What's Next

Chapter Twenty Four 🦋

Val's POV:

"Before we take this any further, I need you all to turn over your weapons." The unknown man instructed, just after the gate had closed behind us. "Sorry what?" I questioned, somewhat angrily. Storming up to the forefront, getting up into the man's face. "Stay, you hand them over."

"We don't know if we want to stay." My brother stated bluntly, also stepping closer. "It's fine Nicholas." I heard Aaron mutter.

"If we wanted to use them, we would've already started shooting up the place." I sneered, knowing my brother probably thought the same thing. "Let them talk to Deanna first." Aaron told Nicholas

"Who's Deanna?" Abraham questioned immediately, making his voice loud and clear. "She knows everything you'd want to know about this place." Aaron explained.

"Rick, why don't you start?"

**

Daryl's POV:

I looked around the room, taking note of every single thing. "You're welcome to sit Daryl I won't bite." Deanna stated.

"Yeah, I'm alright." I replied, continuing what I was doing. "Do you want to be here Daryl?"

I thought about this idea before we got here, I was only okay with it cause of Val and the baby. Carl and Judith on top of that. They all needed a place to live, and my daughter, well our baby I thought was going to be a girl, deserved to have a place to live and grow up with her mom. "The boy and the baby, they deserve a roof."

"and what about the pregnant woman, Val she's your girlfriend, the mother of your soon to be newborn, right?" I looked at her, questioning how she knew these things, until I remembered. "Uh huh."

"Does she deserve a roof too?"

"Of course she does. More than anyone."

**

Val's POV:

It was my turn to be interviewed I guess that what you could call it, I went in straight after Daryl. I only wondered what he could have said. I looked around the room, observing every detail of it. "Hi I'm Deanna Monroe." Deanna greeted, startling me a little.

"Val." I replied.

"Please sit," Deanna directed, and I followed it. I sat on the chair across from her, noticing the camera behind the couch Deanna sat on. I wriggled a little trying to get comfortable. My bump was getting bigger every day, and from what I remember when I was last this far along as I believed myself to be, my bump wasn't this big. It felt like I was carrying a whole house. "Has anyone ever told you how similar you are to Rick?" She questioned me with a warm smile.

"Not so much anymore." I replied softly.

"He's your brother correct?"

"uh yeah, my older brother. The only one I got." I laughed lightly, as I heard Deanna also do the same at my comment. "May I ask, how far along are you?"

"Oh uh, I'm not sure. What I do know is I feel like I'm carrying a whole damn tribe."

Deanna chuckled once again, she would've seen I was trying to lighten the mood, at least for myself. When I'm nervous I had a habit of making jokes. A way to try and ease myself and my thoughts. "Were you a sheriff like your brother?" Deanna asked, carrying on with the conversation. "Um no, I was more interested in hair. I ran my own salon."

"And Daryl, how long have you two known each other?"

"If you don't mind me asking of course."

"Oh ah, that's an odd question."

"I just wondered if you two had known each other before all this, he seems to care for you a lot,"

"Oh well no, just after it all happened. Then some other things had happened, then we just happened and now we're here I guess."

**

I walked back to the house, I felt exhausted from all the walking I've been doing. And overall I smelled horrible. "Oh wow, I don't know how I'll get used to seeing you like that," I laughed, as I took in my brother's clean shaven look. "Ha yeah I think I'll be getting that a lot now." Rick chuckled. I cut the conversation short, walking inside the house, laying down on the couch, falling asleep almost instantly. I guess underestimated how tired I truly was. I felt it but I didn't realise how easy it would be for me to fall asleep, I only laid down to take the extra weight I've been carrying for months off of my feet finally.

**

Daryl's POV:

We all planned to spend the first night in the one house. Only to be sure. I did one last look around before heading in finally. I noticed her, lying on the couch fast asleep. She looked as beautiful as ever. I couldn't imagine how she could be feeling. But yet I felt like the luckiest man in the world being with her. I couldn't have picked any one more perfect to be carrying my unborn child.

I pulled a blanket over her, as she continued to sleep peacefully, as if the world had stopped just so she could. I planted a kiss on her head, only lightly in case I was to wake her. I looked over to see Rick watching what I was doing. He nodded his head at me, I guess as an it's okay sort of thing.

After how much Rick trusted Shane to be with Val, trusting that he would treat her right. The way she deserves to be treated. Only Shane never treated like that. But I will. I will never let any harm come to her. I didn't know if Rick was going to trust me at all to be with his little sister. I knew how protective he was of her, Val told me herself. Yet here we are.

I was going to be a dad. She was going to be a mom. Rick was going to be an uncle. I never thought that would be something I would be thinking about. I could only hope that Val would be okay when it was finally time for the baby to be here. I know Val thought it may be a boy, but I was certain on our child being a little girl. I just had the feeling.

This was Val's second chance to be a mom. After losing her first, I guess she wasn't feeling as confident as I had imagined her being. But yet again, with the world the way it is and the past experience with Lori, none of our confidence was very high.

**