Hotel Key

Chapter 30

2 Months Before Chapter One

Merle rode up to the campsite with his gear tied down to the back of his bike. When he spotted Jessica's camper, he pulled in. Jessica waved at him. She was sitting at a picnic table, eating lunch with her daughters. Brushing herself off, she headed over and wrapped her arms around him. He guessed that RickyJo heard the bike. Because she appeared from around the side of the camper, where she was lying in a pool chair reading a book.

"Let me guess," she said, "...Daryl isn't coming." Merle nodded. RickyJo had a big pair of dark sunglasses on. So it was hard to gauge her expression. But based solely on her body language, Merle could tell she was upset. She turned on her heel and headed quickly inside the camper, letting the door smack slap shut behind her.

"He's really not comin'," Jessica asked. Merle nodded again. "That little fuckin' bastard," Jessica added.

Daryl and RickyJo had both been acting crazy as shit ever since they got back from vacation. RickyJo had been spending all her time at work, and when she was home, she was hiding in her room with the door shut. And Daryl was acting like an even moodier little bastard than usual. Merle was relieved he didn't want to come camping so he could get the hell away from him.

"What in the fuck is goin' on with them?," he asked Jessica. He wasn't able to get anything out of Daryl except grunts and a lot of swear words. The only explanation Merle was able to come up with was that something really bad happened between them in Mexico. Maybe Daryl got too drunk and forced himself on her. Or one of them caught the other one in bed with someone else.

"Daryl say anythin' to you?," Jessica asked. Merle shook his head.

"Fucker won't say shit if he had a mouthful," he said, "...he's been acting like a fucking asshole. You know what's goin' on with them or what?" Merle liked RickyJo. And he wished his stupid ass brother would pony up and apologize for whatever he did so everything could go back to normal. But Daryl could be a stubborn little shit when he wanted to be. Jessica nodded, laughing when Merle sighed in relief. She did know what was going on. She got RickyJo drunk on cheap wine and then coaxed the whole story out of her.

Jessica's daughters were finished with lunch. They ran over to hug Merle and then took off for the playground. Jessica gave a stern warning to her older daughter that she better watch the little one. Then she grabbed a few beers for herself and Merle. And they sat down in the camping chairs. Jessica was glad he came. She was worried about her cousin. The last time she saw RickyJo this upset, was when they found out that Nana had cancer. Jessica opened her beer. And then she started telling Merle what she knew.

When she got to the campsite, RickyJo was acting weird and distant. She said she wasn't feeling well but Jessica could tell something else was wrong. Her first guess was that there was a problem with Laney again. There was always a problem with that bitch. But RickyJo didn't seem upset when Jessica asked her about the woman. She was surprised to find RickyJo camping alone. Daryl always came with her. When Jessica asked where he was, her cousin became visibly upset. RickyJo refused to say what was going on and insisted that Daryl was just too busy working. That night Jesscia made a little campfire and they all made smores. And then she had sent the girls to bed and opened the wine. Halfway through the second bottle, RickyJo spilled her guts.

The morning after she lost her virginity to Daryl, she woke up with her head on his chest, feeling wonderful. They kissed and ordered breakfast. Everything seemed to be going so well and RickyJo said she was wondering if it was too soon to see if he wanted to move his stuff into her room when they got back. He went to take a shower. While he was in there, she powered on her phone so she could text Merle and remind him to come get them from the airport. There were hundreds of calls and texts from Laney. So many long texts she didn't want to take the time to read them. The phone rang and RickyJo answered it. She knew Laney wouldn't stop until she talked to her. The woman was hysterical. Not wanting to have such an intense conversation over the phone, RickyJo promised Laney she would talk to her when she got back. Daryl came out of the shower and asked her who she was talking to. RickyJo said she lied and told him it was Jessica, mostly because she didn't want to spoil the mood. And she didn't want him to worry that she might be getting back with Laney because she wasn't.

RickyJo went to take a shower. And when she came out, she said Daryl was acting weird. When she tried to touch him, he jerked away from her. Then he said some horrible things to her. The kind of things he could never take back. He said he didn't care about her that way and that the night before didn't mean anything to him. What did you think? We were gonna live happily ever after just because you opened yer legs for me? Yer nothin' but a stupid little girl. Go back to fuckin' your little bitch girlfriend and leave me alone. He turned his back on her and headed out to the porch for a smoke so he didn't see the look on her face. If he saw how hurt she was, Jessica was sure he would have instantly regretted his words. RickyJo bawled into her glass of wine, telling Jessica that she wished she was dead. But by the time Daryl came back inside from his smoke, RickyJo had her emotions under control. She wasn't going to let him see her cry.

They flew back home in silence. When they got back, RickyJo was so lonely and sad that she even tried to make up with Laney. But when she told Laney the truth about what happened between her and Daryl, Laney snapped on her. After that, she got out of any obligations she had at work and decided to go camping for the summer.

"Ya know she came home late at night a few days after Mexico with a big red mark on her face," Merle said.

"Yeah," Jessica said, "...she said Laney slapped her." While she wasn't happy about what Laney had done, Jessica was so much angrier with Daryl. She had it in her mind to call that little asshole and have a talk with him herself. Just imagine saving yourself for all that time and then having a guy treat you like that after. Jessica had a lot of guys do a lot of shitty stuff to her, but none of them ever made her feel that bad.

"So they fucked," Merle said, "...she seemed so upset I thought maybe Daryl did somethin' ta her. You know, somethin' she didn't want him ta do." Jessica shook her head.

"No, she said that part was good," Jess said, "...it wasn't until the next morning that he was being an asshole." Merle leaned back and sipped on his beer. He wondered what the hell got into his brother. It wasn't like him to act like that. Maybe he just freaked out. "Anyway, I gotta get the girls back, and I don't wanna leave RickyJo here alone when she's actin' like this. Talkin' about wanting to die and shit. She won't come home either. I thought you could stay here with her a while," Jessica explained. Merle thought this over. Actually, camping with RickyJo sounded alright, even if she was sad.

"I can stay," he said. Jessica gave him a smile and reached over to squeeze his hand.

It took about a week before RickyJo stopped moping around. She just wanted to be alone. Reading, sleeping, and lying around in the sun listening to sad country music was all she wanted to do. And she didn't need any company for that. Several times she suggested not so politely to Merle that he ought to go the fuck home or go stay with Jessica. By the end of the week, it was obvious to her that he wasn't going anywhere no matter how rude she was to him. So RickyJo gave up and decided she might as well enjoy his company.

Merle was frying up some fish he caught earlier in a big cast iron skillet over the fire when he felt RickyJo set her hand on his back. He stood up and was taken aback for a minute when he felt her arms wrap around him.

"I really need a hug," she admitted. This made him smile and he squeezed her so tight so could barely breathe. He knew she would come around if he waited her out. RickyJo wasn't like regular girls that screamed and threw fits. Merle had seen it many times over the years. When she got upset she shut down and closed everyone out. Everyone except Daryl. And he wasn't around. In a strange way, Merle understood it. He didn't like anyone getting too close to him either. "Merle," she mumbled into his neck, "I can't breathe." He laughed.

"I thought ya wanted a hug?," he asked, squeezing her one more good time before he let her go. When he did he saw she was finally smiling. "Are you fuckin' smiling?," he asked, "...be careful it don't break your damn face." This made her laugh, a welcome sound for both of them. RickyJo looked down at her boots, kicking the dirt at her feet and shifting her weight around.

"Merle?," she asked, "...did Daryl say anything to you about me?"

"Nah, he didn't say shit," Merle told her. It was on the tip of his tongue to say what he really thought about Daryl's behavior. That he was being a stupid little stubborn bastard. That if he didn't want to be with her, it was his loss. Merle was thinking about calling his brother and telling him to get his dumbass up here and make things right. But then he decided to do what he did best. He decided to be selfish. Merle liked being with RickyJo. Why should he go out of his way to help Daryl get her when he would rather help himself? As far as he was concerned, if Daryl was refusing to speak to her, that made her fair game.

RickyJo didn't say anything back, she just plopped back down in her camping chair and pulled her sunglasses back down over her eyes. She felt the tears coming. But she was goddamned sick of crying over Daryl. RickyJo took a deep breath and forced herself back up out of the chair. She stomped off into the camper to roll a joint. If she couldn't drink her feelings away, she decided she would try and smoke herself stupid instead.

Merle was always up for any escape from reality, and twenty minutes later they were sitting around high, eating the fish he cooked. He was glad to see RickyJo smiling again, even if it was just because she was stoned. She was kicking around an idea in her head for a while now. It had seemed crazy to her at first, but was starting to sound better and better.

"I think I might not go back to work after the summer," she said, slouching down in her chair and resting her feet up on the cooler. Her hair was loose and hung over the back of the chair in long golden waves.

"Whatcha gonna do instead?," Merle asked her. He always thought it was dumb that she worked anyway. It's not like she needed the money. "Ya goin' home to your Nana's?," he suggested.

"Naw," she said, "...I think I might take the year off and go backpackin' like I did that summer with Imani." She had the most wonderful time that summer. They backpacked all through South America. Sometimes they stayed at cheap hostels and a few times they sprung for nice hotel rooms. Both girls became fluent in Spanish and Portuguese. RickyJo was tired and confused. She needed a break from her life and a chance to find herself again. She wanted a fresh start.

"Yer not goin' by yourself?," Merle asked her. He didn't like when she went with Imani, even though Imani's giant football star brother went with them. But he liked the idea of RickyJo going alone even less.

"Why don't you go with me?," she asked him. Merle looked at her. His first thought was that she must be joking. But she wasn't laughing.

"You fer real?," he asked. She nodded at him.

"We don't have to go to South America," she added, "...we can go to Europe instead."

"Amsterdam?," he asked, making her laugh.

"Wherever you want," she told him, " I really want to see Italy and France though. They have the best topless beaches there." She looked over at Merle. He seemed a little hesitant. She flipped her sunglasses up on top of her head and reached for his hand.

"What do you have to keep you here?," she asked. She sounded excited before. But now her voice was soft and sad. Merle knew this was the closest RickyJo would ever come to admitting how sad and alone she really felt. And in that moment she knew he felt the same way.

"Alright," he told her, "...when are we leavin'?"

"The end of the summer," she said. Now he knew she was really planning to do this if she knew when she wanted to leave. "I wanna camp for the summer and leave in the fall," she said. She wanted to camp, but she also had some work and financial crap she would have to sort out before leaving on such an extended trip. "You wanna stay and camp with me," she asked him.

"I dunno," he teased, "...you gonna stop pissin' and moanin' over little brother all day long?" For some reason the question seemed easier since he didn't say Daryl's name. RickyJo held up one hand and made a little motion with the other across her chest.

"Cross my heart," she promised. He thought he might push his luck a little further.

"You gonna break me off a piece of that ass?," he asked her. RickyJo spit her beer out down the front of her and really started laughing. "You ought to try swallowing," he suggested. RickyJo tried to stop herself from laughing but she couldn't . She laughed so hard she tipped her chair over and fell in the dirt. Merle was sipping his beer and enjoying the show. When RickyJo got really high she was entertainment for everyone. Once he could tell she was winding down, he grabbed her arm and helped her back into her chair.

"You know," she told him, "...yer such pig sometimes." Merle leaned in close making little oink noises into her ear. She pulled him in and kissed him on his head. He thought about making another joke but changed his mind. Instead he gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I like to see you happy," he said.