I slept through the night and only woke up when there was a loud knock on my door the next morning. I moved slowly to the door and opened it, revealing Dwight and Dawson, and unlikely pair.
"We're going to go back to Alexandria today, for you. I want to talk to Daryl. Convinced Dwight to come with me because he really can't say no." Dawson joked. Dwight rolled his eyes but I could tell he didn't mind going.
"Thank you. I appreciate it. I love you." I wrapped my arms around Dawson and gave him a hug, something I needed from him for days. "And thank you Dwight, for going with him. Find me when you guys get back." I told them. They both nodded and went to leave. I decided to talk with them until getting to the cafeteria doors, realizing how hungry I was.
"We'll see you later." Dawson said, as I watched them walk through the doors to the outside.
--
Daryl's POV
Days were long. I missed her but I had to do was right. Part of me felt guilty for what I did but this was something she needed to work on. I was working in the garage when a commotion at the gates knocked me from my thoughts.
"You need to turn around and go back where you came from." Rick's voice said. I walked toward the gates to see Dwight and Dawson. They both had their hands up as Rick and Carl had guns pressed to their foreheads.
"We'll give you our weapons. We just want to talk, it's about Rowan." Dawson spoke up.
"What about Rowan?" I asked, nodding at Rick and Carl to put their guns down. "What happened?" Automatically assuming the worst.
"She sent us to talk to you, Daryl. She apologized to me and my dad. She knew you guys wouldn't let her through the gates. Listen, I know her better than anyone, trust me. When she was talking to me about the things she did, I could see the guilt in her eyes, the pain in her voice. She was mad about losing our mom, something I can't blame her for. She's always had our dad's anger. I talked to her about it, she understands her wrongness, even my dad got through to her. Daryl, if you just come back with us, talk to her yourself." Dawson explained. I shook my head and looked to the ground. I grew to know Dawson in the past few days. I knew how he felt about Rowan, he'd do anything for her, just like I would or her dad. I also knew he wouldn't come here if he didn't mean what he said, every time he left the Sanctuary he was scared to death, which I still couldn't wrap my head around considering who his dad was.
"I'll come back and talk, but I can't stay there. I need to see her. Know she's okay myself." I finally spoke up.
"I'll go with you." Carl said.
"No. I'm going, alone. Ain't no way I'm putting you in harms way." I said strictly.
"Thank you. She really needs you right now. Talk some sense to her." Dawson told me. I nodded. I understood what he meant. No matter how many times Dawson or Negan tried to talk to her, I still needed to be there. I believed Dawson though. I know she's apologized for mistakes and thought them through.
"Give me a few minutes, get my shit together." I mumbled before walking over. Dawson nodded.
A few minutes later, I walked back to the gates and headed off with the two of them. It was a quiet drive. I could only think about Rowan. She was the love of my life. Finally, the Sanctuary gates came into view. The car pulled around to the gate and stopped. I got out first and waited for the other two. The gates opened, revealing Negan on the other side. As much as I hated him, he was still Rowan's dad and I had to respect it.
"Daryl, good to have you back buddy." He smiled. Fakest shit I've ever seen. "Rowan's in her room, thanks for coming to talk to her." This time he was sincere and he slapped his hand on my shoulder. I headed to the familiar double doors that led to Rowan's wing.
