girl giggle a bit.
Connor turned his head a little when he heard the door creek behind him, half suspecting that it was Murphy, but then again, he wasn't exactly surprised to see Daryl there, either. It was almost becoming some sort of ritual these days. He huffed a little and turned around again to keep searching the cupboards for anything useful.
"Don't even start" he warned, but he already sounded calmer and more collected again, more like the old Connor after his yet again very strange act of sudden brutality and aggression. "Ye know I was right" he added and Daryl leaned against the door frame, folding his arms a little, nodding, although he didn't exactly look pleased.
"Yah sure got the point across" he muttered, scanning his friend head to toe, wondering.
"Did ye check the other rooms?" Connor asked, trying to change topic. Daryl chewed on his lips, nodding a little. "Don't sound like anyone else's home" he said, looking back a little, down the corridor. "Guy looked like a crazy loner. Probably saw her go in here all by herself, took his chances. Don't sound or look the type to come in groups."
"He was just a fuckin filthy scumbag. No one's gonna miss te fucker, praise be ta fuckin Jesus."
Daryl pressed his lips together, taking a deep breath.
"So what, you get off on that now? Clobberin lowlives t'death?"
"Well, if I'd had a gun, I would've fuckin used it. Murph was right, he could've killed te lass. Sure looked like he was about ta do it anyway. So te way I see it, I did te world and that woman a favor by clobberin some lowlife ta death as ye call it. I call it good riddance."
Connor grabbed the small bag he'd taken to fill it with clothes and useful items and then turned around, about to leave the room.
"We should still leave this place, just ta make sure. Her screamin could be heard halfway cross town. Sooner or later we're gonna get more visitors if we stay here. Alive or dead."
"And wouldn't yah like that" Daryl said, honest now, looking Connor straight in the eye, the look on his face saying it all.
I worry about you, man.
Connor looked back at him, almost looking like he'd been caught in the act for a moment, but then he just huffed and shook his head.
"Don't be ridiculous" he muttered, trying to walk again. "'m gonna check the other rooms fer supplies. Ye take the left side, I the right so we can get te fuck outta here. Maybe she knows where we should look fer supplies next" he just said, sounding calm, collected and methodical again.
"Hey" Daryl said, his voice low as he grabbed Connor by his arm, squeezing tight, to hold him in place, looking right into his eyes. "'m not stupid, alright. I know 't was stupid of yah bro t'just run in here and play massive target just cos he heard some woman scream. He risked his life, and ours and you're right. It's stupid that gets yah killed these days" he said, not letting Connor look away, letting him know that he was on his side, but at the same time, not. "But he's right, too. Good people need help, we try to help. 's what we do. And 's who we are. Cos if we don't even try….it don't make yah any better than that asshole yah just killed cos he's 'evil'. 's all I gotta say 'bout that topic."
Connor just stared at his friend a little longer, the expression on his face really unreadable, and maybe that made Daryl worry even more.
But then Connor gave him a little smile, breathing out with a gentle chuckle, rubbing the side of Daryl's arm.
"Jesus, do ye really think I don't know that?" he asked, smirking. "Looks like ye finally do get te point about our whole business. 's all about takin te initiative and steppin up. Now, don't think 'm stupid either. I get te way yer lookin at me these days and 'm tellin ye I'm fuckin fine, alright?" he said, looking at Daryl with that smile and then quickly leaning in to give him a reassuring kiss, which actually surprised the hunter.
He immediately returned the kiss though because he needed that near, that intimacy to keep the man he'd grown to love right here with him, keep him locked before he was getting more and more replaced by that…cold stranger. "'m fine" Connor repeated quickly and kissed Daryl once more, knowing exactly that, playing that longing to soothe his friend, to stop him from annoying him with that worry and trying to hold him down, to keep it up just so he wouldn't freak out his friend even more.
Through the kiss and clinging he could just feel it, what was going through Daryl's head, that desperate clingy honest and deep love, and maybe that sobered him up a bit. Although he had just intended to make Daryl feel better with the kiss he suddenly could feel the healing effect of it as well, which was why he quickly ended it before it got too overwhelming.
"Alright, let's check the rest of this house. 'm fuckin starving" he said and gave Daryl a little pat on his back, really appreciating their closeness and trust. Daryl licked and chewed his lips a little, confused because of the sudden abrupt ending of the kiss, even rubbing his mouth in slight embarrassment, but then he eventually did turn around to follow Connor, only to see Murphy come down the corridor to join them. He was looking at his brother with a slightly worried and unsure look on his face, and when he was just about to start talking, Daryl spoke up.
"Yo, M" he said, making Murphy look up while Connor passed him and gave him an equally affectionate gentle pat to his chest, to let him know that he was no longer that mad with him, but really wanted to keep going. Murphy smiled a little, trying to place a hand on Connor's on his chest to nudge him right back, but then quickly turned his head again to look at Daryl, who had placed himself in front of a closed door, rattling it a little.
"Help me get this son of a bitch of a door open, wouldcha" Daryl said gently, nodding at it, to get Murphy to move over to him. Murphy frowned a little but obeyed, coming closer, but he did turn his head one more time to watch Connor disappear inside another room. He then placed himself in front of the door Daryl was trying to open, to get ready to open it up forcefully by ramming it.
Little did he know that Daryl was actually just holding it closed, that the whole thing was a farce to keep him from talking to Connor just yet. He just didn't want him to screw his progress with Connor up, now that the Irishman was somewhat calm and normal again. He just knew that they'd probably start bashing their heads in over something again, stupid brothers that they were, so he wanted to give his friend some timeout by occupying Murphy with something else instead.
They rammed the door a couple of times and then Daryl let go, making them stumble inside what looked like the master bedroom.
"Not so fucken macho now, eh?" Murphy teased and bumped into Daryl with purpose, entering the room to check it out. Daryl just huffed and had another quick look outside, to make sure that Connor was busy enough searching the other rooms, then he finally and properly entered the master bedroom as well to help Murphy look for supplies and food or anything useful.
"So yah know the girl?" he asked, trying to start a conversation so he could eventually lead it to the topic he actually really wanted to discuss with the younger MacManus.
"Aye. Spent te winter with her and her family up in Mass."
"She good?"
Murphy nodded once more.
"Aye. They were real nice. She had a husband 'n everything before things went bad" the younger MacManus explained and then suddenly started chuckling a little, which made Daryl turn around with a frown. Murphy had found an old flannel shirt that looked an awful lot like the ones Daryl usually wore, only that this one actually had proper sleeves. The dark-haired Irishman immediately grabbed it to put it on, dragging it over his dirty black shirt until he was sporting the new one. He then turned around to look at Daryl, squinting his eyes a little so they were smaller and looking more like Daryl's.
"I ain't no goddamn leprechaun yah dumbass" he imitated Daryl, laughing halfway through it. Maybe Daryl was actually a bit impressed by how well Murphy really imitated him, with the way he looked and moved and talked and everything, and the shirt and the fact that they looked very much alike anyway wasn't exactly helping. The only real differences between them were the tattoos, scars, the fact that Murphy was cleaner and less muscular, but other than that, they sure could fool people with that if they wanted to.
"Yah sure are, now cut it out. We're doin serious shit here" Daryl muttered, trying his hardest not to smirk or show any signs that he found it funny indeed.
"Keep yah trap shut, ain't doin no serious shit" Murphy went on, grinning, but it already looked like he was giving the act up.
"I said cut it out, jackass" Daryl said, angrier this time, but Murphy kept the flannel on. He simply left it unbuttoned, revealing his own shirt. It was getting colder each day so he decided to hold on to it, not only to piss Daryl off, because it actually felt nice and didn't look half as dirty as their usual worn out clothes. But at least he stopped imitating Daryl.
He let out a little sigh and got back to searching the cupboards, cheering a little when he found a very old chocolate bar inside the bedside table. Maybe it was a bit too white to be considered good, but fuck it, food was food these days, and expiration dates couldn't be trusted. These days, they were more of a vague date that could easily be expanded by a couple of months. He put it inside his pockets and then grabbed an old pillow case so he could use it as bag, and the more he got caught up with looting, the more serious he got again.
"Hey, so did ye talk ta Connor?" he asked, gently, after a moment of just looting. Daryl, who was momentarily caught up leafing through an old family photo album, nodded with a quiet "Uuhuh."
"Is he still mad? Fuck, I mean I know I wasn't thinkin, but ye know I did the right thing."
"He ain't mad. Yah know 's just the way he is with yah. Maybe 't was foolish, but we saved that woman and kid's lives so it's all good, emo kid."
"Aye" Murphy said, still lost in thoughts. "But still. I don' get why he had ta freak out like that."
Daryl let out a sigh, because this was the exact topic he'd wanted to talk about with Murphy.
"Yeah. I worry 'bout your bro, man" he said and turned around, shooting a quick glance at the door to make sure Connor wasn't there, then he looked straight at Murphy.
His lookalike looked back at him and bit his lips, looking at the door, too.
"Aye, me too."
Daryl looked at Murphy a little while longer, then he let out a little angry snort and shook his head.
"Seriously. Fuck yah stupid memory loss. If your brain weren't so scrambled, you could just tell me if the guy been that way before with all yah bible-banging psycho-killing crap. Cos I feel like that thing's getting outta hand. But how'd you know."
"Fuck ye, I know and remember enough ta tell ye that we weren't that brutal" Murphy snapped a little, looking offended and angry. He then kept packing some clothes and a blanket. Trying to concentrate a bit more, remembering a bit more. "We only shot people in their heads and delivered them ta god. With pennies. And prayers. Not like…that."
Daryl took a deep breath, rubbing the side of his neck.
"Yeah, I know. Guy told me."
They both fell into silence for a moment, thinking about the same thing.
"I thought 't was your fault at first. Cos of you comin back, bein the dynamic duo and all that crap. But now, I ain't too sure anymore."
"I tried ta ask him 'bout what those fuckers did ta him. When they captured him 'n killed Hershel and took him hostage. He wouldn't tell me 'n just shrugged it off."
Daryl snorted.
"Yeah, that's the stupid leprechaun in a nutshell."
Murphy let out a little sigh.
"Yer right. We need ta find yer people again. I feel like he was doing better when he was part of a larger group."
"Yeah. He ain't no good thinkin he's in charge. It gets to the guy's head."
"Aye, that it does."
"Are we really agreein on something and workin together right now?"
"Fuck if I know" Murphy said, and they both suddenly chuckled.
Then the younger MacManus got a bit more serious again.
"Look, I know 's fun ta butt our heads and hate each other all te time, but I think we're both on te same page here. I know what me brother means ta ye, and I really appreciate that. Okay. 's what he needs. Family and friends. So maybe we should do just that. Work tagether. Cos I seriously don' fuckin wanna know what he's gonna end up doin otherwise. "
"Yeah" Daryl muttered, turning his head a little to look back at the door.
"D'ye love 'im?" Murphy eventually asked, which made Daryl turn his head to shoot him an angry glare, but then the look on his face eventually softened, after a while, and he finally allowed himself to give Murphy a small nod.
"Me, too. So we're gonna get his shit t'gether, right."
"Right" Daryl agreed once again, and he was actually really happy to know that he had a definite ally here, someone he could trust just as much as Connor, maybe even more. This was one of the rare moments where he could really see and feel that Murphy was actually older than him, that he could actually be just as much in charge as his brother could, it was just that most of the time, the younger MacManus simply chose not to.
Although he did love to fight with him, hate him and get annoyed by him, Daryl did have to admit that he was incredibly relieved to know that Murphy was there as well, because he wasn't entirely sure if he'd been able to get all of this done by himself. He'd helped Connor once, back on the farm, but he'd been awful at that, and he wasn't sure if he could really do it for a second time.
"Sam told me about tha one place. Terminus 's called. It sounds just like Woodbury. She said there's maps all over the place, by the train tracks around here. Maybe we should try that."
"Yeah. Maybe the others saw the same thing" Daryl muttered, because it was well worth a shot. He didn't quite trust it because it sounded too easy, too inviting, but it was what it was. Something worth checking out these days.
"That's what I told her. I think we should go there."
"Yah bro wants t'keep going anyway."
"Great, and now he's got himself a destination."
They were walking down main street, now properly packed up with new clothes, camping goods, two tents and some food they had found inside one of the houses down the street which seemed to have belonged to the old man, eager to leave town to get some miles behind them before sundown. Connor certainly was calmer and more himself again, now that he'd eaten, found enough rations and a new destination to keep his mind content and busy, making the whole march more pleasant by default. They were walking in pairs, with Connor and Daryl up front, keeping an eye out on their surroundings for any walkers or attackers as Murphy and Samantha walked right behind them.
The young woman was carrying her daughter in an improvised harness she'd strapped around herself, attached to her own backpack she was carrying and that was filled with cans and bottled water. She was actually laughing every now and then, obviously enjoying the fact that she could finally talk to someone other than her infant daughter, an actual old friend, with whom she had lots of catching up to do.
Murphy actually talked more around her then he'd ever done it with Connor or Daryl, telling her many many stories and details about his odyssey down here to Georgia, their shared friend Major Simmons, anything that came to his mind. He also told her about Woodbury, Connor, who pretended that he wasn't listening, even Daryl and all the annoying comments that were connected to their similarity.
Daryl just kept Connor company, hoping for him to turn into that equally cheery Irish bundle of energy, but he could tell from the look on his friend's face that Connor was actually eavesdropping on his brother, and maybe he even looked a little jealous, like it pissed him off a bit how Murphy suddenly had a friend he didn't know and who they didn't share, twin brotherhood and the jealousy attached to it shining brightly. Somehow, it made Daryl smirk a bit. He even moved closer a little nudge his friend's shoulder, turning around once to look at Murphy, Samantha and the kid.
"You think they had something goin, sweet baby bro and Miss Mass?"
Connor snorted angrily.
"Please. First of all, we're talkin about Murph here. Second, the way I understood, te lass was married. Besides, since when are ye te gossipin kinda type."
"Well, sure saw a whole lot more twisted shit back 'n Atlanta with baby Shane and Lori. 'n look at yah now, all jealous" Daryl said, actually chuckling.
It felt damn nice to feel the role reversal for once, how it was him making fun of Connor and not the other way round.
"Fuck you" Connor growled and Daryl nudged him a little.
"Maybe it's good stuff. Maybe this is the right kinda time to start over. For all of us. This Terminus thing and now the girl…maybe that's a sign from yah big boss up there. That we're gonna find our people, start over."
Connor just snorted once more.
"Aye, maybe" he muttered and then finally turned his head for a short time, looking at his brother who actually looked quite content, relaxed and actually happy, despite the fact that they had no real home, not too much food, an uncertain destination and now, certainly more trouble.
"Or maybe this is him just throwin even more obstacles in our way."
Daryl frowned.
"What the hell's that supposed t'mean?"
"Think about it. Now we got two more mouths ta feed. And one of them is a freaking infant."
Daryl let out an angry snort.
"I thought yah liked kids. Yah've always been talkin about wanting to have kids one day. Yah the one who hung out with Rick's kid all the time and who taught him t'shoot and all that crap. Seriously, what the hell's wrong with you these days. They broke a circuit somewhere inside yah Irish melon?"
"'m just saying that she isn't Carl or any of the other kids we had in Woodbury. She can't even fuckin walk yet. And food is more important fer her than it is fer us. And look at us, we can hardly fuckin feed ourselves ever since we lost Woodbury."
"Which is why we're goin to check this Terminus place out, now, don't we?"
"Right…" Connor muttered and then rubbed his forehead a little. "'m just…fuckin tired alright."
They got interrupted by Samantha, who suddenly called out.
"Wait" she said, making Daryl and Connor turn around to look at her, curious to hear what she had to say. The woman nodded to the left, the building there.
"Could I just…go in there real quick look for diapers? I'm kinda…running low and Suzie…well."
Connor eyed her head to toe, looked at the little girl in her arms, then looked at the drug store to their left, until he let out a little sigh.
"Fine. I'll keep watch."
Samantha looked thankful and nodded, quickly turning her head to look at Murphy.
"Could you…hold her? It'd go much faster if I didn't have to…"
"What..uhm, oh yeah, sure" Murphy said, quickly taking the kid, who dug her little fingers into the flannel, holding it tight, playing with it, making Murphy smirk and talk to her almost immediately.
"Right" Samantha said, wiping her hands on her jeans, grasping her knife and then looking at Connor once more. She looked a bit intimidated by him ever since he had killed that man, like she couldn't quite understand him and the way he ticked, but he just gave her a small reassuring nod and patient smile, although he was faking it. "Right" she said once more and then turned around to head for the drug store, and after having looked at Connor and Murphy for a short moment, back and forth, Daryl finally grabbed his crossbow and spoke up.
"Wait up. 'm comin with you. Check the place out real quick while we're at it."
"Oh…okay, sure" Samantha said, watching Daryl enter the building first.
It did smell just like any other old abandoned store they had come across during the past year. The old lingering stench of rotten food that had been long since forgotten inside dead fridges and displays, and just like any other place most of the shelves had been wiped clean. Daryl did find two old lighters and a crushed cigarette pack that had fallen behind one of the shelves, almost impossible to reach but there it was, a treat for him and Connor.
Samantha had entered the hygiene section in the mean time to get the one thing looters usually left behind so he had no trouble finding it - diapers, some of them a bit moist, but others completely intact, ready to use. Daryl, in the meantime, grabbed two old candy bars and old magazines for Connor just like always, then he eventually doubled back to get closer to Sam and the hygiene section, scanning the small dark shop a little in the process, but there seemed to be no threat around.
"So how come yah still alive?" he asked after a while, trying to make conversation to get to know their latest companion a bit better.
Before he got the answer he suddenly couldn't help but stop in his tracks, because then there it was again.
The special section.
Just like last time when he'd hit the Big Spot, only that this time, so many things were different.
Because now he wasn't exactly angry or embarrassed because of it anymore.
Protection. Stimulation.
Condoms. Massage oil. Lube.
Another thing people didn't really bother taking these days.
Maybe….
"Oh that's easy" Samantha suddenly said, answering his question, startling Daryl a bit and making him look up. The woman was still busy packing up some of the diapers and other stuff for her small child. "People see a woman with a small kid and they make the big mistake. They underestimated me."
Daryl chuckled a little and smirked.
"You know, a woman with a baby doesn't mean easy prey. Quite the opposite. It means your dealing with a mom. And as a mom, I will do anything to protect my child. Literally anything. So that's what they usually did. Underestimate me. Underestimate this. Bad for them, good for me."
"Nice" Daryl said, deciding that he liked her. But he was soon staring at these condoms and all the other stuff again, pressing his lips together, thinking about it, a bit hesitant at first.
"And the walkers, did you know that if you cover yourself in their guts and blood, they can't smell you? Keith taught us that back in Belchertown."
"Keith, that's M's dead friend, right?" Daryl said, looking at Samantha but leaning down a bit so he could quickly shove a pack of condoms and other random slippery stuff that was supposed to help inside his own little bag, quickly adjusting his clothes and pretending that nothing had happened.
"Yeah" Samantha said and then walked around the aisle, making Daryl shift a bit so he wasn't standing directly next to the condom section.
"Hey listen, can I ask you something?" she asked, looking directly into Daryl's eyes.
The hunter shrugged a little.
"Shoot."
"Daryl, right?"
The hunter nodded.
"Say, Murphy's brother…is he all right?"
Daryl frowned a little.
"What'd you mean?"
"It's just that…" she took a deep breath and had a look outside. " We got to know Murphy early on. When he had more trouble after what happened with his brother and it just got me thinking. He told us that it was his brother who did…that" she said, pointing at her forehead, indicating that she was talking about Murphy's scar. "And today I saw him kill that man and I just…is he a good man? Because I need to know. I trust Murphy and you seem like a nice guy, but I'm not exactly comfortable leaving my daughter around…"
"He's a good man. The guy saved more lives than I can count. He saved mine. Without a second thought" Daryl immediately said, shutting her up before she got to really speak it out. "That thing?" he then said, pointing at his own forehead. "That was an accident and it fucked him up real bad. What yah seein out there…that's there because of this. He just…has a hard time keepin his shit together sometimes. But other than that, yah trust one bro you can trust the other."
Samantha looked at him a little while longer, looking him right in the eye, and Daryl stared right back, kind of admiring her strength and will power, figuring that yup, he liked her. Then she eventually nodded.
"Good."
For a while, Murphy just sat on the window sill and made the little girl hop up and down on his lap, playing with her, enjoying her very presence. She was babbling and chewing on her fingers a lot just like he remembered her do it last year, although she had been a whole lot smaller and lighter back then. He really enjoyed having a kid around because they were alike in spirit, because they brought so much joy and life to this otherwise so boring and grey world. But then he eventually looked at Connor more and more, who was walking up and down the sidewalk a bit, keeping an eye on the surrounding streets, bringing his fingers to his mouth multiple times, as if he was trying to smoke a cigarette, only to remember that they didn't have any left.
Just seeing that motion made Murphy crave one as well, and for a second, he could even understand why Connor was so cranky lately. The withdrawal symptoms were getting worse each day, and the both of them were desperately longing for a smoke. Murphy chewed on his lips a little, chuckling when Suzie reached for them with her little fingers, but then he eventually got up, taking her with him, walking over to Connor as he rummaged through his pockets until he found the old chocolate bar.
"Here" Murphy said, handing it over to Connor as he adjusted Suzie's weight. The blonde haired MacManus turned around and looked down, looked at the thing in Murphy's hand. His sibling shrugged a little. "I found that back at te house in a drawer. 's a little white but…'s something. It's 80% so it's the good shit."
Connor looked at the chocolate bar, then at Murphy's face, then back at the food and then suddenly chuckled, old childhood memories once again rushing over him. This was old Murphy in the flesh, his way of apologizing by sharing treats and other goodies to cheer him up again. Always with the same introduction. A simple but sweet and innocent here, Con.
Connor chuckled and took the bar, and just like always, split it in half and gave the other back to Murphy.
"Thanks, Murph" he said, eating some of the chocolate and humming lovingly, no matter how old it really was. Little Suzie suddenly tried to imitate Connor's humming, making Murphy laugh once again. He made her jump up and down a bit again and smiled, and Connor found himself watching his brother take care of the kid.
"Ye like that? Huh? Ye like that sweet lil lass? Ye want one, too? Aye? Aye? Well, say ahhh, come on" Murphy said, laughing once more at the faces Suzie made "C'mon. Open yer mouth and…ahhh" he said, putting a small piece of chocolate right in her mouth. Suzie took it in her mouth and sucked on it once, only to pull a face and spit it out, making it land on Murphy's already dirty shirt along with a heap of slimy spit.
Murphy laughed and then let out a disgusted "Ew" and even Connor couldn't help but smile and chuckle.
"Looks like she likes ye big time" he said, but he still couldn't stop looking at the scenario, because now here it was. The thing he'd been thinking about a lot while Murphy had been gone, how he'd wanted to be an uncle to see his brother like that, to see the family legacy going, a sight their mother would've loved as well, may she rest in peace.
"Aye, she does" Murphy chuckled, getting rid of the chocolate and then stroking the back of Suzie's head until he looked up again, the laughter dying, until the look on his face got more serious and honest again.
"Look Con, 'm sorry 'bout te house thing, all right. But just look at…"
"'s all right, Murph. 's all right. Ye were right. I was being a dick and ye did te right thing. This little lad and her Ma probably wouldn' have made it otherwise, if we'd given this old fuck more time. But we took care of it and now 's all done and dealt with. I just got scared fer a moment, he could've had a gun and shot ye 's all. But it's fine now. I don't exactly wanna talk 'bout that shit right now."
"Right" Murphy said, still looking at Connor, who ate the rest of the chocolate and then gently wiped the corners of his mouth, lost in thoughts.
"Now what te fuck's takin them so long" Murphy said after a while, sensing that Connor wasn't going to say much else regarding the topic. But at least there had been some sort of start.
"Right?" Connor said, chocolate still in his mouth, now looking amused. "Maybe he just went in there ta take his chances with her, considering she's probably the last woman on this planet."
Murphy snorted loudly.
"Even if that's te case, no way he's gonna score with Sam."
"Well why not, she seems ta like ye, and he's got yer face."
Murphy gave him his infamous 'really' face.
"We're talkin about yer girlfriend here. He's straight as a fuckin circle."
Although he didn't want to, Connor just had to chuckle a little.
"I beg ta differ. He had a chick once. And he crushed on Carol" Connor threw in, trying to defend his friend's pride, although he just did happen to find their convo amusing.
"But he's still fuckin you. Don't even pretend it's not like tha, Con. 'm not stupid."
"Hey, I'd probably fuck her, if I were in his place. But I respect a lady's choices and freedom. Besides, she's a widow. As sad one. And I respect tha as well."
"No you wouldn't fuck 'er" Murphy said lazily, knowing his brother well enough by now to differentiate between faking and reality. "Yer straight as a circle too, that, and real fuckin inconsiderate."
"'m not fuckin gay, alright" Connor immediately growled, angrily, offended. "Certainly had more girlfriends than ye ever had, fuckwatt."
"Considering that I can't remember shit, yer probably lying. So, fuck you."
"Aye keep telling yerself that, little brother. Still means what it means."
They immediately stopped talking when Daryl and Samantha finally exited the store, ready to get going. Connor and Murphy shot each other a little knowing look and smirk, one that made Daryl frown almost immediately, but both MacManus brothers decided to keep the topic of their conversation to themselves, too amused by the look on Daryl's face to really give it away.