Daryl was busy crawling on his knees along the rows pulling out the grass and weeds that was growing between plants, just as he'd been instructed to do. From time to time he stopped what he was doing to look around at those who were working in his vicinity, concerned that someone might not be paying him much attention and might accidentally trip over him or step on him. There was quite a bit of chaos as everyone scrambled about, and most things were possible.
Daryl stopped what he was doing, sat back and wiped his face with his arm to get the sweat off his forehead. If he hadn't already told Michonne that their trip to the creek the day before was absolutely the only time that she was leaving the community before the baby came, he might have suggested they make another run for it. He wasn't going back on what he said, though, or she might try to use that as leverage when he didn't want her to go anywhere.
Michonne wasn't far off, watering a little bit behind where he was weeding. She seemed absent, almost, and he wondered what she thought about when she was doing things like this, not talking to anyone else, almost oblivious of their presence.
Daryl got up and went over to the water bucket, dipping some out and tasting it. He frowned. It was hot, and hot water on a hot day didn't exactly do much for thirst. He hoped Carol was sending some fresh water down soon.
"Is the water any good?" Rick asked, walking up. Daryl turned, regarding him a moment, surprised to see that he had Judith with him.
"No, hot as piss," Daryl said. "Carol ain't sent none down in a while. What you doin' with Jude?"
"Carol's not going to be sending any down for a while, but I'll walk back to headquarters and tell them we need water," Rick said. "Judith is spending a little time helping me out today. Carol and Tyreese left her with me."
"What do you mean they left her with you?" Daryl asked.
"They're gone," Rick said. "They took a pickup truck and left at least an hour ago."
Daryl narrowed his eyes. He hadn't heard anything about this.
"Where the hell'd they go?" He asked.
Rick shrugged. "I don't know. I came by to see if Judith might want to come help me pick for a bit and Carol said it was a great idea for me to take her because they were leaving for a while."
"And you didn't ask where the hell they was goin'?" Daryl asked.
"I thought they were going on a run," Rick said. "I don't keep up with what everyone does, Daryl."
Daryl grabbed the bucket up and started toward headquarters. He wanted to know where they'd gone, and he wanted to know where the hell his kid was since she was supposed to be with Carol.
As Daryl neared headquarters he veered toward the gates, not putting the bucket down. Maggie was sitting alone in one of the plastic chairs near the gates, looking bored and poking at a Walker through the bars with a long stick that may have been a broom handle.
"Where the fuck is Carol?" Daryl asked as he neared her. Maggie's attention snapped in his direction and she paused in her activity for a moment.
"She's gone with Tyreese," Maggie said. "They went to clean out what they could from the orchard that we found. She wants to can whatever fruit is left out there."
"And she didn't tell nobody?" Daryl asked.
Maggie grinned at him and raised her eyebrows. "She told me, which is more than you can say about your little excursion yesterday with Michonne. I guess Carol figured she owed you for that."
Daryl huffed and Maggie went back to harassing the Walker. She was far enough away from it that no matter how tightly it pressed itself against the bars, it couldn't reach her.
"Where the hell's my kid?" Daryl asked.
Maggie stopped poking the Walker again.
"Stella has Hope and Paul. She's in your front yard in the shade. They found a little wading pool and filled it up with water," Maggie responded. "Your kids is fine."
Daryl pulled his knife out of his belt and quickly stabbed the Walker through the bars.
"Hey!" Maggie protested as it crumpled to the ground.
Daryl walked off without saying anything to her, stopping long enough to toss the bucket in the direction of Beth who was working near one of the fires that they had burning.
"They need water down at the fields," he growled.
He continued on until he got to his front yard. There, in the shade, Hope was sitting in a blue plastic pool playing with various floating toys. Stella sat in the grass near her holding Paul. Daryl felt relieved, not really knowing what he expected. It wasn't that he doubted the girl was capable of watching Hope, but he liked to know where Hope was, and that moment of not having an answer to that question bothered him.
"Da Da!" Hope called, grinning up at him. She stood up in the pool and reached for him.
"No, sit down Hope," Daryl said.
For a minute she looked like she might cry. She was at least considering it.
"Don't cry, Hope, Daddy's gotta do other things right now and you're naked as a jaybird. Sit down and play with your toys," he said. Hope considered him a moment longer and then got down on her hands and knees in the water, splashing around again after one of the toys. "You alright with them?" Daryl asked, turning his attention to Stella.
"Me? I'm fine," Stella said. "I'd rather be here than out there in the sun," she said.
"Did Carol say how long they thought they'd be gone?" Daryl asked.
Stella shook her head slowly.
"No, she just asked me to keep an eye on them," Stella said. "I was going to try to find bathing suits for everyone, but it's so hot out here I thought that they might as well go naked. Probably cooler that way."
Daryl grunted.
Rick came up behind him then.
"I think she could use a cool down," Rick said. He put Judith on the ground and started undressing her, pulling her fingers out of her mouth a couple of times. Daryl stood and watched him. When Judith was undressed, he helped her get into the pool and she immediately started to play with Hope. "I'm leaving her with you, Stella," Rick said.
"I've got it," Stella responded, not shifting from her position next to the pool.
As Rick turned and started back toward the fields, Daryl fell in step beside him.
"So the two of them just took off," Daryl said. "Said they was goin' ta get what was left of the fruit in that orchard Maggie and Glenn found."
"Canned fruit will be nice to have," Rick said. He snickered after a minute.
"What's so funny?" Daryl asked.
"Well, we all know you took off yesterday without any explanation, I wouldn't be surprised if this is Carol's passive aggressive response to that," Rick said.
Daryl thought about it. That would be something that Carol would probably do, but she hadn't said anything about it getting under her skin that they'd gone off like that, she'd just questioned them when they got back about if they'd run into any trouble. Normal questions when someone had been outside the community.
Daryl was calming down, though. He was worried that they were out there alone, but it was still a long time from sun down. He hoped they didn't run into any trouble, and that they'd at least been smart enough about it to be prepared for whatever they might run into. He knew, at least, that Tyreese might not be able to control Walker herds, but he wouldn't let them fall victim to any nasty people that they might encounter.
"Judith doesn't seem to have any problem going with me," Rick said. He broke Daryl's concentration.
"Huh?" Daryl grunted.
"I said Judith doesn't seem to have any problem going with me," Rick repeated. He'd been surprised, expecting her to be upset about being in his presence when she wasn't used to it, but she hadn't seem bothered in the slightest.
"Jude's good about goin' with anybody," Daryl said. "She ain't a fussy young'un."
Daryl saw Rick's face change a little. Daryl stopped for a minute, thinking that maybe Rick had meant something different. He'd been spending a little time with Judith the past couple of days, and Daryl recognized that for whatever reason he was trying to make some kind of effort with the child. He realized now that he might have made Rick feel like it wasn't as great of an effort as it was.
"I'm sorry, man, I didn't mean nothin' by that, I just had other things on my mind. I'm sure Judith likes ya, an' she's gon' learn to like ya even more if'n you keep spendin' time with her like that," Daryl said. He was failing here. He had no idea what he was supposed to say or what he was supposed to do. He thought it was good that Rick was showing some interest in the child, and he certainly didn't want it to be something he said or did that made him stop.
"It's alright, Daryl," Rick said. "I can't expect her to bond with me instantly. After all, I haven't exactly put forth any valiant effort during the rest of her life."
"Just do what'cha can, Rick," Daryl said.
Rick nodded. They were nearing the fields now.
"Better late than never, right?" Rick said.
Daryl responded with a nod of his own head. "Yeah, better late than never."
1111111111111111111111111111111111111111
"It feel so good to be out here," Carol said, dragging a bag over to Tyreese who loaded it in the back of the truck. She turned, going back to grab one of the other boxes and bags that they'd packed up.
"It's a nice day," Tyreese said, "but I'd just as soon be back behind the fences as soon as we can be." He grabbed one of the boxes and she grabbed up another sack.
"We got a lot, though," Carol said. "It was a good run."
"It was, you're right, and I think we got just about everything this orchard's got to offer up," Tyreese responded, loading his own box and taking the bag from Carol.
He followed her back, gathering up what was the last of it. He heaved his own load over the side of the truck and then took hers. Carol took one of the peaches out of one of the boxes, wiped it on her shirt, and took a bite of it.
"'ome 'ere," she said, trying to speak around the bite. She reached her hand up, grabbing at Tyreese's neck. He leaned into her and she kissed him, passing him part of the peach. He pulled away, chewing and swallowing it. She smiled at him, taking another bite, "'ant 'ore?" She asked. He smiled and pulled her to him, kissing her again and accepting the part of the bite that she flicked into his mouth with her tongue. He lingered there a moment before breaking apart from her to chew the fruit.
"We got everything," he said. "We should head back."
They'd seen very little activity during their run. A handful of Walkers along the sides of the roads. A couple roaming around amidst the overgrown orchard, and one or two that had sauntered up from nowhere while they were picking boxes, but nothing really worth raising an eyebrow over. It was getting later, though, and Tyreese couldn't really tell what time it was or how long they had before dusk. The sky hadn't begun to change color yet, but that didn't mean that time wasn't sneaking up on them.
Carol hooked her arm around his waist, pulling him back down to her. He kissed her again. She tasted like peaches. She tipped her head up at him and he licked the stick trail of juice that ran down her chin.
"We could stay a few more minutes," she said. Tyreese was a little amused looking at her. She was looking up with him with what he now knew was lust in her eyes. He waited a moment, leaned against the back of the truck, glancing around to make sure that there were no Walkers in the direct vicinity. He wondered how far Carol would go. The only time that she'd suggested they do anything since they'd been together had been the night that she'd been drunk, and he'd only refused her then, knowing that she'd be asleep in a matter of minutes.
"Are you suggesting something?" Tyreese asked.
Carol cocked an eyebrow at him and he tried to hide his smile. He just stood there, waiting.
"You know what I'm suggesting," Carol said.
"No," Tyreese said, still fighting back a smile. "No, I don't think I do, Carol. What exactly is it that you want? We've been here a few minutes already."
Tyreese watched a bit of a pout cross Carol's face.
"We could stay a few minutes and do something besides pick peaches," she said.
"We've been standing here not picking peaches," Tyreese countered. "You've got a half-eaten one in your hand."
Carol huffed. "That's not what I mean," she said, "and you know it."
"What did you mean, then?" Tyreese asked. He was finding it very difficult to fight his smile. She was growing frustrated, and he thought it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen. He wondered how long it would take for her to finally be driven to tell him what she was thinking. He glanced around again, checking to make sure that all was clear.
"Come on!" Carol said, obviously frustrated. "There's no one here. How often do we get to be alone? No Michonne, no Daryl, no kids, just me and you," she said.
"And that guy," Tyreese said, noticing a Walker ambling toward them.
Carol turned and walked toward the solitary Walker, grimacing before she drew her knife and stabbed it. As it dropped, she pulled her knife out, wiping it clean on the Walker and then returned it to her belt. She turned back toward Tyreese.
"Now it's just you and me," Carol said.
"So?" Tyreese asked.
"So? So…" Carol said. She didn't say anything after that, but she did somewhat flap her arms at him out of frustration and he finally cracked and smiled, letting a chuckle escape him. Suddenly she looked a little mad. "You know what I'm talking about, you're just being mean to me now," she said. He thought she might have said it a little louder than she'd meant to.
Tyreese stood there a minute, regarding her, wondering what she'd do next.
"I just wondered if you'd actually ask me for it, Carol," Tyreese said finally. "You know that you have just as much right as I do to suggest we have sex, right? That's what you want, isn't it?"
He was surprised when she almost looked like she was going to cry, her fists bunched at her side.
"Forget it," Carol said, starting around the truck like she was going to get in the passenger side. Tyreese realized he had pushed too far. He didn't understand why, but the fact remained that Carol just couldn't bring herself to tell him that's what she wanted. He rushed after her, catching her.
"Hold it, I'm sorry," he said, pulling her to him in a hug. He pushed her away after a second and kissed her. "I just hope that one day you'll feel like you can tell me what you want, but if you can't yet, that's fine."
Carol didn't respond to him, but she did look up at him. Now there were definitely tears glistening in her eyes.
"Hey," Tyreese said. "It's been such a nice day, don't start crying and mess it up for yourself, OK? Come on, let's get in the truck. It could be fun. I'd like to go parking with my girl."
Tyreese walked around and opened Carol's door on the truck. At least if they were inside the truck they were much more protected than they would be anywhere out here, and Tyreese didn't relish the thought of getting caught somewhere with their pants around their ankles. Carol got into the truck, and he was sorry. Her general nature right now was nothing like it had been while she was eating the peach earlier. He wished he hadn't pushed her. Now she just seemed upset.
Tyreese circled around the back of the truck after closing her door. He grabbed another peach out of one of the boxes and proceeded to crawl into the driver's side, closing the door.
"Boy you've really got your feelings hurt right now, don't you," he said, regarding Carol.
She didn't respond to him.
"I'm sorry, Carol," he said. "I was an ass. I shouldn't have pushed you. I know you were trying to do your best and you were outside of your comfort zone." Carol didn't respond to him, but he decided he was going to keep going. He wasn't going to just drop it. "I liked that side of you, Carol. I wasn't trying to embarrass you or hurt your feelings. I just wanted more of it."
Carol leaned her arm against the door, her face against the passenger side window. She wasn't responding and he wondered if she was too upset to respond. She'd never exactly explained to him why it was that she didn't like to admit that she wanted to have sex with him, but he knew there was a reason. It bothered him because it also seemed, sometimes, like she didn't like to admit that she enjoyed it afterwards. He felt bad now, wondering if it had something to do with Ed. Sometimes he got angry at the situation, realizing how much they had to work to overcome, just because of that asshole.
"Do you think you'd feel better if you just got it out?" Tyreese asked. Sometimes when she got like this he could urge her to cry it out and then after a few minutes she would be fine. "We don't have to do anything if you don't want to," he said finally, having waited for her response that never came. "I'm sorry, I just hope you forgive me."
Tyreese sighed. There was nothing he could do. He put the peach between them on the seat and reached up to crank the truck.
He stopped when Carol put her hand on his arm. She still looked a little like she was fighting back tears. He felt really bad. He wished he could go back in time and take it back. He wished he'd never hurt her feelings. More than anything, though, he wished he understood what it was that came over her when she was like this, and what he could do to undo whatever it was that Ed had obviously done to her.
Carol didn't say anything, but she did lean over and kiss him. When she pulled away, Tyreese smiled at her. He picked up the peach between them, bit it, and leaned over kissing her and pushing her down a little toward her side of the seat.
She accepted his tongue and the bite of peach and he felt her hands wandering underneath them. He backed off her and watched as she chewed the bite of the peach. She unfastened her jeans and picker herself up enough to push them down with her underwear. She leaned up to kiss him again and he unfastened his own pants. She wasn't going to say anything, and he'd already resolved himself not say anything else. If this was the best that she could do, it was still more than she'd once done, and it was the best invitation to christen this truck that he'd ever received.
111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
"So are we even now?" Michonne asked as she was putting Hope down. Carol was already in the nursery, sitting in the rocking chair, reading books to Judith by lamplight. Hope hadn't made it to story time, choosing instead to fall asleep on Daryl after a round of what Michonne referred to as "Daddy the Jungle Gym".
"I don't know what you're talking about," Carol said, closing the book that she'd just finished.
"You know what I'm talking about," Michonne said. She turned around, leaning gently against the side of Hope's crib.
"Alright, Jude, sleepy time," Carol said. She stood up and carried Judith over to Michonne so that she could give her goodnight kiss. Then Carol kissed the little girl and put her in her crib, handing her the duck that she always slept with.
"Daryl and I went off to the creek for a little alone time and we didn't tell you where we were going, and you and Tyreese slipped off to the orchard," Michonne said, a smirk on her face.
Carol turned around, half smiling.
"You didn't tell anyone where you were going," Carol said. "We told Maggie where we were going. We went to pick peaches for everyone."
Michonne smiled then. "Don't play innocent with me, Carol, I saw you adjusting your clothes for at least five minutes after you got out that truck. You might have picked peaches, but that wasn't all that happened while you were out."
Carol smiled then.
"We're even," she said after a minute. "Just do me a favor and the next time y'all go sneaking off together, at least tell someone where you're off to."
"I'll make a deal with you," Michonne said. "I'll tell you where we're going if you promise not to try to talk us out of it."
Carol paused a minute in front of her as though she were thinking it through.
"Mmmm…how about I agree not to try to talk you out of it as long as it's not too dangerous," Carol said. She cocked an eyebrow at Michonne.
Michonne nodded.
"Fine, same goes for you, though," Michonne said.
Carol smiled again.
"Deal. Goodnight, Michonne," she said, taking the lantern and starting out the nursery and toward her room where Tyreese was already in bed.
"Night, Peaches," Michonne said, snickering.