Meet Me Under Our Willow (A Daryl Dixon Pre-Apocalypse Love Story)

Chapter 2 - Burnt to Ashes

Quinn : 8 years old : July

I finally got some neighbors that moved in to the house next to me. There is a boy and a girl, and they look like twins. I think they're a year younger than me. Their names are Samantha and Oliver. Mom talked to their mom, Ally, and their Dad died in the army a few years ago.

Currently, we are outside riding bikes down the road. Our road isn't very long, so we just ride up and down the length of it.

"Cool bikes." I comment.

"Thanks." they say at the same time.

"They go really fast." I add, "It's hard for me to keep up."

"That's because you're so slow." Oliver taunts.

"Wanna race? I bet I can beat you." I challenge.

"Eat my dust!" Oliver says, speeding off.

As I'm about to catch up to him, I see a figure emerge from the treeline. I immediately recognize it as Daryl. I grin and pull my bike off to the side and get off.

"Hey." I say.

"Hey."

"Do you wanna play with us?"

He looks hesitant, "I don't have a bike."

"Oh," I said, "Well, that's okay. We can play another game."

I urge Daryl to come out to meet my neighbors. They welcome him, and Oliver is ecstatic that another boy is there to play with them, he was getting sick of the girls. I tell them Daryl doesn't have a bike, so Samantha suggest playing hide and seek. We all agree. Daryl volunteers to be the seeker.

As he counts to 10, we all scurry off in different directions. I go and hide behind a large tree not too far from the road. I hear Daryl get done counting. I stand completely still, making sure I'm not breathing too loudly. I close my eyes.

"Found you." a voice whispers into my ear. I jump a little and my eyes find those bright blue ones.

"Did you cheat?" I complain.

"Nah. I'm just a good tracker. Plus, ye were eyeing this tree the second we suggested playin' this game."

I giggle, "It looked like a good hiding spot."

He smirked. Our heads turned when the sounds of sirens in the distance got closer. A fire truck whizzed by us, the horn blasting and the lights flashing. I saw Daryl's face pale for a second. I think that's the direction his house is in.

"We should go check that out!" Oliver yells, coming out of his hiding spot.

"Yeah! It would be cool to see firemen in action!" Samantha adds.

"Come on! Lets go!" Oliver says, jumping on his bike.

He and Samantha speed down the road towards the smoke. Thick, black smoke rises up from the trees. It looks like a big fire. I remember Daryl doesn't have a bike.

"Come on." I said, pushing my bike into the ditch.

We begin to run down the road towards the fire. As we get closer, there are a few cars parked along the road. There is an old and rusty mailbox, with the name 'Dixon' sloppily painted on it. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Daryl sprint up the driveway. I call after him and try to catch up, but he ignores me. People are crowded behind yellow tape that the police put off. An officer stands there to watch them. The people's eyes turn to Daryl, and they are filled with sadness and sympathy.

Daryl pushes past the people to the front of the crowd. I follow him and gasp when I see what everyone is looking at. There is a large pile of rubble and ash with smoke rising from it. The firemen spray the remaining fire with water to put it out.

"Are you the youngest Dixon?" the cop asks Daryl, who has his eyes glued to the pile of ashes. Daryl nods.

"I'm very sorry for your loss, son." the cop said.

Daryl's eyes snap to his, "Who was in there?"

The police officer looks down, but his head snaps back up when Daryl shouts, "Who was in there?!"

"Your mother. Her cigarette started the fire."

Daryl's face falls, and his breathing quickens and deepens. He starts to back away, his eyes wide with shock. I turn to face him, afraid of what he might do. He turns and storms away, harshly pushing past anyone in his path.

"Daryl!" I call after him, following him into the woods. He walks fast. I can't see him anywhere.

Until I hear quiet crying.

I turn to my left, and I see the distant figure of Daryl sitting on a fallen tree. I quickly make my way over to him and hesitantly sit to his right. I gently place a hand on his back. He jumps at the contact, and his teary blue eyes meet mine. My eyes burn with the threat of tears as well.

He lets out a sob and leans his head on my shoulder. I rub his back and wrap my arm around his shoulder. I comfort my friend as he cries into me.