Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
—
WHAT DID THIS mean? These feelings were driving me crazy. Ever since that night, I've had this uncontrollable urge to be close to him. Just the thought of his dumb looking face was enough to send my heart into a frenzy. I hated it, I hated it so much, it was going to drive me insane.
The warmth of his body, his slow controlled breathing, all of it made me second guess myself when I was around him. So I kept my distance. After we arrived back at camp with the other survivors, I made sure to put some space between us. He didn't seem to mind, I guess he didn't like having me around after all.
They chose a good place to settle down. It was close enough to a stream so we could get some fresh water, and there is plenty of wildlife flourishing in the deeper parts of the forest. Two days had passed since we reunited with the others, and everything seemed to be running smoothly. No one from the governor's army had come for us yet.
Daryl seemed to be doing well, for the most part. Most of the time he's either out hunting or sphere fishing. Very rarely do I catch a glimpse of him lingering around the campsite. I figured that's just how he liked spending his time, and who was I to stop him? The creatures he killed made for delicious meals once all skinned and roasted over the open flames.
Today was just another day. Tomorrow was another story, word around camp is that we are getting packed up to leave. Apparently, Sasha, Bob, and Maggie had a place in mind. A safe haven far down the railroad tracks in the middle of nowhere was this place known as Terminus. A safe place for all people who arrived alive, or so we were told. It almost sounded too good to be true.
Since Maggie studied medical treatments under her late father, she was caring enough to take a look at both my and Daryl's injuries. The group we joined up with had some medical supplies on hand, so we no longer were forced to use curtains for bandages. She took excellent care of us, the wounds began looking better already. The pinky was a pretty useless, but now that I had lost the finger, I missed having it attached to me.
It was mid day break and I rested down by the creek. Staring down at my reflection in the flowing clear water for what felt like an eternity before finally splashing it. I couldn't even recognize myself anymore. The bags beneath my eyes sagged and I looked like a mangy mess. There was a hard stinging pain as individual tiny pebbles jabbed into my back. And yet I continued to lay there, with my hands tucked above my head.
Out of pure boredom, I picked up a hand full of pebbles and chucked them into the current. They all hit at various times, making their little dents on the water's surface. There was a faint rustle of a nearby bush and immediately I was on my feet, gripping my knife like my life depended on it. I heard the gurgling as it made its way through the trees and bushes. The walker looked at me with those sunken eyes and in return, I show a glare of disguise.
It tried to limp slowly across the water but quickly learned about the stream's current. The walker came tumbling down the rough terrain and ended up at my feet after clawing its way across the rocky shoreline. At this point, it would be labeled a mercy killing. As I kneeled next to the creature and drew my knife. I swung with my bade, about to pierce its rotting flesh when my ears caught something faint.
It came as a shock when something else got to the walker first. More like someone else. An arrow shot right through its eye and exited through the back of its skull. Rotting blood splattered everywhere and its apparent smell lingered. "That was my kill," I said. Dragging the corpse away from our water source and onto solid ground.
At this point, he made his way over to the rocky shore and sat with me amongst the rocks. Why wasn't he out hunting for food? "You've been avoiding me, haven't you?" He spoke with the sudden question. Avoiding was a strong word, I preferred to stand clear of.
"No," I answered, lying through my teeth. Okay, so maybe I was taking a few precautions to make sure we weren't alone together, so what? I may have blown him off a few times when he tried to discuss food scarcity problems. But that doesn't mean I'm avoiding him.
I made an effort to rationalize it in my head, but in the long run, I guess I had been avoiding him for the most part. "Yeah, ya have, I'm here to figure out why." He stated. We both were trying to find out the same thing. I didn't fully understand why I was avoiding him, to begin with.
What was I so afraid would happen? There was nothing between us. Not a damn thing. One night we slept close to one another but nothing happened. Our feeling for one another wasn't complicated. We were platonic 'friends' who just so happened to share a room for the night, and that was it. So why did my brain want to think otherwise?
"I don't know, we just don't have anything to talk about," I answered with a shrug. It was obvious to both of us that wasn't the reason behind me acting the way I have. "Don't give me that bullshit for an excuse." He said. "If you're going to make up a lie, at least let it be a believable one."
Daryl picked up a hand full of small rocks and one by one tossed them into the rushing current. I thought long and hard about what he said but couldn't come up with a convincing excuse if my life depended on it. "Why do you care? It didn't seem like you wanted me around anyways." I said. He made that perfectly clear the numerous time he told me to buzz off.
The days of me following him around like a lost mutt were over. I allowed myself to take a seat next to him and watch the liquid race down the stream. We sat in comfortable silence as I watched him throw the pebbles into the water. "Y'know, I don't need you to protect me," I said. Most of the time when I seemed to be in distress he would come to my rescue.
Like a prince saving a helpless princess. The only problem with that logic was that I wasn't helpless. I may not appear to be much more than a frail woman in need of protection at first glance, but I can assure him that I was a lot more useful than he cut me out to be. I was perfectly capable of fending for myself and didn't need him babysitting me.
He just snickered. What part of that was amusing? "What, you think I can't?" I asked harshly. He didn't respond to my question, probably because it was a double edged sword and he knew it. He wasn't much of a talker, I wondered if he was always like this or if the current state of the world changed him.
There was a nearby sound of a twig snapping and without another word, we were both on our feet. Weapons at the ready as we glared in the direction that the snapping sound had come from. "Woah," Maggie said. Her hands raised in the air to show she was no emanate threat. We lowered our weapons.
"I haven't seen the two of you together recently." She gestured to me and Daryl. "Something going on?" She asked. Daryl seemingly didn't want to talk about it, he tossed his crossbow over his shoulder and retreated into the deep parts of the forest. She gave me this puzzled look and I just shrugged.
