I have rewritten this chapter multiple times trying to get it right and keep them both in character. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Daryl had gotten over being scared a long time ago. His father had literally beaten it out of him. All these years later while his body still instinctively reacted to perceived threats, his mind was carefully controlled. He had learned to look for the worst in people. He expected negative outcomes and he accepted that to live was to experience pain and disappointment. It was ironic that it took a real life horror movie to change all that. Hell, that wasn't entirely true. It was the people he met as result that had changed all that. Carol had changed all that. It had taken some time but she'd shown him that that his old man was wrong. She taught him that pain and disappointment, though a part of life, were not all there was in the world. It was okay to look for the good in people and it was okay to allow the good within yourself to break through. More than that, Carol had shown him he was worth something. She had an unwavering faith in him that made him stronger. With her at his side, he felt like he could do anything. At the same time, she made him weaker because the fear he thought he'd overcome by closing his heart off to everyone else had worked its way back in. She had touched something deep inside and he was scared of losing that part of himself when it seemed he had only just discovered it. He was scared of losing her.

When he heard Alexandria was under attack, all he could think about was getting back to her. It wasn't that he thought she couldn't handle it. No, he knew she could take care of herself. It was that he knew she would be in the middle of it all, putting herself at risk to save the others. So he turned back. He abandoned Abe and Sasha. He knew he shouldn't have but his drive to protect Carol had trumped everything else. Then as he listened to Rick on the radio he thought about everyone else waiting back home. He cared about them too. They were all at risk, and in spite of that, Rick stayed the course. He had a bigger picture in mind and an unwavering trust that those they'd left behind could handle whatever was happening. The family back there belonged to all of them. So Daryl turned and headed toward the herd to finish what he'd started. Just like at the prison when he'd left with Merle, he knew Carol would understand why he wasn't there with her. He had a job to do and she would expect him to see it through.

After their mission was complete, after all he endured afterwards, he'd finally made it back only to find her unconscious. Rick told him she'd been hurt by Morgan who was defending a wolf he had secretly kept inside the walls of Alexandria. It was all Rick could do to keep Daryl from going over and killing Morgan with his bare hands right then. They'd locked Morgan away until they could could come together as a group and make a decision about what to do with him.

Now Daryl wasn't sure what to think. Carol was okay. She was alive and she was awake. But how long would that last. He had a pretty good idea what was coming. There would be consequences for what the three of them had done out on that road. It was just a matter of time. He continued to sit there on the floor, chewing his lip. Sneaking a look at Carol, he slowly shook his head. She had taken so much on her own shoulders already. He didn't want her to have to deal with anything more right now.

Carol granted Daryl the silence he seemed to need, enjoying just being in his presence. She'd been so busy keeping up appearances since their arrival at Alexandria that she hadn't seen him as much as she was used to. Once he started spending time with Aaron and working on the bike it lessened their time even more. Truth was, she missed him. So, she was happy to give him whatever time he needed as long as they were together. She knew that once they opened her bedroom door, she would have to share him again. She didn't know what had happened after her fight with Morgan, but she could tell it was big. Like Maggie, Daryl had something important on his mind. She could see him struggling with his thoughts and as the minutes ticked by, she grew more concerned about whatever it was he wasn't telling her. She eased herself up into a seated position, "Daryl, you're starting to worry me."

He sat there a few more minutes before responding, "Ain't nothin' for you to worry about right now." He pushed himself up off the floor and sat on the edge of the bed facing her, "You just need to focus on getting better, regaining your strength."

"I'm fine. I'm a little sore in places and physically I may be a little weaker right now but give me a day or two and I'll be good as new...I can handle it, whatever it is."

She studied him intently, waiting for him to speak. Thankfully she didn't have to wait long.

"You know there's always going to be someone who wants what we have, who's willing to do whatever it takes to try to take it from us."

She sighed, "Yes."

"We'll never be truly safe from that."

"No, we won't."

He opened his mouth, just to close it again before bringing his thumb up, chewing at the skin around the nail with his teeth.

"Daryl, just say it." She reached out and laid her hand on his arm, "Whatever it is, we'll figure it out. We always do."

He lowered his arm and looked down at her hand. It was warm on his skin. He thought back to the image of her sitting on the porch in his dream. It had been so vivid and real, and he'd felt so...alive. But Merle was right. Even in a world of his own making he couldn't keep her safe. He raised his eyes to hers. They were tired and concerned and he didn't want her to have to feel that way anymore.

He swallowed hard as the fear gripped his heart tighter. He had lost just about everyone who had ever meant anything to him and he knew he couldn't risk losing her again without her knowing how he really felt.

"I can't...I don't know if I can do it again."

He shook his head. That wasn't a great way to start. He thought he sounded like an idiot.

"Do what again?"

He took a deep breath and pushed forward, "You were dead...At the prison. You were gone. I visited your damn grave."

"You rescued me at the prison."

He ignored her and continued, "Then Rick sent you away. He may as well have just killed you right then and there as much of a chance as you had on your own like that. It was just a matter of time...I was pissed at him for a long time about that."

"I'm the one you should have been pissed at."

"No. No, you were doing what you thought needed to be done to protect the group. He should have seen that, given us all a choice in the matter."

There were things she wanted to say, but she held onto them not wanting to interrupt.

"Then there was all that bullshit in Atlanta."

"We made it through that. It was hard, but we did it."

"When I was out there and I heard gunshots over the radio, I didn't...I didn't know if you were alive, or dead...And it was like it was happening all over again...I've lost you so many times and every time it gets a little bit harder and I lose a little bit more of myself. In an instant, it can happen again, only the next time could be the last. There might not be another reprieve for me and, I'm not sure I can make it back from losing you again."

Carol reached up to run her palm along his jaw. A tear slipped from his eye and she rubbed it from his cheek with her thumb. He closed his eyes as more tears threatened to fall and she could feel him trembling.

"Daryl, will you please look at me?"

He opened his eyes, fighting to keep control of the emotions that were overwhelming him. She scooted closer and gently leaned in, invading his space until she was only a breath away.

"We'll make it through this. I know we will."

He felt her words whisper across his lips and his heart began to race. The room started to shift as he moved, his nose bumping clumsily into hers before it slid to the side and he captured her mouth with his own.