Chapter Text
The two men were smitten with Judith from the moment they laid eyes on her, and that bond only grew as they held her in their arms for the first time. Rick wanted to let Daryl hold the little girl first, but Daryl wanted to let Rick hold her first; in the end the linked their arms together, creating a sort of cradle so that they could both hold her at the same time.
Judith was small, wrapped in a pink hospital blanket, a fine smattering of bright red hair already forming on her little head. Her eyes were a bright shade of emerald, matching her mother’s perfectly, and the men could swear she was already able to smile up at them. One loo into her wide, newborn eyes and they were enslaved to her.
They had to wait a few days before they could take her home from the hospital, but neither of them minded that too much; after all, they wanted their baby to be as healthy as possible from the moment she was born and onward into the future.
They stopped by the hospital every day, always going straight to the viewing window of the infants’ room to catch a glimpse of their little girl. After that they wandered to Torrey’s room to keep her company. She was always in high spirits when they came by, smiling at them and inviting them to come watch some mindless show with her, since she had nothing better to do for a while.
“So what’d you name her?” Torrey asked, sitting upright and cross-legged on her bed, her hospital gown pulled down over her knees.
“Named her Judith.” Daryl piped up, his hand snaking into Rick’s.
Rick threw a smile at Daryl, squeezing his fingers, before returning his attention to Torrey. “She’s named after my grandmother. I thought it’d be a nice tribute to her.”
“Aww, that’s sweet.” Torrey smiled, sun-bright and all-encompassing; the two men hoped Judith’s smile would be that beautiful once she was fully able to form one. “What would you have named the baby if it were a boy?”
“Does that really matter?” Rick chuckled.
Torrey shrugged. “Not really. I’m just curious is all. If I’m being honest, I had my own names in mind; I just didn’t want to think about them too much and start getting attached to the baby, you know?”
“What were the names you were thinking of?” Daryl asked.
“You first, gentlemen.”
Daryl rolled his eyes, but obliged the redhead anyway. “If the baby was a boy we were gonna name him Norman, after my grandfather. Your turn.”
Torrey nodded. “Well, if I’d decided to keep the baby I would have named a girl Amy and a boy Gabriel. Or maybe Michael.” She shrugged again.
“Those are nice, too. Any meaning behind them?” Rick asked.
“Not really; I just like the way they sound.” Torrey blushed softly, turning her gaze to the sheets around her.
And so things carried on that way for about three days, until both mother and child were able to be released from the hospital.
~ ~ ~
“Are you hungry, Lil’ Asskicker?” Daryl cooed at the baby girl one morning as he plucked her from her crib.
Daryl had been up since Judith had started crying around two in the morning, the lack of sleep not seeming to phase him in the least. Rick, on the other hand, had made sure Judith was alright and then promptly gone back to bed, collapsing face-down on the mattress and leaving Daryl to deal with things.
Daryl didn’t mind the added responsibility of taking care of the baby late at night. Rick was already exhausted because of his work schedule, and he deserved this mini-vacation of sorts while they bonded with their child. Rick wouldn’t be going back to work for another two weeks, at least, but he still needed the rest.
Judith raised one small fist, moving it in a slow arc, almost as if she were trying to touch Daryl’s face. Daryl smiled, kissing her on both cheeks, and she made a soft sound of happiness. He touched a hand to her bottom, checking to see if she was still dry, satisfied when he found that she was.
Daryl cradled her in one arm as he padded through the silent apartment, humming quietly under his breath, making his way to the kitchen. He’d become quite adept at fixing up a bottle with only the use of one hand, and he did so now, carefully scooping the recommended dose of powdered formula from the tub and dumping it into her bottle. He pulled the special distilled water for infants from the fridge and poured it on top of the formula, measuring it carefully so as not to have too much powder and not enough water, or vice-versa. Once that was finished he re-screwed the nipple cap onto the bottle and shook it vigorously, making sure everything was mixed to perfection.
“You want it warm today, sweetheart?” Daryl asked just because he could, not caring that she wouldn’t actually answer.
Judith answered in her own way, making grabby-hand gestures toward the already fixed bottle. She was an intelligent child; she already understood that the bottle held her current food source, and she didn’t seem to mind whether it was warmed up or served cold, as it was now.
“Alright, don’t gotta warm it up. No need t’ get impatient.” Daryl tickled her tummy before holding the bottle to her lips.
He walked slowly around the apartment while Judith drank her breakfast, going to the doorway of his and Rick’s bedroom to check on the man. He stood at the threshold, the door ajar just enough to give him a clear view of the man still seemingly passed out on the bed.
“Daddy’s lazy, isn’t he?” Daryl teased, keeping his voice pitched low.
Judith’s eyes rolled to Daryl’s face at the sound of his voice, and she continued to drink her formula.
“I’m not lazy.” Rick’s muffled statement had Daryl chuckling under his breath.
“Then why ya still layin’ around, huh?” Daryl nudged the door open with his foot and made his way inside, coming to stand by the bed.
Rick raised his head and yawned, rubbing at his eyes with the back of one hand. “Maybe because it’s early and I’m exhausted. How you can be woken up at two in the morning and then stay up all night and be perfectly fine right now is beyond me.”
Daryl shrugged, tipping the bottle so that Judith could easily get more of the formula. “I’ve always been more of a night owl, I guess. Bein’ up late don’t bother me, an’ neither does stayin’ up all night. I’ll probably end up crashin’ later this afternoon, though.” He smirked, glancing between Rick’s face and Judith’s. “Truth is, I’d wake up fer this every damn day of the week, miss countless hours of sleep, all t’ get t’ spend this time with her.”
Rick swung his legs around the side of the bed and got to his feet, wrapping one arm around Daryl’s shoulders. He gripped Daryl’s chin gently with his thumb and forefinger, tipping the man’s face toward him, and placed a tender kiss on his lips. “Told you that you’d be a great father, Daryl.”
Daryl flushed soft pink, his gaze returning to the baby in his arms. “What d’ you think, Lil’ Asskicker? Think I’m doin’ a good job?”
Judith just smacked in response as she continued to suckle the nipple on the bottle.
“Why’re you calling her ‘Lil’ Asskciker’?” Rick asked, quirking one eyebrow in amusement.
“Cause I’ve got my life-sized Asskicker right here.” Daryl bumped Rick’s hip with his own, a grin curving his lips.
Rick couldn’t help but laugh. “So you think of me as ‘Asskicker’, huh?”
“Well you can sure kick my ass, if you get my drift.” Daryl winked at Rick, making him blush.
“Then that makes you my Asskicker, since you do the same to me all the time.” Rick replied, moving the arm around Daryl’s shoulders down to the man’s hip, pulling him closer.
“See, that’s why the nickname’s perfect. We’re both each other’s Asskicker, so it only figures we’d have a Lil’ Asskicker to match.” Daryl removed the bottle from the baby’s lips as she stopped drinking, gently moving her up to his shoulder to burp her.
He rubbed her back in soothing circles until the tiny hiccup of a gas bubble escaped her body. He cradled her in his arms once again, his smile beaming, and placed a kiss on her forehead. “That’s a good Lil’ Asskicker. All full from breakfast, ready to start the day.”
Judith raised her fists as she had before, unsure of her movements but looking happy all the same.
Rick dipped down, pressing kisses into her cheeks and forehead and onto the tip of her nose. “Sweet little Judy.” He murmured, running his fingertips over her penny-colored hair.
Rick straightened up once more and placed a smacking kiss on Daryl’s cheek. “Sweet little Daryl.” He chuckled, squeezing the redneck’s hip.
Daryl rolled his eyes, causing Rick to laugh even harder.
They were one perfect, happy family. This was their paradise.