Taking a Chance

Chapter 4

The night air was cool as Daryl leaned against the car smoking another cigarette. At this rate, he may go through this entire pack in record time. Only his brother could press his buttons like Gabrielle did. He probably overreacted, but she wouldn't stop pushing him until he admitted he couldn't afford the damn room. It embarrassed him to have to say that, but that was not as humiliating as her saying she would pay for it. She might as well just have kicked him in the balls, in fact, that may have bothered him less.

He had no idea what it was like not to have to worry about money. He worked hard for what he made, but being a mechanic was not a well-paid occupation. It was what he knew and what he was good at, but it just barely paid his bills with very little left over. Daryl got the feeling that her American Express Card got a good workout on a daily basis. He doubted she knew what being poor was like.

If this was anyone else but Rick, he'd just turn around and hitch a ride home or suffer through another plane trip if he could get the ticket changed, however that worked. He just couldn't do that to Rick. This was his best friend and he would be at his wedding if it killed him and so far it was doing a damned good job.

Daryl climbed into the car and reclined the seat to get comfortable. He had slept in worse places than a Lexus, so all in all this wasn't that bad. He put his hand behind his head and closed his eyes. Smoking had given him time to calm down. He was no longer looking to punch a wall.

He owed Rick and his parents more than he ever could repay. The Grimes's took him in when he had no place left to go. He was at the lowest point in his life and they embraced him into their family. Daryl had a brutal fight with his father who was drunk as usual. He had accused him of eating food he had in the refrigerator, but Daryl never ate it. There hadn't been food in there in days.

His father was cursing and swinging at him and Daryl tried to hold him off, but his father was out of control. He had to defend himself or take another viscous beating that he just couldn't handle. This time he fought back and hard. At sixteen he was starting to rival his father in size, so he was able to fight back stronger than his old man was used to. He basically kicked his father's sorry drunk ass.

He left him bruised and beaten on the living room floor. He walked the three miles to the only place he knew he could go. When Mrs. Grimes opened the front door to his late night knocking, she saw a bloody Daryl in ripped clothes standing in the dark. His eyes were so sad, that she immediately engulfed him in her arms and didn't let go for minutes. Rick's father found them there crying together in the doorway. He ushered them inside and took over.

He asked his wife to heat food up for Daryl, while he took him upstairs. Mr. Grimes walked the bedraggled teen to their spare bedroom and put a hand on his shoulder. "Son," he said. "This room is yours for as long as you need it. This is now your home and we are your family. I'll talk to a lawyer in the morning on how we can do this, but in the meantime why don't you shower and I'll leave some of Rick's clothes for you on the bed. C'mon down when you are done and we'll look at your hands then and then get you something to eat. You know how much Ruthie likes to feed you boys."

All Daryl could do was nod his head yes as he was afraid he'd start crying again in front of his best friend's father. He had just offered him what he wanted more than anything in the world...to be part of a loving family. He looked up at the man he respected more than anything and saw tears shining in his eyes. Daryl couldn't hold them back any longer and as they started to flow down his cheeks, Mr. Grimes grabbed him by the back of the head and pulled him in close. "You're safe here, son," he whispered to Daryl. And he was.

Daryl never knew how they did it, but the Grimes's became his legal guardians until he turned eighteen. Those were the best years of his life and he never saw his father again.