Daryl came in to pick up Travis and Lori was in the bathroom. He stopped short just before the table, because there was Carol was standing at the gym door looking in at the kids. He stood there rooted in place and his eyes moved over her from her toes to her head. Then back over her again, slower this time.
She was smoking hot in that costume and as long as she didn't open her mouth he could stare all night. If she started running her mouth, he was out though.
She didn't know he was there and he didn't say a word, he just enjoyed the view. It was a damn nice view. It wasn't the 'Suicide Squad' costume, but the Harley Quinn dress costume with the sweetheart neckline, thank Christ, that would have been way too much to take.
Still, he couldn't take his eyes off of her.
Lately he had been coming out of that fog he had been in for so long, it was slow, but it was happening. He found himself able to enjoy things again and wanting to do things, not dreading the beginning of a new day.
It was a little scary and a little exhilarating. Change was not an easy thing for anybody, he wasn't unique. This was a slow process, as all of the counselors in New Jersey he saw had told him.
It was baby steps he kept telling himself and for now that was good enough for him. This was the first he noticed a woman in a long time, but why did it have to be this woman?
He knew she was his age and damn did she look good, but her personality had a lot to be desired as far as Daryl could see. He was not interested in ever talking to her if he could help it and he avoided her at all costs.
Merle was a complete ass for making him turn her car over to her three weeks ago and he was pissed at him still. Daryl always got the shit jobs at work.
But, he knew his kid and her kid were friends and they would have to speak to and see each other, but he was not going out of his way to find her.
He had found her now though, like it or not.
Daryl was actually impressed with her telling him exactly how she felt the night at Lori and Rick's and again at the movie. She just walked right up to him and told him off. He sure wouldn't smoke in her car again either. You had to respect the fact that she didn't take any shit from anyone, even Merle.
It was almost hot.
This woman with the great ass had balls of steel. You had to admire a woman with balls and he always did, having no use for shrinking violet types and wimpy girls. Kelly had balls and that was one of the things that had attracted him to her right from the jump.
She never let him get away with a thing, and she called him out on his bullshit every time. He missed her terribly and the way she used to make him feel. She made him feel alive.
For the past few years without her, he would have happily joined her, because he didn't feel alive, but lately, he felt like he was coming back to life again. It was a process, he kept telling himself.
This was going to bite him in the ass though, he just knew it. And not in the good way either. He was going to have to get along with her somehow, for Travis' sake.
For a brief moment he felt guilty for looking at her. As if he was being unfaithful to Kelly, but Kelly wanted him to live life and life included women. They had talked about what would happen if one of them died.
They talked about it a lot, as if they knew somehow that they wouldn't be together forever. In hindsight, thinking of it now, all their conversations gave him peace now.
Making a life with someone else was what they agreed to, he made her promise him she would remarry one day.
He was so sure it would be him to go first. It never occurred to him once that he would be the one left alone.
Daryl had made it clear to her that he wanted her to move on if it had been he that died, and he would have haunted her until she did. He promised her that. He had always thought he would go first and that was the biggest problem of all.
She went first.
Daryl was trying, for Travis and for himself and every day it was getting better. Eventually he would date again, when he was ready and he wasn't looking.
Carol was gorgeous though, her face, her hair, everything about her, there was no mistaking that. That fucking costume was something he could never unsee either.
Not her please not her. He sent up a silent prayer to whoever was listening. He knew one thing about himself, when he finally did fall for someone it would be just like it was with Kelly, all in 100%.
Just not her. As if you ever had a choice about those things.
She was tapping her foot to the music, some song about too hot, hot damn or something and singing softly. He didn't get the new music at all, but damn her hips were swaying nice to it.
Lori came around the corner and saw him looking at Carol's ass and every other part of her it seemed. She stopped and backed up to the side of the hall way and leaned against the wall. Her eyes big and wide in shock.
"Nice costume Carol." He said and she jumped at the sound of his voice. He was a sneaky bastard wasn't he?
Carol turned around and glared at him. "You scared the shit out of me Daryl."
"Sorry." He laughed. "Harley Quinn? Where's your hammer?"
"Oh, so you know who it is?" She said as Lori came around the corner.
"Of course, the movie? Remember when you tried to sit in my lap." He laughed.
"I did not try to sit in your lap you conceited ass." Carol said putting her hands on her hips.
"It was a good movie, all of it." He smiled at her a smile that was full of mischief. "but I prefer Marvel, I'm an Avengers guy."
Lori's eyes grew wide watching them talking. He didn't talk to women, not that she ever knew. Rick said he wasn't interested at all, there was a new officer on the force, a really nice girl. Rick had tried to hook Daryl up with her and he had nicely said no thank you. Three times and one of them just two days ago.
Now he was talking to Carol, this was a development worth reporting and Lori was doing just that, right away.
She took out her phone and shot out a quick text to Rick and then she walked back into the vestibule.
"I'm sure you are." Carol replied, she was a DC comic girl and didn't give a flying one about Captain America. "I bet you like Star Wars too"
"What's that mean?" He said, the hair raising on the top of his neck. She was just as annoying as usual, he thought to himself. She was trying to trip him up with the oldest geek controversy in the world. Marvel vs. DC. Start Trek Vs Star Wars, did she think he was new?
He watched Star Trek, not Star Wars, didn't everybody? He kind of resented her inference that he was on the other team. This wasn't the X-files Vs Roswell after all. That was no contest and the battle lines were drawn through that fandom and all of the others.
He knew where the battle lines of sci fi were drawn, he didn't live under a rock and he had a teenage son.
"Nothing." She replied in a way that meant nothing was something, but she wasn't going to tell him. She was so annoying.
Lori came over and opened the door for him to the gym.
"You're something else, you know that." He squinted his eyes at Carol and she snickered.
He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Oh get over yourself." She laughed. "I was just pushing your buttons."
Well, that didn't come out right.
He grinned, to let her off the hook or not, that was the question.
"And for your information I'm not into Star Wars." He said, totally ignoring the awkward slip she just made. He let it go and let her off the hook. But maybe she did push his buttons, especially in that get up.
She was cute…
Annoying and mouthy, but cute.
"Sure." Carol said. "But you look like you're a Loki fan."
"Totally different subject." He said leaning casually against the door jamb.
"I'm aware, I'm just saying…" She said shrugging her shoulders and leaning against the other door.
"You know what…" He said taking a step towards her.
Now she was just being annoying for no reason, he thought to himself. He was turning to say something to her, with his finger to point to her and Lori jumped in before it got ugly.
"There's Travis, dancing with Sophia." Lori pointed him out to Daryl, hoping to stop him from getting into a rumble with Carol. Although she was sure they both wanted to fight.
These two were either going to kill each other or rip each other's clothes off eventually.
Daryl looked over and Carol was on the other side of the door watching them intently.
"He's a good kid." Carol said.
"Thanks." Daryl said. "and your girl, she's very sweet."
"Thanks." She said and they didn't say another thing to each other, the kids were friends and he knew this wasn't about him.
He didn't have to like all of Travis' friend's parents, but he had to be agreeable to people. But he wasn't good at it yet, Kelly did all the school stuff and he was just bumbling his way through it now.
He knew he would get better at it eventually and maybe next time he wouldn't get into a fight over Star Wars and The Avengers with her, although he was pretty sure Carol could fight about anything. Anything.
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"Hey Dad, Sophia's mom looked slamming didn't she?" Travis said as they drove home after the dance. "Soph dressed as Wonder Woman, I guess they have a thing for DC Comics."
"Ya think?" Daryl replied laughing, he waited for it to start because he knew it would. Travis thought he knew everything, and he guessed at that age so did he. They had an easy relationship and could talk about anything. That was a good thing and a bad thing.
Travis worried about his father and he wasn't shy about it either.
"She would want you to have someone Dad." Travis said. "She wouldn't want you to sleep walk through life and be sad."
"Travis." Daryl said wanting to stop the conversation, he didn't want Travis to worry about him. He was a young kid and deserved a life of not worrying about what his father might do. He lived a life like that, battered by someone who was supposed to love him. It had ruined him, until he met her of course.
Kelly had saved him and made him the man he was today.
He wanted so much more for his son and went out of his way to make sure he had it, no matter what. Daryl suspected it was partly why he never came back home after he met Kelly. He totally immersed himself in her and her life at the beach.
It had been the best thing to do at the time. It had been a wonderful life, but it was gone now. He needed to make a new life now, he knew that deep down inside.
He never regretted staying in New Jersey for a second and Travis was a happy kid, like Daryl wanted. They were tight and the best of friends. While he was helping Travis fix up the truck for himself he saw how his son was growing into a man before his eyes.
But he didn't know everything about life, not yet, not at his age.
"Hear me out ok?" Travis said.
Daryl looked over and nodded. He would hear him out and then he would do what he wanted, as usual. He wasn't ready for anything else, just functioning was a skill right now and Travis just didn't get that.
He was a kid.
Daryl still dreamed about her sometimes at night and woke up thinking she was still here sometimes, but she wasn't and his heart broke all over again every time. He'd sit up in bed and realize they weren't in Surf City anymore and she wasn't next to him.
The air would suck out of his lungs every time and he wouldn't be able to catch his breath. Sometimes he cried, quietly so Travis wouldn't hear from the room next door.
"I know all about how you met in line registering for classes at college and how she fought with you over the last seat in Philosophy class and won. How she told you that you needed to take Psyche instead because you were such an asshole. And how you got out of line and followed her and you were never apart from that day." Travis paused. "But she would be so sad to see you like you've been, thank god Uncle Merle came and got us because I was afraid you were going to drive off the bridge."
"I would never leave you alone, I know I was in a really dark place back home and I'm sorry you had to see it. But I'm here for you always and no matter what 100%." Daryl said. "I would never leave you."
"I know." Travis nodded. "I know Dad."
"It was a really bad time, but I was never going to leave you." Daryl said, even if it wasn't true. He had thought about just going to be with her, but that was short lived. "I think I'm getting better. Don't you?"
"Yes you are and that's great Dad, but you have to think of yourself too, your future."
"I'm trying." He said and Travis nodded. "So Sophia your girlfriend or what?"
They drove in silence for a while.
"I'm trying." Travis said breaking into a smile that looked just like his father's smile.