2. Never Tear Us Apart

-three words, two people, one meaning-

Theo finally managed to get some sleep, but when she woke up hours later, Daryl was gone.

She looked outside to see it was still dark; it must be early morning.

She stretched her back after sleeping in the most uncomfortable position all night, shuffling herself off the bed just as Carl burst in, his urgency evident in every step. 

"Theo, it's Daryl. I need your help, but you can't tell anyone." He panicked, instantly making her worry that something was wrong.

"Is Merle okay?" Theo ran after him, but he ignored her question and continued running. 

She followed Carl after grabbing her knife just in case; following Carl to the watch tower, he opened the door for her, allowing her to go in first.

"Where is he?" She asked her brother just as he locked the door behind her.

"You little shit..." She laughed before walking up the stairs to the top of the watch tower.

She got to the top and looked around, confused.

The place was lit with candles that must have taken ages to gather.

Daryl stood awkwardly at the end, his back to her.

"Daryl?" She called out, making him turn around with a sad smile. "What's this?"

"It's my apology," he smiled. "And before you ask, I'm not asking for your forgiveness. I know that's earned, but I can't continue without doing things right." Daryl began, making Theo look at him with a small smile.

"Carl came and spoke to me a few days back, telling me he could help me win you back." He laughed, making Theo laugh, too. "He told me about you...before the apocalypse and how you hated cheesy romantic novels."

She nodded in agreement.

"But I can tell you secretly like them, and you just say it because you don't want people to know you're soft..." Daryl laughed, and Theo tilted her head at him, knowing he was right.

"So Carl spent all of yesterday trying to find as many candles as possible so I could do this. Because Theo. I am so sorry I spoke about our kid that way; I'm so sorry that I blamed you for things that were never your fault. I can't imagine not having you in my life anymore. I don't want to do it. I almost lost Merle, and having you there made it clear. It made me realise how stupid and blind I have been. No one has ever made me feel the way you have made me feel. You make me feel so much more human. And I can't believe it took the end of the world for me to find that. To find you." He admitted making Theo giggle through her tears as Daryl grabbed her hands. "I love you, Theo."

Theo burst into happy tears as she looked up at Daryl with a smile.

"You mean it?" She asked, holding his hands tighter.

He let them go, removing the tears from her eyes, trying to stop his own from falling.

"I do, Theo. I do." He couldn't hold them in anymore. He smiled as happy tears fell from his eyes.

"I love you too, Daryl" She smiled.

Everything that had happened in the last week was a rollercoaster of emotions, from losing her mother, her baby, and then Daryl.

Having him back mended that bit of her heart that felt so broken.

She had thought about it. She needed Daryl and was willing to try everything again. She was so madly in love with him that she couldn't decline the chance to have her happily ever after.

Daryl took Theo's face in his hands before kissing her, and Theo instantly kissed him back.

They took a breath and rested their heads against one another.