I told you I was updating this fast so we could get past the hump, and damn it, I will deliver. Being sociable today wasn't as bad as I thought it would be! It never really is. Thank you for reading!

Chapter Thirty Six

Carol drove back in a daze. She was riding an emotional roller coaster and she was barely hanging on. She was elated. She was scared to death. She had no idea what to do about this. She was going to stick by her decision though. Or she thought she was going to anyway. She wouldn't tell him about it until she knew that he wasn't going to be sent to prison for three to five years. She wouldn't have him sit there and worry about it.

And then there was that terrifying thought of him being angry about it. He hadn't ever mentioned that he wanted children. Of course, they had never talked about it before, but he didn't seem like the paternal type. He was like the big brother that kids could get into trouble with. But then again, sometimes people changed the way they looked at life when they realized that they were going to be a parent. Either way, she wouldn't tell anyone, not even June, not even her daughter, until he was home and she could talk to him about it. It wouldn't be fair to him to tell the others and it wouldn't make his life any easier knowing about it since, for now, he was stuck in jail.

She had been gone for most of the afternoon so she wasn't very surprised to see all the vehicles in Buck's driveway. At times, several people gathered at the Dixon home instead of the garage. She didn't come here every day but today was the day she was suppose to get to work on that house he had been telling her about. He had taken her there on Saturday after they had gone to see Daryl. He must have known that she desperately needed a distraction and he had certainly given her one.

The house was just a few miles from his own and as soon as her eyes had landed on it she fell so deeply in love with it that she had nearly forgotten about all of their troubles. It was a large house but not so large that it was imposing. It was an old two story Queen Anne style home with a deep wrap around porch, large bay windows, Dutch gables, overhanging eaves, and an impressive three story tower on the south side with a large balcony over the front porch. They didn't make houses like that anymore because there was simply too much that went into them. The varying textures, the spindle work, the columns.

All of it was so intricate, almost breathtaking in it's beauty that when she first saw it, other than her initial awe, she felt deeply sad for Buck. He and his wife had planned on raising a family here. They had loved the house, her in particular but Buck was so heartbroken over the loss of her that he couldn't bear to live in it. She had felt sad for Buck, sad for Daryl's mother and even sad for the house itself. This was a place meant for people to live. The thought of it standing empty for nearly two decades was awful.

But today was the day that she was going to get to start on it. She wasn't sure if she would be able to focus on the task but she was willing to give it a try. She was surprised to see Merle come out of Buck's house as soon as she pulled up.

"Now, just remember that she's the good one and just because she may have fucked up this one time doesn't mean you gotta be hard on her. She's had a rough week," he said before she even made it to him.

The only person that he could possibly be talking about was her daughter. She groaned. "What's happened now?"

"Well, Piper and the rest of them had detention because of that stunt they pulled the other day. As soon as those asshole kids saw that Sophia was by herself they started their shit again."

"What- Shit did they start? I never knew she had any trouble at school."

Merle shrugged. "That's kind of the whole reason Piper and Sophia even met. Some of the kids were giving Sophia a hard way to go and Piper... intervened."

"So, what did she do today?" Carol asked as they made their way to the door.

"The girl grabbed her first," Merle said defensively.

"And then what happened?" Carol asked, letting herself in the front door.

"She damn near slapped her face off," Merle said quickly, but like I said..."

"Yes, I heard you Merle," Carol sighed.

She found Sophia on the couch with Piper. Sophia was sitting up with a book in her lap and Piper was turned upside down with her legs draped over the back of the couch and her head hanging off, apparently enjoying watching T.V. upside down.

"What happened at school?" Carol asked, causing both girls to look up at her.

Sophia placed a book mark in the book and closed it. "I got in a fight. Kind of."

Carol put her hands on her hips. "Why in the world would you do that?"

"I told you why she did it," Merle spoke up from behind her. "That girl had it comin'."

"Merle, she can't just go around hitting people."

"I don't just go around hitting people. I don't hit people and I don't back talk and I don't make them feel like crap about themselves for no reason. But I sure take it a lot. I'm not taking their crap anymore, mom. I'm tired of being somebodies punching bag."

Merle elbowed Carol in the side lightly. "See. That ain't a bad thing. She shouldn't have to put up with their shit."

"Tell your mom what you called her. That was almost better than you slapping the crap out of her," Piper said with a grin that looked odd since she was still upside down and she was still staring at the T.V.

"Piper, stop tryin' to help," Merle warned.

"No, I'm curious. What did you call her before you decided to hit her, Sophia?"

Sophia flushed and looked away. "She was talking about all of us. I had to say something."

"Like?" Carol pressed, glancing at Merle.

He put his hands up. "Hey, I didn't hear about this part."

"It's the best part," Piper laughed.

Sophia's blush grew darker. "She called me a nobody and I told her that... I told her that I would rather be a nobody than-"

"Go on," Carol urged.

"I said I'd rather be a nobody than the school cum dumpster."

Carol's mouth fell open and Merle let loose with a fit of laughter. More laughter could be heard coming from the other room and Carol knew that Buck and the rest of them heard what she said. Sophia looked horrified and then Carol surprised herself when a bubble of laughter escaped her. She covered her mouth quickly but Sophia had saw her. She schooled her face. "That was a horrible thing to say to that girl."

"She said worse," Sophia grumbled. "Well, maybe not worse but she still had it coming."

Carol felt heavy hands land on her shoulders, giving her a reassuring squeeze. The touch was familiar and not unwelcome. Buck's deep rumbling voice sounded from behind her. "She landed in detention for the rest of the week with the other delinquents. You know, cause the smart thing to do to punish the girl is put her right there with all her friends."

Merle scowled. "She don't need punished. She didn't do anything wrong. Come on, I'm suppose to be the hard ass around here. Ask anybody, and I wouldn't get on Piper's shit for that. Hell, I didn't yell at her for doing what she did to land herself in Juvie! And it's the same damn loud mouth little girl that got Piper in trouble."

Buck sighed and dropped his hands. "He's right. The girl is a pain in the ass."

Sophia looked up. "Thank you."

Carol was at a loss. She shook her head and threw her arms up. "So what would you two like to suggest?"

Buck and Merle shrugged. "She should have to polish the bikes. All three of them."

"Four!" Damon called from the kitchen.

Sophia's eyes went wide. "You can't be serious!"

Carol nodded. "I am. I do agree that you shouldn't have to put up with that girl but you can't run around hitting people."

Piper rolled off the couch and crossed her legs Indian style. "Why not?"

Carol rolled her eyes and looked at Merle. "That one is all on you, big boy. I'm not touching it."

Merle laughed and collapsed onto the couch, throwing his arm over Sophia. She made a face. "Merle, please! You're covered in sweat."

Merle grinned, waggled his eyebrows and shoved her face into his armpit. Damon strolled in then, grinning and then reaching over the back of the couch to haul Sophia away from what was obviously a horrible experience. She tried to kick Merle on her way over but he was already reaching down to grab Piper, who was trying hard to flea.

"No you sick bastard!" Piper wailed as he dragged her towards him by her ankle and then put her in a head lock. "You smell like a dirty jock strap! Buck! Do something!"

"Don't expect me to kiss you after that," Damon said to Sophia who slapped his chest.

"I say we get the hell outta here," Buck said, throwing his arm over Carol's shoulder. "I already got some guys out there at the old house, no time like the present."

"You sure you want me to do this? I've always liked putting things together like that but I've never actually been able to do it. Ed was always the one to make decisions about his house."

Buck led her outside, taking her hand and leading her towards his bike. "Then this'll be good for you. Have some fun while you can. Didn't you say you found yourself an apartment somewhere close to the bakery?"

She nodded and made a face. She had found the apartment yesterday after work. She hadn't even really been looking for anything but she had seen the for rent sign outside the building and had stopped. It was suppose to have been a two bedroom apartment, and she supposed it was, if all you wanted to put in your bedroom was a twin bed. And neither of those "bedrooms" had a closet. She was pretty sure it was because the bedrooms actually were the closets. The carpets were dingy, the windows were painted shut. It had no air conditioning. The bathroom was so small you could use the toilet, brush your teeth and run your bath water all at the same time. The tiles in the kitchen were cracked and some were missing altogether.

"Why are you so damn stubborn? You can stay at the little house as long as you want. Rent free. Or you can stay with us. You're here all the time anyway."

She shrugged. "It has less to do with me being stubborn and more to do with, I just want to prove that I can do something on my own."

"Stubborn," he muttered. "Hey, where did you have to go today? June mentioned you didn't go to work cause you had to drive to Atlanta." He straddled the bike and offered her his hand while she climbed onto the back of it.

He was looking at her over his shoulder so she made sure she kept her face schooled. "I just had a doctors appointment. It was nothing."

He turned his torso so he could get a better look at her. "You sure you're okay?"

She nodded and patted his shoulder. "If I wasn't then I wouldn't be so ready to get out there so I could look at that house again and die a little inside because it isn't mine."

He chuckled, and started the bike. His bike didn't look like it was built for speed. It looked like it was meant to be as intimidating as the man that road it. She had never known how much she would like riding until the other day when Buck had insisted she get on. He hadn't been able to believe that she was Merle's age and had never ridden a bike before. And just like with almost everything else about the life these men led, she loved it. She felt safe with these men. She felt like nothing bad could happen to her when she was with them. She just wished that Daryl was with her too. There was so much she wanted to say to him.

In due time. He would know everything in due time. Her arms tightened around Buck's waist as they sped down the straight road towards the old house and he patted her hands affectionately. She had a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach that somehow, everything would be okay. With this incredible family in her corner, how could things not be?