Carolina in my mind
Chapter 33
Leaning back against the outside of the guard tower, Carolina forked a bite of soupy noodles into her mouth. Her legs were crossed, her right knee bumping just slightly against Daryl's. The sun was slowly setting, painting the sky in a rainbow of color. Carolina tried to focus on that and not giggle at the excessive slurping noises coming from her right. Lowering her bowl, she took a swig from her beer. It was warm. But warm beer was better than no beer. Especially since the main reason she was drinking was to calm her nerves.
"I don't care if I win the lottery someday," she said, lifting her bowl up again. "I would still eat ramen noodles."
Daryl stopped slurping long enough to give her a sideways glance and a smile. He tipped his bowl up, tapping the bottom to make sure he got every last drop of broth.
"What else would ya do?," he asked, still chewing a bit on his last mouthful of instant noodles. Carolina gave him a questioning look. What else would she do with what? "If ya won the lottery," Daryl added. Carolina nodded, taking another sip of beer as she pondered what to do with her imaginary riches.
"I dunno," she admitted. "Buy some diamonds. And a new car. Oh! I know! I'd take myself out for a fancy steak dinner. Then I'd go on vacation." Carolina giggled a little at herself. She would say throw coffee on her boss and then quit her job, but she already did that. Daryl smiled at her as he reached for her beer, taking a swig for himself.
"What kinda vacation?," he asked.
"Whatever kind you want," she teased. "Just make sure it's somewhere warm 'cause I'm only packing bikinis and lingerie."
Carolina forked up the last bite of noodles from her bowl before she offered the leftover flavored broth to Daryl. He took it, tipping the bowl up and slurping it down like he'd just done with his own helping.
"What's the point of putin' somethin' on just to take it off?," he asked. Carolina could tell from Daryl's tone that he was teasing her. But she guessed he also sort of wanted an answer to his question. What a sad life, Carolina thought, to never have a woman care enough to dress up sexy for him. Because if a woman had, there's no way Daryl would be asking what the point of lingerie was. Carolina tipped her beer back, leaving enough for Daryl to have one more sip.
"Don't you like unwrapping your presents at Christmas?," she teased, shimmying her shoulders to make her breasts jiggle.
Carolina laughed at the blush creeping up Daryl's neck before she leaned to her side and opened the door that led into the guard tower. Reaching inside, she grabbed the other two warm beers she brought up. Daryl took them both from her, twisting the tops off before he handed one of them back. She smiled and took a sip, drinking enough that the liquid wouldn't slosh out of the bottle as she scooted herself forward towards the edge of the platform.
Daryl shadowed her movements. And soon they were both leaning against the metal bars, letting their legs dangle over the edge of the platform. They were quiet for a while, sipping their warm beers and looking out over the treetops as the sky grew slowly darker and more colorful. The silence was comfortable, not leaving Carolina with the urge she usually had to fill it.
When Daryl was done with his beer he tossed it, aiming for a stray walker that was shuffling along near the fenceline. He missed, the bottle thunking down into the grass instead of shattering against the dead creature's head. Carolina drained the last of her beer and offered Daryl the bottle so he could take another shot. This time he made it. The bottle hit the walker's head and exploded, leaving a large shard sticking out of the monster's eye socket.
"Gross," Carolina observed, making them both laugh.
"Ya think that's gross," Daryl said, "...wait until he turns around. Hoss shit his pants before he died." Carolina shaded her hands and looked down. When the walker began shuffling back away from the gate, she saw what Daryl was talking about. The walker had a giant shit stain on the ass and leg of its pants.
"Nothing says romantic sunset like a pants shitter walking corpse," she joked, bursting into a round of laughter.
Carolina lay back onto the platform, letting her laughter die down on its own. She wiped the water from her eyes, opening them to find Daryl leaning over her. The sky behind his head was a deep gray blue streaked with orange. As he leaned closer her pupils expanded, reflecting the vibrant color of the sky above them. Her breaths came in short pants, her lips already softly parted before he pressed his down against them. The kiss was everything she imagined it might be, with the scruff on his face making a sharp contrast against the soft pillow of his lips. It was the best kind of kiss. The kind that started slow and gentle, building until they were both gasping for breath.
"Maybe we should take this inside," Carolina suggested, flicking her eyes towards the door that led to the interior of the guard tower.
"We can't go in there," Daryl huffed. Carolina raised a brow at him. She knew their last encounter in that same spot didn't go well. But there wasn't much privacy to be had in the prison. Beggars couldn't be choosers. "Glenn and Maggie sorta called dibs," he explained.
"Oh," Carolina offered with a giggle. "Those assholes," she added, smiling when she saw she made Daryl smile. "I guess we can go to my room," she said, not really feeling excited about her backup plan. She never thought she'd be picky about where she slept with Daryl. But after their first time turned into such a monumental mess, Carolina was hoping to make the next time something close to special. Trying to stay as quiet as possible while they smashed one out in the dark on the bottom of a prison bunk didn't exactly scream romance. Merle might not have given a shit if everyone heard everything they were doing. But Daryl seemed nervous enough without adding the pressure of a live audience. And if she was being totally honest with herself, she was nervous too.
"I can sleep in my own room," Daryl offered, suddenly concerned about the scowl on her face.
"It's not that," Carolina promised. "It's just the sound really carries in there..." Cupping the back of Daryl's head with her hand, she pulled him down for another lingering kiss. She wanted to make sure he knew that it wasn't a lack of desire for him that was holding her back. "You should definitely sleep over," she suggested. "We can still fool around…"
"Fool around?," he repeated, giving her a questioning glance.
"Yeah," Carolina said, rubbing her hands up over the hard lines of his chest and over his shoulders before she traced her fingers down his arms. He leaned forward, brushing the tip of his nose against hers.
"I ain't foolin'," he growled. The low rumble of Daryl's voice sent a delicious shiver down her spine. And she pressed her thighs together, hoping to relieve some of the intense throbbing pressure between her legs. She kissed him once more, slipping her tongue between his lips and letting it tangle up with his. But when that kiss broke, Carolina pushed herself back away from the edge of the platform and stood up.
On their way back through the prison to her room, Rick caught Daryl and called him away for some assorted nonsense. Normally, Carolina would be annoyed. But in this instance, she was eager to wriggle away so that she might have a moment to prepare herself for their sleepover. After she slipped into her cell, the first thing she did was lift her arm and sniff her armpit. Immediately regretting that life decision, Carolina grabbed her wet wipes and cleaned her underarms before liberally applying a layer of deodorant.
Pulling the large bag of stuff she brought back from her run off the lower bunk, she wrestled it up onto the top bunk and started searching through it. They brought back lots of stuff for everyone. The only things Carolina really claimed for herself were some toiletries and clothes. And thankfully, in anticipation of this moment, she raided the lingerie drawer of that rich woman's closet. Carolina slipped out of her bathing suit and the clothes she pulled on over it, replacing them with a wispy pair of black panties and a sheer black nightie. Because the previous owner was shorter and more petite than her, what should have been dress length fit her more like a tight tunic. The soft fabric was riding up, baring the underside of her ass. But Carolina decided she liked it that way.
She pulled her soiled bedding off the bunk, tossing it in the corner to deal with later. Carolina was in the process of getting a new fitted sheet tucked under the mattress when she felt Daryl's eyes on her. She tucked in the last corner and stood up. Carolina leaned casually against the bunk, sticking her hip out just enough to accentuate her curves. The nightie she was wearing was completely sheer. Which meant everything, including her breasts and her painfully hard nipples, was on full display.
"Did Christmas come early?," he teased, his hooded eyes raking over her. Daryl took a step towards her, knocking his foot into the kitten that was rubbing the length of its tiny body along his ankles. Daryl jerked his foot back, stumbling a little before he caught himself. The little cat hissed at him with its fur standing on end before it shot off around the edge of the curtain and out of the cell.
Carolina giggled, the sound tinged with nervous anticipation. She was planning on letting Daryl come to her. But before she could stop herself she had already crossed the small space and draped her arms around him. He filled his hands up with her, squeezing the rounded curves of her ass. Even in just the short time they'd been separated, she already felt starved for the taste of his lips. And as their lips met, his hands skimmed over the curves of her hips, catching her by the waist as he walked her backwards towards the bunk.
"Get in bed," he whispered, his hot breath fanning against her neck.
Carolina nodded as she ducked her head and lowered herself down onto the bunk. She didn't need to be told twice. Tension was coiled in the pit of her stomach. And she licked her lips, enjoying the view of Daryl's ass as he strode across the cell and clicked her lantern off, plunging them into darkness. The room wasn't pitch black. There was still a little light filtering through the curtain. Once her eyes adjusted, Carolina knew she'd be able to see. But for now, she was temporarily blinded. She lay still, listening to the rustle of Daryl's clothes as she wondered how much he was taking off.
Her curiosity was satisfied when Daryl lowered himself onto the bunk and pressed his fully naked body against hers. She ran her hands over him, caressing and exploring his flesh. When his lips met hers, their kisses were less controlled and more feverish than they had been on the platform outside the guard tower. But even with the passion building, it was an entirely different experience than what happened in the guard tower when they were both wracked with fresh grief. This time, the only desperation in their embrace was of the delicious kind. And when his hand slid forward over the curve of her hip, Carolina parted her thighs and rocked her hips forward against his touch. Since she was doing her best to follow his lead, it wasn't until Daryl pushed her wispy panties aside and ran his fingers along the length of her sex that she reached down and wrapped her hand around the base of his dick.
He groaned, the sound a low rumble in his throat that sent the heat flooding to her core. Pulling her hand away, Carolina spit into the center of her palm. Starting with the swollen head of his dick, she spread her saliva down his shaft and resumed her former position. She didn't really know yet what Daryl liked. Some men were sensitive down there and some liked it rough to the point of nearly getting a rug burn from the friction. Carolina settled on just grasping him firmly as she moved her hand. From the way he was jerking his hips in time to her movements, she assumed that she was doing something right.
It was getting harder for her to concentrate with the way he was touching her. Daryl slid a finger between her heated lips, gently exploring her folds until he found the hard swollen bud of her clit. Since, truth be told, she wasn't even sure if he would be able to locate it without guidance, when he started to swirl his finger around her little bundle of nerves she came almost immediately. Her orgasm was still cresting when he forced two of his thick fingers inside her. Carolina bit her lip, only keeping about half of her loud cry of pleasure from escaping. When she spoke, her voice was a husky breathless whisper.
"I know I said we were just gonna fool around," she gasped, still sliding her hand up and down his hard length. "But I want you inside me."
Daryl didn't answer her in words. He just withdrew his fingers and started ripping her panties down off her hips. Carolina kicked them the rest of the way off, pushing back on his chest when he started trying to roll on top of her. There was a momentary confused jumble of limbs. But once he realized she intended to climb on top of him, Daryl wasted no time in rolling onto his back and helping her to position herself. His hands were gripping her hips, lifting her as he lined the head of his dick up with her eager slit. He bucked his hips up, making her gasp as he entered her. Carolina sunk down, impaling herself on his dick and pinning his hips against the thin mattress. She braced her hands against his chest and started rocking her hips. Her movements were controlled at first. But soon they turned jerky and needy, her fingers curling into his chest as her insides spasmed around him and flooded with heat. Daryl pulled her down to kiss her and held her there against his chest. Bracing his heels against the bed, he began to fuck her hard from underneath. Both of them had long since forgotten their concerns about who was listening and what they might hear as the sound of their bodies joining filled the room. Carolina's second orgasm left her sensitive, making the pleasure of being mercilessly pummeled almost too much to bear. And when Daryl came, she came with him, spasming so hard that she saw colored dots swimming in the insides of her eyelids.
Carolina realized she must have come so hard that she lost consciousness for a moment. Because when she blinked her eyes open, she was cuddled against Daryl's chest and there was a blanket covering them that wasn't there before.
"Y'alright?," he asked. Alright wasn't an accurate description of how she was feeling. But Carolina still hummed affirmatively, snuggling closer to him. This was by far the best night of her entire life. She just got laid. By Daryl Dixon, her literal dream man. And he was cuddling with her. And she was pretty sure they were a whole item now. Which meant she was probably going to get to do it with him again. Hopefully every night for the rest of her life, however short or long that might be in this new reality.