Chapter Three

Carol really hoped that she didn't look as nervous as she felt. There were a lot of people milling about, the music was loud and the women... well, she shouldn't have worried about her shirt being cut too low. She wasn't sure if her face had ever felt so hot before. The most unexpected thing about all of it, however, was that it was all worth it just because of the rush she felt as her hand gripped Daryl's.

It was all sensory overload as he led her towards the back of the room. She wasn't a risk taker so her body wasn't accustomed to the adrenalin rush she got just by being close to this guy. It wasn't like the two of them had never spent hours with their heads huddled together over the same book before. If she was being honest with herself, this wasn't even the first time that she had caught him staring at her from the corner of her eye.

But this was the first time that she actually had to pretend to be someones boyfriend. And she had to force herself out of her shell because she couldn't just stand there like a mute all night.

"You sure you're okay with this?" he asked, his lips close to her ear because that was the only way she would have heard him.

She nodded, took a deep breath and then looked up at him. He was watching her carefully. "So, what now? Are we suppose to make out in front of your brother or something?" she was joking, of course, but the look on his face was so surprised that she found herself laughing.

He snorted out a laugh of his own and shook his head. "You have jokes. But nah, all he has to do is see you here and then he won't try to push any of these damn women at me like he usually does."

She looked around at the crowd, paying close attention to some of the women that kept glancing at the two of them, their heads together as they whispered amongst themselves. In Carol's opinion, they were all pretty, some could even be considered beautiful, so her curiosity was driving her nuts. She leaned in so he could hear what she was about to ask. "Why aren't you interested in anyone here?"

He glanced around, his gaze lingering here and there and then he finally just shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just ain't. Not my type."

She felt her eyebrows raise slightly. "What is your type? It isn't me. An introverted book worm with no friends. And I know that I dress like I bought all my clothes from an old lady's rummage sale. It's my own way of rebelling against the high school status quo." She could make fun of herself and it didn't matter. She liked who she was, even though she did hate being so damn shy. She didn't really care what other people thought of her. At least, that's what she told herself every day.

He chewed his lip for a few long moments before his eyes landed on hers. "It ain't got anything to do with how they look. Not really. Every female here is somehow tryin' to outdo the next one. All of them have a point to prove, and it's that they're better than each other. I know every damn one of them and there ain't one of them gives a damn about anybody else, trust me. And I ain't got the damn patience to deal with people like that. Cause hell, the guys here, they ain't no different. Always a competition. Always outdoing each other. My brother is one of the worst ones too. I ain't like that. And you ain't like them. So outta everyone here, I guess if I had to choose a type, it'd be the introverted book worm with no friends that wore old lady clothes."

It was probably the most she had ever heard him say at once and even in the shadows where they stood, she could see the deep flush on his face and knew he almost regretted the words even as he spoke them, but it was probably the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to her. But the moment was too heavy and he had dropped her hand, clearly embarrassed by his own bold declaration.

"So, you have a thing for sweaters. That's actually really good to know," she said, keeping her face devoid of emotion, not even allowing her lips to twitch in humor. She didn't know what had come over her since stepping foot in the door but she felt comfortable teasing him and it was a really great feeling. "If you want, I can model some for you when you take me home. I wouldn't tell anyone about your fetish, I promise."

He shook his head and grinned before looking at his boots. "I swear if I'd known you were a total smart ass I woulda asked you out a long time ago."

She grinned right back. "So, you're admitting you actually asked me out? You know, for a first date, this is kind of a let down."

"Jesus," he muttered.

Just then Carol looked up and swallowed hard when she saw a familiar face approaching them. Joe Crawford was a bully and an idiot and she had fallen victim to his harsh criticism more times than not over the last few years of high school. She knew he was one of the people that hung around Daryl when Daryl wasn't stuck studying with her, and one of the reasons she had been so terrified that first day she tutored him. She had expected Daryl to be a lot like Joe and had been surprised and relieved to discover that he was nothing like the other boy.

"Oh no," she muttered, unconsciously stepping closer to Daryl, dreading what Joe was going to have to say to her.

"What?" Daryl asked, frowning down at her.

She nodded towards the other boy. "Your friend doesn't exactly like me. Actually he goes out of his way every chance he gets to remind me that he isn't the only one. He's an ass."

"You ain't ever told me he gives you a hard time," Daryl said, scowling hard.

She shrugged. "Would it have mattered? It isn't like we're friends. I tutored you, Daryl. That doesn't mean I looked forward to confiding in you the horrors of my high school life every chance I got."

"You made it, Dixon," Joe grinned, talking to Daryl but letting his eyes roam over her.

She didn't see a spark of recognition in that mean gaze of his but surely he knew who she was.

"Yeah, well, I didn't have much choice now, did I?" Daryl asked, not sounding very friendly at all.

Joe grinned. "Guess not. Looks like you lucked out. Two new rides in one day, huh? Who's the arm candy?" he asked, turning up a beer trying way too hard to look cool.

She felt Daryl stiffen at her side. "You know who she-"

"Carmen," Carol said suddenly, offering the guy her hand. "Nice to meet you..."

"Joe," he said, taking her hand, his fingers lingering on hers. "So, where the hell did you find this jackass, and why the hell haven't me and you hooked up yet?"

Carol smiled, her heart beating so hard that she barely heard his words for the blood pounding behind her ears. He didn't know who she was! "I guess I just haven't gotten around to lowering my standards that far. I'll let you know if it ever happens." She was almost dizzy, unable to believe she had just said those words to one of her worst tormentors.

Joe's smile dropped and so did his hand and a hard familiar glint returned to his eyes. He opened his mouth to say something but suddenly glanced at Daryl, who barked out a laugh at the look on his face. When Joe looked back at her their was a threat in his gaze but he was smart enough to keep his mouth shut.

"You got somethin' you wanna say, Joe?" Daryl asked, his voice casual but his own blue eyes sharp and hard.

Joe gave her one more hard stare and then sauntered away. She made a mental note to stay as far away from him as she possibly could. She just couldn't believe that he hadn't even known it was her.

"I can't believe that jerk," she hissed, crossing her arms over her chest. "All these years and he comes over here and actually just hit on me!"

Daryl smiled slightly and grabbed her hand again. "Tell you what," he said as he led her towards the other side of the room, "Let's find my damn brother, let him know I showed up and then get the hell outta here."

She felt her stomach drop. She wasn't exactly having fun considering where they were but she was really enjoying getting to know him and didn't want to stop. He seemed to like. Her. The real her, not just because of the way her sister had dressed her up tonight. "Wait," she stopped walking and tightened her grip on his hand, forcing him to stop.

He turned questioning eyes on her.

"We just got here," she said, her voice small in the steady drone of the crowd around them.

He studied her for a few long moments and then shrugged his shoulders. "This ain't your scene, Carol. And it ain't mine either."

She didn't really have an argument for him so she sighed and followed him to wherever he was leading her.

"Hey!"

Her head snapped up as a man approached them, a wide grin on his face as he took them in. He was dressed in black and he had a look in his eye that told even her that this wasn't a man that anyone should mess with. Hopefully he was a friend of Daryl's because she sure as hell didn't want him to be an enemy.

"Little brother," the man said, grinning even wider as he glanced down at her. "Trade up, huh? Ditch the dork and find yourself a firecracker? That's my boy."

"It's the same goddamn girl, dumb ass," Daryl shot back, eyes narrowed on the man.

Oh Jesus, this was his brother. This was the reason she was here and apparently he thought she was a dork.

He let out a low whistle as his eyes raked over her. "I'll tell you what, Sugar Tits, my brother here has a good eye cause I damn sure didn't see a body like that hidin' behind that big ol' bird sweater your ass was wearin' this afternoon."

Carol felt her mouth drop with an audible pop and heard Daryl groan at her side. She didn't know what to say to him. She had never been objectified before and wasn't sure whether to admonish him for being a disgusting pig or feel flattered that he had somehow tried to compliment her appearance. She had never been in this situation before now and had no idea how to proceed.

"Say," he asked, narrowing his eyes and studying her face carefully. He took a step closer, gripped her chin gently and tilted her head up just slightly. All she could do was swallow hard. "Nah..." he shook his head. "You ain't kin to a hot number that goes by the name of Jenny, are you?" he asked.

She felt her eyes widen but she didn't move because he was still gripping her face. "She's my sister," she said, her voice but a breath.

He dropped his hand then eyed his brother before barking out a laugh that startled her.

"What the hell is so funny?" Daryl asked, tension rolling off his frame.

Merle just shook his head and glanced between them. "Let's just say I know from experience. It might take a few tries at first but once that engine gets nice and warm, this girl is liable to go from zero to sixty nine in just a few seconds. I broke in the older one back in high school. Was well worth the wait, trust me. Ain't had a piece that tight before or since."

"Jesus, Merle. You're a real son of a bitch, you know that? Go on somewhere with that shit," Daryl snapped, pulling her past him.

Carol was trying to process Merle's words. Surely her sister hadn't...

Daryl side eyed her when he heard her laughter, turning to face her even though he kept walking backwards, pulling her towards the door. "You think that was funny?"

She shook her head. "Not exactly. I just can't imagine my sister... you know. Getting it on with your brother."

He made a face. "Let's go. We ain't even been here thirty minutes and this damn place has already corrupted you."

She followed him out into the still night and instantly felt some of that adrenalin induced bravado leave her. In a room full of people that didn't know her, she almost felt like someone else, but now that it was just the two of them again, and it was obvious that he was ready for their night to be over, that feeling of quiet insignificance reared it's ugly head.

"Sorry about my brother," he said as they fell in step, walking towards the truck. "He can be a real piece of shit sometimes. I don't even think he does it on purpose. It just comes natural. That was him tryin' to be nice, by the way."

She smiled. "It wasn't so bad. I was glad to help tonight. Hopefully he lets you keep that bike you like so much."

He gave her a sideways glance. "You ready to get home?"

She searched his eyes for a second and decided to be honest. "Not really," she said, her voice quiet.

"I am," he said, opening the door and giving her a small shove towards the seat.

She crawled in, her face flaming. He wasn't even going to pretend to want to spend anymore time with her. She stared out the windshield as he backed out of the parking lot. It had taken her all that time to get ready and it was all for a total of forty five minutes with him. She felt like the dork that his brother claimed she was.

"You hungry? I think we got some leftover pizza in the fridge at the house. If not I can swing by a drive through," he said, glancing at her.

She looked over, catching his eye quickly before he turned his own back to the road that stretched out in front of them. "I thought you wanted to go home."

"And I thought you didn't," he countered.

"Oh!" she finally grasped what he was getting at. He wanted to go back to his house but he wanted to bring her with him.

"You ain't gotta-"

"Leftover pizza sounds good," she said quickly, her nerves kicking up a notch at the thought of going to his house with him, alone.

~H~

He didn't know why the hell he had thought to take her to his house. Not that she seemed to be rolling in money herself but Merle was a fucking slob and Daryl wasn't much better. The house wasn't in awful shape but it was a far cry from a nice one. Sitting alone on one of the lesser used back roads the woods nearly devouring it from the back, it was still home. Had been all his life.

"I didn't realize you lived so far out," Carol said as he pulled into the rutted gravel drive.

The headlights illuminated the front of the house but as soon as he cut the engine the darkness gathered around them like a living thing. There weren't any street lights out here and he hadn't thought to leave the porch light on. The sky was overcast so there was no moon. The only illumination came from the dim glow from town a few miles away. He took note of the nervous quality of her voice and was pretty sure that she was probably thinking he'd brought her out here to murder her.

"You sure you don't want me to just take you home?" he asked, not blaming her for her nervousness.

She cleared her throat and though darkness prevailed, he could hear her shifting nervously in her seat. "I really don't want to go home yet, but..."

He waited but she didn't say anything else. "But, what?"

She blew out a breath. "Well, I just wanted to let you know that... I... I'm not here to do anything."

He frowned. "What?"

"You know," she muttered. "Mess around with you or anything."

He scowled. Truthfully, if she wanted to mess around, he was all for it, but it wasn't why he brought her here for fucks sake! "You ain't got a very high opinion of me, do you?" he asked, making sure he kept his voice neutral.

"What? No, I do I just thought..."

"How many times did I try to feel you up while we were stuck together for hours three days a week for the last six months?"

"Never! I was... I've never been invited to a guy's house before, that's all!"

"So you thought pizza was code for what?"

"I didn't! I mean-"

He laughed. He should have felt bad for messing with her but he'd never met a more nervous person. She had been okay at the party but now that it was just the two of them she was as jumpy as a rabbit. "You wanna come in or not?"

She grumbled something unintelligible under her breath as he hopped down from the truck. Without thinking twice he reached for her hand, only because it was dark and she'd likely fall over something if he didn't at least lead her to the porch. That's what he told himself anyway.

The house wasn't as bad as it could have been. Just a few empty beer cans on the coffee table and some dirty shirts thrown over the arm of a chair in the corner. It wasn't fancy but him and Merle made due with it. Besides, he knew her well enough by now to know that she wouldn't even consider thinking less of a person just because they weren't well off. Her mind just didn't seem to work that way and it was something he had caught onto back when he had first met her. It was one of the reasons he liked her so much.

She followed him to the kitchen, leaning against the counter with her arms crossed tightly over her chest as she glanced around the room. As much as he enjoyed the change that her sister enforced on her for this fake date, he could tell that she was uncomfortable. She wasn't even really showing much skin but it still seemed to bother her that she couldn't hide anything at the moment.

"Come here," he muttered, walking past her, two cokes balanced on top of the pizza box in his hands as he headed towards the hall and his bedroom beyond. Maybe he was really enjoying the view but he hated how fucking nervous she was and if he could make her feel a little bit better then he would. He owed her. He owed her for all the time she had spent helping him all those months and he owed her for doing him a favor tonight, even though she had been forced way out of her comfort zone to do it.

He hit the light switch with his elbow and sat the box down on his bed before turning to the closet. She hovered in the doorway, eyes wide as she watched him. He didn't comment. He sifted through his clothes until he found what he was after. When he tossed it to her it smacked her in the face and fell to the floor.

She frowned and picked it up and once she realized what it was, she grinned but she couldn't hide the blush on her face. "I'm not that obvious, am I?"

He shrugged like it was no big deal and watched as she pulled the oversized hoodie over her head. It draped over her smaller frame, hitting mid thigh and she grinned at him sheepishly.

"I have issues," she mumbled but already she looked more comfortable.

"Yeah? I ain't noticed."

She laughed at that and the rest of the tension melted away as she sat down on the edge of his bed. "I'm a freak, I know. I have anxiety issues. I have since my parents died and sometimes being able to hide in my own skin makes me feel better."

"Makes sense," he said as he shoved a dvd into the player and turned on the ancient TV that he'd bought second hand.

The rest of the evening they spent with their backs against the headboard, a box of cold pizza between them, watching Jaws and stuffing their faces in companionable silence. He wasn't thrilled about taking her home but knew he had to. She talked a little more on the ride back to her place and they even lingered next to the truck after he had let her out.

"You want your hoodie back?" she asked.

He leaned into the side of the truck and shrugged. "Keep it. I don't ever wear it."

"I had fun. I know I was just doing you a favor but I'm glad I did," she said after another beat of silence.

"So did I. The look on Joe's face was pretty damn great."

She grinned. "Well, if you ever get yourself in another bind, you know where to find me."

He nodded, knowing that if he didn't ask her now then he wouldn't ever ask her and he wouldn't see her again until school started back up. "You wanna do somethin' tomorrow?"

She looked a little surprised at the sudden question. "Do something? Like what?"

"I don't know. Anything cheap I guess, unless you're buyin'."

"Why?" she asked, a frown forming between her eyes.

He sighed. "Do you wanna do somethin' or not?"

She nodded.

"Seven again then?" he asked.

She nodded again.

He repressed a grin and nodded right back. "See ya, Carmen."

This earned him another outright laugh. "Bye, Daryl."