Chapter 27 - 74th of Sometember

"Grab that end." Daryl instructed Tyreese as he stood on the bed of the truck, trying to wrestle a 3-seater sofa off the back.

They hadn't found much on the run that day, so had decided instead to bring a lounge suite back to the prison, precariously stacking two 3-seater sofas and two 2-seater sofas on the back of the truck, and were now moving them to the corner of the courtyard under the eaves to make a little den area.

"Great idea on the den, guys!" said Rick as he helped them maneuver the furniture into place. He flopped down onto the cushions with a contented sigh. "Might just end up here for the rest of the day! Better stake your claim now, Daryl!" He indicated the other empty sofas.

Daryl grinned. "Gonna get a big butt-print goin' on in that one there. But first just gotta go grab the rest of my stuff."

On his way out of the courtyard, he bumped into Carol.

"Hey! Seen Tahly around?"

Carol nodded. "Down by the gardens. Why? You missing her already?" she teased with a grin.

Daryl elbowed her as he passed. "Stop." But the light pink tinge across his cheeks gave him away.

Ambling down to the gardens, he found Tahlia weeding the veggie patch.

"Hey!" he called, as she stood up and beamed at him. That smile always melted him, and for some reason he couldn't work out, she always seemed so damned happy to see him.

"How'd it go out there?" she asked.

"Not bad. Here, gotcha something. Heads up!" Daryl tossed a jar of peanut butter her way, and she caught it easily.

"Oh my God, a full jar of extra crunchy! I love you!"

Those words raised a warmth inside him, and he couldn't help the little smile that crooked his lips.

Tahlia opened the jar then glanced down at her dirty hands, looking perplexed for a moment, then she shrugged and made to stick her tongue in the jar, when Daryl held up a hand.

"Wait, y'animal!" he admonished her. "Brought you a spoon." He pulled an ornate golden teaspoon out of his back pocket and threw it to her.

With a hearty laugh, Tahlia studied the spoon. It had a finely detailed carved handle with tiny jewels adorning the end and looked like it could have been a relic from a museum.

"You are the greatest present giver in the whole world! You always get the best stuff."

Daryl rolled his eyes, despite the pride sparking inside him at her praise.

"You're so damn easy to please. Like a lil kid. Y'know, most girls be all whinin' for diamonds and gold. Not you, girl. Fuckin' peanut butter and Christmas crap and you're like a pig in shit."

Tahlia dropped her eyes to the ground with a sheepish shrug, and Daryl's tone softened immediately.

"S'a good thing, Tahly. You're... makes me... fuck. Just a good thing."

He thought back to how Merle had always warned him off getting close to women, always moaned that they were never pleased, that it was impossible to make them happy and that he'd always be chasing his tail trying to put a smile on their face and stop their bellyaching. Daryl wondered why he'd ever listened to his brother's bullshit. Making Tahlia happy seemed to be the easiest thing in the world, and he'd never for a minute anticipated how much happiness it would bring him in return. What's more, he wanted to do it. All he wanted was to make her smile, and he was always looking for ways to light up her face.

Smiling again, Tahlia looked down at the jar. "You know the only thing that would make this better? Pickles."

"Pickles?!"

"Yeah! Pickles and peanut butter. Dip them straight in. Yum. You don't have a jar of those too, by any chance?" she asked with a twinkle in her eye.

"Naw! That's just gross!" Daryl wrinkled his nose in disgust.

Tahlia laughed, then scooped up some peanut butter with the spoon, her eyes flickering shut briefly as she took a mouthful. "Mmmpffff voooooo..."

He had no idea what she'd said, but she looked blissful. When she was finally able to talk again, she dipped the spoon back in, picking up the tiniest smidge of spread then held it out to him.

"Here. That's all you're getting though, so don't eat it all at once."

His lips twitched as he shook his head and sucked on his top teeth at her teasing. He reached for the spoon, then at the last second, grabbed her wrist and jerked her towards him, spinning her into his chest, securing his arm around her shoulders.

"Hand it over, girl." he growled playfully in her ear, causing her to drop her head back in laughter and relinquish the jar. Taking a big scoop, he savoured it for a long moment, then looked back at her.

"Got one more thing for ya."

"Another present?! Wait a minute... is it my birthday?" she simpered.

Daryl snorted. Who the hell who know anymore? Then he threw his arms out to the side and shrugged.

"Yeah, sure. Happy birthday, pain in the ass!"

He turned around, and, slung over his back where his crossbow would normally be, was a bag containing a long cylindrical object.

Tahlia's hand flew to her mouth. "Oh! A yoga mat?!"

"So Sasha tells me." said Daryl, unhooking it from his back and handing it to her.

"So, you're encouraging my crazy hippy shit now, are you?" she teased.

A vivid flashback of her folded in half in lacy underwear sprang into Daryl's head, and he was too distracted to answer her question.

Opening the bag and pulling out a new looking purple mat, a huge happy smile danced on Tahlia's face, and then she gazed back up at him.

"Daryl." she said mistily, a slight furrow in her brow.

"What?" He took a step back from her. "Ain't no big deal, girl. Just happened on it, thought ya'd like it, is all."

"Is a big deal." she insisted. "Creature comfort, you know? Makes everyday life a little nicer."

Dropping the mat, she held her arms out. "Come on." She beckoned to him. "Bring it in."

"Fuck outta here, Tahly ya weirdo." Daryl took another step back.

"You didn't think you could bring me these amazing things and get away without a big smooshy hug, did you? Come on."

"Naw!" he said with his best attempt at a glare.

She pouted. "But it's my birthday!"

He let out a sharp laugh. Well, he'd set himself up for that one.

"C'mere, then."

She broke into a smile and hopped towards him, first placing her hands on his cheeks.

"You are a total sweetheart, Daryl Dixon."

"Oh ma Gawd." he groaned, but by that time she was on her tiptoes with her arms around his neck, and he responded, letting one hand drift to her upper back, the other low on her waist, dropping his face to her shoulder and allowing himself to close his eyes just for a moment, one sweet moment to breathe her in, honeysuckle and sunshine, and wonder how it was possible for someone to fit against him so perfectly.

As they stepped back from one another, he thought for a second. "Hey, so when is your birthday?"

Tahlia wrinkled her nose. "I'm not big on birthdays. Haven't celebrated mine in a long time."

"How come?" Then, "Oh." as he realised, too late.

She nodded. "Yeah. Just wasn't the same without Charlotte. But, hey I guess I have a new one now! Whatever today is. The... 74th of Sometember!" She laughed, then asked, "When's yours?"

Daryl shrugged. "Ain't big on 'em neither. Weren't really somethin' to get excited about in my house."

"Hmm." Tahlia contemplated this for a moment. "Maybe you just need a new one too. You can share mine, if you like? I'm good at sharing birthdays."

"You're a real asshat, y'know that?" he said fondly.

Tahlia propped her hands on her hips. "You want in on this or not?"

He toed the ground for a bit, then gave her a shy glance up through his hair. "Yeah."

"Alright then." A warm smile spread across her face. "Happy birthday, Dixon."

"Right back at ya, girl."

That evening, a few of them were sitting on the sofas, Beth trying to explain how to play Last Card, a card game that Tahlia had taught her how to play after learning it herself in her teens from a New Zealander working on her uncle's vineyard.

"...because Rick put down a 5, then Maggie put one on top, so Glenn, unless you have a 5 as well, you gotta pick up 10 cards."

"10 cards?!" Glenn exclaimed. "But I was nearly out!"

"That's the rules. Pick up." grinned Maggie smugly.

"I can't believe my own wife sabotaged my win. I want a divorce."

"No such thing as divorce anymore. You're stuck with me forever." sassed Maggie.

Glenn couldn't imagine a more enticing prospect, and a gooey smile spread on his face as he leaned over to kiss her.

Daryl rolled his eyes. "Pick up the damn cards so we can play!"

"Sorry!"

As Glenn started counting out the cards, Daryl cast yet another glance around the courtyard. Still no sign of Tahlia.

Where the hell was she?

At least he could see that Brody, over at one of the picnic tables with Joel and Elise, was accounted for. But so was everyone else that she'd normally hang out with. He decided that if she didn't appear after the next game, he was going to look for her.

"Daryl! Your turn!" From the sofa next to him, Michonne was kicking him in the foot.

His attention snapped back to the game. "What're we on? Diamonds... yes! I'm out. Thank fuck for that."

He dropped his remaining 2 cards onto the pile, and sprawled back onto the sofa, happy to let the others battle it out for the remainder of the game.

Just then, Tahlia appeared at the far entrance to the courtyard, and stood for a moment, searching. He clocked her as soon as she appeared and had to fight the very real urge to stand up and wave to her.

And then her eyes locked with his, and she broke out into a smile that told him he was the one that she was looking for, sending a warm wave washing over him. It took an age for her to make her way across the courtyard as she was stopped by nearly everyone along the way for a little chat. It wasn't until she was a few feet away that Daryl realised his gaze hadn't left her that whole time.

"Evening all!" she greeted the group on the sofas as she made her way to Daryl.

He gestured for her to sit next to him, but she shook her head, so he kicked his feet up onto the spare space beside him.

"Tahly! Thank goodness you're here! You can help me explain the rules of Last Card to these guys. They're still not quite getting it!" Beth exclaimed, then frowned at Glenn as he tried to place a handful of cards onto the table. "Glenn! You can't do that!"

"Once Glenn's had to pick up 20 cards in one go I think he'll pay a little more attention to the rules." Tahlia laughed as Glenn gave her the finger. "And sorry, I can't tonight, I just have something I've got to do, but book me a spot for tomorrow night's game. And we might even make it Last Card Torture – that makes you learn the rules real fast!"

Beth gave an excited little gasp at that. "Ooh, that sounds terrifying! I can't wait!" Her attention quickly turned back to the game. "Ok. Whose turn is it?"

"What've you got to do?" Michonne asked Tahlia curiously from behind her.

"Nooothing." she replied mysteriously over her shoulder, then turned to the very relaxed looking Daryl. "Can you come with me please?"

"Naw. Lose my spot."

"Tell me what you're doing!" Michonne poked Tahlia in the back of the knee with her foot, making her leg buckle, and Tahlia gave an indignant squeal.

"Definitely not telling you now!" she exclaimed, then turned back to Daryl who'd still made no attempt to move. "Daryl. Get up."

"Naw."

"Oh!" Michonne suddenly breathed knowingly. "Is this for the-"

"Yes! Shh." Tahlia warned, before looking back to Daryl again.

"For the what?" he asked, curious now.

She just smiled and raised a brow, then turned and started back across the courtyard.

Daryl glanced at Michonne who had a sly grin on her face, then he jumped up and jogged after Tahlia.

"Where we goin'?" he called as he followed her out of the courtyard, but she ignored him.

Intrigued, he tried again. "Tahly, what-"

"Shhhhh!" she hushed him, with a glint in her eyes. He rolled his and followed on.

It was dusk and the soft light of the evening cast a sepia filter over their surroundings as their feet crunched along the path that snaked to the east of the cellblock.

Up ahead on the hillock, Daryl could make out a couple of objects lying on the ground as she ushered him towards them.

"Sit." She pointed to the cushions on the grass.

With a puzzled look on his face and a tiny smile hovering on his lips, he obeyed, and sat cross-legged on a cushion. Tahlia turned her back to him and crouched down, rummaging around a pile of stuff. He heard the telltale flick of a lighter, then she turned around.

"Happy birthday to yooooooou!" she sang, holding a tray with a 'cake' which was a pyramid of 6 Twinkies and two sputtering sparklers sticking out the top.

"Oh ma Gawd." He gave an incredulous huff and shake of his head as he dropped his face into his hands briefly, before peeking up at her again in delight. She'd set the tray in front of him, and was kneeling next to it, beaming.

"I couldn't find birthday candles, just these sparklers – so," She pulled one out and handed it to him. "-we can just draw shit in the air until they go out. Dammit! Why didn't I wait until it was properly dark?!

He laughed as he picked up a Twinkie and took a big bite, waving the sparkler with his other hand. "Still works."

He hadn't used a sparkler since he was a kid, but writing his name in the air in front of him was just as satisfying as it had been back then.

"Ok! Now, present time." Tahlia handed him a washing basket that had been wrapped up in an old towel.

"What is this?" he asked, giving her a quizzical look.

"You gave me my birthday presents this afternoon, now here are yours!"

Shaking his head with a grin, he pulled the towel from the basket and first picked up the card she had made from torn out pages of a library book. He read her looping cursive out loud.

"Happy 1st shared birthday - the greatest one you've ever had! May all our 74ths of Sometember be as unplanned as this one. All the love and big squeezy hugs in the world, from the biggest pain in the ass you've ever met. Xxx."

Daryl could only manage a quick glance up at her because there was a huge lump rising in his throat. As silly as her little display was, no one had ever made a fuss of him before, and he was feeling startlingly emotional that she would go to this kind of effort just for him.

As if she sensed that, she grabbed the card from his hand and dropped it back in the basket.

"Presents now." she instructed.

Getting a hold of himself, he lifted the items out one by one.

A pack of Camels, a book on classic motorbikes, an old bicycle bell, a packet of Twizzlers, a pair of socks decorated with dog faces, and two whiskey miniatures.

"Best I could do on such short notice. You really should give a girl some warning when your birthday is coming up." Tahlia said faux-sternly.

Daryl looked at her in wonder. "Where did ya get all this?"

"Hmm." Tahlia started pointing at the items. "I had to do some serious bartering for the Camels, the Twizzlers the socks and the whiskey. Got a lot of extra jobs and promises to fulfil 'round here now! The book I found in the library; the bell in the tool shed. I was thinking it might be a nice addition to the Triumph!"

Daryl let out a loud laugh. "Merle would have a fuckin' fit if he could hear ya suggestin' that!"

Tahlia bobbed her head from side to side in contemplation. "I feel like if he knew me, he probably wouldn't be very surprised."

"True." Daryl agreed as he surveyed the girl kneeling in front of him - this beautiful girl with the permanent smile, huge heart, and wacky way of looking at the world.

"Here." He cracked open one of the whiskey bottles and handed it to her, before opening the other for himself. "Cheers. And... thanks."

They took a sip in unison, then Tahlia pulled the other cushion over to sit next to Daryl and wrapped her arms around her knees as she gazed out at the shadowy world beyond the prison boundary.

"Ah. Sometember. My favourite time of year." she said dreamily, prompting a snort and an elbow in the side from Daryl.

"Y'ain't like no one I ever met before, y'know that?"

Tahlia just smiled and took another drink.

They sat in silence as the night descended around them, then Daryl chucked back the rest of his whiskey and reached for Tahlia's hand, gently linking his fingers through hers, giving her a little squeeze.

Then he said softly, "It is, y'know."

"What?"

"Greatest birthday I ever had."

She rested her cheek on her bent knees as she gazed over at him contentedly. "Me too."

Oh for fluff's sake :D