Torn Apart (A Daryl Dixon/ The Walking Dead Fanfiction)

Chapter 18

Daryl's P.O.V

I stare at the fields below me, a soft breeze blowing in the air. I take a long whiff and smell the nature surrounding the prison.

"Beautiful isn't it?"

I turn and see Carol standing there, holding out a bottle of water. I smile and take it from her. She leans on the railing beside me and looks at the prison below us. Everyone is spread out. Some are killing the walkers at the fence, the children running and playing games on the grass, Rick plotting the fields. I scowl at him. Things are still tense between Rick and I since our fight. He hasn't come up to apologise and I haven't gone to him either.

"Yea'." I say.

"How's Cat?" She asks looking at me.

"Still hasn't woken up yet, though she did stir in her sleep last night." I say, looking back at her.

"That's good. Hershel did a good job."

"Yea' he did." I say, looking at he old man reading his bible in the sun.

"It's hard to believe we've come so far. Do you remember when we first got here and you told me the story about the poison oak?" She says.

I chuckle as she laughs. She moves her arm and winces, gripping her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"I pulled a muscle in my shoulder while carrying the deer the other day." She says.

"Turn around."

She turns and I begin to massage her shoulder, feeling the knot in her muscle. She sighs in response and I chuckle. She turns her head and looks at me.

"How does your jaw feel?" She says placing a hand on my cheek, feeling my jaw.

Her touch makes me feel awkward, my thoughts fly to Cat and I wonder how she is doing.

"Hey Carl, we need you back here. Hey Cat! How you feeling?" Tyresse yells.

I look down and see Cat standing by the entrance to the prison. She looks healthy, though stiff from laying down for too long. My heart beats faster at the sight of her. She looks up and glares at me and I'm confused as to why she is mad. Carol's thumb running across my lips snaps me back to reality. I look between the two women and realise how this must look. I push Carol's hand away.

"Cat!" I yell.

She runs through the door to the prison.

"Shit." I say running down the stairs. I bolt across the yard and to the entrance to the prison. I open it and see her running into the dining hall. I chase after her and see her running out of the cell block. I run into the hall but can't see her anymore.

"Cat?" I call.

There is no response. The library is to my right and I look in.

"Cat?" I call.

I scan the library and see no one is in there. I close the door behind me and continue down the hall.

"Cat, where are yer?" I call but get no response.

I walk down the hall and check in the bathrooms but they are empty. I puzzle as to where I can find her and search for her some more. I walk back down the hall and see Rick walk out of the infirmary. He sees me and stops and I stop too. After an awkward silence, I speak.

"Have you seen Cat?"

"Not since she woke up." He states.

"You were there when she woke up?" I ask.

"Yeah, I looked in on her and she woke up. I explained to her what happened."

"Did you explain everything?" I ask, shifting on my feet.

He sighs, "Yes I explained everything. She said she was gonna punch the guy that hit me, but when she heard it was you, she changed her mind."

I smirk at this information, but then I see her face as she watched me in the guard tower.

"If you find her, tell her I'm lookin' for her." I say, walking away.

"I'm sorry I hit you."

I turn and see him looking at the ground.

"It just upset me seeing her hurt like that and I got mad."

"It's alrigh'. I was pretty mad too. I didn' mean what I said."

"You were right though. I chose to get out because it was ruining me and Carl. I didn't want him to end up like Shane because that's where we were heading. But what really made me mad was that you just don't realise what an amazing girl you have there. She would do anything for you, like take on Walkers when she couldn't. It just made me mad that she was hurt." He says.

"I do realise how amazing she is and I don' take her for granted. I realise that I'm the luckiest son o' bitch in the world to have her. I felt like the world had ended when she fell in my arms. The whole time I prayed that she'd be ok. I laid beside her every night in case she woke up. I also realise that I'm not good enough for her, that I'm just some redneck that she happened to fall for. I'm afraid that she will realise that I'm not good enough and she will leave me. And when she does, that will kill me." I say.

"Daryl you are a good man. Don't ever doubt that. You have saved this group multiple times and kept it going when I couldn't. Don't ever think you are not good enough."

I nod my head, though his words don't sink in. He nods.

"So we good?" He asks holding out a hand.

I take it, "We're good."

He nods and smiles, walking away. I smile and continue in my search for Cat, hoping that she will let me explain what happened and how I feel about her. How I love her.