Unattainable (A Daryl Dixon love story)

11

Daryl was the last person to breakfast. Everyone watched as he strolled in then tried to leave. Hershel stopped him.

“Have you seen Pepper lately? She didn’t show up to dinner and she’s not here now” he asked. Daryl didn’t know what to tell him. Should he just say she was sick? He managed to muster up “She’s a little sick, she’s sleeping in her cell…”

“Then I’ll come take a look at her” he said, walking with him “And son, slow down on the booze, you wreak of it.”

Daryl didn’t argue. He knew Hershel wouldn’t stray from helping someone who has sick, but it did make him nervous about what Hershel would think when he found her still passed out, nursing her hangover.

Once they were at her cell, Hershel stopped at the doorway. The smell of vodka was prominent. “She has a hangover, doesn’t she?”

Daryl put the food down. “Yeah, but it was my fault, I thought it was a good idea at the time” he told him. Hershel turned his head from Pepper, who was still asleep, to Daryl “Did anything else happen last night?” “God no! You think I would take advantage of her like that?” Daryl’s voice raised, he was obviously mad about the comment.

“The only reason I ask, son, is because you weren’t in your cell last night” Hershel said, recalling last night when he went to his cell to ask Daryl a question. “She told me she didn’t want to be alone because she was scared or somethin, I didn’t want her going on a drunken rampage, so I did. I just slept there.”

Daryl was starting get frazzled. Hershel saw so and tried to calm him down “I know you didn’t try anything, but you need to start being honest with yourself, the reason you stayed in her bed last night was because you wanted to. You can’t use the ‘untrustworthy’ excuse anymore because she has more than proven herself.” Daryl stormed out “You know nothin!”

Hershel sighed and sat on Peppers bed, fixing her covers. “Don’t worry miss Pepper, he’ll come around” he told her still sleeping body and left, going back down to breakfast.

Upon his arrival a few worried members of the camp asked him if Pepper was fine. He reassured them she just had a small fever.

 Later that afternoon, Pepper made an appearance. She found everyone sitting around; another slow day.

She was quickly greeted by Glenn, who asked her if she felt better. She was confused; did he know she was hungover or did they all think she was actually sick? She just went with it, telling him she just needed to sleep in.