I wasn't going to update just yet then I read your reviews and couldn't help myself. I was having a bad day then boom, instantly better when I read them. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart. I don't know where I would be without this.

The reunion you've all been waiting for...and more heartache. Can never have enough of that, am I right?

Words: 1,840

When the last walker falls, Daryl turns to the first person and demands to know where ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶k̶i̶d̶ Charlie is. Luckily, that person is Aaron and he points him to the infirmary. Without wasting another second, Daryl rushes off towards the building.

He barges through the door in a flurry, his eyes sweeping the room. It doesn't take long to see her. She's lying on the bed on her side, her knees pulled close to her chest. He feels frozen, like someone is squeezing his heart before Denise suddenly appears.

"She's okay," She assures him. "Just...got a little tired." That's definitely not it but the doctor decides for everyone's health that it's best to let him believe that for now.

Without as much as a hum, Daryl moves past her and towards the bed. He squints his eyes at Charlie's pale complexion and the bruise and healing cut on the girl's head. He reaches a hand forward and brushes her hair back.

Her left arm, carefully placed along her side and leg, is wrapped. He'd known her wrist wasn't completely healed before but she hadn't been wearing a brace but now she is. And there's a bandage around her hand. Yeah, she just got a little tired. Daryl scoffs and shakes his head.

With his other hand, he reaches towards her right, his fingers gliding over the pink-tinted skin. Dried blood. He only hopes it's from walkers.

As soon as his fingers touch her wrist, Charlie's eyes snap open. It takes her a moment to realize what she's seeing but when she does, Daryl finds himself with his arms full of teenager in that next second.

"I knew you were too stubborn to die," She whispers into his shoulder, her voice muffled.

Closing his eyes, Daryl takes his first real breath since he left Alexandria. He tightens his hold on Charlie just a little, but as soon as he does, he hears her wince. Pulling away quickly, Daryl holds her at arm's length. She's still on the bed, resting on her knees, but she falls into a seated position after a moment.

"It's nothing," She says before he can ask. "I'm fine." She's said that so many times in the last two days, she's almost starting to believe it herself.

With narrowed eyes, Daryl surveys Charlie's face. Not for one second does he believe her, he's just not sure what to do about it. "Yeah? Then what's this?" He asks while running his thumb lightly under the bruise on her forehead. "And that?" He adds a gesture towards her left arm and Charlie closes her eyes and slumps down. She just looks so tired, he can't help but think. Exhausted in a way a few good nights sleep won't fix.

With her head down, Charlie sniffs. She shakes her head and forces out a laugh. But the noise is weak and falls flat. "Sorry, I don't-I don't know why...I'm crying," Lifting her good hand, head still down, Charlie wipes her cheeks. "I'm fine." She's not really crying, not in the typical sense. Tears flood her eyes and a few fall down her cheeks. She continues to sniff as her nose runs but she's not really crying.

"Hey," Daryl's voice is quiet, soft in a way Charlie's rarely heard. She inhales a stuttering breath and looks up at him through her lashes. She can't hold his gaze and looks back down, closing her eyes when he rests his hand on the back of her neck. Swallowing heavily, Charlie leans forward until she's resting against him.

"I'm tired," She admits quietly. So quietly she's not sure he hears until he hums, his thumb gliding up and down her skin. "My hand hurts, and my side." She hadn't told anyone that but they've both been killing her. She wonders how the gash on her hand compares to the one on her side but they're both burning like fire.

"Your side?" Charlie can hear the way Daryl's eyebrows furrow, she doesn't need to see him to know the look on his face. Maybe she shouldn't have said that but...but this is Daryl. And she's tired.

"I don't want to talk about it," She mumbles. She doesn't want to move, really. She's not even sure if she can. But she doesn't want to be here anymore either. "I'll live." Will you?

For now, Daryl decides. He'll leave it for now. "Wanna get back to the house?" Charlie nods with another sniff but makes no move to get up. She just needs a second to catch her breath then she'll be fine.

"Uh," Denise appears so suddenly Charlie feels her head spin. Or maybe that's from something else. "She shouldn't be walking right now."

"Why?" Daryl asks gruffly, looking between the doctor and Charlie, eyebrows furrowed.

"She's worried I'll reopen my wound," Charlie goes ahead and answers for the woman. She figures there's no point in delaying the inevitable. He's going to find out pretty soon. "I already tore my stitches. Probably can't afford to lose any more blood." Wait, why'd she add that?

Charlie closes her eyes so she can't see the look on Daryl's face. For his part, he doesn't show much. His jaw clenches and the lines around his eyes become more defined but others wise, his face stays blank. "I'll live," She repeats. "Just not sure how far I can make it right now."

"How about you let me look at that cut while she rests," Denise speaks up again, wringing her hands nervously in front of her while looking between them both.

"Sounds like a plan," Charlie mumbles and slowly lowers herself back down onto her uninjured side. Daryl watches her for a moment before huffing and allowed Denise to fix the cut on his back. By the time she's done, Charlie is sound asleep once more.

He thinks about waking her but throws that idea away immediately. She needs rest. Maybe he should leave her. But she doesn't want to be here and neither does he, and he's not leaving her. So, doing the next best thing, Daryl very gently lifts Charlie into his arms. It's good she's asleep, she'd never allow this otherwise.

Those stationed right outside the infirmary turn when the door opens. Everyone, even those who don't know either of them well, scrunch up their faces in worry. But Aaron's the one who speaks. "Is she okay?"

"She's fine," Daryl answers shortly, continuing past everyone and down the stairs. There are walker bodies covering nearly every inch of the streets from here to the house. But he moves around them without a glance until he's finally back inside.

Charlie doesn't wake then the door closes behind them. She doesn't wake when he moves up the stairs nor when he places her down onto her bed and moves the covers over her shoulders. He'd noticed how cold she was, colder than she normally is. She's always felt cold, but now more so than ever despite the warm temperature.

There's a chair in the corner. Daryl falls onto the cushion heavily. And he stays there, watching. Guarding.

Pushing the door open, Daryl immediately takes a step back from entering the room when something whizzes past in front of him. He looks to the left to see the culprit. An arrow embedded into the wall, three others surrounding it. He slowly turns his head to see Charlie sitting on the end of her bed, her bow in her hands.

"I'm still in bed," She shrugs. And though she's technically correct, shooting a compound bow while trying to heal a wound on your side isn't exactly 'bed rest'. It's been a week and Charlie started going stir crazy on the third day. Which is really the first day she didn't spend sleeping through. It's done her good though, she's healing, but not as quickly as she should be. Though she says she's sleeping fine now, Daryl knows it's a lie. He can see the dark circles under her eyes.

Sighing, Daryl walks towards her and takes the bow, setting it on the ground before gesturing towards the pill bottles on the nightstand. "You take these?"

"I don't need them," Charlie mumbles, still perched on the edge of the bed, twirling an arrow between her fingers. She hears him pick the bottles up before they're clattering onto the bed next to her. She lets out a sigh of her own and continues staring at the wall across from her.

When she sits on the bed next to her, Charlie glances at the bandages in his hands. He holds them out in a silent question like he does every day even though the answer is always the same. Silently, Charlie moves her shirt out of the way and lets him replace the old bandage with the new.

"Hey," Daryl's mumbled word comes a few moments later, accompanied by his fingers under her chin, gently lifting and turning her head in his direction. Charlie allows the movement but keeps her eyes down. Maybe it's cliché to think but she's been avoiding the mirror this past week on account of the blank look that always stares back at her. She's avoiding his gaze for the same reason. Maybe it's because she doesn't want to deal with it. Or maybe it's because she's scared...scared of what his eyes will look like when he sees the same thing she does.

"Charlie-"

"Hey, you know, there's a dartboard in the room down the hall," Charlie cuts him off and moves her head out of his grasp. "If you prefer me not to shoot the bow inside, I'll go get that."

Placing a hand on her shoulder when she tries to stand, Daryl shakes his head. "I'll get it," He says before standing to do just that. Maybe he should be harder, lock the door and not leave until she talks to him. Every day for the past week, he's tried to get her to tell him what's wrong but every time he tries, she always finds something else to say. Some way to avoid it.

Once out in the hall, Daryl leans back against the wall and runs a hand down his face. He feels lost...he knows Charlie is. But he doesn't know how to help her find her way when he doesn't even know his own.

And here comes the spiral...oop. Sooo, there's a lot here. Daryl is trying his best but I mean, he doesn't know what to do! Neither does Charlie! But he's trying and that's more than I can say for her.

Charlie is...going through a lot and she doesn't want to seem weak. She's felt small and weak her whole life and she's tired of it. And I'm ranting, I should save this for the story.

I hope you guys enjoyed! And let me know!

Thanks for the name suggestions! I'm so excited, I think I know how I'm going to start the sister fic, ish. But if you guys have things you'd like to see happen in that story, feel free to let me know. I know really have a plot just yet.

Until next time, friends!

'-'