Undying Love
Chapter 5- Reminiscence
Thankfully the only thing Daryl found in the walkers "gut-bag" was a woodchuck and no sign that a human had been consumed recently.
Now that we knew for sure, we decided to head back to the highway. Daryl said her trailing was running cold anyway and with it getting late and the sun setting, I was starting to get cold myself. When I confessed this to Daryl he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his side and let me snuggle against him. The heat was radiating off his body and onto me, warming me up instantly like my very own portable heater. "We're gonna locate that little girl ya'know?" Daryl said, making it sound more like a statement rather then a question, but the way he gently squeezed me showed me he wanted an answer. "Yeah, I know" I replied honestly. I wasn't just saying it because I thought its what he wanted to hear, I genuinely had faith in his tracking abilities...he had proved them to me enough times.
"Remember that time you made a bet that you would be able to track me even after giving me a thirty minute head start to find a good place to hide?" I asked him, giggling to myself at the reminiscence of that day. Daryl let out a hearty laugh, the vibrations of his laughter were clearly felt by my arm which I had wrapped around the back of his waist. "Ya seriously want'd me to lose that one, didn't ya?" he joked. "You were doin' everythin' ya could to cover your tracks! Looked like you had stuck a stick up ya ass to drag behind ya whist ya walked!" he teased, followed by more laughter. "Hey!" I cried, playfully slapping him in the chest for insinuating I would actually do that. "For your information, I was walking backwards, holding a stick!" I said between laughs. "And if you must know, I didn't want you to lose the bet because the prize at the end was the only reason I agreed in the first place!"
Suddenly Daryl pushed me sideways until my back was resting against a tree with his body pressed against mine, pinning me to it. "Oh, ya liked that? Huh?" he mused quietly, his face close and his eyes engrossed on mine. Daryl brushed his mouth against mine, a smile gracing my lips at how slow and tentatively he has kissing me. Recently all our kisses have been rushed and hard, so it's a nice change when we get to just relax and savour the moment.
It was me who broke the kiss first because I suddenly remembered that he had actually asked me a question. "Well," I began, wrinkly my nose up slightly and tipping my head to the side slightly. "It was alright" I teased lightheartedly, biting me lip to fight the urge to laugh as Daryl's devilish grin grew wider. "I'll show ya 'alright'" he stated lowly, he's hands descending the sides of my waist and edging dangerously close to the waistband of my shorts. A scream suddenly escaped my lips as Daryl grabbed the back of my thighs and lifted me effortlessly off the ground. I instinctively wrapped my legs around his hips and my arms around his neck as his lips attacked mine again. The gentleness was gone and the fight for dominance began, him wanting to part my lips and gain entrance with his tongue. When I finally backed down and let him take control his hands quickly moved from my thighs to my butt, before leaving me only supported by his body weight as he started unbuttoning my shorts.
I instantly broke away from the kiss and unwrapped my legs from around him so I could stand up and take a hold of his hands. "Daryyll...we can't" I whined regretfully. "For one, we used the last condom back at the CDC and for two, it just doesn't feel right with Sophia being out here" I explain quietly before kissing him lightly again. With a small sigh he nodded to show he agreed but he wasn't exactly happy about it. "We defiantly gotta find a box'a rubbers and soon or I'm gonna explode" Daryl said whilst adjusting his crotch region to try and hide his arousal. When he noticed me watching him, a small-scale smirk plastered itself on his face, before he took my hand in his and we began the short walk back to the highway in a comfortable silence.
~
The next morning, as soon as the sun was up, the plan of action for the day was decided. It was agreed that I would stay back with Dale and T-Dog because T was injured and if a group of walkers came drifting past like they did yesterday, Dale wouldn't be able to handle it on his own. He had his gun but the aim was to use silent weapons like knives and axes to avoid drawing any unwanted attention. Daryl was somewhat relieved that I was staying behind because he said he could be fully focused without having to worry about me out there, however the other half of him also liked having me close by. But from behind the shielding of the RV I gave him a kiss and assured him I would be fine here without him and told him that he had to be safe as well because I want him back in one whole piece. I wanted to tell him that I loved him before he left but I knew it wasn't the right time and would only distract him whilst he was out there, which could get them all into trouble.
"I'm doing this for you" Dale said to Andrea as I stood with Glenn, giving him a hug before he also left. "No Dale, you're doing it for you," Andrea argued. "You need to stop." Without hearing how there conversation started, I already had a pretty good idea what it was about. Her gun. "What do you thinks gonna happen? I'm gonna stick it in my mouth and pull the trigger, the moment you hand it to me?" She rhetorically questioned, causing other members of the group to listen as well. "I know you're angry at me, that much is clear. But if I hadn't done what I did...you'd be dead now" Dale said softly but Andrea was quick to reply and her voice was a lot harsher. "Jenner gave us an option, I chose to stay." "You chose suicide!" Dale retorted in disbelief. I wasn't on either ones side because I could see where they were both coming from. Yesterday I briefly wished I had stayed at the CDC because it was an easy way out, a lot easier then living life the way we currently are. But I realised I still had something worth living for and giving up fight to live would be the same as giving up on him. I guess Dale cares about Andrea so much that he couldn't watch her give up
"Whats that to you? You barely know me!" Andrea said, her voice now raising with every word. "I know Amy's death devastated you-" Dale defended but was quickly cut off by Andrea. "Keep her out of this! This is not about Amy, this is about us. And if I decided I had nothing left to live for, who the hell are you to tell me otherwise, to force my hand like that?" Andrea stated, her voice starting to crack from her built up emotions. I wanted to step in and tell them it wasn't really the time nor place for such a personal conversation, but I also felt like Andrea needed to get this off her chest. "I saved your life" Dale said seemingly confused as to why Andrea was reacting like this when all he wanted to do was help her. "No Dale, I saved yours, you forced that on me. I didn't want your blood on my hands and that's the only reason I left that building. What did you expect? What? I'd have some kind of epiphany? Some life confirming catharsis?" she somewhat spat in his direction, her earlier upset turning into anger. "Maybe just a little gratitude?" Dale responded distantly.
Suddenly I felt a hand rest on my lower back, causing me to flinch slightly. However as I looked to the side of me I saw it was just Daryl, who had slowly edged closer till he was stood right next to me. I knew he was doing it to make sure I was alright which is why I gave him a small smile before turning back to Andrea and Dale. "Gratitude? I wanted to die my way, not torn apart by drooling freaks, that was my choice. You took that away from me, Dale." I found what she was saying unsettling and with Daryl's eyes burning a hole in the side of my face, it was no wonder he picked up on it. I could tell he had noticed by the way he slowly began rubbing my lower back soothingly and moved closer, if that was even possible. "But-" "But you know better. All I wanted after my sister died, was to get out of this horrific nightmare we live everyday. I wasn't hurting anyone else. You took my choice away Dale. And you except...gratitude?"
It fell silent for a few seconds and as I looked around the group, you could see them all processing what she said. No one would argue the fact the life we now live is a horrific nightmare, but not everyone was as prepared as Andrea to give up the fight to wake up from it. "I don't know what to say" Dale said, utterly defeated. "I'm not your little girl, I'm not your wife and I'm sure as hell not your problem. That's all there is to say." With that Daryl quickly kissed me on my temple and I watched as he and the others began heading out.
I didn't know how today was going to go. But I did know it was going to be a heck of a long day.
Now that we knew for sure, we decided to head back to the highway. Daryl said her trailing was running cold anyway and with it getting late and the sun setting, I was starting to get cold myself. When I confessed this to Daryl he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his side and let me snuggle against him. The heat was radiating off his body and onto me, warming me up instantly like my very own portable heater. "We're gonna locate that little girl ya'know?" Daryl said, making it sound more like a statement rather then a question, but the way he gently squeezed me showed me he wanted an answer. "Yeah, I know" I replied honestly. I wasn't just saying it because I thought its what he wanted to hear, I genuinely had faith in his tracking abilities...he had proved them to me enough times.
"Remember that time you made a bet that you would be able to track me even after giving me a thirty minute head start to find a good place to hide?" I asked him, giggling to myself at the reminiscence of that day. Daryl let out a hearty laugh, the vibrations of his laughter were clearly felt by my arm which I had wrapped around the back of his waist. "Ya seriously want'd me to lose that one, didn't ya?" he joked. "You were doin' everythin' ya could to cover your tracks! Looked like you had stuck a stick up ya ass to drag behind ya whist ya walked!" he teased, followed by more laughter. "Hey!" I cried, playfully slapping him in the chest for insinuating I would actually do that. "For your information, I was walking backwards, holding a stick!" I said between laughs. "And if you must know, I didn't want you to lose the bet because the prize at the end was the only reason I agreed in the first place!"
Suddenly Daryl pushed me sideways until my back was resting against a tree with his body pressed against mine, pinning me to it. "Oh, ya liked that? Huh?" he mused quietly, his face close and his eyes engrossed on mine. Daryl brushed his mouth against mine, a smile gracing my lips at how slow and tentatively he has kissing me. Recently all our kisses have been rushed and hard, so it's a nice change when we get to just relax and savour the moment.
It was me who broke the kiss first because I suddenly remembered that he had actually asked me a question. "Well," I began, wrinkly my nose up slightly and tipping my head to the side slightly. "It was alright" I teased lightheartedly, biting me lip to fight the urge to laugh as Daryl's devilish grin grew wider. "I'll show ya 'alright'" he stated lowly, he's hands descending the sides of my waist and edging dangerously close to the waistband of my shorts. A scream suddenly escaped my lips as Daryl grabbed the back of my thighs and lifted me effortlessly off the ground. I instinctively wrapped my legs around his hips and my arms around his neck as his lips attacked mine again. The gentleness was gone and the fight for dominance began, him wanting to part my lips and gain entrance with his tongue. When I finally backed down and let him take control his hands quickly moved from my thighs to my butt, before leaving me only supported by his body weight as he started unbuttoning my shorts.
I instantly broke away from the kiss and unwrapped my legs from around him so I could stand up and take a hold of his hands. "Daryyll...we can't" I whined regretfully. "For one, we used the last condom back at the CDC and for two, it just doesn't feel right with Sophia being out here" I explain quietly before kissing him lightly again. With a small sigh he nodded to show he agreed but he wasn't exactly happy about it. "We defiantly gotta find a box'a rubbers and soon or I'm gonna explode" Daryl said whilst adjusting his crotch region to try and hide his arousal. When he noticed me watching him, a small-scale smirk plastered itself on his face, before he took my hand in his and we began the short walk back to the highway in a comfortable silence.
~
The next morning, as soon as the sun was up, the plan of action for the day was decided. It was agreed that I would stay back with Dale and T-Dog because T was injured and if a group of walkers came drifting past like they did yesterday, Dale wouldn't be able to handle it on his own. He had his gun but the aim was to use silent weapons like knives and axes to avoid drawing any unwanted attention. Daryl was somewhat relieved that I was staying behind because he said he could be fully focused without having to worry about me out there, however the other half of him also liked having me close by. But from behind the shielding of the RV I gave him a kiss and assured him I would be fine here without him and told him that he had to be safe as well because I want him back in one whole piece. I wanted to tell him that I loved him before he left but I knew it wasn't the right time and would only distract him whilst he was out there, which could get them all into trouble.
"I'm doing this for you" Dale said to Andrea as I stood with Glenn, giving him a hug before he also left. "No Dale, you're doing it for you," Andrea argued. "You need to stop." Without hearing how there conversation started, I already had a pretty good idea what it was about. Her gun. "What do you thinks gonna happen? I'm gonna stick it in my mouth and pull the trigger, the moment you hand it to me?" She rhetorically questioned, causing other members of the group to listen as well. "I know you're angry at me, that much is clear. But if I hadn't done what I did...you'd be dead now" Dale said softly but Andrea was quick to reply and her voice was a lot harsher. "Jenner gave us an option, I chose to stay." "You chose suicide!" Dale retorted in disbelief. I wasn't on either ones side because I could see where they were both coming from. Yesterday I briefly wished I had stayed at the CDC because it was an easy way out, a lot easier then living life the way we currently are. But I realised I still had something worth living for and giving up fight to live would be the same as giving up on him. I guess Dale cares about Andrea so much that he couldn't watch her give up
"Whats that to you? You barely know me!" Andrea said, her voice now raising with every word. "I know Amy's death devastated you-" Dale defended but was quickly cut off by Andrea. "Keep her out of this! This is not about Amy, this is about us. And if I decided I had nothing left to live for, who the hell are you to tell me otherwise, to force my hand like that?" Andrea stated, her voice starting to crack from her built up emotions. I wanted to step in and tell them it wasn't really the time nor place for such a personal conversation, but I also felt like Andrea needed to get this off her chest. "I saved your life" Dale said seemingly confused as to why Andrea was reacting like this when all he wanted to do was help her. "No Dale, I saved yours, you forced that on me. I didn't want your blood on my hands and that's the only reason I left that building. What did you expect? What? I'd have some kind of epiphany? Some life confirming catharsis?" she somewhat spat in his direction, her earlier upset turning into anger. "Maybe just a little gratitude?" Dale responded distantly.
Suddenly I felt a hand rest on my lower back, causing me to flinch slightly. However as I looked to the side of me I saw it was just Daryl, who had slowly edged closer till he was stood right next to me. I knew he was doing it to make sure I was alright which is why I gave him a small smile before turning back to Andrea and Dale. "Gratitude? I wanted to die my way, not torn apart by drooling freaks, that was my choice. You took that away from me, Dale." I found what she was saying unsettling and with Daryl's eyes burning a hole in the side of my face, it was no wonder he picked up on it. I could tell he had noticed by the way he slowly began rubbing my lower back soothingly and moved closer, if that was even possible. "But-" "But you know better. All I wanted after my sister died, was to get out of this horrific nightmare we live everyday. I wasn't hurting anyone else. You took my choice away Dale. And you except...gratitude?"
It fell silent for a few seconds and as I looked around the group, you could see them all processing what she said. No one would argue the fact the life we now live is a horrific nightmare, but not everyone was as prepared as Andrea to give up the fight to wake up from it. "I don't know what to say" Dale said, utterly defeated. "I'm not your little girl, I'm not your wife and I'm sure as hell not your problem. That's all there is to say." With that Daryl quickly kissed me on my temple and I watched as he and the others began heading out.
I didn't know how today was going to go. But I did know it was going to be a heck of a long day.