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The first time Daryl Dixon laid eyes on Connie Smith, he was perplexed. He was in the school’s bookstore, standing in line to rent some books for the semester’s courses when he noticed the girl standing behind the desk. She was on the shorter side, had cinnamon-tinged brown skin, and her curly hair was in a ponytail atop her head. She was cute. Gorgeous, even.
He’d never seen her there before in the, now, three times he’s had to go make a trip to the bookstore and her presence intrigued him. He wondered if she was a new employee or if she’d been there and he’d just never noticed her before. But Daryl was sure he’d notice that face.
When he made his way up to the register, Connie smiled and pointed to a button pinned next to her name tag that read: “Hi! I’m deaf.” Daryl nodded slowly and pulled out his phone, opening his notes app. Thank God he had his font set on a decent size.
“Hi. Wanna rent these.”
Daryl watched as her nimble fingers darted across the keyboard of a monitor that was to the side of her and pressed enter before beginning to scan the barcodes on the textbooks in front of her.
“Gotcha! Would that be all for you today?” The laptop spoke in a monotone voice. Daryl nodded when Connie looked at him with a furrow in her brow. As Connie pressed the button on the system before her, Daryl wanted to ask her something, anything. Was she new to the bookstore? New to the school? Is she a student at all? He’d never seen her before.
However, before he knew it, Daryl was being handed a bag full of textbooks and he walked away without knowing a thing about the new cashier at the bookstore. But that was okay, sort of. It didn’t feel right to only talk to her through typing words on his phone, anyway.
When he returned to his sophomore dorm with the books in tow, Daryl was met with the sight of his roommate, Rick, who he’s known since they were 5, and Rick’s girlfriend, Michonne, making out on Rick’s bed. He grunted, which the pair either ignored or didn’t hear--knowing them, it was the former--so Daryl loudly plunked his textbooks onto his desk.
The pair startled apart with swollen lips and hazy eyes. “Oh, hey, Daryl,” Rick smiled, pushing his hair back from the mess Michonne’s fingers made. Daryl rolled his eyes and didn’t greet him back, instead opting for, “Shoulda put a sock.”
Michonne winced, “Yeah, sorry. That wasn’t planned.”
Daryl sat at his desk and began to take off his shoes, grunting again. Though Rick and Michonne have been together since practically the start of freshman year, the pair tended to act as if they were 14-year-olds discovering love for the first time. And, in a way, they were. Or at least Rick was. The older boy had had a few girlfriends for short stints throughout high school and even a long-term one, Lori Peterson, during Rick and Daryl’s Junior year. But, as Rick himself has said and Daryl can confirm, no one was like Michonne.
The pair met at some meeting during Freshman orientation and instantly clicked. Daryl had heard more than his fair share of how gorgeous Michonne was, how smart she was, and oh my god, dude, Michonne’s so funny. You know what she said? that when the pair finally got together after two weeks, Daryl nearly threw a party.
But then, it somehow became worse and Daryl now dealt with his overly amorous friends unknowingly flaunting their perfect relationship in his face everyday.
Rick nodded to himself as he watched Daryl, correctly reading his grunt. “Yeah, not a good excuse there, baby.” He kissed Michonne’s shoulder. “Sorry, Daryl.”
Daryl waved his hand in dismissal before beginning to remove his books from the bookstore bag.
“Oh, yeah!” Rick exclaimed. “Was the line long?”
Daryl shook his head no.
“Cool,” Rick said. “Wanna go down there now?” He directed this question to Michonne, who answered yes.
“The cashier’s deaf,” Daryl informed. “Just to let you know.” He kept his eyes on his books, aimlessly lifting and flipping through them one by one.
From the corner of his eye, Daryl could see Michonne squint and tilt her head, a habit she inherited from Rick, as she studied him.
If she noticed the reddening of Daryl’s cheeks, she didn’t say anything. “Thanks.” The loc’d beauty turned her attention to her boyfriend, “Let’s go before it gets packed in there.”
Daryl kept his attention on his textbooks, this time putting the ones he’ll need for tomorrow’s classes, into his backpack, as Rick and Michonne straightened their clothes and gathered some things before walking out the door, telling Daryl they’d see him soon.
As Daryl was going through his bag, making sure he was prepared for the next day, he realized he needed a calculator and new pens. He guessed he’d have to go back to the bookstore.
The next day saw Daryl walking through the aisles of the bookstore. When he walked in, the place was packed with students rushing to get their textbooks at the very last minute so he went to grab the items he needed. The line was still long, though, so he'd been lingering around the aisles, keeping one eye on Connie as she and the other cashier, Aaron--who Daryl was familiar with--dealt with the onslaught of impatient students.
Eventually, both lines settled down, leaving Daryl able to stand in the third spot of Connie’s line. The products the student currently at the register was buying was taking a particularly long time, leaving Aaron free to take the person standing in line behind them.
They only had three books while the person in front of Daryl had at least 5 more to go. He watched anxiously, his eyes bouncing back and forth between Connie’s register and Aaron’s, praying for things to go his way. As luck would have it, the student in Aaron’s line was having problems with their book voucher just as Connie finally printed a very long receipt for the customer in front of her.
Daryl fought to keep from smirking in victory as the student walked away with a hefty load and he stepped in front of Connie. He watched as she sighed deeply prior to turning to him and smiling widely. She turned to her mechanical assistant and typed out, “Hi, again! How are you?”
Setting down his calculator and pens, Daryl grabbed the notepad and Sharpie that he swiped from Rick’s desk out of his back pocket. He opened the pad and the marker and began to write.
“Okay. You?”
“Better now that the rush is gone!” The look she made to accompany the computer speaking her words was adorable.
Daryl’s lips moved slightly in the corners before he flipped to a new page.
“Good. These all I got today.” He wished he had more to say.
Connie nodded before ringing up the items and giving him a total. He paid and awkwardly stood there for a moment before hurriedly grabbing his things and walking away.
As he made his trek to the door, he heard Connie’s mechanical assistant say, “Come back soon!”
And, yes, he will.
When Daryl got home from his trip to the bookstore, he was frustrated with himself and made the mistake of telling his best friend, who was miraculously without Michonne, about his failure to gain any new information about the new bookstore cashier. And now Rick was laughing at him. Rick was laughing at him way too long and Daryl was about to smother him with a pillow.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Rick began to calm. “It’s just… you really fumbled.”
Daryl stared blankly, “I know, Rick.”
Rick finally calmed down fully before taking the time to register what Daryl’s words actually meant. “Wait… you have a crush? You? ”
Daryl nodded.
“Wow…” Rick breathed out. “Well, you’ve gotta talk to her if you want it to be more.”
Daryl rolled his eyes, “I know , Rick. Help me.”
“Just start small,” Rick advised. “Ask her little things like her major and stuff and build from there.”
Daryl took the advice in, “That’s how it worked with you and Michonne?”
“Yes and no?” Rick replied. “We did that but also just talked about life in general. We never really had an awkward stage, y’know? And Michonne’s not shy about what she wants at all, so.”
No awkward stage, Daryl thought to himself. Of course not.
“I’ll try it,” Daryl said. “Don’t tell Michonne yet.”
“I got you,” Rick promised.
Daryl’s third visit to the bookstore led him to the school apparel aisle, which he loathed. Not once in his year and a half at this school has Daryl ever thought of owning or wearing anything promoting his school. But here he was, looking at the blue and white apparel, wishing for something resembling a leather vest to simply appear on a hanger.
The store was slow today. Aaron was in the back doing something somewhere, Daryl doesn’t really care, while Connie went around with a cart, stocking books on the appropriate shelves. He’d been watching her from the corner of his eye, noticing how she’s steering clear of the higher shelves.
Abandoning his post by the apparel, grabbing a random hoodie as he did, Daryl walked to where Connie was, making sure to take a way where she would see him. Even doing this, though, as she stood from crouching, Connie startled a bit when she saw him.
She smiled another big smile, he doesn’t think he’s ever seen a small one from her, waving at him. Daryl waved back. He glanced upward to see if any of the books she had on her cart needed to be placed high, and sure enough, yes.
Daryl made sure to look at Connie as he said, “Let me help you with this.” He put the books on the shelf and turned back to her. Connie’s eyes snapped back from whatever they were doing.
She grabbed a notepad from her back pocket and wrote, “That’s what Aaron’s for, but thanks! :)”
Daryl grabbed his, “No problem.”
“Are you done shopping for the day?”
“Uh, yeah,”
Connie smiled softly before turning and waving for Daryl to follow her to the register. The two separated for their respective sides of the table, Daryl expecting Connie to scan the hoodie right away, but she didn’t.
“I didn’t take you for Mr. School Spirit.”
She then sat the notepad down and scanned the item. She typed the total into her computer assistant. Daryl gave her his card before writing his response.
“Oh, not for me. It’s for…” he struggled to think of an excuse. “My roommate’s girlfriend’s birthday. It’s tomorrow.”
Connie gave the card back and bagged the hoodie, placing the receipt in the bag. She picked up her pen again, “ A gift for your roommate’s girlfriend?”
Daryl slipped his pen and notepad into his pocket so he could grab the bag easier. Her question startled him. He allowed the bag to slip down his forearm as he lifted his hands. “She’s my friend, too,” he signed roughly as he spoke.
Connie moved her lips and tilted her head as if she were impressed, “Not bad--you sign with a Southern accent.”
Daryl began to smile when a throat cleared behind him. He turned to see another student standing behind him with a look of irritation on their face. “Sorry, man,” Daryl apologized. He turned to Connie who, if he could say so himself, was disappointed about the interruption and signed, See ya later?
Connie grinned, See ya later.
Daryl hustled up to the table Rick was sitting at with their friends Glenn, Maggie, Sasha, and Rosita and smacked him atop the head before sitting across from him in a huff.
Rick flinched and held the back of his head as the other 3 guffawed and laughed, “What was that for?”
“You told Michonne?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Told Michonne what?” Glenn asked, lifting his water bottle to his lips.
Daryl ignored him, “Yes, you did.”
“I didn’t,” Rick responded. “But can you tell me why you think I did?”
Daryl couldn’t answer, however, before Michonne waltzed to the groups table with Connie by her side. Michonne wore a smug grin on her face while Connie looked a bit shy. It was cute.
“Guys, this is Connie. Her friends are in class so I invited her to lunch with us,” Michonne explained. “She’s deaf so make sure to look directly at her when you talk to her.”
She, then, introduced everyone to Connie, making sure to follow what she just instructed to everyone. Connie sat next to Daryl, the only other person she knew at the table, waving at everyone as they welcomed her warmly.
Michonne took her usual spot next to Rick, his arm making its way across the back of her shoulders, the two sharing a kiss as Michonne stole a fry from his plate.
Maggie looked at Connie, “How do you know Michonne?”
Connie whipped out another notepad, “We’re in a legal writing class together.”
“You wanna be a lawyer, too?” Sasha asked.
Connie shook her head, “Journalist. It sounded like an interesting writing elective.”
Michonne butted in, “It’s not.”
Connie laughed, “At all!”
And, just like that, Connie fit into the group seamlessly. Sometime during the meal, Daryl noticed Rick whispering something into Michonne’s ear and Daryl watched as she nodded and pulled out her phone, her fingers typing quickly.
A few moments after Michonne placed the phone down, Daryl felt a vibration against his thigh. He looked to Michonne, who gestured to her own with her eyes. Daryl retrieved his phone from his side pocket and kept the phone underneath the table.
Chonne: Rick didn’t tell me. I just have a brain.
Daryl: how u know it was her
Chonne: She was talking to me ab her new job at the bookstore and this guy that keeps coming in that wears all black but for some reason was buying a bright blue hoodie that he said was for his roommate’s girlfriend.
Daryl sighed to himself.
Chonne: And then I remembered being in your dorm and seeing a bright blue hoodie. I connected the dots.
Chonne: Nice job using me as your excuse btw
Daryl: thx, thought it was a good one
Chonne: She knew you were lying lmaooo
Daryl: dammit
Daryl looked to his friend, her eyes already on him. She shrugged, then went back to the conversation about some television show Daryl didn’t watch. Eventually, Connie looked at her watch and noticed the time.
“Oh, no, I have class :(“ she wrote.
The friends all had varying degrees of disappointment marring their faces when Connie showed them the note.
“We hope we can eat together again soon,” Sasha smiled.
“Yeah, bring your friends next time!” Maggie agreed.
“I will,” Connie wrote. “I’ll text Michonne about it. See you guys later!”
The group waved and said bye as Connie stood and made her way to the cafeteria door.
Michonne rolled her eyes, “Boy, if you don’t go get her number right now…”
Her tone showed Daryl she was serious, so he got up and rushed to Connie, gently grasping her elbow. She turned around, prepped to punch someone, but relaxed when she saw it was Daryl.
Oh, hi, she smiled at him.
Hey, Daryl waved. “Can I have your number?” Daryl signed what he could as he spoke.
A slow smile began to creep its way onto Connie’s lips. Instead of answering yes or no, the shorter girl grasped her notepad and scribbled on a page before ripping it out and passing it to him. She reached to her tiptoes and kissed his cheek prior to quickly exiting the room.
Daryl stood there in a daze before he looked down at the note.
Text me tonight
(470)123-4567
-Connie<3
Ever since that day, Daryl had been texting Connie everyday and has learned more and more about her since. She was born deaf and it’s genetic from her mother’s side of the family, with her grandmother and an uncle being deaf as well. Her parents were divorced and each remarried, both step parents were great, and her 5-year-old sister, Kelly, resulted from her mother and step-father.
Connie was a journalism major, with major plans to work for Atlanta’s local NBC studio. She also had a passion for civil rights and hoped to one day meet Michelle Obama. She was kind, smart, witty, and kept him on his toes, and Daryl liked her. He liked her a lot.
And the great thing was that she liked him back! Or he thought, anyway. Michonne said she does and Michonne would never lie to him. Rick agreed, too, but Rick was Rick. You’d be hard pressed to get him to disagree with anything Michonne said.
But… they had to be right.
Connie sent laughing reactions to all of his jokes, including the ones he knew weren’t funny. She asked how he was and was always genuine about it. Whenever he stopped by the bookstore she seemed to light up, and well… she did kiss his cheek when she gave him his number. That had to mean something, right?
Daryl shook his thoughts from his head as he walked through the bookstore door and saw Connie closing up for the night. The light that alerted her of the door opening lit up, causing her to turn around to greet him.
Hey, Connie greeted. One sec.
Daryl nodded as Connie shut down the operating system and her mechanical assistant for the night before putting on her jacket and gathering her bag. She met Daryl at the door and let him exit first before following him and closing the door behind him. He then let Connie ahead of him first to lead the way.
The pair began their nightly journey to her dorm hall, a tradition the pair started about two weeks ago when Connie began the closing shift at the bookstore, and were in comfortable silence as they each remained in their thoughts.
This was one of Daryl’s favorite things about Connie. He wasn’t a big talker by any means and she recognized that. She embraced it and let him have moments of silence with her. He could just be.
Eventually, the pair made it to the dorm hall and stood before the steps, facing one another. Daryl shifted on his feet before taking a deep breath.
“Okay,” he said to himself. Connie furrowed her brows in confusion, having read his lips.
Connie, Daryl began. Go on a date with me?
Daryl watched with bated breath as Connie mulled it over in her brain, her lips curling in thought was the most adorable sight he’d ever seen. But she kept thinking… and thinking…and thinking… and Daryl was getting even more nervous as time passed on.
He used his thumb nail to scratch his brow and noticed Connie beginning to break with a smile. She pulled out her notepad, “Just wanted to see you sweat a tiny bit more. It’s cute.”
Daryl laughed nervously, still unsure what she’d say.
Connie rolled her eyes, “Yes.”
Yes? Daryl couldn’t believe it.
“Yes!” Connie laughed. “Of course :)”
Daryl laughed, scooping her up into his arms and spinning her around. She giggled in his ear and it was wonderful. He hoped he would hear that sound for much more time to come.
And he just might. Because she said yes.