"Good morning!"

After a restless night's sleep, there was no visible sign that Nye had spent her shower intermittently sobbing and screaming. It took all of an hour for her to get clean and completely shaved with all the breaks to cry in between. Now she stood on the porch, beaming and dressed in a loose and flow-y long sleeved white blouse, slightly bedazzled jean shorts, and a brand new pair of converse, these ones a cheery pastel yellow. The goggles on her head look nearly unrecognizable, having been thoroughly cleaned and polished.

Daryl, sitting on the porch steps, grunted in acknowledgment, toying with one of his crossbow bolts.

Practically skipping down a couple, Nye sat herself beside him on the steps. Dropping her head on her hand and grinned at him. "Aw, is that all I'm getting?"

Daryl huffed, looking up at her. She watched in shock as Daryl's eyes widened a fraction at her appearance. His throat bobbed and she silently gaped at his darkening cheeks and dilated pupils.

She fought a shiver, stomach turning in a very nice way for a change.

So she may have found the stash of make-up hidden away in the bathroom, and may have put the tiniest amount on. And maybe curled her hair. But it wasn't a big deal.

"You got any plans today? Showering, mayhaps…?" The brunette hedged when Daryl didn't give any verbal response at her obvious (to her at least) attempt to garner his attention.

"Nah, just gonna stay here a bit." He went back to messing with the bolt, but snuck one more glance up and down her form.

Nye didn't miss the minuscule action, and was abashed at herself for feeling a heat spread downward at such a small thing. Knowing Daryl though, it was very much not small for them.

I gotta get laid, this is out of control.

The door opened, some of the group trickling out a few at a time. Some clustered together naturally, like Abraham and Rosita, Tara Glenn Noah and Maggie, Sasha and Tyreese. Carl carefully pushed a stroller holding Judith, Rick standing on the porch steps as he watched.

"They said explore. Let's explore." Rick suggested to Daryl and Nye.

"Mom, can we go?" Toby asked in a rush as he and his brother moved to catch up with the others. Unlike his younger brother who took the stairs, Mason vaulted himself over the banister, running off to join Carl before getting a response.

"I mean," Nye gestured to Mason in exasperation. "Go ahead."

"That reminds me," Rick turned to Nye as Toby dashed to follow. "There's this woman, the one who cut my hair, Jessie. She wanted to know if the boys could meet her sons."

Nye stood. "Other kids? Like, ones the gremlins don't know? Aka potential friends?"

Rick huffed a chuckle. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Nye."

Peeking out the door, Lydia was dressed and ready for the day, but had a deeply bothered look on her face.

"...I can't tie my shoes. I forgot how."

As Nye sat her down to re-teach the girl, Rick mumbled something and raced away from the house, having lost sight of Carl and the kids and panicking as a result. Nye let him go, trusting that not even her boys were unlucky enough for something to have happened already.

"And then you twist this here, pull this through there, and… done, ta-da!"

Instead of being happy, Lydia frowned, looking disappointed as she reluctantly stood back up. Before Nye could pry and find out what was bothering her, Daryl spoke.

"You wanna stay at the house?"

Lydia's head lifted, her face hopeful. "Can I?"

Suddenly catching onto the issue, Nye kneeled, taking Lydia's smaller hands. "Of course you can. This is all really overwhelming, it is perfectly okay for you not to feel comfortable yet. You can stay here as long as you need. Okay?"

The amber eyed girl smiled, nodding. "Okay."

Nye squeezed her hands once, and hauled herself up, patting Lydia on the head as she moved to go on her own exploration. "Can you-"

Daryl waved her off with his bolt, as Lydia sat down next to him, whistling for Samson. "I got her, go."

Shrugging, knowing the girl was in safe hands, Nye walked down the steps and away from the house. She didn't know where everyone else was going, so she picked a random direction, and started there.

Walking through the neighborhood, Nye got dozens of smiles and waves from strangers, all of whom didn't even know her name, but that didn't stop them from showing her a warm welcome. It surprised her to a degree, having expected the people to be standoffish at first, but it seemed that you were only ostracized if you didn't meet their standards, and as she saw more and more of them, Nye noticed that she did fit right in, appearance wise.

Coming to a stop at an intersection, Nye looked around, debating which way to take. She didn't get far in her decision before a voice caught her attention.

"You lost?"

Turning her head to the left, Nye locked eyes with a man around her age. He had light brown hair that reached down and became some short scruff on his chin. The man was biting his lip, giving her a friendly look.

"Uh, not really. It's a neighborhood, kinda hard to get lost in one."

The man laughed, a bit harder than what was probably warranted, and approached her. Holding out a hand for her to shake, he took a quick sweep of her body, most likely thinking he was much more subtle than he really was. "My name's Spencer. You must be one of the new people, right?"

"Yeah." She took his hand, ignoring the way he ran his thumb over her first two knuckles. "I'm Nye."

"Well Nye," He chuckled, letting her hand go and using it move up to his hair, brushing it out of his eyes even though the ends only barely brushed his eyebrows, nowhere near long enough to impair his vision. "There's a party my mom is hosting tonight to welcome you all. I look forward to seeing you there."

Turning his back to her, he walked away loosely. The kind of posture that clued Nye into knowing this guy hadn't needed to ever worry about food or shelter, before or after the apocalypse.

Scoffing Nye went to go her own way, but with a grin, she was hit with an idea. Calling over her shoulder,

"Sure thing, Steven."

Out of the corner of her eye, Nye got the satisfaction of seeing him stiffen and stomp away.

"Why are we going?" Mason grumbled, mussing up his hair that Nye had just combed prior to getting ready herself.

"Because we have to at least try to make this work." Glenn repeated, leaning in and fixing the teen's messy curls.

"Mom hates house parties though, she's gonna sneak out at some point you know." Toby said, sitting back on the couch with his feet up on the coffee table. Lydia sat next to him, in a light blue dress and dark grey cardigan to cover her scars. She looked upset, had been since she heard about the party.

"That's why we made a deal." Maggie called to them as she came down the stairs, finished getting ready. "So long as she stays for at least twenty minutes, and mingles some, she has permission to bail. And me and Glenn will bring you three back home when we leave."

"Has anyone seen Daryl? Last I saw him was this morning." Nye asked concernedly as she walked down into the living room. She had her hair split into two low pigtails, missing her goggles for once. On her she wore a red and black plaid dress, thankfully long sleeved, that left her shoulders bare. With sheer black stockings and chunky black heels. She hadn't worn any sort of elevated shoe in so long that she wobbled faintly as she descended the stairs.

"Uh, I…" Glenn stammered, glancing at Maggie in silent communication. "I did earlier. Things kind of got… rough with Aiden's team." Glenn scowled at the reminder of how incompetent Alexandria's supply run team was. "Me and Daryl kind of got into a fight with Aiden and Nicholas."

Nye winced. "Bet Rick and Deanna were pleased."

"Actually, she thanked me for decking her son." Glenn added. "Apparently he's a huge dick."

There was a knock on the door, and when Maggie answered it, it was Tara and Noah, both dressed nicer than they had been earlier. "Ready to go?" Noah asked, his tone expressed how much he, and the rest of them, didn't want to bother with the party.

"No." Mason droned, but walked past the two, out the door.

"Look on the bright side," Nye called after him, her and the others leaving the house and moving down the street towards Deanna's at the other side of the block. "Maybe those other kids will be there. And at least we know the Grimes are there already."

Toby gave Mason a nudge and look that said "I mean she's not wrong." Mason nudged Toby back harder. And in revenge, Toby smacked the back of his head, running immediately after to avoid retaliation. But his head start didn't matter, as Mason had longer legs.

The rest watched as the two teens got farther away, one trying to escape with his life, and the other out for revenge. Samson could obviously sense the high energy in the air, and barked after the boys as he too, now gave chase.

"Oh my God." Nye groaned as the distant figures met in a tackle, Mason taking down his brother ruthlessly. Even with how far away they stood the other five people, still walking at a leisurely pace, could hear Toby's grunt as he hit the pavement. And even better, neither teen could protect themself from Samson as the giant dog jumped onto them, crushing them with his weight.

"Should we help?" Lydia meekly asked, holding Nye's hand as they walked.

"They'll be fine." Nye smirked, hearing Mason start to swear as Samson began licking his face.

The second they were through the door, Nye marched to the table on the other end of the room, eyeing the beers and stale chips. Lydia spotted Judith being held by Rosita, and wandered over, missing the baby since that morning.

As Nye popped the cap off of a bottle of surely expired beer, she felt a tap on her left shoulder. Pursing her lips, she prepared herself for some painful and awkward small talk that these parties always had. But when she looked, she was relieved to see Tyreese instead of a stranger. The relief didn't last, however, as she noticed the intensely worried expression on his face.

"No one's seen Sasha."

Nye relaxed a tad, giving the man a reassuring smile. "Hey, don't freak out. She went out to practice shooting."

Tyreese hummed, turning his gaze to the floor. They both knew that Sasha was one of if not their best shot by now, and that there was no reason for her to practice, other than to blow off steam. She was still mourning the loss of Bob, and it showed.

"Ty, she'll be okay. Just give her time." Nye told him lowly, soft and sincere.

Tyreese took a deep breath, forcing himself to loosen up and try to have fun while waiting to see if Sasha would even come. Nye made sure to put an open beer in his hand before he left, hoping it would help.

Halfway through her second bottle, and now standing by one of Deanna's towering windows, Nye felt something slam into her side. Her first instinct was to find a weapon, but when she saw what exactly had collided with her, she let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

"Sorry." A blonde haired boy, a few years younger than her boys, muttered as he backed away a few steps.

"Don't worry about it." She set down her beer, subconsciously and needlessly fearing that she would set a bad example. "I'm Nye. What's your name?"

"Sam. You're Mason and Toby's mom?"

Before Nye could answer, a woman with grey eyes and strawberry blonde hair came over, weaving between the people standing around as she frowned sheepishly.

"Sam, I told you not to run." She chastised, putting her hands on his shoulders and pulling him to her front. She gave Nye an apologetic grimace. "I'm so sorry about him, he just gets really hyper after drinking soda."

Nye refrained from asking where they could have found the fizzy drink, and all the other snacks sitting around, and instead offered the woman an exasperated huff of understanding. "I hear you, it's fine, honest. I'm guessing you're Jessie?"

Jessie grinned and nodded, shaking Nye's hand. "Yep, and you must be Nye."

The surprise and confusion must have plain as day on her face, because Jessie quickly amended what she said. "I mean, you haven't taken your eyes off of them once, the whole party." She gestured over both to where her boys stood, talking to Carl and Jessie's other son, Ron. And Lydia, standing in the middle of Glenn and Maggie, hiding from anyone who might want to introduce themselves.

"I… I didn't even notice I was doing that." Nye mumbled scratching the back of her head abashedly, minding the pigtails.

"I think it's probably a mom thing. I can't help but keep an eye on Sam and Ron, doesn't matter if I know everything's fine, and we're safe, I just-"

"Worry."

"Exactly." Jessie exclaimed, happy the brunette could relate.

"Mom," Sam called, making the two women suddenly remember he was there. "She doesn't have a stamp." He pulled out a plastic toy stamper, holding it up for Nye to see. "Do you want a stamp?"

"Uh heck yes, that sounds awesome." Nye grinned and pulled up her left sleeve, holding her hand out. After he did it, leaving behind a red 'A' on the back of her hand, Nye ruffled Sam's hair. "Thanks man, this is dope."

"Now you're officially one of us." Jessie informed her, smiling appreciatively at Nye's eager participation.

"Well thank you for having me." She joked, doing a mock curtsy.

Through the throngs of people, the teenage boy she had seen Carl and her kids chatting with appeared next to Jessie. He had a look of poorly masked concern, as he tapped urgently on Jessie's arm. "Mom, Dad's looking for you."

Nye frowned as Jessie tensed, her eyes immediately scanning the room almost fearfully.

"Is everything alright?" Nye furrowed her eyebrows as Jessie jumped.

"Oh, yeah. Ron, watch your brother."

Nye and the two boys watched Jessie retreat into the party, the friendly smile she had been sporting, long gone.

"Is there something going on?" Nye turned to Ron, eyes narrowed, and only getting sharper as Ron shrunk into himself.

"Yeah, everything's fine. C'mon Sam." Ron wouldn't meet Nye's gaze, tugging Sam away by the sleeve.

Something about the way the family was acting left a bad taste in Nye's mouth, feeling the familiar tension in the air that lingered when someone was walking on eggshells around another. Nye knew it had been nearly a decade since she'd seen her father, alive that is, so she may not remember it as well as she thought. But, the way Jessie got that stressed and fearful look in her eyes, while Ron seemed hesitant to send his mother away to her husband, had Nye making a mental note to meet Alexandria's doctor soon, just to make sure things were fine. Hopefully she was making a big fuss over nothing, but she wasn't taking in any chances.

Lifting her beer to her mouth, Nye shook her head and looked back out the window. The bottle froze halfway to her lips, as the saw a silhouette standing in the street in front of the house. She knew the height and build anywhere, and with a grin she skipped through the crowd and out of the house. Shivering as the cold night air hit her shoulders, Nye rushed down the porch steps as she saw Daryl had turned around, choosing not to go in.

"Hey," She called, making him freeze and slowly look back. "Not coming in?"

Daryl tipped his head low, biting his bottom lip. Looking back up at her, he shook his head. Even from her distance, Nye could see the way he couldn't bring himself to stare at one place on her too long.

"Well then," Nye strolled down to the street, stopping next to him. She herself had to pause to take him in, clean and well dressed, and not to mention his hair looked incredibly soft now. "Maggie and Glenn agreed to let me bail whenever, so, where to?"

Daryl glanced back at the house. "I'm gonna head back, you should go back to the party."

Nye raised an unamused brow, settling her hands on her hips. "Daryl, that house is full of well meaning, but ultimately naive people. And you are, short of my kids, my favorite person." She smiled, cheeks red from something else than the cold. "So, where to?"

The hunter sighed through his nose, relenting and leading the way back to the houses. Nye had a feeling that maybe the reason he tried sending her back to the party, was caused by some lingering nerves at the thought of being alone together for the first time since the incident in the RV. And as they walked side by side, she was hit with a bout of courage, likely brought on by the beers. Her right hand, swinging only a few inches away from Daryl's left, slowly moved over.

Heart in her throat, Nye looked down at the pavement as her pinky brushed his. She felt him stiffen beside her, and held her breath. After a few seconds, Nye bit back an excited gasp as he just barely weaved his with hers, touch as light as a feather, but still somehow reassuringly tight. In the back of her mind Nye was squealing, testing the waters by curling her pinky tighter around his. She couldn't stop the dopey grin spreading from ear to ear when he recuperated.

I'm holding pinkies with Daryl Dixon. Nye couldn't help but feel like this was somehow the most intimate thing she had ever done, despite it probably being the most tame. It being Daryl made all the difference though, and she was too deliriously happy to care that she was thinking like she was a girl half her age, all as a result of his close proximity.

But, they seemed to have a trend that always reared its head up at times like these, and now was no different. They were unceremoniously interrupted.

"Daryl, Nye. Hey." Aaron leaned out his front door, smirking at them in a way that gave off the impression that he knew exactly what it was he had just done, as Daryl moved his hand away from Nye's

The short brunette pouted, and her suspicions were confirmed when Aaron very obviously fought a laugh at her brooding. Apparently he found their awkward fumbling around each other to be humorous, the dick.

"Thought you were going to that party over there." Daryl gestured back to Deanna's, clearly ignoring whatever moment he and Nye just had.

And she knew he was shy, and uncomfortable with physical affection, but it still stung.

"Oh, I was never going to go 'cause of Eric's ankle, thank God." Aaron huffed in relief.

"Why the hell did you tell me to go, then?" The hunter recounted, annoyed by the useless effort he put into getting presentable enough for the Alexandrians.

"I said try. You did. It's a thought that counts thing." Aaron shrugged, looking strangely proud of him.

Nodding in acceptance of that, Daryl moved to keep on their way back home, his hand staying resolutely at his side this time. Nye frowned sadly, moving her hands behind her back and locking them together to avoid the temptation of reaching out for him.

"Hey, come in." Aaron quickly suggested, smiling openly as he stepped out of the doorway, leaving it clear as light shined from inside the house. "Have some dinner. Come on. It's some pretty serious spaghetti."

The two traded a look, and Nye shrugged carefreely. She turned back to Aaron.

"You got any wine?"

"We do."

"Good enough for me." She hopped up the steps, slipping inside.

Daryl didn't wait long to follow, at least feeling more at ease at the idea of spending the evening with Aaron and Eric, than surrounded by strangers at Deanna's party. The home was warm, but not overly so, just the right amount after spending time outside in the chill. It smelled like spaghetti, as Aaron said, and he slowly followed the sound of low chatter coming from the dining room. He and Aaron stopped at the entrance of the room, watching Nye and Eric set the table, already deep in conversation despite the fact she and Daryl only just came in. Whatever she and Eric were talking about, was wholly lost on Daryl, as he was paralyzed in the doorway, left to watch her silently as she laughed about something under her breath. In all the time they had known each other, Daryl had never seen her like this. Dressed up, made somehow more beautiful than usual, as she calmly told Eric about her day as she set four glasses down on the table.

It looked entirely domestic. Free of blood, dead people walking, and violence. She was in her element here, once a young nurse with two kids who was thrown way over her head into the apocalypse, who's heart and soul were born to heal and comfort others, but had been conditioned over time to seal itself off to keep itself safe. Here though, she could spend her time playing guitar, reading fiction, and talking about anything and everything that wasn't about what was outside the walls. Here, she could go back to being Niagara Conner, the immature young woman who Daryl never got the chance to meet.

Daryl was snapped out of his stupor as Aaron nudged him with his elbow, and the hunter only now noticed Nye and Eric were finishing up plating the food. Aaron took the seat to Nye's left, across from Eric, and Daryl took the seat to the left of Eric, across from Nye.

"How are the kids settling?" Aaron asked to his right, twirling a bite of spaghetti.

Nye shrugged, taking a sip of wine to give herself a couple extra seconds to think over her answer. "Fine, I guess. Mason and Toby are kind of used to moving around and trying to find their footing in new places, so they're doing pretty well. Lydia's still pretty closed off with some of us, so a whole new community of people to get used to is a bit overwhelming for her. But I think she'll come around soon enough."

"The dog helps." Daryl commented through a mouth full of pasta.

"Dude." Nye giggled, handing him a napkin to wipe the sauce off of the corner of his mouth.

Eric watched the exchange, forming a subtle smirk. Aaron minutely shook his head at his boyfriend, but was trying hard to fight down his own. Aaron knew exactly what he had planned.

"So," Eric lifted his glass to his mouth to hide the conniving smirk behind it. "How long have you two been together?"

Daryl froze, fork stopping midway to his mouth, he stared across at Nye like a deer caught in headlights, seeming so stunned he couldn't look away from her. Nye however, she happened to be drinking from her glass when the question was asked, and as a result, choked harshly on the wine. She hacked, barely managing to swallow what was in her mouth, and set the glass down without any spilling. With eyes as wide as saucers, Nye stammered and fumbled for what to say as she looked right back at Daryl. Neither had anything they could come up with to say, left to flounder as their cheeks steadily grew redder.

"W-we, uh- we're n-not," Nye made a sort of wide gesture with her hands, pursing her lips as she flushed harder. "You know, we um…"

Eric feigned a look of surprise. "Oh, I'm sorry. You two just give off that feeling, I would have sworn you two were a couple."

This time Daryl made a sort of choking noise in the back of his throat, deciding to shovel a bite of spaghetti into his mouth to avoid having to give a verbal response.

Nye frowned at his reaction, knowing Eric's assumption was wrong, but not unfounded. She picked up her glass, downing what was left and holding it out for Aaron to refill. He handed it back, more wine in it than when he had filled it previously, and he offered her an apologetic smile. She muttered a quick thank you, and took another gulp.

Eric finally took pity on them, and changed the subject. He wiped his mouth and turned to Daryl. "Mmm, when you're out there, if you happen to be in a store or something, Mrs Neudermyer is really looking for a pasta maker. And we're all really trying to get her to shut up about it. I mean, we have crates of dried pasta in here, but she wants to make her own or something. I really think she just wants something to talk about, so... if you see one out on your travels, it would go a long way to…"

Nye stopped eating, glancing across the table and raising a brow at Daryl questioningly. He shook his head faintly, squinting at Eric and Aaron, no clearer than Nye on what Eric was talking about, and why Aaron was giving his boyfriend silent signals to drop it.

Eric noticed their confusion, and Aaron's attempt to get him to stop talking, without raising any questions. But it was obviously too late for that. "...I thought it was done." Eric pointedly stared at his boyfriend. " You didn't ask him already?"

"Ask me what?" Daryl asked lowly, having a growing suspicion on what this was about.

Aaron sighed, scooting his chair back and standing. He nodded in the direction of the door leading into the garage. "Come on, I gotta show you something."

When Daryl followed him into the garage, Aaron closed the door after them, but his voice, muffled and unintelligible, could be heard as he explained whatever it was he had planned.

Nye watched the door worriedly, having come to her own conclusion, and fearing what it meant for Daryl. Eric saw, smiling kindly as he refilled her glass.

"From what Aaron said, Daryl's more than capable out there. He'll be fine."

Nye hummed noncommittally, moving to stand from the table, the dinner forgotten. When she tried though, her legs wobbled and the room spun.

"Whoa," She slumped back down, hand going to her head with the realization that not only was this the first time in what had to be over a year that she had consumed alcohol, but that she had already drank a lot tonight, between the beers and wine. She was hit all at once with the dizzy feeling and unstable legs, and besides those, Nye was left to sit in a warm fuzzy feeling taking up her headspace, leaving no room for her usual concerns. How she hadn't noticed the airy feeling before, she wasn't sure. Now very conscious of the warmness in her cheeks, what she thought was from Eric's earlier assumption.

Slumping forward in her chair, Nye giggled uncontrollably at herself, embarrassed for getting so easily wasted, covering her face with her hands. Eric shook his head with a smile, very subtly moving away her glass of wine.

She was sure Daryl was feeling just fine, not affected by the alcohol as extremely as her. He always was proving to be stronger than any person in the room at any given time.

Suddenly she stopped giggling, and Nye peeked through her hands, looking caught off guard by something. "He's so handsome, an' nice, an' strong, an' sweet. An' I wanna just…" She trailed off, face turning a rose-y color, caused by something other than the fast alcohol intake. Her stomach was doing somersaults and Eric was left to assume where it was that her mind had wandered to. Going by the way she was all but drooling, he had a fair idea of where it had gone.

While Aaron was talking to Daryl about a very serious proposition just in the other room, Nye and Eric devolved into a conversation that wouldn't have a chance at happening if the other men were in earshot. Eric, tipsy to a lesser degree than Nye, was recounting to her the many hilarious fumbles he went through in his love life, most before he had found his future in Aaron. Something about the way they fell into such simple comradery with each other was refreshing and nostalgic, bringing back memories for Nye that she had long ago boxed up, to avoid the pain of being reminded of someone she lost.

Nye was full of her own stories from back when she was a self proclaimed "heartbreaker" in college, and it was during the playback of one such story that she let something slip, that took Eric completely off guard.

"You've never had sex with a guy?" He gasped, lowering his glass.

"Hmm-mm." Nye shook her head, her chin resting on the table as she idly twirled her hair. "Nope."

"Why?"

Nye shrugged. "Too scared I guess"

"Scared of what?" Eric leaned forward, neither of them hearing the door behind them open, as the other two had finished their discussion.

Nye blinked, pulling her hand away from her hair. "I… was scared of bein- I was scared of not being in control. Was scared of givin' up something special like that, to, like, some guy who's just gonna leave when he sees my baggage." Nye's eyes got misty, staring into space. "...not a lotta people stuck around after they saw the scars. An' I was scared to be left again, after giving up part of m'self."

Eric sat there, too wrongfooted to find any words to try to comfort her. He felt a burning anger at the people who had treated the brunette badly enough to leave their mark on her, physical and emotional, and could only hope to himself that those people had gotten what they deserved now, after the world ended. Eric did take some solace in the fact that somewhere along the way, Nye had found herself a human guard dog, always looking out for her, even when she wasn't aware of it.

Said guard dog entered the room behind Aaron, staring down at the floor, with a forced even expression. Aaron only had to give one look to Eric, for him to know he and Daryl had heard, at least the last bit.

Eric cleared his throat, drawing Nye's attention, and as she sat up she saw that the two were back in the room. Whatever sullen look she had on her face, melted into a content smile as she saw her redneck standing there.

"You actually ask him this time?" Eric snidely asked, getting a huff from his boyfriend.

"Yes, and he's agreed."

"Agreed to what?" Nye asked cluelessly, having already forgotten what she deduced the conversation to be about.

Aaron opened his mouth, but Daryl quickly shook his head, able to tell that she had most likely gone over her body's alcohol limit, just by her posture and speech.

"Don't worry 'bout it. I'll explain to ya in the mornin'."

"Okay." Nye smiled, standing from the table again. This time when she stumbled, Daryl caught her, keeping her on her feet.

The door creaked as Daryl pushed it open with his left hand, his right was busy holding up the nearly unconscious woman hanging off of him. When he walked them into the house, he spotted a head over the back of the couch, but before he could investigate, the head had already peeked over. Lydia blinked tiredly at them, changed out of the clothes that were deemed Alexandria appropriate, and was lounging back in an oversized hoodie (one of Nye's) and sweatpants.

"What are you doin' here?"

Lydia shrugged, staring at Nye curiously. "Didn't like it there, snuck out. What's wrong with her?"

"She's drunk." Daryl hoisted Nye a bit higher, as she was falling into a light doze and slipping from his grip.

"Oh." Lydia got up, yawning and walking over to where Samson laid, the Saint Bernard snoring and drooling onto the floor. "Is she gonna throw up?"

Daryl snorted. "Probably."

Lydia hummed, laying down against the dog, using him as a pillow as she got comfortable.

"What are you doin'?"

"Sleeping. The bed's too soft."

Daryl hesitated, he had planned to lay Nye down to rest, then go out onto the porch to have a smoke, but seeing Lydia curled up on the floor like that gave him pause. Gently setting Nye down on the couch, the woman all but knocked out, he took the heavy quilt off of the back of the lounge chair by the fireplace.

With her eyes closed, Lydia didn't see him approach, but she felt him carefully put the quilt over her, covering her up completely from her chin down. The heavy weight was calming, and the girl soon fell to sleep, relaxing into the giant dog under her.

He remembered, back on the Greene farm, right after Dale was killed, he found Nye and the boys huddled together on the sofa, sleeping deeply with tear tracks still fresh on their faces. Daryl had meant to leave them, but he noticed the way Nye's lips were pursed in a frustrated frown, unable to fall asleep like the boys with the light still on. He flipped the switch, casting the room into darkness, the only light coming through the window, the moon shining brightly outside. Daryl went to quietly step out of the room, but froze when he heard her voice, thick with grief and raspy from exhaustion.

"Thanks."

With his back to her, he had nodded, knowing she wouldn't see it, and walked away.

Now, he made sure Lydia was sleeping before heading upstairs with Nye, taking her to bed. Instead of just having an arm thrown over his shoulder to help support her, this time Daryl merely scooped her up, carrying her bridal style into the room she had previously placed dibs on. He didn't bother trying to flick the light on, only worked his way through to the bed in the dark. When he finally rested her down, he pulled the chain string on the bedside lamp, tipping the shade so the light didn't shine in Nye's face and wake her up.

Daryl almost stood, leaving her to sleep off the booze, but he waited, knowing she couldn't be comfortable sleeping in everything still. So very gently, he reached behind her head, pulling the elastic band out of her hair, letting the locks free to fall onto the pillow. He moved downward, brushing off the idea of getting her out of her dress immediately after it entered his head, and instead went for her heels, slipping off the impossibly impractical shoes and letting them drop to the floor. He leaned over, intending the turn the lamp off, and was taken aback as he felt a hand curl around his.

Looking back at her face, Daryl saw that at some point Nye had woken up. She wasn't looking him in the face, choosing to stare down at their hands, her fingers interlocking with his. Daryl was suddenly very aware of how loud his breathing sounded in the silent room, but didn't dare move or say anything.

Nye brushed her thumb over the back of his hand, eyes half-lidded and staring off, lost in thought. When she finally opened her mouth, and broke the silence, the words she spoke made the breath catch in Daryl's throat.

"You make me happy." She whispered, her voice scratchy and deep as she struggled to stay awake. "You make me better."

Daryl sucked in a sharp breath, and shook his head faintly. "You're givin' me too much credit Sunshine."

Nye looked away from their hands, and focused her attention on his face. Whatever alcohol induced state of bliss she had been in, seemed to have dissolved into some kind of morose sadness.

"Would you have gone through with it?"

"Through with what?"

"...kissing me?" Nye breathed, softer than a whisper.

Shit

This was the last conversation he wanted to be having with her when she was intoxicated. Because whatever she was going to say, he was left to wonder if it was genuine, or if it was caused by the alcohol. Nye didn't seem to care though, as she held his hand tighter to keep him from fleeing.

"Would you?" Nye squeaked, her eyes going misty.

And even if she hadn't been on the verge of tears, his answer would have still been the same.

"Yeah," Daryl murmured through a resigned sigh. "Yeah I would've."

Nye blinked, silent and still, then nodded.

Thinking that was that, Daryl moved to get off the bed and leave her to sleep, but her hand didn't release his.

"Daryl."

"Hmm?"

Nye looked down at the sheets, her breath hitching. "A-and, if I asked… would you stay? Here, with me?"

Daryl stiffened, turning to see if she was serious. And she was, her cheeks a little paler, like she was terrified of his answer, with her face set into a tense expression. Nevertheless, Nye didn't let his hand go, wouldn't, until he answered the question.

"You ain't thinkin' straight Nye." He sighed deeply.

"Yeah, haven't been since I met you."

"That's not-" Daryl ducked his head, wondering to himself how he of all people managed to wind up here, now, with her. "You're drunk, you probably ain't even gonna remember this in the mornin'."

When she didn't respond, he got worried, thinking he may have hurt her. While he was quickly thinking up something to say to try and make her feel better, she finally gave her response.

"So," Nye mumbled, thumb gently moving back and forth, touch feather light. "If I was sober, you would stay?"

At the hopeful lilt in her tone, Daryl looked at her. Nye was waiting, her brows furrowed and eyes once again watery, and he knew he didn't have it in him to lie to her.

"I don't know. I- I want to… but I dunno if I could."

Nye blinked, eyes drifting back down to the sheets, and she very slowly released his hand. She wasn't about to cry, but she didn't look satisfied either. But even drunk, Nye could tell when Daryl was at his limits, and she could tell this was his limit. She sniffled, nose stuffy from the near tears, and nodded against the pillow as she drifted off.

"Okay."

Daryl waited a moment, to see if she was really done and to make sure she fell asleep peacefully. When her breathing evened out, and her body relaxed was when he finally stood. He pulled the small chain, turning off the lamp and leaving the room in darkness.

And in a rather impulsive decision for him, Daryl leaned down. Even softer than how she had been stroking her thumb over his hand, Daryl pressed his lips to her forehead, right on the scar left when the Termite struck her in the head. He lingered there for a couple seconds, and gently brushed her hair behind her ear when he pulled away.

"Night Sunshine."

As he closed the door behind him, he could hear footsteps coming up the stairs. Daryl turned, and locked eyes with Mason and Toby. Both boys froze, knowing that room was the one Nye had picked, and were now squinting at him suspiciously.

"What were you doing in our mother's room?" Mason narrowed his eyes, marching forward, and being held back by Toby, who sighed tiredly.

"Not now." He begged. "I just want to sleep through to noon tomorrow, and I won't be able to if you start bickering." Toby pulled his brother along, but did shoot Daryl a stern look of his own.

It was slightly jarring for the boys to be so standoffish with him for once. Even back when Nye and Daryl had issues with each other, the boys followed him around like a magnet. Now, it seemed like whatever bond they had was temporarily put on the back burner in favor of being Nye's self appointed white knights. And with that duty, Daryl was the first on their list of people that could hurt her emotionally.

"We'll be talking about this in the morning mister." Mason aggressively sent Daryl the 'always watching' motion, and let Toby drag him away.

Daryl waited for them to close the door to their room, and slumped against Nye's.

He didn't regret his choice to become Aaron's new run partner, having a feeling it was going to help save him from the Conner kids' wrath.

Aaron and Eric stood in their front entrance, watching Daryl lead Nye back to the house, her arm slung over him to stay balanced. They both smiled at the two, and Aaron gave Eric a sidelong glance.

"Eric."

"Hmm?"

"Didn't I already mention they weren't together?"

"Yes, you did."

"So why act like you didn't know?"

"Well, why are you acting like you don't know why I acted like I didn't know?"

"...you think it worked?"

Eric shrugged and walked back inside.

"I don't know."

"Hm, guess we'll have to wait and see."