As promised, another update for today! Thank you, every one of you, for your support. LeyshlaGisel, you especially. You've been here through it all, and your reviews always make my day. Thanks :)

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I helped Molly onto the porch of an abandoned house. Her belly was large and prevented her from walkin' around without a waddle. Kinda cute, I thought.

Rick, T-Dog, Glenn, and I scanned throughout the house before anything. Making sure it was completely devoid of anything with a thirst for human flesh. Turns out, it was empty. We waved the rest of the group in.

First thing we did was raid the kitchen. We were lucky to find an abundance of cans of fruit, beans, and vegetables. I was glad to know we'd all fall asleep with a full stomach tonight. It didn't happen often lately. Usually, any food we found we made sure to give to Lori, Molly, and Carl before the rest of us would eat. Lori never seemed hungry, but Molly was just the opposite-constantly starving. I prayed the baby would be alright, despite the lack of food and water.

I peaked my head into the living room to find Molly curled up on the couch with a pillow between her legs. She said it helped relieve the pressure. "Ay." I called out, a couple feet away.

She opened her tired eyes to look at me and I handed her a jar of bread-and-butter pickles that I had found in the pantry. Her green eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas mornin'. "Oh, thank god." She enthused.

I snorted and took a seat on the edge of the couch with my own can of beans. "Thought you'd like it." I said.

She struggled with the lid for only a moment before she got it open. She didn't waste any time scooping one out with her fingers and taking a bite. "Mmm. God. I've been craving these forever." Her eyes rolled in the back of her head and I couldn't help but laugh.

"Ya look like yer on the verge of a damn orgasm." I joked, taking a bite of my own food.

"I am. You have no idea."

We sat there quietly for a few moments. I shared some of my food with her, and we both leaned back into the couch as soon as we were full. I glanced through a nearby window. It was getting' dark, quick. "Ay, Rick, we holin' up here tonight?"

"Might as well." Rick finished chewing on whatever it was he was eating. "Beats sleepin' in the car. Seems safe enough for one night."

"Thank god." Lori groaned, resting her hands on her belly. "Finally get to stretch my legs out."

"Three bedrooms upstairs. Plus the two couches down here." Glenn spoke, adjusting his baseball bat.

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It didn't take long to figure out our sleeping arrangements, and after we barricaded the doors and some of the windows, we all decided to turn in early for the night. We had the opportunity to get a good night's rest, and after bein' on our feet 24/7 for the past month, we needed to take advantage of it. Glenn and Maggie had agreed to keep watch together, which basically meant they would spend the night getting it on in the kitchen 'till I relieved them at 3am.

Molly and I entered an upstairs bedroom. I shut and locked the door behind me, just in case. She shone a flashlight and made her way towards the bed, taking in her surroundings on the way. She took her time getting in; the bed was high off the ground. Seconds later, I joined her.

We laid side-by-side for one of the first times in months. It was nice. I had been missin' it.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to this." She spoke, slightly startling me.

"What?" I asked. I turned my head to look at her. The light of the moon allowed me to see her, though just barely.

"Breaking into other people's houses. Sleeping in their beds. Eating their food."

"Gon' have to get used to it, baby girl. This is life now." I folded my arms behind my head.

"Don't you wonder what's happened to them? If they're still alive?"

I shook my head. "Ain't no use in thinkin' 'bout that stuff. I gotta of my own to take care of."

"Don't you miss the way it used to be?"

"I do. I miss livin' down the street from you. Goin' to the park. Watchin' ya dance..."

She nudged my shoulder, playfully. "You think about me dancing?"

"A lot."

She giggled and it made me smile. This was the most we've talked in weeks.

"Wouldn't be much good at it now with this big belly." She snorted. "Can you imagine?"

"Yer cute pregnant."

"Please. I look like a whale." She sighed.

"Ya don't eat enough to look like a whale. Besides, that's my baby in there. Yer beautiful."

She looked over at me with a sincere smile, but it didn't last long. She let out a long sigh and stared up at the ceiling. "What are we doing, Daryl?"

"I'onno." I swallowed. "Survivin'."

"I still can't believe this is happening. A baby. Who would have thought?"

"Shit. Not me. I can't even take care of a fuckin' goldfish." I quipped.

She laughed out loud for the first time in a long time but stopped suddenly and clutched her swollen belly.

"What's wrong?" I sat up in bed, quick as a bullet. "Baby comin'?"

"No." She winced in pain, unable to move. She looked like she was in pain. "Just cramps. Bad cramps. Lori... says they're called Braxton Hicks contractions."

"Yer havin' contractions but the baby ain't comin'?" The hell?

She gritted her teeth and furrowed her brow in pain, unable to speak just yet. A few seconds later, she eased up. "They're contractions but I'm not in labor. I don't know, exactly. Only happens when my stomach tenses up. Feels like a fucking basketball."

"You alright?"

She nodded her head and closed her eyes as I laid back down and slid underneath the covers. The room was quiet, but only for a moment.

"Is there an extra pillow around here?" She groaned.

I sat back up and glanced around the room, but I was unable to see that well. I flicked the flashlight on, and finally noticed a few decorative pillows in a nearby corner. I slid out of bed. "You want a big one er a lil' one?"

"Big."

I picked up a long, black body pillow and made my way back to bed.

"Thank you." She took the pillow from my hands and eased it between her legs as she turned on her side, facing away from me. "Baby's kicking." She whispered, a minute later.

I didn't say nothin'. Ain't no use. She wasn't really touchy-feely lately, and I figured askin' her would be a waste of time.

"You...wanna feel?" I was shocked to hear the question come out of her mouth.

"Y-Yeah..." I inched myself into her and wrapped my arm over her waist and on top of her growing belly. Her body was emitting as much heat as an oven. I hadn't been this warm in weeks. It was nice. Felt like home.

However, all thoughts were quickly interrupted when I felt a tiny kick against the palm of my hand. Not only once, or twice, but three times. "I'll be damned." I smiled. "Havin' a field day in there, huh?"

She giggled lightly. "I think it's a boy."

"Yeah? How you know?"

"I just do. My mom always said she knew I was girl, and Lori says she knew Carl was a boy. I guess some women just know."

"That'd be somethin'." I sighed, overwhelmingly happy for this short moment. "I ain't never thought about bein' a dad before. Never thought I'd fine somebody I'd like enough..." I hesitated. "I know we didn't plan on this happenin'...but I want ya to know that I'm glad it happened with you."

To my surprise, she squeezed my hand.

We ended up fallin' asleep, jus like that.