Once A Dixon, Always A Dixon (Daryl Dixon)

Highway To Hell

Setting: Road to CDC, Season One

I woke up in Daryl's arms.

Wait what?

He woke up too, and looked almost as confused as I was. "Wait, did we-" He started.

I looked at the needle in my hand, "I must've fallen asleep after I finished your stitches."

"Oh, thank God," He sighed in relief. I pouted playfully. His eyes widened, "Not that it wouldn't be okay! I mean, you're a great person but-" I shut him up by laughing. I heard talking outside.

We walked out of my tent. Andrea hadn't moved from Amy's dead body. Collin was gone, buried probably. All that was left was a bloody spot. A single tear fell down my cheek. Daryl noticed and put his arm around me.

"We'll get through it together. And let it be known that I am not a people person. You should feel honored," He said. I laughed.

Suddenly, I heard a bang. Amy had turned and Andrea had put her down. I felt so sorry for her. But I'm sure everyone else here felt sorry for the both of us.

"A walker got him! A walker bit Jim!" Jacqui yelled suddenly. We all turned to look at Jim, who was backing away.

"Show us," Daryl demanded.

"I'm okay! Seriously guys..." Jim pleaded but Daryl wasn't having it. He marched over to Jim and pulled his shirt up, revealing a fresh bite.

"He's a ticking time bomb! We need to put him down!" I yelled. It was cruel but there's no such thing as taking it easy anymore.

"Agreed!" Daryl yelled and advanced on Jim with a pickaxe. Rick held a gun to his head.

"We don't kill the living!" Rick said.

"Funny. That's coming from a guy who's got a gun to my head," Daryl retorted. Rick holstered his gun.

"Listen, Jim's only chance is the CDC! We gotta go!" Shane yelled, like he was in charge of everyone.

"I agree. The CDC is our best shot," Rick said. Morales spoke up.

"We're not going. We have family in Birmingham. We want to be with them," He said.

"You won't have anyone to watch your back," Rick warned.

"We have each other," Morales responded. "I've gotta do what's best for my family." Lori hugged Morales' wife and Sophia said goodbye to their daughter.

We got into our vehicles. The Grimes' were in a car with Carol and Sophia. Dale, Andrea, Jacqui, and Jim were in the RV. Daryl, T-Dog, and Shane had their own rides. Shane popped his head out of his Jeep.

"Hey sweetheart, wanna ride in here?" He asked. Ugh. He was getting creepier by the second

"I think if my brother was here, he'd want me to ride with Daryl," I responded.

Shane grabbed my arm. "But your brother ain't here," He said.

That just made me angry. "Yeah. I know he's dead! But I want to ride with Daryl. So piss off!" I said. I saw Daryl standing by his truck. He smirked.

"I liked the way you handled Shane. You got some balls," He said.

"Uhh, thanks. I think?" I laughed. We got in his truck. I looked behind him and gasped.

"That is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!" I drooled. He raised his eyebrows. I ran to the motorcycle and wrapped my arms around it.

"Well, hello there," I said in a deep voice. Daryl laughed. "When your done hugging my bike, we should get a move on." We buckled up and started moving. We were at the end of the line: T-Dog, Rick, Shane, and the RV were in front of us.

I saw Morales give a goodbye gesture and went the opposite way. I started rooting through the glove compartment. I found a folder full of CDs. I picked one up and nearly screamed in happiness.

"Like what you see?" Daryl asked.

"AC/DC IS THE FREAKIN' BEST!" I yelled.

"Well, put the disk in!"

"We could attract walkers!"

"We're driving! We'll easily outrun them!"

"Okay, Shane would kill us before the walkers got to us!"

"You can handle Shane, and so can I!"

"You win Dixon." 

"I always do."

---

"And I'm goin' down!" I sang the last note of "Highway To Hell". I made a guitar motion.

"WHOA!" Daryl yelled and slammed on the brakes. The RV had come to a sudden stop. Everyone got out of their cars. The RV's radiator had broken down again. Shane angrily stalked towards Daryl and I.

"Ah shit," I mumbled.

"What the hell was that? Playing music! That was the most batshit insane idea I've ever heard of!" He yelled.

I grinned. "So? I was jammin' with my favorite redneck!" I lightly punched Daryl's chest. Shane rolled his eyes. Jacqui stepped out of the RV.

"Y'all! Its Jim! Its bad!" She said. Rick went inside to talk to Jim. Moments later, we were leaving him on the side of the road, saying goodbye. He had decided to leave us, to die alone. I walked up to him.

"Hey, listen. I'm sorry I didn't get to know you all that well. Really I am," I said.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to know you," He returned with a smile.

"Hey. Eventually we'll end up in the same place. I'll see you on the other side, buddy," I said and pecked his forehead. Jacqui wasn't kidding, he was burning up. I walked away, trying to let tears fill my eyes. I got back into Daryl's truck.

"So, I'm guessing you don't want any music at the moment?" He asked.

"Yep," I said, popping the "p".

"Understandable," He said.

---

After what seemed like forever, we arrived at the CDC. Or what's left of it anyway. It seem pretty rattled and the dead were scattered everywhere.

"Rick, are you sure this is the right place?" I asked him.

"Its gotta be!" He responded. We all walked to the door. The shutters were down. We were locked out.

"Walkers!" I yelled. A couple walkers were headed right for us. I took a couple down and retrieved the arrows.

"Rick, lets go! There's no one here!" Shane yelled.

"Wait! It moved! The camera moved!"

"You imagined it!"

"Listen! Whoever's in there! We have women, children!" Rick screamed.

I found my way into Daryl's grasp. This was it. I'd be reunited with Collin anytime now...

"You're killing us! Killing us!" Rick screamed. I squeezed my eyes shut, preparing for death.

The shutters opened and a bright light engulfed us all.

A/N The Atlanta Group has made it to the CDC! Some sweet Darico action also occurred!