Firecracker

She wasn’t sure how long she had been running, but it felt like forever. Her legs were aching, her lungs were burning, and she was ready to give up. She had gone to the driveway like Daryl said, but he wasn’t there. He left her. She didn’t want to think that he had abandoned her, deep down she knew that he didn’t, but she couldn’t help but feel like he did.

The twigs and her heavy breathing were the only things she could hear. The moment she saw that Daryl wasn’t where he said he would be, she took off into the woods. She needed to make it back to the highway. That’s where everybody would be.

The sun had just started to come up, bringing her some unwanted heat. But she didn’t stop. She just pushed herself harder. As she pushed her legs to keep going, she felt her foot snag on a tree root. A yelp slipped past her lips and she fell to the ground, using her hands and knees to break her fall.

Her chest rose and fell violently as she stared at the earth beneath her. She couldn’t push herself to go any further. She was too tired. She wanted to just lay down and go to sleep forever. She no longer had a home, she would probably never see her family again...or Daryl. No, she couldn’t think like that. She had to keep going. Groaning, she pushed herself up and started running again, ignoring her quivering leg muscles.

***

Daryl paced back and forth on the highway, waiting for Raine to make an appearance. The others had shown up and she wasn’t with any of them. He felt so guilty for leaving her, but Carol needed help. He left because he had faith that Raine would make it back with the others or at least by herself.

”I don’t know how much longer we can wait.” Lori spoke up, her eyes watering. Carl looked up at his mom with wide eyes and shook his head.

”I ain’t leavin’ her. Not again.” Daryl argued, his voice low. He didn’t care that the group was seeing his soft side. This was Raine. Everybody knew how important she was to him.

”Daryl, we saw her go down.” Glenn added in sympathetically. Daryl shook his head vigorously.

”No, she’s fine.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, there was a rustle in the woods. He raised his crossbow slightly but his heart pounded against his chest. This just had to be her. A few seconds later, Raine’s figure emerged through the treeline and he instantly lowered his crossbow. He put it back over his shoulder and rushed over to her.

Raine looked up, her eyes watering at the sight of Daryl coming towards her. She forced a smile and reached out for him, her knees buckling. Just as she was about to hit the ground, Daryl caught her quickly, sliding onto the ground with her. He cradled her in his arms tightly, feeling a vast amount of relief.

”Come on.” He finally said after a few minutes. He pulled Raine to her feet and walked her over to his bike. He climbed on and started the engine. Raine swung her leg over the seat and sat down, wrapping her arms around his waist. As soon as everyone got into their cars, they were off in search of their new home.



Raine had almost fallen asleep with her head rested on Daryl’s back, but the sound of a horn jolted her awake. She looked over her shoulder as Daryl brought the bike to a stop and she saw everyone else pulling over.

”You out?” Daryl called out to Rick.

”Running on fumes.” Rick replied. Raine climbed off the bike and walked over to her brother, giving him a tight hug. She didn’t get to greet him properly when she finally made to the highway. After she pulled away, Rick made the decision that they would camp there for the night and then gather more gas tomorrow so they could keep moving.

Raine didn’t care too much about camping for the night, she just wanted to rest. She was so exhausted, the idea of moving another inch was just sickening.

”You know I found Randall, right? He had turned but he wasn’t bit.” Daryl explained to Rick who instantly looked down at the ground. Raine furrowed her eyebrows and ran a hand through her hair.

”How’s that possible?” She asked.

”We’re all infected.” Rick explained after a few long moments. “Jenner told me. Whatever it is, we all carry it.”

Raine walked off, unsure on how to feel on the new information. It didn’t change anything obviously. It just meant that no matter what, when they die, they’ll become one of those things. She felt a hand on her back and she looked over her shoulder to see Daryl. He gently turned her around and pulled her in for a hug.

”You okay?” He asked softly in her ear.

”I don’t know how we’re gonna do this, Daryl. I really don’t. Lori’s pregnant, it’s getting colder, we don’t have anywhere to stay, and we all carry whatever fucking kind of virus this is.” She pulled away from the hug and took a deep breath, stealing a glance at the group off in the distance. “I just don’t know if we’ll be able to get through this.”

”We will, I promise. We always do.” Daryl reassured. Raine nodded, knowing he was right.

”I love you.” She whispered, staring deep into his bright blue eyes. Daryl smirked slightly and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear.

”Love you too.”