The sky was dark, a blanket of navy blue stretched out above you. The night had grown cool as the breeze blew through your hair and caused goosebumps to arise on your skin. The air was fresh though, inhaling it was like breathing clear for the first time. The prison was stuffy and the atmosphere was different than anything you were used to, but stepping into the fields late at night it freed you.
Finding a spot among the long growing grass that blew in the wind, you take a seat. Your legs stretched out in front of you, resting your weight on your hands that are bent behind you. Looking up at the sky, the darkness that looks as though it could swallow you whole, you close your eyes.
Allowing the fresh summer wind to blow over you, allowing the night to engulf you and allowing the air to lull you.
You aren't sure how long you sit there like that, by yourself in the quiet night, but hearing someone's footsteps coming your way, you open your eyes. Turning your head to the right, you spot Daryl Dixon walking your way.
Even in the dark, you can make out all his distinctive features. His hair that grows longer each day, his leather vest with the stitching of angel wings on the back, and his crossbow strapped over shoulder.
"What are you doing out here?" You inquire, as he is now only feet away from you.
"Could ask ye the same thing."
His voice is low but somehow blends perfectly with the peacefulness of the night. There's something soothing, and something calming about his voice. Maybe it's his accent or maybe it's just that his voice comes from him.
Daryl reaches you and takes a seat in the grass beside you, dropping his crossbow near his side and looks out at the vast field.
Looking back up at the sky, there is silence once again. A quiet that lets your mind think, and lets your mind rest. A comfortable silence.
"I come out here some nights, when I can't sleep or I just need some air." You say and your voice breaks through the void of quietness.
"I like to come outside and look up at all the stars sprinkled in the sky. I like to spot the moon hung up brightly above me. I like to breathe in the fresh air that instantly clears my mind and my body."
You don't know if Daryl is even listening as you don't look over at him. Just continue to stare up at the blanket of stars spread out above the two of you. The kind of relationship you had with Daryl was one you couldn't describe. Whenever you wanted to label it a friendship, the word didn't seem big or important enough. But you couldn't think of a word that truly fit for the two of you. And maybe that was okay.
"You know," You pause, swallowing and tilting your head to the side looking upward. "When I was young, I wanted to be an astronaut."
Your lips curl faintly upward at the memory of all the days you wished to be shot up into space in a rocket.
"Why?" Daryl asks, and looking over at him slightly you find him looking your way. His legs are crossed loosely and he rests his elbows on his thighs as he plays with a blade of grass in his fingers. But his head is turned in your direction, as if he's been paying attention to you the entire time.
"Because I wanted to disappear." Sitting up, you cross your legs and lean forward. "I wanted to float away. I wanted to float up into the stars and never come back down."
Daryl doesn't say anything, just continues to watch you and listen to you speak.
"I wanted to get away from everything. Away from my home, away from all my pain, away from the people in my life, away from my life." Shaking your head, you can't help but think of the people you don't want to think of.
"I wanted to fade into space, become lost in the vast galaxy with the stars and the planets. I wanted to cut my ties to earth, letting go of my gravity. I wanted to disappear."
After a second of silence, you laugh softly.
"Sorry." You say to Daryl, shaking your head. "You probably don't understand anything I just told you, and I doubt you care much."
You laugh not because it's funny but because you sit out in the field in the dead of night, speaking to Daryl about something that wouldn't matter to him.
"I get it." That single phrase haults your pitiful laughter and you turn your head to look at him. This time he's not looking back you, but up at the sky above him. Up at the stars and up at the moon.
Those three words he said to you says more than a million words. The way he said it so simply and so kindly, it makes you know he was indeed listening. He was listening and he could relate. He truly could understand, for something hidden in his voice tells you he has a story. That there's a part of him too that wants to float away and disappear, either now or once in life long ago.
Looking back up at the sky, watching the stars twinkle brightly and the moon lend light to a otherwise pitch black night, you feel something inside of you was let go. Something was understood by someone, that you suddenly weren't alone. And that was a feeling you had always wanted to feel someday.
And here you were, with Daryl Dixon of all people, looking up at the night sky. Feeling understood in ways you never thought you could be. Maybe the stars seemed like the place you wanted to be, but right here beside him... That didn't feel too bad either.
A/N: Short, kind of fluffy one!😊💛
