Chapter 32 - Now ya can go

The weather was warming up, the days were getting longer, and Dwight had just turned 30 – the timing couldn't be more perfect for a party. Word quickly spread that Dwight and Sherry's was the place to be on Friday, and because winter had been quiet for most people, everyone was amping to get together and let loose for a night.

Keen to close out the working week himself, Daryl shut up shop a little earlier on Friday afternoon and shepherded the guys out the door, and in high spirits already, they all headed straight for the party.

Dwight and Sherry lived in a bungalow on the edge of suburbia, a tidy 3 bedroom with an open kitchen area at the back of the house that flowed out through sliding doors to a decked area and a surprisingly large backyard beyond that lent itself very well to parties. Sherry and friends had been on set-up duty since the early afternoon and the place was looking great – balloons and streamers hung from every corner, colorful festoon lights twinkled from strings across the yard, trestle tables of snacks and drinks were set up on one side of the fence line outside, ice laden buckets of beer stowed underneath. Music blared from speakers set up on the edge of the deck, and just beyond, Sherry's masterpiece – two big slabs of corkboard propped up on easels borrowed from Tanya's art gallery, lovingly adorned with a selection of photos of Dwight and all their friends through the years.

Shoulder to shoulder, Dwight and Daryl surveyed the pictures, chuckling at some of the memories they conjured up.

"God, look at this." Dwight pointed to a poorly lit snap of the two of them slouching at the corner table at Fox's, all youthful scowl and swagger as they looked up at the camera. "Think that was the very first week you started at work."

Daryl grinned. "Oh yeah, I remember. We were babies."

"And now look at us. Couple of old assholes."

"Well, we've always been assholes."

Dwight let out a hearty laugh. "Yeah, you're right. That'll probably never change."

Just then, Sherry appeared behind them and crooked her arms through theirs. "Punch is ready!" she announced, steering them towards the drinks table where Amber was ladling fluorescent punch from a gigantic tureen into plastic cups. "Here, have some."

Daryl raised his brows. "Sherry, last time I drank your punch, I don't remember shit from the rest of that night and was hungover for two days. That stuff's lethal."

Laughing, Sherry waved a hand at him. "Oh, that was years ago! I've refined the recipe now."

"This one's for you, Daryl." simpered Amber, pushing a drink towards him. "Filled it right to the top."

"Uh-uh. I'm stickin' to beer." Daryl replied, reaching for a bottle from the ice bucket.

"Suit yourself." shrugged Amber as she took a big swig from the cup instead, then smiled up at him through her lashes. "But if I end up on my ass from this later, you'll look after me, won't you, Daryl? Take me home?"

Her insinuation was clear, and it was a hell no from Daryl, but he didn't know how to frame that politely, so just gave her a flat look in response.

Then the music cranked up even louder, and Daryl threw a glance around. "Your neighbors gonna be ok with all this?"

"Yeah." affirmed Dwight easily. "They're all pretty cool about it. We let them know this was happening and most of them said they'd be over to join in for a drink at some point, so it's all good. Ah, look! Jerry's here already." Pointing to a big guy with dark, shoulder length hair and a catching smile that had just wandered out onto the deck with a box of beer under one arm, Dwight then clapped Daryl on the shoulder. "He lives across the street. He's awesome. Come meet him."

More than happy to put space between him and Amber, Daryl quickly followed after Dwight.

A steady stream of people continued to trickle in, and it wasn't long before the place was packed out, lively chatter and raucous laughter filling the air.

There were a lot of people Daryl hadn't seen for a while, and though he was content enough with all the catch-ups and reminiscing, he was acutely aware that the one person he really wanted to see (despite the fact he saw her all the time) still hadn't arrived.

A while later, standing with a group of the old bike racing guys by the bonfire, Daryl stole a surreptitious peek at Shadow's watch as they passed a tobacco pouch between them. Six o'clock already. Wondering if perhaps Tahlia wasn't going to make it to the party after all - she did have a flight to catch that evening so timing was always going to be tight – he decided that after this smoke he'd go and fetch his phone from his truck (probably shouldn't have left it there in the first place) and find out where she was at. And if she didn't have time to stop by the party, then he'd go to her. Meet her at the airport if he had to. He had no further plan. He just needed to see her before she left town for the weekend.

Daryl was halfway through his cigarette when Tahlia finally emerged through the sliding doors and out onto the deck, and he felt the tension loosen from his shoulders just at the sight of her. Flanked by Sherry and Frankie and some girl whose name Daryl could never remember, Tahlia was ambushed by hugs and greetings as she made her way deeper into the yard, and as much as Daryl wanted her for himself, he knew there was no point in trying to get to her until their other friends had had their piece.

Eventually Tahlia found her way to his side and nudged him in greeting.

"Found you. Hi!"

Taking a last languid draw on his cigarette before stubbing it out, Daryl sent her a sideways look.

"Thought ya said you were comin' right after work."

"I did! I just finished now and came straight here."

"It's after six. The hell are ya doin' at work so late on a Friday when you gotta work all weekend too? They get way too much outta ya."

Tahlia gave a pleasant shrug. "You know how it goes there. They only employ people who are willing to sell their soul to the firm."

"Should come work for me. I'd set you free by 5 every day. Give you a full hour for lunch, too."

Smiling, Tahlia arched a brow in interest. "Oh yeah? And what would my role be?"

"Hmm." Daryl rubbed a hand thoughtfully across his chin. "Could be our official vehicle counter. Y'know, keep track of how many red ones, how many blue ones."

"Ooh, that falls right within my skill set!" laughed Tahlia. "Where do I sign up?"

In the next moment, there was a loud, "Guys!" as Tanya barreled up to them and planted a swift kiss on each of their cheeks. "Hi. I'm trying to make my way around everyone while you're all still mostly sober. So – Monday! It's the opening night of the exhibition at my gallery, remember? I need to know that you're going to be there for moral support and numbers."

"Of course!" enthused Tahlia. "It's been in my calendar for ages. Wouldn't miss it."

"Amazing, thank you." said Tanya gratefully, then looked expectantly at Daryl. "You, too. You promised me you'd come."

"I did?" asked Daryl blankly.

"Daryl!" Tanya shoved his shoulder. "I need to know you'll be there! I need the numbers!"

"Alright, alright, I'll be there." Daryl held his hands up in submission and gave Tanya a lopsided grin. "Already promised ya that, didn't I?"

First with a withering look at Daryl, Tanya nodded resolutely. "Ok, good. I'm holding you guys to that. Shadow! Monday! You'll be there?"

A few feet away, Shadow turned around from his conversation and glanced at Tanya. "Huh? Monday? Oh, yeah. Definitely."

Satisfied, Tanya spotted Merle and Andrea in the next pocket of people and moved on to demand their commitment to the exhibition, too.

When she was safely out of earshot, Shadow leaned in closer to Tahlia. "So, what was that about? Where am I supposed to be on Monday?"

Laughing, Tahlia swiped at his arm. "At the gallery? For the opening night of the new art exhibition?"

Bemused, Shadow scratched his head. "Pretty sure this is the first I've heard of it."

"Yup." agreed Daryl, finishing his beer. "Me too."

"You two are shockers!" exclaimed Tahlia, raising her brows in disbelief. "She's been talking about this for weeks! It's the first time she'll be displaying a few of her own pieces and she's really nervous about it, so she wants us all there for support."

Still clueless, Daryl and Shadow just exchanged a look and a shrug as Tahlia shook her head in amusement.

Then Shadow pointed towards the guy and the girl he'd been talking to. "These are friends of mine, Magna and Bernie. I used to race with Magna's brother back in the day."

Tahlia and Daryl introduced themselves, and then Daryl stepped back a little to let Tahlia take over with the getting-to-know-you questions – her warmth and genuine interest in people made her so much better at that kind of thing than him.

His eyes bright with affection and his chest aching with the pure volume of tangled feelings she evoked in him, he watched her talk for a little while and then suddenly realized that he really needed to keep track of the time. It wouldn't be long before she had to leave, and he had firmly resolved to say something to her tonight. He couldn't keep letting this drag on.

A soft squeeze of his arm drew him out of his thoughts and he glanced down in surprise to see a blonde woman at his side, smiling coquettishly up at him.

"Daryl! What a nice surprise seeing you here tonight. It's been a while."

Groaning inwardly, Daryl couldn't even muster the beginnings of a smile. It was Sherry's cousin, Faye – it took him a moment to dredge her name up from the back of his mind - they'd drunkenly messed around a couple years back, but thankfully she lived up in Chattanooga so he hadn't seen her since. And, to be brutally honest, he would have been perfectly fine if he had never seen her again. But here she was, lashes aflutter and a hungry heat in her eyes that suggested the memory of the last time they'd been in contact was fresh in her mind.

"You look great." she purred, hand still on his arm. "How have you been?"

She was too close, too familiar, and Daryl's body tensed defensively.

"Fine. You?"

"Better now that I've seen you!" Faye arched a brow and ran her tongue over her lower lip. "So… I'm only in town for the night, what do you say we… catch up later back at yours?"

Daryl gritted his teeth in irritation. If he was never propositioned again, it would be too soon. Maybe he should be flattered, but since he'd met Tahlia, attention from other females was just annoying. Tahlia was the only one whose attention he relished, and she happened to be right there, her back mostly to him as she followed along with a tale that Shadow was spinning, so on impulse, Daryl reached out and hooked a finger through the beltloop at the back of Tahlia's pants and dragged her backwards into him, tucking an arm possessively around her waist.

"Nah." he told Faye bluntly and nudged his head towards the bewildered woman in his arms.

"Oh!" Faye's hand flew to her mouth. "Sorry!" she giggled, first directing the apology Tahlia's way, then looked back to Daryl. "My bad. Didn't realize you had someone now. Well, it was nice to see you all the same. Have a great night you two!"

Staring after Faye as she bounced off into the crowd, Tahlia blinked rapidly. "What just happened?"

Giving a sudden gasp of realization, she pushed Daryl's arm from her waist and turned to face him, one hand propped on her hip and her forehead furrowed in indignation.

"Excuse me! Are you using me to repel women?!"

Daryl flicked his brows at her in amusement. "Worked like a charm."

"Oh, great. So now you want to use me as some kind of talisman to ward off all the horny chicks, huh?" Tahlia shook her head in displeasure, though her eyes were twinkling with mirth. "That feels like a new low, even for me."

Chuckling, Daryl noted that that right there was another benefit to having a girlfriend that he'd never considered before – his official and public status would be taken. Made him feel all warm and bright just thinking about it. Even more reason to get the hell moving with this.

"Hey. What time you gotta leave here?"

"Michonne said she'll swing by and pick me up at 7:30 sharp. Then it's straight to the airport for our flight, arrive in New York late, check in to the hotel, then bed." Tahlia stretched. She was looking forward to the sleeping part of the evening already. "They've jam-packed the agenda for the conference this weekend from sunup 'til sundown on both days, so we basically don't get a minute to ourselves."

"That's a little rough."

"Yeah," she agreed, nodding thoughtfully. "It'll be exhausting, but there's some incredible speakers lined up and some really interesting workshops, so we'll get a lot out of it."

Catching his lower lip between his teeth, Daryl took a long, slow inhale. The moment was now, before he ran out of time.

"Can we go somewhere quiet?"

"Quiet?" laughed Tahlia and gestured to the rowdy party surrounding them. "Doubt you'll find anywhere quiet around here tonight."

"'Kay, just somewhere less crowded, then." he replied. "Need to talk to you."

"Oh." Tahlia's eyes widened as she registered his serious tone. "Shit. What have I done? A thousand apologies in advance."

"You ain't done nothin'." said Daryl fondly as he gestured for her to follow. "Just wanna run somethin' past ya. See uh… see what you think. C'mon."

First dropping a quick, 'excuse us' with Shadow and his friends, Tahlia was then right behind Daryl as they weaved their way through the pockets of people in the yard. They were stopped several times for hellos and brief conversations which had Daryl half-irritated by the holdups, but half-grateful too, because all sensible thought was steadily draining from his brain, and he found himself completely devoid of ideas of what he would say to Tahlia.

Having never had a girlfriend nor ever having a need to even think about this type of conversation before she wandered into his life, he wasn't sure how you actually moved into a relationship with someone. It wasn't like he could just ask her to be his girlfriend – because aside from the fact that that sounded stupid, maybe that was too much too soon, maybe he was supposed to take her on a date first or something. How the hell was he supposed to know the right way to go about all this? Tight panic started to pull across his chest and he wished he had thought to ask Merle about this shit. Merle would've mocked him mercilessly, but at least he would've also given him some answers.

Then the feeling of familiar warmth against his palm dragged him out of his thoughts and he glanced down to see that Tahlia had slipped her hand into his and was tugging gently to get him to stop moving.

"Daryl," she said, looking up at him, that ever-present smile sparkling in her eyes. "Do you want a drink?"

And it was in the simple triviality of her question and the way holding her hand always felt like his world was clicking into place that he found a sudden reprieve from the clamor in his head.

Didn't matter. He realized. Didn't matter what words he used or didn't, because he knew how he felt, and she would hear that, regardless.

"Daryl?" Tahlia repeated, amused. "Beer?"

Only then he noticed that they were now in the kitchen – it was just as busy here as it was outside – Tahlia had a fresh beer in her free hand and Frankie was brandishing another at him.

"Oh. Thanks." he said, accepting the bottle from Frankie and starting to move again, pulling Tahlia along with him before they could get caught in another conversation.

But in the next moment, a loud shout had him turning around, and Dwight, flanked by Sherry and the biker boys, clapped his hands onto his shoulders.

"Dixon! Just the man I've been looking for. It's birthday burnout time! You and me, man!"

Loosed from Daryl now, Tahlia leaned into Sherry. "What's a burnout?"

Sherry rolled her eyes. "Ugh, it's this tire-spinning thing they do with their bikes. Makes a whole bunch of smoke."

"Oh." Tahlia didn't get it. "What for?"

"Who the fuck knows." replied Sherry drily at the same time that Dwight declared, "Because it's awesome!"

"You keen, man?" Dwight asked Daryl eagerly. "Remember we did this at your 30th? Thought it would be cool to do it again. My bike's out on the street and Tex said you can use his."

"Uh…" The timing was shit, and Daryl flicked a look at Tahlia, then back at Dwight's hopeful expression. There would still be time. "Sure thing, man. It's your birthday. Let's go."

Everyone swept out onto the street, the soft halo of streetlights glowing through the blanket of night that had settled above, and Daryl let himself be shepherded towards a line of motorcycles.

Stopping in front of Tex's bike, he let out a low whistle of admiration. "A 998, nice. Sure you're ok with me usin' this?"

Tex grinned. "Go for it buddy. If you fuck it up, least I know you can fix it."

And because there was just something about the powerful machines that activated an innate desire for speed and recklessness, Daryl jumped on the Ducati, gunned the engine and shot down to the end of the street, Dwight chasing close behind on his GSX, the whoops and hollers of the crowd drowned out by the roaring engines as they sped over the asphalt.

Showing off with a couple of wheelies on the way back, they pulled up in front of their friends, and as the chant of "Burnout! Burnout!" rose around them, they locked on their brakes and revved the engines obnoxiously, building up until they were red-lining the gauge, then with a glance at one another, they leaned forward and released the clutch, their bikes still stationary as the back wheels spun wildly, a thick cloud of smoke rising up around them from the burning rubber.

The partygoers whistled and cheered loudly at the display and Daryl and Dwight couldn't help grinning as they eventually killed the engines.

As the smoke cleared, Daryl searched the sea of faces and soon spotted Tahlia crowded in next to Amber and Frankie and Justin, and laughing as she caught his eye, she spread her hands in confused question – she still didn't get the point of a burnout – and Daryl smiled shyly back and shrugged before ducking his head to hide his pinkening cheeks.

Climbing off the bike, Daryl dutifully accepted a shot from Sherry who was tottering around with a stack of plastic shot glasses in one hand and a bottle of tequila in the other, and downed it when a toast was raised to Dwight's birthday. There came a collective call for a speech, and despite Dwight's protest, he soon lifted his hands in submission and obliged. Sherry linked her arm through Daryl's while they listened, and though Dwight's speech didn't last long, a few of the others jumped in to share funny stories, and Daryl found his shot glass filled twice, three times, and it was on the fourth that he caught himself and surreptitiously tipped the liquid onto the ground – drunk was the last place he wanted to be tonight.

Even so, the warmth of the tequila bloomed and tingled in Daryl's belly, but it wasn't just that making him feel all fuzzy. In general, parties weren't his favorite scene, but this feeling he liked. Standing in this crowd of familiar faces, some of which he considered family, and knowing he had a place amongst them; hearing stories that evoked happy memories of good times past; knowing that he was part of something, anchored.

Soon the speeches ended and the street started to empty as everyone headed back into Dwight and Sherry's, but the biker group naturally gravitated to the motorcycles, and because Daryl was still standing near them, he found himself at the center. Casting a glance over his shoulder, he caught sight of Tahlia, arm-linked with Andrea and deep in conversation, disappearing back into the house – he'd slip away from these guys in a couple of minutes and finally grab his moment with her.

It was easy to become quickly immersed in the bike-talk though, one of the few subjects on which Daryl had plenty to say, and when old Earl, Dwight's next door neighbor and fellow motorcycle enthusiast invited them over to his place to see his two classic bikes, Daryl momentarily forgot that there was a clock ticking on the one thing he wanted to achieve this evening, and joined the other guys as they followed Earl down to the garage at the rear of his property.

Then, halfway through a detailed discussion and inspection of Earl's Triumph Bonneville, Daryl stood up like a shot from his crouch on the garage floor.

The time.

Grabbing hold of Shadow's wrist and startling the hell out of him, Daryl swore under his breath.

7:36pm.

Fuck. Tahlia had said she was leaving at 7:30. Without bothering to explain himself, Daryl darted out of Earl's garage and jumped the picket fence that led directly into Dwight's backyard. The festoon lights didn't provide great visibility at this time of the evening, and there were more people clustered around than before, making it difficult for Daryl to search at speed. Dodging desperately around the groups, he was holding on to the hope that she was still here.

Frankie's red hair caught his eye and he grabbed her arm.

"Seen Tahly?"

With several glasses of punch under her belt, Frankie blinked lazily at him and shook her head. "Mm… not since the street. But you could check with-"

Daryl didn't wait to hear her suggestion and was off again, making his way towards the house. There was Andrea in the kitchen pouring herself a drink, and Daryl skidded to a stop at the counter.

"Andie, seen Tahly?"

Glancing up briefly, Andrea nodded. "Yeah, she said her goodbyes a few minutes ago. Michonne came to take her to the airport. Hey. Try this."

"Naw." Daryl held up a dismissive hand to the proffered cup. "So… she's gone?"

"Yeah. Few minutes ago." repeated Andrea. "Why? What's up?"

An icy column of disappointment descended in Daryl's gut, and he shook his head. "Nothin', I was just hopin'… Nothin'."

Observing him for a moment, Andrea then shrugged in acceptance. "Ok. Here, have a bourbon."

Slopping a couple of inches of bourbon into the only glass within reach, Andrea pushed the drink into Daryl's hand, and he was gripped by a sudden urge to down it in one, then refill it and do it again and again until the night disappeared into nothingness.

But knowing that he often made regretful decisions when he got himself into that kind of state, and that there were at least two women at this party who would likely encourage him to make those decisions again if they had the opportunity, he stopped himself, his grip tightening around the glass instead.

A heavy cloak of disillusionment settled on his shoulders with the realization that another opportunity had slipped him by, and as he turned back towards the wide-open doors to the backyard, the noise and the pulse of people was suddenly overwhelming, draining. He needed a minute.

With the destination of his truck in mind, he veered down the hall, but paused at the sliding door that led to a tiny, enclosed courtyard on the east side of the house. This space caught the morning sun, the picnic table the only item of note - Dwight and Sherry's preferred spot for breakfast in the summertime - but tonight it was shrouded in darkness and thankfully, empty. Crossing the cobbled stones, Daryl dropped onto the bench seat, his back against the table edge as he rested his elbows on his knees and stared dismally into his glass, rhythmically swirling the amber liquid, the happy, upbeat sounds of the party beyond in jarring contrast to how he was feeling.

Daryl wasn't a believer in fate; divine preordination; but if he were, he'd really be starting to think that the universe had been throwing up a lot of roadblocks to stop things progressing between him and Tahlia; that this felt like just another sign telling him that they weren't meant to be.

Because surely it shouldn't be this hard.

For God's sake, he'd slept with dozens of people over the years without even trying, and now he couldn't even orchestrate a fucking conversation with the girl he loved; his goddamned best friend. Weary with the emotional weight of it all, he was faced with the bleak conclusion that maybe he just needed to be happy with things the way they were. Their friendship was still better than anything he'd had with anyone else. It wasn't everything he wanted, but it was enough.

"There you are!"

At the sound of that voice he knew so well, Daryl's head snapped up and his brow furrowed in surprise as Tahlia slipped through the door and made her way to him, phone in hand and bag slung over her shoulder. He didn't understand. Sure, he'd had a few drinks, but he wasn't drunk, and he certainly wasn't anywhere near hallucination territory – but this just wasn't making sense.

"What are you doing sitting by yourself out here in the dark?"

Daryl was still wide-eyed in wonder that Tahlia was standing right in front of him, haloed by the light shining from the hallway behind her, looking every bit like some ethereal dream, and he didn't even register her question.

"Thought you left already."

"I should have." Tahlia replied with a guilty smile. "Michonne's waiting for me in a cab out front. I just wanted to find you to say goodbye first – although you didn't make that very easy for me, hiding out here." Then a slow shadow of concern crossed her face as she studied him. "Are you ok?"

Given that his brain had only just kicked into low gear to begin processing the situation, Daryl didn't have the presence of mind to move from his seat, but he did manage a dazed nod in response.

"Sure?" checked Tahlia, then her phone buzzed in her hand and she glanced at the message. "Oh shit. I really do have to go. Michy's text shouting at me. Right! Well, I've found you so, goodbye." She leaned down and pressed a fleeting kiss on his cheek, her perfume and her warmth lingering after she'd pulled away. "Have a good night. I want to hear all the goss, so get your butt back out there into the action." Then she was on her way back to the door, calling over her shoulder, "See you Monday at Tanya's art thing!"

Raising his eyes heavenwards to the star-speckled indigo night and the universe beyond, Daryl was still pretty sure he didn't believe in fate; signs; but this felt like a gift all the same and he certainly wasn't about to squander it.

"Tahly, wait!"

She turned back to face him, brows raised in question, and Daryl glanced down at the drink in his hand and gave the bourbon a last brusque swirl before downing it in one and slamming the glass onto the bench next to him. Then he was on his feet and striding towards her, swiftly closing the distance between them, belly fizzing and heart hammering in anticipation.

Stopping in front of her, his nerves were live wires and he wavered for a tremulous moment, but then he reached out and caught hold of her elbows and that grounded him, set his intention.

With touch light but purposeful, Daryl ran his fingers up her arms, circled over her shoulders, feathered over her neck and cupped her face gently, one thumb stroking her cheek in soft caress.

"Silver."

Her name but a breath between them.

Bewildered, Tahlia stood there still and silent, her eyes glazed emerald, fixed on him, her lips parted in breathless wonder, and as Daryl gazed at her, he had never been more sure of anything in his life.

Then time shimmered and slowed as he leaned in and his mouth found hers, heat instantaneously bursting between them, melting the world away. And although it had only just begun, it was more than a kiss had ever been.

He was weightless and full all at once, helpless to stop himself from tumbling deeper, from chasing the sensation of golden warmth rippling through his body. He felt her hand on his chest now, fingers clutching at his shirt, pulling him closer, her palm soaking in the rhythm of his thrumming heart.

Perfect. Was his only coherent thought as his tongue moved in unhurried, gentle exploration. She was perfect.

Soft and sweet and tasted like strawberries and things that had no name but were now his favorite things all the same.

Eventually Daryl broke the kiss, slow and careful like it was a fragile, precious thing, and somehow, with his hands still lightly against her cheeks and only inches between their faces, this moment was the most intoxicating yet, because now they had that; a first kiss was part of their story, and a future of glittering possibility had been unlocked and laid out in front of them.

Loathe to let her go, Daryl couldn't help but press his lips to hers once more, tenderly, chastely this time, then he released her completely and drifted one step back, letting the world rush in around them again, and his hands found his pockets while his eyes, all cobalt fire, never left hers for a second.

"Alright." he managed, his voice a slow gravel drawl. "Now ya can go."