Be Careful What You Wish For
One fall afternoon about a year after Daryl had accepted Mike's offer, Daryl slipped into his father's trailer quietly to check on things. It was in worse disarray than he'd seen it in some time and as he grabbed some garbage bags from where he'd hidden them he heard a groan from the back of the trailer in the vicinity of the bathroom.
Daryl crept cautiously along the hallway to the doorway of the bathroom. Peering in he saw his father lying prone in a mass of vomit, his head bloodied from a fall against the counter or the toilet. Daryl stood paralyzed, taking in the scene. As many times as he'd wished his father dead, he'd never imagined Will Dixon drowning in his own vomit.
Daryl stood staring slack jawed, in shock at the scene before him. His mind had gone blank and he couldn't seem to shake himself into action. He lost track of the time as he stood there, realizing if he left his father to die he would finally be free of his tormenter. No more beatings, no more humiliation, no more being called a bastard and hearing the various insults regarding his mother. Daryl's breath hitched in his chest, a quickly stifled sob escaping his lips. He would no longer be tormented, but he would be all alone in the world. No mother, no father, who knew where Merle was or when he'd reappear?
And if he called for help? First they had no phone so he'd have to call from the dump office. Then they had no money, no insurance. Would an ambulance even come? And how long had his father been lying there? Would there be any guarantee that if Daryl called an ambulance and if the ambulance came and if Will survived to arrive at the hospital, would he ever be fit to live on his own again?
At the thought of being his father's full time caretaker, Daryl's legs gave out and he sank to the floor. No matter what he did, there was no good outcome for him. It was the story of his life-he was screwed. Cursed. He could either sit here and watch his father die-for however long that would take. Or he could go, call an ambulance, hope they came and hope his father would make a full recovery.
Daryl's eyes began to burn and he rubbed them roughly with the heels of his hands. What the fuck was he to do?