The Bet

Part 7

"Be safe, and stay with Maggie, ok? Be sure to keep a knife and gun on ya, you don't wanna get caught and not be ready," Daryl was nervous. He was never usually nervous leaving for a run, but this was different. His group was going out far for meds, and there was no way of knowing what kind of trouble they were walking into or when they would be back.

Michonne and Bob were loading the car, while you and Daryl said your goodbyes. Tyrese finally arrived and they were ready to go.

"I know, I got this... Maggie and I got this. Plus, Glenn, Carol and Rick are here, so is Hershel. Just go get what they need and get back," your hand absentmindedly went to your stomach. Daryl didn't notice, too fixated on making sure you were prepared to defend yourself.

"Ready Daryl?" Tyrese asked before getting in the car.

"Yeah, one second," Daryl turned back to you. "Remember what I said last night?"

You smiled and nodded, "How could I forget?"

"I meant it," he said, lowering his voice and leaning his forehead against yours. "I'll see you soon and show you how much." Daryl leaned in and kissed you, and an instant later, he was gone.

Maggie's earlier prediction of things getting worse before they got better was far too accurate. Soon after Daryl and the group left, Glenn was put into quarantine as well and Maggie was close to breaking down. The walkers had been piling on the fences worse than usual, and all the work the guys had done to reinforce them over the last few weeks was coming undone.

Rick and Carol left to get what they could in neighboring communities, while you and Maggie were left to clear the fences and to keep the water flowing. It was dusk the next day when the fences finally started to cave. You, Maggie, Rick and Carl took out as many walkers as possible, until the gunshots started from inside.

Rick told Maggie to go and check on Glenn and Hershel, while the rest of you defended the prison against the walkers. For what felt like an eternity, you were firing ahead at the dead that were zeroing in on you. Moments after the last walkers fell, Carl was shouting for Rick as the headlights from Daryl's group illuminated the front gates.

Seeing the damage at the fences, as soon as the van was put in park, Daryl and Michonne ran over to help get it back up, while Bob and Tyrese brought the meds in. Working through the night until almost dawn, you all worked together to repair the damage to the fences and get meds to those who were sick.

When the sky started showing signs of life, Daryl put his arm around you and walked you back to your bunk. Once inside, he held onto you in a tight embrace for more than a few minutes. He didn't say a word, and you knew that the journey to get the meds must have been more difficult than they had let on.

Feeling your knees sway a little, you sat down on your bed and laid back. Daryl sat down next to you and slowly slipped off your boots one by one.

"What are you doin'?" you asked and sat up, resting your chin on his shoulder and wrapping one arm around his back.

"Just tryin' to get ya comfortable," he said before getting up and changing himself. Daryl went into your drawer and grabbed you a clean change of clothes. You watched in wonder as he went about silently stripping you out of your muddy clothes and into helping you into your favorite pair of sweatpants and tank top. He was sweet and gentle, and as much as his touch was always exciting to you, this time it was much more loving than it was passionate.

When Daryl was done, he laid down on the bed and pulled you into him. You were about to work up the courage to tell him what the doc said, but your lapse in memory about the pregnancy test hidden under the pillow outed you first.

"What the hell?" Daryl grumbled picking his head up off the pillow and slipped the long box out from beneath it.

"Oh shit," you gasped and closed your eyes in regret at your forgetfulness.

Daryl looked at the box, then back at you and sat up further on the bed. He saw it wasn't open and handed it to you.

"Guessin' this is yours?" his tone was even and you couldn't read his expression which was immediately unnerving.

"Daryl, I... the doc gave it to me right before you left. I didn't want to... everything just happened so fast, and with you gone..." you were rambling, nervous how he was going to react to everything.

"You didn't take it yet," he said, his eyes holding yours without wavering.

"No. I left it here and planned on doing it later in the day, but then..."

"Shit happened," he said with a nod, "Alright. Well, let's do it now." His voice was still as unfluctuating and you were starting to worry that this news may just be the straw that broke the camel's back considering how the last few days had gone.

"How are you so calm about this?" you asked with amazement and a hint of panic in your voice.

Daryl rubbed a hand down the length of your body, pausing his over the lower part of your stomach. He seemed lost in thought, and you let him stay there, wanting him to have the time he needed to really think about what it all meant.

"I gotta be," he said quietly. "I told you last night, I love you, Y/N. And, if this is real.. then I gotta be ok. Ain't a choice anymore. Just how it's gotta be."

"I was gonna take it... I am gonna take it... but I think I already know the answer," your voice betrayed the fear hiding inside you.

"So, why wait any longer?" Daryl got up off the bed and offered a hand to you to help you up. Taking a deep breath you walked down the corridor to the bathrooms, found an open one and took the pregnancy test.

Daryl insisted on waiting right outside the bathroom entry. When you walked out, he was leaning against the wall chewing nervously on his thumb, eyes transfixed on the doorway. The second he saw you, he stood at attention, staring at your face with his brows raised in question.

"Congrats, dad," you said with a hesitant smile, holding up the positive test.

Before you could say another word, Daryl had you wrapped up in his arms, his face buried in your neck. He held you like that for a couple minutes, and when he finally let you go, his face was serious and thoughtful.

"You ok? I mean, I know you don't talk about it much, but you had kids before..."

You placed a hand on his chest to stop him.

"Those boys were my life," you swallowed hard at the memory of them, but did your best to continue. "That was a different lifetime ago. After they were gone, I resigned myself to the idea of never having that again. I also had also told myself I would never let anyone in again, and yet... here we are," you smiled at him and felt an overwhelming pull of love for the man standing in front of you. "But, knowing that you're here and that you're going to do this with me, I kinda feel like we can do anything. Including this chaos."

You placed a hand on your stomach, and he covered it with his. You stayed that way until he felt your stomach rumble from hunger and insisted on getting you something to eat. Within minutes you were sitting together on the bunk of your cell, munching on crackers while Daryl laid his head on your lap and you talked about the possibilities of what life would be like after adding another Dixon to the world.

As you both finally drifted off to sleep, wrapped up in each other, the sun was rising outside. You smiled and enjoyed the last truly peaceful moment you would have with Daryl for a very long time.