Suddenly...Gone

Chapter 4

Daryl woke up early Monday morning still slightly hung over from the weekend. He had such a good day on Saturday that he carried it over through drinking all weekend with Merle and a couple of Merle's buddies. They even had to make two additional runs for beer when they ran out.

The clock next to the bed said it was almost six thirty. Even though the garage didn't open until eight, Daryl wanted to get there early. He groaned as he sat on the edge of the bed with his head pounding. It had been a while since he had gotten that drunk. Paying the price the next day always made him wonder why the hell he did it.

He stood under the shower for a good fifteen minutes just letting the hot water run over his body. He had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders this week, and he could not screw up the first day. Once he towel dried and combed his hair, he got dressed in clean work clothes and was ready to head out the door a few minutes before seven.

Daryl locked the trailer door behind him and headed towards his truck. He automatically looked over to see if Emma's car was there and it was. Emma was standing beside it staring at a flat tire.

"Need help?" he automatically offered. It was like his mouth spoke before his head kicked in. If he had thought about saying anything to her, he might have stumbled over his words again looking like a fool.

Emma was dressed completely different this time. The tight shirt and short skirt were replaced by a pale pink waitress uniform that stopped just above her knees. In place of the cowboy boots were sturdy rubber soled shoes. This looked more normal on her than the other outfit even though it was an unflattering uniform.

"Oh thank God. Yes, I do," Emma said relieved. "I have to be at work in a few minutes, and I think my spare is flat too. I was trying to figure out what to do."

This was absolutely perfect for Daryl. This was a great way to get to know her better and fixing this was what he did. "Let me check it, and we'll figure sumthin' out." The front tire was definitely flat, so he went around the back of the car and look at her spare. Just by looking at it he knew it was soft without even touching it. The perfect plan popped into his head.

"The spare's flat too," he told her. Emma's face fell. "Got an idea. I can drop you off at your job, so you won't be late. I'll come back and take the front tire off. I'll bring that along with the spare back to the garage to fix them. I work at Mack's Garage over on Elm. I can't leave the shop until it closes at five, but if you need a ride home I can drop by and pick you up. Whadda you think?" Daryl did a quick inventory on what junk he had on the front seat of the truck. Nothing like trying to impress a girl with a crapped out vehicle.

Emma realized that Daryl was going to be her savior. "I think it's perfect. I get out between two and three, but I can hang out and wait. You are a lifesaver. Daryl," she said flashing him a big smile. It almost made his heart stop. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

"Then let's get you to work," he told her. He walked over to the passenger side door and opened it. Luckily there wasn't much on the seat just a ball cap and some papers. He dropped them behind the seat and held the door for Emma to get in. She tucked her legs inside and murmured thanks as Daryl closed the door for her.

As he walked around the truck to get in, he didn't ever remember doing that for another girl before. He silently patted himself on the back. The truck started up easily, and as Daryl backed out, he asked Emma where they were going.

"I work at the Parkview Diner. Do you know how to get there?"

Daryl had only been in town for about a month, but he thought he knew where it was. "Isn't it over by the auto parts store and the Dixie Market?"