Exhausted {Daryl Dixon Fanfic}

XVI. Scars

slight tw...nothing is detailed but it is briefly mentioned

I woke up rather rudely the next morning. Glenn's boot connected with my ribs as he tripped over me, nearly falling off the RV in the process. I groaned in pain as I shot an arm out to steady him. I heard a small chuckle from below us and saw Hershel and Rick discussing some things. Glenn shot me an apologetic look and made his way down the ladder, which I assumed was his original goal. I sat up and stretched my arms above my head. My shoulders popped loud enough for me to sigh in relief and I looked out across the small campsite.
Andrea hadn't left the Jeep, but Shane and T-Dog were gathered around with Rick and Hershel. I assumed they were discussing the trip to the CDC. Lori and Carol were sorting through some berries while Sophia and Carl sat drawing in the dirt with some rocks. The only person unaccounted for was Dixon, but I didn't worry too much about where he was off at. He was a big boy.
I decided to join the kids in the dirt. Carl seemed like a bright kid and he was drawing out what looked like a comic book character. I listened as he tried to explain to Sophia who the superhero was and she only shook her head and mumbled something about silly boys. I giggled fondly at the innocent interaction. It was so helplessly childish in a broken world. I rested my chin on Carol's knee to see what they were sorting. It seemed to be mulberries but a lot more were going in the rotten pile than not. Carol sighed and ran her fingers through my hair. It was such a motherly gesture that I wasn't used to and I stayed deathly still as she did so. After a few more minutes of sorting Lori seemed to give up as well.

"Cara, have you ever fished?" Lori asked me as she poured a little water into the good berries.

"Kind of," I thought back to how my older cousins had tried in vain to teach me, "I'm not the best."

"Could you run down to the creek and help out Daryl? Andrea is still, well," she gestured to the Jeep where she refused to leave.

I brushed the dirt off my shorts as I went off in the general direction Lori had pointed. I knew there wasn't a big lake around the campsite like I was used to back home, but I could hear the sound of water through the trees not far from where we set up. I knew we were far enough from the city for their to be many walkers, but I tried to keep as quiet as possible none the less. When I finally came upon the creek I was met with a sight I hadn't expected.
Daryl was knee deep in the water with his hands out of sight and I assumed he was hand fishing. His crossbow was discarded at the edge of the water along with his vest and his shirt. His bare back was towards me and I was shocked by what I saw. Deep scars criss-crossed all down his back. The scars seem older and faded and yet they were still so prominent they had to have been deep marks to begin with. I almost gasped but I didn't want to scare him or the fish, as I assumed he hadn't noticed me yet. A few minutes passed and I watched as the creek picked up pace with the gentle wind. I waited patiently as he slowly bent down closer to the water. My eyes were glued to the scars. Each one seemed to move with the muscles across his back. It was like a delicately painted picture.
All of the sudden, Daryl jerked a net out from under the water. Inside the net was four to five decently sized fish. He turned back towards the grass with a smile wide on his face, obviously satisfied with what seemed to be his first catch of the day. The smile vanished when he saw me. He looked between me and his shirt and I saw the faint blush of embarrassment fade down his neck and chest. I didn't let my eyes wander and instead kept them glued to his own blue ones that were wide.

"I....Nice catch," I tried not to further his embarrassment by pointing out the scars, but it was no use.

He bounded out of the water careful not to turn his back to me and dumped the fish into a large bucket. His eyes locked back onto mine and they were no longer wide, now, they were angry.