"Ya doin anythin t'night?" Daryl asks, taking a drag of his cigarette before passing it to you as you walk off college campus. "Nah, you?" you ask as you exhale the smoke, locking eyes with him while you pass it back, hoping he'll ask to hang out, like you did almost every day. "Thinkin a' findin somewhere to chill and smoke that bag we bought. Ya down?" he asks, muffled by the cigarette hanging between his lips, puffs of smoke exiting as he spoke. "Yeah, sounds good. Got any ideas where?" you ask, grinning as he gives you the last hit, a kind little thing he always did, before snuffing out the butt between the concrete and his boot. " 'Member tha' abandoned buildin we passed on the way to tha' gig las' week?" he asks, shoving his hands in his pockets as his bike comes into view. You can't help but smile at the memory. You'd snuck into the venue to see Circle Jerks, yelled along and danced in the mosh pit and snagged free drinks all night before having to drunkenly dash from security. "Yeah, isn't it private property though?" you smirk, knowing neither of you really cared, and he laughs, nudging you playfully with his shoulder, the simple touch warming you all over. He straddles the seat of his bike and taps behind him for you to get on too, as many times as you'd done it, you'd never gotten used to it, being so close to him. You slip on behind him, trying to keep a distance between your front and his back, placing your hands lightly on his hips. He grabs them, pulling them tight around his waist so you're hugging him, your chest pressed against him. "Ya tryna fall off or somethin?" he teases, and you chuckle against his shoulder, not that he could hear over the roar of the engine starting. With a spin of wheels, you're off down the road, the wind blowing Daryl's long hair behind him, tickling your face, which you bury against Merle's winged leather vest on his shoulder blade. You close your eyes, smiling at his warmth, the feeling of his abs beneath your arms and strong back muscles against your chest, your nose full of his scent of cigarettes, cheap cologne, and Daryl's signature earthy smell. You loved the way he smelt, it was an immediate comfort to you, like the time he insisted you wore his jacket when it was raining, and you wish you'd kept it. Opening your eyes, you watch the blur of fast passing trees and over grown grass, your eyes then lingering over the muscles of Daryl's arms as he steered the bike with his strong hands. "Ya alrigh'?" he yells over the motor and harsh wind, and you nod against his shoulder, now resting your chin atop it, your cheek lightly touching his equally warm one. You found yourself subconsciously rubbing your thumbs in circles on his sides, but he doesn't seem to mind, relaxing back into you.
The engine sputters as you pull down the gravel driveway, slowing to a stop between some trees, hiding his bike in the bushes, just in case. Reluctantly, you unravel your arms from his torso as you both stand, stretching as Daryl kicks the stand down, turning to grin at you. "C'mon," he grumbles, one arm slinging his bag off the back of his bike over his shoulder, the other hand grabbing your wrist gently and leading you to the fence. He stands before it, offering a knee and hand to help you get up, which you take, butterflies erupting in your stomach and one of his hands holds yours and the other lingers on your back while you use his knee as a step boost over the fence. You drop over it, landing on your feet with a thud, and he drops down only a second later, the task easy for him with his height and strength. The grass was long, snagging on your ripped jeans as you walked though it to the old cement building, parts of the walls crumbled to the floor on all three levels. "Suns startin ta set, we best get up there. Reckon it'll be a damn good view," he says, lips twitching in a small smile as he looks at you, the orange light rays illuminating your face. You follow him through the unlocked door and up the two large flights of stairs, a slight sweat breaking over your skin in the evening warmth, Daryl quite a few steps ahead of you. "Goddamn, you gotta see this!" you hear his raised voice of excitement from the top level as you get to a gap where a few stairs had deteriorated. He lowers himself to the floor, offering his hand and pulling you up with the same insane strength that must've gotten him over the gap without help. He doesn't let go of your hand, whether he means to or not, you're not sure, as he leads you over to an edge where the wall had fallen, leaving a gap to the outside world. Your jaw drops in amazement at the view, the sunset of oranges, pinks and purples visible over a line of pine trees. "It's beautiful," you whisper, catching his eyes, which were already on you, a slight tinge of pink to his cheeks. He looked gorgeous in this light, his tanned skin and toned muscles tight against his sleeveless flannel, his blue eyes sparkling behind strands of his wavy chestnut hair. You plop yourself down on the floor, legs hanging over the edge, and he joins you, shoulder to shoulder, knees brushing as you kicked your legs. You watch his hands, strong from working on his bike, as he rolls a joint carefully between his long fingers, licking a stripe along the paper to seal it, the action much more attractive then it should've been. He passed it to you, and you smile at the skull stick-and-poke on his hand you'd given him, taking it in your hand with a matching one by him. "Thanks," you mutter, bringing it to your lips as he flicks the lighter, which you lean down to until the joint is lit.
He watches as you inhale the smoke, eyes fluttering closed contently as it billows out between your soft pink lips. Quickly looking away as you open them and pass it to him, he takes his own hit, trying not to think about how your lips had just touched this same place, as if you hadn't shared joints, cigarettes, drinks and food millions of times before. You repeat this, passing the joint between you in comfortable silence until it's down to the filter, snuffing it out on the concrete beside you. The sun set now, there was only the dim light of a street lamp just outside the building, and you lay back down against the hard floor, resting your spinning head on your arm. Daryl lays back next to you, sighing peacefully, anxiety ridden by the weed, body feeling weightless. You roll onto your side to face him, which he mirrors, his eyes scanning your face as you smile softly at him, your eyes showing admiration he found hard to believe. "What?" he asks, barely a whisper, the loud chirp of crickets surrounding you in the silence of the night, only broken by an occasional passing car. "Nothing, just, glad you're here. Glad I met you," you whisper back, heat rising to your cheeks, and you see his do the same. "Me too," he whispers after a second, staring at your hand laying on the floor between you, wanting so desperately to take it in his own. So he does, slowly, carefully, watching your reaction as he intertwines your fingers. You just smile, your cheeks hurting from happiness, and he does the same, his thumb rubbing over your knuckles. You stay like this for hours, talking about philosophical stuff, joking about stupid stuff, deep conversations about each other's childhoods and future plans, all of which included each other. You stand up, jumping around the empty floor, and Daryl joins you, playing a game of makeshift tag. You both get to a point where you just can't stop giggling, clutching your stomachs and rolling on the floor, your laughter echoing off the walls of the building. Daryl picks you up over his shoulder, spinning you, and suddenly a blaring alarm screeches in both your ears, the shock almost making him drop you. "Shit, they still got a motion sensor in this ol thing?" he yells, spotting the source of the noise and striding over to it, jumping up to rip it off the wall, ceasing the sound, his shirt riding up to show his v-line and snail trail above his belt. "Battery powered, o'course," he mutters, throwing it on the floor and crushing it with his foot before spitting on it. "Reckon it sends an alert?" you ask, joining his side, passing him his bag as sobriety washes over you both. "Might, better safe then sorry, c'mon," he grumbles, pissed by the night being cut short as he helps you over the gap in the stairs again. Just as you get over the fence and to the bike, you hear gravel crunching beneath car wheels, Daryl quickly pulls you with him into the bushes where his bike was hidden.
You hear radio static and two pairs of footsteps exit the car, slamming the doors shut behind them, flashlights brushing just over where you were. You lay on the dirt floor, half on top of him, one hand over your mouth, the other on his chest, his heart thundering in his ribs. His hand is on the flat of your back, the other holding a finger to his smirking lips to gesture to be quiet. This pulls a giggle from you, and you can see him holding one back. Your hand falls from your mouth and a giggle spills out as you listen to them trying to get over the fence, until the flashlight spins back over to where you were. Daryl's hand is over your mouth in a flash, his eyes panicked, yours apologetic, when luckily, the footsteps depart and you hear the thud of them going over the fence. You lick his hand, causing him to burst into giggles again, and you do too, rocking side to side slightly. "Reckon we can sneak out now?" he whispers, breath brushing your face, but you shake your head, face flushed as you realise how close you are. "Too risky with the bike," you whisper back, holding his sparkling gaze, and he nods, bangs tickling his forehead. You could've sworn you saw his line of vision drop to your lips before darting back to your eyes. You can faintly hear the officers talking, getting clearer as they near the fence again. "Must've been a fuckin raccoon or something," one of them says, and Daryl breaks into giggles, you shushing him panickedly as you try to hold your own laughter back. You can hear them climbing the fence, but Daryl's still giggling, staring at you, eyes glittering in the moonlight, and you need to find a way to shut him up. But God, his laugh is so beautiful, you wish you could listen to it forever. You're lost in how cute he looks, eyes crinkled and teeth on display in a beautiful smile behind plump lips. You don't think twice before leaning forwards, pressing your own against them. You can feel his shock beneath you, but just as you're about to pull away, his lips move against yours, washing your panic away. You melt into it, your lips fitting perfectly together, capturing each other, as you bring a hand to his cheek, rubbing your thumb over the soft skin. His hand moves from your back to the nape of your neck, fingers lacing slightly in your hair. Your heart is pounding in your chest, butterflies erupting in your stomach, feeling lightheaded and tingly all over. You both pull away, shocked at the slam of car doors and start of an engine, as the car pulls out of the drive way and down the road. You both exhale a relieved breath, you were safe, the police were gone. You look down at him, searching for an expression on his face, but you can't figure it out.
"Why'd you kiss me?" he whispers, hand moving from your neck to your cheek, and you nuzzle against it, smiling. "Because you wouldn't shut up. And...I wanted you," you whisper back, heart hammering in your chest, face flushed. He smiles, but chews his lip nervously, as if he's unsure. "Why did ya want to?" he asks, as if he thinks he's undeserving of it. "Because, I like your laugh," you stutter, unsure what to say, there were so many reasons. He pulls you from your anxiety, hesitantly bringing his face back to yours, brushing your lips together before kissing you lovingly, both of you smile into it. "Guess I should laugh more often," he teases as he pulls away, your foreheads resting on each other. "Is that the only reason?" he asks, wanting to hear confirmation on your feelings, to know what this is. "No, Dar. I like you, I have for ages, forever, basically since the first time I met you. I just...didn't realize, and when I did, it freaked me out. But...I just, seeing you laugh, being so close, having such a good night together, I just couldn't hold my feelings back anymore. It's been so hard, having to stop myself from doing that so many times" you admit, a weight lifting off your shoulders as you finally get it off your chest. "I wish you hadn't held back. I shouldn't have. And...me too, I mean. I like you too. Have for ages. Got scared, almost pushed ya away, but...realised I couldn't live without ya, not now I knew what life was like with ya. Ya've made me happier then anyone or anything has my entire life. Feel whole for once. Like I can be myself around ya. Don't think I even know who I was before meeting ya. Didn't know what happiness was, or fun. You taught me that. Guess I'm saying thank you, for bein' my best friend, my only friend, ever," he says, and it might be the most you've ever heard him say at once, and you could've cried from happiness right there. "You too, Dar. You did all that for me too. That's why I didn't act on my feelings, I couldn't throw that away, couldn't lose you when I finally had everything I'd ever wanted and needed," you whisper, your head resting against his chest, feeling the rise and fall of it beneath you. "Listen, I wanna be more, more then jus' your best friend. I want this, you, us, but only if yer sure ya want it, me, too. Ya know I got a lotta issues, don't wanna burden ya-" he begins rambling, feeling insecure, but you cut him off with a kiss to the lips, which he quickly reciprocates, slotting together easier each time. "I want you. I want this. I want us. You'll never be a burden to me, you're the opposite," you say, both sitting up now, you cross legged between his open knees. You hold his gaze, smiling and brushing hair from his face, tucking it behind his ear, the blush from his cheeks extending to it. He holds your face in one hand, his other arm snaking around your waist, pulling you in and kissing you deeply, passionately. He deepens the kiss with need, like he's hungry for more of you, lips less gentle against yours as they previously were, yet still so caring. His tongue grazes your bottom lip, which you part, allowing him access. He explores your mouth, mapping it out, tangling his tongue with yours, suppressing a groan and you pull his body impossibly closer to your own, chests heaving as one. You part only for air, and he begins trailing kisses down your jaw, to your neck, before stopping for a second.
"Can I...can I mark ya? Want ya to be mine...want people to know tha', if you do?" he whispers into your neck shyly, and you bring him to face you with a hand on his strong jaw, unclenching as you brush your fingers against it. "Only if I can mark you back. Y'know, just so they know you're mine too," you say, a sudden wave of confidence washing over you from the dilation of his pupils. He kisses back down your neck, slowly, softly, before grazing his teeth along part, sucking and biting slightly, and you hiss pleasantly at the feeling. He leaves a couple more up and down your neck, admiring his artwork of now dark, purple splotched bruises, before diving back to your lips, breathing in deeply as he does, like you were oxygen. To him, you were. And tonight was the deepest he's breathed you, fresh air. You pull away, leaving soft kisses all over his face; his pink cheekbones, where his eyelids batted; his freckled nose; his forehead, where strands of hair stuck with salty sweat; his jaw, untensing under your touch; down his throat, where his Adams apple bobbed nervously; his collarbones, just exposed under the loose top button of his sleeveless flannel. You run your tongue over a section of his skin, before repeating his actions, leaving a soft, soothing kiss over each bite. Feeling you shiver, mistaking it for cold and not happiness, he takes his vest off, placing it over your shoulders, but you wear it anyway, breathing in his scent. He pulls your head to his chest, where you rest listening to his heartbeat, as he runs his fingers through your hair, pressing a soft kiss to your crown. "I've wanted you for so long," you whisper into the marked crook of his neck, and he presses another kiss to your forehead. "Ya already had me. I've always been yours, will be forever, if thas' what ya want," he rasps back, kissing you softly when you look up at him, holding each others faces. You giggle against his cheek as you part, and he pokes his fingers into your side. "Wha'?" he asks, chuckling as you grin at him, his lips red and swollen from kissing, yours probably the same. "Nothing, just can't believe this is real. Been wanting it for so long, I never thought it would actually happen, didn't think you'd ever feel the same, like me like that," you say, smiling as your chest bubbled in happiness, his laugh like music to your ears, your favourite song. "Ya wan' me to pinch ya or somthin? I sure as hell hope this is real, waited too long for it to not be," he teases, rocking your side to side in his arms, and you smack his bicep gently, before taking his hand in your smaller one. You lace your fingers together, looking up at the stars above, a shooting star granting your wish, making it come true. Daryl was yours, you were his, forever. You were happier then you'd ever been, the boy you were head over heels for felt the same about you, and now you had a whole future together.