Daring Dixon (A Daryl Dixon fanfiction)

Chapter 18

The baby in my arms smiled up at me with the prettiest smile and green eyes I had ever seen. She got them from her dad.

She waved her little fists around in the air, and my world seemed to finally be complete. After nine months of carrying her and twelve hours of excruciatingly painful labor, I now had this beautiful little girl in my arms.

Mom, Dad, and Riley stood around my bed, beaming down at me. I had never seen Riley so happy in his life, even on our wedding day. His green eyes twinkled, brimming with tears of joy. This was our little girl.

I could just about imagine what Mom and Dad would do to spoil her. Lily. I would name her Lily. I was sure Mom and Dad would buy her all sorts of beautiful dresses and dolls and feed her junk food all day. But that's what grandparents were for, right?

I awoke very peacefully. I kept my eyes closed, stretching, but my hands almost immediately hit a wall. My eyes shot open and filled with tears. My dream had been so real. I couldn't shake off the feeling it had given me, a sense of happiness and yet sadness and desperation.

I sat up in the bed and looked out the window. Where I should have found cars I instead found a farm house. Curious, I got up and walked out of the RV, trying not to cry. I had to keep myself together.

As I walked past Glenn, Andrea, T-Dog, and Shane, I could feel the looks being thrown my way. It was all I could do not to ask them what the hell they were staring at. Hadn't they lost someone dear to them?

I found Dale on the roof of the RV keeping watch. He turned as he heard my footsteps and gave me a small smile.

"How are you feeling?" Dale asked softly.

"Fine," I barely managed to choke out.

"You're not fine," Dale said. I nodded. "Why don't you go back down and get some rest?" Dale suggested. I nodded and climbed back down the ladder.

I went back to bed and stayed there for days. I couldn't get out of bed. Carol brought me food, and Dale came in every night to sleep, but never tried to talk to me. Lori and Glenn came in once a piece, but I just laid there, not even attempting to join in on their attempt to make conversation.

After a few days in the RV, Dale finally came and sit on the edge of his bed. "You haven't moved from that bed in days," Dale said. I nodded slightly.

"We're all going to the house and having a big dinner with all those from the other family. I think you should come," Dale said. "Will you do that for me?" he asked. I nodded.

"Good. Why don't you get up and clean up, and by the time you're ready it will be time to head up to the house," Dale said, standing and heading through the doorway.

"Dale?" I croaked.

"Yes?" he asked, turning to face me.

"You don't think I'm overreacting, do you?" I asked.

He shook his head and gave a soft, knowing smile. "No. When my wife died, I could barely bring myself to get out of bed. I can only imagine what it's like to loose both your parents within that short amount of time," Dale assured.

I nodded, and he turned back around to exit the RV. I sighed, hoisting myself out of bed. I was wearing the same clothes that I had first laid down in, and they were crusty and smelled like I hadn't ever taken a shower. I grabbed a clean pair of clothes and headed out to Dale. Everyone around the fire eyed me as I walked towards Dale. "I need a shower," I said.

Dale smiled knowingly. "I'm sure Hershel will let you use his shower. Go inside the house. You'll probably see a dark haired girl first. Her name is Maggie. Tell her I sent you in to shower," Dale said.

I nodded, and made my way to the house. The door was opened so I opened the screen door and stepped inside. Almost immediately, a dark haired girl came around the corner. "Who are you?" she demanded.

"I'm with Dale and the others," I said. "I've uh, been in bed a while. Dale said I could come take a shower," I said.

She nodded. "I'm sorry about what happened." I nodded, but didn't answer. "Right this way," she said after a slightly awkward silence.

I went inside the bathroom and locked the door behind me. There was a towel and a washcloth set out on the back of the toilet, so I just undressed and hopped in the shower. I turned on the water and was amazed when steaming hot water came out of shower head.

I got out of the shower really quickly. I didn't want to waste any time. I had already wasted a couple of days.

As soon as I finished and was dressed, I went back outside and dug through my bag to try to find my hairbrush. For some reason, I couldn't figure out where it was. I walked over to Andrea, who was sitting around the fire with everyone else.

"Do you have a hairbrush?" I asked her. She nodded, stood, and then went into the RV. I followed her.

"You're, um, feeling better?" Andrea asked cautiously, rifling through a bag.

"I'm trying," I said softly. Andrea nodded. She knew what it was like to lose someone you love before your eyes.

"Here," she said, handing me a hair brush.

"Thanks," I said, taking it from her and then turning and leaving the RV.

I walked to the rest of the group around the fire. Everyone shifted uncomfortably in their seats when I sat down, and I noticed that nobody would look me in my eyes. "What?" I demanded.

Nobody spoke. I sighed, pulling the hairbrush through my hair, dragging it through the snarls that even the conditioner wouldn't make come out.

There was a commotion on the top of the RV. Dale and Andrea had spotted a walker on the horizon. We all rushed to the side of the RV to see what it was. "I bet I can nail it from here," Andrea said, lying on her belly and lining up the barrel of her gun.

"No, no, Andrea, put the gun down!" Rick insisted.

"You'd best let us handle this," Shane said.

Rick walked over to Shane. "Shane, hold up. Hershel wants to deal with walkers," Rick tried to tell Shane.

"What for, man? We got it covered," Shane said, stalking past Rick.

I had no idea what to do, so I stayed standing, watching the walker approach us. Rick went after Shane, Glenn, and T-Dog, who were now running towards the walker, ready to take it down. They approached the walker, and they got closer and closer. Dale warned Andrea not to shoot, but she did so anyway, just as Rick and the others stopped in front of him. The fact that they stopped puzzled me, until I caught a glimpse of a crossbow dangling from it's hand. It was no walker. It was Daryl.

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