This New World We Live In (A Walking Dead fanfic)

Sunshine (Chapter 16)

Daryl's POV

We arrived back at camp and Maya was looking at us, grinning, ear to ear. Damn, why was this girl always so happy to see us?

I thought for a second. What if she knows? About Katie and I? The way she nudged Drew, like they have some kind of theory.

Nosy city folk.

I couldn't help but wonder what Merle would think, about all this. Hell, who am I kidding? I know what Merle would think. Merle would slap some sense into me for falling for someone.

Was I falling for her?

I'm pretty sure the answer was yes, but I've never really felt this way. I've always been focused on surviving, hunting, eating, sleeping, not much to be honest, but with this girl, I can't think straight. My mind keeps wandering to her.

She didn't think of me as redneck trash. She didn't treat me less than Rick or Shane. She cared. She asked me about my scars, and I trusted her. I asked her about hers, and she trusted me. Then we kissed...

I liked kissing her. A lot. It made me feel weak and venerable, but for once, I didn't care about any of that. She made me pull my walls down that closed me off from any sense of love and happiness.

She made me happy.

Katie and I approached the RV.

"Hey, can you guys take over for the night?" Maya asked. "We're kind of tired... I'm pretty sure Drew fell asleep."

On cue, we heard a weird mumbling noise, followed by a groan.

I saw Katie tense beside me and her whole body stiffened.

"It's just Drew." I told her.

With that, Drew stood up, climbed down the ladder and hazily stumbled into the RV.  

Maya looked at us apologetically before helping Drew into the RV.

I sighed and climbed up the first two steps of the ladder to get to the roof.

I swung my crossbow off my shoulder and hoisted it onto the roof. I pulled myself up and grabbed my crossbow, just as Katie climbed up after me.

"I won't be able to stay awake for very long, Dixon." She pointed out to me once we got our lawn chairs set up beside each other, facing opposite directions on the roof.

I just shrugged my shoulders and patted one of them, allowing her to rest her head on it.

She smiled and rested her head on my shoulder.

I flinched. She brought her head down too quickly.

She looked up at me with sad, sympathetic eyes, at all of my permanent scars from my childhood, physical and mental.

I didn't need sympathy. Not from her. She needs it more than I do. Some strange man forced her to lose her purity. Gave her scars.

She should be in a worse emotional state than she actually is. She is so strong. Independent and strong.

I'd like to think that if Merle could see her, he'd approve of my choice. He never liked the clingy, cliquey girls. Katie was the opposite of that. She was a catch. And I wasn't about to let her go.

This realization made my hand come up to head and stroke her hair.

In the morning we would leave, to go see her family. She would be so happy. As much as I tried not to accept it, I knew that when I saw her smiling, ear to ear, hugging her long-lost family, I would be happy, too.