A/N: Thank you for the reviews! They make me happy :)
Also, Eric and Jake are other OCs threw in just because I needed them. They're not huge characters.
Ch. 17
"Jesus fucking Christ! There's more of them!"
Rick awoke to the sound of Carl's voice.
His boy was standing near the window, gun aimed at some walkers below.
Maggie stood nearby, gun also in hand, doing her best to pick off the walkers that Michonne, Glenn and David couldn't fight off on the ground.
BANG!
The sound of Maggie's gun went off in Rick's ear.
"Fuckin' hell, why didn't you wake me?" He asked, standing up. He reached for the pair of jeans that he'd left lying on a nearby chair.
Despite the medicine's bad physical side effects, it had definitely helped Rick mentally.
It was now three weeks out from when they'd first arrived, and he could honestly say that he hadn't had an hallucination in half that time.
Still, the medicine made him weak and shaky at times. His blood pressure would sometimes drop, leaving him basically useless. The only positive, besides the mental clarity, was that the medicine had helped Rick put on some much-needed weight. He'd been so thin when they'd arrived, now he looked almost the way he used to.
The group generally tried to shield him from action, though. If he were to pass out during a showdown, it would cause more harm than any good he might be able to do.
"Just relax, dad," Carl said, tone even. "We got this."
"Like hell you do," Rick growled. He grabbed a gun after buttoning up his pants and took aim out the window, knocking off one of the walkers near Michonne.
"Good shot," Maggie said, under her breath.
Rick didn't acknowledge her. Rather, he focused on picking off any walker who got too close to his group.
00
Down the hall, Daryl was unaware of the situation at hand.
He was having a mental crisis and was too absorbed in it to think about anything else.
A week prior David had relented and unlocked the handcuffs that tied him to the bed. So, that morning, Daryl had woken up to find Carol by his side, as always.
She was still asleep, so he quietly got out of bed and made his way to the shower.
Cold showers sucked, but they beat the feeling of being filthy with sweat. It wasn't like the college had air conditioning, after all.
As he stripped out of the scrubs which had become his daily garments, he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror.
"Shit," he mumbled, inspecting himself closer.
He had a belly. Granted, it wasn't big. He looked like maybe he'd eaten a really big meal, or something to that extent, but it was definitely there and definitely noticeable.
Daryl turned to the side to examine himself. His stomach was curved, sticking out just a small bit over his boxer shorts. He frowned and rested a hand flat against it.
The problem was, that he hadn't told anyone besides Hershel and David about his pregnancy yet.
Mainly, he was afraid. Afraid that the rest of the group would reject him; see him as weak and force him out to fend for himself. Which he could've done, under normal circumstances, but now, with this kid in his belly…
Surely the others expected him to pick up arms and fight and hunt again as soon as he was able. They had to expect that. What else was he good for, anyway?
Daryl's thoughts then turned to Carol.
He had to admit that he was slowly falling for her.
She had been so devoted to him - sleeping near him, waiting on him hand and food, making sure that he had everything he could possibly need to be comfortable. The woman had even cleaned up his puke, for god's sake! More than once, too, not that Daryl was keen on admitting that.
She was going to be horrified when she found out. Disgusted, too. She would never want to speak to him again - would definitely not want to be with a freak like himself.
And yet, despite the fear he felt, Daryl also felt happy. The bump was proof that his baby was in there, alive and growing.
He'd been doing his best lately to eat regularly, and to take the vitamins that Hershel provided. He'd been resting appropriately, too.
Sighing, he stepped into the shower. He would change back into the scrubs when he got out - could probably hide himself for at least another month in those. That'd be enough time to figure out a way to tell everyone the truth, he hoped.
00
The group had just finished killing all of the walkers by the time Daryl stepped out of the bathroom. Carol was waiting for him, with breakfast, as usual.
"Good morning," she greeted him.
He noticed that she looked sweaty. Odd.
"Everything alright?" He asked, sitting down on the bed. He took the bowl of oatmeal from her hands.
"Group of walkers out in the lot. I helped David and Glenn out a bit, handing over ammo and such."
Daryl frowned. The further his feelings developed for Carol, the more he hated the thought of her fighting off the walkers.
Daryl took a bite of his oatmeal. A pair of voices in the hallway caught his attention.
"Everything was okay?"
It was David's voice.
"Yeah, she was fine. She's a trooper."
Beth's voice.
"I really appreciate your help."
"Oh, it's no problem. I don't mind. I'm glad to help."
Daryl had to smile. There was definitely something going on between David and Beth. Daryl was sure of it. Not that it was a bad thing. David deserved to have a nice girl in his life, and Beth seemed to truly care for him and Elena.
As he finished his breakfast, Daryl's thoughts turned back to Merle. God, he still felt awful about that. His brother had literally given up his life for him. And he'd been so angry at the man before! He doubted that he could ever forgive himself for that. He only prayed that Merle, wherever he was, knew how sorry he was.
"I'll take that," Carol said, holding out her hands for the empty bowl.
Daryl handed it over.
"Would you like some more?"
"Er. Yeah, sure." Now that he thought about it, he was still fairly hungry. "If it's not a problem. I don't want to take from the others."
"There's more than enough. Besides," Carol said, smiling, "It's good that you're eating. You look good with a little belly." She poked him in the stomach playfully, before standing up.
She was out the door quickly, thankfully missing the look of horror on Daryl's face. Maybe a month was too much to ask for. He might have to tell the others now.
00
Miles away, Caesar Martinez and his group had heard what sounded like gunshots. With how empty everything was, sound tended to travel pretty far.
"You heard that?" Martinez asked, looking at his right hand man. He could always count on Eric while he was out on missions like this.
"Yeah. Sounds like it came from the east," the other man answered.
"You thinking what I'm thinking?"
"Yeah," Eric nodded. "We ought to tell The Governor. It's the only direction we haven't checked yet."
Martinez grinned. Those bastards Daryl and David could run and hide, but they'd find them. All in due time.