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"Earth to Daryl," Star's voice broke his reverie. She was holding out a towel to him, watching him with amusement. He took it from her, muttering thanks, and began to dry off. She chuckled to herself and crossed the steamy room to the mirror, wiping a clear section off with the palm of her hand.
Daryl felt like he should say something, anything, but for the life of him couldn't come up with anything that didn't sound painfully awkward. Star, on the other hand, seemed at ease in the silence following their sexual encounter. She was pulling her long hair into an elaborate plait starting on the side of her head and spiraling down to the back of her neck, quietly singing under her breath.
Rivers and roads
Rivers and roads
Rivers till I reach you.
Rivers and roads, oh rivers and roads
Oh, rivers till I reach you.
She finished with a tie to keep the braid in place, and turned to smile at him.
"That's…that's nice," he finally muttered. She wasn't sure if he was talking about the song or her hair, but brightly said, "Thanks."
She crossed over to the pile of discarded running clothes on the floor, acutely aware that his eyes were following her around the small space. Casually, she dropped the towel that was wrapped around her to the floor, and bent over to dig through the pile. She heard Daryl's breath catch behind her and smiled slyly to herself.
Sure, she loved running, but she was discovering her new favorite hobby; it was nothing short of hilarious and exhilarating to tease Daryl Dixon.
She selected her shorts, bra and shirt from the heap and pulled them on one by one. Now clothed, she turned around to find Daryl using his towel to shake out his hair. She was going to make a flirty remark to him, but the words caught in her throat as the sunlight illuminated several long, crisscrossing lines across his back.
Scars, she realized. They're more scars.
Daryl sensed her stillness and was about to turn around to see what had given her pause when he realized what he had left exposed. He hurriedly dropped the towel down around his shoulders and turned around to see if she had seen his marred back. Her wide eyes radiating concern gave him his answer.
"Don't," he warned, just as he had done with the scar on his hand.
"Daryl, I…" she started, but was cut off by an even sharper, "Don't, Star!"
He expected her to push back, to insist on knowing who and how and why. Half of him wanted her to, and the other half was ready to storm out of the room, again.
"Okay," she said in response. His shock showed plainly on his face. She crossed to him in two light steps and took his hand in hers.
"I respect your no," she affirmed, and let go of his hand as she exited the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
Daryl was left in the room alone, the air heavy with warm water droplets, his hand tracing the very tops of the harsh lines along his shoulder.
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When she was a child, Star had run on the left of Echo, an earbud in her right ear and the left one dangling. She had listened to her sister's stories and musings while letting the melodies keep pace for them. Echo, of course, ran with nothing to distract her from the endless life in the world around her.
But music is gone, and so is Echo, Star thought as she ran in silence. The only things left of them in this crazy world was what she could remember.
Star had loved to listen to rock and salsa music when she ran, until Echo came back from her first semester in the South and introduced her to bluegrass music. She had been a fan of some certain bands, and added them to Star's running playlist on their shared music accounts for when she wasn't there. Despite her original objections, Star found the songs to be great pace keepers, and had listened to them so much on her long mountain runs that their tunes and lyrics had become subconsciously associated with running.
All it'll take is just one moment, and…
You can say goodbye to how we had it planned.
Fear like a habit, run like a rabbit
Out and away,
Through the screen door to the unknown…
And I want to love you and more,
I want to find you and more.
Where do you reside when you hide?
How can I find you?
The words and instruments drove her through the forest. Since encountering the smaller herd on the highway, she intended to avoid the area. Her spear's carrier was tight across her chest to keep the weighty weapon from smacking into her spine. While she felt confident in her skills with the weapon, she preferred not to use it if she could avoid it.
Her eyes were peeled for a vehicle that she could bring back to Alexandria. Other members of the family had begun a grid search, but they were sticking to the highways and major roads, hoping that quantity would lead to quality. Star had a different idea; in this reality, anything worth using was worth hiding. She knew of a small cluster of cabins down the same dirt road that led to the mechanic's garage, and was hoping that someone had beat her to the worthwhile vehicles at the garage and stashed them there.
Rescuing the group destroyed both search vehicles, leaving only Star's Jeep as the available mode for transportation for the family. If they could get Eric and Aaron on board, they would have the Subaru. But that only totaled to ten seats, and they needed twelve for Rick's family, plus herself, and Aaron and Eric, as well as Enid, potentially. Sixteen travelers total, so they were lacking at least one large vehicle, preferably two in case one failed them on the road.
She heard a motor sound across the forest, and ducked down into the lower foliage to hide, one hand promptly reaching back for her spear. A familiar green Outback was visible through the trees, on a road about two hundred yards away. The car came to a slow, quiet stop, and Star saw that it wasn't Aaron or Eric driving, but an unfamiliar woman with shoulder-length brown hair. The woman held her hand up as a visor as she peered around at the surroundings, her face coming into Star's view.
"Maggie?" Star called from her hiding spot. Maggie immediately had her gun out of her waistband and in her hands, aimed squarely in Star's path.
"Who's there?" Maggie demanded. "Come out now."
"Relax," Star soothed as she slowly stood up, although her hand remained on her weapon, too. "It's me, Star."
Maggie didn't lower her firearm. "Why are you hiding?"
Star didn't relax, either. She hadn't decided to trust the young woman yet. "Because I didn't know who was driving up…"
Maggie accepted her answer and put her gun back into its holding place. Star relented as well, dropping her hand to her side as she quickly stepped out of the trees and onto the concrete road next to the car.
"What're you doing out here?" Maggie asked. She was still uncertain about the newcomer, and was often put off by her presumptuous and abrasive personality.
"Looking for vehicles we can use," Star replied curtly. "What are you doing out here?"
"The same thing," Maggie informed her. "Aaron and Eric let me borrow their car." She threw a thumb in the direction of the Subaru.
"Ah, yeah, I see that," Star acknowledged. The two then stood in an awkward silence, star swaying back and forth nervously and Maggie chewing on the inside of her cheek.
"Well I was…" Star said, overlapping with Maggie saying, "Actually, I think…"
They both stopped and looked at each other, Maggie sighing.
"Go ahead," Star prompted.
"Um, yeah. I was actually looking for a road that Aaron and Eric told me about. I think I passed it."
Star jumped at the chance to prove her usefulness to the skeptical family member. "What's it called?"
"They said it didn't have a name. It's just a dirt road that leads to a shop and some properties."
"Oh!" Star proclaimed. "No, you haven't passed it. I was heading for it myself, actually. But the shop is definitely empty of working cars."
"Seriously? Shit," Maggie murmured, clearly disappointed.
"Yeah, Daryl and I were there a week or so ago. It's got some parts, though, which might be useful if we find a vehicle."
Maggie shook her head. "We feel pretty bad about the search cars getting destroyed, you know."
Star's eyebrows raised. This was a softer side of Maggie that she hadn't expected. Maggie seemed like a no-nonsense, my way or the highway kind of person. Star jumped on the chance to smooth some of the waves between them.
"It's not a big deal," Star shrugged casually. "That old RV was about to die, anyhow."
Maggie gave a small smile in appreciation of her effort.
"Anyway," Star continued, "there's a couple of cabins hidden on that road, past the shop. I haven't checked them out yet, but they might have a vehicle or two no one has found. You might try there."
"Ok, thanks," Maggie nodded. There was another pause, and Star was about to wave goodbye and continue on her run when Maggie blurted out, "Can you show me where?"
Star nodded and climbed into the front passenger seat as Maggie walked around to the driver's side. The two women set off down the deserted street.
"Normally I go off the highway, but this road runs pretty parallel, so we should be making a right in about half a mile," Star let Maggie know. The brunette nodded to show she understood.
"Look," Star started, sensing this was a good time to begin again with Maggie, "I'm sorry about kicking you and Glenn out of Deanna's the other night. I thought it was the best course of action, but I didn't want to hurt or insult either one of you."
Maggie didn't respond, and kept her eyes locked on the road. After several tense minutes, she spoke.
"I heard you kicked Thomas in the face at that meeting."
"Ah…" Star panicked. "Yes, I did."
Maggie pursed her lips, and Star didn't know her well enough to tell if it was in amusement or disgust. "Why?"
Well, here we go. The do or die moment, Star thought. "Because he was being a dick."
Maggie snorted, and Star felt relief flood through her. "I know that. He's a pain in the ass. But why specifically that moment?"
"He was being disruptive, trying to get people riled up. He called Eric a bitch, and then Daryl tried to intervene, and he called Daryl white trash."
Maggie's eyes went wide. "So you kicked him in the face?"
"He wouldn't shut up, so I shut him up," Star defended. "Maybe not the most civil or elegant of solutions, but I don't tolerate disrespect."
"Well, I'd stay away from him for the rest of forever, then," Maggie advised. "He won't stop talking about it with the other townspeople."
Star dropped her head back to the headrest in exasperation. "Oh joy."
"He says you're under our influence, and that you're blindly obsessed with Daryl."
Star laughed. "Well, that goes to show exactly how well Thomas knows me, I suppose. The road is right here."
Maggie turned the car onto the dirt road and then tore her eyes from the windshield to look at her companion. "Well, you are with Daryl, though."
"Well… I'm not blindly obsessed with him…" Star clarified.
"But you are with him?"
Star rolled her eyes at the ceiling. "Well….I mean…"
"You don't know if you're with him?" Maggie pushed.
"I'm with your family," Star deflected. It was Maggie's turn to roll her eyes.
"Oh please, that is such a cop out!" she teased.
Star giggled. "Isn't this where I am supposed to insist I don't believe in labels?"
The two women laughed at the notion.
"But seriously," Maggie pushed.
Star buried her face in her hands and groaned. "I don't know! I don't know what we are, or even who I am to him!"
Maggie let out a peal of laughter at the girl's frustration. She realized that the confident, relentless energy Star had was just one, small dimension to the woman.
"How did you know when you were 'with' Glenn?" Star prodded, desperate to turn the conversation from her and Daryl. Maggie furrowed her brow but kept smiling.
"I don't really know… I guess, I mean…it just kind of happened."
"See?! Exactly!" Star exclaimed.
"Things do NOT just 'happen' with Daryl Dixon," Maggie insisted. "We don't even know what he was doing before the end of the world."
"He worked in a car shop," Star responded.
"See! I have known him for a year and I didn't know that. He refused to tell us," Maggie pointed out.
Star shrugged. "I don't know how it happened. I don't even know what 'it' is. I'm trying not to push it."
Maggie nodded in understanding. "Glenn and I tried to keep things quiet, too, but mostly because my father was with us." Her face fell at the memory of her kind, wise father.
Star set a comforting hand on Maggie's shoulder. "Maggie, I'm really sorry about your dad. I've heard so many incredible things about him, and he sounds like a great man. The world was lucky to have him."
"Thank you," Maggie said, comforted by the words. "But…your father isn't here, right?"
"No. I lost my family early on," Star told her. "I don't have a problem with people knowing, but Daryl doesn't seem comfortable with it."
"I'm sure it's nothing personal," Maggie reassured her. "Daryl's a private guy. It takes him time to get used to other people."
Star took this information in with a nod.
"How's Deanna doing?" Star asked.
"Alright, given the circumstances," Maggie responded. She pulled the car to the side of the road, in front of a small cabin tucked back in the trees. "This one has a garage. Come on," she invited, cutting the engine and exiting the car.
The two woman grew increasingly at ease with each other as they raided the vacation home for supplies. Maggie gave Star a huge smile when the later found a stash of Girl Scout Cookies in the pantry, and the two cheered and exchanged a high-five when they discovered a Toyota Highlander in the double garage. After using the Subaru to jump the new vehicle, the two made their way back to Alexandria as the sun reached its noon peak.
"Let's keep this quiet and bring it straight back to the house," Maggie suggested as she opened the gates to Alexandria.
"Just in case," Star agreed. The phrase had become their justification for everything, and it had an unspoken second half. Just in case…we abandon this town. The two quietly made their way through the gate and shut it as silently as possible behind them, padlocking the panels. Maggie took the Subaru back to Aaron and Eric's, and Star drove her way around the generally empty perimeter of town until she reached the two family homes. She hauled the garage open by hand and drove the vehicle in, double checking her six before sliding the door closed again.
Sasha, Carl, Rosa and Eugene were home, and came into the garage to investigate the ruckus.
"Merry Christmas!" Star exclaimed as she jumped down from the driver's seat. "Hope you've all been…decent…this year."
Eugene promptly popped the hood and nodded as he examined the engine. "The guts look pretty good," he noted.
"Like you even know what you're looking at," Rosa chided.
"Where's Daryl?" Star asked. "I was hoping he could take a look at it and see what we need in terms of parts."
"I think he went over to Aaron's a while ago," Carl told her. "I'll go with you. I have a book Eric lent me."
"Sure thing," Star smiled, and the two set off for their neighbors'.
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"Aaron! Eric!" Star called from the front lawn.
"In here!" Aaron's voice responded from the open garage. Star and Carl crossed the driveway and found Aaron and Eric with the Subaru Maggie had just brought back.
"Something happen to the Outback?" Star inquired. "We just took it out, and it was driving just fine."
"We're just making sure it keeps running fine," Eric stated. "Maggie said you guys found another car?"
"Yep! I was hoping to steal Daryl away to check it out. Is he here?"
"He's inside, washing up," Aaron said, just as the man in question walked through the door.
"Oh, Eric, I brought this back," Carl said, handing the man the book. Star took the opportunity to cross to Daryl.
"I have something for you," she joked. "It's back at the house."
Daryl looked apprehensively at her, and Star noticed it immediately.
"What?" she questioned.
"Wha?" Daryl responded. "Didn't say nothing."
Star's posture and facial expression immediately took on her direct, relentless stance. "Oh no you don't," she said, grabbing him by the arm. Before he could protest, she was dragging him out of the garage and down the driveway.
"Bye Ry! Bye Daryl!" Aaron joked after them. Star waved at them with her free hand.
"Star, cut it out, will ya?!" Daryl protested, but she continued. Once they were out of earshot from their friends, she pulled him between two empty houses and released his arm, crossing hers in front of her chest.
"Why are you acting weird?" she pushed.
"I ain't!" Daryl protested.
Star huffed at him. "Is it because I saw your scars?"
All of his defensive walls immediately flew up. He turned his back to her and began to walk away, but she caught him by the arm again.
"Knock it off!" he barked.
"No!" she shot back. "Not until you talk to me."
"Ain't nothing to say!"
"Fine, then I'll do all the talking, AGAIN! I'm not treating you any differently because of your scars. So you don't get to treat me differently because of them, either."
He was taken aback, and his face softened. "Wait, wha?"
"I said," Star repeated testily, "that I'm not treating you any differently because of your scars, so you…"
He held up his hand to silence her. "I heard ya. You…you don't care?"
"Care? Of course I care!" she whispered harshly. He seemed confused.
"I care that some monster put them there," she clarified. "I care that they hurt you. I care that they obviously still hurt you. But I don't care that they are there. They don't change how I see you, and they don't change how I feel about you."
Daryl stared in amazement at her. Ever since the scars had appeared on his skin, he had taken great care to not show them to anyone, fearing witnesses would see them as weakness. They were evidence of a childish, stupid, blind devotion to earn his father's approval and love.
But now someone had seen them. He had been so comfortable around her that he had forgotten they were there, for the first time in his life. And she cared, and she didn't care.
"Someday," he promised her. Confusion flashed across her face.
"I'll tell ya 'bout them," he explained. "Someday."
She took his hand in hers, squeezing it in reassurance. "Ok, Angel. Someday. I'll hold you to that."
He leaned in and captured her lips in a soft, sweet kiss. They pulled away and she bounced backwards, already pulling him towards the family home.
"But today," she instructed, "we take a look at the car I brought you."
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