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This chapter is set two years later, which means Daryl is 13 and Merle, 18 and not much has changed between them, but things have certainly changed between Daryl, his Dad and Mike.

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Part 14: The line is drawn

Will had a few of his closest friends over one weekend, not just to get loaded either - he'd got some real good shit from his dealer. But the party wouldn't really start until Daryl was safely tucked up in bed.

Among the invited guests was Mike of course, 41, the only one who looked out of place with his youthful good looks. Combined with his overal healthy glow and the big strong arms that he got from his work, it was enough to make the rest of them sick. Still, he had reasons to be content, starting out as a car mechanic, he now had his own successful business with a couple of employees in tow. More than that, his customers would come from villages miles around for his services and his nice clothes, his big house in the part of town he lived in, were the fruits of that success.

Naturally, up to a few years ago, Will had been jealous of his money, but his resentment was soon appeased when Mike began to share out the wealth generously amongst his close friends. He went so far as to spoil his sons by buying them presents all the time, especially Daryl, his honorary 'godson'. Dixons didn't do religion.

Mike also dabbled in drugs less often than they did and Will wondered if he would pass up on them. He had that hungry look on him tonight though, so Will doubted that he was planning on saying no.

Another member of Will's inner circle was Mark, a man in his late 40's, fat and slow, but he could hold his booze (and drugs) better than most.

The oldest of the bunch was One-eyed Joe at sixty. He'd been a hardworking lumberjack and had led an even harder life which was written clearly on the lines in his face and his sagging jowls. He'd got his nickname when he lost his left eye in a bar-brawl while celebrating his 30th birthday and his punishing lifestyle had continued ever since, causing him look at least 10 years older.

Last but not least, Smitty, a scrawny scarecrow of a man who'd lost half his teeth due to heavy drug-use, but he'd failed to take the hint and slow down. Had no family to speak of but he couldn't care less with his severe life-long addiction that started at age 13. Now he did more meth and rock than all of them put together and it had been that way for years. He was only a few years older than Will and Mike but the meth had robbed him of nearly all of his teeth and his good looks along with it. His nose was also missing a septum and Will always had doubts whether he should let someone like that around his sons or not. He told himself that the man was harmless and a real good friend, never mind his appearance that had scared Daryl so much when he was younger. Will didn't plan on kicking him out any time soon.

But Mike – Mike - was a completely different story.

As he expected, Will saw Smitty's eyes light up with excitement when he hinted at the treat he had in store for them while his best friend looked at best – bored. Irritating as this was, Will decided to ignore it.

As they took their seats on the living-room sofa, Will gazed at his best friend for a moment and tried to gauge his mood, but was left none the wiser. The man was giving nothing away on the poker-face he was wearing.

Losing interest in this game which he couldn't win, Will lost himself in the past instead, remembering the boys they once were. He had plenty of memories to draw on from over the years. Growing up together from that first day of elementary school where they'd met as they did, the two best buddies had been inseparable ever since. They'd watched each other's backs, protected and supported each other their entire lives.

Will smiled fondly to himself as he recalled sharing their very first cigarette which they'd smoked while laughing, hearts beating hard and fast, wondering if they were going to get caught behind the school bike shed. The pack of woodbines had been stolen, naturally, from Will's dad and he had paid the full price for both of them at the wrong end of his Daddy's belt when he got home that night. But he would have done it all again given half the chance - it had been worth every stinging lash.

Then, when they got older, they passed other rites of passage together and been each other's best men at their respective weddings, the Dixon tying the knot a few years earlier than his friend.

To put it in a nutshell, if Will's own older brother hadn't died in a hunting accident at the tender age of 18, he couldn't have been closer to Mike, even if they weren't blood.

More than that, the gaping hole left behind in Mike's heart by Maggie not being able to give him any children of their own to love, certainly played a big part in his fondness for Will's two boys. Will knew that Mike had naturally taken on the responsibility as a second father rather quickly, especially after his wife died and he knew that looking out for Merle and Daryl had been a welcome distraction from his grief.

In many ways, they were kin in every sense of the word and Mike had become the brother he had lost and a real' Uncle' to the boys, not only in name.

He was family.

That's why it was even more shocking for everyone involved to understand how what happened later could have happened, especially with all the history between the two men.

Things had changed over the last two years however, because sure, on the surface, the man had done his part as 'Uncle' and 'Godfather' by occasionally giving Daryl money and presents on important occasions. Yet, Will had a feeling that until recently, Mike had done his duty simply out of necessity because it was expected of him, not because he wanted to. For some reason, he had decided to put some space between him and his youngest son. The father could trace this shift in attitude from round about the time Daryl had come back after staying at Mike's after Will got drunk and lost it.

Will had partly blamed himself for that – after all, hadn't he told him to back off after their fight? But that had been a long time ago and even if he thought that Mike could've handled it a bit better with Daryl, he wasn't going to be the one to tell him that. Anyway, Mike taking a step back was the best thing that could've happened since him and Daryl had finally got the chance to grow closer with him more or less out of the picture.

To be honest, despite Daryl's obvious distress, Will had been secretly pleased at how things had turned out.

Until now that was.

When Mike had first started backing off, Daryl would come to him asking him why Mike was shooing him away all the time. But each time This happened, Will had waved it off like it was nothing. He was careful to not make it into a big deal by trying to explain to Daryl what was happening, because he had no real idea why himself after all. Well – that wasn't quite true, he corrected himself. He had his theories but he didn't know - not for sure.

The common thread in all of this was that Daryl hadn't understood what he'd done wrong, and he'd been hurt at first. But even if he used to worship the ground Mike walked on, he eventually got over him, tough boy that he was. He was a Dixon and everyone knew that the Dixons were as tough as nails.

Now things between them had recently shifted again when Mike had started taking more of an interest in Daryl. For example, he often asked Will how he was doing when he had barely mentioned him before.

In this way, he indicated that his period of disinterest and distance was officially over. Confusing the kid even more and raking up all the old hurts – he could see it in his son's miserable expression, Will thought sourly, wondering why he had let this slide. Maybe because he was secretly wondering how Daryl would react to the new and improved 'Mr Friendly' Mike tonight and if Mike would be able to keep it up.

Daryl had long got over how he'd been shoved aside and passed over, but he'd never forgotten it. Will predicted that once deeply hurt by Mike's behavior towards him it would be enough to make his son find it difficult to trust him again. Probably never would, he thought a little smugly to himself.

This satisfying thought made Will smile quietly to himself when later, it became clear that he had predicted right. Daryl hadn't fallen for this sudden change of heart. It was too much of a leap from being ignored, to him suddenly being Mike's favorite boy again. Of course, he was suspicious and remained reserved towards his once beloved 'Uncle Mikey'.

Yet there was something different in the way Daryl looked at the man lately. It wasn't just bewilderment at his new, almost overbearing friendliness. An act that failed to ring true to Will. Mike didn't convince his son either, that much was very clear.

Besides, what was the kid supposed to think after months of only a few grunts and sidelong glances, to this sudden barrage of attention and flattery?

It was more than just fatherly interest coming from Mike, Will was sure, yet he couldn't put his finger on what that other part was. No wonder Daryl looked at him a little apprehensively, especially since it was only a few weeks ago that the man had done everything in his power not to be alone in the same room with him. Now, naturally he didn't know what he'd done to deserve this renewed acknowledgement that he existed.

The whole thing with Mike was fucked up and weird, that's what it was.

Will knew that however close he and Mike had been, Daryl came first. His son always would come first, no matter what. While he watched them together, he had a nagging feeling that he was missing a piece of the bigger picture, something vitally important. Therefore, he made a promise to himself right then, to watch over them closely. Especially since, whenever Mike was present, Daryl seemed to be downright intimidated by the man sometimes. Will thought he looked damn near ready to jump out of his skin every time Mike addressed him. But to be fair to Mike, the boy had always been highly-strung.

Yet try as he might, Will couldn't fathom the reasons for this second big change even if he tried, he only knew that it made him uneasy.

For example, Mike had started asking his youngest what he'd done during the day or exclaiming admiringly how big he'd grown. He did this often, acting as if he and Daryl was sharing a big secret between them that Will wasn't party to. Like he knew something that Will didn't know about and it irritated the hell out of him. Besides, all the compliments embarrassed his son.

The boy had answered his questions, showing respect to his elders just like he'd been raised each time, but usually escaped as soon as he could from the relentless questioning and his father couldn't blame him. Will put it all down to the kid's damn shyness – the boy never did like to be the center of attention.

There was also the fact that Mike used to be good at making Daryl laugh before, even though he was never a kid who was easy to amuse. Except for his big brother, of course. Brought so effortlessly to uncontrollable giggles by his 'Uncle' in the past, Will would snigger now whenever Mike struggled to even coax a shy little smile from him. He no longer responded to his jokes and funny stories in the same heartfelt way anymore. It wasn't just because the kid was older now and less easy to impress, that much didn't escape Will.

The head of the Dixon household was lost in his thoughts while the others chatted, smoked and drank as he lit his own cigarette while trying to understand what the hell was going on. When he pondered it in more depth, he thought he recognized the signs. Daryl was on edge, acting the same way he did when his big brother wasn't around and there was a punishment hanging imminent in the air. Will now glared at Mike trying to figure out why he was going through so much effort, because Daryl's instincts were rarely off.

There was also something about the way Mike looked at his son lately, different to before in a way he couldn't exactly pin-point. Whatever the reason, an icy finger would trail down his spine whenever he caught Mike staring at Daryl like he was drinking him in with his eyes...and watching them would set off the alarm bells ringing in his head.

Still, Will did nothing to interfere no matter how many times he'd felt the urge to call his boy over and hold him close. Something always stopped him and he couldn't allow himself to pursue this train of thought and add the obvious numbers together to finish the equation. Because it couldn't be true what he suspected of his oldest, best friend who had been nothing but good to him and his two sons in the past. Even taking them in when needed and treating them like his own.

Besides, Mike wasn't like that – couldn't be - any hint of that and the offender was immediately either ostracized or 'disappeared' from their community. Even the cops would turn a blind eye.

They'd known each other all their lives and Mike had never shown any signs of being into that, of being a pervert - he loved women too much. If either of his sons were in danger, surely Will would have known?

Takes one to know one, his mind whispered to him tauntingly, but he shoved the nagging thought away. It scared the shit out of him like nothing else could.

Surely he was overreacting? Both him and Merle had always been overprotective when it came to Daryl – there was just something fragile about the boy, almost vulnerable yet he was no weakling or a weak pushover, he'd proved it again and again. Daryl was far from soft, in fact.

Will resumed his study of his friend in silence, while Mike happily focused his attention on talking with the others, to his own, and no doubt – his son's relief. Merle wasn't joining them tonight – was out on the prowl somewhere, another reason for Daryl's skittishness.

His best buddy was a good fit-looking man for his age, Will had to give him that, and he used it to his advantage with women. He always made sure to take care of his body – one he was proud of and had every reason to be. He had a gentlemanly manner about him too that served him well with the ladies.

He'd had himself a few girlfriends a lot younger than himself since his wife passed away, to all of theirmutual admiration and jealousy.

Yet none of this history helped to ease the father's heart because no matter how he tried, he couldn't shake off the feeling of mild alarm when he saw the change in Mike's attitude towards Daryl. Why was he renewing his interest in him now? It was unsettling to say the least, and Will almost wished Mike would go back to treating Daryl like he'd done only six weeks ago. Go back to barely speaking to or looking at him and always keeping him at arm's length.

As if to confirm it, some instinct had made the father plan to keep Daryl away from Mike and the others as often as he could even though he was curious about how Mike and him would interact but damn it - they'd only gone and turned up early and he hadn't sent the boy up to his room yet.

This gave Mike the opportunity he'd been waiting for. They'd only swigged down a can or two, not even started on the meth yet – (Will wouldn't allow it until Daryl was safely sleeping upstairs) and he didn't have the time to ping open another beer before the big brute started.

'Hey, son.' He had greeted Daryl warmly as soon as he laid eyes on him.

Daryl froze in his tracks and frowned at the man before he eyed him with blatant distrust.

No wonder the kid was mixed-up. Will could sense his discomfort from where he was standing, watching how this would unfold with interest. Not daring to be rude and risk his father's wrath, Daryl was pinned right where he was.

A fact that was apparently lost on Mike, or he simply didn't care as he continued: 'Can't believe how big ya grown. Got a girlfriend yet?' He badgered him almost without pause.

Smitty and Joe snickered but pricked up their ears to listen while Mark looked on and said nothing.

Daryl blushed and looked away, a fact that immediately irritated Will who wished that he was more like Merle who would have given a witty and filthy comeback at the same age, to make them all laugh. But not Daryl.

'Speak up, son, when ya spoken to. Mike was asking ya a question.' He ordered him before he sat down with a loud grunt. Despite himself, Will was curious to hear the boy's answer, even though he was pretty sure what it would be. His baby boy was too shy and picky, no doubt. None of the cheap tarts that his brother always bedded would be good enough for his Daryl.

Daryl shrugged when he realized he had no choice but to answer. 'No.' He replied hesitantly and Will knew he was telling the truth.

'What?' Mike answered with exaggerated surprise. 'A handsome boy like ya? They must be linin' up round the place just to get a piece of ya.'

Will frowned at this degrading image and even the others looked shocked. Meanwhile, he caught him actually looking his son up and down the whole length of his slender body. Had the others also seen? As if checking him out – but that was sick and therefore impossible, wasn't it? What did the guy think he was playing at? And with his thirteen-year old son at that?

Yet, during this creepy exchange he repressed a shiver and remained seated where he was. Even their audience looked uncomfortable. Especially when Daryl wrapped his arms over his chest and hunched his shoulders, looking so damn small.

What the hell was Mike doing? He was still just a little boy! Will Dixon thought angrily to himself. OK, he had to admit when Merle was thirteen, he hadn't thought about him as 'just a little boy' but that was Merle. Too knowing by half and this contrast in personality was among the things that made them different from each other. Daryl was sweeter than his brother had ever been and this, and the fact that he was the baby of the Dixon family was what made him Will's favorite.

Had he really expected his children to turn out the same? Why the hell should they?

Will had sensed from his birth that he needed different treatment from his brother. Recalling his little boy's body, Will knew for a fact that he was still relatively hairless with skin as smooth as a baby's. So what the fuck did Mike think he was doing, asking him a question like that?

Daryl was a slow developer, shown by his voice that remained mostly unbroken. A voice he couldn't find at the moment to give an appropriate reply to the too personal questions. Or even to tell Mike to mind his own damn business like his brother would have done at his age. Too scared of his Daddy's reaction no doubt, but right then Will wished he would have fought back. He wouldn't have punished him for it later either, probably would've praised him for showing some backbone. But to his son's defence; how was Daryl to know that?

So, he remained where he was, looking dumbstruck and like he didn't want to be there. Will fought down the impulse to get up from his seat and get between them to shield his son from that intrusive gaze that roamed all over his slender body, but he stopped himself just in time. He didn't want them to think that he handled Daryl with kid gloves. He was a Dixon and should be able to stick up for himself after all.

At the same time, Will wanted to break the palpable tension in the room which was ruining the evening as well as distract those greedy eyes that seemed to be undressing his kid right in front of him. He intended to do something about all of it, but he couldn't seem to make himself move or make his mouth speak. Whether it was him in denial about his best friend, Will wasn't sure.

Seconds later he forgot his earlier doubts and the notion of leaving Daryl to stick up for himself vanished from his mind when he heard Mike's next words, 'Or don't ya like girls, boy? Ya a little pansy, that it?'