I honestly can't even explain how much I love this particular AU of Beth and Daryl's life. Just imagining it puts a smile on my face and I wish it was possible to just live in here forever and I find myself thinking of so many other scenarios to write for them and this little life of theirs. This is a very domestic part.
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3/3.
Beth felt silly. She had been working on the house for months right alongside Daryl and had seen it as it got closer and closer to the finished product but now as she walked through the rooms, her fingers twined with Daryl's, the kids running from room to room, shouting back and forth with excitement, she felt tears prick her eyes.
The air smelled of fresh paint and finished wooden floors; sunlight was streaming through the new windows with a few open, a soft breeze floating in. It all looked so beautiful, she honestly felt as if she was looking into the pages of a home magazine. But this wasn't Southern Living or something like that. This was her home. Her family's home. They lived here and this was theirs. All theirs. And Daryl had worked his butt off to give this to them. Five months, almost six, and she couldn't believe that he was still standing and hadn't just collapsed into an exhausted heap. They had used all of the extra fifteen thousand they had saved from buying the house initially and she knew Daryl was proud of himself for not spending too much more than that, finding as many deals as he could along the way. They hadn't gone completely broke – which were both of their fears over the past few months and plenty of sleepless nights.
But he had done it. He had done it all and she doubted that this house had ever looked as good as it did now – even when it was first built.
She stood in their bedroom, looking around and remembering how it had been when they walked through this house for the first time. And even though she had seen the slow transformation of it every day, she could still hardly believe it.
She looked at Daryl then and he stood there, watching her. She laughed softly.
"Is this really ours?" She asked, feeling more tears spill down her cheeks but only more laughter bubbled in her throat.
It looked like he wanted to smile, too, his lips twitching. "'til Hunter burns it down."
She laughed and cried and hurried to him, throwing herself against him. He hugged her tightly, crushing her body to his, and she felt herself sobbing, seemingly unable to help herself. It was almost as if she had no idea what else to do. Telling him thank you seemed so entirely insufficient considering everything he had put himself through over the past few months to get this finished. He had built their family a home. How could a thank you possibly be enough for something like that?
"You're never allowed to ask me for anythin' again," he said in his grunt and she laughed then, pulling her head back, beaming up at him and he was smiling, too.
"Nothing ever again. I promise," she said and then lacing her fingers behind his neck, she stood up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. She felt his fingers in her hair and she breathed against his mouth, sinking against him.
They had a get together that afternoon – an open house of sorts to show off the final product – with family and friends and Beth swore her face was starting to hurt because she hadn't stopped smiling all day. Annette was crying, too, as she hugged Beth and then Daryl tightly, telling them how beautiful the house was, though Daryl was pretty sure she was crying with relief now that they had finally moved out of her house after months of staying there.
They had tables set up outside in the yard covered with the food and desserts that everyone had brought with them and Beth dragged Maggie around, showing her every nook and cranny of the house – both inside and out.
"My vegetable garden can be even bigger here," she was saying, showing the spot in the backyard that Daryl had already marked off for her to begin. "And we're going to get a few more chickens, too."
"Still staying self-sufficient?" Maggie asked with a smile, spotting Daryl's familiar deep-freeze where he stored all of the meat he hunted.
"Always," Beth smiled. "Well, what do you think?"
The two sisters turned and looked up at the house.
"It's so beautiful, Bethy," Maggie said without hesitation. "Like one of those houses you see in the magazines. All sunshine and wood and fresh flowers. I hope Glenn knows he's getting an earful on the way home. I'm not going to be living in some crappy apartment for the rest of my life," she said and Beth couldn't help but laugh.
Coming around the house to the front yard, the kids, plus Shawn, were playing on the tire swing and playing tag with one another. Glenn had bought Hunter a marshmallow gun as well as a bag of marshmallows and everyone was getting pelted. Daryl had crouched down behind him to show him how to aim and hit his target and Hunter whooped with joy when he hit Uncle Merle right in the forehead.
Beth went back inside where she found Lori in the kitchen with Lizzie, Carl's girlfriend, along with Annette, who was bouncing Abby on her hip.
"Oh, you don't have to do that!" Beth hurried over to where Lori was loading dirty dishes into the dishwasher. Another treat Daryl had installed for her. "You're the guests," she reminded her.
Lori waved her off with a hand. "You and Daryl have built a house. I think the rest of us can manage cleaning up after ourselves."
"There," Lizzie declared, setting the large bowl of chocolate pudding down on the counter that she had just pulled from the refrigerator where Beth had let her store it. "Do you think it's set enough?" She asked.
"It looks delicious, dear," Annette assured her and Lizzie smiled though she still looked nervous. Annette then leaned into Beth as Beth took Abby from her, holding the infant in her slim, strong arms. "We've been trying to tell her that it's very hard to screw up opening the Jell-O pudding box but she has been a nervous wreck," Annette said in a low whisper and Beth smiled, looking at the girl.
She remembered the first time she ever made anything for Daryl. Chocolate chip cookies – a thank you for changing her flat tire. She had been so nervous handing them to him, hoping he liked them. As her mother said – and almost every other mother – a way to a man's heart was through his stomach.
The back door opened then and Carl and Luke entered the kitchen.
"Mom," Luke frowned the instant he saw her. "Judith won't stop trying to kiss me."
Lori sighed. "That girl is going to make her father a very grey-haired man."
Carl gasped when he saw Lizzie standing at the counter, a large bowl of chocolate pudding in front of her. "My favorite," he said and instantly dunked his finger in, scooping some out, not seeing his mother's frown.
Lizzie beamed happily, her cheeks stained a light pink.
As the sun began to set, everyone began helping cleaning everything up and preparing themselves to leave. Beth hugged everyone and thanked them all for coming and for all of their help with the house and she looked for Daryl but didn't see him anywhere.
Luke and Hunter were so tired from the festivities of the day that when Beth told them to go upstairs and get themselves ready for bed, they gave no argument. Beth waved one more time as her parents were the last to drive off and she then turned off the front porch light, going inside, closing and locking the front door. Even though they had had so many people over that afternoon, everyone had made sure that the house was just as spotless as it had been when they had arrived. There was nothing left for Beth to do except turn off the lights.
She did so slowly, walking through each room, smiling to herself. She wondered if she would ever get used to it. This home was theirs. This big house was all theirs.
Most of the rooms looked so large because they didn't have that much furniture and they probably wouldn't for some time. They had already spent so much money and she knew Daryl wouldn't be looking to spend any more anytime soon. And it didn't really matter to her. The only other thing she wanted was a dining room table but she had promised she wouldn't ask Daryl for anything else so she wouldn't tell him – at least not for a few months.
Once all of the lights were off and the doors were locked, she headed upstairs. Hunter and Luke were both in their pajamas and in the bathroom, standing at the sink, brushing their teeth. She still didn't know where Daryl was but she wasn't worried. She ushered them from the bathroom and tucked Hunter into his bed, kissing him on the head.
"I've never slept without Luke in the room," he then commented.
"I know, sweetie," Beth smiled faintly at him as she sat on the edge of his bed. "But remember what your daddy built for you?" She pointed then to a small door in the wall. "If you get scared and you need Luke, you can just crawl right on through that door to his room. And Luke can crawl in here if he gets scared."
"I won't get scared," Hunter then boasted with confidence that made her smile.
"But you'll be okay if Luke crawls in here?" Beth asked.
"I'll take care of him," he promised then and Beth had to swallow down a laugh. He was such a Dixon. Hunter then grinned up at her. "Did you see the way Luke was running away from Judith today. She's eight," he said.
Beth smiled a bit wider and smoothed back some of his hair. He wanted to grow it out like Daryl's right now and rose a fit if he even saw scissors anywhere near him.
"Your brother is growing to be a very handsome young man," she said, smiling as she recalled Judith blushing that afternoon whenever Luke was near and even Lizzie had said that Luke was cute, which Carl had frowned at.
Hunter looked as if that was the most disgusting thing he had ever heard and this time, Beth did laugh. She kissed him on the head and wished him to have a good night. She left, leaving the door open, and went into the room next door where Luke was already in bed, already asleep. She made sure he was covered with the blankets and kissed his head before leaving the room, heading down the hall. She went into the room across from hers and Daryl's, which was now Abby's. She had been put to bed a couple of hours earlier and she was still sleeping deeply in her crib.
When Beth finally walked into the bedroom across the hall, she was not surprised to see that that was where Daryl was – already passed out on their bed, still fully dressed. She had suspected that that's where he was this whole time.
She crossed the room quietly to their bed and making sure she didn't wake him up, she began unlacing his boots and pulling them off his feet, placing them down in the closet. She then began to undress herself, changing from her clothes into one of his flannel shirts. It was really the only thing she ever liked to sleep in.
When she crawled into bed and slipped between the cool sheets, feeling the heat from Daryl's body beside her, she realized just how tired she actually was. It felt like the instant her head touched the pillow, her eyes closed and she feel deeply asleep.
When she woke up again, the sun was just rising, the sky outside pink and purple with dawn and Daryl was no longer in bed with her. She laid there for a moment, listening to the birds chirping outside and she heard movements downstairs, hushed voices, a few pans banging together. She let out a yawn as she sat up, looking to the clock. It was just a few minutes past six. That was actually sleeping in for her.
She pulled herself from the bed and went into their bathroom, smiling faintly as she washed her face with the cold, clear water that was coming out of the pipes. After tugging on a pair on sweatpants and a pair of thick socks – she quickly learned that the floors were incredibly cold just like in their old home – she headed down the stairs, finding everyone in the kitchen.
Daryl was awake, holding Abby in one arm as she sucked on her pacifier and rested her head on his shoulder as if still tired. In his other hand, he held a flipper, scrambling a pan of eggs at the stove. Luke and Hunter were both sitting at the table, Luke eating a piece of dry toast and Hunter drinking from a cup of orange juice. Luke had his sketch pad with him as he almost always did and Hunter was looking through one of his Highlights magazines, trying to find all of the differences between the two pictures. Hunter had grown into not really being a morning person so the mornings, at least for a couple hours, became the one time of the day where they knew they would get some quiet.
"Good morning," Beth smiled upon looking at the scene.
Their first Sunday morning in their new home. And it looked perfect. Like Maggie had said – like something seen in a magazine.
"Good morning," Luke was the only one to respond.
Hunter kept drinking his orange juice and Daryl gave some sort of grunt that she interpreted as a "Good morning, dear. How did you sleep?" She went to the boys, giving each of them a kiss on the head and then went to the stove, kissing Abby on the cheek and then standing on her toes, she gave Daryl a kiss on his chin.
"How'd you sleep?" She asked, taking Abby from him as she stretched her arms, clasping and unclasping her hands for her mama. "I thought you would sleep all day."
Daryl shook his head. "Got some work on the truck I wanna get done today."
She smiled a little and set Abby down in her high chair. "You are allowed to take the day off. It is Sunday, the day of rest."
He smirked a little and shrugged. "Got enough sleep last night."
He finished scrambling the eggs and fried some bacon and they all sat at the table, sharing their first breakfast in their new house. They were going to take it easy that day. Beth was going to finish unpacking the rest of their things from the house. Luke was going to go into the woods to sketch tadpoles that he found in the creek the day before and Hunter was eager to help Daryl with the truck. Hunter had begun to show interest in something other than causing trouble and that was learning about cars. And Daryl was downright eager to teach his son everything he knew.
It was a quiet day. A perfect day.
Beth opened the windows in the house so the light breeze could float into the house and Abby played on the floor of the living room, throwing her toys and laughing as she crawled to fetch them again. After about an hour of this, Beth scooped Abby up in her arms, resting her on her hip, and went out onto the front porch, seeing Daryl and Hunter both under the truck, only their feet and Daryl's legs visible.
"We have a problem," Beth said with no other precursor.
A moment later, Daryl pulled himself out from under the truck and he helped Hunter get out safely without conking his head. "What?" He asked, standing up, wiping his hands on a rag he had in his back pocket.
"I keep losing Abby," Beth admitted. "This house is so much bigger…"
He looked at her for a moment and then smirked a little. "Thought you wanted me to spend my Sunday, restin'," he said, teasing her a little. Beth looked at him and smiled, letting out a huff of laughter. "You sayin' I can rest after I build some baby gates?" He joked.
"Or I can just lock her in the study for the afternoon," Beth mused as Abby grabbed a lock of her hair and tried to start sucking on it.
"Thought that's what we decided on usin' the room for anyway," he smiled a little. He finished wiping his hands and handed Hunter the rag who mirrored his actions. Daryl then put a hand on the boy's head. "Let's go get some wood. Got enough left over to build a gate or two."
"You're the best husband in the world," Beth smiled warmly at him.
"I thought you promised me you would never ask for anythin' again after I built you a house," he reminded her, his lips threatening to turn upwards in a smile the longer her looked up at her and Beth's smile was warm and infectious and only grew.
"I'll make it worth your while," she teased him.
"Last time you told me that, we got a kid out of it," he replied back and her laughter echoed through the afternoon air.
They had a dinner of roasted rabbit, rice and green beans and for once, Luke was the difficult one at the table, hating any and all food that was green and Daryl wouldn't let him leave the table until he ate every single green bean on his plate. After the dishes were put in the dishwasher and the kitchen was wiped down for the night, Beth sat down at the piano and tried to write a few bars of a song she had been working on though hadn't had time to really focus on with everything else happening at the same time.
Tomorrow, it was back to life. Daryl had work and Beth had work and Luke and Hunter had to get to school but summer vacation was almost upon them and Beth was already imagining hosting a Fourth of July barbecue at their house that year.
They went about their nightly rituals, getting the kids ready for bed and tucking them in and by the time they could get themselves ready for sleep, Daryl collapsed onto their bed in their room and Beth closed the door behind them.
"You can't sleep in your pants," she told him, approaching the bed. "You did that last night and I hate feeling your jeans against my legs."
With that, she reached out and pushing his shirt up, her fingers popped open the button of his jeans and began lowering the zipper. And with his stomach exposed, she felt herself nearly licking her lips. Tanned and defined with muscles and dusted with hair, she had never been a girl who went crazy over a male's body but that was only because she hadn't seen Daryl's and the first time she did see his body, she was completely hooked. Even after all of this time, he could get her so turned on from doing nothing more than stretching his arms above his head, lifting his shirt up and showing off a sliver of his stomach.
Now, she didn't fight what she wanted and she leaned over, pressing her lips to his stomach directly below his bellybutton and she smiled against his skin when she felt him practically shiver.
"Whatcha doin'?" He asked, his voice already low and rough and his fingers already in her hair.
She looked at him for a moment before lowering her lips again, moving them a fraction of an inch lower, heading towards his boxers.
She didn't answer him. She knew it wasn't exactly even. Not by a long shot. A blowjob for a house like this but she knew that he knew that that wasn't why she was doing this and she also knew she and Daryl weren't exactly keeping score like that. They never did something like that. And even if they were, she knew Daryl would make sure that she won. Because that was just the kind of man Daryl Dixon was.
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Thank you so much for reading and please review!