There it was again, that goddamn Christmas music. Every single day since the beginning of December Daryl had to endure the overly cheerful music blasting from his equally cheerful neighbours apartment. It was only a small building, he hadn't moved in long ago but he made it a point to avoid his neighbours as much as possible. He bumped into them every now and again on his way in and out of the building but for the most part they ignored him too, all except the woman next door. He didn't know her name but he knew she had a small child, single parent by the looks of things, he had never seen the girl's father going in or out.
Whenever he saw her she always smiled brightly and said hello, all he would do is grunt a response and disappear quickly inside his apartment. He thought she was pretty, he liked her smile a lot, but it wasn't enough to make him stop and chat. He had always shied away from any kind of social interaction where he could. The only person he spoke to comfortably was his brother, and he was currently serving time prison, again, so he would be spending the holidays alone. He didn't feel lonely, he had grown accustomed to it over the years.
He hadn't bothered doing anything to get into the Christmas spirit, he hadn't even celebrated it when he was a child so why would he start now? The woman next door certainly had though, if he had to listen to Mariah Carey one more time he was going to lose his shit. It was a nice building that he lived in but the walls were thin, the only reason he hadn't gone banging on the door and telling her to shut the fuck up was because he didn't want to ruin it for the kid.
He sighed and ran his hands through his shaggy hair, he couldn't hear himself think with that racket. It was Christmas Eve and he knew he was being unreasonable, she might even have friends and family round to celebrate. Throwing his book down on the coffee table he stormed over to grab his jacket and keys, maybe if he went out for a long drive on his bike it might've stopped by the time he got back. He straddled the bike and looked up at the window towards her apartment, the display of flashing lights a stark contrast to his dark undecorated one. He just didn't see the point, it was only him after all.
Daryl enjoyed the drive, the chill in the air helped clear his head. When he pulled back up at his building he was surprised to see her outside, she was helping her kid into the back of a car, a man sat in the front looking impatient whilst she said her goodbyes, the girl's father he guessed. He watched as she waved to the girl driving off with her Dad, a pained expression on her face he could tell she was trying to fight. Shit, now he was going to have to walk back inside with her. He attempted to walk straight past her but she noticed him, quickly forcing a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes and trying to blink back the tears clouding them.
"Hey," she greeted timidly. This wasn't the woman he was used to seeing, she was always bubbly and bright but right now it seemed like all the joy had been sucked right out of her. Every instinct was telling him to not engage in conversation, simply return her hello and move on but something else was stopping him. She still looked beautiful, even without that smile that made butterflies erupt in his stomach, but the sadness that replaced it was tugging at his heart.
"Y'alright?" He grumbled, watching as she tried to smile again.
"Yeah, yeah of course," she nodded, her arms wrapped around herself to fight to cold. "It's his turn to have Sophia for Christmas that's all, it's gonna be a quiet couple of days."
Just minutes ago those words would've had Daryl thanking the lord but instead he found himself wanting to comfort her, an unfamiliar feeling for him, he didn't know what to say.
"Ya don't get her back tomorrow?" Was all he could think to ask.
"No I got her all to myself last year. I get her for New Years at least. I guess that's fair right?" She shrugged.
"Guess so," he nodded. An awkward silence settled over them that had him itching to get back inside. "We gonna stand out here in the cold all day or what?"
She huffed a small laugh and headed back towards the entrance, he followed a few steps behind.
"So what are your plans for the holidays?" She asked in another attempt at small talk. "Is your family coming to visit?"
Now it was Daryl's turn to laugh. "Nope, no family. Just m'brother but he ain't around right now."
"Oh," She sighed, her expression showing sadness again only this time it was directed towards him.
"Not really a festive person anyway," he offered with a shrug as they stopped outside their respective doors.
"Well I hope you still have a good one. Merry Christmas Daryl," she smiled, a little more genuinely now.
"Ya know my name?" He questioned, this was the first time they had ever said more than hello to one another.
"I saw it on your mail," she explained with a slight blush. "I'm Carol."
"Oh, well Merry Christmas Carol," he nodded as he opened the door to his apartment.
When the door was shut behind him he took a moment to think about the situation, his apartment was weirdly quiet now. He felt bad for Carol, she was going to be spending Christmas alone, so was he but he was used to it. She was probably used to leaving out milk and cookies tonight and being woken up at the crack of dawn to open presents with her excited little girl, this year she was without her. He decided from then on he would make more of an effort when he bumped into her in the halls, as uncomfortable as it was he was glad they had spoken. Maybe it felt awkward because he was just an awkward person, if he kept trying to make conversation with her maybe it would get easier. He threw himself down on the couch and picked up his discarded book from earlier. At least now he might be able to read in peace.
A few hours had passed and Daryl was almost drifting off in his slouched position, a soft knocking on his door woke him up sharply. He opened the door puzzled to find that no one was waiting on the other side, he was however met with the mouth watering smell of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. Looking down at his feet he noticed that someone had left a plate at his door with a note.
'Baked too many so enjoy. If you were looking for something to do tomorrow you are welcome to come over here and I'll cook for us. Don't feel like you have to, just an idea, no one should be alone at Christmas. Carol x'
He looked between the note and the cookies, another unfamiliar warmth spread throughout his body as he contemplated her offer. He wanted to spend the day with her, he remembered the heartbroken look on her face as she waved her daughter off and hated the thought of her sitting all day by herself. His unskilled attempt at conversation with her earlier had him dragging his palm down his face, he couldn't even last a few minutes without things feeling awkward so how was he supposed to manage the whole day? Was he supposed to get her a present now? How was he supposed to get her a present when he knew absolutely nothing about her? All of these thoughts ran through this mind before making the final decision that he would go, if his presence was going to cheer her up in her time of need how could he possibly say no?