Twenty-One
Carol hated road trips before. Even before the abuse started, Ed was always a bear to drive with. He always insisted on driving, would drive until well into the night, stop at hotels out in the middle of nowhere and insist on getting up early to get as much driving time during daylight hours as possible. And the only time he stopped is if they needed gas or to pee. He also hated driving with music on, so they generally sat there in silence listening to the tires on the asphalt. Carol would often make up little games in her head to entertain herself. And after Sophia was born, she generally spent most of those long drives keeping her quiet so Ed wouldn't get irritated.
Daryl was probably the best road trip partner she'd ever had. Sophia had found her old collection of CDs under the passenger's seat, and she hadn't even asked. He'd noticed her fidgeting with the zipper of the collection case and offered to put some music on for her. The smile that spread across the girl's face warmed Carol's heart. She loved seeing Sophia happy, and despite the awful circumstances of the world they were living in, she felt happier than she had in years. It occurred to Carol that if it hadn't been for the horrible turn of events that brought the group together in the first place, she never would have met Daryl. Ed would still be alive. All things considered, this nightmare of a life was better than life with Ed Before.
When they group picked up at first light and took off, Daryl chose to stay at the back of the caravan. They had a walkie on the dash board that directly communicated with one in Rick's vehicle up at the front.
After only a half hour of driving, Carol got uncomfortable in the passenger's seat. When he noticed her squirming, he slowed down a little.
"You ok?"
"Huh?" She stared at him curiously.
"You look like you need a break. Want me to ask Rick to stop?"
"No," she chuckled. "I'm fine. I just needed to move a little."
"Mom hates road trips," Sophia interjected from the back seat. Daryl glanced at her in the mirror and then looked back to Carol.
"You sure you're good?"
"I'm fine," Carol assured him. "I'll be glad when we stop tonight. Whenever that is." She sighed and leaned her head back against the seat. They all knew when it would be. It would be whenever Rick was ready to stop. Carol wasn't surprised at all when the leadership conversation took very little time that morning. It was also no surprise that most everyone wanted Rick to lead. Though there was talk of voting and making big decisions as a group, Carol knew in her gut that when it all came down to it, Rick was going to have the final say. That could either be a blessing or a curse.
Carol knew Rick was a good man, but his main priority was his family, as it should have been. She just wasn't certain that if the time came to make decisions for the group, he would make a choice that was good for everyone, not just his family. She supposed that time would tell. Besides, as long as she had Sophia and Daryl, she had all she could ask for. When it came down to it, if it came to choosing between the group and her family, there was no question which way she would go.
She leaned back in her seat and rested her arm on the rest in the middle. When she felt his arm bump against hers to rest beside it, she smiled. It wasn't but a moment later that he was holding her hand, and her heart beat a little faster in her chest. There was something about holding hands with him, about kissing him that made her knees go weak. Sometimes it felt brand new again. Those butterflies in her stomach always acted up when he was close. And now that they weren't sneaking around, she felt almost shy to hold his hand and to kiss him. Those sparks were still there, still simmering just under the skin, but knowing someone was likely watching made her feel exposed.
She could practically feel Sophia's eyes on them when Daryl ran his thumb over her knuckles. They weren't doing anything dirty, but Carol had been with Ed so long, and Ed was the least affectionate person she ever knew. She imagined it was a shock for her daughter, and she did feel a little guilty that she hadn't spoken with her about Daryl a while ago. But, the girl didn't seem to feel left out about finding out with the rest of the group. If anything, she was just as happy as she was the day she and Carl were chasing each other around the farm.
It wasn't long before Sophia settled back with a book. Carol never had figured out how Sophia could read in the car without feeling sick, but she supposed it was something Sophia trained herself to do from a young age to avoid being mentally present in the tension-filled drives with Ed.
Carol found herself dozing off before long, and when the car jerked suddenly, her eyes flew open, and she saw Daryl clenching the steering wheel. The cars ahead of him had stopped abruptly. He reached for the walkie he'd put on the dash.
"The hell was that?" he asked. "You hit somethin'?"
"Two cars in the road. We can't get around. There's an exit up ahead though. Looks like a truck stop. We're gonna stop and use the facilities. Grab something to eat. Maybe see if we can pull some fuel. Lori's feeling bad." Carol immediately grabbed for the walking.
"Is she ok?"
"Nothing to worry about. We just need to rest for a bit." Carol nodded then, as if Rick could see her, and she handed the walkie back to Daryl.
"I'm gonna get out. Help them get the cars off the road," Daryl sighed.
"Be careful," Carol urged.
"Lock the door." He opened the door and looked around, seeing no sign of danger before closing the door. Carol hit the automatic lock on her side, and Sophia sat up a little. Carol reached up and turned the CD player off.
"Where do you think we'll end up?" Sophia asked quietly, resting her chin on the edge of Carol's headrest.
"I don't know, Sophia. Hopefully some place safe. Some place we don't have to keep watch all night."
"Do you think we'll find other people?" the girl wondered. Carol gazed out at the back of the car in front of them and leaned her head back a little.
"I'm sure there'll be more people somewhere. We survived. I'm betting there are groups scattered everywhere doing the same thing we are right now."
"I hope so," Sophia sighed. "Mom?"
"Yeah?"
"You really like Daryl, don't you?"
"I do," Carol offered with a soft smile.
"Do you love him?"
"I do," Carol said, unflinching. She turned in her seat to look at her daughter. "Is that something you're going to be alright with?"
"Yeah," Sophia said slowly. "He's not like Dad."
"No. He's not like your father. Not at all." She reached up and put her hand over Sophia's.
"Will you get married?"
"What?" Carol chuckled. "What on earth made you think of that?"
"I don't know," Sophia shrugged. "People that love each other get married."
"Sometimes," Carol acknowledged with a little nod. "Not always."
"I wonder if I'll get married someday," Sophia frowned.
"Sophia, you're only thirteen. You don't need to worry about that right now." Carol watched her daughter's frown fade, but she still looked concerned.
"When I'm old enough to get married, there might not be anybody left." She slumped back in her seat and opened her book again. Carol slowly turned back in her seat and stared ahead, thinking about her daughter's words. She had a point. This world was dying and so were the people in it. Carol couldn't help but think it was going to take a miracle to get the world back to something like it used to be, even if they had to build it back up from scratch. Nothing was ever going to be the same again, and thinking ten years down the road left Carol with that rush of anxiety akin to the second before the first drop on a rollercoaster. What kind of world were they looking forward to? What kind of world would she leave for her daughter to survive in when she was gone? It was a terrifying thought that left knots tightening in her belly.
She jumped when Daryl pulled on the door handle and let it flip back. She put her hand on her chest and quickly unlocked the door. When he slid in, he saw the apprehension in her tense face.
"You ok? Something happen?"
"Yeah. You scared me."
"Sorry."
"It's ok," she chuckled. "I was in my own little world, I guess." She put her hand on his. "We ready to go?"
"Yeah, we're gonna shoot for the travel center a half mile down. If it ain't overrun, we're gonna regroup and figure out our next move."
"It's a start. It's something," Carol said with a tired smile. "Besides, I think we could all stand to stretch our legs for a bit."
"Yeah. Maybe it ain't been picked clean. Get some food, some supplies. Maybe it's one of them truck stops with the shower rooms. Ya know, for those truckers that slept in their trucks?"
"Anything would feel great right about now," Carol offered with a tired smile. She settled back in her seat and watched the car ahead slowly creep forward. Daryl followed behind, and it wasn't long before they were coasting down the exit ramp toward a large travel center. Back in the day, it was the kind that had gas pumps for cars and trucks as well as larger ones for semi-trucks. There were signs advertising an all you can eat buffet for just $10.99 as well as showers.
The place looked relatively untouched, but there were cars lined up at the gas pumps, doors wide open and abandoned long ago. The price of gas on the sign was four times what it was before shit hit the fan, and Carol guessed that when they bled the pumps dry, people abandoned their cars and started off on foot. She knew that day would come for them, too, but she hoped that day was long after they found a permanent home where they could start over from scratch and not have to depend on supply runs to survive. They'd almost had that at the farm. Next time, they'd have better fences. Walls, maybe.
They lined the cars up right in front of the doors, parking bumper to bumper so not to let anything get between the cars. Rick had mentioned over the walkie that the area looked secure but they needed to be ready to leave at a moment's notice, and parking right up along the building would make that easier and keep anything from getting into the travel center.
"I'm gonna go in, help Rick and Shane clear the place." He reached into the back seat for his crossbow, and Sophia handed him his pack full of bows. "Thanks, Soph." She smiled at him, and Daryl cast a glance in Carol's direction, getting a little smile from her in return. "Be right back."
…
There was a half dozen walkers in the travel center, and it took Daryl, Rick, Shane and T-Dog less than fifteen minutes to put them down and drag the bodies out the back. They did another check of the place including the bathrooms and shower rooms before motioning for the rest of the group to come inside.
"Hot water in the showers," Daryl announced. "There's a generator, probably for back-up for the pumps since we're so close to the Interstate. Folks best cut it down to five minutes in the shower each to be safe."
"We'll go in groups. There's five stalls per shower room. Carol, Lori, Andrea, Sophia, Maggie, you go first. T-Dog, Glenn, Hershel and Shane can take the men's shower room. Daryl, Carl and myself will scavenge until the first group's done. Then we'll swap. When you're scavenging, go for things that'll keep. Boxed foods. Canned goods. This place is pretty much untouched, so we should be able to gather a lot." Rick was pretty good at splitting people up for different tasks, but it remained to be seen how things would go when things got rough on the road. He'd gotten them precisely from the quarry to the CDC where they'd almost died. Then he'd gotten them from the CDC to the traffic snarl where Sophia had almost died. Rick was a good man. Carol knew that much. But she still felt better staying closer to Daryl. She was certain he had what it took to be a great leader, but she knew that was a job he'd never ask for.
Carol followed the rest of the girls back toward the showers, but when she was about to turn the corner, she felt a hand against her arm. She turned to see Daryl standing there, his blue eyes locking with hers.
"Stay safe," he urged. She smiled then and leaned forward to kiss him. She grinned when he pulled back, and she leaned in to whisper against his ear.
"I'd suggest a replay of our night in the shower room at the CDC, but I'm not one for an audience." Daryl snorted at that, and the tops of his ears turned red. She kissed him again, and he pulled her in for a tight embrace. She sighed softly and relaxed in his arms, glancing over to see T-Dog and Glenn grinning as they passed by. She giggled when Daryl pulled back. "What was that for?"
"Just been wantin' to hold you all day. Ain't gonna be easy to do much more than that for a while, I expect."
"Well," she smiled, "we'll just have to get creative." She winked at him, and he damn near turned as red as the handkerchief in his back pocket. She passed one quick peck of a kiss over his lips before turning and hurrying off to the showers, leaving Daryl red-faced and looking forward to whatever the hell Carol's idea of creativity was.
Author's Note: Thanks everyone who is still reading this. I appreciate your comments so much! Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. Feedback is very much appreciated!