A few days passed and Carol was absolutely miserable. She tried to avoid Daryl in the hall…she tried to avoid him everywhere. She'd go out of her way to avoid him if she saw him anywhere in public. She didn't know what to say to him and the whole thing seemed awkward. He'd quit coming to the Watering Hole, and while she was working there she couldn't help but notice that Merle hardly looked in her direction and Andrea had little more to say to her than what she had to say regarding work.

She'd never meant for this to happen, and she wished she could undo the entire thing. She wished she'd never even slept with Daryl in the first place.

Carol got off work at the Watering Hole on Friday night as she normally did. Andrea was locking up and told her that she could wait for her outside. They'd walk to the apartments together. Carol stepped out into the night air and waited for Andrea, feeling bad that the woman seemed to think she needed to babysit her. Andrea wasn't being mean to her since she'd broken things off with Daryl, but she was more or less just tolerating her, and the tolerating was almost harder to take than ignoring her would be.

Carol's heart jumped a little when she saw headlights. She lived with the constant nightmare that one of these nights she was going to see headlights somewhere and it would be Ed. He'd be coming at her like he had that day in town, and she wouldn't have any way to get away from him. She couldn't even count, these days, on Daryl showing up unannounced to act like any kind of surprise knight in armor.

The headlights, though, that pulled up now were connected to the front of a police cruiser.

"You shouldn't be out here by yourself," Shane Walsh called out the window as the car rolled to a stop. Carol smiled a little, relieved to see that it was Shane and not Ed popping out of her nightmares. She walked quickly across the parking lot, coming to a stop a few feet from the door.

"Andrea's locking up," she said. "She'll be out in a minute. Rick left not half an hour ago."

Shane nodded at her a little.

"So you're off work for the night?" He asked.

Carol smiled at him again. It was a silly question. She didn't get off work from the Watering Hole until they'd pushed the final drunks out into the street. Once they were gone, there was little reason to hang around the rat trap.

"Yeah, I'm off," she said.

"Why don't you come for a ride?" Shane asked. "I'm off now and I was thinking of swinging by the Dairy-O, see if there's anything to see."

Carol wasn't sure if she should go or not. Michonne had worked out a deal with Ed's lawyer and the divorce was in some kind of state of processing. Apparently things would be worked out there rather quickly and Michonne was confident that it would be granted before long. Carol didn't think that there was anything that anyone could say about her going to the Dairy-O with Shane, but she wasn't positive. Still, he was a police officer, so they might not even pay it any attention, and it was just ice cream.

"I…" she hesitated, looking around to see if Andrea had emerged from the building yet.

"Come on, Carol Ann, it's muggy as hell and I'm wide awake. I know you're not going straight to sleep after dealing with those sloppy drunks," Shane said, smiling.

Carol considered it for a moment longer and turned when she heard Andrea call her from the sidewalk.

"You coming?" Andrea asked. "Who the fuck…oh…night, Shane," Andrea called.

"Night Andrea," Shane called back. "What'cha say? I'll take you home, safe and sound."

Carol nodded, finally and turned back toward Andrea.

"You go on without me," Carol called. "I'm going with Shane."

Andrea stood on the sidewalk for a moment obviously trying to figure out if she should actually continue on the walk back to the apartment buildings or not. Carol circled around the car and pulled open the passenger side door, sliding in. It was only when she looked over her shoulder, buckling her seatbelt, that she noticed Andrea finally start to head home for the night.

Carol felt strange as they headed toward the last place that was open in Sweet Junction besides the all-night pharmacy and liquor store. She felt, for a moment, like she was back in high school. Shane was handsome, and he was charming. Carol almost felt her head swimming for a minute with the school girl thrill that he'd picked her up from work to drive her out for ice cream.

"Nobody too out of control in there tonight?" Shane asked, steering the car in the direction of the small restaurant that would likely be packed with teenagers who'd negotiated a later curfew and drunks who were trying to eat something to absorb whatever alcohol they'd guzzled.

"Not too bad," Carol said. "Nothing out of line for a Friday night at least."

Shane chuckled a little and pulled the car to a stop in one of the parking spots.

"What do you want?" Shane asked. "My treat."

"You don't have to treat me," Carol said. "I make my own money now, and this isn't a date."

Shane smiled at her.

"I insist," he said. "What do you want?"

"Strawberry," Carol said. "In a waffle cone."

Shane smiled again, unbuckling his seatbelt and heaving open the door.

"One strawberry waffle cone for the lady," Shane said. "Coming right up. You hold things down out here and don't mess with the radio." He winked at her and closed the car door.

Carol sat there, in the cruiser, and watched as Shane made his way into the little restaurant, nodding in the direction of several people and speaking to a few more. She'd had a crush on Shane in high school, but for whatever reason he'd never been interested in her. She hated to admit that she was curious if he was interested now, or if he just genuinely happened to pass by the Watering Hole at precisely the time that they were closing up shop.

When Shane came back, he got in the car and passed her the cone. She thanked him and licked at it, glad that he brought extra napkins because no matter how hard she tried, she'd never been very good at eating ice cream without making a mess.

"I've got an idea," Shane said. "It's a nice night. Let's drive down to the lake."

Carol felt her heart jump in her chest and she suddenly felt like she was sixteen again. Going to the lake had been a big deal when they were in high school. She didn't know if it still was, but it had always been the place where they had picnics during the day, but at night you went there for pretty much one of two things, which really ended up being only one thing. You went there to swim, or you went there to park…and usually you went there to swim until you worked up the nerve to park.

"I don't know," Carol said, momentarily forgetting that there was ice cream in her hand that risked dripping all over her in the Georgia heat.

"Come on," Shane said, switching on the car and backing out of his parking spot. "It would be a shame to waste the night."

Carol realized that she had very little say in the matter right now. Shane was eating his ice cream with one hand and steering the car through town with the other. She tried to focus on her ice cream and not let the panic that was threatening to overtake her rise up.

She didn't know why she felt panicked either. She certainly had the right to choose what she did or didn't do at the lake, and she was an adult. She could do what she wished with Shane Walsh if that was what she decided she wanted to do. The whole thing was in her control. Still, she felt like a panicked virgin just at the thought of going there.

When she was in high school she never would have dreamed of going to the lake. She heard other girls talk about it, but she wasn't that kind of girl. Come to think of it, that could have very likely been why Shane Walsh had never been interested in her in high school. She'd never even been out there with Ed.

Carol nearly gave herself brain freeze a time or two because she was focusing so hard on her ice cream to relieve her growing nervousness, that she swallowed half the ice cream cone whole. Shane drove along, casually eating his ice cream, and every now and again he would glance in her direction and smile. She wondered if he could tell that she was freaking out, and that she hoped she didn't get sick and throw strawberry ice cream up all over the place.

When they pulled up to the lake, Carol realized that somewhere along the line there had been some kind of generation gap. She expected the place to be crowded with cars and teenagers, but they appeared to be the only car out there. She reasoned that over the years there had been some other place that was dedicated as the cool place to spend a Friday night.

"Come on," Shane said, unbuckling his seat belt. "It's nice out, we can sit on the hood."

Carol sighed and mopped the sticky remnants off her hand the best she could. She unbuckled her seat belt and got out. Shane slipped up on the hood of the cruiser and leaned back against the windshield, his hands under his arms.

"Won't that bend the hood?" Carol asked.

Shane sat up a little and chuckled.

"Don't know if you noticed, Carol Ann, but these cars aren't exactly in the best shape. It won't be the first damage the hood has ever seen," Shane said.

Carol tried to figure out how to gracefully get on the hood, but she wasn't experienced at this sort of thing and she somewhat afraid that she would step somewhere she shouldn't and pull something off.

Shane sat up and watched her fumble around for a second before sliding off and coming around. He caught her around the hips and she gasped a little, not expecting the contact. He smiled a half smile at her and heaved her off her feet, sitting her down on the hood. She didn't move until he'd removed his hands from her hips and circled around again, hoisting himself back into his original position.

Carol leaned back against the windshield like she'd seen Shane doing. It was a nice night, and the view of the lake was peaceful. The moon was big and full and it glittered on the water.

"It's nice out here," Carol said, feeling more relaxed now about the situation.

"I like to come out here when I'm off duty," Shane said. "It's quiet and it sort of helps you wind down. I'm not always ready for bed when I get off work."

"I know what you mean," Carol said. "Sometimes I come in and I can barely make it to the bed and other nights I feel like I could run half a marathon before I go to sleep."

For a little while they stayed there in silence then, both gazing out over the lake. Carol closed her eyes and listened to the sounds around her, enjoying the quiet. She'd never imagine this place to be like this at night, but then again all she'd ever heard about it was how many people had been there and how fast they could steam up windows before the police came knocking on them. She laughed a little at the thought that now she was perched on a police car at the very same spot the police used to interrupt the backseat fumblings of inexperienced high school students.

"What's so funny?" Shane asked.

"I guess this isn't what it used to be in high school," Carol said. "Where do the teenagers go now?"

Shane chuckled a little.

"You remember everything, don't you?" He asked. "No, the lake isn't the go to spot anymore. Most nights that I'm out here I'm surprised if I see another car. Now the kids all go down to Milland's Pond. You know over there off Route 4."

Shane sat up a little, and Carol turned, watching him look out over the lake. He turned back at her and smiled, half laughing to himself.

"God I hate the nights that I'm on duty and I have to go out there," Shane said. "I always feel like the biggest asshole tapping on their windows and telling them to go home. I'm wrecking every high school boy's fantasy of cherry chapstick and bubblegum. I've become the asshole I hated in high school."

"Their parents are probably thankful that you're that asshole, though," Carol said. "The scenery might have changed, but I'm sure that reputations are formed just as quickly now as they ever were."

"Yeah…" Shane said, "maybe you're right. Still, they're just being healthy teenagers. It's hard to treat them like they're really breaking some kind of serious law."

Carol sat up and pulled her knees up to her then. The air was damp with humidity, but there didn't seem to be any bugs out. Around them the only sounds were frogs and crickets happily humming. She turned back toward Shane and he was half smiling at her, barely visible in the moonlight.

"What?" She asked.

"You're just as pretty as you were in high school," Shane said. "Maybe prettier, if it's possible."

Carol felt herself blush and was thankful that he wouldn't be able to see that in the darkness.

"And you're still the same sweet talker," she said.

"I don't sweet talk like I used to," Shane said. "You grow out of that. Start realizing that it really isn't getting you anywhere, especially in a town like this."

Carol yawned. She was getting tired now and the peace and tranquility around them just reminded her that she was sleepy.

"Am I picking you up in the morning?" Shane asked.

"No," Carol said, stifling another yawn. "Michonne doesn't work again until Monday. I'm off tomorrow. I'm working at Lula's on Sunday, but I won't need a ride there."

"Ed leaving you alone?" Shane asked.

"So far," Carol said. "I just keep thinking that he's going to show up, but he hasn't. I hope it stays that way."

"I heard through the grapevine that he's thinking of leaving town. That new construction company's putting him under, so they say. I'm not sure too many people will be sad to see him go," Shane said. He glanced back toward Carol again.

"I wish he would leave," Carol said. "I've always heard that you shouldn't regret having loved someone, but that's not the case with Ed. I regret everything about him. I wish he was gone and I never even had to hear his name again."

"That's the crazy thing about love," Shane said, "it can bite you in the ass."

Carol chuckled a little.

"I didn't think you ever loved anyone," Carol said. "If you did, I never heard about it."

"Grapevine doesn't know everything," Shane said. "I've been in love before. A couple of times, actually. Well, at least once…maybe the other times I just thought I was…"

Carol lolled her head toward him, smiling.

"What?" Shane asked. "I can't say I've been in love?"

"Sure you can," Carol said, "but it just sounds like here comes the part where you tell me you were in love with me and then I'm supposed to swoon over it…except I shouldn't be wearing my uniform from the bar. I should be wearing something more akin to what I wear to Lula's."

Shane chuckled.

"Shows how much you know, Carol," he said. "I was in love with Lori Sharp."

"Rick's wife?" Carol asked. "I never knew anything about that."

"Ah, the great all-knowing Oz of Sweet Junction doesn't know everything," Shane said. "By the time that I was in love with her she'd already been going out with Rick for about six months. I don't think she even knew what I felt about her."

"So you don't know if you loved her or not," Carol said. "You thought you might, but you really can't know if you love someone if you've never tried being in love with them."

"You get that shit off of Oprah?" Shane asked.

Carol giggled at him.

Shane slid off the car and circled around to her side. She scooted over, certain she could probably slide off the car without half the trouble that she'd had getting up, but realizing that he was going to be a gentleman and keep her from possibly spilling into the grass. Shane wrapped his hands around her waist and started to slide her off the hood, but suddenly she stopped the downward motion. She was pinned against the fender, still barely resting on it, and Shane's arms were around her.

Carol wasn't sure exactly what to do at the moment. Shane smiled at her, and leaned in, his lips brushing against hers. She kissed him back, tentatively, unsure of whether or not she wanted to kiss him at all.

One of his arms left its position around her, and she felt her weight shift a little. Her right toes barely touched the ground, but she remained suspended, pinned between Shane and the car, his leg supporting her state.

The hand that had left its station rubbed the side of her face gently and she felt him tuck a loose curl behind her ear. He was looking at her, a calm look on his face. He leaned in, kissing her again, and she felt his tongue teasing her lips. She let his tongue in and he kissed her fully, his hand travelling then down to her thigh and wrapping around it.

Carol pulled away from the kiss as much as she could in her current position. She was a little short of breath and he was pressed against her tight enough that even if she wanted she couldn't have breathed too deeply.

"We should go home," she said.

Shane smiled softly and kissed the side of her face. The hand on her thigh trailed upwards and she felt him rubbing the inside of her thigh, just inside the leg of the shorts she was wearing. She swallowed.

"It's still early," Shane said. "It's not like our parents are waiting up for us."

Carol wasn't really sure what to do now. She realized, suddenly that she didn't want this to go any farther, but she was a little afraid that she might have let herself be led into some kind of trap. There was no one out here, and Shane was a police officer.

"I think we should go," Carol repeated.

Shane kissed the side of her face again, his tongue trailing a line across her jawbone. He leaned into her ear.

"You're not in high school anymore, Carol Ann. There's no need to protect your virtue," Shane said.

"It isn't about that," Carol said. "I don't want to do this…"

She felt Shane's hand trail deeper into her shorts and rub against the seam of her underwear. She sucked in a breath.

"If you don't want to do this here, we can go back to my place," Shane said. "I understand if you're one of those romantics that likes to have a bed. I'll be good to you, you'll like it."

Shane searched her lips out again and Carol turned her face away from him.

"I don't want to have sex with you, Shane. Not here and not at your apartment. Not at all," she said. She held her breath for a moment, not knowing what to expect. She thought that maybe he'd attack her. Maybe she'd end up some kind of statistic. She didn't expect him to back away, setting her down on the ground.

As soon as her feet hit the ground and Shane had backed a few steps away, Carol nervously tugged at her shorts and shirt, making sure everything was where it should be.

Shane looked at her and ran his fingers through his hair. He stepped forward and Carol jumped, but he didn't go for her. Instead he opened the passenger side door and stood there until she walked a large circle around him and got in. He closed the door and circled around, climbing in the driver's seat.

When he'd buckled himself in, he ran his fingers through his hair again and cranked the car, chuckling a little.

"Carol Ann McAlister," he said, a low growl to his voice, "once the ice princess, always the ice princess."

Carol sat back in her seat. The nickname, one she'd heard a few times in high school for having turned a few guys down for dates that might have gone similar to this, stung more than she thought it would after all these years.

"You're going to pickle, Carol," Shane said, shaking his head. "It's a waste too. Keep yourself all locked up tight. Protect your reputation, but one day you won't have to protect it because no one's going to want it at all."

Carol didn't say anything. She bit back the tears a little at the thought of herself growing old and alone. Maybe Shane was right, or maybe he was just goading her because she'd turned him down and hurt his pride a little. She rode in silence until they pulled up at the apartment. She started to open the door, but Shane's hand shot out and caught her arm. She turned quickly toward him and he didn't look as annoyed as he had before.

"No hard feelings," he said. "I'll pick you up for work on Monday."

Carol didn't know if she should tell him that she was sorry that she hadn't wanted to have sex with him, or if she should thank him for continuing to drive her to work in light of the fact that she hadn't had sex with him. She was in unfamiliar territory here. Finally, she simply opened the car door and crawled out of the car.

"See you Monday," she said. "Goodnight."

She walked toward her apartment, aware that behind her Shane was waiting to make sure that she got at least to the lit stairway without a problem. She dug her keys out of her purse, fighting back the tears and wondering why exactly she was so upset that she couldn't wait to get to her bedroom and let out everything that was puddling up just behind her eyes.