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alyssaforevermore · 4 months

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Unearthed ↦ Daryl Dixon season one, part seven

Synopsis: Based on the events of The Walking Dead television series, Y/N Grimes, younger sister of Rick Grimes, attempts to survive in a world now inhabited by walkers. Family has always meant everything to her, but in this new world, can she keep her family safe and together?

Show: The Walking Dead (S1-S11)

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x fem!Reader

Warnings: coarse language, violence, character deaths, drug and alcohol references, series spoilers and general The Walking Dead content warnings!

TW FOR SA AT THE END OF THIS CHAPTER!! This specific scene will be following material from the show and I tried to avoid details, but please take care of yourself and skip that final bit if needed.

Tags: @1ivinqdeadqir1 @callmeyn @thegeorgiahuntsman @mellxander1993 @bigbaldheadname @cjmonsterwolf @abbi23323 @actuallyklee @lanxsee @livingdeadblondequeen @sweetz1919 @moonmark98 @sarahbaker2010

Masterlist

“Daryl, cover the back!” Shane commanded. “Everyone inside, now.”

You all pushed through the doors, entering a main lobby that was completely empty.

“Hello?” Rick called out, the sound of a gun cocking caught your attention.

An older man stood in the doorway, rifle in hand. “Anybody infected?”

“One of our group was. He didn’t make it.” Rick confessed.

“Why are you here?” The man asked. “What do you want?”

“A chance.”

“That's asking an awful lot these days.”

Rick nodded, shifting his feet. “I know.”

The man looked everyone over for a moment, letting out a sigh. “You all submit to a blood test. That’s the price of admission.”

Rick nodded. “We can do that.”

The man lowered his gun. “If you’ve got stuff to bring in, do it now. Once this door closes it stays closed.”

Already having all you needed, you followed the man towards an elevator. He swiped his access card and it opened, him ushering you all in ahead of him.

“VI, seal the main entrance. Kill the power up here.”

He pressed a button, the elevator kicking into gear with a small beep.

Rick held out his hand. “Rick Grimes.”

The man looked down at Rick’s hand before looking away. “Dr. Edwin Jenner.”

“Doctors always go around packing heat like that?” Daryl asked.

“There were plenty left lying around. I familiarized myself, but you all look harmless enough.” Dr. Jenner spoke, before looking down at Carl. “Except for you, I’ll have to keep an eye on you.”

Carl smiled, looking up at his mother.

The elevator came to a stop, the doors slowly creeping open. Dr. Jenner stepped off and you all followed close behind.

“Are we underground?” Carol asked.

Dr. Jenner looked at her. “Are you claustrophobic?”

She nodded. “A little bit.”

“Try not to think about it.” He responded, his tone cold.

You all came to a large dark room, Dr. Jenner asked “VI” to power on the lights. Then, he turned to you all.

“Welcome to Zone Five.”

You looked around the room. “Where is everybody? The other doctors, the staff?”

“It’s just me here.”

“What about the person you were speaking with? VI?” Lori asked.

Dr. Jenner smiled. “VI, say hello to our guests. Tell them ‘welcome’.”

“Hello guests. Welcome.”

His face fell as he looked back at your group. “I’m all that’s left. I’m sorry.”

You didn’t want to push right away, but you couldn’t help but wonder where everyone else had gone. Did they leave? Did they die and turn? Was this place as safe as you’d all thought?

Dr. Jenner began taking blood from each person in your group. The last up was Andrea.

“What’s the point of this?” She asked. “If we were infected, we’d all be running a fever.”

“I’ve already broken every rule in the book by letting you in here.” Dr. Jenner responded. “At least let me be thorough.”

Andrea nodded. “Fair enough.”

When Dr. Jenner was finished taking her blood, Andrea stood up, her knees immediately giving out. You caught her before she could fall, Andrea slowly regaining her senses.

“Are you okay?” Jacqui asked.

Andrea nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

Jacqui turned to Dr. Jenner. “She hasn’t eaten in days. None of us have.”

Looking between the members of your group, Dr. Jenner gave you a soft smile. “I think we can fix that.”

…

You sat at a large dining table with your group, laughing as your nephew took his first sip of wine. The boy recoiled, sticking out his tongue as he handed the glass to his mother.

“That’s disgusting.”

Lori smiled, pouring the wine into her own glass. “That’s my boy.”

“Well, just stick to soda pop there, bud.” Shane smiled.

Daryl pointed across the table. “Not you, Glenn.”

“What?”

“Keep drinking, little man. I want to see how red your face can get.”

Everyone continued to laugh and enjoy their first real meal in months. You couldn’t help but soak in the looks on their faces; you had begun to feel as though this kind of joy was impossible now.

Rick stood up, tapping his fork against his glass. “It seems to me we haven't thanked our host properly.”

“He’s more than just our host.” T-Dog gleamed.

Daryl held his glass in the air. “Here’s to you, Doc, booyah!”

You held out your glass for a moment, slowly bringing it back towards your lips and taking a sip. Across the table, you noticed Shane, his brows furrowed as he was slumped in his seat.

Shane cleared his throat, sitting up straight. “So when are you gonna tell us what the Hell happened here, Doc? All the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?”

“Is this really the time for that?” You asked. “Can’t we just enjoy this moment?”

“Whoa, wait a second. This is why we’re here, right? This was Rick’s move—supposed to find all the answers.” Shane responded. “Instead we found him. Found one man, why?”

“Well, when things got bad, a lot of people just left,” Dr. Jenner explained. “Went off to be with their families. And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted.”

“Every last one?”

“No, many couldn’t face walking out the door. They opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time.”

“You didn’t leave.” Andrea whispered. “Why?”

“I just kept working, hoping to do some good.”

The room fell silent for what felt like forever, everyone taking in his words. If the members of the CDC had given up so soon, how were any of them to believe there was any hope?

“Dude,” Glenn spoke. “You are such a buzzkill.”

The rest of your meal was mostly spent in silence. Dr. Jenner then showed you to the dorms, everyone piling into their own rooms. He’d mentioned hot water, and you absolutely could not wait to have a shower.

You placed your bag on the bed, unzipping it and removing a hair brush. That was one of the things you’d kept close since the world ended. You could still remember your mother brushing your hair after each bath when you were a little girl, a small comfort that meant the world to you, especially now.

Grabbing a change of clothes, you headed into the small bathroom of your dorm.

…

Later that evening, you decided to leave your dorm, wanting to visit the rec room. You hoped there might be some good books there; it had been weeks since you’d finished the last one you’d managed to bring with you to the quarry.

You exited the room, your body instantly colliding with someone else's.

“Shit,” You mumbled, looking up. “I’m sorry.”

Daryl eyed you, opening his mouth to speak. He quickly closed it, taking a moment before finally deciding to respond. “It’s fine.”

“Is everyone else asleep already?”

He shrugged. “I haven’t seen anyone.”

You looked down, noticing a bottle of wine in his hands. He seemed to notice, letting out a sigh as he handed you the bottle.

“Thank you.” You smiled, taking a sip.

Daryl shifted his feet, his eyes locked on the floor. “What do you think about all this?”

You raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Everyone abandoned this place.” Daryl spoke. “What does that tell you?”

“It tells me that he’s no closer to finding a cure than they were when the world went to shit.” You sighed, taking another sip before passing Daryl back the bottle. “Look, I’m thankful we have a place to sleep tonight, but I really don’t think we’re gonna get the answers we came here for.”

“You think we should’ve followed Shane’s plan?”

This question took you aback and you weren’t entirely sure how to answer it. In your head you felt this was a dead end, but you knew you’d have gone wherever Rick had wanted to go.

“I think it’s still an option.” You shrugged. “Sure, we’re low on gas but surely we can find some somewhere. Enough to get us all to Fort Benning. What do you think?”

Daryl looked confused. “What do I think?”

You nodded. “I mean, I know you probably still wonder where Merle could be. I know I would. If this place doesn’t work out how we wanted, would you come with us?”

There was a small silence between the two of you. “Maybe it’d be better if I didn’t.”

“Better for who?”

“In all this time I’ve been with this group, you’re the first person who’s asked where I stand.” Daryl confessed, taking a sip of the wine. “I think everyone would be better off if I just went to look for my brother.”

You couldn’t help but frown. “Like it or not, you’re one of us. You see things differently than we do, and sometimes, that’s a good thing. If you want to go, I won’t stop you, but I’d feel better if you stayed with us.”

A small smile crept across his face, though you could tell he was trying to hide it. “Even after this morning?”

“You saved my life last night.” You responded. “I get where you were coming from with Jim. I think we all do. Sometimes it’s just not so easy, you know?”

Daryl nodded, handing you back the bottle. “I’m gon’ head to bed.”

You nodded, watching him as he slowly disappeared down the hall. There was a calmness falling over you. For the first time since you’d met Daryl, you were beginning to believe there was some good he was hiding beneath the surface. As much as you felt awful for thinking it, maybe he was better off without Merle around?

The sound of a door slamming shut down the hall caught your attention. You knew it came from the direction of the rec room, so you slowly made your way over. When you placed your hand on the doorknob, you began to hear faint whispers.

“I love you.” Shane spoke.

“No, you’re drunk.” You froze, Lori’s voice catching you off guard.

“And I know there were some things that say that you love me, too. Because there’s no way that you could’ve been with me the way that you were.”

You could feel your heart shattering into a million pieces. How had you missed this all this time? When did this even start?

“Shane.” Lori spoke. “Shane!”

“Just, stop.” He continued. “You love me.”

“Get your hands off me.”

“I love you. There’s nobody here.”

“Stop it!”

With that, you swung the door open, just as Lori scratched Shane’s neck. He pulled away from her, taking a moment before looking behind him; right at you. The silence was deafening, a million different things running through each of your minds.

“I think you should go, Shane.” You finally choked out.

Shane looked back at Lori for a moment, taking a deep breath before pushing past you and out of the room.

Lori’s eyes locked on to yours, her eyes filled with tears as she searched for the words to say. She wasn’t sure how much you’d heard.

You looked back in the hallway, making sure Shane was out of sight before you closed the door. As you stepped towards Lori, she tensed up, trying her best to keep her eyes on you.

“Are you okay?” You whispered.

Lori stood there for a moment, letting her feelings sink in. “I-I think so.”

You nodded. “I’ll walk you back to your room.”

“Y/N-”

“Please, don’t.” You whispered. “We don’t have to talk about it right now.”

In that moment, Lori knew that you’d heard enough. As much as you wanted answers, your main focus was getting her safely back to her room.

----

AN: I didn't exactly plan to include that scene, but writing this chapter just slowly took me in that direction. It also sets up a lot for season two, including Reader's feelings about Shane and her internal conflict over if/how she should tell Rick. I won't get into spoilers with those plans, but you'll see later. The final chapter of season one should be out later this week. If you'd like to request to be tagged in future chapters, you can do so here. Please be sure to like and reblog <3

#daryl dixon; unearthed #twd #twd fanfiction #twd fanfic #daryl dixon #daryl dixon fanfiction #daryl dixon fanfic #daryl dixon x reader

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frangipanilove · 2 months

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Fighting Fire With Fire Part 2;

"The Duality Of Fire"

(read part one and part three here)

During the early stages of the outbreak, the military used napalm in an attempt to control the spread of the virus. Through flashbacks and through FTWD, we saw how Operation Cobalt completely failed to contain the virus, while simultanously contributing to the total breakdown of societal structures. Metropolitan areas on the North American continent were indiscriminately bombed, making no differentiation between the living residing there, and the undead. We also saw, for instance in Shane's flashback to when Rick was in the hospital, how federal forces went in and killed any remaining survivers.

This is the duality of fire. It can be used for total obliteration, but it can also facilitate new life, as we saw in TOWL 1x1 Days, when Rick told the story of how his father burned down the farm, and how it flourished the next year.

During Rick's echelon briefing, we see the duality of the "fire" symbolism illustrated. Both Rick and Major General Beale talk about how you sometimes "have to burn things down in order to bring things back":

Both recognize the tremendous power of the fire symbolism, but they use the metaphor differently. Where Rick is ultimately interested in a good outcome as in facilitating new life, thriving crops and a sustainable future, Beale is literally talking about burning down cities, along with the people living in them.

In flashbacks seen during Major General Beale's Echelon briefing, we witness how the military used napalm on Atlanta and LA.

Napalm is, simply put, a fire bomb made from petrochemocals.

Let's explore the "fire = fuel" angle for a minute.

The opening minutes of 1x1 was our first introduction to the visuals and the symbolism of the show. We see Rick arrive at a gas station in search of fuel.

He only finds death and destruction, meaning that since the very first seconds of the show, the literal opening scene, we see gas, gas stations and fossil fuel surrounded by death symbolism. And, when we later learn that the military bombed the cities and killed countless civilians using napalm, we realise they used a firebomb made from petrochemicals.

The symbolism around gas stations as temples of doom continues, such as in 4x4 Indifference:

This sign quite literally labels the gas station as "hell". The people residing there had committed suicide. Keep this in mind, I'll return to it shortly!

The term "fighting fire with fire" was originally used to describe a technique of forest management, specifically in regards to how to manage wildfires, in which controlled fires were ignited in the path of a wildfire as a preventative measure:

"Fighting fire with fire" as an expression has also often been used to describe vaccines, due to the way it was discovered that exposure to pathogens in some cases could trigger the immune system to produce antibodies against said pathogens, thus resulting in immunity:

When first we met the character Dr. Edwin Jenner at the CDC in TWD 1x5 Wildfire, his name was a reference to Dr. Edward Jenner, an English physician widely known as the “father of immunology”, due to his role in developing the world's first vaccine, against smallpox, in 1798.

It is not a strecth to say that this foreshadows a potential vaccine in TWDU. The virus is called wildfire. Vaccines are often said to be "fighting fire with fire". We learned about the wildfire virus from a character named after the guy who developed the world's first vaccine.

In TOWL 1x2 Gone, we see Michonne involved in a situation that sheds light on how the "fighting fire with fire" symbolism is utilized by TPTB. We see her trying to get through an enormous walker horde, it's a virtual ocean of death:

She tries to distract the walkers by shooting a small missile into the horde, which then explodes. Fighting fire with fire.

Eventually, Nat shows up and helps by adding more explosive fireballs, and the "ocean of death" parts to reveal a way forward.

Fighting fire with fire:

This also provides an interesting example illustrating how fire bombs can be used responsibly, in contrast to the way napalm was used by the military, who indiscriminately bombed cities, killing innocent civilians in metropolitan areas by incinerating them.

It shows that when the people, who have harnessed the tremendous power of fire, have the right intentions, it can be used for good. It shows the duality of fire, and it illustrates the duality of pharmakon, a poison and a cure.

Fighting fire with fire.

This guy stands out from the crowd, and I believe he tells us something about what the wildfire virus in TWDU in reality is a metaphor for:

He's a callback to Rick, back in TWD 1x1 Days Gone Bye:

He beautifully illustrates the ominous nature of the fire symbolism, here represented by fossil fuels, or simply gasoline. We saw it herald death and dystopian hellscape at the gas station in 1x1, we saw it at the gas station in 4x4 Indifference, which was literally named "Hell", we saw it when napalm made from petrochemicals was used indiscriminately to destroy metropolitan areas on the North American continent and massacre anyone in proximity, infected or not.

And we see it again here.

The gas man is Mr. Wildfire Virus incarnate, a posterboy for death and necrotic life, a metaphor for "the old ways". He represents the disease, the plague, the extinction event...

He represents "the end" of humanity!

I don't think it's a stretch to say that the wildfire virus and the walkers in TWDU are metaphors for carbon emissions, the fossil fuel industry and the rapidly escalating threath of climate change to humanity. That's always been my interpretation, and that's solidified after seeing the gas man.

An interesting detail is how the gas man is shown here with gold teeth, as though he's illustrating the incredible wealth accumulated by the fossil fuel industry at the expense of the equilibrium of the ecology of the planet.

Seeing a gas man as the front figure and team captain of an enormous horde of the undead, an insurmountable obstacle, an ocean of death... it's not subtle.

A gas station innundated in death symbolism was the very first thing we, the audience, saw of TWDU, it was literally in the opening scene of 1x1.

And the gas man were among the last things we saw in what's so far one of the last episodes of the last spin off. But a few episodes later, we did see a glimmer of hope, and a potential way out of the mess...

The gas man functions as the face of the threat to humanity in TWDU, and was, in my opinion, inserted as a counter point to what we saw few episodes later, the ethanol as a representation of a "cure", an "antidote" in the back Richonne's escape car.

An electric/bio-ethanol hybrid car, no less...

Again, not subtle...

Bio-ethanol, a sustainable, renewable source of energy, is portrayed as a foreshadow of a sustainable future, in which humanity recovers and thrives.

A green(e) future?

I wrote about how they in FTWD season 4, and in particular 4x16, explored the "ethanol = cure" theme in a post the other week, read more about it here.

Remember how we in TWD season 9, saw the production of bio-ethanol as an alternative source of fuel. We saw how crucial it was, in that Maggie was even seen trading produce for bio-ethanol.

This is a theme TPTB also explored in TWD World Beyond, where especially Elton was concerned about the sixth extinction event, the Holocene extinction.

The kids in TWDWB called themselves "the Endlings", seeming to have accepted that they were among the last survivers of a humanity that was on a direct path to self destruction. Here's from an article in Comicbook.com:

"'Wind always wins,'" Elton tells Hope, borrowing a phrase from his mother who died at the onset of the apocalypse ten years earlier. "Something my mom said about nature deciding who lives and who dies. Turns out she was right."

He explains humans are "at the conclusion of the Holocene extinction," the sixth extinction event on the planet following the Late Ordovician mass extinction, the Late Devonian extinction, the End-Permian extinction, the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event, and the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event.

"We were already killing ourselves directly and indirectly, but nature made a shortcut," Elton tells Hope. "It took the dinosaurs possibly 60,000 years to die after 240 million of living, so following that ratio, given the human race's 600,000 and factoring in other miscellaneous variables, I say we have about 15 years until we're gone."

Elton was referring to the walkers when he talked about the threath to humanity, however, if the walkers are a metaphor for climate change, Elton's predictions of 15 years until we're extinct are sobering...

In TWOL 1x6, Major General Beale estimated non-necrotic, meaning human, life has 14 years left.

In real life, the doomsday clock is currently at 90 seconds to midnight (x)...

...we're nowhere near reaching the 2 degrees Celcius target...

...and 2023 was the hottest year on record.

We're not doing great.

TPTB seem to be well aware, because...

...here we see how an electric/bio-ethanol hybrid car represent the "antidote", the future, the "escape" from the extinction event.

Richonne's yellow stick shift electric/bio-ethanol hybrid car represents a potential way out of the imminent Holocene extinction. It represents an "escape" from the sixth mass extinction event, much in the same way a shift away from carbon emitting fossil fuels, to sustainable, renewable sources of energy represents the "cure" against climate change in real life.

But back to the narrative of the show. The accumulation of walkers represent a real threath to humanity, as Major General Beale correctly stated. What could the expression "fighting fire with fire", or "pharmakon", tell us about a potential "cure"? What could the "antidote" be, in the canon of the show?

During Rick's echelon briefing, Major General Beale raised a few issues that would be of legitimate concern, even if most of the rest he said were the ramblings of an authoritarian genocidal madman. He mentioned hordes of up to a million walkers, and he referenced studies suggesting non-necrotic life, meaning humans, could have as little as 14 years left before the the dead would outcompete the living. Millions of walking corpses, spreading diseases, polluting the soil, contaminating fresh water sources.

Those are legitimate concerns and would have to be dealth with. Fire could play a literal role.

Glenn told us in season one. "We bury the ones we love and burn the rest". From an infection contagion prevention point of view, it makes sense to use fire to destruct the wildfire virus. Fighting fire with fire. However, there must be some way to contain the virus while still preserving one's own hummanity. "We bury the ones we love and burn the rest". Unlike what happened during the mass murders of Operation Cobalt during the initial stages of the outbreak.

Again, fire, when used responsibly, could play a role in neutralizing the treath of the plague. It's pharmakon, a poison and a cure.

Fighting fire with fire.

And using fire as a contagion preventation measure was already built into the infrastructure at the CDC. We first saw it in 1x5 Wildfire, when Dr. Jenner accidently knocked over a vial containing samples from Test Subject 19, his late wife, upon which the lab went into full decontamination mode and erased any remaining trace of the pathogen in a great ball of fire.

Later, when the doomsday clock at the CDC reached zero, we watched the entire CDC explode, effectively destructing everything inside, including test samples containing wildfire as well as any other pathogen they might have kept in there.

We also saw it on Hershel's farm in season 2, when the barn where he had kept the reanimated corpses of his loved ones while awaiting a cure, caught on fire. Although, that was more of a display of the symbolism involved rather than a depiction of how to scientifically contain a virus:

We've also seen it countless other times. Fire symbolism has been prevalent on the show since the very beinning, and there's a reason for that. It's because it represents pharmakon, a poison and a cure!

My hypothesis is that "fire" could play a literal role in the resolution of the zombie apocalypse. I also believe that it's likely the term "fighting fire with fire", or "pharmakon", could be meant to be interpreted figuratively, as in the develepment of some kind of cure/vaccine/treatment/immunity.

And like I explained in this post from a few days ago, connections to Beth is found everywhere in the symbolism surrounding these themes.

I mentioned her association with ethanol (as in moonshine = alcohol). I discussed the precedence set by Alicia from FTWD in regards to the bite/cure theory.

And finally, I've spent years now, talking about the Sirius symbolism that Beth has been absolutely immersed in. The word "Sirius" comes from Greek Seirios, which means "glowing", "scorching", it refers to Sirius the Dog Star, and it's associated with the scorching hot "dog days of summer".

"Sirius" symbolism IS "fire" symbolism, they're literally the same, and it ultimately means "return/resurrection/rebirth/reunion", as a reference to how Sirius the Dog Star periodically disappears from the night sky, only to return one morning, right before dawn.

I've talked about how Beth is deeply connected to the symbolism we see around Rick, I've talked about how they so often completely mirror each other and the resurrection symbolism around Rick is identical to the resurrection symbolism around Beth.

If "fire" is a part of the "cure" on the show, the fire symbolism includes resurrection symbolism, which we've seen countless exemples of around Rick and Beth.

And remember, the future is green(e)!

#team delusional #bethyl #daryl dixon #beth greene #team defiance #the walking dead #beth x daryl #twd #daryl x beth #twd towl #twd world beyond

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devnmon · 1 year

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TS-19

Chapter Nine: Written in My Stars

Summary: After a long day's ride, sanctuary is discovered. But not all is what it seems in their newly found safe haven.

Daryl Dixon x Reader

Series Masterlist | Playlist

Chapter Warnings: descriptions of walkers/dead bodies, mentions of blood & needles, suggestive content, mentions of death, suicide, and lotsss of angst.

wc: 10.2k

A/n: This is the longest chapter of all s1 ahaha.. afraid to say they're just gonna get longer as I go on writing this fic. But... as season 1 concludes I'm ready to dive into writing season two when my semester ends, so it'll be a while before that happens. Enjoy this last chapter <33

The light penetrated your vision as it poured out from the large doorway. Gasps of disbelief were heard as Rick raced up to the entrance. The glass doors were heavy but when you pushed them open, a blast of cool air flooded your body.

"Hello?" Rick called into the building, the others spreading out as you all advanced into the building.

Upon first look, it was ominous. For one, the place was completely clean. There was no debris on the floor, no stench of rotting corpses, dead or alive, no blood anywhere to be seen. The high ceilings and windows only intimidated you further. Almost hidden behind Daryl's large figure, you followed him inside, bow drawn.

"Watch for walkers," someone spoke. There wasn't a chance your group would take a step further inside if even one of those dead freaks showed their faces. Where there's one, there's always more, and you knew the group wouldn't take that chance.

Frantic faces glanced about, searching for any sign to retreat out of the building.

How could this place still be standing?

Something was off about it, but you weren't sure what yet.

The unfamiliarity with what you'd seen in this building, versus what the outside world looked like, was unsettling. It concerned you more than the door even opening in the first place.

Clicking of a shotgun sounded from not too far away, your heart skipping a beat at the abrupt noise.

"Anybody infected?" A voice called out, holding a shotgun from down the hall. You didn't see the figure until you moved further into the lobby.

Holy shit. Maybe this is hope, you thought.

"One of our group was. He didn't make it." The sheriff stated, still holding his shotgun out as well.

"Do you see that guy?" you asked Daryl, walking to the side of him.

"Mhm.. don't know what he's got in store for us. But it'll do for now, that's for damn sure." He turned back to you, voice low but still in a mode of suspicion. You shot him a small smile and he turned back.

The man stepped closer, look on his face nervous, but you could tell he didn't want to have to shoot. None of you were infected, which changed his facial tone as he spoke again.

"Why are you here? What do you want?"

"A chance," Rick replied, out of breath from his yelling before.

"That's asking an awful lot these days."

Silence rang out as the unknown man's eyes trailed over every single one of you.

"You all submit to a blood test. That's the price of admission."

Rick nodded fervently, "We can do that."

"Once this door closes, it stays closed," The man said, walking towards Rick, his guard completely down at the moment. He rushed back with him, grabbing whatever bags were left in the vehicles, and entered the building again. As everyone rushes in, the blonde man swipes a keycard at the front entrance and states a command like he would to an assistant.

"Vi, seal the main entrance. Kill the power up here."

Who the hell is Vi?, you thought.

"Rick Grimes." The sheriff introduces himself to the blonde man.

"Dr. Edwin Jenner," he replied with shifty eyes.

Definitely suspicious, you thought to yourself. Shifty eyes, untrustworthiness, yeah. This guy's gonna have to convince me.

Jenner led you all to an elevator, where he let you all squeeze in, before pressing the lowest button of all levels.

Daryl, being the curious man he is, spoke up as the elevator ride turned to a cramped and silent one, "Doctors always go around packin' heat like that?"

He didn't trust good things like this often, always thought it was too good to be true. Though, Daryl was on his guard, ready to pierce an arrow through Jenner's skull if there was any sign of trouble.

"Well, there were plenty left lying around. Familiarized myself," he replied, looking back at all of you, "But you look harmless enough," he said, as he looked at Carl, "Except you. I'll have to keep my eye on you."

The boy smiled at his joke, making you smile a bit too. When you looked over at Daryl, his face was stoic, a version of his own mistrust his shield for the moment.

After piling out of the elevator, Jenner had you all walking down a long hallway. The place seemed like a maze, infinite doors and hallways you couldn't count. You and Daryl trailed behind everyone else, continuously marveling at the state of the place.

"Are we underground?" You asked, chest starting to tighten.

"You claustrophobic?" Jenner questioned, turning around as he walked ahead of the group.

"A little."

"Try not to think about it." He stated, turning back around.

Try not to think about it my ass, you thought, scoffing and continuing to walk with the group. The long hallway led to a massive room, filled with computers and one large screen on the wall.

"Vi, bring up the lights in the big room." Jenner's voice echoed out eerily, the clutter in the room not enough to mask the extensive shape of it.

There's that name again, Vi.

Daryl trudged into the room with you by his side, nervous at what was to come or what Jenner had in store for you all. As if on command, the room lit up with a ring of light hovering above all the computers.

"Welcome to Zone 5."

"Where is everybody? The other doctors? The staff?" Rick questioned, expecting more than just one man to be working at such an extensive place.

"I'm it. It's just me here." A moment of silence rang out as loud as the door opening had been, Lori breaking it with another question.

"What about the person you were speaking with? Vi?"

"Vi, say hello to our guests. Tell them, welcome."

The computer spoke, as if it had a mind of it's own.

Hello guests. Welcome.

You followed the Doctor down another hallway, as he brought you all to another room, one that looked like some sort of conference hall. Everyone took a seat against the wall or in one of the chairs.

"Sit tight, I'll be back with the equipment for everyone's blood tests." Jenner stated, before walking into another room off the one you were already all in.

"Ah shit, I hate needles," Daryl stated, taking a seat on one of the chairs. You scoffed at the irony of his statement.

"You're telling me big, bad Daryl Dixon is afraid of a little needle?" You inquired, turning to him as your weight flopped on the chair next to him.

"Didn't say I was scared, jus' said I didn't like 'em." He played with the strings of his bow as he replied. Sure, he'd been around needles before. But not in a medical context.

"Well, it's not that bad. Just a pinch, and if you're that bothered by it, don't look. That's what I do."

"You tellin' me you're scared of needles?" Daryl scoffed, realizing you two were more alike than he thought.

"All my life I've hated them, not shots at the doctor's, just whenever I needed an IV or blood drawn."

"Uh huh, we're the same then." He said, shrugging as he threw his head back on one of the seats.

"Guess we are." You sighed, doing the same.

Jenner came back into the room with several vials as well as other things he needed to take everyone's blood properly. He sat in the front of the room, as everyone watched the other's blood be taken. You went before Daryl, but he sat by your side, back turned to Jenner as he went on with drawing your blood. Once he finished, you turned to Daryl with a soft smile.

"See? Not so bad." He only grunted in response, taking the seat you'd been in a moment before.

A couple other group members took their turns, but when Andrea was in the seat, she had relentless questions.

"So, what's the point? If we were infected, we'd all be running a fever," Andrea stated from her seat across Jenner, as the vial filled.

"I've already broken every rule in the book letting you all in here. Let me at least be thorough." As soon as he was done, Jenner watched Andrea's light headed state take over, becoming light headed easily after barely any food. "Is she okay?"

"We haven't eaten in days, none of us have." Jacqui replied while helping Andrea sit. The look on his face had enough concern to fill an entire stadium, but he knew how to fix it.

Next thing you knew, you had been brought to a dining hall, sat next to the members of your group, shoveling food and booze into your mouth like there was no tomorrow.

A fit of laughter broke out amongst the people around you, relishing in the wine rushing through your system. Each bite of food was like heaven, filled with flavor and warmth that made you forget how abhorrent the world was outside the walls of the building. The euphoric tone it set for the group had Jacqui throwing her head back in a fit of laughter. You all seemed to be enjoying yourselves, food and drink coursing through your systems.

Your heart felt as full and content as it had once been, a long time before the world fell. It was a genuine, innocent time, one that couldn't be replicated or replaced. You were happy to just be caught in another moment like that after an extensive period without it.

When another fit of laughter broke out, it had been from Carl's reaction to the taste of wine. It brought tears to your eyes with how hard you were chuckling, smile lines beginning to ache from how big you had beamed from across the table.

Daryl noticed the shine from your smile from his seat, as he sat chugging the rest of his wine down.

You were chuckling loud enough for him to hear; he hadn't gotten to hear you laugh, genuinely and completely, ever. This was the first time he'd been lucky enough to do so. He stumbled, getting up to grab a fresh bottle.

"Why don't you stick to soda pop there, bud." Shane spoke.

"Not you Glenn," Daryl retorted, after grabbing another red wine bottle, walking back over to the table.

"What?" The dark haired man replied, cheesing so hard due to the buzz of alcohol in his system that his cheeks hurt.

"Keep drinkin', little man. I wanna see how red your face can get." He smirked, sitting back down at his seat. You burst out in a fit of drunken giggles yourself at Daryl's words. The alcohol in your system might have been distracting you from the horrors you'd seen the past few days, but to know you were there with these people you trusted made every torment wash away.

As you giggled to yourself, your eyes subconsciously found Daryl, sat across the table. His arms were poking out of that yellow plaid shirt, vest adorning his shoulders. His bicep muscles flex, moving ever so slightly, shaking your thoughts when you notice the group's conversation had died down a little.

Though Daryl's indulging himself thoroughly, he isn't blind to how Rick's gaze trails over to Jenner, sitting quietly and watching everyone around him in a corner. A moment later, Rick is clinking his glass and standing up.

"It seems to me, we haven't thanked our host properly."

"He is more than just our host," T-dog replied, raising his wine glass in a toast, causing you all to raise your glasses with him.

"Hear, hear!" Dale exclaims. The clinking of wine glasses overtook the man's words, as the others expressed their appreciation for him.

"Here's to you, doc. Booyah!" Daryl blurted out, the liquor in his system clearly taking over the usual grumpy attitude he always puts up.

It's got you giggling at him, again.

The laughter settles, and Shane starts to speak again. "So, when are you gonna tell us what the hell happened here, doc? All the uh- the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?"

Though, Rick is quick to retort, not wanting to ruin the wholesome moment the group had going.

"We're celebrating, Shane. Don't need to do this now."

"Woah, wait a second. That's why we're here, right? This was your move- supposed to find all the answers. Instead we- we found him. Found one man, why?"

His persistence pisses you off slightly, but the alcohol in your system is too overtaking to have the strength to snap back at him.

Jenner goes on to explain that the rampage of dead walking corpses drove some to up and leave the facility. They hadn't been thinking straight, just wanted to get home to their friends or loved ones and spend whatever time they had left with them. On the off chance that those people didn't leave, some couldn't face the outside world, dead people walking and whatnot. The sheer brutality of it all. Some chose to opt out, as he'd said, taking their own lives in the hallways to avoid letting the terror that walked the streets into their minds. He'd only stayed in hopes of doing some good with what work he continued.

Silence rang out in fault of Shane, for bringing it up during a nice moment.

"Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man."

You all cleaned up the space after eating, then ended up following Jenner down yet another hallway, one filled with rooms available to get some rest in.

If i have to sleep on another cot, I'd just die.

"The couches are comfortable, but there are cots in storage, if you'd like."

Oh, great.

The alcohol is running through your system at such a fast rate that your brain doesn't pick up anything else that Jenner says, until he mentions the showers.

"If you shower, go easy on the hot water."

"Hot water?" Glenn repeats, an overjoyed smile on his face now.

"That's what the man said.." T-dog replied, smiling as well.

He meets your eyes, his bright facial expression turning yours into one as you realize how long it's been since you've taken a shower.

"Oh, hell yeah."

Just the first glance at the shower stall makes a chill run up your spine. After all this time with your guard up in the world you lived in, letting it down for something as simple as a shower made you shudder. The clothes on your body felt welded to your skin, soaked with sweat and dirt and who knows what else, like a filthy dish towel.

In such a way, you hadn't removed your clothing to relax with something like this in so long. To be this unguarded again after so long intimidated you a bit. There was nothing comparable to the vulnerability of a shower.

Every birthmark, scar and mark on your body was still painted on your skin, only covered from a layer of grime, sweat and dirt that built up from the wear and tear of the outside world.

A rush of clean, fresh water fills the room, with the shower turning on. Mist floats onto skin with warm droplets, like spritz of a water spray. It's almost anticipatory, the image of you holding the shower curtain back. To have something this humane after so long felt unbelievable.

A hopeful tone is set as you enter the shower, stepping in with the water beginning to heat up. It hits your feet first, warming them so, that it tickles a bit. With just the flow of water, your mask of filth begins to wash from your skin.

The several months old nail polish was still coated over your toes, realizing how long it's lasted.

You step further under the flow of water, just the aroma of it closing your eyes in relaxation. With your head under the water, you stood silently for a few minutes in the peacefulness of it all. The liquid runs hot, goosebumps rising over your body at the contact. It's warm, familiar, something you haven't known since the world fell. Like a hug from a close relative. Safe.

Having something like this back after so long without it made the moment even more euphoric, as if you'd never be without it again.

When your eyes shoot open, droplets trailing down your lashes, you look to the couple of bottles placed on the shelf. Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and an unused razor.

Even before the apocalypse, you hadn't found the desire for relentless hair removal in your top priorities. Sure, you shaved a few parts of your body, armpits and face at times, but didn't bother with your legs or anywhere else. Especially not when there were other things that deserved more attention in these times.

You weren't especially girly, either. Didn't grow fond of dresses or skirts, not even wedding gowns stood out to you. You'd been a tomboy all your life, no reason to change now.

Pouring some of the shampoo into your palms, you massaged it through the crown of your hair thoroughly, the contact of your fingers scratching your scalp heavenly. The shampoo and conditioner both were refreshing to the smell, its lathery substance washing from your hair. A lack of dirt and grime on your skin lifted your mood, still a little tipsy from your wine at dinner, but nonetheless it made you feel completely clean for once. Who knew if you'd have the chance to be this tidy again one day.

Raking fingers through your hair, you wrapped your body up in the one clean towel and changed into your other clothes for the night, a pair of sweatpants and big t-shirt. You packed up the filthy clothing from before and balled it up, throwing it in a different compartment of your duffel. Passing the others in their rooms from the hall, you'd been about to enter the room you were to share with Andrea for the night, only to walk in upon Dale sat beside her next to the toilet.

She'd gotten sick from all she drank, and he'd been comforting her.

"Hey, everything alright?" Dale turned to you at the sound of your voice, look of concern in his eye.

"She drank too much, got sick. On top of everything that she's gone through, overcompensating on the wine wasn't the best idea."

A groan comes from Andrea at his words, still knelt over with her hair pulled back. You refrained from speaking as Dale shook his head.

"Okay.. I'll just find somewhere else to stay, then. Feel better, Drea."

Walking back into the hallway, you tried to find another place to hole up for the night, duffel bag in hand. It wasn't till you reached the end of the hallway, that you spotted Daryl sitting in one of the rooms alone, fiddling with his crossbow. His muscles contracted with every movement, biceps unveiled as they had always been. His shoulders and neck were tense, you noticed, and his eyebrows were furrowed

What's causing your tense state, huh?

He hadn't looked up from his task, whatever it had been, until you knocked lightly at the door.

"Hey, Daryl?"

He finally looked up at the voice coming from the doorway, eyebrows releasing from their furrowed state as he met your eye.

"Oh, hey. wh'sup?" He slurred, still under the influence from wine he'd drank.

"I was supposed to stay with Andrea tonight, but she isn't feeling the best. Could I possibly bunk with you for the night? I'd like some company when I sleep. Don't wanna be alone." You leaned against the door now, droplets from your hair wetting your shirt just the slightest. Daryl was quiet for a minute, noticing the cleanliness of your skin and hair. It was a different look for you, one that showed you to him in a new light.

Chewing on his lip, he nodded with a low mhm, then continued working on his bow.

Walking into the room, you were suddenly hit with an awful scent that made you grimace. Placing your things down, you sat on one of the chairs in the room, while Daryl sat on a cot he'd taken from storage, shirt unbuttoned a bit as his angel wing vest hung on the back of a chair.

"Did you get a chance to shower yet?"

Daryl glanced up again.

It wasn't that he hadn't gotten the chance, it was that he didn't think he needed it. After all the time spent in the woods, covered in filth, he grew accustomed to it. It was comfortable for him, and he couldn't find anything else more safe. The energy of washing all the evidence of survival off his skin- he didn't have that. Daryl didn't want to lose that proof of survival, either. It was easier than wanting to clean himself. So he just didn't.

"Nah, let y'all go first. There prob'ly ain't no hot water left, neither."

Gaze back to his bow again.

Although his eyes wanted to trail back onto your figure, clean and freshly smelling as opposed to his, dirty and filth-ridden.

There's no way she'd go for you, baby brother.

Shaking his head lightly at the thought, he placed his bow down on the floor.

Your head tilted at his action, compassion in your eyes that he couldn't see you had for him.

"Well, I'm not gonna go to sleep until you shower." You said pointedly, getting him to look at you again. There was a smug look on your face, like you knew how to get under his skin.

"Don't. Ya need rest."

"C'mon! Take advantage of the hot water and soap like you did those two bottles of wine, Dixon."

"You're funny, but still no." He rummaged through his bag as if looking for something that wasn't there.

What is it with him? Why is he so stubborn that he's missing out on things that are good for him? Make him feel better?

You sighed, feeling the leather behind you on the chair, an idea popping into your head. Daryl was searching through his bag, so you grabbed the vest from the back of the chair. It was heavier than you thought it'd be, and stunk like cigarettes and motor oil. But it smelled like Daryl.

"Okay, well I didn't wanna have to resort to this." You stood, pulling his attention from the pack, "You've lost vest privileges, Mister Dixon."

"I've lost wha'?"

A confused look on his face turned to an annoyed one as you slipped the vest over your shoulders.

"Cut that shit, give it back. Now." He started to saunter towards you, but you stepped back slightly.

"It was on my chair, and until you shower, it's mine. I'm not staying in here all night if you're gonna stink up the place."

"Then go find somewhere else to sleep!" He yelled, throwing his arm in the air.

"Can't, rooms are all booked. No vacancy! Guess you're gonna have to listen to me after all."

Daryl rolled his eyes, "Don't do that. Seriously- y/n, give it back." He advanced closer to you, not threateningly, but starting to get irritated with you.

"Shower, and you get your precious vest back. Easy as pie." Shrugging, you inspected the vest as it weighed your shoulders down a bit.

"Nah. An' I don't even like pie."

"Ugh, you're so stubborn! Just listen to me, Daryl, a shower can do wonders for relaxation. You certainly need it."

He scoffed, "I am relaxed," eyebrows raising at your words, stepping back from you just an inch or so. His buff arms crossed over his chest, biceps flexing.

"Really? Cause the tension in your shoulders says otherwise." One of your hands rested on your hip now, the other clutching his vest in your grip.

"Stop it. Gimme-" Your hand yanked the vest away from his grasp as he leaned forward again, arm out to grab it from you.

"Daryl, is this about something else? You can tell me, you know." You met his eye, pausing him in his tracks. You knew there was something else, something he wouldn't let come to light, but he couldn't hide it now. Not after you specifically called him out for it. His gaze dropped to the floor before sighing and looking back at you.

"Don't you think this place is for real?" He took a seat on the cot again, shifting his weight and sitting hunched over his legs.

"How do you mean?" You asked, sitting down as well, dropping the vest back onto your chair.

"Like, do ya think we could survive in this place. I mean, there ain't no other doctors here, just Jenner, and I don't think he was tellin' us the whole truth. There's gotta be more to this whole place. I jus'.. don't trust him."

"Yeah, I wanna believe that we can. Daryl, I don't think he's gonna stab us in our sleep, if that's what you're assuming," you chuckled, "He's been kind and let us in, given us food, water, soap, alcohol? Why would he-"

"Exactly. He's given us all this stuff, even a place to sleep. Why would he waste all that shit on us? Cause Rick said we were desperate? Nah. There's gotta be more to it. We're nothin' special."

Nothing special? Me saving you from certain death was nothing?

"We're not?" You repeated, taken aback a little at his statement, "Cause I-I don't think people who are nothin' special survive a horde of walkers, let alone travel all the way here on basically nothing for a slim chance at survival."

How could he just push aside everything the group has been through? Did joining the camp really mean nothing to him? Did-

Did meeting you mean nothing to him?

"I didn't mean it like that. Ain't no society, no 'thing' to be anymore. We're all nobody. Shit went down the drain... day I saw a walker for the first time. Tha's when I knew we were never comin' back from it."

"Daryl, you can't think like that. You're not nobody to me, you're my friend. That makes you somebody. It makes me somebody, makes Rick somebody, Dale, Lori, Carl, even Glenn. This group makes us all somebody to each other, and if that's all we have, then so be it. We can make it through. No matter how long we're alive for. But we've gotta do it together."

Daryl sighed, sitting back against the wall. He went silent, contemplating everything you'd said, and his blue eyes glanced at you before sitting up again.

"Alright," he drawled, "Now, what's a man gotta do to get his vest back?"

A genuine laugh came from you, optimism light in the air for both of you, when he seemed to chuckle as well.

"Well, for starters, you can take that shower.." You mentioned again, a part of you wanting to see what Daryl looked like when he didn't have dirt and sweat plastered across his skin. You wanted to see how his biceps flexed every time he moved, wanted to feel them twitch as he lifted something heavy.

Woah. Has he always been so handsome?

Daryl scoffed, the slightest twinge of a smile making itself apparent on the apples of his cheeks.

"Fine."

He strode out of the room silently, giving you a few moments alone to collect your thoughts and get ready for bed.

Daryl walked down the hallway, passing each of the rooms everyone had settled in for the night. Once he found the showers, he slipped in and kicked off his boots at the door. Dirt cluttered out of the soles of his shoes, not realizing he'd been wearing them for so long.

He met his gaze in the mirror, shying away from his face to the dirt covering his arms and neck. To be quite honest, he did feel disgusting. But he owed it to you for convincing him to even think about showering, let alone doing it again after so long.

Slowly, he undid every button of his sleeveless flannel, tossing it onto the chair in the shower hall. He didn't dare turn around to look at his back, or memories from decades ago would come back to bite him in the ass.

He couldn't. Not now.

To pull himself away from going there, he thought about you, the soft image of you in your sweatpants and t-shirt, damp hair as well as your face illuminated by the lamp light. From what you looked like at camp, till now, was a way different image of you.

You seemed calm, content, okay, given the circumstances.

How he wished he could do the same.

Daryl found comfort in you, tried to hold onto it as best he could, without getting attached. If he did that, it would be over for him. He'd be pining away for the rest of his life.

There was just too much up in the air about Jenner for him to think straight, which almost pulled his focus from you, but he didn't.

Jus' relax for the night, dumbass. Worry 'bout that shit tomorrow.

He began undoing his pants, dropping them to the floor along with his belt. All his thinking about you made his boxers tighten, not becoming apparent to him until he looked down.

Fuckin' serious righ' now?

Stood in only his boxers now, he turned the shower head on. Daryl tried to ignore the confines of his boxers becoming tighter, and only when the water was hot enough did he strip himself from them, and step into the shower.

A low groan left him as the hot water covered the expanses of his body, trickling down the front of his torso, dampening his skin and the wiry hairs on his chest. When he pooled some of the shampoo in his hands and began washing it through his short hair, he squeezed his eyes shut, those pesky thoughts about you and your soft gaze only making it harder to focus on something that wasn't you.

The soft scent of his shampoo, how the water felt against his back.

Nope, nothing was stronger to distract him from the horrors of the outside world, other than you. His thoughts shifted from what you looked like in those clothes, to what you looked like without them. Though he hasn't seen all of your skin, he wished he'd have the privilege to see it one day. To have you in his bed, doing sinful things to make you feel good. To have you call out for him in the name of your pleasure.

Daryl.. Daryl... Daryl...

Your voice was the sweetest of all; behind your spitfire demeanor was that kind-hearted person he met in the woods that day. He knew from the day he saw you that he thought you were beautiful. Perfect, even. Like no one he's ever met before. Especially not someone he knew because of his brother.

How, he thought, how could someone like you become a person in his life? He thought he sure as hell didn't deserve it, someone kind willing to talk to him, be around him, listen to him talk?

Can't get attached.

The left over suds of shampoo trailed down his body, reminding him of the reason his boxers were tight. His gaze finally trailed down there, now apparent of how caught in a daze he's been over you.

Can't walk back in there with a hard-on, either... man, fuck it.

Daryl decided to indulge himself just this once.

Once, and it'll never happen again, he told himself.

The satisfaction washed over him when he'd finished entertaining himself over filthy thoughts of you. When that was gone, guilt came creeping over him like a devil on his shoulder.

Got no fuckin' right, thinkin' 'bout her like that. I got a better chance gettin' to the moon than ever gettin' them. She don't want some redneck trash deadbeat Dixon.

As he turned the water off, he stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel hanging on the wall. He dried himself accordingly, draping it over his shoulders as he pulled on his dirty clothes he'd tossed to the side before. Steam from the hot shower clouded the mirror, walking up to it again.

He looked different, soaking wet hair, face bare of dirt or sweat or walker blood. All of the sudden, he felt his eyelids droop just the slightest bit.

Guess the shower did somethin' right, can't wait to hit the sack now.

He trudged back to the room he shared with you, where he saw you sat with a book in your hands. First glance at you like that made his heart drop, thinking you'd found his journal, was reading all of his intimate thoughts, broken his trust. But no.

You'd picked out one of the books in the recreational room, which Jenner mentioned was full of games and books for anybody's use. Once you'd spotted the shelf of classic literature, you couldn't help yourself.

The place had every story you could imagine, Emma by Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, even The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Safe to say you grabbed a couple of the ones you were familiar with, and one or two you hadn't read. You started with Of Mice and Men, but stopped when you remembered the ending.

Although once you picked up The Great Gatsby, you couldn't put it down. It was one of those novels that made you want to live in the 1920's, just for the fashion. Flappers and the massive growth in modernization always fascinated you. Prohibition, though, never seemed ideal.

Before you headed back to your room, you thought on what Daryl had said about not trusting Jenner. He was right, in a sense. Jenner wasn't telling the whole truth, and there was no knowing what else he'd been hiding about the place. It all seemed eerie, but you remembered to bring it back up to Daryl before you both fell asleep.

You'd been reading silently, when you heard the familiar thump of Daryl's boots down the hall. Everyone else had turned in for the night, hallway dimly lit by other sources.

"Welcome back, wow you smell exquisite." You laughed, peeking up from the book in your hands.

"Pfft, stop." Daryl sat back onto his cot, blanket splayed across it. He hadn't known how to start conversations properly, especially not after doing what he just had in the shower. Thinking about you in a way he shouldn't have.

His flannel was unbuttoned, tiniest sliver of his torso visible, falling further apart as he leaned back. It began to pull back further, but you stopped looking before getting caught.

Get your head out of the gutter.

"Feeling relaxed, now?"

He chewed on his lip silently, giving you a low mhm, as he shoved off his boots onto the ground, kicking his feet up on the cot. The hairs on his chest were slight, but still visible.

"So, I've been thinking about what you said. About Jenner." You closed the book over on your thumb, Daryl lifting his head from the pillow.

"You were right, we can't trust him. He's shady, and probably hiding more things than we thought. We gotta grill him for info, tomorrow or something. It's the only way we'll get the truth. You know?"

"Don't know if Rick would be cool with it.. much less anyone else. But we are gonna find out what he ain't tellin' us. I can promise ya that."

"Good enough for me," you said, standing up and placing the book on the couch, "Alright, well I'm gonna go brush my teeth. Carol stopped by while you were in the shower and gave you and me toothbrushes and toothpaste. Swear I've never been so ecstatic in my life."

You chuckled before leaving the room, slight smile on Daryl's face, one you couldn't see. One he wished for you to see. One he grew a liking to plastering across his face because of you.

Groaning, he laid back on his cot, before realizing he hadn't journaled yet today. A hand darted out to his pack, shifting through his belongings to find another shirt for him to wear, and his journal.

Day nine

Somehow we made it to the CDC. It looked like another dead end at first, bodies scattered all over the place. Some doctor let us in, Jenner. Y/n rode with me the whole way on my bike. I think she sees me, like really sees me. Strange, feelin' like someone cares about me for who I am. Never expected that from anyone, not even her. She's stupid to care about me, and I aint no good, neither. Spent the night eatin' real dinner and drinkin' real booze with the group. Thought the night would conclude with me passin out drunk. Then y/n asked to stay with me. She would'a stayed with Andrea, but since she wasn't in the best place, she came to me instead. Even convinced me to shower. Weird how much she affects me already. Rubbed one out jus' thinkin' about her. Fuckin' dumb thing to do. I ain't got no right feelin' that way about her. She's a friend, never gon' be anythin' more.

With that, he closed the journal, tossing it back into his bag and replacing his older shirt on his body with a somewhat clean one before you came back. Daryl attempted to get himself to actually relax, and once his head hit the pillow, the same fatigue that washed over him in the bathroom returned to his head.

Though he was laying to face the wall, he heard the slight pitter patter of your feet approaching the room from down the hall. You entered silently, closing the door and shutting off the light.

Silence was present in the room, and he thought you'd passed out, until you heard you speak.

"You're a good man Daryl. You may not see it, but I do. I don't know what you've been through, but whatever walls you put up, you'd better think about taking them down."

That was the last thing he heard before drifting blissfully off to sleep.

The next thing Daryl could focus on was a splitting headache, one he'd gotten from his lovely two bottle of wine drunk. Relentlessly, he tried to make it go away, but sleep didn't come as easily as it once had. His instinct was to get up and turn on the light, but paused when he remembered you were in the room with him. If he turned the light on, you'd wake up and lose some of your rest that you very much needed.

Daryl's hand darted out from the covers to his pack, grabbing the flashlight and his journal from it as he stood from the cot. Cracking the door open, there was a small source of light coming from down the hall. Once he clicked his flashlight on, he began striding down the hall.

He came across the rec room, void of any people. One of the clocks read 4am, which meant he'd been asleep for about 4 hours at most. Once he sat, he opened another page to his journal and started a new entry.

Day eleven

It's 4 am. Only know cause there's a clock in this rec room. Had to take a walk. Made me feel like shit for leaving y/n alone when she asked for company while she slept. I'm gon' go back, just needed a minute to clear my head. I don't completely trust Jenner, he's hiding something. Definitely more to what he told us. I've been tryin to keep these people safe best I can, so if there is something else goin on here, I've gotta find out. Don't wanna lose any more people. Can't. Won't. Them undead pricks won't stop me. Won't stop us. I'll do whatever it takes, for this group.

Once he'd finished, he shut the book and headed back to the room to find you still asleep on the couch. Sleep washed over him a while after he laid down again.

The rough knock on the door was loud enough to shake you from your slumber, reading the clock in the room that said 8:45. Daryl snored lightly from across the room, chest lifting with each breath. He looked peaceful, laying under the covers of his cot like it was the best sleep he'd gotten in years.

You wondered what it would be like to actually wake up next to him in the mornings, brush the hair from his face and leave a soft kiss on his cheek before rising for the day.

But you couldn't, and you thought you never would.

You rose silently, letting the archer catch a few more minutes of rest while you put on clothes for the day, and slipped your boots on again, brushing your fingers through your hair to calm some of your bedhead. The mirror on the wall helped, as you rubbed the sleep from your eyes. You remembered to pack both toothbrushes and toothpaste from the previous night, before walking over to Daryl, fast asleep on his cot.

"Hey, psst. Daryl," You poked his chest once, twice, three times before his eyes fluttered open.

"Wha-"

"C'mon, they're making breakfast. I can smell that bacon from all the way in here. Maybe we can find out what Jenner's keeping a secret today, too."

He groaned, sitting up and rubbing his eyes, still half asleep. You glanced at him from where you stood by the mirror, he looked adorable, even in his drowsy state. You noticed the darker color shirt he was wearing, the top buttons undone, chest hairs visible. You could've sworn you saw a tattoo poking out from his left pec.

Before you could stare any more, his eyes opened fully, pulling himself off the cot. His pants were unbuttoned, a sliver of his boxers visible as he stood. You tore your eyes away from him, although you wanted to look more.

Daryl cleared his throat, buttoning his pants as you combed your hair in the mirror. He walked towards you, turning back to him.

"Ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

The door opened, light beaming from the hallway. Some of the group had already exited their rooms, hearing their chatter from down the hall. The two of you walked into the room you had all ate in the night before, smell of bacon and eggs filling the place.

"Eggs, powdered, but I do 'em good." You hear T-dog say, walking over with a pan in his hand. "Protein helps the hangover."

Glenn, on the other hand, is sat upright, head in his hands, groaning loudly for everyone to hear.

"Morning, everyone." You stated, taking a seat next to the dark haired man, Daryl sitting next to you. A few others said good morning back, others too caught up in their hangovers to speak. Rick looked about as bad as Shane did, but not as terrible as Glenn looked.

Lori glanced up at you, her eyes shifting to Daryl as you took a plate and served yourself, "Eventful night?"

"What? No- I just read some books and went to sleep." You chuckled, trying to break the awkward tension floating in the room.

Rick picked up a pill bottle from the table, asking Lori about it, responding with, "Jenner thought we could use it. Some of us, at least."

"Ugh, don't ever, ever, ever let me drink again."

The group conversed lightly as everyone woke up, sipping their coffee and eating their meal. You stood to grab some coffee as Jenner walked in.

"Morning."

"Hey, doc."

You saw Andrea nod to Dale, turning towards Jenner in his chair.

"Doctor, I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing-"

"But you will anyways."

"We didn't come here for the eggs," Andrea states.

Jenner brought you to the same big room again, standing in front of the screens while he spoke a command to the computer: Give me playback of TS-19.

Displayed on the monitor was the playback he requested, closing in on an internal view of a brain, along with other pieces of data. Jenner demonstrates that the lights flowing through a much closer-up image, was someone's life; their experiences, memories, thoughts- it was everything. He continued rambling on about the test subject, someone who was infected by a bite, but volunteered to have the process recorded for research.

Scanning to the first event per his request, the playback began to display the doctor's research, as the lights in the brain began to flicker rapidly, fading to darkness quickly after. Solemn expressions plagued the room upon hearing Jenner's analyzation of the infection's course.

A moment later, he scans to the second event, playing back on the monitor the same as it had before.

What Jenner calls resurrection points reveals itself to be that moment of reanimation you'd watched in Amy, two days prior, not to mention the individuals you saw on the road before finding your group.

The same brain flickers with red light, hearing that it restarts the brain stem, only lasting a few seconds before its termination occurred. You and Daryl shared a confused look, silence ringing out loud enough to hear a pin drop.

Andrea puts two and two together and questions Jenner yet again, only this time it's on account of not having a clue as to what the virus is.

"There has to be somebody who knows something. Somebody, somewhere.."

"I've been in the dark for almost a month, but I hear France was the longest to hold out. But that's as far as I know."

That was the moment your heart dropped. You inhaled sharply, losing the grasp you had on any hope left.

"Man, I'm gonna get shitfaced drunk, again."

At that point, you might as well have joined him, if there really was nothing left anywhere in the world. It was all gone.

Your vision filtered out of focus, room beginning to spin as you lost any strength you had in your legs, as your body hit the cold marble floor.

It felt as if a moment passed where your eyes were fluttering open, attempting to push yourself up with the help of your forearms. Your head pounded, each voice muffled as you went to grasp at your head that was now throbbing in agony.

As the aching settled a moment later, you were finally able to clear your foggy vision on the person crouching before you, Daryl.

"You alright?"

"I- uh, what happened?"

"You fainted, sure ya not still drunk?"

"N-No, just-"

The recollection of what you had just been told by Jenner became apparent in your mind, the horror flooding through your head once more.

"There's nothing left, is there?" Your voice weakened, not sure whether to be bothered with the way four of the group's men just ran out of the larger room in a panic.

"C'mon, lemme get ya back to the room, 'kay?"

Nodding, he pulled you up, draping your arm across his shoulder with your head still pounding. Daryl brings you to the couch you'd slept on the night before, as he lets you sit down on it.

"You think Jenner was serious? About there being nothing-" You inhaled again, unsettled feeling coating your stomach at the thought.

Daryl stood chewing on his thumb, now pacing back and forth, "Ain't sure, 'specially not with the way he went quiet." His pacing became aggressive, grabbing the bottle of whiskey on the ground that he'd apparently put near his cot the night before.

Your conversation was cut short after hearing a commotion about the air shutting off in the rooms.

Why is the air off?

What's going on?

Voices echoed from outside the room, Daryl peeking out of it with the bottle still in his hand. Jenner was the one being questioned relentlessly by the members of your group as he treaded down the hallway.

Why's everything bein' turned off?, you hear Daryl say as Jenner walks right by him and swoops the bottle of liquor from him, taking a swig. He follows Jenner out the door, quickly rising from the couch to follow him and the rest of your group on the quest for answers.

Energy use is being prioritized, he replied, admitting to not having any control over the building's programming. Zone 5 is shutting itself down.

Daryl's frustrated state grows with annoyance, fed up with the doctor's vague answers and wanting some real ones.

"Hey, what the hell that mean, huh? Man, I'm talkin' to you! What'd you mean it's shuttin' itself down? How can a building do anything?"

"You'd be surprised."

Another vague answer.

The computers were programmed to be the very last thing kept running until the power grid shut down completely, beginning at the half hour mark of a digital clock with large red numbers, counting down the minutes.

What the fuck... what happens at zero..

"Let me tell you something-" Shane bolts towards Jenner but Rick stops him before he can get any closer to the doctor.

"To hell with it, Shane. Lori, get our things- everybody, get your stuff, we're getting out of here, now!"

That was the sign you'd been scared of getting, one that meant retreat in the most devastating way. Heart racing, you all turned for the door, until a loud alarm sounded out, startling you even more.

Thirty minutes to decontamination, the computer played out.

"Doc, what's going on here?" Daryl yelled, straining his own throat at the looming unknown of what was to come in those thirty minutes.

Suddenly, the hallway you'd been heading towards was being blockaded by an automated door, and by the looks of it, there was no getting through it.

"Did he just lock us in?" Glenn spoke, "He just locked us in!"

Anger overtook Daryl in a wave, throwing himself towards Jenner with every intention of beating his face into the ground, only to be ripped away from the chance, getting pushed away from him getting any closer.

"I told you, once that door closed, it wouldn't open again. You heard me say that."

"It's better this way."

"What is? What happens in 28 minutes?!" Rick questioned incessantly, standing a few feet away from the doctor.

Jenner had gone off on one of his rambling tangents again, only this time it was in a fit of rage, attempting to make the group realize why this place was built the way it was.

"In the event of a catastrophic power failure, H.I.T's are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out."

"H.I.T's?"

"Vi define-"

H.I.T's: high-impulse thermobaric fuel-air explosives.

It continued on to state how they'd be set off as the timer runs out, lighting the air on fire with its two step process. Gasps of horror and cries filled the air as the computer had all but handed you each a death sentence on a silver platter.

A chill rushed down your spine at the realization: every single one of you was going to die.

No chance of survival desired by the effect the explosives had promised. They would set the air on fire.

Some of the group clutched their loved ones in their arms desperately, while others only stood around, any hope they still held washing away from their expressions.

We're all going to die here, you thought. There's nothing left, anywhere. We were doomed from the start. How could we be so stupid? So ignorant? So filled with hope and determination to make the world better for us, to survive, when there's nothing out there that could fix this? Nothing that could make it better?

Any hope you'd still clung onto was pooling out of your body in a pile of unseen ambitions and delusions you'd foolishly looked forward to for the future.

Daryl's anger only burned, a forest fire that only grew larger with every time he yelled out for the doctor to open the door. You sat crouched against a wall, huddled with the rest of your group that wasn't doing everything they could to release the door.

We're fucked. We're so fucked.

"You should've left well enough alone. It would've been so much easier." Jenner stated, the men still throwing themselves at the door.

No, no, no. This doesn't make anything easier.

"Easier for who?" Lori spoke, offended with his words that were so clear of an attempt to pull you all back from this realization.

"All of you. You know what's out there-a short, brutal life, and an agonizing death."

His words, although speaking from a scientist's point of view, began to sink in, but not in a way that sent death to your door terrifyingly.

The words of your group members were muffled, focusing on your heart beating so infuriatingly fast, until you heard: Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher.

The next words you heard were the heated ones coming from a familiar voice.

"Well, your head ain't!"

You glanced up from your lap, viewing how Daryl threw himself at the doctor, once more getting pushed away from the man before inciting violence on him.

There's always hope, you heard Rick say, Maybe not here, but somebody, somewhere-

No, there's not. Not anymore, you mumbled to yourself.

Within his rage, Daryl managed to take a few deep breaths, eyes trailing over to where you sat. His focus changed from the situation at hand to the frail state of your body, legs pulled to your chest and hands shaking with every move they made.

"What part of everything is gone do you not understand?"

This is our extinction event.

After an outburst from Shane resulting in him shooting several of the computers, then Jenner, with a shotgun, you only felt more despair fill your chest. It made you raise from the floor in fear of getting run over. The state of everything had already converted people to such evil, why would you want to live in a world like that?

"I think you're lying."

"What?"

"You're lying about no hope. If that were true, you'd have bolted with the rest, or taken the easy way out. You didn't. You stayed when others ran. Why?"

"Not because I wanted to. I made a promise," Jenner stood from his chair at Rick's questioning, pointing to the monitor, "To her. My wife. She begged me to keep going as long as I could. How could i say no?"

Bang.

Daryl was at the indestructible door again, sending blows down on it with an axe.

"She was dying."

Bang.

"It should've been me on that table."

Bang.

"I wouldn't have mattered to anybody. She was a loss to the world."

Bang.

"Hell, she ran this place. I just worked here. She was an Einstein. Me, I'm just Edwin Jenner."

"Your wife didn't have a choice. You do. That's- that's all we want- a choice, a chance."

"Let us keep tryin' as long as we can," Lori stated, with Carl in her arms. The tone in her voice made you break a little, but there was no changing what your fate had decided.

"I told you, topside's locked down. I can't open those." Jenner walked past Rick and the others to another computer, swiping a keycard and pressing a few buttons on a pad with numbers.

Just like that, the door opened.

Daryl was the first one to yell out, being he was closest to the door.

"C'mon!" He started out the door, but entered again when he realized you hadn't followed.

You felt empty, the fight for hope dwindled to just ashes, somewhat like and end to the blazing fire of life, living, surviving. The whole world was gone, and there was nothing to be done about it. All the feeling from your chest faded away.

"I'm grateful."

"The day will come when you won't be."

Gasps and desperate yells sounded out from the group, alerting the group of their one passageway out of the building. While everyone grabbed onto each other, you stood in place.

Glancing around the room through tear-brimmed eyes, you noticed not everyone had bolted out the door, either.

Jacqui and Andrea stayed in place as well.

"Y/n! What're you doing? Let's go!" He bolted towards you, only watching as he approached with a solemn face.

"I-I can't. You go."

"Wha- n-no. I ain't lettin' ya. 'M not just leavin' you here."

"Yes, you are, Daryl."

She's not in her right mind, the coercion of Jenner's words had gotten to you, he thought.

"Hey! we've got four minutes left! C'mon!" Glenn yelled out, still stood by the door with Carl and a few others, as Lori pulled Rick out the door.

T-dog tried to bring Jacqui with him, only to be shoved away.

"No, I'm staying. I'm staying, sweetie. I'm not ending up like Jim and Amy. There's no time to argue, and no point if you wanna get out."

"Just go." You whispered, walking a few steps from Daryl.

How could he tell you why you dying would be the worst thing that would happen to him? It would rip him apart, piece by piece until he only became a shell of himself.

"I can't, you know I can't. I'm not leavin' you here." He only followed after you, not having the right words to say to you in a hopeless time like this. "You were the one that told me there was hope, remember?"

"Daryl-" you started again, kicking at the debris on the ground.

"Nah. Listen to me. I ain't goin' if it's not with you."

"You're insane," you scoffed, arms crossed over your chest.

"And you're not? Come on, there's always somethin' to fight for. Just gotta find it. How can ya if you ain't with us? We're gonna do it, make the world better. If we can't do anythin' about the geeks, we can only do it in spite of 'em."

Your eyes glimmered with fear, but he could've sworn he saw a light of hope, so he continued.

"You can find somethin' new to fight for, I swear on my fuckin' life. I can't-" Daryl sighed, "I can't lose you. I won't. You mean too much to me. You're my only friend, the hell 'm I gonna do with you gone? If you're not around, I got nothing to fight for. Nothin'."

Daryl's voice broke amidst the other conversations.

That was the moment his eyes met yours, flicking to light the fire of survival in you once again. Tear filled eyes met his, pulling him in for an embrace, and against his skin, you whispered.

"Okay. Let's go."

With that, you both ran for the doorway, pushing the ticking clock of death away with every patter of your footsteps. Eventually, you'd gotten to the front of the building, where the rest of your group was figuring out how to exit the building. Glenn spotted you and Daryl coming closer towards them all, a slight smile on his face.

Their methods of getting the window's glass to break had failed, until Carol rushed towards Rick, pulling something from her bag.

A grenade.

Once he got close enough to the glass, he pulled the pin, urging everyone to step back to be guarded from the blast. You all but threw yourself far enough away, hearing the effect of the blast shatter the glass with a loud boom.

You all dashed out of the window, spotting the vehicles down the road from where you'd parked them. Walkers had heard the blast and began to approach, only to be taken down by bullets from your group. Once you reached Daryl's bike, you looked back at the building one last time, before it was blown to pieces.

Two figures emerged from the broken window, Andrea and Dale.

You heard Lori yell from the RV to get down, both you and Daryl crouching behind the Winnebago before the blast rang out.

All you heard a few seconds later was the massive explosion of the building, along with a wave of heat that radiated all the way over to you all. Daryl panted, looking at you before hopping on his bike, starting the engine. Hopping on behind him, the engines of each vehicle sounded out, as they began to drive away.

You clutched onto Daryl's torso as the bike engine began, shuddering breaths filling your chest. Before he began driving, you tapped his shoulder.

"Daryl, thank you for getting me out of there. You're right, I do have something to fight for."

His eyes lightened, nodding before pulling his weight off the ground and driving the bike away from all the wreckage.

You'd found something- better yet someone to fight for, and it happened to be the very archer your arms wrapped around.

You chose to fight for him, of all things.

Just as hard, he'd chosen to fight for you.

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final-girl96 · 6 months

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Broken World: Chapter Sixteen

Flashback

The whole city was in total chaos. People were running in every direction, and screams and gunfire filled the air. The dead were up walking and stumbling around; how was this real life? They decided Atlanta was the best place to set up a refugee camp. Who's ever idea that was, was a fucking idiot. Things didn't take long to fall apart. Infected people got in and “turned”, they bite others, killing more, turning more people, and before anyone knew it, the whole city was being overrun.

The military was trying to get it under control, but it was no use. There were too many of them. There was a shoot to kill an order. That's exactly what I was doing; shooting the dead. It wasn't natural; the dead were walking around. I made it back into the precinct, killing anything that got in my way. I could hear the jets flying over the city, and shortly after, just as I scrambled under my desk, explosions rocked the whole city. They just bombed the city.

Center For Disease Control

Dr. Edwin Jenner. That was the man standing in front of us closing the doors behind us after a few of us ran out and got our bags. He led us to an elevator where we all piled in; It was a tight squeeze. Daryl was pushed back into the corner with his back to the wall. I was directly in front of him and almost touching him but not. Everyone else filed in though and I got bumped causing me to stumble back more and into Daryl. His left hand landed on my hip to steady and my whole body was on fire. His hand left just as fast as it came. Jenner walked into the elevator, waited for the doors to close, and then pressed one of the bottoms on the panel.

I could feel how tense Daryl was behind me; I was just as tense. I also hated being in such a small space with so many people. “Doctors always go around packing heat like that?” Daryl asked. Jenner had an M4A1 in his hands. He looked down at it then back at our group. “There were plenty left lying around. I familiarized myself. But you look harmless enough.” He looked down at Carl and smiled at him, “Except you, I’ll have to keep my eye on you.” The elevator doors opened and everyone got out.

We were led through halls, up metal stairs, and down another hall into a circular room with computers and a large screen on one wall. “VI, bring up the lights in the big room,” Jenner said, and the lights turned on. “Welcome to Zone 5.” We looked around to see an empty space. Nobody was here. “Where is everybody? The other doctors, the staff?” Rick asked. Jenner turned and looked at him. “I’m it. It’s just me here.” I shook my head, staying back from the group. “What about the person you were speaking with? VI?” Lori asked. “VI, say hello to our guests. Tell them… Welcome.”

“Hello, guests. Welcome,” An artificial intelligence voice said. “I’m all that’s left. I’m sorry,” Jenner told us. He then led us to a room where he took our blood. That was the agreement, he would run tests to make sure none of us were infected and we could stay. I sat in the chair and gave him my arm. He gave me a weak smile, cleaned the skin with an alcohol wipe, and stuck me with the needle. “You don't look happy to be here,” he said. I raised an eyebrow, “What makes you think that?” I asked. He finished filling a vial with blood and pulled the needle out, replacing it with a gauze pad. “You hung back from the others, didn't seem too surprised to know I was the only one here.” I hummed, leaned forward a little and said, “That's because I know no one would be here. I saw what happened to this place.” With that I stood up and went to stand near the door.

Jenner took Andrea’s blood for a sample. As she stood up she started to stumble a little until Jacqui caught her. “Are you okay?” Andrea nodded her head and held onto her. Jacqui looked at Jennerx who was looking a little concerned. “She hasn’t eaten in days. None of us have,” she explained. He looked around the room and nodded, then he led us to the kitchen where some of the women started to cook up dinner for everyone with the help of some of the men. There was plenty of wine and even some whiskey. When everything was done we pushed a few tables together and sat down. Jenner sat at a separate table close by.

Rick was pouring wine into Lori's cup when Dale said, “You know, in Italy, children have a little bit of wine with dinner. And in France.” She held up her glass and took a sip. “Well, when Carl is in Italy or France, he can have some then,” she said. “What’s it gonna hurt? Come on. Come on,” Rick said, trying to convince her. She agreed and gave him a little bit. He tasted it and scrunched his face up in disgust. Loro poured the rest into her glass. “That’s my boy. That’s my boy. Good boy.”

“Yuck. That tastes nasty,” Carl said. There were some laughs and chuckles from everyone. “Well, just stick to soda pop there, bud,” Shane told him. “Not you, Glenn,” Daryl said. Glenn looked around at everyone and laughed awkwardly. “What?” He asked. “Keep drinking, little man. I want to see how red your face can get,” Daryl said.

I leaned back in my chair at the end of the table beside Glenn, wine glass in my hand, swirling the dark red liquid around in the glass. Someone clinked thier glass and looked up to see Rock standing, glass raised. “It seems to me we haven’t thanked our host properly,” he said. T-Sog held his glass, “He is more than just our host,” he said, taking a drink. “Hear hear!” Dale cheered. Everyone held up a glass to toast Jenner with them. “Here’s to you, Doc, booyah!” Daryl shouted. Rick thanked the doctor and a cheer of booya's went around.

Everyone went back to eating and chatting until Shane interrupted it all. “So when are you gonna tell us what the Hell happened here, Doc? All the—the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?” He asked. “We’re celebrating, Shane. Don’t need to do this now,” Rick told him. I let out a scuff. "Whoa, wait a second. This is why we’re here, right? This was your move—supposed to find all the answers. Instead we—” I took a deep breath, “We found him. Found one man, why? I mean I told you this was all a waste of time,” I said. I wanted to know too. I wanted to know exactly what happened. I knew this place fell the second the city erupted into chaos.

“Well, when things got bad, a lot of people just left, went off to be with their families. And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted,” Jenner said. I just kept looking at Rick, giving him that “I told you so” look. “Every last one?” Shane asked, narrowing his eyes at the doctor. Jenner was silent for a few seconds and then said, “No, many couldn’t face walking out the door. They… opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time.”

“You didn’t leave. Why?” Andrea asked. Jenner looked up from his glass to look at her. “I just kept working, hoping to do some good,” he said quietly. Silence fell over the group. “Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man,” Glenn said to Shane.

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scarisd3ad · 1 year

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To the end and back [daryl Dixon x reader]

Chapter five - everything has changed

Masterlist

Taglist

Previous >> next

Summary - after the world ended you were sure you’d never find love again but a certain archer catches your eyes and changes the entire trajectory of your life.

A/n - Last chapter of season 1, season 2 coming soon.

Tw- death, mentions of suicide, suicidal thoughts

'Ts-19'

Season 1 ep 6

edited

tw - death, mentions of suicide, and suicidal thoughts.

It opened it actually opened, I was sure no one was in there, that not one part of the government was left. We all walk in ready to see hordes of walkers, ready for this to be a trap set by some sick fuck that broke into the CDC. "Daryl, you cover the back" Shane orders. We walk in with Rick leading the way. He's got his gun pointed forward, ready to fire "hello? Hello?" he shouts as he walks forward.

"Close those doors. Watch for walkers." We slowly walk through the building. We're all alert, ready to see a horde of infected former CDC workers but there isn't its clean and pristine there's not one drop of blood in sight it looked like the world hadn't ended. every other building I've been in since the world ended had been littered with bodies, and blood stained the walls, but this looked like how it probably looked in the old world. like it was ready to be filled with doctors and scientists trying to figure out cures for diseases in the world. "Hello?!" Then we see him, a guy, a doctor, he has light brown hair, and he looks at least in his forties. At first, we think he's a walker, so we all get ready to shoot. "Anybody infected?" The guy shouts we put down our guns. "One of our groups was...he didn't make it" Rick answers.

"Why are you here? What do you want?" The guy asks as he walks a bit closer, he sounds tired like he's ready to give up. "A chance" Rick replies breathily. "Thats asking an awful lot these days." The guy inches a bit closer. Rick shakes his head agreeing "I know." a chance is a lot to ask for, sometimes even got a hefty price on it these days.

"You all submit to a blood test. That's the price of admission." rick nods and replies "We can do that". The guy lowers his gun "you got stuff to bring in, you do it now. Once this door closes it stays closed." Some of us end up running out grabbing anything we might need.

Dale, and t-dog close the two main doors and the man says "vi, seal the main entrance. kill the power up here" the rolling door closes back. "Rick grimes" Rick says sticking his hand out "dr. Edwin jenner."

The elevator hums as it descends. We're packed in it like sardines. "Doctors always go around packin' heat like that?" Daryl asks referring the the large gun dr. Jenner carried. "There were plenty left lying around. I familiarized myself....but you look harmless enough." He replies. "Except you, I'll have to keep my eye on you" he says to Carl which makes Carl grin a bit.

We're walking down a white hallway; it reminds me of the somehow eerie hallways of a hospital. "Are we underground?" Carol asks, with her brows furrowed up in confusion. Jenner turns around "Are you claustrophobic?" Jenner asks, "a little." Carol replies "try not to think about it." He says Turning back around and continuing to walk.

"Vi, bring up the lights in the big room." Jenners voice echos as he shouts. We enter a large room with bunches, and bunches of computers. computers that are supposed to be occupied by doctors. The lights flicker on. "Welcome to zone 5."

Where is everybody? The other doctors the staff?" Rick asks confusions flooding his face. we hoped for there to be more staff, more doctors trying to figure out what the hell was going on, but it seemed like Jenner was the last one left. "I'm it...it's just me here" Jenner replies which is disappointing to most of us. "What about the person you were speaking with? Vi?" Lori asks as we all come to a stop. "Vi, say hello to our guests. Tell them...welcome." Jenner shouts.

A computerized voice comes over the overhead speakers "hello, guests. Welcome."

"I'm all that's left. I'm sorry" Jenner says as he turns around. We all get blood test. Since we haven't ate properly in the past month or two, we're all a bit woozy afterwards. I'm sitting across from Jenner watching as my blood drains into a small vile. He takes the vile out and retracts the needle. "All done" he says. I dizzily stand up from the chair. Glenn's stood behind me. He grabs both my arms stabilizing me. I've lost a lot of blood in the last few days. "You, okay?" Jenner asks. I nod slowly. "She's lost a lot of blood already; she hasn't eaten in days either. None of us have."

Jenner offers us dinner. He's got so much food and drinks. I haven't seen so much food in my entire life. We all seem happy, for the first time in the last few months. We're actually happy. We're all laughing and chitchatting like we're old friends.

"You know in Italy; children have a little bit of wine with dinner" Dale says as he hands a cup of wine to Lori. "And in France" Dale adds. "Well, when Carl is in Italy of France, he can have some then" Lori says covering up the cup that sat in front of Carl. "What's it gonna hurt? Come on" Rick says trying to persuade his wife to let there 12-year-old have some wine. Lori turns her head towards Rick with a small smile on her face "come on" Rick laughs.

"What?" Everyone's giggling as Lori shrugs. Dale hands Carl a cup with just a little bit of wine in it "there you are, young lad" Carl puts the cup up to his lips and takes a tiny sip we're all staring at carl waiting for his reaction. "Eww" Carl says as he scrunched up his face in disgust. We all burst out laughing again. I'm pretty sure we all remember our first drink and our reaction was pretty much the same as Carls.

"That's my boy. That's my boy" Lori says as she takes the cup from Carl and pours it into hers. "That tastes nasty" he says as he shakes his head. "Well, just stick to soda pop there, bud." Shane says. Glenn hasn't drunk much tonight. Probably doesn't want to be as hung over as he was this morning. I've had myself a few cups. By few I mean like five but I'm fine. "Not you, Glenn" Daryl says. Daryl's drunk as fuck. He's going to be fucked in the morning. "What?" Glenn asks raising his head, a little embarrassed that he's gotten called out. "Keep drinking, little man. I want to see how red your face can get." Daryl says which makes all the men start laughing. The clinking of glass makes us all stop and turn our attention to Rick. "It seems to me we haven't thanked our host properly." Rick says standing up. "He is more than just our host." T-dog says raising his glass.

"Hear hear!"

"Here's to you, doc. Booyah!" Daryl says raising the bottle of wine he had been drinking out of.

Booyah!"

"Thank you, doctor." Rick says quietly. "So, when are you gonna tell us what the hell happened here, doc?" Shane asks. Which subsequently makes everyone's smiles fade. "All the uh..other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?"

"We're celebrating, Shane don't need to do this now" Rick hisses as he sits back down. "Whoa, wait a second. This is why we're here, right? This was your move—supposed to find all the answers, instead we uh..we found him" Shane chuckles as he points towards Jenner. "Found one man. Why?"

"Well when things got bad, a lot of people just left, went off to be with their families. And when things got worse, when the uh military cordon go overrun, the rest bolted." Jenner explains. "Every last one?" Shane asks as he sinks down in his chair a bit. "No, many couldn't face walking out the door. They...opted out. There was a rash of suicides" that definitely killed the mood. What Jenner just said confirmed my suspicions, this was never going to end. We were just going to have to adapt, adapt to this new harsh reality, adapt to the monsters that have now taken over. If we didn't then we're dead. There was no end to this shit, this was just how we were going to have to live. One day hopefully when we get used to it we can have normalcy, homes, families, pets, but not now we have to learn first. Learn how to survive, learn how to live in this new world, learn how to live amongst the monsters, if we didn't, we'd never live.

"That was a bad time." Jenner whispers solemnly "You didn't leave, why" Andrea asks. "I just kept workin', hoping..to do some good."

"Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man" Glenn groans.

Once we were finished with dinner Jenner shows us around. We follow him down a hallway "most of the facility is powered down. Including housing, so you'll have to make do here." Jenner explains. "The couches are comfortable, but there are cots in storage if you like. There a rec room down the hall that you kids might enjoy." Jenner turns around addressing Carl, and Sophia. "Just don't plug in the video games, okay?" Both kids nod. "Or anything that draws power. The same applies—if you shower, go east on the hot water." Jenner says before turning back around and leaving, Glenn turns to all of us eyes widened "hot water?"

"That's what the man said" t-dog says with a laugh.

I decide to take a shower. I haven't had one in so long; I can't even remember the last time I washed my hair. Yeah, at times we'd go and bathe in the quarry but that was only sometimes.

The hot water feels like heaven. I'm so glad I had collected up shower supplies just hoping one day I'd be able to have a normal shower. I haven't shaved my legs in God knows how long. it's not like I miss having to shave my legs every day, but I do miss the feeling of bare legs under freshly warmed sheets. I miss the soft feeling of my legs after lotion. I miss the aspect of life that us as humans wouldn't think we'd miss. Things we found a hassle at the time but now we long for it. Like washing clothes, or dishes. At the time I hated slaving over the sink washing each dish, but now I miss it.

I shave my legs, and arms just to feel like the world was normal again. I'm sure I spend at least 2 minutes just smelling at the bottle of shampoo that smelt like strawberries and cream. I'm sure I stunk of sweat beforehand, I'm sure we all did. But we eventually didn't smell it our brains tricked us into not smelling it like our brains makes it seem like we can't see our nose even though we can.

I find myself a room to settle into, it's an office but it's got a couch so that's fine. I pull my blanket out of the bag I had brought in it's not clean and kind of smells like wood and fire, but it's a blanket.

Knock, knock, knock.

I sigh as I walk over to the door and unlock it. It's Daryl stumbling over his words like he's trying to practice what to say. His eyes widened as he sees me. "I- um I really fuckin' like ya" I peek out the hallway to see Glenn, and t-dog peeking out from behind a corner. All three are drunk (I'm probably just as equally drunk but we're not going to talk about it). "You like me?" I ask raising my eyebrows teasingly. I don't know when I started liking Daryl, I was scared of him for the longest time, but when did that fear turn into adoration. Maybe when he stayed with me when I was hurt in Atlanta. Maybe when he gave me that package of ramen noodles. "Yeah, I really f-fuckin' like you" I smile as he slurs his words. "I like you too Daryl" I whisper as I place my hand on his cheek and lean in kissing him. He wraps his arms around waist pulling me closer. I can hear Glenn and t-dog trying to quietly celebrate down the hall (there not, there actually really loud) I pull away my hand still on his cheek. He's blushing, it's kind of cute seeing a man so big, and tough be flustered. "You wanna come inside?" I ask he nods rapidly, and I pull him in closing the door behind us.

What I've learned is that drunk Daryl and sober Daryl, are two completely separate people. Drunk Daryl is way more open about his feelings, softer, nicer too.

I wake up in the middle of the night my body halfway on top of Daryl. He's got his arms wrapped around me while he's snoring quietly. We were lucky this couch was able to fit the both of us. I lay my head back against his bare chest and listen to his heartbeat.

The next time I wake up is when Daryl wakes up.

We're both sat on the couch, discussing what had happened last night. "So do you really like me, or was it like something Glenn and t-dog made you say?" I whisper. His brows furrow as he looks at me "it wasn' a lie. I wouldn' lie bout somethin' like that." I nod as I inch closer to him. "Do ya really like me?" He asks I nod. "Yeah, I really like you" he smiles, I've never really seen him smile much. He's always got this stone-cold serious look on his face, but not now.

He leans in close and presses a kiss to my lips. After a while of just sitting soaking up each other's company we get up and head to the kitchen area. Almost everyone's already there, I guess it's a little harder to estimate what time it is being underground and all. Glenn's moaning and groaning about his hangover which makes me laugh. He probably drank more than he'd even drank in his life yesterday.

The rest want answers about the walkers, what's causing it, and shit like that so Jenner takes us back to the big room with the computers. I don't wanna know much about them, I like to know as little as I can, if I know too much it makes me paranoid. I'm happy living my life just trying to avoid them at all costs. He presses a few buttons and then says, "give me playback of ts-19."

"Playback of ts-19"

The big screen in front of us starts to show a video of a brain "few people ever got a chance to see this. Very few." Jenner says. "Is that a brain?" Carl asks, "an extraordinary one...not that it matters in the end." Replies Jenner.

"Take us in for e.i.v" Jenner says. "Enhanced internal view" the video then zooms in. We watch as we get closer and closer into the brain until we see the neurons. "What are those lights?" Shane asks. "It's a person's life..experiences, memories. It's everything. Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you, the thing that makes you unique. And human." Explains Jenner.

"You don't make sense ever" Daryl says. "Those are synapses, electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says, does or thinks from the moment of birth to the moment of death."

"Death? That's what this is, a vigil?" Rick asks as he approaches Jenner. "Yes" Jenner says "or rather the playback of the vigil." We all watch the screen so interested in what Jenner is saying as well as the neurons. "This person died. Who?" Andrea asks "test subject 19. Someone who was bitten, and infected...and volunteered to have us record the process."

"Vi, scan forward to the first event."

"Scanning to first event."

It zooms back out and fasts forward. the brain stem begins to darken. "What is that?" Glenn asks "it invaded the brain like meningitis. The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brain goes into shutdown, then the major organs." The brain goes completely dark. They died. "Then death" Jenner whispers to himself. "Everything you ever were or ever will be..gone."

"Is that what happened to Jim?" Sophia asks "yes" her mother replies nodding. It's what happened to Jim, Amy, my brother, and possibly us one day too.

Andrea tries to blink back tears, but it just doesn't work "she lost somebody two days ago. Her sister." Lori explains to Jenner who is looking at her with his brows furrowed together.

"I lost somebody too. I know how devastating it is." Jenner says to Andrea. it is truly devastating, losing someone to this, watching them slowly lose their lives and then become the very monster that took it from them. "Scan to the second event!" Jenner shouts to vi as he walks away from Andrea.

"Scanning to second event."

"The resurrection times vary wildly. We have reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours. In the case of this patient, it was two hours, one minute...seven seconds."

The brain stem flickers back on. "It restarts the brain?" Lori asks. "No just the brain stem basically, it gets them up, and moving." Jenner says it just brings back the basic part like walking, biting, grabbing but not the human part. "But they're not alive?" Rick asks. Jenner walks back to rick pointing up to the screen "you tell me." Rick shakes his head "it's nothing like before. Most of that brain is dark."

"Dark, lifeless, dead. The frontal lobe, the neocortex, the human part that doesn't come back. The you part. Just a shell driven by mindless instinct." Then something goes straight through its brain. "God. What was that?" Carol asks, "he shot his patient in the head, didn't you?" Andrea asks.

"Vi power down the main screen and the workstations."

"Powering down main screen, and workstations"

The lights shut off. "You have no idea what it is, do you?" Andrea asks as she walks towards Jenner. "It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal" he doesn't know. No one does. There's not going to be a cure we're just going to have to suck it up and learn to live this way because life will never go back to what it used to be.

"Or the wrath of god?" Jacqui asks. "There is that." Maybe it was the wrath of God, or Mother Nature, or maybe our time was just up. Maybe human lives time was up, just like the dinosaurs. "Somebody must know something. Somebody somewhere" in times like this when I know I'm destined to die, and I just want to go back. Maybe do something different, maybe it's my fault I'm stuck in this situation. Maybe I did something as a kid to deserve this. I wish I got bit in the early days, died, became one of the walkers in the city because this is hell. Trying to survive, but also keep some kind of normalcy was hell. I don't know what day it is, or the time I'm just going on day to day, an empty shell of the person I used to be. I'm no longer that bright lively person, and I know it. how can you when you're living through the apocalypse. I'm not truly happy I'll never be, not anymore, I don't think I can. No matter how many people I have around me, how many of those I love are around me, I'll always think about the people I left behind, my roommate, my brother, my granddad. They're all dead, they're lucky they got the easy way out. I wish I did too.

"There are others, right? Other facilities?" Carol asks. "There may be some. People like me." Jenner replies. "But you don't know? How can you not know?" Rick asks. "Everything went down. Communications, directives, all of it I've been in the dark for almost a month." Jenner explains. "So, it's not just here. There's nothing left anywhere? Nothing? That's what you're really saying right?" We came here for no reason, we came for answers, and Jenner had none.

Andrea scoffs, we're all finally realizing this is not going to end. "Jesus" Jacqui mutters. "Man, I'm gonna get shitfaced drunk..again" Daryl says as he leans himself against a cubicle "dr. Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you, and I hate to ask one more question but...that clock it's counting down. What happens at zero?" The clock is at 59 minutes. "The...basement generators they run out of fuel." He seems uncertain or as if he's lying. He's not telling us the full truth, and I know that. Jenner begins to walk around "and then?" Rick asks. Jenner doesn't answer he just walks away. "Vi what happens when the power runs out?" Rick asks.

"When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur."

I sit in the office I had claimed as my sleeping quarters the previous night. Facility wide decontamination. Decontamination, we're going to die. The doors won't open back up that's what Jenner said at the beginning, once they shut, they aren't opening back up. So, if we wanted to leave, we can't. We'll have to die. And I'm fine with it. I'm fine with dying, I'm not sure if I even want to live this life anymore.

The air conditioner has shut off.

I'm becoming more and more comfortable with the thought of dying. If I died, I wouldn't have to do this anymore, I don't want to do this anymore.

The lights shut off next. There's not much time left. Am I convincing myself I'm ready to die or am I really ready to die. I don't really have an option anymore, do I? So, I shouldn't think about it. If I think about it, I'll panic, so I should just not think about it. If I don't think about it will be fast, without any struggle, or crying just death in a flash.

I can hear everyone in the hallways asking what's happening. They're probably talking to Jenner. I'm staying curled up on the couch, I'm not moving.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Come in" I say meekly.

The door opens, and in comes Glenn. "Come on" I look up at him brows furrowed. "I want to stay in here" he sighs "come on just..please come with me" I begrudgingly get up and follow Glenn into the big room where everyone else is. Everyone's confused, and scared.

"Jenner, what's happening?" Rick asks as he power walks after Jenner. "The system is dropping all the nonessential use of power. It's designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second. That started as we approached the half-hour mark. Right on schedule"

31 minutes 28 seconds.

Jenners got a bottle of alcohol in his hands which Daryl snatches from him. "It was that French" I furrow my brows "what?" Andrea asks "they were the last ones to hold out as far as I know while our people were bolting out the doors, and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs till the end. They thought they were close to a solution." Jenner answers. He begins to walk father away from us "what happened?" Jacqui asks. "Same thing that's happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice." Jenner explains. "The world runs on fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?" Jenner says with a chuckle before turning back around. "Let me tell you-" Shane says trying to run after Jenner. Rick grabs at Shane "to hell with it Shane. I don't even care."

Rick turns towards his wife "Lori, grab our things, everybody, get your stuff. We're getting out of here now!" Rick shouts most of us start scattering when an alarm starts blaring "what's that?" Shane asks.

"30 minutes to decontamination" vi says.

Jenner walks over to a desk "doc, what's going on here!" Daryl shouts. "Everybody y'all heard Rick. Get your stuff, and let's go! Go now! Go!" Shouts Shane. Just when everyone was about to run out the door shuts.

"Did-did you just lock us in?!" Glenn stammered out. Jenner sits down not answering Glenn. "He just locked us in!" Glenn shouts fearfully. Everyone else begins to run back towards Jenner.

"Carl!"

"Mom!"

Daryl begins to run up to Jenner angrily. "You son of a bitch." Daryl barks as he sprints at Jenner. "Shane! Shane!" Rick shouts. Shane chases after Daryl "you locked us in here!" Shouts Daryl as he grabs onto Jenner. "No, stop don't!"

"You lying—"

"No, no, no, no!" Shane says as he pulls Daryl away. "Wait, no! No, don't do it." Shane and t-dog has to hold Daryl back as he angrily punches and tries to wiggle out of their grip. Rick marches up to Jenner "hey, Jenner, open that door now." Rick demands.

I'm leaning against one of the desks my face buried in my hands with my fingers spread so I can still see what's going on. "There's no point. Everything topside is locked down. The emergency exits are sealed." Jenner replies. "We'll open the damn things!" Shouts Dale.

I can't talk, I won't talk to anyone if I do, I'll cry, and I'll change my mind on being okay with dying. "That's not something I control. The computers do. I told you once that front door closed, it wouldn't open again. You heard me say that." Everyone else is stressing, carol especially she doesn't want her little girl to die this young. She wants Sophia to have a life, live a long life even during this mess. "It's better this way" Jenner says. Rick turns his head towards Jenner a little offended "what is? What happens in 28 minutes?" Rick says through his teeth as he walks closer to Jenner. Jenner doesn't answer just begin to type away at his computer. Shane begins to walk up. I guess he could see some tic in Rick because one second later he's shouting, "what happens in 28 minutes!"

Jenner stands up "you know what this place is?! We protected the public from very nasty stuff! Weaponized smallpox! Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country! Stuff you don't want getting out! Ever!" Jenner shouts in both Shane and ricks faces before sitting back down. "In the event of a catastrophic power failure—in a terrorist attack, for example H.I.T.s are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out." Jenner explains. Rick walks over to Jenner "H.I.T.s?" Jenner doesn't want to explain so he shouts to vi "vi, define."

"H.I.T.S high-impulse thermobaric fuel-air explosives, consist of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power, and duration than any other known explosive except nuclear. The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen at between 5,000, and 6,000 degrees, and is useful when the greatest loss of life and damage to structures is desired."

"It sets the air on fire no pain." Jenner says. Carol is crying while holding her daughter close. "An end to sorrow, grief...regret......everything." Jenner whispers. He's right, this is the best way to die, death is almost instant. It's an end to all the grief, and sadness I've felt since the moment this thing started.

Daryl's throwing shit at the door trying to...I don't know break it? "Open the damn door!" Daryl shouts. I stare at my feet, what was there to live for anymore? "Out of my way!" Shouts Shane before he hurdles towards the door with an axe. It makes a noise similar to when you run your fingers nails down a chalk board. Blugh, it makes me want to puke. Both Daryl and Shane are pounding these pickaxes maybe regular axes I don't even know anymore. But they're just hitting, and hitting, and hitting, and all I want to do is curl into a tiny ball, and cry. My brain isn't working, and sound is starting to blur, fizzle out as I stare at my feet.

There was no need to live anymore, we were just going to be stuck in this mess of a world anyways. So why not die right now? Why does everyone but me want to get out? Is something wrong with me specifically? Am I just that fucked up in the head, that I don't want a second chance at life? I'm ready..but I'm not at the same time. Every time I convince myself I'm ready I just begin to think about what I could have in the future, but then I think about what I could've had, then I'm right back at the beginning. I don't want to live my life in constant fear of getting bitten, I don't want to live in the constant cycle of grief, and regret.

I'm not paying attention to anything that's happening. I'm ready, I'm ready. I keep telling myself that. I'm re-

"Come on, hey y/n he opened the door." Glenn snaps me out of the trance I was in. I shake my head "it's for the better" I whisper. Glenn furrows his eyebrows "what?" I let out a shaky breath "I-I don't want to live like this anymore Glenn, I want to stay" he shakes his head. "No, no I'm not leaving you here! I don't care I'm not leaving you here." He says I shake my head again. "I don't want to go" I whisper "I love you y/n, I can't just leave you here." I don't reply.

"Daryl!" He shouts waving him over. He runs over kneeling down next to me. "She doesn't want to leave, help me convince her to leave." Glenn whispers. I shake my head. I don't want to leave, I want to die. "We don' have time" Daryl says picking me up and throwing me over his shoulder. I kick and punch at Daryl begging him to let me stay but he doesn't do anything.

"Let me go Daryl" I cry "I want to stay."

We end up stopping at the door. "Hey, we've got four minutes left! Come on!" Shouts Glenn. "Daryl please, please, please. Leave me" I sob. "No, no, no m'not doin' that" he mutters. I can barely hear anything over my thoughts.

You need to stay. You need to stay. You need to stay. it was like a virus infecting my brain telling me that I needed to die.

Then we're running again. That's what snaps me out again. The only thing I notice is that dales, Andrea, and Jacqui are staying. If dales staying, I want to stay too, but Daryl won't let go. He's got a tight grip on me, that I can't wiggle out of.

We're going upstairs, and then we're on the top floor. I'm placed on the ground as Daryl, and Shane try to break through the windows. It won't work. This is a government building the windows are only able to break if there's an explosion. It won't break for axes, chairs, or gun fire.

"The glass won't break?!" Cries Sophia. "Rick, I have something that might help!" Carol says running up to Rick as she dug into the bag she held in her hands. "Carol, I don't think a nail files gonna do it." Carol ignores Shane's misogyny and continues to talk to Rick. "Your first morning at camp, when I washed your uniform, I found this in your pocket." She says showing Rick a grenade.

Rick takes it from her, and everyone begins to take cover.

"Oh shi—"

Boom.

The windows broken. I'm still set on staying. I'm hoping Glenn, and Daryl will forget about me and leave me here. "Come on" Daryl's kneeled down next to me. I shake my head. "No, I want to die Daryl why can't you just let me die" I cry. "God dammit women ya can't just do this to me" he mutters before picking me back up and throwing me over his shoulder again. I'm being stupid, and stubborn I know, but why can't he just leave me here. I already said I want to die.

We're running towards the cars. Rick, and Shane shooting at walkers at the same time. The bomb definitely was bringing a bunch, so we had to hurry.

We make it to the cars unscathed. Daryl places me in the passenger side of his truck instead of the SUV I was originally in with Rick, and his family. We brace for impact.

3, 2, 1. Boom.

I think it's the most fire I've ever seen in my life. Jacqui's dead, but Dale, and Andrea made it out. Jacqui was a sweet lady. She cared for everyone even people who had wronged her. She didn't deserve to die, but she just ran out of hope. Hope, how can we have hope when we're going through this.

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#fanfics #x reader #the walking dead season 1 #the walking dead #daryl dixon x female reader #daryl dixion x reader #daryl dixon #glenn rhee #Lori grimes #Rick grimes #Carl grimes #zombie apocalypse #zombie #female!reader #fem!reader

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topazy · 2 years

Text

Tomorrow’s promise

Pairing: Shane Walsh x reader, Rick Grimes x sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, sexual content, mentions of injury and character death

Chapter: 1.03

Your breath caught in your throat as you stared at the bright light that comes out of the CDC. Everyone stood frozen for a moment until Rick and Shane took the lead and went inside while Daryl covered you from behind, making sure no walkers got in.

You step inside the lobby that looks completely empty and say, “Hello?”

Hearing the sound of someone cocking a gun, you turn the other way to see a man pointing a rifle in your group's direction. He looks nervous and asks, “Anybody infected?”

“One of our groups was. He didn’t make it,” Rick answers.

“Why are you here? What do you want?”

“A chance.”

The man gulps down, “That’s asking an awful lot these days.” He looked around the room, still seeming unsure of what to do next. “You all submit to a blood test. That’s the price of admission.”

“We can do that,” you nod. You step forward and reach your hand out to shake his hand. “Lily Grimes.”

He lowers his weapon and shakes your hand. “Dr. Edwin Jenner You've got stuff to bring in; do it now. Once this door closes, it stays closed.”

Shane placed his hand on your back as you started to quickly follow Jenner, and you flinched when the metal shutters slammed down, covering all the windows and doorways in the lobby. Seconds later, the sounds of walkers trying to get in echoed through the room.

As everyone entered the elevator, Jace started to make a gurgling noise. Shane bent down and kissed him on the head before brushing Jace’s cheek with his finger and saying, “Hey little man, it’s all going to be okay.”

The sight warms your heart, but the feeling of loving warmth disappears when your eyes land on your sister-in-law, who is watching as Shane interacts with his son with an emotionless expression on her face.

—

When the elevator doors open, Jenn steps out first and says, “VI, seal the main entrance. Kill the power up here.”

He leads you down a hallway. “Are we underground?” Carol asks from behind you.

Jenner looks back at her and asks, “Are you claustrophobic?”

“A little.”

“Try not to think about it,” he answers casually. Jenner opens the door to a room that’s in complete darkness and says, “VI, bring up the lights in the big room.”

A hum of fire cuts through the air before the lights come on, and you stare in awe at what looks like a sci-fi lab you’d see in movies.

“Welcome to Zone 5.”

“Where is everybody? The other doctors, the staff?” Rick asks, trying his best to keep the concern out of his voice.

“I’m it. It's just me here.”

Lori looks at him confused. “What about the person you were speaking with? VI?”

“VI, say hello to our guests. Tell them… Welcome.”

A computerized voice starts talking, “Hello, guests. Welcome.”

“I’m all that’s left. I’m sorry.”

—

“Shane,” you whisper while nudging his arm with your elbow. “Cut it out.”

Shane gives you an annoyed look before returning his attention back to Jace, whom he was holding protectively. When Jenner said he’d need to test everyone’s blood, that included your baby. Although you weren’t happy with it, you didn’t see another choice. Shane disagreed but reluctantly agreed to let Jenner take blood from your son, which now led to him shooting death glances at the man.

When Andrea stands after having her blood taken, she stumbles forward but is caught by Jacqui before she hits the ground. She shakes the blonde's shoulder and asks, “Are you okay?”

“Mmm.”

“She hasn’t eaten in days,” Jacqui explains to Jenner. “None of us have.”

—

Everyone is seated at a large round table, eating pasta, laughing, and drinking wine. Minus yourself. Having a normal meal with family wasn’t something you thought you’d ever get to do again, which is why the moment felt so precious to you. You watch amused as Dale hands your nephew a glass with a small amount of wine in it for him to taste. Carl pulled a look of disgust after tasting the alcohol, causing everyone to laugh.

Lori stroked the back of his head before pouring the wine from his glass into hers. “That’s my boy. That’s my boy. Good boy.”

“That’s disgusting!”

Shane chuckles, “Well, just stick to soda pop there, bud.”

Daryl lets out a laugh. “Not you, Glenn.”

“What?” Glenn’s face flushes slightly.

“Keep drinking, little man. I want to see how red your face can get.”

You feel Shane tense beside you while others laugh. He didn’t look happy. You place your hand on his and ask, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just thinking,” is all he says before kissing the side of your head.

The look on Shane’s face makes you feel uneasy, but you don’t push for further information and return to devouring the meal in front of you.

While everyone else was laughing and talking among themselves, Lori leaned back in her chair to get your attention. There was a slight gap between your chairs, but nobody else was sitting between the two of you. She points towards the untouched glass of wine sitting in front of you and asks, “You going to drink that?”

Since you were breastfeeding, you wouldn’t be able to drink it, and it would be a shame for it to go to waste. You handed the glass to her, and the smile on her face pissed you off. “What’s mine is yours,” you say low enough that only she can hear you. “At least you asked this time, right?”

The smile on her face falls. Your attention is drawn to Rick when he stands and taps his fork against his glass. “It seems to me we haven’t thanked our host properly.”

“He is more than just our host,” T-Dog points out.

Dale raises his glass, “Hear hear!”

Everyone cheers to Jenner, thanking him for letting you in when Shane cuts in. “So when are you going to tell us what the hell happened here, Doc? Where are all the other doctors who were supposed to be figuring out what happened?”

The atmosphere changes immediately, and the lightness of evening and the heaviness of how the world was dammed were all real again.

Your brother shoots him a look. “We’re celebrating, Shane. You don’t need to do this now.”

“Whoa, wait a second. This is why we’re here, right? This was your move—you were supposed to find all the answers. Instead we—” Shane, let’s put in a sarcastic chuckle. “We found him. I found one man, why?”

A look of sadness falls over Jenner’s features. “Well, when things got bad, a lot of people just left and went off to be with their families. And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted.”

“What happened?” You ask, feeling sorry for him.

“Many couldn’t face walking out the door. They opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time.”

“You didn’t leave. Why?” Andrea asks.

“I just kept working, hoping to do some good.”

Glenn turns to Shane and sighs, “Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man.”

After finishing the rest of your meal in an awkward silence, Jenner begins to show you more of the building, including where you’d be sleeping.

“Most of the facility is powered down, including housing, so you’ll have to make do here. The couches are comfortable, but there are cots in storage if you like. I think there’s also a crib in one of the rooms that your little one could use,” he says, smiling at you. “There’s a rec room down the hall that you kids might enjoy. Just don’t plug in the video games, okay? or anything that draws power. The same applies—if you shower, go easy on the hot water.”

“You have showers here?”

“With hot water?” Glenn asks excitedly.

Jenner nods.

T-Dog claps his hands together and laughs, “That’s what the man said.”

—

“You know, I didn’t like what you said earlier.” Shane’s voice reaches you through the sound of running water.

You look over your shoulder at him and ask, “What?”

He joins you in the shower and kisses the back of your shoulder. “When you introduced yourself to Jenner, you said your name was Lily Grimes. I didn’t like that; it should be Lily Walsh.”

Lily Walsh. You liked the sound of that. From the first time Shane told you he loved you, you knew you wanted to marry him and be his forever, but that was before the world went to shit. In another life, you’d be planning your over-the-top wedding and spending your days daydreaming about saying ‘I do.’ But instead you were washing off a couple of weeks' worth of dirt, blood, and sweat. As you looked down at the dirty ring at the bottom of the shower, it made you regret ever taking such a luxury for granted before.

“Hey, are you still with me?” Shane’s voice brings you back to reality.

He looks at you with concern as you turn around to face him. “Yeah, just lost in my thoughts. Jace?”

“He’s sound asleep. I asked Carol to watch over him for ten minutes.”

He goes to say something else, but you cut him off with a kiss. You pull back and pour some shampoo into your hands before rubbing it into his hair. He closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of you massaging his scalp before you pulled him further under the spray of the shower with you.

He wipes the soap that’s dripped down his face with his hand, giving you a playful grin. Suddenly, he wraps his arm around your waist and pulls you in close as he starts to leave trails of kisses over your neck and face. “That felt good,” he says with a grin. “Now, I think I should return the favor.”

“I’ve already washed my hair.”

“There’s more than one way to make you feel good,” he says in between kissing your jawline. You are hesitant at first, but when Shane drops to his knees in front of you, you let out a soft moan as he kisses your stomach. He puts one of your legs over your shoulder and starts kissing up your thigh, “I can stop; just tell me and I’ll stop.”

You tangle your fingers in his hair, “whatever you do, don’t stop.”

He smirks before putting his mouth where you want it. One of your hands slammed against the wall while the other pulled on his hair as he devoured and worshiped you with his skilled tongue.

—

You walk into the rec room and smile at Carol, who’s gently rocking the crib Jace is in, and quietly say, “Thank you so much for watching him.”

“He’s slept like an angel,” she smiles before saying good night to you; her young daughter Sophia does the same.

At the same time, they leave. Lori and Carl come into the room. You smile at the young boy, “Hey munchkin, you hungover?”

He lets out a giggle before noticing a couple of board games that are in the room. “Aunt Lily, can you play a game with me?”

You glance down at Jace, who is still sound asleep, then back at Carl, who is staring at you with pleading eyes. “Of course, but only if you let me win at least one game.”

“You're such a sore loser,” he says before setting up a game of chess.

Lori places her hand on your shoulder and says, “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

A part of you wanted to rip her hand off and yell at her squints; she didn’t need to appreciate it because Carl is your family and you’d do anything for him, even something as small as play a board game with him to make him smile because that’s what families do. or are supposed to do. But instead, you bite down on the rage you have towards her and give her a nod before sitting down across from Carl.

As you put away the chess board, Lori says to Carl, “Baby, go say your prayers. I’m gonna browse a bit.”

“Night, Aunt Lily,” he says before looking down at Jace. “Night little cuz.”

So sweet. Seeing the sweet interaction made you want to wrap your son and Carl in bubble wrap. Silently, you pick Jace up and go to leave, but Lori calls after you.

“Lily… Do you—are you—how are you holding up?”

“Holding up?”

You see an uneasy look pass over Lori’s face. “Being a mom is difficult. God, I remember spending so many nights crying because I just didn’t know what to do with this tiny human who depended on me. And no matter how hard your partner tries to help, the loneliness of it gets to you. I couldn’t imagine going through all that again when the world is like this.” She swirled the tiny amount of wine left in her glass before sitting the glass down. “Being a new mom in a new world must be really stressful.”

“It would be a lot less stressful if my sister-in-law didn’t bang my fiancé.”

She stares at you in shock and struggles to form a reply. You turn your back on her and walk out of the room and back down the hallway to the room you’d be sleeping in for the night.

—

You try not to laugh at Glenn as he groans into his arms as everyone sits around the same table as the night before for breakfast. The smell and look of the powdered eggs were enough to turn your stomach, but you imagined being hungover would have made it much worse.

“Protein helps the hangover,” T-Dog says, putting a plate down in front of Glenn.

“Hey, Aunt Lily, how come you eat eggs now?”

You let out a quiet laugh, watching him shove a forkful of food into his mouth. You sometimes forget how observant Carl is for such a young boy. You didn’t want to bring him down and tell him the truth—that the choice to be vegan was no longer an option—so you just lied.

You shrug, “because I heard you were being taught how to cook, and you can’t learn to cook without an official taste tester.”

You and Rick exchange a look. He smiles at you before returning to his meal. You glance at Lori and notice she still hasn’t lifted her head. From the moment she'd sat down, she’d avoided eye contact with you, Shane, and Rick.

“Morning,” Jenner says, entering the room.

Shane continues to lightly bounce Jace in his arms and looks over at him. “Hey, Doc.”

Everyone at the table greets Jenner. You watch disapprovingly at the way Dale stares at your host while he pours himself a cup of coffee. You understood that everyone’s mind was spinning with questions, but the least you could do is let the man have his breakfast.

Dale didn’t share your line of thinking and says, “I don’t mean to slam you with questions first thing—”

Jenner sighs, “But you will anyway.”

“We didn’t come here for the eggs,” Andrea adds.

—

You stood in awe, staring at a big screen inside the lab, watching as it zoomed in on a skull, detailing the threads as they became closer and pulsed with different colors. “What are those lights?”

“It's a person’s life—experiences, memories,” Jenner explains. “It’s everything. Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you—the thing that makes you unique and human.”

You try to soak up as much information as you can, but Jace starts fussing. You walk over to the other side of the room and begin to feed Jace while your eyes scan different things in the room.

The atmosphere in the room became heavy as Jenner explained what happened to a human body after it died, how it shut down, and how long it took before it resurrected. Andrea became upset thinking of her sister Amy, who had only died due to being bitten by a walker a few days prior.

After death, if you were bitten or scratched by a walker, you’d be alive enough to get up and move, but that was it. All your memories and consciousness were gone. Nobody knew what had caused the apocalypse to happen. Jenner also shared that all communication with other labs had gone silent months ago.

“Man, I’m going to get shitfaced drunk again,” Daryl says, shaking his head.

You look over his shoulder at the large countdown on the wall behind him. “Dr. Jenner, I don’t want to harass you with any more questions, but what’s that countdown for? What happens when it reaches zero?”

“The basement generators—they run out of fuel,” he deadpans.

“What happens then?”

Jenner ignores your question and walks out of the room. Rick gives you a confused look before looking up at the ceiling and asking, “VI, what happens when the power runs out?”

“When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur.”

Oh shit.

—

With the countdown getting closer to zero, the energy from the generator was being prioritized, so all the lights in the hallways and bedrooms have been turned off.

You studied Jenner as he finished off the bottle of whisky he’d taken from Daryl. The building was shutting down with all of you still inside it. “No power grid. It ran out of juice. The world runs on fossil fuels. I mean, how stupid is that?” Jenner says casually.

“Let me tell you—” Shane tries to follow him, but you grab onto his arm, holding him back.

“To hell with it, Shane.” Rick says, turning to address the group, “Lori, grab our things. Everybody, get your stuff. We're getting out of here now!”

Before anyone can leave, an alarm starts blaring, and Vi confirms the decontamination will start in half an hour. Jenner ignores everyone’s questions about what's happening and scans his badge and enters a code into a security pad. Security doors slam shut, locking everyone in the room.

Daryl runs at Jenner, attempting to hit him on the head with a glass bottle, but Shane and Rick hold him back.

“Hey, Jenner, open that door now,” your brother says firmly. But Jenner seems unfazed.

“Rick,” you stand beside your brother, close enough that only he can hear you. “He let us in here so we can die with him. This place-”

“There’s no point,” Jenner cuts you off. “Everything topside is locked down. The emergency exits are sealed.”

“Well, open the damn things?”

Jenner looks up at you from his desk. “That’s not something I control. The computers do. I told you once that the front door would not open again. You heard me say that. It’s better this way.”

“What is? "What happens in 28 minutes?” Rick asks, and when Jenner ignores him, he asks again. “What happens in 28 minutes?!”

Jenner jumps out of his chair and shouts. “You know what this place is! We protected the public from very nasty stuff! Weaponized smallpox! Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country! Stuff you don’t want getting out! Ever!” He sighs and sits back down, regaining his calm composure. “In the event of a catastrophic power failure—in a terrorist attack, for example—HITs are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out.”

“H.I.T.s?”

Jenner rolls his eyes and says, “VI, define.”

“H.I.T.s—high-impulse thermobaric fuel-air explosives—consist of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any other known explosive except nuclear. The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen at between 5,000 and 6,000 degrees and is useful when the greatest loss of life and damage to structures is desired.”

Everything starts to feel like it’s moving in slow motion when people start to cry out of grief and fear, while Shane and Daryl try to break down the door with axes.

“An end to sorrow, grief, and regret. Everything,” Jenner says sadly. The Doc remains unfazed when Daryl tries to get to him with the ax. Jenner looks directly at Rick and says, “You do want this. Last night, you said you knew it was just a matter of time before everybody you loved was dead.”

You watch Lori’s face fall along with your own at hearing those words. Shane glared at your brother and said, “What? You really said that? After all your big talk?”

“I had to keep hope alive, didn’t I?”

“There is no hope. There never was,” Jenner says blankly.

Shane stares at Jace for a moment before picking up his shotgun and storming towards Jenner. Your brother tried to stop him, but Shane aimed the gun at Jenner’s head. “Out of the way, Rick! Stay out of my way! Open that door, or I’m going to blow your head off. Do you hear me?”

“Brother, brother, this is not the way you do this. We will never get out of here,” Rick says, trying to calm him down. “If he dies, we all die.”

Frustrated Shane yells before shooting at the computers on the other side of the room. Rick knocks him to the ground and takes the gun away from him.

You kneel in front of Jenner and place your hand on his, an action that visibly pisses your fiancé off. “You and Rick are both wrong, you know? There is hope, and if you didn’t believe there was a chance of a better life, you wouldn’t have kept this place going for so long.”

“I didn’t do what I wanted to. I did it because I promised my wife. She begged me to keep going as long as I could. How could I say no?” He blinks away tears as he points to a picture of a woman who was used as a test subject to see how long it took the dead to turn. “She was dying. It should’ve been me at that table. I wouldn’t have mattered to anybody. She was a loss to the world. Hell, she ran this place. I just worked here. In our field, she was an Einstein. Me? I’m just Edwin Jenner. She could’ve done something about this. Not me.”

“Your wife didn’t have a choice in how or when she died, but you do. And if you want to die like this, then it’s on you... but please, please give us the choice as well; give us a chance to survive.” You look down at Jace, and fear strikes as the reality of your son's death hits you. “Give me a chance to save him.”

Jenner turns away from you, types a code into the security pad, and unlocks the door. You squeezed Jenner's hand and said, “Thank you.”

“Lily!”

Hearing Shane call your name, you walk towards him, where he’s waiting by the doorway for you. You glance back at your brother, who’s still talking to Jenner, and say, “Rick, come on!”

Your attention is drawn to T-Dog arguing with Jacqui, who has decided she wants to stay behind and die with Jenner. T-Dog looks completely heartbroken and doesn’t move until Shane takes him by the arm and leads him up the ramp into the hallway. “Dog, come on, man. Come on! Let’s go! Let’s go!”

—

“Fuck!” You hear me reaching the door in the lobby. “The doors are locked! We are still trapped!”

Daryl and Shane try to break the glass with the axes while T-Dog tries to unlock the door with the pad by the door, but none of it works.

“Try the gun!”

Shame aims his shotgun at the glass and fires, but the bullet barely makes a tent.

“Rick, I have something that might help,” Carol says, reaching into her bag. “Your first morning at camp, when I washed your uniform, I found this in your pocket.”

Carol hands your brother a grenade, and you immediately run to the other side of the lobby to take cover from the blast. Rick looks terrified as he pulls the pin on the grenade and leaves it on the window sill. He quickly jumps down, making it far enough away that blast just misses him.

One of the windows shatters, and you all run towards it. You jump down from the ledge onto the ground outside and cuss, “Ah fuck!”

You stand long enough to feel a sharp pain in the back of your thigh, but Glenn wraps his arm around you and helps you as you try not to stumble forward.

Rick and Shane cleared a path for everyone by shooting the walkers that were attracted by the noise of the explosion.

When you reach the vehicles, Shane looks back, notices you struggling to run, and practically carries you to the car while everyone else gets into the RV.

He jumps in the car beside you and asks, “What happened?”

You look down to see what's causing you such pain and see a shard of glass sticking into the back of your leg. “Fuck, that's what I must have done it when I jumped.”

Mentally, you made a note to make sure Shane kept his promise to take Jace to safety if you ever got hurt, slowing them down again in a life-or-death situation. But now wasn’t the time.

You look up when Rick starts to honk his horn, and you see Dale and Andrea running out of the building. You duck down, doing your best to cover Jace without hurting him. Shane covers your body with his own to protect you from the blast.

The CD explodes into a huge fireball, and you feel the heat from the blast, but luckily the fire doesn’t reach you. The sky starts to fill with thick black smoke that will no doubt attract all the walkers in the area.

When Andra and Dale get into the RV, Rick starts to drive away. Shane looks shaken as he stares at the distraction that’s left behind. “Hey,” you lightly grip his chin so he faces you. “We’re okay, we got out.” You felt guilty saying those words knowing not everyone made it, but you needed Shane to snap out of his shock before any walkers reached the car. “Baby, I know this is hard, but we’ve got to go.”

Shane offers you a small smile and follows behind Rick, with T-Dog and Daryl behind you.

#the walking dead #Shane Walsh #shane walsh x you #shane walsh x reader #TWD #fear the walking dead fandom #the walking dead fanfiction #rick grimes x reader #rick grimes #rick grimes sister #Shane Walsh smut #TWD s1 #twd smut #the walking dead smut #tomorrow’s promise #Shane Walsh/you #Shane Walsh/reader #the walking dead x reader #the walking dead x you

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dannyo000 · 6 months

Text

This is the first part of my Rick fanfiction. Follow the character through their life and attraction to the taken sheriff.

Word count: 4.6k

Warning: Self harm; suicidal talk/mentions; angst; character death (not sure what else)

《•○●○•》

I yawned sitting in the main lab. Computers and gadgets surrounding me. I rubbed my eyes and stood up from the computer.

I froze when my eyes caught sight of our security cameras. There was a group of living people outside our heavily armed doors. I could see 2 guys arguing while everyone around them looked upset and worried, constantly glancing around, making sure no walkers were close.

"Come on, let's go. Let's get out of here. Let's go. Please." A man with a black t-shirt on and army pants begged the sheriff.

I hurried over to see how many people exactly the group was. I moved the camera over and saw it was quite a big group. I laughed and smiled, other living people.

The sheriff was the only one who noticed the camera move. He was trying to convince everyone that someone was inside. I grabbed my gun and looked around to make sure my dad was nowhere close by. Quickly, I made my way to the front of the building.

"Vi, open the main entrance door." I called out and slowly the door began sliding upwards.

"Hello?" I spoke, cocking my gun. "Anyone infected?"

"One of our group was but he didn't make it." The sheriff spoke, his gun also pointed towards me.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked, looking around behind them. "What do u want?"

"A chance."

I nodded and uncocked my gun.

"Im going to have to have you all submit a blood test. My father would kill me if I didn't have you guys do it."

Not like he might already since I'm breaking our number one rule of not letting anyone in from the outside.

"We can do that."

"Grab all your things. Once this door closes it has to stay closed."

《•○●○•》

Everyone finally got into the building. I turned around and gulped, seeing my dad standing behind everyone.

"Vi, seal the main entrance! Kill the power up here." Dad spoke and crossed his arms with his brows raised as the door beeped and clanged.

I put my gun in the back of my jeans.

"Rick Grimes." The sheriff held his hand out to my dad.

He eyed his hand before shaking it with his own.

"Doctor Edwin Jenner. And my daughter Beatrice Jenner." He pulled me to his side.

I gave Rick a side smile and a wave. My dad pulls me and leads us to the elevator. We all fit in packed tightly.

"Your daughter always go around packing heat like that?" The guy with a crossbow asked referring to my gun.

"There was so many left around that I took it upon myself to learn how to use one. Took forever go convince my dad to learn." I laughed answering the question myself.

Rick laughed and smiled at me. Seeing him up close. He was honestly very attractive. And im not just saying that because he's the first guy I've seen since all hell broke loose in the labs.

We made it down to our zone and began walking towards the big room. Dad in the lead with me behind him a bit.

"Are we underground?" A lady with super short hair asked.

"Are you claustrophobic?" My dad replied back to her.

"A little."

"Try not to think about it." I shrugged looking back at her.

We walked in silence to the big room and began walking into it.

"Vi, bring up the lights in the big room." Dad speaks out.

The computers lit up, and then the florescentlights above turned on illuminating the whole room.

"Welcome to zone 5." I looked back at everyone before heading towards the middle of the room.

"Where is everybody?" Rick asked walking a bit faster than his group to catch up to us. "The other doctors, the staff?"

I sat down and looked at my lap.

"We're it." My dad sets his hand on my shoulder. "Its just us two here."

Rick slowly looked down defeated.

A brunette with long hair spoke up, "What about the person you were just talking to?"

"Vi?" I asked.

"Vi! Say hello to our guests." Dad outspoke. "Tell them welcome."

"Hello guests, welcome." The computer spoke through the speakers.

"Its just my dad and I. Im sorry." I frowned at everyone's devastated looks.

My dad clapped his hands together. "Shall we get started on those blood tests."

Everyone followed him out of the room and down the hall to a room with medical supplies. I listened while everyone introduced themselves, and then, while my dad took care of them, I pushed through the group and made my way to my room. It wasn't anything special. As soon as the world went to shit my dad rushed me to get here as soon as possible, and once I got here, there was no leaving.

My bed is in the corner of the room, it's enough for maybe two people. All white sheets and pillowcases. I have my suitcase sitting on the floor wide open with all my clothes in it. Well, what I could fit in it. Next to my bed a have a cart with wheels that I use as my nightstand, I have a desk lamp on it that I took from someone's desk and a picture of myself with my dad and mom.

I laid in bed and read a book for about an hour before heading out to see where everyone was. I heard laughing and cheering coming from the "dining room." I walked in and saw everyone drinking and eating food. My dad nodded to me in a way of greeting. I took a seat next to him and took a drink of his wine. He stood up and patted my shoulder before putting some dinner on a plate for me.

I sat quietly as everyone talked and laughed with each other. It made me feel awkward, and I could tell my dad felt the same way. We'd been alone for a little more than a month, and to have so many living people with us is overwhelming.

I glanced over at Rick as he sat with who I would assume is his wife and kid. He made eye contact with me before nodding and standing up, clinking his fork on his wine glass.

"Its seems we haven't thanked our hosts." He smiled at me and nodded his head to my dad.

I smiled back. Looking back down at my plate as I blocked out everyone's cheers.

"So when are you gonna tell us what the Hell happened here, Doc?" Shane began asking, "All the—the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?"

I froze and looked up at him. He looked between Dad and I waiting for an answer.

Rick got serious and glared at Shane, "We’re celebrating, Shane. Don’t need to do this now."

"Whoa, wait a second. This is why we’re here, right? This was your move—supposed to find all the answers." Shane shakes his head and chuckles humorlessly, "Instead we- we found them. Found one man and his daughter, why?"

Shane looked at everyone in the room and it got quiet. Everyone began wondering the answer.

I swallowed the last of my spaghetti and glared at Shane, I didn't like him.

"Well, when things got bad, a lot of people just left, went off to be with their families. And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted."

"Every last one?"

I scoffed at his reply and opened my mouth to speak but my dad beat me to it.

"No, many couldn’t face walking out the door. They….opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time."

I scratched at my wrists nonchalantly before quickly standing up and taking my plate to the sink. I quickly rushed out of the room and headed to my room. I sat on my bed and tried my best to calm myself down. It felt like hours before I felt okay again. I grabbed spare clothes and a towel before heading to the showers.

Few of the guys walked out with smiles on their faces, and I chuckled softly. I stepped into a stall and closed the glass door. Luckily, it has texture, so u can't see completely through. I stripped out of my clothes and tossed it out the door before turning the water on.

I washed myself and washed my hair before taking a seat on the floor of the shower. I grabbed my razor from the hidden spot between the stalls and cut at my thighs. The water that ran under the stall to the drain was red. I turned the water cold and sat under it with my knees to my chest. I shivered and started crying.

Ever since I watched my mom slowly turn into a walker, I've been falling apart. Recently, it's gotten worse. As the days dragged on with nothing new happening or being accomplished, I started giving up hope.

I gasped as the door to my stall was pulled open. I froze seeing Rick looking from me to the red water going down the drain.

"Wh-what are you doing?" I spoke as sternly as I could in my state, trying to keep myself covered in certain places.

"Shit! Im sorry. I saw the water and-and I needed to make sure nothing bad happened."

I gulped and looked away from him ashamed. Suddenly the water stopped and a towel is wrapped around me. I looked up at Rick and he helped me up off the floor.

"Where is the blood coming from?" He asked checking over my arms and face.

I scoffed, "You don't actually care Rick. You don't know me and you just met me."

"You're right I don't know you and we just met but that doesn't mean I don't care. You saved us earlier which means you cared about us and you didn't even know who we were. Now quit being stubborn and tell me where ur bleeding at."

I rolled my eyes and took a seat on a toilet seat, lifting my towel a tiny bit to still keep me covered but show him what I did. His face changed to guilt and maybe sadness? I rolled my eyes.

"I assume you have never seen someone hurt themselves."

He shook his head, "Yes but not like this."

"I've been locked in here for over a month. No one to talk to except my dad and that's when he doesn't ignore me."

"Does he know about this."

"He knows. This isn't my first rodeo."

I got up and walked over to the cabinets, grabbing some gauze, wipes and bandages I put in there for times like this. Walking back to the bench I cleaned my thigh up and put bandages on the small cuts before wrapping my thighs with the gauze. I looked up at Rick.

"Im perfectly fine. You can go now." I fiddled with my towel and he blushed and nodded before making his way out the showers.

I pulled on my undergarments, then an oversized shirt and a pair of sweatpants. I towel dried my hair and threw it in the corner of the bathroom. I walked out into the hall and made my way to the big room. My dad sat at one of the computers looking over the blood samples from everyone. He looked over at me and smiled.

"Whats up honey?" He asked as I took a seat next to him.

"Just figured I would see how you were doing thats all." I shrugged and laid my head on his shoulder looking at all the data.

I sat up at the sound of footsteps walking towards us. Rick came walking in holding a wine bottle which I could see was half full.

"Hows the blood?" He asked.

"No suprises." My dad replied back beginning to pack his papers and binders up.

I turned in my seat to look up at Rick , who stood next to me now. I could easily tell he was tipsy on the verge of drunk.

He wiped his mouth, "I came to thank the both of you."

"You did." My dad spoke and we glanced at each other confused.

He was smiling at us before he suddenly stumbled back a bit and slid down the side of the computer desk. I gasped and tried to steady him, but he was too far away from me. He sat on the ground, leaning up against the desk.

"You alright Rick?" I asked him getting down on my knees next to him, gently taking the wine from him which thankfully he let me.

"You don't know what it's like." He laughs a little and looks to the side away from where I am. "You don't know what it's like out there." He got serious, his head resting against the desk behind him. "You may think you do. But you dont."

I get up off the floor and sit back in my chair, looking over at my dad with the same guilt ridden look on his face that I have.

"We'd have died out there. It was only a matter of time. There's too many of those things." He pauses for a second, his eyes getting glossy. "My-my boy.. My-my wife, I never- I never told them what I really thought. I never even hinted, just-."

He closes his eyes. "Just kept it in."

"Kept it in and kept us moving you know?" He began getting a little hysterical.

"It'll all be okay." My dad promised. Rick stared at him, "It'll be okay."

Rick stayed where he was for quite some time. I stayed with him while my dad put his things away before heading to bed. I stared at Rick before standing up.

"Let's get you to bed."

I reached down and helped him up, throwing his arm over my shoulder to keep him from falling or running into something. He was quiet the whole walk to his room. I let him go once he was outside the door.

"Pretty sure everyone is in bed so rest well." I smiled and turned around to walk to my room.

《•○●○•》

I smiled at everyone as we ate breakfast. Carl was absolutely adorable. Even though I wasn't super close to everyone, I still felt like I was part of the family. I smiled bigger seeing Rick walking towards us. Definitely hungover. Not gonna lie he looked pretty cute.

"Are you hungover?" Carl asked and glanced at his mom tryna not laugh. "Mom said you'd be."

Rick smiled at his son and nodded as he took a seat. "Mom is right."

Lori ripped pieces of her bacon and put a piece in her mouth, "Mom has that annoying habit."

She glanced at Rick and he looked down.

"Eggs powdered but I do 'em good." T-dog announced, walking towards us with a plate of eggs, dishing some out to Glen who looked way worse than Rick.

Shane walked into the room and sat down with scratches on his neck.

"Must've done it in my sleep."

"Never seen you do that before." Rick said.

"Me neither." Shane shook his head, "Not like me at all."

Shane stared at Lori and she looked over at him before looking down at her plate. I furrowed my brows at their weird body language towards eachother.

In came my dad, "Morning."

Shane replied "Hey doc."

"Doctor I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing- but you're going to anyways." My dad interrupted Dale.

His back was to us all as he got himself a coffee.

"We didn't come here for the eggs." Andrea spoke.

My dad itched his nose as he turned around, looking at everyone. "Follow me." He nodded towards the door and made his way out it, everyone got up from the table. I quickly rushed after him, knowing exactly what he was doing.

"Dad."

He kept walking.

"Dad!"

He continued to ignore me. He walked down the ramp to his main computer, pressing a fre buttons before speaking.

"Give me playback of TS-19."

'Playback of TS-19.'

The giant screen in front of us loaded to a picture of the scan of a human brain.

"Few people ever got a chance to see this. Very few."

I stare at the screen as everything around me suddenly disappeared.

The screen changes to a side view. The imagine begins to zoom in. The image becomes more and more detailed. You could see the inside of the brain. Bright blue threads of energy racing around. The detail zooms in until the threads become closer and pulses of light can be seen sparking throughout the brain.

"What are those lights?" Shane asked

"It’s a person’s life—experiences, memories. It’s everything. Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you—the thing that makes you unique and human." My dad informed them.

"You ever gonna make sense?" Daryl asked.

Dad looks to me to speak "Those are synapses. Electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says does or thinks from the moment of birth to the moment of death."

I turned away from the screen as he fast forwarded to the end. I closed my eyes and covered my ears not wanting to see or hear anything that's about to be done.

My dad rubbed my back as a way to tell me it's okay now. I looked at everyone and took a deep breath.

"Dr. Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question, but…that clock—it’s counting down. What happens at zero?"

"The basement generators—they run out of fuel."

I furrow my brows and look at my dad confused. He wouldn't look at me.

"And then what?" I asked him and he ignored me, walking out of the room.

Rick watches him in disbelief as he walks out the room.

"VI, what happens when the power runs out?" Rick asked the computer

"When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur." Vi warned us.

Most Everyone ran out of the room to who knows where because I went after my dad. I checked a few rooms before finding him in my mom's office looking at a picture of all 3 of us smiling and happy.

"Did you ever think to tell me what was going to happen?" I asked him hurt.

"No, I figured we would both just go out quick and painless." He stood up from the desk.

"I think I deserved a choice to choose what I want for myself. This wasn't up to you!" I shouted at him.

"Im what I think is best for you! You saw the way your mom died. You wanna go out like that?!" He shouted back, slamming his hands on the desk.

I went to speak but the air shut off and shortly after the power shut off. I stormed out of the room followed by my dad. Dale and Lori were in the hallway and spotted us.

"Why is the air off?" Carol asked walking out of her shared room with Sophia.

"And the lights in our room?" Lori asked.

I see Daryl poke his head out his door, "Whats going on? Why is everything turned off?"

My dad began walking past everyone, "Energy use is prioritizing itself."

"Air isn't a priority? Or lights?" Daryl scoffed.

"Its not up to me. Zone 5 is shutting itself down." We all followed him to the big room.

"Hey! Hey, what the hell does that mean?" Daryl began to get angry, storming towards my dad faster.

But Dad ignores him of course.

"Hey, man, I’m talking to you. What do you mean it’s shutting itself down? How can a building do anything?"

I see Shane, T-dog, Glen and Rick came into the room. All looking pissed off as ever.

"You’d be surprised." I shook my head sadly looking at Daryl.

Lori and Carol stayed close to the rooms exit with their kids while the rest of us were in the center of the big room. I pushed through everyone and sat down at my dad's computer, looking through everything to find a way to stop the building from exploding. Anything.

A loud alarm sounds in the room, and I look up at the stopwatch on the screen, seeing only 30 minutes till we are all dust and ash. I mumbled to myself, ignoring everyone's yelling and crying. I stood up and threw the computer mouse across the room. I stressfully raked my fingers through my hair.

"We need to go now." I spoke and walked towards the doors only for them to shut as a few of us got close.

I flipped around and noticed my dad by the security lock keypad by his desk. I felt my heart break seeing him take a seat in his desk. Completely calm and okay with locking everyone in the room. He opens up his video recording and begins speaking to it.

Rick and my dad are arguing with each other. I couldn't hear the words over the sound of my rapid heartbeat. I'm scared. I'm not ready to die. Before, I thought I was, but I'm not. Meeting Rick and his group has made me want to keep surviving, keep living.

"You know what this place is?! We protected the public from very nasty stuff! Weaponized smallpox! Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country! Stuff you don’t want getting out! Ever!" My dad was up from his seat shouting louder.

"Open the damn door!" Daryl growled.

Shane runs at the door with a fire axe. T-Dog tosses one to Daryl. He catches it and they both try to destroy the door.

"You should’ve left them alone it would have been so much easier." Dad gritted his teeth at me.

"Easier for who? They would have died!" I cried out.

"And they are still going to, just not painfully. You guys know what’s out there. A short brutal life and an agonizing death." My dad turns to Andrea who is sat on the floor leaning against one of the computer desks, "Your—your sister—what was her name?"

"Amy."

"Amy. You know what this does. You’ve seen it. Is that what you really want for your wife and son?" He looks to Rick.

Rick gets in my dad's face, "I don't want this!"

He walks to Shane and they converse for a second.

"The doors are built to withstand a rocket launcher." I sighed walking over to them.

"Yeah well his face ain't!" Daryl shouted as he ran towards my dad with an axe.

"Woah, woah!" Everyone blocked Daryl and grabbed the axe from him.

I stood back and listened to how hysterical my dad has become. Suddenly I hear a gun cock. Shane angrily comes towards my dad and I.

"Shane, no!"

"Get out of my way Rick! Stay out of my way"

Shane comes towards me pointing the gun at my forehead. I raise my hands and keep my face normal as I stared him in his crazed eyes.

"Open that door! Or I'm gonna blow her head off, do you hear me?!" He looks to my dad.

"Brother, brother. This is not the way we do things." Rick reminded Shane, trying to calm him down. Rick kept glancing between Shane and my 'tough exterior look. "We will never get out of here."

"Shane you listen to him." Lori speaks up.

"Its too late." Shane mutters.

"She dies, we all-"

Shane interrupts Rick by yelling and pushing the gun further into my forehead before turning away to the side away from my dad and I and shooting the computers over and over all while still yelling. I cower away and go running into Rick's arms in a matter of seconds after the gun is out of my face. I finally broke down. He gently rubs my back for a second and then hands me over to his wife, who rubs her hand up and down my arm as it's wrapped around me.

Rick struggles as he takes the gun from Shane. Shane was going crazy. Once he got the gun from him, he had to hit him with the butt of it and elbows his shoulder, dropping him to the ground.

I hid my face against Lori's shoulder, crying quietly as Rick began talking to my dad again.

"She was dying. It should’ve been me on that table. I wouldn’t have mattered to anybody. She was a loss to the world. Hell, she ran this place. I just worked here. In our field she was an Einstein. Me? I’m just… Edwin Jenner. She could’ve done something about this. Not me."

She never would have wanted him to do this to me let alone to a group of people who didn't ask for it.

"Your wife didn’t have a choice. You do. That’s—that’s all we want—a choice, a chance." Rick begged.

"Let us keep trying as long as we can." Lori tightened her grip on both Carl and I.

My dad made eye contact with me before looking down.

"I told you topside’s locked down. I can’t open those." He walks over to a keypad and scans his card and types in some numbers, opening the doors to the big room.

Everyone began rushing to the exit. I shooed Lori off as I stayed in the room.

"There’s your chance, take it."

"I’m grateful."

"The day will come when you won't be." My dad warned.

My dad takes Rick's hand and shakes it before pulling him close and whispering in his ear. I ran over and dragged Rick away, pushing him towards the doors.

"You staying?" He asked me quietly.

"I need to say goodbye but I will be right behind you." I smiled softly and nodded at the door.

"We've got 4 minutes let's go!" Glen shouted.

I walked over to my dad and let out a sob. He let a few tears drop from his eyes.

"I can't stay here dad." I shook my head and gave him a sad smile.

"I know baby I know. It's not your time yet." He pulls me into a hug. "But it is mine." He kisses the top of my head.

I pull back and wiped my eyes.

"I love you dad."

"I love you too sweetie, don't forget it." He kisses my forehead and gently pushes me towards the exit.

I nodded and ran quickly out of the room. I ran as fast as I can to my bedroom to grab my family picture, then made my way to the front of the building. The walls shook with a loud explosion. I got to the front and noticed they had broken a window. Everyone was running towards the vehicles, but Rick, he stood waiting. He smiled when he saw me and climbed out the window first before helping me out, making sure I didn't cut myself on any of the glass. Both of us came running to the R.V. I got on before Rick, and he quickly took a seat in the driver's seat, grabbing the keys that were left sitting on the dash.

I stood behind him watching the building. Suddenly, Dale and Andrea slowly came out of the exit. They began running towards us. Rick began honking the horn.

"Get down!" I yelled and Andrea and Dale took cover behind a small barricade of sandbags.

Not but 2 seconds later did we all get down, and the loudest explosion happened. Heat from it hit all of us. I quickly stood up to see the aftermath of it. I began sobbing, knowing my dad was gone. I quickly moved to the couch and sat on it with my head facing down. I feel the vehicle began to drive away. With one last look out the window, I saw black smoke and an unrecognizable building.

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