at the infirmary...
Carol and Shelby helped him up the stairs to the infirmary sitting him on the bed Shelby ran around collecting supplies for carol she was in the next room she listened to them talk softly "You have a knack for getting into trouble when I'm not around you know that pookie." carol hummed softly.
"mmhm ya need to quit tryin to leave me then next time might not make it was real close this time." daryl mumbled.
Shelby gasped softly hiding in the doorway.
she heard carol gasp too "sweet pea I would never willingly not again." she peaked around the doorway and saw them carol had her hands curled in his hair and his head leaned in her neck nuzzling in to it hands linked around her waist
"carol." he breathed out she rubbed down his neck on to his shoulders touch an ever present comfort
"yeah?" she replies
"i love you." he mutters softly into her ear kissing her in the soft spot below it
carol inhales softly "really."
he hums softly "yeah have for awhile just kept loosing people was never the right time." she smiles lifting his head up so she could see his eyes "i love you too pookie just didn't want to push you." he pulls back freeing the rings from his vest grabbing her hand sliding one of the rings on her finger pulling it up to his lips
"this is so tobin don't get any ideas a'ight don't like sharing i'm selfish like that." carol lifted a rag to his cheek washing away the dried blood
"you haven't seen nothing yet I can be the most selfish person alive." She pulls the other ring from his hand slipping it on his finger "you know after everyone hears and it sinks in what you did your gonna have to learn to live with the love huh but remember I loved you first." he steals the rag from her hand and runs it across her neck cleaning the blood he left there when he nuzzled it and hands it back to her so she can finish cleaning the deep cut on his cheek.
Shelby smiled and intentionally dropped something on the floor so they knew she was coming around the corner daryl smiled "hey kid." she sat the stuff on the table to one side and daryl shrugged out of the vest not wanting blood to drip on it yet "get up here Shel I know some of that is your blood cause Dwight never went down easy I know I fought him twice." she climbed up next to him and while carol stitched the cut in his cheek he carefully dabbed Shelby's face holding her chin carefully watching out for the bruises he knew all too well.
she watched his face as carol stitched it not so much as a wince in pain but when she met his eyes she saw a spot near his temple jump and she realized he was just good at holding it in he turned her chin toward the door way working on the other cheek only shallow cuts peppered her cheeks he saw as carol finished and she saw a kid her age a boy with one eye watching them from the window "that must be Carl." she thought to herself and the moment she thought it the back door opened and a skinny ginger man came in and was floored by the sight.
Daryl dropped his hand and rag from her cheek grabbing Shelby's hand softly saying "its fine." with his eyes when she looked up carol glanced back and smiled hands moving of their own accord working open daryls buttons
"hey Eric." the man Eric inhaled softly eyes falling to the open shirt
"oh my god, daryl, what happened." daryl glanced down to his chest seeing his old scars and the large bruise resting over his ribs he crossed his arms covering his chest
"it's nothin' Eric 'm fine." the man looked at carol who nodded
"he'll be fine we all will." vague but accurate to the situation.
the man turned to Shelby eyeing the cuts and bruises on her face and blood stained hair "and who's this?" daryl smirked
"well Shel who are you?" she nodded
"i'm Shelby Wyatt Daryl's protegee came from kingdom." she held her hand out to him noticing for maybe the first time the grime and filth covering it when he smiled taking it in his clean un-callused one
"it's nice to meet you Shelby will you be staying here or do you have a family back at kingdom." she let go shaking her head he saw daryls hand move to cover hers resting by her side she looks down at it stuttering out
"no-not anymore it's just me." daryl grabbed her chin with his other hand making her look up
"not just you anymore kid." he spoke in a tender voice Eric never heard before he looked down for the first time since coming in and noticed daryls leg thinking to himself
"shit shit what the hell happened, where were they, what attacked them." what he said was "oh i'm sorry." he walked over to the shelf of medicine and grabbed the ibuprofen carol gave a questioning look at him and he shook his head "Aaron dropped one of Daryl's motorcycle parts on his foot then hit his head trying to pick it up he's fine just a headache. And daryl the parts are fine." daryl shrugs
"not like I got a bike for 'em anyway they don't fit mine which ain't here anyhow." Eric nodded
"alright well I'll see ya." and he left the same door he came from and when she looked to the front door Carl was gone too reporting back to his dad no doubt these people had trust issues but so did she, she only really trusted daryl and then carol by association she turned back to see daryl had pulled off his shirt and she could see scars everywhere she'd seen some of them before but not all she realized what he meant with what he said back in the cabin he'd taken abuse before for along time from the looks of it.
carol brushed her fingers over his scars a recognition there she realized carol had too and he closed his eyes to her touch and relaxed as she carefully wrapped up his ribs with an ice pack over the worst of it and glanced down at his leg "hun I saved the worst for last what do you want me to do." he looked up pulling his shirt back on shrugging
"just gotta do it." he looked at Shelby "hey Shel go lock the back door then wait outside okay don't let anyone in no matter what they hear alright." her eye's widen and shoot to carol who's biting her lip quietly then looks back at daryl and nods standing and doing as she was told when she heard carol ask
"that bad huh." he grunted
"bullets still in there I can feel it gotta get it out but gotta do it quick cant have everyone descending on this place like the walkers outside I'll be okay just don't stop no matter what." Shelby turns back into the room when carol tries to argue and sees him holding her wrist "it's gotta be you. only you, you can do it." carol reaches out to his cheeks tears falling down her's
"i—i don't know if I can daryl." his hands winding around her back pulling her to him his face into her stomach he rubs his good cheek against her carefully nuzzling her like a big puppy
"i know you can, carol, I trust you." Shelby walks through and out the front door collecting her bow from the car to stand guard on the porch like at the cabin except this time there wasn't a threat she braced herself for the sounds that would follow inside.
but nothing could prepare her for the hellish animalistic howl that came ripping out of the house shaking the windows scaring birds out of a near by tree and causing people to come out of their houses armed and ready for anything the howl a deep animalistic sound was cut off by a deep string of curse that melted into soft mummers of reassurance she sighed hearing daryls words through sharp pants "hey you got it... it's okay... i'm okay... sorry for the scare sweetheart I know that was hard." she turned to look in the window seeing carol staring down at her hands covered to the wrist in blood
daryl pulled himself up unsteadily wound stitched and covered and pulls her into his chest not feeling the pain in his body he ran his fingers through her hair forehead on hers "still here. The both of us. Ain't gonna lie though I was scared that was some real shit out there but..." he tugs the rag from his pocket running it over her hands wiping his blood away "i got you okay whatever happens. I'm not leavin' you alone again you'd have to kill me." Shelby chuckles when carol pulls back to slap him only to have him catch her hand and pull her into a kiss leaning his forehead on hers "love you okay."
Shelby turns away when she hears foot steps approaching she saw a large man who looked like her dad when she turned around her bow knocked with an arrow between them she was scared but wouldn't show it like daryl showed her "nobody is allowed in daryls orders." the man huffed softly but she saw the passing glimmer of fear at daryls name
"huh cute kid and just who the hell are you ya little freak." she pulled up her bow pointing it at the man
"archery prodigy and Daryl's protegee and the one that 'll fuck ya up ya call me names again." he backed up and rick came up behind him
"there a problem here Shelby." she shook her head
"nope." rick heard her pop the p for emphasis rick turned blocking her she let her bow down and twirled the arrow to slide it back into her quiver
"tobin I wouldn't try anything she's under daryls protection not that she needs it though everything's fine here just go to the church I'll explain everything in a while." he rested a hand on the tall mans chest who nodded fight gone she saw a little fear at the mention of daryl from them both as he turned trudging back down the stairs rick turned to her "hows it going in there." he nodded to the door she smirked softly
"their bout done was told to wait out here." and before rick could reply daryl had the door pulled open the tore up shirt he wore exposing white bandage underneath and carol right behind him Shelby looked up at daryl eyes concerned his lips cocked up in a half smile creasing his stitches "i scare you kid." she shook her head
"no-no just surprised didn't know a person could make that sound." daryl rested his hand on her shoulder
"surprised myself too kid." he looked up at rick who was dumb founded
"that was you. Fuck man thought a wild animal got caught by a walker." daryl smiles
"mm-hmm yeah sorry bout that." he walked out a limp created by the walking cast carol put on for his ankle rick smiled
"glad to see you up and moving so soon." daryl nodded carol's arm came around resting on Shelby's shoulder muttering
"yeah helps that he's pleasantly drugged up... thanks for that rick." she glances up at rick as Shelby giggles softly and daryl hearing what carol said exhaled a short chuckle
"yup." the popping p sound coming from a smiley daryl this time.
Rick shook his head thinking just how good this kid was for them already "so you can walk but maybe you should ride in the car home we're having a town meeting at the church for all this but you don't have to go shouldn't push it so soon we need you back in peak shape when your healed and some people might not understand a'ight." carol and Shelby walked off the porch carols hand and body turned at the last step beckoning daryl down to them a shine glinted off of one finger a ring the ring glinted in the sun up at rick and daryl the small red stone twinkled as she wiggled her fingers at him and a glint in daryls eye when he glanced to rick told him everything he needed to know that and the solid gold shining back from his hand as daryl patted his shoulder smiling
"its all good brother." grabbing the rail and making his way down the stairs carefully slight limp in his steady gate the wings of his vest glowing like a real angels wings carol reached for his hand and his fingers wrapped around hers pulling her into him and kissing her hair Shelby opens the doors shoving their stuff into the back handing off his bow to him he rested it on his shoulder pointing it straight into the air as he looked out over the streets "'s good to be home." carol nodded fingers curled in his, staring at his stitched cheek thinking how she was home wherever he was
"yeah it is." rick slipped away to the church leaving them to soak in the feeling of home, of family and each other.