A/N: I'm so sorry it took me so long to finish this story! I'm been struggling with my health. I sincerely hope you enjoyed this story and please comment one last time.
3 Years later
Daryl rolls over in bed and hugs Beth close to his chest. They've only been on Alexandria for six months and Daryl still isn't used to the too soft bed. He still has a hard time coming home to a fancy house or dealing with all the naive people that live here. But the one thing that is comfortable and familiar is Beth. Waking up next to her is as normal as breathing. When he's out recruiting with Aaron and Beth isn't beside when he wakes, he always has a moment of panic. It fades quickly but he doesn't think it will ever go away.
One year after he and Beth married the prison fell. Emma, having already lost one group, told the council they needed to have a backup plan. And it was good she did because Daryl didn't know where they'd be now or who else they would have lost if they didn't have this plan in place. They were able to get everyone out and in the meeting spot safely. However, they ended up spending a year and half on the road, wandering and searching for a place to make their own. It was awful. There were days of starvation of hunger. They lost people to walkers and the cold, to other people and injuries. But still, they survived. They continued on until Aarons found them.
And now he Daryl was here, in this too soft bed, with his beautiful wife wrapped in his arms. He let the serenity wash over glad to have her here with him. Thankful he never lost her along the way. There had been close calls for them both but they made it. They survived.
He was startled out of his thoughts by the wail of a baby. Beth turned in arms awoken by the sound of the hungry little boy.
"I don't think I've ever met a kid that cries more than that boy does," Daryl complained grumpily.
Beth laughed softly and gave him a look that told him she wasn't fooled.
"We both know that little Hershel has you wrapped around his finger even more than me," Beth teased him.
He scoffed but knew she was right. Uncle Daryl was one of little Hershel's favorite people. He couldn't help but love that little boy as much as he loved Judy. Maggie had given birth two months ago after a difficult pregnancy on the road. He had never been more glad to find Alexandria when they did. The last thing they needed was another incident like Lori. But Maggie had a real doctor and a safe place for the last 4 months of her pregnancy. And little Hershel came out perfectly healthy and Maggie did good. He didn't think he would ever see Glenn happier than he normally was but he had taken to being a dad with a joy Daryl couldn't help but envy. One day he was hoping for a family like that, no matter how terrified he was. But right now wasn't the time to take a chance. The prison didn't last and he didn't know how long Alexandria would. His main priority was Beth.
Beth was his life, his hope, and everything else he could imagine. She gave him what he never had; unconditional love. So for now he was happy with being just the two of them. They had survived it all. And he knew he would do anything to make sure they kept on surviving.
Seeing his serious contemplation Beth reached up and cupped his cheek and he looked straight into those clear blue eyes.
"I love you Daryl," she said seriously never breaking eye contact.
"Show me," he whispered gruffly, letting her see his emotions. No walls between them, never again. Just love and honesty.
And she did. She spent the next hour showing him just how much she loved him and he returned in kind. He didn't know what would happen in the future but he knew that right here, right now, he was happy and he wasn't letting it go.