Tell Me A Dary Dixon Love Story

OUR STORY

Friday night he found himself lying in the grass under the balcony. It felt like it had only been a few minutes but she'd been reading for a little over two hours. But it was so close to the end he was annoyed when she suddenly stopped. He heard her get on the branch. Before he could even sit up she was hanging upside down by her legs, facing him.

"You tryin' to kill me?" he whispered harshly, clutching his chest and sitting up. Her face stayed blank as she watched him sit up, book still in her hand. They stared at each other for a few more seconds, he felt like she was tearing him apart with her eyes. It made him so nervous, he didn't know what to say to recover from this. "Look i-"

"Do you wanna finish the book tonight or tomorrow?" she whispered, still hanging off the tree.

He's mouth parted, she fucking knew i was listenin this entire time. Fuck. "how'd ya know?"

She rolled her eyes. They seemed to glow in the dark to him."I could smell the smoke. Hear the lighter." she finally smiled at him. "Now, you wanna hear the rest tonight or tomorrow?"

"Tonight," he grumbled, relaxing a little. At least she didn't care. "Please."

Without saying another word she swung herself up so she was sitting on the branch, leaning against the trunk, one leg dangling. Daryl took a similar position and relaxed again to her silky voice.

"Did you like it?" she asked, dropping in front of him after finishing the book. She sat legs crossed opposite him. He picked up the book from her lap and examined it. It was torn to shit, he thought, touching the tape that was barely holding it together and missing back cover.

"I liked it." he whispered still thinking about it all. The book just made him sad, made him feel like he was missing something. "They should add pictures."

"This ones been a favorite of mine for a while." She breathed laying back in the grass. "I wish I had connections like that, family, friends."

Daryl looked at her laying in the moonlight. That was what he was missing. He thought about how that kid at least had a supportive family. She must have friends though, he knew her family life was shitty, just from what he heard from the other guys working here, but a pretty girl like her must have got friends, maybe a boyfriend. "Me too." He mumbled. they stayed like that for a couple of minutes, in silence. Her watching the leaves in the tree rustle in the breeze and him watching her expressions change slightly. He appreciated that she was quiet, let him be quiet, it made him feel less nervous.

"You wanna pick the next book?" she asked, getting to her feet and offering him a hand.

He ignored it and got up. "Ya." and he followed her to the garage. It had to be like one in the morning by now. A little after two and he'd be seeing Merles bike coming up the driveway.

She wandered to the very back and crawled under a work bench after clearing away some wood. There was a small latch, cleaver, he thought. "My brother, Troy, used to hide booze here. He told me I could use it when he left."

"Troy your older brother?" he asked, crouching down to look in the hole, he just picked the first one he saw. 'To Kill a Mockingbird.'

She crawled out and covered everything up. "Yes and no, Jakes the oldest, Troy's my twin." she brushed dirt from her pjs.

"You dad said he joined the military." he stated, remembering that pretty clearly.

"No, Daddy forced him into military school." she sighed and took the book from him. She looked sad again. "He messed up at school and here so bad that Daddy couldn't look at him anymore."