Disclaimer: I own no Walking Dead characters. Boo.

Author's Note:
I want to again thank everyone for the support, the favorites and followers.3 :)
And a special thanks to the reviewers of the last chapter.
fabsch1, jasminedragonemployee, hauntedskies, the-originals-rock,
bigtimerushlover101, workitblackjesus, and padme1000.

I LOVE YOU ALL.
Sorry... I get a little excited sometimes :o

CHAPTER EIGHT.
WASTING MY TIME.

Taylor sat slumped on a beat down log across the campsite. She had her head rested in her hands, titled slightly to the side, staring at the two men in the distance. Her eyes burned into them as she watched intensely when they hunched over the crumpled road map discussing where to head to next in hushed voices. Andrea plopped down next to her still wearing her sad face from the day before. It seemed that it never really went away. The taller blonde followed her younger companions eyeline.

"Enjoying the view?" Her voice was hoarse from the relentlessly crying she had been enduring since she watched Shane and Jim move her sisters body away the previous evening. She frowned and gave her a sideways glance at the question. "What's wrong Taylor?"

"Andrea…" she stopped and let out a noticeably loud sigh. "My problems are so ridiculous and pathetic compared to yours. I would feel like a dumbass if I told you after what you've been through-"

"I don't want to talk about Amy," she quickly cut her off before she could finish. A lump began growing in her throat and she wished she hadn't spoken her name. It was true though, with all the agonizing she'd been doing the last thing she wanted to do was talk about her younger sister who she'd never see again. She sniffled and wiped her nose with her sleeve determined to not start bawling like a baby again. She had already kept herself, Dale, Glenn, and a whole lot of other people up all night with her strained sobbing. She just wasn't in the mood to do it all over again.

"Sorry," Taylor's eyes shifted back over to the boys. She knew that Andrea only was avoiding it because denial was the best way for a temporary fix in that situation. Taylor had done the same thing when her brother, sister, and grandmother had passed. She couldn't say the same for her parents, but so was life and she was not going to delve into her past again like she did last night with Rick.

"Tell me what's wrong," Andrea pried again once she noticed Taylor go as quiet as she had. She had an inkling that it had something to do with Daryl, though the way she was eyeing up Rick made her think different. "Taylor." Her voice was stern and the little blonde let a small smile slip on her face.

"How do you always get me talking?" She asked with a shove to her friends shoulder. Although Andrea had normally spent the majority of her time with Amy, she had always made room to hang out with Taylor as well. She had become like another little sister over the past few months. "If I tell you something you have to swear you won't say anything to anyone."

"Of course," she nodded slowly and waited for the confession to come.

"I uh… well last night. Ugh, it was like-"

"TAYLOR!" Daryl called over to her making her stop her words immediately. She snapped her mouth shut and looked over at him as he folded the map up and handed it over to Rick. They exchanged a nod and Rick began to walk away, his eyes setting on Taylor for a few moments before breaking away to get the group prepared. Daryl's hand waved her over and she turned to Andrea with a sympathetic shrug.

"Tay," she grabbed her hand and looked her directly in the eyes. "You're okay, right?"

"Yeah," she nodded quickly and shuffled over to him without looking back. Andrea knew she was lying and there was something bothering her. She also knew it had to do with Rick. The look he gave her- the way she was staring at him- did not go unnoticed by her newly acquired hyper observance.

"Hey!" Rick turned and stopped to spin around and face the voice that was calling out to him. It was Andrea, he didn't really know her, didn't really have the chance yet but he was not going to be rude and continue to walk.

"What's up?" He asked with one eyebrow cocked upwards and a perplexed look clearly on his face. He couldn't really imagine what she would want with him.

"I just want to let you know that whatever happened between you and Taylor, or is happening, is done," she had her hands on her hips with her no-nonsense attitude. He shuffled his feet once to switch his stance. He scoffed and folded his arms across his chest clearly offended by her assertion with him.

"Excuse me?"

"She's obviously upset over something and it's obviously you," she pointed sternly at him with her long index finger inches from his face. He backed up to avoid her intrusion on his personal space.

"Don't you think that's a little bold? I barely know her and you don't know a damn thing about me." His eyebrows knitted together and she could tell his defensive attitude was for a reason.

"You have a wife. Stay with her and stay away from Taylor. That's all I'm going to say about it…" She narrowed her eyes and gave him the dirtiest look she could manage. Andrea always had an overwhelming need to protect people and since Amy was gone all she had left to shelter was Taylor. She would be damned if she was going to let a married man do to Taylor what had been done to her pre-zombie world. She spun quickly on her heels and stomped off in the opposite direction talking to herself a little louder than she meant to, "arrogant hot shot men thinking they can do whatever they want… typical…"

Taylor started to drag another lifeless body across the dirt to the graves that had been lined up ever so neatly. The decision was almost unanimous to bury their own and burn the walkers. There was a fight from just a few but majority had ruled and the dead from their group were given the right to a proper burial. Taylor titled her head with a disheartened expression and slid the body into the unmarked grave. She huffed and dropped down to her knees trying to catch her breathe. She was definitely not strong enough for the manual labor she was requested of, but wasn't going to complain about it.

"Why am I helping you with this again? I'm the worst when it comes to all of this… death…" She sighed and awaited a response from her quiet companion. She knew he didn't want to talk but prodding was her thing and she couldn't help herself.

"Because I don't wanna talk to nobody else right now. I don't even want to talk to you," he admitted with bitterness in his tone. Daryl was still reeling from the fact that nobody, sans Dale, had sided with him on burning all the bodies. They were going to regret their decision, he just knew it. They were being stupid and sentimental which were two things he would never let himself become a victim of. He grunted and threw one of the bodies carelessly onto the fire pile, let 'em burn, he thought to himself with no remorse before wiping his forehead clean of the built up sweat.

He figured him being an outcast was due to his ability to let go of everything without a care in the world. He didn't grow up in the best environment and that carried on until the whole pandemic broke out. He never had a good life and he just handled the shit cards he was dealt without bitching or moaning- that wouldn't get anybody anything. As much as he didn't mind most of the people in the group he didn't appreciate their complaining about their dead beloved ones. They were dead! They weren't coming back and that was that, done and over with. His deep thoughts were penetrated when she finally made a comeback to his not so friendly statement.

"Oh, how charming," she mimicked his motion and wiped the sweat from her forehead before rolling her eyes at him. It seemed as if he just couldn't hold back his crassness no matter what the situation was.

She carefully walked over Amy's body and let it be, she knew that it was to be saved for Andrea to put under. As she walked past she let a little sigh escape from her partially opened lips. She couldn't believe Amy was really gone. They weren't that close- she was much closer to Andrea, but still… she was never coming back. It hit Taylor hard right there.

"I can't believe she was able to do that."

"Do what?" He unloaded another body with a loud thunk.

"Put Amy down," she motioned over to the lifeless blonde's body, "she was very strong."

"Strong?" He scoffed with hostility clearly present. "She shoulda put that bullet in her head before she turned. Coulda got us all bit. It was dumb," his voice strained as he carried one of the heavier walkers body over to the fire, "not strong."

"Really?" She bit back harsher words that threatened to seep out. She couldn't believe how insincere he was being. "Would you like that to happen to you? Your brother? Without a second thought, just right then and there."

"Hell yeah," he didn't hesitate to answer since he had known the answer all along. If it was himself he wouldn't even want the chance that he'd turn into a lifeless, flesh hungry, monster. He figured that being put out of his misery was the most plausible option. He honestly didn't see how any of them even second guessed it to begin with.

"Maybe she waited for some closure… didn't have to do it until she really needed too. I understand. I still think she was strong. I wouldn't have been able to…"

"What? Shoot your sister?" He stood back as the fire grew into an uproar with more bodies being added. The flames spread over the rotten flesh and tattered, dirty clothes. Taylor grimaced as the sickening smell hit her all at once. She looked over at him with sincerity masking her normally unreadable face. She stood up and brushed off her knees to remove the clinging dirt.

"No. You," she bit her bottom lip to hold back the tears as just the thought of his death graced her mind, "I wouldn't have been able to kill you."

"God dammit," Daryl threw up his arms in frustration. "Always gotta bring up that bullshit," he muttered to himself before storming off down the trail to leave her by herself. He shoved past the oncoming Rick as he continued his angry pursuit to leave the awkward situation. He hated whenever she brought up all the lovey dovey horseshit that she knew made him uncomfortable. Rick looked over his shoulder briefly as the fuming Daryl made his way back to camp.

"I uh…" he looked forward again and noticed her gloomy aura. "I came up to see if you guys needed help?" He looked around at all the bodies that were already organized properly. All the walkers were burning and everyone from their own group were either in the graves or waiting to go in one. "Guess you guys got it covered."

"Yeah," she swallowed the lump that had grown in her throat from trying to not cry again. Now she knew she really had to hold it back lest Rick's only impression of her be an emotional mess.

"Um," he pointed his thumb over his shoulder obviously signaling to Daryl and opened and closed his mouth a few times. "You okay?"

"I'm awesome," she picked up the shovel and set it in the bed of the truck along with all the other tools. Rick grabbed her arm as she tried to brush past him like he wasn't there.

"I don't think it's right… he doesn't treat you right," he told her quietly. When she tugged her arm away from him he immediately let go, not wanting her to think that he was trying to use force with her. She stood with her back still to him but did not make a move to leave again. Once he knew she was listening he turned himself so he was directly behind her placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. He leaned over to whisper to her, "if you're crying more than you're smiling, it's not right."

"How would you know what he does and doesn't do?" She whipped around and scowled at him. He didn't know her, he didn't know Daryl, who was he to make an assumption? And why was she getting so defensive for him when he did make her cry all the time?

"I've only known you for a few days but every time he's around… or mentioned, you're cryin or about to cry."

"Why do you care then? You just said yourself you barely know me," her mind began to spin. She tried so hard with Daryl and he rejected everything that was even remotely considered affectionate. She knew that wasn't his thing, he's said it time and time again, not to mention how obvious his characteristics and behavior made it. Then there was this stranger that waltzed into her life and made her feel special without even trying.

"I don't know," he shrugged his shoulders lightly. "Why are you so desperate for him to love you?"

"Did you just call me desperate?" She spat in almost full anger, his words cut her but his eyes and soft voice made it impossible for her to be completely enraged.

"No. I'm not saying you're desperate in general. I just think for whatever reason you want him to care about you the way you do about him." He paused briefly. "Make sense?"

"I guess."

"I don't know what it is about you..." His hand instinctively reached up for her face again and suddenly it was déjà vu. The night before flashed in her mind when their faces were inches apart. The only reason why their lips didn't meet were the rustles they heard in the bushes. If it hadn't been for their jumpiness from the previous mob attack they would have surely shared a secret, intimate moment.

He brushed the stray bangs out of her eyes and leaned down to the point they had left off the night before. Her eyes nervously darted from his lips to his eyes knowing what was coming. His lips grazed hers gently as his husky voice broke the silence, "he doesn't know what he's missin."

"Hey!" He retracted his hand and ran it through his hair with a frustrated sigh. Glenn jogged up to meet them with a half smile playing on his lips. The smile quickly faded when he noticed the burning bodies behind them. "You guys need help?"

"No…" Taylor smirked over her shoulder at Rick then turned her attention back to the quizzical boy before her. "Everything's ready for later. Just need the truck moved back," she patted the side of its hard metal shell.

"I'll do it," Rick squeezed himself between the two and shuffled into the driver seat. "I'll see ya back at camp." The corner of his lips tugged into a small grin as his eyes set back on the blonde. She shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably under his gaze while Glenn watched with suspicious eyes. She tucked her hands into the back of jeans pockets and nodded for him to go.

"See ya…" Glenn watched as the truck made a u-turn before skimming down the dirt hill back to their campsite. His eyes immediately shifted towards the dazed looking Taylor who was biting her lip to the point he thought it would bleed soon. "What's wrong with you?"

"What?" She cocked an eyebrow at him and began to walk away with obvious intent to avoid him. He picked up his pace and made it so his strides met hers, which wasn't hard with his longer leg advantage.

"You know what," Glenn chuckled quietly and scratched the back of his head. "He is pretty cute." He let his demeanor shift from intrusive to laid back.

"What?!" She stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face him with the most befuddled look he'd ever seen her wear. "You… did not just say that." To say she was taken aback was putting it lightly. Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined that Glenn was into men, the thought made her temporarily lose her equilibrium. It certainly wasn't as shocking as the world being taken over and run by the living dead- but it was scandalous nonetheless.

"He is," he shrugged his shoulders lightly and let a Cheshire cat grin spread across his lips. "I'm not surprised you like him."

"First, I don't like him." She corrected him with a clearly faltering voice. Taylor had never been a good liar and Glenn seemed to have a knack for knowing when people weren't being honest. "Second… you uh… like-"

"I go both ways, if that's what you're asking." He was not ashamed to admit that he was bi-sexual. He had been out of the closet for years but nobody really ever asked nor did they take notice.

"I had no idea," she mused aloud as they started to walk again. She didn't plan on broadcasting it to the others but she did wonder who else in their group knew about it. Was she the only one in the dark on the matter?

"Nobody bothered to ask."

"Holy shit," he chortled at her reaction as that was what he was used to. People always appeared so stunned by something that he considered to not even be a big deal.

"I'm not embarrassed by it or anything, but I also don't go around shoving it down people's throat." Taylor coughed and her eyes went wide as an image she didn't expect ran through her head. "That was probably a bad choice of words."

"Mmmm, not the best," she shook her head a few times but let a smile form afterwards. She felt like she was closer to him now. Even though she had no idea who else actually knew about it, it made her feel less lonely, like it wasn't just Andrea she could talk to anymore. Glenn was proving to be more than just another face at the campfire.

"You're serious?" Shane let out a breath of air in pure astonishment. "You really mean it?" He was pacing the backside of the tent feverishly unsure if what he was hearing could even be possible.

"Yes," she whispered under her breath unable to believe the words that were coming out of her mouth herself, but her decision had been made. She was one hundred percent sure that it was what she wanted. She had stayed up all night fighting with herself about it and it was final- so final that she had already gone through with it.

"Wow," his eyes grew wide as the realization hit him hard. It was like a fist right to the gut full force. The words had almost sucked the air right out of his lungs.

"So…?" The tall brunette swept a hand through her long locks as a tiny smile crept up on her lips.

"I'm…" he lifted his balled up fist to the air and pumped it once. "I don't know what to say," he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her against him tightly spinning her in a circle once. He wasn't used to being cheesy or romantic but she just brought it out in him. He crashed his lips to hers in a heated attempt to claim them as his. Their tongues battled in a war of love and passion that couldn't have been won by either of them. Lori ran her hand through his thick black hair and grabbed a fist of it as he trailed his kisses down to her neck. She let a small moan escape from her throat as his lips passed over it.

He held her close to him like he was afraid if he let her go she would never come back to him again. She set her head down on his shoulder and a shiver ran down his spine as her warm breathes cascaded down onto his tingling skin.

"You're leaving Rick? For good?" He pulled back from her and titled her chin up with two of his fingers to make sure she would look him in the eye. He needed to see her beautiful face whenever she said the words. She slid her wedding band off and let it fall to the ground carelessly. The tormenting, nagging thought at her mind since Rick had returned was finally freed. Before the world had been flipped upside down she was ready to leave him, and now, after everything that had happened, she had.

"I've already left him, I told him and I'm done." Her eyes flickered and a full blown smile spread across her swollen-from-his-kisses lips. "I want to be with you Shane," she sighed as he pressed his lips to her forehead for a quick kiss. "I don't love him anymore. I love you. I'm all yours."