That evening was cold, but the grass was warm where he sat. It was the beginning of winter, and he could see his breath gently spiral into the unusually calm air.

Honestly, he didn't know what he was doing there, or why. He felt the way he always did when he came even a step into the field where the wooden cross, the one that he had tied together with Maggie, stood. Seeing it made him want to scream, and kick, and fight like some stupid, bratty kid. It made him want to run until he couldn't anymore, but even with an ache to flee itching at his entire body, he sat there, almost unmoving.

Suddenly, his words spilled out, and he moved his eyes to the ground. "You know I ain't much for prayin'," he began, rubbing one palm over his hand, feeling the bones of his knuckles and the cuts that had etched themselves into the flesh there. "I ain't sure if there's any God. M' pretty sure there ain't… But- But maybe there's a Heaven. I'd like to think that, ya' know? Like to think that you're up there, in some golden palace… Singin' whatever it was you were singin' then."

He swallowed down a sob and his head hung low, trying to fight the overwhelming amount of emotion that threatened to take over. The tears had started coming, and he felt like he was bleeding his sorrow. Not that the feeling went away. There was tons more sadness where that came from.

"You know I ain't any good at talkin', Girl… M' sorry for that," he continued, his lungs and aching heart begging for a cigarette, but he thought better of it. He felt like if he lit one up now, it would be disrespecting her spirit, or some shit like that. "I ain't good at most things really. But you… You were good, Girl. Better-" He took in a shaky breath. "Better than I ever expected to see in this damned to hell world. I guess I just came to say… I think I wanna leave this place, Beth."

He could practically feel her disapproving gaze on him, and his eyes roamed the frozen grass. He began to pick at the blades, plucking them from their root and tossing them aside.

"I know it ain't fair... But… But I don't know how much more I can take," he said. His words broke as his shoulders hunched, the sobs rolling through him endlessly. "I wanna be with you, with Sophia, with Merle… With my Mom…" He shook his head roughly, his gaze snapping up to the homemade cross. "There's… There's gotta be something better than this. Beth-"

He heard a gentle voice shushing him, and slender arms wrap around his waist, the soft warmth of another body pressing into his back.

"You can't leave em' Daryl." Beth's voice breezed across his neck, and he tilted his head back instinctively.

This had happened before, seeing her, being able to feel her, especially in dreams. He could feel her dainty arms wrap strongly around the waist as his emotions bubbled over, and he shattered, just like that day with the Moonshine cabin, and he would wake up feeling like the broken half of a miracle. More often though, he would hear her sweet melodies echoing inside his head. Sometimes lulling him to sleep, generally during the night when he felt the most on edge.

But this was different.

It was as if her arms were there, holding him together as he fell apart. He could feel her small frame and her warm breath. He knew he was hallucinating, but it felt so real, so he let himself get lost in it for a moment.

"I don't know If I can stay either, Beth," he whispered. "Is'all just too much. We're broken. We ain't the same as we was before."

"Daryl, that just proves my point," she said, her tone soft, and soothing. "You gotta be there for em'. Fer Rick, Carl, and Carol… Fer Maggie."

He stiffened at her sisters name, another sob coming with the foaming heat of guilt. "I can't-"

"You can, Daryl," Beth replied, her tone stronger than he'd expected.

Her strength made him feel so weak, but so strong at the same time.

"We all got jobs to do, Daryl. You know that," she said, the gentleness in her words slowly returning.

"I know…" he replied softly.

There was a moment of silence as he just let himself feel her. Let the relief and joy of being in her presence warm his being, even if it was all in his mind.

Her arms tightened around him suddenly, and he brought his hand up to squeeze her forearm. Then she took a deep breath, her song filling his ears and swirling hope into his soul.

"Hold on… Hold on… You gotta hold on. Take my hand… I'm standing right here you gotta hold on…"

The song made his body prick with sadness, but soothed him at the same time, making him feel like maybe… Even for just a little while... That they could be good.

"Daryl?"

Rick's voice knocked him back into reality, and his head snapped towards the former sheriff as Beth's warmth left a loneliness in it's sudden absence.

"Yeah?" he called back, quickly swallowing down the obvious ache and messy sadness that had filled his voice and wiping at his tear streaked face.

"You said earlier that you were gonna go on a hunt soon, I was just wonderin' if I could come with," Rick said, walking up to him.

Daryl nodded and said, "Sure."

If the former Sheriff noticed the tears in Daryl's eyes and the sadness that seemed to consume him, he said nothing, and Daryl was thankful for that.

Rick began walking back towards the group, and Daryl watched him go. Daryl turned his gaze to the dinky cross and gave the object a long stare.

Thoughts of all his friends, his family, dying because he was too much of a pussy to stick around filled his mind. He knew Beth was right, he couldn't leave, it wasn't his time. He wasn't alone. Not yet. Not as long as the rest of his family was still alive.

He hung his head, smirking a bit. Even in death, Beth was persistent... And right. "Alright Beth, you win, Girl," he said, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it.

Then he stood up, following Rick's path back towards the treeline. As he went, that blonde angel's sweet voice slipped into his mind and filling his ears like he was watching her pretty head at that piano again. He hummed along to the song, still missing her, but feeling a little lighter than before.

"And we'll buy… A beer to shotgun… And we'll lay in the lawn... And we'll be good."

Yeah, we'll be good.