"So, Mabel. What's your story?" Rick asked as some of the group gathered around the small makeshift fire after having cleared out the barn. They looked to Mabel then, and even Daryl threw her a hard gaze, as everyone waited for her response. She looked at them, feeling her usual awkwardness setting in, but took a deep breath.
"Not much to tell really," she started with a shrug of her shoulders, "I was a mechanic before all this, though not a very good one, along with my older brothers. When the outbreak began we stuck together, but we eventually got separated. I found another group, which didn't last long. The leader went crazy and attacked, so I had to kill him. Had to kill the remaining member after a horde of walkers caught us off guard, but he was already dead when I did so...and here I am now."
"A mechanic?...Wow, didn't take you for the greased up, smelling like oil type." Carl stated lightheartedly and chuckled, and Mabel found herself blushing at his comment as she looked down at her hands. "Yeah, it was either that or college." Carol frowned at that statement, so Mabel decided to elaborate. "We didn't have the money for that sort of thing, so I didn't want to put us in debt."
Carol nodded in understanding, giving the new girl a soft smile. She believed it to have been a very mature move on Mabel's part, and it wasn't all for nothing, seeming as she could help the group with the skills she'd learned. Dale had been the one who knew his way around a vehicle, a knowledge he passed on to Glenn before he died.
Mabel stood up slowly, brushing off the knees of her jeans. "I'm gonna see if I can sleep. It's been a while." she stated softly, and everyone could see she was telling the truth; the dark bags under her eyes hadn't gone unnoticed. Rick smiled at her before she walked away, leaving the light of the fire behind. A few moments had passed before Daryl stabbed at the dirt with a stick, letting out a grunt as he pushed off the ground. "Right...I'm callin' it a night." he said in a gruff tone, turning from the group as he found a spot to lay down, and he let out a sigh once he had stretched out.
He hadn't realized the petite figure just a foot away as he made himself comfortable, a small voice making him aware. "Hey...Daryl, right?" He turned to find Mabel, who was sitting with her legs crossed Indian style. He jerked his head forward, nodding, and she smiled at him. "That squirrel you caught really hit the spot. Thank you," she commented gratefully, and Daryl's heart raced violently in his chest as he tilted his head in order to look at her. "Yer welcome I guess." he mumbled with a shrug, trying to stay neutral to the conversation.
Mabel looked at him for what seemed like hours, yet in truth it'd been only a few minutes, before she spoke up again. "You don't like me do you?" Her question caught Daryl by surprise, but he didn't let it show as he thought her question over. It's not that he didn't like her, but letting another person in was too much a risk for Daryl to take. Finally he settled on a reply, "Ain't gotta reason not to." Mabel sighed, that not being the answer she had hoped for. She wanted an explanation, a reason behind his coldness towards her, but maybe that was too much to ask.
She forced out a smile and nodded, "Well, as long as you don't hate me, I think I'll be able to rest." She laid down after that, rolling onto her side, back facing Daryl as she closed her eyes. Eventually sleep found her, and Mabel drifted off into a peaceful dreamland.