𝐍𝐄𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐂 | 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘

𝑵𝑬𝑼𝑹𝑶𝑻𝑰𝑪

𝘊𝘏𝘈𝘗𝘛𝘌𝘙 𝘛𝘞𝘌𝘕𝘛𝘠 

☼

The warmth of the coffee filled mug in her hands was an oddity. Again, even a day into the stay at Alexandria, Delaney couldn't comprehend the normalcy of it all. Being in a comfortable home, standing in the kitchen space with a mug of coffee in her hands - granted it was instant coffee, but coffee nonetheless. It was strong, black, and just the kind of thing Delaney needed to wake herself up this early in the morning - another strange thing, time. They had means to track it now, by clocks and alarms and they no longer had to try and figure out how out of time Rick's old watch was. 

It was 4:00 AM. 

Far too early for Eleanor to even think to be awake, but Delaney couldn't sleep and so she'd snuck out of the sickeningly comfortable bed to start the day. 

Her mind was on Daryl. It was on the argument they'd had the day before and more importantly the look he had been sending her in those last few moments - remorse, perhaps, but still an unwillingness to say that he was wrong, or to apologise for how he'd come across. That was him all over though, baring the irritating inability to say that he was wrong. He had always been a little like that, a habit he'd picked up undoubtedly off of their shared father. 

She blew against the hot rim of the mug and exhaled, closing her eyes. With her back against the kitchen counter and her eyes locked on the clock that had been ticking far too slowly, Delaney also found her mind on Rick Grimes. 

Whilst she didn't know Rick as well as many of the other folks in that group, she'd like to think she somewhat had a good judge of his character. He was a good man, evident in the way that he cared for the people he claimed as family, and evident in the way that he cared for her too - despite how she had initially treated him. The haircutting, the impromptu trimming of his curls yesterday had filled her with a sort of hesitation. She and Rick were friends - this was established now. Their friendship was new and budding and the two of them were still figuring things out, but yesterday had felt a tad too intimate for Delaney's liking. Not to mention, the way he'd shed a tear when talking about never thinking he'd see Electricity and showers again -

 - she sighed, shaking her head softly from side to side before she took a sip of her hot beverage. It tasted sour, far too sharp for her true taste, but she drank it all the same, needing something to wake her up at the ungodly hour. It was feeling strange as it was, not to be out in the open on the hard ground, or with the several soundly sleeping bodies of the group about her feet. She wondered if they were all okay in that big house, if they had gotten any sleep. 

God, this all felt so wrong. 

"Couldn't sleep?" Eleanor's voice was small and a little yawn was suppressed behind her hand as she walked tiredly into view, "The bed was cold..." 

"I've been up fer a while." Del smiled, watching as Eleanor ran her hand through her blonde hair, trying to temper it down, whilst yawning a second time. As she blinked several times, trying to wake up, Eleanor sluggishly walked around her kitchen and began to make herself coffee like Delaney had done. Delaney watched her, half amused and half bemused at the familiar sight of Eleanor being so sleepy. It was a lot to get used to again, this, the homey comforts of having her girlfriend around this early in the morning.