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The rain hammering down outside matched the atmosphere inside the house perfectly as you stood on one side of the room, annoyance clear across your face as you glared at Daryl who was leaning against the door frame, watching you from behind his hair.
“I told ya I ain’t arguing with ya,” Daryl told you, his voice steady as you rolled your eyes and shook your head at him. “It’s too dangerous, I ain’t letting you go out there.”
“But it’s fine for you to go?” You snapped at him, the two of you running around in circles, the same conversation that had started over an hour ago when Daryl told you he was going out to see if they could find anything out about the latest threat to Alexandria and you had to stay here. “I can take care of myself, Daryl!”
“I ain’t saying you can’t!” Daryl shot back, anger towards the new group coursing through his veins for causing the two of you to argue, before this Daryl couldn’t remember the last time the two of you had been against each other.
“So then I can go?” You asked, raising an eyebrow in his direction and scoffing as he shook his head. “Course I can’t because in your head I’m just some idiot who can’t handle herself right, not like I’ve survived this long and taken out more walkers than either of us can count.”
“C’mon Y/N, that ain’t fair and you know it,” He told you gruffly, shaking his head again, “Course ya can handle yourself, nobody’s saying you can’t but there’s other people headin’ out, you don’t need to be out there.”
“Why not? I can help, Daryl!” You were never one to sit back and let the fight pass you by, especially not when your people, your friends, were being hurt and killed. Watching as a group Aaron had gone out with return bruised, bloody and broken had you cleaning your weapons, ready for what was to come and now Daryl was the one stopping you from helping.
“I ain’t risking you!” Daryl snapped, pushing away from the door frame and taking a step towards you. He watched as your nose flared and your eyebrows knitted together as you took in his words before you let out a shaky, disbelieving laugh.
“But it’s ok to risk yourself?” You asked him, all the anger seemingly draining from your voice. “You know I can handle myself.”
“Against walkers.” Daryl said, lowering his voice and desperately wanting to take another step closer to you but he knew you wouldn’t let him get close right now.
“So you don’t think I can handle myself?” He watched as you looked away from him, turning to face the window and looking out towards the gate where the car was being loaded.
“I already said I know ya can but we don’t even know what we’re dealing with, we know nothin’ about these people. I don’t care if ya hate me for it, Y/N/N, but I ain’t risking you, no way.” Daryl told you and watched as you shook your head again but didn’t have a chance to answer as a knock sounded from the front door.
“Daryl? You ready to head out?” You heard Rick call from outside and glanced over your shoulder, watching as Daryl looked from the door and back to you with a pleading expression across his face, one that would usually have your glare softening into a smile but this time you just gestured to the door with a nod of your head.
“You should go.” Daryl barely found himself suppressing a flinch at the coldness of your tone but he stood by his decision, he’d rather have you alive and hate him than dead and not able to love him.
Daryl moved over to you, hating the way your whole body tensed but still he leaned in close and pressed a kiss to your forehead before he pulled away and headed towards the front door, glancing back over at you, a soft sigh leaving his lips as he grabbed the door knob.
“Love you.” He said quietly into the tense silence and didn’t give you a chance to reply as he slipped out of the door and past Rick who watched him go with a concerned look before following after him.
Days seem to pass by in a blur and you found yourself out of the house more than you were in it, unable to sit around without letting the last conversation you had with Daryl invade your mind, constantly playing like it was stuck on a loop. You hated that he hadn’t let you go but now you hated that he’d left and you hadn’t told him you loved him, hated that something could happen to him and the last thing he’d remember about you would be an argument.
You shook your head as you sat on the steps to Rick’s house, blinking hard against the sudden wetness in your eyes as you held Judith closer to you, letting your head rest against hers. Two days wasn’t long but it felt like an eternity right now and it took every ounce of self control you had to not leave the walls and search for Daryl.
“You ok?” You heard Carol ask as she came closer to the house but you couldn’t look up, still trying to fight back the tears that threatened to spill. “He’ll be back before you know it.” She told you, taking a seat next to you and letting Judith grab her finger.
“I know,” You sniffed, finally pulling away from Judith and looking up at Carol who smiled sympathetically at you. “He thinks I hate him.” You said quietly, voice barely above a whisper and frowning as she laughed.
“No he doesn’t.” She said making it sound like even the idea of Daryl thinking you hated him was ridiculous. “You two have survived too much together for him to ever think that.”
“I didn’t tell him I loved him.” You said miserably and Carol rolled her eyes but her tone was soft as she spoke, knowing this was one of the first real times in yours and Daryl’s relationship that the two of you had been on bad terms.
“He knows.” She said easily, “He knows you love him and you know he loves you, more than anything in this world. That’s why you’re here and not out there, he knows you’re safer in here than you are outside of these walls-”
“I’m safest wherever he is.” You cut her off, not doubting your words even a little bit causing Carol to smile at you.
“Yeah, you’re probably right but he won’t look at it that way, his job is keeping threats as far away from you as he can, that’s his priority.” Carol told you and you nodded along as he spoke, knowing she was right but still not happy.
“Why can he go out there and risk his life but I can’t?” You asked her, looking at her with wide, watery eyes.
“Because if you die out there he wouldn’t come back from it,” She told you honestly, watching how your eyebrows knitted together as you took her words in before you looked away from her. “If you’re safe here, that’s all that matters to him.”
“And if he dies out there?” You managed to choke out, a single tear managing to slip down your face at the thought.
“Then you’re safe here.” Carol answered and you let out a choked sob as you shook your head.
“He can’t live without me but if he dies I’m supposed to, what, carry on without him?” You asked angrily. “I’m not doing this without him, Carol.”
“I’m not saying he’s right but I do know he’s doing what he thinks is best for you, that’s all he’s ever done. He doesn’t care what happens to him but if anything ever happened to you..” Carol said, trailing off and looking away as she thought of a world without you, knowing exactly how Daryl would react.
“That’s why I should be with him, he watches out for me, I watch out for him.” You told her, eyes pleading with her causing her to laugh softly.
“It’s not me you have to convince, it’s him and trust me that’s a fight you don’t stand a chance in. That man would do anything you asked him but he won’t do anything that puts you in harm's way.” She told you and you knew she was right, loathe as you were to admit it.
“I just want him to come home.” You said softly, resting your cheek on Judith’s head as she leaned against your chest. “I hate fighting with him.”
“He’ll be home before you know it.” Carol promised, her hand resting on your knee and giving it a gentle squeeze.
You sighed as you stepped into the silent house in the early hours of the morning after a long shift on the watchtower, not quite ready to spend another night alone in bed. With another sigh you pulled your shoes off, not bothering to change out of your clothes as you walked into the living room and lay down on the sofa, drifting off to sleep moments after your head hit the pillow.
Daryl was glad to see the walls of Alexandria, exhausted and ready to collapse into bed with you after two days of searching for any signs of the newest threat. They’d found a small group of members who had all been killed when it became clear that they would not be giving up their plans or information about their group.
With a quick goodbye to the rest of his group Daryl walked up to the house and opened the door as soundlessly as he could, not wanting to wake you at such a late hour. Standing in the hallway he slipped his boots off before walking further into the house, intending to head upstairs and into bed with you before a noise from the living room stopped him.
Pulling a knife out, Daryl gripped it and made his way over to the doorway, eyes darting around, quickly adjusting to the darkness before a smile made its way onto his face and he pocketed the weapon.
He didn’t know just how long he stood in the doorway for, smiling dumbly over at you as you slept but eventually he made his way upstairs, quickly changing into something less bloody and tugged a blanket from your bedroom over his shoulder before he made his way back downstairs.
The sofa definitely wasn’t big enough for the two of you but somehow Daryl managed to shift you enough so he could lay down before bringing you close to him, laying you on his chest and wrapping the blanket around the pair of you before his arms wrapped around you. He couldn’t stop the soft smile that spread across his face as you mumbled something he couldn’t make out and gripped his shirt in your fist.
With a lingering kiss to the top of your head Daryl let his eyes fall shut and drifted off to sleep, glad to finally have you back in his arms.
You woke up as light force its way past you closed eyelids causing you to groan slightly as you cuddled further into the warm chest underneath you, only to tense a moment later when you registered that there shouldn’t be a warm chest underneath you unless-
Your eyes opened and a tired smile spread across your face as you tilted your head to look up at Daryl who was still asleep with his arms wrapped around you, probably for the best considering how close you were to the edge of the sofa.
Daryl scrunched his eyes together as he woke up, frowning as he felt something against his chest. Upon opening his eyes a smile appeared on his face as he watched you trace shapeless patterns into his chest. He continues to watch you for a few minutes before he shifts and places a kiss on your head.
“Mornin’,” He greets, voice thick with sleep and you tilted your head to face him, smiling softly up at him
“Morning, you okay?” You ask him, smoothing your palm against his chest and looking over his face again as he nods.
“All good, Y/N/N.” He assures you, his thumb brushing up and down against your hip.
There was a silence that stretched between the two of you, an uncomfortable silence that neither of you had experienced with each other since the early days when you’d just met and weren’t too sure of each other yet. Daryl hated that one fight seemed to tip you both off balance so much, you hated it too.
“Do you hate me?” Daryl finally forced himself to ask, the conversation from before he had left not once leaving his mind the entire time he was gone. He watched as you rolled your eyes at the question before you shifted so you could see him better.
“I don’t like the fact you won’t let me come with you,” You told him honestly, for so long it had never been an issue, the two of you outside together but now you had stable walls, you had safety and you knew Daryl’s top priority was your safety. “We’re better together. You know I can handle myself and you can trust me to watch your back.”
“S’not that,” Daryl replied, voice quiet as he spoke, “I trust ya to have my back and I know ya can fight, ain’t nobody doubting that. I just-” Here he trailed off as he shook his head, taking a moment to compose himself before speaking again, “I can’t lose you, not you, Y/N, anything happened to you…”
“You can’t protect me forever.” You told him softly, smiling as he scoffed at you with an eye roll.
“Yeah, watch me.” He told you, causing you to let out a soft laugh.
“Surely I’m safer with you then, I mean what if you’re gone and something happens here? I like it here, Daryl, but I don’t want to be here all the time. I’m meant to be out there, I’m meant to be with you.” You watched as Daryl closed his eyes and knew your words were having the desired impact.
“Hate it when you’re right.” He grumbled causing you to grin up at him and he opened his eyes before letting his forehead thump gently against yours.
“Does that mean I get to come next time?” You asked, watching as he rolled his eyes.
“Damn pain in my ass, you know that?” Daryl told you and you couldn’t help but laugh as you nodded, causing him to smile and lean over to press his lips to yours in a soft kiss that lasted only a moment or two, the two of you pulling away with matching smiles and eyes that held so much warmth.
“But you love me.” You stated watching as the man’s smile grew and he leaned down again for another quick kiss.
“Damn right I do.” He confirmed as he pulled away briefly before connecting your lips together again, deepening the kiss as he pulled you as close as possible.
It wasn’t long before the two of you were pulling away, foreheads resting against each other as you gasped for air, one of Daryl’s hands coming up to brush against your cheeks and you turned your face so that you could press a soft kiss to his palm.
“I love you too, Daryl.” You whispered against his hand, swearing that no matter how mad you were in a moment, you would always say those words to him.