Daryl's POV
Damn he was tired, and for that matter dirty. Probably smelly too. Hauling bodies out of the lower level sure as shit wasn't clean work. Daryl hoped he could grab his things and make it to the shower before he saw her. Luck was with him, there was no one in the halls of the cell block. Quickly he grabbed his things and headed to the bathroom. As he opened the door he ran right into her. Literally.
"Oh!" Stella cried as she began to fall backwards. Daryl quickly shot his hands out and grabbed her, pulling her close. "Eww," he heard her say. He dropped his hands and stepped back. The front of Stella's shirt was now covered with various fluids and walker remnants, none of which was pleasant.
"Shit, sorry. I didn't see you there." Daryl stammered. Why did this have to happen? All day he had thought about her, about what he would do and say when he saw her. Instead, he slimed her. Way to make an impression.
"Didn't think you had." Stella chuckled looking down at herself. She held the fabric away from her body to keep the moisture from touching her skin.
"Look, I'm really sorry, I'll wash it for you," he offered.
"Daryl, I've seen a few of the things you've washed. They all have holes in them from you scrubbing them so hard. Seriously though, don't worry about. I have other shirts. I'm just glad you're back safe. What took you so long? Glenn and Oscar got back an hour ago."
"I wanted to check out one more area before I headed back."
"Did you see any sign of Carol?"
"No, nothing. We'll look again tomorrow. She might be in a different section of the prison. How's Lori doing?
"She's hanging in there. Woke up for a little while. She got to see her baby." Stella's eyes went soft at the memory. "Anyways, she's doing about as well as can be expected."
"Good," Daryl replied. They were both silent for a moment. Then they both started talking at once.
"I'll let you-"
"I should-"
They smiled at each other. Daryl didn't remember ever feeling so awkward. But it was awkward in kind of a nice way.
"I'm going to go," Stella said. "Let you get cleaned up some. See you in a bit."
"Okay," Daryl replied. He watched her walk out of the bathroom. Groaning with frustration he turned and walked to the showers.
He felt almost normal when he emerged from the showers a short time later. The almost was because he was hungry. He hurried down to see what was for dinner. unfortunately, it wasn't much. Maggie and Carl had gone out and collected some more of the wild onions and tubers. Together with some cans of vegetables she had made a soup.
As Daryl sat down, Maggie was talking about her day, "I found a patch of sweet potato, but of course we can't harvest them till the fall. It's a nice big patch, though. I put it on the map. Carl thought of a real good idea while we were out there. Didn't you Carl?"
"Well Maggie was teaching me how to tell what plants were what, and I thought that I wished I had a camera for pictures, so I could look at the pictures if I wasn't sure. Anyways, thought that maybe the library or a bookstore might have some books on edible plants, stuff that grows around here."
Rick spoke up, "That's not a bad idea. There could be other subjects that we might want to look up too. We could check the library here but if we don't find anything we could stop when we're making a supply run one day."
Daryl looked around the fire. Stella was missing. Although he felt that he already knew the answer, as Beth passed him a bowl of soup he asked her where she was. It was Hershel that answered. "Still in with Lori. Been in there almost all day. Even when someone else watches her, she only leaves for a few minutes and comes right back. Girl's gonna drive herself crazy." Hershel shook his head with concern. "Why don't you take her some dinner? Keep her company for a little while."
"Sure," Daryl said. To anyone sitting around the fire, he sounded indifferent to the suggestion, but he could have kissed Hershel. Grabbing another bowl from Beth he headed inside.
When Daryl got close to Lori's cell he heard Stella's voice speaking quietly. "No, I'll get it. Here, sip slowly."
"Thank you Stella."
"You're welcome."
"No. Stella, Thank You. For everything. I can't believe I have a daughter, she is alive, and I have actually gotten to hold her in my arms."
"Um, Lori, there's something else I need to talk to you about." Daryl heard Stella clear her throat. "Lori, I'm sorry. You're not going to be able to have any more children. Hershel and I tried but we couldn't stop the bleeding. We had to perform a hysterectomy. I'm so sorry Lori."
It was quiet for a moment then Lori said, "I have two beautiful children. I don't need anymore children. Honestly Stella, it's somewhat of a relief to know that I can't ever get pregnant again. This world isn't made for women that have a history of emergency c-sections. I was really lucky this time, I probably wouldn't be so lucky next time."
Stella said something too low for Daryl to make out. He waited for another minute to pass and then ducked through the curtain. He looked down at Lori and nodded. "Glad you're doing better Lori. Brought you two some soup for dinner." He passed the bowls to Stella. "That's a very pretty little girl you got there. She got a name yet?"
"Rick and I decided on Judith. It was my mother's name."
"That's real nice Lori," Daryl said.
"Thanks Daryl. Stella, I just realized that I don't even know your full name. What is it?"
"Stella Turner"
"No, your full name."
"My full name? It's kind of a mouth full." At Lori's urging she said, "Fine. But you can't laugh."
"We won't. We promise." Lori and Daryl said together.
"I can't believe I'm going to tell you this." Stella took a deep breath and said, "It's Estelle Imogene Palmer Forbes Emerson Turner." Daryl and Lori stared at her, their mouths agape. "What? You asked."
Daryl swallowed hard. He was trying so hard not to laugh. "Woman, how on earth did you get so many names?" A chuckle escaped. Stella shot him a dirty look. He pressed his lips together. Tight.
Stella sighed. "Well, my parents both wanted Estelle for my first name, but they couldn't decide on my middle name so finally they decided to give me two middle names. My mother was a bit of a feminist and her maiden name was Forbes so she wanted me to have that name as well. And in my family when you get married your maiden name becomes a middle name, and then Turner is my husband's last name. There. That's it. The story of my many names."
"Well I think Imogene would sound nice with Judith. What do you think Daryl?"
"Judith Imogene Grimes? Think it has a real nice ring to it Lori."
"Lori... I don't know what to say. I... Thank you." Stella said, her voice filled with emotion.
Lori smiled up from her bunk. "You're welcome. Now Daryl, help me into a sitting position will you? I'm going to try some of that soup."
Daryl was bunking down for the night on the perch when the rest of the group trickled in from outside. Stella and Rick were in Lori's room, keeping an eye on her. Daryl watched as Hershel stopped outside Lori's room. Using one of his crutches he pulled the curtain aside. "Both of you, out now. You're both going to sleep in your own beds tonight. Beth is going to sleep in here with Lori and she'll keep an eye on her. Now get up and go to bed."
Rick emerged from the room. Stella however wasn't going to give in so easily.
Stella started to protest. "Hershel, she's still at risk for a PE or heart failure, her incision could dehisce." Stella continued to rattle of a list of possible problems.
"And would you sitting here all night, watching her sleep, prevent any of that? No, it wouldn't. The only thing it would do is make you useless if anything did happen because you'd be so tired you couldn't see straight. You've been up for almost 48 hours now, with just a few cat naps here and there. Now go to bed." Hershel insisted using his best dad voice.
Daryl heard her sigh all the way where he was. "Fine, I'll just go over a few things with Beth and then I'll go to bed." Hershel must have given her a look because she quickly said, "Just the medication schedule and her fluid rates."
"I'll go over those things with Beth. Now scoot." Stella appeared slowly in Lori's doorway and began walking towards her own. She must have remembered something because she turned around and opened her mouth but Hershel was too fast for her. "No Stella, to bed."
Daryl chuckled softly. He was glad Hershel was the one that had pulled her out, and not him. If looks could kill. She had been shooting daggers at Hershel on her way to bed.
Soon the sounds of everyone settling into bed faded and the sounds of night filled the room. Daryl closed his eyes and thought about the things he had been wanting to think about all day. The way her hair felt against his arm, the weight of her head on his shoulder, the softness of her face as she slept.
It was the sound of Gertie's nails going click-click-click on the concrete floor that woke him. Daryl rolled over and opened an eye. Sure enough she was peeking in on Lori. Daryl rolled onto his back and started working himself up to get up and show her back to bed. He couldn't believe she was awake. Must be about two o'clock in the morning. Just as he was about to sit up, she came back out and walked back to her room. She was only in there for a minute before she emerged again, this time carrying a blanket and her pillow.
"Where the hell is she going?" He thought to himself. He swore when he heard the outside door open. He jumped up and shoved his feet into his boots, leaving them unlaced. He grabbed his crossbow and knife and hurried out after her.
"What is she doing?" the thought ran through his mind. "Stupid, fool woman." What if something happened to her out there? Everyone else would be inside. There'd be no one to help. Daryl clenched his teeth so hard his jaw hurt. He pushed the outside door open and scanned the yard.
There she was, about halfway down the hill. Even though it there was almost no moon in the sky, he had no trouble finding her. The white of her nightgown was shinning like a beacon in the night. He watched as she laid the pillow on the ground and shook the blanket out on the grass. She looked so beautiful. It just made him even madder.
He stalked over to where she sat. She must have heard him coming but she didn't look back. She just looked forward and waited for him to arrive. "Woman, what the hell are you doin'? Are you crazy coming out here all by yourself? Do you want to get killed?" Daryl started to berate her even before he reached the blanket. He came around to stand in front of her. And stopped dead in his tracks.
She was crying. Or, to be more accurate, tears were simply streaming down her face. He stood there, unsure of what to do. Every fiber of his being told him to flee back into the prison but he felt like his feet had turned to cement. He couldn't leave her here. But he had no idea what to do with a crying woman. She wiped some tears from her cheeks and smiled wryly up at him.
The smile did it. It was a such a sad smile, it pulled at his heart. He sat down next to her, not touching, but close enough so that he could feel the heat from her body. They both stared straight ahead. "You alright?" It was the only thing he could think of to say. He saw her nod out of the corner of his eye. "Wanna tell me what's going on?" She was silent, but she didn't shake her head either. Daryl felt as though she was working up to something. If she needed a moment, he'd give her one. In the meantime though, he reached over and grabbed her hand. He threaded his fingers through hers, just as she'd done for him the night before.
"I had a dream. I dreamt I was somewhere, alone. That I had never come here. In the dream there were no people, no Gertie. There was no one left. I kept looking but everyone was gone." She took a breath. "When I first came here, I felt so safe. It wasn't just the prison walls, but the people too. I could see that you guys really looked out for each other, that you would fight for each other. I hadn't had that in so long. I somehow thought it would start to be like it was before. That life would somehow get back to normal. And I don't mean getting dressed up to go out to dinner, but that it would be safe. It's never going to be safe again." She paused for a moment. "Even if we keep out the walkers, things can still happen. Lori almost died because she didn't have a real doctor. We didn't even have access to the things we needed. We could all get sick, with some bug that we figured out how to beat a hundred years ago, but here, it could kill us all."
Daryl thought about what she said for a moment. "You're right, things can still happen. But Lori is still alive, and we are still here. You're worrying about things that haven't happened yet. Maybe it won't ever be the same, but maybe it'll get better. You don't know, you just have to wait and see what's around the next corner."
Stella sighed and laid her head on his shoulder. "I know you're right. I'm just so afraid that one day I'll be all alone again."
Without even thinking about what he was doing, Daryl turned and gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head. As soon as it was done, he froze. Would she leave? Would she be angry? Instead she scooted in closer and let out a contented sigh.
It was a few minutes before Daryl broke the silence. He had wanted to know the answer since yesterday morning but had been afraid to ask. "Can I ask you, why were you so excited that Lori had peed?"
"What?" Stella lifted her head off his shoulder to look at him. "Oh, um, when the body doesn't have enough blood and goes into shock the organs can shut down, permanently. The kidneys are always the first to go. Since she urinated it meant her kidneys were working."
"Oh, well now it makes sense. I have to say, I was a little afraid you had some sort of weird thing about pee," Daryl teased.
Stella gave him a light quick jab in his side as payback. "You want to see why I came out here?" she asked. Daryl nodded.
"Here," she grabbed the pillow and put it behind them. "Lie down, we can share." Daryl kicked off his boots, laid back and rested his head on the pillow. Stella laid down next to him. Their bodies pressed together from shoulder to hip. "I saw a few through the window when I went to check on Lori."
Daryl looked at the sky and saw nothing. "Saw what?"
"Just wait, be patient." Just then a shooting start streaked across the sky. A few minutes later there was another and another. Soon the sky was filled with shooting stars. They laid there quietly watching the meteor shower.
"How did you know?" Daryl asked when it began to slow.
"Well I saw a few like I said, and this month's typically pretty good for meteor showers, especially the first half. I took a chance."
"And how did you know that?"
"I took an astronomy class in college. I needed an elective and thought it would be interesting. I always wanted to learn the constellations."
"So what's that one over there?" He pointed up at the sky.
Stella turned slightly toward him and pressed her cheek to his. Her scent filled his nose, causing him to breathe in deeply and close his eyes. "That one there?" She rolled back. "That is Bootes, the farmer."
"And that one over there?" Again she moved closer to see where he was pointing.
"Andromeda. That one has a good story."
"Oh yeah? Well let's hear it."
"Alright, here it goes. They that Andromeda's mother, Queen Cassiopeia, was very vain. She could often be heard saying that she was prettier than all the sea nymphs. The nymphs of course didn't like this and they complained to Poseidon. He in turn sent a monster to destroy her land. The King and Queen were told that in order to save their country, Andromeda must be sacrificed. They had two weeks to decide. So the day came and the King ordered his daughter to be chained to a cliff, to be sacrificed to the monster. But suddenly there was hope, Perseus, a demi-god, arrived. He had travelled hundreds of miles and killed Medusa, taking her head. He rushed back to the city. As the monster was about to eat the princess he pulled out the head and when the monster looked into the eyes of Medusa, it turned to stone and crumbled into the sea."
Daryl had been so enthralled listening to her he didn't realize for a moment that the story was done. When he regained his senses he said, "You went to college to learn that? That's not a good story. I could tell you a better story than that." His voice teasing.
"Oh yeah?" said Stella, pulling her shawl closer around her. The nights were still chilly.
"Come here," Daryl said moving his arm. "Come stay warm and I'll tell you a story." Stella rolled onto her side and laid her head on his chest. Daryl wrapped his arm around her. "Well, let's see." He brushed her hair back from her face. "A good story, huh?"
"That's what you said."
"Okay, I got one. There once were three little pigs, whose mother sent them out into the world to make their fortunes. They each built their own house. The first little pig built a house that was made of straw," Stella started chucking. "What? Have you heard this one before?" Daryl asked.
"Maybe once or twice."
"Well see? That means that my story was better. The better the story, the more people have heard it."
"Really? It couldn't be that my story was a couple hundred years older. Could it?"
"Nope," Daryl said succinctly. They laid there quietly for a while. Daryl started playing with her hair. He couldn't believe such a mass of curls could be so silky. "This ain't bothering you, is it?"
"No, it feels nice." She replied, her voice sleepy.
"We should probably head in." Stella nodded against his chest. Neither of them moved. If Daryl had to pick one moment from his life which he could live in forever, this would be it.
Just before sleep claimed him, Daryl had a thought. He realized this was the first time in his life he had ever fallen asleep holding a woman in his arms.