XLVIII

—/<3/—

"Where's ma brother?" Merle asked as he wandered the cell block.

"Probably in the watch tower with Rory," Carol answered curtly, watching baby Judith over Rick's shoulder.

"They bonin' or somethin'? They were up there last night too." Merle wiggled his eyebrows as his smile turned perverse.

"Believe it or not, Merle, Daryl is capable of making friends. Rory and Daryl have been close since the farm." Glenn took a sip of his water, giving the old redneck a pointed look.

"Gimme the keys, I'm gonna go check on them."

"No. You stay here and you leave Rory alone," Rick said firmly, rocking his daughter in his arms.

"I learnt my lesson man, ain't no need for hostility. Any friend of my brother's is a friend of mine."

"Rory doesn't want to be your friend," Archie said.

"You almost ruined it for Daryl when you said all that stuff in the woods. Didn't you see how sad and uncomfortable he got when he looked at her? He thought she wouldn't want to be near him anymore because of you. Leave them be." Maggie sighed.

"Whatever." Merle scoffed.

—/<3/—

"Hold out your hand," Daryl said, keeping his cigarette balanced between his lips.

"Is there a bug in you hand?" Rory asked skeptically, but she held her hand out anyway.

"What? Why would I have a bug in my hand?" Daryl gave her a weird look.

"Archie used to trick me a lot when we were kids." Rory shrugged. Daryl huffed and dropped the item onto her open palm. Rory squinted to see what it was and pulled out her flashlight to see properly.

She smiled when she noticed the two chunks of Epidote hanging from a piece of thread, one a brownish-green and the other a pure, light green. "When did you have time to find these?" she asked, moving her hair away from her neck so she could secure the thread around it.

"After Woodbury, when I was in the woods with Merle. Found a whole bunch of 'em under a bridge," Daryl explained shyly.

"So you picked them up even though you weren't planning on coming back?"

"I guess, but Merle started actin' up so I came back anyway."

Rory hummed and raised herself so she was on her knees. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his cheek. "Thank you, Daryl," she said quietly, fiddling with the stones around her neck. Daryl grunted and slotted their lips together for a proper kiss, pulling away a few seconds later with pink cheeks illuminated by the abandoned torch at Rory's feet.

—/<3/—

Rick headed out with Michonne and Carl the next day, refusing to take Daryl or anyone else with him. Everyone was surprised by his choice but Rory was hopeful that Michonne and Rick would get along, and the latter would change his mind about kicking Michonne out when her leg healed. Rory liked Michonne, she was strong and didn't take anyone's shit. Rick would be stupid to give up someone like that.

In their absence, the rest of the group got to work clearing the bodies out of the fields before they decomposed any further and tainted the soil. The midday sun was harsh and combined with the oppressive humidity that sat heavy in the air with the lack of wind, the task was not easy. The heat intensified the smell of rot, and everyone was soaked with sweat as they worked.

Rory glared at Archie, Mikey and Glenn bitterly as they stripped off their shirts, wishing she could do the same. Even with the collapse of society, she doubted the group would find it acceptable if she stripped off and even if they did, she wouldn't dare in front of Merle and his ever-wandering gaze.

"This is killing me, I can't deal with the boob sweat anymore," Niamh hissed as she and Rory threw another walker body atop the growing pile. "Look at them prancing around half-naked without a care in the world," she said dramatically. "And we're stuck in clothes with our tits melting off."

"I'm sure the guys wouldn't be opposed to you walking around with your boobs out." Maggie laughed.

"You're the only one of us who could get away with it Niamh, I can't strip with my brother right across the field and Maggie's dad is about. That would be too awkward for us."

"Do you reckon I should just do it?" Niamh looked down at her black tank top. She wasn't wearing a bra underneath.

"It's your body, if you want to go shirtless you can, but you'll have to put it back on before Rick gets back with Carl." Rory shrugged. She wiped the sweat from her forehead with her arm.

"Don't take it off," Carol shook her head as she approached, having heard their conversation on the walk over to the pile. Daryl trailed behind her, dragging a loose walker limb. "You don't mean anything sexual by it, you're just trying to cool down, but some of the boys won't see it that way."

Niamh groaned. "I hate having boobs."

"You have great boobs though, it could be worse," Rory said.

"And how would you know that?" Carol laughed.

"We've been friends for half our lives, of course we've seen each other naked," Niamh rolled her eyes. "I was the one who pierced Rory's nipples, belly button and her tongue."

The girls all turned to Daryl when he choked and began to cough. Carol reached out and slapped his back a couple of times, eyeing him curiously. He avoided looking at any of them and opted to turn back towards the fields to grab another walker.

"Poor guy, the smell must be gettin' to him," Maggie said.

"Or all the boob talk," Niamh snickered.

--/<3/--