We entered the almost empty city by foot, leaving the bike hidden securely in a bush nearby. For the first couple of minutes of our walk we were silent, and I had the first opportunity to actually feel the wetness in my denim. With a cold shiver running down my spine, I realized we didn't use any protection, and we weren't exactly careful, the very proof of that now making walking quite uncomfortable with the wet sensation between my legs. As if on cue, Daryl gazed at me and asked, "Everythin' okay?"

"Uh-" I bit my lower lip. How do you even say such a thing? I took a deep breath and I mumbled sheepishly, "We might want to find a pharmacy, not only the veterinary clinic."

When Daryl looked at me questioningly, slowing down a bit, I muttered with embarrassment, "We need the morning-after pill."

The man stared at me for a moment longer, sudden realization hitting him, and he stopped dead in his tracks eyes wide and alert, "Fuck, princess, I didn't-"

"Me neither," I cut in, stopping as well, "We should be fine though, if we find the pill."

He nodded slowly, still frozen to the spot, "I really didn't mean to-"

I couldn't help the small smile from showing on my lips at his concern. Even though the potential idea of having a child during the fucking end of the world of all things shouldn't make me smile, Daryl's reaction and care did. Almost agonizingly slow, I reached for his hand and intertwined our fingers with careful movements. He didn't help me, but didn't try to stop me either and with Daryl, that was just enough. With his warm hand almost covering mine, I said quietly, "You didn't do anything. I was the one encouraging you."

"Still-" he bit his lower lip, looking away.

"No," I interjected yet again, moving closer, so now I was almost hugged to his arm and I honestly didn't know if I did it for his sake or mine, "It's on both of us."

Daryl nodded shortly and his fingers tightened on my hand, the very gesture equally astonishing and sweet. As if to prove he had even more surprises up his sleeve, the man turned slightly, so now he was facing me and embraced me with his free hand. I moved my arm around his back, hugging him tightly, savoring the feeling of his warmness. After a moment, he pulled back, "Let's go then, it's getting late."

I nodded, smiling lightly at him. I wanted to take my hand away, but Daryl held it a little tighter as he started walking, and I couldn't think of any gesture I'd love more at that moment.

We walked briskly in complete silence for a couple of minutes. I could see the first buildings in the town, the view making me slightly nervous, as memories of my last stay here appeared in front of my eyes. I focused on Daryl's hand and cleared my throat, starting, "I thought you'd have a lot of questions."

"I do." He answered quietly and for a second he looked as if he wanted to elaborate, but changed his mind at the last moment. Then, he licked his lips slowly and added, "But it ain't the best time."

"Is there a good time?" I asked quietly, finding his warm hand extremely comforting and making me bolder.

"No, but, we should focus." Daryl explained, his eyes scanning the perimeter, as if to prove his point. I bit my lower lip to stop the smile from appearing on my lips. Even though this whole afternoon and my feelings back then sound incredibly cliché, I couldn't help the warmness in my stomach, my heart, my brain even, from spreading all over myself.

"I bet there are some questions which would allow us to stay focused," I murmured, squeezing his hand briefly. I tried to smile encouragingly, but I guess it was more like a grimace. Daryl glanced at me sideways and opened his mouth a couple of times, wetting his lips with his tongue.

"What does it look like?" He asked slowly, and I could see on his face he regretted his choice of words almost instantly. I gave his hand another reassuring squeeze.

"As if I can't breathe. You might think I'm dizzy or blinded for a moment, and I'll start hyperventilating," I licked my lips slowly, "I might run away to be alone. I think I never screamed during the attacks, though I can't be completely sure."

Daryl nodded, frowning. He looked as if he was memorizing the information, a thing I found completely endearing. Before I could think about it any further though, he started again, "Ya said I helped ya stop an attack. How?"

I chuckled lightly and Daryl shot another glance at me, which made the chuckle die on my lips. Instead, I cleared my throat and answered, "Well, you kinda- were there. In my case, the key to stopping this shit is focusing on something and evening my breathing. I'm not sure if you remember, but in front of the barn I grabbed your arm. I simply focused on your muscles working and tried to breath to the rhythm. It did the trick for a moment, but then-" I swallowed, not sure how to finish the sentence.

"Yeah," Daryl jumped in, as if sensing my discomfort, "Okay. And is there anythin' I can do in general?"

I sighed and shrugged, "I can tell you what my friends did. But again- this knowledge goes back to the times when I was a teenager." I chewed on my lower lip, continuing slowly, measuring my words, "Well, when they noticed the attack was about to happen, they kinda guided me to a calmer place — which, I know, might not be an option here — and asked me to breathe slowly. Jake would place my hand on his chest and make me breathe with him. Andrea usually took my hand and tapped on it, asking me to breathe to the rhythm."

I stopped for a moment, taking a deep breath. I noticed we were nearing the clinic and Daryl was scanning our surroundings, but he didn't try to stop me from speaking. There was utter silence around us, not even a small breeze spoiling it and I found myself lowering my voice, "Technically, I think what helped me most was their presence. And-"

I had half a mind to tell him his presence appeared to be more than enough for me, but after a short hesitation I decided it wasn't something I was bold enough to share, at least not yet. Instead, I continued, "I guess you'll have to find your way, if you'd be willing to help me." I glanced at him, adding quickly, "Which, of course, you don't have to!"

Daryl let go of my hand and I blinked nervously, turning my gaze to him, only to notice he did that to open the door to the veterinary clinic and knock on the wood of the door frame. He had his bow at the ready, arm muscles contracting slightly from the effort, eyes fixed on the shaded interior, but he added quietly, "For the record, I want to help ya."

I smiled, taking out my knife. No noise came from inside, so I looked at Daryl, who nodded, motioning for me to go first. When I entered the dark clinic, he followed, turning around. I felt my heart thumping in my ears, but to my surprise, even though I knew we were at risk, I thoroughly enjoyed how we worked together. When I opened another door, jumping a step back, Daryl was there to check it with his crossbow. When he stopped in front of a huge waiting room, I got inside in one swift motion, holding my knife in front of me just in case, the man kept an eye on the rear, his focus on the dark, open corridor.

After a couple of minutes we were sure the clinic was completely empty, minus a ton of spiders hiding in every corner. I took a deep breath, taking the piece of paper out of the pocket of my jeans, "Okay, here's the list. Can you read it?"

Daryl glanced at it quickly, "What's that?" He pointed to the third position on the paper. I read it for him, and he nodded, asking, "I suppose ya don' know how those meds look?"

I shook my head and Daryl muttered a short 'okay'. I licked my lips nervously, "I'll take the left side, and you go to the right?"

"Sounds good," Daryl murmured, still looking at the piece of paper. He offered it to me, but I shook my head.

"I already remember the names, keep it." I said, turning around to head to the first of the cabinets.

"Princess?" Daryl's voice was almost a whisper, but I whipped around as if he shouted at me, steadying myself by placing one of my hands on the wall. When I looked at him questioningly, he eyed me somewhat sheepishly and after a brief hesitation, he took two steps towards me and placed his lips over mine in a sweet kiss. Even though there wasn't really much urgency or sexual need in this gesture, I still shuddered at his touch. After an all too short moment, Daryl pulled back and looked down at me with a sheepish smile, "It's good you're so stubborn."

"I think you meant 'determined'," I rolled my eyes, but it was so damn hard to look offended, when your mouth threatened to break from the huge grin you carried, "You really have to choose words more carefully."

"I know what I meant," Daryl smirked and turned, walking into the room to the right. I shook my head with a huge smile plastered on my lips and opened the closest cabinet to the left.

XXX

"Anythin'?" Daryl entered the small room I was in, propping his bow on his arm. As I started to notice during the last few weeks, he did that a lot and I couldn't help but wonder whether that was an actual need to adjust position or more like a nervous twitch.

I showed him the bottles in my backpack and pointed to some of them, secured in a small inside pocket, "Those are antibiotics, though judging by the quantities, we'll have to powder them as I did before."

"And the ones for ya?"

"Nope," I murmured, zipping the backpack, "Maybe in some other room."

Daryl nodded, taking out some bottles from his vest's pockets, "Not sure if I read the names correctly."

I checked the bottles he held in front of me and I grinned at him, "You did. Where were those?"

Daryl motioned his head to the right, "In that room."

"Great," I smiled, "So we have everything we need. Just the pharmacy."

"Jus' the pharmacy." He nodded and waited for me, as I put the backpack on. I looked at him and noticed a small smile on his lips.

"What is it?" I asked, tying my hair with a brand-new hairband given to me by Maggie just yesterday, and guiding him out of the room.

"Nothin'," was all the response I got, but somehow, it was just enough. I turned my head and smiled back at Daryl only to find him standing behind me with his eyes wide open and fixed on something behind us. I started turning around, but before I managed to do so, he grabbed me and pushed me roughly back inside the room where we were just seconds ago.

He closed the door shut with a quiet, swift movement that barely made a noise at all, and we were surrounded by complete darkness. By the quiet, well-known noise I could tell Daryl readied his bow and I moved closer to him, or where I hoped he was, whispering, "What's going on?"

"Someone was walkin' down the road." Daryl's voice was calm, but there was an edge to it that made my heart flutter with anxiety.

My breath hitched in my throat, but I managed a quiet, "Maybe just a walker?"

Just when the words left my mouth, I started wondering, since when those creatures started to be "just walkers" and how on Earth did we end up in a situation where fellow humans were rising to an equal threat in my eyes.

"Unless they started carrying weapons, I wouldn't count on it."

Something between a sob and a groan left my mouth inwardly, and I clasped my hand over my lips to quiet myself. I noticed my fingers were trembling, and I had to lean on the wall behind me to keep myself upright. It was so dark I didn't really see Daryl, but I knew he was near me with his crossbow at the ready. I wanted to reach for him and hold his elbow, waist, anything really, just to feel his presence, but I knew that'd restrict his ability to move, so I stopped myself. Unsteadily, I reached for my own gun, tucked securely in a special strap, provided to me by Rick yesterday. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to use it even if I had to, but I had to try.

There was a long silence and only my unsteady breathing could be heard in the closed room. My eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness and I could make out Daryl's form as well as shapes of most of the furniture. When my gaze was running somewhere close to the man's frame, I noticed him going very stiff. It took me a moment, but I definitely heard some muffled voices, as if a couple of people were speaking somewhere nearby, with a few obstacles between us and them. I went completely still, trying to make myself one with the wall behind me.

After what felt like eternity in my head, Daryl took a cautious step closer to the door and listened carefully. I felt uneasy, most unwelcome images of someone opening the door and hurting Daryl creeping their way up my head. I was about to beg him to back off a bit, but he did it on his own, making his way to me in two long strides, "I think they're gone."

I nodded, but realizing he might not be able to see it, I whispered shakily, "Okay."

"Ya' okay?" he asked quietly, moving one of his hands to the small of my back. I stepped closer to him and finding myself somewhat hidden from the entire universe, I nodded again, this time making sure my head brushed his chest in the process. His scent and proximity were the most calming things I've ever experienced, and I still had trouble embracing my mind on the idea that someone could have such an effect on me.

"Yeah, just-" I stopped, not sure how to finish the sentence. Daryl pressed his lips to the top of my head and I closed my eyes for a moment, bathing in his calming presence. Then, I took a breath and murmured against his skin, "I'm good. Let's get out of here."

"We gotta get to the pharmacy," Daryl reminded me quietly, and I winced. That we did, and we couldn't risk not going. A not planned pregnancy was by far one of the last positions on a list of my needs in this fucked up world.

"Okay," I whispered. I could feel a small change in his stance, a slight hesitation which was expressed by a sudden stiffness and I pulled my head from under his chin, looking up, "What is it?"

"I think ya should head to my bike," he muttered, at the same time spreading his hand over the small of my back and pushing me closer, as if his mind and body couldn't quite agree, "If I'm wrong, and they're here, I'll be able to draw them away from ya'. And with yer leg I'll be faster on ma own."

I nodded, finding it hard to speak. I didn't want to leave him, but I could understand my presence wouldn't help him in the slightest if anything unexpected happened. Daryl however seemed to disagree with himself, since his hands held me so tight I started having trouble taking a deep breath. Once again, I found myself hugging tightly to his chest, but after a moment I forced my hands to let go of him, the loss of contact — though expected — leaving uneasiness stirring in my mind. I looked up at him only to find him staring down at me intently. I forced a quiet, "Come back safely."

"Will do." Daryl nodded, sending me a crooked smile and stepping away from me. He cast a quick glance at the door and muttered intently, "I'll go first. If you hear somethin', anythin', don't ya dare to leave this room. If it's quiet, get out of here and run to the motorbike, I'll meet ya there."

I nodded, biting my lower lip. Daryl stared at me, as if he wasn't convinced, and he added fervently, "I mean it, princess. Any sound outside and ya find cover in the darkest corner. Don't come out for me."

I wanted to object. To tell him I wanted to have his back as much as he had mine, but the reality was cruel on me: even with my leg fully healed, I believed Daryl was more than capable of taking care of himself if he didn't have to look out for me. I cleared my throat, trying to smile at him, "Got it. I'll find a pond."

Daryl's eyes looked at me for a moment longer, almost as if he wanted to memorize how I looked and too soon, he forced through clenched teeth, "See ya soon."

With that, he was just gone, and I made a small, shuffling movement to follow him, but I forced myself to stay put. My heartbeat was filling my ears, but that was the only sound I could hear so far. After forcing myself to stay unmoving for what felt like forever, I started slowly towards the door, trying to be as quiet as possible.

I kicked a small box and cringed at that, closing my eyes briefly, and I cursed inwardly, not daring to make a sound — well, another sound. I moved quickly towards the door, hugging my back to the wall close by. Even though I couldn't tell that it was a quiet noise, no reaction could be heard outside, so after waiting for a couple of seconds, I gripped my gun even tighter and left the room slowly.

I had to narrow my eyes when the afternoon sunlight hit me in the corridor, but my surroundings seemed to be quiet and, even more importantly, no one was in sight. Taking a deep, steadying breath I tiptoed towards the entrance, keeping my gaze fixed on the outside of the clinic. Aside from the wind blowing lightly, there was still no sound or movement, so I gathered all the courage I had in me and left the safe interior.

The sun was now going down, but it was still warm outside. I looked around, feeling my fingers tremble slightly, so I adjusted my hold on the gun.

"You can do it," I muttered, "You were on your own, and you managed."

I nodded, as if I tried to confirm my own words. My eyes darted to the left, where Daryl went for the pharmacy and I made a small step to follow him. Then, I closed my eyes for a moment yet again and jogged to the right to find Daryl's motorbike, which we left outside the town.

My feet were thumping lightly against the pavement, but I was moving steadily towards the town border. Suddenly, I caught a movement to my left and I turned abruptly, moving my hands with the gun in front of me. My eyes searched my surroundings frantically and even though it took me a minute, I noticed someone — or something — behind a building not so far from me. Holding back a gasp, I jumped behind a nearby wall next to a shop or something which was a shop once.

"Dude, it's empty, they ain't idiots!" A weary voice reached my ears. The man who was talking seemed to be annoyed or maybe a little impatient. I hugged myself tightly to the small wall, trying to be invisible. The men were nowhere to be seen, so I couldn't quite tell from which side I could hear them. Before I could ponder on that anymore, another voice responded in a more collected manner.

"Maybe they're not, and maybe they are. We gotta check."

This voice sounded as if it was closer to me and I twitched nervously, not sure where to aim my gun. Finally, I realized they were both behind that building where I first saw movement, but on the far ends of it. I tried to decide whether they could see me if I moved, but before I made my final decision, I heard the most unwelcome, hissing noise. My head snapped towards the source of it and I noticed a walker stalking towards me determinedly. Before I could think about it, I cursed under my breath, "Shit."

Not finding any other choice, I got up, trying to stay as low as possible, and I pulled out my knife. Ugly pieces of skin were dangling on the creature's arm as if it was stabbed previously, and it was missing half of the jaw. That's why it was only hissing: making any other noise was simply impossible. Trying to make as little noise as possible, I approached the walker and stabbed it in the head forcefully. A sickening, cracking sound filled my ears and I almost let go off the creature, realizing at the very last moment I couldn't make too much noise. Forcing my muscles to hold the limp weight of the stinking body, I lowered it to the ground with a soft thud. This left me breathless, and I had half a mind to rest for a moment, but the approaching voices made me rethink my decisions, "Did you hear that?"

Before I could fully think about it, I started towards the line of trees on bent legs. I must have been making some noise, but I honestly didn't know what to do: there were two of them, and I was alone. After what felt like eternity, my jelly-like legs brought me to the forest surrounding the small town and I slid down a wide branch, breathing heavily. I felt sweat dripping down my forehead and I cleaned it with the back of my hand angrily. I listened carefully to all the noises, but nothing too alarming came - I must have been too far. I knew if the men I overheard would notice the walker I killed, they would know someone was in the town. While I highly doubted they'd try to look in the woods, the knowledge that Daryl was still in town left an uneasy feeling in my stomach.

I looked around the branch, trying to see something in the town. I was 30, maybe 45 feet away from the buildings and I couldn't see any movement. Fighting the urge to go back there, I slowly pulled up and hid even deeper in the forest, slowly starting towards Daryl's motorbike or at least in its general direction. I tried to be noiseless, though it was pretty tough to take steps so as not to break any twigs in the process. I kept mumbling curses every time I stepped on a wider branch, the very noise of my voice distracting me enough to keep my heartbeat more or less steady.

Another twig broke under my foot and I cursed again only to freeze in spot: there were no sprigs in this particular place, so it couldn't have been me who made the noise. Breathing through my nose way faster than it was needed, I moved my knife up front, turning around frantically.

"You kind of look scary," the voice made me jump and turn at the same time, the very sequence almost resulting in me landing gracelessly on my ass, "I almost pissed myself, princess."

"Jesus Christ, Daryl," my hand moved to my chest involuntarily as I tried to regain the meaning of breathing, "Don't do that ever again."

The man smirked slightly and moved towards me, placing the crossbow on his back with a swift movement, one that was completely unreal to me, now that I knew how much that goddamn thing weighed, "No promises," he murmured, placing his arm around my waist securely, "It was fun to watch ya sneak around."

I looked up at him, slowly hiding my knife into its sheath, and then placing my hands on his warm, wide chest. I swallowed before saying, "Did you see them?"

Daryl's eyes widened a bit, and he shook his head. I felt his hand pushing me closer to him and I welcomed the feeling with gratitude. I continued slowly, "There were two of them, at least I've heard two. I think they were looking for us," I murmured, adding, "I mean Hershel, Rick, Glenn and me."

Daryl's gaze turned towards the town as if he could see through the trees, and he stared in that direction for a moment. Then, he looked back at my face and let go of me, making a small movement with his head, "Come on. Let's get outta here."

I nodded and started in the direction I was headed before, but Daryl's slightly amused voice stopped me in my tracks, "Not this way."

He turned in the very opposite direction and started walking confidently. Fighting the childish, but oh-so-satisfying idea to stick my tongue at his back, I started walking as well, following the man as quietly as I could.