A/N:
Hey everyone!
Sorry about taking so long to update, had real life to deal with unfortunately, extra hours at work and so forth.
This chapter isn't thick with plot, really just Bethyl bonding, fluff and establishment.
The plot shall follow in later chapters and I hope you'll hang in there with me!
xo Captain Kraken ox
Through the Dark : Chapter 2
That night Beth climbed into the double bed and Daryl leaned against the doorway.
"I'll take the couch." He assured and she shot him an amused look.
"Why? You afraid I'll steal your innocence?" She teased and he laughed in disbelief.
"I aint got no innocence left." He countered and she smiled a little fondly at him – she didn't think that was true. Underneath all of his survival skills, his rough exterior and bad language, Beth was sure that there were aspects of Daryl that were incredibly innocent.
"Then what you worried about?" She asked and he tried not to gulp at the thought of being in bed with her.
"Fine." He shrugged then wandered over to the empty side of the bed and she shuffled over, giving him space as he climbed in next to her. He turned on his side facing her and before he could say anything, Beth moved close to him and hugged into him, tucking her face into his neck and her arms around him. He was surprised but he allowed it, letting his arm gently settle on her back after almost a minute of being unsure what to do with his hand. "I was so relieved when I saw you today." He whispered and she gave him a gentle squeeze, understanding that it wasn't easy for him to admit things like that.
"No more separating." Beth said.
"Agreed. If we leave this place, it's always together." He decided and she smiled.
"We should have a meet up place in case we ever get separated." She proposed surprising him – figuring he really should have thought of that.
"Alright." Daryl agreed. "Where?" He tested and she considered that.
"The farm." Beth replied softly. "I know that entire area like the back of my hand and you spent tons of time out there." She reminded him.
"Deal." He approved. "Wanna head there after Terminus if there aint nobody there?" He examined.
"The walkers should be clear now." She proffered. "We could build high fences all around the property then grow crops. Daddy kept tons of extra seeds and bulbs in the underground cellar. They'd still be there." She opined and he nodded.
"If we find the others, we'll mention that. We could also raise animals if we can find any." He supplemented.
"And it's out of the way, so looters wouldn't instantly find it." She added.
"Sounds like a plan, Greene." He approved with a sleepy tone to his voice.
"Night, Daryl." She whispered against his neck and he unconsciously pulled her closer to him.
"Night, darlin'." He whispered back just before he drifted off and Beth couldn't help a smile – she really liked him calling her that.
Daryl's eyes fluttered open the following morning and he instantly knew why. Something smelled amazing. He climbed out of bed and trudged into the living room and cocked his head to the side in confusion. He saw Beth at the window using a frying pan over a planter then he really looked and blinked in surprise, seeing that she'd built a small fire inside of the planter that could hang off the window and he thought that she was a little bit of a genius as out the window meant it wouldn't be a fire hazard to their little apartment. He thought that she really could be so resourceful and everyone at the prison had seriously underestimated her.
"What you got there?" He examined and she looked up in surprise, seeing that he was awake and she smiled.
"I was going through the pantry and at the back I found this giant box of pancake mix. It only needs water, so I figured I'd make us pancakes for breakfast." She smiled and he grinned a little at the thought of pancakes.
"Fuck yeah." He approved pleased and she winked at him.
"And there're two kinds of syrup." She pointed to the table that she'd already set and he looked delighted.
"You know, pancakes were my favourite back in the old world." Daryl remarked as they finished their breakfast.
"Does that make me your favourite person at the moment?" She teased fondly.
"Not just at the moment." He blurted then his eyes widened a tiny bit and he looked a bit embarrassed which just made her bite her lip with a small blush, understanding that he hadn't meant to say that out loud. "Uh…" He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand and she shot him an amused look.
"You're my favourite person too." She replied surprising him, but he couldn't help a tiny smile at that. "Did you sleep with Carol?" Beth asked bluntly and he looked stunned silly.
"What? No." He denied like that was absurd. "Why?" He tested with furrowed brows.
"Just curious. Lots of people were wondering." Beth responded and he scrunched his nose at the thought of that.
"Nah, didn't see her that way." Daryl answered and she looked at him with interest, deciding to take a rather big risk…
"Do you see me that way?" Beth asked and he froze, his eyes locked with hers. He didn't answer for ages because he didn't know what to say. "Just be honest." She bid and he exhaled, rubbing his hand down his cheek.
"Do you really think talkin' 'bout this is gonna be productive?" Daryl mumbled, taking a sip of his coffee – seriously, he'd had no inkling that they were going to have a conversation like this and he felt like he needed more time to prepare something to say.
"I'd rather talk about it than dance around it." She answered and he couldn't help wondering if maybe he was the teenager not her given that he'd been content to dance around it.
"You wanna talk 'bout it, so you start." He pointed to her and she nodded her acceptance.
"I feel really comfortable with you." She began. "In a way I've never known it was possible to be with another person that isn't my momma, daddy, brother and sister." She admitted. "But it's different with you." She commented. "It's not just comfort." She advised and he watched her.
"Then what?" He pushed and she blushed a little.
"I didn't really think about it until last night when you were asleep but I really like being close to you. I like touching you and being in your arms and it's not in a friendship or familial way. Admittedly, I don't have a lot of experience with guys given that I've only had one sexual relationship and it scared the hell out of me which resulted in going out with Jimmy then Zach because they were both harmless." She explained and he was seriously surprised that she had had a sexual relationship – everyone had kind of been under the impression that she was virginal.
"What scared you?" He queried and she considered that.
"It scared me because I was one of those stupid girls that had sex because all of her friends did it first and were pushing me." She admitted surprising him. "I didn't love the guy, I just thought he was hot and that's it." She sighed. "It went on for a little while but I was getting uncomfortable, so I called it off… then he told all of his friends that he dumped me because I was bad in bed." She rolled her eyes and he shook his head.
"Boys are stupid." Daryl stated and she chuckled.
"Yeah." She agreed amused. "But back to you." She steered and he tried not to gulp – a seemingly recurrent thought he kept having.
"What about me?" Daryl tested.
"There's nothing about you that makes me uncomfortable or hesitant." She confessed surprising him. "I just… wanna be around you all the time." She said and he couldn't help a small smile because he'd been feeling kind of pathetic for feeling that way about her.
"Is that it though? You're comfortable 'round me?" He questioned and Beth shot him a look like he was stupid.
"Is that all you took from everything I said?" She asked him and he chuckled.
"Brainless redneck remember?" He teased and she rolled her eyes.
"No, you're not." She disagreed making him exhale a little nervously – he wasn't used to anyone thinking he wasn't that. "I'm not sure of what to call it." She commented thoughtfully, visibly trying to find the right words. "Any time I've liked someone before it's been like a 'crush' where I'm happy to see them but nervous to be around them, or around strangers where I feel suffocated, but with you…" She sighed. "It's like I can finally breathe. You're like a glass of water on a hot day." She said softly and his heart churned a little.
"Do you mean that in a… romantic way?" Daryl tested.
"Obviously." She nodded like he should have gotten that already and he took a long breath and made his decision. He decided to be honest with her because for all they knew, they were the only ones left of their group – why overcomplicate things when they didn't need to be that way?
"An' you're my sunshine." He admitted softly making her smile. She stood up then walked around the table and plopped down on his lap sideways, her arms going around his neck and his hands awkwardly held her hips as his heart thudded in his chest.
"Do you feel what I feel?" Beth asked him gently and he nodded to her then pulled her closer until their lips were only an inch apart. He checked her eyes before he closed the distance but she just looked happy and relaxed. His lips brushed against hers and Beth melted against him as she kissed him back. One of her hands ran through his soft – and now clean – hair as her other hand gripped his shoulder, and his hands stayed on her back, keeping her flush against him. His tongue brushed her lower lip and she allowed him entrance then the two of them were kissing deeply and sensually for ages until Daryl broke the kiss and the two of them breathed heavily as they watched each other.
"Damn." He whispered making her smile.
"Wanna go back to bed?" She asked, her fingers playing with his hair and he closed his eyes in disbelief.
"Beth." He choked out and she giggled at him, feeling him growing hard against her thigh.
"C'mon." She encouraged then grabbed his hand and towed him across the room into the bedroom and Daryl followed, trying to regain some brain function. She turned back to him and put her arms around his neck and his hands gripped her waist. His right hand wandered as he looked down her body, his hand gently grazing over her breast and her breath grew ragged as did his.
"We don't have anythin'." He remembered, his voice coarse with emotion and lust.
"That's not entirely true." She smirked. "I found condoms in the drawer." She nodded her head behind her and he exhaled as his hands gripped her hips gently.
"You sure 'bout this, darlin'?" He asked and she looked up at him.
"I'm sure if this is going to be something." She confirmed and he arched a brow at her.
"Meanin'?" Daryl pushed, needing to know that she was completely certain about this.
"Meaning, I wanna be with you, not just this one time." She elaborated and he shook his head.
"I wouldn't have kissed you if I didn't want that too." He promised making her smile.
"Then what are you waiting for?" Beth asked him softly and he picked her up and lay her down on the bed then crawled up over her.
"Nothin'." He replied then they were kissing heatedly again as they pulled at each other's clothes…
They were lying curled up afterwards, naked and sated under the blanket. Beth's arm was hooked up underneath his arm, her hand splayed over his shoulder while her other hand played with his hair. One of his arms was underneath her, wrapped across the length of her back and his other hand rested on the spot where her thigh and butt cheek met, keeping one of her legs over his hip.
"How you feelin' now?" Daryl asked her gently, the first one to break the long silence.
"In what regard?" She asked him just as gently.
"You said that your first scared you." He reminded her and she nodded.
"I feel like I never wanna leave this spot." She said with a smile and a cheeky look and he chuckled with his own smile, pecking her a kiss on the lips understanding that she just felt happy to be with him. Her hand rubbed gently over his shoulder over his scarred flesh and she looked like she was thinking that over. He waited for her to ask about the scars but instead she just looked like she was thinking about it.
"What?" He queried.
"Do those scars still hurt sometimes?" She asked curiously and he nodded.
"Why?" He asked.
"Because the skin around them doesn't have a lot of elasticity." Beth observed thoughtfully as her fingertips gently trailed around them and his eyebrows furrowed – that hadn't been the reaction he was expecting.
"So?" Daryl tested.
"So you'll be left with more pain and muscle aches if you don't take care of that." She commented surprising him. "Wait a sec." She bid then moved away from him and he let her go watching her with confusion. She hurried off into the bathroom for a few second then came back with a bottle of something. "Lie on your stomach." She directed.
"Why?" He tested, trying not to scan over her naked body as this was not the time to get aroused.
"Because." She smirked and he rolled his eyes then moved onto his front. She climbed up and sat on his butt then he waited – he was expecting a gasp when she finally saw them or some kind of reaction or question but all that happened was he felt warm liquid on his back then her hands massaging it into his skin in circular motions and he groaned in pleasure because damn that felt amazing and she smiled. Beth took her time, massaging every inch of his back with the oil, not just the scars until Daryl felt like he was jelly against the bed. She'd been at it for over half an hour until the oil was practically completely absorbed into his skin. Then she climbed back in beside him under the covers and one of his arms moved over her. "Good?" She smiled and he nodded then kissed her.
"Felt amazin'." He agreed. "My back feels ten times better already." He said honestly and with a bit of surprise in his tone making her smile.
"It's Bio-Oil. I found it in the bathroom earlier. It's specifically formulated for dry skin, scarred skin and stretch marks." She replied surprising him.
"What does it do?" He asked curiously.
"If it's used regularly, the vitamins and ingredients in it soak into the skin and help heal the tissue, so over time scars become much less visible and it improves skin elasticity, so the scar tissue heals much more easily. Even old scars." She replied surprising him.
"How'd you know 'bout it?" Daryl inquired.
"Maggie had acne scars and she used that stuff and you can't even tell now." Beth advised surprising him as he'd never noticed any scarring on the elder Greene's face.
"So it's good stuff." He deduced and she nodded.
"I don't think it'll get rid of all of your scarring but it should limit any pain or discomfort you get from them and make them a bit less visible if you keep applying it regularly." She detailed then gave him a kiss and he pulled her closer.
"Doesn't bother you?" He asked her curiously and she looked confused.
"What do you mean?" Beth asked him for clarification and he was surprised that she seemed so not disturbed by his back.
"My scars." He said surprising her.
"Of course not." She denied shaking her head. "I mean obviously I wouldn't mind putting a bullet into whoever did that to you." She said making him smirk – he liked that reaction a hell of a lot more than the pity he'd always seen in other people's eyes. "But I don't find you less attractive and it doesn't put me off if that's what you're asking." She said sincerely and he watched her eyes.
"You didn't look or seem surprised." He commented and she considered what to say.
"I saw a little of your back at the farm when you were sleeping one day after the arrow in your side. Patricia sent me in to get your dishes." She said surprising him. "And I saw Merle's back at the prison once." She added and he watched her.
"You gonna ask?" He queried and she shook her head.
"No. As far as I'm concerned, we burned our pasts away when we torched that cabin." She said. "None of it matters anymore. The only thing that matters anymore is what we do now." She added and he wrapped her up in his arms.
"And what do you think we should do now?" He asked, kissing her neck and she smiled and put her arms around his neck.
"Round 2." She mumbled then his lips were on hers and she reciprocated immediately as he moved over her…
A/N: Remember this is set after Alone and the two of them were very comfortable together in Alone. Let me know what you think, pretty please =)