He went into the woods that night and thought over everything. He stayed there all night thinking. Maybe this was a sign. He had been thinking about this girl for weeks and now they were having a baby. Maybe this was a sign they were meant for more. But could he raise a kid? Merle was right they had worked hard to be nothing like their father. Did he want a kid? He thought about that for a moment and pictured taking his kid to the woods and teaching them to hunt and track and be the father he never had. Yeah he wanted one now he had one coming. Man his life was officially about to change.
"Time to step up and be a man Dixon." He told himself.
With his mind made up he actually felt excited at the prospect of being a dad and when he got home that next morning and showered he grabbed his phone and dialed her number.
"Hello." She answered and damn she sounded tired.
"Hey it's Daryl." He said.
"Hey I didn't expect to hear from you so soon." She told him and he grimaced.
"Well, I wanted to talk to ya. I've been thinking about everything. I anit ever thought I'd be a dad. My old man was an abusive bastard, I know you felt or seen the scars on my back. But I promise I won't be that way with you or the youngin. I want to be involved completely Eve." he said and he heard her sigh in relief.
"Alright. If you're sure Daryl. I really don't want to disrupt your life." She said and Daryl snorted.
"Honey, my life consist of my job and a few friends I hang out with and hunting. You and our kid anit disrupting shit. And I anit got no wife or girlfriend like you ask earlier. Anit been with no one since you." He said and she was shocked that a man as fine as Daryl Dixon didn't have the women beating at his door.
"Okay." She told him not sure what else to say. She hadn't expected him to want to be involved. She was resigned to go at it alone.
"Do you need anything? What can I do?" he ask at a complete lose of how to take care of a pregnant women. She chuckled tiredly over the phone.
"I'm good right now. I found a doctor not too far from here that was taking patients. Never been there before but I have an appointment tomorrow if you wanna meet me there. Up to you." She said and Daryl smiled.
"Yeah. I'd love to go. Can you text me the address and the time?" he said.
"Yeah, this number you called from your cell?" she ask and he hummed.
"Yep. Save it so you can call me and I want you to call me if you need anything Eve, or anything new happens. I want to know everything. I'll text you a few other numbers too in case you can't get me on my cell. I'll give you my shop number and my brother's cell. Someone will always answer." He told her and she almost teared up at the care he was already showing her.
"Ok, well I need to get to work soon but I'll text you as soon as we get off. The appointment is at 2:45." She said and he wrote that down on the paper he found while talking to her. He stopped and frowned at what she said.
"Ya still working?" he ask and she snorted.
"Ah. Yeah." She said.
"Anit that bad for ya. Shouldn't you be resting with your feet up or something?" he ask and she laughed for a moment at the innocence of his question. He really was clueless.
"Yeah as nice as that sounds right about now being pregnant don't stop the bills from needing to be paid. I have to work and I really need to get going. Thank you for calling Daryl and for wanting to help. I'll see ya tomorrow." She said and he agreed and hung up the phone feeling a whole lot lighter and happier.
She text him immediately with the address, time and name of the place and he looked it up on his phone. She lived about an hour from him in a small town, smaller than even the one he was in but he knew where it was.
He sent her the shop and Merle's numbers and wished her a good night before heading to bed. He was tired as hell after being up all night in the woods.
The next day Daryl arrived at the Doctors office nervous as hell and completely out of his comfort zone. He was still dressed from work having left to come straight here and when he went inside all the pregnant women eyed him with prudish looks.
"Can I help you sir?" an older women from behind the desk ask eyeing him over her glasses.
"I'm looking for someone." He said shortly as he looked around the waiting room but saw no sign of Eve.
"What's her name and I'll see if she checked in yet?" the lady ask.
"Eve." He said and realized he didn't know her last name.
"I don't see an Eve on the sign in sheet maybe she hasn't gotten here yet." She said and he nodded and mumbled he'd wait outside and fled the office.
He paced outside near his truck and smoked while he waited. At about 5 till her appointment time he turned to look down the road and narrowed his eyes. Eve was walking with her bag down the sidewalk and he quickly tossed his smoke and jogged over, she gave him a big tired smile that stopped his heart.
"Ya alright? Your car break down?" he ask and she chuckled and shook her head.
"Nope. Don't have a car. I walk everywhere. My apartment is about 3 miles that way and my job is 2 blocks from there." She said and Daryl narrowed his eyes and frowned.
"You walked here? Why didn't you call me?" he sighed in annoyance. This chick was going to be the death of him.
Eve rolled her beautiful blue eye and smiled at him and patted his cheek as they walked towards the door.
"It's no big deal Daryl. I'm use to walking everywhere. No need to burden you with anything more than what I already have." She said and he grabbed her wrist lightly to stop her and make her face him.
"Eve. Nothing you could ask for would burden me. You got to work with me here darlin. I can't help if ya don't tell me what to do." He said and she sighed and nodded.
"Sorry." She mumbled and he just nodded and opened the door for her.
"Don't wanna be late now" he said and she chuckled before walking in and letting him follow.
She signed in and filled out some forms and then they waited. Daryl sat next to her and ignored all the women who were staring at him. He was so uncomfortable.
"Do you want me to ask about an early DNA test?" She ask him as they waited. He looked at her and shook his head.
"No. My brother's girl said that test is pretty dangerous. I don't want anything happen to ya or the kid. I believe you Eve. It's mine." He said and she smiled at him and blinked back the tears of happiness at his omission.
"Evelyn Carmichael." They called and Eve stood up and Daryl followed.
"Evelyn?" he ask as they walked down the hall and she rolled her eyes.
"I prefer Eve or Evie. Evelyn is too posh." She said and he chuckled at her as they weighted her and ask her a bunch of questions. Daryl hovered in the doorway chewing his thumb nail watching.
"Is this your husband?" the nurse ask after they showed them a room and she came inside to ask more question and draw some blood. Eve blushed and shook her head.
"No ma am were not married but he is the father." Eve said and the nurse eyed Eve with distaste that Daryl didn't like.
"Are you sure?" he nurse ask and Eve gapped at her.
"The hell you mean am I sure? Yes I'm sure. I'm not a whore." Eve snapped and the nurse just huffed.
"Were you taking any birth control or using other protection." The nurse ask and Daryl really wanted to strangle this snudy bitch because he could see how upset and embarrassed she made Eve and that shit didn't fly with him.
"Yes I was taking the pill but we had a few drinks that night and we did use condoms." Eve said and the nurse wrote it down and acted like she didn't believe Eve.
"Have you told your parents?" the nurse ask turning to look at Eve and Eve snapped her head to look at the women.
"Hell no. Lady I'm 25 years old why would I want to tell my parents?" Eve ask and the nurse sighed and took her glasses off.
"Because I think maybe they should know Eve." The nurse said and Eve narrowed her eyes at the women.
"You're a friend of my mother's aren't you?" Eve ask and Daryl looked back and forth between the two women.
"Yes. Your mother and I host the country club picnic every year." The nurse said and Eve snorted.
"Then I'm sure you know that I don't have anything to do with my stuck up parents and if I find out you've violated HIPPA law and told them I'll sue you and this office." Eve snapped and the nurse tensed and nodded before leaving the room.
Eve took a few deep breaths to calm herself and Daryl watched her.
"Carmichael? As in Carmichael industries?" Daryl ask and Eve nodded looking at him.
"Your family is loaded." He said and Eve snorted.
"My parents are loaded. I was disowned and disinherited years ago when I dropped out of college in my third year and ran off with my ex because I refused to become like them. Turns out the ex was a cheating prick but they were so quickly to write me off because image is everything to them that I have no use for cold people like that." Eve told him and he nodded. He understood that.
The visit got worse after that. The doctor who apparently must have known her parents too was just as rude as the nurse. Even going as far as to tell Eve who had ask about medicine for her morning sickness that he wouldn't be able to prescribe her anything she could afford and Daryl snapped.
"Ok. That's it. I refuse to sit back and let you people treat her like shit. Like dirt on your shoe. You're not fit to breath the same air as her and I'll be damned if I let a bunch of sore ass pricks deliver my child. We're leaving Eve." He said and Eve quickly followed him out the door seeing how pissed he was. She had to walk fast to keep up with him as he lead them to his truck. When he opened the door for her she jumped in and watched as he walked around and got in and slammed the door.
"Daryl. Are you alright?" she ask him when he didn't start the truck for over 5 minutes and sat very tense with his jaw locked and hands gripping the wheel so tight his knuckles were white.
"Fuck no I anit alright. I'm trying to stop myself from going in there and beating the shit out of them all. No one talks to you like that while I'm around Eve. No one." He said and she just listen to him rant until he calmed down some. She was touched by his care.
"As much as I appreciate the concern Daryl. I have no choice but to go here. It's the only office in walking distance that takes Medicaid." She said and Daryl snapped his head to look at her.
"Fuck that. I got a friend that's a baby doctor like this. I'll talk to her and get her ta see ya. She won't treat you like this." He said and she smiled at him.
"Daryl that's too far away. I'll never be able to get there." She said and he huffed.
"I'll pick ya up and take ya." He said starting the truck.
"Daryl I don't want you to have to do all that. I'll have to go to the doctor all the time. You'll get tired of it or fired." She said and he snorted as he pulled out the parking lot.
"I own the shop with my brother so I can come and go as I damn well want and I planned to be at all the appointments anyways. I'll take you Eve it won't be no trouble." He said and she knew he wouldn't take no for an answer and she really didn't like that office so she sighed and nodded and gave him her address so he could take her home. He smirked to himself at his win and felt like he was doing something right for a change.