A|N:
Yay new chapter! I promise im gonna try to be less angsty (wellnotreallylol)
Hope ya'll enjoy this one, and thanks for your sweet comments they make me so so happy you guys rule ! They really make me love to write this!
Anywho, you know how it goes. R&R away, TWD isn't mine (;
The day he remembered the past part 2
Some where between, Alyssa taking up half the bed, Marie waking up to pee a least a dozen times, being constantly beat up, having absolutely no covers and hair being all in his face, Daryl eventually got his kids to settle down and sleep. Marie had found comfort sprawled across his stomach with her head upon his chest while Alyssa laid next to him. Both her arms where wrapped around his forearm like a body pillow. He held both girls tight to him, finally getting the best sleep he had in weeks. The three of them slept well into the day, all of them needing a long over due rest, and they probably would have slept forever too if the door bell didn't ring.
The typical door bell jingle that echoed through the house was ignored the first couple times. Eventually Alyssa reached over and started pushing her father's face. "Dad the door." She could hear him grumble, pulling her closer and falling back to sleep. "Dad... t'door bell."
"So?" Daryl mumbled as he rubbed his eyes.
Alyssa chuckled as she grabbed the sheets and covered herself with it. "So your the dad, go get t'door."
Daryl groaned, carefully removing his sleeping baby girl off his body and then got up off the bed. As he approached his door he stop real quick to look back as his kids rolling around, kicking each other and giggling as the two of them tried to get comfortable once more. After a few minutes they fell back to sleep, and with a smile on his face Daryl finally left the room.
When he got to the door he took a moment to look threw the peep hole to see who it was, and when he saw a total stranger his nose scrunched in confusion. Looking at the mans uniform he noticed the logo on his shirt. Music World? What t'hell?
Daryl opened the door half way, staring at the man with a tired look, "Ya lost or somethin'?"
The man looked at his clipboard then back at Daryl, "This is the Dixon household, correct?"
"Mmhm." Daryl nodded, staring at the man.
"Well I got a delivery for one.. Alyssa Dixon? She lives here, correct?" His dorky smile just way too happy for Daryl this early in the morning.
"T'ats my kid, so yes." Daryl answered as squinted his eyes, trying to avoid the beaming sun shining down on his house.
"Perfect, then you can sign this for me." The delivery man handed Daryl a pen and his clip board before walking back to his truck.
After signing his name Daryl noticed the part of the paper that said Williams Overture 88 Key Digital piano and across the name a receipt for $624.50. His eyes nearly popped out of his head. "What the hell, hold the fuck up sunshine! I didn' pay for no 600 buck piano!" Daryl called out for the delivery man as he followed him to the truck with clipboard in hand.
The man smiled as he started unloading the piano from his truck. "I know you didn't, Mr. Dixon, you only signed the pick up waver. The piano was paid for by one Katherine DeSerrano.
Daryl blinked twice, watching the stranger carry the piano into his home. "Kat?"
"Thank you Titi, I love it!" Alyssa screamed in excitement as she hugged her aunt
Kat smiled, giving her niece a quick kiss. "Anything for my musically wonder girl. How else you gonna get any practice if you don't own your own piano?"
"Ya at least didn' think t'ask me if I wanted this in, ya know, my house?!" Daryl growled a bit frustrated. "Ya could of at least warned me!"
"Then you would of told me no!" Kat smirked at Daryl, letting her oldest niece go. "Besides, now that the girls live in a real house they should have their own personal things to put inside it don't you think?"
Daryl huffed crossing his arms over his chest, "Just warn me next time, kay?"
"Fine," Kat's mischievous smile got more sly as it grew. "Then I'm telling you now that I'm taking Marie to pick up her things from storage today, is that okay with you, Mr. Mom?"
Marie's eyes lit up like a christmas tree, "You mean my toys?!"
Alyssa shot a look of concern at her aunt, "You are not getting those damn cats!"
"Yes we are, lets go princess." Kat let her hand out for Marie, who ran to grab her jacket before taking it. Daryl followed them to the front door, and before Kat could say goodbye something caught her eye. She picked Daryl's hand up slowly to her face, it was bruised a dark blue color with dried blood stuck to it. All in all it looked gross. "Jesus, Dixon, what did you do? You should get that checked out."
"M'fine, Kat." Daryl said when she finally let go. "Don' keep her out too late, she got homework t'finish fer monday."
Kat smiled as she waved goodbye. "Bye Daryl."
Daryl waved both Kat and Marie goodbye before finally closing the door. When he turned around Alyssa was standing right behind him. "Come on, daddy, I'll clean it for ya." Daryl let out a slight smile and nodded okay before following his daughter to the bathroom to get his hand cleaned up.
It had been an hour since Kat left. After Alyssa cleaned Daryl's hand the two had felt the tension between them grow. When she had asked if Carol was coming over that day after Ed went to work, Daryl complete ignored her. She knew then it was about her, the events that happened the other night, but Daryl begged her not to think too into it. She must of known he really didn't wanna talk about it, because she quickly dropped the subject. There were too many emotions to count in his brain. He had never felt this way before, never hand anyone really affected his heart the way Carol had. He wanted so badly to just forget about her. He tried to convince himself she wasn't important anymore, all that really mattered was his kids. They were his only priority.
It was easier this way, and a lot less painful too.
In a desperate need to be to left in piece, Daryl had asked Alyssa to play the piano for him to help him relax. He knew that Alyssa was learning the piano in school, as well as lessons as a child, but he had never heard her play before. The music just about put him to sleep, the serene silence in the room helping him to not worry about his problems. For a moment he could have peace, even if it wouldn't last long.
"You should call her, daddy." Alyssa finally spoke out from her little piano. Her voice was soft as she carefully tried not to push his buttons.
Laying back on the couch, Daryl crossed his arms and scoffed, "Hell no."
"I'm sure Miss Carol will forgive you for whatever it is, she's so nice.."
"It ain't about t'at, Lyss." Daryl grumbled, biting on his thumb.
"Then explain it to me." Alyssa replied, still playing on her piano. It was the sweet sound of classical music that rumbled threw it's wooden body. It calmed him, and helped Daryl keep his cool as his oldest tried to pick at his brain and figure out what was wrong. "Your Miss Carol's friend, and when you wrong a friend your supposed to apologize."
"Don' think an apology will do it." Daryl sighed, the look of Sophia's face was the only thing on his mind. "Not fer what I did."
The music stopped as Alyssa put her hands down to the side, the only sound he hears now is her fingers tapping on the wooden bench. "So... what did you do?"
"Don' wanna talk about it..."
"Daddy," Alyssa faced to turn him, but he was ignoring her, "You came home, broke a mirror at one in the morning, and your hand looks like you got into a fight. What happened?"
Daryl still said nothing. He just continued to bite on his thumb as he ignored his oldest daughter. He could see how well wrapped his hand was. Alyssa had patched it up good. He wished they didn't have to see him last night, then questions like this could of been avoided..
"Daddy, does it gotta do with Miss Carol's husband?"
Daryl finally sat up on the couch and looked at Alyssa. She wasn't facing him anymore, instead she had her eyes back on her little piano. "How did ya..?"
"It's because he hits her, isn't it?" Alyssa hovered a hand back over the piano, not yet touching it's keys. When Daryl didn't reply, she started to play again. "Is that why your hand was bloody? Cause of him?"
"How'd ya figure?" Daryl hunched over when he sat, his eyes on his hands as he listened to Alyssa play again.
"Miss Carol ain't very good at hiding her feelings." He could hear her frowning from where he sat, and refused to look up, "Even when she ain't got no bruises, or no broken bones. You can just see it in her face, when her husband is home... she looks so sad..." Her music matched her somber mood, slow and sad. "Mom used to look like that.." At the mention of Vivianne, Daryl's head lifted up again. He didn't say anything. It was Alyssa's turn to talk, to get her feelings out the way like Marie had the night before. "Marie never understood why she was like that, or where the bruises came from, but I knew. I'm only 16 but I ain't stupid."
"M'sorry Lyss.." Daryl choked on his words, his voice cracking as her story broke his heart.
"Strangers used to hit mom. People we'd see once and then never again.." Alyssa finally stopped playing, closing the piano. "But that's her husband... your supposed to love the person you marry, aren't you? I just don't understand why he'd wanna hit her.."
"Because Ed Peletier is an asshole..." Daryl growled at the thought of the man. Probably shouldn' be tellin' 'er this, but it's true.
"Then I don't see why you two are fighting," Alyssa faced her father once more,
"She should be grateful you stood up for her.."
"S'cause of Sophia.." Daryl grumbled, trying hard to not think of her scared little body shaking in the doorway anymore. "S'cause she saw me.. what I did." He ruffled his own hair as he took a deep breath. "if she didn' stop me, I woulda killed him.."
"Well some men deserve to die then." Alyssa scowled. She was angry now, that little Dixon temper in her running short. "That's a stupid reason to be mad at you.."
"That's her daddy, Alyssa."
"Ya well not all Daddy's are assholes." Alyssa crossed her arms in a fit, "Miss Carol and Sophia are good people, they deserve better.."
"Well ain't nothing I can do about that." Daryl answered.
Alyssa turned back to her piano and opened it again, playing it once again in an attempt to relax herself. "Well maybe you should marry her instead, you'd make hell of a better husband than that Ed Peletier."
Daryl snorted, "Ain't how it works Lyss, sides ain't anyone crazy enough to marry a Dixon." Alyssa looked back at her father as she played and smiled. They both shared a laugh before she turned her head back to her piano.
It was a few minutes before Alyssa would speak again. "If ya had gotten the chance.. would ya have married mom?"
Daryl open his mouth to reply but then shut it quickly. Well shit... we always joked about it but.. would I? I don' know if I loved Viv like t'at. Hell I don' even think I know what true love is.. Daryl took a deep breath as he scratched at the back of head. "M'not really sure if I like... ya know.." He sighed, not sure on how to answer his daughters question. "Like loved her like that."
Alyssa chuckled, "S'okay dad, I don't really think mom was the wife type in the end. Mom never had the same boyfriend for very long." Her frown was now a smile as she thought of her mom. "She used to say that had things been different for her she would of married you, but I didn't really believe her that much. Mom was like.. having a big sister. Not much of a mom.. I don't think that she was ever ready." The beat of the music picked up, she must of been feeling much better. "Not like you, we walked in on the middle of your live but you were ready. It was like... you were always ready."
"I was far from ready Lyss." Daryl had thought over the last three months. So much had happened, and so much has changed. He was a better man then he was three months ago. "You guys helped me find myself, helped me to grow up. It was you and Marie that made me want to change so much. If it wasn't for you guys.. who knows, maybe I would of grown up to be that monster. Just another low life Dixon."
"You're always teaching me that being Dixon means family is everything, not just kin but the ones who always treated you like it." Alyssa turned her head towards her father as her smile softened, "You guys are my blood, but so are Miss Andrea and Amy, and The Grimes... and so is Miss Carol and Sophia." The music stopped for one final time. After a moment Alyssa closed the piano and went to sit by her father. "You don' give up on family, daddy, we just can't. Not when they need us." She grabbed her fathers hand and held it tight with both of hers. "Please call Miss Carol, daddy, she's our family too."
Daryl just looked at her not really with any straight emotion. His daughters read him like an open book and most days it drove him crazy, but today they were right. Carol was family, just as much as Merle or Kat. Sophia was too, just as much as his daughters. He just adored that little girl to no end. So as much as it killed him to admit it, he missed them.. so fuckin' much. Finally with a deep sigh, Daryl leaned over and gave his daughter a kiss on her forehead. "Fine, brat, i'ma call 'er I promise."
At the end of the night, when Daryl new Ed wouldn't be home, he stood up late with the intentions of calling Carol and telling her he changed his mind. Instead he sat there in front of his cell for an hour, trying to think of excuse's for why he forgot to call and apologize. Stalling the phone call that could make or break this, whatever it is they had forever. He had figured he was gonna chicken out and just say fuck it, never calling her back. That's what he wanted to do, it was the easy way out.
He couldn't speak to her.. he just couldn't. So instead, he left her a text.
'Hey Carol.. listen I need to tell ya something, but I couldn't get myself to call ya.. so here it goes. I'm sorry, ya know, for what happen last night. For letting Sophia see it happen. She didn't need to see that, and I hope the two of ya can forgive me. But Carol... I'm not sorry for beating the shit out of Ed. Because he fucking deserved it, for what he's done to you. And believe me when I tell ya, I care about ya Carol.. and I don't want to see you covered in bruises and broken bones anymore.. It ain't right. And I won't ever be sorry for what I did to him. Never.'