Struggling (Sequel to Little Mouse)

Morning After

It took most of the night, but we had finally finished the surgery, successfully removing all of the bullet fragments from Carl's torso. The surgery was relatively easy with the antibiotics, and Hershel knew a great deal about it. While Carl was asleep with Lori by his side, I decided to take a much needed break and went outside. It was early morning, probably about 8 or so, and the birds were chirping from nearby trees. I took a seat on a rocking chair and just soaked up the scenery properly. I watched the cattle graze in the distance, and, oddly, Shane, T-Dog, and Glenn were gathering large rock. I noticed that Shane was now bald, and was wearing a pair of oversized overalls. My eyes widened a bit in surprise, but oh well. It was his new look, and if he was happy with it, I was too.

"The heck are they doing?" I mused out loud. Though in all honesty, I didn't care. I shrugged it off and closed my eyes, taking a deep breath of the crisp, fresh air. It was almost as if the walkers didn't exist and the world wasn't in ruins.

Then I heard a familiar vehicle in the distance. I opened my eyes just in time to see Daryl's motorcycle and the RV driving up the dirt road. I smiled and stood up to greet them, feeling lighter now that Carl was ok. As soon as they parked, Daryl hopped off of his bike and started walking towards me.

That was when I remembered what I had done before coming to the farm with Maggie and Jimmy. I felt my cheeks flush red with embarrassment as I remembered the feeling of his stubble on my lips and chin. Oh god, how would he react to me now? What if he thought I was weird or even insane?

"Carl alright?" His gruff voice asked, breaking me from my panicked thoughts.

He doesn't seem mad about it. "Yeah. We got all of the fragments out last night. He's sleeping now. Any luck with Sophia?" I asked, relieved that he wasn't bringing up the kiss.

"Nah." He mumbled, sounding disappointed. I bit my lip and walked down the stairs towards him, stopping in front of him.

"We'll find her. Like you said; she's going to be just fine." I declared, trying to sound encouraging.

Daryl nodded and glanced around the farm, his eyes landing on a couple of trees in the distance. "Imma go set up camp." He remarked.

"Want any help?" I offered, but just as I said that, I felt a yawn break through my lip, reminding me that it had been a long time since I had slept.

Daryl shook his head and chuckled a little. "Nah. Get some sleep, Mouse." He ordered, giving me the faintest smile before turning around and heading towards the two trees. I nodded and rubbed my eyes, heading over to the RV for a nap.

...

I had absolutely no idea how long I had slept on that tiny RV couch, but when I came to it appeared to be some time in the afternoon. I sat up with a yawn, still tired after my little nap, but I needed to do something useful. I briefly wondered if Daryl needed any help with anything. And then he could probably update me on what had happened while I was asleep.

I left the RV quietly, glancing around. I was surprised to see Hershel carrying a few handguns back to his house, one of which I recognized as Rick's revolver. I was curious, and almost walked over to ask him, when a certain crossbow's glint caught my eye. Daryl was heading over to his little makeshift camp that was away from the main camp near the front of the house. I decided I'd prefer Daryl's company and made my way over to his little campsite.

As I approached, Daryl had paused by his tent and had noticed me following him. I slowed down as I approached, smiling kindly at him. "What all did I miss?" I asked.