Only this chapter plus about one or two more until I am on season four! Woo Hoo!
OOOOO
It was getting colder by the day. And that was one thing Kayla always hated…the cold. She could never get warm enough…before and after the world ended. Her heating bills were always too high because her apartment would be at seventy degrees all winter. The clothes she had were warm, but not warm enough and Daryl noticed pretty quick. She was always rubbing her arms to generate heat or she was shivering. The winter they were on the road he always would pull her into his arms whenever he could and warm her up with body heat, but he couldn't do that now. So he did what he was still able to and one night after everyone fell asleep, he grabbed his second and only other jacket that was black leather and insulated inside and walked over to Kayla's cell. The blanket she normally had hanging up was on the ground so it must have fallen which gave Daryl a better view of Kayla. She was on her side facing the cell and strands of her brown hair were in her face. Daryl walked into the cell quietly and placed the jacket on the sink so she would see it in the morning. He turned and saw Kayla's sleeping face, making him smile. He walked over next to her bed and kneeled next to her. He tucked the hair in her face behind her ear and then removed his hand. He watched her for a moment before walking out of her cell and back to his.
The next morning when Kayla found it she smiled, knowing it was Daryl's doing. Even though she was barely speaking to him he was still taking care of her. Her eyes got teary and she wiped them before slipping the jacket on and zipping it up to go outside. She was going to help Daryl and the others with the defense in the field, but they weren't doing that for a while so she went over to the other cell block where she would go when she needed to think. Or just have some time to herself.
When she walked into the cell block, she found mattress stuffing being thrown out of the cells. She put her hand on her gun and walked over to the cell, but found it was only merle ripping up mattresses. "What the hell are you doing?" she asked. He looked up at her and smirked. "Whadda you think?" he questioned. "Person with a history of substance abuse ripping up prison mattresses…take a guess."
"You're really looking for drugs? With everything going on, you wanna get high?" Kayla snapped.
"What's your point?"
Kayla let out a sound of disgust before turning to leave, but Merle's voice stopped her. "So you're the one that is with my brother…" he said. Kayla stopped and walked back to the cell. "Excuse me?" she questioned.
"Not gonna lie you don't seem like his type." Merle admitted.
"And what's his type?"
"Normally the kind of girl that you'd see tripping over her feet walking out of a bar or the hot, whore of a cashier at the grocery store. Not a college graduate."
Kayla rolled her eyes. "It doesn't even matter because we aren't even…" she began. "We're not together."
"Ain't that his jacket?" Merle asked as he stood up. Kayla looked at the jacket and didn't reply. "Look I know you don't like me." Merle began. "And I know why. But what I need you to hear from me is that my brother loves you. It's clear as the damn day. And I know you still love him or whatever you wanna call it that you feel for him. Fact of the matter is he made a mistake. If I was him I wouldn't have gone with me…I've made a lot of mistakes and done things I ain't proud of, but don't blame Daryl for that and take it out on him."
Kayla listened to what Merle had to say and realized this was their first actual conversation. "You're right." She said. "I don't like you. You're bad for Daryl. I know what kind of person you were back in Atlanta…and I know people like you don't change. But Daryl…I know what kind of person he used to be too, but the thing is he did change….for the better because you weren't around to influence him. He had a good heart and a clear conscience, something you need in this world. I love him, I do. And I wanna try to work things out, but you Merle you don't fit in this group. I don't want you dead, but people like you are better off alone."
Merle let out a breath. "You don't hold back, do ya?" he responded.
"No I don't." Kayla answered. "But I think that is exactly what you needed to hear."
Merle looked at her for a few moments before responding. "You know I'm sure I'd like you a lot better if we weren't under these circumstances." He said through a laugh before looking back at Kayla. "But I'm Daryl's brother…and you're just a girl he met at the end of the world."
"You're also the brother who walked out when they were kids and he needed you."
Merle's face fell. "Yeah I know that, too." Kayla said. "And when I was younger I would have killed to have at least one person in my life while my daddy hit me and Daryl had a sibling who just walked away. You didn't deserve him." Merle stepped out of the cell and walked over to Kayla, stopping in front of her. "Don't blame Daryl." Was all he responded with. "Don't take your anger you have for me out on him." With that said, Merle walked into another cell and Kayla left the cell block.
OOOOO
A little while after they cleared the fields, it was mid-afternoon when Rick gathered everyone in the courtyard. Kayla sat down with Alex and immediately noticed Daryl, Merle, and Michonne weren't there. Once everyone sat down, Rick began to talk.
"When I met with the Governor." He began. "He offered me a deal. He said he would leave us alone, if I gave him Michonne. And I was gonna do that to keep us safe. But I changed my mind. But now Merle took Michonne to fulfill the deal and Daryl went to stop him and I don't know if it's too late. I was wrong not to tell you…I'm sorry. What I said last year…that first night after the farm…it can't be like that. It can't. What we do, what we're willing to do, who we are it's not my call. It can't be. I couldn't sacrifice one of us for the greater good because we are the greater good. We're the reason we're still here, not me. This is life and death. How you live…how you die…it isn't up to me. I'm not your Governor. We choose to go, we choose to stay. We stick together. We vote. We can stay and we can fight…or we can go."
When Rick walked out of the courtyard, Kayla's heart fell to the ground. God damn it Merle. Why can't you just stay put? But her mind wasn't focused on Merle. It was on Daryl. What is he ran into the Governor and his men? What if he got overrun by walkers? What if he got hurt and couldn't make it back? What if, What if, What if? Kayla stood up and walked over to the fence surrounding the field. She looked out past the field of walkers and at the entrance of the prison and waited for Daryl.
OOOOO
No one bothered Kayla while she stood at the fence. They knew she didn't want to talk to anyone, but when the sun began to set she knew she'd have to go in soon. Not even Daryl's insulated jacket could keep the night's cold out. But then Kayla saw him. Crossbow over his shoulder and he was walking towards the side entrance. He was alive, he wasn't hurt, and…he wasn't with Merle. Kayla didn't dwell on it because her face broke out into a smile and she ran inside and raced down to the side entrance in the generator room. She walked in just as he walked in and she ran into his arms. "You're alright." She said, wrapping her arms around him tightly, but Daryl didn't hug her back. "Rick told us and I was afraid that the Governor or his men or…" Kayla pulled back to looked at him and saw his puffy cheeks, signaling he's been crying. She looked at him for a moment before putting the pieces together. "No…" Kayla said. "No." Daryl just nodded and Kayla hugged him again. "I'm so sorry…" she told him. "I'm sorry." This time Daryl dropped his crossbow and hugged her tight as tears welled up in his eyes again. He put his face in her neck as the tears fell and just held her as close as he could to him. Because right now that was all he needed.
