Chapter Ten

Daryl clutched at the long tangled strands of Beth's hair, pulling them back from her face as she vomited onto the side of the road. Her stomach had long since been empty of food but as they stood in the chill air of the afternoon light she continued to throw up yellow film that reeked of stomach acid. Finally she coughed dryly a few times before taking a deep breath and pushing herself into a standing position. She wiped her hand across her mouth before spitting to the side.

"Better?" Daryl asked as he let go of her hair. Beth nodded, an embarrassed look on her face.

"Sorry." she whispered in a small voice to which Daryl shook his head. It wasn't as though he'd never seen someone throwing up before. The amount of times he'd seen Merle empty his stomach after drinking to much was astounding.

"Some kills are just messy." he said with a shrug looking over his shoulder at the walker whose head he had crushed against the floor with his boot upon which point Beth had begun to throw up more than she actually had eaten in days.

She ran her hands over her now pale face and shook her head again. "And to think I used to have such a strong stomach." Daryl passed her a water bottle which she took gratefully. Taking a small sip she rinsed her mouth out and spit to the side again. "Ugh." she groaned. "What I wouldn't give for a stick of gum."

"Wanna take a detour then?" Daryl asked as she passed him back the water bottle and they started down the highway again.

"What do you have in mind?" Beth looked at him with a small smile as the color began to slowly return to her face.

"Saw a sign a few miles back for a town coming up around here." Daryl explained as he hitched his bag higher up on his shoulders. "We need to set up camp for the night anyways." he said looking over sideways at Beth. He didn't say it but he was thinking they needed to get her some medicine too. Ever since the gas station two days ago she had gotten sick four times. Daryl was beginning to think she might have caught a bug from the man who had attacked her. He didn't say anything to her about it because he didn't want to worry her. He also didn't want to worry himself anymore than he already was. He hoped it was just a small stomach flu and not some strain of the flu that had taken over the prison. Daryl was no doctor, sure he could fix up cuts and bruises but he'd had plenty of experience with those types of injuries. Diseases were a whole other matter that was not his expertise. He had decided that morning when he had woken up to Beth throwing up at the edge of their camp that they needed to get some medicine in her. Unfortunately they had been on a lone stretch of highway all day and the closest town was still miles away.

"Think you can make it?" Daryl asked her as they passed a sign nearly half an hour later promising the town's exit would be in five miles.

Beth smiled at him and nodded. Admittedly she didn't look too sick which was one of the only things appeasing Daryl's frantically worrying mind. When the people at the prison had been sick you could tell they were ill. They were pale and sweaty and despite throwing up, she looked to be perfectly normal. Beth hadn't started having the cough that had racked the prison yet either.

"Where do you want to stay tonight?" she asked a few minutes later as they made their way. Daryl looked back at her, he had been distracted by the dark clouds that had begun to roll in from the east. He paused to think it over, his brow crinkling in thought. He needed to get her medicine but how to explain his desire to sleep in a pharmacy in a way that wasn't odd? She'd be better off sleeping in a bed anyway than on a cold store floor.

"We'll find a house." he decided. Then she could sleep on a bed and if there was no medicine to be found there he would simply sneak out and find a pharmacy on his own. No need for her to be put in more danger when she was sick anyway.

"Daryl?" he snapped out of his darkening thoughts at her inquiring tone. "What's wrong?" her large blue eyes stared at him, worry filling them to the brim.

He was saved from answering as a walker had begun to shuffle onto the road in front of them. A quick shot from his cross bow later the body crumpled to the ground. As they approached it silently Daryl bent and retrieved his arrow mentally reminding himself that he needed to make more that night. He was down to only five bolts now and he did not relish the idea of coming up empty handed one day.

"That's the eighth one today." Beth whispered as they continued on. Daryl nodded as he shoved the bolt back into his quiver. They were beginning to see more walkers as they neared larger cities. Part of him wondered exactly what they would be walking into when they got to DC but a larger part of him didn't really care. That was something they could deal with later. He had much more important things to worry about right now.

They made the rest of their trek into the town in silence, both all to aware that any extra noise would only draw more walkers to them. Daryl led them down the first exit they came to and cursed to himself when he realized that he had taken them into the downtown area instead of a residential center. They ducked down a side street and cautiously made their way down a back alley, Beth quickly putting down the one walker that was aimlessly wandering down it.

"We should go inside somewhere." she whispered next to Daryl's ear. He nodded, there were way to many walkers on the streets for them to keep wandering around, especially with darkness fast approaching. Daryl refused to let this trip be in vain so he peered around the corner of the alley and scanned the names of the storefronts. Gratefully he spied a sign for a pharmacy at the end of the block. Roughly ten or so walkers filled the street between them and the store.

"We going to the pharmacy." Daryl whispered back. Beth opened her mouth as if she was going to ask him why they would risk crossing the street when they could choose somewhere much closer but she simply nodded at him after a moment of silence. The amount of trust she put in him always surprised him.

They crept to the end of the alley and Beth looked up at him again, mouthing the word "Plan?" at him. Daryl shrugged back at her and mouthed, "Run."

That was all the motivation she needed. Beth ran out of the alley, her knife unsheathed and held tight in her hand as Daryl followed her out, his crossbow held at the ready. The walkers on the street turned towards them but neither of them slowed until they reached the pharmacy storefront. Beth made to go for the door but Daryl grabbed her arm and pulled her around the side of the shop instead. Leaving Beth to keep guard he managed to jimmy open the locked back door to the building in another trick he was suddenly grateful his brother had taught him. He grabbed Beth by the arm and pulled her in after him, slamming the door shut behind them.

Beth gasped as they were plunged into darkness and Daryl cursed lightly. Digging in his pockets he came up with a book of matches and he lit one carefully. Holding it high over his head he locked the door they had come through again and led Beth through the small storeroom of supplies to the door into the main part of the store. Satisfied that the room they were in was empty Daryl slowly opened the door into the front half and knocked his bow against the door frame lightly. They waited with their breath held but nothing stirred inside.

Slowly the pair moved out into the store, Beth still clutching her knife. Daryl was pleased to see that the walkers on the street had forgotten them already and had simply returned to their aimless wandering. He was grateful his plan of not going through the front doors had worked. Since the walkers hadn't seen where they had gone they had given up on finding them.

Beth let out a sudden gasp and he turned towards the shelves she stood by quickly. "You alright?" he whispered. Her back was towards him but he thought she shoved something in her pocket before turning towards him with a shaky smile.

"Yea, sorry." she started looking at the shelves again, running her fingers over the thick layer of dust on them. "You see any mints?" she asked hopefully.

Daryl shook his head and joined her in her browsing, only he searched instead for flu medicine. A few minutes later he heard Beth give a small satisfied cry and she turned towards him with a pack of gum in her hands.

He shook his head at her bright smile as she walked back over to him unwrapping the cellophane as she did so.

"I've never stolen from a store before." she admitted as she popped a stick of gum in her mouth before turning the pack towards Daryl.

"Point." he admitted with a shrug as he removed a stick of gum from the pack. He had stolen plenty of candy from stores as a child. As he grew older Merle continued to steal, taking alcohol and cigarettes whenever he could. Daryl had reaped the rewards with him but he had never taken part in the acquisition of the goods.

Beth's gaze on him didn't change at all as she waited for his reply. Daryl was still surprised when she didn't judge his answers, no matter what they were. He always felt as though his past would convince her to leave him or to treat him differently but she always accepted his past as just that, the past. He wished he could the same.

"I've never swallowed gum." he came up with as the mint flavor sprang over his tongue. Beth grinned at him.

"Really?" she asked in surprised. "Not even as a kid?"

Daryl shrugged and shook his head no at her.

"Well point." Beth admitted as she pocketed the pack. "I used to think gum was candy so I always swallowed it. Then Shawn told me that a doctor was going to have to cut the gum out of me and I didn't chew gum again until I was fourteen." she shook her head with a laugh at the memory. "Course Shawn also convinced me that if I ate watermelon seeds one would grow in my stomach."

Daryl snorted. "You believe him?" Beth grinned sheepishly at him and Daryl chuckled. "How old were you?"

A light blush spread across Beth's face. "Twelve." she admitted causing Daryl to actually laugh out loud. She grinned back at him but their merriment was suddenly cut off as a loud crack of thunder filled the air. Both turned to look out the shop window where large raindrops were beginning to splatter on the pavement outside.

Sighing, Daryl handed Beth the bottle of anti-nausea pills he had found. She took it with a raised eyebrow but opened it without question. "Looks like we're staying here tonight." Daryl said as he turned to the back of the store again. "Let's see if they've got an employee room back here." Beth dry swallowed the pill before following him back into the dark room, another clap of thunder sounding behind them.