It was the first moment all night that she'd had to herself and Carol was thankful for the breather. She was having a wonderful time, but she wasn't used to so much stimuli and it was a bit overwhelming for her - especially since she was the only one over 21 that was completely sober.
The week had went by much quicker than she expected. When Daryl and her parted ways earlier in the week she offered to pick him up. As far as he knew she'd only offered because she didn't plan on drinking so she would DD for him. But there were also a couple of other reasons she wanted to pick him up. Firstly, she didn't want to arrive alone and have to deal with that initial awkwardness. And secondly, she wanted to make sure that Daryl would actually show up. Carol worried if he was left on his own to arrive he would just blow it off and that would have made her very sad.
The remainder of the week had been all about her contract. She took a day to read it over and make a list of questions, then found a lawyer and made an appointment. She had to drop of the contract ahead so he could read it over and they had met on the Friday to review it all. He helped her understand everything and they decided together that as long as she was okay with the amount of money being offered there really didn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary she needed to contest. When the showrunner and legal team called her in Carol was fully prepared to sign.
She was a little bit nervous about the clause related to promoting the show, but the lawyer said it was standard and it was highly unlikely they would be willing to change it. Being on the show meant she would have to help promote it - whatever interviews, photoshoots or TV appearances that might entail.
Now, after a busy week she was standing in Lori's living room, leaning against the wall with a glass of punch - the one without alcohol, watching a group of people interact who had literally been thrown together from all walks of life. These were people who very likely would have never been friends had this opportunity not come about. It was loud, but all she heard was happiness. Laughter, chatting, teasing - it was all in fun. Carol couldn't remember a time she'd been surrounded by so much joy. Sure, half of them were wasted, and most of the rest were well on their way, but they were all smiling and it made her so happy to see. She was overcome with the strangest sense of family - something she hadn't felt since she was a child.
"Come on Dixon, we're doing this again," she heard Shane call out loudly.
"Dude, he's beat you 6 times - give it up," Glenn shouted.
"Yeah, well he's had 3 beer and 2 shots since then - I got this," Shane laughed. Carol knew the cop had drank every bit as much since their last arm wrestling match, so she wasn't sure how it was going to make a difference.
"Alcohol only makes me stronger," Daryl announced, joining Shane at the table. Carol smiled. It was pretty cute watching Daryl win every single time. Shane clearly had a huge ego and could not deal with the fact that he couldn't beat Daryl. Besides, she wasn't going to complain about watching two handsome men display their rather sexy biceps yet again.
Shane really gave it a good try and held Daryl off for a lot longer than usual, which made Carol wonder if perhaps Daryl was playing with him a bit. But in the end it was Shane's hand slammed against the table yet again and the room lit up with chants of 'Dar-yl, Dar-yl, Dar-yl.' She joined in and saw him look her way. Carol knew he was checking to see if he'd impressed her and she gave him a little smile. It was her way of patting his head and saying 'you did good' from across the room.
About an hour later things were starting to get out of hand and being the only sober person left Carol was scrambling. She had just come back inside after dealing with Glenn, who had puked and then passed out on the front porch. The only thing she could do was drag him out of the way so he didn't get stepped on and cover him with a blanket. He was a really cute kid and Carol liked him already. Half an hour earlier he'd been standing on the couch belting out a horrible version of My Heart Will go on while acting out the 'King of the world' scene from Titanic.
She had already called a cab for Andrea and Amy which Dale jumped in as well. Carol was surprised that he'd joined in the festivities, though alcohol only made him talk more. Dale was still a sweet guy but she could already tell that Shane and him were not going to get along.
When she got back inside T-Dog was doing a strip tease version of Macarena while Jacqui and Lori cheered him on. When he got down to his boxers Carol decided she'd better shut it down. She quickly changed the song. "Heyyyy, what…" T-Dog yelled at her.
"Put your pants back on now or I'll snap photos for blackmail purposes," Carol threatened, throwing his jeans at him.
"Oh Baby, you could make a lot of money from those photos," T-Dog said, followed by a giggle. Carol almost laughed out loud at the girly giggle coming from the big Teddy bear. Thankfully he was making an attempt at getting his pants back on, which ended up with him falling flat on his face in a heap. She paused to see if he was okay, but when she heard the giggling again she moved on.
"There's another cab on the way," she announced to Rick. He was the only one left that wasn't completely wasted. He'd been drinking, but he wasn't obliterated. "But, uh, I think Glenn might be spending the night on your porch."
Rick slung an arm around her shoulder. "Thanks for being the party mom," he said. "But I feel bad that you didn't get to have a drink or two with the rest of us."
"Oh hell no, after the bar the other night… I'm done with booze for a long time," Carol moaned. Just thinking about that night and the next morning made her nauseous.
"I like him," Rick said, out of the blue, pointing over at Daryl. "I don't know why the fuck I do, but… I do. Ya know?" Carol nodded. She did know. She knew exactly what Rick meant. There was just something about Daryl that she was drawn to and it wasn't something she could explain or figure out. "I think he's ready to go home though," Rick added with a laugh. Daryl looked like he was about to fall asleep. "Go ahead - I can get the rest in the cab." Rick leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Seriously, thank you."
Carol squeezed his hand. "Any time." She walked over to where Daryl was sitting on the couch and plopped down beside him. It startled him and he jumped which made her laugh. "Come on Drunky Pants, let's get you home to bed."
"You're coming to bed with me?" he asked with a stupid grin.
"You wish," Carol flirted back. She knew she really shouldn't have done it, but it felt good.
"I do wish," he sighed. "I really do." Carol froze momentarily. His drunken admission was shocking. Was it just that? A flirty, horny, drunken moment? Or was it a slip of truth that he was too drunk to keep to himself? Either way - she was rendered speechless for a moment.
Once she regained her composure Carol jumped up and grabbed his arm. "Come on. We're leaving."
"Okay," Daryl replied, very cooperatively. They said their goodbyes and she helped him to her car. When she leaned over to buckle him in she knew Daryl was looking down the front of her shirt. "You have nice tits," he commented. Carol finished quickly and gave him a look. "What? You do. I've seen them, remember?"
"Yes, I remember that very well," she sighed.
"You have a nice ass too," he called out as she moved around to the driver's side. She allowed herself a smile before she got in and acted annoyed. Apparently alcohol was like a truth serum for Daryl. It was rather amusing.
"You're drunk and you should probably stop talking," Carol suggested.
"Oh no, I'm not drunk," Daryl slurred in response. "I'm not," he insisted when she snorted. "I'm an asshole when I'm drunk. A mean, snarly asshole." He shot her a goofy smile. "See, so I can't be drunk."
"Um, actually I think you have that backwards," Carol replied. "You're an asshole when you're sober."
"Heyyyyyy," he whined. "That ain't very nice." Daryl rolled down the window. "Why is it so hot I here," he moaned, sticking his hand out the window to feel the cool air.
They talked and laughed the entire drive to his house and Carol was actually feeling sad that the night was over when she pulled into his driveway. "Come on, I'll help you to the door," she offered. "I'm betting you won't be able to get the key in the hole."
"That's never a problem for me," Daryl said suggestively, giving her a sly look. Oh God, I hope he remembers all of this tomorrow she thought, knowing how embarrassed he would be. It wouldn't be as much fun to tease him later if he didn't remember any of it. She was pretty confident he wasn't the blackout type of guy.
Of course she was right and Carol had to help him get the door unlocked. "You think you can make it from here?" she asked.
"Aye, aye Captain," he said, saluting her.
Carol rolled her eyes and said goodnight. She could feel his eyes on her as she walked back to her car. "Stop checking out my ass," she called out with a laugh. She got in the car and started it. He closed the door when she backed out of the drive. Two blocks away she remembered something. "Shit," she cursed, slapping the steering wheel. She had to go back to Daryl's. Her pants didn't have pockets and she had accidentally taken her wallet into the party. Instead of taking it back to the car she'd given it to Daryl to put in his pocket.
When she got back to the house she knocked lightly and then tried the handle. It was open so she let herself in. "Daryl?" she called out.
"Kitchen," was his reply. She wandered towards the sound of his voice into the kitchen and gasped when she saw him. "Hey. I was starving. Want some Mac and Cheese?" he asked.
"Daryl," she squeezed her eyes shut. "Where are your clothes?" He was standing at the stove, stirring a pot, without a thing on. Buckassed naked.
"I told you I was too hot," he replied easily. Clearly he was way too drunk to care that she could see him nude if she opened her eyes. Even though she knew she shouldn't Carol snuck a peek. She was struck by two things. One - he had one of the nicests asses she'd ever seen and she really wanted to touch it. Two - his back was covered in scars.
The opposing emotions from the two sights were frightening. That part of her that was extremely turned on was instantly made to feel guilty by the tremendous empathy she felt looking at those scars. He'd been abused - just like her. It both explained and complicated so many things. Their instant connection that she couldn't figure out - it had to be related to their shared past. But Carol was almost positive it wasn't something Daryl shared with anyone or wanted her to know about or he would have said something when she talked about her own past. She was seeing something she wasn't supposed to see, far beyond his nakedness.
Carol decided to keep it light so she wouldn't upset him. This was his secret and it was none of her business until he wanted it to be. "Just tell me where your pants are. I need my wallet."
"You sure you don't want some?" Daryl asked, turning around.
"Oh… uhhh…" She was staring at his package and couldn't tear her eyes away.
"Carol, my eyes are up here," he said, teasing her.
She felt her face burn as she looked up at his huge smirk. "You are gonna be so embarrassed tomorrow," She said, shaking her head. "Where are your damn pants?"
"Living room," he replied, shoving a huge bite of the orange cheesy pasta in his mouth straight from the pot. Carol ducked away and found his jeans on the floor. She dug out her wallet. By the time she was done he was leaning in the entranceway still eating from the pot. "Guess we're even now, huh?"
"Oh no," she shook her head. "We are far from even. Sorry, Pookie," Carol replied with a wicked smile.
"Whatdya mean?" he said between chews.
"I don't remember what happened when I passed out in the shower," she started towards the front door and opened it. "But tomorrow when you wake up… you're gonna remember every second of this. Night night Pumpkin." With a triumphant grin Carol shut the door and headed to her car.
She tried her best to get the image of Daryl's junk and that nice ass out of her mind. Unfortunately it was the image of those scars on his back that replaced them. Carol headed home and hoped what she'd seen wasn't going to destroy the wonderful relationship they had built in such a short time.