❝ᴡᴇ'ʀᴇ ɴᴏᴛ ꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅꜱ ᴀɴʏᴍᴏʀᴇ, ᴄᴀʀʟ. ᴡᴇ'ʀᴇ ꜱᴛʀᴀɴɢᴇʀꜱ.❞
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𝐈𝐍 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐂𝐇 Carl Grimes and Madi Walsh had been best friends for most of their lives. That is, until Rick Grimes killed Madi's father, Shane, and the young girl ran away. It wasn't until year...
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There were many wounds that a mere apology simply couldn't heal, if they could heal any at all; they did genuinely yearn to. But, it was an unusual concept to begin with, really; a bandaid over a bullet hole. After all, how much did words continue to mean when somebody had been wronged? The act itself was deceptive, masquerading as though meant to soothe the receiver, seemingly focused around them. In actuality, however, expressing sorrow was about the very person who was doing so. It was about how they felt. What good did it really do to share, besides allowing them a sense of relief that they were completely undeserving of?
Furthermore, it put those on the opposite end in a difficult position, where they were burdened with the responsibility for any fracture that remained. The other party had done their job, and forgiveness was now expected, while more bitterness was seemingly unjustified. Except, they weren't in the wrong. They'd done nothing of harm, but the potential future of the relationship rested upon their shoulders. To move on, they were asked to be a bigger person, so large that they could fill the empty space that the other left, becoming enough for the both of them.
Not to mention, a vast majority of those who apologised were lying through their teeth. As far as Daryl was concerned, it didn't mean a goddamn thing to anybody, the whole 'sorry' ordeal. He could spout it until his lips were blue, and it'd make no difference. Sure, there were plenty of things that he was, indeed, sorry for; plenty of regrets that still haunted him today. He'd tried to express as much to the people he felt would receive comfort from the knowledge, in the past. However, he found that many struggled to see anything of value in an apology. His father was an abusive drunk with a hot head and short temper. As such, Daryl had heard it a thousand times.
Alas, every apology meant nothing in the end; certainly not, when they were only ever followed by repeat offences. Hell, he himself had made his mistakes, and they were not to be forgotten so easily. That much was clear. What mattered, though, were the decisions he made afterwards, actions speaking louder than words. If he truly regretted something, then he wouldn't do it again; he, alongside anyone else who wholeheartedly sought to do so, would actually try to prove his remorse.
But then, he couldn't think of a way to do this when it came to Madi Walsh. She seemed to confuse most others in the same exact way, leaving them unsure of how to mend things, how to cure the heartbreak they'd caused her. After all, she was quick to make up her mind, especially upon sensing betrayal. Afterwards, she was incredibly stubborn, her worst fears difficult to appeal to. Convincing her that she was able trust you again or let you back in was damn near impossible. Carl Grimes knew all about it. And, unfortunately, Daryl could feel her pulling away from him, the two beginning to drift apart from the moment they first set foot in Hilltop, before Lydia and the cell and everything that came after.
