million dollar man | twd

ᴄʀᴀᴠɪɴɢ

[ craving ]
꧁꧂

Over the next few days, Daryl noticed the change in Vanessa's demeanor, the way she seemed distant and troubled. He saw the familiar signs of inner turmoil on her face—the same ones he had seen before when they first met. He approached her quietly, not saying a word, but staying beside her.

Vanessa was lost in her thoughts, her struggles masked by the façade of determination she had carefully constructed. But Daryl's presence was grounding. He knew better than to push her or to ask her directly about what was going on, but he stayed close, offering silent support.

"I'll be back. Gonna go look for water" Vanessa said, as their group walked down the road.

"You should stay here, in case you run into something," Rick said.

Vanessa scoffed as she walked away. "We haven't run into something in days, Rick. I see anything out there I'll throw you a party."

Vanessa pushed through the underbrush, her steps heavy with exhaustion and a growing sense of defeat. The dense woods seemed to close in around her, their oppressive silence amplifying her inner turmoil. She walked aimlessly, her thoughts a storm of regret and pain. Eventually, she found a large tree with a sturdy trunk and slumped down against it, her back pressed into the rough bark.

As she sank to the ground, the weight of her emotions became too much to bear. Her resolve cracked, and the tears she had been holding back finally spilled over. Vanessa buried her face in her hands, her sobs muffled by her palms. The forest around her seemed to blur, her world reduced to the ache in her heart and the despair that had crept back into her life.

She heard a rustling behind her but didn't move. The thought of something or someone approaching didn't even spark fear—she almost welcomed it, as if the danger might offer a release from her torment. Her gun remained where it was, slung over her shoulder, forgotten. She sat there, tears streaming down her face, lost in her grief.

The rustling grew closer, and Vanessa could sense a presence beside her. She didn't look up, too consumed by her own misery to care. But the figure that settled down next to her was unmistakably familiar.

Daryl sat down beside her in silence, his presence a steady, comforting weight. He didn't speak or ask questions. He simply sat there, close enough to offer comfort but not intruding on her sorrow. Vanessa continued to cry, her body trembling with the intensity of her emotions.

The tears eventually subsided, replaced by a peculiar, disbelieving laughter. Vanessa's shoulders shook as she started to chuckle, the sound jagged and uneven.

"This is so stupid," she said through her laughter, her voice raw. "I always thought when I died, it'd be from an overdose or something dramatic. But instead, I'm gonna starve to death."

Her laughter was a mix of irony and desperation, the absurdity of her situation hitting her all at once. She wiped her tears with a shaky hand, trying to catch her breath as she continued to laugh.