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Losing Rick had been hard for all of them. They’d immediately started searching for his body along the river, but after a week of no luck they held a funeral for him in absentia. Hours later, Daryl had packed his supplies up and set them by the door so they were ready for him to leave in the morning. He sighed as he realized Carol was watching him from where she was sitting on the edge of the kitchen counter.
“I…” Daryl started, not really sure what was going to come out of his mouth. An explanation? An excuse?
“I know.” Carol replied softly, looking down so he couldn’t see how much it broke her. “You’re leaving to look for Rick again.”
“‘M sorry.” He offered. She shrugged, trying to pretend like it wasn’t killing her.
“Just…be safe, okay? I can’t lose you too.” She sniffled softly, wiping her tears and cursing herself for crying in front of him like this.
“Ain’t ever gonna lose me.” He stood between her legs, hugging her tightly and resting his head against her shoulder.
She threaded her hand through his hair, tugging slightly to force him to look at her. “Promise?” She knew it was unfair to ask him to make a promise he couldn’t keep.
“Promise.” He kissed her softly, cupping her cheeks. They kissed for a while, their lips pressing all the words they couldn’t say against the others, before she pulled him up to her room.
Hours later, she watched as he laced his boots up, sheets pressed to her chest. She hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep, too busy watching his chest rise and fall as he slept pressed into her. She sat up, hugging him from behind as her bare chest pressed against the angel wings on his vest.
“Leave me a trail?” She whispered before she pressed a kiss to his shoulder.
“‘Course.” He squeezed her hands.
A week later, Carol trekked through the woods with a backpack full of supplies for him, following the little strips of fabric he’d tied around branches for her. She dropped the backpack at his camp, following Daryl’s tracks to the river where he was fishing.
“Hey.” She whispered, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind. He didn’t tense under her touch, knowing from the sound of her footsteps that it was her.
“Hi.” He replied gently.
“I miss you.” She let herself admit to him.
“‘M right here.”
“I know.” She kissed his cheek before moving to steal the spear from him. She stood on the bank of the river for a moment before driving the spear into a fish, smiling triumphantly at him as she pulled it out of the water.
The next morning, she woke slowly, her limbs tangled with his in his tent. He pressed a kiss to her forehead as her eyes fluttered open.
“Morning.” He mumbled into her hair.
“Good morning.” She whispered, leaning up to kiss him. They kissed for a few minutes before she pulled away. “I wish I could stay out here with you forever.” She admitted.
“Ya could.”
“Aaron’s helping run Alexandria, but someone has to take care of our family. You’re out here, Maggie’s at Hilltop, Michonne’s not in the right headspace to do it, so it has to be me.”
“‘M sorry.” He said sincerely.
“I know.” She pressed another kiss to his lips before getting ready to head back.
“Daryl, you can’t keep doing this.” Carol raised her voice at him.
“I ain’t leavin’ ‘till I find Rick!” He yelled
“You aren’t going to find him! He’s gone, Daryl! You need to accept that!” She threw her arms up, exasperated.
“Like you did when Sophia went missin’?!”
She glared at him, her eyes watering with tears over her late daughter. “You need to work your shit out, now.” She was dangerously calm.
“I ain’t got shit to work out. He’s out there.”
“Maybe he is, but I’m right here and I don’t want to lose you. Don’t make me have to.” She watched as he grabbed his knife, going to cut up the deer he’d caught for their dinner. She sighed shakily, starting the fire before patching up the holes in his clothes.
After dinner, he held an apple he’d found out to her with an apologetic look. “‘M sorry.”
“I know.” She took the apple, scooting over so he could sit next to her. “It’s okay.”
“Nah it ain’t.”
“It will be.”
“It weren’t your fault, y’know. Sophia.”
“It wasn’t yours either, Daryl. She died long before she walked out of that barn. You weren’t ever going to find her out there.” She leaned against him, wrapping her arms around his waist.
“I ain’t ready to give up on Rick yet.” He said after a minute.
She sighed softly. “I know…but when you are, I’ll still be here.”
a few months later
The realization hit Carol like a freight train. She’d written off the nausea, the headaches, the overall fatigue, as just consequences of her increased responsibilities. She was talking with Maggie when it hit her, the smile on her face dropping instantly.
“What?” Maggie asked worriedly.
“It’s probably nothing.” Carol tried to shake away the thought.
“Carol, I’ve never seen you react like that. What is it?”
“I think I need to see Dr. Carson.” Carol said finally. Maggie grabbed her hand, dragging her to their infirmary and yelling for Dr. Carson.
“What’s going on?” He rushed in. Maggie looked at Carol.
“I think I’m pregnant.” Carol said almost shyly.
An hour later, Carol held the ultrasound proof of her earlier suspicions.
“Are you gonna tell Daryl?” Maggie asked gently, not wanting to upset her friend.
“How’d you know?” Carol looked surprised that anyone knew about her and Daryl.
“We all knew you two were in love before you did. Unless you finally gave Ezekiel a chance.” She teased gently. They shared a soft chuckle before falling into comfortable silence.
“He’s still out there looking for Rick, y’know. It’s been months. I get so mad at him sometimes. Why can’t we just have this one thing that makes us happy in the middle of all this shit? Why can’t we just be together?” Carol sighed. “But I get it, him and Rick were close. He was a better brother to him than Merle ever was. Searching for him is just something he has to do, and I can’t take that away from him.”
“It’s a baby, Carol. What are you gonna tell him when he comes back? Surprise, I had your kid and never told you? That’s not fair to him.”
Carol thought about what Maggie said before wiping the tears that flowed against her permission. “Damn you, Maggie Rhee.” She heard Maggie chuckle softly before being pulled into a tight hug.
Carol smiled softly as she heard Daryl’s footsteps, leaves crunching under his boots as he walked. She turned around from her spot by the fire, the winter air sending a chill through her bones.
“I thought I was going to miss you.” She hugged him, grateful that the weather meant she was wearing extra layers, concealing her bump.
“Knew you were comin’. You said two weeks, I been countin’.” He hugged her back, dropping his crossbow against the tree.
“Aw, Pookie, that’s sweet.” She teased him, sitting back by the fire in his arms. She poured the soup she’d heated up over the fire into bowls for them. They ate in comfortable silence, her stealing glances in his direction as nerves overcame her. She knew she had to tell him about the baby, but she was scared.
“You’re starin’” He mumbled.
“Sorry.” She darted her eyes down.
“Didn’t say ya had to stop.” He joked. “What’s wrong?”
She bit her lip anxiously. “I might not be back for a while.”
“Oh.” His smile dropped, his mood shifting. “Cuz’ it’s gettin’ cold?”
“Yeah.” She lied. It was a high risk pregnancy to begin with, and Dr. Carson had advised her in no uncertain terms that she needed to take it easy.
The next day, she left without telling him about the baby.
Carol had been in labor for 12 hours, with nearly half of that spent actively pushing. In the grand scheme of things, though, the birth had gone pretty smoothly. Michonne and Maggie had kept her comfortable while Dr. Carson made sure the baby was safe.
“Oh, she’s beautiful.” Carol whispered in awe, holding her new baby girl.
“She’s perfectly healthy as far as I can tell. Congratulations, Carol.” Dr. Carson smiled, squeezing her shoulder before leaving.
“Did you decide on a name for her?” Michonne asked.
“Georgia Rose Dixon.”
“That’s perfect, Carol.” Maggie kissed her head. She knew the symbolism behind the name and thought it was beautiful.
Hours later, Carol rocked Georgia in her arms as she shushed her, watching as she drifted to sleep.
“As soon as I’m better, we’ll go get daddy, okay baby girl?” She whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead before setting her in her crib.
three months later
Carol tied the wrap around herself, making sure Georgia was fixed to her chest snugly. She zipped her jacket up around Georgia, the early May morning chill still cool enough to warrant an extra layer.
“Stay safe.” Michonne held the backpack out so Carol could slip it on.
“Thank you.” Carol hugged her. “We’ll be back soon.”
“Even if he doesn’t come with you?”
“I’ll knock him out and drag his ass back with me if I have to. We’ll be back.” She smiled at Michonne before setting off for the woods.
A few hours later, Carol’s heart dropped as she noticed a walker shambling towards Daryl. She raised her bow, quickly letting the arrow off. It slammed into the walker, nailing it to the tree next to Daryl. He looked up at her.
“Hi.” He smiled at her, relieved to finally see her again. He’d been worried.
“Hi.” She quickly closed the distance between them, about to throw herself into his arms before she stopped herself. “I have something to tell you.”
“What is it?” He asked, still not noticing the infant on her chest.
“Please don’t hate me.” She begged him with her eyes before unzipping her jacket and pulling Georgia out of the wrap. She looked up at Daryl anxiously.
“Who’s baby?” He looked confused.
“Ours.” She watched as it clicked into place for him.
He looked uneasy for a moment before leaning in and kissing her. “Could never hate you. You had your reasons, can’t blame you for that.” He said softly when he pulled away.
“I couldn’t lose you again, if we lost her. I didn’t want to get your hopes up for something that might not happen. And you needed to be out here, looking for Rick. I couldn’t force you to come back home and tie you down with a baby.” She over-explained, self-conscious in her choices.
“Hey,” He cupped her cheek, forcing her to look at him. “I ain’t mad. Promise.” He kissed her quickly before pulling away to look at his daughter.
“Do you want to hold her?” Carol asked as Georgia wrapped her tiny hand around his finger.
“Dunno, she looks real fragile.” He was scared to hurt her.
“She won’t break, Daryl.” Carol eased Georgia into his arms, helping him hold her correctly.
“What’s her name?”
“Georgia Rose Dixon.” They shared a smile at her name. “We’ve been calling her Gigi.”
“Gigi.” He looked down at his daughter as he tried out her name. He liked it. “She’s perfect.” He looked up at Carol, tears streaming down his cheeks freely.
“Oh, honey, don’t cry.” Carol wiped his tears, pressing kisses to his face as tears of her own started. They stood there in each other's embrace, holding their little girl.
“Let’s go.” He finally spoke.
“Where?”
“Home.” He caught her hand, pulling it up to his lips to kiss it as she giggled softly.
A few hours later, after finally reaching Alexandria, Carol and Daryl laid in their bed together, wrapped around one another.
“What are you thinking about?” Carol asked sleepily. She’d been dozing off, but could feel his brain working.
“Nothin’.” He answered almost too quickly.
“Daryl?” She pulled away a sliver, raising her eyebrow at him.
He ducked his head in defeat. “Just thinkin’ about how I’m gonna make your last name Dixon too.”
She blushed at the thought, pulling him down for a kiss. “Tell me when and where, and I’ll be there.”