Daryl and Beth approached the gate, and it looked like Spencer's shift on watch duty had ended because there was someone new there, a woman in her forties with grey hair, as well as a different man.
The woman clutched her rifle closer to her chest when she first saw them but soon relaxed, having recognized them from earlier.
She disappeared from their view for a moment while she climbed down the ladder and lifted the latch on the gate, sliding it open enough for them to slip through, saying, "Spencer told us to be on the lookout for you two. My name's Erin. You're Beth and Daryl, right?"
Beth smiled, shaking the woman's hand while Daryl just gave a brief nod of his head and kept his distance.
Erin slung the strap of her weapon over her shoulder and returned Beth's smile. "I don't know all your names yet, but that'll come. It sure is nice to see to see some new faces around here."
She walked over to the base of the ladder that would take her back up to her watch post and turned with one hand on the bottom rungs. "You haven't missed much. Deanna's just finishing up with the last of your group."
The older woman glanced at her watch. "It's just about supper, too, so I'm sure you're hungry. There's probably already been someone around to stock your houses with the basics in food."
"Okay, thank you." Beth watched the woman start climbing the ladder.
Erin turned one last time when she got to the top and gave a little wave. "You have a good night."
Beth raised her hand before she and Daryl walked away, heading in the direction of their house.
The truck and school bus they'd driven there were still parked on the street, and Tyreese was just returning from his interview.
Rick came down the steps of the other house with Aaron and addressed them. "Daryl, you and I will drive our vehicles up the street for the night to their storage building and we'll start unloading the truck tomorrow. I'm gonna hold on to the bus keys for now."
Rick's gaze turned to Aaron like he was expecting him to object but the other man just shrugged lightly and said, "Whatever you're comfortable with."
Daryl touched Beth's arm and nodded up at the house, saying, "We'll be back in a few minutes. I'll meet you in there."
She nodded and started climbing the steps, looking back to see Aaron get in the truck with Daryl to show him where to go.
Pushing open the front door, she found Eugene at the piano with tools in his hands. The front panel was off and it looked like he was trying to tune it by himself.
Beth closed the door behind her and hurried over, fearing the worst. "Eugene, do you know what you're doing?"
He hit a key and adjusted a string with the hammer, only answering her after he struck the key again and nodded happily. "Yes, I do. No need to worry. Despite my horrible singing voice I was born with perfect pitch. My mother used to get me to tune her piano instead of payin' somebody, and whatever she saved each time she let me spend on books."
"Really?" Beth relaxed and watched him adjust the tension on another string. "That's so cool."
Eugene looked up at her, surprised. "You really think this is cool? I wish more pretty girls like you had thought so when I was growing up. It didn't get me any dates at all."
Beth giggled and looked around. "So how come you're in here by yourself? Where is everyone?"
"I already spoke for a bedroom in the other house, but Abraham and Rosita are currently breaking in the one next to it, so Tara made me come over here until they're finished. She said it's creepy when I listen in."
Beth snorted with laughter and turned around when she heard someone coming down the stairs. It was her sister.
Maggie looked her over and sat down on the couch. "Where've you been?"
"Daryl and I went for a walk." Beth turned back to watch Eugene, feeling her cheeks burning.
"Mmhmm."
Beth looked over her shoulder at her sister, and said, "What?"
Maggie raised an eyebrow and took in her little sister's appearance again. "Your hair always get that mussed up when you're walkin'?"
Beth automatically lifted both hands to her hair and started smoothing it down, making her look all the more guilty. Maggie leaned forward and narrowed her eyes, saying, "I knew it."
"Mind your own business, Maggie." Beth folded her arms and fought to keep her temper in check.
"Just tell me you're usin' protection. That's all I want to know."
Beth's jaw dropped open at the question, and she gestured at Eugene who was going about his business, and then back at her sister, wondering if she'd forgotten he was in the room with them.
Maggie just shrugged nonchalantly, waving her hand at him. "He doesn't care. Do you, Eugene?"
He hit another key, never taking his eyes off his work, and tightened another string. "Not really. I have become accustomed to living amongst you all with hardly any remaining social boundaries left to speak of."
Maggie nodded her head at his answer and looked back at her sister, waiting.
Beth rolled her eyes and sat down across from Maggie, speaking in a low voice even though Eugene could hear her. "If you must know, we haven't gone that far."
This time Maggie raised both her eyebrows, looking surprised. "You haven't?"
"No. He's not your typical guy that way." Beth looked defensive, like she was waiting for her sister to make a crack about Daryl, but it didn't happen.
When Beth looked at her sister Maggie had a genuinely pleased smile on her face. She sat back on the couch and said, "I'm beginning to see that."
Beth wasn't expecting that response, and she was even more surprised when Maggie spoke again.
"Well, when you do get to that point, you promise me you'll use a condom. There's a box up in the top drawer of the bathroom that Glenn found a while back. I won't be needin' them for some time. One of the perks of bein' pregnant." She grinned at Beth and folded her hands over her small baby bump.
Smiling back at her older sister, Beth pushed herself up and sat down beside Maggie excitedly, sliding her hand next to her sister's to feel it. "It's so small. I can't believe you're gonna have a baby."
"I know, me neither. But, Glenn and I have been talkin' about it for some time. Deanna said their doctor is gonna schedule me for a checkup day after tomorrow."
Glenn was just descending the stairs when the door swung open and Daryl stepped in, his eyes immediately finding Beth. "Rick said for us all to go next door and eat. Tara made somethin', I guess."
Tyreese and Sasha were already there with the others, although they'd each staked a claim for the two bedrooms on the ground floor of the house with the piano. The unmistakable aroma of food being cooked was coming from the kitchen, and Beth followed the smell, finding Tara standing over a large pot on the stove, wearing a ridiculous frilly apron.
She turned around and smiled at Beth, holding a wooden spoon in her hand. "Like my new duds?"
Beth's eyebrows couldn't have been raised any higher. "Who would've thought Martha Stewart would survive the apocalypse."
Tara grinned and waved her spoon in the air, turning back to the pot and stirring the contents. "Some chick brought us a bunch of stuff. Said we have power to cook for the next few hours so I went to town. Rotini pasta in alfredo sauce, "she raised a spoonful up and inhaled deeply, "with three cans of tuna, which I used to think was absolutely disgusting, by the way, but I'm so hungry right now I'm just about ready to make out with it."
She dropped the spoon back in the pot and put her hand on her hip, yelling out, "Are Abraham and Rosita done already? Because I'm frigging starving here!"
The sound of heavy boots came down the steps, and Abraham's voice rang out loud enough to be heard in the kitchen. "Watch your mouth, woman."
He clumped through the living room and appeared in the doorway to the kitchen with his nose in the air, sniffing. "What is that magnificent aroma? Why didn't anybody say there was food? Let's eat!"
It was tight, but all thirteen adults squeezed in around the table with their bowls of pasta. Rick held Judith on his lap, blowing on a noodle until it was cool enough to feed his daughter.
At some point, even though they were hungry, it seemed to dawn on nearly everyone how surreal the moment was and it became very quiet at the table as they looked around, struck by the sudden change in their living conditions.
Eugene was the only one who seemed undeterred by the new surroundings. He continued shovelling pasta in his mouth, oblivious to everything but the hot food before him.
Tara took another mouthful and sighed heavily, chewing as she looked at the house around them. "Yup. If somebody had told me 24 hours ago that I'd be cooking tuna alfredo in some dead guy's fancy kitchen I would've thought the cheese had slid off their cracker."
"Well, I, for one, am thankful that we're here." Abraham raised his glass of water in a toast, looking over at Tara. "I did not realize my life was incomplete until I saw you cookin' in that frilly number. "He leaned over to Rosita and waggled his eyebrows at her. "Maybe you could wear that to bed tonight."
"Ew, gross!" Tara snatched up her empty bowl and carried it into the kitchen. "Keep your pervy hands off my apron, dude."
It was getting dark outside when Rick fed Judith the last of her supper and started wiping alfredo sauce off her hands. He looked around the table where the entire group had lingered, unsure of where else to be. "It's gettin' late. Might not be a bad idea for everyone to turn in. Deanna said she'd have a group meeting with us all in the morning to talk about what jobs she's got lined up."
"And there's somethin' else. Michonne and I have already discussed it, and we've agreed that until we get a feel for this place it would be wise to have someone on watch, just at night. One person can keep an eye on both houses from either front porch, so divide it up amongst yourselves, however you want. This house will take the first four hours starting when you head back next door."
Rick's suggestion didn't seem to surprise anyone. Instead, it was a grim reminder of how precarious their safety was at any given minute. He passed Judith to Carl and watched her play with his spoon, saying, "We haven't gotten this far by bein' careless, and it would give me peace of mind knowin' one of us is out there when our guard is down."
The six of them from the other house pushed up from the table and said their goodnights on the way out.
Sasha was the first to offer to take a shift on watch. "I'll take the 2 am slot, if no one else minds. I'm not sleepin' much lately, anyway."
Tyreese held the door open for her and said, "Then I'll do the hour after you."
"Ah, no offense Ty, but you were noddin' off at the table just now. I don't think I'd be able to wake you up if I tried."
Glenn spoke up as they climbed the stairs to their front porch. "I'll take 3 am, Daryl you take 4 o'clock, and Beth will do the last one at 5."
Beth and Daryl both nodded, fine with that schedule, but Maggie looked at her husband, a little miffed that she'd been left out. "What about me?"
"My beautiful pregnant wife will be sound asleep in bed, where she should be." He rubbed her shoulders as they entered their foyer, and she laughed and rolled her eyes.
Daryl checked to make sure all the doors and windows were locked while the rest drifted off to their rooms. Beth hadn't chosen one yet so she followed Maggie and Glenn upstairs to see what was left.
They had picked the first one closest to the bathroom, and there were three other rooms along the hall. Beth liked the furthest one away from her sister and her husband, and the only one with a queen bed. Whenever she and Daryl did get to use those condoms they would need as much privacy as possible.
Beth lingered in her doorway until she heard Daryl's boots on the stairs, and she smiled up at him as he eyed the two empty bedrooms on either side of the hall, offering, "You can share this one with me, "she glanced at the bed behind her, "there's plenty of room for both of us."
"Yeah. If we share that room, there won't be much sleepin' goin' on." Daryl looked over her shoulder at the queen bed.
"That's the idea." Beth grinned up at him.
"Listen, Beth," Daryl held on to his crossbow strap and looked down at his feet awkwardly, "I know we did some foolin' around today, but losin' your…, "he swallowed thickly and stared at the bed again, "virginity is kind of a big thing, so maybe we should take this a little slower."
Beth's eyes went wide and she chuckled under her breath, giving him a puzzled look. "Daryl, I'm not a virgin."
"I don't want you rushin' into anythin'…you're what?"
"I'm not a virgin." Beth folded her arms and leaned against the doorframe. "I haven't been for quite a while."
"Oh." Suddenly, Daryl looked incredibly nervous standing there.
"I mean, I don't have a ton of experience, but yeah, that's not an issue if it's somethin' you were worried about. " Beth cocked her head at Daryl, who was now fidgeting with the bottom of his shirt.
An idea seemed to come to him in the moment and he shrugged, saying, "Well, we don't got any protection, so I guess we'll have to wait until I can find some, anyways. Best play it safe."
Beth shook her head happily, pointing a finger up the hall behind him. "Oh, but we do. Maggie said there's a box of condoms in the bathroom and that I'm welcome to use them."
Daryl's face fell again, and he started edging toward the door of one of the other bedrooms. "I'll just sleep in here for tonight, though. S'been a long day for both of us."
Beth was thoroughly confused by his behavior, and Daryl gave her one last apologetic look before starting to swing his door shut when she whispered, "Do I at least get a kiss goodnight?"
He looked at her guiltily and nodded, closing the distance between them in two strides and kissed her deeply. Beth's tongue found its way into his mouth and she sighed when his brushed against hers.
Trying to prolong the kiss, she started wrapping her arms around his waist, but Daryl was already starting to pull away. He stared down at her mouth, the tips of his fingers brushing lightly over it and then to her cheek, and he kissed her chastely on the lips again before reaching around behind him and gently taking her hands down from his back, letting them fall back at her sides.
Daryl gripped the knob on his bedroom door and said, "G'night. I'll wake you at 5."
She nodded, and watched his door close softly behind him.
So why is Daryl seemingly putting on the brakes? Some of you can probably guess, but all will be revealed in the next chapter.
Please leave a comment if you liked the chapter. :)
