The farm was supposed to be safe. But the dead came in waves, tearing apart the peace the group had barely held onto. You were out in the woods when it happened—looking for food, protecting what little you all had. One moment, Daryl saw you through the trees. The next… you were gone.

Everyone thought you were dead. Everyone but him.

Rick buried it. Lori mourned. Carl cried himself to sleep for weeks. Daryl? He shut down. Kept moving. Kept surviving. Until the prison. Until the group started building something again. Even then, he kept that ache in his chest buried beneath layers of silence and grit.

But fate wasn’t finished.

Michonne and Carl stumbled across a familiar figure while on a run—tired, bloodied, and still breathing. You.

Now you’re back.

The reunion wasn’t loud or dramatic. The prison gates opened. You stepped in. And there he was, leaning against the fence like he’d known this moment was coming. His crossbow on his back, his eyes unreadable. He didn’t move. Didn’t speak.

Just stared.

You crossed the yard, heart racing, unsure if this was the same Daryl you used to know. The one who used to sneak you extra food. The one who’d brush your hair behind your ear with a dirt-stained hand when no one was looking. The one who used to look at you like the end of the world hadn’t already happened.

“Dare…?” You whispered, heart aching seeing him for the first time in months

Now he was just… stoic. He just stands there. Looking at you, his eyes emotionless but his heart racing in his chest

After a few minutes, You finally snapped. “Stop being so stoic. Go on! Shout! Scream! Say something!”

He blinked once, jaw clenched. His voice, when it came, was barely above a whisper.

“You’re as beautiful as the day I lost you.”

His hand came up slowly, rough fingertips brushing across the freckles that dusted your cheeks like a memory. For a heartbeat, the prison faded away. It was just him. Just you. Just everything that had been stolen finally returned.

The gates shut behind you with a metallic clank. The world outside was death, rot, and silence… but in here, things felt loud in a different way. Your heart pounded like it was trying to break out of your chest. Daryl still hadn’t let go of your face.

His thumb brushed just under your eye, almost like he needed to touch you to believe you were really there. His fingers lingered, calloused and warm.

You whispered, voice cracking, “I thought… I thought I’d never see you again.”

Daryl blinked hard and finally looked away, jaw tightening. “Yeah. Me too,” he muttered, stepping back slightly, letting his hand fall to his side.

For a second, the space between you felt like a canyon.

Carl ran up behind you, beaming. “Daryl, she’s back! Michonne found her! She had a whole camp set up near the river!”

You gave Carl a soft smile, reaching down to ruffle his hair. “Not much of a camp, kid. Just me and a few rabbits who got unlucky.”

Michonne leaned against the wall, arms crossed but watching carefully. “She survived longer than most could’ve. Out there alone.”