Author's Note: Thank you for your reviews, reads, tumbl's and tweets. I appreciate and read every last one.
TWDTWDTWD
By the time the sun began to set, it also began to rain. Daryl rode through it until they pulled to a stop in the fading light, right on the side of the road. They hardly ventured onto the highways, sticking to the smaller roads where there were only the odd Walker stumbling about. Most of the time they just drove straight past, occasionally stopping if they were close enough to take out with relative ease.
Lori finally left her at the end of the day and after her initial rant over her and Rick's conflicting views on how to raise Carl, Carol found herself enjoying the time with her friend. They had a lot to say to each other, it felt like she hadn't seen the woman for weeks. It was nice to laugh about things of no great importance. She adored Daryl's company, but they could spend hours without talking. Idly chit chat was not something Daryl Dixon would ever engage in and for that, she was grateful. She spent far too much time with the man to have him irritate her with boring conversations. Still, it was nice to talk nonsense with Lori, gossiping about everything and nothing.
She was glad to see him that evening though. He rode the bike up the makeshift ramp stored in the truck and the vehicle rattled as he strapped it down securely. They weren't going to bother with tents for the night. It was too dark, too wet and too cold.
There was a small space behind the truck's bench, where Carol assumed it's last owner would've squeezed themselves into to sleep more comfortably at night. However, she and Daryl would have to make do with the bench because the space was filled with their things, including Daryl's crossbow and ever-expanding collection of knives. She reached over to hunt for something to eat - left over rabbit, some cold rice mixed with sweetcorn and a couple of candy bars and some dry clothes. Hers weren't too bad - she only stepped out into the rain briefly to relieve herself and only her pants really needed changing if she left her coat dry out.
He barrelled into the truck, slamming the door and shaking his head like a dog.
"Hey! I just got dry here." She moaned lightly, throwing his fresh clothes in his direction. Daryl took them without a word, shrugging off his wet things and pulling on the dry ones as Carol busied herself with getting their food ready.
"How many hours are we stopping for?" She asked him, after a few mouthfuls of rice, handing him the plastic container so he could have his fill.
"Six hours, max." He told her, barely stopping to take a breath between mouthfuls. He swallowed and took a sip from his bottle of water. "I'm ridin' in here tomorrow an' Lori ain't welcome."
She looked at him from the corner of her eye and bit her lip to hold in the smile that was threatening to quirk her mouth. "That so?"
"Damn straight. It's my fuckin' truck." He finished the last of his food quickly, passing the remains of the rice to finish for herself.
"That's true, it is your truck." Her tone was playful, lightly mocking and he picked up on it, turning to give her a glare as he rooted around the back for the blankets. "I think Lori said all she needed to say anyway."
"Too much as usual, I'll bet." He muttered, tossing the sleeping bag onto the bench, pushing his crossbow aside to get to the extra blankets. Carol knew they would be needed, she'd pulled on two sweaters but she was still freezing.
Carol would not admit it to him, but she had missed his presence that day. More than she thought. She hadn't realised it until he came back to her and judging by his tone, she suspected maybe he missed her a little bit too. She tucked the plastic boxes back into their bag, pushing them behind her before choosing her blanket to wrap around herself, trying to settle herself against the door.
"You ain't even gonna get a lick of sleep like that, ya know." He told her, pulling a cushion from the back. "Get over here, woman."
He pulled her over by her arm before she could even sit up properly, dragging her across the bench and over his lap. He wedged her between the driver's side door and his own body, pushing the pillow behind her for comfort. Her thighs rested on top of his, legs lounging across the bench. He dragged the sleeping bag over them and unzipping it, jamming the edges tight around them.
"You just going to sit upright all night?" She asked, because she couldn't see how he was going to be comfortable without anything to rest his head against.
He just snorted dismissively, shifting himself slightly and leaning himself down onto her, resting his head right on her breasts. Carol let out a snort as he made himself comfortable.
"Really? That's your master plan?" His head bobbed up and down as she laughed and the sight of him made her chuckle even harder.
"It's fuckin' genius. You've got the best fuckin' tits, comfortable as fuck. Now shut up an' go to sleep, or else I'll be tryin' to find out the best way to fuck you in this cab." He told her firmly and she quieted her laugh, bring her arm up to his hair, tangling her fingers up in it. That was a compliment wrapped up in expletives and she thought it were better than any boring old nicety. She wondered if this position was a little too similar to comforting a baby. Except she was pretty sure a baby didn't slide their hand up four layers of clothing to rest their hand on her bare breast, fingers rubbing against her skin. And she was pretty sure that it was definitely a grown man, not a baby, who's hardness pressed against her thigh and drove her close to breaking her resolve to not have sex in the truck. It was only the thought of him driving on so very little sleep and the chance of the two cars by the side of them finding their windows steamed up that stopped her.
She woke up with a start only a couple of hours later. The drizzling rain had turned heavy and hammered on the roof and she was pretty sure it was a sheet of lightening that woke her. She had slipped from her position against the door, lying flat against the bench and Daryl was virtually atop her, face still pressed against her breasts. There was a low, distant rumble of thunder and she jumped slightly, stirring Daryl. His fingers flexed against her hip and he lifted his head up to look at her.
"You a'right?" He asked groggily.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Storm just gave me a fright." She pulled the blanket up a little higher, trying to settle herself down again.
"It'll pass. Anyway, in here's the safest place t'be." He pulled his head up to meet her, pushing his mouth onto her's and she let him kiss her, melting into the bench as he pressed himself down onto her.
Daryl hadn't intended on trying to fuck her in the truck. Not that he didn't want to, because he was pretty sure he always wanted to have sex with Carol, but he knew the idea made her a little uncomfortable. Not when the others were so close. He forgot that despite what she was like behind closed doors - the temptress that was out to kill him - she was a fairly modest woman who didn't like to flaunt herself. And that thought made him even hotter.
She was receptive to his kiss though, spreading her thighs so he could straddle her leg properly, hands wrapping around his back to pull him closer to her. He had his hand on her waistband, ready to slide his hand underneath when he first heard the groaning.
At first he almost mistook it for her, combined with the pounding rain it was a muffled sound. He pulled his mouth away from her slowly, lifting his head to look out the window but despite squinting, it was pitch black out there.
He heard it again. Low and unmistakeable. He sat up sharply, pushing himself from her and she looked at him, confused.
"Wha-?" His hand muffled her mouth before she could even get out the first word and he tried to listen through the hammering rain to hear the noise again. It was close.
"We got Walkers." He murmured and he reached into the back of the cab for his jacket and his weapons.
"Let's just drive away." She told him, pulling at his shirt.
"Naw, it'll be easy." He stuffed the gun into his waistband, rooting for his buck knife. Just as he made to open the door, there was another groan, louder and closer and the truck rocked suddenly as the rotting body of a Walker forced its self against the passenger window, mutilated face pressed against the glass as it tried to get at them. Carol let out a cry in fear, jumping back and Daryl reached out a hand, pulling her back towards the driver's side.
"Fuck." He muttered, finally getting the buck knife in his grip. He leant over the trembling Carol to flick the truck's headlamp on and he could instantly see someone stirring in the shadows of Rick's car. He could also see the the three Walkers approaching them, limping down the road.
"Stay in the car." He ordered, sliding past her to jump out of the driver's side and she didn't even have a chance to pull her eyes from the snarling and snapping Walker that hammered on the glass and protest before he slammed the door behind him. It didn't even notice him sidling up to it, so focused on trying to get into the car to take a bite of Carol and she watched as Daryl slammed his knife into it's skull, blood smearing along the window pane as it slid to the floor.
Daryl pulled his knife free and instead of opening the door to the truck like she expected, he walked to the front and it was then she spotted the other Walkers up ahead. Her breath hitched in her throat as she saw him stride up to them, talking the first one out with ease. Rick, Glenn and T-Dog had mobilised themselves and followed, weilding bats and knives. But there wasn't just three.
There were at least three more coming from behind the truck and they lumbered passed the window without so much as a passing glance at Carol, focused solely on the men in front of them. She craned her head to look out the rearview mirror and she saw one more, a female in a ragged dress, it's scalp half-flapping from it's skull in the wind. Despite the rain, she groans were loud, ringing in her ears. Lightening flashed and as if by magic, the thing was pressed against the window, fists pounding the glass, broken jaw mashing at the screen.
Carol did not scream this time. She looked out the front window and she could see the other men were busy with their own troubles. It might be too late before they spotted this Walker on the truck. Her gun was on the dash of the car still, but she knew better than to fire it, there were already 7 or 8 about, probably more, especially if they heard the noise. She scrabbled in the cab behind her, hands falling on Daryl's leather roll, filled with knives, she pulled the first one free and she knew then that she would deal with this one herself. Her first Walker.
She rolled the window down some and immediately the Walker pressed its fingers into the gap. As it widened it replaced it's hands with its face, rotten skin pulling from the bone as it tried to force its head through the too small gap. The smell made her recoil. She had almost forgotten, it had been so long. It took a second for her to remember what she had to do but she managed to throw her full weight into the knife, landing right into the eyeball of the Walker with a squelch. The weight of the Walker as it fell almost took the knife from her grip, she had to brace her foot against the door to keep hold of it as it fell away from the rotting flesh. She rolled the window up quickly and turned away from the window, looking for Daryl and the others.
All she could see were bodies. There was noone standing and she felt the cry form in the back of her throat, the door opened quickly, sending her jumping back in the other direction.
Her heart leapt when she saw it was him, drenched but whole. He threw his weapons to the floor of the passenger side of the truck and kicked the engine up, without even looking at her. Carol realised the was still holding the knife and she dropped it to the floor with his, drawing her knees to her chest on the bench.
He squealed onto the road, Glenn and Rick close behind him, flooring it as fast as he thought he could get away with in the incliment weather. He had seen what she had done. He felt an inexplicable rage that she had taken such a risk when he was just a few seconds away from taking the Walker down himself. But it was a rage tinged with pride, because he was pretty certain she had never killed a Walker before, at least not as long as he had known her.
"You ok?" He managed to choke out, tearing his eyes from the road briefly to take in her hunched form.
She nodded. "You?" She shuffled a little closer, but still inches from touching him and he reached out to touch her knee.
"'m fine." He would argue with her another time, he decided, upon touching her and feeling her trembling. Lightening flashed across the sky and he pulled the blanket that was underneath him over her and she took it gratefully.
Carol pressed her face into the blanket, trying to collect herself. She had killed her first Walker. It wasn't her first kill, but it was her first Walker.