𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒍𝒇 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔 ➪ «𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑦𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑥𝑜𝑛»

ch. VI pt. II

oOo

Diana awoke later in the night to whispers and someone shuffling around.

The sky was dark and speckled, the moon no longer over them, the embers from the fire had long been extinguished.

She tuned her ears, stifling her breath and lying still; there was something in her backpack poking her behind the ear and it was uncomfortable.

Sam was switching shifts with Irene, she heard him ask once more if he should keep her company, but Irene whispered back that that would defeat the purpose of the watch and sent him to rest with a kiss. There was a sleepy whimper from Alice as Sam took his wife's place.

Diana waited, shivering slightly in her hoodie, and soon she heard her dad's snoring start up. She wondered if it would attract attention. She sniffled, the tip of her nose and fingers cold, and rose on her elbows, rubbing the spot behind her ear. She rubbed her face free from the stiffness the salty tears had left on her skin.

Being on the outermost part of the semicircle they'd formed, Diana faced only trees, seeing deep into the dark forest. She started at the sudden hoot of an owl and turned until she could see her mom's silhouette, sitting with her back to the truck to see from all angles.

Across the fire pit, by the end of the truck, Diana could only make out one figure, which meant one of the brothers was keeping watch as well. She could've guessed they would.

An idea started taking form in her mind.

She tried to inconspicuously lean over to squint at the lump, trying to identify it without rousing suspicion.

"What are you doing?" The faint whisper startled her and she scrambled to sit up, jamming her palm into a pebble in the process. The whites of Irene's eyes twinkled down at her from her post and Diana held her injured hand to her chest, rubbing the indentation to try and ease the pain.

Sam's words from earlier echoed in her head, don't approach them and never ever find yourself alone with any of them.

"I gotta pee," Diana whispered back, heart fluttering at the lie.

"Want me to go with you?" Irene asked and prepared to wake Sam to replace her when Diana shook her hands in dismissal.

"No, no, it's okay, I'll be close by."

"You sure? I can go."

"I'll be fine, mami, the only thing that can happen is me tripping on a root." She stood quietly and, with a warning from Irene, took the bow with her. She wouldn't be able to see what the hell she was shooting, but if it eased her mind, so be it.

She disappeared around the truck and took a moment to breathe deeply. Shit.

What now? If Merle was on watch, she could forget it; of the two brothers, she trusted him the least. No way in hell she would go talk to him in the middle of the night. She didn't know if he had rapey tendencies, but his sexual innuendos until now had been enough to make her inner alarms go off, and she didn't want to risk it by giving him the perfect setting.

Daryl gave off a different vibe. He was still rude and painfully blunt, but she appreciated his honesty, and she knew no matter how rude he was to her, he would never be able to surpass Alice on that aspect. He felt genuine. She had no idea how or why, but by looking at him she had the feeling that he always spoke the truth, that he was easy to trust.

Shit, please let her parents be wrong about her blind naivety.

Another deep breath, a reassuring thrum resonating through her body, and she was semi-ready to go through with her dumb, ill-advised plan, as they all seemed to be. She needed to work on her track record.