Caught Me With His Crossbow (Daryl Dixon TWD Fanfiction)

Chapter 6 - Belongs To The Dead

As the sun peaks above the clouds, I wander down to the quarry. I spot Shane and Carl catching frogs and the rest of the women doing laundry.

I felt like there was a growing weight on my shoudlers. From everything that has happened today, yesterday and years ago.

I begin to strip down to my underwear. I couldn’t give a toss about anyone that saw me. I wanted to go swimming and that was that. I dived into the cool waters and I felt instantly relaxed. The women doing the laundry were laughing hysterically. I loved the way that people found a way to stay positive even though the world has gone to shit. Carl ;istented intently as Shane told him how to catch frogs. I dunk myself underwater and tempted myself to open my eyes. The water was clear as day. I swam for a few seconds as the sun beamed into the water in front of me. My stomach lurched and caused me to go further under water. My feet tangeld into each other as I tried to float to the top. The water weighed on me as I felt my lungs longing for air. I put one hand over my mouth as I felt vomit come up my throat. I kept it in my motuh, not wanting to make the water contaminated with barf. I used my free hand and paddled to the surface. I gasped for air as I felt the air invade my nostrils. I raced over to the shore and crawled weakly onto the sand. I let out a groan as I collapsed onto the ground. The sounds from around me echoed and I felt someone toss me onto my back. “Bree!”, Shane yelled from the distance. I fought my eyelids as they threatened to close. I gazed into my Mom’s face as everyone surrounded me. “Someone help her!”, Mom yelled. My brain felt so much pressure that it had begun to sear with hot pain. I reached out for my Mom’s hand before the light turned to dark.

The darkness was still there. All I could hear was the faint hum of a car engine. Why was I in a car?

My eyelids flew open to the screech of brakes. I darted straight up and felt dizziness as I tried to process what was going on.

Daryl sat in the drivers seat. We were in my truck. “Daryl?”, I croaked weakly. He whipped around with an alarmed expression. He ahd blood stains on his shirt. “What’s going on?”, I ask. He grabs my hand as I manouver myself into the front passneger seat. “Walkers attacked camp while you were unconscious”, He said. “How? The camp was secure?”

He rubbed his temple and sighed. “The walkers must be running out of food in the city”, He says. “Where are we going?” I looked out of the window, It was dark out as the car began to move again. “The CDC”, He says simply. “Where’s Merle’s bike and your truck?”, I ask. He motions to the trunk. “We had to leave my truck behind”. The countryside fades into the derelict buildings of the city. “I was hoping I’d never set foot in the city again”, I mutter. We pass by the piles of bodies and the military stations left behind. I spot a rocket launcher lying on the ground and I gasp. “Stop the car”, I shout. Daryl brakes and I hurl myself out of the car. I didn’t spot any walkers as I dragged myself over to my squads guard point. I see they’re corpses, flattened into the ground and their guts spilling out. I trained with these people, we had each others backs. I kneeled down in front of Sarge’s ravaged carcass. I shouldn’t of ran away. I should have stayed and bombed the city to ashes if it meant keeping my squad alive. I was a coward, I was saving my own skin. I knew deep down inside that if I had have stayed then I wouldn’t be alive right now. I would be here, strewn across the rubble with my guts strewn across my weapons. I didn’t even know if I’ll be safe at the CDC. Another squad that trained with mine was stationed there and they didn’t answer their radios after I left the hospital.

I scrambled to my feet and went back to the truck. Daryl had a look of disapproval on his face. “Why the hell did you get out the truck?! There could’ve been a herd out there!” His face was full of socr as I ignored him. I closed the door with a slam and the truck began to move again. “You know we lost Amy, Jim and Ed when you blacked out, We can’t afford to lose someone else, and definitely not you, Bree!” I couldn’t look at him properly, he’s never been like this before. “I just needed to see”, I mumbled. “I was so worried you weren’t going to wake up, you don’t realise how much people care about you”, He says, punching his hands off the steering wheel in frustration. “Daryl, I didn’t mean to hurt anyone, I couldn’t help going unconscious and I had to see my sergeant and my friends just one last time, regardless if they were dead or alive!”, I croak out. It puzzled me why I blacked out, but I couldn’t exactly go to A&E could I? “Just be careful, Bree”, He says. “I can do that”, I reply. I could see the familiar symbol for the US army as we approached the CDC.