See, two in one night! I'm feeling very inspired tonight since the finale. I have so many scenes already written and envisioned in my head for different parts in all the seasons. It's just all the in between that I have trouble with. What did everyone think of the finale?! I was more than a little disappointed, I have to say. I was hoping for action and answers but instead I got very little action (besides Daryl of course) and no answers to anything important.
Anyway as always enjoy and Review if you so choose :)
Daryl let Lacey sleep as long as he could but didn't have any idea where he was going. He almost regretted having to wake her because he realized she probably hadn't slept more than two or three hours since they left camp. Lacey jerked up when he shook her shoulder and it took her a moment to get her bearings.
"Need to know where I'm going," He said and Lacey took a quick look around before saying, "Take a left up here and go about ten miles. It's just a small cluster of houses."
True to her word, they soon pulled back onto that street she'd stayed in only a few days before. Lacey turned to the house she and Glenn had stayed in and motioned for Daryl to pull over. They did a quick sweep to make sure no unexpected guests had wondered in. Thankfully the house was still clear.
"This house had running water and electricity so I suggest we sleep here," Lacey said, checking the windows to make sure they were still locked.
They cleared houses all day only getting through five or six and had packed the truck bed as much as they could. Together they found cans upon cans of food and boxes of dried shit that Lacey wouldn't have touched before all this, preferring to make her own food. Daryl had also filled trash bags with clothes and sheets at Lacey's request, knowing that they were always good to keep in case they couldn't wash their mucked up clothes.
At sunset they took some bungee cords and tied down all the new stuff in the truck bed before heading into the house for the night. While Daryl showered, Lacey cooked them as fancy a meal as she could with some canned beef stew and instant rice. She looked in the cabinets and found two shelves filled with spices and she took the time to clear it out, putting them all in bags, thinking that maybe Lori and Carol would appreciate it.
When Daryl came down, she smiled at his attire. He was out of his normal jeans, instead wearing loose fitted sweats and a t-shirt that was a little tight, obviously making him a bit uncomfortable. Daryl grunted, "Shut up," causing Lacey to giggle, and they ate in silence before Daryl said, "Go take a shower so you can clean your hand up." Lacey looked down in confusion and finally felt the sharp throbbing. From all the work they'd been doing and in her own exhaustion, she's completely forgotten it. She excused herself and took a shower, enjoying the hot water streaming over her filthy body. While she scrubbed her stomach she found a familiar scar and was momentarily lost in her thoughts.
It was a nasty looking thing from one of mother's husbands. He'd burned her one night in a usual fight. She'd taken it in place of her mother who was pregnant at the time. He was also the sick bastard who'd ironed her face not long after.
Lacey felt more at ease after her shower than she had since she lost her sister. She felt so relaxed that she even let herself put on a pair of shorts and a tank top before making her way down the stairs, running her finger through her long red hair, mind set on having Amy cut it when they got back.
She froze when she walked into the living room. Daryl was bent over an old record player, swearing under his breath. Lacey laughed a little and came up beside him, gently pulling his hand off the machine saying, "My mother had one of these. We didn't have a lot of money growing up so this was one of our only entertainments."
Daryl watched her intently, a little surprised by her gentle actions, used to her being as stoic and sarcastic as himself. Lacey got it working and smiled when Patsy Cline came through the speakers. She turned to face him and was surprised by the intensity in his eyes as he stared at her, smirking.
"Do you know Patsy Cline," She asked and Daryl nodded, grabbing her shoulder, pulling her over to the couch.
"Need to fix yer hand; stay," he grunted, walking off in search of some first aid supplies.
Lacey shook her head, grinning softly at the change in Daryl's attitude since they left camp. He wasn't overly friendly or talkative but he'd been good to her, albeit a little grumpy. But Lacey had to admit that she was getting a soft spot for him and so she let him clean and wrap her burn.
When he was done they sat in silence before the record turned over and Lacey stood, offering her good arm to Daryl in the most formal way she knew and said, "May I have this dance?" Daryl looked up at Lacey like she was crazy and shook his head. Lacey laughed, "What? Is Mr. Dixon telling me he can't dance? Or is he just too shy? Come on, don't be a chicken Mr. Dixon," She teased sticking her tongue out at him.
Lacey turned around in a not so graceful circle and gasped when she felt Daryl grab her around the waist and pull her to him, finishing the circle. She was pleasantly surprised; she didn't honestly think that would work. "Ain't no fucking chicken," Daryl mumbled, making Lacey laugh.
"Well I'm glad you can dance 'cause I sure as hell can't," She said, laughing and letting him twirl her around.
The next song that played was slow and Lacey felt Daryl tense, obviously out of his comfort zone, but she paid it no mind. She was enjoying herself and Daryl couldn't have hated it that much or he would've stopped. So instead she said, "I didn't think you'd know who Patsy Cline was." Daryl twirled her around before answering, "'O course I do. Grew up with that shit. To tell the truth I was shocked you knew who she was- you're a little young."
Lacey snorted, "I'm thirty-one, thank you very much. I'm probably not that much younger than you."
"Nah you're not," Daryl said. Then after a few moments of silence he grunted, "How'd you get that scar on yer face?"
Lacey sighed and Daryl felt her muscles tighten. For a second he though she wouldn't answer but then she laid her head on his shoulder and said, "Well my mom was married a lot. Mine was the second- total dead beat. Left when I was nine. The third was a beater. I was fifteen or sixteen and my mother was pregnant with my little sister, Sarah.
"One day I was helping my mom with laundry- she was ironing. He came in drunk and started trying to wail on her. I pushed her out of the way and he managed to get a hold of the iron and held me down and basically did this. We had to wait for him to leave before we could go to the neighbor's and have them take me to the hospital. He never gave us keys to any of the cars."
Daryl was sorry he asked. He had a feeling she'd had it rough but that was just disgusting that someone would do that Sure he'd been beaten but he'd never had anything more than a cigarette burn. At least she'd gotten to a hospital though and got taken care of a little bit but he was sure the damage had been done before she got there. He gave an uncharacteristic sigh and said, "Yer tough as shit lady."
Lacey smiled and then did something that surprised not only Daryl but herself as well. She got up on her toes and kissed his cheek before saying, "Thank you Daryl."
It suddenly struck Daryl that this was the first time she'd ever said his first name. Every other time she referred to him she'd called him Dixon, Mr. Dixon, or asshole, but he liked the way his name sounded coming from her, not that he would ever admit that to anyone.
Eventually the record ended and he extracted himself from Lacey and said, "Sleep. I'll take first watch."
She shook her head. Even though she was exhausted she didn't want to face her nightmares again, especially since she was running on an emotional high at the moment. Daryl just gave an irritated sigh and threw a pillow and blanket onto the couch, motioning for her to lay down.
Lacey didn't argue but narrowed her eyes up at him as she got comfortable. Daryl shrugged and turned off the light before slowly sliding down to the floor, sitting in front of the couch. He didn't turn his head to speak but said, "I'll keep watch right here. Ya need to sleep, I bet the car today was the most sleep you've had since we left camp."
"Actually I haven't slept more than a few hours since I met up with Glenn," Lacey said, exhaustion creeping into her voice. Daryl grunted in reply and Lacey let herself drift to sleep, praying that if she did have a nightmare that she at least wouldn't wake up screaming.
The house was beautiful. Lacey didn't recognize it but it was very much her style- modern yet classic. It was her dream house. She walked from the living room to the sleek modern kitchen and was entranced by the stainless steel fridge where pictures were hung. She stared at the Polaroids. She was in them and so was Daryl and in between them was a baby boy.
Lacey knew this was a dream. She'd never wanted or liked kids nor did she know Daryl before all this shit. She leaned on the counter thinking, when she heard cries from the upstairs and slowly made her way, following the small wails.
Before she got to the door, she could smell the metallic scent of blood and willed herself to start but no matter how much she told herself to stop she kept moving. Daryl was leaning over the crib, digging in the folds of the sheets. Lacey told herself not to look but she moved forward anyway.
Her heart broke when Daryl turned to face her. His eyes were glazed over, face covered in blood. His hands were bathed in red and bits of pink; flesh. In his hands was the baby, still alive just barely, its small entrails strewn around it, dangling. One of its arms was bent at an odd angle and its eyes were wide with incomprehensible fear and pain.
Daryl dropped the baby to the side, silencing the pitiful cries. His eyes were full of hunger, blood dribbling down his front. He lunged for her and she felt his grasp on her arm, raising it to his pale bloodied face.
"No," Lacey screamed, trying to fight but she couldn't move, "Daryl please no!"
Daryl heard her whimper and mumble his name. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion and he put a hand on her arm. As soon as he touched her she screamed. From outside there was the unmistakable moan of a walker and he launched into action, putting his hand over Lacey's mouth, pulling her onto the floor with him.
Lacey jerked out of her sleep, fighting whatever was on top of her. Daryl shushed her and she felt tears prick her eyes. There was no blood dripping from his mouth, no teeth gnashing at her skin, and no dead babies. She took a deep steadying breath, instantly ceasing her assault on him. Daryl let her go for a moment and let her have a minute to get herself together. He hated crying but he knew she couldn't control it.
"There's a walker outside, drew it with yer screaming," Daryl whispered.
"Sorry," Lacey grunted but otherwise kept quiet, letting Daryl hold her close, enjoying the warmth he gave off, praying that the walker would leave.
Honestly she was a little surprised at the position they were in. Daryl was partially on top of her, one hand resting across her chest, the other under her, holding her in place. If there wasn't a walker outside, Lacey probably would've been more than a little excited, having only a few encounters with the opposite sex. After a few minutes of bated silence, the moans stopped and she felt Daryl's head drop onto her shoulder. Lacey smiled, laying one of her hands on top of his head giving it a pat.
"Ya said my name," Daryl grunted. Lacey shivered as his hot breath hit her collar bone.
"Really," she whispered and the dream came flooding back to her. She ran her fingers through his hair before saying, "I heard a baby crying so I went looking for it. You were a walker and you were trying to kill me and the baby."
Daryl stiffened on top of her and lifted his head, eyes narrowed in a glare at Lacey, "I ain't gonna be a fucking walker, Ya hear me," he spat.
Lacey pulled his head back down, feeling him growl, obviously not liking when she forced him to do something. "Tell that to my stupid brain. It's not like I want you to tear my flesh off," She snorted.
Daryl snorted against her skin, relaxing into her body. He knew he should move but she was warm and if she wasn't complaining or teasing then hell, we wouldn't cause a problem. He almost thought Lacey had fallen asleep when she suddenly spoke, timid as if she was afraid he'd get angry, "If I get bit, will you kill me?" He felt himself getting angry and grunted, "Ya ain't gonna get bit."
Lacey gave and irritated sigh, "But if it does happen, will you kill me? I don't want to be one of them."
Daryl finally nodded and tightened his arms around her a fraction but Lacey felt it and understood. Neither of them belonged in the group back at the quarry and they needed to stick together as much as they could and if he got bit, he wanted her to kill him too.