Damn! Two chapters in one day (It is short but eng) I'm telling you those reviews really do help. Anyhow I'll try to start working on another chapter later this week but I gotta catch a nap. Way too wired at the moment.

Anyone I hope you enjoy :)

Chapter 11- Empty

In this life I'm me,
Just sitting here alone and by the way I tried to say I'd be there
For you
Walk beside an emptiness
That leads me by my hands
And throw away

Angel didn't sleep that night. Her mind wouldn't stop long enough for her to keep her eyes closed. She really wanted a drink. She just kept telling herself over and over that if she could make it until morning she could have a whole bottle that was waiting in her car. She went through the rest of her pack of cigarettes trying to make it to daylight.

She was worried that if she left and Wood Berry decided to strike she wouldn't have anything to come back to here. Just the thought made her stare into the dark, knife in hand. She didn't know what she was waiting for but she was ready. At the same time all of the events that took place the day before kept replaying in her head. Sully's words had cut deep.

She didn't understand him anymore. He used to want her to be happy she was until she saw that look he sent her when she came back from the showers. It all but broke her. Didn't he understand? Why didn't anyone understand why she tried so hard to push people away?

Daryl's words touched her and she realized he hadn't given up on her yet. After all the times she put him down he still believed in her. It made her feel like shit.

Daylight finally came. Her hands shook aggressively and her eyes burned. She stood on uneasy legs begging herself to snap back. She felt vulnerable to the world and it wasn't good. Her mind felt paper thin ready to break at any moment and her heart felt like ice again waiting for the one rock that would finally shatter it.

She took a deep breath. She knew if she could just make it out to her car and get a drink everything would be all right. She grabbed up all her guns that she had tucked away safely under her bed. She strapped them all in their proper places.

She sat back down on the bed holding her hands out. They still shook like fall leaves in the wind. She took her last cigarette out and lit it. She inhaled the chemicals as deep as they would go. As she blew out, her hands went numb and she smiled. "Always the last one," she mumbled with a grin.

She stood and walked out looking around for Rick. Instead she spotted Daryl. Did he even know? She walked over to him. "Hey," she said softly.

"Hi," he said crisply.

"I kinda wish you could go with me."

"Well I can't. Hey you got Sully to take care of you and keep you company." Angel pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

"Don't do that. Please don't."

"Whatever . . . see you when you get back if you even come back." She wanted to cuss him out but she held her tongue as he started to walk away. She didn't want to leave it on that note though. In the back of her head she knew this could be the last time she ever saw him and that bothered her a lot.

She ran after him wrapping her arms around him. "I'm coming back . . . be here when I do."

"I don't make promises anymore . . . but I'll try." She let him go and he took a few steps before he turned on the stairs looking back at her. It could've been his last chance too and he knew it. "Angel I-"

"Good to see you awake," Rick said happily from the top of the stairs. "I'll go gas up your car. You wake up Sully."

"Too late," Sully called down numbly. Rick passed Daryl and left out of the door vanishing outside. Angel looked back to him and waited for him to say something.

"What did you want to say?" she asked softly.

"See you when you get back I guess." He left then and she felt numb not like she had before. This was a numb that left you empty and feeling incomplete. She drew in a shaky breath lowering her head in regret.

"Come on Sully! We're burning day light," she called out.

"Hey wait," Merle said and came down the stairs quickly. Daryl watched from the top making sure there would be no conflict, he didn't want to repeat yesterdays events. He stopped in front of her and held his hand out. "No hard feelings right?"

Angel poked her lip out in a what-the-fuck moment. She shook her head and grabbed his hand. "As long as you don't stab me or call me a whore yea . . . we got an understanding," she announced. He smiled and she took her hand back and walked over to the cellblock door leaning against the wall.

Rick had left the door open for them. Angel waited patiently as her heart sunk down into the bottom of her stomach. She didn't want to do this anymore but she wasn't going to back down. The possibilities that could come out of the trip gave her strength. There might be a cure. She could save everyone from becoming one of those things. Maybe there could be a way to make them as strong as she was without the side effects. It was just wishful thinking.

Sully came marching down the stairs wearing his long leather coat with the sleeves rolled up and his neck held onto a shell necklace. Strapped to his back was his automatic and to his waist his pistol and knife.

"Ready?" he asked numbly running his hand through his hair. He had left a note for Beth beside her bed telling her he was going to come back at least once to see her. So yea maybe he had a little crush on her after the singing they did together.

"Yea," she mumbled looking up at Daryl with a downcast face. She turned and opened the door all the way walking out. Sully paused spinning around flipping Daryl off wanting to say 'I got her all to myself.' He didn't though and quickly fell in line behind Angel.

They made it outside seeing Rick standing by the black Camaro. He crossed his arms after throwing an empty gas can aside. Sully went straight to the passenger's side hopping in and slammed the door shut. He was glad to get the hell away from here.

Angel walked over to Rick. "Be careful Angel . . . I'll see you in a few days," he said with a serious face.

"Yea you will," she smiled. He held his hand out but she went in for a hug and he patted her back. She pulled away. "Don't let anything bad happen . . . if you have to leave do it. There are more places out there besides here. If you do you know I'll find you." He gave a weak smile and pushed off the car walking to the gate.

Angel jumped in cranking up the car and the engine roared to life catching the attention of the walkers. Sully grabbed one of Angel's machetes out the back seat and rolled down the window a little. She pulled up to the gate and Rick opened it quickly and she dug out to get through quicker. He closed the gate behind them.

Angel plowed through a few walkers and Sully reached out the window cutting a few heads off laughing. He pulled his arm back in throwing the blade into the back seat and rolled the window up.

As soon as the prison couldn't be seen out the rear view mirror she reached back and grabbed up one of the bottles out the floorboard and stuck it between her legs. She reached in the middle console and pulled out a fresh pack of cigarettes. She shoved them in Sully's lap. "Pack those," she demanded.

"Only if you share them," he said grabbing them.

"Sure. If you pack them good enough." He packed them beating them against his palm and opened them. He stuck one in her mouth and one in his own before bringing out a cheap lighter he had in his pocket. He lit hers then his. "Did you really mean what you said yesterday?" she asked opening her bottle and taking a big swig. As the alcohol trailed down her throat she shivered it was the best feeling she had in a while.

"I don't wanna talk about that," he said hitting the play button on the CD player.

"Well you're going to!" She hit the off button. He glared at her almost humored. He gave a small chuckle. He pulled out her CD case and picked out an acoustic soundtrack and pulled the other Cd out replacing it.

"Nope," he said hitting the play button again. "I refuse."

"I refuse for you to refuse," she retorted taking another swallow out the bottle. She hit the off button again.

He started humming a tune. As soon as her hand left the CD player he hit the play button once again and starting singing along. "God damn it Sully!" She hit the off button one more time and he kept singing. "Talk to me!" He started singing louder and leaned over with his elbow resting on the middle console.

"Fell in a river of illusion! And apathy! Drowning in a self-induced confusion! I'd rather be! Yea! My fears come alive! In this place where I once died! Demons dreaming! Knowing I . . .I just needed to realign!" he sung loudly puffing on his cigarette occasionally. Angel smiled a bit but pretended she was looking out the widow at something to hide it.

She got annoyed though. She grabbed the pack of cigarettes out his lap and stuck them under her butt. She rolled the window down a bit before grabbing the cigarette he held and threw it out the window. He grew quiet looking at her in shock.

"Really?" he questioned. "Those are hard to come by now." She glared at him.

"Yep and you're not getting another until you fucking talk to me!" she all but yelled. He crossed his arms and leaned back over into his seat.

"What you want me to say? No better yet I have one question for you and you're going to answer it! What the fuck do you do when you feel hurt huh?"

"I get mad."

"And what the hell do you do when you're mad?"

"Say things I don't mean."

"Well there you fucking go Angel!" He threw his hands out. "What more can I say? You brought me to a place where I felt like a fucking animal in a cage and I only had one fucking person I trusted in . . . And you know what they did? They ripped my heart out of my chest and stomped on it." He starred at her with sad broken eyes. "You broke me alright. You hurt me really fucking bad yet still! Still I keep coming back for more!"

"Sully I-"

"No wait I'm not finished yet." He grabbed her shoulder. "I keep coming back and you just fucking stomp on my heart a few more times! Yea I get that you've been through hell but damn Angel how you think people are now. Guess what I'm trying to do? I'm trying to build me a little fucking family and enjoy the short years ahead if it's even that long. I wanna die happy knowing I loved someone and they loved me back."

She stayed silent as he pulled his hand away and wiped his eyes. She took another swallow out her bottle before reaching under and grabbing the cigarettes before tossing them into his lap. She turned the radio on and silence followed, between them. Well at least she knew she had accomplished something that she tried to do. She pushed him away at the same time hurting him. She knew it was best though.