I suppose I can't claim international time differences for the delay in this one! Sorry :/

Chapter 28 - None of your business

Blue Zenith was Aunt Jemma and Uncle Jack's sprawling vineyard on the outskirts of Charlottesville, and it had always been a place of peace and happiness for Tahlia; it had always been a home.

Jemma and Jack had always doted on Tahlia, had both celebrated the sunshine and weathered the storms of her life with her, so when Jack appeared at the apartment and caught Tahlia in his arms and said, I'm taking you home, she had melted against him and gratefully agreed that that sounded like a wonderful idea.

Stepping out of Jack's pickup and onto the gravel driveway, Tahlia gazed out over the orderly rows of vines winding over the hills and giving way to wide open expanses of rolling farmland that stretched all the way to the hazy swell of the mountains in the distance, and she felt the weight of her recent ordeal slipping from her shoulders, fading with every breath of crisp country air.

A loud shout from the direction of the main house drew her attention, and she turned to see her Aunt Jem, plait bouncing on her back and apron flapping at her thighs, rushing to meet her, arms outstretched.

"My God, girl." managed Jemma, anguished, as she studied Tahlia before embracing her. "We'll take care of you now."

And Tahlia knew that yes, right now, this was exactly what she needed.

There was always plenty going on around the vineyard, and the holiday season was no exception – with only four days until Christmas, the place was buzzing.

Tahlia had known most of the workers and the people in the wider, tight-knit community since she was a child, so there was a comfort, an ease, in slotting into place and having this big family rally around her. Wanting to keep busy, she threw herself straight into the bustle of life there, happy to muck in wherever needed. The kitchen was a hot hive of activity with baking and cooking and prepping food parcels for the local shelter, and when Tahlia wanted a change of scene, she headed outdoors to help with pruning or to throw a hand in on the endless list of jobs to be done, and when a quieter moment was needed, she'd join Tess, the winemaker, in the winery.

There was only one tiny black cloud – the day before her arrival at the vineyard, a truck had taken the second corner on the lane too late and crashed into the telephone pole that serviced the property, taking the phone lines down, and Jack had assured her there'd be no one out to repair it this side of Christmas. So, with no working landline and no cellphone reception available over most of the vineyard, she'd had very limited contact with the outside world.

On a trip into town one day she'd managed to get hold of Andrea and have a quick catch up, but on the vineyard the only place she could scrounge some service was at the top of Sunrise Hill - a 15 minute walk down the gravel path and up the hill behind the winery. Once a day she'd trudge on up through the daisies and check her messages, firing off a few in return, and for the most part, she enjoyed not being at the mercy of her phone, but she really did miss Daryl. The couple of times she'd tried to call him it had gone to voicemail, and the texts she'd sent him had been sporadically answered in typical Daryl fashion – unemotive, closed, and to-the-point - the opposite to the type of messages she received from Alden.

And though she tried to convince herself otherwise, she knew whose messages she looked forward to more.

Still, the week flew by and Christmas dawned clear and cold and sparkling. Late morning when Tahlia was crowded around the crackling fire with the other Santa-hatted and knitted-jumper clad bodies, swapping gifts and hugs and laughter, pulling crackers and swilling eggnog, she grinned to herself at the overload of festive spirit and Christmas magic, and quietly resolved to force Daryl to endure this experience at least once in his life.

Happy, but in need of a walk after over-indulging at their early-afternoon feast, Tahlia took herself up Sunrise Hill with the intention of sending out some obligatory Christmas texts.

Her phone began pinging as she reached the summit, and sitting on the damp grass, she typed out quick responses to the messages and tried not to be disappointed that there was nothing from Daryl. After all, he'd said himself that Christmas was just another day to him, no big deal, and given that he didn't like phones at the best of times, festive text messages would hardly be high on his list of priorities.

Staring out to the mountaintops as she composed a text to him in her head - aiming to fill it with as much Christmas cliché as possible - her phone beeped again, and when she looked down, her mouth made a small 'o' as golden warmth spread through her limbs.

A message from Daryl:

Merry xmas beautiful

With his thumbnail in his mouth, Daryl stared at his phone, the words of the message he'd just sent still there on the screen.

"Fuck." he muttered through a sigh before dropping to lie back on his bed.

He hadn't meant to write that - he'd intended to write 'Silver', but 'beautiful' had ended up in its place so he'd just left it there. And now he wished he could take it back. It wasn't like he didn't mean it, but it was probably best if he kept those types of thoughts inside his head for the time being.

At least she had shitty cell service so she wouldn't see it for a while and he'd have some time to think about how to explain it away.

Then, in his hand, his phone began to ring.

"Fuck." he said again as he looked at the caller ID. "Fuck."

"Oh! You answered!" exclaimed Tahlia in surprise when she heard Daryl's short greeting down the line.

"Uh, yeah coz… you rang." he replied, swallowing down his sudden bout of nerves.

"I know," she said matter-of-factly, "But you've been avoiding my calls all week."

Daryl scoffed at that. "Ain't. You been callin' in the day when I got my head under cars and my phone nowhere near me."

"Well, I've got hold of you now, so… Merry Christmas, handsome!"

"Piss off." muttered Daryl, certain the flush on his cheeks was radiating all the way down the line.

"Oh," said Tahlia innocently. "I just thought that's what we were doing today."

"We ain't." Daryl asserted flatly. "That message was an accident. Sent it by mistake 'fore I'd finished it."

"Mm-hmm. So, what was it supposed to say?"

Daryl could hear her smiling, could picture it too, and he was having serious trouble keeping his own at bay, but he did his best as he doubled down on his fib.

"Meant to have 'day' on the end. 'Merry Christmas, beautiful day'."

Tahlia snorted. "Is that right?"

"Uh-huh. That's exactly right. I just pressed send too soon."

"Well, in that case," she replied loftily, "I hope you didn't mishear me and think I called you 'handsome'. Because I didn't. I said, 'and some'."

"And some what?"

"You know, Merry Christmas, and some."

"That don't even make sense!"

"Of course it does." insisted Tahlia, doing a terrible job at keeping the wobble of laughter out of her voice. "It's a common Christmas greeting. You've never heard it before? Like, 'the Christmas is merry and then some more'. Extra merriment, you know? I believe it originated in 14th century England when Edward the-"

"Alright, jackass." chuckled Daryl, shaking his head at her commitment to fabrication. "You can shut up now."

"Beautiful jackass, don't you mean?" teased Tahlia.

Smiling to himself, because he'd missed their banter and his little message slip-up had been totally worth it, and actually, it didn't feel like a slip-up at all anymore. "Yeah, that sounds about right."

Tahlia laughed softly, no smart remarks left. "It's nice to talk to you."

"Yeah. You too. You sound good."

"I am good, most of the time. Healing slowly, though I still look like a mess. Jem and Jack have been incredible. And the horses help."

"The horses?"

"Yep," affirmed Tahlia, "Horses. Jem's friend across the way is an equine therapist, so she convinced me to help with her horses, go riding, talk things through at the same time."

"I don't… what?"

"I still don't quite get it either! But apparently there's studies and everything on how beneficial horses can be as a therapeutic aid, so I'm giving it a go. Anyway, if you think that's weird, then I won't tell you about how I had my aura cleansed yesterday."

"Your what?! Damn, Silver, the hell are they doin' to ya out there? Don't tell me I gotta come and rescue you."

Tahlia had always found something hotly galvanic in the knowledge that he would, anytime, anywhere – if she said she needed him, if she really meant it, he would drop everything to get to her, and having that little gem wrapped up and tucked away, close to her heart, was more than enough on its own.

She smiled. "I don't need rescuing just yet. But you could still come out here, you know. It's so beautiful, you'd love it. Come for a few days. I'll get you on a flight."

And he wanted to, it felt like the right timing now, but it wasn't really an option anymore.

"Damn, Tahls, I can't. I picked up a bunch of extra shifts at work. Y'know, said I'd cover for the guys who're takin' some time off. But…" Biting his lip he ventured, "Maybe we could road trip out there. Like in the spring, or somethin'."

"Yeah," agreed Tahlia happily. "We should do that. Aunt Jem's desperate to meet you. Says she's going to get our winemaker to make a special blend and name it after you."

Daryl laughed, that idea sending a warm wash of pride coursing through him. "So, how's the morning been?"

Tahlia painted a jolly picture of Christmas at the vineyard for him – the cheerful thrum of constant visitors, the vibrant, excessively decorated house, the mountains of food, the garish festive dress-ups that no one could escape. In turn, Daryl filled her in on his morning at the hospital – narrowly avoiding the sprigs of mistletoe that a mischievous elderly lady had hopefully strung around the ward; the patient a few beds over from Merle who'd gotten his hands on some whiskey, and by 10am was drunkenly attempting to rouse the other patients in rowdy renditions of carols – the nurses eventually giving up trying to quiet him and joining in for a couple of numbers instead.

They talked easily for a while until Tahlia reluctantly said, "Ah, sorry, but I'm going to have to go. We've got the neighbors coming over and all the kids are going to put on a pageant. They've been practicing all week and they'll crucify me if I'm late."

"Sounds like you'd better run." agreed Daryl, simultaneously wondering why the hell sitting with Tahlia and her exuberant family watching random kids perform some corny show sounded like the best thing in the world to him right now. "But first, tell me when you're gonna call next so I can make sure I don't miss it."

"Happy New Year!"

With a pained groan, Daryl held the phone away from his ear for a moment at Tahlia's chirpy greeting. "Ain't nothin' happy 'bout it."

"Daryl Dixon!" scolded Tahlia, mock-appalled, "Don't tell me you're hungover on New Year's Day?!"

"Maybe a little. Why you callin' me so early?"

They had managed to speak to each other every other day since Christmas - just brief conversations because Daryl was all too aware that to be on the phone Tahlia had to stand out in the cold, but enough to have them both feeling warmly connected again.

"You said to call at 10am."

"It's already 10?!" croaked Daryl, his voice all faded around the edges. "Damn. I been out to it.

"Did I wake you?" Tahlia's stomach dropped as she suddenly realized that he might have company. "Uh… maybe I should call back later when you-"

"Naw." he cut in firmly, knowing exactly what she was thinking, and he wanted her to know that she was wrong. "Now's good. Ain't doin' nothin' but lyin' here. Alone, 'fore you ask."

"I wasn't going to ask!" protested Tahlia, both relieved and pleased that he'd told her anyway. "It's none of my business."

"When's that ever stopped ya?" he remarked drily. "And how come you ain't hungover?"

"Laid off the booze last night."

"Pfft. Bullshit. I seen what you're like when the wine's flowin'."

"Yeah, but you weren't there to keep me out of trouble and put me to bed, so I took it real easy. Plus, you'd be surprised at how wild a community barn dance can get! I ducked out early. Couldn't keep up. So, how was your party?"

Still chuckling at the mental image of a debaucherous barn dance, Daryl hummed.

"Was alright. Few guys showed up that I ain't seen for years, so that was kinda cool. Way too much bourbon, though. Don't think I made it home 'til 4."

"That's a good effort. And… did you get a midnight kiss?"

"Thought you weren't gonna ask that stuff."

"Well, I've asked now, so you might as well tell me."

"Like you said before - ain't none of your business." he asserted stubbornly, but caved soon after. He was done playing those games with her. "But naw. No kisses, no nothin'. At midnight or any other time." Opening his mouth to grill her right back, a sigh escaped instead. He didn't want to know, he decided.

Daryl didn't want to know how often she spoke to Alden; if he'd gone to visit her; if he floated through her daydreams and tugged smiles from her lips.

He didn't want to know if there was anyone on the vineyard she had history with; anyone that occupied a little space in her heart; anyone that sat by her side under the stars and whispered into the night.

There might be 500 miles between them but in these snippets of time together at the end of their phones, it felt like they were the only people in the world, and he wanted to keep it that way.

"Hey. So, I got a call yesterday. From the guy at the hunting and fishing store."

"You did?!" said Tahlia excitedly. "About goddamned time!"

"You coulda given me a heads up." accused Daryl, in the fondest tone possible. "I didn't know what the fuck he was goin' on about - that my item was ready for pick up and all this shit, so I argued with him for ten minutes straight tellin' him he had the wrong number. Weren't 'til he read me the message on the order that I realized you had somethin' to do with it." Daryl laughed. "You really are a fuckin' jackass."

Tahlia stifled a giggle. "So? Did you go down there and get it?"

"Yeah." Daryl turned softly serious. "Thanks, Tahly."

"I told the guy what you already had and he recommended that one. Do you… like it?"

"Like it? Damn, it's the best crossbow on the market! It's fuckin' amazin'! Makes my old one seem like a slingshot. Can't wait to try it out properly. Gonna do that today." He paused for a moment. "But you didn't need to buy that for me, it's too much, y'know. I don't think I can-"

"Stop! Don't you dare say you can't accept it. There's a no-returns policy, you know." Tahlia sternly joked. "Seriously though, it was just about getting you something you'll use, so naturally a crossbow came to mind, and I remembered up at the cabin you said your other one was kinda old and… anyway, I just wanted to get it for you."

"Well, thank you. It's perfect." Daryl told her sincerely, strangely choked up. "Gonna teach you a whole bunch of outdoorsy stuff in return."

"Can't wait!"

"But can't do none of that 'til you come back. So… when are ya comin' back?"

"Mm." Tahlia gave a contemplative hum. "I don't know yet. Negan says take as long as I need, and Jem and Jack want me to stay for at least another couple of weeks, and I… well, it's been nice taking some time out here."

Two more weeks sounded like an absolute age to Daryl but he didn't want to influence her decision in any way.

"I reckon you'll know when you're ready."

It was a Sunday, the fourth day in a row that misty drizzle trickled from an endless slate-gray sky and Daryl found himself looking forward to work the next day, just for something to do. The weekend had been a quiet one on account of the weather, and he hadn't even bothered going to Fox's on Friday night because he was sick of their friends asking him about Tahlia: yes, she was still out of town; yes, he'd talked to her; yes, she seemed to be doing ok; no, he didn't know when she'd be back; none of your damned business if he was missing her.

The house was cleaner than it had ever been before with Merle home from the hospital – Daryl always forgot how domestic Merle really was at heart. He was supposed to be on bed rest, but he'd had enough of that in the hospital and was brimming with pent up energy, so he'd already scrubbed and organized their house from top to bottom to a near-obsessive degree. Daryl had even come home from work one day to find that all of his clothes had been neatly re-folded and color coded in his closet, and he'd said to Merle, not unkindly, stay the hell out of my room and get a goddamned hobby.

Which was, incidentally, how Daryl had ended up enrolled in night classes at the community college for a course in small business management.

In his boredom, Merle had taken to twanging around on his banjo more than ever before, and one day decided that given he'd likely be off work for the remainder of January, he'd like to learn how to read music and tab. Browsing through an adult education brochure he'd picked up from the library, he found a music class that suited him, and a business course that he was adamant Daryl needed to do if he was going to take over Axel's garage. Daryl stuck to his protests for a whole evening, but the next day when he came home from work, he discovered that Merle had already enrolled him in the course with the promise that they'd work through all the content and the assignments together. Having struggled through his short time at high school, Daryl was angrily apprehensive about taking on a business course, but after running through his first week's notes that morning with Merle and Andrea who were both interested and supportive, he was feeling much more positive about the whole thing.

It wasn't long later that he was apathetically staring into the fridge for sandwich-filler inspiration when Andrea appeared at the counter and announced,

"Tahly's coming back today."

Daryl immediately swung around, sandwich forgotten.

"Yep," affirmed Andrea, "Just got off the phone to her. Said she decided she was ready. Her flight's later this afternoon." She noted Daryl's narrowed eyes and rolled her own. "She did call you first, you know, but you didn't answer."

That made Daryl feel a little better, but given that it was still a few days shy of the two weeks Tahlia had mentioned on New Year's Day, the unexpected news had him concerned. "She ain't said nothin' 'bout this durin' the week. She ok?"

"Yeah, seems to be. I think she's just been trying to weigh up what she wants to do against what everyone says she should do, and she didn't want to talk about it too much until she was sure. Her aunt really doesn't want her to leave yet, so this was hard for both of them."

"Shouldn't worry so much 'bout what other people want."

Andrea shrugged. "She can't help it, you know what she's like. Anyway, she flies in at 4, so I'll go pick her up and bring her back here."

And Andrea wasn't surprised in the least when Daryl resolutely said,

"I'm comin'."

The airport was bustling, but Daryl spotted her as soon as she came through. Figured he'd be able to pick her out of any crowd in a second. Maybe he was always just looking too hard.

She looked good. Of course, Daryl thought she always looked good, but she seemed fresher, brighter. The bruising on her face had faded, just a few marks above her eyebrow, and though long sleeves covered her healing arms, she was moving as if she was no longer in pain. He hung back to let Andrea have a moment with her first, and when they were done with their hugs and smiles and that weird girl-thing where they talked all fast and excited at each other, Tahlia propped one hand on her hip, cocked her head to one side and beamed at him.

"Hello." she said, the word all round and full-bodied and somehow comical, and Daryl smiled and bit his lip and jackass, he thought, such a fuckin' jackass.

Then she was in his arms and he probably held her way too long and too tight but he didn't care because he could feel her clinging to him right back.

When they arrived back at the Dixon house, Merle was cooking up a storm and he let out an enthusiastic shout upon seeing Tahlia, immediately lumbering over and sweeping her into a bearhug. He hadn't seen her since she'd faced off against Brooks and he went a little misty-eyed, knowing that they were now, in a strange way, bonded for life by a fucking tweaker's knife.

They bared their scars – Merle's deep ragged punctures, Tahlia's neat pink slashes – and spared a few minutes to talk it through all over again, another step towards closure. Then Merle was back by the stove stirring the pot and handing out tasks to do, and it wasn't long before they were all sitting together over an early meal accompanied by some wine that Tahlia had brought back with her.

"So," said Merle through a mouthful of food. "Whatcha doin' back here so soon? Thought you were stayin' away for longer?"

Tahlia hitched a shoulder. "Mm, I felt like my life was just on hold and I needed to get it moving again. And I guess work played a big part in that. If I want to make partner this year I can't keep hiding out in the country. Gotta close some clients and get billing."

Studying her for a moment from across the table, Daryl asked, "Is makin' partner what you want, though? Or what your dad wants?"

Huffing out a contemplative breath, Tahlia dropped her gaze to her plate. "It'll be a great achievement for me career-wise if I do it."

It was glaringly obvious that she hadn't answered the question and after a few more moments it was clear she wasn't going to, so Merle tried to shift things back to more neutral territory.

"You goin' back to work tomorrow, then?" he asked, downing the rest of his wine and making a face. "I really don't fuckin' get why people like this shit."

"That's their best seller, I'll have you know." Tahlia told him with a smile. "And yeah, I'm going in tomorrow. Actually I'll need to head off home in about an hour."

"Shouldn't stay on your own tonight." Daryl said. "Your first night back in town. Just stay here. I'll take ya home in the mornin'."

"Oh." Tahlia shifted uncomfortably. "Um, Alden's coming to pick me up. He knew I was coming back today and wanted to see me, so…"

"Right." muttered Daryl nodding brusquely, averting his eyes. "Long as you got someone with ya tonight."

"Tahly!" Andrea quickly swooped in with a change of subject before the good mood ebbed away. "Did you know that these two are both students now?!"

"You're studying?!" exclaimed Tahlia delightedly, her excitement so over-the-top that Daryl immediately blushed and forgot about Alden. "Tell me more!"

Later, much later, after Alden had arrived and Tahlia had gone and the evening had sloped towards night, Daryl was lying in bed wishing he would hurry up and fall asleep so he could escape the jumble of thoughts in his head and the hollow ache in his chest. He didn't know what that was all about. The dull drag behind his sternum. Maybe he was coming down with something. Because he should feel fine – things were under control at work, he was looking forward to his classes this week, and of course, Tahly was back and she seemed to be doing pretty good. They'd had a nice few hours hanging out (he always liked it when it was the four of them together, kinda felt like a complete family), and though he would've preferred it if she had stayed, at least they'd arranged to catch up on Tuesday. But still, he just felt… unsettled.

Throwing an arm across his eyes, he heaved a sigh, and then there was a sudden, grating sound. His phone ringing; buzzing against his nightstand.

Rolling over to grab it, he took one look at the caller ID and answered in a rush of worry, because why would she be calling at this time if everything was fine?

"Tahly? What's up?"

"Shit, sorry." came Tahlia's distant apology, her voice low, slow and inscrutable. "It's late, I know. Were you asleep?"

"Nah." Daryl couldn't hear her usual smile, and concern simmered in his belly. "Why ya callin'?"

"Um… this is stupid, but…" she paused for a moment. "I was wondering if you'd just talk to me for a little while?"

"Talk to ya?"

"Yeah, just for ten minutes or so, if you're… if you have time."

Daryl was sitting up now, one hand raking through his hair as he tried to understand what the hell this was really about. "Course I have time, but I just… why?"

"Well, you always make me feel… calm, safe, you know?"

"You…" started Daryl carefully. "You tellin' me you ain't feelin' safe right now?"

"I just…" She let out a tiny laugh, a wry little thing. "I'm sure you'll find this very hard to believe, but I'm scared."

That wasn't funny to Daryl. Not in the least. "Why ya scared?"

"You know what I'm like when I'm by myself at night."

"Why ya by yourself?" demanded Daryl, wishing she would just give him the whole fucking story so he could stop asking questions. "Thought Alden was with ya?"

"Mm. He's not here anymore. That's why I just wanted-"

"I'm comin' over."

"No, honestly! You really don't have to-"

Daryl was already out of bed and half-dressed. "Leavin' now."

When Daryl let himself into the apartment less than twenty minutes later, Tahlia nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Fucking hell, Daryl!" she exclaimed from her position at one end of the sofa, arms hugging her knees. "You could've warned me you were letting yourself in! Scared the shit out of me!"

"Sorry." he said, shutting the door and kicking off his shoes. "But I didn't know if you were up and I still got the keycard. So," he stopped in front of her, hands on his hips. "Where the fuck is Alden? Why did he leave?"

Gazing up at him, Tahlia shook her head wearily. "Does it matter?"

"Yeah, it matters, Tahly." growled Daryl tightly. "It really fuckin' matters."

She considered her response for a long moment then said evenly, "I asked him to leave."

Anger blazed through Daryl's veins. "The fuck he do, huh?!"

"Daryl…" Tahlia sighed and rubbed a hand over her face. "Nothing. I just… can we talk about this later?"

Nope. Thought Daryl. Fuckin' no coz I need to know if I gotta go hunt him down.

But instead he sat down next to her and took a deep breath.

"He hurt ya?"

"No."

"You have a fight?"

"No! Nothing like that." insisted Tahlia. "Honestly."

"Alright." nodded Daryl. That was enough to placate him for now. "So… you want some tea or somethin'?"

She shook her head. "I'm good."

"C'mon then." Daryl stood up, pulling her to her feet at the same time. She was already ready for bed, so that's where he would take her.

"Sure you don't want me to leave a light on?"

Tahlia pressed her hands to her face. "No! This is embarrassing enough."

Rolling on to his side to face her and doing his best not to think about how Alden might have just been in her bed, in this very spot – it didn't matter, Daryl told himself, it didn't fuckin' matter - he tucked an arm under his head. "What's embarrassin'?"

"That I'm a grown fucking woman who can't even stay in my place alone because I get scared. It's ridiculous."

"It ain't." growled Daryl firmly. "You got good goddamn reason to feel like that." (the bag; the blood). "And I don't want ya to be alone right now. Don't think ya should be."

Uncovering her face, Tahlia peeked over at him through the gloom. "So, you don't think I'm ridiculous?"

"Oh, naw, I think you're ridiculous." quipped Daryl with a grin. "Just not 'bout this."

Tahlia tried to mask her giggle with an indignant gasp as she aimed a few half-hearted smacks at Daryl, but he blocked her easily and caught her hand. Kept hold of it as she stilled.

"What happened with Alden?"

Shifting onto her side to mirror his position, Tahlia raised her brows. "It's none of your business."

With a withering look Daryl squeezed her hand sharply. "Silver."

Chuckling, Tahlia shook her head. "Nothing, really. I just don't think I'm in a space to make anything like that work right now."

Bright sparks of hope popped in Daryl's chest. "You break up with him?"

"Mm, I wouldn't say that."

The sparks faded until Tahlia used her free hand to pinch his side. "Because he was never my boyfriend. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

Fucking fireworks now. But outwardly, Daryl just nodded. "'Kay. Then I don't feel like such an asshole for bein' in your bed." Chewing his lip thoughtfully for a moment, he then ventured, "Are ya… are ya sad? Want me to get ya some ice cream?"

"Ice cream?!" snickered Tahlia. "Where did that come from?"

"Like in them chick movies!" stated Daryl defensively. "Girls are always cryin' into a tub of ice cream after a break-up."

Tahlia couldn't respond for giggling, and Daryl's good-natured 'shut up's and prods in the ribs sure didn't help.

Eventually she rolled onto her back and wiped her eyes, still smiling because goddamn it was cute of him to ask that.

"No," she managed solemnly. "Thank you, but since it's midnight I think I'll pass on the tears and ice cream. Maybe tomorrow."

"Shut up." repeated Daryl with a smile as he shuffled in close to her and tucked an arm around her waist, pulling her against him into the spoon position.

"And I'm not sad." she added quietly as she relaxed into him. "I think maybe he was a little disappointed and I feel bad about that, but it was just never going to be anything real for me."

"Alright." Daryl kissed her shoulder lightly. "Go to sleep."

If he thought his mind was jumbled before, it was a hurricaned mess now but that ache in his chest was gone; he felt settled, content, like everything had righted itself.

He was nearly asleep, when Tahlia's voice sounded softly in the dark.

"Daryl?"

"Mm?"

"I uh, I never slept with him."

Instantly wide awake, Daryl swallowed drily. "Huh?"

"With Alden. I mean, we slept in the same bed a couple of times but we never actually… I don't know why I'm telling you this. It's none of your business, of course." She let out a whisper of a laugh and Daryl wondered if she could feel the now frenetic drum of his heart in his chest. "I was never into it enough in my head to be able to go there with him, and…" She expelled a long, soft sigh. "I guess I just wanted you to know that, that's all. I'll let you sleep now. Night."

Squeezing his eyes shut tight, Daryl pressed his face into her hair, breathed her in, said nothing.

That information had set a fire hot and bright burning in his belly because it made him wonder why, why she hadn't been able to get her head into it; made him wonder if the reason she'd told him that, if what she really wanted him to know was that, inextricably, she was his. He tried to push that thought down as soon as it started to rise because it was tinged with darkness and it wasn't right to make that inference from the little she'd just said, and he shouldn't think like that at all because she wasn't an object for ownership.

But, still.

He tightened his arm around her and for one fleeting, possessive moment let himself revel in the notion that here and now, in some way, she belonged to him.