Chapter Text
The wind rushes over Rick’s head as Daryl presses his foot down hard on the accelerator. With a lurch, the open-topped jeep gained speed, its engine roaring and tyres screeching.
Daryl let out a whoop as they sped towards the walkers that block the road up ahead. It never ceased to amaze Rick how Daryl was able to find the silver lining in a circumstance. Having to waste precious fuel, making a lot of unwelcome noise and driving headfirst into a potentially deadly situation – all these things flashed through Rick’s mind as the jeep gained upon the cluster of walkers. But to Daryl, all he focused on was the thrill of the drive, the speed, the rush of the wind and the feeling of power.
Daryl was an optimist, Rick supposed, hell all he knew for sure was that it hadn’t been for red-neck he wouldn’t have made it this far. Not since the Governor, Judith’s death, Carl’s death...after everything and everyone. Each other was all the two men had and Rick planned on keeping it that way.
“Hold on!” Daryl shouted. Rick braced his arms against the dashboard.
The jeep ploughed into the walkers with an unlimitedly bang. Undead bodies bounced off the sides and splattered on the bonnet. Gore spurted up the windscreen and Rick swore. But Daryl only laughed, revving the engine harder and forcing the jeep through the snarling, groaning mass of the undead. Lucky there were that many of them and after a couple of seconds the jeep shot out from their midst. They left a mess of crushed bone and rotted flesh behind them.
“Now that’s what you call road kill!” Daryl yelled over the engine and the wind. Rick relaxed back in his seat and smiled wearily sideways at Daryl.
“You wanna check out the next town?” the red-neck asked as he slowed the jeep down a little to conserve fuel.
“Better do,” Rick said, glancing over his shoulder into the back to scan their small bundle of supplies, “we’re running low.”
They arrived at the town at midday. It was a nice town – or rather had been – with spacious houses with large front gardens. Rick could almost hear the ghosts of the children laughing as they played in the streets. A shiver ran down his spine and his hand unconscious moved to touch Daryl’s wrist.
The younger man glanced at him and saw the pain in his eyes. Concern instantly chased away any of the exhilaration from earlier and Daryl removed his hand from the steering wheel so he could thread his fingers with Rick’s.
“You ok?” He asked gently, squeezing his hand, “You want to move on?”
Rick shook his head, “No. I’m fine – it’s nothing.”
Pulling the jeep over in front of a house with wooden shutters, Daryl turned off the ignition. He twisted in his seat so he facing Rick.
“That’s bullshit,” he growled, trying to catch the older man’s eye, “Rick you don’t need to hide your feelings from me. Hell, I thought we had been through enough that you trusted me –“
“- I do trust you, Daryl,” Rick interrupted, mirroring the red-neck’s position, “I truth you with my life and my...”
He broke off. He couldn’t say it allowed – my heart. The thing between them was real and meaningful, yes. Rick couldn’t imagine living without Daryl’s touch. He just couldn’t say so aloud, for that would mean it would end. Every time he allowed himself to truly believe in something that made him happy it was taken away from him. And he couldn’t let that happen, not again, not with Daryl.
“The place just gave me the creeps for a moment, that’s all,” Rick muttered, reaching for the door handle, “let’s just find some food and get out of here.”
Getting out of the jeep, Rick checked his revolver was loaded and his knife was sheaved at his hip. Daryl pulled out his crossbow from the back and slung it over his shoulder. He moved around the jeep and pushed into Rick’s personal space. Rick sighed, meeting Daryl’s frustrated eyes.
“I’m fine, I promise,” he insisted; though he didn’t believe totally believe the words himself. There was something about this place, something that put him on edge.
“You’d better be,” Daryl said gruffly, then closed the distance between them and pressed his cracked, dry lips against Rick’s. At the kiss Rick felt some of his tension leave his body. He sank into Daryl’s warmth, kissing him back softly.
Daryl pulled back after a second and shoved a machete into Rick’s hands and growled, “Let’s go find us something to eat, I’m starving!”
Rick didn’t take the abrupt ending of the moment to heart, he knew Daryl meant to harm by it. The red-neck had always found sissy stuff (his words not Rick’s) difficult, embarrassing. He just wasn’t that type of person and Rick knew better than to try and change that.
The two of them made walking quietly up the path of the nearest house. On the leaf-strewn porch they stopped. Rick had lost count how many times they had scouted out a place, the routine was so embedded in them both that they didn’t speak. Daryl wiped the window and peered inside. He gave Rick the thumbs up. Reaching for the door handle Rick turned it and, unlocked, the door opened.
Slowly, he pushed it open, holding the machete at the ready. Inside the house looked relatively untouched, promising and inviting. Rick stepped inside, peering around the nearest corner into a dining room. Behind him, Daryl stepped inside, sweeping his crossbow in a circle.
Back to back, they moved through the house. It was silent and empty. Upstairs Rick paused in the doorway to the master bedroom. The sight of a proper bed called to him and suddenly he became aware of how exhausted he was. Daryl checked the last two rooms upstairs then returned to Rick’s side.
“I think we’re good,” he said, giving Rick a tight smile, “we should stay here for tonight. Hell, I know I could sure use a night sleep not cramped up in that bloody truck.” Rick agreed, “Let’s see if there’s anything in the kitchen.”
They were lucky, hidden on top of the cabinets Daryl found a can of peaches and an open box of cornflakes. Rick brought in their supplies from the jeep whilst Daryl secured the back door and windows. Together, they pushed a bookcase in the way of the front door before flopping down the sofa.
The cereal was extremely stall and tasted like cardboard, but it was edible washed down with some water. Rick had long since stopped caring about what food tasted like, as long as you could keep it down you ate it. The kept the can of peaches for another day.
“Damn, what I wouldn’t give for a burger and fries?” Daryl groaned, leaning back against the cushions of the sofa and stretching his arms over his head. Rick heard the pop of his shoulder.
“With extra fresh, crisp salad and coleslaw,” Rick grinned, moving to sit on the other end of the sofa, his back against the arm. Daryl didn’t complain as Rick stretched his legs out so his feet were in his lap.
“Always with the healthy leaves, hey, officer friendly,” Daryl chuckled, using Rick’s old nickname with fondness. Rick smiled and rested his head on the cushion and closed his eyes. His body felt as it was made of lead, every muscle ached and his mind felt cloudy.
Gently as he could, so not to disturb Rick, Daryl untied his boots and pulled them off. The smell of sweaty feet no longer registered in his mind, so he hardly cared having Rick’s in his lap. Daryl watched Rick’s face as he began to rub his feet, massaging them. The ex-sheriff’s face went slack and he let out a long sigh.
“Hmm,” he mumbled, “feels good.”
“Yeah?” Daryl replied, slipping his fingers higher up to wrap around the other man’s ankles.
Rick moaned softly and cracked open his eyes to peer at Daryl, “if you keep that up I’ll be asleep.”
“Well, we wouldn’t want that now, would we?” Daryl grinned wolfishly. Suddenly Rick found himself being tugged down so he lay flat on his back. Daryl’s weight pressed against his chest and the younger man lowered his face towards his. Smirking, Rick untangled his legs and opened them to allow Daryl to nestle between them. Resting his arms either side of Rick’s head, Daryl nuzzled their nose together before kissing him properly.
His body immediately woke up and Rick eagerly slipped his hands up Daryl’s arms and into his hair. Tugging slightly on the soft strands, Rick tilted his head so their mouths slid together at just the right angle.
Daryl’s rough-skinned hands cupped his face, his thumbs running across his cheekbones. Groaning, Rick opened his mouth and ran his tongue across the young man’s. Instantly Daryl allowed him access, sucking his tongue and scrapping his teeth across it.
Heat flashed through Rick and he ground his hips upwards, rubbing against Daryl. Impatiently, Rick slid his hands down the other’s back to the hem of his shirt. The skin beneath was warm the touch and Rick ran his nails down lightly Daryl’s sides in the way he knew drove him mad.
Hissing, Daryl broke the kiss, panting heavily as he stared into Rick’s wide lust-filled pupils.
“I think we should continue this upstairs in bed,” Rick suggested, winking at the red-neck. With a growl, Daryl was on his feet and tugging Rick towards the stairs. They fell onto the mattress, a tangle of limbs and wet kisses.
In the morning Rick would be ashamed about the level of noise the two of them had made. He would have thought the sound of the headboard banging against the wall would have been enough to attract at least a dozen walkers to their location. But if it had, the walkers had had the common decency to not disturb the two men. So Rick knew they must be none close by for walkers didn't have decency. In fact, decency had died the very first day the world had gone to hell.