Haunted | Daryl Dixon

6. Take Care of Yourself

There were three dinners in their small, redneck town. The one Evelyn and Daryl always went to, the one Caleb had taken her to a few nights ago, and the one Evelyn worked at.

She picked up shifts whenever she could, whether it be after school or on weekends. Anything she could to get her out of her house, the money it came with was just an added bonus.

"Miss. Evelyn Wright."

The brown haired girl felt a smile tug on the corners of her lips as she turned in her spot, away from the coffee maker and towards the man who had called her name.

"Mr. Merle Dixon." She greeted back, wiping her hands on her apron before leaning against the counter that separated the two of them, "What can I do for you on this fine day?"

Merle glanced out the window at the dark clouds and downpour going on outside and let out a laugh, "Fine day indeed." He snickered, "I'll just do a cheeseburger and fries to-go." He told her.

She grinned at him, quickly jotting it down on her notepad, "Coming right up." She told him, pushing a bit of hair off of her forehead and turning around to give the order to the cook.

A low whistle sounded from behind her, and Evelyn immediately tensed up, knowing for a fact that it came from an older man sitting at the counter a few feet away from her. He had been eyeing her in a way that made her shudder all night, and there wasn't a doubt in her mind that he was now looking at the too-short skirt that was the uniform here.

Evelyn kept her back to the man though, knowing that turning around and acknowledging him would only encourage him to continue, even if she did snap at him to fuck off.

"Oi," Merle snapped, a deep scowl set on his face as he glared harshly at the man, "I'd suggest you keep those eyes to yourself or I'll knock yer crooked teeth out of yer damn head."

The man blinked over at him for a couple of moments, then paled when Merle didn't once tear his hard gaze away from him.

The man mumbled a bit under his breath, quickly fumbling to throw some bills onto the counter to cover his meal before rushing out of the restaurant.

Evelyn turned around, blinking once in surprise, "Um-thanks, Merle-"

"Don' mention it. Wasn' that big of a deal." He waved his hand, as if to clear the air of the conversation, not wanting to talk about it.

Before Evelyn could protest, a voice interrupted her.

"Order up!"

She turned and retrieved Merle's food and handed it to him.

The eldest Dixon reached into his pocket and pulled out some money, but Evelyn held up a hand to stop him, "You know that you and your brother don't have to pay here, Dixon." She insisted, "It's on me, especially after what you just did for me.

He playfully rolled his eyes, throwing a stack of bills- plus a decent tip- onto the counter and taking his to-go bag.

Merle threw a wink at the girl, a strangely soft look on his face, "Take care of yourself, Miss. Evelyn Wright."

That was new.

"You too, Mr. Merle Dixon." Was all she could say before he walked out the diner door with a final wave in her direction.

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Evelyn woke with a start, eyes flying open, and it took her a second to pinpoint the cause of her being woken up.

There was a banging sound. Someone was hitting against her window.

Quickly, she flew out of bed, heart hammering so loudly she swore someone could hear it across town as she peaked over her curtain and to her window.

It was only Daryl.

She let out a breath of relief, but that sense of comfort was short lived when she realized that it was well after two in the morning, and Daryl looked more distraught then she had perhaps ever seen him.

Once again, she found herself silently thankful that her father wasn't home, that way he wouldn't hear as she opened the window and quickly beckoned her best friend inside.

"Dare? What is it?" She asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"

Instead of answering, the Dixon boy began pacing the length of her room, running his hands through his hair and anxiously tugging harshly at the roots in a way that made Evelyn worried he was going to make himself bald.

Quickly, she crossed the room and gently grabbed onto his wrists, pulling his hands away from his hair before he could ruin it.

They stood so close now- chest to chest- staring into each other's eyes so intently that Evelyn's breath stuttered for a second.

"What's wrong, Dare?" She finally asked again, in a soft whisper this time, almost as if the close proximity took away her ability to speak normally.

It had been pretty hard to see in the dark room before, but now, the moon through the window was illuminating Daryl's face, and Evelyn's heart fell when she saw his blue orbs full of unshed tears.

"M-Merle," He stuttered, "Merle's gone."

Evelyn stared up at him, mouth agape, "What?"

"He's gone, Ev. I got home an-an' dad said Merle ran off to join the army, an' I didn' believe him, but all of his stuff is gone. He packed all of his shit and he left." It hardly sounded like Daryl was breathing as he began to anxiously rant, eyes growing wide and panicked.

Merle had left. He had left his little brother behind.

It all made sense then, that weird farewell he had given her at the restaurant earlier that day. He had actually been saying goodbye.

The girl opened her mouth to speak, but quickly snapped it shut when she saw Daryl's face morph from sadness to anger before her very eyes.

"The son of a bitch is gone!" He roared, swiftly spinning on his heel and punching the closest wall with all of his might, no doubt leaving a small dent in her already fragile wall-structure.

Evelyn jumped when his hand hit the wall and her heart broke as she watched a single tear roll down his cheek.

"He left me." He whispered, all the rage draining from his body just as quickly as it had appeared and he leaned against the wall.

Unafraid of his outburst as Daryl had expected her to be, Evelyn approached him and quickly wrapped him into her arms. She held him in a hold that was so protective and loving at the same time, that he couldn't help but break down right then and there.

He hadn't meant to lash out like that, especially not in front of her, but he couldn't help himself. He couldn't help the anger he felt towards Merle for leaving him without a word. For leaving him with their father.

At first, he had been afraid that he had scared Evelyn, he could have sworn his heart had stopped when he saw her flinch out of the corner of his eye as he hit her wall, but she didn't show an ounce of fear.

She just kept on being her usual, selfless, brave, self and comforted him in a way she somehow knew would always work.

In her arms, he felt at home. He finally felt at peace.

So he wrapped his arms around Evelyn and let her offer him the solace that he so desperately needed.

A/N: Sorry for the short chapter!!