I WROTE ANOTHER FIC WITH DARYL
You were trying to concentrate on the plan Rick was explaining to attack the Saviors.
You were really trying with all your might, but it was proving IMPOSSIBLE.
The cause of your distraction had a name and surname.
His mere presence was distracting you.
He wasn't doing anything.
I mean, he wasn't even moving, and you were already practically drooling over him.
"I'm pathetic" you thought.
He had left the crossbow leaning against the wall, while with his arms crossed over his chest, he listened attentively to what his friend, whom he already considered practically a brother, was saying.
He listened, while you thought about how it would feel to run your fingers through his thick, long black hair while he was…
"Y/N," a voice suddenly called, pulling you out of your daze.
"I'm here!" you exclaimed, slowly focusing on Maggie's face.
"Are you okay?" She questioned, observing you as if your entire body had suddenly turned green. “You looked like you were on another planet.”
“Almost,” you confessed, “but it’s okay, I’m fine. What did I miss?”
Rick chuckled softly before turning directly to you.
“I was saying that both Daryl and you are the best trackers we have,” he said, “so you two will be doing a reconnaissance mission to see where the Saviors are hiding, their lairs, and areas they think are secret.” He whispered, “That’s where we’ll attack first.”
“Okay,” you murmured. “When do we leave?”
“There are still three hours of daylight left,” Rick said. “If you leave now, you’ll be back in time for the gates to close at night.”
You both nodded and slowly got up to leave the makeshift meeting room.
“I’ve been practicing with the bow since no one taught me how to shoot their crossbow,” you complained sarcastically, as Daryl grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder.
“The bow is more accurate than the crossbow” he said. “It’s not like I don’t want to teach you or anything.”
“You don’t need to explain. I already know what’s really going on.”
“Oh yeah?” he whispered, his light eyes fixed on yours. “And what is the truth?”
"The truth is, you won't teach me how to shoot the crossbow because you're afraid I'll be better than you."
"That's not true," he retorted. "You're already better than me without even knowing how to shoot it, so I don't see the need to teach you how to use it," he added casually.
You stared at him, unsure what to say, when he pointed to a path along the edge of the woods.
He bent down to examine a group of footprints on the ground before looking up at you again.
"These are human footprints" he explained. "They go from here to there, and there's quite a bit of space between each one." "They had another person with them," he said, pointing to one of the footprints. "This one is more pronounced than the others, which means two people were dragging or stumbling along a third."
"A hostage?" “You asked, and he nodded, his damn long hair falling lightly over his eyes again.
“That’s my main hypothesis, yes,” he said, making you roll your eyes.
“Your ‘main hypothesis’?” you questioned. “Someone’s been spending time with Eugene, it seems.”
“He taught me how to make ammunition,” the dark-haired man confessed, “and in return, I listened to everything he had to say about string theory.” He snorted. “I’ve been talking to him about it for days, and I still don’t know what it is.”
“Me neither,” you murmured, making him nod, before continuing through the woods.
Daryl’s gaze would occasionally shift behind him, so he had you perfectly under his control.
He could tell with absolute clarity if something was wrong, if a thought was troubling your mind, or if, regardless, you needed to rest for a while.
This time, it was the latter.
You had such a focused expression on your face that it was impossible not to notice something was wrong.
"You can tell me, if you want" he blurted out suddenly, snapping you back to reality.
"What do you mean?" you asked. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"You haven't said a word for ten minutes," he said. "That's reason enough to worry me," he whispered. "I'm just saying you can tell me, if you want," he murmured gently.
"Okay, if you insist" you murmured. "The reason I'm like this is your fault."
"My fault?" he questioned, looking at you intently. "Did I do something to make you uncomfortable, or…?"
“No, no, nothing like that, quite the opposite, you’re always very good to me,” you replied. “It’s just that lately I’ve been having recurring thoughts in which you’re the main character, that’s all.”
You walked a few steps into the woods, but as expected, he caught up with you in no time.
“You can’t just say something like that and leave,” he murmured, making you turn around to look at him again. “I deserve an explanation.”
“You’re right” you replied firmly. “I don’t know how can I say it, so I'll just do so—you swallowed hard—I'm in love with you—you whispered—I know perfectly well that you don't feel the same way about me, and that's fine, it's no big deal. So…—you shrugged—well, I've said it. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going back to the city before a walker kills me, or worse, before I die of embarrassment.
"You can't die of embarrassment, and we both know that if a walker appeared here right now, you could take it down without any problem," he argued.
He paused for a moment to look at you more closely before speaking again.
"I feel like an idiot," he confessed. "How could I not have seen it?"
"I'm not exactly known for being very expressive, to be honest," you laughed nervously. "It's not your fault, Daryl, really."
"I see" he said, before glancing at your lips for a fleeting moment. "And just so you know, you're wrong about me" he whispered, his gaze returning to you. "I feel the same way about you" he said, before quickly disappearing into the woods.