❀ 20s | She/her | ✉ inbox requests: open ✉ | multi-fandom | My page is cute and pink to distract from angst being my specialty ❀ ❗Do NOT plagiarize my work❗
Everything on this account is purely fanfiction written by me for entertainment purposes.
fan fic·tion
noun
fiction written by a fan of, and featuring characters from, a particular TV series, movie, etc.
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🐿️ Currently working on a Daryl Dixon series: My Wife
🌸Completed I Wanna Be Yours : A Robin Buckley series. Check it out if you would like!
I write mostly female!reader
As of right now, I write for Robin Buckley and Steve Harrington from Stranger Things (separately of course), and Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead. Since I write for more than one fandom, feel free to filter the tags 👍🏻
Comments and reblogs are always appreciated
Work is tagged #xoxo-sarah 🩷
Mostly angst and fluff on this account
I have not and will never make a profit off of my work. I put it out in the world for entertainment only. Credit goes to all original creators of the characters I write for. Thank you.
Of a little Nick Clark angst in my drafts. Lmk what you think!
Warnings: mention of drug addiction, Nick Clark's addiction, hospitals, yearning, rough draft
"Do you hate me?" He whispered, doe-eyed.
You stared at him, frowning. "No. I don't hate you. Maybe the choices you've made, but I could never hate you."
He smiled, relaxing back into the uncomfortable pillow. His eyes scanned your whole face, noticing new blemishes from stress, school—
him.
He wanted to remember you.
Mostly because this time felt like the last time you were willing to stop your life for him. You had made something of yourself, far, far away.
Away from the town you grew up, the playground at the park, the kindergarten where you met, the highschool where you ditched prom together.
You moved away from him.
The reality of that always faded away when the heroin shot through his veins. The blurred reality felt sweeter, with hands on him that weren't yours but he couldn't tell the difference when he was so far in the clouds; with chemicals replacing the ones he produced naturally when you were around. They didn't quite reach his expectations, but they did him for the day.
He always got his faux fix.
"Lay with me."
Your eyebrows furrowed. "What? No."
"C'mon. Like we used to. I'll move these wires." He reached up, pushing the wires and cords away from the bed, scooting to the edge to make room for you on the thin, uncomfortable mattress.
"You're hurt."
"You won't do anymore damage." His eyes twinkled again, smirk on his face.
Sighing, you reluctantly sat on the edge of the bed. You stared down at him as he stared up at you. Your hand instinctively moved to fix his hair.
Fingers ran through strands as they've done plenty of times. His hair had gotten a lot longer than the last time you'd seen him. He was in a desperate need of a shower, but you ran your hands over his scalp nonetheless. He practically purred under your touch.
"They don't believe me." He was back to whispering, eyes glossed over. "I saw it-her. Blood. I ran. I didn't- I didn't know what else to do."
...
This was in my rough draft. Might be altered when I post the full fic.
↝a/n: I was unaware of how long it had been since I last updated this series. Wdym it's been 7 months? I am so sorry! I tried making the wait worth it, but I seem to be a little rusty. I HATE the flow of this and I hate how it turned out. Hopefully y'all don't! 🩷
↝pairing: season1!Daryl Dixon x wife!reader
↝warning: usual TWD stuff, not proofread, timeline does not completely add up with the show, blood, gore, etc. Maybe the characters are slightly ooc but it's okay- trust!
↝⎙ 6.9.26
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
Series Masterlist | Character Masterlist
Your fingers ran over white fur, dragging out any knots in the long, thick fur. Small snores emitted from the puppy in your lap. She had instantly snuggled up to you.
It was silent in the truck, with only the two of you. Daryl focused on the road and the others cars leading the way, and you tried to not think about what you were driving away from.
The train of cars had stopped shortly after you had left what was left of the C.D.C. The goal was to move on to Fort Benning.
Coming to the highway, cars were piled up, an 18-wheeler flipped on its side, the smell of death and leaking gas palpable. Glass littered the road, blood seeped into the cracks of the road, dried in the concrete.
Everyone had been maneuvering through the abandoned cars, until the R.V’s radiator had blown. Daryl insisted on you staying in the car, saying it would only be a minute. You watched as he looked through cars, looking for anything of use, before moving to the next car. He lifted the hood of a car, his arms flexing as one hand kept the hood up, and the other messed around.
Glancing to the side, you caught movement in the side mirror. Squinting, you noticed a walker. Behind it was another. Then, another. They slowly made their way over to where everyone was. You turned, looking out the back glass. Turning back around, you saw Rick turning to where you had been looking. He squinted, before raising his gun.
Looking back again, a herd of walkers had gathered around the turned-over car. Panic hammered in your chest. Luckily, everyone had become aware and were trying to hide. Most of them rolled under the cars. You ducked in the seat, away from the window. The puppy in your lap moved a little, but fell back asleep. Holding your breath, you watched as they by, stumbling and snarling and staggering after the other. They weaved around the cars. The herd seemed to never end. A bang on the window had you jumping out of your skin, the dog’s head jerking up, alert. Her head tilted, ears back.
A walker had stumbled right into the side of the truck, but was looking forward. Still, the dog stared, a growl coming from her chest. “Shh.” You tried, moving further into the floor board. She looked at you, then back to the window. The walker was gone, but now the dog was alert, watching as the last few of them walked past. After a moment, you glanced up, into the side mirror, checking if the coast was clear.
Finally being able to breath, you pulled yourself up into the seat, looking for the others. Your heart was loud in your ears. Your eyes instantly found Daryl, who was pushing a body off of himself, before helping T-Dog do the same. Your eyes frantically swept over his body, looking for any injury. He dusted himself off. No sign of any harm. T-Dog, however, held his arms with a pained expression. Blood gushed through his fingers. Daryl tore the bottom of his shirt, wrapping it around his arms tightly and quickly.
A scream alerted you and the dog. When you looked up, you saw a head of strawberry blonde hair half stumbling and half running into the woods, a few walkers in tow. Rick jumped over the railing, following after them quickly after. Everyone ran out from their hiding spots, keeping a hysterical Carol from following. “There’s two walkers after my baby!” She wailed, legs giving out in the process. Lori shushed her, trying to keep her from alerting any more walkers.
A bark released from the puppy, watching the scene just as you were. Daryl ran toward the truck, opening up the door and reaching under his seat. His favorite hiding spot it seemed. He kept most of his hunting gear under the seats. ‘Easy to grab on the go', he had told you before. Now, they weren’t just useful when he decided to hunt or needed to protect himself. Now, it was useful to keep himself and you alive in a world full of monsters that would claw your face off and peel the skin off of your bones with their teeth.
He pulled out a box with arrows, and a hand gun with a small box of bullets. “Sophia ran off. We’re gonna search for ‘er.”
You sat up, “I’ll help.” You weren't about to sit in the truck and do nothing.
He looked up, squinting at you, before deciding it wasn’t worth the fight. Sophia was out there, scared out of her mind if she wasn't already a walkers lunch. Plus, you could help keep Carol from sprinting into the woods. You were good with a bow yourself. You could help keep everyone safe from a distance, while he helps Rick look for Sophia. It’s not like he was willing to let you go into the woods with the state of your ankle anyway.
He dug deeper under his seat, pulling out his old bow, the one he had used in his childhood, before you came along and bought him another for his birthday. It was old, but could still shoot an arrow into the eye of whatever you chose.
“‘Member how to use it?” You nodded. He had taught you early on in the relationship. Thankfully. If it weren’t for him teaching you how to wield weapons, you probably wouldn’t have lived in the abandoned city as long as you did. “Alright.”
You jumped out of the truck, dog in your arms, as Daryl handed you the old bow. He led you to the group, and Dale offered for you to sit on the top of the rv, being a lookout, especially since your foot was still throbbing with every step.
That didn’t matter to you. What did matter was being of use. You weren’t about to sit in the truck and be useless for the rest of the time you all were on the road. Rick, Daryl, Glenn, and Shane were in the woods now, searching for Sophia. You weren’t about to sit on your ass and do nothing to contribute.
Not many walkers have stumbled upon the group, but if they were any in your sight, you shot them before you could hear their snarl. You sat in the lawn chair Dale had on the roof of the old R.V, looking through the small scope of the crossbow.
An arrow flew through the air, plunging into a walker's skull, right as the ladder on the side of the rv creaked. “You might be a better shot than Daryl.”
You smiled at T-Dog, glancing at his bandaged arm. “What is the saying- The student has become the teacher- or something like that?”
“Yeah, somethin’ like that.” He looked at his arm for a moment, before looking back up at you. “I feel like a burden. Getting cut up by a car? C’mon, that’s some stupid shit, man. How am I supposed to help out around here?”
“It would be harder to help out if you were dead. You’ll be fine. We’re all gonna be fine.” Your eyes found the trees, searching for any sign on Daryl. Or Sophia.
He squatted, petting the dog with his good hand, watching as her tail wagged. “Got a name?”
“Haven’t really had time to think about it.” Your mind had been preoccupied as of late.
“'T-Dog' is fittin'.” He left out a huff of amusement. You shook your head, aiming for another walker that was yet to be seen by the others of the group.
They paced, trying to keep Carol from darting to the woods, and trying to rummage through the abandoned cars. Hoping to find anything useful.
“Probably need to change that before it gets infected.” You glanced at his arm, where a shirt was wrapped around his arm with his blood soaking through it. He shrugged you off, and let silence fall over you.
The day drew on, sunlight retreated behind the horizon, bugs came alive and chirped every other second.
Before long you were with Carol, who shook in her shoes. You tried reassuring her, “Daryl- he can track just about anything. He’ll find her.”
She didn’t give you a response, or any indication that she heard you.
If Daryl was anything, it was determined. He was determined to find Sophia. He had always had a soft spot for kids. When your family visited, very rarely, the kids flocked to him every time. He tried to act nonchalant about it all, but he enjoyed it. He’d help them find ‘good’ sticks so the kids could run around and play fight, acting as if they were wielding swords and guarding some type of treasure (Daryl’s toolbox). After his own rough childhood, it was nice to not feel like kids were as scared of him as he was of his own father. Maybe that is part of why he was so set on finding Sophia. He was out there looking for her like how he wished someone would have looked for him when he ran away from home. Away from the hitting and yelling. He would get lost in the woods, but the trees, bugs, and wild animals offered more than his broken home ever did.
The conversation of kids was brought up a time or two in your relationship, but Daryl had this fear of turning out like his father. He never told you, but you knew. You could tell. He did everything in his power to not end up like his dead-beat father. He was softer, always had been and always would be. Especially with people he cared about. With you. With what you could bring into this world.
Now?
The world had practically ended. The people that surrounded you were your family now. You cared for the kids as if they were your own. The adults like they were your siblings. You all cared about each other enough to protect the other. Who knew that an apocalypse- the world falling apart- could bring some people the comfort they had seeked when the world was ‘normal’.
—
Daryl knelt down in the water, looking at where Rick had said he had left Sophia. “You sure this is the spot?” It was harder to track the darker the night got.
Rick stepped toward, “I left her right here.” He turned, pointing forward, “I drew the walkers way off in that direction up the creek.”
“Without a paddle-seems where we’ve landed.”
Daryl trudged through the creek, ignoring the water submerging the bottoms of his legs and pants-boots soaked.
“She was gone by the time I got back here. I figured she just took off and ran back to the group. I told her to go that way and keep the sun on her left shoulder.”
Daryl glanced from Rick to where he pointed, tracking eyes searching for any sign in the mud, broken twigs. He stepped closer, finding a pair of sneakers in the path. He stared up at what was attached to the shoes, “Hey, short round, why don’t you step off to one side? You’re mucking up the trail.” Glenn looked down, before shuffling off to the right, looking back down at the ‘trail’ he was ‘mucking up’.
“Assuming she knows her left from her right.” Shane muttered. Daryl huffed slightly under his breath, tired of hearing Shane’s voice. Daryl wasn’t dumb, despite what many people think. He could pick up on stuff, such as the tension between Shane and Lori. Before Rick had turned up, they were close. Then, Lori glared at Shane every chance she got. Shane stared at her, at her family, with his jaw clenched. He wasn’t oblivious to the times where they would both disappear from the group when they were at the quarry. That’s mostly why he and Merle would try to stay gone. Hunting kept them busy, away from the drama brewing.
“Shane. She understood me fine.”
Shane signed, hands on his hips, “Kid’s tired and scared, man.” And probably already dead, he probably thought. “She had her a close call with two walkers.Got to wonder how much of what you said stuck.” Rick looked away, jaw and shoulders tense.
Got clear prints right here.” Daryl pointed out, “She did like you said, headed back to the highway.” He stepped up, out of the water. Raising his hand for Shane to help him out of the creek. “Let’s spread out, make our way back.”
Daryl followed the Sohpia’s tracks, ducking under trees and around shrubs. He stopped, eyebrows furrowing, and knelt down on the muddy, leaf covered ground. “She was doin’ just fine ‘til right here.” He pointed at where her shoes had halted and turned. The indention was deeper than before, where she had used more force to move away from whatever it was she was running from, or toward whatever she had seen. “All she had to do was keep goin’. She veered off that way.” He pointed to the side, where her footprints lead.
“Why would she do that?” Glenn asked.
Shane shrugged, “Maybe she saw something that spooked her, made her run off.”
“A walker?”
Daryl shook his head, “I don’t see any other footprints. Just hers.”
“So what do we do? All of us press on?”
“No,” Rick answered Shane, “Better if you and Glenn get back up to the highway. People are gonna start panicking. Let them know we’re on her trail, doing everything we can. But most of all, keep everybody calm.”
“I’ll keep ‘em bust scavenging cars. Think up a few other chores. I’ll keep ‘em occupied.”
Daryl didn’t listen to the others as he continued to follow the tracks, pushing leaves aside to find the small foodprints. He pushed through the brush, only turning to motion for Rick to follow him as Shane and Glenn made their way back to the road.
They walked further into the woods, until Daryl came to a halt.
“The tracks are gone.” Rick said in an exhale.
“No,” Daryl ducked, getting a closer look, “They’re faint, but they ain’t gone. She came through here.”
“How can you tell?” Rick looked around, “I don’t see anything. Dirt, grass.”
“You want a lesson in tracking or you want to find that girl and get our ass off that interstate?”
Rick stared at the back of Daryl’s head, wondering how a woman like you dealt like the attitude of your husband. You two seemed so…different.
What he didn’t see was how you two anchored the other. You weren’t really that different.
—
You followed the puppy, watching as she stopped to sniff the tired every now and then. Her ears perked when a struggling of shoes against concrete alerted her. Carl trudged past, holding a leather binding of some kind. His head was hung low, frown etched across his face. “What's that you got there?"
He looked up and stopped walking, holding the leather like it was the most interesting thing in the world.
“Knives and hatchets. An arsenal." He mumbled out.
Your face twisted, “That's pretty cool. Where'd you find it?"
He looked behind him, before turning back to you, stepping closer and talking quietly. “This guy in a truck was holding it. He nearly fell on me when I grabbed it."
“What? Did you get hurt? Did you get bit-" your worries were cut short.
“No- it wasn't a walker. He was already dead. Smelled really bad." The puppy ran over to him, sniffing at him, tail wagging vigorously. Carl leaned down, holding the leather on his side as he began petting the dog.
“Oh." Your eyes searched him, making sure he wasn't actually hurt. Your eyes fell on the leather again. “Can I see them?"
“They're pretty cool," his lips quirked in a small smile, but only for a second. He looked over his shoulder again. " Shane said for me to take them to Dale.” He looked back at you, a mischievous glint in his eye. " But I can show you, I guess.” He put the binding on the ground, unrolling it to reveal a lineup of different hatchets, knives, and machetes. They glinted in the sunset.
Carl continued petting the dog, who let out a happy sound.
You gawked, a little exaggerated to match his excitement. “These are pretty cool! I bet Dale is going to be so surprised." He nodded frantically, rolling the leather back up. Giving the dog one last pet before he walked away, his mood a little better.
Looking back down at the puppy, she was watching him leave, before she turned and ran toward a van. Walking (limping) after her, you heard talking. Slowing down, you stayed on the other side of the vehicle, not being able to help eavesdropping. It wasn't really eavesdropping if they were loud enough for others to hear, you tried justifying yourself. Voices carry when the rest of the world is dead.
Television wasn't easy to come by, after all. Entertainment was limited.
"I don’t believe you- You’re giving me the cold shoulder?” You heard Lori.
“Isnt that what you want?" Shane's voice came next. Your brow rose, ears sharp. “Weren’t you the one who said stay the hell away from him and you?”
“You forget what happened at the C.D.C? Your little meltdown in the rec room slip your mind?" She shuffled closer, voice lowering. “When you tried to-”
“When I tried to what?" Shane’s voice was low, testing. “What do you think that was?” He stepped closer, hands flexing at his side, eyes glaring, daring her in a way.
She seethed, “I think it is pretty plain what that was.”
“A mistake. One that I admit to. I have a few mistakes under my belt, Lori. So do you.” You heard feet shuffling away. Lori sighed, before following after him.
“No debate there. But, Shane, we need to stop this.”
“Why do you think I'm prepping my new ride?” He motioned to the van, looking over. You ducked. “I’m leavin’.”
“Leaving?” Her voice held confliction. She didn’t hide it well.
“As in, gone for good. Gonna quietly slip away the first chance I get.” He whispered, watching her for any reaction. Anything that said to not leave.
Hollering broke you from your daze. Daryl stumbled out of the woods, a bitter look on his face and blood splattered over his shirt and forearms. Rick had his head bowed, until he heard Carol, her voice and spirits broken, “You didn’t find her?”
Shane stormed away from Lori, who slowly walked around the car, hands on her hips, mind in the clouds.
Her gaze found you.
You ducked your eyes, snapping your fingers at the puppy, “C’mon, girl.”
Next part: TBA
•2021-2026 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I do NOT give permission!]
↝a/n: well this was heart wrenching. ☹️ Why did I decide to write this? I hurt my own feelings with this one, guys.
↝pairing:Daryl Dixon x reader
↝warning: angst, death, season 9 events, Alpha + whispers, the spikes, Daryl never getting his happy ending, it's a bit gruesome ngl, crying, fighting, torture, getting shot, stabbing, self-loathing (Daryl ☹️), more death, not proofread
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
↝⎙ 6.24.24
Daryl Dixon masterlist
The early morning sun shone across the town of Alexandria, although not doing much for how the fall chill nipped at any skin showing.
Daryl glanced up from his spot on the porch, after hearing the door open. You stepped out, face scrunching when the smell of nicotine hit your nose. Daryl simply took in your appearance. Freshly showered, clean clothes, and wet hair knotted into a different style than usual. He took a final puff of the cigarette, before flicking it somewhere off the porch.
As you stepped forward, his hand motioned to your hair, "I tried a different braid. I think it's called a fishtail, I'm not sure though. Needed to practice so I could do something different for the fair." You shrugged, moving to take a seat beside him on the rickety porch steps. His hand raised, feeling the bumps of the braid.
He knew you were excited for the fair, wanting to get out of the walls of Alexandria, and not to do a supply run. You need this; time with friends who feel more like family every day.
Daryl dropped your hair, looking around at the other houses. They were quiet, due to everyone still being asleep. If Daryl hadn't stayed the night, you would probably still be in bed. But you woke up to Daryl, who hadn't slept a wink, due to his stress levels. The whole whisperer thing had him on edge, and it only got worse when Lydia came into the picture. Daryl had been just fine only caring for the people he kept close to him, people who he had known for years. But then came Lydia, who was just a kid. He had needed out; out of Hilltop where Lydia and Henry were. You were his safe space, somewhere he knew he could always go to.
Feeling weight being added to his shoulder, he turned, listening as you whispered into the crisp morning air, almost like talking normally would wake everyone, or disturb the peaceful space of the porch. "She's a good kid. She just doesn't know any better. Alpha, her own mother only taught her survival. It's not Lydia's fault, you know that. Give her time."
"Might not have time." He couldn't help but grumble. He knew you were right, Lydia is a kid. She only knows survival. To an extent, Daryl could relate to her. You lifted your head, looking over his face,
"Maybe, but I have a strong hunch that you have enough time to go wash the stench off of you." Your nose scrunched again, more animated than before.
Daryl rolled his eyes before standing. You watched him as he walked to the door, flipping you off before the door shut behind him. A heavy sigh exited your lips when you knew he was gone.
It had been a little over two days since you last saw Daryl. It's not like you were worried. He could hold his own. Atleast, he could before people who wore the dead's faces were among everyone.
That might have you on edge. Or it might be the fact that he had the thing that Alpha wanted, making him become an even bigger target.
Your fingers divided your hair, twisting it into the same braid from before. Your mind was elsewhere, hands moving without a second thought.
The house that you occupied in Alexandria was quiet. Too quiet. You had grown comfortable with the usual silence, since Daryl had left in search of Rick.
The house you once shared turned into yours, with Daryl only visiting. He never stayed for long. Maybe it was the memories, or something that you had no knowledge of. Either way, you weren't going to push him.
Men like Daryl, once they're pushed too far, they leave. It's like their fight or flight goes off. You weren't one to push.
When Daryl and the little gorup found Lydia, Daryl had to escape for the night, going straight to the familiar house. He had told you everything about the Whisperers and Lydia, how they had killed Jesus. Although her group had killed someone who you could rely on, you pitied Lydia. The moment between you two was short-lived when morning came. After he had taken a shower, he was on his way back. Your time together wasn't much, but it was something. Given the circumstances, it was enough for both of you.
A knock at your door had your trailing thoughts stop, along with your hands. You were quick to tie the braid up, before moving to the door. Daryl stood, shoulders sunk in, along with the bags under his eyes, blood coating his hands. Your eyes met, relief, from seeing him mixed with the concern from seeing the dried blood, ran through your back.
Daryl stood against the kitchen sink, scrubbing his hands together, watching as the water turned red before flowing down the drain. "Henry's hurt." Was the first thing he had uttered since you opened the door, letting him in.
You perked up from where you were perched against the counter, having been watching his movements. "How bad?" He shook his head, letting you know it wasn't life or death, without saying a word.
"Here was closer to get him stitched up. Lydia's with us."
Your eyes traveled over his face, looking for any sign of how he felt about that, and maybe even a hint of how much shit you were all in.
"She's a kid." He sighed, turning the water off as he used your same words from before.
You nodded, hoping he knew that he didn't have to explain himself to you. You trusted him and his instinct.
Now night time, you walked with Daryl and his little group as they got ready to leave. Aaron insisted on walking with you, staying with Daryl as you were in step with Henry and Lydia.
You tried to ask questions that were easy for her to answer, questions that didn't revolve around how she had grown up. Questions that made her feel human, not just a piece in the game of survival.
As your conversation drew to an end, you listened in to Aaron and Daryl, " 'Member way back when I told you, you'd make a great father?" Your eyes traveled to the gravel under you. "You got to skip the exploding diapers part, but I was right."
Henry and Lydia tried to contain their own little conversations, hiding their smiles and blushing from the other. Just two teenagers acting as normal as two teenagers could in the broken world.
Daryl grumbled, "A lot has changed." You felt eyes boring into your back but didn't look. You smiled as you felt Dog rub against your legs, begging for attention. Would you and Daryl be able to be happy in a world like this?
"I stand before you today at the start of a new tomorrow. A tomorrow made possible by the sacrifices of many over the years." After a long ride to the kingdom, you stood amongst the crowd, watching as Ezekiel stood on the balcony, giving one of his infamous speeches.
"Among them, a man whose mission was to build community and strengthen the bonds between us. A man who had to destroy the very thing that connected us in order to save us. It took far too long to fulfill the promise of what Rick Grimes and his son, Carl, envisioned, the same promise Paul Rovia, better known to most as "Jesus", believed in when he brought us all together those many years ago. We always will be. We fought our way back to each other. We have grown. The crossing over the river may be gone, but we have rebuilt a bridge, nonetheless. Today is proof we can unite, not against a common enemy, but for the common good. So eat, drink, and be merry...'cause we got a lotta lost time to make up for."
Jerry stepped forward, a huge grin on his face, "Let the First Annual Inter-Community Reunification Fair begin!"
"Jerry!"
Jerry swung around, looking up at the King.
"We changed that."
"For reals? F. A. I. R. Fair?"
Ezekiel sighed, leaning over the railing to stare down, "It's too many-nevermind. Let the Fair of New Beginnings begin!"
Applause broke out through the crowd, doves being released into the air.
Tara, who stood beside you, nudged your shoulder, directing your attention to the gate of the Kingdom. The gates opened, revealing Michonne-who was set on not coming to the fair-with Judith, Daryl, Connie, Henry, and Lydia in tow.
Your feet moved before you even thought about it, and you were in front of Daryl before you knew it. He opened his arms, welcoming the warmth of your arms around him.
Sure, you had seen him not that long ago, but being apart from him became even scarier over the week. Daryl swayed from side to side, before you pulled away slightly.
Carol came over when you two had fully broken apart, bringing her best friend into her arms.
You smiled, watching the two. After she teased him, she watched as you moved back under his arm, laughing when your lips collided with his cheek, watching Daryl grow shy, his ears turning a pink hue.
"C'mon, I heard there's a fair or something happening." You winked at Ezekiel, as he joined in on watching the two of you, throwing his arm around Carol.
It only took about 15 minutes before the fun was cut short.
"You just got here." you sighed, utterly frustrated. You couldn't have one day that was slightly normal. Somebody always had to be a threat. It just happens to be Alpha's group.
"Hilltop's in danger."
"I know,” You huffed, kicking the asphalt under your feet, stopping when Daryl halted, reaching down to pet Dog's head. "I just think you deserve to have fun too. Or at least let me go with you."
He instantly shook his head, standing at his full height. His eyes slightly squinted as he looked at you, "'T's too dangerous, you know that."
"Exactly. You need more people and you know i'm a good shot." You cracked a smile, trying to ease the tension. Daryl looked away, hiding his slight amusement. "At least be safe." Your voice was serious, almost threatening. Unwinding your arms, letting them fall to your sides, as he finally looked back. "I mean it, Dixon." He puffed air out, before bringing you into a side hug. You two stood by the gate, not caring as people walked past, trying to get ready to leave with Daryl.
The hug was warm- comforting, too bad you don't get the luxury often. "You too." His gruff voice was muffled in your hair, followed by a dry kiss on your forehead. "Can you take care of Dog for me?" He pulled back, already knowing your answer.
You only got a single nod in before Carol walked over, an apologetic smile on her face about the whole thing; having to interrupt to hint that it was time to go and having to cut your time together short.
Saddiq grunted as Michonne rushed over to his pitiful body. His tired eyes reluctantly raised to look at the people following behind her. As he saw Daryl, the pain felt fresh, like all the wounds were pulled open and dirt was shoved into them. He shook his head, trying to get the picture of your last moment out of his head. Your screams of agony rang in his head. What you made him promise rang even louder. He could only cough when the makeshift gag was ripped from his mouth, waiting as Michonne cut his hands free. "What happened?" Michonne asked.
Saddiq could only point, words dying on his tongue. "I-I..." He stumbled with his feet as much as his words. Michonne held most of his body weight as he tried leading them to the hill.
Michonne's face dropped in horror, as they walked closer, close enough to realize exactly what was in front of them, close enough to identify the heads on the spikes.
All it took was for the wind to pick up, causing the braid to sway in the wind, for Daryl to feel the world stop on its axis. He could only watch as your mouth moved, biting and nipping at the air like a feral animal.
Something that would haunt him forever, the hunger for human flesh taking over the one person he couldn't live without. As you began to let out a growl, he had to turn his head, looking anywhere. He couldn't take the sight, feeling his stomach churn.
You were just in his arms, smiling at him, joking around, wanting to spend the time at the fair with him.
His eyes caught a head of blond hair, his body moving before he could think twice. "No! No!" His hands attached themselves to Carol's shoulders, frantically trying to conceal the gruesome picture before them that would surely give him nightmares, if he was even able to sleep. "Just look at me." His voice broke, but continued to repeat himself.
He watched as her lips pursed, before they began trembling, feeling his own emotions breaking through the comfort-others-before-yourself facade.
His body slowly collapsed with hers, his hold on her not faltering. If he held her tight enough, he might be able to feel the warmth you always radiated in his arms.
Maybe it was selfish to try to find comfort of his own while he was comforting her, but he couldn't help himself. Who was going to comfort him? You?
Daryl wasn't one to cry much, but he felt his eyes begin to burn. Before either of them knew it, their tears mixed together on Daryl's clothes as his grip tightened even more.
"I was there. I was taken with the others. And I saw...I was supposed to die with them. I was ready to." Saddiq stood on the podium, looking out at the crowd of mixed communities, all of which had lost someone dear to them. "Then, Alpha whispered in my ear, "Tell them." Something hit me and everything went black. And when I woke up, I was alone." The image of you, tears and blood dried on your face as you laid lifeless. "What happened was evil."
Daryl stood in the very back of the crowd, arms crossed. His own thoughts ran wild, so many 'what if's. What if he had stayed? What if he had let you go with him? What if, what if, what if... Daryl tuned out the rest of the speech, only zoning back in when he felt a shaky hand on his shoulder.
"Y/n..." Saddiq did everything in his power to not let his voice shake, but it was useless. He forced himself to keep eye contact ashe now stood in front of Daryl, feeling like he at least owed that, even if his eyes were glossy and his nerves were shot. Daryl had to know. He had to know Saddiq was honest and kept his word to you. "She fought. Hard." The shaky man shook his head.
-flashback-
Siddiq looked around, at the old barn, at the people who stood around wearing the dead’s faces, at his friends and family kneeled down, gagged and tied up.
You stared at the people standing, a fire behind your eyes, that Saddiq had never seen before. He couldn’t recall you even blinking.
As Saddiq watched for you to blink at least once, your eyes shifted from the person you were staring down, to behind them.
It was only a split second before the person you had been staring at was hit in the back of the head.
Ozzy, Alek, and DJ yelled as they swung at each and every masked person. You weren’t sure who untied you, but you didn't have time to see. You were on your feet, punching the closest whisperer to you, picking up the knife that had fallen out of their hands.
Everything turned into a massacre.
You stabbed and swung and stabbed some more. Hearing a yell, you swung around on your feet, grabbing the person holding Enid down, before you grabbed by the back of their shirt, your hands moving fast and with force as the knife punctured the chest repeatedly.
Blinded by rage, you moved on adrenaline.
Large hands grabbed your shoulders, yanking you off of the dead body. You could only watch as a new group of Whispers amerged, and charged at what was left of your group.
Alpha stood in front of you, inspecting you. She moved her hand to your hair, her grin making your blood boil. “Beautiful hair. Shame I have to keep it on your head.” The image of her flashed in your head. The blonde hair, of which you now knew wasn’t real, or wasn’t her actual hair. The thought of her cutting it off of someone made you sick.
She tsked, turning when she saw one of her own push someone into the dirt, their knife raised to strike.
“Stop.” All eyes, including your own, were watching the scene play out. Alpha’s eyes scanned the small barn, bodies littering the ground. “They’re the last two.”
The hands tightened on your arms, but you weren't about to show weakness, not over a few bruises being made. One hand moved to hold you still, as another brought a blade to your neck.
Your nostrils flared, watching as Alpha dragged Saddiq right in front of you, although it didn’t take much force with how his body ached, before she held a knife to his throat too.
“What do you think; should we let them decide who should die?” Alpha’s words were directed to the man behind you.
Your eyes caught sight of Tara, who laid limp on the ground, blood dripping from her mouth. Clenching your jaw, you looked past Saddiq, straight into Alpha’s soul, or lack thereof, anyway. “Now," Alpha pointed at you, “You’re Daryl’s. I watched you this morning.” You felt the grip on you tighten even more at the mention of Daryl’s name. “You’re loved by everyone— is he?”
She shifted her crazed eyes to the back of Saddiq’s head. When she didn’t get an answer, she put pressure on the knife, drawing blood.
“Fine!” you croaked, “Fine, kill me. Please, he-he’s important. More than me. Please.”
You turned your attention to the man holding you, “Daryl, he said he beat your ass. Told me all about it. You want to hurt him back, right?” You knew you were playing a dangerous game, but you just hoped they would take it out on you, not Daryl or Saddiq.
Beta growled, his breath becoming erratic, as he looked at Alpha for any signal. He could make one quick move and break your neck, but you knew Alpha wanted you to suffer. She wouldn’t let him have all the fun.
It had to be you. Saddiq had a baby on the way. Rosita had told you, and made you promise to keep it on the down low. He was a doctor, he could save lives without thinking twice about it. Carl died for him.
There was a long moment of silence, only the angry hot breath fanning over your head, before you were thrown to the ground, hands tied behind your back again. Alpha made everyone leave, dragging Beta out as he shook in anger, ready to pounce.
When the two were out of earshot, you stared Saddiq down. He began shaking his head, “You can’t-”
“Yes. Yes, I can, Saddiq. Rosita needs you.” The baby needs you, especially in this world. “You have to tell Daryl that none of this was his fault. I know him, he’s going to blame himself and pull away.”
You licked your lips, feeling the dryness and small cracks in the skin. Maybe it was selfish to ask that of him, but it was the only thing you could think of in the moment. You didn’t want your last moments to be thinking of how Daryl will pull away, like he always did when he lost someone. He wouldn’t have you to help him out of it. “Tell him I wouldn't blame him for anything that happened tonight. Please, Saddiq. Please promise me. Just…make sure he’s not so hard on himself. Please-”
A gunshot rang out, followed by your screams. You fell onto your side, blood oozing from the wound on your shoulder. Saddiq’s head swung to where the bullet had come from, Alpha walking back in, handing the gun to Beta as he followed her. Whatever conversation they had had outside left Alpha fuming.
Another scream ripped through your throat when Alpha brought her foot up, putting weight on your open wound. “Why are you so willing to die for him?” She seethed.
“‘Cause that’s what you do for family, but you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” Angry tears welled in your eyes as you stared up at her from the weird angle.
Your next words were directed to Saddiq, as if you knew what was going to happen next. “ Tell Daryl I love him.”
It all happened so quick. Alpha leaned down, her other hand holding a knife as it dragged across the soft skin of your neck. Your hands fought to move to the blood flowing out of your neck, but were bound behind you. Your mouth moved like a fish out of water, until blood coated the inside of your mouth, painting your teeth red.
Saddiq watched the life drain from your eyes, his brain blank. He felt numb. Alpha walked back over to him, leaning down to whisper in his ear. Before he knew it, everything went black.
“-She wanted you to know that she loved you. I could tell she did. I’m sorry it's not her standing in front of you.” Daryl didn’t reply, much like how he hadn’t uttered a word since Saddiq began talking about you, about your last moment. He walked away, leaving a teary-eyed Saddiq.
The wind was chilly as Daryl and Lydia walked up the hill to where Daryl felt the word stop. The spikes still stood, a reminder that that was Alpha’s territory now.
Darl looked away from Lydia as she kneeled in front of the spike, where Henry’s head had been. He let her have a moment.
“She’s just a kid.” Your voice rang out in his head, a reminder that she was a kid, dealing with the loss of someone who she cared for and who cared for her. Sounds familiar.
His eyes caught sight of the familiar spike, glaring at it with all the hatred in his heart. Blood had soaked in and dried to the wood. Your blood.
He hated the world even more. He hated Alpha, Beta, the fucking whisperers, and he wanted to hate you for being so selfless, but he couldnt get himself to. Most of all, he hated himself for going against your last wish. The guilt would eat him from the inside out and he would let it.
He felt like he deserved it.
•2021-2024 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I don't give permission!]
People who wanted to be tagged: @vaniniweenie @sassysebastian20
Hi ! Just wondering if you were still going to finish the Daryl Dixon series?
Yes!!!!
Life has been so busy so I haven't had time to write ANYTHING 🫤 but I have a few days off work so I'll try to get something out. Thank you to everyone who has been patient. ILY and I'll try to make it worth the wait!!! 🩷🩷🩷
↝a/n: been a hot minute.....hopefully the drama makes up for it.
↝pairing: season1!Daryl Dixon x wife!reader
↝warning: death, angst, the CDC blowing up and what happens with that, usual TWD stuff, not proofread, injuries, arguing
↝⎙ 11.11.25
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
Series Masterlist | Character Masterlist
You were going to die.
You survived the zombie outbreak, just to get blown up. That fact kept replaying in your head as your knees were tucked under your chin, back against one of the cubicles, completely zoned out.
You had grown quite ocustumed to the chaos of the room. The yelling, the crying, the bottles and weapons being thrown at the sturdy-locked door. Everyone sat with the reality of what was about to happen in 12 minutes. Someone had grabbed everyone's bags, set on the fact that everyone was going to get out. Others didn't see the point. It was useless.
Daryl threw his wine bottle at the door, turning around, face red, to yell at Jenner. "Open the damn door!" He bellowed.
Jenner was unfazed, simply watching as Shane ran at the door with a pickaxe. Another was thrown at Daryl and the two worked together, hitting, grunting, hitting harder than before, just releasing their frustration at the situation.
Sophia clung to Carol, Carl huddled closer to his mother.
"You should've left well enough alone. It would have been so much easier." Jenner simply watched, that being all he seemed to be able to do. He certainly wasn't moving to help at all. Not even to console the weeping mothers and others.
"Easier for who?" Lori glared at the man.
"All of you! You know what it's like out there-" Rick walked over, listening to the river of simplified, nagging beliefs Jenner was sharring. He wanted to tell you how bad the outside world was, but he hadn't walked out the doors. He didn't know what it was like and had no right to think he knew what was best for you.
"A short brutal life and an agonizing death." He turned to Andrea, "Your-your sister, what was her name?"
"Amy."
"Amy. You know what this does. You've seen it." He turned to Rick, "Is this really what you want for your wife and son?"
Rick kneeled forward with a scary calmness. He stared Jenner right in the eye, eyebrows furrowed, eyes crazed, hair disheveled. You could see a vein popping out of his forehead from where you sat.
"I don't want this." He whisper-yelled.
Jenner looked away. He didn't want to hold eye contact with Rick, not when he felt like the officer was about to panse, especially when his family is brought up. He made eye contact with you instead, watching you as if he was trying to read your mind. Ignoring your red eyes, swollen face from the salty tears. "It's better this way." He echoed.
Fury burned in your veins. "That's not for you to decide!"
He blinked at your outburst. "You won't feel it; it will only take seconds. No pain."
You abruptly stood, moving out of rage. You pushed at him, at his chair, anywhere you could touch and release your anger on. The chair fell back, clattering to the floor. Jenner had caught his balance before he had also fell down. He stared at you in shock, confusion.
You kept hitting, your hands meeting his chest over and over. "Piece of shit!" Tears cascaded down your face.
T-Dog ran over, growing quite tired of you and your husband's actions. He grabbed you, pulling you away. "You only let us in so you didn't have to die alone. You deserve to!" T-Dog stood between the two of you, huffing with adrenaline.
It didn't matter if the kids were listening now. You were rightfully pissed off, and scared, and didn't know what to do with all of the emotions. Trauma wouldn't matter to the kids if everyone was going to die in 10 minutes. Nothing mattered.
Shane and Daryl finally gave up with the door. Shane leaned up against a cubicle, "Can't make a dent."
Jenner sat back down, fixing his obnoxiously white jacket. "Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher."
"Well, your head ain't!" Daryl ran toward the doctor, axe raised high with intent.
"Woah! Woah!" Dale, Glenn, and Rick all moved to hold Daryl back. "Daryl! Daryl, Daryl."
T-Dog gave you a begging glance before letting you go, running to help hold Daryl back.
Jenner stood, "You do want this. Last night. you said you knew it was just a matter of time beofre everyone you loved was dead."
Rick looked to Lori and froze. The wine was a terrible, terrible idea.
Alcohol makes you volnurable, with the wrong people most of the time.
"What? You really said that?" Shane stared at his bestfriend in shock, someone who he grew up with. He licked his lips, nostrils flaring. "After all of your big talk?"
Rick ignored Shane, still looking at Lori. "I had to keep hope alive, didn't I?"
"There is no hope." Jenner kept talking, "There never was." "There is always hope. Maybe it wont be you, maybe not here, but somebody, somewhere-"
Andrea cut Rick off, "What part of 'everything is gone' do you not understand?" She held on tighter to her knees, pulling them closer to her chest.
"Listen to your friend." Jenner said, "She gets it. this is what takes us down. this is our extention event."
You could feel your pulse in your temple, your hands trembling.
This isn't how you wanted to die.
Before Daryl, you were fine dying alone. You were set on making your career your whole life. Nobody mattered.
Then, Daryl showed up. Everything changed. It wasn't just a singular grave plot under an old oak tree. It was two graves, two headstones. Flowers growing on top.
"Loving wife" And "Loving Husband" etched in stone.
You didnt want to die here, in a sterile CDC room with people you had only just met. You didn't want to get blown up, or bit for that matter. Every since you reunited with Daryl, you didn't want to die. Sure, the thought accured when you were stuck on the roof. That happens when you're left alone for a long period of time. The thought of Daryl leaving without you, and the red fur, and the hell you had seen; the blood, ripped skin, and the screams you've heard, didn't help to eleminate the thoughts.
Maybe dying this way would be better--easy. But you didnt want easy. You wanted a future with Daryl. If that meant fighting for your lives every second, then fine. But atleast you would be together. That's what you promised in your vows. You would fight until your last breath. And that would not be at the hands of Jenner.
"This isnt right." Carol sobbed, "You can't just just keep us here."
Jenner leaned forward, getting too close to Carol, "One tiny moment-"
One second you were zoned out, sound around you muffled, the next, your fist was meeting Jenner's cheek.
You weren't thinking- not about jenner, or the kids- not at all. You were feuled by anger, by fear, by the thought that death was enevitable.
You didn't hear the scrambling behind you, or Rick yelling at you. You only heard your heartbeat in your ears, felt the shake of adrinaline in your legs.
Jenner staggered back, gawking as he the side of his face. It was aching at this point. He glanced at Daryl, who had been quick to stand in between the two of you, before leaning back in his chair. He looked back at Carol, "As I was saying a second ago, no pain."
Carol broke down even more. "My daughter dosnt deserve to die like this." She handed handed Sophia to Dale, moving away from the doctor.
"Wouldn't just it be kinder, more compassionate to just hold your loved one and wait for the clock to run out?"
The sound of a gun cocking alerted everyone to Shane. Rick rounded on Shane, who had in fury burning in his irises. "Shane, No!"
"Out of the way, Rick! Stay out of my way!" He pushed Rick. Everyone scurried away. Shane put the gun eye leved to Jenner. "Open that door, or I'm gonna blow your head off. Do you hear me?!" His eyes were crazed.
"Brother, brother, this is not the way you do this. we will never get out of here."
Lori spoke up "Shane, you listen to him."
"It's too late" Shane mumbled.
Rick stood his ground, " He dies, we all die!"
Shane began screaming, teeth clenched. His finger pressed down on the trigger. Your ears rang. He aimed at every computer, sending sparks and glass everywhere.
Rick eventually got control of Shane's hands. They fought over the gun, before Rick elbowed Shane is the mouth, sending him to the floor.
Rick stood over Shane, the butt of the gun aimed and ready. "You done now? Are you done?"
Shane panted, "yeah, I guess we all are." He seethed.
Rick stared at him for a second before stepping away, handing the gun to T-Dog. He stared at Lori, at Dale, at everyone he had led here for help. He turned back to Jenner, who sat away from everyone else. "I think you're lying."
"What?" Jenner looked up.
"You're lying, about no hope. If that were true, you'd have bolted with the rest, or taken the easy way out."
"It doesn't matter."
"It does matter. It always matters. You stayed when others ran. Why?" Rick bent down to Jenner's height.
"Not because I wanted to." Jenner stood, not breaking eye contact with Rick. "I made a promise... To her." He pointed at the screen, "My wife."
"Test Subject 19 was your wife?" Lori asked.
"She begged me to keep going for as long as I could. How could I say no? She was dying. It should've been me on that table. I wouldn't have mattered to anybody. She was a lost to the world-hell, she ran this place. I just worked here. She was our Einstein. Me? I'm just...Edwin Jenner. She could have done something about this. Not me." He shook his head.
Daryl scrolled back to the doors, continuously hitting the axe against the metal.
"Your wife didn't have a choice. You do. That's-that's all we want-a choice, a chance." Rick continued.
Lori chimed in, "let us keep trying as long as we can."
Jenner seemed to have thought about her words, shaking his head and sighing. "I told you topside's locked down. I can't open those."
He walked around Rick to where he had put a device down. He pushed his thumb to the sensor until it beeped. He put some code or something in.
Daryl stopped beating on the doors as it fell down with a hiss. "C'mon!"
"The day will come where you won't be." Jenner shook Rick's hand, pulling him closer.
Daryl grabbed some bags, waiting for you halfway done the hallway. You could hear Glenn behind you, "Hey, we've got 4 minutes left! Come on!" He held Carl as Lori ran to pry Rick away.
T-Dog draged Jacqui, but she stopped, pulling her arm back. "Let's go! let's go!" He looked back at her.
" No-no! I'm staying I'm staying, sweetie."
T-Dog gawked, " But that's insane!"
You and Daryl stopped, looking back at the scene.
No, it's completely sane. For the first time in a long time. I'm not ending up like Jim and Amy."
Daryl pulled at your arm, urging you to move, but you couldn't. Your eyes were stuck on Jacqui.
"There's no time to argue, and no point. Not if you want to get out. Just get out. Get out!"
One final pull of your arm had your feet moving. You heard Andrea say she was staying, then Dale trying to convince her not to, but your feet didn't stop.
You held the straps of your bags tightly in your hand. Polaroid was in the other. You ran out multiple flights of stairs, feet shuffled behind you. Coming to the main room, where you were first let in, you looked around. Daryl and Shane and Selena beating against the windows with axes.
There was still nowhere to be seen. T-Dog ran toward the window with a chair, but it didn't work- nothing worked.
"Dog, get down, get down!" Shane held up a gun, aiming it at the glass. He fired, but the bullet didn't make a dent. "Jesus..."
Sophia looked up. "The glass won't break?"
Carol looked through her bag, digging around. " Rick, I have something that might help."
Carol, I don't think a nail file is gonna do it."
"your first morning at camp, when I washed your uniform, I found this in your pocket."
Contrary to Shane's unnecessary comment, Carol pulled out a grenade. Her hand shook as she handled it, waiting for Rick to grab it.
"Look out!" Everyone ran for cover, falling to the ground. Anticipation not at your bones is Rick hesitated to pull the pin.
"Oh shi-!" He ran away from the explosion, face pale, heart racing. The building shook as glass shattered.
After the initial shock were off, everyone ran to the window pain, taking turns jumping. A few jump down first, helping the kids down next.
You grab the bags. Your movements were too fast, grip to loose, because the Polaroid slip from your fingers. Spinning around faster than you should have, your feet were a second behind. Your ankle roll to the side, sending you tumbling. You yelled bags falling and scattering across the floor. Daryl spun around, dropping his bags and weapons to run to your side.
"Go! Go!" You ignored the tears burning, the ache in your ankle. You waved him off, telling him to go on.
Glenn stood by the opening, looking between you and Daryl and the others running across the grass, away from the building.
Daryl and norgie, grabbing under your arms, helping you stand. But your ankle wasn't having it. The egg was too strong. He threw a bag over his shoulder, kneeling down to grab under your legs and back, plucking you off the ground.
Glen scrambled to pick the rest of the bags up, following after Daryl.
It was a struggle for Daryl to jump from the panel, with the extra weight, but he managed, moving as fast as he could. His bow hit against his back with every movement.
Almost to the truck, you look back call my catching side of Dale and Andrea jumping out of the window.
"Get down! Everyone get down!" Daryl had just got into the truck, not even having time to open the door or anything, only enough time to put you down on the ground, covering your body with his. Your hands went around him, body's clothes. Time moves slow as the CDC exploded. Jenner, Jacqui, the picture; gone.
The ground rumbled, heat radiated across the field, debris flew everywhere.
Daryl looked up, pulling away. He exhaled, taking in the scene. He finally looked away, at you.
He helped you up. Opening the truck door for you. "C'mere." You managed to pull yourself up enough for him to plop you in the seat. Your eyes were captivated by the fire behind Daryl. You didn't notice when he closed the door, or ran around the truck, or even when he started the engine and drove away. "Close." Daryl mumbled, but it fell on deaf ears.
~~~
The ride was silent. Neither of you knew what to say. That was too close. The ache had calmed down a little in your foot. Daryl is in one hand off the wheel to pull out a shirt from his bag but 15 minutes into the ride. It was a silent tell for you to wrap your foot.
Hours passed.
She's blurred the truck cruise at 55 mph. Daryl kept granting at you. You still haven't said a word. "'Just a picture-"
Something snapped. You turn toward him.
"No-no it wasn't. It was before; when we were happy; had a roof over our heads; food in our stomachs. Don't sit here and tell me it was just a picture."
Maybe you were being a little irrational. Emotions were getting the best of you. Daryl's eyebrows furrowed, not entirely listening to your words, what they meant. "I lost my brother. You lost some piece of paper-"
"Stop!"
"No. You don't getta yell at me and think I ain't going to say my piece-"
"No, stop the truck!"
Darryl glanced over, before pressing the brake and pulling off to the side of the road. "What're ya doin'? Gonna walk?" He put the truck in park, staring at you as you stared out the windshield.
You had seen him blob of white following the truck, covered by the trees.
Your head went to the door handle, but Daryl's hand covered it. "You're not gettin' out, you're hurt."
"I saw something."
"What're ya talking 'bout?"
"In the woods."
You saw the blur of white again from your peripheral. Your hand inch towards the door handle, but Daryl pulled it away, before crumbling under his breath. " I'll check it out."
He opened his door, moving to step out, before seeing your hands move to the handle. He turned and pointed at you, playfully. The tension from earlier was dissipated. "Stay. You're hurt."
You pursed your lips, hiding your amusement. Grabbing his bow, he shut the door, walking in front of the truck. You watched as he looked through the trees, ducking to see where the white blob had jumped to.
A growl alerted you away from Daryl. A walker limped towards the truck.
Scooting over to the passenger seat, you hit the outside of the truck door, grabbing the walker's attention. Slowly, it made its way over.
As it got closer, you fiddled under the bench seat, grabbing Daryl's toolbox and digging around. The growling became louder, closer. Hands grabbed and gnawed at you through the window. You seem to have grabbed everything but something that would be useful in the moment; screws, nails, nuts and bolts. Everything but something that was long enough and sharp enough to puncture.
Cursing under your breath, you move to the door. You fun through one of the compartments in the inside of the door. Grabbing a screwdriver, you plunged it into the skull, pushing the body away from the truck with a huff. You nearly jumped right out of your skin when a sharp bark admitted after a second of silence. You sharply turn to see Daryl standing at your window, holding a white puppy.
Its head tilted, staring at you through your window.
Sorry for the delayed post, life happens.
Part 8: TBA
•2021-2025 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I do NOT give permission!]
fandom etiquette as a whole died when people who didn’t grow up on fandoms became stans during lockdown, yes, but why am i seeing people openly mocking fics on twitter. why am i seeing screenshots of fics with captions like “bro what is this 😭.” why am i seeing people mock fic writers for not knowing how sports or theater or college or any other organization operates in the real world.
“college is absolutely nothing like this” “why are we writing four people on the team scoring a hat trick in one game” “so tech work is nothing like this, hope that helps!”
if you don’t like a fic, and if you can’t suspend your belief enough to enjoy a fic that exaggerates or ignores real-world orgs, you don’t have to read it. you don’t have to screenshot it and put it on blast for twitter. you don’t have to post a link to it in the replies. the back button is literally there on your phone. it’s not giving baby’s first fandom anymore, it’s giving entitled asshole and it isn’t as cute as you think it is.
↝a/n: been a hot minute.....hopefully the drama makes up for it.
↝pairing: season1!Daryl Dixon x wife!reader
↝warning: death, angst, the CDC blowing up and what happens with that, usual TWD stuff, not proofread, injuries, arguing
↝⎙ 11.11.25
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
Series Masterlist | Character Masterlist
You were going to die.
You survived the zombie outbreak, just to get blown up. That fact kept replaying in your head as your knees were tucked under your chin, back against one of the cubicles, completely zoned out.
You had grown quite ocustumed to the chaos of the room. The yelling, the crying, the bottles and weapons being thrown at the sturdy-locked door. Everyone sat with the reality of what was about to happen in 12 minutes. Someone had grabbed everyone's bags, set on the fact that everyone was going to get out. Others didn't see the point. It was useless.
Daryl threw his wine bottle at the door, turning around, face red, to yell at Jenner. "Open the damn door!" He bellowed.
Jenner was unfazed, simply watching as Shane ran at the door with a pickaxe. Another was thrown at Daryl and the two worked together, hitting, grunting, hitting harder than before, just releasing their frustration at the situation.
Sophia clung to Carol, Carl huddled closer to his mother.
"You should've left well enough alone. It would have been so much easier." Jenner simply watched, that being all he seemed to be able to do. He certainly wasn't moving to help at all. Not even to console the weeping mothers and others.
"Easier for who?" Lori glared at the man.
"All of you! You know what it's like out there-" Rick walked over, listening to the river of simplified, nagging beliefs Jenner was sharring. He wanted to tell you how bad the outside world was, but he hadn't walked out the doors. He didn't know what it was like and had no right to think he knew what was best for you.
"A short brutal life and an agonizing death." He turned to Andrea, "Your-your sister, what was her name?"
"Amy."
"Amy. You know what this does. You've seen it." He turned to Rick, "Is this really what you want for your wife and son?"
Rick kneeled forward with a scary calmness. He stared Jenner right in the eye, eyebrows furrowed, eyes crazed, hair disheveled. You could see a vein popping out of his forehead from where you sat.
"I don't want this." He whisper-yelled.
Jenner looked away. He didn't want to hold eye contact with Rick, not when he felt like the officer was about to panse, especially when his family is brought up. He made eye contact with you instead, watching you as if he was trying to read your mind. Ignoring your red eyes, swollen face from the salty tears. "It's better this way." He echoed.
Fury burned in your veins. "That's not for you to decide!"
He blinked at your outburst. "You won't feel it; it will only take seconds. No pain."
You abruptly stood, moving out of rage. You pushed at him, at his chair, anywhere you could touch and release your anger on. The chair fell back, clattering to the floor. Jenner had caught his balance before he had also fell down. He stared at you in shock, confusion.
You kept hitting, your hands meeting his chest over and over. "Piece of shit!" Tears cascaded down your face.
T-Dog ran over, growing quite tired of you and your husband's actions. He grabbed you, pulling you away. "You only let us in so you didn't have to die alone. You deserve to!" T-Dog stood between the two of you, huffing with adrenaline.
It didn't matter if the kids were listening now. You were rightfully pissed off, and scared, and didn't know what to do with all of the emotions. Trauma wouldn't matter to the kids if everyone was going to die in 10 minutes. Nothing mattered.
Shane and Daryl finally gave up with the door. Shane leaned up against a cubicle, "Can't make a dent."
Jenner sat back down, fixing his obnoxiously white jacket. "Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher."
"Well, your head ain't!" Daryl ran toward the doctor, axe raised high with intent.
"Woah! Woah!" Dale, Glenn, and Rick all moved to hold Daryl back. "Daryl! Daryl, Daryl."
T-Dog gave you a begging glance before letting you go, running to help hold Daryl back.
Jenner stood, "You do want this. Last night. you said you knew it was just a matter of time beofre everyone you loved was dead."
Rick looked to Lori and froze. The wine was a terrible, terrible idea.
Alcohol makes you volnurable, with the wrong people most of the time.
"What? You really said that?" Shane stared at his bestfriend in shock, someone who he grew up with. He licked his lips, nostrils flaring. "After all of your big talk?"
Rick ignored Shane, still looking at Lori. "I had to keep hope alive, didn't I?"
"There is no hope." Jenner kept talking, "There never was." "There is always hope. Maybe it wont be you, maybe not here, but somebody, somewhere-"
Andrea cut Rick off, "What part of 'everything is gone' do you not understand?" She held on tighter to her knees, pulling them closer to her chest.
"Listen to your friend." Jenner said, "She gets it. this is what takes us down. this is our extention event."
You could feel your pulse in your temple, your hands trembling.
This isn't how you wanted to die.
Before Daryl, you were fine dying alone. You were set on making your career your whole life. Nobody mattered.
Then, Daryl showed up. Everything changed. It wasn't just a singular grave plot under an old oak tree. It was two graves, two headstones. Flowers growing on top.
"Loving wife" And "Loving Husband" etched in stone.
You didnt want to die here, in a sterile CDC room with people you had only just met. You didn't want to get blown up, or bit for that matter. Every since you reunited with Daryl, you didn't want to die. Sure, the thought accured when you were stuck on the roof. That happens when you're left alone for a long period of time. The thought of Daryl leaving without you, and the red fur, and the hell you had seen; the blood, ripped skin, and the screams you've heard, didn't help to eleminate the thoughts.
Maybe dying this way would be better--easy. But you didnt want easy. You wanted a future with Daryl. If that meant fighting for your lives every second, then fine. But atleast you would be together. That's what you promised in your vows. You would fight until your last breath. And that would not be at the hands of Jenner.
"This isnt right." Carol sobbed, "You can't just just keep us here."
Jenner leaned forward, getting too close to Carol, "One tiny moment-"
One second you were zoned out, sound around you muffled, the next, your fist was meeting Jenner's cheek.
You weren't thinking- not about jenner, or the kids- not at all. You were feuled by anger, by fear, by the thought that death was enevitable.
You didn't hear the scrambling behind you, or Rick yelling at you. You only heard your heartbeat in your ears, felt the shake of adrinaline in your legs.
Jenner staggered back, gawking as he the side of his face. It was aching at this point. He glanced at Daryl, who had been quick to stand in between the two of you, before leaning back in his chair. He looked back at Carol, "As I was saying a second ago, no pain."
Carol broke down even more. "My daughter dosnt deserve to die like this." She handed handed Sophia to Dale, moving away from the doctor.
"Wouldn't just it be kinder, more compassionate to just hold your loved one and wait for the clock to run out?"
The sound of a gun cocking alerted everyone to Shane. Rick rounded on Shane, who had in fury burning in his irises. "Shane, No!"
"Out of the way, Rick! Stay out of my way!" He pushed Rick. Everyone scurried away. Shane put the gun eye leved to Jenner. "Open that door, or I'm gonna blow your head off. Do you hear me?!" His eyes were crazed.
"Brother, brother, this is not the way you do this. we will never get out of here."
Lori spoke up "Shane, you listen to him."
"It's too late" Shane mumbled.
Rick stood his ground, " He dies, we all die!"
Shane began screaming, teeth clenched. His finger pressed down on the trigger. Your ears rang. He aimed at every computer, sending sparks and glass everywhere.
Rick eventually got control of Shane's hands. They fought over the gun, before Rick elbowed Shane is the mouth, sending him to the floor.
Rick stood over Shane, the butt of the gun aimed and ready. "You done now? Are you done?"
Shane panted, "yeah, I guess we all are." He seethed.
Rick stared at him for a second before stepping away, handing the gun to T-Dog. He stared at Lori, at Dale, at everyone he had led here for help. He turned back to Jenner, who sat away from everyone else. "I think you're lying."
"What?" Jenner looked up.
"You're lying, about no hope. If that were true, you'd have bolted with the rest, or taken the easy way out."
"It doesn't matter."
"It does matter. It always matters. You stayed when others ran. Why?" Rick bent down to Jenner's height.
"Not because I wanted to." Jenner stood, not breaking eye contact with Rick. "I made a promise... To her." He pointed at the screen, "My wife."
"Test Subject 19 was your wife?" Lori asked.
"She begged me to keep going for as long as I could. How could I say no? She was dying. It should've been me on that table. I wouldn't have mattered to anybody. She was a lost to the world-hell, she ran this place. I just worked here. She was our Einstein. Me? I'm just...Edwin Jenner. She could have done something about this. Not me." He shook his head.
Daryl scrolled back to the doors, continuously hitting the axe against the metal.
"Your wife didn't have a choice. You do. That's-that's all we want-a choice, a chance." Rick continued.
Lori chimed in, "let us keep trying as long as we can."
Jenner seemed to have thought about her words, shaking his head and sighing. "I told you topside's locked down. I can't open those."
He walked around Rick to where he had put a device down. He pushed his thumb to the sensor until it beeped. He put some code or something in.
Daryl stopped beating on the doors as it fell down with a hiss. "C'mon!"
"The day will come where you won't be." Jenner shook Rick's hand, pulling him closer.
Daryl grabbed some bags, waiting for you halfway done the hallway. You could hear Glenn behind you, "Hey, we've got 4 minutes left! Come on!" He held Carl as Lori ran to pry Rick away.
T-Dog draged Jacqui, but she stopped, pulling her arm back. "Let's go! let's go!" He looked back at her.
" No-no! I'm staying I'm staying, sweetie."
T-Dog gawked, " But that's insane!"
You and Daryl stopped, looking back at the scene.
No, it's completely sane. For the first time in a long time. I'm not ending up like Jim and Amy."
Daryl pulled at your arm, urging you to move, but you couldn't. Your eyes were stuck on Jacqui.
"There's no time to argue, and no point. Not if you want to get out. Just get out. Get out!"
One final pull of your arm had your feet moving. You heard Andrea say she was staying, then Dale trying to convince her not to, but your feet didn't stop.
You held the straps of your bags tightly in your hand. Polaroid was in the other. You ran out multiple flights of stairs, feet shuffled behind you. Coming to the main room, where you were first let in, you looked around. Daryl and Shane and Selena beating against the windows with axes.
There was still nowhere to be seen. T-Dog ran toward the window with a chair, but it didn't work- nothing worked.
"Dog, get down, get down!" Shane held up a gun, aiming it at the glass. He fired, but the bullet didn't make a dent. "Jesus..."
Sophia looked up. "The glass won't break?"
Carol looked through her bag, digging around. " Rick, I have something that might help."
Carol, I don't think a nail file is gonna do it."
"your first morning at camp, when I washed your uniform, I found this in your pocket."
Contrary to Shane's unnecessary comment, Carol pulled out a grenade. Her hand shook as she handled it, waiting for Rick to grab it.
"Look out!" Everyone ran for cover, falling to the ground. Anticipation not at your bones is Rick hesitated to pull the pin.
"Oh shi-!" He ran away from the explosion, face pale, heart racing. The building shook as glass shattered.
After the initial shock were off, everyone ran to the window pain, taking turns jumping. A few jump down first, helping the kids down next.
You grab the bags. Your movements were too fast, grip to loose, because the Polaroid slip from your fingers. Spinning around faster than you should have, your feet were a second behind. Your ankle roll to the side, sending you tumbling. You yelled bags falling and scattering across the floor. Daryl spun around, dropping his bags and weapons to run to your side.
"Go! Go!" You ignored the tears burning, the ache in your ankle. You waved him off, telling him to go on.
Glenn stood by the opening, looking between you and Daryl and the others running across the grass, away from the building.
Daryl and norgie, grabbing under your arms, helping you stand. But your ankle wasn't having it. The egg was too strong. He threw a bag over his shoulder, kneeling down to grab under your legs and back, plucking you off the ground.
Glen scrambled to pick the rest of the bags up, following after Daryl.
It was a struggle for Daryl to jump from the panel, with the extra weight, but he managed, moving as fast as he could. His bow hit against his back with every movement.
Almost to the truck, you look back call my catching side of Dale and Andrea jumping out of the window.
"Get down! Everyone get down!" Daryl had just got into the truck, not even having time to open the door or anything, only enough time to put you down on the ground, covering your body with his. Your hands went around him, body's clothes. Time moves slow as the CDC exploded. Jenner, Jacqui, the picture; gone.
The ground rumbled, heat radiated across the field, debris flew everywhere.
Daryl looked up, pulling away. He exhaled, taking in the scene. He finally looked away, at you.
He helped you up. Opening the truck door for you. "C'mere." You managed to pull yourself up enough for him to plop you in the seat. Your eyes were captivated by the fire behind Daryl. You didn't notice when he closed the door, or ran around the truck, or even when he started the engine and drove away. "Close." Daryl mumbled, but it fell on deaf ears.
~~~
The ride was silent. Neither of you knew what to say. That was too close. The ache had calmed down a little in your foot. Daryl is in one hand off the wheel to pull out a shirt from his bag but 15 minutes into the ride. It was a silent tell for you to wrap your foot.
Hours passed.
She's blurred the truck cruise at 55 mph. Daryl kept granting at you. You still haven't said a word. "'Just a picture-"
Something snapped. You turn toward him.
"No-no it wasn't. It was before; when we were happy; had a roof over our heads; food in our stomachs. Don't sit here and tell me it was just a picture."
Maybe you were being a little irrational. Emotions were getting the best of you. Daryl's eyebrows furrowed, not entirely listening to your words, what they meant. "I lost my brother. You lost some piece of paper-"
"Stop!"
"No. You don't getta yell at me and think I ain't going to say my piece-"
"No, stop the truck!"
Darryl glanced over, before pressing the brake and pulling off to the side of the road. "What're ya doin'? Gonna walk?" He put the truck in park, staring at you as you stared out the windshield.
You had seen him blob of white following the truck, covered by the trees.
Your head went to the door handle, but Daryl's hand covered it. "You're not gettin' out, you're hurt."
"I saw something."
"What're ya talking 'bout?"
"In the woods."
You saw the blur of white again from your peripheral. Your hand inch towards the door handle, but Daryl pulled it away, before crumbling under his breath. " I'll check it out."
He opened his door, moving to step out, before seeing your hands move to the handle. He turned and pointed at you, playfully. The tension from earlier was dissipated. "Stay. You're hurt."
You pursed your lips, hiding your amusement. Grabbing his bow, he shut the door, walking in front of the truck. You watched as he looked through the trees, ducking to see where the white blob had jumped to.
A growl alerted you away from Daryl. A walker limped towards the truck.
Scooting over to the passenger seat, you hit the outside of the truck door, grabbing the walker's attention. Slowly, it made its way over.
As it got closer, you fiddled under the bench seat, grabbing Daryl's toolbox and digging around. The growling became louder, closer. Hands grabbed and gnawed at you through the window. You seem to have grabbed everything but something that would be useful in the moment; screws, nails, nuts and bolts. Everything but something that was long enough and sharp enough to puncture.
Cursing under your breath, you move to the door. You fun through one of the compartments in the inside of the door. Grabbing a screwdriver, you plunged it into the skull, pushing the body away from the truck with a huff. You nearly jumped right out of your skin when a sharp bark admitted after a second of silence. You sharply turn to see Daryl standing at your window, holding a white puppy.
Its head tilted, staring at you through your window.
Sorry for the delayed post, life happens.
Next: Part 8
•2021-2025 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I do NOT give permission!]
↝a/n: sorry for taking so long to update, I've had major writer's block. Poll at the end! Please participate!!!
↝pairing: season1!Daryl Dixon x wife!reader
↝warning: usual TWD stuff, not proofread, angst, hangover, drinking wine, yelling, arguing, Daryl wanting to knock Jenner out Cold, existential crisis??? Idk, reader works for CPS (which I found charming considering Daryl's childhood and how he should've been taken away and given a better life), emotional
↝⎙ 7.9.25
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
Series Masterlist |Daryl Dixon Masterlist
The scratchy material of the blanket grating against your cheek is what finally woke you up. Your eyes flutter open, eyelashes skimming the top of your cheeks. At first, you were disoriented, probably due to the amount of wine you had had the night prior.
Blinking, you let the memories come back to you. The surrounding, the night before–it all came back to you within a few blinks. Stretching, you stifled a yawn as your eyes trailed down to the cot beside you. It was empty.
“Your hair's always a rat’s nest ‘n the mornin’.” Daryl stood by the bathroom, buttoning his dirty jeans. The belongings of his bag strewn across the floor.
“And your morning breath was always bad.”
He shook his head, hiding a grin as he bent over to dig a shirt out of his bag. You sat up, trying to push the wild hairs down. It didn’t really matter, did it? He’s seen you in far worse condition. Hell, he has seen you soaked in blood with dirt caking your skin. For better or for worse.
Still, a part of you had always wanted to impress him.
Even when you imagined yourself old and grey, you pictured buying a new lipstick just to show it off to him — same with a new blouse.
Your eyes scanned the room as you patted your hair down, seeing your bracelet and the polaroid on the side table. Your ring glinted on your finger. Daryl must have put it back on in the night.
“T-Dog’s makin’ breakfast. Said for us to get ready.”
~
“Eggs. powdered. But I do ‘em good.” T-Dog brought the hot pan over to the table just as you walked in. You smiled at him as he made eye contact with you. He playfully winked, as Glenn moaned, his hangover feeling like death. “I bet you it can help. Protein helps the hangover.” He plopped eggs on everyone’s plate. He motioned toward the stove, where he sat the eggs down beside a plate of piled bacon.
“Where’d all this come from?” Rick sat by Lori, taking in the food they hadn’t had in so long. He picked up a bottle of medicine, turning it toward his wife. “Can you help me, please?”
“Jenner. He thought we could use it.” She answered, her eyes shooting up to Jacqui, who rubbed Glenn's back and shoulders. “Some of us, at least."
Glenn groaned, “Don't ever, ever, ever let me drink again.”
You grinned, fixing your plate, Daryl following behind you. You had to keep yourself from taking the whole plate of bacon. The smell had nostalgia nipping at your brain.
Shane walked in after. You didn’t glance back, not really caring. In the short time that you’ve known him, he’s been a total dick. Sure, he did what he had to to protect everyone, especially the kids, but he gave off jackass cop vibes. And you’ve seen your fair share of jackass cops. Especially with how Merle used to run around and flee to your house. Cop cars pulled up to your house too many times to count. They were power hungry. Only a few actually took their oath seriously; To Protect and Serve.
“The hell happened to you? Your neck?” T-Dog’s questioning had you looking up, eyes widening at the scratches on Shane's neck.
“Must’a done it in my sleep.”
“Never seen you do that before.” Rick stared across the table.
“Me neither. Not like me at all.”
You walked around the table, smiling back at Carol as she beamed at you.
Jenner walked in, clearing his throat. “Mornin’.”
“Hey, Doc.”
You sat beside Carol, digging into the breakfast. She watched you, eyebrows raised. She leaned closer, whispering in your ear. “It might be the lighting, but you’re glowing.” She grinned, pulling back to glance at Daryl beside you. Her thin eyebrows wiggled as yours furrowed, looking away before she could tell how flustered you were.
“I showered,” you whispered back, looking back at your plate.
“Doctor, I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing-”
“But you will anyway.” Jenner interrupted Dale, fixing himself a cup of coffee.
“We didn’t come here for the eggs.” Andrea voiced. Staring daggers through Jenner. She was a straight-forward woman.
You plopped a piece of bacon in your mouth, having to keep yourself from humming in delight.
~
You stared up at the screen, watching as it zoomed into the brain, far beyond what you have ever seen. It kept zooming in, kept showing what you couldn’t imagine just by looking at someone on the outside. There aren't words to describe the MRI image in front of you.
That is what powered your every thought, every feeling, every movement. It felt surreal to see all of it, especially when the world beyond the strong walls of the CDC was ruined. There is no wondering what is happening in someone’s brain. College you, who studies psychology, was intrigued. If only for a second.
It didn’t matter, not now. You can’t ask a walker about their feelings when they’re trying to eat the skin off your bones. You hadn’t thought about what the human brain since you finished that class. You didn’t need to. You worked to help children and families have the best possible living environment.
“What are those lights?” Shane wrung his hands, perched on one of the computer chairs. The room smelt sterile but also the air had a weird smell, almost stuffy. That of which happens when the air from outside can’t get in. It would suffocate you if it weren't for the air vents.
“It’s a person’s life–” Jenner started, making you squirm in your seat. “Experiences, memories. It’s everything.” He turned away, staring up in awe. “Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you–the thing that makes you unique. And human.”
Daryl swapped his weight to his other feet, folding his arms over his chest. “You don’t make sense, ever?”
You brought your hand up, rubbing his lower back. But your attention was on Jenner, waiting for his point for this whole thing; why he brought you to this room with all these computers, why he let you in the night prior.
“Those are synapses, electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says, does, or thinks from the moments of birth to the moment of death.”
“Death?” Rick stepped forward, staring at the doctor. “That’s what this is, a vigil?”
“Yes.” Jenner still stared at the screen in awe. “Or rather the playback of the vigil.”
Andrea gawked, “This person died? Who?”
‘Someone he cared about.’ The thought entered your mind before you could help yourself. It took everything in yourself to not blurt the words. He was showing emotion, even if on a small scale. Blame it on the hangover or what you spent years in your career field doing, inspecting one's emotions. You don't usually look at someone with that much awe if you don't love, or at least care for them.
“Test Subject 19. Someone who was bitten and infected, and volunteered to have us record the process. Vi, scan forward to the first event.”
“Scanning to first event.” Beeping sounded all around the room, from each speaker.
The image quickened, along with the person’s breath. The brain looked very much active, trying to stay alive.
“What is that?!” Glenn gawked.
“It invades the brain like meningitis.” Jenner pointed, “The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brain goes into shutdown. Then, the major organs.”
The brain went black. The person stopped breathing.
“Then, death.” Jenner looked down. “Everything you ever were or ever will be…gone.”
Andrea bowed her head from your peripheral. There was no doubt she was thinking about her sister, who had such a long life ahead of her.
“Is that what happened to Jim?” Sophia’s small voice questioned, looking up at her mother with wide eyes for an answer.
“Yes.” Carol nodded, frowning down at her daughter.
Andrea inhaled, standing on shaky legs.
“She lost somebody two days ago.” Lori answered Jenner’s inquisitive stare at Andrea. “Her…sister.”
He walked close to Andrea, “I lost somebody too. I know how devastating it is.” He stepped away within a second, as if showing any more emotion would burn him.
“Scan to the second event.”
Vi complied, “Scanning to second event.”
“The resurrection times vary wildly. We have reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours. In the case of this patient, it was two hours, one minute…seven seconds.”
A flicker of light shown in the brain stem, like a tiny flame.
“It restarts the brain?!”
“No,” Jenner shut Lori down, “Just the brain stem. Basically, it gets them up and moving.”
Rick shook his head, licking his lip and putting his hands on his hips, “It’s nothing like before. Most of that brain is dark.”
“Dark, lifeless, dead. The frontal lobe, the neocortex, the human part–that doesn’t come back. The you part. Just a shell, driven by mindless instinct.”
Before you knew it, a bright blue light flashed and there was a clear hole in the person’s head. They were shot.
“God!” Carol winced, “What was that?”
Andrea looked at Jenner, “He shot his patient in the head. Didn’t you?”
Jenner ignored her, “Vi, power down the main screen and the workstations.”
“Powering down main screen and workstations.”
“You have no idea what it is, do you?” Andrea followed Jenner, folding her arms over her chest.
“It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal.”
“Or the wrath of God?” Jacqui shook her head, voice shaky.
“There is that.”
Your posture gave out, head falling into your hands. This was all too much, yet not enough at the same time.
You came here for answers, sure. But a warm bed, no threat to your lives, that sounded better. Even if that was selfish. It was clear Jenner wasn’t giving you any answers, not any you wanted to hear.
The wine from last night sounds so good right now.
Andrea wasn’t about to give up. “Somebody must know something. Somebody, somewhere!”
“There are others, right? Other facilities?” Carol questioned.
“There may be some. People like me.”
Rick sighed, “But you don’t know?” he squinted his eyes, “How can you not know?”
Too many questions. Too early in the morning.
“Everything went down,” Jenner answered as if that were obvious. “Communications, directives-all of it. I’ve been in the dark for almost a month.”
“So it’s not just here. There’s nothing left anywhere? Nothing?” Andrea countered, “That’s what you’re really saying, right?”
The air shifted, somehow becoming more stale. Daryl ran his hand over his face in irritation. The stress snaked around his muscles just like they had out there. The crease between his brows was back. “Man, I’ma get shitfaced drunk again.” He palms dug into his eye sockets until he saw dots. He leaned against the desk that you sat at.
“Dr, Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question, but…that clock-” Dale pointed at the big clock adjacent to you. 01:00:01. The numbers were in bold red. 01:00:00. “It’s counting down.” 00:59:59. “What happens at zero?” 00:59:58.
“The basement generators-they run out of fuel.”
00:59:57.
“And then?”
00:59:56.
Jenner ignored Rick, so the latter turned toward the screen, “Vi, what happens when the power runs out?”
00:59:55.
“When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur.”
You looked away from the clock, glancing at Daryl who still leaned on the desk beside you. He turned toward you.
~
As soon as you got back to the room, you began cleaning up. The clothes Daryl threw or let fall out of his bag were quickly picked up and stored. Daryl sat on the cot, nursing a new bottle of alcohol. He didn’t pay attention to what you were doing, not even questioning it. Maybe he thought you were just cleaning up, trying to ease your mind with the information you were given. You just saw an MRI of a person getting shot in the head. Well, a walker, at the time of getting shot. It didn’t help. You still saw a bullet puncture a skull.
The bustling in the room came to a halt, the lights flickering until it became completely dark. Daryl grumbled, coming to a stand. He stumbled to the door, bottle in hand. Opening the door, you could see the lights in the hallway were still on. Each door opened, everyone peeking their heads out.
“Why is the air off?”
“A-and the lights in our room?”
You stuck your head out of the doorway from behind Daryl.
“What’s going on? Why is everything turned off?”
Jenner swooped down, grabbing the neck of wine in your husband’s hand.
Daryl’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Energy use is being prioritized.” Lori, Carol, and Daryl began following Jenner.
“Air isn’t a priority?” Dale threw his arms up. “And lights?”
Jenner took a swig of the wine, “It’s not up to me. Zone 5 is shutting itself down.”
“Hey! Hey, what the hell does that mean?” Daryl sped up, falling in stride with the doctor. “Hey, man, I'm talking to you! What do you mean it's shutting itself down? How can a building do anything?”
“You’d be surprised.” Jenner’s voice was monotone, like he had better stuff to do than listen to Daryl, much less answer any of his questions. You sped up, following behind Daryl.
Lori yelled after her husband when they ran out from under the stairs, coming from the room where the generators were.
Rick met Jenner at the bottom of the steps, “Jenner, what’s happening?” He began walking backward when Jenner rounded on him.
“The system is dropping the nonessential use of power.”
“What the hell does that mean? Can you please just stop talking in hieroglyphics?! You’re really pissing me off.” Your cheeks burned, frustration bubbling in your veins. This was all too much.
Jenner glanced back at you. “It’s designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second. That started as we approached the half-hour mark.” He explained, pointing with the glass bottle in his hand. His white coat flowed and fluttered as he walked further into the room, to the computer area. “Right on schedule.” He walked to one of the desks, leaning against it and taking a huge swig of the wine.
As Jenner lifted the bottle to his lips, Daryl glared from beside the doctor, yanking the bottle back after he took a swig.
“It was the French.” Jenner stated randomly.
“What?” Andrea questioned, stepping closer.
“They were the last ones to hold out, as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors, and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs ‘til the end. They thought they were close to a solution.”
“What happened?” Jacqui asked, brows furrowed.
Jenner rolled his shoulders, “The same thing that’s happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice. The world runs on fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?” He chuckled darkly. He was the only one finding any amusement in the moment.
Shane hauled himself up on the platform, going after Jenner. “Let me tell you somethi-” He gritted his teeth, only stopping when Rick physically held him back.
“To hell with it, Shane. I don’t even care-Lori, grab our things. Everybody, get your stuff. We’re getting out of here, now!”
Everyone shuffled back, turning to run back up to the rooms you had just had the best sleep you’ve had in 2 months.
Before you could move even 5 feet, a blaring alarm went off, sending pain through your skull.
Carl looked up at his father, “What’s that?”
Rick opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by Vi: “30 minutes to decontamination."
Red lights violently flashed overhead,
“Doc? What’s going on, Doc?!”
Shane ushered everyone away. “Everybody, y’all heard RIck. Get your stuff and let’s go!
Before you could move, a hissing sound came from the door, right before it clanged shut.
“Did you just lock us in?” Glenn gawked at Jenner, turning to everyone, only to get the same reaction. “He just locked us in.”
Jenner ignored the noise behind him, beginning to record on one of the computers. He began talking to the camera, saying some nonsense.
Everyone panicked. Lori and Carol held their children tight. Everyone was looking at each other, begging for an answer.
Daryl glanced at you, pacing as you fidgeted with your fingers at your side, a nervous habit.
The kids were just as frantic as the adults. The air was thick.
Daryl stepped on the platform, moving like he was on a mission. “You son of a bitch!”
“Shane!” Rick pointed at Daryl.
“You locked us in here!” Daryl roared, as Shane and a few of the others went after him, telling, begging him to stop. He kept cursing at Jenner, growling when Shane picked him off the ground and moved him away.
You stood, shocked. You had never seen him so angry, so devoted to getting his hands on someone to hurt them.
T-Dog looked at you for help. You blinked yourself out of the trance, making eye contact with Daryl, before moving in front of him. “Stop. Hey-Stop!” His actions weren't not justified, but it was not the time. Everyone was terrified, the kids were scared and confused. “Daryl, there are kids and you’re scaring them-”
“They’re scared ‘cause they’re locked in ‘ere! Cause of him-”
“You’re not making it any better!”
His nostrils flared, turning his glare to the doctor, who was in his own world. He didn’t seem to care what was happening simply because he let you in the night before.
Rick walked away from the locked doors, eyes stern. “Hey, Jenner, open the door, now.”
“There’s no point.” The doctor finally looked up, fixing his coat. “Everything topside is locked down. The emergency exits are sealed.”
“Well open the damn things!”
You turned, dragging your hands down your face, leaving them covering your mouth. Darryl huffed and puffed from behind you.
“That’s not something I control. The computers do. I told you, once that front door closed, it wouldn’t open again. You heard me say that. It’s better this way.”
“What is?” Rick stepped closer, glancing at the clock, counting down. “What happens in 28 minutes?”
Jenner turned back to the keyboard.
Shane rolled his lips in frustration, nostrils flaring. He smacked the desk, emitting a loud sound that had Sophia flinching.
Rick repeated himself, “What happens in 28 minutes?!” His patients with the doctor were running thin.
Jenner abruptly stood, being toe-to-toe with Rick, “You know what this place is?!” He bellowed, spit flying out of his mouth. ”We protect the public from very nasty stuff!” He moved toward Shane, spitting the words in Shane’s face, “Weaponized smallpox!” The doctor began listing off everything he protected from the public. “Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country. Stuff you don’t want getting out, ever!” His face was a deep red when he finally closed his mouth.
Everyone stared at him. It’s all any of you could do.
“Stop-!” You rolled your lips between your teeth in frustration, trying to soften your voice. You had noticed every time Sophia would flinch when his voice raised. “Stop yelling. You’re scaring the kids.”
Jenner looked at you, his eye twitching, like you were the crazy one. “They shouldn’t be.” His voice was eerily calm this time around. He sat back down, fixing his coat again. “In the event of a catastrophic power failure- in a terrorist attack- for example. H.I.T.s are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out.”
You kept looking back at the kids, ignoring most of the words coming from Jenner. Their worry was evident. It had become easier to read children’s emotions, even ones they didn’t understand themselves. You tried to understand the family dynamic, if the kids were in the right situation. But this instance was different. It wasn’t a CPS case. It wasn’t a file put on your desk, or a profile sent to your computer. This was happening. There was no way out. You couldn't help these kids out of this shitshow.
Your breathing became shallow, your chest beginning to cave in.
“H.I.T.s?” Rick questioned.
Jenner broke the intense eye contact battle between the two. “Vi, define.”
“H.I.T.s- high-impulse-thermobaric fuel-air explosives consist of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any known explosive except nuclear.” Vi fulfilled, as everyone stood in shock; in fear.
The building would explode in 27 minutes, 42 seconds.
Carol brought Sophia into her arms, holding her tight, like Carol could use her super-mom strength to stop the explosion. Tears cascaded down her cheeks, a sob shuddering her entire body.
Carl stared up at his parents, looking desperately for an answer to all this. He even glanced at Shane, who he had grown closer to since his dad was yanked away from him.
Your hands slowly fell from your face. Daryl stepped toward Jenner, a fury behind his eyes. Daryl wasn’t fond of everyone in the room, but they were still people. People who welcomed every new survivor they had run across. These people had lives to live. There were kids that deserved a childhood.
You-God, you.
There didn’t seem to be a thought behind your eyes as he looked back at you. Your arms were limp at your sides, face void of any emotion. You looked older in this light, wrinkles on shown, frown prominent.
You had spent the last five years of your life helping families, only to be stuck in a room with all these people, who were starting to feel like your own family.
He just got you back.
How was he supposed to stop what was to come? He couldn’t stop an explosion. This wasn’t what either of you imagined when you vowed “‘til death do you part”. You were supposed to grow grey and old. You were supposed to watch your kids grow up and start lives of their own. You were supposed to be the cool grandparents. Daryl would take the kids hunting, teach them how to fix cars and bikes. He would do anything for the people he loves.
“The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen at about 5,000° and 6,000° and is useful when the greatest loss of life and damage to structures is desired.” Vi concluded.
“It sets the air on fire.” Jenner said, emotionless. “No pain. An end to sorrow, grief,...regret. Everything.”
Daryl jumped toward the doctor, emotions running rapidly. You didn’t move to stop him, instead, your arms wrapped around your body, trying to find any comfort within yourself.
You were all going to die.
should I kill reader off next chapter?
yes, give me the angst
no, let us have this one thing.
roll the dice and surprise us 🤫
Voting ended onJul 17, 2025
Next part:TBA
•2021-2025 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I do NOT give permission!]
Hiii I dun know if u have seen me liking ur posts but I luv your my wife series for Daryl it’s so cutie patotie and I like your fics overall and I hope your pillows are always cold when u want them to be. Have a nice day :3
This is genuinely the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. Thank you so much! You're so sweet 🩷 I hope you're having an amazing day, Love. 🩷🩷🩷
↝a/n: sorry for taking so long to update, I've had major writer's block. Poll at the end! Please participate!!!
↝pairing: season1!Daryl Dixon x wife!reader
↝warning: usual TWD stuff, not proofread, angst, hangover, drinking wine, yelling, arguing, Daryl wanting to knock Jenner out Cold, existential crisis??? Idk, reader works for CPS (which I found charming considering Daryl's childhood and how he should've been taken away and given a better life), emotional
↝⎙ 7.9.25
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
Series Masterlist |Daryl Dixon Masterlist
The scratchy material of the blanket grating against your cheek is what finally woke you up. Your eyes flutter open, eyelashes skimming the top of your cheeks. At first, you were disoriented, probably due to the amount of wine you had had the night prior.
Blinking, you let the memories come back to you. The surrounding, the night before–it all came back to you within a few blinks. Stretching, you stifled a yawn as your eyes trailed down to the cot beside you. It was empty.
“Your hair's always a rat’s nest ‘n the mornin’.” Daryl stood by the bathroom, buttoning his dirty jeans. The belongings of his bag strewn across the floor.
“And your morning breath was always bad.”
He shook his head, hiding a grin as he bent over to dig a shirt out of his bag. You sat up, trying to push the wild hairs down. It didn’t really matter, did it? He’s seen you in far worse condition. Hell, he has seen you soaked in blood with dirt caking your skin. For better or for worse.
Still, a part of you had always wanted to impress him.
Even when you imagined yourself old and grey, you pictured buying a new lipstick just to show it off to him — same with a new blouse.
Your eyes scanned the room as you patted your hair down, seeing your bracelet and the polaroid on the side table. Your ring glinted on your finger. Daryl must have put it back on in the night.
“T-Dog’s makin’ breakfast. Said for us to get ready.”
~
“Eggs. powdered. But I do ‘em good.” T-Dog brought the hot pan over to the table just as you walked in. You smiled at him as he made eye contact with you. He playfully winked, as Glenn moaned, his hangover feeling like death. “I bet you it can help. Protein helps the hangover.” He plopped eggs on everyone’s plate. He motioned toward the stove, where he sat the eggs down beside a plate of piled bacon.
“Where’d all this come from?” Rick sat by Lori, taking in the food they hadn’t had in so long. He picked up a bottle of medicine, turning it toward his wife. “Can you help me, please?”
“Jenner. He thought we could use it.” She answered, her eyes shooting up to Jacqui, who rubbed Glenn's back and shoulders. “Some of us, at least."
Glenn groaned, “Don't ever, ever, ever let me drink again.”
You grinned, fixing your plate, Daryl following behind you. You had to keep yourself from taking the whole plate of bacon. The smell had nostalgia nipping at your brain.
Shane walked in after. You didn’t glance back, not really caring. In the short time that you’ve known him, he’s been a total dick. Sure, he did what he had to to protect everyone, especially the kids, but he gave off jackass cop vibes. And you’ve seen your fair share of jackass cops. Especially with how Merle used to run around and flee to your house. Cop cars pulled up to your house too many times to count. They were power hungry. Only a few actually took their oath seriously; To Protect and Serve.
“The hell happened to you? Your neck?” T-Dog’s questioning had you looking up, eyes widening at the scratches on Shane's neck.
“Must’a done it in my sleep.”
“Never seen you do that before.” Rick stared across the table.
“Me neither. Not like me at all.”
You walked around the table, smiling back at Carol as she beamed at you.
Jenner walked in, clearing his throat. “Mornin’.”
“Hey, Doc.”
You sat beside Carol, digging into the breakfast. She watched you, eyebrows raised. She leaned closer, whispering in your ear. “It might be the lighting, but you’re glowing.” She grinned, pulling back to glance at Daryl beside you. Her thin eyebrows wiggled as yours furrowed, looking away before she could tell how flustered you were.
“I showered,” you whispered back, looking back at your plate.
“Doctor, I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing-”
“But you will anyway.” Jenner interrupted Dale, fixing himself a cup of coffee.
“We didn’t come here for the eggs.” Andrea voiced. Staring daggers through Jenner. She was a straight-forward woman.
You plopped a piece of bacon in your mouth, having to keep yourself from humming in delight.
~
You stared up at the screen, watching as it zoomed into the brain, far beyond what you have ever seen. It kept zooming in, kept showing what you couldn’t imagine just by looking at someone on the outside. There aren't words to describe the MRI image in front of you.
That is what powered your every thought, every feeling, every movement. It felt surreal to see all of it, especially when the world beyond the strong walls of the CDC was ruined. There is no wondering what is happening in someone’s brain. College you, who studies psychology, was intrigued. If only for a second.
It didn’t matter, not now. You can’t ask a walker about their feelings when they’re trying to eat the skin off your bones. You hadn’t thought about what the human brain since you finished that class. You didn’t need to. You worked to help children and families have the best possible living environment.
“What are those lights?” Shane wrung his hands, perched on one of the computer chairs. The room smelt sterile but also the air had a weird smell, almost stuffy. That of which happens when the air from outside can’t get in. It would suffocate you if it weren't for the air vents.
“It’s a person’s life–” Jenner started, making you squirm in your seat. “Experiences, memories. It’s everything.” He turned away, staring up in awe. “Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you–the thing that makes you unique. And human.”
Daryl swapped his weight to his other feet, folding his arms over his chest. “You don’t make sense, ever?”
You brought your hand up, rubbing his lower back. But your attention was on Jenner, waiting for his point for this whole thing; why he brought you to this room with all these computers, why he let you in the night prior.
“Those are synapses, electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says, does, or thinks from the moments of birth to the moment of death.”
“Death?” Rick stepped forward, staring at the doctor. “That’s what this is, a vigil?”
“Yes.” Jenner still stared at the screen in awe. “Or rather the playback of the vigil.”
Andrea gawked, “This person died? Who?”
‘Someone he cared about.’ The thought entered your mind before you could help yourself. It took everything in yourself to not blurt the words. He was showing emotion, even if on a small scale. Blame it on the hangover or what you spent years in your career field doing, inspecting one's emotions. You don't usually look at someone with that much awe if you don't love, or at least care for them.
“Test Subject 19. Someone who was bitten and infected, and volunteered to have us record the process. Vi, scan forward to the first event.”
“Scanning to first event.” Beeping sounded all around the room, from each speaker.
The image quickened, along with the person’s breath. The brain looked very much active, trying to stay alive.
“What is that?!” Glenn gawked.
“It invades the brain like meningitis.” Jenner pointed, “The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brain goes into shutdown. Then, the major organs.”
The brain went black. The person stopped breathing.
“Then, death.” Jenner looked down. “Everything you ever were or ever will be…gone.”
Andrea bowed her head from your peripheral. There was no doubt she was thinking about her sister, who had such a long life ahead of her.
“Is that what happened to Jim?” Sophia’s small voice questioned, looking up at her mother with wide eyes for an answer.
“Yes.” Carol nodded, frowning down at her daughter.
Andrea inhaled, standing on shaky legs.
“She lost somebody two days ago.” Lori answered Jenner’s inquisitive stare at Andrea. “Her…sister.”
He walked close to Andrea, “I lost somebody too. I know how devastating it is.” He stepped away within a second, as if showing any more emotion would burn him.
“Scan to the second event.”
Vi complied, “Scanning to second event.”
“The resurrection times vary wildly. We have reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours. In the case of this patient, it was two hours, one minute…seven seconds.”
A flicker of light shown in the brain stem, like a tiny flame.
“It restarts the brain?!”
“No,” Jenner shut Lori down, “Just the brain stem. Basically, it gets them up and moving.”
Rick shook his head, licking his lip and putting his hands on his hips, “It’s nothing like before. Most of that brain is dark.”
“Dark, lifeless, dead. The frontal lobe, the neocortex, the human part–that doesn’t come back. The you part. Just a shell, driven by mindless instinct.”
Before you knew it, a bright blue light flashed and there was a clear hole in the person’s head. They were shot.
“God!” Carol winced, “What was that?”
Andrea looked at Jenner, “He shot his patient in the head. Didn’t you?”
Jenner ignored her, “Vi, power down the main screen and the workstations.”
“Powering down main screen and workstations.”
“You have no idea what it is, do you?” Andrea followed Jenner, folding her arms over her chest.
“It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal.”
“Or the wrath of God?” Jacqui shook her head, voice shaky.
“There is that.”
Your posture gave out, head falling into your hands. This was all too much, yet not enough at the same time.
You came here for answers, sure. But a warm bed, no threat to your lives, that sounded better. Even if that was selfish. It was clear Jenner wasn’t giving you any answers, not any you wanted to hear.
The wine from last night sounds so good right now.
Andrea wasn’t about to give up. “Somebody must know something. Somebody, somewhere!”
“There are others, right? Other facilities?” Carol questioned.
“There may be some. People like me.”
Rick sighed, “But you don’t know?” he squinted his eyes, “How can you not know?”
Too many questions. Too early in the morning.
“Everything went down,” Jenner answered as if that were obvious. “Communications, directives-all of it. I’ve been in the dark for almost a month.”
“So it’s not just here. There’s nothing left anywhere? Nothing?” Andrea countered, “That’s what you’re really saying, right?”
The air shifted, somehow becoming more stale. Daryl ran his hand over his face in irritation. The stress snaked around his muscles just like they had out there. The crease between his brows was back. “Man, I’ma get shitfaced drunk again.” He palms dug into his eye sockets until he saw dots. He leaned against the desk that you sat at.
“Dr, Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question, but…that clock-” Dale pointed at the big clock adjacent to you. 01:00:01. The numbers were in bold red. 01:00:00. “It’s counting down.” 00:59:59. “What happens at zero?” 00:59:58.
“The basement generators-they run out of fuel.”
00:59:57.
“And then?”
00:59:56.
Jenner ignored Rick, so the latter turned toward the screen, “Vi, what happens when the power runs out?”
00:59:55.
“When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur.”
You looked away from the clock, glancing at Daryl who still leaned on the desk beside you. He turned toward you.
~
As soon as you got back to the room, you began cleaning up. The clothes Daryl threw or let fall out of his bag were quickly picked up and stored. Daryl sat on the cot, nursing a new bottle of alcohol. He didn’t pay attention to what you were doing, not even questioning it. Maybe he thought you were just cleaning up, trying to ease your mind with the information you were given. You just saw an MRI of a person getting shot in the head. Well, a walker, at the time of getting shot. It didn’t help. You still saw a bullet puncture a skull.
The bustling in the room came to a halt, the lights flickering until it became completely dark. Daryl grumbled, coming to a stand. He stumbled to the door, bottle in hand. Opening the door, you could see the lights in the hallway were still on. Each door opened, everyone peeking their heads out.
“Why is the air off?”
“A-and the lights in our room?”
You stuck your head out of the doorway from behind Daryl.
“What’s going on? Why is everything turned off?”
Jenner swooped down, grabbing the neck of wine in your husband’s hand.
Daryl’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Energy use is being prioritized.” Lori, Carol, and Daryl began following Jenner.
“Air isn’t a priority?” Dale threw his arms up. “And lights?”
Jenner took a swig of the wine, “It’s not up to me. Zone 5 is shutting itself down.”
“Hey! Hey, what the hell does that mean?” Daryl sped up, falling in stride with the doctor. “Hey, man, I'm talking to you! What do you mean it's shutting itself down? How can a building do anything?”
“You’d be surprised.” Jenner’s voice was monotone, like he had better stuff to do than listen to Daryl, much less answer any of his questions. You sped up, following behind Daryl.
Lori yelled after her husband when they ran out from under the stairs, coming from the room where the generators were.
Rick met Jenner at the bottom of the steps, “Jenner, what’s happening?” He began walking backward when Jenner rounded on him.
“The system is dropping the nonessential use of power.”
“What the hell does that mean? Can you please just stop talking in hieroglyphics?! You’re really pissing me off.” Your cheeks burned, frustration bubbling in your veins. This was all too much.
Jenner glanced back at you. “It’s designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second. That started as we approached the half-hour mark.” He explained, pointing with the glass bottle in his hand. His white coat flowed and fluttered as he walked further into the room, to the computer area. “Right on schedule.” He walked to one of the desks, leaning against it and taking a huge swig of the wine.
As Jenner lifted the bottle to his lips, Daryl glared from beside the doctor, yanking the bottle back after he took a swig.
“It was the French.” Jenner stated randomly.
“What?” Andrea questioned, stepping closer.
“They were the last ones to hold out, as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors, and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs ‘til the end. They thought they were close to a solution.”
“What happened?” Jacqui asked, brows furrowed.
Jenner rolled his shoulders, “The same thing that’s happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice. The world runs on fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?” He chuckled darkly. He was the only one finding any amusement in the moment.
Shane hauled himself up on the platform, going after Jenner. “Let me tell you somethi-” He gritted his teeth, only stopping when Rick physically held him back.
“To hell with it, Shane. I don’t even care-Lori, grab our things. Everybody, get your stuff. We’re getting out of here, now!”
Everyone shuffled back, turning to run back up to the rooms you had just had the best sleep you’ve had in 2 months.
Before you could move even 5 feet, a blaring alarm went off, sending pain through your skull.
Carl looked up at his father, “What’s that?”
Rick opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by Vi: “30 minutes to decontamination."
Red lights violently flashed overhead,
“Doc? What’s going on, Doc?!”
Shane ushered everyone away. “Everybody, y’all heard RIck. Get your stuff and let’s go!
Before you could move, a hissing sound came from the door, right before it clanged shut.
“Did you just lock us in?” Glenn gawked at Jenner, turning to everyone, only to get the same reaction. “He just locked us in.”
Jenner ignored the noise behind him, beginning to record on one of the computers. He began talking to the camera, saying some nonsense.
Everyone panicked. Lori and Carol held their children tight. Everyone was looking at each other, begging for an answer.
Daryl glanced at you, pacing as you fidgeted with your fingers at your side, a nervous habit.
The kids were just as frantic as the adults. The air was thick.
Daryl stepped on the platform, moving like he was on a mission. “You son of a bitch!”
“Shane!” Rick pointed at Daryl.
“You locked us in here!” Daryl roared, as Shane and a few of the others went after him, telling, begging him to stop. He kept cursing at Jenner, growling when Shane picked him off the ground and moved him away.
You stood, shocked. You had never seen him so angry, so devoted to getting his hands on someone to hurt them.
T-Dog looked at you for help. You blinked yourself out of the trance, making eye contact with Daryl, before moving in front of him. “Stop. Hey-Stop!” His actions weren't not justified, but it was not the time. Everyone was terrified, the kids were scared and confused. “Daryl, there are kids and you’re scaring them-”
“They’re scared ‘cause they’re locked in ‘ere! Cause of him-”
“You’re not making it any better!”
His nostrils flared, turning his glare to the doctor, who was in his own world. He didn’t seem to care what was happening simply because he let you in the night before.
Rick walked away from the locked doors, eyes stern. “Hey, Jenner, open the door, now.”
“There’s no point.” The doctor finally looked up, fixing his coat. “Everything topside is locked down. The emergency exits are sealed.”
“Well open the damn things!”
You turned, dragging your hands down your face, leaving them covering your mouth. Darryl huffed and puffed from behind you.
“That’s not something I control. The computers do. I told you, once that front door closed, it wouldn’t open again. You heard me say that. It’s better this way.”
“What is?” Rick stepped closer, glancing at the clock, counting down. “What happens in 28 minutes?”
Jenner turned back to the keyboard.
Shane rolled his lips in frustration, nostrils flaring. He smacked the desk, emitting a loud sound that had Sophia flinching.
Rick repeated himself, “What happens in 28 minutes?!” His patients with the doctor were running thin.
Jenner abruptly stood, being toe-to-toe with Rick, “You know what this place is?!” He bellowed, spit flying out of his mouth. ”We protect the public from very nasty stuff!” He moved toward Shane, spitting the words in Shane’s face, “Weaponized smallpox!” The doctor began listing off everything he protected from the public. “Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country. Stuff you don’t want getting out, ever!” His face was a deep red when he finally closed his mouth.
Everyone stared at him. It’s all any of you could do.
“Stop-!” You rolled your lips between your teeth in frustration, trying to soften your voice. You had noticed every time Sophia would flinch when his voice raised. “Stop yelling. You’re scaring the kids.”
Jenner looked at you, his eye twitching, like you were the crazy one. “They shouldn’t be.” His voice was eerily calm this time around. He sat back down, fixing his coat again. “In the event of a catastrophic power failure- in a terrorist attack- for example. H.I.T.s are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out.”
You kept looking back at the kids, ignoring most of the words coming from Jenner. Their worry was evident. It had become easier to read children’s emotions, even ones they didn’t understand themselves. You tried to understand the family dynamic, if the kids were in the right situation. But this instance was different. It wasn’t a CPS case. It wasn’t a file put on your desk, or a profile sent to your computer. This was happening. There was no way out. You couldn't help these kids out of this shitshow.
Your breathing became shallow, your chest beginning to cave in.
“H.I.T.s?” Rick questioned.
Jenner broke the intense eye contact battle between the two. “Vi, define.”
“H.I.T.s- high-impulse-thermobaric fuel-air explosives consist of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any known explosive except nuclear.” Vi fulfilled, as everyone stood in shock; in fear.
The building would explode in 27 minutes, 42 seconds.
Carol brought Sophia into her arms, holding her tight, like Carol could use her super-mom strength to stop the explosion. Tears cascaded down her cheeks, a sob shuddering her entire body.
Carl stared up at his parents, looking desperately for an answer to all this. He even glanced at Shane, who he had grown closer to since his dad was yanked away from him.
Your hands slowly fell from your face. Daryl stepped toward Jenner, a fury behind his eyes. Daryl wasn’t fond of everyone in the room, but they were still people. People who welcomed every new survivor they had run across. These people had lives to live. There were kids that deserved a childhood.
You-God, you.
There didn’t seem to be a thought behind your eyes as he looked back at you. Your arms were limp at your sides, face void of any emotion. You looked older in this light, wrinkles on shown, frown prominent.
You had spent the last five years of your life helping families, only to be stuck in a room with all these people, who were starting to feel like your own family.
He just got you back.
How was he supposed to stop what was to come? He couldn’t stop an explosion. This wasn’t what either of you imagined when you vowed “‘til death do you part”. You were supposed to grow grey and old. You were supposed to watch your kids grow up and start lives of their own. You were supposed to be the cool grandparents. Daryl would take the kids hunting, teach them how to fix cars and bikes. He would do anything for the people he loves.
“The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen at about 5,000° and 6,000° and is useful when the greatest loss of life and damage to structures is desired.” Vi concluded.
“It sets the air on fire.” Jenner said, emotionless. “No pain. An end to sorrow, grief,...regret. Everything.”
Daryl jumped toward the doctor, emotions running rapidly. You didn’t move to stop him, instead, your arms wrapped around your body, trying to find any comfort within yourself.
You were all going to die.
should I kill reader off next chapter?
yes, give me the angst
no, let us have this one thing.
roll the dice and surprise us 🤫
Voting ended onJul 17, 2025
Next part:TBA
•2021-2025 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I do NOT give permission!]
↝a/n: sorry for taking so long to update, I've had major writer's block. Poll at the end! Please participate!!!
↝pairing: season1!Daryl Dixon x wife!reader
↝warning: usual TWD stuff, not proofread, angst, hangover, drinking wine, yelling, arguing, Daryl wanting to knock Jenner out Cold, existential crisis??? Idk, reader works for CPS (which I found charming considering Daryl's childhood and how he should've been taken away and given a better life), emotional
↝⎙ 7.9.25
|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||
Series Masterlist |Daryl Dixon Masterlist
The scratchy material of the blanket grating against your cheek is what finally woke you up. Your eyes flutter open, eyelashes skimming the top of your cheeks. At first, you were disoriented, probably due to the amount of wine you had had the night prior.
Blinking, you let the memories come back to you. The surrounding, the night before–it all came back to you within a few blinks. Stretching, you stifled a yawn as your eyes trailed down to the cot beside you. It was empty.
“Your hair's always a rat’s nest ‘n the mornin’.” Daryl stood by the bathroom, buttoning his dirty jeans. The belongings of his bag strewn across the floor.
“And your morning breath was always bad.”
He shook his head, hiding a grin as he bent over to dig a shirt out of his bag. You sat up, trying to push the wild hairs down. It didn’t really matter, did it? He’s seen you in far worse condition. Hell, he has seen you soaked in blood with dirt caking your skin. For better or for worse.
Still, a part of you had always wanted to impress him.
Even when you imagined yourself old and grey, you pictured buying a new lipstick just to show it off to him — same with a new blouse.
Your eyes scanned the room as you patted your hair down, seeing your bracelet and the polaroid on the side table. Your ring glinted on your finger. Daryl must have put it back on in the night.
“T-Dog’s makin’ breakfast. Said for us to get ready.”
~
“Eggs. powdered. But I do ‘em good.” T-Dog brought the hot pan over to the table just as you walked in. You smiled at him as he made eye contact with you. He playfully winked, as Glenn moaned, his hangover feeling like death. “I bet you it can help. Protein helps the hangover.” He plopped eggs on everyone’s plate. He motioned toward the stove, where he sat the eggs down beside a plate of piled bacon.
“Where’d all this come from?” Rick sat by Lori, taking in the food they hadn’t had in so long. He picked up a bottle of medicine, turning it toward his wife. “Can you help me, please?”
“Jenner. He thought we could use it.” She answered, her eyes shooting up to Jacqui, who rubbed Glenn's back and shoulders. “Some of us, at least."
Glenn groaned, “Don't ever, ever, ever let me drink again.”
You grinned, fixing your plate, Daryl following behind you. You had to keep yourself from taking the whole plate of bacon. The smell had nostalgia nipping at your brain.
Shane walked in after. You didn’t glance back, not really caring. In the short time that you’ve known him, he’s been a total dick. Sure, he did what he had to to protect everyone, especially the kids, but he gave off jackass cop vibes. And you’ve seen your fair share of jackass cops. Especially with how Merle used to run around and flee to your house. Cop cars pulled up to your house too many times to count. They were power hungry. Only a few actually took their oath seriously; To Protect and Serve.
“The hell happened to you? Your neck?” T-Dog’s questioning had you looking up, eyes widening at the scratches on Shane's neck.
“Must’a done it in my sleep.”
“Never seen you do that before.” Rick stared across the table.
“Me neither. Not like me at all.”
You walked around the table, smiling back at Carol as she beamed at you.
Jenner walked in, clearing his throat. “Mornin’.”
“Hey, Doc.”
You sat beside Carol, digging into the breakfast. She watched you, eyebrows raised. She leaned closer, whispering in your ear. “It might be the lighting, but you’re glowing.” She grinned, pulling back to glance at Daryl beside you. Her thin eyebrows wiggled as yours furrowed, looking away before she could tell how flustered you were.
“I showered,” you whispered back, looking back at your plate.
“Doctor, I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing-”
“But you will anyway.” Jenner interrupted Dale, fixing himself a cup of coffee.
“We didn’t come here for the eggs.” Andrea voiced. Staring daggers through Jenner. She was a straight-forward woman.
You plopped a piece of bacon in your mouth, having to keep yourself from humming in delight.
~
You stared up at the screen, watching as it zoomed into the brain, far beyond what you have ever seen. It kept zooming in, kept showing what you couldn’t imagine just by looking at someone on the outside. There aren't words to describe the MRI image in front of you.
That is what powered your every thought, every feeling, every movement. It felt surreal to see all of it, especially when the world beyond the strong walls of the CDC was ruined. There is no wondering what is happening in someone’s brain. College you, who studies psychology, was intrigued. If only for a second.
It didn’t matter, not now. You can’t ask a walker about their feelings when they’re trying to eat the skin off your bones. You hadn’t thought about what the human brain since you finished that class. You didn’t need to. You worked to help children and families have the best possible living environment.
“What are those lights?” Shane wrung his hands, perched on one of the computer chairs. The room smelt sterile but also the air had a weird smell, almost stuffy. That of which happens when the air from outside can’t get in. It would suffocate you if it weren't for the air vents.
“It’s a person’s life–” Jenner started, making you squirm in your seat. “Experiences, memories. It’s everything.” He turned away, staring up in awe. “Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you–the thing that makes you unique. And human.”
Daryl swapped his weight to his other feet, folding his arms over his chest. “You don’t make sense, ever?”
You brought your hand up, rubbing his lower back. But your attention was on Jenner, waiting for his point for this whole thing; why he brought you to this room with all these computers, why he let you in the night prior.
“Those are synapses, electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says, does, or thinks from the moments of birth to the moment of death.”
“Death?” Rick stepped forward, staring at the doctor. “That’s what this is, a vigil?”
“Yes.” Jenner still stared at the screen in awe. “Or rather the playback of the vigil.”
Andrea gawked, “This person died? Who?”
‘Someone he cared about.’ The thought entered your mind before you could help yourself. It took everything in yourself to not blurt the words. He was showing emotion, even if on a small scale. Blame it on the hangover or what you spent years in your career field doing, inspecting one's emotions. You don't usually look at someone with that much awe if you don't love, or at least care for them.
“Test Subject 19. Someone who was bitten and infected, and volunteered to have us record the process. Vi, scan forward to the first event.”
“Scanning to first event.” Beeping sounded all around the room, from each speaker.
The image quickened, along with the person’s breath. The brain looked very much active, trying to stay alive.
“What is that?!” Glenn gawked.
“It invades the brain like meningitis.” Jenner pointed, “The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brain goes into shutdown. Then, the major organs.”
The brain went black. The person stopped breathing.
“Then, death.” Jenner looked down. “Everything you ever were or ever will be…gone.”
Andrea bowed her head from your peripheral. There was no doubt she was thinking about her sister, who had such a long life ahead of her.
“Is that what happened to Jim?” Sophia’s small voice questioned, looking up at her mother with wide eyes for an answer.
“Yes.” Carol nodded, frowning down at her daughter.
Andrea inhaled, standing on shaky legs.
“She lost somebody two days ago.” Lori answered Jenner’s inquisitive stare at Andrea. “Her…sister.”
He walked close to Andrea, “I lost somebody too. I know how devastating it is.” He stepped away within a second, as if showing any more emotion would burn him.
“Scan to the second event.”
Vi complied, “Scanning to second event.”
“The resurrection times vary wildly. We have reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours. In the case of this patient, it was two hours, one minute…seven seconds.”
A flicker of light shown in the brain stem, like a tiny flame.
“It restarts the brain?!”
“No,” Jenner shut Lori down, “Just the brain stem. Basically, it gets them up and moving.”
Rick shook his head, licking his lip and putting his hands on his hips, “It’s nothing like before. Most of that brain is dark.”
“Dark, lifeless, dead. The frontal lobe, the neocortex, the human part–that doesn’t come back. The you part. Just a shell, driven by mindless instinct.”
Before you knew it, a bright blue light flashed and there was a clear hole in the person’s head. They were shot.
“God!” Carol winced, “What was that?”
Andrea looked at Jenner, “He shot his patient in the head. Didn’t you?”
Jenner ignored her, “Vi, power down the main screen and the workstations.”
“Powering down main screen and workstations.”
“You have no idea what it is, do you?” Andrea followed Jenner, folding her arms over her chest.
“It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal.”
“Or the wrath of God?” Jacqui shook her head, voice shaky.
“There is that.”
Your posture gave out, head falling into your hands. This was all too much, yet not enough at the same time.
You came here for answers, sure. But a warm bed, no threat to your lives, that sounded better. Even if that was selfish. It was clear Jenner wasn’t giving you any answers, not any you wanted to hear.
The wine from last night sounds so good right now.
Andrea wasn’t about to give up. “Somebody must know something. Somebody, somewhere!”
“There are others, right? Other facilities?” Carol questioned.
“There may be some. People like me.”
Rick sighed, “But you don’t know?” he squinted his eyes, “How can you not know?”
Too many questions. Too early in the morning.
“Everything went down,” Jenner answered as if that were obvious. “Communications, directives-all of it. I’ve been in the dark for almost a month.”
“So it’s not just here. There’s nothing left anywhere? Nothing?” Andrea countered, “That’s what you’re really saying, right?”
The air shifted, somehow becoming more stale. Daryl ran his hand over his face in irritation. The stress snaked around his muscles just like they had out there. The crease between his brows was back. “Man, I’ma get shitfaced drunk again.” He palms dug into his eye sockets until he saw dots. He leaned against the desk that you sat at.
“Dr, Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question, but…that clock-” Dale pointed at the big clock adjacent to you. 01:00:01. The numbers were in bold red. 01:00:00. “It’s counting down.” 00:59:59. “What happens at zero?” 00:59:58.
“The basement generators-they run out of fuel.”
00:59:57.
“And then?”
00:59:56.
Jenner ignored Rick, so the latter turned toward the screen, “Vi, what happens when the power runs out?”
00:59:55.
“When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur.”
You looked away from the clock, glancing at Daryl who still leaned on the desk beside you. He turned toward you.
~
As soon as you got back to the room, you began cleaning up. The clothes Daryl threw or let fall out of his bag were quickly picked up and stored. Daryl sat on the cot, nursing a new bottle of alcohol. He didn’t pay attention to what you were doing, not even questioning it. Maybe he thought you were just cleaning up, trying to ease your mind with the information you were given. You just saw an MRI of a person getting shot in the head. Well, a walker, at the time of getting shot. It didn’t help. You still saw a bullet puncture a skull.
The bustling in the room came to a halt, the lights flickering until it became completely dark. Daryl grumbled, coming to a stand. He stumbled to the door, bottle in hand. Opening the door, you could see the lights in the hallway were still on. Each door opened, everyone peeking their heads out.
“Why is the air off?”
“A-and the lights in our room?”
You stuck your head out of the doorway from behind Daryl.
“What’s going on? Why is everything turned off?”
Jenner swooped down, grabbing the neck of wine in your husband’s hand.
Daryl’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Energy use is being prioritized.” Lori, Carol, and Daryl began following Jenner.
“Air isn’t a priority?” Dale threw his arms up. “And lights?”
Jenner took a swig of the wine, “It’s not up to me. Zone 5 is shutting itself down.”
“Hey! Hey, what the hell does that mean?” Daryl sped up, falling in stride with the doctor. “Hey, man, I'm talking to you! What do you mean it's shutting itself down? How can a building do anything?”
“You’d be surprised.” Jenner’s voice was monotone, like he had better stuff to do than listen to Daryl, much less answer any of his questions. You sped up, following behind Daryl.
Lori yelled after her husband when they ran out from under the stairs, coming from the room where the generators were.
Rick met Jenner at the bottom of the steps, “Jenner, what’s happening?” He began walking backward when Jenner rounded on him.
“The system is dropping the nonessential use of power.”
“What the hell does that mean? Can you please just stop talking in hieroglyphics?! You’re really pissing me off.” Your cheeks burned, frustration bubbling in your veins. This was all too much.
Jenner glanced back at you. “It’s designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second. That started as we approached the half-hour mark.” He explained, pointing with the glass bottle in his hand. His white coat flowed and fluttered as he walked further into the room, to the computer area. “Right on schedule.” He walked to one of the desks, leaning against it and taking a huge swig of the wine.
As Jenner lifted the bottle to his lips, Daryl glared from beside the doctor, yanking the bottle back after he took a swig.
“It was the French.” Jenner stated randomly.
“What?” Andrea questioned, stepping closer.
“They were the last ones to hold out, as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors, and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs ‘til the end. They thought they were close to a solution.”
“What happened?” Jacqui asked, brows furrowed.
Jenner rolled his shoulders, “The same thing that’s happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice. The world runs on fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?” He chuckled darkly. He was the only one finding any amusement in the moment.
Shane hauled himself up on the platform, going after Jenner. “Let me tell you somethi-” He gritted his teeth, only stopping when Rick physically held him back.
“To hell with it, Shane. I don’t even care-Lori, grab our things. Everybody, get your stuff. We’re getting out of here, now!”
Everyone shuffled back, turning to run back up to the rooms you had just had the best sleep you’ve had in 2 months.
Before you could move even 5 feet, a blaring alarm went off, sending pain through your skull.
Carl looked up at his father, “What’s that?”
Rick opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by Vi: “30 minutes to decontamination."
Red lights violently flashed overhead,
“Doc? What’s going on, Doc?!”
Shane ushered everyone away. “Everybody, y’all heard RIck. Get your stuff and let’s go!
Before you could move, a hissing sound came from the door, right before it clanged shut.
“Did you just lock us in?” Glenn gawked at Jenner, turning to everyone, only to get the same reaction. “He just locked us in.”
Jenner ignored the noise behind him, beginning to record on one of the computers. He began talking to the camera, saying some nonsense.
Everyone panicked. Lori and Carol held their children tight. Everyone was looking at each other, begging for an answer.
Daryl glanced at you, pacing as you fidgeted with your fingers at your side, a nervous habit.
The kids were just as frantic as the adults. The air was thick.
Daryl stepped on the platform, moving like he was on a mission. “You son of a bitch!”
“Shane!” Rick pointed at Daryl.
“You locked us in here!” Daryl roared, as Shane and a few of the others went after him, telling, begging him to stop. He kept cursing at Jenner, growling when Shane picked him off the ground and moved him away.
You stood, shocked. You had never seen him so angry, so devoted to getting his hands on someone to hurt them.
T-Dog looked at you for help. You blinked yourself out of the trance, making eye contact with Daryl, before moving in front of him. “Stop. Hey-Stop!” His actions weren't not justified, but it was not the time. Everyone was terrified, the kids were scared and confused. “Daryl, there are kids and you’re scaring them-”
“They’re scared ‘cause they’re locked in ‘ere! Cause of him-”
“You’re not making it any better!”
His nostrils flared, turning his glare to the doctor, who was in his own world. He didn’t seem to care what was happening simply because he let you in the night before.
Rick walked away from the locked doors, eyes stern. “Hey, Jenner, open the door, now.”
“There’s no point.” The doctor finally looked up, fixing his coat. “Everything topside is locked down. The emergency exits are sealed.”
“Well open the damn things!”
You turned, dragging your hands down your face, leaving them covering your mouth. Darryl huffed and puffed from behind you.
“That’s not something I control. The computers do. I told you, once that front door closed, it wouldn’t open again. You heard me say that. It’s better this way.”
“What is?” Rick stepped closer, glancing at the clock, counting down. “What happens in 28 minutes?”
Jenner turned back to the keyboard.
Shane rolled his lips in frustration, nostrils flaring. He smacked the desk, emitting a loud sound that had Sophia flinching.
Rick repeated himself, “What happens in 28 minutes?!” His patients with the doctor were running thin.
Jenner abruptly stood, being toe-to-toe with Rick, “You know what this place is?!” He bellowed, spit flying out of his mouth. ”We protect the public from very nasty stuff!” He moved toward Shane, spitting the words in Shane’s face, “Weaponized smallpox!” The doctor began listing off everything he protected from the public. “Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country. Stuff you don’t want getting out, ever!” His face was a deep red when he finally closed his mouth.
Everyone stared at him. It’s all any of you could do.
“Stop-!” You rolled your lips between your teeth in frustration, trying to soften your voice. You had noticed every time Sophia would flinch when his voice raised. “Stop yelling. You’re scaring the kids.”
Jenner looked at you, his eye twitching, like you were the crazy one. “They shouldn’t be.” His voice was eerily calm this time around. He sat back down, fixing his coat again. “In the event of a catastrophic power failure- in a terrorist attack- for example. H.I.T.s are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out.”
You kept looking back at the kids, ignoring most of the words coming from Jenner. Their worry was evident. It had become easier to read children’s emotions, even ones they didn’t understand themselves. You tried to understand the family dynamic, if the kids were in the right situation. But this instance was different. It wasn’t a CPS case. It wasn’t a file put on your desk, or a profile sent to your computer. This was happening. There was no way out. You couldn't help these kids out of this shitshow.
Your breathing became shallow, your chest beginning to cave in.
“H.I.T.s?” Rick questioned.
Jenner broke the intense eye contact battle between the two. “Vi, define.”
“H.I.T.s- high-impulse-thermobaric fuel-air explosives consist of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any known explosive except nuclear.” Vi fulfilled, as everyone stood in shock; in fear.
The building would explode in 27 minutes, 42 seconds.
Carol brought Sophia into her arms, holding her tight, like Carol could use her super-mom strength to stop the explosion. Tears cascaded down her cheeks, a sob shuddering her entire body.
Carl stared up at his parents, looking desperately for an answer to all this. He even glanced at Shane, who he had grown closer to since his dad was yanked away from him.
Your hands slowly fell from your face. Daryl stepped toward Jenner, a fury behind his eyes. Daryl wasn’t fond of everyone in the room, but they were still people. People who welcomed every new survivor they had run across. These people had lives to live. There were kids that deserved a childhood.
You-God, you.
There didn’t seem to be a thought behind your eyes as he looked back at you. Your arms were limp at your sides, face void of any emotion. You looked older in this light, wrinkles on shown, frown prominent.
You had spent the last five years of your life helping families, only to be stuck in a room with all these people, who were starting to feel like your own family.
He just got you back.
How was he supposed to stop what was to come? He couldn’t stop an explosion. This wasn’t what either of you imagined when you vowed “‘til death do you part”. You were supposed to grow grey and old. You were supposed to watch your kids grow up and start lives of their own. You were supposed to be the cool grandparents. Daryl would take the kids hunting, teach them how to fix cars and bikes. He would do anything for the people he loves.
“The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen at about 5,000° and 6,000° and is useful when the greatest loss of life and damage to structures is desired.” Vi concluded.
“It sets the air on fire.” Jenner said, emotionless. “No pain. An end to sorrow, grief,...regret. Everything.”
Daryl jumped toward the doctor, emotions running rapidly. You didn’t move to stop him, instead, your arms wrapped around your body, trying to find any comfort within yourself.
You were all going to die.
should I kill reader off next chapter?
yes, give me the angst
no, let us have this one thing.
roll the dice and surprise us 🤫
Voting ended onJul 17, 2025
Next part
•2021-2025 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•
•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I do NOT give permission!]
