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softestnatalie · 7 months

Text

Abandoned corridors of the heart

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x female!reader

Timing: Season 1

Chapter Summary: Your group arrives at the CDC and things don't go exactly as planned. Daryl seems to regret the words he’s said.

Warnings: alcohol use, characther death, dead bodies

Autor's note: I really love this chapter 'cause Daryl and reader finally have their first honest moment together (even tho they're drunk lol). Also, I am so sorry for the long wait, school is really time consuming, but I hope you can unterstand. Likes, comments and reblogs are always appreciated and the support would really help me. Have fun reading <3

Chapter 4: Just for one moment

Your eyes followed Jim as the van started moving again, his body leaning against a tree with his eyes closed as he tried to fall asleep in peace. Your heart cracked a little more at the state he was in; his skin bright red and glowing, showing how much he must have been burning up from the inside, the droplets of sweat running down his face and neck only proving the point.

He refused to go any further with you and your group, his body hurting unbearably and the fear of putting just a single one of his people in danger because of his bite made him stay right there - beside the road - as the rest of you drove away.

Leaving him behind hurt you more than you'd like to admit, your hands grabbing the fabric of your dirty jeans harshly as you forced yourself to let him go. You hadn't known him for long - only four days - but he was kind - kind enough to let you stay with him and his friends even though none of them knew you.

With a heavy sigh leaving your lips, you sat down on your knees, still looking out the window and watching as the woods around you blurred when Dale sped up the van. It was quiet - awfully quiet - and the tension inside the moving vehicle was thick enough to cut with a knife, the loss of yet another member of the group affecting everybody.

"You okay?" Glenn whispered after a few more minutes of silence, trying to be as private as possible, though you were sure the others could hear him just fine.

You didn't react at first and Glenn thought that maybe you didn't even realise he was talking to you but then you turned your head, staring at him with an expression he could only describe as pained. You nodded slowly even though both of you knew it was a lie.

The asian boy bit his lip in concern, not sure if he should just drop it, "You sure?" He whispered again after a moment, deciding to ask you a second time.

And as if that one simple question was enough to hurt you, your facade crumbled, the blank expression you had on your face molded into a quivering lip and furrowed eyebrows. Before you could do anything to stop it, your throat clenched tightly as a sob broke through. It was too much for you. Death and blood was all you could see in that moment - three people in just one night; Amy, Jim, and your mother. Deep down you'd always known that she'd leave someday, sooner ot later. It wasn't supposed to be this soon though.

Gleen's eyebrows shot up in shock when he heard your cries, looking around and seeing everyone's eyes directed on your tiny figure. He hesitated for a second before he reached out his arm, wrapping it around your shoulder and pulling you into his side carefully, trying to give you a small piece of comfort. Though it only made you cry harder. Your nails were digging into your palms, your body tensing as you wished to be somewhere else - alone.

Andrea placed one of her hands over yours, squeezing it softly and telling you silently that she understood your pain. You didn't look at her but you were thankful.

A few hours later, the van stopped in front of a road blockade. Glenn stood up, forcing you to lift your head off of his chest as you got back on your feet as well, following him out of the vehicle. Your arm flew over your face - covering your mouth and nose - as soon as you stepped outside, the corpses on the street making the air smell way too bad.

The group stumbled over the dead bodies, Shane and Rick leading all of you to the huge, white building with their guns raised, ready to shoot if something was to attack them.

"Keep moving, come on," Rick said, looking behind him to make sure everybody was following along.

Shane tried to pull up the shutters while Rick banged on them, trying to get inside or to make whoever was living in that building realise you were there. Though nobody showed a sign of letting you all in and you figured the CDC was empty.

You jumped when Daryl started yelling all of a sudden, raising his crossbow, "Walkers!"

Before you could even react on your own, Glenn grabbed your shoulder, forcing to to hide behind him, shotgun in hand and ready to shoot, "Stay there, okay?" He looked at you with a worried yet serious expression, "Right behind me, you understand?"

You nodded in agreement. Not only because you trusted him but also beause you didn't have any kind of weapon with you, making it quite impossible for you to protect yourself.

Everybody was tense and disappointed, the hope of getting help - maybe even some kind of cure - gone. Just gone. Shane was trying to think of another plan - another place for you to go - while Rick didn't want to accept your defeat.

"You're killing us! You're killing us!" He screamed repeatedly as he continued to bang on the shutters. And it was honestly starting to scare you, the noise attracting even more walkers, Daryl taking care of them.

"There's no one there!" Shane yelled and grabbed Rick roughly by the collar of his sheriff uniform, pulling him away and forcing him to come with the rest of the group.

And just then, the shutters opened, a bright light making you wince and cover your eyes.

Everybody's movements paused, looking at the now open building in shock - almost disbelief. Someone was there. A doctor. Alive. Your mouth dropped slightly as you realised there was still a chance. Hope.

"Come on," Glenn whispered to you, following Rick and Shane inside in small, carful steps.

The inside was - you didn't even know how to describe it - but you guessed beautiful was an accurate word. Clean. It looked almost innocent - as if everything was still normal.

"Hello?" Rick called out.

The clicking sound of a gun was heard, "Anybody infected?" A blonde, old looking man made his way towards you, keeping his gun raised.

Rick swallowed loudly, "One of our group was," he lowered his head, "He didn't make it."

The mention of Jim made another frown appear on your face, thinking that if the doctor in front of you had any kind of medicine to stop the infection, Jim wouldn't be able to recieve it anymore.

"Why are you here? What do you want?" The man asked so quickly you almost couldn't understand his words.

"A chance," you spoke up when nobody knew what to say, "We want a chance."

The man's eyes drifted towards you, noticing you for the first time. He seemed to think about your words before he eventually agreed, "You all submit to a blood test."

Later that night, Jenner let you all have dinner with him and to say you were fascinated by the dishes on the table would be an understatement. Real food, right in front of you, something you all hadn't seen in weeks. It made you crack a tiny smile, being beyond grateful for the doctor's hospitality.

"You know, in Italy, children have a little bit of wine with dinner," Dale laughed as he filled Lori's glass with the red substance, "And in France."

Lori shook her head and covered Carl's glass with her hand, taking a sip of her wine, "Well, and when Carl is in Italy or France, he can have some."

The group laughed again and everyone seemed to be in a good mood for once, wearing big smiles and grins on their faces. And even though you were still really sad about your recent loss, you managed to have a good time, laughing when Carl was allowed to taste a tiny sip, watching as he swallowed it with a grimace, an 'ewww' leaving his lips.

"Now ya, (y/n)," Daryl's voice surprised you, "I wanna see how red yer face can get," He walked towards you with a wine bottle in his left hand and, surprisingly, with his lips formed in a teasing smile. You didn't think you would ever get to see Daryl smile. Acutally smile.

"Oh no, no no," you shook your head and waved your hands around, but it was no use, he was already filling your glass up, not even giving you time to take it yourself. Instead, he took it with one hand, the other grabbing the back of your head as he brought the glass up to your lips, making you drink a bit of it.

"Here, easy, girl," he said as he put the glass on the table, the group laughing once again when they saw your pursed lips, the red liquid running down the corners of your mouth.

"You got a little something on your face," Glenn teased as you swallowed and used your arm to clean your chin.

"Ha ha," you poked your tongue at him before chuckling as well, then looking at Daryl, who was still grinning.

If a little bit of alcohol gets him like this, I'll have to get him drunk more often, you thought. It was nice to see him in a better mood, less serious and guarded. And if you were being as open as you could be; the dimples that formed when he smiled looked quite pretty on him. You have had thoughts like that before - about him - but you chose to ignore them whenever they came up at night, knowing it was for the better, wanting to protect your heart from any more pain. And even though it might sound harsh; Daryl wasn't really the type of man your mother would have approved of.

After dinner, Jenner showed you the rooms your group could stay in. 6. Exactly 6 rooms - which of course wasn't enough for everybody to have their own, so the rooms had to get shared. Rick with Lori and Carl, Dale with Andrea, Carol with Sophia, T-Dog with Jacqui, and Shane with Glenn, leaving you with Daryl.

Glenn gave you an apologetic look as he walked off with Shane, making you pout like a little child. You were hoping to share a room with him since he was the closest to you out of the group. You were also quite drunk after Daryl had poured you another glass, and staying with said man - who apparently only liked you when he was inebriated - was making you a little too nervous.

He swung his arm over your shoulder, pulling you into him with a rather rough motion which made you yelp in surprise, "Come on, girl," he slurred his words and you were honsetly a little scared he wouldn't even remember the night the next morning, "Let's get us to bed," he started walking the both of you into the room, closing the door with his foot, almost slamming it shut, the loud noise ringing through the hallway.

"I can take the floor," you said, looking at the single bed - blanket folded neatly on top of it - and untangling his arm from around your neck. You waited a few seconds but when you didn't get an answer, you looked into his direction.

Big mistake.

"Daryl!" you exclaimed, averting your eyes as quickly as they had found him, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Gonna take a shower," he mumbled and eyed you a little confused once he had the buttons off his shirt open, his chest still covered though, "Wha', barbie? Never seen skin 'fore?" He walked into the bathroom, locking the door behind him.

You scoffed at his words, rolling your eyes and plopping down on the bed, waiting for Daryl to finish his shower so you could wash yourself as well. Again, something you all hadn't done in weeks. You took the time alone to sober up a little bit, your brain becoming only the tiniest bit clearer.

You were hoping your group could stay here on long terms. Doctor Jenner didn't tell you how long your group was allowed to be there, but if everything turned out to be as good as it seemed, you really thought your group had a chance of actually living at the CDC. If Jenner let you, that is. You would be safe, the shutters making sure that no walker could ever get inside, enough food and water for at least a few months, and real beds to sleep on. Almost as normal as the life each of you had had before the apocalypse started. Almost.

"'M done," his gruff voice pulled you out of your thoughts, your eyes finding his frame, dressed into the same, dirty clothes with his hair wet and drops of water dripping down his forehead.

You nodded and stood up, rushing into the bathroom with quite a lot of eagerness, "You better didn't use up all the hot water," you spoke loud enough so he could hear you through the door. He didn't anwser.

You took your clothes off hastily and you couldn't help the loud sigh that left your lips when the dirty garments were finally not on your skin anymore. The thought of having to put them on again disgusted you. The cold air made goosebumps rise on your pale body so you finally stepped inside the shower and turned on the water. Your mouth opened in a silent moan once the warm substance hit you, your head dropping back, savoring the sensation you hadn't felt in so long.

The transparent liquid turned into a brownish colour as you rubbed your skin, getting weeks of dirt and the proof of basically living on the streets off of you. It was quite fascinating how something so normal - something people used to do on a daily basis - can become something so special once it gets taken away from them. And you were sure that if life would ever return to normal, you would appreciate every single meal, every single shower, and every single night you would get to sleep on a bed.

A few minutes later, you turned off the water, wishing you could stay inside the shower a little longer, but you didn't want to use too much of the doctor's water, so you stepped out with another sigh, shivering at the cold once again as your body had to get used to the air. You dried yourself with a towel before you put your clothes back on, taking a mental note to wash them as soon as possible.

The mirror on the wall showed you what you had been so scared of seeing and you really couldn't even recognise yourself anymore. You felt as if a completely different person - a stranger - was staring back at you. Your skin much paler than you had ever seen it before, cheekbones and jawline way more visible than they had been just a few weeks ago, eye bags decorating your face, and your hair was - even though you brushed it as often as possible - tangled.

The sight made you frown visibly. Who even were you anymore?

You didn't want to have to see your reflection any longer so you left the bathroom in a hurry. Though, you stopped in your tracks when you saw Daryl lying on the floor right next to the bed. His body was slightly curled up and he didn't move so you guessed he was already asleep. You didn't miss the fact that he purposely left the bed to you, though, you didn't know if that made you feel happy or frustrated. You didn't want him to sleep on the floor because of you and, really, you would have been fine with taking the hard surface. And if he would have been awake you certainly would have argued with him, but he wasn't and you didn't want to wake him up. He didn't seem to sleep that much as it was so you climbed into bed as silently as possible, not wanting to make too much noise.

"Didn' mean it," you had just laid down when his voice rang through the room in a quiet whisper, making you turn your head to look into his direction, even though you couldn't properly see him from where you were laying.

"What do you mean?" You asked him, not knowing what he was talking about.

It was quiet fot a few seconds and you were sure that he really had fallen asleep this time but then he spoke up again, "What I said," he started, "At the camp. 'Bout y'all deservin' what happened. Didn' mean it."

You thought about his words and realised that this was probably his was of saying sorry. You didn’t think he would even try to apologise but there he was, telling you he didn't mean what he had said. And maybe he didn't notice, but the small smile on your face showed how much that meant to you. You hoped he would be just as nice to you when he was fully sober, but a part of you was sure he wouldn't be. Still, the fact that he cared about what you thought was enough for you in that moment.

"I know."

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softestnatalie · 8 months

Text

Abandoned corridors of the heart

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x female!reader

Timing: Season 1

Chapter Summary: There are a few complications on Merle's rescue mission. Your group is forced to leave the camp as chaos erupts.

Warnings: swearing, mild language, blood, gore, character death

Autor's note: School's starting again in a week and I'm NOT ready. I'll have much less time to write :( so updates will proably take a few more days as soon as I have classes again, hope you can understand. Also, reader crying because of Daryl got my heart aching :( And the reader gets to see sb she thought she'd never see again ;)

Chapter 3: Everything changes

You're stronger than you think.

That's what your mother used to tell you whenever you needed to hear it - whenever something was putting you down. And right in this moment, you were trying so much to hold onto her words, an axe in your hands and a geek on the ground, a few men of the camp beating it up. Still, no matter how many punches they delieverd, it didn't die. You didn't exactly know how to help, but you did remember the moment you saved Daryl - he shot it right through the eye as soon as he'd been able to grab his crossbow. After that, it didn't move anymore, so you assumed the head was the important part.

You were just waiting for the right moment to interfere and when Rick hit the geek with a pitchork, the spikes piercing it's abdomen and forcing it to stay on the ground, you quickly pushed the other men out of the way, raising your arms high above your head before bringing them down with as much force as you could, cutting it's head off in a swift movement.

All of you were breathing heavily, drops of sweat running down your foreheads. Rick looked at you and nodded, saying thank you for your help. You nodded back and drooped the axe right next to the bodyless head, blood leaking from the open throat.

"That's the first one we had up here," Dale spoke after a few heavy seconds of silence, "They usually don't come that far up the hill."

"Maybe because the cities are getting empty," you decided to speak your mind, "I mean as far as we know, they bite humans - we're their food - they're searching for more," your eyes trailed to the poor deer laying on the ground, it's neck wide open and chewed up. Your heart ached for the animal, which had to give his life for no reason at all.

You jumped when you heard more rustling from the woods, grabbing Rick's arm - since he was closest to you - and hiding behind him. He turned his head to you and raised an eyerbrow, making you lower your head in embarrassment.

Shane raised his gun instantly, pointing it at the forest and waiting for the creature to show itself. You grabbed Rick's arm a bit harder when the rustling got closer as you held your breath, body tensing. You relaxed though, when you realised who it was.

Daryl stopped in his tracks, looking at the gun in shock before his eyes trailed to the dead deer on the ground, geek laying next to the animal. His shock turned into anger, "Son of a bitch," he walked closer, "That's mah deer. Been trackin' it fo' miles."

The geek's head started to move again, making you cringe and Daryl scoff, "Don' ya know anythin’, people? Gotta be the brain," he lifted his crossbow and just like the first time you'd met him, he shot an arrow right through the eye.

Your group decided to leave the deer for safety reasons since nobody knew if it was still edible after it got bit. And you really couldn't say you were disappointed about the news, you probably wouldn't have eaten it anyway - your guilty conscience way too big. Though, the squirrel Daryl brought back with him wouldn't be any better.

But before you went back to the camp, there was one thing you desperately wanted to do; bury the deer. You wanted to give the poor animal at least a little bit of peace. So, you begged Shane - since he was always the one to make desicions - to help you. And after a few minutes he actually agreed, shoveling a grave before laying the deer inside.

After you were satisfied, you made your way back inside the camp, Shane following behind you. And the first thing you saw was Rick arguing with Daryl, and you could only imagine what the argument was about.

Daryl was rubbing his forehead, his eyes narrowing in anger as you and Shane walked closer. It probably wsn't the smartest idea to interfere in what was happening but you were curious and you did want to know how Daryl would take the news about his brother.

"Hold on, lemme process this," Daryl turned away from Rick, rubbing over his eyes with his elbow - and you thought he looked close to crying by the way his face twisted up for only a second before he turned to face Rick again, "Ya sayin' ya cuffed mah brother to a roof," his voice raised in volume, practically screaming, "And ya fuckin' left 'im there?"

Rick put his hands on his hips - a move he seemed to be doing a lot, you noticed - and nodded, "Yeah," unlike Daryl's, his voice was calm.

A 'pfft' left Daryl's lips and he pursed his lips, pressing them together and trying to supress his upcoming rage. It didn't seem to work though as he grabbed the rope hanging on his left shoulder and threw the squirrel he'd caught into Rick's direction.

The situation escalated even more when Daryl pulled his knife out of the holster he had on his left hip, swinging his arm around widly, trying to hit Rick with the weapon. Luckily, Shane was able to put Daryl down before he actually got to hurt anyone.

Soon after, they decided to go back and get Merle and for some weird reason Shane decided to send you with them. He came up to you while the boys were preparing the truck, you about to go back into your tent when he spoke to you, "Think you should go with them."

You turned around and your mouth opened in shock when you realised he meant you. You. "Wha- why me?"

Honestly, the last thing you wanted to do was to go outside the camp because, really, you didn't have a death wish. Moreover, you had close to no experience killing geeks and the others having to look out for you constantly would just slow them down.

Shane shrugged, his left eye twitching a little, "You were doing a good job earlier, you know, helping us with the geek."

You shook your head quickly, a confused chuckle escaping your lips, "Shane, I had no idea what I was doing," you pulled the hair tie Lori had given you only a few hours ago off your wrist and put your hair up into a ponytail, "Really, I'd be more of a problem rather than help."

You tried to talk your way out of it but by the way he was looking at you, you knew there was no chance of you staying at the camp, "You're going," he walked away and continued talking with his back to you, "I'm sure it'll be okay."

And then he was gone. And you were left standing there, your eyes trailing after him until he disappeared from your sight and if looks could kill, he'd have died on the spot. His words didn't make any sense to you.

You've done great.

You surely hadn't done great. You had a conjecture and acted on it, basically trying your luck without knowing how it would go. And it's not like you actually killed the geek - Daryl did.

I'm sure it'll be okay.

You wondered how he could even say that after the situation which had happened just a day ago. The last group to leave the camp was faced with death and almost didn't make it back - and you were sure they were far more experienced than you. You were also sure about one more thing; you really didn't like Shane.

You were standing beside the truck when you had prepared yourself to go - and with prepared you meant getting a knife from Dale. You were still hoping someone would come and safe you from having to go since you were sure the four men would be fine without you, and there really wasn't any reason for you to go. Again, you questioned Shane's intentions.

"Oh," you lifted your head at Glenn's suprised voice, Daryl standing next to him, making you even more nervous. The absurdity of the situation wouldn't allow you to give the young man a smile. You. Going on a rescue mission to safe the brother of a man who acted like he despised you.

"Yeah," you muttured, nodding your head.

Glenn seemed to realise you didn't really like the idea of going with them - and he could understand, of course - so he didn't answer anymore, just nodded and gave you a reassuring smile as he opened the back doors of the truck to let you inside.

The ride was awkward. Glenn was driving the truck, Rick siting next to him in the passenger seat. Daryl and T-Dog were in the back with you, each one of you sitting in a different corner. None of you said a word.

It didn't take long before the vehicle stopped - the brake squeaking - and Glenn turned around to face the three of you, "We'll walk from here."

Daryl was the first to stand up and jump outside while you and T-Dog started at each other before he slowly stood up as well. You allowed yourself a few more seconds to take a few deep breaths, rubbing your thighs with your shaking hands as Glenn reached out his hand in order to help you out. And, honestly, Glenn was about to become your favorite person and, hopefully, a good friend over time.

The walk was short and only took a few more minutes until you were standing in front of a large building, the sun blending you when you looked into the sky to see the roof as best as you could. You just wanted to get Merle as fast as possible so y'all would be able to go 'home'.

But to everyone's suprise, the roof was empty, only a bloody and cold hand was left behind.

You covered your mouth as your eyes widened and a gasp left you, staring at the limb before you looked at the redneck when he started to scream for his brother. And you were almost scared he would attract geeks with how loud he was being.

Your group followed the trail of blood in hopes of finding him somewhere inside the building. But it didn't change anything.

Merle was gone.

"I lost my police bag when Glenn saved me," Rick said as he stopped Daryl from searching for his brother on his own, "We can go and get it. It's full of weapons - guns, lots of guns - and then we can look for him together."

Daryl stepped away from Rick's touch and thought about the spoken words before he gave a curt nod, "We can do tha'."

And so it was decided. Your group made a plan how to get the police bag first and for that plan to work, you had to be in pairs. And, of course, just your luck, you were paired with Daryl. While Glenn would be the one to run and get the bag, Rick and T-Dog would wait around a corner while you and Daryl would wait around another corner to be able to help Glenn if anything went wrong.

And, oh, a lot of things went wrong.

Before you could react, there was a boy standing in front of you, screaming in a language you couldn't understand - but you assumed it sounded like spanish. Daryl raised his crossbow but before he could do anything, two older men came running towards the three of you, pushing Daryl to the ground and giving him a kick in his side.

Right in that moment, Glenn returned with the bag and a hat in his hands, looking at Daryl before his eyes trailed to you. His expression matched yours; mouth opened wide just as well as your eyes.

You ran to get Daryl's crossbow, which was laying a few meters away from him, as soon as the men's attention was on Glenn, sprinting over to him. It was heavier than you thought and your arms burned a bit when you picked it up and gave it to Daryl, who managed to shoot an arrow into one man's ass.

The next thing you knew, you were picked up and thrown over a shoulder before you got pushed inside a car, Glenn right after you.

"Daryl!" you screamed a few times until the car started moving and there was nothing the redneck could do to safe you. The car was small, you and Glenn sitting shoulder to shoulder, so he could feel your shaking body right next to him.

"We're gonna be all right," he whispered but it did little to calm you. And you loathed Shane for forcing you to go on that stupid mission, all you had done was give Daryl his crossbow, so why were you even there?

It took at least an hour until your kidnappers reached their destination. One of the men opened your door and grabbed your arm, pulling you out and leading you and Glenn inside what looked like a hospital.

"Ese," there was a light voice calling and the man behind you turned around, looking at the source of the noise, "What?" the unknown man lifted his arms, pointing them in your direction and having a look of utter confusion on his face, "Who are they?"

You lowered your head as the two of them started to discuss about you and Glenn, rocking back and forth on your feet. You were scared of them and what they would or could do to you. Nobody would be there to help.

"I said grab the bag, not bring two strangers with you!"

The voice pulled you out of your thoughts and only a few seconds later were you led further down the white corridors. And the sight you were met with almost eased your fear just the tiniest bit. Old people. A lot of old people. They were sitting in their chairs, just enjoying their time and it almost looked like a retirement home.

"You can just sit down if you want," the unknown man said, pointing at a few empty chairs. You and Glenn looked at each other and you raised your eyebrows as if to ask him what he thought, him responding with a little shrug and a nod. So, the both of you walked over in small steps and sat down.

That was pretty much how you spent the next few hours, just sitting there and watching the old people talk, occasionally standing up to change position or help somebody. At some point, you were brave enough to start talking to Glenn, not being all too scared anymore.

It was pretty late already, the sun starting to go down when the man from earlier walked in again but this time with a familiar face.

Rick.

You nudged Glenn with your shoulder as soon as you saw the member of the camp, nodding into his direction so that Glenn could see him as well. Daryl and T-Dog followed soon after, looking around skeptically.

"I thought you two were bein' eaten by dogs," T-Dog said when he saw you and Glenn walking towards them. And you almost laughed when the korean man raised an eyebrow and turned around, looking at the three tiny chihuahuas as they started barking as if they could understand our words.

You and your group got pulled into another room to talk about the situation without the seniors having to hear.

The unknown man - what seemed to be the leader of that hospital - explained their story. They didn't mean any harm, didn't even plan on meeting other people on their way to get the weapons. They were just as scared as you were.

Rick decided to give them a few of the guns and ammo we had inside the bag, showing his understanding. Still, he kept most of the weapons to himself and saved them for the camp. After the conversation, your group could go 'home'. The leader of the Vatos - that's how they called their group - said a big 'thank you' before he led y'all out.

But, of course, the relief you felt didn't last very long. Because when you and your people walked outside, the truck Rick and the other two had came with was gone.

"The hell is the truck?" Daryl asked at the same time Glenn spoke, "Who'd take it?"

"Merle," Rick pursed his lips as he seemed to realise Merle wouldn't want anything positive for the people who had left him behind - even if it was by accident. And if he found his way back to the camp, nothing good would happen.

And since y'all didn't have any other options, the streets being empty and no other car in sight, you started jogging towards the camp, trying to be there as soon as possible to prevent anything negative from happening.

You didn't think it'd be that bad.

The five of you could hear the screams from a distance and you could feel your heart sink once you knew they were coming from your camp. At first, you thought Merle was the reason for the loud noises, you didn't expect to see the entire - once peaceful - camp filled with geeks.

All you could hear was the screams of the people living here and the loud gunshots as they tried to defend themselves. It was dark by then but, still, you could see a lot of blood on the ground, coming from the people who had got bitten already.

You thought about running away, somewhere safer than there, but everything you had on your mind left you at once when you looked into an all too familiar face. It wasn't as beautiful as it once was, the skin being a light shade of gray and the teeth hanging out in an unnatrual way.

You took a step forward, almost as if you were in a trance, but jumped when another gunshot sounded and the face you couldn't seem to stop looking at fell backwards, blood spraying from the bullet wound.

"No!" you screamed, the tears that had been welling up in your eyes finally rolling down your cheeks. Your body reacted before your mind could as you got on your knees and crawled over to the body on the ground.

The others killed the rest of the geeks as you sat on your knees, practically sobbing at this point, tears blurring your vision, "Mom," you whispered shakily, touching her hair carefully.

You didn't even realise how quiet it got as your screams echoed around the woods, holding your mother's cold hand tightly. You didn't think you'd ever get to see her again and you were just trying to accept that, but seeing her like this put you at least three steps back.

Please don't leave me, I need you, you thought, your eyes wandering around the group for the first time since your parent got shot. And only then did you realise you weren't the only one crying. Amy - the girl you had tried to comfort just a day ago - was lying on the ground, her neck wide open and bood all over her. It was obvious that she got bit.

How ironic. Amy had been so worried about Andrea's well being, scared they'd get seperated way too soon and now it was the other sister laying motionless on the ground.

The sight made you cry even more. So many lives. And they got taken away as if they didn't matter at all. The others were darting their eyes back and forth, looking at you and then at Andrea.

You looked back down at your mother, your tears wet her white and dirty shirt. Your story wasn't supposed to end yet, you wanted a happier ending for her.

You sat like that for the rest of the night, the sun raising after a few hours and you thought the worst part was sitting there the next morning, realising she was gone for good. That morning, you felt physical pain for the first time - a deep ache consuming your whole body but mostly your heart - without actually being hurt.

Daryl came over to you after some time, sitting on his heels next you and your body tensed uncomfortably.

"We gotta-" he started to talk but you didn't even let him finish his sentence.

"Stop," you spoke curtly, shaking your head at whatever he had to say, "I wanna bury her," you waited for a response but when you got none you allowed yourself to look at him. His eyes weren't as hard and cold as they usually were - still distant but not cold. Maybe because he could actually understand you considering the current situation involving his brother.

He nodded softly and stood up, grabbing your mother by her shoulders, making you tense up even more, "Hey, hey! What are you doing?"

He stopped his actions, looking at you again, "Help ya dig a grave."

You stared at him for a few more seconds before you eventually decided you could use the help, so you let him continue, "Okay," you whispered.

And it was all going okay until Shane thought he had to tell his opinion even though nobody asked for it, "Hey," he called, walking over to you and Daryl, already beginning to shovel the grave up again, "We don't bury geeks. She wasn't one of us."

Daryl scoffed at him, his eyebrows furrowing into a glare as he stopped shoveling, "Ain't yer business."

Shane shook his head and licked his lips, "Sure is," he tilted his head a bit to look at you still working to close the grave, "We don't bury them."

You shut your ears after that, focusing on your task since you really couldn't care less about Shane in that moment. And you honestly couldn't even explain how much you hated him. The argument between Daryl and Shane got more heated and at some point it just kind of escalated.

"Hell with y'all," Daryl exclaimed, waving around with his arms, "Ya had this comin'," he pointed at your mother's grave with one hand before slowly gesturing to the other bodies as well.

And this got your attention.

You had this coming.

How dare he say these words? Innocent people died. And he has the audacity to act as if they deserved it? And point at your mother - the mother you'd just lost a few hours ago - while doing so? His words hurt and they cut deeper than a knife ever could. Did she deserve to die? Did you deserve to see her like this?

Too many questions you didn't know an answer for, but you did know one thing; You didn't want to see Daryl anymore.

"Go," you suddenly spoke up, "Both of you, I can do this alone," your voice cracked towards the end, your face twisting up in pain, showing how much Drayl's words actually affected you.

The redneck started talking again, seemingly realising his hurtful words, but you didn't let him finish, raising your voice instead and telling him to fuck off. Both men left eventually, leaving you alone to do your work.

Only a few hours later did your group decide to leave the camp behind in order to find help for Jim since he got bitten. So you packed your stuff just as well as the rest of the group to head to the CDC - hoping to get a cure and save Jim.

You said goodbye to your mother before you left, sitting at her grave for some time before eventually moving towards the van. You were hoping your group would be able to come back as soon as Jim got the help he needed.

You didn't think about a lot of things when the van started moving, but in the end you realised something.

Everyone leaves at some point.

Tag list:

@goth-cowgirl-03 @paintlavillered @hotgirlsshareaccounts @tiedyedghoulette @alialiclouds

#daryl dixon #daryl dixon x you #daryl dixon x reader #daryl dixon twd #daryl dixon fanfiction #daryl dixon smut #daryl twd #the walking dead #the walking dead fanfiction #merle dixon #rick grimes #lori grimes #carl grimes #shane walsh #carol twd

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softestnatalie · 8 months

Text

Abandoned corridors of the heart

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x female!reader

Timing: Season 1

Chapter Summary: An unexpected guest arrives at the camp as another member of the group goes missing. Your attempts on getting closer to Daryl fail.

Warnings: swearing, mild language

Autor's note: I'm so excited for this fanfiction omg, it's so fun to write and i really can't wait until Daryl and the reader get closer and have cute (and spicy hehe) moments. Also, I'm so unsatisfied with this chapter, I rewrote it, like, 3 times but it's still not as good as I wanted it to be :/ Also, thank you for all the support, likes, follows, and reblogs are always appreciated <3

Chapter 2: One day at a time

The next day, you decided you should thank Daryl not only for bringing you here but also for the little trust he had in you. So, when you woke up, you made it your mission to find him and tell him your 'thank you's'.

You had to admit you were more than just nervous. The last time you had talked to him, it didn't go quite well and he was pretty moody towards you but you hoped it was just a first time expirience and that maybe he'd be nicer this time.

You were hoping to make a new friend in him - after all, you didn't really have friends and the fact that you saved him and he gave you a place to stay at would be a good basis for a friendship. At least, that's what you thought.

You found him pretty quickly. He was outside his tent, holding his crossbow as he seemed to be cleaning it. Next to him was another man, talking to him in what seemed to be an aggressive manner. It made you rethink for a moment - maybe another moment would be better - but you didn't know if you would have the courage to speak to him some other time , so you decided to just get it over with.

When you continued walking in very small steps, the other man went inside the tent - seemingly sharing it with Daryl - and it made you walk faster in hopes of being able to talk to the grumpy redneck before the other man came back outside. Though, it probably wouldn't really make a difference - he would still hear the both of you.

Daryl looked at you when he sensed you walking into his direction and his expression changed from annoyed to even more annoyed, making you feel small again. Still, you kept going until you were standing only a meter away from him.

"Hey," you whispered, nervously fidgeting with your fingers as he looked at you for a split second before he averted his eyes again.

"Whatcha want?" he grumbled into the cigarette, which was hanging between his lips. And the way he practically spat these words at you made you feel even smaller, so you stayed quiet for a moment in order to find your voice and think of an answer. Apparently, it was too long for him because he stood up with a 'pffft' leaving his lips and walked past you.

You turned around and watched his back for a few seconds before you jogged up to him and reached for his arm, "I- wait," your hand only graced his skin before he jerked his arm away from your reach, a scowl forming on his face.

"Sorry," you mumbled quietly becasue, somehow, you just weren't able to speak louder than a mouse around him. And, honestly, by the way he was looking at you, you were losing hope about building a friendship, pretty fast. Still, you continued to speak, "Thank you."

Daryl shook his head, smoke puffing from his mouth, "Fo' what?"

A small smile formed on your lips as you looked up at him, putting a strand of hair behind your ear, "For bringing me here," you waved your hands around, "It's nice," you paused, smiling again and folding your hands behind your back, "And also, thank you for trusting me - at least, enough to bring me here."

He scoffed loudly, pulling the cigarette from between his lips, throwing it on the ground and stomping it out, smoke, again, escaping his lips, "There ain't nothin' to thank me fo'."

You shook your head instantly, "There is-"

You got interrupted by him before you were able to finish your sentence, "Go, girl, don' need yer bullshit."

Your smile fell at his words and you didn't know why his words stung so much, after all, you didn't even really know him - but, god, they stung. You didn't dare to say anything else, afraid you'd have to hear more of his hurtful words. So, you just nodded slowly before you turned around and walked away.

Daryl watched you until you disappeared from his sight before he continued walking as well, doing what he wanted to do before you had walked up to him. Hunt. He'd almost say he regretted the words he had said but he didn't allow himself to think about you too much - he'd be gone soon anyway.

You took a moment to process the conversation - if you could even call it a conversation - and calmed yourself down, taking a deep breath and closing your eyes for a second. It was clear to you that you and Daryl definitely wouldn't become friends.

An 'oof' left your mouth when you bumped into something hard and you looked up to see a young man - probably only a few years older than you - looking down at you, an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm sorry," he exclaimed, holding you by your arms to keep you stable.

You shook your head and smiled gently at him, "It's okay, wasn't looking," you lowered your head in slight embarrassment.

The young man smiled as well and nodded softly, "Okay," he looked around and seemed to remember something because his eyebrows shot up and he opened his mouth to say something, "Me and a few others are going on a run to get - you know - supplies," you nodded in understanding as he continued to speak, "So I'm asking around to see if anyone needs anything in particular."

You held up your hands while you shook your head again, "Oh, no, I don't need anything. But, thank you-" you paused mid sentence as you realised you didn't even know his name.

"Glenn," he finished with a short nod, "Okay, gotta go, we're leaving soon," he was already starting to walk away as the words left his mouth, lifting an arm to wave at you.

You hummed and continued walking as well, trying to find a quiet place to have some alone time. You wanted to be by yourself for a bit and just think about the whole situation - become clear about your feelings.

You found a small lake, which was at the back of the camp. Walking a bit closer to the shining water, you sat down, pulling your knees up to your chest and crossing your arms over your legs. You rested your chin on your knees as you looked at the blue waves - the slight wind making them move softly.

You liked it here - at least, you thought you did. It's kind of weird - if that's the right word - to be with a group full of strangers. You felt like an outsider among them 'cause they all seemed to be so close and you just couldn't imagine fitting in. Not now, not ever. You had always been a person without many friends or people you actually cared about, so you weren't used to having that many people around you. But most of them were being really nice to you despite their clear distrust. You were hoping you'd feel more comfortable over the time - after all, you had only been there for a day.

You stayed there for a little while longer before you stood up, ready to go back to the others and help them with their daily chores. Most of them were busy already. Dale was trying to fix up his old RV - the hose seemingly making a problem - while Carol was sitting with her daughter, reading something. Lori and another woman, who's name you didn't know, were doing the laundry and you thought helping them would be the best option. You walked over to them, smiling almost shyly as you started picking up the clothes.

You managed to hang up a few pieces before a crackling noise got your attention and it seemed like it got Lori's as well because she dropped the piece she just started to pick up and jogged over to Dale, who was holding a walkie-talkie. You followed her, stopping next to a girl with blond hair as all of you waited for Dale's next move.

There was a voice coming though the little speaker and the old man listened for a few seconds, trying to understand what was being said before he spoke, "Hello? Reception's bad on this end. Repeat, repeat."

It was silent for a moment before the voice sounded again, "Shane, is that you? We're in some deep shit."

Dale held up one finger to silence Lori when she started to ask questions as the voice on the other end came through once more, "We're trapped in the department store."

The group was starting to get nervous now, everybody oviously tensing up as they realised their people were in danger. Shane was rubbing the back of his neck, staring at Dale, "He say they're trapp-"

He didn't even get to finish as the walkie-talkie made a crackling sound and the situation got further explained, "Geeks all over the place," the voice said more but it was barely audible, the crackling way too loud.

You were confused at the word 'geeks' but you quickly realised he meant the 'rotten people'. Dale tried to get a few more answers but at this point, he couldn't hear the person - called T-Dog - at all. The others started to discuss wether they should or shouldn't go after them and you just stood there, looking around almost helplessly as the group got louder, looking angrily at each other.

Amy, the girl who had been standing next to you for the past few minutes, was arguing with Shane, "She volunteered to go," she looked him up and dowm, "To help the rest of us."

He nodded, "I know," he lowered his head and looked at the ground before meeting her eyes again, "And she knew the risks, right?"

Amy stared at him in disbelief, cleary not understanding how he could be like that. You weren't even sure who they were talking about but you were, too, shocked about the fact that he was ready to leave the rest of them behind. People who wanted to help - people who put their lives in danger so the group would be able to survive.

"See, if she's trapped, she's gone. So, we just have to deal with that. There's nothing we can do," he continued talking, now looking at you for a split second, who was still standing next to Amy, then trailing is eyes to the ground for a second time.

"She's my sister, you son of a bitch," she practically spat at him before she ran away, surely wanting to be alone. And you could understand her. The worry she must've felt in that moment - it reminded you of the time when you were waiting for your mother to return. You could only hope that their story wouldn't be over yet.

And as if mother nature understood the current mood and situation, it suddenly started thundering with rain following close behind. Lori decided to follow Amy, giving Shane a long look before walking away.

The group split up afterwards, everybody doing their own thing as to dirstract themselves from their feelings. While Carol cutted Carl's hair and Shane cleaned his gun, you helped a man named Jim hanging up a line, cans attached to it. It was supposed to alarm the group if 'geeks' - as they called them - made it up the hill.

You were busy for quite a while. Everything was going good and you thought Jim was pretty good company. You were talking to him when everybody's ears perked as a loud siren like sound pierced the air. Dale immediately took his flield glasses to see what was causing the noise as the rest slowly walked over to him.

"What is it? Is it them?," Amy asked, in hopes of getting her sister back. And you, too, hoped it was them just so everybody would be able to reunite with their loved one's.

"A stolen car is my guess," Dale answered, following the car with his eyes as it drove up the hill, parking right next to his RV. Carl covered his ears when the loud beeping sound became too much for him.

Shane and Amy almost sprinted towards the car when the door opened and Glenn stepped out, suprisingly wearing a wide grin on his face.

"Holy crap, turn that damn thing off," Dale exclaimed, pointing his finger at the korean man. But he didn't even get a chance to as Amy started pestering him with questions about her sister, "Is she okay? Is she all right?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah," he held up his hands as Shane forced him to sit in the car again in order to pop the hood. Jim made the sound stop as Amy continued to ask about her sister, "Where is she? Why isn't she with you?"

"She's fine. Everybody is," Glenn smiled and that seemed to shut the blond girl up, nodding her head slowly. You walked over to her and rubbed her am in a comforting way, which made her give you a small smile - a silent thank you. Glenn apologised for the loud noise just before a big Truck approached.

Amy freed herself from your grasp when she saw another blond girl stepping out - you assmued her sister - and ran towards her, giving her a big hug, both of them laughing in happiness.

Everybody started to hug each other and you had to admit you felt a little left out, you weren't close enough to them to hug anybody. So you looked down, trying to make yourself somewhat inivisble - not that it was hard. Glenn seemed to notice you anyway and thought it wouldn't hurt to see you smile as well. So, he made his way over to you and wrapped you into his big arms, catching you of guard for a second before you returned the hug.

You pulled away after a moment, looking at him with a small grin, "I'm glad you're okay."

He nodded softly, "Yeah, me too."

He turned to Shane when he asked the young man how they even managed to get out on their own, "The new guy. He got us out."

Just then, another figure stepped out of the truck, putting his hands on his hips as he made small steps into the camp. He was wearing a police uniform but it looked dirty and used, showing his fight to survive on the oustide.

You jumped a little when Carl started running towards the man, screaming in happiness, "Dad!" The older man engulfed the child in his arms, hugging him tight to his body. Lori was following close behind, looking at the man in pure shock before she wrapped her arms around the both of them.

You were happy for them - all of them - you just wished you could've had the same luck with your mother.

Later that night, when everything was dark already, your group was sitting in a circle, Rick telling his story. And it amazed you, gave you hope, knowing that even in a shitty situation like this, good things can happen.

After some time, Dale turned his head into Shane's direction, "Have you given any thought to Daryl Dixon?" he took a sip of his drink, "He won't be happy to hear his brother was left behind."

Shane shook his head, folding his hands above his knees. And you were a little shocked since you didn't even think about Daryl having a family here. Then again; it'd explain the man you saw him with this morning.

They started dicussing who would be the one to tell Daryl about Merle's fate, T-Dog volunteering first and then Rick. In the end, they decided Rick should do it 'cause they were scared the situation would get worse if a black guy told Daryl about it. You didn’t think it’d make a difference, but it’s not like anybody would care about your opinion.

"I stopped long enough to chain the door," T-Dog said, his head lowering in guilt of leaving a man behind, "Staircase is narrow. Maybe half a dozen geeks can squezze against it at once. Not enough to break it," he paused for a moment, looking at everyone, "Dixon's alive and he's still up there, handcuffed on that roof."

He stood up and left after that, going into his tent to call it a night and leaving the rest of the group.

"I'm gonna go sleep, too," you spoke, standing up, stretching your legs and arms, and yawning loudly. The others smiled a bit and said their good night's to you.

You laid in your tent that night, staring at the 'ceiling' and thinking about the day. It was okay - better than the days before - and you actually felt like you could be happy if you got used to this place - to the people living there. You were scared of being happy here because that would mean you accepted the fact that you'd lost your home and your mother. It would mean you're letting go of the past. But you tried to tell yourself that it's okay to miss someone, that it's okay to let go, that the hurt will fade, that it's okay to move on. You tried.

Chapter 3

Tag list:

@hotgirlsshareaccounts @tiedyedghoulette @alialiclouds

#the walking dead #the walking dead daryl #daryl dixon #daryl dixon x female reader #daryl dixon x you #daryl dixon x reader #daryl dixon smut #daryl dixon fanfiction #daryl dixon twd #rick grimes #lori grimes #carl grimes #shane walsh #daryl x y/n #daryl x you #maggie rhee #glenn rhee #negan smith #michonne grimes

158 notes · View notes

softestnatalie · 8 months

Text

Abandoned corridors of the heart

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x female!reader

Timing: Season 1

Summary: You were on your own when the apocalypse started, not having much family or friends. That, however, changed when you met a grumpy redneck in the woods. In desperate need for help and a group, you chose to trust him just the slightest bit. You didn't expect him to change your life the way he did.

Warnings: large age gap, mild language, swear words, daryl being an ass, violence, blood and gore, character death, sexual content, just basic TWD stuff, topics like sexual assault and self harm

Autor's note: Hi! This is my first The Walking Dead fanfiction. It will start in season 1 and end in season 11 so this chapter will play in the first episode of TWD. Of course I will put in my own plot as well. The female character is supposed to be the reader, not an original character, so I won't describe her looks and you can imagine her however you want. She does have a backstory tho. The warnings above are for the story in general but I will try to put warnings for each chapter. That being said; have fun reading babes! <3

Chapter 1: The home you lost

You didn't know how it started or when exactly it started, but you knew it was spreading quickly. They were talking about the unknown illness on TV, playing it on the radio, warning as many people as they could. That's how you first heard about it - the terrifying sickness - you just didn't take it as seriously as you should have. You were living with your mother to that time - only being 19 - so you told her about it in hopes she would ease the little worry you were feeling.

She didn't - couldn't. You remember the look on her face when you told her - the slight widening of her eyes, the raise of her eyebrows, and the way her mouth parted the smallest bit in shock - and you knew she wouldn't be able to comfort you even if she wanted to because she was even more worried than you.

It was only a few hours later when you saw a weird figure on the street while you were walking home. It made you squint your eyes in order to see the walking sillouette a bit better, not that it helped in any way. You realised quickly that it wasn't a person - not a living person at least because, really, no living person could look like that and it made you shiver nervously. The groaning was getting louder the closer that 'thing' got to you and only then did you decide to continue moving and get home as soon as possible. You were lucky that day.

You decided against telling your mother about the incident. Not only because you weren't able to process what you saw yourself, but because you didn't want to cause her any more fear than she already had, so you kept quiet.

Everything was still pretty much normal - people went to work, friends were being met, and places were being visited. A few things did change though. Everyone was being more careful when they were outside, almost like they had a third eye on the back of their head. What scared you a little more were the people walking through your city - definitely too many to count and the masses only got bigger as days passed. Some of them were covered in blood while others were completely clean. It was clear to you why these people left their home and what their goal was and it made you question how long it would take until you would be one of them, deperately looking for a new home.

You and your mother decided to stay at home from that point on because it was simply too dangerous to step a foot outside. Both of you called in sick for work, making sure you wouldn't have any problems when all of this was over. It only took a few days until stores and businesses had to shut down or were run over by 'them'. Things got even worse when your food was starting to run out, barely getting you through these few days, and your mother offered to go out and get more from a nearby grocery store, but you declined. The last thing you wanted was your mother getting hurt.

Only another two days later did you change your mind. The food was officially out and you had to rationate the little bit of water that you had left. You knew someone had to go out and get supplies in order for you to survive. Your mother shook her head almost angrily when you asked her if you should accompany her on her way, telling you it was important for you to stay as safe as possible and that she would never allow you to put yourself in that kind of danger. A mother is supposed to protect her child.

So you waited inside your shared apartment, biting your nails in nervousness - a habit you just couldn't seem to overcome. You glanced at the old clock hanging on your wall - 5 minutes had passed. Under normal circumstances she would only need half an hour to come back with what you needed but given the current situation she would definitely need longer. That's why you weren't suspisious when your mother wasn't back after an hour had passed. But when the two hour mark was reached and there was sill no knock on your door, you felt your fingers twitch nervously.

You thought for a moment, not knowing what to do. But you knew rather quickly that you should go and look for her. So you put on your shoes and a jacket, grabbing the keys for your house before shutting the door behind you. Your heart was starting to beat quickier the more steps you took. It was your first time going outside since all of this - whatever 'this' was - started and only now could you see what kind of impact it had on your city; whole buildings were destroyed, the otherwise busy streets were empty - not a single moving car - and where couples and families were once walking together was now an empty sidewalk.

The only noises being heard were the wind blowing softly around you and disgusting groans in the distance. You kept your pace steady and fast as you looked for your parent but you quickly lost all the hope you had when you reached the little shop and there still wasn't a single sign of your mother. You opened the glass doors slowly, carfully stepping inside and your mouth opened in shock at the condition the shop was in. Shelves were pushed to the ground and almost all of them were empty.

You called the name of your mother softly but when you didn't get an answer and the store remained silent, your shoulders dropped in disappointment. You decided to take a few of the suppplies with you before you left the store again. 2 bottles of water - not much but enough for a few days - and a few packs of sliced bread. It was all you could carry since you didn't take a bag with you.

Your heart made a big jump inside your chest and a little squeal left your lips when you saw a head between two fallen shelves. It was rotten and somehow a light shade of gray, it's teeth yellow. You would have covered your nose if your hands wouldn't have been holding the things you needed to live because the smell was just so disgusting, leaving a bitter taste in your mouth.

It was time to go back, you decided. You looked around once more before you turned around and pushed trough the doors, leaving the body behind. You kept your eyes open on your way home, hoping you would catch a sight of your mother - without success. Still, you were trying to think positive; maybe she would already be home by now, waiting and worrying for you.

You were wrong. The house was empty and the only thing that had been waiting for you was silence. A deep breath left your mouth as you walked into your kitchen, not even bothering to take off your shoes, and put down the food and water. You lowered your head, putting your hands on the kitchen counter for stability. You felt alone - so utterly alone - and you missed your parent more than words could describe. Guilt was bubbling up inside you because you let her leave. You should have gone with her, helped her.

Only when you opened your eyes again did you realise you were crying, soft tears running down your face and making your head ache. Another shaky breath left you as you sat down on your couch. You left the front door unlocked because there was still a chance of your mother coming back and you wanted her to be able to get inside at any time of the day. The chance was slim but it was there.

It was slowly starting to get dark outside when you got up to eat some of the bread you found, taking the water with you as you sat on the couch again. You thought it would be the best to stay on the couch for the night since it was close to the front door and you wanted to be here if your mother came back and you knew you wouldn't be able to get any sleep anyway.

That's what you did for the next few days. Eat, wait on the couch, sleep for a few hours, and wait again. But she didn't come back and at this point you started to understand that it would probably stay that way - that you wouldn't get to see her again - and it made you cry harder than you thought was possible. Still, you didn't dare to lock the door because maybe, just maybe, she would come one day.

Things were going okay until you woke up one night with noises coming from your door. It was dark outside and your clock proved that it was way past midnight. Your were frozen for a moment but you moved quickly when the door opened, a smile forming on your lips. It faded as quickly as it came when you realised that whoever was in your house definitely wasn't your mother. And before you could think of what to do, the figure was standing right in front of you, a clicking sound filling the air before he pointed something at you. It was too dark to recognize it but you could imagine what it was.

"Stop," the voice spoke and you were pretty sure it was a male talking to you. You didn't dare to say anything in fear of saying the wrong thing. "Don't move," he spoke again.

It was quiet for a few moments before you heard his voice once again, "Do you have food?" He asked you in a rather harsh tone. You nodded your head as slow as possible, lifting your hand and pointing in the direction of your kitchen, "Just bread," you whispered, "You can take it - you can take it all - just leave again, please."

The man started walking backwards in small, heavy steps but still kept the gun pointed at you. He grabbed a pack of sliced bread and looked at it before he put it down again and chuckled quietly, "Oh, baby, this is my home now. Feels safe enough here."

He shushed you when you started to talk, pleading for him to just leave you alone. "You can choose how you want this to end," he walked closer again, stepping right in front of you and pressing the cold end of the pistol against your forehead. "Option one: you're gonna put on your shoes and walk straight out that door," he nodded is head into the directon of your front door, "You won't come back and everything will be fine. No one has to get hurt."

You winced slightly when he pressed the gun even harder against you and you shook your head silently. You didn't want to leave - you had nowhere else to go and you would never survive out there - especially on your own.

"Option two: you will refuse to leave and well," his voice got quieter towards the end and he trailed the gun down the side of your face, "There won't be enough space for the both of us."

You sayed still as you thought about his words and you felt the need to cry again because you knew that either option would mean your death. That man would kill you if you decided against going and if you decided to go and try your luck out there, you would probably die within the first day. Staying inside your home - which held some of your most important memories - would be the easier death. Definitely less painful.

Still, you went to put on your shoes in slow steps, signaling the man before you that you wouldn't do anything stupid and were planning on leaving. Why did you think option one was the better one? Because it gave you hope and at least the smallest bit of a chance to survive.

The intruder chuckled again, "Good choice."

Your shaking hands made you fumble with your shoelaces before you walked towards the still open door, giving the person one last look before leaving the house you've been living in for the past 19 years behind. As soon as you could hear him close the door you let your tears fall, allowing yourself to be weak for the millionth time this week because how could everything go so wrong so damn quickly.

You didn't know where to go or what to do because you didn't even get the chance to take a bag or anything similar with you. You were alone - lost the only person you were still close with and now even your home. It made your heart squeeze painfully in your chest and you just wished it would end - wished that your life how it was just a few weeks ago would return.

The first place you visited was the shop from a few days ago in hopes of finding food once again. You weren't so lucky this time - the shop was completely empty, not even a single pack of anything left. So you went to a few other shops but the only thing you could catch at the end of the day was one can of coke. Obviously, other people were just as desperate and needed food and water just as much as you did.

A few days later you found yourself in the woods a few miles away from your home town and you were honestly suprised you were still alive. You hadn't eaten since you got kicked out of your own house and the coke ran out after a few nights. The weather was good for the most part but the nights were really cold and not having a jacket with you wasn't making it easier.

Luckily for you, you didn't really have many enounters with those 'rotten people'. You saw a few but you always managed to hide successfully before they could cause you any harm. You wouldn't have known how to defend yourself if one of them would've attacked you - you wouldn't have known what to do. You didn't know a lot about them in general. You knew they were spreading the illness by biting still living people but other than that you were completely clueless.

Your clothes were drenched in dirt just as well as your exposed skin and not having any way to shower just made you feel worse about the whole situation. A few cuts were decorating your left arm caused by your stupidity when you tripped over your own feet and scratched your arm against a tree when you tried to catch yourself.

Your feet were screaming in pain after hours of walking and looking for something - anything. A place to stay, something edible or something to drink or maybe even your mother. By now, you were sure she was dead - or one of the 'walking deads' - and you slowly started to come to terms with it. Still, the uncertainty was killing you. You needed to see her - needed to say goodbye to the person who had raised you for the past 19 years.

You decided to take a break and took a seat at a nearby tree, leaning your back against the hard surface when you felt like your feet wouldn't carry you for much longer. You leaned your head back in exhaustion, letting yourself relax for at least a few minutes. God, how you wished to be home in your bed right now, your mother sitting in the living room and watching her typical shows. You missed those times. So much.

Thinking about your mother was always hard. Losing her was the biggest loss you ever had to face in your life. She was always a very loving and caring person and you were so incredibly thankful for the good life she was able to give to you. Not having a father figure made you both grow really close, making her not just your mother but also your best friend.

It was truly-

Your thoughts got interrupted when you heard a loud grunt echoing through the woods and your first reflex was to jump up from the sitting position you were in and look around you in quick motions. You couldn't see anything near you - no danger or somthing that could cause you any harm. You were about to continue walking when you heard yet another grunt.

You pondered for a moment before you decided to walk into the direction the noises were coming from. You had no idea why you did what you did but something inside you told you it was the right thing. You picked up a stick from the ground just in case you had to defend yourself.

It only took you a few seconds to find the source of the noises and your mouth opened in pure shock as you watched to scene in front of you. Right there, on the ground in a forest, was a man lying on his back with his arms high above him, trying to hold a dead person away from him. Its head was dangerously close to the strangers face, its teeth making a loud sound as it tried to take a bite.

You were frozen for a moment, not knowing what exactly you should do - not that there was much you could do. You were weakened because of the days you had to get thorugh without having any food. You thought about turning around and hide once again but you quickly decided against it. Instead, you thightened the grip you had on the stick in your hand because you had to at least try and help the man.

So you took all the braveness you had left inside of you together and moved as fast as you possibly could, raising your arm and smacking the stick against the creatures head with force. Your hit forced the dead person to let go of the man and roll over the tiniest bit. It wasn't much but it was enough for the man to get back on his feet and grab the crossbow - which was leaning against a tree a few meters away - and pointed it at the creature. One of his arrows pierced through its head right when it started to walk into your direction.

You winced slightly in fear and shock, staring at the body that was lying right in front of your feet, blood oozing out of the wound. Your hands were shaking as both, you and the man, were breathing heavily. Swallowing once, you slowly raised your eyes to look at the man you just saved and your heart started beating even more wildly when you saw that the crossbow was now directed at you.

"Drop it," the man spoke and the gruffness his voice was holding sent a shiver down your spine. You were confused for a second until you realised that he was talking about your stick. You found it quite weird - funny almost - how he seemed to feel threatened by a simple stick while he was holding a damn crossbow. Still, you had no wish to die so you dropped the stick slowly, letting it fall to the ground with a quiet thump.

It was quiet between the both of you and only after a minute of silence did you decide to speak to him, "I don't mean any harm."

He didn't answer but his eyes stayed on you, studying you for a few more seconds before he finally decided to lower his weapon as he seemed to realise that you had saved him and that you definitely weren't armed besides that pathetic little stick. He looked around in hopes of seeing the squirrel he had been hunting but when he didn't, he turned around and started walking away.

Your body reacted before your mind could even catch up as you took a few quick and fast steps after him, "Wait- wait a second." And once again you didn't know why you did it but you hadn't had a conversation with another living person in days and it made you desperate. You didn't want him to go - didn't want to be all alone again, just waiting for one of those things to catch you.

He stopped abruptly and turned around in one swift movement. The words seemed to die in your throat at the look he gave you. His eyes were glaring at you and they seemed so distant - almost cold - and they were intimidating you to no beyond.

"Ya gonna talk or what?"

His southern accent was thick and filled your ears, causing you to stay silent for a few more seconds, just staring at him before you finally found your voice again, "Sorry I-," you paused for a moment beacuse you didn't even know what exactly you wanted to say to him, you just knew that you didn't want him to leave you alone, "Where are you going?"

He furrowed his eyebrows into an even harder glare and let out a small scoff as if he couldn't believe that you had actually asked him such a thing. It made you shrink back even more, rocking on your feet in nervousness.

"None of yer damn business," he grumbled quietly and you honestly didn't know what you expected since it only made sense that he wouldn't tell a complete stranger anything about himself. Still, you didn't give up and once he turned around and started walking once again, you spoke up for a third time.

"Please, don't leave me here," you felt ridiculous begging him like that but he was the only chance you had. It had been days since you last saw a living person - another human being - and you just weren't ready to let go of the situation beacuse who knew when you were going to meet somebody else - if you would meet somebody else, "It has been days since I've last eaten or had something to drink. If you have a safe place to stay, please, take me with you."

He looked at you again and was suprised to see tears forming in your eyes. He continued walking as a another scoff left his lips, "Ya don' really think I'd take a stranger with me, do ya?"

His quiestion made you shrug to which he gave you a side glance, "Please," was all you could say even though you knew that it probably wouldn't do much to convince him but you still tried because, what else were you supposed to do?

Your pleading made him think about it more than he would have liked because as much as he didn't want to admit it, he woul've been dead if you wouldn't have saved him and you actually didn't seem that bad. He wasn't sure if he was even allowed to bring people back to the camp since he and his brother were pretty new there as well and big, mighty Shane was the 'leader' - at least that's what he liked to call himself - making all the decisions. He had to roll his eyes at the mere thought of that guy.

Then again, he really didn't care about Shane's opinions since he and his brother would leave them soon anyway. So whatever impact you could or would have on the group wouldn't be his problem. That's what convinced him.

He gave you one last look before he nodded, "If ya even think 'bout doin' somethin' stupid-"

He didn't have to finsish his sentence as you nodded your head, "I won't."

He gave you another nod before he continued walking and you took that as your clue to follow him. His steps were big and fast, making it quite hard for you to follow him. Other than your heavy breathing and loud steps, everything was quiet, giving you time to actually think about your current situation. The realisation that you wouldn't be alone anymore almost brought a smile to your face. Almost.

"So, what's your name?"

The man walking in front of you looked behind him at the sound of your voice, an annyoed expression forming on his face, almost making you feel bad for speaking up.

"Daryl," he answered eventually, his voice only a quiet grumble. You nodded and waited for him to ask about you but when he didn't, you told him your name on your own accord.

"I'm (y/n)," your voice was almost as quiet as a whisper and when he didn't show any reaction at all, you thought that he didn't hear you but he did nod eventually. You quickly understood that he was a man of very few words or maybe it was just because it was you. Either way, the walk was quiet and neither of you said another word.

It took about an hour until you finally reached a bigger group of people. You were walking up a small hill before you stopped in your tracks at the amount of humans in front of you. 14 - you could count 14 faces - 15 with Daryl and 16 with you. It took you a moment to get out of the trance you were in because you really didn't expect to ever see such a large group of living people again.

Your eyes widened when you saw a man walking towards you and Daryl in fast steps and by the look on his face, you could only assume he wasn't happy.

"What the fuck?" the man raised his voice, shaking his head in disbelief as he eyed you before he looked at Daryl, "What the fuck is this?"

Daryl shook his head in annoyance and rolled his eyes at the man because, really, who did he think he was? He walked past Shane as a scowl formed on his lips, "Found 'er in the woods," was all he answered with a small shrug of his shoulders.

You felt incredibly out of place as you watched to two men arguing with each other and the lingering looks of the rest of the group made you feel even worse. They were looking at you as if you were some kind of enemy - an outsider - and you knew that nobody really wanted you here. So you lowered your head until all you could see was the dirty ground - the only escape you had.

How could you bring her with you?

She's a stranger!

You're putting us all in danger!

The male voices got louder and if the world wouldn't have been so fucked up, you would've turned around and left as fast as your feet could've carried you. You lifted your head in shock when you felt someone standing in front of you, hiding the sun from you.

"Make yourself useful if you wanna stay here," the man spoke harshly, staring you down, "And don't even try anything stupid, understood?"

Your mouth opened and closed a few times as you tried to find your words but after a few seconds of silence you simply nodded instead of saying something.

He nodded as well and placed one and on his hip, lifting the other to point into the direction of a few women, "Go and help them do the laundry."

You would have given him a piece of your mind if you weren't so damn desperate for a place to stay, so instead of telling him how disrespecful he was being and that you were far more useful, you gave him a slight smile and nodded once again before walking away. You could feel their eyes burning holes into your body as your feet carried you to the pair of women.

You waved softly and murmured a quiet 'hey' as you reached them. They stared at you with a look you couldn't fully describe but you would say it was something between fear and uncertainty before one of them spoke up.

"I'm Carol," the woman spoke while she looked anywhere but your eyes and you thought that she seemed just as shy as you, which kinda comforted you. She had really short hair, most of it being gray already, her eyes blue, and her very thin lips were formed into a very slim smile.

"Lori," the other woman said with a small nod. She was beautiful. Long, wavy, brown hair that matched the color of her eyes and her lips were also formed into a smile.

The fact that they were being nice and pretty much friendly to you eased your discomfort a little more, so you let your own smile play on your lips, "(y/n)."

You walked closer until you were standing next to Carol and you decided to follow the mans instructions, copying the womens actions and hanging the soaked pieces of cloth on the clothes line. It almost felt good because it gave you a sense of the life you had been living just a few weeks ago. The three of you made slight conversation - basic smalltalk, them mostly trying to get to know you a little bit better - and before you knew it, the work was done - the laundry basket empty.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" you asked the two women you were hoping would become your friends soon but before one of them could answer your quiestion, there was a much deeper voice sounding from behind you.

"Hey there," you turned around and were greeted by a man looking at you with kind eyes. He was pretty old you would guess, his beard and hair painted gray and white, "I'm Dale," he offered you his hand to shake, which you accepted a bit hesitantly, "Thought I'd give you a tent so you have a place to sleep in. You're lucky, I had a spare one in the back of my RV," he gave you a bag that he had been holding in his other hand.

The smile that showed on your lips was the most genuine one in a long time, your tensed shoulders relaxing at the kindness he was showing you, "Thank you, Dale." He grinned before walking away again, leaving you with Carol and Lori.

"Go and set it up," Lori said, "We're going to cook in the mean time."

You didn't argue much, they managed to do it without you before so they'll definetily manage now. With a nod you searched for an empty spot and quickly found one. It took you a while until you were finally finished, it being harder than you thought it would be. It was pretty dark by the time you were done and when you looked around you could see the group starting to eat.

You opened the zipper of your tent, sitting down softly and watching them from afar. After all it wasn't your food to eat and you didn't feel like you had a right to sit with them as if you were one of them. You were sure most of them still didn't like nor trust you. Carol walked by after a few minutes, holding a bowl of something to eat and stopping once she saw you alone, "You don't wanna sit with us?"

You shrugged, "I just- I don't wanna intrude."

She scoffed a bit, it almost sounded like a chuckle, "You're not. Come on, I'm sure you're hungry."

She was right, you really were hungry and as if your stomach heard Carol as well, it decided to grumble right in that moment. You blushed a bit when her smile widened but stood up and nodded with an 'okay'. You followed her as she brought you to the rest of the group and once again their eyes were on you - some kind, others not so kind - but you tried to ignore it as best as you could as Carol gave you a bowl of food. Your eyes locked with Daryl's for a second but the glare he gave you made you look away only a second later.

And you actually felt quite okay because even though you had lost a home, you felt like you just found a home.

Chapter 2

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