Work Text:
It was one of those days again when you felt shitty. No matter what you did, nothing really seemed to ease your stress. Not listening to music, not going out for a walk, not doing household chores, not a damn thing you could think of. So you were just lying on your bed, drowning in unpleasant emotions you couldn't banish. Even the sound of an approaching motorbike irritated you. But then you realized who it was, and it ignited a tiny spark of hope. Maybe this could distract you enough to make you forget your worries for a moment.
You got out of the bed, walked through the house and out of the door. And there he was, just letting his bike roll down his driveway to a stop. Merle. He killed the engine and hopped off, and then noticed you standing on the grass of your front yard.
“Hi there, sugar”, he greeted you with the familiar grin.
“Hi”, you replied, but something in your tone, or maybe in your expression made him raise his eyebrows.
“What’s the matter, girl? Ya look like someone just killed yer dog.”
You huffed softly, but then said: “No. No, it’s nothing.”
“Nothin’ my ass”, Merle called out your bluff, but even then you just offered him a fake smile. It wasn’t that you wouldn’t want to talk, but you didn’t know what to say. Or how. It just didn’t feel right to bother your neighbour with your problems.
When there was no reply from you, he spoke up again: “Alright, ya don’t gotta tell me shit, but I ain’t lovin’ to see a pretty girl that blue. What about ya get over here an’ I promise to put a smile on that face o’ yers?”
A smile tugged the corners of your lips just because of his words, but you weren’t too sure of it. Despite being on friendly terms with him, you knew Merle’s reputation, and it wasn’t flattering. Sex, drugs, and what not. His idea of cheering someone up could be quite… interesting.
“Aww, come on now, girlie", he tried to coax you like he would have read your thoughts. "There ain’t no reason to be shy. I’ll play nice for ya.”
Now it was your turn to raise your eyebrows. Play nice? Him? But your situation wasn’t gonna get any better by standing there, and so you decided to go for it. After a deep breath you walked over to Merle, which seemed to delight him.
“There she is”, he cooed with a hint of tease in his tone and stepped closer to you.
You smiled a bit, even if it wasn’t an actually happy smile. But his body language was open and inviting and after searching his dark eyes and seeing nothing but mischievous warmth in them, you couldn’t help but close the distance and hug him.
For a second Merle stood still, taken by surprise by your sudden move, but then he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you in close.
“Well, look at that”, he drawled. “Lil’ thing just needed some TLC, huh?”
You said nothing, your body tense against his. Suddenly you wanted to cry, your heart screaming to stay, but your brain wanted to pull away, to protect yourself from rejection that sure would follow if you’d be too needy with a man you didn’t even know that well.
“Yer wound up tighter than a damn barbed wire”, Merle observed in his usual gruff tone. “Can’t have that, now can we?”
And instead of pushing you away as you feared, he adjusted his hold to make you more comfortable, and started to rub your back with slow strokes. A barely audible sound of surprise left your lips. You had not seen that coming.
“Easy now”, he hushed. “Ya just breathe, sugar. I got ya.”
His touch stayed firm but gentle as he continued to caress you. Despite your reservations, you sighed and let yourself relax. And in no time, you noticed that you were feeling better. No matter how adult you were, sometimes co-regulation was the only thing that really helped to get unpleasant feelings under control. You just hadn’t expected to get it from him.