ᴀɴɢᴜɪsʜ » ᴅᴀʀʏʟ ᴅɪxᴏɴ

{23} Stay

"You shouldn't be like that with that girl, " Hershel spoke while his fingers pressed down against the edges of the bandage. To make sure it'll stay in place until the next change. Daryl looks over his shoulder, touching the wrapping around his head. Willow left the room moments before with some attitude and Daryl couldn't quite understand why she left in such a way. Hershel did. He knew exactly why Willow would storm out like that.

At first, Hershel did not want to speak up, but the thought of his first wife gave him the courage to do so. Hershel and his former wife, Josephine, were much like Daryl and Willow. Two different people who found love in the most unexpected way. And in that love, Maggie Greene was conceived. Though Hershel is blessed to have his firstborn, he did not believe Josephine should have given him such a gift. He didn't deserve it.

If he could make Daryl understand this, maybe Josephine will completely forgive him for his own past.

"What did you say to me old man?" Daryl spat, rolling his eyes.

"Remember, I'm the one keeping you alive right now. Let's not burn bridges, " Hershel reminds him.

Daryl kept his gaze forward. What exactly would he know? A man who had a family, a farm, and everything he needed to survive. To Daryl, Hershel meant nothing but a resource until Carl is fully healed and Sophia is rescued. Nothing more. Dixon didn't want to hear what Hershel had to say when it came to Willow Hunter. Yet, once Hershel spoke, Daryl still listened. Possibly because he did want to hear.

"Willow reminds me of my late wife -"

"Which one?" Daryl grunts.

Hershel paused, leaning back in his chair. "My first wife. Her name was Josephine Greene. Lovely woman. Headstrong and stubborn too. Just like Willow." Hershel flicked his eyes at Daryl who shifts slowly, sitting upright in the bed.

"And?" Daryl questions, rubbing the tip of his pudgy nose. "What she got to do with Willow?"

"If you let me talk, I can tell ya." Hershel teased, smiling at Daryl. This was the first time anyone amongst Rick's group saw a glimpse of Hershel's smile underneath his white beard. "We met when we were young. She was something else. The most beautiful woman I've ever met and out of my range. I was only the son of a farmer, while she had a good amount of wealth in her family. She was straight and narrow, I was rebellious and out of touch with reality. But she still fell in love with me. Dealt with my alcoholism for many years."

Daryl listens, digging the Sharktooth necklace from out of his jean pockets. He had managed to keep it safe, not wanting to lose it during his time of trying to stay alive. His fingers fumble with the necklace, narrowing his brows as he thought of a few parallels between Hershel's story and his own.

"She always stood by my side, though she did make me sleep on the sofa a few times." Hershel chuckled his nose red from the slight embarrassment of their past arguments. "But she stayed and gave me a beautiful daughter. Jo was a good woman, who left this world too early."

Daryl raised his head, tightening his fingers around the necklace. "What happened to her?" Daryl asks softly.

"Cancer. It ate her up so quickly. One day she was here, the next she was just gone." Hershel paused, holding back tears. "My second wife, I loved her. I do. But no one could compare to my Jo."

Daryl blinked a few times before bending his head down to gaze back at his necklace. He thought for a quiet second, thought about a lot of things. About this damn Apocalypse and the death of so many people. And out of all the odds of meeting again, he and Willow did. It was like fate was trying to tell them something.

"All I am saying is to treat her a little better. Show her you're the man she needs and the woman you deserve, " Hershel spoke while standing from his chair, putting away his medical items.