One-shot. After an attack on the group by a bunch of walkers and an unexpected accident Rick realises his feelings for a certain blond. But will she survive long enough for him to tell her?
Authors note: This is a quick 'Reth' (Rick and Beth, not sure what their ship name is or if they even have one but this is what I call them) one shot. Please let me know what you think.
Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own The Walking Dead or anything associated to it except the DVD's. Everything belongs to AMC and Robert Kirkman.
Everything was peaceful and quiet at the prison. There had been no sign of the Governor for months and everyone was starting to feel comfortable in their lives, well as comfortably as one can be during a zombie apocalypse. Former deputy sheriff Rick Grimes was busy working in the new garden; something he had been doing a lot of since relinquishing leadership to Daryl and Hershel; when he spotted Beth and his little daughter approaching him.
"Hey," he smiled as they got closer. Seeing his little girl seemed to bring a smile to his face lately. "Is everything okay?"
Beth smiled shyly at him. She couldn't help feeling her heart beat that much faster when she was around him. She had never experienced what love felt like, not even with Jimmy, but she wondered if this feeling she had was what it felt like.
"Beth?" Rick stepped closer, waving a hand in front of her after she didn't answer.
"Sorry," she snapped out of her head. "I just thought Judith might like to come see her daddy."
He took the little girl from Beth, kissing her lightly on the head. "Hey there sweetheart. You and Beth having fun yeah?"
"Always a perfect little angel this one," Beth smiled tickling the little girl. "How's it going out here? I thought Carl was helping you?"
"He was, got bored and decided to go hang out with some of the kids from Woodbury."
"That's good, that he's around some kids his own age."
"What about you?" he asked looking over at her. She was so young yet she never seemed to act like it. She came across as someone older than her years.
"Me?" she asked confused.
He nodded shifting Judith who had begun to squirm. "Yeah, I noticed that you spend most of your time with Judith and Carol or your father and sister. You don't really socialise with others your own age."
She shrugged, "I like being with the others, their family. And...I don't know. The others seem so much younger. If that makes any sense?"
"With everything you been through, it's understandable that you've had to grow up so fast. That's been my biggest issue with Carl. It's not fair that you both had to lose your...innocence so to speak."
"I don't mind. I mean I do wish that this had never happened but part of me is." He looked at her in surprise. "You wouldn't understand."
"Try me."
She shook her head, "It's not important." She reached out to take Judith. "Well, we'll let you get back to things."
"You know I don't mind having her around. You could keep me company."
Beth's stomach flip at the idea of spending time with Rick especially with no one else but Judith around but she knew that the little girl was due for a nap. "As tempting as that is Judith needs to take her nap else she gets very grumpy."
"And we don't want that?" he asked.
"No we don't. Say goodbye to daddy." Beth held the little girl towards her father as he once again gently kissed her.
"Maybe once Judy is down you could come back? You know I could use a hand." He wasn't sure where the suggestion had come from, part of him really did want some help and the company, but another part of him didn't want Beth to leave. Over the last couple of weeks he had been spending a lot of time in her company and he found that he looked forward to seeing her just as much as Judith every time he went to see his daughter.
She smiled brightly blushing slightly, "Okay. I'll be back soon."
He watched her go feeling something he hadn't felt in a long time. He knew he shouldn't think of her in that way, he was much older than her, but he felt so drawn to her. At night he caught himself thinking of her, dreaming of her and he knew Hershel would properly kill him if he could see what Rick saw, hell Maggie would properly bring him back just to kill him again for thinking of her little sister the way he did. But he couldn't help it. She was the light in this dark hole, she was the reason he looked forward to getting up in the morning. He knew it should be his kids but it was her, the thought of seeing her made him happy and excited to start the day. Most of the time he felt alone and lost but not when she was around. He didn't think he'd ever tell her, she was a beautiful girl and there was no way he would begrudge her happiness. He was content to admire her and dream of her from afar. Or so he thought.
Beth had just put Judith down for her nap when it happened. She ran out of the cell as the first scream pierced the air. She stopped as she ran into something hard. "Daryl, what the hell was that?" she asked as she recovered her footing.
"I don't know, but you should stay her." He raised his crossbow ready to move as a second louder scream erupted.
"I think it's coming from the shower area," she replied reaching for her knife.
Daryl took off with her following behind. "Where you think you're going?" he asked not stopping.
"With you."
"Beth," he began but she stopped him.
"I'm going with. Rick is outside, it's gonna take him time to get here and the others are out on a run. I'm what you've got."
He was about to argue as a young boy came running in, "Walkers, their everywhere."
"How many?"
"5 maybe more, you've gotta help, my sister is down there."
Daryl quickly raced down the cell block not waiting while Beth looked at the shaking boy. "Go find Rick, tell him what happened and that Daryl and I are down there.
The boy nodded not being able to stop shaking and ran of to find the older man. Beth followed after Daryl. She could hear the swoosh of the arrows as the man ahead of her fired at the walkers. Stopping behind him she gasped. Lying on the ground among the dead walkers was a little girl not more than 8 years old. Looking around to see if there were anymore walkers around, Beth raced to the little girl.
"She hurt?" Daryl asked, crossbow still raised, as he kept an eye out for any more threats.
She looked over the girl and saw a deep bite mark on her neck. She looked up and shook her head, "She's bit," she whispered.
"Shit!" Daryl moaned.
"What do we do?" she asked.
"The only thing we can do."
Beth looked at him shocked. "You wanna put a bullet into a little girl?"
Daryl shrugged but had a look of angst on his face, "We don't have a choice Beth, you know that."
They both turned as they heard footsteps approaching. Rick appeared followed by the young boy. "You guys okay?" he asked looking at both of them but letting his eyes linger a little longer on Beth.
"We're fine but the kid aint." Daryl replied giving Rick a look that said it all.
"Beth, can you take Ben?" Rick asked her.
She looked back at him before nodding in understanding. She didn't want to be there for what was about to happen anyway. "Come on Ben; let's go find your mom."
He looked back and forth between the adults, "What about Licia?"
"We'll take care of her buddy," Rick knelt in front of the boy putting a hand on his shoulder. "Please go with Beth."
He nodded and took Beth's outstretched hand.
They had just reached the corner when they heard the gunshot. Ben pulled away and raced in the direction of his sister, "Licia! Licia!"
"Ben!" Beth yelled before taking off after him. She caught up with him and find he had ran right into a walker. "Ben, slowly take a step back towards me."
He did what she asked and she slowly moved him till he was right behind her. "Go, run!" she ordered. Thankful he listened, leaving her alone with the walker. She pulled out her knife and held on tightly as the walker slowly approached her. Taking a deep breath she walked up to it and plunged the knife into its head. She wiped her forehead and breathed out a sigh of relief. Looking up though she saw another walker headed their way; she ran, hoping towards Rick and Daryl. When she rounded the corner a gun shot went off and all she felt was pain spreading across her stomach.
Rick and Daryl had just killed the little girl and a few stray walkers when they heard a gun shot coming from down the cell block. They quickly looked at each other before racing towards where the sound had come from. Daryl got there first and stopped in his tracks at the sight in front of him. Beth was on the ground propped up against the wall hands covered in blood and Ben was crying as a gun lay on the ground next to him. "I thought she was a walker," he cried.
Rick raced towards the girl he loved. "Beth," he reached up and grabbed her chin tilting her head till she looked at him. "You're gonna be okay." He picked her up and raced back to cell block C shouting for Hershel, Daryl close behind dragging Ben behind him.
"What is it?" Hershel asked limping towards them, gasping as he saw his little Bethy in Rick arms. "Beth!"
"She's been shot."
Hershel headed straight for his cell and Rick followed. He lay her down on the bunk. Hershel grabbed a scissors and began cutting her top. There was blood everywhere. "Get something to stop the bleeding, NOW!" Rick raced out of the cell looking for anything to help save Beth.
It had been three hours since Beth had been shot and Rick had been pacing like a wild animal. The others had finally returned from the supply running miraculously having raided a pharmacy; bring a whole lot of meds with them. He had wanted to stay with her but Hershel had kicked him out not needing the distraction. He finally looked up as Maggie and Hershel appeared.
"How is she?" he asked desperately.
Hershel sat down with a sigh, "I managed to get the bullet out but she's lost a lot of blood. Thankfully there doesn't seem to be any internal damage but its still touch and go. All we can do is wait." Rick ran a shaky hand through his hair.
"What happened?" Maggie asked anger evident in her voice.
"Walkers got into the shower area, two kids got attacked and Beth wanted to help me." Daryl replied feeling the guilt eating away. He knew he should have forced her to stay put.
Rick shook his head at his friend, "This aint your fault Daryl."
"Then whose is it?" Maggie demanded.
"A young kid lost his sister in that attack and he was scared. He came back looking for her and he got lost, ran into a walker. Beth told him to run but he went back with a gun wanting to help her. He got scared, thought she was a walker." Rick replied.
"So he shot her?" Hershel said eerily calm.
Daryl nodded, "He didn't mean to shot her."
"Cause he didn't, but because he didn't call for help my Bethy might die!"
Rick had never seen Hershel lose control like this, and he understood. Beth, his light, the woman he loved was laying on a bed with a bullet wound, fighting for her life and he was scared that he was going to lose her. But he also understood that Ben was a kid and he had been scared. "Can I see her?"
Hershel looked up at him and saw the look on the young man's face. He nodded slowly, "I don't know if she'll be awake."
"I just need to see her." Rick replied before heading towards Beth. He saw Carol sitting across from the young blond tears in her eyes. She looked up as Rick entered the cell.
"We can't lose her Rick," she cried softly.
"We won't. She's tough; she'll make it through this. She has to."
"I hope so."
"Can I have a moment?" he asked.
She nodded before getting up; she lightly touched his shoulder as she passed. "She's lucky to have you," she added before leaving him alone with Beth.
He knelt down beside her bed and grabbed her hand. She looked so pale, so small, and it crashed him to see her like this. "Beth I don't know if you can hear me but you need to fight. You need to be okay. We need you...I need you." He gently began rubbing his fingers across her hand and arm. "You are my light in this crazy world, you're the reason I can get up and fight each day to survive. After Lori died I didn't think I would ever feel something for another woman but then you snuck up on me and stole my heart. I was happy to watch you from afar because I thought it was inappropriate for me to have feelings for you, but the thought of losing you scares the crap out of me. I realised I can't live without you; I don't want to live in a world where you're not in it. I love you Beth Greene so I need you to fight, so I can tell you, so I can kiss you, so in can hold you and never let you go." He felt the tears begin to fall and he lay his head against hers. He felt movement and sat up.
He saw her staring at him with a small smile, she still looked very weak but he thought she had never looked more beautiful.
"Never thought I'd hear you say that," she whispered painfully.
"Hey, save your strength okay," he kissed her head. "Need you to get better okay?"
"So you can kiss me?" she teased, before coughing and groaning in pain.
"Yes, now if you don't rest I may have to change my mind."
She frowned at him, "You don't wanna kiss me anymore?"
"NO, I wanna kiss you till it hurts and then some more, but I need you to be healthy."
She turned carefully till she could touch his cheek, "I think a kiss will make me feel better."
He shook his head, "Not now, not while you are hurt." She pouted softly. "Hey, think of it as an incentive to fight. Something to look forward to."
She thought it over then smiled. "I can't wait." She closed her eyes. He made to get up but she gripped his hand tightly in her small hand. "Will you stay with me?"
"I'm not going anywhere, as long as you promise me you're not either."
"Oh, I promise, you do owe me a few kisses Mr Grimes." He smiled as she drifted off to sleep.
It took several weeks for her to recover but she did and everyone was happy to have their Beth back none more so than Rick. After everything had settled down Rick approached Hershel as he sat down reading his bible. "Hey Hershel you got a minute?"
The older man nodded closing his book. "What can I do for you?"
The young man took a deep breath facing his fear, "Before I say anything I just want you to know that I would do anything to protect you and your family."
"I know you would. I've seen it many times."
Rick nodded, "I also want you to know that I never planned for this to happen, it just did."
Hershel looked at him knowing where this was going. He had watched Rick and Beth's interaction since the shooting. He might be old but he still had eyes. "This is about Bethy," he stated.
"I have feelings for her."
"I know."
"You know?" Rick asked in surprise.
"I've known for a while. And to be honest at first I wasn't happy about it. No man wants his little girl to grow up and fall in love with a man almost twice her age." Rick nodded in understanding. "But every father wants his daughter to grow up and meet a man who he can respect and trust to look after her, to love her. I know you're that man."
"I do love her Hershel. I never thought I would love someone else but she snuck in there."
Hershel nodded with a smile, "She has away of doing that. Just treat her right and remember I have a gun."
Rick nodded, "I wouldn't dream of hurting her. Thank you, it means a lot to have your blessing and I know it'll mean a lot to her."
Hershel shook his hand, "You're a good man Rick, I couldn't be prouder for Beth to be with someone like you. Now go, make Beth happy."
Rick smiled and got up quickly making his way to the cell Beth and Carol shared. He passed Daryl who gave him a wink and a pat on the shoulder, "Go get the girl already."
Rick smiled in thanks. He spotted the girl he loved and her friend laughing at something he hadn't heard. "Hi ladies."
They both looked up and gave him a smile. "Hi Rick." Carol returned the greeting.
"So Beth, you think you're up for a walk outside?" he asked.
She smiled at him almost jumping from her bed, "Are you kidding me? Absolutely."
He walked over and helped her get up, "Don't worry Carol, I'll bring her back soon."
Carol smiled, "Don't hurry back on my account."
"Shall we?" he asked holding out his hand which she happily accepted.
He led her down the stair, her father smiled as she passed and out into the grounds. She sighed happily as the sun hit her face. He smiled lovingly at her. "Feels good doesn't it?"
"You have no idea."
"I have a small idea." She looked at him. "After I got shot. I did wake up to walkers everywhere but it was good to be out of that hospital bed."
"I forgot about that," she answered honestly.
"Feels like years ago. But let's not talk about the past. I want to concentrate on the future."
"Futures good."
He led her around the building to a quiet spot where she saw a blanket was laid out. "What's this?" she asked.
"I thought we could spend some time alone. See, if I remember correctly I owe you a kiss."
"A kiss? I'm pretty sure the promise was kisses," she teased.
"Well I'm sure we can make a plan," he smiled as he gently pulled her closer and lightly touched his lips to hers. It didn't take long for both of them to deepen the kiss and to begin exploring each other. He was mindful not to hold her too tight in fear of hurting her but she didn't seem to mind at all. She could deal with any pain if it meant feeling him so close to her. Breaking for air they pressed their heads together and smiled at one another. "So worth the wait."
Rick laughed, "Without a doubt. But if you don't mind I'd very much like to do that again and I don't think I can wait."
"Will how can I deny my hero. But first, I never got to tell you this before."
"What?" he asked.
"I love you too."
He picked her up and kissed her deeply again. Knowing in his heart he was never going to let her go again. She was his light, she was his world and after been alone and lost for so long, he had finally found his home...with her.
Authors note 2: I had thought about letting Beth die and seeing how Rick would handle it, but after all he's been through I thought he deserved some happiness. Plus I'm a sucker for happy endings and I just love Reth too much to keep them apart. Thanks for reading, reviews would be greatly appreciated.