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THE HOPE IN the group has decreased as they have lost two people in the matter of two days. They're losing faith in themselves and blame is circulating around the group as each person has guilt built up in their bodies. Relationships are tearing apart because fingers are being pointed.
Aria pushes her way through the trees as she scouts for any source of water or food. This is the first time the group has been without food or water in forever and it's taken a toll on them. Fiddling with the arrow necklace around her neck, Aria crouches down, her eyes studying the dry dirt. Bugs of all kind crawl around and for a second, Aria debates eating them but she shakes the thought off, disgust overcoming her hunger. Footsteps shuffle behind her and she turns her head, Daryl, Maggie, and Sasha looking down at her in hope. Shaking her head, the hope in their eyes dim away and Aria stands to her feet, wiping her dirty hands on her jeans.
Trailing behind the other three, Aria stares down at her worn out converse as the gravel crunches beneath her feet. It was a hotter day than usual and Aria hates it. The sun is beaming down on the group as sweat pours down their faces and runs down their bodies, soaking their clothes up. Their mouths are brittle dry as they've been without water for a day and a half. They've been traveling nonstop because they're trying to get to Washington in hopes that there will be people like them there.
♚ ♛
Aria silently shuffles beside Michonne, both females enjoying the silence between them. The groups' van had broken down and they're left traveling on foot. 60 miles left until Washington and the groups' faith is running thin. Aria's eyes trail over to Daryl and Carol as they drift off from the group, walking into the woods. "You aren't going to go after them?" Michonne asks and Sasha leans forward, looking over at Aria. "No. He's just going to snap at me. I can't deal with it anymore." Aria admits, her hands fiddling around with the blue rock in her hand.
"So you're giving up on him?" Aria shakes her head, a frown crossing her face. "No. I know him and Beth were close, so I'm not taking his insults to heart. It's just—frustrating because I try to make sure he's okay and he gets mad at me." Aria begins to rant, spilling all her feelings out. She trusts the girls in the group, they're the only ones who really understand anything. "Maybe you should talk to him about it?" Michonne suggests and Aria shrugs her shoulders, her eyes raising up from the ground. "Daryl isn't really one to talk about his feelings."
♚ ♛
Aria crosses her arms over her chest, gazing over at Noah. Turning her attention back towards the ground, she lowers her hand, running her fingers across the prickly grass. A branch snaps loudly causing Aria's head to shoot up, her hand flying to her pistol. Daryl walks out of the woods, sending a small nod towards the group. Lowering her hand, Aria crosses her legs, avoiding eye contact with Daryl as he sits down in front of Noah and her.
Daryl knows he been being a dick towards her. He hates seeing her upset at him but he has to do it. He had gotten close to Beth and look what happened, her lost her. He doesn't want to lose Aria, that will kill him because he loves her. So the best thing to do is distance himself and it's getting harder.
Rustles and growls fill the air, causing the group to tense up as they each grab their weapons, their gaze drifting off to where the growls are coming from. One by one, 4 dogs emerge from the trees and Aria's eyes soften slightly before gardening again as the dogs bark and growl at the group, hunger evident in their eyes. The dogs let out whines as they fall to the ground, bullets hitting them from Sasha's silence sniper.
Aria's eyes dart from Sasha to the dead dogs and she bites her lip, not exactly knowing what to do. Well, shit. She thinks to herself, sitting back down on the hard ground.
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Aria walks alongside Daryl, silence consuming the two and not the silence they like; the awkward silence. They both need talk about what's going on between them, but they don't want to in fear that they'll be losing each other. Wiping the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand, Aria glances over at Daryl. "Daryl—I can't lose you too, okay?" Aria finally admits, overcoming the fear of loss.
Daryl looks over at her with a clenched jaw and narrowed eyes. "Tell 'em I went to look for water." He gruffly says before darting off into the woods, leaving the group behind. Shaking her head, Aria runs her tongue over her lips, her eyes rolling. He won't talk about nothing and it's aggravating her. Aria looks back at Abraham, a small and fake smile on her lips. "Tell them we went to look for water, please." Drifting off into the woods, Aria's eyes dart around for any sight of Daryl.
Peering out of the woods, her eyes land on Daryl and she sighs softly. Narrowing her eyes slightly, she shakes her head as she watches Daryl press a lit up cigarette to his hand. Aria walks over, crouching down in front of him. She takes the cigarette out of his hand, throwing it on the ground. "We're not going to start this shit, Daryl." She growls, her voice trembling. She's been through this stage. The stage where you feel like you have to harm yourself to get rid of the guilt inside of you. She doesn't want him going through that because it drains you mentally. She needs to help him and she sees that.
"Fuck off, Aria! Leave me alone." Daryl snaps, glaring at her as he stands to his feet, Aria following suite. "I need to make sure you're safe and not doing something stupid!" She responds, her arms flying out to the side as their emotions begin to boil over. "I ain't stupid like you! I don't need no babysitter." He pauses for a second, his face turning red. "What those people said about you were right; all you are is just an attention seeking whore who cuts her wrists looking for attention."
Aria's whole body freezes as she feels her whole heart shatter. Daryl realizes what he said but right now; it doesn't register in his mind that what he said had a huge effect on her. A few drops of tears slide down her reddening cheeks and she nods slowly, her lip quivering. "W — well, maybe you shouldn't be dating an attention seeking whore." She whispers, the sentence barely audible but Daryl heard and that's when it registered. But it was too late, because Aria was already walking off away from him. And when he looked down, his heart shattered. Down at his feet was the little blue rock he had given her before the prison fell.
A U T H O R let's all team up and kick daryl in his balls, hm?
also, if y'all can't tell by now, the rock kinda symbolizes something between them (along with the asshole keychain). i know it's weird but hey, it's also cute.
