I'm back guys! I just wanted to thank you so much for being so understanding as well as all the support! My dad is doing better and is out of the hospital, we got to spend Christmas together which I was so happy about. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
I don't own the Walking Dead.
Beth sat on the couch trying to pay attention to what it was Harley had on TV. The young artist had put it on as a distraction to keep Beth's mind off Daryl coming to pick her up but it was clearly not working. It was his turn to pick their date and he wouldn't tell her anything about what they would be doing, claiming he wanted it to be a surprise. Harley scoffed when he first mentioned that, saying that he only said that cause he had no idea what he wanted to do at the moment. All Daryl would tell her was that they were taking his bike so she should wear something comfortable.
"I bet you he still has no idea what he's going to do." Harley said from the chair next to her. Beth rolled her eyes at her best friend, every now and then she would throw some suggestion about what her brother was going to do for the date but now she had given up. "You should have just taken your time getting ready, then you wouldn't be sitting here fifteen minutes early waiting for Daryl to show. In fact if we had more time I would suggest making me something to eat, perhaps that chicken you made a couple of days ago. It was amazing."
"I'm sure you can fend for yourself, in fact I don't doubt that as soon as I leave Chase will be here to come to your rescue." Beth joked. Harley laughed and went back to sketching, a smile still on her face.
Beth thought about how Harley seemed happier now that she was dating Chase, he seemed to balance her out and she did the same. There was a knock on the door that pulled Beth out of her thoughts, she grinned widely as she opened the door to see Daryl standing there. He held a small bouquet of flowers which just made him even more handsome to Beth.
"Oh they're beautiful, thank you so much Daryl." Beth stood on her toes to kiss him. "Let me go put these in water and then we can head out."
"So do you really know what you're going to do or are you just going to wing it brother bear?" Harley teased from her seat. Daryl rolled his eyes and flipped his little sister off.
"For your information cub I do. I've just kept it from you because I know how big your mouth is." Daryl joked. Harley glowered at Daryl, she was about to make a comment when Beth came back into the room with a jacket and her things.
"Alright, that's enough you two." Beth smiled at the two siblings, they always seemed to find something to bicker about and it never surprised the blonde anymore. "Let's go Daryl before she pulls you in for another round."
"I've won the last three so I don't see why he would want to go another." Harley grinned widely. "He'd just be hurting his pride even more than usual!"
Beth shut the door before either one of them could get another word in, she couldn't help but let out a loud laugh when she turned to see Daryl glaring at the door.
"She's lying through her teeth, I won those arguments and she knows it." Daryl huffed, Beth swore she saw his lip start to turn down into a pout.
"If you say that you won then I believe you." Beth kissed him on the cheek. "Now, what's the plan? I'm excited for today."
Daryl's emotions quickly changed as he took her hand, leading her down the elevator. He didn't say anything until they were out of her apartment and walking to where she assumed he parked his bike. He handed her a helmet and then took out another one as well from his saddle bag. Which amused her since Beth knew Daryl and Harley often rode without helmets.
"Yes I sort of bought these just for us to wear." Daryl admitted sheepishly. "I just wanted you to be safe because I care about you."
Mindful of the helmet in her arms, Beth hugged Daryl as tightly as she could. He always found a way to either say or do the sweetest things and it amazed Beth how caring he could be. Daryl hugged her back, relieved that he did the right thing and Beth seemed to like his gesture. He was always worried that he would do the wrong thing with Beth or say something to offend her but somehow that never seemed to happen and she always seemed happy with what he tried to do for her.
"I thought it'd be nice if I cooked you for you." Daryl told her. "My ma taught me how to make a few things so I know some pretty good home cooked meals."
"That sounds wonderful Daryl." Beth beamed at him, it was the smile that had make Daryl realize that he was falling for her and it was his favorite smile to see.
"Alright now just hop on." Daryl said as he climbed on the bike.
Beth slowly climbed onto the back, Daryl helped as best he could and then made sure she knew to hang on tight. Daryl took off at a slower pace than normal and then accelerated smoothly to the speed limit, well a little over the speed limit. Beth had to admit that despite having a helmet on she loved the feeling of being on the bike, it was thrilling and getting to hold on tightly to Daryl was an extra bonus that she certainly didn't mind.
When they passed the turn that would take them to Daryl's apartment Beth tried to ask what he was doing but he smiled and shook his head. She was curious about what was going on but would have to wait. Eventually they pulled up to a building that wasn't too far from downtown, Beth realized that it was a tattoo shop that had two stories and looked well kept. It had an old fashioned vibe to it and was called Timeless Ink which Beth found nice as a name. She walked with Daryl up to the shop, her hand in his, and was surprised how confident he seemed. He seemed so at home here.
"Hey pa, I'm here!" Daryl shouted, slightly startling Beth. "You said you'd be here, do I have to call Chubs and ask where you are"
There was a commotion in the back and an older gentleman walked out, he had a wide smile on his face and Beth was surprised by the amount of tattoos he had. The only other person she knew who had that many was Harley. The man had a kind smile and equally kind eyes. His hair was a gray color but he still had a youthful look to him, truthfully Beth thought that his hair was the only thing that could be an indicator of his age.
"Sorry son, I was working on the books and lost track of time." The man smiled, Beth couldn't help but return it.
"It's fine." Daryl shrugged. He then embraced the man, Beth could tell that he was important to Daryl and was beginning to understand what was going on. The older gentleman turned to Beth and greeted her with a similar hug.
"You must be Beth, I'm Charles." He introduced himself. "I've heard nothing but good things about you from Harley over the past few years and now you've got Daryl singing your praises as well."
Beth felt her cheeks warm from the complement, she hadn't known that both siblings talked so highly of her.
"They're probably exaggerating, I know Harley at least has a tendency for that at least twice a week." Beth joked.
"I'm going to get dinner, I'll let you two talk." Daryl excused himself. Beth worried for a moment that she would embarrass herself or not have anything to say but after Charles led her over to some of the chairs it seemed that she didn't have to worry.
"Beth I've got to say that I'm really thankful for you being a part of Harley Belle's life." Charles started out. They had been talking about her job for a while before he seemed to change the subject, it seemed that his was something that had been on his mind for a while. "I don't know how much either of them have told you but when my wife and I adopted Daryl and Harley, well they were going through a horrible time. Hell, Daryl was just about to start his teen years. I think we had a harder time raising him than we did with Harley!"
Charles chuckled. "What I'm trying to say is, my wife and I raised them the best we could. Both of them were looked at as if they were our own yet they still had scars that would never go away. You coming into their lives and treating them no differently, showing them the same love and compassion that we did, I see so much more light in the both of my children and I want to thank you for that."
"Honestly sir, Harley attached herself to me and I couldn't ask for a better friend." Beth tried to keep the tears from escaping, she was touched by his words. "Harley has shown me truly that a person's appearance isn't what's important but what is important is their personality and Harley has such an amazing one. As for Daryl, I've never met anyone as kindhearted and sweet as him. To tell you the truth sir, I can see myself falling for him even more than I already am."
"First off, no more of that sir shit." Charles smiled widely at the petite girl. "Second, I can see it in the way he talks about you that Daryl is falling hard as well. It may be a while before he owns up to telling you but I think that you two will be extremely happy together. Daryl has never been so excited for me to meet a girl except for in the third grade and that only lasted two days. I'm confident that you have a hell of a more chance than her!"
Both adults burst out laughing, tears streaming down their faces. Beth had to admit that a part of her was relieved to know Daryl was falling just as hard as she was, especially from someone who knew him so well. She also enjoyed knowing that she got along well with Charles, he seemed like such a wonderful man.
"I'm glad you two seem to be having a laugh at my expense." Daryl said from the doorway. He had just came down from the apartment to find his dad and Beth in hysterics.
"Oh trust me son, I haven't even told her some of the good stuff." Charles joked with the two. The back of Daryl's neck turned a light pink color at the thought of what his dad might tell Beth. "Don't worry I'll save them for later, you two have fun."
"You sure you don't want to join us?" Daryl asked, he had wanted Charles to join them but his dad didn't want to interrupt their date.
"I'm positive Daryl, you two have a nice time. I'll be down here with Chubs finishing up some work." He couldn't help but smile at the two. Charles would probably join them later but for now he wanted to give them some time to themselves.
Daryl led Beth up to the small apartment that was upstairs, there was a small kitchen of to the side as well as a living room that had a table set up with a picnic basket. Beth couldn't help but be touched by the gesture. There were flameless candles placed around the basket and the table was set for two but she knew that if Charles were to come up here at any moment Daryl would have enough for him. The two walked over to the table and Daryl pulled out her chair for her, it was such a simple thing but made Beth feel like she was worth a million dollars. Before he sat down Daryl pulled out the food from the basket; it included chicken and dumplings, green beans, and some lemon bars.
"This looks amazing Daryl, you cooked all of this yourself?" Beth asked as he made a plate for her and himself. Daryl nodded shyly as he handed her the plate then sat down.
"Yeah, they're mom's recipes. She always made the best food and I guess this is my way of introducing you to her since you two can't meet." Daryl slumped in his seat, he laid the silverware down as he suddenly found it hard to concentrate. A small hand wove through his large rough one, he looked up to meet Beth's cornflower blue eyes and her bright smile.
"I think that this is the perfect way for me to get to know her." Beth squeezed his hand, making sure he knew she was there for him. "Who knows, maybe in the summer we can take a drive up to West Virginia to see her? I think that Harley would benefit from the trip as well."
Daryl couldn't help but smile widely at her suggestion. Beth was always thinking of others, he loved how selfless she was. Bringing her hand he was holding up to his lips he gave it a gentle kiss, letting her know without words how much that meant to him. The rest of the time they ate and talked about the next coming weeks. They would both be busy since Daryl was working on the tattoo shop and Beth had Maggie to look after once she was back and another patient. He knew though that he wanted to do something even better than this for their next date and Daryl already had a few things in mind.
I again want to thank everyone, especially to those who messaged me. You guys are so kind and it helped a lot to know that I wasn't letting anyone down by not updating. I'll be trying to get back into the swing of things so hopefully you'll hear from me soon. Hoped you enjoyed it lovelies!