Stolen Childhood

Daryl Dixon POV

Age: 6

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I heard the secret knock on my back door, and I quickly sprinted over to it. Opening the door I saw something I wasn't expecting, a girl.

"C'mon idiot don' just stand there. Let's go." She said smirking, her long blonde hair loosely pulled back in a messy braid. Her clothes where a bit muddy and ragged but she didn't seem to mind.

"What's yer name soldier?!" I asked pointing my BB gun at her.

"Sam...what's it to ye?" She sad grabbing my hand and pulling me outside. "C'mon Caleb's waitin fer us!" She tugging me along through the woods.

"Wait how do ye know Caleb?" I asked yanking my hand back. You see Caleb has been my friend pretty much ever since I was born...he's been there for me through thick and thin.

"He's my cousin idiot."

I rolled my eyes and looked around for him.

"Don' see 'em." I said crossing my arm. She crossed me as a stubborn girl who doesn't give up on things easily.

"He's up there." She placed her hands on her hip and pointed upwards to the giant tree house. My mouth slightly gaped open as I laid eyes on the gigantic structure.

"Who built this?!" I asked running over to the ladder and beginning to climb up.

"My daddy." She said following me.

I wish my dad would do things like this for me, but he was too busy drinkin' all the time. I don't see why he can't just stop and play with me like all the other kid's dad's. Was there something wrong with me? Did I do something bad? Suddenly my thoughts where interrupted by Caleb's loud, sometimes obnoxious voice.

"Where ya guys been? I've been waitin here for like my whole life!" He whined standing up.

"Ye didn't tell me how difficult yer friend was." She said shitting the door to the house.

"I gots somthin ta tell ye." He said with sad eyes. I knew exactly when he had something bad to tell me because he would never look me in the eye. He always looked at my nose or something. "Me and my parents are movin and Sam is takin our house."

"What!! But yer my best friend and she's...well she's a girl!" I can't believe he's doing this to me, and after all we've been through!

"Hey!" She yelled, but I ignored her.

"I know...I'm sorry. My dad gots himself a new job and he wants us to move with him an-" Suddenly I could hear Caleb's dad calling him down.

"Caleb! Time to go bud." He yelled up.

"Yer leavin now?!" I said sadly while walking with him to the door.

"Ye...I'll visit soon. I promise. Cross my heart and hope to die." He said making a small X over his heart. I nodded and watched him walk down to his dad and get in the car. I just lost my beat friend...like all the others. They all say they will visit, and write me, but they never do. Nobody wanted to stay in touch with the weird kid who always had those strange cuts and bruises.

"Hey, it's gonna be ok. He'll come back soon." Sam said wreaking my train of thought. I turned around and have her a are you kidding me look.

"No he won't...they never do." I looked down at my feet and tried not to tear up.

"Well even if he don't ye still got me." She smiled and put her hand on the shoulder. "I can be lots of fun."

"Prove it." I crossed my hands and stared and her straight in the eyes.

"Fine! Come with me." She grabbed a blindfold and lead me down the stairs, and through the woods. Suddenly we stopped and I could hear her mumbling to herself, pulling me in all different directions. "Maybe it was...no...that way? No...oh yes 'ere we go!" She grabbed my hand and pulled to a place with hard flooring. She then took off my blindfold, and revealed a old abandoned parking lot.

"TADA!" She smiled.

"What are we doin here?" I asked annoyed. What could possibly be fun about an old stupid parking lot?!

"See all these wooden boards I put out? Well these are the things that ya jump on. A-and if ye...if ye touch the pavement, witch I call lava, ye die and the other person wins." She gave a small, tired smile.

"I'm not doin' that. This is stupid." I said beginning to walk off.

"No, no wait! If ye play with me...I-I'll give ye a starburst!" She pushed her hand down in her pocket and searched around for the candy, then pulled out a yellow starburst, and reached out her hand to give it to me.

"Raise me a red and I'm in." I liked to barging to see how much I could get out of someone. After all, it couldn't hurt me to try.

"Fine!" She grumbled and pulled out a red candy. Snatching it from her and and putting it in my back pocket, I walked over to the first board.

"So how do ye play this stupid game again?" I asked kicking the board a little. She seemed very scatterbrained and frantic, just like my mom. She never knew where anything was or cared to remember. All she cared about was her cigarettes, never really bothered to check up on me.

"Hey country boy! Ye get off into dazes easily don' ye?" She smiled and looked down at her feet. "All ye gotta do is jump on the boards, and if ye touch the pavement yer dead."

I sighed and leaped on the first board. This is so stupid...what's the point? I looked back at her and gave her an annoyed look, to witch in return she stuck her tongue out at me.

"Daryl!" I heard a voice coming from the woods. Out from within the forest I saw my father come out, his face filled with anger, as he was dead drunk. "Where the 'ell you been!" He grabbed me arm abruptly and brought my face close to his.

"I was just playin' daddy." He scared me, beyond words. My arm started to cramp from his tight grip.

"Awwh how sweet. Ye where playin' with yer little friend!" He swiped his hand across my face, and left a tingling, painful sensation. I couldn't control myself and I just let the tears flow. Every time I would find joy, or fun in something he had to ruin it, and I hated him for that. "Now c'mon...before I get the whip out."

I wiped my tears and followed my dad into the forest, only glancing back once at Sam to see the horrified look on her face. I always got looks like that. It seemed like society just shunned the poor kid with the abusive father. It's one of the reasons I didn't want to tell Sam about him, I was scared she would judge me too. But I guess that's the world I live in...and there's no way to change that.