Dixons Divided | Daryl Dixon

Chapter 1

Ava- 9 years old
Daryl- 10 years old

Daryl watched with a sour expression and curious eyes as a large moving van pulled into the driveway of the house next door. The home had been sitting vacant for months on end now. Long enough that the boy hadn't expected anyone to be coming in. The neighborhood wasn't the worst. A little rundown with more than a few methheads here and there, but it was home to Daryl and had been since his mother brought him home from the hospital ten years ago. He wasn't sure how he felt about these new folk pulling up. He could only hope they weren't as mean as the last residents. 

The previous tenants had been in constant trouble with the law. They were the type with ran with Merle, who was bad enough on his own. They trashed the place and fled, leaving their landlord to pick up the pieces. It seemed the man didn't want to deal with renting anymore. The big 'For Sale' sign had been kicked down several times by the neighborhood kids and now had a big, red X spray-painted across the front of it. Daryl guessed the vandalism didn't matter much anymore now that the sign was useless. 

The ten-year-old boy couldn't stop himself from lingering outside to see who would pull up and walk up to the home. He sat in his yard under the large oak tree that sometimes dropped branches on their already-damaged roof during storms, his blue eyes watching intently as a dusty grey SUV pulled up to the curb, gravel crunching beneath its tires. It somehow reminded him of his brother's truck, which was heavy enough to make the same sound. Daryl wondered idly where Merle was at the moment. Probably off with some hooker, drunk off his ass. 

Daryl made up a few scenarios in his head. Maybe it would be a raunchy couple like the previous residents. The kind that would throw empty beer cans at him for fun if he exited the house at the wrong time and leave cigarette butts in the grass. Or maybe it was a mean old lady who would shake her fist at him and call him troubled. There was always a chance he had it turned around. It could be a newlywed couple with a baby on the way who'd chosen to move into the sticks so they could find a bigger house for a cheaper price. It could be just one person too-- a man or woman looking for a home. The possibilities were endless. With nothing much else to do, Daryl let his imagination run wild. 

A man got out first, and then a woman. Daryl observed them with a frown. They weren't all that young, but they definitely weren't very old either. The man would have white in his hair like Daryl's daddy did. Unless he dyed it like his mama. She changed the color almost every month, turning her plain brown hair into an array of different shades. From auburn to straight blonde, Daryl wasn't sure there was a single natural color he hadn't seen his mama wear.

One of the SUV's side doors flew open and drew his attention back towards the scene unfolding before him. A little girl, around his age maybe, bounced out excitedly. He almost had to blanch at the overwhelming enthusiasm she displayed. She looked overly happy, her eyes alight as she gazed at her new family's home. Her hair was sleek and black, but other than that she didn't seem like nothin' but a scrawny lil' girl to Daryl. The boy frowned as she bounded towards the house.

"Wait a moment, now." Her father chuckled. The girl, all but bursting with energy, skidding to a halt at her father's request. "We've got to let the movers carry all the boxes in before we go exploring our new house!"

"That's no fun." The girl frowned but didn't otherwise retaliate. Daryl froze like a deer in headlights when her eyes landed on him. They were a vivid green color, like tree leaves in the spring and summer, or fresh, clean moss on a creekbed. He couldn't stop tension from climbing up his spine and into his shoulders as she beamed at him like he was the best thing that could've happened to her, darting over before he could much process what was happening. And more importantly, before he could stand up and make his escape. The woman that had to be the girl's mother just chuckled as she watched her daughter.