All I can think is how fast this is goin'. At first, I liked it. It's what I knew. Quick, rough sex was always my thing. Probably 'cause I wanted to get what I needed out of it an' send the girl out the door. Funny how many girls were into that.
No matter how fast I moved, Beth was keepin' up the pace. I already knew where I saw this goin', an' when I lifted her up I knew she thought the same thing. I couldn't help but think I'd opened up another dark door to my past. She was blindly followin' me through it. She trusted me.
I looked into her face an' almost lost it at how she gazed up at me, just like yesterday. Hooded eyes, parted lips, warm flush. She really wanted this. But then I remembered the rest of yesterday. She's never done this before. I haven't fucked a virgin since high school, but I know you should be easy the first time. The way she looked at me sealed the deal.
I kissed her more gently, her arms went 'round me an' I took us down to the ground. Kneelin' over her gave me a second to wrap my head 'round this, to be sure she really wanted us to go through with it. Her eyes were wide an' bright, I saw her tongue run over her lips. Her hair was all 'round her face, leaves stickin' to it. She smiled at me as I leaned down to kiss her again.
This is what we both wanted. I've never craved havin' sex with any woman before, never desired it to be with any single person. It was just sex then. But the thought of what we're 'bout to do makes my chest tighten. I need to have this with her, an' I push any doubt I have aside. I love her. For the first time in my life I don't intend on a quick, selfish fuck. She needs to know this means more. She means more. I finally finished workin' over that stupid fuckin' buckle. My hands are shakin' like crazy. I needa get it together. I just start to pull at the button of my pants when she says it.
"I love you, Daryl."
My fingers have stopped movin'. It takes a second for it to sink in. I can't bring myself to look at her, afraid it won't be real. But I can't sit there forever, so I finally meet her stare. A sweet smile plays at her lips, there's a warmth comin' from her skin. For the first time since I don't remember when, I actually smile. Not my usual jackass smirk. A full blown, idiot-helplessly-in-love smile. She just told me she loved me. I don't even think as I lean down to kiss her. Her cheeks are heated under my hands. I pull away from her, stupid grin still splittin' my face.
This is what I've been waitin' for ever since that fuckin' funeral home. The moment where we finally get eye to eye. I almost can't handle the bubble swellin' in my chest at what this means for us. That distant feelin' of hope seeps in through the cracks. She loves me, too. The words have almost rolled off my tongue when we hear shots fired.
My body acts on pure impulse an' adrenaline. We take off towards the camp. There are screams an' the only thing I can think is walkers. I let go of her hand as I whip my bow in front of me. My voice is gruff when I tell her to stay behind me. The forest edge is just in front of us now. My heart's hammerin' painfully against my ribs as branches scratch at my face an' arms. But we push on an' make it through to the track. I don't have time to think when I take in the sight 'round me. There are no walkers, but Rosita's on the ground. Blood pools at her side. I see the back of Rick an' I run over to him.
"The fuck happened? We heard shots fired an' ran back." I'm all outta breath. Sasha's at Rosita's side, makin' a tourniquet out of a shirt. From the looks of it, Rosita was shot in the thigh. She screams out again when the tourniquet tightens.
"We were attacked. There were three men that came out of the woods. We didn't see it comin'." He's angry. When I look just past Rosita I see two bodies on the ground.
"Thought you said there was three?" But that's when I understand the worry I see on all their faces. One got away. How much of a threat was he? Lookin' down at Bob tryin' to remove the bullet from Rosita, I know that whoever it is, they're a real threat. Good people don't just open fire on anybody.
"He went out there?" I nod towards the woods opposite of where we just came from. Rick tells me that he took off that way when the others were killed. Abraham had fired shots at him but he'd gotten away. It's too much of a risk. He could stalk us all the way to D.C. Any minute he could shoot us up without us expectin' it or seein' him. There's only one thing we can do for the good of the group.
"We gotta track him down. Kill him." Abraham looks at me. His brow furrows. But he makes up his mind.
"Daryl's right. We better kill him before he gets the chance to kill us." It's settled. I'm settin' out with Rick an' Abraham. The others will stay back. Maggie, Glenn an' Michonne on watch. I set up my bow when I feel her hand on my arm. I face her, but she won't look directly at me.
"Please don't go. Let Rick an' Abraham handle this." Her words are shaky. Her hand reaches up to wipe at her eyes.
"They need me to help track him, Beth. I'll be back once we take care of it."
"Please don't leave me, Daryl." The sentence cuts through me, stabbin' at my heart. It's a plead. She's beggin' me not to leave her. Jesus. I look at her, eyes wide an' afraid. It kills me to see her lookin' at me like that. But I can't put her in danger. This is what we have to do to protect our own. I kiss her forehead.
"Be right back. Promise." I pull away from her but she's pulled me back. I brace myself for an argument, but she grabs my chin an' pulls my mouth to hers. There's so much feelin' in that action. She lets me go. I kiss the corner of her mouth an' whisper against her skin.
"Promise."
There's a trail of blood from the track. I follow that a few hundred yards before it starts gappin' more. The bleedin's almost stopped. My hand catches a browned leaf, droplets of blood spattered on it.
"He's still headin' west. C'mon." The signs are all there. Broken branches, blood stains. One stain rubs against a tree, 'bout five or more feet off the ground.
"Y'all got him in the arm." Rick nods. Abraham looks confused.
"How do you know that? What gives it away?" Rick turns to him.
"You wanna lesson in trackin' or you wanna find this son of a bitch." I catch his eye. That's the same fuckin' thing I said to him the first day we set out lookin' for Sophia. 'Cept I had asked if he wanted to find the little girl.
"Point taken." Abraham takes no offense, he knows there's a job to do. He's a good man. We've gone out a good mile or so when the trail starts to slip away. Don't help that the sun's gone down.
"It's gettin' dark. We're not gonna find him out here tonight. Let's head back. We can take shifts keepin' watch." Rick has a point. We won't be no good out here all night. 'Sides, they need us at the camp. We head back. Rosita has been moved to the truck, Sasha an' Bob keepin' watch over her. Abraham an' Mullet will sleep in the cab. Abraham convinces Rick to give him first watch, tells us he'll wake one of us in a few hours. I climb in the back of the SUV they'd given up for the truck. Beth's there waitin' for me.
"Told you I'd be back." It's pitch black out, the sky's too clouded to see shit. No moon, no stars. I reach out into the darkness an' find her hand. She tugs at me an' I drop next to her. I feel her head lay on my chest, her arm wraps 'round me. I rub her back.
"I'm glad you're alright. I missed you while you were gone." I let out a small laugh.
"Missed me? I was gone maybe two hours." She kisses my chest, right over my heart. My grip tightens 'round her.
"Two hours without you is a long time, Daryl."
I don't know how long we lay like that. She sits up an' tells me she has to go to the bathroom. I tell her I'll go out with her but she refuses. So I tell her to stay close to the car. She slips out an' I can only just make out her figure steppin' away from me. I stay upright, waitin' for her to get back.
I start thinkin' 'bout earlier, when she told me she loved me. I realize I haven't said it back. I think of the best way to bring it up to her. I've never done this before, but I figure it means more if it's sorta romantic. I don't know the first fuckin' thing 'bout romance. Part of me is glad we didn't go through with our intentions. I'd hate to think she woulda regretted it. I really needa figure out the romance concept.
It dawns on me that she ain't back yet. I can't imagine her pissin' so long. Maybe she went too far an' couldn't see her way back? I climb out, bow at my side. I make my way down to the bushes.
"Stay right there."
I stop midstep. It's a cold voice, turnin' my blood to ice. He's here. I can just make out his shape. I put my hands up. My voice is calm.
"Take it easy. I'm not gonna hurt you." He laughs at me. I hear a small cry an' my entire body goes rigid. He has her. I let her step out by herself an' he grabbed her. The icy voice reaches my ears again.
"I already shot one of yours. This one makes us even for both of mine." I can't breathe. I try to clear my head, figure out what to do. The clouds have shifted slightly. The light ain't much, but it's enough to see him holdin' her. His gun's at her temple.
"Let her go. You wanna be even? Take me. I'm one of the ones that just hunted you down." His face is set, I can't figure what he's thinkin'. Beth looks terrified an' there's no move I can make. I set my bow down in front of me, my foot kicks it to the side. My hands are still up. I can't plead with him. That'll only make him wanna kill her. I gotta think fast.
"Look, your men tried to rob our camp. You were lookin' for somethin', right? We have a stash of weapons in the woods. Canned food an' water bottles, too. I'm the one who hid it all." For a split second, his eyes flicker. I'm takin' a gamble here. I know there ain't shit in them woods. But he don't know that. I keep up my poker face. I need him to fall for my bluff.
"Take me out there. I'll dig all that shit up for you. Put a bullet in my head when it's done. You get the shit you came for an' you get even." Beth's cryin' now. She tells me not to do this. I need him to fall for it. Even if I can't kill him, I won't let him kill her. He lets out another laugh.
"Well, sugar, looks like you got yourself a knight in shinin' armor." He throws her to the ground. She isn't hurt, but she's beggin' him to let us both go. I turn to her. This is it. I could die tonight.
"I love you, Beth."
She lets out a sob, her hands cover her mouth. My sight locks on hers. Away from his face, I drop my eyes to my crossbow so she can see. There's a fire in her gaze, now. She understood.
"I love you, too, Daryl."
He scoffs at us. "Alright, shinin' armor. Lead the way." I step in front of him an' make towards the bushes. He says somethin' 'bout how I'll be able to find the stash in the dark when I hear the crossbow release. The telltale thwack lets me know she hit him. I turn to see him gapin' at me, the bolt juts outta his heart. When he drops to his knees I see her behind him, bow raised.
He's on his back now, the arrow's pushed further through his chest. I stand over him. He's still breathin'. My boot holds him down an' I reach for my arrow. My hand's firm 'round it. When I speak, I mock his icy tone.
"You better hope you're dead before the walkers find you. You stupid fucker." I rip it out of his chest. He shouts out an' we turn away an' leave him to die. Abraham comes runnin' at us, gun raised.
"Holy shit! What the fuck were y'all doing out there? It ain't exactly the perfect evening for a midnight fuckin' stroll. I could've shot one of you!" My arm's over Beth, holdin' her tight to my side. I spit at the ground an' nod my head back to where we were.
"You'll find the fucker who shot Rosita bleedin' out by the bushes. Do yourself a favor, no mercy kill. It ain't worth the bullet. We're goin' to bed."