I take no claims for any Walking Dead themes or characters.

Hey again. Here's the next part. Not too many reviews last time :( Hopefully I get some more this time. Please please please tell me what you think :)

Eve threw her delicate hands over her eyes and sobbed in the passenger seat of Daryl Dixon's pickup. Daryl had pulled over onto the side of the road after flashing his lights to the others to let them know they needed a minute. After parking on the side of the road in front of Daryl, Rick Grimes turned around in his seat and made eye contact with Daryl from their separate cars, trying to communicate. Rick held his hand up in an "okay?" gesture, and Daryl held a single finger up, indicating they would be ready to continue in a second. Rick nodded and turned back so he was facing the front of his car, looking around the area to make sure it was safe.

Back inside his own car, Daryl turned to the girl next to him, her frail figure quivering in the falling sunlight. Placing a hand underneath her chin, he raised and turned Eve's face so that it faced him. However, her haunting blue eyes were still downcast.

"Eve," Daryl spoke sternly, trying to get her attention.

The girl continued to look downward, sniffling at the memories of her nightmare and past life, reliving the feelings of guilt and fear all over again.

Holding her chin softly but firmly, Daryl spoke again, "Look at me, Eve."

It took a moment, but eventually she looked up and stared into his deep blue eyes, a few tears dripping and falling over her cheekbones. Trails of glittering wetness were left in their wake. Dark lashes framed her wide and elegant eyes and shimmered with trapped tears under the dim light.

"There's those pretty blues." Daryl smiled softly when she looked up at him, causing Eve to smile slightly in return. He continued to speak, "Darlin', despite what ya' think, it wasn't yer fault. I don't know why you think that why, but it aint right."

Eve bit her lip, doubtful of his words.

"No, don't give me that look. I already know what yer thinking and ya' aint said nothin' at all. You didn't do nothin' wrong."

The girl shook her head, "If I hadn't had tripped….If I could see properly…"

Daryl shook his head. "No, Eve. Don't think like that. Look around us. You aint in that shed anymore, Eve. Yer here with me, and I'll watch after you, ya' hear?"

Wide eyed, Eve soaked in the words he said but quietly replied in almost inaudible tones, "But…I don't want anything to happen to you."

Daryl shook his head. Tucking a lock of hair behind her ears, he spoke, "Aint nothin' goin' to take me down, Eve. Especially no brainless bag-of-bones dead freak."

A soft laugh came from Eve's pouty lips. Hearing her chuckle and seeing her smile made Daryl's pulse race.

"Do you promise, Daryl?" Eve softly inquired.

Rolling his eyes, Daryl laughed, "Yeah, I promise, you silly woman."

Eve smiled and nodded. They stared at each other for a few moments, just studying each other's faces. Eve noticed the lines of his eyes, and how tan his skin was from days of work outside. She saw the small mark above his lip and his prickly golden stubble around his jaw and mouth.

Daryl visually traced the lines of her full pink lips, up and down her cupid's bow and back to the pouty bottom. Her cheekbones were pronounced and elegant. Her skin was pale. Most notably, Daryl stared into her eyes as pale blue as the arctic ocean, glittering like stars in the night sky. Long, thick and dark lashes framed them and defined them. A pair of thin and graceful brows sat above her eyes.

Eve smiled suddenly and quickly reached over to Daryl, pulling his face towards hers, pausing right before their lips met. He could feel her hot, sweet breath on his face. They stared into each other's eyes for a moment before closing them and feeling the warmth radiate between their bodies. Daryl reached a hand up and softly held her pale cheek, brushing the wetness from her tears away with his rough thumb. He closed the space between them by gently pressing his lips to hers.

Daryl Dixon knew from that moment that he would do anything to keep Eve Bishop safe and keep her smiling. He would do anything in his power to keep her with him for as long as he could.

"You think something is wrong?" Lori asked her husband Rick in the van.

"Nah. I think those two just needed a moment." Rick smiled at his wife. Carl was sleeping in the back seat. Rick figured they would need to stop for the night and get something to eat soon. They would travel up the road a ways and then settle down for the evening when they found somewhere suitable.

"You think they like each other?" Lori always loved to gossip a little. With everything that was going on with her it was nice to get some of the attention off of herself. She could only imagine the conversations going on in the camper after everyone heard the news of her pregnancy.

Rick smiled and shook his head almost in disbelief, "It looks that way, doesn't it?"

Lori laughed, "Why the skepticism?"

"If he's anything like his brother, Merle, I can hardly understand what Eve sees in that man." Rick chuckled.

"Rick! Merle is dead, we can't make fun of him anymore," Lori stated, fighting back laughter.

Rick put a hand up to his forehead with a small grin, "I know, I know. I'm just teasing. Dixon is a good kid. I trust him. And Eve seems to as well."

Lori turned in her seat to spy back on the pickup truck behind them. Dale had pulled the camper up further between them so Rick and Lori had a good view of the truck. She spotted the two just as Eve pulled Daryl's face to hers passionately. Lori snorted and laughed, "Well, maybe I won't be the only pregnant one for long."

"Lori!" Rick jokingly scolded his wife.

She turned back around in her seat and innocently spoke, "What?"

Rick shook his head and squeezed her knee with his hand, "You're bad!"

Lori closed her eyes and chuckled, "I know."

Soon, Daryl flashed his lights again and the group headed back onto the road. Rick led the way down the highway, scouting for a place to spend the night comfortably. They wouldn't be setting up tents or settling down; they just needed a strategic area where they all could rest for a few hours until dawn.

The sun was going down slowly but as soon as Rick felt it was getting too dark to continue safely, he pulled into a grassy field next to the edge of the road. The group parked their cars front to back, creating a relative circle they could use as a common-area for the night that was relatively well protected. The men decided to take shifts doing the look-out while dinner was prepared from some of the cans they had stocked in the Winnebago over a fire that was started in the central area.

Carol sat on a rock near the side of the fire, holding herself in the cool night air. Dale gently rested a blanket over her shoulders, to which she dimly smiled in thanks before wrapping it around her old, frail figure while staring into the nothingness of the flames. Andrea and Lori were cracking open cans of chicken noodle soup and pouring them into the pot resting over the fire, quietly chatting with one another. Carl sat by his mother while he scanned the area and made sure nothing was sneaking up on them, the gun his father had given him a few days back still in its holster on his belt.

Daryl had led Eve out of the truck and sat her next to the fire, careful not to put any pressure on her ankle. By now it was only a dull ache, and Eve could definitely tell it was healing. All it really needed was a break from having any weight on it, and spending the entire day sitting in a car had helped. Eve sat with relative poise for her current ailment, but posture was part of her nature. Daryl asked if she was okay before he walked off to talk with Rick. Shane had taken lookout duty around the camp, stalking the perimeter with the gun he hadn't let go of since this morning. He had not talked to anyone since the incident; he just kept his head to himself and glared at the surrounding trees and shrubbery while many different thoughts went through his mind. Maggie sat on Glenn's knee while they both huddled near the fire, waiting for dinner to be served. Maggie was still relatively upset but being close to Glenn made her spirits rise a bit. This is what she wanted and what she achieved, and now she had to privately deal with any feelings of guilt. She kept a soft smile on her face for the sake of appearances within her new group.

"So, how's everybody feeling? Nice to stretch the legs out, I presume?" Dale addressed the group by the fire as he held his back while sitting down next to Eve.

Andrea nodded with a sneaky smile, "Oh yeah, definitely. My ass fell asleep about three hours ago so it can only get better from there."

Lori laughed, "All I know is that I'm starving." She stirred the pot of chicken soup while smelling it from above with closed eyes and a longing look.

Dale nodded with a pleasant smile, "Well I suppose that's all good to hear. How are you feeling, Lori?"

Lori raised an eyebrow, "Am I going to have to hear this for the next nine months, Dale?"

Folding his hands in his lap, Dale smiled, "Of course."

Lori rolled her eyes but smiled in appreciation, "Great."

Andrea fetched the bowls from the camper and Lori poured a bowl for everyone, leaving some in the pot for Rick, Daryl and Shane who were watching the camp.

"So, Eve, I hear you're a pharmacist."

Startled that she was being included in the conversation, Eve swallowed the bite of food she had in her mouth before responding, "Yes, sir, I am."

Dale raised his eyebrows at her response, "And polite too? Where'd you get that from?"

"Oh, my mother had me attend finishing school when I was younger. I guess it just stuck around me. Sorry."

The older man shook his head, "No need to apologize. We like you just the way you are." Dale put his hand on her shoulder comfortingly before continuing his thoughts from before, "So, I've got a big ol' bag of pills that I have no idea what they do. How about I leave them with you so you can look through them tomorrow?"

"Definitely, I would love to help." Eve smiled shyly before continuing to eat her chicken soup in silence, just observing the conversations going on around her and laughing at the group's antics. Everyone was in high spirits, but the memories from this morning were on the back of everyone's mind. Ignoring the incident almost made it seem like it never happened, and no one could afford any of their time to properly mourn. They would continue on by trying to have a good time and making each other laugh.

On the edges of the camp, Daryl and Rick walked with one another stealthily, looking for any signs of danger. The area was surprisingly quiet and had no walkers from what they could tell, however they wouldn't let up just because they thought it was secure. The men would keep on the lookout until they left the area tomorrow morning to make sure the group and their women were safe.

In quiet, whispering tones, the men spoke to one another. Rick held a shotgun while gazing through the trees as best as possible. "So, everything okay with you and Eve?"

Daryl held his crossbow up and stared at the man with no discernable emotion, "Why?"

Rick raised his eyebrows at Daryl's defensive response. "Just making sure there isn't anything I could do to help."

Daryl scoffed, "Well, you could keep fuckin' Shane away from her; that could help. I'd suggest keepin' yer wife away from him too, you know?"

Rick sighed, not knowing how to respond. Daryl was right; something was cracking inside of Shane. He didn't act the same anymore. Something was going on with him, but they needed him there too. He was a good fighter, a good hunter, and right now they needed all the help they could get. "I'll take that advice."

Daryl and Rick soon made their way back to camp and quickly ate their dinner. Glenn switched to take lookout on top of the camper, watching the surrounding area from a pair of Dale's binoculars.

Daryl sat next to Eve and put his arm around her to keep her warm. "You had enough to eat?"

Eve nodded and yawned, a bit tired from the day's activities. Her rest in the car was unfulfilling and awkwardly painful. "Yeah."

"Good. You tired?"

Andrea and Carol were cleaning up from dinner, rising off the bowls and putting them back into the Winnebago. Dale said his goodnights and went to sleep in the back of the camper, Lori and Carl sharing the bed across from him. Rick was going to sleep on the ground in between the two beds in the back, and Glenn and Maggie were sharing the sofa by the kitchen table. Carol and Andrea were sharing the floor of the camper in the main area. Shane had quickly eaten his soup and had left the group again to sleep in his Jeep.

Daryl spread out a sleeping bag in the bed of his pickup, having had moved the Harley motorcycle a few moments earlier. He grabbed a few other blankets from the backseat of the car and laid them out over the sleeping bag.

Daryl grabbed Eve by the waist, lifted her up onto the bed of the pickup truck and sat her on the makeshift bed. "You okay here? You need anythin', anythin', and you yell out. I'll come runnin'. Alright?"

Crawling up to the top of the bed of the truck, Eve slipped underneath the covers and shimmed down so that she was laying properly. "When will you be back?"

Daryl folded the blankets over top the laying girl and tucked her in.

Eve held the blankets tight to her figure and stared up at him with wide eyes underneath the sparkling stars in the dark night sky.

Expressionless, Daryl replied, "A few hours, at most."

Eve nodded silently before Daryl returned the nod and stalked away with his crossbow up high near his face and made his way towards the trees.

Looking up towards the skies, Eve noted the stars and the vastness of the heavens above her head. It was early fall at this point, not cold yet but not getting any warmer. Soon they wouldn't be able to sleep and gather outside because it would be too cold. It was never extremely chilly down here in the south, but it wasn't healthy to be exposed to the elements during these seasons.

Eve's pale blue eyes drifted over to the camper where Glenn was sitting atop in a sun chair, the binoculars held tight against his eyes. He would be switching soon with Rick and making his way to where Maggie was sleeping, but for now he was keeping watch on the central camp while Daryl stalked the perimeter. Eve felt relatively safe knowing there were people looking out for her, but she would feel better if Daryl was close.

After a few minutes Eve slowly drifted to sleep in the back of Daryl's pickup, blankets clutched around her small figure underneath the sky.

Hours later in the dead of the night, Shane woke up in his Jeep, ready to switch with Daryl. He grabbed his shotgun and tucked his own gun from when he was at the police headquarters into its holster on his belt. Quietly he jumped out from his car and shut the door behind him. It was a few hours past midnight at this point and the only sounds he heard were the calls from the animals in the cover of the forest and a soft breathing coming from the back of Daryl's truck.

Stealthily Shane walked over to the bed of the truck and looked down over the side. The girl Daryl had found the other day laid on some blankets, her tight stomach exposed to the cool night air. Apparently she had pulled the covers down in her sleep and the shirt she wore was pulled up slightly so that her stomach and part of her ribcage was showing. Her skin practically glowed in the moonlight.

Shane noticed her plentiful bosom pushing against the fabric of her shirt with every breath, a few locks of her auburn hair spilling over her shoulders and around her head. Small sighs came from her slightly parted pink lips. She was thin and in shape, and her skin looked so soft and pale. Unknowing, Shane reached out a fraction of an inch towards the slumbering girl.

A hard hand gripped Shane's shoulder. "You ready to switch?"

Shane whipped his head around and saw the young Asian boy, Glenn standing behind him with a cautious and suspicious look.

Shane brushed his hand off of his shoulder and took one last look at the girl before making his way into the trees. Rick sleepily walked out of the trailer and walked over to Glenn, exchanging a few words before taking the binoculars and climbing the back ladder to the top of the camper.

Daryl came out of the trees as soon as he saw Shane's approaching figure and walked over to the bed of his truck to the girl he had left sleeping there.