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It was a quiet night at the prison. It seemed like everyone was asleep and that made Rick wonder why he was up walking around. All the halls were dark as he passed through them, heading for the cells. He wasn’t sure why he was going that way but he knew there was a reason. There was something leading him there.
He walked past the bars that separated the cellblock from the rest of what they’d come to call home and looked around. Everything was dark, everything was quiet. He stood there for a minute before he heard a sound. He wasn’t sure what that was and he keened his ear to listen closer. Then he heard it again. Almost like a low puff of breath.
It sounded kind of far away so Rick stepped quietly further into the room. He had made it all the way to the steps before he heard it again. Another low exhale of breath, like a sigh. But now he could tell that it was coming from above him. Quietly, he made his way up each metal step, trying to keep his boots from scraping as he went.
Once he made it to the top, he looked around and saw a faint light coming from a cell on his left. Just a slight glow made its way out from the bottom of the curtain draped across it as Rick stepped closer. He was about five feet away when he heard the sound again. This time it was clearer. A low, gruff blow of breath, almost like it was in frustration but Rick couldn’t be sure.
He realized that it was a male voice, a familiar one, but for some strange reason he couldn’t think of who it was. Now he was right by the cell, the curtain only inches away. Rick slowly reached out a hand, having an urge he couldn’t resist to see who was causing this sound so late at night in their silent prison.
His fingers brushed against the dark, rough material used to conceal whoever was behind it. Hooking his finger around the edge, he slowly dragged the fabric back, leaning forward just to peak in. He couldn’t help but feel the need satisfy his overwhelming curiosity. At first he couldn’t tell from the small opening he made, so he pulled the curtain back a little more so his eyes could see, heart pounding in his chest for some strange reason.
Leaning closer, his eyes finally focused and his breath caught in his throat at what he saw. Now the owner of the voice came clearly to his mind once he realized who it was. It was Daryl and the sounds that he had been making hadn’t been sounds of frustration or anything else that Rick had been thinking; they were grunts of pleasure.
Daryl was in the cell, completely naked, sitting on the cot with his back leaning against the concrete wall. What Rick saw had his mind reeling and his jaw just about hit the floor. Daryl’s lean body practically glowed in the low light of his lantern and Rick’s eyes ran over every inch of skin. Small beads of sweat dripped down Daryl’s forehead, making his long, shaggy hair stick to him.
Daryl’s face was a mess of flushed concentration, biting his lip as he tried to hold back the small moans that were slowly escaping. Looking down, Rick could see why. Daryl had a long, thick hard-on standing straight up from his hips and he had one hand at the base while the other slipped up and down the shaft. Rick licked his lips and felt his own breath start to turn ragged, his jeans feeling a little too tight.
Daryl let go of another one of those sounds that had brought Rick up here and Rick had squeeze his mouth shut to keep from making one of his own. While still holding the curtain open, he took his free hand and brought it to his own erection that was now straining against the stiff material of his pants. Rubbing himself, he continued to watch Daryl and listen closely. Daryl’s moans were getting more frequent and then he actually hissed out, “Mmm…fuck…Rick…”
Rick’s eyebrows shot straight up and he thought he must have been imagining what he heard. But he listened closer and a second later, “Oh…Rick…” His heart stopped beating and his breath froze in his chest as he heard his name. “Oh…Rick…yes…Rick…hey…Rick…”
Rick was abruptly pulled from his sleep, jumping awake and looking around the rundown car he was sitting in. “Hey, Rick. Wake up, man.” Turning to his left, he saw Daryl sitting in the driver’s seat, his hand shaking Rick’s shoulder to wake him.
“Huh? What? Trouble?” Rick asked wide-eyed, looking around for any sign that they needed to leave. The sun was just starting to peak over the top of the sky and Rick whipped his head in every direction, checking for walkers that needed to be taken down or outran.
“Nah. You was dreamin’. Figured you needed to wake up. Didn’t exactly seem like a nightmare though,” and Daryl’s eyes cut down to Rick’s lap. Rick glanced down and blushed about ten different shades of red. He had a full erection that had made a big tent in his pants. Embarrassed didn’t even begin to cover how he felt, especially when he remembered the dream that had caused his current situation.
“Shit…sorry, Daryl.” Rick pulled his shirt down and tried to turn his body away as he worked to adjust the hard length that just wouldn’t go down. He settled for pushing it to the side and leaving his shirt over the big bulge, hoping that he hadn’t made Daryl too uncomfortable. “It’s starting to get light. You wanna get a few hours of shut eye before we head back out?”
He and Daryl had gone out on a run the previous day but their car had broken down and nothing Daryl did could fix it. So they grabbed what they could and headed out on foot, thankfully missing any big groups of walkers. Once the sun set, they had tried to continue on, hoping to make it by moonlight, but the night was cloudy and they decided to rest in this abandoned car they found just a little off the highway.
Daryl had volunteered to take first watch, and Rick had made him promise to wake him midway through to the night so they could swap, but of course Daryl hadn’t bothered. He was always putting Rick’s rest before his own, which aggravated Rick sometimes, but it also made him feel something that he wasn’t quite sure he could name.
Daryl had become one of Rick’s best friends at the prison, and after he lost Lori, the hunter had given him time to get his mind together. But he always made sure that Rick knew he was there to help. This wasn’t the first time he’d had dreams like this though. Those had started a couple months ago and Rick wasn’t really sure what to make of them or how they made him feel around the hunter that he’d come to depend on so much. But instead of questioning them, he just let them happen and enjoyed them when he could. He just never thought he’d have to deal with one around Daryl.
Daryl lit up a cigarette and blew a puff of smoke out of the small crack he’d made in the driver side window. Leaning his seat back slightly, he stretched his legs and Rick couldn’t resist running his eyes over Daryl’s body, the dream still fresh in his mind. Daryl was wearing his usual dark jeans with a long sleeve shirt and his leather vest over it, but that didn’t stop Rick from imagining what was underneath.
After he took another drag, he turned his head towards Rick and shrugged. “Ain’t that tired. Nah, how ‘bout you tell me what that dream was ‘bout.” Daryl raised his eyebrows at Rick curiously and Rick couldn’t help but blush again.
“Yea…right,” Rick laughed nervously. “Was I…did I saying anything? Anything crazy?” He ran a hand over his stubbled chin and darted his eyes over to Daryl, who squinted at him in his usual inquisitive way.
Blowing out another cloud of smoke, Daryl shook his head. “Nah, you were just…mumbling and…moaning. Started sportin’ some serious wood. Lil’ hard to miss.” Rick laughed sheepishly and turned away, only too aware of how he was still hard as a rock.
“Sorry, again. Really sorry.” Rick didn’t even know if he was apologizing for the erection he got in front of Daryl or the fact that Daryl was the cause of said erection.
“S’cool,” Daryl shrugged. “Call it even if you tell me what it was that caused all that.” Daryl’s hand went in a big circle, gesturing to all of Rick. Rick figured he must look more flustered than he thought.
“Aw, man. You don’t wanna hear all that,” Rick said with a wave of his hand, trying to fend off the hunter’s pestering inquiry.
“Shit. Ain’t like I got nothin’ better to do. Porn ain’t that easy to come by no more,” and Daryl reached both his hands out, mimicking like he was typing on a keyboard.
Rick sighed and ran his hands over his face, shaking his head afterwards. “Uh…I mean, it wasn’t that great. Nothing worth telling, really.” Daryl scoffed and leaned over, elbowing Rick in the side.
“C’mon, Rick. Don’t be shy. Jus’ tell me.” As he continued to nudge Rick’s side, Rick’s shirt started to hike up, uncovering the full bulge that was still ever present in his pants. Worried that Daryl would see it and get uncomfortable, Rick gave in.
“Alright, alright. It was in the prison.” As soon as Rick started talking, Daryl stopped with his elbow, leaning back in his seat and continuing with his smoke. “Uh…it was night. Everyone was asleep. I was walking through the halls. Kept hearing this sound. Followed it. Found out where it was coming from and stumbled upon…some things.”
“That’s it? Gotta be more than that,” Daryl persisted.
“Not really…”
“Oh, c’mon. What was the sound?”
“Mmmm…” Rick bit his lip as he tried to think of words to describe it. “It was like a sigh…like an exhale, I guess.”
“Someone was huffin’ and puffin’ then,” and Daryl smirked in his seat. Rick chuckled and nodded.
“Yea, I guess you could say that.”
“Where was it coming from?”
“Oh, man. You’re killing me. From a cell in the cellblock…”
“Whose?”
Rick looked out the window as the sun was starting to get higher in the sky. They should be getting a move on soon, but Daryl seemed insistent on knowing this story. “Just a person from the prison, man. Nobody I wanna mention.”
“Alright, alright. What were they doin’? Since they was huffin’ and puffin’ and all.” Rick turned his head towards Daryl and rolled his eyes.
“They were doing…stuff,” Rick said, exasperated.
“Kind of stuff?”
“Good lord, Daryl. You gotta dirty mind to be wanting to know all this. They were getting themselves off, masturbating, and I watched from outside the cell!” Rick threw his hands in the air and then crossed his arms with a huff.
“I see…” Daryl nodded, putting out his spent cigarette. He ran a hand over his chin and sighed, looking out the driver side window. Rick thought that his last sentence had ended Daryl’s inquisition, but a minute later Daryl spoke again. “So who was it?”
“DARYL!” Rick chided with wide eyes, looking at the man in disbelief.
“Aw, hell Rick. You can tell me. Who was it? Maggie?” Rick turned away and shook his head silently. “Carol?” Rick shook his head again and bit his lip. Daryl was going to list every woman in the prison and what was he going to do when he finished and still didn’t have an answer. “Don’t tell me it was Beth. She’s a little young, Rick. I mean she’s cute, but she’s like a little sister, man.”
“It wasn’t Beth, Daryl. What makes you so sure it was a woman?” Rick bit out. He turned his face towards Daryl and watched the hunter shift uncomfortably in his seat, his face a mix of surprise and something else Rick couldn’t quite read.
“Not like you said otherwise. I mean…I ain’t got no problems with that, if that’s what you…like.” Daryl shrugged his shoulders and looked out his own window.
“Yea, right. Like you’d still wanna hear about it if I said it was a guy I was watching…” Rick said sarcastically.
“If you’d wanna tell it…I’d listen…” Daryl replied quietly, still looking away. Rick’s hands fiddled in his lap as he thought about what Daryl was saying. He couldn’t help but be tempted to test this theory.
“Yea? So if I said I went into the cellblock and watched while a guy sat naked on one to the cots and jerked his massive, hard cock, you wouldn’t have anything to say?” Rick watched as Daryl’s face turned bright red and he couldn’t help but smile because he’d done that to the man who tried to maintain the toughest exterior of anyone he’d ever known.
“Do I ever got anythin’ to say? Thought that's why I was a good listener,” Daryl mumbled, pulling out another cigarette, his hand slightly shaky as he tried to light it.
“And when I say that I started to touch myself while I watched this guy jerk off? That he started to say my name and that excited me?” Daryl took a deep puff on the cigarette that he finally got lit and blew out an unsteady breath of smoke.
“Hope you got to see him finish,” Daryl said lightheartedly, smirking slightly and finally glancing back over in Rick’s direction. “Can I ask who it was now?”
Rick chuckled and ran his hands over his knees, wiping away some sweat that had formed on his palms. “If you must. Might not like the answer though.” Daryl chuckled and then started naming off men in the prison. Rick steadily shook his head no to each name until Daryl got the very last name, crossing off every man in the prison besides himself. Daryl got quiet and took another long drag off his smoke, finally turning towards Rick and looking him full in the face, his eyes asking the question that his lips couldn’t form.
Rick knew though and he slowly nodded. “Yea…it was you.” Daryl nodded slowly, taking a long, deep puff off his cigarette and blowing out a long line of smoke before stubbing it out.
“Didn’t see that coming…” the hunter mumbled, chuckling slightly before crossing his arms and leaning into his seat.
“Hey, I’m sorry, Daryl.” Rick went to put his hand on the other man’s shoulder, but thought better of it and sat his hands in his lap instead.
“Sorry for what? I asked, didn’t I?” Daryl raised his eyebrows in Rick’s direction and shrugged.
“Yea…but I still feel bad. I mean, it’s not like I can control these dreams, but…”
“Dreams? More than one?” Daryl asked, eyeing Rick oddly. Rick silently cursed himself as he tried to think of a way to answer that.
“Uh…yea. Every now and again…for a few weeks now…” Rick bit his lip as he felt his face flush, running a hand through his hair as he sighed. They sat there quietly for a minute as the sun rose a little higher in the sky. Rick could see that it was going to be a pretty day.
“They always the same thing?” Rick turned his head at Daryl’s question, not thinking that he’d still want to talk about this.
“Uh…no. No, they’re always different.”
“Which one's the best?” Rick smiled as he thought about the dream he’d had last week. He’d been in the best mood after waking from it, even giving Daryl a hug when he saw him outside checking traps.
“It was…'bout a week ago. In it, it was before all this,” and Rick gestured to the apocalyptic world around them. “We…we were living in a house with Judith and Carl. They had gone to bed and then…we went to bed.” Rick chose his words carefully, not sure how much Daryl wanted to hear.
“What happened…in bed?” Rick kept his eyes on his hands as he spoke, unable to find the nerve to look Daryl in the face as he told him the next part.
“We…got naked. Got under the covers. Uh…we kissed and…used our hands. Then you used your mouth on me. After that…we had sex.”
“Why's that the best one?”
“Because…we kissed. Usually that doesn’t happen. Most of the time, it’s me watching you or just us getting down to it. But that time, we kissed the whole way through, even…even during sex.” Rick chuckled like he was being silly and he finally brought his eyes up to Daryl, hoping that the hunter thought it was as ridiculous as it sounded to him. But instead Daryl’s face was serious and quite thoughtful; enough to make Rick go silent as their eyes locked together.
“Was it like this?” Daryl asked, and then he leaned over and before Rick knew what was happening, their lips pressed together. The kiss was light but the touch of Daryl on him set his entire body aflame and his heart felt like it was going to burst through his chest. Daryl pulled back slightly and their eyes opened to one another, only a few inches apart.
Rick shook his head slowly and exhaled. “Nah…it was more like this,” and his hand cupped the side of Daryl’s face, bringing him back in. This time their kiss was much more forceful, lips fully pressed against one another, Rick putting all his feelings into this moment. When they pulled back again, Rick could see that Daryl’s eyes had changed a little, turning dark with what Rick assumed was desire.
Daryl licked his lips and glanced down at Rick’s slightly swollen mouth. “We can do better ‘an that,” he mumbled and their mouths crashed together again. Now lips parted and tongues reached out to taste at one another. Rick could taste the smoke still on Daryl’s mouth and he breathed deeply through his nose, trying to memorize the way each one of his senses felt during this moment.
His hands dipped into the hunter’s shaggy hair and he felt Daryl’s fingers tickle lightly at his sides as their bodies got closer. Suddenly, Daryl’s lips weren’t enough and Rick wanted to taste his salty skin, so his lips started to kiss a path down to Daryl’s neck. Finding a tender spot, Rick lapped and sucked at the sensitive flesh and felt a shiver run through Daryl’s body. Taking it a step further, he placed a light bite into the same spot and actually heard the hunter take a small, sharp intake of breath.
Rick liked that sound so he bit again, this time with a little more force and Daryl let a small groan slip past his lips. After that, Daryl’s hands snaked their way up Rick’s body and his fingers laced into Rick’s curly hair, fisting the locks hard enough to pull Rick off his neck. He brought their mouths crashing back together, tongues quickly connecting to fight for control.
Daryl’s hands dropped back down and slipped underneath Rick’s shirt, fingers ghosting across Rick’s pale skin. Rick liked the feeling of Daryl’s hands on him and he took the opportunity to explore the hunter in the same manner, finally feeling the smooth, tan skin he’d been dreaming about for weeks. Rick’s hand went all the way up to Daryl’s chest, fingertips running over the hunter’s nipples until they formed hard, little peaks. Rick tweaked at one of them, causing Daryl to growl a little and nip at Rick’s lower lip.
Rick smiled into their kiss and tweaked the same nipple again, but instead of giving another bite, Daryl’s hand skipped a little further south and Rick felt his fingers brush over the re-formed tent in his pants. The new contact caused Rick to pull back from their kiss and gulp a few breaths of air. Daryl’s smirked a little mischievously and leaned his forehead against Rick’s.
“We do this in your dreams?” he asked Rick in his rough, sexy voice. His hand glided over Rick’s bulge again, this time fingers wrapping around the firm outline of Rick’s hard length. Rick bit his lip and sighed a little, nodding his forehead against the other man’s. The hunter’s fingers pushed against the denim clad member one more time before he gave Rick a light kiss and brought his hand up to un-do Rick’s belt.
Rick looked down and watch the hunter’s usually deft hands stumble to unbutton his pants and pull his zipper down. It made him feel a little better to know that Daryl was just as nervous as he was. Daryl’s eyes darted up to Rick’s just as his hand slipped under the elastic of Rick’s underwear, fingers brushing against the velvety smooth skin of Rick’s rigid cock.
Rick couldn’t help but groan and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he felt Daryl’s hand wrap around him. Daryl gave him a couple quick strokes before pulling the erection out into the open air. Looking down and watching Daryl rub a hand up and down his cock was almost more than Rick could take and he brought his mouth back to the hunter’s to get his attention off of all the sensations he was feeling below his waist.
Rick’s hands had fisted themselves into Daryl’s shirt and he slowly unclenched his fingers so he could work his own hand south. Once he had made it to Daryl’s lap, his hand slowly glided over Daryl’s crotch and he wasn’t disappointed in what he found. Daryl felt just as big as he’d imagined him in his dream. As he gave him a few practice strokes, he felt Daryl’s lips go a little slack against his and he pulled back to see Daryl’s eyes shut tight as his forehead creased in tense concentration. “You okay?” Rick asked quietly.
The hunter’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly exhaled, like he’d been holding his breath. “Yea…jus’ been a long time…” He blushed a light pink and that made Rick want to chuckle, but he held back because he didn’t want to laugh at Daryl’s honesty. Instead he just nodded and kissed the man slowly as he worked the hunter’s pants open.
As soon as he pulled the zipper down, Daryl’s stiffness sprang free and Rick pulled away to get a good look at it. Running his hand from the base, up the shaft, to the rounded head, Rick let go of a satisfied sigh. To finally see and touch what he’d been dreaming about for so long, words couldn’t describe how happy that made him. “Jeez…it ain’t that great…” Daryl mumbled, looking away slightly embarrassed.
Rick grabbed Daryl’s chin and quickly brought their eyes back together. “Yes, it is,” Rick stated and then their lips were on each other again. As their mouths embraced, their hands stroked at each other’s stiff lengths, each man moaning lightly between gasps for air.
They rubbed one another at the same pace, picking up speed gradually until their hips were grinding into each other’s hands. Rick felt Daryl get even harder and he knew that they were both close. Pulling back from their kiss, he fisted a hand into Daryl’s hair, their eyes locking together as they got closer and closer. “Oh, fuck…” Rick huffed out after a ragged breath. “Come with me, Daryl.”
Daryl only nodded and as they both thrusted into each other’s palms, Rick felt himself reach his peak, spilling onto Daryl’s fingers and grunting with intensity. His eyes never left Daryl’s and he watched as the hunter hit his own orgasm, going much quieter but breathing deeply, digging his head into the headrest behind him. Rick looked down and watched Daryl’s cock pour onto his hand, the liquid seeping between his fingers.
Letting go gently, Rick’s body fell back into his seat, every muscle relaxing as his heart returned to its normal pace and his breathing evened out. Looking left, Daryl looked just as languid and Rick couldn’t help but smile. He glanced down at his sticky hand and tried to think of a way for them to clean up. “Here,” Daryl said quietly, pulling the handkerchief he had wrapped around his ankle off and handing it to Rick after he quickly wiped his own mess up.
Rick cleaned himself and then looked at the cloth in his hand, unsure of what to do with it. Daryl took it and stuffed it into one of his many pockets. “Better not let that get tossed in with the regular wash. The ladies’ll raise hell,” Rick chuckled. Daryl lit up another smoke and waved Rick off.
“Nah…think I’ll take care of that…” he winked at Rick. They sat there in silence for a minute, quietly contemplating the event that had just transpired. “How was that? Compared to your dreams?” Daryl asked quietly, his eyes showing the small amount of vulnerability that he didn’t show to anyone but Rick.
“Better than anything I could have imagined,” Rick replied, smiling at the hunter. Daryl smirked back and Rick went to grab his hand but stopped himself halfway because he wasn’t sure if their moment had changed things for good or not. Daryl answered by meeting him halfway and lacing their fingers together, squeezing Rick’s hand with his own. They sat that way for a minute before Daryl sat up quickly and looked in the rearview mirror.
“Company,” he said and Rick whipped his head around. A few hundred feet away he could see a group of about six to eight walkers heading their way and he knew it was time for them to leave the haven of the car.
“Time to go,” Rick said, glancing to Daryl. He couldn’t help but worry that this was a one-time thing and he didn’t want it to end that way. Daryl caught the look though and quickly leaned over, giving Rick a brief kiss.
“Don’t worry. May have been the first time, but it won’t be the last,” and he winked at Rick. Both men jumped out the car and grabbed their gear, heading briskly down the road that led back to the prison. But now Rick didn’t have just his dreams to look forward to.