"There's got to be another way,"

I looked him up and down. "Don't ask me to leave him. You already did that once."

"We started something last night," he was hot on my feet. "You realize that?"

"No him no me," I pulled open the trunk of our car. "That is all I can say." I threw some things into a bag and tugged it over my shoulder. "Take care of yourself…and can you just tell her I love her." I nodded to her head that lightly peeked out from the passenger seat. He stared at me before I walked off into the woods.

He welcomed me with an open arm. "There's my baby brother." He smiled wrapping his arm around my shoulder and walking us away. I casted one last glance over my shoulder at the car knowing I was leaving everything behind for my asshole of a brother. I had to make myself turn away just imagining her face was painful enough, the thought of her realizing I had left was horrifying me. I had to not think about it. But it seemed impossible. My brother barley talked while we walked through the woods, all I had on my mind was her. I had to mull over the reasons to make my actions seem justified, I had to forget her face, I had to forget how special she made me feel, how wanted she made me feel, and I had to forget how much she had made me a better person. It was essential, or else I would turn around and run right back to that prison. I survived before didn't I? I survived without her didn't I? Why was this time any different? Because I was not in love back then. I did not know this feeling or what it was capable of doing to the human soul, or how much it could change a person. What had she done to me?

"Merle," I cried out my voice croaked, and cracked, and withered. My hand shot out in front of me to grip onto the bark of a tree. "Merle!" I called out again louder this time making sure he turned around. His eyebrows shot up with sarcasm. "We need to stop for a second."

He laughed at me. "Staying at that prison really killed your endurance Darlene."

I shook my head trying to regain my breath even though I was not at a loss. "I need to sit down," I collapsed beneath the tree feeling my world tumble down around me. The sky was a big blur of blue swirling around in my vision, patches of green floated in now-and-then to confuse where I was supposed to be looking, and Merle's head was shadowing between four to five heads as he stared perplexed at me. What was happening to me? Why was I confused and wounded? Why did my chest hurt so badly?

"You know when I would try to stay off the weed for a while to get clean," He shifted to lean on his hips, "I had the same confusion, same surprise, same panic attack…you're going through withdrawal baby brother."

"I ain't addicted to anything." I growled letting my head fall onto my knee.

Merle laughed stepping forward. "You are smoking one mighty strong plant with the name of Rose."

I was on my feet in a second with my hands tangled in his shirt shoving him against a tree. "Shut up!" I slammed his back into the tree. "Shut up!" I pulled him away and shaved him onto it again. "Shut up!"

Merle's stump uppercutted my stomach sending me stumbling backwards, and then he gave a kick to the targeted area of my abdominal tumbling me to the ground. He kneeled beside me yanking m forward by my shirt. "You left her Daryl, now get over it." He released me. "Now stop being a pussy I'm hungry."

"I ain't a pussy," I mumbled dusting myself off, grabbing my crossbow, and standing up following him through the green tower of trees. Silence was back upon us as we tracked. I could feel the uneasy tension dilating off both our skins. We both had unanswered questions just itching to be scratched. Why he never came looking? Why he left? Why he was with Woodbury? Why did he torture Maggie and Glenn? His eyes kept meeting mine whenever he sensed I was being reluctant to follow him.

"If you love her so much, why did you come with me?" he asked picking off a leaf of some bush.

I glanced around. "You're my brother."

"She means more to you than I ever did or ever will," he smirked but I could see the shame in his eyes, hear the self-confidence in his voice flatten and die.

"You could have come with us," My eyes flickered to his as he stopped. "We could have figured something out."

He toyed with his hands. "They're all going to be dead."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Right about now he's probably hosting a housewarming party," Merle began, "He's going to bury what's rest of your pals," he spit. "Let's hook some fish," then brushed past me.

I jogged up to him. "Maybe we should go back and get her."

Merle shook his head. "No, I ain't having her pulling us down, not in the condition she's in." I didn't ask the question playing with my mind; instead I just followed his actions in spitting and walked off. Of in the distance I could hear him rambling off about his time in Woddbury, all the things The Governor would do. He mentioned some forgiveness story about taking Rose away from the prison, away from me, but I blocked it out the memory of us was too hard to enjoy. I tried to toughen up; I tried to not be so soft when it came to her. It was like I was some rock to her, some old, beat-up, scarred, sedimentary rock that seemed indestructible to any interference. Then there was her, a great wave of a woman so ready to wash away all that sea-salt stained colored sadness of me, she crashed over my soul cleansing my from the inside out breaking my rock apart. She broke me just to fix me. No one would ever be able to do that to me like she has. Her precise skill, her agile actions had crept into my skin and made a home to spread throughout my body pinpricking ever bad demon I have ever encountered and obliterating it. How could anyone else compare?

My ears picked up a wailing. "Hear that?" I stopped listening savoring anything to distract me from her.

"Yeah," Merle didn't smirk. "Wild animals getting wild."

"That's a baby."

He shook his head and gave nervous smile. "Why don't you just piss in my ear and tell me it's raining too." I broke away from him spotting an open area of sunlight just passing through the trees. A gunshot echoed around the river a couple of people trying to fend for themselves atop of a bridge. I shook Merle's arm and ran past him up the incline. "Hey! I ain't wastin' my bullets!" I ignored him running as fast as I could. Before I would have agreed with Merle and ran in the other directions, but things were different now I suppose. They were shooting haphazardly, shaking the whole time the trigger was being pulled…no wonder they were close to death's doorstep. I released an arrow just into the head of a walker ready to take a chunk out of one of the kid's legs, another when into the head of a walker staggering close to me, I pulled it out shoving it into the head of one just behind me."

"Cover me!" I yelled to Merle as I took out one atop of a car where the baby's wails could be heard. I reloaded killing the one next to it. I smashed a walkers head into the car window, and ran to back to pull the crawling zombie inside the trunk out and slam the trunk onto its head. I had to pick them off without any real help from Merle and the man, who I am assuming was the dad, could barely stop shaking enough to reload his gun. Though, the job got done when the last remaining walker was kicked off the bridge side. That's when I heard Merle's gun snap up.

"Slow down beaner," he spoke slowly. "That ain't the way to say thank you."

The man responded with Spanish. "Let em' go." I grumbled staring at Merle. He pulled his gun back setting it in the waistband of his jeans mumbling something about rewards, then went digging in their backseat. I could hear the baby moaning from inside the car. I raised my crossbow to Merle. "Get out of the car."

"I know you're not talking to me brother." He stopped moving but remained in the car.

I looked at the family. "Get in your car and get the hell outta' here. Go! Get in your car!" The dad hit the son and they ran around to the other side while Merle slowly pulled away from the car door staring straight into me. Behind us the family peeled out and drove off. He pushed the crossbow out of his face which I swung around to move in the other direction.

"Daryl!" he said suddenly grabbing onto my shoulder. "Daryl wait I need to tell you something important." I turned around hesitantly with a scowl on my face and a glare in my eyes. "It's about Rose…" he looked off the bridge. "That baby in the car…that woman…it's just…maybe you should know now before it's too late…Rose she-she is having a baby."

My crossbow clattered to the ground. "What?"

He looked at me. "She's pregnant."

"How is that-why-you know-she never-I thought-" I ran my hand through my hair looking everywhere but his face. I knew this was the zombie apocalypse and those precautions were never available but she always assured nothing of that sort could happen. She always told me that but never why…how could this even be possible? How could I let this happen to her? How could I put this burden on her? I was killing her! I was murdering her! How could I leave after doing that to her? How could I leave her? "I have to go back." I picked up my crossbow and took off in the direction we came. I heard Merle yelling behind me with reason on why we could not go back, but I didn't care. I had to go back. I needed to go back. She made me so soft, so weak, so mushy, but yet I was stronger than ever, tougher than I had ever been, and now she was going to need me to support everything she did. She needed my love, and tendering gestures. She needed my trust and courage. She needed me, and that made me want her so much more. I loved her more than humanly possible…and now…

She was having my baby.

I twirled the pacifier between my fingers staring at the playful twist, and taunting ducklings on it. It was clear. It had to be. Rose would not stand for pink, nor blue stating this gender would have to be a surprise. "Daryl," Michonne spoke beside me. "Ready?"

"Yup," I reached over slamming the car door closed tucking the binky in my jacket pocket making sure it was safe and secure. I glanced out the window watching the scenery blow past me and smiled; something still hard to get used to…I was ready to start this family.

This chapter sort of takes place right after Daryl leaves the prison group to head off on his own with Merle...

Then it flashes back to Daryl heading back to the prison with the medicine.

Lot's of love xoxo-kate.