As we sit there in the silence we hear grumbling from across the road. Just as we start to get ready to take out the walkers, 3 feral dogs make their way out into the street. They stay standing in place, growling and ready to attack us! I eye a few people, unsure what we should do but silenced gun shots go off before anyone can say anything or take further action. Sasha stands to the side, her gun lowering as they die there. We get to eat something that night, even if it is dog, it's meat. I try and stay out of people's conversations, too tired to talk or too even listen. Daryl is fine with that, allowing me to rest on his lap while he takes first watch.

The next day we move along, going in the same direction we have been, moving slower than the past few days "is this what its come too?" I ask Rick from the front of the group "walking aimlessly?"

"I don't know much else we can do" he returns shifting a sleeping baby in his arms.

She coo's at the movement but stays asleep "this isn't a way for her to live." I remind him "it's not a way for anyone of us to live." I add on.

"You haven't been having any nightmares lately. That's real good" he changes the subject.

I shrug "I think my body is just too tired to come up with some crazy subconscious story" I reply back, actually believing that to be the reason.

He looks at me "maybe. Or maybe it has something to do with being back around Daryl" he offers the idea.

I mull it over, having thought of that myself but don't want to give in to that conversation. "Could be, who knows." Is all I decide to say back.

He turns his head and scans the crowd "where is Dixon anyway?" He asks.

My heart sinks and I turn my body around completely "what?" I stammer out. I search the crowd as well but don't see his familiar dark head of hair or tanned arms anywhere. "Daryl?!" I shout out worried. I move among the passing people "Daryl?!" I shout again.

"He went off to look for some water." Glenn comes over and whispers to me, seeing how eager I was to find him.

I grab his arm and exhale deeply "oh, Jesus." I mumble out. Although I'm angry at him for just leaving and telling only Glenn what he was doing I keep moving, using the energy that pulsed through me when I thought he was missing to keep me going. We don't go much further though before Rick stops "what's going on?" I ask when others begin to stop as well.

"something ain't right" Abraham says lowly.

"There's water.. just, just sitting there." Maggie gets out with a confused look on her face.

I peek out from behind the small crowded half circle and see what they are talking about. In the middle of the road lies water. Bottles and gallons of it just sitting there. A piece of paper lies on the ground next to it "from a friend?" I read it out loud where I am standing, being the last to see it.

Rick goes over and grabs it from the ground, his body tense with worry and anger. We all start to look around us, ready to attack whoever is following us. Daryl comes out of the woods just then and Rick brings the sign over to him, allowing him to see it. After a moment he thrusts it back toward Rick and swings his bow up. "What else are we gonna do?" Tara asks out loud.

"Not this." Rick retorts back quickly "we don't know who left it."

"If that's a trap, we already happen to be in it." Eugene speaks up. My eyes find him in the circle, his staring down at the liquid with temptation "but I, for one, would like to think it is indeed from a friend."

"What if it isn't?" Michonne argues "they put something in it?" She offers the idea.

"We'd drop and be out for the count" I shrug, starting to agree with her "who knows what'd they do with us."

Eugene rushes forward towards the water, grabbing one bottle off the ground. Rosita squawks "Eugene!" as he does.

"What are you doing, dude?" Tara asks following her.

He twists the lid off "quality assurance" he goes to lift it to his mouth.

Just as the water falls out Abraham swats it out of his hand. His eyes piercing Eugene and Eugene shocked at his outburst. Rick breaks the silence with a simple "we can't."

We continue to stand there silently, not knowing what to do next when thunder breaks the tension. Soon after the first bang another comes through louder and it begins to rain on top of us.

My body shivers at the cold touch and I tilt my head back, letting it fall onto my face. I laugh with glee along with some of the others, going over towards Carl and nudging him as he throws his head back to catch some rain in his mouth. Rosita and Tara lay on the ground laughing allowing the rain to soak them. I look over to Daryl, expecting a smile but his straight face kills my happiness. I don't have time to dwell on it though, as Rick directs us to start filling things with water "everybody get the bags. Anything you can find." The rain starts to fall harder, thunder getting louder and happening closer together, signaling the storms close by. Judith begins to fuss in her big brother's arms and the rest of us look over to the dark looming clouds headed our way, lightning visible in them even in the daytime. "Let's keep moving." Rick directs us, knowing we can't stay here much longer or risk being in the middle of it.

"There's a barn." Daryl yells out towards Rick.

"Where?" He asks back with wide eyes. Daryl nods his head towards the woods where he came from and takes the lead. We grab our stuff and follow him through. It's not far from the road and we quickly clear it out, getting inside and out of the storm.

I go to Daryl once inside and lean up to give him a kiss. When I do, I can smell the nicotine from his breath and push myself away. He supposedly went off looking for water but found a barn and had a smoke while doing so? It's stupid to be annoyed at him for that but he didn't tell me he was leaving and that bothered me. I walk away putting myself against a wall. I begin taking my shoes and socks off to try and let them dry out while we wait the storm out.

"I'll try" Rick comments after Daryl gives up trying to stoke our fire more.

"No, too wet." Daryl returns to him. I keep my eyes trained on the dirty ground, still upset with him.

Carol comments lowly after Rick looks over to his sleeping son "he's gonna be okay. He bounces back more than any of us do. I used to feel sorry for kids that have to grow up now. In this. But I think I got it wrong." He pauses, letting his words sink in. "Growing up is getting used to the world. This is easier for them."

"This isn't the world." Michonne disagrees with him. Her face stone cold against what she is telling us "this isn't it."

"It might be." I comment lowly, letting my eyes find Daryl's. His gaze isn't back on me though but trained on the tiny amount of embers glowing.

"It might." Glenn returns back after staring off at his wife. Maggie separated herself from the group, choosing to lay alone.

"That's giving up." Michonne argues.

"It's reality." Glenn reminds her.

Rick chimes in "until we see otherwise, this is what we have to live with." Lightening brightens the barn for a moment and he continues talking "when I was a kid, I asked my grandpa once if he ever killed any Germans in the war. He wouldn't answer. He said that was grown-up stuff, so- so I asked if the Germans ever tried to kill him. But he got real quiet. He said he was dead the minute he stepped into enemy territory. Every day he woke up and told himself, "Rest in peace. Now get up and go to war." And then after a few years of pretending he was dead, he made it out alive." His voice is lower and somber, recalling the memory of his Grandfather. "That's the trick of it, I think. We do what we need to do and then we get to live. But no matter what we find in DC, I know we'll be okay. Because this is how we survive. We tell ourselves, that we are the walking dead." I stare at him, his beard coming in grey and thick. He's gotten older these past few weeks, even more so then when we were traveling with a pregnant Lori. My heart aches for him, and everything weighing on his shoulders.

A ring of thunder claps loudly and my attention is drawn out again. Just as it stops cackeling through the air, Daryl comments back to him "we ain't them." His eyes are pouring into Rick but only for a moment. He breaks the stare and leans up onto his knee's, working at the fire again.

"We're not them." Rick tries to grab his attention. "Hey." He pushes again when Daryl doesn't look up "we're not."

"We ain't them." He says back in a low husky voice after standing. He grabs his bow and comes over and grabs my hand. He waits for me to stand and we walk away from everyone else.