The next morning, there was a ringing in my head that just wouldn't quit.

As I shifted under the covers, I realized that I was still dressed in what I had worn out the night before. I wracked my mind, trying to figure out how I'd gotten home, when I'd gotten home, what I'd done while we were all out. The last thing I remembered was sitting with the group in our booth and taking tequila shots with Daryl once everyone had dropped out for the night. If there was one thing Daryl could do, it was drink. If the previous night had been a contest, Mr. Dixon definitely would have taken home the gold medal.

Looking over at the bedside table, I saw my phone laying next to two Aspirin tablets and a glass of water. Whoever brought me home last night was definitely considerate. I just had to figure it out so I could thank them properly. After taking the medicine and gulping down the entire glass of water, I laid back and wondered about how I had gotten home. There was no way Daryl brought me back on his bike, but everyone else was way too drunk to drive me. Had I taken a cab? Had I called another friend to come get me? My thoughts shifted to Daryl. I made it a point to stop by his apartment later to check on him, but at that moment all I wanted was a shower.

While I waited for the shower to heat up, I wrapped the towel around my chest and finished up in the bathroom as I washed my face clean of all the leftover makeup I had slathered and streaked across my face. Surprisingly, there was a decent amount of eye make-up still left, which meant that I hadn't cried, well hopefully. With everything going on in my life, I was proud that I didn't have a tremendous breakdown in front of everyone.

Once I was done, I went over to my bed and inspected my phone. I was shocked to see that Jimmy had called around 3am and that call was followed by six more and five text messages asking me to call him. I decided I'd worry about Jimmy later, not really being in the mood to talk to him in the first place. I was sure he'd tell me what we spoke about whenever I got around to calling him, but for the moment? I needed food.

I walked out into my kitchen, still wrapped in my bath towel before I noticed I wasn't alone. If I hadn't turned and seen him, I probably would have screamed. There laid Daryl, with a pillow and blanket, all tucked in on my couch. Looking at the clock on the wall, I noticed it was past noon which meant that I didn't need to hurry because I'd already missed Church. Quietly, I snuck back into my room and got dressed before I went back out to make breakfast, but he was already waking up by the time I got back.

"Afternoon, Daryl" I said cheerfully, feeling better now that the ringing in my ears had subsided. Honestly I was a bit worried that he was sleeping on my couch instead of his apartment across the hall, but I was sure there was a decent reason. I just needed to get him up and figure that out. "Want a cup of coffee or anything?"

My questions were met with low grumbles as he pulled the blanket over his head. I could see that his jeans were still on, which made me feel a bit better about the situation, but his boots were off and sitting by the door like the other morning. I smiled at the thought.

"I mean it, Dixon. Rise and shine!" I placed the mug of hot coffee on the table, along with two Aspirin tablets for him. I knew he'd had a lot to drink the night before, and if he was anywhere near my level at the bar, he'd need the medicine too. Grabbing my own coffee, I sat in the padded chair that matched the rest of my living room set and watched as he shifted in his fabric cave.

"How're you so damn cheery?" came a gravely voice that made me laugh. He was definitely feeling it the same way I had when I had gotten up. "What time is it anyway?"

"Around 12:30, nothing major" I replied, sipping my coffee as he sat up and stretched. I noticed his black button down was gone, leaving him in his jeans and white t-shirt. I hoped that it had nothing to do with me, but odds were it did. "There's aspirin on the table for you, coffee too."

Yawning, he reached over and grabbed the medicine and coffee, drinking them down quickly as if the coffee were water. He placed the mug back onto the coffee table and wrapped the blanket around him as he sat looking over at me. His clear blue eyes were bloodshot, and his hair was shooting off in all different directions. If I hadn't been sipping my own coffee, I would have smiled awkwardly at the adorable sight.

Setting my mug down, I cleared my throat. I needed to know what had happened, especially why he was in my apartment over night. Hopefully he had the missing pieces to the puzzle I had been trying to figure out for the past hour. I had never blacked out before from going drinking and the thought of not consciously remembering my night made me a little uneasy. I smiled at him and began my inquisition.

"Mind telling me what happened last night after our round of tequila shots?" I asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable. "And most of all, why were you knocked out on my couch?"

The grin that came to his lips didn't make me feel any better. "Well, let's see" he began, obviously enjoying tormenting me. "After the rest'a them tapped out, we kept goin' shot for shot for a little while. Lasted longer than I thought you would, girl. Gotta hand it to you. Once we were finished with that, we needed to get ya home so I got us a cab, carried ya and put'cha inside. My bike is still there, hopefully."

I breathed a little easier knowing that he hadn't driven home drunk on the motorcycle. I grabbed my coffee again and nodded to him so he'd continue filling me in on the events of our night.

"We got back here and I carried ya in here, then your boy called. Got pretty heated, too. Apparently, he was upset that you went out without telling him."

I scoffed as I cocked my head to the side in surprise. "How'd you know that?"

He looked down and twiddled his thumbs. "You had it on speakerphone."

"Shit."

Chuckling a bit, Daryl continued. "Oh, it gets better, girl. Trust me. Y'all got into it pretty bad. You told him that he didn't own you and that you could do whatever you damn well pleased, if memory serves. Then ya told him it was over and hung up on 'im."

I choked on my coffee. "You've got to be kidding..." He had to have been. I wouldn't have broken up with Jimmy, especially over the phone...would I? I ran my fingers through my still straight hair and sighed as I dropped my head into my chest. I found it difficult to breathe. After about five years together, had I really gotten drunk enough to end things like that? "Explains the calls and texts." I mused reluctantly.

"Yeah, he's a persistent son of a bitch, I'll tell ya that." Daryl replied. "But every time he called or wrote you, you laughed and said it felt good to not worry about him."

That still didn't explain why Daryl was sleeping in my living room. Regardless of what had happened with Jimmy, had I done something with Daryl? I couldn't have. If we had done something, wouldn't I have woken up to him in my bed? Unless we didn't make it that far...

"Okay, and why were you sleepin' on my sofa?" I asked, my voice shaky and timid. I was more afraid of that answer than anything else.

"You asked me to stay" he replied, his voice equally as quiet. "You tried ta get me to sleep in bed with ya, but I turned ya down. Promised I'd stay on the couch until ya woke up. You even got me a pillow and blanket from your bed so I'd be comfy. I had planned to leave after ya had knocked out, but I fell asleep. Do ya know how comfy this couch is?"

I laughed at his question and it was laden with relief. I was glad that nothing had happened between me and Daryl, but I still felt like I had made a fool of myself. I let myself sink back into the padding of the chair as I hung my legs off the armrest. From that position, I was staring straight at him and I couldn't help but smile, regardless of how bad I felt.

"I'm guessing that was you who left the aspirin and water by my bed?" I asked, the smile still playing on my lips. Just the thought of him being so caring and considerate left my stomach in knots and tangles. He nodded as he leaned forward and got up from his place on the couch.

"Thought ya'd need it" he said quietly. "You weren't exactly that good at takin' orders last night. Y'er one hell of a stubborn woman." As he spoke, he folded the blanket he'd used and placed it on top of the pillow, moving it to the farthest end of the couch. Then he grabbed his mug and brought it to the sink, washed it, and put it in the rack to dry. His manners seemed so out of place based on our first interaction, but the more time I spent with him, the more of a gentleman he became in my eyes.

"What happened to your shirt?" I asked as I stood and finished the rest of my coffee. I brought it to the sink and repeated the process Daryl had done before I heard him laugh.

"You did. Had to throw it away after whatcha did to it. There's no way I woulda gotten the smell out."

I blushed, hard. I had no idea that I had gotten sick, but I'm glad he wasn't upset about it. Well, at least he sounded like he wasn't upset. I made up my mind that I'd buy him a new one to replace the one I ruined, and turned to face him, my body leaning back on the counter.

"I am so sorry" I said with earnest. "I really shouldn't have drank that much."

Daryl smiled as he walked to the door and put his boots on. He looked much more comfortable in my apartment than he had last time and it made me feel so much better. "Don't worry about it" he said kindly. He winked while he spoke again. "What are boyfriend's for?"

I laughed at the memory much harder than I anticipated. I remembered Zach cornering me after I sang on stage, and I remembered Daryl coming to my rescue, pretending to be my boyfriend so Zach would leave me alone. There was just something about that kid that didn't sit well with me, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

As he opened the door, Daryl turned and smiled at me. "By the way" he said softly. "You have a beautiful singing' voice." And with that, he was gone. I didn't hear his door open or shut, so I assumed he went to go back to the bar to get his motorcycle. It wasn't for another ten minutes or so that I heard a knock on my door.

"Did you forget something?!" I yelled while I opened the door, but who was there caught me completely off guard. My heart began to race and I could feel my stomach churning like I was going to be sick.

Jimmy put his hand on the door frame and leaned in close to me, the smell of alcohol pouring off every inch of his body. "Who woulda forgotten somethin'?"