Carolina in my mind

Chapter 63

Carolina leaned down, shifting her body awkwardly to the side as she used her elbow to turn the faucet on. Her hands were covered in blood and she didn't want to smear it all over the clean kitchen. She watched as the water slowly rinsed the blood away, the red liquid swirling in the bottom of the sink before it disappeared down the drain. It was strangely soothing. And Carolina began to wonder where the blood went and how much of it would end up down these drains before the day was done.

Daryl's hand on her shoulder finally snapped her out of her head. "Been callin' yer name fer a minute," he said. "Y'alright?" Carolina looked down. Her hands were clean. And so was the cold water that was running off them. As she lifted her damp hand and cut the water off, she started to wonder exactly how long she'd been standing at the sink. It must have been long enough that Daryl got concerned and came to look for her.

"I think I'm just tired," she said as she dried her hands off on a towel. "I got hit by a grenade earlier today…" Thoughts of the blast brought with them the sound of Negan's voice and the feel of his fingers biting into her shoulders. Carolina shivered at the thought. And she shifted her body closer to Daryl's, eager for the comfort of his touch.

"When the hell did ya get hit with a grenade?," Daryl asked, His expression was somewhere between concerned and amused. Like he wasn't sure if she was serious or not.

"On that run this morning. Aiden was shooting at a walker and it had a grenade in its pocket," Carolina admitted, a high pitched laugh bubbling out of her. She must really be tired. Because suddenly, she was finding the whole Aiden grenade situation to be a lot funnier than she had when it happened. Daryl usually found her outbursts amusing. But at the moment, he was looking at her with an expression of concern.

"Maybe we better sit this one out," he suggested, ticking his head towards the door. "It's not like they were even our people…"

Carolina shook her head. They might not her her people. Or Daryl's people. But good people died today. The least they could do was stand outside for a few minutes while their families laid them to rest. Carolina was sure she could hold her hysterical laughter in long enough for that to happen.

"Deanna wasn't one of us. But she was their leader. They're probably feeling lost and scared without her. We should go…"

Carolina didn't say anything else. She just leaned into Daryl and wrapped her arms around his waist. This was a sad day. But it could have been a lot worse. When she and Daryl started booking it for the armory, enough of their people started running with them that they were able to make a difference. The wolves poured into town with machetes and small homemade explosives. But their group was armed and ready. Pete and Deanna were killed by the wolves on their way into the medical center. And while Reg was crying over his wife's dead corpse, she reanimated and bit him. But it could and would have been a lot worse. As much as Rick annoyed Carolina, he was a goddamn amazing shot. When the wolves realized they were outgunned, Rick and Daryl gave chase and killed the rest of them before they could flee town. Carolina helped Michonne stab any of the wolves that weren't taken down with a headshot, which was how she got so much blood all over her hands.

"You know I shot someone in the face today," Carolina whispered.

Daryl released his hold on her and began to guide her out of the kitchen and towards the front door. "We shot a lotta someones in the face today," he quipped. "Yer shootin' is gettin' better," he added, giving her hip a little squeeze. "Ya did good." Really, she did better than good. Carolina might not be able to hit a moving target. But she was the reason they ran straight for the armory the moment the horn sounded. If they hadn't, they'd be burying a lot more than three people today.

"Not the people that attacked us," Carolina corrected. "Earlier. I shot Aiden's moron friend. He was gonna get Michonne killed. So I blew his fuckin' brains out." If she closed her eyes, she could still see the pattern Nicolas's blood made when it splattered against the glass.

"Damn," Daryl cursed. "Ya had a busy fuckin' day babe," he teased.

Carolina felt herself smile. But this time it wasn't the work of her overtired and overwhelmed brain. Daryl made her smile. She could never tell if he was being funny on purpose or not. But on this occasion, she suspected it was intentional. He had a morbidly dry sense of humor.

"I love you," Carolina whispered as she leaned into him and bumped his slim hip with her much more ample one.

Daryl released her waist once they exited the house, reaching for her hand instead and holding it. His touch was comforting. And Carolina was grateful for it as they moved closer to the weeping crowd of Alexandrians. Being that they weren't close friends or family with the deceased, they stayed towards the outskirts of the crowd. Carolina noticed most of their people were doing the same. Closer to the open graves, Spencer had his arm slung around Aiden's shoulders. Both young men looked more numb than anything. Nearby, Jessie was holding onto her younger son for dear life. She was sobbing uncontrollably to the point where one of the other townspeople stepped in and escorted her home the moment Pete was lowered into the shallow grave they dug for him.

As dirt was being shoveled back into the holes, the crowd slowly began to disperse. Carolina watched Rick weave across the space, stopping when he reached Daryl's other side. She wasn't surprised when he approached them. But she didn't expect Aiden to leave his brother's side and join their small gathering. Rick glanced at the man, unsure if he wanted to say whatever he came to say now that Deanna's son was listening. Carolina flicked her eyes back and forth between them, wondering which of them was going to break the awkward silence first.

"Some changes are gonna have to happen around here," Aiden said. "My mom's way of doing things is what got her killed." His voice was filled with emotion, and when he swallowed his throat bobbed with the effort.

"There's a hoard of walkers outside town," Rick replied. "Let's deal with that first. Then we'll figure out what to do around here." Aiden nodded. Carolina didn't think it would last forever. But for now, the young man seemed relieved that someone else was willing to take charge. He offered Carolina a soft smile, speaking to her before he turned and headed for home.
"Thanks for this morning."

Rick waited until Aiden was out of earshot before he asked Carolina what happened earlier. She gave him the shortened version of that morning's events before she tugged on Daryl's hand and started heading towards their house. Rick walked with them, making it obvious that he wanted to continue discussing the walker hoard. But Daryl waved him off, promising him the walkers would still be there tomorrow. When they entered their house, Carolina could hear someone cooking dinner in the kitchen. But she could still smell dried blood on herself. And combined with the smell of the food, it was turning her stomach.

"I need a shower," she explained, dropping Daryl's hand as she headed for the stairs. She smiled a little when she heard his heavy tread on the stairs behind her. He followed her into the bathroom, clicking the door shut behind them. Carolina turned the shower on, wrapping her arms around Daryl and kissing him as the heat of the water began to slowly warm the room.

His lips found hers and anchored there, only breaking the contact as they stripped each other's shirts off.

They left a tangled pile of their clothes behind on the bathroom floor as they stepped into the shower. The water was steaming hot. And Carolina adjusted the handle, turning the temperature down slightly before she pulled Daryl under the warm stream of water with her. She tipped her head back, letting the water slick her hair back away from her face. His hand moved to her face, the rough pad of his thumb grazing over the slowly healing cut there. It scabbed over and peeled, leaving a pink line of new skin behind. By now, Carolina had made her peace with the fact that she was going to have a permanent scar there. The rest of her injuries were gradually fading away. The skin around her eyes was taking the longest. There was still a fading purple bruise under one eye and a cut in the eyebrow of the other eye that was scabbed over.

Daryl's hair was hanging down into his face, dripping water as he swiped it out of his eyes. He stopped the movement of his thumb as he leaned in, pressing a kiss to the scar on her cheek. The fading bruises around her eyes were the next area to receive his attention. His lips gently grazed over each healing injury before they found her mouth.

Carolina parted his lips with her tongue, moaning softly into his mouth as she felt Daryl's arms tighten around her waist. The warm water sluiced down over their bodies as they kissed, washing away the horror of the day and sending it spiraling down the drain. She could feel the heat building between her thighs, making the water feel cool by comparison. And their kisses grew more sloppy and feverish as she began to grind her hips against his. Daryl's hard length was pressed between their bodies. His hand stroked down to grab her thigh, lifting it to give him access to her pussy. He thrust inside too eagerly, knocking them both off balance. Daryl dropped her leg and laughed as he braced his hand against the shower wall to keep them both from falling.

Carolina kissed him, nipping at Daryl's bottom lip before she spun in his arms and pressed the rounded curve of her ass against his groin. This time she braced her hands on the shower wall, arching her back in an obvious invitation. She felt his hand between her legs, guiding the flared head of his dick into her slicked opening from behind. As he thrust into her, her cries were muffled by the sound of the water beating against their bodies. He moved hard and fast, his hands cupping her breasts and teasing her nipples into hard pink points.

Carolina kept one hand on the shower wall. The other she moved to the apex of her thighs. Reaching between her parted legs, she cupped his swaying balls and gently squeezed. The contact made him groan. And she felt Daryl's teeth against the back of her neck. She released him, rubbing circles around her clit as the force of his thrusts increased. Carolina's inner walls were still tender from the love they made the night before, making each thrust burn slightly. The feel of him inside her was sharp and she came hard, her insides clenching and spasming around his thick length. Carolina gasped for breath, reaching for his balls again. She cupped them, gently squeezing and massaging. Daryl's grip on her breasts tightened. And with one last hard pump, he came with a low growling groan.

"Liked that didya?," she teased, lifting up onto her tiptoes and letting his slowly receding erection slide out from inside her. Daryl's only answer was a soft chuckle. He took Carolina's hand, turning her around to face him and pulling her back into his strong arms. They relaxed into each other, enjoying the blissful moment and the warm water that was still beating down on them.

"I liked that," Daryl confirmed with a soft grin. "...but I like you more."