A/N: I'm so excited that so many of you like this story. I can't thank all of you enough, it makes my day to read the reviews. I hope you enjoy this little chapter and Bethyl on. Much love to my Bethyl sister.
Walk With An Angel
Chapter 3: Should Have Known Better
The next morning Daryl was up and out the door. Carol had come in around midnight to get a few hours of sleep before sending Sophia off to school.
He had a feeling today was the day, today Merle would wake up and he'd be on the road to recovery.
As soon as he entered the hospital he saw her, blonde hair, sweet smile and that halo that sat perfectly atop her head.
Beth turned from the nurse she'd been chatting with and walked over to him. "Long time, no see. You look like you got some sleep."
"Thanks... for that cloth." The words he wanted to say got stuck in his throat, his eyes looked anywhere but at her.
She rested her hand on his arm, the contact tingled and prickled his skin. His eyes flicked down to her alabaster fingers as she squeezed slightly. "I was repaying a favor. My mom is much better this morning, the doctors can't understand how she's recovering so quickly. The Lord works in mysterious ways."
'The Lord indeed does.' Daryl thought to himself, as he enjoyed the feel of her warm hand on his arm.
Daryl noticed a guy at the end of the hall, he waved at them and started walking their way. "Hey Beth, your dad was wondering where you went. I'm gonna go help Maggie and Glenn this morning, I'll see you later."
The way she smiled back at him, the way she dropped her hand from Daryl's arm when she saw him, it all clicked together. It wasn't until the guy gave Beth a kiss on the cheek that it was crystal clear.
She had a boyfriend, she was taken. How could he not think that before? A young, sweet thing like that couldn't be single.
Daryl walked away with his now somber mood. Beth was just a girl that was nice to him, she was probably nice to a lot of people. If he'd kept his head on straight he'd seen that, seen that she probably felt sorry for him.
Before he can get half way down the hall, Beth called out to him. "You got time for a quick cup of coffee?"
Could this be more of her kindness? Daryl wanted to find out, wanted to see if he was just a Christian good deed to her.
"Sure... a quick cup." They walked side by side to the cafeteria, Daryl noticing her protective stance. She walked with her arms wrapped around her small frame, her hands balled into her ribs.
They purchased the coffee and took a seat by the table in the corner. "You never really told me your name."
"Sorry... Daryl... Dixon." There it was again, that nervous stutter that only happened around her.
"I know, Reverend Smith told me. So, Daryl Dixon what do you do for a living, do you live close?" He wanted to shrug his shoulders as he'd always done in the past, letting the questions remain unanswered.
"I do odd jobs, mostly mechanic work. Live with my brother and his girlfriend, not far from the vet clinic. Took a dog there for Sophia once, yer pa fixed him up." He gripped the coffee cup, the hot cup stung but he needed the distraction from her angelic face.
"Sophia, that your girlfriend?" Beth blew slowly on her coffee, Daryl watched as her two perfect pink lips puckered out.
'Damn, pull it together Dixon.' The thoughts that coursed through his mind were not of the pure nature. Never in his thirty two years had he wanted to kiss a woman as badly as he did her right then.
His grip on the cup was like a vise, so hard the coffee spilled over and burnt his hand. "Dammit."
Her blue eyes shot up to his face and he caught her gaze. He wanted to leave, to forget he'd ever saw her. Beth jumped to her feet and gathered some napkins. "Just a little coffee. Are you okay?"
To his surprise, she took his hand and wiped off the burning liquid and began to blow his scalded skin. The things her lips could do, that image smacked him so hard he was nearly breathless.
"See, all better." She placed his hand back to the table, the line of questioning almost forgotten
"I don't have a girlfriend, Sophia belongs to Carol, Merle's girlfriend." He examined his hand, the raised red patch of skin far from the worst thing he'd ever had.
"Oh. No girlfriend. You're not a confirmed bachelor are you?" Beth almost giggled out the last statement, the sound gripping his heart strings again.
"No." The word came out too harsh, as if her question offended him.
The room goes quiet, Beth sitting there staring at him. He wished she'd speak, say something to let him know he wasn't a complete asshole.
"I have to be getting back, it was nice talking with you." The once bright blue of her eyes had faded to a cloudy indigo. Daryl wanted to kick himself, wanted to take her hand and apologize.
"Wait." The word slipped off his tongue before he'd formed a coherent thought to why she should stay.
Beth turned back to face him as Daryl let out a held breath. "I didn't mean to pry Daryl. It's my fault."
"You can pry all you want. Maybe over lunch?" As the storm clouds lifted from her eyes, Daryl's heart returned to its normal rhythm.
"Lunch? I'll see what I can do, but no cafeteria food." They both let out a chuckle, when it hit Daryl that her boyfriend may not like it.
As they head back to their respective family members, Daryl stopped in the hallway with a burning question on his mind.
"Will you be bringin' yer boyfriend with ya?" The question hung in the air as Daryl stared back at the smiling girl before him.
"Nope, kind of hard to do when I don't have one. Wait, do you mean Zach? No, he's just a friend that helps my dad out on the farm." Her hand laid on his arm again, the heat and tingling from before somewhat intensified.
"Good to know." He wanted nothing more than to stand right there, feeling her warmth and bathing in her smile, but he had to get to Merle.
He nodded to her as he walked off, Beth reminding him of their lunch date. "Meet me at the hospital entrance, around noon."
"You got it." With a lift in his steps, he found himself in Merle's room and his brother very much awake and cussing off the hinges.
