Hey guys, just wanted to drop an extra line and say thanks so much for the pms and reviews! Suggestions and comments are very much appreciated and every single one has helped me shape up the direction and ideas for this fic, so lots of love and thanks to you all! =)
~Cadence
Sleepless nights were not an uncommon occurrence when it came to Beth. Ever since the farm was overrun with walkers and they had all been on the run she had learned to sleep lightly, with one eye open. Although the shelter of the prison had helped ease her fears at first, the threat of the Governor brought her back to square one. Last night she had spent the remaining hours before dawn laying on her bed, wide awake. This time, however, it wasn't the fear of what was outside these walls that kept her awake, but rather the allure of what was inside of these walls that kept her awake, tossing and turning. She had stopped focusing on what could have happened and instead looked into what did happen.
All she could think about was Merle Dixon. Even now as she sat alone in the table area playing with her untouched oatmeal he was still in her head. Over and over again she replayed the nights events in her mind: the way he looked in the moonlight, the gentle touch from his calloused hand, that kiss... If Merle had been a mystery before he was a million-pieced puzzle now. Some pieces were easy, for those were the ones the others claimed as deemed to be the whole of Merle: 'cruel', 'mean', 'harsh', 'evil', 'volatile'. Then there were the smaller ones, the trickier ones to find: 'brother', 'loyal', 'protective', all of which were parts she was sure Darryl saw and the piece she herself saw last night, though she couldn't say for sure what exactly it was just yet. She could only hope she'd see that part of him again, long enough to try and figure out what it was she saw.
The loud snap of clacking boots yanked Beth out of her reverie. It wasn't too big of a trip though, for the man on her mind was now here, standing before her.
"A penny for 'em?" the familiar slow drawl called out, accompanied by the steps of the stairs. Beth glanced up in time to see that half-smile half-smirk play upon Merle's face, bringing back the flutters within her from the night before.
"H-Hi," she breathed out softly, a small smile playing on her face.
He strode over casually and took a seat across from her. He said nothing for a while, allowing silence to infiltrate and heighten the tension. There were questions on his mind regarding her and her thoughts, but if there was one thing Merle had learned in his long life it was that observance was everything. People could talk all they wanted, yapping about anything and everything and it wouldn't mean shit. Behavior, however, was different. It wasn't something that was as easily manipulated and altered the way words were. And his thoughts were backed up. If he recalled correctly there was some Latin quote or another that he'd seen in the Woodbury library that showed he was right: Acta non Verba.
And so, he plead the fifth, choosing to just sit back and relax, enjoying the view of the pretty little lady in front of him.
She blushed under his intentionally-obvious gaze, shifting slightly in bashfulness. Looking for the ease of a sprinkle of conversation she offered a topic to launch. "So, I heard you were going on a run with Rick today."
He nodded slowly in reply, not taking his eyes off her. Mentally he was retracing all the perfect little features his hand had grazed mere hours before. Occasionally, however, his gaze took a detour wandering down her front. She wore a simple black tank top today that revealed a healthy flash of cleavage. Shit girlie, give a man warnin' 'fore ya show of 'em sugah tits! He thought to himself.
"Ya heard right, lil lady. Headin' off soon as Officer Friendly gets hisself togetha and isn't chasin up his butterflies like 'e tends to." Despite his words, so far as Merle was concerned Rick could take his time. He was in no hurry.
Concern filled her blue doe-like eyes. "Shouldn't you get some sleep first? You just got back from patrol."
Had it been someone else who suggested he nap, Merle would've likely kicked that sucker's ass for insinuating he couldn't take care of himself and needed sleep as though he were an old geezer of sorts. There was a part of him at the surface that wanted to snap back, to tell off this girl, and call her out for insulting him. His eyes had narrowed, his back had tightened and his mouth was already forming a rampage of slurs… but all curses died on his tongue before they were released when realization dawned on him.
She was worried. Worried for him. This girl was worried for Merle Dixon. Merle. Fucking. Dixon.
The concern for him he saw in her caught him momentarily off guard. Aside from maybe Darryl he hadn't seen that before… He didn't know what would have been perhaps the proper way to react, so he went about it in the way that felt best to him; the 'Merle way'. He shrugged it off with a snorted laugh, shaking his head. "Shit, girlie. Ole Merle ain't that old. Don't ya worry yer lil blonde self. I'm up 'n at 'em." He added a wink for an extra kick, smirking at how the simple gesture brought an added hint of pink to her pale skin. To his surprise though, she replied to this challenge, catching him off-guard once more.
"You drank Daryl's coffee, huh?" She asked with a knowing sort of look upon her. It was the smile Merle recognized and was soon realizing was one she had for him returned to his face.
He blinked at her in returned surprise, glancing at her up and down in a 'what the hell' manner. "Damn girl, ya got eyes that can see through walls or somethin?"
The expression on his face brought out a wave of light laughter as she shook her head. "You forget, I'm the younger sibling too. I know all about the tricks older one's pull. I saw Daryl heading up there with breakfast and figured you would have pulled something like that." Beth was aware of how he was glancing at her and she could only imagine what he must be thinking at this point, but she wasn't ready to give in just yet, not when she still had nerve in her. She kept a poker face intact and met him on, look for look.
Dark eyebrows rose in surprise. Merle's hand rose up to scratch his week-old beard thoughtfully, observing the girl in front of him. "Is that right?" She had spunk, Merle had to give her that. Maybe she wasn't the fragile little thing everyone seemed to treat her like. He knew off the bat just by looking at that curvaceous figure of hers that very much a woman. A young woman, to be sure, but a woman nonetheless. Now as he spoke to her he was realizing his observations were being validated. Maybe she really wasn't a naïve little girl after all.
"Hmmph, well look at that. Guess all 'em study sessions of yers are payin off. Gettin ole Merle all figured out ain't'cha?" he asked
She flushed a deeper red at that, causing him to let out that long southern drawl of a chuckle. The deep boom of it eased slowly over her, encompassing her form like dripping honey. "…Not as much as I'd like to..." she admitted quietly, daring to let her blue eyes meet his as she leaned forward, inching ever so slowly towards him.
Merle kept his poker face on for the most part but deep inside his heart was racing and that familiar thrill he recognized from his skirt-chasing days was washing over him. Not entirely aware of it, he was starting to lean in a little closer to her too. So close that he could smell hints of her shampoo: the faint sweet scent of strawberries getting stronger and more prominent as he leaned closer and closer, so close to her strawberry colored lips…
"Excuse me." a voice called out, breaking the spell. Carol had entered at some point and was now staring at them both, Judith in her arms. "Rick is looking for you, Merle. He's about ready to get on the road now."
Remnants of the building tension lingered, though were forcibly squashed by the two for fear of arising suspicion. "Bout time!" Merle barked out in his trademark gruffness. Despite speaking to Carol, Merle kept his eyes on Beth, slowly and reluctantly pulling away to Carol's. "Where's Officer Friendly at?"
"Rick is at the courtyard. He and Glenn are waiting by the car."
"Chinaman's taggin' along?"
Carol rolled her eyes, shaking her head at Merle disapprovingly. "Yes, Glenn is going too."
"He's Korean." Beth added lowly. Despite not approving of Merle's nickname, she couldn't help the hint of a smile upon her face.
Merle turned to Beth, shooting her his cocky half-smile with a shrug. "Sugah, given the way things are in this hell-hole, I'm willin' ta bet the last whiskey bottle that there ain't a China or a Kuhreah left so whys it matter what the hell I call the feller? I mean, think about it-"
Before Merle could get further into his thoughts, Carol cut in again with a rapidly increasing impatience. "Okay, as riveting as this little apocalyptical geography lesson is, Merle, Rick is waiting for you. You might want to get a move on. Now."
Merle glanced back up at Carol, raising an eyebrow. He stared at her for a while, taking her in. For a moment Beth thought he'd snap back with a few of his comebacks like he normally did when other members of the group tried to shut him up only to see him shoot that same old smug look of his. "Well, well. Looks like lil Miss. Fieldmouse really has stepped up and grown a pair. That or ya took 'em from my brother. Either way, kudos ta ya." He snickered, rising from his chair. "I'll see ya lovelies later." As he turned to walk away he shot Beth a wink. To avoid suspicion, or perhaps simply for the hell of it just to infuriate her more, Merle shot Carol one as well; a long overly-acted and drawn out one before leaving the room, the clack of his boots accompanied by the rumbles of his snickers. In his wake he left behind two reddening ladies: one darkening with annoyance and the other flushing and blushing from flattery.
As typical of the Merle nature, even when he'd left it still wasn't the end of him.. His voice could be heard, loud and clear from outside. "Ya done playin' Mr. Mom, Officer Friendly?" he asked in that easy-going, casual tone of his. The effects were immediate as both the women in the cell block turned towards the noise. Despite herself, Beth couldn't help but let out a small giggle at Merle's antics, which she hastily covered with a mini round of faux coughs.
Mumbling could be heard in reply, most likely Rick's and Glenn's voices, though none could pierce through the air quite like Merle's could. "Ya, I heard. Don't make no difference to me if Chiner over here tags along, so long as he ain't drivin'. Ya know what I'm sayin'?"
More mumbling could be heard, followed by Merle's reply. "Aw, c'mon now, sonny boy. Y'know I'm jus' playin. Shit, a fellas jus' tryin to cut the damn' tension and ya get yer chopsticks all busted up. Ha! Now c'mon now, can we get a move on yet?"
Another round of mumbling continued, though eventually a starting car engine was heard, loudening and eventually fading as the car left the prison grounds, leaving
"Finally! I swear, apes have more poise!"." Carol sighed, shaking her head in annoyance. "Hard to believe he and Daryl come from the same gene pool with the way Merle acts."
"Hmm, maybe…" Beth replied thoughtfully, though she didn't seem entirely convinced by that notion. The way she saw it, Daryl and Merle were one in the same with the only differential factor being chance and opportunity."They have the same eyes though, don't they?" she asked with a smile, thinking of the Dixon shade of silver-blue.
"I wouldn't know. Merle's eyes always seem to be too narrowed in a glare for anyone to be able to tell." Carol replied with an inflection of humor in her voice. "Or I guess I should say winks, judging by that little show he put on, whatever that was supposed to mean."
She glanced up at Beth who seemed to be in a land of her own. Her sapphire eyes were glossy, glazed over by whatever thought was streaming through her mind as of that moment. What it was exactly that was going through the girl's mind was a total mystery to Carol. She wasn't one to pry into another's thoughts, so she left her curiosities to that alone. Her questions on the earlier events, however, were not afforded such luxury. She had seen Beth and Merle sitting across from each other at the table, talking. Although innocent enough on the surface, Carol's maternal instincts whispered other potential aspects of the scenario.
"Beth, sweetheart, about what I walked into…" she tentatively began.
Slowly with reluctance, Beth broke from her reverie "Hmm?"
"Earlier. You and Merle were sitting together, talking."
"Oh, yeah. What about it?" Beth asked slowly, trying to keep her tone neutral and expression as guarded as possible. She had a feeling this was going to go down the oh-so-familiar 'You're just a kid, you don't know what you're doing, we have to protect you.' routine her Dad and sister seemed to have made a farm on and she was definitely not too thrilled at the idea of Carol setting up a tent in these woods as well. "We were just sitting, getting to know each other. We weren't doing anything wrong." Despite her efforts at staying guarded, however, the slight edge on her tone went noticed by Carol.
"I know, sweetheart. I'm just… looking out for you, is all." Carol replied softly, glancing downward. Maybe she was making mountains out of ant hills, she reasoned. She really hadn't seen anything inappropriate upon walking in. Hell, she had seen Axel make more of a move on the girl and Carol hadn't reacted half as strongly to their late prison mate. Maybe she was just getting over-flamed about it.
For her part Beth had softened at Carol's reply, feeling a stab of guilt for snapping at the woman whom Beth had started to view as a mother-like figure. She knew that Carol was only looking out for her, just as she did for everyone in the group. It just got to be really frustrating when the protectiveness started to stifle. Despite what the others all might think, Beth wasn't a little girl. If her days were counted right she had been eighteen for a few weeks now and, in her opinion, she had shown to the others she wasn't a completely helpless child. "I know… And I promise. If ever there was something wrong –anything- you'd be the first person I'd go to." She smiled softly, giving the older woman a one-armed hug, mindful of the infant between them.
The two women eventually settled down and headed off together for their chores for the day, Carol to do the laundry and Beth to look after Judith. Unbeknownst to them, however, a pair of green eyes had walked in on their conversation. Maggie had witnessed the exchange between Carol and her sister and couldn't help but be suspicious as to what was going on with her baby sister…
