Feral. (A walking dead love story)

Chapter III: Corpse Roads

Chapter III: Corpse Roads

Andrea hadn't made it; Jake told he witnessed her death. However we were now homeless, with nowhere to go and almost out of fuel, so we hadn't much time to concentrate on it. We decided to set our camp near a small waterfall and wait until the other day to figure out what to do.

"What's up with you and you and the redneck?" Alana asked while we were on guard, I stared back at her, puzzled "Right after he rescued me, instead of getting the shit out of the ranch, he drove around looking for you. He almost had us killed."

I shrugged "That doesn't mean anything"

"Haven't you noticed?" She insisted "He looks at you differently... I can't really explain, but it's rather interesting."

"You're tripping." I shook my head.

"Talking 'bout the devil..."

Daryl was just coming back from his squirrel hunt, and was walking to our direction. He greeted us and Alana walked away nonchalantly. I glanced at the dead animals hanging by his shoulders in a rope.

"Alana told me you went looking for me."

"I told you to stay back, but it looks like you're fucking deaf." His voice was soft, yet the words were sharp.

"Jesus, I was just trying to thank you for caring about me."

"Who told you I give a damn about you?"

"Can't you just pretend to be nice?"

"What do you want me to be nice about?" He vociferated furiously.

"Just be human, for Christ sakes! Don't you have emotions other than just bitterness and angry?"

"What do you want me to say? That I look everywhere in that farm for you? That I was worried sick?"

His face slowly turned from angry-red to his usual skin tone. Daryl was rude, but behind the hostile mask he held was a warm hearted being.

At night it was clearer the winter was approaching, the cold air penetrated trough the layers of my clothing and I could feel it in my bones. In a distance I could see that Lori held Carl in her arms to sleep, Beth and Maggie sang to the rest, all gathered around the crackling fire. I heard the crunching of the dry leaves on the floor, I placed my hand over the knife I hid in my belt, and was ready to attack when someone sat by my side.

"I wouldn't do this if I were you." I didn't turn to see, but I recognized Daryl's croaky voice "Sorry that I blew up on your face earlier. You ain't wrong on this, I care."

"You should know I'm always right." I giggled, and even in such low light I could spot a smile hanging by the corner of his mouth.

I was the kind of girl that had the nasty habit of over reading things, but this time, with only the moon shining upon us, I knew I wasn't mistaken.

As soon as the sun came out slowly unfreezing the dewdrops the cold night once froze, we separated in groups to scavenge whatever we could find; Rick, Glenn and T-Dog went to the highway to get fuel, Jake, Beth and Alana went south to a street he mentioned that looked clear and I was left to go with Maggie, Daryl and Carol to a small village next to our camp.

The village was the kind you see in movies; ramblers houses with white rocking chairs in their decks. If I concentrated enough I could imagine the dogs on the porch and the kids playing on the street, I couldn't help but smile.

They were all very alike, but one in particular caught my eye and I had to stop. The outside was trashed, but we could see where once a flower path that led to the entrance door was, the apple trees that were now naked due to the winter, the rusty yellow swing and the pale gray paint that peeled off.