my angel ➶ ➶ daryl dixon

f o r t y e i g h t

"Daryl? What the hell?"

"Aspen get back!" Rick yelled at me, pulling me away from Daryl as him and Hershel ran out of the room.

Daryl coughed, blood spewing into his hand. "Daryl. C Block. Now." Hershel said, leading him away from the group.

"This is spreading too fast." Rick muttered. "Wanna come help me in the fields?"

"Sure." I smiled. Rick knew that always made me feel better. I grabbed my jacket from my room, and made my way out into the courtyard. Rick and I made our way up and down the rows of vegetables, soon filling up more baskets than we could carry. My thoughts wandered to Daryl. Was he doing ok? How bad was this disease? Was he going to die? I had never doubted that Daryl could take care of himself, but this wasn't something he could out stubborn. It was a virus, a deadly one.

The sun was just passed midway in the sky when Rick finally spoke up. "Want to get some lunch?" I nodded, not hungry, but I needed to force something down. I carried a few baskets in with Rick, and we each picked up a plate. I sat down beside Maggie, not seeing Carl.

"My dad's insisting that he helps in the cell block with the sick people." She sighed, obviously frustrated. "If he gets that disease he could easily die. He needs to stop trying to take care of everyone." I nodded in agreement with Maggie but I knew there was no convincing Hershel to stop helping. He loved his job as the local doctor, and didn't care if it put him in danger as long as he was helping others.

"I am sort of glad he's up there though. Glenn's sick." She said, much quieter. "I'm worried about him."

My eyes went wide in surprise. "I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure he'll be ok though."

Maggie sighed, running her fingers through her hair. "He's a fighter."

I fidgeted with my food for a minute before speaking. "Daryl has it too."

"How do you know?"

"I bumped into him walking through the hallway earlier. He didn't look good. I'm worried about him." I said, getting quieter with each sentence.

"You should go visit him! This is the perfect time for y'all to talk. He can't run away." Maggie said jokingly, nudging me with her elbow. She was kidding, but I thought about it. Daryl wouldn't be able to leave, and I might be able to finally talk to him. I don't think I could handle if he died without me talking to him again.

Maggie and I finished up lunch, and I managed to slip away from her, making my way down to Cell Block C. It wasn't hard to find, the coughing from the sick echoing through the walls of the prison. I turned one more corner, and an awful smell slapped me in the face. I covered my mouth with my hand, trying not to gag. Pushing through the awful smell, I made my way through each row of cells, looking for any sign of Daryl. I made my way upstairs, no luck on the ground floor. I was about to give up when I saw a leather jacket hung on the bed post in one cell. I quietly pulled the cell door open, and made my way inside. I could see Daryl's body, curled in a ball on the bed.

"Daryl?" I asked quietly, kneeling by his bed. He groaned softly, slowing rolling over. His eyes, normally so clear, were bleary with fever.

"Aspen?" He asked. Well at least he recognized me.

"Hey." I said, giving a meek smile. "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit." He mumbled. In that moment, he began to cough harshly, covering his mouth to avoid spraying too much blood. "Ya shouldn't be in here." He said once the coughing stopped.

"I'll be ok." Another fit of coughing overtook him, and he reached for a bucket by his bed. He leaned his head over the side, and puked into the can. I moved behind him, and before I knew what I was doing, I started rubbing his back. His body tensed under my fingers, and I pulled away slightly.