Disclaimer: I do not own.

1) This is in answer to the post on my FB page - on what one shot everyone would like to read. 'Chloe x someone new' was the most popular, with Daryl Dixon the name most mentioned. So here you go, a oneshot in a SV/TWD universe :)

2) It goes without saying that there are spoilers for The Walking Dead season 1 (despite it being AU and things happening differently/at different times).

"Should we tell him?" Lois Lane wanted to know as she glanced at the newest member of the Atlanta Camp. His arrival had thrown everyone, and while they were glad that Lori's husband was actually alive it made the whole her-sleeping-with-Shane thing very awkward. How exactly Lori and Shane were keeping it a secret from her husband and his best friend was beyond them all.

"Why exactly would we tell him?" Chloe wanted to know as she ignored Rick Grimes, who was in deep conversation with Shane Walsh and Dale Horvath. The sheriff's deputy from King County, Georgia, was still getting his bearings and trying to find his place in camp. "It's none of our business."

"But they're making fools of him," Lana whispered from where she was braiding Lucy's hair. Even with a scar running down the middle of her cheek, from her ear to her lip, Lana was beautiful. "If that was me I wouldn't want to be the only one in camp who didn't know."

"As if Clark would actually cheat on you," Lucy muttered with a scoff. Her gaze shifted to where her boyfriend, Glenn Rhee, was talking to Amy, and it narrowed in displeasure. Then again, for some reason Lucy was jealous of Andrea's childish and innocent younger sister. Chloe had thought having someone else of her age in camp would make Lucy feel more at home, not so alone, but the brunette had instead gone out of her way to let Amy know that Lucy staked claim on certain people and things, and that if Amy knew what was best for her she would stay away. That brought a lot of tension between Andrea and Lois, who backed up their little sisters without a second's thought.

Speaking of Clark, he joined Dale, Shane and Rick. He looked so much older, body scarred yet strong. Whatever this virus was it'd highly limited his kryptonian abilities, and like humans he was able to be hurt. Losing his invulnerability hadn't changed his superhero ways though, it only made the risks he took to help protect the group even that more impressive. Shane had been leading the group on his own, but when his group and Clark's had met the leaders had seen qualities in each other that they'd needed, and so they'd formed one larger group with the two of them leading jointly.

Shane glanced towards where Lori and Carl (her and Rick's son) walked by. His gaze lingered on them before he cleared his throat and returned his attention to Rick.

Lois shook her head. "How is it not obvious to him that those two have been going at it during the whole time they thought him dead?"

"How sure are we that his story is even real?" Chloe wanted to know. "I mean, it sounds like he recited the storyline of 28 Days Later and just applied it to Georgia instead of England."

Lana waved at Carol Peletier and her daughter Sophia before going over to talk to them. Carol's husband Ed had been a part of Shane's group once upon a time, but he'd not only been abusive to his soft-spoken wife and daughter, but he'd also hurt some of the women in camp, and Clark hadn't stood for it. To this day Chloe couldn't understand how Ed could've been as visibly shocked as he was when he was kicked out, or how he could've thought that Carol would choose to leave the group's safety and comfort to leave with him. Carol and Sophia were much better off without Ed, and wherever he was, a mean part of Chloe hoped he was suffering for all that he'd done.

"Nah, his story works with Shane's of leaving him in the hospital, except, of course, Shane's story ended with Rick dying at the hospital," Lois muttered as she kept eyeing Rick curiously. "He's kinda hot, don't you think?"

Chloe looked up at that. "No."

Lois scoffed. "Figures. You're more into the rugged type. Like Shane." She paused. "Or Daryl."

Chloe smirked. "You're right. Shane really is my type."

Lois grinned outright. "Of course."

Almost as if he'd heard them talking about him, Daryl Dixon walked back from the woods carrying his crossbow and some… were those rats? Chloe made a face and wished they were back to the days in which eating rats wasn't an option, and yet the longer they lived within the Apocalypse the less appealing food sources could be found.

Daryl's gaze scanned the camp and found hers seconds before he looked away and cleared his throat, instead heading towards his older, gruffer, far less likable brother, Merle.

Lois eyed between Chloe and Daryl. "Do you want me to ask him if he likes you?" Her expression was pure kindergarten. "I'll even pass him a note and he can circle yes or no."

"Shut up," Chloe muttered, yet couldn't keep the amused smile from her face. "It's not like that."

"Will you two stop acting like you're kids in primary school and just get together already?" Lois wanted to know. "Sure, a rough, southern redneck was definitely not the type I imagined you with, but he's got his moments." She shrugged. "Plus he's an expert tracker and one of our best hunters. We need him on our team and I'm willing to sacrifice you in order to get him."

Chloe laughed outright at the utter silliness her cousin could come up with. "Stop it and behave."

"When do I ever behave?" Lois wanted to know before her gaze returned to where Rick was, and she bit her bottom lip.

At that moment Chloe wondered whether Lois wanted Rick to know about his wife and best friend for his own good, or because she obviously had the hots for him. Her own gaze though shifted towards where Daryl stood listening to Merle go on and on and on. Daryl nodded now and then but didn't contribute much to the conversation. He took in a deep breath and his gaze shifted towards her and paused when he caught her gaze.

Chloe's eyes widened and she gave a weak little wave.

Daryl nodded in her direction and turned his attention back to Merle before his brother could notice his attention had wavered.

Sighing, Chloe looked away.

"We can't, Shane!" Lori hissed. "Rick's back and it would be wrong to do this to him!"

Chloe paused and turned towards the bushes the voices were coming from, which was also the same direction Rick was heading in.

"I love you, Lori!" Shane whispered back. "You're the only person I've ever loved!"

"You don't mean that!" Lori cried.

"I do and you love me too!" Shane declared before the muffled sounds of kissing could be heard.

Rick was getting closer and would soon hear this himself.

Stuck with a split-second on which to decide what to do, Chloe froze. She'd never been good with emotional dramas. Just as Rick turned towards her, about to see her, hands reached out and grabbed her, covering her mouth (and silencing her scream) as she was pulled into the bushes. For a second she feared Walkers had gotten her, but the body she was pulled against was still, extremely strong, and other than keeping her quiet did nothing at all.

Lori gasped out: "Rick!" seconds before the sound of a punch hitting its mark could be heard.

The hand around Chloe's mouth disappeared, the grip loosened, and she turned to find Daryl Dixon had been her savior. "Thanks." She stared up at him, eyes wide and cheeks flushed as she whispered. "I did not want to be involved in any of that."

"Figured." Daryl gave a shrug, not meeting her eyes as the sound of out-right fighting (and Lori screaming for Shane and Rick to stop it) broke out and caused more of the campers to come running. Daryl shoved his hands in his jacket's pocket, and after a quick look at Chloe, walked away.

She hugged herself as she watched him go.

"Would it be wrong of me to use this emotionally weak moment of his to sleep with him?" Lois wanted to know as she glanced at Rick Grimes, who sat next to Dale and wouldn't look away from the camp fire. News that he'd finally caught Lori and Shane had spread rapidly through the camp, had been the gossip of the century, and none had enjoyed the drama more than Lois.

"Nope," Lucy declared the same second Lana announced: "Yes."

Glenn looked up in amusement from where he'd been resting his forehead on top of his girlfriend's head. "Luce, you're scary."

"You know it," Lucy grinned as she rubbed his thighs and leaned back further against him.

"It's not right to use someone's fragile emotional state," Lana preached softly and turned to look at Clark for back up as the group stayed around their own little campfire. "Right honey?"

"Right," Clark assured her.

Lois turned to Chloe. "What do you think?"

Chloe threw some logs in the fire. "I think we need more firewood."

"I'll get it." Clark stood.

"It's my turn." Chloe rolled her eyes as she stood. "I'll go."

"Want some company?" Lois asked.

"It's close by, I have light and a weapon, I'll be fine." Chloe shoved the steel pipe she'd been using as a weapon down her makeshift hoister for it. "You just concentrate on stalking Rick Grimes."

"I'm not stalking him." Lois rolled her eyes. "That insinuates following him around. I just watch him, constantly. And maybe fantasize about him riding me while I wear that hat of his."

"Too much information!" Glenn looked queasy.

Laughing, Chloe grabbed a basket and slipped off into the darkness of the woods with only her flashlight as a guide. They had people stationed in watch around the camp at all hours so she knew that as long as she stayed inside of the protected section she should be fine. She kept quiet and kept her flashlight on. Any wood she found was thrown into the basket. It was nice being away from the others a while, and while she was within the barrier she knew she was relatively safe, so she allowed her mind to wander as she hummed and continued to gather wood.

She wasn't sure how long passed while she was there, but when she heard a twig snapping under weight to her right she froze. Her eyes widened as fear filled her, and yet when she shone her light in the direction of the sound she didn't see a Walker. Instead, it was Daryl Dixon with a sheepish and uncomfortable expression on his face.

"You scared me!" Chloe brought a hand to her chest, her heart beating like crazy.

"Sorry," he muttered, voice low, eyes not meeting hers. "Didn't mean to."

She lowered her basket to the ground at her feet. "What are you doing out here at this time of the night? You can't be hunting, and you aren't on patrol rotation because yours was yesterday." Sure, Chloe, let him know that you'd learnt his patrol schedule. That doesn't make you sound like an obsessed stalker at all!

He cleared his throat and ran his hand over the back of his head. "Is there a law against a guy walking alone in the woods?"

"No?" He was clearly defensive, and she couldn't figure out why. "I'll leave you to it then." She picked up her basket and made to move passed him into the darkness.

"You're going passed the lookouts," he called after her.

She paused and peeped over her shoulder at him. "No I'm not. I would've seen Ralph if I was."

"You're off course," Daryl muttered reluctantly. "Way off course. It's what happens when you don't concentrate for over thirty minutes. That's also how you get yourself killed."

She turned to face him and blinked. Over thirty minutes? How would he know just how long she'd been lost in her own mind? "How long were you there watching me?"

Daryl's lips parted, closed, he glared at her, shucked his hands in his pockets, and walked away. "Get bitten for all I care."

Chloe watched him go in silence, completely befuddled as to the inner workings of Daryl Dixon's mind.

"If he calls me chink one more time…!" Glenn snapped as he yanked off his baseball cap and threw it on the ground. "I'm not even Chinese - I'm Korean!"

"Just ignore Merle, he's not nice to anymore, not even Daryl, not really." Lana, who truly did have Chinese ancestry, was sadly enough used to hearing the derogatory term from the redneck. She was probably one of the nicest people in existence, especially after the Apocalypse, and somehow managed to not hate Merle for his blatant racism.

"I hope he gets eaten the next time we face Walkers," Glenn muttered resentfully.

"Glenn!" Lana scolded him. "That's a horrible thing to wish on anyone!" She paused. "Even if that person is Merle Dixon."

From where she was gathering the clothes to take down to the river and wash, Chloe had to smile at the fact that Lana had, even if only for a second, obviously imagined Merle Dixon eaten by a Walker. It would definitely not be the first time that someone had done that. Merle was a racist, sexist asshole who rubbed everyone the wrong way on purpose. He enjoyed provoking people and then beating the living shit out of them when they finally broke and attacked him. He was a mean son of a gun, and she didn't get why Daryl was so close to the guy, especially since he treated his younger brother like he was a half-wit minion most of the time.

She was still smiling thirty minutes as she washed the clothes. The thought of Lana enjoying the imagery of someone's gruesome death was just too funny given the fact that Lana was one of the nicest people ever. It just went to show just how much of a dick Merle was. Chloe rinsed out the pants in her pants and stood up, going to throw it over the fishline clothes line Clark had put up for them some weeks back after coming from a supply run. She turned back towards the river and was in the middle of washing a shirt when she heard rustling in the trees behind her.

Given the fact that she was very close to the middle of the camp, and there was no way a Walker could stumble across her without someone seeing it (or it tripping the many makeshift booby traps around camp), she didn't look back. It was probably Lana deciding to come and wash her and Clark's clothes at the same time so they could pass the chore by while gossiping, or, well, more like Lana nagging Chloe about her needing to take better care of herself. Lana felt that the world, post-apocalypse, wasn't safe for a single female, and while Chloe had to agree that that could be true, she wasn't about to hook up with someone just so that he could help protect her.

Suddenly realizing that Lana hadn't arrived by her side (no one had, actually) Chloe glanced over her shoulder, a little surprised to see no one there. She'd been sure she'd heard a twig breaking under someone's weight. I must be imagining things. With a shake of her head Chloe returned to washing Lois' shirt. She hummed to herself as she tried to scrub out a very stubborn dirt stain, and then another twig snapped.

Standing, Chloe twirled around and held the shirt to her chest. "Is someone there?"

Nothing but silence.

Unease settled in her chest but after two whole minutes of standing still and waiting to hear the noise of approach, she realized that a Walker would've given away their position by now. That was why she shook her head and returned to what she'd been doing, humming louder to herself to try and stave off the discomfort. There were no more breaking twigs, but the feeling of being watched persisted. The hair on her arms stood on end, and it was only because she was staring at her arm that she didn't see the reflection in the water of a figure looming behind her until it was too late.

A hand covered her mouth and another yanked her up seconds before she was pulled back against a body and a knife held to her throat.

"Shhhhhh," a male voice cooed in her ear. "Can't let you be making any sort of noise and alerting yer friends that I'm here. Especially not with how hard it was ta get passed them."

Horror filled Chloe like led which sunk in her stomach. She'd been so worried about Walkers she hadn't even considered rogue humans! Her first instinct was to fight, but the blade pressed too hard into her throat, if she moved even an inch she'd slice her own thrown open.

"Now move niiiiiice and slowly, turn," he ordered in her ear. "Careful now. Don't wantcha slicing yerself open on my blade, now, do we?"

Tears formed in her eyes as he leaned in and smelled her.

"I was aiming fer the younger one, pretty dark hair, but that asian boy doesn't leave her alone," he was obviously talking about Lucy. "And then you wandered off on yer own and I thought - she'll do."

Chloe closed her eyes tightly, realizing that Lana hadn't meant Chloe needed someone to protect her, she'd actually meant someone to have Chloe's back in situations like this is which she couldn't actually fight back on her own without jeopardizing herself more.

"Walk," he snapped in her ear.

She shivered in fear yet was force to take that step when he pressed the blade harder into her neck, actually managing to draw blood.

"That's it," he herded her further from the camp through the woods. "Soon we'll be alone in my little cabin and we'll get to know each other better." He sniffed her again. "I just can't wait to—." He suddenly went still as something warm speckled her cheek as he seemed to be driven hard into her back seconds before his knife fell… and he began to fall on top of her.

Chloe screamed, scared he was going to try and do it right there, but while she fought his weight was too much and drove her down. She scrambled, screamed, and then suddenly his weight was off of her and someone was hauling her up. In her haze of fear she didn't notice who it was and fought until he shook her, forced her to look up at him, and she saw his face. It was Daryl.

Eyes wide, Chloe turned to look at the guy who'd tried to kidnap her, and she found an arrow sticking out of the back of his head. That was why he'd sagged against her. He'd died. Chloe looked up at Daryl and then threw herself at him, clinging to him and sobbing her thanks. He'd frozen in her arms, his hands at his sides, his body completely tensed. She didn't really care at this point, she'd been horribly shaken, realizing what had so nearly happened to her. If Daryl hadn't been near by—. Green eyes closed tightly as she hide her face in his chest. How had Daryl even been able to figure out what was happening? That guy had taken precautions, and he'd been silent as a mouse. It just went to so just how superior a hunter Daryl was that he'd figure out what was happening and tracked the guy back to her!

It took a while for Chloe to realize one of Daryl's arms was around her, holding her close to him. The other still held his crossbow, his gaze apparently on the forest around them in case there was someone else ready to jump out at them.

"Is everything okay?" Clark yelled as he came towards them, followed by others. "We heard screa—!" He must've stopped because he'd seen the body.

Daryl immediately tried to pull away from Chloe, but she held on, tightly, apparently surprising them both with her strength because Daryl faltered but didn't try to move away again. In fact, his grip around her tightened. "Found him with a knife to her neck, trying to sneak her out."

"There might be more of them, we need to check our perimeters," Shane announced, ever in charge, ever the leader. "They're obviously raiders after our resources."

"Women aren't resources," Rick spoke, voice hissed.

"No," Shane agreed. "But in times like these, there are men who will see them that way."

Rick was quiet. He obviously didn't like that, but couldn't refute it either.

"We need men in camp, and men canvassing the area with a comb," Clark declared. "We need to do this now before they can get away."

"Are you okay?" Clark asked seconds before his hand landed on her shoulder.

Chloe took in a deep breath and nodded as she finally turned to look at everyone. "If it wasn't for Daryl…"

Clark nodded as he turned to look at Daryl, appreciation deep in his eyes. "Thank you."

Daryl looked very uncomfortable. "It was no big thing."

"It was to her, to me," Clark assured him before he turned to Chloe. "Come on, I'll take you to where Lois and Lana are." With that he eased Chloe away from Daryl and walked her away.

She let him take her, but looked over her shoulder at Daryl and found him still watching her.

Chloe tried not to let it show how much the attack had shaken her. She'd thought herself more than able to protect herself, had maybe been a little overconfident. Before their group had met and banded with Shane's, they'd faced many Walkers, and Chloe had had to kill her fair share of them. For a while she'd forgotten that there were other dangers out there other than the undead kind, and hated herself for having been so freaking naive. She jumped at every sound now, and hated it, but the scabbing scar around her neck from where the man's knife had actually drawn blood was a constant reminder of what could be out there.

Her friends were all worried about her, but she tried to assure them that there was no reason to - that she was fine. It was why she was on her lone walks to find firewood. She'd never accepted company before, having liked the precious moments alone that she rarely got anymore. Now though she was nervous, jumpy, not at all enjoying this.

She was ducking down to pick up a piece of firewood when someone, silent like the night, gripped her from behind, grabbing her hand in one hand and covering her mouth in the other, pulling her back to him. She struggled against him in vain as he pinned her to his body.

"Stomp on my foot," a voice ordered in her ear.

She froze, eyes wide, recognizing that voice. Daryl?

"I've got you pinned to me. You're too close to head-buck with enough force to actually do any harm, and your hands are out of commission, so what do you have left to use against me?" He asked seriously. "Your feet. So use them. Stomp on my foot."

She did, though not too hard.

"Good, that will cause me to loosen my grip on you," he informed her. "Now you can wriggle enough to loosen a hand, now what do you do?" When she had no answer he sighed. "What can you do with your arm in this position?"

She thought of it for a second and then mimed elbowing him in the ribs.

"Now you're getting it." He let go of her, and when she turned to face him he yanked out his hunting knife and pointed it at her. "So, what you do you do if someone comes at you with a knife?"

He'd noticed. Despite how hard she'd tried to hide it from everyone, he'd realized what no one else had, and he was trying to help her regain her confidence and sense of security.

Chloe smiled in realization, but quickly stifled it and gave his lessons her full attention. "What do I do if someone comes at me with a knife?"

Daryl grinned and proceeded to show her.

There were people who designated to do supply runs. Glenn was always on the team because his job as a pizza boy meant that he knew the city quite well. Lucy was also a part of the supply run team because she didn't trust Glenn not to get himself killed while out in the city where the number of Walkers was ridiculous. Lois was also a part of the supply run, not out of worry for Lucy, but because if she had to stay in camp all the time she would probably go insane and do something stupid.

Daryl and Merle were probably one of the only ones who weren't fixed members. Either one or the other went. Never did both go at the same time or none at all. There was always a Dixon on the supply runs, and this time it had been Daryl. Like always, Chloe waited with the others with her stomach in knots, like everyone who had someone loved going out there in the danger.

Lori apparently was trying to keep herself busy with Carl so she didn't have to think of Shane and Rick being out on the supply run as well.

Shane and Clark were like the Dixon brothers in that they always made sure one of them was on the run, and one was always at camp, that way there was always a leader and someone who could take command in case anything happened while they were separated. This time Shane was out, and it was nerve-wrecking considering Rick had made himself a staple on the supply team – probably in an effort to put some distance between him, Lori, and Shane.

When the group finally returned, they were missing two members. Two hadn't made it back. Chloe felt bad at how relieved she was that those two people weren't ones she actually cared about. Her loved ones were back, bruised and subdued, but they were back with the greatly needed supplies.

Chloe's gaze followed Daryl. He moved off on his own, like always, but there was an oddness to his gait. Something was wrong. Worry flurried in her as she grabbed some of Lana's medical supplies and, after making sure that Merle was busy elsewhere, stormed towards Daryl's tent. She could see surprised gazes on her as she bent down, opened the flap of his tent, and ducked inside.

Daryl looked up at her in shock, his shirt off to reveal a slash across the side of his stomach. He'd been cut with something and it went deep. "What the hell are you doing here?"

She ignored him and sat down across from him. "You're going to need stitches."

"Don't need none of that," he mumbled. "Get out."

She didn't. Instead she poured water from her canteen onto a rag and motioned to him. "Hands up. I've got to clean you first."

"No." He frowned at her.

Eyes narrowed, she reached out and held his hand up with one hand, and began cleaning his wound carefully.

Daryl's mouth opened and closed in utter shock. "I told you no."

"I ignored you," she replied, easing the cloth to remove both dirt and blood.

Daryl frowned as he looked at her. "You shouldn't be here in the tent with me."

"Why, is my honor being impugned?" She quipped as she continued to clean him, gaze on his wound. "What got you? This was done with something very sharp."

"Doesn't matter," he muttered. "I messed up is all."

"Were you going to tell anyone you were hurt?" She asked as she finally finished cleaning his wound, and inspected it better.

"No one's business but mine," he replied, eyeing her pointedly.

She ignored that as she pulled out the needle and got it ready, sanitizing it over his candle's flame. In little over a minute she had it ready and turned to him. "This will hurt."

Daryl glared at her before he huffed and shifted to make it easier for her.

Lips twitching in a smile at the realization that she was basically bullying him, Chloe shuffled closer and began the task of stitching Daryl back together again. He didn't make a sound, despite the fact that she knew it had to hurt like a motherfucker, and while she was impressed she also wished he didn't feel the need to act so emotionless.

One part must've been really bad though, because Daryl reached for a bottle of some sort of booze he'd had hidden and took a very long gulp of it. It gave Chloe time to finish the stitching and steal the bottle to pour it over the wound to help disinfect it. Passing the booze back to Daryl, she secured gauze over his wound with medical tape.

When she was done, Chloe was more than proud of herself as she gathered the things together and stood. Her gaze found Daryl's questioning, confused one. "I'm glad you're back in one piece, even if it's a little bloody." With that she ducked out of the flap and ignored the looks she was getting from the others for having gone in there in the first place.

She forewent her own side of the camp and went to wash the blood out of the rag, as well as wash the things she'd used. Even with Daryl's lessons in self defense she was a little nervous, but sanitizing these things was very important, she couldn't leave it till tomorrow just because she was nervous.

Chloe skidded to a surprised halt to realize that she wasn't there alone. Shane sat by the water, gaze at the full moon above them, expression hurt and contemplative. He was also covered in blood.

She wondered if he wasn't acting this way because of Lori trying to fuss over a reluctant Rick back at camp.

Shane looked up and finally noticed her. "Hey."

"Hey." Chloe moved closer and came by his side. "Need some help?"

He noticed the things in her hands. "Nope. This blood isn't mine."

Not sure what else to say given the fact he was obviously in a mood, Chloe moved passed him and went about doing her own thing. She washed the cloth out as best as she could, watched Daryl's blood float away, and then hung it on the clothesline to dry. She cleaned the utensils she'd used and put them away in their container, slipping it into her jacket's pocket. When she stood and turned she stopped once more, finding Shane still there, looking at the moon.

Taking in a deep breath, Chloe knew she shouldn't butt in, but damn it, a bit of the nosy girl she'd been before the apocalypse was still there. "You love her, huh?"

Shane hesitated before he nodded. "I thought she might love me too, but with Rick back, the guilt-she's pulling away." He hung his head. "She didn't even come to see if I was okay when we came back from the supply run, and I looked like this."

"What will you do if he takes her back?" Chloe asked curiously.

"I don't know," Shane admitted. "I am banking on the chance that he won't." He smiled sheepishly. "I'm rooting for Lois to get her claws in him. That'd solve everything, or at least make things more bearable."

Chloe smirked, realizing that her cousin was even more obvious than she'd thought. "I'll let her know you're Team Lick."

He laughed, genuine amusement now overtaking his pensive moodiness before. "Team Lick…" He shook his head, still chuckling. "So what would Lori and I be called?"

"Team Stori," she informed him.

Shane smiled fondly. "I like the sound of that." He sighed and ran a hand down his face. "I guess I should wash this off."

Chloe observed him in silence before she patted his arm. She didn't agree with what he'd done, but he was paying for it in his suffering now, and really, who was she to judge?

"You're a good kid." Shane ruffled her hair.

"I'm not a kid." She raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm twenty."

Shane eyed her thoughtfully, leaving his hand in her hair.

What was he thinking?

Something sounded behind her and she peered over her shoulder to see Daryl moving towards them, an odd glint in his eyes as he moved passed them, bumping his shoulder into Shane's as he did so, effectively knocking Shane's hand off of her. Daryl wordlessly headed towards the water and yanked off his shirt, obviously about to bathe.

"Don't get the gauze wet!" Chloe found herself ordering before she could stop herself.

Daryl ignored her.

"If you get that gauze wet you'll regret it!" She snapped at him, annoyed at his sudden attitude.

He finally turned to face her, expression rebellious. "And just how would you make me regret anything? Nag me to death?"

"If that's what it takes," she replied with cold promise. "I can nag with the best of them, and I will dedicate every moment of my life to making you regret that you got that gauze wet. You'll wish that you had just done the smart thing, even if only so I would just shut up."

Daryl rolled his eyes and yet there was a reluctant smile twitching his lips.

Pleased, realizing that she was getting through to him, Chloe smiled, but it didn't last long at all. Nope. Chloe's eyes widened and she flushed in embarrassment when she noticed Daryl beginning to undo his jeans. "Uh, I'm, uh… I should go. Now." She turned and hurried away, hating how hot her face was flushed by the time she returned to camp.

The fighting wasn't surprising, but it was louder than ever and more violent, too. Rick was a pacifist, but it was obvious that this whole situation between his wife and best friend had really gotten to him – especially when the news hit that Lori was pregnant. Given the fact that Rick had slept with Lori before realizing what had been going on between her and Shane, there was no clue as to whether the baby was his, or his best friend's.

The whole camp had been pulled into this argument considering that half the camp were loyal to a fault to Shane, and the other half understood and sympathized with Rick. Lori was just bawling, and Carl was, well, this wasn't the way that the kid should've found out about what had happened. He was now with Lana, who was yelling at the men to just stop behaving like idiots and to think about the kid and his feelings.

Chloe wasn't about to get in the middle of this so she decided to take a walk down the long, winding road which led through the countryside to their camp. Looking back, given the fact that they were in a world filled with Walkers, and she'd already been attacked by a rogue human, it hadn't been the smartest thing to do. But she was sick and tired of the fighting, of the heavy atmosphere that surrounded the camp, and thanks to Daryl's training she was confident that she could at least get away from someone if they grabbed her.

It was that overconfidence that made her freeze in fear when someone reached out and grabbed her from behind before slamming her face-first into a tree. Chloe was only just able to shield her face from the blow, and would've screamed but there was a rough hand clamped tightly over her mouth, leaving her unable to utter a word.

What did Daryl say to do? What was I supposed to do in this sort of circumstance?

There were all sorts of movements that he'd taught her, and yet Chloe found herself reaching back and grabbing hold of her assailants balls, squeezing hard.

A shouted cry was heard before her attacker let go and collapsed on the ground in agony.

Chloe turned around, kick in mid-swing, only to find herself about to kick Daryl. She somehow managed to stop herself, eyes wide. "I'm so sorry!"

Lying on the ground, covering his balls, Daryl laughed painfully. "I don't think I taught you that one."

"Lois did." She hovered over him in worry. "I'm so sorry, I thought you were—I-."

"You did what you were supposed to," he assured her, still hissing in pain. "Jesus, girl, I was prepared to get hit by you-not for you to go for my nuts!"

Sitting down on the ground next to him, Chloe worried her bottom lip with her teeth. "I feel terrible."

"You feel terrible?" He huffed in disbelief.

Despite everything she couldn't help her tiny smile. "Next time you decide to jump me, give me warning."

He glared at her. "I don't know what type of fancy school you went to, but people don't normally warn you before you get tested."

"Sure they do," Chloe countered. "It's only pop quizzes that you have no advanced warning for."

Daryl merely glared at her.

They stayed there until Daryl's balls "stopped throbbing" (his exact words), and then they walked back, slowly, together. By the time they returned the fight was over, there were black eyes and bruises all around, but some sort of peace or truce had been reached.

Lana just looked at everyone in stark disappointment, muttering how everyone were turning into savages.

When Chloe and Daryl parted ways she sent him one last look, caught him looking at her, and when she smiled at him he… he actually returned it. It was small, it was quick, and it was gone in a flash, but it had been there.

For the rest of the day she was walking on sunshine.

"He still loves her," Lois lamented as they lay together, staring up at the darkened sky. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but given everything's she's done to him – has put him through – I was still so shocked when he turned me down." She sighed. "Makes me like him even more though."

Chloe didn't know how to console her cousin. It was a very tricky, very complicated situation.

Lois sighed and turned to face her. "Enough about me. What about you and the less annoying Dixon?" She seemed to perk up. "You two have been getting really close lately."

Chloe raised an eyebrow. Just today Daryl had told her she was a pain in the ass. "Not in the way I'd like it, though." She peered up at the stars in contemplation. "I think he sees me like a kid, like Shane does."

Lois laughed and then froze. "Wait, you were serious." She scrambled to sit up, eyes wide. "How can you be serious? I mean, with the amount of stalking he does!" She shook her head. "You can totally see he's a hunter."

"What are you talking about?" Chloe asked as she sat as well.

Lois went pale. "Oh my god, you mean you weren't just letting him do it to be coy and coquette?"

"He isn't stalking me." Chloe frowned.

"Uhm, yes, he is, and the only reason why I haven't taken issue with it is because I know you like him and figured you were encouraging him or something." Lois ran a hand over her face. "You really don't realize that he always makes sure to keep you in his sights at all times when he's not on a supply run?"

Chloe shook her head, stunned.

"Wow." Lois blinked. "So you don't realize that whenever you leave the camp to do anything he disappears after you?"

"He does?" And then Chloe stopped and thought about the many times he'd just appeared out of nowhere. She'd never really wondered what he'd been doing around at those time, but had he actually been seeking her out? He was, well he wasn't good in social circles, and he didn't know how to act among people, so was this his way of… she didn't know… getting to know her?

Lois frowned at her. "Do I have to tell him to back off?"

Chloe shook her head rapidly.

Lois eyed her and then grinned. "So now you're going to encourage it by being coy and coquette?"

Chloe ignored her, blushing hard.

Daryl Dixon watched her constantly while they were at camp.

How had she never noticed it before? Maybe it was because she'd been so worried he'd catch her staring that every time he'd even look in her general direction she'd look away and be too scared to look at him for hours. She wasn't sure, all she knew was that now that Lois had pointed it out to her Chloe realized just how obvious it was. Daryl Dixon watched her. A lot.

Now, when she stared at him, she let him catch her, on purpose. She noticed the little start he'd get every time, and the curious glint in his eyes when she'd merely smile at him. He never smiled back at her, but gradually stopped looking away when she caught him staring.

It took a whole week of this for Chloe to realize this was flirting, kinda. It was primary school level flirting, but it was flirting nonetheless.

Everything was going wonderful until Merle went with the supply run and never came back. Things had gone sideways, and from the little that they could get from the survivors, Rick had been forced to leave Merle handcuffed on a rooftop because of… reasons. Chloe wasn't sure why, all she knew was that Daryl had gone off big time because of it. He'd gone back with the group to find Merle and free, but had only found Merle's hand. He'd apparently sawed it off and had been long gone by the time the rescue party had arrived.

Daryl had always been on the outside of the camp, it was worse now than ever. He blamed Rick for what had happened to his brother, and Chloe could understand why he would. Still, she knew Rick enough to know that he wouldn't have done what he had if Merle hadn't given him good reasons to, and she knew Merle well enough to know that he most definitely had given Rick those reasons.

After coming back from the search Daryl disappeared into the forest for four days. No one was sure they'd ever see him again. Chloe kept her gaze on the forest, worried, especially since all of Daryl and Merle's things were still there. The only thing Daryl had taken was his crossbow and his arrows. He had to come back! He had to!

On the fifth day, as the sun began to set, Daryl Dixon reemerged from the forest, his face expressionless. He didn't speak to anyone, didn't look at anyone. He moved towards his tent and his brother's. He looked like he hadn't eaten, slept, or bathed in those five days.

Chloe didn't care. She raced towards him and flung her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. She didn't care that he smelt bad, she just held on. "I was so worried about you, you idiot! Don't do that again!"

He tensed in her grip. "I can come and go as I please. I don't need your permission for nothing."

Usually she'd just brush that off, but her emotions were haywire, that was the only reason she had for shoving him away and stomping away angrily. She was throwing a tantrum and she was too old to throw one, didn't even have the right to throw one. If anyone had the right to do so it was Daryl, but her blood was boiling and her fear these last couple of days needed some sort of outlet, and god help her, it was coming out in irrational anger.

She didn't make it very far – or as far as she'd intended to at least. By the time Daryl had grabbed her and spun her around angrily she was far enough from the camp that no one would be able to see or hear her.

That was probably the plan, since he was livid. "What the hell was that back there?"

"Nothing." She glared at him and shoved him away once more. "Welcome back." And with that she stormed away, or, well, she would've, if Daryl hadn't grabbed her and yanked her right back.

"I'm not done talking to you," he growled.

"I'm done talking to you," she growled right back.

Daryl looked like he wanted to strangle her, and he let out a choked hiss. "Damn it, girl! Stop it! Don't test me when I'm already in a state!"

"Or what?" She pushed. "You'll hurt me?"

Anger filled his eyes. "Do not provoke men who are angry. Some of them do not care that you're a woman."

"Is that a threat?" She wanted to know provokingly.

"Oh for crying out loud!" Daryl threw his hands up in the air. "That's it! I give up! You're a pain in the ass!"

Chloe frowned at him and then began to walk off, only to have Daryl cut her off. She glared at him, hands on her hips. "What? Aren't I the pain in the ass that you've just given up on?"

"Yes!" He snapped at her. "You are!"

"Fine." She sidestepped him.

"Fine!" He yelled after her.

She stormed away.

He let her.

Lori and Rick were trying to make things work between them. Shane was miserable. Carl was acting out. All in all the Grimes family drama was just making things even more depressing around the camp. When Chloe came across Shane drunk by the river, drinking from a bottle of booze he'd no doubt gotten while on one of the supply runs, she was just as miserable as him and in just as much need of a drink.

It'd been three days since Daryl had come back. Three days since, in her anger, she'd basically broken up with a guy she hadn't been going out with. For the last three days she hadn't looked at him, embarrassed and ashamed for how she'd acted. How could she have acted like such a kid? Maybe she wasn't mature enough to have a relationship in the zombie apocalypse. The thought was daunting.

It was why, when on one of her walks she'd stumbled upon Shane drinking by the river, she'd just sat down next to him. He was already visibly drunk, and she envied him, wanting to forget about her own problems for a couple of hours.

"I should love her enough to be happy for her," Shane slurred as he passed Chloe the bottle, not even bothering to say hello. "But I don't, I can't."

Taking a long gulp of the burning liquid, Chloe passed Shane back the bottle. "Well, you know what they say."

"Love's a bitch?"

"The best way to get over someone is to get under someone else," she corrected.

He raised an eyebrow. "You offering?"

"No." She raised an eyebrow. "But I'm sure Andrea would."

"Andrea." Shane made a face.

"Yes," Chloe informed him. "She's been watching you so much I know she wouldn't mind a tumble, even if you told her there were no strings attached. It's not like there's a lot of options here in eye-candy, anyway, and those that are attractive are taken."

"Nice to know," Shane muttered, sounding utterly depressed.

"It would do Lori some good to see that you're not moping after her," Chloe informed him in all seriousness. "If she doesn't care then you know that you're wasting your time with her."

He looked utterly terrified at the thought.

Footsteps could be heard heading in their direction, and Lori's voice could be heard faintly. She was coming here and talking to someone.

Shane looked up at Chloe in terror, obviously horrified of Lori catching him drunk and miserable and basically so pathetic.

As Lori drew near, Chloe cursed under her lips and knocked the bottle of booze out of Shane's hands before she straddled him and kissed him, deeply. Her hands caught in his hair as she kissed him harder, sliding lower onto his lap. When Lori broke through the bushes with whoever she was with, Shane had figured out what Chloe was doing and had his hands under her shirt as he kissed her back.

It was surprising to Chloe just how not into the kiss she was. Shane was good looking, he was definitely her type, but when he kissed her there was no interest in her to make this go forwards.

"Shane!" Lori cried out, horrified, reproachful.

Shane and Chloe pulled away to see Lori staring at them, betrayal on her face. She turned and hurried away, leaving Rick with a defeated look on his face.

Rick Grimes took in a deep breath and closed his eyes before he opened them and looked at Shane. "Go after her."

Shane stared at his best friend in shock before he scrambled to his feet and raced after Lori.

Rick looked distraught but not surprised.

Feeling somewhat guilty for her part in all of this, Chloe reached for the discarded bottle of booze and held it up. "Want some?"

Taking in another breath, Rick didn't budge at first, and then he walked towards her and lowered himself to where Shane had been sitting before. "I feel like such an idiot."

"You shouldn't." She passed him the bottle. "No one else thinks that."

"Right." He took a very long gulp of the bottle before finally stopping to breathe. "I loved them both, you know? It's hard to see… It's… It's hard to lose them, especially to each other."

Chloe took another gulp of the booze when Rick passed it to her.

"You shouldn't do the same to Daryl, especially not after all he's gone through lately," Rick informed her softly, not reproachfully, more like advising her. "If that had been him who had walked in on you two like that…"

"Daryl and I were never together," Chloe informed him with a little steel behind her voice. "And after my stupid behavior the other day I doubt we'll ever be together."

Rick raised an eyebrow and stole the bottle from her when she kept it. "I did wrong by Daryl by handcuffing Merle and leaving him, so let me do right by him right now." He took another long gulp and eyed Chloe. "The only reason why that guy came back to the camp, why he's sticking around, is because of you. Anyone can see that." He pointed the bottle at Chloe. "Talk to him, especially before word of the kiss gets out." He motioned with his head towards the trail. "Go."

Stumbling to her feet, Chloe eyed him Rick thoughtfully. "Thanks."

Rick just motioned her away and took another long gulp of the bottle.

Three times on her way towards camp Chloe faltered and almost turned back, she actually did turn at one point, only to find Daryl leaning against a tree behind her, shadows playing on his face and hiding his expression from her.

Chloe's eyes widened as sudden realization hit her. "You're still following me." When he didn't deny that she went pale. "So you heard my conversation with Rick." It was funny how she was more worried about Daryl hearing that conversation than him seeing her kiss Shane.

Daryl pushed away from the tree and moved towards her casually.

It terrified her. She backed into a tree.

He walked passed her.

Chloe breathed out, heavy. She peered over her shoulder at Daryl, who was walking back towards the camp. "I kissed Shane."

He stilled. "What makes you think I care?"

Huh. So she'd gotten a reaction out of him, and yet it hadn't been the one she'd hoped for. "Because you like me."

He snorted. "Someone sure thinks highly of herself."

Damn it, that hurt.

As he continued to storm off towards the camp, Chloe slid down the tree's trunk, covered her face with her hands, and told herself not to cry.

"Oh my god, you're idiots!" Lois lamented as she turned to Rick. "Aren't they idiots?"

"Not my place to say," he sidestepped from where he was eyeing the damage to the vehicle they were using for supply runs. Ever since Lori and Shane had officially gotten together Rick had stepped back quite a bit, but he gave his son and the supply runs his full attention.

Lois turned to face Chloe. "Rick thinks you're idiots."

Rick turned to look at them with reluctant amusement. "Rick said it was not his place."

"Rick was just being a nice country boy," Lois informed him.

The man who still wore his deputy had shook his head at her. "Rick can talk for himself, thank you very much."

"Rick should talk for himself then," Lois declared in all seriousness. "Rick should tell Chloe she and Daryl are idiots."

Rick opened his mouth.

"Oh my god!" Chloe threw her hands in the air. "You two are the idiots!"

Lois turned to Chloe, hands on her hips. "Rick resents that."

Rick opened his mouth, closed it, opened it, and then chuckled as he shook his head. "Rick is leaving, ladies." Tipping his hat to them he left to join Clark and Dale.

Lois stared unflinchingly at his ass. "I hate when he leaves but I love to watch him go." She then turned to Chloe with a lecherous grin. "I'm wearing him down little by little, all his defenses are crumbling to my innate charm and bulldog determination."

"Doesn't hurt that you keep finding innovative ways of flashing him bits of your boobs," Chloe muttered.

"I know," Lois agreed. "Do you know how hard it is to do that and make it look accidental?"

"Lois." Chloe placed her hands on her cousin's shoulders. "No one, and I mean no one, thinks your boob flashes are accidental."

Lois pouted. "Someone could." She thought it over. "Glenn could, he's a total innocent despite my sister having her claws in him."

Chloe shook her head.

Lois' eyes widened. "Not even Glenn?"

Chloe squeezed Lois' shoulders. "He and Lucy have bets on how exactly you'll try again next time."

"What are the bets?" Lois wanted to know.

"Lucy thinks you'll 'accidentally' tear your shirt during a supply run," Chloe informed her. "Glenn thinks you're gonna somehow manage 'accidentally' to spill something on your shirt the one day all your bras are hanging drying."

Lois' eyes widened. "I like Glenn's idea! I'm going with that one next! Tell me every time they come up with a bet, because to be honest I'm running out of ideas myself."

Chloe smiled at her cousin. "Will do."

Lois hugged her tightly before whispering in her ear. "I still think you and Daryl are idiots though."

Chloe hugged back. "Yeah, me too."

Chloe awoke to the sound of screams.

It was the middle of the night, and confusion abounded as she grabbed her weapon and scrambled out of the tent she shared with Lois to find the campsite infested with Walkers. Screams filled the night as all around her people fell, being dragged under. It was a hard. They were outnumbered. They were trapped. Chloe tried to find her friends, her family, amongst the throng but couldn't. Lois hadn't been in the tent with her when she'd awoken so Chloe was completely alone, terrified, searching for her family.

It took Chloe a second to realize that the Walkers hadn't noticed her yet. She wasn't sure if it was because she'd been in the tent until now, or if it was because, unlike everyone else, she wasn't screaming or making noise. In fact, she was positively frozen. They'd notice her soon though, and she needed to figure out her game-plan by then. If she started hacking and sawing she'd no doubt get their attention and find herself caged in by the horde.

Maybe if I make it to the cars… Nope. There were too many Walkers in between her and the cars. The forest. I can lose them in the trees! Decision made, Chloe shifted her grip on her machete and began chopping her way towards the forest. The problem was the numbers. They were everywhere. They were innumerable. They were hungry. They now noticed her.

Tripping on something, Chloe glanced downwards and froze when she noticed she'd tripped on two legs, two small legs. Sofia's legs. Sofia, who was being eaten by two Walkers. She stared at Sofia in horror, freezing up, forgetting for a second that she was being pursued.

A Walker collapsed to the ground next to her, an arrow in its head.

Chloe looked up as another arrow flew from the trees and hit a Walker to her right. Daryl. He was in the forest somewhere and he was wasting his arrows to help her.

Reaching down, Chloe yanked out both arrows and made a mad dash towards the trees. Swinging her machete left and right, Chloe mowed down the Walkers ahead of her, and those she didn't get, Daryl did. From the angle of the shots she realized he was in the trees somewhere, and when she finally made it into the forest she glanced up into the trees while running. That was the only reason why she noticed the hand reaching down for her, a hand which yanked her up into the tree with him.

Daryl pushed her against the tree, his hand to his lips as, below, Walkers stumbled into the forest after her. They grunted and groaned, stumbling here and there, more and more following.

Chloe's heart raced, she was terrified she'd just gotten Daryl killed. The Walkers would discover them, or they'd just stick around and—!

The sounds of engines revving caught the Walkers' attention, and they all turned and headed back to the clearing.

Daryl and Chloe remained where they were as the sound of the caravan disappearing down the road was drowned by that of the Walkers groaning in protest.

Keeping his finger to his lips, Daryl motioned for her to get comfortable. The Walkers were still there, still too many for them.

Doing as ordered, Chloe got as comfortable as she could.

The next couple of hours were the longest of her life.

The camp was a disaster. By noon the next day only a few straggler Walkers had been around, and Daryl and Chloe had made minced meat of them. There were a few Walkers Chloe hadn't been able to handle, Sofia being one of them. Daryl had merely muttered for Chloe to look away while he dealt with it, and she had. They'd then been able to scavenge the campsite, filling water bottles and collecting the things that were still usable. A couple of the trucks were still there but the Walkers had gone to town on them, and inside the vehicles were bloodied with bits of those who'd tried to escape still littered on the seats.

Merle's motorcycle remained intact though, and after Daryl secured what they'd needed to the back of it, he'd motioned for her to join him. They rode in silence. Chloe hadn't seen Lois, Lucy, Glenn, Lana or Clark amongst the dead, and she had high hopes that they'd made it into the vehicles that had managed to escape, heading towards the pre-determined rally point should anything like this happen.

"Thank you," Chloe finally said as she rested her cheek against Daryl's back. With the wind she wasn't too sure he heard.

"We should reach the rally point by tomorrow," Daryl muttered as they sat together in the car they'd found abandoned on the roadside. The windows were all intact, and the locks worked. He'd already siphoned out what little gas it had so they could use it in his motorcycle the next day, so it was as safe a place as any to spend the night.

"Hopefully everyone is okay," Chloe whispered as she curled up on her side of the backseat, body tired from the long drive.

He peered out of the window at the darkness around them.

She watched him in silence. "Thank you."

"For what?" He didn't look away from the darkness.

"For helping me," she responded.

"You already thanked me," he muttered, proving he'd heard her earlier.

"I needed to know you'd heard me," she admitted softly.

He finally turned to face her. "I did."

They stared at each other for a moment in utter silence.

"Rick thinks that the only reason you stayed with our group after what happened to Merle is because of me." Chloe didn't know why she was saying this, why now, but then again she did. She'd nearly died, again, and Daryl had saved her, again, and damn it, he couldn't continue acting like he didn't treat her differently from the others because he did.

Daryl's eyebrow raised. "Is that so?"

She nodded. "Is it true?"

Daryl huffed and looked away, not answering. "Deputy Do-good needs to pay attention to his own damned business."

"But is he right?" She pressed. "Do you like me too?"

"Look, I don't know why he—." Daryl froze for a second. "Wait. What did you just say?"

"I asked if he was right."

"No."

Chloe's heart plummeted. "Oh."

"That's not the part I was asking about." Daryl narrowed his eyes at her. "It was the part after that."

For a moment she was utterly confused, and then her eyes widened in understanding as she flushed. "Oh."

Daryl stared at her with a strange, impatient intensity. "So?"

She licked her lips. "I asked if you liked me too."

"As in…"

"As in, you liking me back." She groaned and covered her face. "Lois is so right about us! This is ridiculous! I feel like I need to pass you a paper with the words I LIKE YOU, DO YOU LIKE ME BACK? CIRCLE YES OR NO TO—!" Chloe's words were swallowed by Daryl's mouth as he pinned her between the seat and the door, his hands everywhere.

Well… I guess that means he circled 'yes'.

Those were her last thoughts before everything melted into white hot pleasure.

"Goddamnit, woman." Daryl's voice was rough, annoyed, and turned on. "You're going to be the death of us. Stop it."

"I'm not doing anything," Chloe muttered into his back, which was she plastered against, her hands clasped around his waist as he sped down the abandoned road.

"Tell that to my dick," he grumbled at her.

Chloe rubbed her hand over his crotch. "I'm not doing anything."

"Jesus!" The motorcycle swerved slightly before Daryl got it back under control. "That's it!" He pulled off the side of the road, parked the motorcycle, and hoisted a confused Chloe off of the seat before throwing her over his shoulder and stomping towards the trees.

She smirked in sudden realization as to what exactly was going on. "Daryl Dixon, you horndog."

Once they were under the cover of the trees, Daryl put her down and proceeded to show her just how much of a horndog he was.

With all the stops they made (which were, apparently, all Chloe's fault) they didn't make it to the rally point that day as planned. Chloe wasn't exactly complaining, although her legs might be. Considering there wasn't a safe place to spend the night Daryl shifted her on the bike so she was riding in front of him, and he rode throughout the night. She nearly fell asleep a time or two, only to awaken to him gripping her tightly, keeping her in place. It was obviously why he'd put her in front.

By the time dawn broke they came upon the camp. The sound of the motorcycle's engine had awoken those asleep long before they came into view of the scouts. That was why, the second Daryl parked, Chloe found herself with an arm full of Lois, Lucy and Lana, who were all crying. Clark stood over them, next to Glenn, both visibly relieved that she was alive.

Lois let go of Chloe to go and hug and shocked Daryl, who looked terrified.

Chloe smirked at him over Lucy's shoulder.

He glared at her over Lois'.

All in all, it was a great morning.

Some Months Later

"I just want to point out that I knew this day would come," Lois declared with a huge grin on her face. "I knew he couldn't resist my charms forever."

Daryl snorted from where he was eating by their campfire. From that very first morning at the rally point he'd reluctantly been dragged over to Chloe's side of the camp, and he'd been "adopted" into the family. He hadn't been too happy but he'd gotten used to having Clark, Lana, Lucy, Lois, Glenn (and more and more Rick and Carl) being around all the time.

"Got something to say?" Lois raised an eyebrow.

"It wasn't your charm," Daryl assured her pointblank.

"How dare you?" Lois cried out, and then totally broke and grinned. "I mean, who would've guessed Deputy Grimes was a butt guy? I spent so many wasted months flaunting the wrong asset!"

Daryl turned to Chloe, silently asking her, once more, just how sure she was that she was actually related to the brunette.

Lois saw Rick, grinned, and left Chloe and Daryl to go bother the guy whom she'd finally worn down and conquered.

Daryl shook his head. "You know, I feel sorry for Rick."

Knocking her shoulder into his, Chloe chuckled. "Behave."

They looked up to see Hershel, the man whose farm they were staying at, talking with Shane and Clark. There were some tensions between the group and the man, but he'd allowed them to stay and they had to be grateful. Chloe did her best to try and befriend those from the farm, trying to close the divide between the two groups, but it wasn't easy, especially when so many people from each side weren't even trying.

Another one trying her best to "unify"? Lucy. But for her own reasons. She probably would've been annoyed with the fact that Glenn was obviously attracted to Hershel's daughter Maggie if Lucy wasn't so obviously attracted to her herself. Considering what Chloe had accidentally walked into the other night (and had slowly backed away from and high-tailed it out of there) Maggie had no issue with both Glenn and Lucy's attractions.

"I wonder how long this truce is going to last when Hershel finds out what your other cousin is doing to his precious oldest daughter," Daryl mumbled as he finished his food. It was no secret that Daryl didn't expect any of this to last, or that he wasn't even sure it should. He felt it naive and dangerous that the others were starting to relax, to allow themselves to feel at home, safe almost.

"Hush," Chloe whispered. "With Lori's pregnancy this has to work. This is the safest environment not only to give birth in, but to raise a baby in."

Daryl shook his head. "It's wrong for her to bring a baby into this world. What sort of person brings someone innocent into a piece of shit life like ours?"

Chloe gazed down at her hands. "It's not like she tried to get pregnant."

"That's no excuse," Daryl responded moodily. "There isn't one night that I'm not inside of you, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to be careful." He stoked the fire. "You take precautions because it's a shitty thing to do to bring a kid into this mess."

Chloe eyed him thoughtfully. "Are you saying that if I got pregnant you wouldn't want me to keep it?"

He looked up at her, opened his mouth, and then closed it, eyeing her suspiciously. "Are you pregnant?" When she shook her head his shoulders sagged in relief. "Good."

Kinda insulted, Chloe stood to leave.

Daryl, knowing her well enough by now, grabbed her hand before she could take a step away. "We ain't having kids until there's some sort of cure and the Walkers are gone. Not until then."

Chloe paused and then turned to face him. "But you do want to have kids? Some day?"

He then gave her the dirtiest, filthiest look he'd ever given her. "Believe me, I'm looking forwards to making them." His expression somehow managed to turn even more lecherous. "You'd look good all round with my kid."

She flushed and sat down once more next to him. "Damn it, Daryl."

He grinned, knowing her so well by now. "Forest?"

"Forest." In seconds she was on her feet yanking him towards the only sort of privacy they could have during the day.

Halfway there, Daryl grew impatient and hoisted her over his shoulder as he hurried their pace.

The apocalypse was far from over, and if the CDC guy was to be believed a cure wasn't going to appear any time in the near future, but it was moments like these that made living, waiting, hoping, planning for a future worth it.

As Daryl pulled her down on the leafy ground with him, Chloe followed, straddling his hips as she kissed him, desperately.

They had a very long way to go before they'd be able to find happily-ever-after, but with Daryl's lips on hers and his hands all over her body, Chloe figured they'd find a way to pass the time.

The End

I hope you all liked it!