Burn Burn [Daryl Dixon]

Fiery Hell [Chapter 34]

He had to figure out at one point or another.

It would be best coming from her own lips.

But Brady seemed keen on ruining her life.

“Go fuck yourself.” She had told him.

Kendall gave her a ride home that night.

The lights were on in the living room, the flicker revealed that they were watching TV. Brady’s vehicle was not there, which she was thankful for, but that did not mean he had not come by to ruin what Alice and Daryl had. She walked in, and Daryl looked up from the couch. The expression on his face was soft, suggesting that Brady had given Alice at least the night to figure out what she wanted to do, to reconsider his deal.

“Hey.” Daryl said softly, gesturing for her to sit down next to him.

She walked over, cherishing the moments that Daryl would still be welcoming to her. Tucking her legs underneath her body, she leaned up against the man and inhaled his scent for what might be one of the last times. The worlds danced in her throat and on her tongue like flames, but they burnt out every time she thought she might speak of them.

Merle was in the green chair, his lids heavy. He was drunk, probably doped up too, but he already knew that Alice stripped down and danced for money. She was surprised it had never left his lips, but his reasons had be honest. He didn’t want Daryl to get hurt, and Alice knew that the easiest way to prevent that was to tell Daryl herself. But she had let it go on for too long without telling him; the lie had solidified and festered like an infection, and it would kill him when he found out now.

No matter who it came from.

“How was work?” Daryl asked, bringing an arm around Alice’s shoulders and pulling her close against him.

“Good.” She lied; it had been stressful in reality, with Brady’s threat.

“Been workin’ lots lately.” Daryl noted.

Alice sighed heavily, an orange strand of hair flying upwards at the gust, and then slowly falling back down against her cheek, tickling her skin. She brushed it behind her ear. “I was in the hospital too long.”

“Nah, you’re better.”

She hoped that was true. “I feel like such a loser… You would never need to talk to a therapist ‘bout your problems, never need to take drugs to prevent breakdowns…”

“Hey.” Daryl warned, “Don’t talk like that; I just deal with things differently.”

“You’re stronger than me.” She sighed.

“Of course I am.” He grinned, his hands tightening playfully around her body as he pulled her onto his lap, kissing her lips before she could even squeak out a laugh. She smiled into the kiss, her heart beating fast and her mind forgetting all the things that she wanted to say. She giggled lightly as he freed her lips, but continued to hold her on his lap.

“Gross.” Merle commented, his tone disgusted, but his expression playful. He got up from the chair with a deep sigh and a dramatic groan. “I can’t stand t’ look at ya love birds.”

“G’night, Merle.” Alice chimed.

Merle’s door shut quietly, and Daryl grabbed the remote to turn off the television. As they were submerged in darkness for a moment, Alice felt the courage to tell him bubble up into her chest. But Daryl reached over and turned on the lamp, illuminating the smile on his pale lips. Alice stared at him with widened eyes for a moment, inhaling those words she had meant to say once more, and smiled back at him. She rested her head on his shoulder and felt the smile fade from her lips.

Tomorrow, she told herself again and again. For weeks now it had been tomorrow. And yet, tomorrow would come and go and she would not tell him. She continued to tell herself that it was not a big deal; it wasn’t as if she was withholding pregnancy or something more serious from him. Instead, she was protecting him from the truth. The truth was that the big bad world was harsh, and Alice had to do what she needed to do to keep herself from drowning. It didn’t matter what Daryl thought of what she did for work, but Alice feared losing the only person who seemed to give a damn if she lived or died.

To ease the thoughts out of her mind, Alice reached over and grabbed her bag, popping a Prozac pill between her lips. Without water, she choked it down and then sighed, as if the pills worked as fast as that. In reality, they had taken a few days to start working, and she had begun to fear missing a pill. The nightmares would come back, the visions, the horrific memories in her mind. The memories would never disappear, but at least she could compartmentalize them and tuck them away.

For now.

Alice stood up and grabbed Daryl’s hand gently. He followed her lead, knowing exactly what was running through her mind as she stared at him with lowered lids, her tongue trailing and dampening her pink lips. Daryl released her hand and wrapped his arms around her thin waist, lifting her in the air and indulging himself in her giggles. A sound he didn’t hear often, but made him realize why he loved her. Alice reached her hands out and pushed open the bedroom door, her feet hovering inches above the floorboards as Daryl lifted her high up, then tossed her to the bed with a grin on his face.

It was rare that Alice saw someone smiling at her, a real, authentic and adoring smile. She wondered why Daryl bothered with her, what he saw in her. She was basically skin and bones, she had more issues than she would like to admit, she saw her dead ex-boyfriend, and yet Daryl was able to look passed all of that. Perhaps he would be able to look beyond her choice of work. Still, Alice kept her lips sealed, only parting them to kiss Daryl.

He slid between her thighs as he did every night, passion filling the spaces between them, lust consuming them and taking them away from the dreary, dusty town they lived in. They weren’t in the Dixon house when they were in the bliss, they weren’t even in Georgia. They were on cloud nine, and Alice never wanted to come down to the fiery hell that was reality.

Tomorrow, she told herself.

Six to go!! I want at least three comments! Also, if you message, I will always message back! I love to chat and get to know people on here. I've written no further than what is posted, but I will continue to try to write a chapter a day. Sorry this chapter was boring, I needed some filler.