#live laugh love the slicked back hair there glenn

[hellogoodbyegirl]

Squeeze in 1980?

[wrightiverse]

Chrysanthemums

When he was drunk and maudlin, Bill Close had a phrase he used to explain why he’d never become a star: timing is everything. If he hadn’t done a certain audition right before lunch, when people were hungry and distracted. If he’d been playing the night the agent was in the bar, instead of at home babysitting. If he’d been five minutes earlier here, two hours later there, a few seconds in either direction, he’d have the life he was actually supposed to have. Bad timing. Good timing. Didn’t quite pull off the timing. Timing is everything. Glenn buys all that as a kid, but he eventually realizes that Bill only had it half right. It’s not just the bad stuff that comes down to being in the right place at the right moment. Sometimes, everything aligns to give you much more than you deserve. (Posted this on AO3 originally but we’re all in sad Close boys hours this week anyway so I may as well bring it over here. Full version below cut has references to a car accident, pregnancy, and a certain canonical death that I’m sure you can guess. It was also written before we realized that Wrightiverse Nick was trans but fuck it, why go back and have Glenn and Morgan misgender baby Nick when I don’t have to. Nick is much younger when Morgan passes in this than in the show’s canon now but canon is optional, free your mind.) 

When he was drunk and maudlin, Bill Close had a phrase he used to explain why he’d never become a star: timing is everything. If he hadn’t done a certain audition right before lunch, when people were hungry and distracted. If he’d been playing the night the agent was in the bar, instead of at home babysitting. If he’d been five minutes earlier here, two hours later there, a few seconds in either direction, he’d have the life he was actually supposed to have. Bad timing. Good timing. Didn’t quite pull off the timing. Timing is everything. Glenn buys all that as a kid, but he eventually realizes that Bill only had it half right. It’s not just the bad stuff that comes down to being in the right place at the right moment. Sometimes, everything aligns to give you much more than you deserve. *** It’s not exactly a fairytale love story. They literally meet in a dumpster.

It’s been most of a year since he told his parents to go shove their advice and their money up their respective asses, three months since the semester ended and he lost access to the dorm room and meal plan, a week since he ran out of cash, and at least 24 hours since he ate anything. Couch-surfing is keeping a roof over his head, and his friends are generous with food and booze and weed when they have any to spare, but that only goes so far. One year of college courses under his belt, no idea how to make a resume, no work history even if he did, no permanent address. The job offers aren’t exactly flooding in.

But to hell with it, Glenn Close isn’t gonna just lay down and die. He’s already cased a bakery a few blocks away and he knows they usually throw out the stuff too stale to sell around 11 p.m. He’d hoped not to have to use that info, but whatever. Someday this will make a great anecdote for his episode of Behind The Music.

Glenn hovers across the street until he sees a silhouetted figure toss a bag into the dumpster in the alley, then casually strolls over once the figure goes back inside. The sides of the dumpster are taller and have fewer handholds than he’d pictured, but he drags over some pallets and manages to climb in. It’s half empty and the bag has landed right on top, safe from the nasty trash juices that are soaking the cuffs of his jeans.

The first thing he sees when he tears the bag open is a plain bagel, and the first bite he takes is so good that he almost passes out. He’s so busy wolfing it down that he doesn’t notice the approaching steps from outside until another bag of trash flies over the top of the dumpster and bounces off his head.  

“Watch it,” he says reflexively. Then he freezes, not even chewing as he strains to listen for movement outside. Nothing. Maybe they just tossed the bag and walked back inside. He might get away with this.

“Yo, Templeton,” a voice says from outside the dumpster. “You gonna quit pretending you’re not in there, or should I close the lid?”

Glenn considers his options for a moment, but now that he comes to think of it… “Yeah, I’m realizing I don’t have anything to stand on in here. Little help?”

That’s the first time he hears her laugh. Even knowing he was the butt of the joke, he wants to hear it again. He gets his chance seconds later, when her head pops above the wall of the dumpster.

“Would you look at that? Somebody threw away a perfectly good dumbass.” Then that laugh rings out for the second time

Even his innate panache can’t overcome being hungry, chest-high in trash bags, and covered with flour. He’s humbled, and she’s amused, and that somehow turns into a connection that surprises both of them with how deep it gets and how fast.

If Glenn meets her at any other moment than that, he blows it by trying to be cool and charming. He lucked out. It’s perfect timing.

Morgan’s too good for him on any level you can name. Too cool for him, too smart, too tough, too beautiful. A better musician than him, both with the actual music and the business side. She’s the one who teaches him how to scrounge and hustle, how to read a contract’s fine print and argue with a booking agent who doesn’t want to pay up. Sometimes it feels like every other living soul on earth is elbow-to-elbow with them, fighting for the same scraps that they are, but it’s clear that Morgan’s the one in a million who’s going to make it. And he’s along for the ride, feeling like the luckiest son of a bitch alive every single damn day.    ***

***

Seven years hearing her laugh every day. Seven years getting to be the one who makes her laugh, sometimes even on purpose.

“I think we should get married,” he says one day, and she laughs in his face.

“You still think it’s more legit if the government knows about it, huh?” But she softens, because she knows what he’s actually trying to say, because of course she does. “I get it, baby. This is the real deal. In sickness and health, for better or for worse, and so forth. I’m not signing any paperwork, but you know we throw a good party. Let’s just do the fun parts. You down?”

It’s a very good party, and afterward she calls him “my husband” and they make plans to get rings. Later, if she’s tipsy and feels like teasing him, she calls him “my first husband,” and she laughs. Then she squeezes his face in her hands and gives him a kiss to make sure he understands that she’s only joking. He always knows she’s joking. He always lets her kiss him anyway.

***

Morgan spends a few days thinking she’s got food poisoning before realizing a stowaway has outwitted their precautions. Glenn’s always counted that as very good timing by Nicholas -  if that tricky little bastard shows up any earlier than he does, there’s no way Glenn even considers becoming a parent. But once they decide to go for it, it’s more fun than they’d have ever imagined. They build a lot of castles in the air together while they’re waiting to meet Nick. Glenn says he wants enough kids for a Partridge Family style band, and Morgan agrees as long as nobody plays the tambourine.

They discuss it endlessly, but finally decide a percussionist is the first priority. The closer the due date gets, the more it seems like their new bandmate agrees. Morgan grabs Glenn’s hand and puts it on her belly so he can feel the urgent kicks. “Check out this sick drum solo.”

Nick inherits his parents’ knack for knowing how to make an entrance. He’s so fashionably late that Morgan decides they should just party without him. It’s like ditching the friend who’s taking too long to get ready, except for the part where they can’t actually leave him behind. She and Glenn hit up their favorite venue that very night. The music thumps through their bodies like a pulse. The energy of the crowd makes them forget how long they’ve been waiting. And if anybody has any concerns about seeing a ridiculously pregnant woman dancing her heart out until her hair sticks to her face with sweat, they’re smart enough to keep their mouths shut.

Fear of missing out is apparently hardwired, and Nick graciously deigns to join them a few days later. Everything changes. Three a.m. feels a lot different when you know you’ll be awake again at 4:30, and 5, and probably 7, and maybe 8 for good measure, and…

“This new guy can’t hang,” Morgan mutters. She’s standing beside the bed, Nick tucked against her shoulder, patting his back and swaying. Glenn’s sitting up in bed, trying to stay awake out of solidarity, losing the battle.

“New guy is a lightweight,” he says. “And he’s pretty nasty. That dude does not know what a toilet is for.”

“Come on, man, get it together,” Morgan says softly to the fussing figure in her arms. “We can’t take you anywhere.” Baby Nick finally burps and spits up a little onto Morgan’s shirt. A few additional angry hiccups are all he can manage before he falls asleep.

“Did you hear that?” Morgan murmurs as she lowers him into the crib. “He said he was gonna fight me. Slow your roll, new guy, you aren’t ready for this heat.”

She collapses back onto the bed next to Glenn. “I’m bluffing. He’s kicking my ass.”

“Me too,” Glenn says, “but at least we outnumber him.” ***

***

Not long after Nick’s second birthday, Morgan notices that she’s a couple of days late. It’s not a big deal, it usually doesn’t mean anything. Glenn makes a joke about the Close Family Quartet, and Morgan says she’ll grab a test when she gets groceries that weekend. But whether their lead guitarist was about to debut or still waiting in the wings, she made an amateur mistake and left things a little too late. The band broke up first. That’s show business for you.

People always want to know what happened. Glenn never gets into details. They must make up their own pictures in their head: a rain-slick curve taken too fast, a semi truck jack-knifing across the highway. It makes more sense for something like that to happen when you already know you’re in danger.

It’s the middle of the day. He’s going maybe five over the speed limit, keeping pace with traffic. He’s not high or drunk or tired or even distracted. They’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time. A dog runs into the road, someone swerves to miss it, someone else tries to get out of their way. Barely a fender-bender, except that their car gets just enough of a push to end up in the intersection.

Early on, he thinks a lot about how a few seconds here and there could change things.

The dog runs into the street a little later, and then the oncoming traffic isn't trying to beat a yellow light.

The dog runs into the street a little earlier, and they drive home with a scraped bumper.

But that’s Bill’s half-assed way of thinking about it, and Glenn knows better. It’s true, it could have been different. It could have been much worse.

He drives a split second slower, and the other car meets theirs with a direct hit, crumpling the back seat as well as the front with far more force than Nick’s booster seat can deflect.

He drives a split second faster, and the clipped bumper spins them into the next lane, and he never makes it to the hospital at all, and Nick doesn’t have anybody left.

Glenn knows now what his dad was talking about in those grumbling laments. It’s like trying to put together two tracks that are just slightly out of sync. Where do you snip out a piece to make things fit right again? What if you’re already balanced on that tipping point with the fewest misfortunes and the most lucky breaks? What happens if you start messing with that?

He can’t second-guess. It happened the way it happened, and he’s still here, and Nick’s still here, so he still has a job to do. He’s going to be there for Nick the whole way, along for the ride, feeling like the luckiest son of a bitch alive because he gets to be here at all. It could have gone another way. Timing is everything.

[coffee-obsessed-writer]

The New World - Part 3

A shorter chapter, but hopefully will answer some questions, but not the BIG question... not yet. Stay tuned, my lovelies!

Part 1 | Part 2

Daryl x Reader, Daryl x Maggie, Maggie X Reader, Daryl x Glenn, Negan x All

Warnings: Implied smut, language, Canon-Violence, Canon-divergence, some fluffy moments with Daddy Daryl

Word Count: 3401

The only light trickling into the cell through the one small window cast a dark shadow across his face. His hair no longer neatly slicked back, hanging long in his face. A grin crawled across his lips as the voices from outside became louder. The iron gate opened into the exterior of the cell, and he waited patiently for them to make their entrance.

The moment they were all in his line of sight, Negan pushed himself away from the wall, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. Chuckling darkly, he smirked as his eyes locked onto the sheriff.

“Been wonderin’ when you fuckers were gonna come down here and see me.”

“What? No ‘happy-to-fucking-see-you-Negan’ smiles? C’mon, I thought we were all friends now?!” Negan’s voice bellowed and bounced off the walls of his cell, making him sound larger than life, a sardonic grin plastered across his face as his eyes flicked from each one of their glares.

“Now, I imagine there is a problem of some kind, because normally, it’s just my buddy Rick here stoppin’ on by for a chat,” Negan’s eyes narrowed, a playful defiance burning in them as he met Rick’s gaze. “But, lucky me! I get the whole damn crew!”

He ran his tongue over his top lip and bit down as Rick took a step closer to the bars of the cell door.

“What did you do?” Rick growled, trying to fight the urge to shoot the man through the door.

“Do? Me? Awe, Rick,” Negan feigned disappointment and clutched his chest with one hand, “I’m hurt. What is it that you think I’ve done?”

Rick cocked his head to one side and could feel Maggie’s hand barely touch his shoulder. He turned to look at her and slightly shook his head. Without a word Maggie gave him a look that told him she was ready to handle Negan.

Rick flashed a questioning glance to Glenn who nodded, though seemed to be just as nervous. The sheriff moved out of the way to let Maggie stand face to face with the prisoner.

“Now, now! This IS a treat! I mean, I always enjoy our time together Rick, but feasting my eyes on this pretty little thang, well, does my heart good!” Negan laughed and licked his teeth while staring down Maggie.

“Hey! You don’t fucking LOOK at her,” Glenn yelled ready to pounce on Negan. Daryl grabbed him by the shirt to tried to hold him back. Even though Glenn was smaller, it took all Daryl’s strength to keep him still.

“Not now man,” Daryl grunted. “She’s got it.”

Maggie’s fiery gaze never left Negan’s face. Amused by Glenn and Daryl’s actions, Negan finally looked back at her. When he met her again and saw the look she was wearing, his tickled expression fading away.

“Damn, girl. You don’t have to look at me like that,” Negan stood up straighter now, his attention solely on the woman in front of him. “What is it that you want?”

“I want you to tell me how you made that happen,” Maggie stated calmly and matter-of-factly. “I want to know how you managed to get rid of the guards and get the gate open. Who’s helping you?”

Daryl and Glenn exchanged a curious glance, while Rick took a step back and narrowed his gaze at Maggie, then back to Negan.

The twinkle faded from his eyes, along with the smile he always seemed to wear. Negan took a few slow steps towards the door. When he was close enough, he wrapped his hands around the bars, leaning his face into them as far as he could.

Maggie didn’t budge. Standing her ground merely inches from Negan, she maintained her level voice and spoke again.

“Tell me what I want to know. Now.” None of the men behind her noticed that she slowly reached around to the back of her jeans where her gun was waiting.

“Lady, I have no idea what you’re fucking talking about,” Negan hissed at her, his brow furrowed in frustration, nostrils flaring with anger. “Besides, even if I did fucking do something, which doesn’t seem very fucking likely, explain to me how I would do that? You’ve, had me locked in here, for YEARS!” Negan’s bark rose to a deafening level in the small cell, his chest heaving with fury.

Maggie smirked, and in one quick motion pulled the gun from the rear waistband of her jeans and had it to Negan’s forehead.

“I don’t have a clue, you stupid piece of horse shit, that’s why I’m askin’. We have children here, and whatever game you’re playin’ nearly got them killed. So, I am going to give you one more chance to answer my questions before I put a bullet between your eyes.”

“Please, sweetheart. Do it,” Negan goaded her.

Maggie to pull back the hammer of her gun, as Negan defiantly raised a brow at her. Trying to hide a grin, Maggie pulled back the trigger, making Negan jump at the ‘click’ sound of the empty revolver.

“Like I’d give you the satisfaction,” she laughed, shaking her head as she tucked the gun back into her jeans. “However, you will tell me what I want to know. Eventually,” Maggie turned and walked out of the cell without looking back. Before she was gone completely, Negan could hear her leave instructions for Glenn, Daryl and Rick. “Rations are low boys, he’s the first to get meals cut.”

Rick smirked and turned to leave with Glenn and Daryl following behind him. When the iron gate closed shut, Negan stepped back from the bars and sauntered over towards the small window. The day’s light was fading which meant he would be in the dark soon. He didn’t mind when the dark came though, it was when his friend came to visit. After the day’s events, he was anxious to have a nice long chat with them, there was a lot of work to do.

 The church door opened and closed behind you, but you didn’t move. You knew Maggie was there without looking; Maggie was always there. She slid into the pew next to you and placed a hand on your knee.

“You alright?” she asked quietly, looking straight ahead.

“No,” you sighed, running your hands through your hair. You noticed you were still covered in blood and cringed. “I need to change,” you said absently, more to just have something to say.

“Hun, what happened out there with Daryl? All this time, I’ve never seen you two fight, ever. What’s going on?”

“Maggie, he wants to –”

“I know what he wants to do, Y/N. I don’t like it, but I agree with him, and so does Glenn.”

“Maggie, I can’t. I just… I can’t do that again. Not after last time.”

“Y/N, you have too. You need to talk to him about it now. If you don’t want to tell me about all that happened back then, fine. But you have to talk to Daryl. He just wants what’s best for everyone, wants to keep everyone safe. That means the kids need to know how to defend themselves.”

Shaking your head, Maggie rubbed a hand up and down your back. “Sweetie…”

“I know. I know you’re right,” your voice was small, riddled with a range of guilt, sorrow and anxiety. “I’ve put it off long enough, he needs to know.” Sighing deeply, you patted Maggie’s knee and stood up, ready to finally explain yourself to your husband.

  Walking into your house, you saw the light shining from under the playroom door down the hall. Pushing it open, you saw Daryl laying on the floor with Abe and Shelby, a video playing on the small TV Glenn had found them. He had one arm tucked under his head and one curled around his daughter, both the kids had already fallen asleep.

You stared at them for a minute and felt overwhelmed with a swirling eddy of love and fear. As if sensing your presence, Daryl lifted his head and saw you by the door. Making sure both kids were comfortably asleep, he left a kiss on their foreheads before he got up completely and left the room with you.

Daryl pulled the door closed quietly and you motioned for him to follow you. You went to open the door to the porch, but his hand on top of yours stopped you.

“Wait, babe, why don’t you go get cleaned up,” his gaze was soft and loving. He brushed a thumb over your cheek and gently pulled your face to his. His lips touched your softly before leaning his forehead into yours. “I’ll wait for you outside, then we’ll talk.”

Fifteen minutes later you had quickly showered, changed, and found yourself pacing on the porch. Daryl was leaning against the house waiting for you to say something, but finding a place to start was much harder than you thought. Taking a deep breath, you smiled at your husband and found your voice.

“I got married young, like real young,” your hands twisted in each other, nerves already getting the best of you. But you knew this was a long overdue conversation, and Daryl deserved to know.

“His name was Robbie. I knew him from high school, but right after we got married he wanted to move to Atlanta. Our boys, Jacob and Ryan were born within two years of moving there. It didn’t take long for us to realize we were miserable together. He was an ass, cheated on me so many times I honestly lost count.”

You saw Daryl’s body tense at the admission and loved him for it. Even though it was so far in the past, knowing he still had a reaction to someone hurting you made you love him even more.

“’Bout two months before the outbreak, my dad died and we ended back on the farm. We were broke, couldn’t afford the city anymore. So, the plan was to just live there ‘til we could sell it and then,” you just shrugged, not knowing how much to really tell him, “…probably was just going to leave him, but then the world went to shit.”

“You shoulda beat his ass,” Daryl chimed in, crossing his arms over his chest.

You snorted a nervous laugh and tried to continue, your hands still turning in each other anxiously.

“About a week after we saw the reports of what was happening in the city, Robbie insisted on checking out the property. He wanted to know if the fences were intact and he wanted to take the boys, but I said no. But, being how he was, he insisted. We had been fightin’ so much Daryl, I was just tired of fighting. I shoulda never…” the sobs came in hulking waves, your chest felt tight at the memory of watching the boys leave; walking down the lane of your daddy’s farm smiling, and never seeing them the same way again.

“It’s alright sweetheart,” Daryl comforted quietly, “take your time.” He put an arm around your shoulder, pulling you into him. Normally his embrace made everything feel better, but in that moment, you just needed to get it all out. You needed to feel it all, the guilt included, if you wanted to be honest with your husband.

You gingerly pulled away from him and paced back and forth on the porch again. Daryl watched you carefully, waiting for you to continue. Swallowing hard, you looked at him and offered a sad smile while wiping tears from your cheeks.

“When they got back, Jacob had been bit. They were out in the west end and a walker came from the woods. Jacob was on the other side of the rails, got caught climbing back through and it got him on the arm. I remember that Robbie was so calm about it…”

You ran your hands through your hair and even sniffed a laugh at the memory of how naïve you’d all been. “He thought it would just heal because it wasn’t that bad. Neither of us knew then what it really meant. The news had been vague and because we were way out there, we didn’t see it up close.”

The next wave of tears threatened, but you held them back to get through the hardest part.

“The fever came on almost immediately, and within the night he died. We didn’t know he’d turn. I didn’t know…�� you could feel yourself starting to hyperventilate, but when Daryl’s hand touched your shoulder, you steadied yourself.

“I had fallen asleep in the chair on the other side of the room and didn’t hear him get up. He came back, Daryl… he walked right past me and went to his brother’s room. I don’t know why. There was no reason for it. Jacob went right into Ryan’s room… I heard Ryan scream. I jumped up and ran in there just as Jacob was ripping out his brother’s throat. I can still hear him trying to scream, but he just made this terrible gurgling sound.”

Daryl’s arms wrapped around you from behind and crossed across your chest, his chin resting on your shoulder. His mouth was by your ear, the bristles of his beard tickling your neck.

“You don’t have to…” he whispered, “You can stop if you want, I get it now.”

“No, you have to hear it all,” you turned to face him, knowing now that he had to know everything that happened in the house that night.

“Alright,” he grumbled, slowly releasing his grip on you, but letting his hand linger on your shoulder.

“I screamed. I screamed when I saw them like that. I didn’t know where Robbie was, he wasn’t upstairs. But when I screamed, Jacob turned and came after me. I didn’t have a gun… didn’t have a knife. I didn’t even know that you needed to get the brain…”

“No one knew everythin’ in the beginning, Y/N. You can’t blame yourself for that.”

“I know, but when they’re your kids Daryl, you can’t help but blame yourself. My beautiful, sweet boys were dead, and I was panicked. I slammed the door shut, ran downstairs looking for Robbie. Found the fucking asshole passed out in the chair; bottle of whiskey on the table and his fucking hand down his pants. I saw daddy’s shot gun on the table. I picked it up and I shot him. I hated him Daryl. In that moment, all I could think was that my boys were dead because of him. He insisted on taking them out that day. Damn near tore my head off over it in a fight that morning.”

Daryl closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Biting on his lower lip you could see him trying to contain the swell of anger and sadness building.

“I hate that you had to do that,” he snarled, his hands balling into fists.

“I don’t care that I killed Robbie. It’s horrible but, if I am being honest, I have no guilt for that. It was the walk upstairs to Ryan’s room that killed me. I shot Jacob first in the chest. When he didn’t stop coming, I aimed for his head. That’s how I learned how to take out a walker, by shooting my son in the head. Ryan was just starting to come back, so I took care of him too.”

“I’m sorry,” Daryl said softly.

Your voice was even now, the emotion had somehow leveled out once the tale was told. You leaned over the railing and took in a deep breath of crisp evening air and looked up at the stars.

“Daryl, I’m sorry for how I acted earlier,” turning to your husband, you found him barely a step away from you. “Just with the walkers comin’ in, and the kids… I just…”

“It’s fine,” he said leaning next to you at the railing. “Thank you, for tellin’ me ‘bout your boys though. You know you can talk about ‘em to me, right?”

You nodded, “I know, it’s hard to even think about them, much less talk about them. Especially with Abe growing up. He looks so much like Ryan sometimes.”

Daryl grabbed your arm and pulled you into his chest. His embrace felt warm and comforting, and this time you accepted in greedily.

“What you did to that piece a shit… he got what he deserved,” he kissed your head and wrapped an arm around your neck. “But, I stand by what I said earlier. We can find a way to do it so’s you’re comfortable, but, sweetheart… those kids gotta learn if they want to survive.”

“I know,” you said barely above a whisper.

“What happened today was no accident,” Daryl said, making your head snap up to look at him.

“What?”

“Mmhmm, after you left, me and Rick went to see him, Maggie and Glenn too. He’s up to somethin’,” Daryl snarled.

“How is that possible?”

“I dunno. Rick and Maggie both have a few thoughts, gonna talk about it all tomorrow. I wanted to wait for you to be there,” he looked down at you, smiling softly, “but you were pretty pissed at me before so, figured tonight wouldn’t be the time to talk.”

Biting your lower lip, you snaked your arms up around his neck and tangled your fingers into his hair. “I’m sorry baby, I lost my mind for a minute. Chalk it up to a stressful day?”

You didn’t want to think about the past anymore, and even with what he just told you, you didn’t want to talk anymore period.

“Yeah, we can do that,” his eyes narrowed on you and you knew he was done talking too.

“Tomorrow, we’ll get together with everyone and figure shit out,” you raised an eyebrow at him and pressed your body a little closer.

Daryl’s hands rubbed down your back, and over the back of your jeans, gently cupping your ass. “Tomorrow’s good.”

“Maybe for tonight, I can just say I’m sorry for being a little crazy before and make it up to you.”

You reached up, brushing your lips against his. “Because, I am really, really sorry…”

“Mmhmm,” Daryl growled, and took a fistful of your hair through his fingers. He bent your neck to the side and lightly sunk his teeth into your neck. “I’m thinkin’ it’s time to get the kids in their beds. Then, I think it’s time to throw you into mine so you can start makin’ apologies.”

You leaned up to kiss him and he pulled back slight, a lustful grin spreading across his lips.

“C’mon woman, go, don’t make me get the belt again.” He playfully smacked your ass. Being frisky with Daryl made you feel like yourself again, enjoying life and focusing on the good things that were in it.

“Yes, daddy,” you purred, pausing only to kiss him deeply before going inside to do what you were told.

  The next morning, when you felt the sun trickling through your bedroom window you pushed up from your bed and looked around the empty room. Wiping the sleep from your eyes, you headed downstairs to find Daryl and Maggie in the kitchen, all three kids playing quietly in the playroom.

“Oh good, you’re up,” Maggie smiled and came around to hug you. “You alright?”

“Yeah, I’m good,” you said as you pulled away from her embrace. “We talked,” you motioned to Daryl, “I’m scared as fuck, but I’m on board.”

Daryl put his cup of coffee on the counter and folded you into him. He gazed down at you with a smile and expression that was full of love and pride.

“Mornin’ sweetheart,” he kissed you gently and you both laughed when Maggie made a gagging sound.

“I knew that wouldn’t take long...” she rolled her eyes and put down her mug of tea. “But now ain’t the time. Rick’s waitin’ at the church for us.”

“This about what happened yesterday?” you asked, the feeling of anxiety returning to your stomach. “You guys really think that prick had something to do with it?”

“I do,” Maggie answered, pushing her shoulders back, “somehow, he did it. He’s got someone here helpin’ him. We just gotta figure out who?”

“Who what?” Shelby’s little voice rang out as she walked into the kitchen.

Daryl let you go and scooped his daughter up from the floor.

h“Daddy!” she squealed with a laugh, Her long brown hair swinging around into her face as Daryl threw her over his shoulder and tickled her gently under her arms. “No daddy! No tickles!” Shelby’s cries of joy and Daryl’s wide grin made your heart felt fuller in that moment than it had in days.

You and Maggie were both laughing, but behind the playful moment, you could both feel the weight of the situation looming. Something was coming to disrupt your lives in Alexandria. Despite the screeches of laughter that rang out from your daughter’s lips, you knew that the blissful quiet of your everyday world was about to be taken away.

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[wrapped-in-rosegold]

things ain’t always set in stone (i know my destination but i’m just not there)

After Andre, after Mike, after…after everything, it became easy to survive.

It was living that was the hard part.

Living without them, living with herself, it was a burden she carried along with her katana and the ropes that dragged the very essence of her otherworldly, ever present pain everywhere she went.

She had thought that was all there was left in this world, walking among the monsters and eventually becoming one of them, dwelling on the constant pain that left only numbness, living, but not really, to survive, and surviving to live, a vicious, unrelenting cycle that left her a little more hollow each day, a cycle that patiently scooped out a little more each day of what had made her Michonne.

And then she had met Andrea, a woman who reminded her what it was like in better days, in days long gone by in a world Michonne couldn’t quite remember anymore, when there were such things as girls’ nights and cabernet sauvignon and a semblance of normalcy.

Andrea, who had indirectly led her to Glenn and Maggie, both of whom had unwittingly led her to the fence of a once overrun prison.

To him.

To Rick. To Carl. To Judith.

To her family.

And little by little, day by day, she could feel the ragged pieces of her soul slowly begin to repair, still damaged but so alive in the presence of her newfound world with these people, her people.

She could feel herself becoming Michonne again.

It was in the moments she rode up to the prison on her horse, seeing those smiles on Rick’s and Carl’s faces in anticipation of not what she was bringing with her, but the fact that she was returning to them once again.

It was in the moments where Rick would teach her and Carl about snares in the middle of a lonely forest that wasn’t quite as lonely with her two boys there.

It was in the moments where Michonne would lean over to caress Judith’s hair as the baby sat on Rick’s lap, where she felt a sudden, pleasurable jolt at just how domestic it felt, and how Rick took her presence in stride, as if it was as natural to him as breathing.

It was in the rush of giddiness she felt when she found stale M&Ms and Big Cats on a run. It was in how she laughed at Daryl’s assertion that he had indeed been a homicide detective in his previous life. It was in the way she felt as she had fallen on her ass after overestimating the walkers gaining on her on her way back to the prison. It was in the way she demanded that they were going to Alexandria, and that was that. It was in the simple pleasure, the taken for granted ritual of brushing her teeth at night before bed.

It was in the way she could physically feel the pain of Glenn’s and Abraham’s deaths, as viscerally as a baseball bat to the head.

It was in the way she couldn’t bring herself to hold Judith, really bring her close and cradle the baby girl until she allowed herself to truly break down and cry, until she truly began to feel the loss of her son.

It was in the way desire coursed through her as Rick’s eyes had met hers on that couch on that fateful evening, in the way her skin blazed with heat in the wake of his eager touch, in the way her toes curled and her body was slick with sweat, and in the way she felt the gentlest of pressures as his forehead touched her own in the moments after they had made love for the first of many, many times.

Hell, it was even in the way her stomach had dropped and her cheeks had burned hot as she came out of Rick’s bedroom the morning after that first, blissful time, only to find all of her chosen family, including Carl, waiting on the staircase and the landing, eyebrows slightly raised but not a word said and oh God, it was the end of the world, but apparently that didn’t mean an end to awkward moments between friends - and her lover’s son.

It was somehow oddly reassuring.

It meant, it all meant, that she was alive once again.

More importantly, she wanted to be alive. They, Rick, Carl, Judith, and the rest of their extended family…they made her want to live.

They had lost so much already, and they couldn’t count on a place to call home anymore – not the prison, not a church, not even Alexandria, the closest thing to home they had to date – but as long as she was with these people, with Rick at her side and his children a presence in her life just as much as she wanted to be a presence in theirs, Michonne knew, that whatever happened, as long as she was with her family, she would always have a home.

[such-a-common-girl]

Scandalous Love [Negan x Reader] PT. 1

Word Count: 4,023

Negan x Reader, Rick x Reader

Request: In this tumultuous story, the drama begins when Negan threatens to kill your boyfriend, and group leader, Rick Grimes if you don’t join him in the Sanctuary as his wife. Over the time you spend as Negan’s wife, feelings arise, making everything a bit more complicated. Based on this request.

Warnings: Language, death, feels, angst

a/n: this was getting too long to be a one-shot, so I am splitting it into three parts! As of now, this is officially the first part of this mini-series! If you want to be tagged in the upcoming chapters, let me know!

The trip to the Hilltop isn’t going as expected.

You had volunteered to go along, wanting to help Maggie in any way possible. She’d been one of your best (and only) friends ever since the outbreak began, and panic had wedged its way into your mind at the thought of anything possibly happening to her. Not only that, but Rick was leading the group and you couldn’t bear the thought of Rick being away from you. He’s the only man who had managed to make his way into your cold, closed off heart- if anything were to happen, you’d rather be there for it instead of staying back in Alexandria.

Somewhere along the journey to get Maggie to the Hilltop, you’d been stopped. The Saviors had found you, forced your entire group into a line, and put you into the compromising position you’re currently in.

You know what’s about to happen; you can feel it, and you’re sure everyone can as well. Their leader is about to step out of that RV and undoubtedly kill one of you, if not more. Rick had slaughtered several of his men, and you know that people don’t take kindly to that. Rick wouldn’t.

You’re in between Maggie and Rick, your knees practically glued to the ground as you look over at Rick in terror. He nods at you, as if telling you that everything is going to be alright. His reassurances normally calm you down instantly, giving you a sense of peace and safety. But tonight? Tonight, you know that not even Rick is going to be able to do anything about whatever is about to happen. He may be a powerful and strong leader, naturally making him a protective boyfriend as well, but even he knows that he has no control in this moment. It’s all up to the man who’s standing in the RV.

“We pissin’ our pants yet?” A tall man steps out of the RV. He’s wearing a black leather jacket, along with a red scarf and grey pants. His hair is dark and slicked back, his beard almost completely grey. If you weren’t scared out of your mind right now, you might even think that he is attractive.

The man walks over to Rick, introducing himself as Negan. You reach out to grab Rick’s hand as Negan speaks to him, but the threatening glare you receive from Negan has you retracting your hand from his as soon as you touched.

The way Negan speaks to everyone, the way he carries himself- it’s so full of power and control, and it terrifies you. And by the looks of it, everyone is mirroring your emotions.

“Eeny, meeny, miny, moe…” Negan begins, his bat placed in front of your face as he passes you. He winks as the bat passes over you before moving on to the rest of the group.

It lands on Abraham. There are no words to describe how you feel as you watch Negan brutally beat him to death. You don’t dare move, or cry- there isn’t anything you can do to stop it, and crying isn’t going to change anything.

You thought it was over; Negan said one person. But after Daryl’s freak out (you don’t blame him- if you weren’t so afraid, you would have probably done the same thing), Negan took it upon himself to take another victim- Glenn.

This was when you really lost it. The tears finally fell from your eyes, your entire body sobbing and shaking as you watch Negan kill the one man that is important to your best friend. Not only that, but similar to Rick’s story, Glenn had been the one to save you from a group of walkers back when this whole thing started. He saved your life and he’s the only reason you’re alive right now. And now, he’s gone.

You lean over into Rick, and he shakily puts his hand on you as he tries to control his own emotions. It’s bad enough that all of you have to experience watching this, but what’s worse is that Negan enjoys it.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” You can’t help what comes out of your mouth. You know screaming at Negan isn’t going to end well, if anything it’s going to make the situation worse, but you can’t control yourself any longer. “Why would you do that?”

“Excuse me?” Negan looks over at you. A smile grows on his face as he looks you up and down, walking over to you and placing his bat over his shoulder. “Did you just question me?”

Rick stares at you, fright obvious in his eyes. You know he’s silently begging you to stop, for you to just back down and not do anything that could put you at risk. He can’t lose you- you’re the love of his life, he can’t. He refuses.

“Yes.” You say, looking at Negan dead in the eye and completely disregarding Rick’s silent pleas.

“You know, for being a girl, you’ve got some mighty big balls.” Negan laughs. “I should kill you for that.”

“Go ahead, kill me. I’d rather die than work for you.” You challenge.

‘Don’t do this,’ Rick mouths, grabbing your shoulders and forcing you to look at him. You’ve never seen him look this way before, so desperate and scared. You shake your head, turning your body back to face Negan.

“How fucking cute is this?” Negan smiles at you two. “You and Rick are together, aren’t you?”

“Why does it matter?” Rick speaks up, his voice shaky.

“Because, Rick, your girlfriend here is hot as shit. So I’ve got a proposition for you- what’s your name, sweetheart?” Negan directs that last part at you.

“Y/N.” You breathe out, nervousness suddenly overtaking your body as you realize that he might do something to Rick now that he knows you two are together.

“Alright, Y/N,” Negan cocks his head. “Here’s your options. You can come with me back to where I live as my wife. You’ll be treated like a goddamn queen, certainly way fuckin’ better than Rick here can treat you. See how scared he is right now?”

“There aint no way in hell that she’s ever gonna go and be your wife.” Rick spits out angrily. “What’s the other option?”

“It aint your damn decision, Rick. So, Y/N,” Negan glares at Rick. “Be my wife, or don’t. It’s that simple. Shit, you can choose to stay here with your pathetic as shit group if you really want. But, if you choose that, Rick here dies, and you lose another oh-so-valuable member of your group.”

Your mouth hangs wide open, your heart feeling as if it’s stopped. The amused look on his face lets you know that’s exactly what he wants- for you to panic. For you to have to choose something that you deem impossible. You don’t want to go be his wife, you’d rather do anything else… Except let Rick die.

“Kill me.” Rick begs Negan. “Kill me, now. She aint gonna be your wife.”

“Rick, like I said earlier, this is Y/N’s choice. So if you don’t shut your fucking mouth, I’ll kill you and take her as my wife.” Negan says harshly.

The entirely of the group is looking at the events folding in horror. You can’t imagine what is going through their heads right now, but you do know one thing. You can’t let another one of you guys die. The group just lost Abraham and Glenn- they can’t lose their leader now, too. It’s so much more than you just not wanting your boyfriend to get killed. This decision could change everything.

“I’ll go.” You whisper. “I’ll go.”

“Ah, you made the right choice.” Negan smiles at you. “Come on, sweetheart. We’ve got a long ride ahead of us.”

You begin to get up off of the floor, giving Rick a soft smile. Tears are running down his face, something you’ve only seen him do twice. You hate that you have to be the reason for him to cry again.

“No, no, no…” Rick cries out. He tries to get up to run after you as you walk into the RV with Negan, but one of his men stops him, pushing Rick back down to the floor. All he can do is watch while you leave.

“I’ll be okay.” You whisper out, even though you know that he can’t hear you. Negan opens up the door to the RV, allowing you step into the vehicle. Daryl is shoved inside directly behind you, his body almost knocking you over as you two stumble inside. Daryl can’t help but let a few tears run down his face out of anger as you two sit down in the chairs beside each other, Negan sitting across from the two of you.

The car ride is long and silent. For what seems like the first time since you met him only a few hours ago, Negan has nothing to say. He just sits there, his mouth kept shut. You’re thankful for that, since you think that if he said anything else, you might have another break down.

Your mind is running wild with everything that just happened back at the lineup. Two of your friends died back there, victims of the man who you now call your husband. Your husband just murdered them. The serious relationship you had formed with Rick had dissolved, ending the minute you agreed to go with Negan. You know that Rick would have rather died than see you go off with Negan, but you didn’t have a choice. It was the right thing to do.

Your eyes start to tear up at the thought of never seeing Rick again, or any of the people you left behind. They’re all family to you and you love them. That’s the only thing that’s going to get you through this- remembering that you did this for the people you love.

You look over to the driver’s seat, a man with blonde hair driving as he listens to the dark haired man in the passenger talking about the weather conditions. They’re talking about a storm coming in, but you couldn’t care less. The only thing going through your mind is getting out.

Ideas forming through your head, you notice that Negan’s bat is perched up on the chair behind Negan himself. He’s not paying attention to you or Daryl- he’s too interested in talking to his men who are operating the vehicle. You glance over at Daryl, who’s watching you like a hawk. You lead your eyes to the bat, trying to show him what you’re indicating. His eyes go wide before he nods, accepting your plan.

Putting the plan into motion, you quickly jump up out of your seat and grab the baseball bat. You grip on to the handle tightly before swinging it down, aiming for Negan’s head. It’s almost to his head when you hear him mutter a ‘fuck’, diving out of his chair and onto the floor. He scrambles to his feet, an angry look on his face when he faces you. He starts to walk towards you but Daryl pushes him, making him slam into the wall of the RV.

The man in the passenger side gets up off his chair, running to the back towards the fight going on. You’re about swing the bat at Negan again when the man pulls out two guns, both aimed directly at yours and Daryl’s heads.

“Drop Lucille. Now.” Negan says threateningly, his face turning red from anger. You shakily put down the baseball bat, realizing that there was no way you could win this battle. Not with guns involved- you and Daryl were stripped of any weapons you had back at the lineup. One baseball bat against two guns wouldn’t do you any good.

“Oh, that was not fucking cool.” Negan hastily picks up Lucille, pointing it at you. “I did you a goddamn fucking favor, and this is how you fucking repay me, dear wife? I could’ve killed you back there, shit, I could’ve killed everyone back there. Instead, I only took two and I decided to give you the life of a fucking queen. I showed you fucking mercy, and this is what I get? This shit?”

“You call killing my friends, forcing me to be your wife, and taking Daryl mercy?” You laugh sarcastically.

“You chose this, baby girl.” He looks like he’s going to swing Lucille at you, but after some moments, he puts the bat back down on to the chair he was previously sitting on. “That was mercy. To prove just how fucking merciful I am, I’ll let this pass. But only for you, Y/N. Daryl here? Oh, he’s in for one hell of a shit show once he gets to the Sanctuary. I was just gonna force him to work for me, but now I’ll make his life worse than I had intended. Dwighty-boy here will make sure of that, won’t you?”

“Yes, sir.” The blonde man driving nods his head.

“And I want you to know, baby girl, that whatever happens to Daryl is completely your fault.” Negan smiles at you. You drop your head in defeat, running your fingers through your hair in stress. You didn’t want this to happen. None of this.

But, just as Negan said earlier- you chose this.

Negan waves off the other man, telling him to back down. He puts his guns down, giving you two a weary look and a scoff before going back to the front seat. Negan follows him and grabs something from the middle compartment, whispering something to the men.

He comes back holding two pairs of handcuffs, his head shaking in disappointment.

“I really didn’t wanna use these tonight, but looks like I’m forced to.” He grabs your wrist, cuffing you to the table, forcing you to stay in place. He does the same to Daryl before taking a seat back in his chair, making sure to keep Lucille in his lap now.

“I’m really sorry.” You whisper to Daryl.

“Don’t be.” He whispers back. “I’ll get us out of this, I promise.”

The rest of the ride is once again spent in silence. The three of you were all writhing in anger, but you and Daryl both felt completely and truly defeated. Your attempts back at the lineup didn’t work, and your surprise attack plan only a few minutes ago was anything but a success. The only thing to do now was to go with it.

Later rather than sooner, the RV pulls up to a building that you assume is what Negan refers to as the Sanctuary. Your new home. Straining your neck to look out of the window, you can barely make out several people opening up the gates, allowing the RV to drive through.

Negan gets up, stretching his body before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the key for your handcuffs. He unlocks Daryl’s first, grabbing him by the arm and shoving him out of the door. You watch as Dwight follows, grabbing Daryl’s hair and forcing him to enter the building with him. You can’t help but feel scared for the man, not knowing what’s about to happen to him. You’ve already lost so many people- you can’t lose Daryl, too.

“Alright, sweetheart.” Negan sighs, grabbing your cuffed hand and undoing the lock. Your hand springs free, the metal no longer digging into your skin. Negan grabs your wrist, making you wince as your skin was tender and cut from the handcuffs.

“I hurt you?” Negan’s eyebrow furrows. You scoff and glare at him in response. “You should’ve told me they were too tight.”

“Why? Because you’re so nice and you’d loosen them up for me?”

“Believe it or not, Y/N, I actually fuckin’ like you. I won’t lie and say that I didn’t take you just because I knew it would hurt Rick, but, it helps that you’re attractive as hell. You’ve got a hell of an attitude that I like, too. And, all of that aside, you’re my wife now. I treat my wives right.”

“Wives?” You ask, Negan’s grip softening on your wrist as he leads you out of the RV. The cool air hits your face, making you instantly feel better.

“This is the goddamn apocalypse, I can do whatever the hell I want to. So why not treat myself? Why not have more than one wife?” Negan tells you, acting as if it’s nothing, like it’s something you would hear every day.

“I guess.”

He leads you to the main entrance of the building, everyone stopping and staring at you while you walk with Negan. Some of the people bow at him, as if he is some king, and other people avoid eye contact and walk away quickly.

Once inside the buildings, he takes you down a series of corridors before showing you to your room. You almost gasp at the sight of it- it’s beautifully decorated, and it almost makes you feel as if the world was back to normal again.

“Told you. Treated like a queen.” Negan smiles at your reaction. You put a straight face back on, not wanting to give him any indication that you like the room. The last thing you want is for him to think you’re enjoying yourself.

“Okay.” You shrug, attempting to seem nonchalant. You walk inside the room, taking it all in. The walls were a light grey color with white accents, pieces of art hung up throughout the room. The TV that was atop of the dresser was bigger than any other you had ever seen, and the bed was relatively large. Larger than the bed you had in Alexandria, that is.

“I’ll get some shit from the other wives to bring to you. I can’t have you walking around this place looking like that. By tomorrow, you’ll have a closet full of clothing you can wear.” Negan informs you.

“I like my own clothes.” You shake your head. “So, no thanks.”

“Ah-ah,” Negan shakes his finger. “You’ll wear what I say you wear. Trust me, you’ll appreciate it.”

“I doubt it.” You mumble. “I don’t want your stupid wives clothes.”

“Got myself another fucking Sherry…” Negan says under his breath, barely audible. “Whatever, Y/N. You’ll change your mind whenever you get around them.”

“Are we done here?” You sigh. “I’m here, I’m your wife. You got what you wanted. Can I get some privacy now?”

“You don’t want to spend your first night here with me?” Negan frowns. “I’m certainly not going to force you to do anything, but it is a tradition ‘round here with the wives.”

“There’s no way in hell I’ll ever spend a night with you. Go screw one of your other wives, I’m sure they’re desperate to whore themselves out to you anyways.” You roll your eyes. You know you’ve probably crossed a line with that one, and by the look on his face, you know you’re right.

“You just keep pushin’ your damn limits, huh, baby girl?” Negan steps closer to you, putting his lips near your ear. “Don’t keep testing me. I’m nice to you, but that can only last for so fucking long.”

“You’re right.” You sigh out, catching Negan by surprise. “I should be thankful. Thank you so much Negan for sparing my life, and for sparing Rick’s. I can never repay you for that amazing deed.”

“That’s what I’m fucking talking about, baby girl!” Negan smiles at you, obviously not catching the sarcastic tone in your voice. “Well, since you’re so damn adamant on us not spending the night together, I’ll let you get some rest. It’s been a long night for you.”

You scoff at his remarks. Negan has no idea what this night has been like for you. Your life completely gone down the drain within a matter of twelve hours, and he expects you to be nice and thankful?

‘Whatever. He’s never going to understand how you feel right now- the guy is a complete lunatic. If I just cooperate and don’t intentionally make this harder than it needs to be, this’ll go much smoother. It’s not like I’m going to get out of this, anyways. Might as well not be any more miserable than I have to be.’ You think to yourself.

“Okay.” You say quietly.

“The bathroom is the door to the left. I’ll have someone bring in clothes for you to sleep in.” Negan nods, turning on his heels and heading to exit your room. Just as you think he’s gone and you’re about to head into the shower, you see him enter your room again. A look of sympathy is on his face, something you definitely did not expect to see him from.

“Look, Y/N,” He sighs out. “I wasn’t kidding when I said I know it’s been a long night for you. I fucking get it, and I’m real sorry you had to see that back there. I was brutal, I know. But you gotta understand why I did it. Your boyfriend killed twelve of my men, Y/N. What kind of a leader would I be if I let that slide?”

You’re taken aback by his sudden display of sympathy. You want to believe it, and you almost do. The way he is selling himself to you is so convincing. But memories of what occurred earlier, how he seemed to enjoy killing your friends, comes rushing back to you, ruining his “apology.”

“I understand I’m not your favorite person right now,” Negan continues. “But I don’t want what happened tonight to get in the way of would could happen between us, wife. I don’t want you to be miserable here, which is what will fucking happen if you don’t at least give me a chance.”

You stare at him blankly, unbelieving of what you just heard. Realizing that you’re not going to respond to him, Negan sighs and walks out of your room, shutting the door behind him.

“Un-fucking-believable.” You murmur to yourself, collapsing down onto your new bed.

After some minutes of sitting on the bed, staring into space, you tear yourself out of your trance and force yourself to the bathroom. It’s extravagantly decorated, just as you assumed it would be. The bathtub is almost the size of a hot tub and the shower certainly big enough to fit two people (whether Negan did that on purpose or not, you don’t know.)

You reach into the shower, pulling on the handle to turn the water on. You strip of your clothing, letting the dirty fabric fall to the floor as you wait for the water to warm up. Looking into the mirror, you can’t help but let a few tears drop.

You see the face of a girl who woke up less than twenty-four hours earlier next to her loving boyfriend. You see the face of a girl who was discussing and laughing with her best friend about her pregnancy only shortly after. You see the face of a girl who’s life was turned upside down in a matter of moments, her heart shattered into a million pieces as she had to leave her family. You see a girl with a dirty and tear-stained face, standing naked in the bathroom of the man who just ruined her life.

You see you.

[premiumcable]

Wet

Rick Grimes x Reader

Hi! I love your stuff! Could u pls write one about rick and the reader going out on a run together and they come across a stream and decide to take a swim bc its so hot outside.. its kinda awkward at first and then things get heated? ;) pls and thank u!

Here you go anon, hope you like it! 💙

Warnings: SMUT, swearing, semi-public sex, oral sex, dirty talk, a little fluff at the end

Words: 3,020

A/N: Sorry if I fuck up my description of Georgia, I live on the west coast and had to rely on Google maps!

The sound of someone tapping the bars at the opening of your cell wakes you from your slumber. Looking towards the noise you see Beth standing in the doorway, baby Judith balanced on her left hip.

“Good Morning Y/N. Rick sent me to wake you up, he wants to leave for the run soon.” You rubbed your eyes softly, yawning. Today was the day you guys were heading out to an old abandoned pharmacy about 20 miles away that Glenn and Maggie had come across on a run, but it had been too dark to risk going into and they had no more room for supplies in their car.

The council decided that it was worth another run after the flu that had just hit the prison. Medicine was running dangerously low so you and Rick volunteered to go. It was just the two of you, the rest of the group was either recovering from being sick or taking over the duties of the ill to keep things running smoothly.

“Thanks, Beth. I’m just gonna get changed and be out there in a sec.” You say as you begin to climb out of bed, throwing your legs over the side and sitting up. Standing, you grab a pair of jeans, a tan flannel button-up and quickly throw them on. You put on your boots, lace them up, and then grab your (Y/H/C) locks into a messy bun. Slipping your knife and handgun holsters on your belt, you leave your cell and begin to walk down the cellblock towards the exit where everyone is outside eating breakfast.

“Morning Y/N,” Carol says as she hands you a bowl containing powdered scrambled eggs, your stomach growls at the sight of the hot food.

“Morning, Carol. You seen Rick around? That pharmacy run is today and we’re supposed to be heading out soon,” You say as you accept her offering, digging in immediately as you wait for a response.

“He’s out getting the car all packed up in case something happens and you guys have to stay out later than expected. You know how it is, anything can happen,”

“Yeah, better to be safe than sorry.” You say as you finish up the last of your food, bidding her farewell and heading off to where the cars are all parked. You can see Rick loading up the car with some containers for the medicine and some extra food and water before closing the trunk. He turns towards you as he hears your footsteps echoing closer.

“Hey Y/N, you ready to go? I wanna go ahead and get out there early, feels like its gonna be a scorcher today,” He says, wiping a bit of sweat from his forehead that accumulated from his earlier actions.

“Yeah, I’m all set so we can leave whenever you’re ready,” He nods and says he’s going to go say goodbye to Carl and Judith and then you both can head out. You go ahead and climb into the car, buckling yourself in while you wait for Rick to come back.

A couple of minutes pass and the drive side door opens, Rick stepping his foot into the car before sitting down. He turns the key in the ignition before looking over at you.

“Ready to go?” He asks with a smile.

“Let’s do this, Grimes.” You reply, grinning, as he shifts the car in drive and starts driving forward towards the gate. Maggie opens it and you both wave at her on your way out.

You pull the map out of the glove compartment and look at the city circled on the map.

“Alright so the pharmacy is in Newnan, it’s about 20 miles northwest of here. So it shouldn’t take too long to get there, all we gotta do is get on route 16 and it’s a straight shot.” He nods at your words as he drives down the road away from the prison.

You’re both quiet on the drive to the pharmacy, him focusing on the road ahead as you watch the scenery pass by through the window on your right. You’d never get used to the emptiness of this world, you think as miles stretch without you seeing a single person. Well, a live person, that is.

You’re pulled from your thoughts as Rick pulls up to the pharmacy and turns off the ignition.

“Well, here we are.” He says, smiling at you before exiting the car and grabbing a pack from the trunk. Looking around, you don’t see anything suspicious as you both walk up to the entrance. From the size of the pharmacy, you can tell that Newnan is a small town, very much unlike the memories you have of growing up on the west coast in a big city.

Rick knocks his elbow on the front window, hoping to draw out any walkers before you guys go inside. About a minute goes by and you don’t hear or see anything so you both head towards the door. Rick goes in front of you, raising his gun and sweeping the area for any signs of danger. Pulling your knife from your belt, you do the same.

After walking through the pharmacy and seeing that the coast was clear, you both walk behind the counter to where the medicine bottles are stored. There was so much, all of this medicine would keep you guys stocked for months. Opening your bags, you both start grabbing everything off the shelves and stuffing them in the duffel bags you brought.

It takes about half an hour to gather all the medicine and you take the liberty of looking around the pharmacy for other supplies while Rick loads everything up for the trip back home. You grab a few essentials you think the group might need before heading outside where Rick was waiting in the car.

As soon as you exited the store, you could feel the sun beating down on you. It must have gotten at least 10 to 15 degrees hotter while you guys were inside. Tossing the items you grabbed for everyone into the backseat, you got back in the car.

“You weren’t kidding, it’s so hot out here. I feel like I’m gonna melt.” You say dramatically, fanning yourself with your hand, trying to cool down a bit. He laughs softly at you before putting the car in drive and leaving the small town behind.

“Rick, you’re gonna have to put a window down or something. I’m literally dying over here!” You say before spotting a sign that says “EAST NEWNAN LAKE – 5 miles”. You smile as you turn towards Rick.

“Can we please stop Rick? Please please please!” You say, motioning towards the sign. A frown crosses his face.

“Y/N, we should really be getting back.” He says and you push your bottom lip out, pouting softly.

“Please Rick, please? Can we stop, just for a little bit! I promise I won’t complain for the rest of the drive.” You say and you can tell he’s giving in to your request.

“Alright, alright, anything to shut you up.” He teases and you push his arm lightly in response, laughing.

He takes the exit and turns down an old dirt road with a sign pointing that the lake was that way. Driving down the road, you start fidgeting excitedly as the lake comes into view. You open the door as soon as Rick puts the car in park.

You sit at one of the benches surrounding the lake and pull your boots and socks off before walking towards the water. You moan in satisfaction as the cold water touches your feet. Looking back at the car, you see Rick sitting on the hood of the car, arms crossed, watching you from a distance.

“You’re not gonna make me swim all by myself are you, Officer Friendly?” You say teasingly.

“You’re not even swimming, you’re just dipping your toes in the water,” He jests in return. Laughing, you walk over towards him. You grab his hand and pull him over towards the water.

“Come on Rick! Lighten up a little,” You say, laughing as he sighs playfully behind you. He kicks off his shoes before stepping into the water.

“You were right, Y/N. This isn’t too bad.” He says, as he pulls his button up from his jeans and begins undoing it. You watch him pull the shirt from his shoulders, admiring his body. Sweat runs down his toned chest, running across his abs before disappearing below the waistband of his jeans. You lick your lips at the sight, but a slight cough breaks your attention. Rick is standing still, gazing at you amusedly with his hands on his hips. You blush at the realization that you’ve been caught ogling him.

“Oh, sorry! I’ll give you your privacy.” You say before turning around and giving him his privacy. Kicking yourself at your awkwardness, you stare at your feet, wanting the Earth to open up and swallow you that very minute.

“Alright, Y/N. You can turn around now.” You hear from behind and you turn to see Rick in the lake, water up to his chest.

“Look the other way Grimes, I’m comin’ in. No peeking!” You joke as you disrobe quickly before walking in the water, pulling your hair down as you descent. You let out a little yelp at how cold the water is compared to you. Swimming deeper into the lake, you groan as your body begins to cool down. This was exactly what you needed.

“You feeling better, Y/N?” You hear Rick say and you look over at him and nod.

“Yes, much. You have no idea how hot I was in that car, Rick.”

“I reckon I got some idea,” He says, his voice low and your eyes widen a bit, was he flirting with you? Shaking your head at the thought, you laugh it off and immerse yourself under the water before coming back up and slicking your hair back with your fingers.

You both keep to yourselves for the rest of your time in the water; an awkward silence coming over you both after his earlier statement. Feeling your hand start to prune up, you called over to Rick. He was treading water about 10 feet away from you, his head pointed up towards the sky, relishing in the quiet.

“We should probably be getting back, Rick.” You say as you head towards the bank where your clothes are lying in a heap. He lets out a sound of agreement and you can hear him as he moves in the same direction.

“I’ll get out first Grimes,” You say as you climb out of the water, expecting that he’s turned his back to you. Bending down, you grab your blue, cotton panties. You lift your leg to put them on but you're interrupted by a hand on your waist.

“Are we really gonna leave this unresolved, Y/N?” A husky voice inquires behind you and you spin around. You turn to see Rick standing close to you, his eyes dark with lust.

“Rick! What are you doing?” You exclaim in shock.

“Come on, Y/N. Don’t play dumb, you know exactly what’s going on here.” He says, placing his rough hand against your cheek, running index finger over your bottom lip. His other hand wraps around your waist as he jerks you close to him before crashing his lips down to yours.

Groaning, you immediately respond and run your hands up his chest to his face. Placing your hands on his cheeks, you open your mouth slightly and groan as his tongue intertwines with yours. Rick’s hand migrates down to your ass and he grabs a handful, a soft cry slips from your mouth at his actions.

Pulling his lips away from yours, he kisses down your neck, sucking softly before wrapping his lips around your left nipple. You moan at the delicious feeling of his beard on your skin.

“Rick!” You cry, putting your fingers in his hair and holding his head to your chest, as you relish in the sensations his mouth was causing. The need to feel his lips back on yours emerges and you pull his mouth back to yours. Your hand drifts down his chest, wrapping around his prominent erection. He felt heavy in your hand, and so thick. Gathering the fluid from the head, you begin stroking him up and down. He breaks the kiss, his head falling to your shoulder, his mouth letting out delicious groans and obscenities.

“Oh fuck, Y/N.” He says as you stroke him faster, rotating your fist slightly when you stroke upward. His hand moves down to your wrists, stopping your movements before pulling your hand away. You pout slightly.

“I’m not gonna last if you keep doing that. Now if you want me to come all over your hand go right ahead, but I’ve got some other ideas.” A shiver races down your spine at his words. Your mind immediately flashes to the thought of him fucking you roughly, slamming that big cock in your pussy as you cry out in pleasure.

“Mmmmmm, what do you have in mind?” You ask, running your finger over his chest lightly.

“Well, how about you get down on your hands and knees and I pound that tight little pussy. Would you like that, Y/N? Hmm?” Rick says, his voice husky as he runs his fingers through your folds before moving upwards, touching your clit.

“Fuck, you’re soaked.” He says as you whimper and nod before doing as he said. Turning your head over your shoulder, you can see him kneel behind you. He runs his hands over your ass before bending down and licking your cunt.

“Rick, oh my god!” You cry, digging your fingers into the soft ground beneath you.

“Fuck, Y/N. You taste so sweet, I could eat you all day.” He says before diving back between your legs. Your eyes roll back from the pleasure and you can feel your orgasm approaching.

“Fuck me, Rick! Oh my god, please fuck me. I want your cock inside me when I cum.” You whimper.

Your words elicit a deep groan from him and he pulls his mouth away from your soaked opening, only to replace it with the blunt head of his cock. Your head drops down and you let out a loud moan at the feeling of him thrusting his length inside you.

“Fuck, Y/N. Not so loud. We don’t want to attract any attention, now do we?” He admonishes as he begins moving. He feels incredible, each drag of his thick cock along your walls hurdling you closer to your release.

“Oh my god, Rick! You fuck me so good!” You cry out and he pulls you back towards him so your back is against his chest while he fucks you. His hands run over your chest, touching your breasts before drifting downwards. You whimper as his finger circles your clit, his other hand runs under your chin, turning your face towards him as he takes your lips with his. You can taste yourself on his tongue and you groan into his mouth.

“Come on Rick, fuck me harder!” You cry and fall back forward onto all fours and his hands firmly grasp your hips, smacking into you with brutal force. You scream out in pleasure and he quickly moves forward, placing his hand over your mouth to muffle your cries.

“Is this what you wanted? Fuck, I’m never gonna get tired of fucking you.” His words elicit a groan from your throat.

His punishing thrusts push your closer and closer to your climax and you can feel your walls beginning to tighten around his erection. Your moans become more frequent and he keeps his hand over your mouth to mask them.

“Fuck, Y/N. You’re getting close, aren’t you? I can feel that pussy squeezing me. So fucking tight.” Rick says and you nod at his words. He begins to thrust faster in response, pushing your closer to the edge.

“Come on baby, cum all over my cock.” His words and a particularly well-placed thrust catapults your into your release and you scream into his palm. Your pussy gushes liquid down his cock and his thrusts begin to lose rhythm at the sensation.

“Fuck, Y/N. I’m gonna cum.” He says as he pulls his hand away from your mouth, resting it on your hip.

“Cum in my mouth, Rick, please?” You ask, catching him off guard. Your request causes a loud groan to tumble from his lips.

“Oh fuck. Get over here,” He says and you turn around before grasping his erection in your hand and sucking the tip into your mouth as your hand strokes up and down his shaft. You can feel him beginning to twitch in your mouth.

He lets out a long low groan as he spurts of his cum fill your mouth. Looking up at him you see his head is thrown back; his neck tense and you can see the tendons in his neck tightening as he clenches his jaw. Swallowing his load, you pull back from his cock and your gazes meet. You lean over and kiss him softly before pulling back.

“We should be getting home,” You say, standing up. He lets out a sound of agreement and you both wash the dirt from your legs before getting dressed and heading back up to the car. On the drive back to the prison, you sit in comfortable silence.

Resting your head against the seat, you close your eyes in contentment. The feeling of Rick’s hand on your thigh catches your attention and your gaze moves over to Rick. His eyes are still on the road, but you can see a small smile on his lips. You run your hand over his and take it with yours, he looks over at you before pulling your joined hands together and kissing the back of your hand as the prison comes into view.

Hope you enjoyed it! Thank you for reading. Feel free to send in your requests!

[reedusdixonfictionaddiction]

The Summer in Georgia

Chapter 26. …or is it the Whole Penis Envy Thing?

Thursday, Isabella went to the station with Rick. There were several things that she still needed to take care of before the dance Saturday night. She was there in an informal capacity, since Rick still hadn’t received her paper work from New York. He assured her he was keeping track of her hours and all the hard work she was doing and would pay her as soon as he got the info he needed to fill out her tax papers. Rick paid her for keeping the house, of course, plus a little extra and he made sure she knew that if she did need more money, he’d gladly pay her out of his own pocket. She said, not to worry about it, she had everything she needed and gave him a hug.

Isabella enjoyed being at the station. She really liked everyone, especially Chris and Glenn and everyone was so nice to her. She felt useful and important and they all treated her just that way. Rick had given her a little office space with a phone and a laptop. She stayed busy making phone calls and faxing things pertaining to the party, she’d put out at least half a dozen fires and was quickly coming to the end of her to do list. She thought she’d take a break, so she found Rick in his office and he invited her to sit down and talk.

“Have you heard from your brother at all, since you’ve been at my house?” Rick asked her.

“No, but I called him a couple of days ago to see how he was. He didn’t answer, so I called his office and they said, he’d been out of town since last week. I guess he and his family are on vacation.” She said, looking down.

“I thought he would have called you to see how you were settling in. You know, just to check on you.”

“Me too, but I’m sure he’s really busy. He’s not used to me being around, so maybe he forgot.” She laughed. She tried to play it off like she was joking, but in all reality, she knew he probably just didn’t care.

Rick smiled, but he was thinking the same thing. “I’m going to give him a call, you know, just to let him know you’re doing so well. You are doing alright, aren’t you? I mean you’re happy and feel safe with us?” Rick asked.

“Oh my gosh, yes! I feel very safe with you and I’m so, so happy. I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy in my life. I just love you guys so much and you have been so good to me. You’re like my family now.” Isabella said with a sad smile.

“Good! I’m glad to hear that. We love you too. Especially Daryl.” He laughed and winked at her. She smiled shyly and giggled. “I want you to know that if there’s ever anything you need or want, all you have to do is tell one of us and we’ll take care of it. Okay?”

“Okay. Thank you. The same goes for you too. I wish I could do more for you guys, it doesn’t seem like I’m doing nearly enough to pay you back for all the kindness you’ve shown me.”

“You’re doing plenty, trust me. You’re a great kid, honey. You’ve made my home feel like a home again, thank you for that. It’s been hard since Lori left, it’s been lonely, but since you’ve been here, things seem ok again. You’re like a daughter to me or at least a little sister.” Rick said sweetly.

This brought tears to her eyes. He thought of her as family. “Thank you.” She said, grabbing a tissue off his desk and dabbing her eyes with it. She was getting ready to sit back down when she felt a presence behind her.

“Thank you for what?” A familiar voice asked. It was Daryl.

Isabella whirled around with a huge smile on her face. “Hi!! I can’t believe you’re here. Yay!” She squealed, wrapping her arms around him and hugging tight.

Both Rick and Daryl laughed. Daryl squeezed her back quickly and then kind of pushed her away. He still felt a little uncomfortable with public displays of affection. Just then Glenn popped his head in the doorway.

“Hey Rick!” Glenn said kind of annoyed.

“Oh, Glenn. I’m glad you’re here. I need to tell you something. I’m so…” Rick started, when Glenn cut him off mid-sentence.

“Yeah! I know what you’re gonna’ say. Chris just told me I have to work Saturday night. What the fuck? Me and Maggie were going to the dance.” Glenn exclaimed.

“I know, I know. I’m sorry, but I need you. You’ll be working the dance, so you can still spend some time with Maggie, I just don’t have anyone else. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll be working too.” Rick explained.

“Why do ya’ gotta’ work? I though ya’ was bringin’ Jessie.” Daryl asked. Before Rick could answer, Glenn cut in again.

“Do I have to be in uniform?” Glenn asked.

“Yes, but so do I.” He said to Glenn. Then he turned to Daryl. “She’s still coming. She’ll just have to drive herself. I thought the county would spring for security, but they said, ‘no’, so this is the way it’s got to be.” Rick explained.

Daryl shook his head in understanding, but inside he was getting nervous. This would be his first real date, out in front of God and everyone. He thought he’d have Rick and his other friends there as a buffer, someone to take the focus off him being there. Everyone in the county would be there and they’d all be looking at him and passing judgement on him, as usual. They’d see Isabella with him and wonder what was wrong with her to be with a guy like him. They’d be passing judgement on her too. He didn’t want her go through that. She didn’t deserve it. His heart was racing and his palms were getting sweaty, he was having a panic attack. He hadn’t felt like that in a very long time. At that moment, he would have done anything to get out of going to that dance.

“Maggie’s gonna’ be pissed.” Glenn said and walked away. Rick just shrugged his shoulders, what could he do.

“So, are you here to take this beautiful girl to lunch?” Rick asked Daryl. Daryl was still deep in thought. “Hey, you okay”

“What? Yeah, I’m fine.” He answered. “Ya’ hungry? Ya’ wanna’ get lunch with us?” Daryl asked Rick.

“No, you two go and have a good time. I’ve got shit to take care of here. Are you sure you’re okay? You look kinda’ out of sorts. What’s up?

“Huh? Nothin’, I’m fine.” He said then turned to Isabella. “Ya’ ready? Where do ya’ wanna’ eat today?”

“Can we go to that little Italian place over by the movie theatre?”

“Yeah, that sounds good.” Daryl said. “I’m gonna’ take a piss before we go. I’ll be right back.” He said and walked off.

When Daryl came out of the bathroom one of the other deputies stopped him in the front to ask him a question. Daryl had his back to the front door facing Rick’s office, he was trying to concentrate on what the deputy was saying, but Isabella was in his sightline, she stepped to the side and he saw Charlie standing there beside her with his arm around her shoulder. She moved away from Charlie, then turned and smiled at Daryl. He smiled back at her, but inside he was fuming. His stomach started to turn, he wasn’t hungry anymore. He finished talking to the deputy, so he hollered to Isabella.

“Hey, rabbit. Let’s go.” Daryl hollered. She turned and put her finger up, signaling that she needed another minute. Then he heard someone say,

“Well, as I live and breathe. Is that my old pal, Daryl Dixon?”

Isabella, Rick and Charlie were just coming out of the office. Daryl recognized the voice right away. He winced and turned around.

“Jax. What’s up?” Daryl said to the man standing behind him.

“No much, Daryl. What’s up with you?” Jax said back.

Daryl didn’t answer him. He just stood there silently.

“What’s a matter, cat got yer tongue?” Jax asked with a sly smirk on his face.

Just then Isabella came up behind Daryl and slipped her hand into his. Rick and Charlie looked at each other with raised eyebrows and stood back observing the interaction between the two men. Daryl glanced down at Isabella quickly, he wished she’d stayed in Rick’s office for a bit longer, but there she was.

“Who’s this?” Jax asked, looking Isabella up and down.

Daryl turned to Isabella and told her to go wait in the truck. She asked him ‘why’, but he didn’t have an answer, so he just stood there unsure of what to do next. Isabella looked up at Daryl, wondering why he wasn’t introducing her.

Daryl just stood there, so Isabella said, “Hi, I’m Isabella.”

“HellOH, Isabella.” Jax said flirtatiously, holding out his hand.

Isabella reached out her hand, but he didn’t shake it, he kissed the back of it. This embarrassed her causing her to pull back quickly. Daryl told her to go get in the truck again. She just looked up at him with a confused look on her face. She turned back to Jax and said,

“I’m sorry, what’s your name?”

“No, I’m sorry. I’m Jax.” He said with a smile, then looked over at Daryl, who was glaring at him.

Isabella remembered the name, but he didn’t look like she imagined. He was about 5’10” with sandy blonde hair, he wore it slicked back with a ponytail in the back. He was wearing jeans, a t-shirt and a black leather biker vest and big black biker boots. He had the same kind of facial hair as Daryl, only his goatee was a bit longer. He was very good looking. Daryl had told her the story of their friendship, but had been vague when telling her why the friendship ended. She got the idea in her head that maybe it ended on a bad note. She felt defensive and protective of Daryl, she didn’t know what happened between the two men, but she just knew Jax had done something to hurt him. Now here he was flirting with her, right in front of him.

“It’s nice to meet you.” She said bluntly.

“Daryl and me go way back. Isn’t that right Daryl?” Jax said eyeballing him.

“Yeah, way back.” Daryl said flatly. “Whatta’ ya’ doin’ here?”

“Not that it’s any of yer business, but I’m followin’ up on a robbery. Someone broke into my shop and stole a bunch a shit.  Gosh Daryl, yer not making me feel very welcome.” Jax said sarcastically.

Daryl didn’t answer back.

“I can’t believe yer still wearin’ that vest. Ya’ think ya’ would’ve upgraded by now. Ya’ like mine?” Jax said, turning around so Daryl could see the back of his vest. It had ‘Men of Mayhem’ embroidered on the back.

Daryl nodded his head, acknowledging Jax’s vest. “Ya’ know I don’t like change.” He said.

Jax shook his head back and forth. “Same ol’ Daryl. Nothin’ ever changes. ‘Cept one thing, I see ya’ got better taste in women now. Is this yer lady?” He said looking at Isabella.

Daryl cringed at the ‘same ol’ Daryl’ comment. He had changed, but some people refused to see this, no matter how hard he tried to prove himself. It burned him that Jax was one of these people. Rick and Charlie knew their past, they knew the anguish that Daryl must have been in. They looked at each other and took a deep breath in.

Daryl didn’t know what to say. He was still trying to wrap his mind around what was happening. He had seen Jax a few times since their friendship ended, but they always seemed to find a way to avoid contact. Now, here he was on Daryl’s turf, flirting with Daryl’s girl, talking to him as if nothing had ever happened. He was beyond uncomfortable, he didn’t want to be there, he didn’t want to remember what had happened between them. He didn’t want Isabella to know, it would have humiliated him. Daryl wished that she had just gone and waited in the truck. So, what was he supposed to do, was he supposed to say that Isabella was his girl? He didn’t like being put on the spot about something he hadn’t quite figured out himself. He didn’t want to answer that question, not to him, especially. Daryl was afraid that it would jinx him. That he and Jax’s past would come back and ruin his future.

Isabella was very uncomfortable and getting embarrassed. Jax had asked Daryl a question about her and Daryl wasn’t answering. Isabella was getting angry, but not at Daryl, she was thinking that whatever this guy had done to him must have been bad, so bad that Daryl was afraid to speak. She wanted to tell this guy off, to give him a piece of her mind, but she had no idea what unspeakable crime he had committed against her man. Isabella wished she had gone to wait in the truck, anything to be out of the tension that was so obvious between these two old friends. But she couldn’t run out, she was stuck. She did the only thing she could do, she squeezed Daryl’s hand, hoping it would prompt him to speak.

“Damn, Daryl. Used ta’ I could never get ya’ ta shut up and now look at ya’.” Jax laughed.

“Yeah, she’s my girl.” Daryl finally said. Rick and Charlie finally exhaled. Isabella relaxed a little. “Why?” He added.

“Just wonderin’. Ya’ seemed ta’ have raised the bar, when it comes to women. Glad ta’ see that.” He said to Daryl with a smile. Then he turned to Isabella and said, “Ol’ Daryl here never had much sense when it came to women. He liked ‘em fast and dirty. Ya’ shoulda’ seen some these girls. God, they were bad.” He laughed and shook his head.

Isabella was pissed and she couldn’t understand why Daryl wasn’t defending himself. Charlie stepped forward to say something, but Rick grabbed his arm and shook his head at him.

“Remember that one girl that ya’ hooked up with, the one that told ya’ she loved ya’ before ya’ even… Well, I’m sure ya’ remember.” He said to Daryl. “She was a real winner, Isabella.” He said laughing, shaking his head. “Daryl had all kinds a girls and he kept ‘em all to himself, never left any for the rest of us. He didn’t have ‘em long though, ol’ love ‘em and leave ‘em Daryl is what we called him. But I’m sure it’s different with you. You seem ta’ have some class.” He said winking at Isabella.

That was it. She had had enough. He was purposely trying to make Daryl look bad and she wasn’t going to stand there and let it happen.

“Why are you doing that?” She asked him. Daryl squeezed her hand and said a quiet, ‘stop’, but she just ignored him.

“Doing what?” Jax answered.

“Bringing up Daryl’s past, trying to embarrass him in front of me, trying to make him look bad. You’re not saying anything I haven’t already heard; he’s told me about his past.” She barked.

Jax laughed. “Really? Is that what I’m doin’? Why would I want to embarrass my ol’ friend like that? Besides I don’t think he gets embarrassed, the Daryl I knew don’t have no shame.” He said sarcastically. “Really, I don’t mean no harm, I’m just givin’ him a hard time. It’s what old friends do, right Daryl? I think it’s just great that you’ve found yerself a nice girl, after all those others. God, there were so many others.”

“Why do you keep commenting on that? I told you that I know about all the girls.” Daryl told her to stop again, she told him ‘no’ and kept going. “Are you jealous or something? Ohhh, or is it the whole penis envy thing? You see I know about that too. Obviously, you’ve got some pretty big balls to stand here and talk a lot of BS right in front of him and me. The thing is, I’ve always heard that if someone has big balls, they don’t have much else going on down there. So, yeah! I’m going with penis envy.”

Jax laughed outright. Rick and Charlie were trying to keep their laughter in. Daryl shut his eyes tight and shook his head in disbelief.

He looked down at Isabella and said, “Let’s go! C’mon, now!” And pulled her out the door.

Jax was still laughing. When he finally caught his breath, he asked Rick and Charlie, “Who is that fresh angel? I think I’m in love!”

Rick laughed.

Charlie just shook his head and said, “Join the club.”