July 28, 2010
~*~ SW ~*~
Shane stretches out lazily on the bed, enjoying the sensation of bare skin against good sheets and one of the better mattresses he's ever stretched out on. The small cabin does merit the name, with just enough room for the queen size bed, a closet with built-in drawers, a kitchenette with a woodstove obviously designed to cook on as well as provide heat, and a loveseat. The bathroom is sectioned off, and that not truly a separate room, only a privacy wall that keeps anyone not on the bed from seeing in.
Which means he is enjoying the excellent view of Scout toweling off. She tosses her towel to join his on shower rod and joins him on the bed, laying on her back and wriggling her toes. "God, I've missed the chance to just feel nothing but air on my skin without worrying about what's outside."
He laughs. "Me too. I used to always sleep in the nude. After that damned cheap ass uniform all day, I couldn't stand anything on me."
"Can't say I did that all that much, but that's more to do with too many years of communal living. I'll have to try it out. It'll certainly teach everyone to knock."
"Something tells me they'll be careful about that anyway." No one wanted to walk in on a couple in the middle of sex after all, and the cabin wouldn't leave much to the imagination if someone opened the door.
"Probably." She rolls to her side to face him, expression serious. "You up for this? We've gone from introductions to essentially living together in less than a week, and I don't think either of us was ever up for that kind of commitment before. I'm not saying end what we have going, but we can..."
He stops the words by kissing her silent, smiling when the kiss finally ends and she looks less worried.
"We already know that what we have is different than what we looked for before. I want to give it a try. If we end up feeling like we're too much in each other's pockets, one of us can beg a temporary spare bed for the night elsewhere."
"Alright. We sure have a small space to get used to each other in."
"About the only thing that worries me is that woodstove in the kitchen."
She actually giggles, making him realize how little he's seen her truly carefree. "I was never here enough to really need to cook, so we decided it would be a good backup to the solar power in case the batteries couldn't get enough charge. The regular HVAC system is a heat pump of sorts that heats and cools. I'm guessing from how cool it is and the fresh sheets that Glynnis prepped the place."
"And cooking?"
"When I came home, it was never for more than a week at a time, so I devoured enough of Daddy's cooking to last me until the next time I was on leave. There's a toaster oven and a hot plate in one of the lower cabinets, which I think I used a total of twice in five years. The cabin is actually a few years older than the main house."
"Did y'all start out in the little ranch house?"
"Yeah. We moved here the summer between my freshman and sophomore years of high school. Before that we were up in northeast Georgia a while after Daddy got out of the Marines."
"Where all did you live?" It's a little foreign to him, because he's lived all his life in Georgia.
"I was born in Guam, but we left there for 29 Palms, California when I was eight months old. We were only in California for a little over a year, then North Carolina until Daddy's final enlistment ended after Desert Storm in 1992. Not as crazy as some of the Army brat stories."
"I spent my entire life in King County except for college. College was in Statesboro, so not all that far."
She fiddles with his necklace. "You played football, right?"
"Yeah. Liked it enough to play as long as they'd scholarship me for it. Stumbled through a communications degree and when Rick changed his mind about being a history teacher to be an officer, I followed because I didn't have any better idea of what I wanted to do."
"I can't picture you as the PR guy for some corporation. Sheriff, maybe."
He snorted. "I came from the wrong side of the tracks for that, not in the county I grew up in. Just figured Rick would run one day, once our boss could be bothered to retire and stop being reelected."
"Daddy moved us all here to avoid that wrong side of the tracks issue. Did really well for the younger ones. Bet a lot of those biddies from where Daddy's from would shit themselves before the dead rose if they saw him now."
Shane figures she's right on that. He remembers the looks on the quarry camp people when they arrived, to seeing what Merle's built for his family here, which he's glad Scout missed in the middle of greeting the neighbors.
"I didn't get a chance to meet any of the neighbors. Glynnis lived here already, I remember you saying. They all seemed really happy to have your dad home."
"Glynnis has been part of the family since my parents divorced. She and her daughter, Carrie, lived up the road from us when we first moved back to Georgia. So she babysat a lot, became a surrogate grandma. When we moved here, she relocated too. Lived in town then in a little duplex. Dad built her the cottage when she retired."
"Where's her daughter?"
"As far as we know, on her way here. She was in Kentucky when this all hit. Her husband and some of his coworkers and their family were aiming for here since it's secure. That'll be a big can of worms, because Carrie is Tihu's ex-wife and she's been an utter bitch keeping my cousin from the family for years."
"How the hell did she manage that?" The kind of money Merle obviously has, combined with Glynnis' closeness, should have been in Daryl's favor, even if a law enforcement job wasn't.
"She's not his biological daughter. He married Carrie when she was a baby. Never did a formal adoption before Carrie played badge bunny and left."
"Damn. Poor Daryl. He must be out of his mind."
"It is contributing to his level of antisocial behavior." She sighs and rolls to snuggle against him, nuzzling at his throat.
He takes it for an invitation to provide a distraction. They've got time before they're missed at supper.
~*~ GR ~*~
Glenn thinks that being assigned to the barn room is definitely worth it. He ran back to his room to drop off a stack of clothing that already came back from the laundry team only to get volunteered by Maggie to help with the horses she is bringing into the barn.
"You've never ridden?" she asks, latching the stall next to the one where Glenn just filled with the grain he mixed by the instructions near the feed bins.
"City boy, both when I lived in Michigan and in Georgia. Never even did a pony ride as a kid."
"Well, I'll teach you, when we're between supply runs. You're still going to do those, right?"
"Yeah, of course. But I'm supposed to get shooting lessons too. Scout doesn't want me just relying on a machete, even if Canton looked more like a ghost town that anything else."
"I could teach you that too." She flashes him a smile, and he almost fumbles the can of feed for the horse she just stabled.
"That sounds great." He manages to tip the grain into the feeder although he has to negotiate with the horse to get his cap back.
Maggie giggles. They've been paired together on runs a lot, enough that he knows her well enough to know giggling isn't her norm. He doesn't want to get it wrong, but he thinks she's flirting.
"That one is a little too friendly," he grumbles.
"She thinks you're cute. She has good taste."
Well, even he isn't so inexperienced with girls as to miss that she's definitely flirting. This would normally be the point he'd ask for a date and pray for success, but dating is a bit difficult now. He thinks fast.
"Do you think anyone would be upset if we grabbed food and ate down by the pond?" he asks, giving her his best smile.
"Like a picnic?"
"Exactly."
"That sounds perfect. You snag a blanket out of your room, and I'll go talk Patricia out of our share of supper."
She leans in and kisses his cheek before jogging off.
He touches the spot and grins.
~*~ LG ~*~
Lori watches as Carl treks back to the main house in the dimming light with a backpack with clothes and toiletries for overnight. It makes her beyond nervous to have him that far away, but she can't keep denying the evidence that he's safer than safe among the Dixons. So, she sees no real reason to deny making him happy by letting him stay over with the two older boys and be able to spend more time around Sophia. He's missed his friend.
"I was surprised you said yes," Rick says from behind her in the RV.
She shuts the door, taking a moment to gather her thoughts before facing him. As much as she was horrified when Shane revealed the affair, she's now grateful he had the worst part of the reveal. She and Rick have barely spoken since, letting Carl carry all the conversation in the drive here.
Squaring her shoulders, she turns. "We need to talk, don't we?"
To his credit, he looks genuinely distressed. She always thought this conversation would make him happy, to be free of a woman he only proposed to because she was pregnant. Not that she can blame him. She didn't have to accept, and for the first five years, she couldn't complain about much.
But they already pushed this marriage eight years beyond its expiration date.
"I wanted you to feel like you were somewhere safe."
"But you made up your mind back at the quarry, didn't you? The night you and Shane talked." Because that's when he stopped reaching for her as soon as Carl was asleep.
Rick nods. She rubs at her bare arms, feeling suddenly cold.
"We'll tell Carl in the morning," she decides. She might as well have some part in the decision. "He would be happier rooming with some of the other boys. I'll see if I can bunk with one of the other women."
"Lori, no, I'll find another place to sleep."
"I've seen the quarters list, and it's not like you have Shane to bunk with now. It'll be easier for me to move around." She busies herself with repacking the few things she put out earlier when she showered.
"You know it's not because of Shane, right?"
She faces him again, sighing. "Yes, I know it's bigger than that. But it's not something we'd ever really get past either. And don't worry. I'm done being a bitch to him."
"And Scout?"
"And Scout." She sits on the bed, toying with a fold of the blanket. "It's funny. Before you were shot, I would have done my best to set them up."
She looks up to see a sad smile on Rick's face. "Me too."
"You never looked at me like he focuses on her." She reaches out to take his hand. "That's not meant to be a criticism, Rick. We dated because it was what everyone expected and neither of us was willing to buck the expectations. Not until you decided to be a cop."
"You were never happy about that."
"No, but I can't deny it was your calling. Maybe now is the time I find mine "
She doesn't turn away when he leans in for a kiss, but the intimacy is bittersweet. She strokes his cheek when he pulls away, earnest blue eyes reminding her just how beautiful she's always found him to be.
"Just think. Now you can grow that beard you always wanted." She pats his stubbly cheek.
Rick gives her a wan smile. "You sure you're okay with this?"
"I'll be fine, and so will you. Carl will be happier if we are." She stands and finishes tucking away her things. "I'll go talk to the ladies. I'll see you tomorrow."
He nods, looking sadder than she expected him to be. She leaves him sitting on the bed, resisting the urge to look back again. If she does, she might lose her resolve, and she suspects if she really presses, he'll back off and they'll start this cycle all over again.
She leaves her bag at the base of the stairs up to the deck, remembering she saw some of the women having drinks out there when she left with Carl earlier.
They're gone, but Merle's on the end nearer the stairs. He's got his feet propped on one of the patio chairs, holding a bottle he seems to be studying more than drinking.
"Sorry, I was looking for Alaina or Ana."
He gives her a slow half smile. "Ana headed to her RV and Alaina is inside fretting over her missing kids. Anything I can help with?"
"Um. I'm not sure."
He drops his feet to the deck and pushes the chair out for her. "Take a load off and we'll find out "
She sits, realizing as he sits the glass bottle down that he is drinking a cream soda, not a beer like she first thought.
He sees the glance to the bottle and shrugs. "Alcohol doesn't make me ugly me the way the other does, but it's a matter of resolve to stay clear headed."
"That sounds like a good plan."
"You want something to drink?"
She shakes her head. "I'm more in need of a new place to sleep."
"Huh. You sure on that? Splitting with the ole man? That's a tough road to take even before." She's surprised by the amount of concern on his face.
"Maybe it makes it more important not to keep making each other unhappy."
"True enough." He sighs and takes a deep swig of the cream soda. "Got plenty of company on the single parent thing here."
"How did you do it?"
"Didn't have much choice. Lilliana needed to be gone and my girls and Daryl needed me. World's most painful learning curve, I think. Didn't get it right for a while."
"You did a good job."
"I suppose I did. Hopefully still am." He finishes off the soda and stands. "Feel up to trusting me for a tour?"
Why the hell not. She's turning over a new leaf, right. She stands and follows his lead into the master suite. The closet makes her a little more wary, until he motions at the stairs hidden in the back.
"Did you see the basement door when you came around to the deck stairs?"
"Sorta." She wasn't really looking around.
"This'll come out right by that." He disappears down the stairs and she follows, now too curious not to.
The narrow stairway opens up into a basement that's been finished out nicely enough she wouldn't guess it was a basement except for the lack of windows. The room they're in is set up as a family room, with a pool table and two comfortable looking couches.
Unlike the upstairs living room, the TV here has at least two gaming systems she recognizes and one she doesn't.
He sees her looking and grins. "Keeps the noise and inevitable yelling downstairs instead of echoing around the whole place."
He leads her past a small kitchen with a fridge, sink, microwave, and two commercial freezers to a doorway that opens into a room with rustic bunk beds that remind her of the ones at Girl Scout camp.
"I didn't assign this space because the bunks aren't the most comfortable. They're more for the storm shelter side of things. But until we can get you an RV, it's a bit of privacy. Although I can probably ship a few boys down here and give you one of the upstairs rooms."
"I'm surprised they aren't down here. The other boys have got to be missing their game systems as bad as Carl."
"The girls tricked them into playing a board game after Beth found the game closet."
"I don't want to put anyone out." But being in the basement alone makes her skin crawl.
"I doubt any of the boys will be upset. Jazz's room isn't as scary as most teenagers', so we'll just send them down and they'll never notice the bunk beds are substandard."
"If you're sure." She notices the door on the other side of the bunk room, past another set of stairs. "There's more?"
"Yeah, but six months ago, you'd have called me a special kind of crazy." He uses a keypad for this door, waving for her to com look.
Where she can estimate that the part of the basement she's seen already runs the length of the master and living room, the big room beyond might actually be bigger than the kitchen to garage section of the house.
"It looks like a warehouse. Is this all food?". He's right that six months ago, she would've considered him a bit unhinged. Now it feels a bit like he's Santa Claus leading her to the North Pole as she explores the row upon row of stored goods.
"Mostly. The Mormons have some real good deals and good ideas about being prepared for anything. There's a year's worth of food for fifty people. Drop in the bucket for our current numbers, but good for emergency backup. Plus some medical and hygiene supplies and the water tanks."
She picks up a giant jar of honey and marvels at what's all around her. "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asks softly.
"Because I can't ask for forgiveness for my behavior at the quarry if I'm not willing to give it. Maybe it is easier for me, because my memory's shot to hell about it, but that's how it is."
He takes the jar from her and puts it back on the shelf. He replaces it with a bag of mini Milky Ways he takes out of a sealed plastic tub hidden behind a bucket labeled freeze dried apricots.
"Safest place in the house from Honey's sweet tooth. l figure you're in need of a dose of comfort chocolate."
She accepts with a smile. "Only if you'll share."
Merle laughs and motions her back ahead of him through the locking door. "I never turn down Milky Ways."
~*~ SW ~*~
"If the apocalypse hadn't already happened, I'd say I just saw one of the signs of it." T-Dog is shaking his head as he and Amy pass drinks around.
Shane takes a beer, anticipating both the cold drink and not having to be on night watch. Between the existing security system Merle has, and a few creative improvements Glynnis' group arranged, watch is two people in a room with video screens who also monitor the radios. Everyone on Merle's building crew is considered exempt for now.
Scout stirs enough to take her soda. She's reclined against him, using one of the big pillow chairs someone retrieved from upstairs as his backrest on the floor while those interested in old world luxury are watching a movie.
"What's that worrisome?" she asks.
Amy plops down next to her sister. "Merle and Lori are out on the deck eating out of a bag of candy."
"Ah hell, I knew that man had chocolate stashed somewhere," Scout grumbled. "As long as no one's screaming, I say leave them be."
"Your brother mentioned the boys are all being evicted to the basement." T-Dog's voice drips with curiosity.
"I doubt they'll see it as punishment considering the game room is down there. Daddy doesn't like the sound of gunfire in games, so he makes the kids keep the video systems downstairs." Scout glances over at her sister, who is braiding and rebraiding Tara's hair.
"Yep. They're still all down there. I figure the girls are about to be abandoned as soon as they finish that round of Apples to Apples."
"Good luck on that. The girls can always put the gaming table top on the pool table and move their game down there."
Shane laughs at the looks the sisters are getting as they discuss an entire floor of the house the newcomers weren't aware of. But he also feels a bit concerned, since Rick indicated at supper he was going to break the news to Lori. He leans forward to murmur in Scout's ear that he's going to go check on Rick. She nods and scoots forward to let him up.
He routes through the kitchen to grab a second beer and makes his way to the RV assigned to Rick. Knocking gets him the direction that it's open.
At the sad and relieved look on his best friend's face, he's glad he came.
~*~ CP ~*~
Carol rolls onto her stomach and experiences a guilty enjoyment of suddenly being able to solve the mystery of which of Merle's colognes he actually wears. Although the sheets have the clean scent of detergent, she obviously got Merle's favored side of the bed, since the pillow is embedded with a lovely scent.
She must have made some sort of noise, because Maggie giggles beside her. She raises up to stare at the younger woman, who grins unrepentantly.
"If I didn't know any better, that was a sound of a woman who would prefer an entirely different bed mate tonight."
Carol feels her face flush as the rush of embarrassment flows through her. She plops her face back into the pillow.
Maggie's voice is softer. "I didn't really mean to embarrass you. I tend not to have a filter."
Raising back up, Carol gives her a wavering smile. She's young, enthusiastic, and seems like she really wants to be friends. Trying to be a little bolder, she pushes the pillow toward Maggie.
The brunette takes the dare. "Oh, good choice. You'll have to take a sniff to see if he still wears it."
Carol just shakes her head as she tugs the pillow back into place. "I am not going to go sniff Merle. He just feels responsible for me."
"I think it's more than that, but if you aren't ready to think about it yet, that's fine. Can I ask you something?"
"As long as it's not about Merle."
"Nah. What do you think of Glenn?"
"He's a sweet guy. Awkward, but a good man." Carol watches as Maggie thinks that over.
"We had a picnic tonight. He was very sweet, but shy."
"I think you wouldn't find anyone here more devoted, if you can let him move at his own pace."
"I can do that." Maggie snuggles into her own pillow and yawns. "Goodnight, Carol."
"G'night, Maggie."
As the younger woman joins Patricia in sleep, Carol finds herself glancing toward the closed office door. As much as she's convinced there's no way a man like Merle would be interested in a woman like her, she can't help but yearn a little.
~*~ LG ~*~
Lori closes the door gently behind the retreating boys, who are more than thrilled with their eviction. Normally, the idea of borrowing a teenage boy's room would be abhorrent, but Merle is right that the room is atypical from most.
She wishes Carl kept his room this clean and tidy. Everything is neatly in its place, and while she might normally think that Glynnis or someone cleaned the room, Merle assured her it's just Jazz.
The twin over full bunk is a built-in complete with shelving. As she puts her bag on the bed, she notices the intricate carving on the bed, all animals and forest. She wonders who did the work.
The books on the bed's shelf show a love of fantasy fiction and voracious reading. There are easily over a hundred books crammed into the shelves, and these aren't the only bookshelves in the room. The wall facing the front of the house has each of the windows framed with overstuffed bookshelves. Curious, she browses those to see a mixture of non-fiction books spanning everything from botany to military history. A few sports trophies are placed randomly in front of the books.
She's almost glad to see she's not the only parent who denied a TV in the bedroom. Jazz's desk is a neat and orderly setup with a powered down laptop tucked into a base station with a monitor and keyboard. It's possible he watches TV on the computer, but she senses not. Even the futon in the room has a few books sitting on one end. Everything about the room gives her the vibe of a kid who loves being lost in books. The only poster in the room is a Marine Corps one above the desk.
She changes into her sleeping clothes and taps at the bathroom door to make sure it isn't occupied before slipping inside. She latches the opposite door that leads into Jamie's room from the jack and jill bath. Like the boy's room, the bathroom is tidy and she's careful to leave it that way before returning to the bedroom.
She slips into the comfort of the bottom bunk and reminds herself that ending her marriage was a joint decision. The candy sharing conversation was surprisingly interesting as Merle easily shared some of the adventures of his early days of single parenthood. She can be grateful at least that she doesn't have four children and zero second parent input.
It doesn't stop her from feeling a rush of loneliness at being alone in a strange room in a strange house.
But at least in a weird twist of fate, she's made an unusual friend in Merle.
~*~ GR ~*~
"Did I or did I not see you coming back from the pond with Miss Maggie after supper?" T-Dog accompanies the question with a thump to the underside of Glenn's bunk. His tone is an echo of the teasing over him staying overnight in the Dixon girls' tent.
But this time the answer isn't a protest. "Yeah. We had a picnic."
"How'd that go? I see you're still bunking with me tonight."
"It was good." Glenn's glad his expression can't be seen, since he's grinning ear to ear.
"Hmm. Maybe I'll get a new roommate soon."
"I don't think I want to rush it like that. I'm not brave enough to casually face an ex over group breakfast if it doesn't work out like Shane."
"But if you don't take a leap of faith, man, you might miss out entirely. We aren't exactly in the land of plenty for partners anymore."
Glenn thinks the other man's tone sounds wistful and he wonders if his friend is lonely. "Maybe you're right."
"Can't go wrong with Maggie. Sweet and spirited."
"Should I be worried?"
T-Dog laughs. "No, man. She's a little young for my taste. But she's perfect for you."
"I hope so." He really does.
There's a yip from the bunk below and Glenn rolls to stare down where every single one of the eight puppy litter are curled up with his roommate. "Seriously?"
T-Dog just laughs and pets one of the fuzzy little heads. "Glynnis just said they had to be in the barn at night. She didn't specify the stall. I always wanted a dog, but kept putting it off "
"Well, keep that up and you'll end up with eight, and based on their parents, they're going to be huge." All the kids were thrilled to meet the Dixons other catahoula, a huge female named Livia, and her litter of seven-week-old puppies.
"I doubt Merle would let me have more than one."
Glenn lays back down, laughing at the image of the big man surrounded by content puppies. Maybe happiness isn't always found in romance.
~*~ DD ~*~
Daryl's already on his cot when Merle comes to bed.
"You sure that's wise?"
Merle looks his way after tossing his shirt in the laundry basket. He stretches lazily before answering. "Letting that particular storm keep brewing would just end up with someone hurt. Woman needs a friend who's been where she is, and I didn't figure you'd want to volunteer."
"Hell, no. Maybe you want to forgive and forget, but I don't want to be anywhere near her brand of bitchiness."
His brother sighs and sits on the end of the futon nearest Daryl. He reaches out and shakes his ankle gently like he used to when Daryl was a kid and worried about something.
"Tell me this... how long did it take me to offend the majority of that camp after we rolled in?"
Daryl considers lying, but Merle's got a virtual radar for his tells. "Less than a day."
"Just keep in mind that the woman you dealt with in camp thought she was a new widow in a world she wasn't equipped to deal with. Then this jacked up redneck blows into camp and they can't afford to do without our hunting... Blame her for anything she said, but you're gonna have to let me shoulder half the blame for how she reacted to us."
Daryl really doesn't want to accept the logic Merle proposes. He wants to forget his brother's ugly descent into addiction. It's easier to be pissed off at those who looked down on him and Merle than to process that the fear hasn't really left him that Merle's safe again.
When he doesn't answer, Merle sighs and moves away to keep getting ready for bed. He settles his bulk on the futon before he speaks again.
"She needs a friend as much as Carol, baby brother. Maybe her ole man didn't lay into her, but you and I both know that neglect can leave some pretty powerful scars too. And I don't think I've ever met anyone who reeks of pure loneliness more than Lori Grimes."
Daryl rolls to face the wall, hating that Merle is making him feel sympathy for Lori. The woman openly jerked her child away from him, as if he was going to contaminate the boy by being within three feet of him.
But Merle doesn't ask much of him.
"I'll be polite if need be," he offers at last.
"A'right. S'all I ask. Be nice if she had more than one friend though."
He hears the creaking of the futon's wooden frame as Merle rolls to sprawl in his belly as he likes to sleep. It doesn't take long before his brother's breathing settles into the rhythm of sleep.
Daryl just hopes this friendship doesn't come back to bite Merle in the ass. Not the first time Lori's been unable to stand on her own, and he doesn't want to see Merle as her next bedmate. Woman's got an eye for gravitating to power, and here, on Dixon land, Merle is the power.
After the devastation Lilliana left in her wake, Merle deserves someone loyal and sweet, like Carol. With that thought settling in his mind, he falls asleep too, avoiding thinking about his still missing daughter.