Beth groaned as she rolled over and looked at her alarm clock. Only a few more weeks of sleeping in, she'd be teaching in September and something told her that Mr. Blake would not tolerate tardiness. She rolled out of bed and walked down stairs to let Ollie her dog out in the back yard. He barely made it off the porch before peeing.
"Poor boy, did I sleep too late?" Beth asked leaving the door open so he could let himself back in while she went off to the bathroom herself. Beth came back out to the kitchen to Ollie sitting by the counter staring at his treats. She tossed him a few milk bones and filled his dish with kibble before grabbing one of the peaches she had bought yesterday for herself for breakfast. It was almost lunch anyway, she thought as she bit into the fruit. She got out some bread, lettuce and tomato and started to assemble a sandwich before taking out the bacon she bought and cooking it. She'd need the rest for her Mac and Cheese. She got her chicken out and put it in a bowl with buttermilk to marinate in the fridge. She quickly washed down the counter and her hands before flipping the sizzling bacon strips. She got to work grating her cheese, putting it in a container back in the fridge before laying the bacon out on a plate lined with paper towels and slipping a piece to Ollie and making her sandwich. "After I eat we can go for our jog before we start making dinner." Beth said sitting down at her island and digging into her early lunch. Ollie walked over and took his leash down from the hook Beth had hung it from walking back over JD sitting patiently beside her with it in his mouth while she finished. Beth reached over and patted him on the head before heading up and washing her face and brushing her teeth. She quickly pulled on some shorts, socks and her sneakers, a sports bra and tank top before spraying on some sunblock and grabbing her ball cap. She pulled her messy hair through the cap before securing it in a messy ponytail and making her way back down to the front door where Ollie sat with his leash. Beth stretched a bit before slipping the leash on, grabbing a plastic bag and heading down her steps. Ollie was well trained, he ran right beside Beth on her left side, never got tangled with her and ignored the playing kids, barking dogs in yards and cats that hissed at him. He had been used to running free on the farm, but he had quickly adapted to the city and subdivision life. It was a good thing he was so well behaved, he weighed 6 pounds more than Beth did and when he stood on his back paws, he was about the same height, maybe taller standing up. Beth followed the roads and soon found herself along Main Street. She ran through the park and stopped at the fountain, letting Ollie cool off with the other dogs that were playing in it for a few minutes before setting off for home. Ollie stopped to do his business, and the sweet boy that he was, it was right next to a garbage can in the park, so Beth didn't have to carry around a plastic bag of poop. She ran past Jacqui's on her way back home, not noticing the stares from inside the diner.
Daryl sat along the counter watching the street, waiting on the lunch order Dale had called in for everyone. He watched the few people playing in the park and longed for his days off. Wednesday he'd work 8am to 9pm, then only have to go in Thursday for a few hours to be up to his forty. Hell maybe he'd actually use a vacation day only work 32 hours this week. He followed the black baseball cap jogging with the biggest dog he'd seen in a long time till it dawned on him who was running. It was Beth, either she had a part time job dog sitting or she had the meanest looking heavyweight Rottweiler in Georgia. He could tell even from here that the dog was well trained; when she had stopped to tie her shoe, the dog had sat beside her and smiled, and when a toddler ran up to pet him, Beth had only had to point to the ground and he hand rolled over and let the little girl rub his tummy. His eyes followed Beth as she ran past him and he decided that he was lucky that Adidas made tight little running shorts, he might have to email the company and thank them. He was pulled from his thoughts when Carol set a few bags down in front of him, smiling and sending him on his way back to work. He went out, hoping in his truck and pulled out his phone. He sent a text off asking Beth to confirm her address, even though he was 99% sure of where she lived. He knew roughly which house was Shane's and she'd be the one attached to it. He threw his phone down on the seat and pulled out, heading back to work.
Beth could hear her phone buzz on the table by the front door when she let herself and Ollie back in. She picked it up and checked her texts. One from Maggie asking her how things were going, a messy one from her daddy, he was just learning how to text, and one from Daryl, confirming her address. Beth replied to Maggie and her dad with lengthy texts, waiting a few minutes, foolishly berating herself for not wanting to appear eager. What did she actually care? She really liked him. She apologized for missing his text, explaining she hand been out on a walk with her dog, and confirmed that yes, she lived at 33 Birch. When Daryl didn't answer right away, she went to the kitchen, washed her hands and got fresh water for Ollie and a glass of sweet tea for herself before getting to work on dinner. She quickly got the Mac and Cheese made and ready for the oven, toasting a few pieces of bread and making the bread crumbs for the top fresh. She found 2 paper bags and started mixing up up the flour and spices for her fried chicken when the phone buzzed again. Looking down she saw that Daryl had answered that it wasn't a problem, he had been driving back with lunch for the boys at work. He added that he thought he may have seen her at the park walking a beast if a dog. Beth laughed, causing Ollie to look at her with a tilted head. Beth typed out an answer and hit send, no longer caring if she looked eager. She set the phone back down and got the skillet and chicken out. She set the chicken on a wire rack on a baking sheet to let the excess buttermilk drip off, and poured the milk down the sink, adding her dirty dishes so the dishwasher as she went. Washing her hands again, she put on more tea to brew and sliced up some of her peaches to make it extra tasty, adding a few ice cubes to the pitcher before shoving it to the back of the fridge so it would be thoroughly chilled for dinner. She added her chicken parts to her spice and flour blend shaking it up, tapping off the excess and putting the coated chicken on the wire and waited for the Crisco to melt in the skillet before adding the chicken to cook. She quickly washed and dried the baking sheet before lining it with paper towels and another brown paper bag to help seep some of the grease out of the chicken. Beth picked up her phone and texted Daryl again, suddenly worried, asking him if spicy was ok. She had added quite a bit of cayenne pepper and paprika to her flour blend. He answered that it was fine and she breathed a sigh of relief before flipping the chicken and grabbing an empty soup can to drain the oil into once it was done. She quickly wiped down her counters, the island and her table before moving the chicken to the baking sheet and checking to make sure it was cooked through. Satisfied with the chicken she moved it the fridge to cool and swept her floors and straightened up the living room, she planned on asking if Daryl wanted to watch the ball game or a movie after eating. She was getting ready to head on up the stars and shower when someone knocked on the door. Ollie padded over quietly and watched while Beth opened the door to Carl and Judith.
"Hey guys." Beth said leaning back against the door. "What's up?"
"My mom kicked us out of the house while she talks to my dad and Shane. Is it ok if I use your bathroom? Shane's door was locked." Carl asked. "She wouldn't even let me pee first first."
Beth reached over and took Judith, letting Carl inside. He kicked off his shoes and walked through the kitchen to the half bathroom/laundry room thanking Beth. Ollie sniffed at the baby licking her bare feet before plopping down on the couch and drifting off to sleep. Beth bounced the baby on her hip, and looked across the street. Rick stormed out of the house and into his car, speeding away. Beth waved when he nodded his head to her, turning back and watching Shane storm out and across the street towards their shared house. She closed her door not wanting to deal with Shane's mood and waited for Carl.
"Hey." Carl said walking back and sitting on the little bench Beth had by the door to slip his shoes back on. "Thanks."
"No problem, anytime. You want to call your mom? I saw your dad and Shane leave, you might be able to head home." Beth said handing him her landline. She didn't want to send him home without giving Lori some heads up. Carl quickly dialed, spoke a few curt words to his mom and hung up reaching for his sister.
"We can go home. My mom said to say thanks again." Beth held the door open and Carl took off across the street. Beth made sure he made it back with the baby and was inside before she closed her door again and ran up the stairs to clean herself up and pick out what to wear.
Dale had enthusiastically agreed to Daryl taking a few days off, reminding him that he had worked 40 plus hours every week since he had started working for him 5 years ago, not even missing time when Merle had accidentally broken his leg hunting. Daryl thanked him and got back to work on the appointments they had for oil changes, working quickly.
"So you taking time off have anything to do with the hot blonde I saw you with?" T Dog asked handing over fresh oil to Daryl to pour into the car.
"Just a coincidence." Daryl said, though he guessed that he'd be able to see a bit more of Beth before she went in to work in September if he took some time off. "That was a first date last night." Daryl added when T Dog didn't walk away, sensing he wanted to talk. "Seeing her again though."
"Yeah at breakfast Carol mentioned you were going to wing night with her." T Dog said. Daryl nodded before letting Martinez take the car back out front to the customer.
"Seeing her tonight too. She invited me over." Daryl said wiping his hands off and grabbing his bottle of water.
"It's about time you met someone." Tyreese called over from the tire oration he was handling. "You've been single for as long as I've known you."
"How'd did you met her anyway?" T Dog asked leaning against the desk while Martinez brought in another car.
"Here." Daryl said. "Came is last night."
"Wait you picked up that tight little blonde that bought the wipers?" Martinez asked handing over the order slip on the car he brought in.
"She asked me out." Daryl said. "Programmed her number in my phone and called me about 15 minutes later."
"Damn man! I sent her back cause I was lined up! I knew I should have made the line wait while I fixed her good." Martinez said stalking back to the front of the garage.
"Something tells me she liked Daryl's Southern Charm. Bet you showed her how to fix them blades herself. Opened her car door." Tyreese teased as he finished up and lowered the car back to the ground.
"I have good customer service." Daryl said defensively. "Showed her how to change the washing fluid too."
"How hot is she Martinez?" T Dog asked. "I guess we'll all find out on wing night." T Dog added when he saw how red Daryl got in the face.
"Stop teasing him." Dale called down from his office. "Do I need to remind you of what you did when Andrea came in with a flat tire Theodore?"
Beth combed through her wet hair and let herself air dry before pulling on fresh panties and a bra. She dabbed on some perfume and deodorant before walking over to her closet and looking through her clothing. She'd have to dress up soon enough for work so she settled on a pair of cutoff jean shorts and black tank top. She put on some flip,flops before adding a bit of tinted moisturizer and mascara to her face and some lip balm. She hardly ever wore any more make up than that anyway. She looked at the clock and raced downstairs to get the Mac and Cheese into the oven and cooking before setting the table and folding a few pieces of paper towels into napkins. She started on the salad quickly finishing since she had prepped so much that morning. She tied her hair back in it's usually messy top knot and walked over and crashed on her front steps, enjoying the afternoon breeze. Lost in her thoughts she didn't notice when Shane walked over and plopped himself down next to her until it was too late.
"Hey." Beth said politely sitting up straighter and pulling at her shorts.
"Hello neighbor." Shane said staring at her. "Big plans?" He asked.
"Just having a friend over for dinner." Beth said awkwardly. "You?"
"Working the overnight." Shane added leaning back on the steps like Beth was, getting even closer. "Thanks for letting the kids in while Lori, Rick and I talked." Shane said running a hand across Beth's shoulder. She flinched away and mumbled no problem. "Rick works so much, Lori worries. It wasn't anything serious." Shane added ignoring Beth's discomfort. "You want to go out sometime?" Shane asked.
"I'm kinda seeing someone right now." Beth said, kinda lying, she knew that, but it was kinda true too. "I really like him." She added subtly stretching and scooting away.
"Boyfriend back home?" Shane asked staring across the street. "Long distance is hard."
Beth shook her head. "No I met him here in town, been out once already."
"That the friend coming over tonight?" Shane asked making air quotes around the word friend. Beth nodded her head and praised The Lord when her oven timer went off. She shot up and made her way to the door.
"I better check on dinner, I don't want to burn anything. Have a good night at work." Beth said waving awkwardly and closing the door behind her. She moved to the kitchen and checked on the oven. She pulled the dish from the oven and removed the aluminum foil covering and set it back in to brown the top. She walked over and checked her phone. Her daddy had texted her again a few times, offering to come up and visit before school started. Take her back to school shopping. Beth laughed and picked up her landline calling home.
"Daddy I'm a teacher now, not a baby. I don't go back to school shopping!" Beth giggled into his phone.
"You're my baby. You sure you don't need new things?"
"I still have the outfits you bought for graduation. You can just come visit me you know." Beth said sitting down. "I got a guest room."
"I'll stop by next time I'm in the city for farming supplies. You live too close for me to visit over night darling." Hershel said. "Your sister would like to have a few words." Hershel said handing the phone off to Maggie.
"You met anyone yet?" Maggie asked not bothering to say hello. "Glenn says hello." She added pushing Glenn away when he tried to listen to the conversation.
"Yes I have. A few people." Beth said. "How's Glenn handling taking over for Otis?" Beth asked. Maggie and Glenn had moved back to the farm to run it while her daddy ran his vet clinic. Otis had retired and moved to Florida with Patricia, leaving her daddy all alone on that big farm.
"City boy stop crying himself to sleep a week ago." Maggie joked. "Nellie kicked him in the gut yesterday."
"What he do to my horse?" Beth asked tossing the hand towel she had been using to wipe the counters down with into the sink.
"Offered her half an apple." Maggie said. "I miss having you around."
"I miss having you bossing me around too." Beth said. "You and Glenn could come visit me!"
"Let that city boy have a glimpse of the easy life?" Maggie scoffed.
"We could make him do my yard work while you're here." Beth said as the oven timer went off again. "I got to go Maggie. Promise me you'll think about a weekend up? Even a day trip."
"I'll think about it." Maggie said hanging up. Beth sighed and put her phone back on the charger. It was almost 7:00pm, Daryl would be here soon. She took the Mac and cheese out of the oven and recovered it with the foil so it'd stay warm and checked herself out in the mirror, making sure she hadn't spilled anything on herself before walking over and inspecting the table on last time. Ollie walked over to the front window and stood on his hind legs wagging his tail. Beth guessed that someone had pulled into her driveway, but she was surprised to see Rick making his way up her stairs with Judith. He knocked firmly on the door and Beth walked over and quickly answered it.
"Hey Beth sorry barge in like this, have you seen Carl?" Beth shook her head.
"Not since this afternoon."
"I'm going to head out and look for him, can you watch Judy? She's asleep." Rick said handing over the car seat.
"I'm having a friend over for dinner. Do you mind if I'm a bit distracted while I watch her?" Beth asked accepting the bundle.
"Not at all. Lori went to her parents for a few days, I'll just go get Judy's things and bring them over." Rick said making his way down the steps quickly and across the street. Beth set the car seat down and grabbed a laundry basket and placed a few towels down before easing the sleeping baby out of her seat and into the makeshift bed. Ollie came over and sniffed the basket before plopping down and curling up around it and the baby. Beth grabbed her phone and texted Daryl, letting him know that the baby would be there for a little bit and that she hoped he didn't mind. Daryl answered no problem almost instantly and Beth was relieved. There was no way she'd ever finish all the food she made. Rick made his way back over and dropped off a diaper bag and his cell number.
"Are you looking for Carl to watch the baby while you're on night shift?" Beth asked accepting the bag. Rick shook his head.
"Shane and I are on our 3 days off." Rick said turning and taking off down the stairs thanking Beth again before getting in his truck and pulling away. Beth shrugged her shoulders, figuring that Shane was catching some overtime. She shooed Ollie away and picked Judith up and brought her into the kitchen, placing the basket on the island. She heard a car pull up and a quiet knock on her door a few minutes later.
"Hey Daryl, nice truck." Beth said commenting on the shiny big Ford parked behind her jeep.
"Thanks, it's a bit quieter than the bike. Didn't want to scare your neighbors or your dog." Daryl said as Ollie trodden over and sniffed at him. Ollie simply turned and walked back to the kitchen, laying down by island. "He's not much of a watch dog." Daryl said kicking off his shoes me following Beth to the kitchen.
"He's a gentle soul." Beth said grabbing the water pitcher and ice tea from the fridge and placing them on the table. "Besides his favorite person in town is napping on the island." Daryl peered into the basket at the sleeping baby and put her soother back in her mouth. Beth moved all the food to the table and told Daryl to sit in either spot before placing Judith on the empty end of the table closest to her. Ollie followed them to the table, sleeping underneath across their feet with his head on Daryl's foot.
"So how'd you end up with the baby?"
"Lori is visiting her folks, Rick is out looking for Carl. I think he was desperate." Beth said. "I watched them last week for him too. Lori had appointments and Rick had to head in to work for some emergency. Help yourself." Beth said holding out a serving spoon for the pasta and helping herself to some salad. She poured them each a glass of tea and water and handed over the chicken to Daryl.
"I think I saw Carl on my way here." Daryl said. "He was at the Diner."
Beth quickly picked up her phone and called Rick, letting hi know what Daryl had told her.
"Why were you at the diner? Filling up incase my cooking is awful?" Beth teased. "Rick wanted me to thank you for the tip. He'll let us know if he finds him."
"I was reserving a table for tomorrow at 5pm. Wing night is serious business." Daryl said digging into the food. "This is really good." Beth smiled and took a bite.
"Thanks, I stole the recipe from the foodnetwork." Beth said. "You got enough pull to reserve a table in a diner last minute like this? I'm impressed." Beth said reaching for more chicken.
"I fixed jacqui's car and the motor in her mixer. I'm her favorite customer." Daryl said leaning back. "When do you start work?" Beth wiped her mouth off and cleared their plates.
"Two weeks. I go in before the kids and set up my class, submit my lesson plan for approval and met with head of the English department. I'm ready though, so I can relax till then."
"County Fair's coming on Thursday, staying for a few days. Want check it out?" Daryl asked. Beth smiled again, he wondered if her heels ever got sore for too much movement.
"I'd love to go, but you've got to promise not to let me spend a fortune of carnival games. I keep playing and playing. Last year they took pity on my back home and just gave me a prize. I had dropped about $100 without even realizing it. I'm glad you're asking me on a date of your own free will. I kinda felt like Carol forced you into asking me. "
"Nah, don't really do anything I don't want to do." Daryl said bring over the rest of the dishes and helping Beth load her dishwasher. She shooed him back to the table.
"You're my guest. You don't have to clean." Beth said putting a lid on the leftover pasta and chicken in a container before bending slightly to stack it into the fridge. Someone knocked on the door. "I bet that's Rick. Can you go let him in?" Beth asked as she finished cleaning. Daryl walked to the door and led a sheepish looking Carl and Rick back to the kitchen.
"Carl has something to say." Rick said pushing Carl forward.
"I'm sorry that my childish behavior put a damper on your evening. I won't runoff again and force my dad to rely on the kindness of our neighbors to find me." Beth struggled to keep a straight face in accepting his apology.
"Judy slept the entire time you were gone. Did you get to eat?" Beth asked Rick shook his head and said they'd get drive thru later. Beth opened the fridge and pulled out the leftover chicken and pasta. "Please take it! I'll be eating leftovers for the week if you don't." Rick gratefully accepted the leftovers, handing them to Carl and accepted Beth's offer of returning her laundry basket and towels in the morning once Judy woke up. He apologized again before heading out across the street with his kids and Judy's things.
"So I guess I'll see you tomorrow? You want me to come pick you up around 4:45pm?" Daryl asked.
"You want to stay and watch so tv?" Beth asked pointing to her living room. "Just push Ollie off the couch and make yourself at home."
"Be ok for a little while. I got to work in the morning though." Daryl said squeezing in on the end of the couch next to Ollie who promptly rolled his head into Daryl's lap. He scratched the dog behind the ears, making his hind leg shake. Daryl laughed as Beth came over and wrestled the dog to the floor so she could joking him on the couch. Beth flicked on Netflix and scrolled through the titles.
"Want to watch a few episodes of a show? Game is on too if you follow baseball." Beth said switching to cable.
"Games fine. Who's playing?" Daryl asked leaning back. Her couch was more comfortable than his bed.
"Let's see, we got Detroit vs Cleveland, San Francisco vs Atlanta and Dodgers vs the Pirates." Beth said checking the guide.
"You ok with the Braves?" Daryl asked. Beth nodded and clicked on the game. She placed the remotes back on the table and cuddled in next to Daryl, lifting his arm and putting it around her shoulders.
"You're kinda pushy aren't you?" Daryl asked leaving his arm where she put it.
"I'm trying it out for awhile." Beth said looking up at him and smiling.