The Dead Shall Rise

XIV

A/N As promised, a chapter with chocolate ;D Who wouldn’t want to hear Daryl Dixon and chocolate in the same sentence?

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WARNING: ONCE AGAIN, SEXUAL CONTENT. CARRY ON.

I snuggled deeper into my blankets. I don’t think I’ve ever slept this good. I felt a smile sneak across my face. I hand touched my shoulder and gently shook. “Wake up, Celeste. We’ve got to go.”

I rolled over. “Five more minutes, Mommy.”

Wait, my mom never woke me up for anything let alone wakes me up gently. Then I saw her body lying on the floor, bloody. I sat up with a gasp. “Mom!”

I looked around my surroundings. Bars. A jail? I was in a jail. Why was I in a jail? Then my memories broke through the dam of sleep. A warm hand covered mine. I looked over into blue eyes. I pulled my hand away and scrambled back. Then I took in Daryl’s face and I felt my face turn bright red. Those memories came flooding back. His eyes filled with worry.

He asked, “Are you okay?”

I pushed my hair back. “Yeah. I don’t like being touched. I feel like every touch is going to turn violent.”

He smirked. “You liked being touched last night.”

If it was possible, my face turned a brighter shade of red. I said quickly, “We have to go.”

He stood up, chuckling. I looked down my body as I stretched. I saw a flash of blue when my shirt rode up. I pulled my shirt up and stared. Right over my hips were bruises in the shape of fingers. How had I not noticed him gripping me that hard? I pulled the collar down and my jaw hit the floor. There were hickies all over my breasts and across my collar bone. I didn’t want to know what my neck looked like. I shivered as I remembered him gently biting my neck.

I flipped my hair so it came over both of my shoulders. Then I thought screw it. I wasn’t going to be distracted by my hair when I was out facing walkers. I took my hair band from my wrist and pulled my hair back. Let people look. For once, I wasn’t ashamed at what had happened. Did I love Daryl? No, but he was gentle and was nice (sometimes, well he was mostly cold, but he didn’t treat me like crap) and that was all that mattered to me. That and I felt a connection with him on some level that I couldn’t put my finger on it.

I pulled on my hiking boots and laced them up. I stepped out of the cage and groaned. The sunlight shining through the window hit my eyes. I strapped on all of my knives, my sword, and my guns (I’d gotten an extra from Rick.) I leave my bow near the door. Everybody was eating breakfast. I grabbed some and sat in my usual corner. I started eating while thinking about last night. I felt lighter, now that I’d told somebody about what’d happened. That light feeling might also be the same giddiness I bet most virgins fell their first time. I snorted. Here I was, twenty-three with existence of sexual knowledge (albeit not pleasant), and I was acting like newly deflowered little lady.

I looked up when I felt eyes on me. Beth asked, “What’s so funny?”

I shook my head. “Nothing. Just my own musings.”

Rick stood up. “We’re going to go for a run before we leave. Now, the roads are probably packed so we have to take the bikes. That means only four of us can go. Michonne, do you mind being the fourth?”

She shook her head. We stood up and followed Rick out the door. I grabbed my bow and arrows on the way out. Michonne rode with me and Rick rode with Daryl. We weaved our way between cars. We stopped at the little town close to the prison where Daryl and Glenn had found me. I said, “I know where there’s a store. It has some dried foods and cans left.”