The Spare Room

Summary: The bills keep piling up and if Daryl Dixon has any hope of improving his life, he and his brother are going to have to find someone to fill their spare room. The problem is that while he can't stand his new roommate, he finds himself falling for his roommate's girlfriend. Caryl. AU.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that you recognize from the Walking Dead.

Chapter 7

One nice thing about living on the edge of town was that Daryl had access to the woods if he ever needed an escape. As soon as he hit the treeline, Daryl took off in a run. He knew this section of forest well enough to know where branches had fallen on the path and where the gnarled roots had come up out of the ground. He was going to his favourite place, a section of creek that had widened to create a small pool. Animals used it as a watering hole and more often than not, Daryl got to observe some deer or even a coyote looking for a cool drink. The pool was untouched. Most people didn't bother to go as deeply into the woods as he did.

Daryl found it calming to listen to the trickle of the water as it flowed and as he breathed in the fresh forest air, he was able to tamp down the urge for a cigarette. He had been trying to quit since moving to Cranwall and while he had yet to completely kick the habit, he had cut back a lot. He was down to four cigarettes a day and he wanted to keep it that way. That was why whenever he felt agitated, he would come to this spot and let nature calm him as it had done when he was a boy hiding from the wrath of his daddy. Coming to this spot helped Daryl calm down enough to resist the cravings.

Daryl settled on the forest floor, a few feet from the water's edge, and tossed pebbles into the calm water, creating a ripple of rings on the glassy surface.

He had been trying to be nice…accommodating to Carol Taylor. He offered her a drink and his company, even though at that point, he just wanted to be left to his own devices after a shitty day at work. Still, the woman was good company and he enjoyed talking with her. She wasn't one of those fake women who simply smiled and nodded to whatever he had to say. She seemed to genuinely care about what he had to say. Hell, she seemed to genuinely care about him and THAT was saying something, considering they had only met three days ago. Daryl hadn't had anyone worry for his safety since his mama was alive. Sure, Merle fought with their daddy to protect Daryl, but that was different. Merle had worried about Pa beating the shit out of Daryl, not the little things. Daryl's mama had worried if Daryl would fall down the porch steps or come across a poisonous snake in the long grass behind the garden shed. Carol was similar to his mama in that sense. She cared and didn't want to see anyone harmed, even if it was just a sliver. Daryl understood that about her. He liked her for it.

And then Ed had happened, consumed by a fit of jealousy over Carol asking Daryl a simple question. Sure, the question had caught Daryl off guard, but there was no need for Peletier to react like that, getting in her face and accusing her of being unfaithful. After all of the shit Daryl's daddy had put his mama through, Daryl wasn't going to stand to see a woman like Carol get mistreated. He intervened and then Ed's wrath had turned on him. Even though Ed had a clear weight advantage, he had underestimated how a man can panic when trapped. Daryl couldn't help but wonder if the fear had shown on his face when Ed had grabbed him. For a moment there, Daryl was not twenty-two and fighting a man a year younger than him. For a moment, he was twelve-years-old and he was trapped in his daddy's grasp, anticipating a beating for slamming a door when his old man was hung over. He had struggled against Ed and had thrown the first punch in a bid to escape. Daryl had received the second one and in the glassy water of the pool, he took note of his blackened eye.

Things were said and Daryl had been pissed. He had said that if Carol had any sense, she wouldn't be with that asshole. In that moment, Ed had been exactly like Daryl's daddy and a good woman like Carol didn't deserve a man like that. She deserved someone better, someone honorable, who appreciated her.

'Like who? You?' an inner voice in Daryl's brain taunted.

He shook his head. A woman like Carol didn't need no Dixon either.

'She doesn't,' the voice agreed, 'but think about it. That little woman on YOUR arm, cooking YOU dinner, calling out YOUR name in YOUR bed…'

The images that filled his mind did something to him. The thought of Carol looking up at him, her eyes filled with warmth and love made his heart beat faster. The idea of sitting down with her, after a long day of work, to a home-cooked meal as they shared stories about their days sounded almost perfect. After all, he hadn't minded talking to her at all today. It had been downright pleasant and he couldn't say that about talking with most people. And then, the image of her beneath him, her face contorted in pleasure as he thrust into her made him dig his fingers into the earth. He would make sure she enjoyed it. He liked sex better when his partner was enjoying it and judging from Ed's performance the other night, she hadn't enjoyed it that much at all.

But then he felt guilty. He was fantasizing about another man's girlfriend, a woman who didn't deserve to be the object of Daryl's fantasies.

'But they may not be together much longer…' the voice reminded him.

And it was true. Ed had been an asshole tonight and surely Carol would see that as well. She might decide that Ed wasn't the man she had thought he was and dump his ass…but then if that happened, Daryl probably wouldn't see her again. They didn't run in the same circles. She was well-off, a banker's daughter. He was trash, an alcoholic's son who sprayed ditches and spent his free time keeping Merle in line. Besides that, the thought of pursuing Carol made Daryl's stomach do nervous flops. It seemed like a daunting task to keep on with a woman, one of the reasons that Daryl had never had a real serious relationship…and if he ever dated Carol…well, she was the real serious type of relationship. Like Merle said, if you had her, you held onto her. Daryl had never had anything like that in his life. He didn't know exactly if he could hold onto it if he ever got it.

'Well, too bad you're a Dixon then…too useless to go after what you want…'

0-TSR-0

Carol got up off the bed and approached the window. Standing there on the lawn was her boyfriend once again tossing pebbles up at her window. For a moment, Carol just stood there watching him and trying to figure out how the remorseful man standing down in her yard was the same one who reacted so violently to a simple comment.

"He's trying," Catherine observed, "What are you going to do?"

That was really the question. Was Carol willing to hear him out or was she finished with him? Looking down at Ed now, Carol was more acutely reminded of what she stood to lose by breaking up with him. At the same time, however, she wasn't going to simply turn a blind eye to his actions. She pushed the window up and opened.

"What are you doing here, Ed?" she asked.

"Carol, Sweetheart, we need to talk," he said.

"We do," Carol agreed.

"Good," Ed replied, relived that she was in agreement, "Come on down here and we'll talk."

She knew that was coming. She knew he'd want to talk tonight, but as of tonight, he was still drunk and she was still annoyed by his presence.

"No," she told him, shaking her head, "We-"

"Dammit, you just said you'd give me a chance!" Ed griped, his voice rising from the whisper-yells.

"I will, but not tonight," Carol said quickly so that she could keep him quiet before he woke her parents, "I'd rather talk while you're sober and while my head is cooler."

"Sweetheart, let's just get it over with-"

"No. We'll talk tomorrow at five thirty at the Burger Baron," Carol said firmly, shutting her window to him. She turned to her sister, who sat with her eyebrows raised.

"Nice going, Sis. I've never seen you talk like that to somebody before," Catherine told her, clearly impressed.

"Then that gives you an idea about how I feel about this whole thing," Carol replied, moving away from the window, "You ought to get to bed, Cath. Last I hear, high school is still in session in May."

Catherine rolled her eyes, "Yes, Mom."

She promptly ducked as Carol threw a pillow at her on her way out the door.

0-TSR-0

It had been a while since Merle had the house to himself. Daryl was off pouting in the woods and Ed was off trying to woo the little woman. Merle found he didn't like the silence, so he sat in the darkened living room with the TV on. They really rarely used the thing, one of the reasons that Daryl had decided against getting cable. Merle's only two options for viewing right now consisted of the Late Show and a re-run of The Beverly Hillbillies. Since the Beverly Hillbillies had the ditzy blond in a bathing suit swimming in the 'cement pond', Merle opted for that, though his mind was elsewhere.

Try as he might, he could not stop thinking about that whole damn afternoon and what his brother had said to him.

It really bothered him that his brother thought that he didn't care about Peletier throwing punches. Of course Merle cared. He spent most of his childhood getting in between Daryl and their pa's fists up until he was seventeen and he had to get away before he killed the old man. Merle took countless beatings to ensure that Daryl would be safe and he would gladly put himself in between his brother and harm. The situation with Ed was different, though. The Dixons needed the money of a third person. Sure, they could get by without Ed, but it would take Daryl that much longer to get his ass into school and for as much as Merle razzed his brother, he wanted Daryl to go to school.

Daryl was a rarity in their family. He was the first Dixon to graduate high school. His brother, father, uncles, and cousins had opted to drop out to either work, ramble around the country-side, or to support a family. Most of the Dixon clan had thought schooling was a waste of time, but Daryl had been determined to make something of himself and for that, Merle could not be prouder of the boy. If there was anyone that could break the mould, it was Daryl.

And Merle wanted to see Daryl actually go to school. He feared that if his little brother waited too long, he'd never go and then he'd regret it for the rest of his life. At thirty, Merle was eight years older than Daryl. He had enlisted in the military at nineteen and served for three years before he was dishonorably discharged. After that, he rambled around Georgia for two years before returning to Clayton to retrieve his baby brother, who would have been sixteen at the time. Daryl hadn't wanted to leave with Merle, though. He wanted to stay in Clayton and finish his schooling, so Merle waited on him. Merle learned about Daryl's desire to go even further than high school and it was at this time that Merle was seeing a bank teller who helped him open a savings account in Daryl's name. They made it so that Merle could put money into it, but only Daryl could withdraw it when he was ready. The money was safer that way. Daryl didn't even know about it, but it was Merle's way of making amends.

"Feels good, don't it?" Merle asked, lounging happily in the shallows of the local lake as his eyes roamed over the women sunbathing on the beach.

"Sure does," Daryl agreed, sitting on the dock with his feet dangling in the water. Merle, who was more than happy to be submerged in the cool water, found it unacceptable that his sixteen-year-old brother refused to jump in. He pulled Daryl down into the water by his leg, making the boy curse up a blue streak.

"The fuck ya think ya doin', ya fucker?" Daryl demanded, spluttering as he surfaced.

"Live a little, Brother," Merle taunted, laughing. Daryl scowled and began making his way to the shore, his white wife-beater clinging to his wet skin. Under the thin material, Merle saw something on his brother's back, some sort of indentation in his skin that made the scars on Merle's back throb for the first time in years.

Later that night, when Daryl was asleep, Merle crept into his room and pulled back the blanket to reveal the scarred back of his younger brother.

Merle never spoke about it, but he still felt the crushing guilt over leaving and not being there to protect his brother from the wrath of their father. It was the thing that made him open up the account and made him add to it every month. A good portion of Merle's paycheck went into the account and the last thing he wanted to do was waste the money on rent when it was really meant for Daryl. That was why they needed Peletier around and that was why Merle was currently feeling like a shitty brother for keeping the guy around. Still, aside from act like a grade A asshole, Peletier hadn't done much to hurt Daryl. Hell, Daryl had even threw the first punch so in a way, he was asking to get hit. It was a minor thing and if they tried, both men could get past it and Merle could continue to use Ed's money for rent so that he could continue saving for Daryl.

The front door opened and Merle twisted to see who was coming in. Ed made his way into the living room and flopped down on the sofa, a bottle covered by a paper bag clutched in his hand.

"She said she don't wanna talk to me," Ed groused, "Said she wanted to wait 'til I was sorry or sober or some shit," he slurred.

"Smart woman," Merle grunted.

"I'll get her back. She won't stay mad long…she never does. Got her eatin' out of the palm of my hand. She wants to marry me," Ed boasted. Merle frowned over at him.

"She gonna wanna marry ya if ya homeless?" he asked. Merle watched with some satisfaction as Ed's head snapped up.

"What're ya talkin' 'bout?" he demanded.

"I'm talkin' 'bout that shit ya pulled in the yard," Merle clarified, getting to his feet so that he loomed over Edward Peletier in a menacing manner, "You ever fight with my brother again, you ever touch him again, your ass is out of here. Got it?"

The two men locked eyes and for a moment, Merle hoped that Ed would get belligerent. Instead, Ed nodded his head and assured Merle, "I ain't got nothin' against your brother. Was just a misunderstandin' is all."

"See that it is," Merle told him, turning to go to his room, leaving Ed to watch the antics of Jethro and Granny on the TV.

TBC

AN: Okay, so this was more of a filler chapter than anything, but at least it gave you some insight into the Dixons. Updates might be slow over the next few days. I'm gonna be camping. Also, I want to focus on updating my other fic, A Better Man, as I feel I've been neglecting it since starting this one.

Please let me know what you think so far! Thank you for all of the wonderful and kind support!