Haunted | Daryl Dixon

31. Stormy Nights

It didn't take long before it became evident that there was a storm rolling in. A bad one.

Daryl had been quick to jump forward and suggest a barn he had seen a bit of ways into the wood as a new shelter for cover and refuge for the group.

No one had hesitated to follow after him as he led the way, Evelyn right up in front beside Rick as everyone hurriedly trekked through the woods.

The weather beating down on them was becoming less and less favorable as the minutes went by.

It had only taken a few people to do a quick sweep of the place before it was deemed safe, and everyone was quick to file in- desperate to get out of the pouring rain.

A fire was built within minutes and everyone spread out across the room, Evelyn opting to sit around the fire with Daniel, Daryl, Rick, Carol, and Michonne.

A few of them were chatting quietly amongst themselves and Evelyn found her eyes wandering over to where Carl sat, a few feet away, with sitting against a wall, staring into the fire as Judith slept on his bunched up sweatshirt peacefully.

With a small smile, the woman detached herself from the group and made her way over to the young boy, "Got room for one more?" She asked quietly.

Carl was quick to nod his head eagerly and scoot over, offering her some room.

"How are you doing?" She asked quietly, lolling her head to the side to look at him.

He shrugged slightly, "Alright," He answered briefly.

Playfully, Evelyn reached up a finger and gently poked his forehead, "What's going on in that head of yours?"

"A lot of things," Grimes replied honestly.

"Anything you care to share with the class?" She leaned her head against the wall.

Carl's eyes flickered up to her and he opened his mouth, only to seemingly think better of it and close it, diverting his eyes once more.

"I-uh... I was thinking about you and Daryl. Did you... know each other? Before all of this? I asked my dad, but he said it was none of my business." He cleared his throat, clearly having not wanted to actually say what he had been thinking, so he settled on speaking the first thing that came to mind.

"At first I asked because I wanted to know, then I had to know if it meant you were single or not. If you weren't, I want you to know that I'm willing to take Daryl in a fight if it means that I can ask you out." He nodded and stated in all seriousness.

Evelyn huffed out a laugh, unable to stop her eyes from traveling over to the fire, where he sat, smirking slightly at something Carol had said to him.

"We-uh- yeah, yeah we did know each other." She finally answered, not seeing the point in telling the young boy anything but the truth.

He titled his head to the side, "Then why did you act so weird when you first saw each other at the prison?" His voice held a genuine, child-like, curiosity.

"Well," She cleared her throat, "It-uh- last time we saw each other... it didn't end well." She told him softly.

"What happened?" His voice was equally as quiet as hers was.

For a split second, Evelyn debated whether or not to tell him the truth, but the only other person she had told about this was Hershel... and she somehow just couldn't stop herself from allowing the words to tumble out of her lips.

"He broke my heart." There were no tears that accompanied the statement, no wavering in her voice. It was just the four words, the statement.

It took Carl a little bit, but after a moment, he slowly nodded his head in understanding, and he began rising to his feet.

Evelyn tracked his movement with her eyes, wondering what he was doing, but then she caught sight of where he was reaching.

Carl slowly pulled his gun out of its holster and took a step towards the fire, eyes trained on Daryl.

Evelyn was quick to shoot her hand out and wrap her fingers gently around his wrist, pulling him to a stop, unable to stop herself from letting out a short laugh.

"No- uh- Carl, it's- it's fine," She laughed, gently tugging him back to sit next to her again, "You don't have to do that. It's fine now."

The boy just scowled in Daryl's direction- the man remaining oblivious to his surroundings and the young boy sending the best glare he could muster his way.

"Listen, just get some sleep," There was still amusement in her voice as she spoke, "It's been a long day."

Reluctantly, Carl gave in, sinking into the ground beside his sister.

"Goodnight, Carl." She said softly, gently ruffling his hair as she stood and moved past him.

"Night," He mumbled in return.

Just as she was about to reach the group, Daryl stood up, visibly upset, "We ain't them," He hissed before turning on his heel and storming off to the opposite side of the barn.

With furrowed eyebrows, Evelyn turned towards the rest of them, all with pursed lips and clearly solemn faces.

Daniel was the only one who made eye contact with the woman, and shook his head softly, silently telling her not to ask.

Evelyn turned her head into the direction that Daryl had stormed off to, hesitating only for a moment before following after him.

She found him pacing in front of the poorly secured doors of the barn entrance, them blowing back and forth in the harsh wind.

"You alright?" She asked softly, pulling herself to a stop a few feet away.

The man whipped around, clearly not having noticed her presence before, but his muscles relaxed slightly when he saw it was just her.

"Yeah," He grunted, turning his attention back to the doors, "'M fine."

The woman's eyebrows furrowed, "It's okay to not be okay, sometimes, Daryl."

He froze in his movements, those were words he had heard her speak countless times to him before, whenever he would get too angry but keep it bottled up when they were teenagers.

Finally, he turned to her and opened his mouth, as if to say something, but it was at that moment that movement from outside the barn doors caught Evelyn's eyes as they blew open.

In confusion, she hurried past the man and towards the door, trying to take a look outside, only for her heart to drop.

There were dozens upon dozens of walkers making their way to the barn, groaning lowly and snapping their jaws.

Without an ounce of hesitation, Evelyn threw herself and all her weight against the doors, using every bit of strength she had to try and keep them closed.

Daryl's own force joined her less than a few seconds later, face contorted in concentration.

Evelyn grunted as a particularly strong gust of wind threatened to throw the doors open and send her tumbling to the ground.

Only moments later, the rest of the barn was able to catch wind of what was going on, and bodies joined the two at the door, hoping with everything they had that their combined force would be enough to keep the walkers out and keep them safe another night.

A/N: Sorry for the short chapter- the next one should be on track for being longer!!