𝗔𝗠𝗢𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗨𝗜𝗡𝗦 (DARYL DIXON X READER)

Chapter 2

The air outside Woodbury's gates felt suffocating, and each step you took felt like you were carrying the dead bodies of those you had left behind with you. But as soon as you crossed the gates, it was like that weight was dumped at the entrance, not gone, just pushed back-the thoughts about all the shit you'd to go through was left behind. The familiar sight of the town-the talking and laughter of people living as if the world hadn't ended-was almost too much to come back to.

For you, it felt like false normalcy, as if slamming into a brick wall. The faces around you were looking relieved and confused at the same time, their smiles wide but their eyes looking empty. It was surreal-like walking into a dream that quickly turned into a nightmare.

"Fuck, welcome back!" A voice pulled you away from your thoughts-a soldier's voice, the happiness in it sounding more forced than joyful. But he was grinning, his eyes wide, like he'd just seen a ghost, but he was trying to play it cool. "I can't believe you're actually here! We thought you were gone for good."

You barely even listened to his words; your throat was feeling tight as hell, dry like sandpaper. You wanted to respond to his question about your friends and your colleagues, but the words were stuck in your mouth, choked off and making you tongue-tied by everything you'd seen. Instead, you looked down, letting the silence answer him with the truth you couldn't, and didn't want to, put into words just yet.

The soldier's smile fell a bit, but he was still sounding happy and glad, wanting to get an answer from you anyway. "So, come on, what the hell happened out there? Where are all the others?"You couldn't look at him. You stared at the ground, and that was enough for him to get the message.

"Shit... I'm sorry. We'll talk later," he mumbled, trying to sound sympathetic but failing. There was a tone in his voice that you couldn't really ignore-perhaps relief that he wasn't out there, facing the same horrors. "For now, come on. Let's get you to everyone. They're gonna be thrilled to see you back!"

You barely heard him. The idea of facing anyone else right now felt weird; the guilt you felt from the past days-hell, was it weeks?-was still fighting with your mind. But you followed him anyway, your legs moving on autopilot. It was strangely comforting to see Martinez beside you again, his machine gun hanging loosely from his shoulder, like this was just another day in the apocalypse. He didn't pull any of that fake sadness bullshit, but there was something in his eyes-something that felt both reassuring and unsettling.

As you walked forward, the man kept glancing at you. "So, what's the damn deal? What happened out there? You look like you've been through hell and back. You know you can tell me, right?"

You wanted to snap at him for his disrespect, but you couldn't do it. Instead, you swallowed hard and tried to keep your voice steady. "You have no idea," you said. "It wasn't pretty; let's leave it at that. And the others... they didn't make it, okay? None of them."

His face fell. "Shit. I didn't think..." He trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "I thought you were gonna bring them back. We all did. Thought you were joking around with us. Fuck..."

You could see the confusion in his eyes, the frustration. He looked away, as if trying to process your words. "Look, I'm sorry," he said finally, his voice a bit more understanding. "I didn't mean to push. Just... it's good to have you back, at least. We were all simply worried."

He stopped talking, and only then could you feel the eyes of Woodbury's residents on you.

"Yeah, well," you grumbled. "I'm back. Doesn't mean I'm alright. Just-just give me a minute."

The man nodded. "Got it. Just... take your time. We'll get you sorted. People here... they care, you know? Hope you didn't forget that."

You appreciated his words, though they felt empty right now.