Beth awoke a few hours later with a crick in her neck and the sun in her eyes. She glanced over at Daryl, who was sitting rigidly and obviously trying to keep himself awake. "Pull over, I'll drive." She yawned and stretched, arching her back.

"'M fine," he grumbled, running a hand over his face.

"Daryl, you haven't gotten any sleep in two nights. Please pull over, it won't do neither of us any good if you can't keep your eyes open," she reasoned, putting a hand on his forearm.

He glanced down at her hand and then up to her eyes. Sighing and stepping on the brake, he mumbled, "Fine. Ya know how to drive a stick?"

"I grew up on a farm. Whaddya expect?" she said playfully, maneuvering herself to the back of the van so they could switch spots without having to climb outside and deal with aimless walkers. She tossed a fleece blanket from the mattress to Daryl and hopped in the front seat. "Just keep headin' north, right?"

Daryl grunted in assent and leaned the seat all the way back. Throwing an arm over his eyes and pulling the blanket up, he answered, "Yeah. Wake me up when we start to get low on gas."

"Mkay." Beth started the van up again and drove down the middle of the highway, avoiding walkers and cars and humming along to the music.

…

The needle pointed a bit above E when Beth finally pulled over. She had driven for quite a while. It was difficult navigating through Atlanta, but she managed. That had been about an hour ago. The sun was dipping into the west and late afternoon would soon be turning into dusk.

Daryl snored lightly in the passenger seat, and Beth had let herself take a moment to admire his relaxed features before shaking herself him awake lightly. "Whatssa matter?" he slurred, bolting upright as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Nothing. We're just almost out of gas and the sun's gonna set in a few hours," Beth assured and yawned. "I figured we could camp out here tonight and look for more fuel in the morning."

Daryl nodded, rubbing his eyes and squinting outside. "Damn. How long was I out for?"

"A while. We drove through Atlanta a bit ago."

"'M surprised this piece of junk has such good gas mileage." He slapped the dashboard and moved to the back of the van, picking up two cans that had rolled around. "I'm fuckin' starving. Do you want Spaghetti-O's or chicken noodle soup?"

By the time night fell and the moon had risen, they had heated the cans up over a small fire and practically inhaled them. Daryl scraped the inside of the Spaghetti-O's can with his finger and Beth made sure to eat every noodle. There were still a few cans in the back, and they had plans to ration them accordingly.

Daryl stomped the fire out quickly afterwards and Beth put the food in her bag so they wouldn't make any extra noise during the night. She then knelt on the mattress and rearranged the musty pillows and the blankets to make it seem homey.

"I think we'll be okay if we don't keep watch tonight, as long as we're quiet," said Daryl as he climbed into the van after her. "Can't believe that I'm tired after sleepin' through the whole day."

"Ya probably needed it," Beth replied, taking off her boots and touching her swollen ankle softly. "I'm happy I got to rest my ankle a bit today."

Daryl nodded, chewing on his thumbnail. "You wanna take the mattress? I'll sleep up here."

Beth looked up and met his guarded eyes. "You're gonna kill your back if you sleep up there any longer. It's big enough to share."

Daryl stared at her from the front seat, still and with a hard gaze.

Huffing, she tilted her head and patted the spot next to her. "Daryl, it's okay. I trust you. All ya need to do is take your boots off. It'll be fine. Plus it's cold out."

Swallowing thickly, he nodded and crawled next to her. Beth settled into the bed, wrapping a dusty comforter around her and resting her head on a pillow. Daryl followed soon after, lying on his back and an arm tucked under his head. Beth wriggled closer to him on her side and let herself be soothed by his deep breathing and woodsy smell.

"Do you think we're doing the right thing?" she whispered into the dark.

"Whaddya mean?"

"We just kinda upped and left. I dunno… just doesn't quite sit right with me."

"It woulda been hard looking for them with it gettin' colder. And we don't really know if-"

"Yeah, I know," she cut him off, sniffling.

He curled an arm around her, tucking her closer to his side. "'Sides. You know Rick. He always shows up some time or another."

Glancing up at him, she smiled softly and nodded when their eyes met. "Goodnight, Daryl," she murmured, not wanting to completely break the silence.

"Night, Beth," he replied under his breath, absentmindedly tucking a greasy strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

And then, as if she had been doing it routinely for years, she stretched up and kissed him softly on the lips. It was chaste and sweet, just the hesitant pressing of two lips against each other's. A sense of home and warmth flooded throughout Beth's core, from her lips all the way down to her toes. Daryl was the one to pull away. He let out a long sigh, his nose dragging up her cheekbone and the side of her face, and his lips pressing a kiss to her forehead. Beth closed her eyes and fell asleep fighting back a smile.

…

They were back on the road early the next morning. After siphoning gas and sharing a can of soup, Daryl offered to drive to wherever their destination would be.

They pulled over that night in an abandoned campground at a southern tip of the Appalachian Mountains. He parked under a large willow tree next to a fire pit that looked as if nature was reclaiming it.

Beth hopped out of the van, eager to stretch her legs. There weren't a lot of walkers in the area, so she used this opportunity to explore. At the edge of the campsite, the terrain sloped down to a small river – more of a creek – that ran adjacent to the site. Smiling at the prospect of getting clean, she hiked back to the van and grabbed her bag from the front seat. "There's a river down there and I still have half a bar of soap left," she said to Daryl, who was scanning the area intently.

He flicked his eyes down to her. "You sayin' I stink, Greene?"

Beth rolled her eyes and smirked. "Well, you don't smell like roses, Mr. Dixon."

"You're one to talk," he replied, a small smile forming on his features.

"Well, come on then. We're gonna lose the light pretty soon," she countered, flinging the bag over her shoulder and carefully walking down towards the edge of the water. When she started shedding off her grey sweater and yellow polo, Daryl made a startled noise behind her.

"Jesus, give a man some warning next time," he griped.

"Oh please. You're the only guy I'd be okay with doing this in front of." She was down to a thin tank top. "We should just get in at the same time. We'll have dinner going faster," she reasoned, kicking off her boots and shimmying her jeans down her pale and dry legs.

Daryl grunted from a ways off. Once she was only in her tank top and panties, Beth started to walk into the cold water. It simultaneously felt like a breath of fresh air and an electric shock. Goosebumps dotted her skin as she forced herself into the water. Tugging her hair tie out and wrapping it around her wrist, she waded in the waist deep river before crouching down so she could get her shoulders wet.

Clutching the bar of soap, she started furiously scrubbing at the grime and blood on her arms. "You comin'? I won't look, I promise," she called, her back to the shore.

Daryl cursed as he splashed into the water, venturing out farther than she had. She turned and saw his scarred back before he forced himself all the way under. His scars weren't unfamiliar to her, she had seen them when her daddy took care of him after injuring himself looking for that little girl all those years ago. Beth knew better to ask about them though, she figured he'd bring them up when he was ready.

The soap felt harsh on her pale skin, but at the same time felt like she was finally ridding herself of the past four days. The black grime and screams of the men that had clung to her skin were now pooling in the water, being swept away by the current. Beth sighed and dunked her head underwater, wetting her hair for the first time. She didn't have any shampoo, so she foamed the soap up on her fingers and cleaned her scalp as best she could.

Dirt and gore and sweat were unraveled from her hair, and she began to feel human again. Not like monsters that were so common these days, but a human being with basic morals. She knew that night had changed her, for the better or worse she didn't know.

Letting out a shaky breath, she washed the soap out one last time and stood up. "Soap?" she offered Daryl, politely averting her eyes.

He grunted and swiped the bar, his fingers brushing her palm for a fleeting moment. Beth tried not to think about the tingles that shot up her arm and focused on getting warm in her dry thermal.

…

After splitting a can of chicken noodle soup, Beth and Daryl retreated to the confines of the van. Even with the fire, the late autumn air bit deep in their bones.

"Should probably get some sleep," said Daryl, double checking the locks on the front and back doors.

Beth hummed in agreement, sitting down on the mattress and pulling her boots off in the dim light of the lantern. She began to shuffle her jeans off when Daryl made a strangled noise similar to the one he made at the river.

"Geez, again?"

Beth blushed, looking at her bony knees. "It's so cold, I figured we'd be warmer. If it really makes you uncomfortable, I'll keep them on."

Daryl paused and kept staring out the window. "'s fine. You can do whatever. I'll sleep up here."

"Don't be silly. Am I really that bad to sleep with?" She winced at her word choice. "I mean – well –"

He cleared his throat and nodded. "I know what you mean. 's not that."

"Please?"

Chewing on his thumbnail, he finally looked at her from the front seat. In the dim lighting, she held his gaze as she climbed under her comforter, murmuring, "Last night, I got one of the best night's sleep since the prison. It feels nice when you're next to me."

Daryl cast his gaze downwards and nodded. Letting out a shaky breath, he kicked his boots off and shucked off his vest, jacket, and outer flannel. He crawled in next to her, settling in with a sigh.

Beth propped herself up on one elbow and met his eyes again. "Are we heading to somewhere specific?" she asked.

He slid his forearm under his head and blinked sleepily. "Wherever you wanna go, Greene."

She nodded, absentmindedly brushing hair out of his eyes. "We'll figure it out. Just you and me, right?"

He closed his eyes at her touch. "You an' me," he hummed.

Beth lowered herself a few inches and pressed her chapped lips to his, as she had the night before. Unlike the previous time, he returned the pressure almost immediately. Daryl smelt like river water and campfire smoke, along with a distinct musk that belonged only to him. Beth ran her thumb lightly behind his ear and he ran a hand down her side, dragging the thermal up and placing his hand on her hip, just above her panties.

Beth nipped his lower lip lightly before pulling away. She bit back a grin at his hazy and flushed appearance. Daryl squeezed her hip one last time before reaching over her to turn the lantern off. Curling up against his chest, she was asleep quickly after placing a kiss where his neck met his collarbone. She slept deeply, his warmth distracting her from the harshness of the world outside.