DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS FROM TWD; MERELY BORROWING THEM FOR A WHILE; I MAY PUT THEM BACK...OR I MAY NOT!
AN: This story was inspired by the Nickleback song 'Trying Not To Love You' and it got me thinking about all of those moments where Daryl seems to be trying so hard not to reveal his feelings - and failing miserably...
It was at the camp near the quarry that he first noticed her; a quiet woman following in her husband's shadow. She always seemed to be at Ed's beck and call and he'd wondered at first what the appeal was – until he started to look closer and noticed that although she was always at Ed's side it wasn't through choice at all. He swallowed the bitter sting of the acid rising at the back of his throat when he noticed the slight bruising that appeared on her arms – always after Ed had been sullen the night before. He wanted to say something back always held back, knowing that it wasn't his place; that he had no rights at all where she or the girl were concerned.
He wasn't the only one to notice though, his brother came bursting into the tent one evening all snarls and bristles.
"Caught that little shit pickin' on little mousey again…something about the coffee not being strong enough this time…He was nearly about to pour the pot over her hands when I came up behind him….Oooohhh he nearly crapped his pants when I whispered a little warning in his ear…" The elder Dixon brother slapped his hands on his thighs and laughed uproariously at the memory. When Daryl made no remark Merle kicked at his feet at the bottom of the sleeping bag. "Hey, 'lil brother are you even listenin' ta me? I said…"
"Jesus, Merle….I ain't deaf and I sure as Hell ain't sleepin' no more either…I think the whole camp heard ya…" Daryl sat up in the sleeping bag and ran his hands over his shaggy hair; blinking sleepily at where Merle was sitting crosslegged near the opening of the tent staring in the direction of the Peletier tent.
"So, what are we gonna do about it?"
"About what?" Daryl absently scratched at the scruff that was beginning to show through on his cheek and cracked an almighty yawn.
"Little Mousey and the asshole…who did you think I meant? I tell ya, Daryl – it just ain't right, it ain't right at all." Both men had suffered at the hands of an abusive father and the thought of a hulking brute like Ed laying his hands on a sweetly, shy little thing like Carol had them both feeling sick at the thought. Carol was a slender woman of indeterminate years; Daryl had overheard her mention to Jacqui in passing that her hair had started to turn grey when she was in her late twenties so it was hard to tell just by looking at her what age she was. She had the smooth skin of a young woman, but her eyes held the wisdom and sorrow of an old soul. Merle had nicknamed her 'Mousey' because of the colour of her hair, saying that it reminded him of a pet mouse that he'd had once; not silver and not quite grey but somewhere in between.
"Do ya think that anyone else knows about how he treats her?" Daryl pulled on a ripped t-shirt realising that Merle was not going to let him go back to sleep until they had talked it out.
"Some of the women maybe….Shane's too busy sniffing around that Lori woman to even notice."
"Shame he cain't meet with an 'accident' whilst out on a run," Daryl made air quotes as he met his brother's eyes and saw that Merle was smirking back in his direction.
"I like the way you think sometimes, 'lil brother, think I might just suggest to the Chinky that we bring Ed along with us tomorrow when we hit the City for supplies."
"He's Korean," Daryl corrected his brother for what must have been the hundredth time, only for Merle to smirk as if to say 'just yanking your chain'. Daryl sighed, knowing that he would always fall for it, Merle was just Merle. "Might be worth comin' along just to see that…"
"The more the merrier, brother." Merle tipped Daryl a wink before slipping silently back out of the tent and disappearing into the fading darkness. Daryl threw back the covers of the sleeping bag and pulled on a pair of Khaki's, reasoning that if he couldn't sleep then he might as well go and start a pot of coffee instead. He zipped himself up and stepped out of the tent, scanning the lightening horizon for signs of any movements that were out of the ordinary.
"Morning, Daryl…can't sleep?" A low, sweet voice from beside the low burning embers of the fire pit had him whirling around to see Carol sitting on a log unhooking the coffee pot from where it hung over a trivet. She poured out another cup and added just a dash of sugar before handing it over to him. Their fingers brushed as he wrapped a hand around the mug and he smiled faintly in thanks.
"Naw…had an early morning visitor that didn't seem to care whether I was asleep or awake," Daryl took a seat next to her on the log and they sipped in companionable silence.
"Let me take a wild guess, Merle?" At Daryl's nod, Carol gave a light, tinkling laugh, which sent shivers racing down his spine; it was a rare thing indeed to see Carol even smile lately; so to hear her laugh was like having all of his Christmas and Birthdays all rolled into one. "I saw him sitting outside of our tent last night, keeping guard I guess…it wasn't needed, but tell him thanks all the same."
"How about you? Why you up so early?"
"You know for a tracker you're not really all that observant are you?" Carol smiled again as she sipped her coffee slowly, Daryl's raised a single eyebrow in question and Carol waved a hand around the camp. "Did you think that magic fairies come in every morning wave their wands and breakfast just magically appears? I've always been an early riser – I get up and stoke the fire, put the coffee on; make a start on breakfast and sort out the laundry."
"How come I never saw you out here before?"
"You probably just never noticed…I've seen you and Merle go out some mornings and you have a rhythm together; completely focused on the task ahead – there could have been a parade of girls on the run from the Playboy mansion and the two of you would probably not even noticed them either."
"Huh- wouldn't be too sure about that…I seem to remember Merle having a thing for Miss July a few years ago…something tells me that he wouldn't be too quick on passing that by." Daryl murmured into his mug and felt Carol giggle against his shoulder. "So, are you and Soph okay after last night? That ass…Ed – didn't hurt you?" Daryl bit his tongue as he was about to call her husband an asshole right in front of her.
"Yeah, we're okay for now…He's getting worse though Daryl. I'm not afraid for me, God knows I've been through worse with him…" Carol felt Daryl stiffen against her side and muttered an apology as she moved slightly away. "God, Daryl…I'm sorry…I really didn't intend to bring that up in conversation. I don't know what's got me running off at the mouth like that." Carol held up a hand to her mouth, shocked at her own forthright speaking.
"'S okay…what did you mean? You afraid for Soph? Merle and me…well, we ain't gonna let anything happen to you or your little girl." Daryl placed his mug on the ground and nudged Carol's shoulder with his own. He splayed his hand out on his thigh, tapping his fingers nervously and was startled when Carol quickly patted his hand with her own before placing it back in her lap.
"Thanks, Daryl and thank your brother for me too…that was the best night's sleep that Sophia and I have had in weeks." Daryl's cheeks flushed at the compliment and the slight caress of her fingers against his own. He swallowed hard at the lump that appeared to be blocking his throat and coughed slightly to clear it.
"Ed's going out on the run today with Merle, Glenn, Me and a few of the others. It's about time that he started pulling his weight around her. We'll leave Shane and Dale behind to keep an eye on things around here." Daryl saw that Carol was biting her lip anxiously and gently placed a hand on her arm to comfort her. "Hey, what's got you all gnarled up aller sudden?"
"He won't like it, Daryl and he'll take it out on me and Sophia when he gets back tonight."
"No, he won't – not with Me and Merle around, we won't let him," before Daryl even quite knew what he was doing he'd pressed a fleeting kiss against Carol's cheek; and felt her jerk back slightly in surprise. "Shit! Sorry, Carol don't even know what the Hell I was thinkin'…..sorry." Daryl bolted off into the forest leaving Carol sitting rubbing her fingers against the spot that he had kissed, and staring off into space with a wistful expression on her face.