Marching With the Dead (Daryl Dixon FanFiction)

•Chapter 29•

•Chapter 29•

•Grace's POV•

I stared up at the ceiling without blinking. All was quiet in the room except for Daryl's snoring next to me. I glanced at him to see his lips slightly parted and his eyes were closed. A small smirk played itself across my lips, but immediately went back to a straight line.

I shifted my weight slightly and decided to get out of bed. My hair was still damp from the shower when I ran my hand through it. The mirror on the other side of the room showed my distraught face. My hair wasn't parted right and made loops over my head. I let out a yawn and rubbed my eyes.

I glanced over at the door to see it slightly open. I cracked it wider and made my way out of the room. I saw the light of fire flicker from upstairs which made me decide to head down there. My footsteps were sounds of thunder every time I took a step. I'm sure I attracted the attention of everyone in the house.

A head poked out over the back of the couch and stared at the fire. It took the shape of Joe and I realized it was him.

Once the noise of me climbing down the stairs reached his ears, his head snapped in my direction. The light of the fire made his small smile visible. I gave him the same expression, but it immediately went back to a frown.

"Come sit," Joe motioned next to him. I took the offer and made my way over to him. I plopped down next to him, but kept a small distance between us. The warmth of the fire reached me which was only a few feet away. Joe had his arm draped on the back of the chair and glanced at me every once in a while. Finally he let out a heavy sigh,"I'm sorry."

I blinked a few times before looking up at him. "For what?" I asked slightly unsure of the answer I was going to get. Joe hesitated to answer and stared at the ground,"That you had to go through that. I don't think the bastard that killed Merle ended it quickly."

I let out a heavy sigh and nodded my head. This was an emotional roller coaster. It seemed like everything was going up in flames. The only thing that was preserved were the survivors.

"There's no good people anymore Joe," I sighed. Joe shifted for comfort and I felt his warmth leave me. "Not me, not Daryl, not you. I mean, I'm sure you've done a few bad things in your life, but... Are there any more innocent people?"

He nodded his head agreement. At least I thought it was agreement. He might just wanna stop hearing me talk.

A thumping noise hit my ears and I immediately jumped up out of habit. Walkers haven't threatened us that much lately, but you could never be sure when a heard was on your ass. Daryl emerged from the staircase as he rubbed his eyes. He stretched his arms and knotted his eyebrows together when he caught sight of me.

"Come on up. You need some sleep," he yawned motioning his hand up to the stairs. I glance back at Joe who was staring at me.

"Night," I sighed before standing up and walking to Daryl. I heard Joe sigh as he watched us head up the stairs. The small thumping of our feet against the wooden staircase was the only sound I focused on. Daryl was right behind making sure I didn't get away.

It seemed like he was closer than before even though most of the threats were dead. I was just waiting for Daryl to put a leash on me that only gave me a two foot distance from him.

"C'mon," Daryl whispered placing his hand gently on my side and guiding me to our room. Daryl looked at me with a sullen look as if he was studying each one of my features. He glanced at my brown hair with blonde highlights and inches of roots from not dying it in forever. He stared at my hazel eyes and the small freckles on my nose.

I stared right back at him to make him just as uncomfortable. I focused on his mole just by his lip that anyone would notice. His facial hair had grown since the first time I met him and so did his actual hair. It was less greasy than it usually is since the showers gave us some relief, but we have to give it up tomorrow.

Daryl let out a small chuckle as he opened the door for me. A smirk played itself onto my lips as I walked over to our bed. Daryl followed me only he didn't split off to his side like he was supposed to. Instead, after I laid down he climbed over me with his hands on the side of my head.

He nudged his face closer to mine and the warmth of his breath fanned across my face. The corner of my lip rose slightly as my heart started to beat a little faster. His forehead grazed mine as I stared into his blue eyes. They pierced me or at least what I could see through the darkness. Daryl's head then started to tip towards my lips. I felt him graze my skin with his mouth before he pushed closer.

My hand automatically went to his neck to play with his hair. I twisted the strands between my fingers giving me something to concentrate on while Daryl kissed me. I couldn't help but smile as our lips moved in unison. Daryl felt my smirk and followed with the same expression.

He moved for comfort and fell to my side, but grasped my sides and brought me on top of him with our lips still attached. My smile wouldn't go away as Daryl rubbed my side between my ribs and hips. "You want to?" Daryl whispered after we broke away to catch our breathes. The smile I had grew bigger. I knew exactly what he meant.

I nodded my head.

•Later That Night•

I grasped Daryl's shirt tightly as I stared up at the ceiling. I tried to keep my breathing in rhythm with his, but it was too uncomfortable for me so I went back to breathing normally. His snoring wasn't audible anymore so I was guessing he was awake.

"What are we gonna do?" I sighed before propping myself onto my elbows to look up at him. He looked at me with sympathy and shook his head not knowing what to say. "Survive, I guess. What can't do much more than that. Probably try to find a group and stick with them," he said a little over a whisper.

I lowered my head,"What we really need to do is find a sanctuary. Somewhere we can bunker down and lay low for awhile," I added. Daryl let out a scoff,"Last time we tried that, we nearly got eaten."

I rolled my eyes and went back to lying on his chest. The rise and fall of his lungs lifted me slightly giving me some comfort. I felt Daryl's thumb grip onto my shirt as played with it. I hoped he would always be there, even when I was on my death bed. I would try to do the same for him. Everyone needs someone like that. It's only human nature.

"What's your last name?" I heard Daryl mutter. A small smile formed on my lips,"Why? You wanna change it?"

Daryl let out a small scoff,"Just asking." I rolled my eyes again,"It's Thompson. Pretty common." I looked up at Daryl to see the corner of his lip slightly risen. "And your's?" I rose my eyebrows at him. His smirk grew wider,"Dixon."

I nodded my head and pursed my lips,"Never heard that name before." Daryl shook his head and stared up the ceiling like I was before. I decided I need to sleep for the big day tomorrow so darkness consumed me.

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There will be some surprises in the next coming chapter.