The closer Kendall and Daryl got to the man the worse he looked. His jaw wasn't merely bloodied, the whole thing was nearly torn off, and one of his eyes were hanging down onto his cheek. Just looking at him made Kendall's stomach turn, and she wasn't easily disturbed. The man slowly shuffled through the over grown grass of their yard, Daryl had refused to go cut it for over two weeks now, and it showed.
"Holy shit, man c'mon, come inside and we'll call and ambulance for yah," Daryl said to the man, who made no response, but he seemed to perk up at the sound of Daryl's voice. All of a sudden, the man started to head towards Kendall, his mutilated jaw snapping together hungrily at her. Kendall stumbled back a couple of steps making it so that the man's teeth just missed sinking into her exposed shoulder.
"Wha' the fuck?" Daryl roared and punched the man square in the nose, making him fall down to his knees instantly. "Go inside," Daryl said to Kendall, who weakly nodded and then jogged into the house, with Daryl right behind her. Daryl slammed the door shut behind himself and then walked into the kitchen, where Kendall was perched on the countertop, calling 911. Daryl stood beside where she sat and looked out the window that was directly above the sink. The man was still out there, staring at the house longingly. Kendall hung up the phone and put it down.
"What just happened?" Kendall asked. Daryl looked over at her and shrugged.
"I dunno," He admitted. "But something just wasn't right there," Daryl stole one more glance out of the window, nothing had changed; the man was still standing in the lawn. Daryl then looked back to Kendall. She was trembling, and he sure as hell didn't blame her. That thing had gotten damn close to biting her, right on the shoulder. "It's okay, Ken. I locked the door, and you called the cops, he'll be gone soon."
"He almost fucking bit me," Kendall said. Her eyes were cast down at the wood floor.
"I wouldn'ta let him bite yah," Daryl said, inching closer to Kendall "I'm the only one who can bite yah,"
"Daryl, did you forget that I was packing up to leave?" Kendall asked coldly. Daryl's heart dropped to his stomach. As a matter of fact, he had forgotten that little detail. With what had happened in the front yard, that had completely slipped his mind.
"Yeah, I did," Daryl replied softly. He stole a glance over at Kendall, who was looking down at her feet. She was wearing denim cut offs and a white tank top to try and escape from some of the south's brutal heat. Daryl studied her for a second, hoping to think of something to say. Sorry didn't seem to cut it, sorry didn't seem like an option at all for all the fighting they'd had about Merle, money, and the accident among a million other things. Despite the fact they hadn't gotten along in so long, he still loved her. Kendall was the only girl he'd ever loved, and the only girl he wanted to love, as corny and clichéd as it was, it was one of those thoughts he had that he'd never admit to anyone.
"Yeah," Kendall said quietly, not lifting her eyes up from the floor. Like Daryl, she didn't want to leave when she thought about it. After the rage from a fight wore off, she remembered all of the good times, like the time they met.
It had been almost five years ago, it was Kendall's 21st birthday, and to celebrate her friends had taken her out to a local bar on the edge of town, so that they were less likely to get pulled over since they didn't have a designated driver planned out. Daryl had been sitting at the bar when Kendall and her friends walked through the door. He noticed Kendall first, she had one of the nicest asses her had ever seen. It was perfectly rounded, something to grab onto but not "big" or "fat". Kendall and her friends took a table in the corner of the bar, and had ordered a round of shots. When the round was placed before them, on the unpolished, dirty looking table, Kendall's four friends all started to shriek 'Happy birthday' to her, most of the bar joining in with them. Daryl didn't sing, but knowing it was her birthday opened a door of opportunity…
Daryl had remained at the bar, shooting the shit with random guys who sat near him and drinking, but he always stole a glance at the pretty brunette who sat in the corner of the bar. It frustrated him that their eyes hadn't met, not even once. The girl hadn't even noticed him. Well, he figured, he'd make himself noticed. Daryl got the bartenders attention and ordered another round for the girls, and told the bartender to wish the girl in the red plaid shirt a happy birthday from him.
"A gentleman over at the bar sent these over for you, and wished you a happy birthday," The bartender said as he placed each shot glass in front of one of the girls.
"Who?" Kendall asked.
"The man over there, sitting on the very end of the bar. His name is Daryl," The bartender said as he turned on his heel and went back behind the bar to make more drinks. Kendall looked at the man; he was wearing a gray thermal shirt, but even beneath the thick fabric, she could tell he had amazing arm muscles. His hair was cut short, he had just a little bit of facial hair, and drank his whiskey and coke slowly.
"Well shit, this may not be a bad birthday after all," Kendall whispered in her friend, Natalie's ear, who had also been checking Daryl out.
"Go thank him!" Natalie whispered back and nudged Kendall's arm with her elbow. Kendall got up and walked across the dirty bar, some country song blasting behind her.
"Hey, mind if I sit?" Kendall asked as she pointed to the stool beside him. Daryl swallowed the mouthful of whiskey and coke that had been in his mouth and nodded. "Thanks for the rounds. I really appreciate that," She smiled.
"Well, it's yer birthday, no better present than some alcohol," Daryl replied in a laugh.
"True. I'm Kendall, by the way," She said and stuck her hand out, which he shook heartily.
"Daryl Dixon,"
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Daryl Dixon. Why don't you stop sulking at this bar and come sit with me and my friends?"
"I was not sulkin'" Daryl said.
"Sure you weren't," Kendall said as she got up off the barstool and waited a second for Daryl to do the same. The two sat next to one another all night, almost ignoring everyone else. Just cracking jokes, flirting, and talking. It was at the end of the night though, when Daryl knew he really did like her. He had driven her home, as one of her friends had begun to vomit, and Kendall, not wanting to be stuck in such a confined space with that, asked him to.
Kendall sat in the passengers seat for awhile, continuing to talk with Daryl, and loving not having to yell to hear each other. After awhile, both Daryl and Kendall went silent, and Daryl utilized that moment. He placed his hand on her knee and leaned and kissed her on the lips. Her lips felt just as they looked, soft as silk. She tasted like cigarettes and whiskey, and he loved it. The way a Dixon's woman should taste. Daryl's hand started to slide up her knee, and Kendall twitched out of his grip.
"Sorry, I don't fuck on the first date," Kendall said slyly as she opened his trucks door and jumped out. "But, I'll call you soon, okay?" As Daryl drove home he was enraged. He had been rejected. It wasn't until he got home, to his bedroom that he realized, yes, he had been rejected this time… She was a challenge, and Dixon's loved challenges.
"He's still out there," Kendall said quietly as she looked behind her, out the window, where the man still stood.
"I know," Daryl replied. He still stood in front of the sink, beside Kendall who remained perched on the countertop.
"Daryl, I don't want to leave," Kendall said quietly, after a long silence between the two of them.
"Huh?"
"You. I don't want to leave you. Or this house."
"Well, I already told yah I didn't want yah to leave," Daryl replied, looking up at her and making, for what felt like the first time in ages, eye contact.
"Can we just stop fighting? Please?" Kendall asked, her eyes shimmering a little bit with tears that he knew she'd never let fall. Kendall was very high strung, and not very emotional. In the four and a half years they had been together, he had only seen her cry a handful of times, all of which were valid reasons to cry. Before Daryl could answer, sirens roared down the street and parked on the edge of their yard. Two officers got out of the cruiser and strolled across the overgrown lawn to get closer to the deranged man. Daryl, seeing this, went out on his porch.
"Watch out!" Daryl shouted to the police. "Fucker tries to bite!"
"Sir," The older, red haired cop called out to the man who had now turned facing the two officers. Both cops were taken aback by his appearance, he looked so gory from head to toe, how he was standing up and walking was beyond them. "Hang tight, okay? The ambulance is on it's way. We'll take you over to our car, and get you something, okay?" He asked. There was no response, but the mutilated man started to shuffled across the tall, bright green grass, towards them. The younger cop, new to the department, reached out his hand as a way to offer aid to the man. Well, the man wasted no time in taking this offer. His grisly looking, brown-grey teeth clamped down on the cop's fingers, severing them from the knuckles.
"Hey! Hey! Get off him!" One cop shouted over his comrade's frantic screaming. Kendall, who had been watching from inside stepped onto the porch and wrapped an arm around Daryl, to try and calm her own fear and nerves for what was about to happen.
"I said get off of him!" The older cop yelled again as the young cop fell to the ground, holding his injured hand tight. Blood seeped in between his fingers and tears rolled down his face. The man didn't heed the cops warning, and started to bend over to take another bite of the young cop, when the older cop took his pistol from it's holster and shot the lunatic, right between the eyes. The older cop gave the young cop a hand to his feet, and sat him the car to wait 'til the ambulance arrived to take care of his now fingerless hand.
"Mr., Ma'am," The cop said, giving each Daryl and Kendall a polite nod. "I'm so sorry that this happened. The ambulance will be by soon to clean up this mess. But, I need to ask a couple of questions before I go. Did you know this man at all? Tell me everything that happened before I got here," He said. Kendall obliged, giving him the whole story of everything that had happened, while Daryl stood rigidly beside her. He didn't like cops. Not one bit. Daryl was thankful that at least Merle wasn't awake though, that really would have been a mess.
"Thank you for your time," The cop said as the ambulance rolled down the road and parked behind the cop car. "They'll just be cleaning up, so you two can go inside if you'd like," He added with a sad smile. Kendall thanked him for his time, and went back inside, Daryl following.
"I can't believe that just fuckin' happened," Kendall said as she walked through the kitchen and into the living room.
"He bit that fuckers fingers clean off," Daryl mused as he plopped down on the off-white couch beside Kendall.
"Holy shit," Kendall whispered under her breath as she recounted all of the events in her head once more.
"So, yer not gonna leave me?" Daryl asked after a long silence between them. Kendall turned her head and looked him in the eyes.
"We have to stop fighting so much," She said quietly.
"I'll try," Daryl said quietly and rested his head on Kendall's shoulder, breathing her in and thanking God almighty she was still there.