Complicated ✔

Ch. 20 - The Shack

DARYL'S POV

It remained quiet between us after the walker incident. Kathryn kept up the best she could with that limp but didn't make a sound as she followed behind me. I still felt a little bad, like I had been just a bit too rough but she had to understand if she wanted to prove herself out here there she couldn't get lost in her head like that. Glancing back at her, I made sure she was still following along behind me before I turned my attention back the way we were headed, looking for any signs of Sophia out here. As we walked, I could see a clearing up ahead of us. "Stay here a moment," I said looking back at her once we reached the edge of the trees to see her nod.

Turning back, I slowly emerged from the tree line and out into the open, looking around for a sign of any kind of threat. I still had my crossbow across my shoulders, hand resting on the shoulder strap and I continued to look around. Slowly pulling the strap up over my head, I held the crossbow in my hands before turning slightly to look back at Kathryn still hidden in the woods. Nodding my head once to tell her to come out, I looked back ahead of us towards this building standing in the center of the clearing as I heard her slowly make her way out of the woods behind me to come to a stop right next to me. Holding my crossbow in hand, I pulled out my single bolt to load into the crossbow as we began silently making our way towards the building. "Whatever you do keep quiet," I whispered to her as I glanced back once we reached the porch of the shack.

KATHRYN'S POV

I followed behind Daryl as he led the way with his crossbow armed and ready as we made our way up the stairs of this shack and to its front door. He kicked the door open before walking in with his crossbow aimed as he checked each room we came to on the downstairs portion of the shack. I stayed behind him and out of the way, remaining as quiet as the creaking floors would allow me too. I watched as he searched each room before moving on to the next, looking in every corner where something or someone could hide in wait. With each room he check, he never went in further than just past the door until he came to the kitchen in front of the stairs leading to the next floor. He walked in, me following behind, and made his way to a second room that on the other side of the kitchen itself. I stood in the center of the kitchen as he made his way to peer around the other door to check and make sure it was safe before he backed out of that door and happened to look down.

"What is that," I asked, my voice coming out in a whisper as he picked up an empty and smelly can front the trash by the door. "An empty can of sardines," he said looking up at me a second before looking back to it and pouring out some of the leftover juice. I watched as he lifted his eyes to something just to my left as he lifted his crossbow again, ready for anything. Slowly, I followed his eye line to a slightly opened door that I'm sure lead to a cupboard. Figuring it was in my best interest, I slowly moved around away from the cupboard to stand behind him as he made his way cautiously towards the ajar door. I held my breath as I watched him reach out and quickly open the door to reveal it empty of any signs of life.

I let out the breath I was holding as I watched him visibly relax and seem to stare down at something in the floor of the cupboard. "Daryl," I asked confused as he quickly walked by me. I turned my attention to the floor of the cupboard and spy what caught his attention, blankets in the bottom like someone small had been staying there. I quickly turned and followed after him, out the back door where be quickly moved down the stairs and into the yard. "Sophia," he called out, looking this way and that before moving to one side of the house in the direction we had come from as he looked for her. "Sophia," I shouted as I stayed at the top of the stairs.

"Sophia," he shouted again as he made his way back and I carefully moved down the stairs. "Daryl what is it," I asked as something seemed to catch his attention as he made his way towards the other side of the house and walked towards it. I climbed down the last few steps before limping over to where he knelt down in front of this white flower. "What's that," I asked as I came to stand just behind him. "it a Cherokee rose," he said as he fingered the pedals of the flower, staring at it as if lost in thought. "A Cherokee rose," I asked confused as he glanced up at me before looking back to the flower. "The story goes," he started, "is that when American soldiers were moving Indians off their land on the Trail of Tears, the Cherokee mothers were grieving and crying so much 'cause they were losin' their little ones along the way from exposure and disease and starvation."

I watched as he stopped talking for a second, picking the flower he had been looking at before standing to his full height and turning to face me. He kept his head lowered towards the flower but I watched as he lifted his blue eyes before continuing on with the story of the flower he was telling me. "A lot of them," he said looking back to the flower, "just disappeared." "That's horrible," I gasped as I lifted my hand to cover my mouth as he continued. "So the elders said a prayer," he said nodding, "asked for a sign to uplift the mothers' spirits, give them strength and hope." Again he stopped for a moment, seeming lost in thought as he continued to look at the flower. "The next day," he said, "this rose started to grow right where the mothers' tears fell. I believe this flower bloomed for Sophia." I felt a single tear begin to fall down my cheek as he finished his story about the Cherokee rose and looked back up at me with the flower still in hand.

"I think we should take that back to Carol," I whispered after a few minutes when I was sure my voice wouldn't quiver from the emotions I was feeling as I wiped away the tear that had fallen. "I think we should be getting back," he said nodding as he slowly walked past me as he placed his crossbow over his shoulders before leading the way back into the woods, with me hobbling slowly behind him. I wasn't about to tell him but after so long of not being able to walk far because of the cut on my calf, it was really starting to burn and hurt from all the usage of it. I think he looked back when I wasn't paying attention and caught sight of me limping worse than before. "Told you that you should've stayed back at the farm," he grumbled as he stopped and moved his crossbow so that it was in front of his chest.

"What are you doing," I squeaked out as he walked over towards me before turning his back and bending down, waiting for me to hop on. "Get on," he growled when I didn't move, "you're gonna slow us down with how back you're limping. "But," I said looking at him and hesitating only a second longer before he turned to glare at me. Sighing, I walked forward and took the rose he was handing me before I climbed onto his back. He placed his hands on the backs of my thighs as my hands found his shoulders to hold me close to his back so I didn't fall off while he carried me. "You're heavier than you look," he mumbled while I simply glared at him even though he couldn't see it.

"No one asked you to carry me," I growled back because he called me fat without really saying the word to begin with. Daryl stayed quiet the rest of the way, him carrying me back to the edge of the woods where we'd exit and see the farm. Just before we reached the edge, he sat me back down on my feet before turning his crossbow around to rest against his back once again and took the flower from my hand. I watched as he walked off before I let out a sigh and began limping after him, back to the farm where everyone was. We split off just before we reached the camp of our group, him in search of Carol to give her the flower and me back into the farm house to be with Carl and to rest my leg.

Just as I reached the steps of the house, I looked back towards the group camp and spied Daryl walking up to the RV's door. Just before he entered, almost like he knew, he turned to look back at me where I'd stopped at the foot of the stairs leading towards the porch. Feeling my cheeks heat up with being caught staring, I quickly turned around and made my way up the stairs and into the Greene's house and over to where Carl was sleeping in one of the downstairs bedrooms. I walked in, looking down at my feet and not looking up until after I'd entered the room and heard someone speak up. "And where were you this whole time," Lori's voice said causing me to lift my head to see her staring at me from where she laid beside Carl on the bed. This was just what I needed after the day I had in the woods with Daryl, Lori trying to play mother with me.