Philip Blake x Reader

__________ stabbed a walker in the face, hard. She was angry, and with good reason. Her group had discarded her, just because some woman had a baby? One would think that the more people there were, the more protection the kid would have. She was betrayed and lost and frankly, frightened. She'd only been alone out in the "wilds", as her former group had called it, twice.

She raised her gun and aimed at a stumbling figure in the distance. It tripped forward even more, walking with that slow and slurred gait. 

She snorted in disgust and her finger tightened on the trigger. The figure stopped suddenly and watched. It did not move out of the way. It just stared at her.

She lowered her gun and stared back. She walked tentatively towards it, her finger tight against the trigger. 

He was tall and slim, and his hair was an untrimmed, tangled mess. A five o'clock shadow ghosted his face and his right eye was covered by a black patch. He looked at her from under his lashes, a forlorn but defensive look on his face. He clenched his jaw and looked down. He began shuffling away, not giving her a second glance.

She ran after him, easily catching up to his shambling pace. She tapped his shoulder and walked alongside him, waiting for him to acknowledge her. He did not turn to face her. She pushed him around to face her. He looked distant, perhaps unconnected from reality. But for some reason, she doubted it; his eyes were not dead, only his face. His eyes glittered with a lilting light and emotion of their own, watching her every move. 

She grabbed his shoulders and shook them, her eyes suddenly filled with worry. The only living being she'd seen in four days was not even responsive. He cast his eyes down again, but did not attempt to push her off. 

She loosened her grip on him, and she felt the tears coming. She hadn't seen another human in days, and though many people went solo, human contact was the most comforting thing. She grabbed a fistful of his jacket and jerked him forward. Her vision blurred as the tears began to fall. She stumbled forward into his chest and the smell of old cologne and leather filled her nose. She began to sob. She slammed her fists into his chest, hoping to get some sort of reaction. When she didn't get one, she stopped and clenched her fists tighter. She took deep breaths of that people-smell, that soft, living thing before her now. God, it was so comforting. 

She heard the low rumble of a hum in his chest and shuddered. She pulled away and took a deep, shaking breath. 

"Who are you?" she asked with a trembling voice.

"Philip," he answered almost instantly. He flinched and looked away again.

"I'm __________," she said softly. "I-"

"Why are you alone?" he interrupted. 

"Group abandoned me," she replied hesitantly. 

He nodded and resumed walking, though he picked his feet up off the ground this time.

"You're leaving?" Her voice faltered, and she could tell he noticed. 

"And you're not coming with me?" he asked quietly, before turning back around. She followed after him sighing in relief. 

They traveled until the sun began to set, and they settled in an open field. He set up a small tent, and motioned for her to go inside. 

"You're sleeping outside?" She shook her head. "No. I'll hear them, it's alright."

"I don't mind it." He crossed his legs and sat down at the entrance of the tent definitively.

"No."

He arched an eyebrow and for a moment, his face darkened. 

She swallowed. "I'm not going to put the only other person I have in danger right now."

His face relaxed after a moment. He crawled inside the tent and grabbed her wrist. "Then you're staying here. Don't be afraid, I've got nothing to take from you."

She nodded and followed in after him, her muscles tense. Why was she so eager to trust him? It was a foolish move in times like these. But he was a human being.

He zipped up the tent. "The walkers can't get past the fabric, really, so don't worry about that either."

She nodded. He turned away and let out a long breath. But, _________ sat awake for a while, contemplating her next move. She listened to the slow, long breaths of the man beside her and she shivered. It was getting colder.

She pulled a blanket from her own pack and covered him with it. He'd given her a place to stay and a breathing companion, it was a fair trade. She lay back and closed her eyes, praying that he wouldn't leave her, as he'd said. She drifted off after a long while.

"I'm not cold. I've got a jacket. You've got nothing," he whispered. 

He covered her up and tucked a stray lock of hair out of her face. She was so beautiful. She was beautiful to him because she did not know him. She didn't know what he'd done, the people he'd killed, his tortured past. She knew him only as Philip. He brushed his thumb across her face. Her soft skin was like satin against his rough hands. He felt hot tears well up, but he blinked them back. He rested his hand against her face and let her warmth soak into his cold hand as he drifted off again.

The morning was brought on early by the groaning of a walker outside the tent. __________ jolted awake, but Philip had beat her to it. He had his knife ready, and an arm lashed out in front of her, as if to protect her. When it began to scratch at the nylon, he simply jerked the zipper down and slashed at it's head until there was nothing but a hunk of putrid meat left behind. He turned around to look at her, a carnal rage bubbling under the surface. She stared at him with a mixture of fear, surprise, and gratitude. He zipped the tent back up on the way inside.

"It's not even daybreak yet. The sun's not even up," she said quietly, examining his face. Blood spattered across his face in violent red splotches. 

She wiped them away with a corner of her blanket and he leaned into her soft, warm hands. She blinked in surprise.

"What happened to you?" she asked.

"Lots of things," he answered tightly, before laying back down on the still-warm fabric and closing his eyes once again. 

She lay down again too, glad to have been prepared for the day to come with a gentle reminder of the danger outside. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. She rolled over and fell into a dark, deep sleep, deeper than before.

Warm skin met warm skin in the late hours of the afternoon and _________ jerked awake. He blinked at her. "Sorry."

She nodded and closed her eyes. She tried to readjust herself, but only managed to tangle her hands in the blanket. She sighed in annoyance and freed them from their fabric captor. She stared at it for a moment. "This was for you and-"

He was sleeping again, already, his ears dead to her words.

She let out a long breath and pressed her face against his back. She was cold and she needed to inhale that smell. 

She needed to remember him by it.

He felt her hands press against his shoulderblades, a light touch with quivering fingers. He felt her nestle into him, searching for warmth, probably. He didn't reject it, or even acknowledge it. There was no point. The dam in his mind had been broken open enough, and if he opened his mouth he'd scream. 

But he wanted to confront her. See what she would do. 

He took a deep breath. He felt her hands tense and he turned to face her. She looked away.

He brushed her cheek and turned her face so she was forced to meet his gaze. He stared into her eyes coldly, but he pressed his lips to her forehead anyways. He pulled her tight to his chest and wrapped his arms around her. A sudden vehement urgency to keep her safe bled into him. He hadn't been able to protect anyone before. He'd lost his daughter and his wife and his brother. He'd lost everyone he loved.

When she raised her gun to shoot him down, he wouldn't have thought twice about moving. He'd been wandering aimlessly for seven months, with nothing left, and no one to look after. He'd lost his will to live a long time ago.

He swallowed the sudden shock of emotion that cut through his chest and weaved his fingers into her hair. She felt his warm breath along her temple, and she listened to his quiet but fierce words before falling asleep beside him. 

"I won't let anything hurt you. I swear."