I'm sorry. This story feels like it's everywhere now so I'm gonna try to wrap it up soon! Thanks for sticking with it!

Chapter Eleven

Carol had hoped he would show back up at school but it didn't happen. She didn't know what he could have been up to and it was more distracting than she ever could have imagined. She was having a hard time focusing on anything at all and it was infuriating.

Now she understood why other people had it rough. When you actually had a life, school just seemed... time consuming. It was an off feeling and one she hoped she got over soon. She didn't need distractions. She needed to focus. Not that it really mattered at this point, since the day was already over. She pushed her way through the crowd, something she never would have done last year, until she finally made it to her locker, shoving books inside and yanking out the ones she would need for tonight's homework.

She slammed the locker closed and then nearly jumped out of her skin when she realized Daryl was standing right there. "Jesus," yelled, her hand going to her throat as her heart jumped.

He grinned. "You look like you had a shitty day."

She frowned, studying his face and trying to figure out why on earth he would be in such a good mood. It wasn't like there was much to be happy about. They had made a total and complete mess of everything and the stress of it was weighing on her. She couldn't choose between him and her sister and she shouldn't have to. It was making her miserable. "It was just another day," she said, turning with him and heading down the hall towards the doors. "That probably would have been better if you had been here. This new codependency thing that we have going on here is for the birds, Dixon. I was perfectly content in my solitude before you came and shook things up," she muttered as they slipped out.

He laughed at that and steered her towards his bike that was illegally parked right on the sidewalk. "That stings."

She tried to fight a smile but this strange good mood he was in was a little infectious and she needed that right now. She stopped next to his bike and shot her own ten speed a wistful look. "I think maybe I should go home alone. I need to at least try to figure out how to bring a little balance to my life. I miss my sister." She hated that she felt so torn between the two.

He pushed a strand of hair out of her face, his eyes meeting hers. "I think she feels the same way."

She snorted. "I doubt that. I've turned into a total disappointment and I think every time she looks at me she's reminded of that. Maybe there isn't anything I can do to fix it but I want to try. I don't have to spend every minute of every day with you."

His brows went up at that but his face remained serious. "You ain't a disappointment to anybody, especially not to her. She just don't know what the hell she's doin'. She's gonna work on it too."

Carol frowned. "Yeah, I'm sure she's gonna jump right on that. You heard her. She was furious."

"I talked to her today. I manned up and walked right into the lions den. You outta be impressed," he added.

"You what?" she asked, knowing full well he wouldn't have done something like that. It just wasn't him and he had told her before that he hated the thought of walking into a nursing home because they were depressing and he didn't know how Jenny worked in one.

"I went there today and talked to her about it and she's gonna try to lay off," he said, sounding a little smug.

"Are you serious?"

"Yep. But if you think me and you need a break then go ahead and take your time, do what you need to do and give me a call when you figure it out."

She scowled at the knowing smile on his face. She climbed onto the bike. "Screw that. Let's go to your place and I'll make sure I'm home for dinner."

He chuckled and climbed on in front of her. She ignored the angry shout from the principal as Daryl tore away from the sidewalk.

~H~

Merle hadn't managed to get far before he was able to think about what he was doing and then he had turned right around and went home to think of the best way to approach this subject. It would have been stupid to storm into her work, even though her ass deserved for him to cause a scene. He was pissed. But he wasn't pissed enough to actually risk costing her her job. She had a kid to raise just like he did.

So he watched his watch until he knew it was time for her to get off and he drove back out to her work, parking beside her own car and waiting, fuming over his brother and hoping he could talk some fucking sense into this girl. When she finally stepped out he narrowed his eyes on the scene, since she was walking with some scrub clad pencil neck fucker who was saying something to make her laugh.

When she finally looked up the smile on her face died completely and she almost stumbled, clearly surprised to see him parked there. He crossed his arms over his chest and eyed the man, who also just realized Merle was standing there, leaning casually against his truck.

"What are you doing here?" she asked wearily, looking tired and on guard.

"We need to talk," he said, gaze traveling between her and the guy, who was still lingering. He didn't know why the hell it bothered him so much. Was she dating him? What the fuck business was it of Merle's if she was? It wasn't. The only reason he was here was to try to talk her into taking it easier on his brother. That was it. He wasn't here to try to fix anything between the two of them because that shit was just too complicated for his liking.

She looked at the doofus she was with and smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow night," she said.

The guy nodded, gave Merle one more leery glance and then turned, heading for the other side of the parking lot.

"You got a date tomorrow night?" he asked, sounding mean even to his own ears.

She crossed her arms. "Not that it has anything to do with you but no, I'm picking up another shift so I can get an extra day off next week and Jeff is staying over to help out. What do you want to talk about, Merle?"

Fine, if she wanted to get right down to business then that's what he would do. "I want you to cut my little brother some fuckin' slack. He's blaming himself for the rift between you and your sister and he's blaming himself for me wanting to kick you right in the ass. And it ain't his damn fault. You make him think he ain't good enough and we both know that ain't the goddamn truth."

She narrowed her eyes at him but dropped her arms to her sides, seeming to lose a little tension. "Fine," she said firmly.

He blinked a few times, processing the world and then frowning. "What the hell do you mean fine?"

She shrugged. "Fine. As in, I'll cut your brother some slack. You happy now?"

He opened his mouth to tell her that he was but then he closed it again. What the hell was going on here? Why the hell wasn't she getting into her tight lipped battle stance? That was what he was prepared for, anyway. He sure as hell wasn't prepared for her to agree this easily. Hell, truth be told, he was prepared for her to fight it till he got tired of arguing with her. All he really wanted was for her to know that she was hurting his brother and if she was gonna keep doing it then he didn't want a damn thing to do with her.

She finally smiled slightly and tilted her head, studying him. "What? Isn't that what you wanted to hear?"

He was still a little flustered by her quick reply but he gathered himself and gave her a firm nod. "Yeah, it is."

"She'll still have a curfew but they can go out. And as long as he isn't sneaking in at night, he can be in her room with the door closed but that doesn't mean I'm not gonna throw in a few surprise inspections to make sure their clothes are on."

"Curfews are stupid. What the fuck are they gonna do at two in the mornin' that they can't do at eight at night?" he grumbled before realizing that maybe he should shut the fuck up since so far he was winning here.

She shrugged. "Take it or leave it, Dixon. I'm not arguing with you."

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I'll take it. But why the hell are you givin' in so easy?"

"Because I miss you and I miss my sister and your brother is a really great kid that loves her. I just wanted to protect her but that kind of backfired."

He digested her words for a few long moments and then finally nodded towards the truck. "You wanna hop in? If you missed me so much that you're willin' to quit with this stubborn shit then I can let you go for quick spin out here in the lot." He was halfway joking. If she actually wanted to fuck him in the truck in broad daylight, he was perfectly fine with that.

"I'm not having sex with you in your truck, Merle," she said, walking past him to her own car.

He gave her a look and she waved him away. "Okay, we both know that's a lie but if they see me I'll get fired so you have to take a rain check."

"I can do that," he grinned.

"I'm sure you can," she said.

He hopped back in his truck feeling a hell of a lot better now that he'd talked to her and worked all this shit out for the kid. He was actually pretty damn excited to tell him.

~H~

Daryl probably should have been paying attention to the clock but he was way too fucking preoccupied for that. He almost felt guilty for the situation, since just earlier he had finally convinced Carol's sister that he wasn't some sort of pantie raiding piece of shit but he wasn't about to stop now. They had been on his couch for the good part of an hour and this was as far as he'd ever gotten before. Up the shirt but over the bra, he could totally live with that for a while. It was better than nothing anyway. And it wasn't like he had any chance of getting into her pants anyway, so he didn't really feel very bad at all.

Something told him that they should take this to his bedroom but Merle wouldn't be home from work for a while and no one was coming over. And she was actually allowed to be here so there wasn't in harm in having some fun on the couch. He really should have listened to that little voice in the back of his head because his lips had barely trailed down to her throat when he heard a low familiar whistle.

He flew off of her so fast that he nearly landed on the arm of the couch and toppled off but he was able to maintain his balance somehow and then he slid down, snatching up a raggedy couch pillow and placing it firmly in his lap.

"What the fuck are you doin' home!" he nearly shouted, his ears flaming.

Merle was grinning like the asshole that he was then he sat down on the recliner near the couch. "What's with the pillow?" he asked instead of providing an answer to Daryl's question.

Daryl grumbled a "fuck you" under his breath but he gripped the pillow a little harder in case Merle decided to steal it from him. At least with Merle in the room, he wouldn't have to worry about his problem for much longer. If anything could kill the mood, it was his older brother knowing he was sporting wood. Goddamn Merle.

"I wanted to catch you and let you know that you don't have to worry about Jenny anymore," he said smugly, like he'd had a hand in that.

"What makes you say that?" Daryl asked, flashing Carol a look that let her know to keep quiet about his trip to her sister's work. But Carol was too busy looking at her nails, not making eye contact with anyone, her face flaming. He didn't want Merle to know that he had talked to the woman.

"Well, I paid a visit to that home where she works a little bit ago and had a talk with her. She agreed to give you two a break."

"You talked to her?" Carol asked, apparently more curious than embarrassed.

"Yep. Can't have her messin' you two up," he said, his gaze flicking between them.

Carol finally looked over, meeting Daryl's eye with a raised brow but all he could do was shrug. She smiled slightly, like she was up to something before she turned her focus back on his brother. "It doesn't surprise me, really, since it was you that went and talked to her."

He knew that Merle didn't know that Daryl had made a trip there before Merle had even thought about it and he hoped that Carol knew it too. This was his victory and even though he was willing to let his brother think that he was taking the credit, Daryl at least wanted her to know that it was his decision that changed Jenny's mind, not Merle's.

Merle seemed interested in her words. He perked up a little but tried to play it cool. He was turning into a really shitty actor. "What the hell makes you say that?" he asked, trying and failing to seem nonchalant about it.

Carol stood up, shouldering her bag. "Oh, I think she was really bummed about the two of you fighting. She must really have a thing for you, Merle. I mean, she was so hell bent on keeping me and Daryl under her thumb, the only thing that could have made her loosen up is the fact that she's crazy about you."

Daryl wasn't sure what the hell the girl was up to, and even though Jenny had basically been like a blade at his throat lately, the talk they'd had today had changed his opinion of her. He at least understood who she was a little better and he had to admit that he liked her. But that didn't mean that Carol felt the same about his brother. She had voiced her concerns already, not wanting her sister to get hurt, so he was a little shocked she was taking steps to repair that relationship, if that was even what it was at the moment.

Merle chewed on this information for a few long moments, looking more troubled than anything else, like he couldn't decide if this was a good thing or a bad thing. Finally his expression cleared and with a barely there nod he got up and grabbed the truck keys he'd tossed on the table.

"Where you goin'?" Daryl asked, hoping that whatever he had decided to do, it wouldn't be another obstacle for him and Carol.

"Quit bein' nosy," Merle grunted as he pulled open the door. "And don't you forget to have that girl home by ten." He took off then, leaving Daryl and Carol on the couch to contemplate.

"You think he's going to propose?" Carol asked, trying to hide a grin.

Daryl snorted. "That ain't likely, but at least he's outta our hair." He grabbed her hand and yanked her across the couch until she was in his lap. He couldn't bring himself to dwell on his brother's love life. All he could do was hope that whatever Merle was doing, he was doing the right thing.