AUTHOR'S NOTES: This will be a short couple of chapters as I needed a small break from my other stories and this has been on my mind. I will be working on TRATD this weekend.

WARNING: A bit of Lori bashing

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Walking Dead or its characters

Apologies in advance for any spelling and grammatical errors. Thoughts in Italics

The Black Velvet Lounge

Chapter 1

Shane twirls his bottle on the table and takes a deep sigh looking at both Rick and Daryl sitting there with faces that looked like slapped arses.

"I know why he's got that face!" Shane says taking a look at Rick who looked like his cheeks could use a once over with a lawnmower and his eyes needed more than four hours of sleep and then turns his attention to Daryl "What's your excuse Bubba?" Shane asks.

Daryl peers up from beneath his shaggy bangs covering his eyes to see Shane waiting for a reply.

"Ya not read my autobiography?" Daryl grunts which makes Rick snort grabbing a few salted nuts, throwing them into the back of his mouth glad his domestic life was not going to be the topic of discussion tonight like it normally tended to be.

Rick's eyes move slowly towards Daryl as he chews even slowly on the unappetising salted nuts observing Daryl looking downer than normal. Rick breathes heavily out his nostrils knowing there were only two people in this world who could make Daryl feel like this. Flicking his eyes back to Shane - they share a look, they know each other so well, they didn't need to vocalise their thoughts, growing up together from the ages of two and being partners since the academy, they had their own ways of communicating that nobody understood.

"Didn't know ya could read and write!" Shane teases to lighten the mood and then looks serious at Daryl "Merle or your Pops this time?" Shane asks knowing both older rednecks needed their asses kicked by someone bigger and badder than them both put together.

Both he and Rick, wanted nothing more than to go over and beat the crap out of Will Dixon for everything he'd done to Daryl and his Mamma over the years and Merle for trying to drag Daryl down with him. They seemed to still have some sort of hold on Daryl even now when he's in his thirties and trying to make it by himself. Daryl just couldn't seem to raise his hand back at the men he called Pa and Brother, anyone else he'd have knocked them out of their socks but Will and Merle were made from the same cloth, so was he but they knew how to pull his strings and abuse him.

Daryl doesn't answer Shane just looks down at his bottle not wanting to reveal to them that Merle was out of prison and pressurising him to join him in the family business of Redneck Hell. Merle was turning up at his work raising hell and causing havoc to get him sacked so he'd be freed up to re-join him and his hillbilly hooligans. Daryl's boss was getting agitated and pissed with the trash rolling up at his doors every day scaring away his customers and doing damage to his business. They had competition down the road and if Merle keeps showing up, the customers would drive on by to their rivals and the business would be as good as over. Daryl chews on his inner cheek, he's been given a warning if things don't stop, then he needed to look for a new job. He has rent and bills to pay, he needed this job, the only job he's been good at that didn't involve stealing or hunting.

Feeling both Rick and Shane's eyes on him, Daryl tuts in irritation. They both had their Cop's intuition looks on their faces. He didn't want to talk and to then have Dr Shane preach to him like he likes to do because his mamma's a legitimate shrink. He claims to have acquired her gift from when he was floating around in her womb and was qualified to listen and give advice to his nearest and dearest. Rick was still having his forced sessions with Shane and always humoured Shane by just nodding and umming like he was listening whilst Shane doodled in his notepad - some type of shorthand Shane swore when Rick snatched the pad out of Shane's hand one day when he was getting into the personal intimate parts of his marriage of what went wrong and it was easy – he knew Rick needed to get laid for months thus diagnosed Lori was frigid and there was no smashing through her arctic exterior.

Daryl knew the moose was right and only was trying to help but he was never good at the talking stuff like both his friends seem to do when it's just them. He just wanted to have a quiet drink after a long gruelling day at the garage, he didn't leave until 8pm because he had to do last minute jobs. He needed to prove he was good for the job, he wanted to keep this job more than anything. Other than this job, he had nothing and having nothing meant doing nothing which led to doing something and it was the something in times of desperation that he was afraid of.

Rick had once said it was good to talk, let it out and Shane was right but he needed to talk to someone preferably whose head doesn't resemble that of the Mad Hatter's but to someone who was qualified and Shane's mamma was in fact a legitimately good Psychiatrist, she was helping Rick through his issues. Daryl just sits there contemplating what to do.

Shane knocks on the table recapturing Daryl's attention. Daryl looks up seeing Shane was waiting for him to talk. He didn't want to talk, he preferred to just listen and give his normal one or two syllable answers or his usual grunt or mumble and wants all attention off of him.

"Can't help it, ma natural face looks like this and ya say - smile it might never happen, I'll beat ya with ma thumb!" Daryl threatens Shane.

Shane backs off lifting his hands in the air knowing where the line was between him and Daryl, he was on borderline of getting an asswhooping with the scowl Daryl was giving him, he sees the tight line on Daryl's lips twitch so he turns his attention to his right to catch Rick holding his cell phone and just staring at it despairingly, like it was talking to him, rather screaming at him and he just wanted nothing more than just to say "shut up!"

Shane sees the lines on Rick's forehead were prominently bulging and he knew Rick was reading a text message. Shane's scrunches up his face in a grimace shaking his head - not tonight! He knew exactly who it was, only Lori managed to make that face and lines appear on his best friend's face which seems to age him in an instant. Shane smacks his palm beneath Rick's hand and the phone flies out of Rick's grasp. Shane grabs at it and presses reply and taps away at the screen giving his back to Rick deflecting him from reaching and grabbing it back.

"Woman! You're the elegance of frigid! When a man gets home from work survivin' bullets to the chest to bring ya home the pay cheque, he wants to be met with a smile, kiss and cuddle from his wife, edible food on the table and at least one night a week of earth shatterin' friction between the bed sheets not the constant bitchin' about feelings ya don't seem to have an ounce of! Get ya nose out ya arctic ass if ya know what's good for ya and stop pesterin' me unless it's about Carl, otherwise talk to that mullet head attorney of yours to talk to mine – Peace Out!"

Shane presses send as Rick was leaning over wrestling for his phone back and then he goes tumbling backwards into his seat when Shane lets go looking like he'd done Rick a massive favour.

Rick's eyes race across the screen getting bigger and wider at each line he reads. He sees the message saying "sending message" with the little timer going round in circles, he could stop it before it sent – reception in the bar was never good. Rick tries to cancel it and then freezes horrified when he sees the message saying "message sent"

"NOOOOOO! SHANE! YOU ASSEHOLE!" Rick yells and then looks up at Shane jumping from his seat.

Daryl is up and holding Rick back as he grumbles curse words and where he wants to shove his foot.

"She has to be told!" Shane defends himself not apologising but getting ready to bolt out the door if Rick got free of Daryl's hold.

"She does man!" Daryl says gruffly into the back of Rick's head agreeing with Shane reading the text message on the phone Shane had sent which was sitting on the table as Rick just stares down at it, his lips looked dry.

Daryl's never liked Lori and like Shane, thought she needed to get her nose out of her arctic ass because she wasn't all that she makes out to be especially when she put her nose down at him when he and Rick became friends at the end of high school "She's a two-faced yo-yo diva!" Daryl adds.

Rick's phone begins to buzz and vibrate angrily on the table and they all just stare at it. Rick does something he's never done. The others watch intently not believing it as Rick reaches over, index finger hovers over the screen and then he taps decline.

"Shit!" Daryl says stepping back and slumping down into his seat, lifting his bottle up to Rick that he finally did it and then takes a long swig from his bottle.

Shane jumps at Rick pulling him under his armpit scruffing his hair congratulating him for finally taking back his balls from Lori. Rick shoves Shane off and walks back to his seat and sits down rubbing the scruff on his cheeks, it was just as good as saying "shut up!" he always took her calls knowing they'd never be pleasant, he was always polite and considerate but didn't feel like it anymore, not with Lori and her games she plays.

They all sit there quietly finishing off their drinks listening to some unknown song playing from the Jukebox.

It was Friday night and the night felt dead. The last months of Friday's has been the same. They'd get together, drink together and moped together. Daryl was going through his stuff, Rick was going through a divorce with Lori who would love nothing more than for him to mess up so she can throw it in his face and make empty threats and Shane was on thin ice with The Sheriff for beating up wife-beater-dick, Ed Peletier for beating up his wife and that in front of their twelve year old daughter. He was waiting for his disciplinary and the hopes that Ed won't press charges.

A guy in a long leather trench coat, long hair and beard drops a couple of leaflets on to their table and the next where there's a few guys their age and then at the bar where Leon and Aiden were sitting watching the football reruns on the hanging flat screen. The mysterious guy moved like a ninja, they couldn't clearly see his face – he was in and out in seconds as they all watch him disappear before he was caught and ushered out of the bar by the barman.

Shane picks up a leaflet, Rick and Daryl turn back when the door slammed shut and look at Shane when he reads aloud.

The Black Velvet Lounge

New Exclusive Lounge Bar

Doors open from 7pm

Entry fee: $20

Opening Night's Headliner:

**Miss Beth Greene**

A New World, A New Experience!

"A new world, a new experience, Miss Beth Greene whoever you are - we're so there!" Shane says decidedly drinking the last of his beer, slamming the bottle down and wiping his mouth on his sleeve with a grin pulling out his wallet. He hoped there were a few pretty girls to lighten the atmosphere and make it a night to remember "Rick!" Shane says getting up.

"Alright!" Rick answers pushing his chair back "It's as good a night as any!" not needed to be asked twice looking around their local bar which looked run down and needed a facelift "Daryl?" Rick calls and looks at him hopefully.

If Daryl didn't want to go, then they'd be stuck in their Old Man's Bar and Rick felt the shackles have finally been lifted off his ankles and he wanted see what this new world, new experience was, there had to be something better than this around them and he wanted to find out.

Daryl didn't want to go somewhere he's never been, he was comfortable in the cesspit of a bar they've been coming to since they were old enough to drink and then he feels both Shane and Rick's eyes on him, standing there more telling him than asking him.

"Well c'mon then! I ain't got all day!" Daryl snaps pushing his bottle across the table knowing he was going to hate this new world, this new experience.

They pay their tab and gather their jackets and make their way to the new and exclusive bar which was a five minute walk away.