I don't own any of the characters or the original plot.

2. Shy away

Carol's POV:

He'd told her that they get to start over. That she can start over. She really wants to. There's nothing she wants more than to do that. To get a clean fresh start with him, it would be wonderful. But she knows it's nothing more than a dream. She's dust in the wind and everything that she touches crumbles and shatters and dies. Carol doesn't want that happening to him. She knows it's not fair to him, for her to shy away like this but their reunion after Terminus was an eye opener. She can't love him. She can't let him love her and have him stay safe. After Karen and David, after what happened with the girls… after Sophia… she knows now that she doesn't get to be happy. Being with Daryl makes her happy, she knows it makes him happy. But eventually, it will all fall apart, just like everything else. Finding the car makes her mind even more made up. She has to go. She has to, to save him. And he can't find out. This morning was too close a call. She makes a mental note to slip away tonight, when everyone's relaxed and caught off guard. Hopefully he will be to.

Daryl's POV:

Yeah, he'd told her that they get to start over. That she can. He can tell that she doesn't believe him. Like she's stopped trying to believe in anything. And it scares him. It makes his blood turn cold. He'd watched her go over the car, checking it and he watches her every move and expression. She doesn't know that he can read her this well. She doesn't know that she wrinkles her forehead every time she steels herself for something. Or that her eyes flicker to the left every time she says something she doesn't mean. He knows this, because he's always watching her and after this, after this morning, he'll be watching her even closer.

He seeks Tyreese out when they return. After asking Michonne to keep an eye on Carol, he asks where Tyreese is and finds out that he's on watch out back behind the church. He looks surprised to see him but nods and greets him.

"Daryl, what can I do for you?"

"Need to ask you something, 'bout Carol".

"Don't know if I can give any answers, but I'll at least listen to your question".

Daryl chews the side of his thumb, thinking hard about how he should put his question. Dropping his thumb, he sighs. "Look, I get that something bad happened with the girls and I'm not going to ask about it. But did something else happen out there?"

Tyreese's eyes glimmer with sadness at the mention of the girls and nods his head.

"Yeah, it was bad alright. But other than that, nothing else happened. Why do you want to know?"

"It's just… she was so happy to see me at first and now she's really distant. It's like she's checked out and I can't seem to reach her. Found her in the forest this morning, throwing up her guts. Ya know anythin' 'bout that?"

Tyreese looks at him for a second, contemplating his answer it seems.

"I might, but that's for Carol to tell and not me".

"I already asked her, wanted to know if she's sick, she told me no. Did she lie to me?"

"No".

"Then what the hell is wrong with her?!" Daryl yells. Tyreese keeps looking at him, completely calm. Looking around him, then at Daryl, he lowers his voice.

"Look, she's not sick. And like I said, it's not my business to tell you about it. But –" he stops Daryl as he's about to protest – "whatever is wrong with Carol, with her throwing up, is something that only concerns her and you".

Daryl stares at the man in front of him. "The fuck does that mean?"

"Think about it. The reason she is throwing up is nobody's business but yours and Carol's. That's all I'm going to say about it".

Daryl keeps staring at him for a minute, then shakes his head and starts walking away. And just as he turns something in his brain clicks and he remembers something from his and Carol's embrace yesterday. Something that had seemed out of place, but not important enough to ask about or even worry about. But now he realized that it was very important indeed. And he realized something else; Carol was going to run. "Hell no! Not if I have somethin' ta say 'bout it!"