Complicated ✔

Ch 53 - Back

DARYL'S POV

I stood quiet, caught up in my own thoughts about choosing Merle over the others in the prison, over Kat. It's been about a day now since I've made my choice, and I keep thinking more and more that it was the wrong choice to make. "What's eatin' away at you baby brother," Merle said as I snapped out of my thoughts, "leave behind a piece of tail back at that prison with your ol' pal Rick?" "Shut up," I grumbled before looking at my crossbow in my hands as Merle decided now would be a good time to take a piss. "Who was it," he asked as he ignored what I said, "that woman who's own husband was hitting on her and that daughter of hers? No, I think it was the redhead that always was lookin' our way." "I said shut up," I growled as he walked up to me, "what are we doin' here anyway? Ain't nothin' here but mosquitoes and ants."

"And you call yourself a hunter," he chuckled, "patience little brother. Sooner or later we'll get ourselves a squirrel." "Even so," I grumbled, "that ain't very much food for the both of us. Have better luck finding something in them houses we saw earlier." "That what your new friends taught ya," he asked, "how to loot for booty? Speaking of booty, what's the sheriff's daughter like? Redhead and all, bet she's a freak in between the sheets." "You don't know what the hell you're talkin' about," I snapped as I turned to glare at him, "you don't talk about Kat like that." "Kat is it," he sneered, "gave the little bitch a nickname did ya? That what you shout out when you're pounding into her little ass?" "Shut the hell up," I shouted as I glared at him. "Awe what's the matter baby brother," he sneered again, "wanna go back to that little bitch? Needing some of her little ass already? Can't say I blame ya though, I ever had the chance I'd get a piece of that ass too."

"Don't ever talk about her like that again," I shouted in his face. Before he could say anything else, I turned and began walking on in the direction we were headed. "What you gonna do," he asked as he trailed behind me, "head back to the road, go back to the prison?" "They got shelter," I said not turning to face him, "food. A pot to piss in. Might not be a bad idea. "For you maybe," he said, "they'll welcome you back with open arms and that little redhead will come running back to your arms. I'll get a gun to the face if I show back up there." "That's because of your own stupidity," I said shaking my head, "not mine. You're the one who took Glenn and Maggie. You're the one who started all this trouble. It's your own damn fault."

"So," he said glaring back at me, "is it my fault I lost my hand too?" "I went back for you," I shouted, "you weren't there. I didn't cut off your hand neither. You did that your own damn self. You just had to wait! We were coming back for ya!" I watched as he started chuckling. "You know what's funny to me," he asked before holding up his hand, "you and Sheriff Rick are like this now. I bet you a penny and a fiddle of gold that we were planning on robbing that camp blind." "It didn't happen," I said, shaking my head at him. "Yeah it didn't," he said, "because I wasn't there to help you." "What like when we were kids," I asked stepping forward into his face, "who left who then?"

"What," he shouted, "is that why I lost my hand?" "You lost your hand because you're a simple minded piece of shit," I shouted right back before turning my back to him. In that next moment, he had his hand on the back of my shirt, jerking it. The sound of the fabric ripping as I lost my balance surrounded me before I found myself on my knees on the ground. Glancing back at him slightly as I tried to grab the torn pieces of my shirt to cover my back, I could see the shock on his face. "I didn't know he was," he started stammering as he stared at my back, and the scars that covered it. "Yeah he did," I said as I grabbed my dropped back and placed it back on my back before standing to my feet, "he did the same to you. That's why you left first."

"I had to," he said as I started walking away from him, "I would've killed him otherwise." I looked back at him before continuing to walk away from him. When he realized I wasn't going to answer, that's when he spoke up again. "Where you going," he called out, causing me to stop and look back at him again. "Back where I belong," I said, Kat instantly coming to mind when I stated I was going back to Rick and the others. She'd probably never forgive me for breaking my promise to her, but I'd try anything to gain her forgiveness and to regain her trust in me. "I can't go with you," Merle said snapping me from my thoughts, "I tried to kill that black bitch. Damn near killed the Chinese kid." "He's Korean," I said, sticking up for that boy for the first time since I'd met him.

"Whatever," Merle called back as I looking at him and thought, "doesn't matter. I just can't go with you." He had a point. If he went back, he'd never be welcomed. And if Rick knew what Merle was saying about his daughter earlier, he'd kill him right on the spot without hesitation. Rick's done killed one man for his daughter, I wouldn't put it past him to kill another. "I may be the one walking away," I said looking up at him, "but you're the one that's leaving. Again." With that, I turned and began walking away. I'd let Merle decide what he was going to do. But I wasn't going to follow him around like some mindless shell of a man, like I had done before. I was going back, and I was going to beg for Kathryn's forgiveness and pray she'd welcome me back but I wouldn't get my hopes up yet for that. Like Merle pointed out, she was a redhead and could be very stubborn. I've seen that stubbornness a few times already.

It was silent behind me, as I began making my way back to the prison, before I heard Merle's footsteps following behind. I let the silence last, as he soon was walking beside me. I didn't feel like talking to him anymore for the time being, I just wanted to get back before the Governor got back to the prison before us and attacked. The last thing I wanted was to return to find the prison attacked and everyone in it gone. As we drew closer to the prison, the sound of gunfire caught my ears. "Son of a bitch," I growled as I began running in the direction it was coming from, not caring if Merle was following close behind or not. I had one thought in mind, Kathryn.

When we got to the tree line that stopped right before the prison, I caught sight of the prison yard full of walkers with a vehicle inside and Rick up against the fence with two walkers trying to take a bite out of him. Acting quickly, I lifted my crossbow up before firing the already loaded bolt into one of the walker's skull. While I was pulling out another bolt, Merle quickly ran by me with a bar and began helping Rick out before I came up beside him. When the last walker was down, he looked to me, nodding his head once in gratitude before turning to face the fence. I walked up next to him, looking up to the prison before looking back to him. "You came back," he said looking at me. "Yeah," I said nodding before a thought occurred to me, "where's Kat?"

I made Merle a dick in this haha. But anyway I'd like to give a shout out to BexCelia and her amazing story Forbidden Fruit. If you haven't read it yet you need to!
- Kenz