Angel (Daryl Dixion x Reader)

~10~

You pop your head up over the stairs you'd been hiding behind to see the glass was indeed shattered. Yes freedom! You think as you yank Carl and Sophia up from their crouching positions. "Come on!" You yell to everyone as you rush to Rick on the ground as everyone else takes off climbing out the broken window. "Come on Rick!" You yell yanking your brother off his back and start running to the window jumping out.

Daryl was chopping off a walkers head as he glances back at you dragging your bother out of the building. "Get into the vehicles!" You yell as you run up to Daryl who was still watching for walkers waiting for you to catch up as you release Ricks arm. You grab Daryl's hand running for the truck with him. He throws his bag and the two axes in his hand into the bed of the truck beside his bike as you throw your bag and rifle in there too.

You whip the truck door open ready to jump in when you see Dale and Andrea crawling out of the building. Your heart skips a beat when you hear the familiar sound of the explosives charging. "Dale! Andrea!" You scream trying to run at them but before you can take a step your grabbed by Daryl in the divers side and yanked into the truck. "Get down!" You scream out the still open door at them and see them duck behind a sand bag wall.

You were about to duck when you saw the flames starting to rise up and out of the building making your eyes widen. "Get down!" Daryl yells pushing you down on to the seat and laying over top of you. Your hands shoot up over your ears as you squeezed your eyes shut. You didn't even realize you were yelling out as the explosion shook through out the cab of the truck. The vibrations radiating through your body made you see the images from Afghanistan you wished never to see again.

Just as soon as it started it had ended. It was eerily still and the ear piercing sounds gone leaving an all too familiar ringing in your ears. The pressure of Daryl's body over yours slowly starts to let up and you open your eyes slowly sitting up. Daryl's face is in pure shock and your sight follows his gaze to the burning building. The once large facility was now reduced to nothing but burning rubble. The flames burn high as the ringing in your ears slowly starts to subside only to be replaced with rumble of the fire.

Daryl's eyes tear from the ablaze rubble to see Dale helping Andrea into the RV. He sighs slightly in relief only to turn his gaze back to you staring at the destroyed CDC. Your jaw was clenched tightly, eyes were distant and expression cold while you held your dog tags so tightly it made your knuckles white.

He turns the truck on swiftly yanking it into drive and pulling off with the rest of the group. You couldn't tear your eyes away from the destruction of the CDC and where two people had just died. They were now nothing but a pile of ash, just dust in the wind. "Hey," Daryl says gently making you finally snap out of your staring contest with the passenger side mirror with the flames slowly growing smaller behind you, "ya alright?" He asks you.

Your eyes meet his briefly and you see the worry in them, "Yeah..." you manage to get out despite the hurricane of memories and emotions threaten to tear your chest out, "You okay?" You ask when he notices your tone and slightly glossy eyes. It was soft and sounded like you were about to break which was true, you were fighting tears. The flood of memories you fight every day passed through you like a tsunami when that explosion shook your bones literally and figuratively.

"M'fine darlin." He says gently as he reaches over to taking your left hand down from your dog tags and lacing your fingers together. You hadn't even noticed you still gripped your dog tags tightly until Daryl reached out for your hand taking it. In all honesty it kinda surprised you when he did but you weren't going to complain. Daryl Dixon wasn't someone to do something this but it meant the world to you in this moment. In that moment Daryl's hand in yours was holding you here in the present, he was keeping you from slipping into that abyss of darkness.