Farmer's Daughter (Daryl Dixon Love Story)

Chapter 26

I've got two big surprises in here! You people better be ready!

Melinda's POV

My eyes slightly open to see a bright light above my head, it was to blinding to see anything else but the ceiling.

My head rolls to the side as my eyes adjust, now seeing more and more of the new surroundings.

A man stood in one of the corners of the room, cleaning away at some metal tools. It was a large room filled with cabinets and drawers, papers stuck out of the cracks as if they were filled to the brim. Metal operating tables lay in neat lines by my side. A desk with yet another light and more papers by my other.

My head leaned up as I took in more of the room, now noticing the man was walking my way. He seemed oblivious to my awakening.

He started to neatly lay out tool after tool on a tray. Then grabbing a few paper towels. He sloppily folded them as he turned in my direction, finally noticing my presents.

"Oh, you're awake." He shyly walked over to the other side of my cot and sat the tools down. He fumbled a bit as he grabbed a near by stool and sat on the soft padding. He softly pushed up his glasses as he avoided eye contact.

"I really had wished you would have been asleep for this. I'm not used to having my patients moving." He softly chuckles as he looks down at his hands.

"Patients?" I whisper. He nods his head and looks up to my face.

"Well yes, you know what I'm going to do right?" He questioned. I softly shake my head. "Oh dear." He continues.

He soon stands and quickly walks over to another room while swinging a door open. A few moments pass before he comes back through the door and saunters my way with a manila folder in his grip.

"This is but a few of my findings. The things? The biters, they call them. Well you see, I feel like deep down they still remember who they actually are. A little piece inside of them wants to stop but the disease is to powerful. And that's mainly why you're here."

I stare at the man with the upmost confusion. A small smile is on his face as he looks at me. He finally clears his throat and begins talking again.

"How rude of me, please, call me Milton." He shows off white teeth as he lightly smiles.

"Melinda." I mumble. He nods his head as he reaches for my hands to tighten the unnoticed restraints.

"We are going to have to go through a few proceeders. But I promise they won't hurt."

I try to speak but a mask soon covers my face and he starts to count down from ten. He only made it to seven before everything went black once again.

Daryl's POV

"Daryl?" I look down at the little voice as she pulls on my pants leg. Her big blue eyes glistened with joy as she looks back up at me. She had woken up a few hours ago and hasn't left my side yet. I can't say that I like kids, but this one was different.

"Yeah Charlie?" I muse. Her forehead scrunches up as she crosses her little arms over her chest.

"Where is my momma and daddy?" She ask in all seriousness. My heart dropped at the thought of both of her parents being gone. But I shook off the thought as I soon reminded myself that Mel was coming back to us.

"They just went away for a while. Ye'll see them soon honey." I bent down to her hight so she was eye level with me. She looked exactly like her mother. Which made me miss her even more so. I didn't want to admit it to myself, but I've got feelings for her. But there was no way I could tell her that. She probably doesn't even feel the same way.

"But I want to see them now!" She whines. Her bottom lip pokes out as it quivers. I softly rub her arms as a way of trying to calm her.

"We'll get momma soon okay? Before ye can count to 100. Can ye wait that long?" I challenge. She ponders the idea for a moment before quickly nodding her head.

"I think so." A light smile comes on my face as she shrugs and skips off as she starts to slowly count her numbers.

Melinda's POV

"Melinda." A rough accent came in softly. I stirred a little as I started to recognize the voice.

"Daryl?" A flow of happiness coursed through me as a smile appeared on my face. "You came. You came for me." I softly whisper as I bring my hands up to my face to rub watering eyes. I look in the direction the voice came from and once I see who it is, my smile vanishes.

Merle sat at my side with a look of upmost shock. His light blue eyes, much like Daryl's, bore into mine. And I could see the pain, and the joy, and the sadness all rolled into one. The man didn't know what to feel at the thought of his brother.

"Ye know my brother?" Was what his only question was.

I nodded my head as a reply. But he kept looking at me, silently begging for me to tell him more.

"Yes, I know your brother. Maybe even a little to well." I bite my lip to keep from saying more. I wanted to tell him more, but I just didn't know what.

"How's he doing?" He looks down at his dirty hands and starts to rub what dirt that was on there off.

"Last time I seen him I left him standing in the woods while I came here. I just left him there. He tried to tell me not to, but you see how well I listen." I sunk down in the dentist like chair and thought about the look on his face before I left.

He looked worried, maybe sad, or even confused. But he wasn't mad. And I hadn't seen that face in a while and that's what made me think back to the other times we had where he wasn't angry.

The time at the CDC, where he slept on me. And that morning where we had to get out of the building, he grabbed me and pulled me down as it blew. Or when we were on the highway and he pushed me under the car as the herd came by, how he grabbed me as one of the walkers fell. Or when we went to look for Sophia and the huge herd passed us, he held me against him tightly without another thought. When Tyler came limping out of the barn, he held me, even if he didn't want to, And he told me everything was going to be okay, even if it wasn't. And just a few hours later when Charlie arrived, he sat with me in the living room, yet another thing he didn't have to do. And the trip to Walmart, I kissed him and he didn't think before he kissed me again. And one of the last memories, before I left. Even though he didn't keep me from going, he still followed me out there into the woods and he still tried to keep me from leaving because he cared.

And for the first time I really started to think about the man in a way I had never before. He made me feel like I mattered. He made me see things in a whole new light. And most importantly he made me feel safe.

A few tears streamed down my face as a goofy smile spread across it. And a choked sob escaped me.

I looked to the man at my side and seen the confusion taking over. I shook my head and took in a much needed breath.

"I love him."

A/N

So guys... You're getting some action now. But this is going to go slow. They aren't going to straight up hook up so calm yourselves. Lol

-Melinda