Zedler, M.D. // Daryl Dixon

Chapter Three: Daryl Dixon

•three•

Beatrix

"Don't dwell on the fact that we left him behind," Morales pops his head in between Rick and I while we're pulling up the hill to their camp. "Nobody will be sad he's gone. Except maybe Daryl."

"Who's Daryl?" I ask him. He didn't have time to reply though because as soon as we stop, he jumps out of the back of the van to run to his family.

"Let's go meet our new group," Rick places a hand on my shoulder before getting out of the van. I followe behind him, trying to take in everyone around when I spot Lori bending down to talk to Carl.

"Rick," I poke his shoulder and point to the pair. He runs to meet Carl, literally tacking him in a hug and running on to Lori. A few tears come to my eyes as I watch the happy sight unfold. It reminds me of what it was like when a patient would wake up after surgery and I got to go tell the family.

"Doctor Zedler?" I whip my head around to look at Shane, who is standing beside of an RV.

"Hi, Shane," I wave at him from where I'm standing. I've operated on him before, and he was the one that told the EMTs to bring Rick to me. He thought I was a good suergon and I was proud of that.

"Did you?" He points to Rick and I nod my head, knowing what he was asking. He walks over to me and wrapped his arms around me in a hug, "Thank you."

"It's my job," I laugh as I hug him back. "And call me Beatrix. There's no need for the doctor title anymore."

"So who exactly are you two?" An older man with white hair and a beard asks, looking between Rick and I.

"Rick Grimes, I was the King County sheriff before all of this went down. I got shot and was in a coma, but Doctor Zedler here," he motions to me. "Saved my life."

"Thank you so much," Lori lets go of Rick and moved over to give me a hug. She whispers in my ear, "I remember you from the hospital."

"Yeah, I pulled the bullet fragments out of his kidney," I smile at her as we pulled away from the hug.

"How'd you get with him now though?" Lori wipe the tears from her eyes as the rest of the group listenes in.

"Well, um," I nervously push my hair behind my ears again. I don't like talking in groups of people I don't know. "I kind of stayed back in King County in my apartment and checked on him until he woke up yesterday."

"Well I know we'd all love to hear the full story," Shane says and everyone nods in agreement. "But it's getting dark and we need to make a fire. I'm sure you and Rick will tell us everything that happened around the fire, right?"

"Of course," Rick smiles and I give a small nod of agreement.

I help Lori and Andrea arrange chairs around the fire pit while the men gather wood. Soon enough, the sun is gone and we're all sitting around the fire with blankets wrapped around us. I'm sat between Glenn and Shane, half listening to everyone talk about what happened at the department store today. I tunevback into the conversation when someone asked Rick about walking up again.

"Disoriented. That's the word that comes closest to what I felt," he sighs.

"Words don't always give us the explanation we want," the older man, whose name I learned to be Dale, pipes up.

"Yeah," Rick trails off.

"Mom said you were dead," Carl looks up at Rick. The sight breaks my heart. Carl is such a sweet boy. He'd always bring Rick a toy or something when he came to visit him in the hospital. He was part of the reason I wanted to stay and help Rick.