Chapter 37

All Beth could process was that her whole body felt like it was on fire. She drifted in and out of consciousness as she felt herself being lifted up into the air. At first she thought that she was floating towards heaven, then Daryl's worried and terrified face hovered over hers and she realized that she was still here. She wanted to stay with Daryl, anyway.

She felt arms around her and grew more lightheaded as precious time passed. Her hearing was muffled with the occasional clear word put in there. When she closed her eyes, all she could she was herself lying on the ground, dead, and Daryl sobbing. It was those images that made her eyes fly open every time.

A screech suddenly rang out in her ears. Her heart sped up as panic flooded through her- an initial reaction to the noise of an ear-splitting scream like that. Not after long, she realized that it was her screams and yells of agony that ripped out of her throat. She clenched her teeth and bit it back, a bit curious as to where Daryl and the other people around her were taking her.

Daryl was desperate to do something- anything to get her to live! He guided Michonne and Rick with Beth in her arms to their old apartment when they had stayed here. It was the only place that he knew of to go. They had been lucky not to run into anyone on the way there.

When they rounded the corner to the building, Rick almost slammed into a woman there. He whipped out his gun and put it to her forehead. She looked terrified. "Are you a doctor or a nurse?" The woman nodded and Daryl almost burst out in tears at the relief he felt. Rick roughly grabbed her arm and dragged her along, still holding the gun to her forehead next to her.

Daryl rushed into the building holding Beth in his arms and placed her on one of the couches in the old lobby. It was barely in good condition, but it would do. He kneels down in front of her and grabbed her hand which was limp.

He constantly checked her pulse, making sure it didn't slow down at all. His face hovered over hers as she wearily blinked, her eyes only half open. "I swear to God, Beth, if you don't make it…"

Her mouth opened in a silent scream and Daryl looked back to see the woman pressing down on her wounds. "What the hell are you doin?'" he demanded. He reached forward to grab her and throw her off of his Beth, but Rick grabbed his shoulder and held him back.

"There was an exit hole in her chest but not in her gut." The woman sighed. Daryl was slightly relieved that a bullet wasn't lodged into her chest near her heart, but he was still insanely worried about the one stuck in her stomach. "Get it out, then!" he yelled. The nurse handed Daryl the clot. "We've gotta put her on her side." Daryl and the woman slowly turned her so that the front of her body was facing Daryl. Tear were running down Beth's cheeks and Daryl wanted to do nothing else but reach over and comfort her.

"Put pressure on both sides of where the bullet went through." Daryl reluctantly obliged as Rick poked the gun back into the nurse's spine. "What now?" The next words nearly broke Daryl's heart. "She doesn't have much longer. I'm gonna have to open up her wound farther and get the bullet out." "Hurry!" The desperate man would do anything to ensure that Beth would live.

"I don't have my tools. I need them for this kind of surgery." It was like a light bulb went off in the lady's head as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of silver, sharp scissors. Without thinking, the woman shoved it into the bullet wound on Beth's abdomen, digging in to find the bullet. Beth let out one last agonizing scream, before she blacked out, leaving the world around her.

Three Days Later

Daryl stared out at the beautiful sunset beyond Terminus as he stood on the old garbage bins that him and Beth had stood on when they had watch weeks before. He thought back to days before when his group- his family- had taken down the enemy that had tortured them enough. They were over with. They had taken down the people of Terminus while Beth was dying.

"Hey!" Daryl turned around, startled by the familiar voice. An automatic smile formed on his lips. "Any room for me up there?" Beth grinned up at him as her hands wrapped tighter around the spare crutches they had found.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" She shrugs. "I'm alright. Now help me up." She tossed her crutches up to him and he set them down next to him before grabbing her hands and pulling her up as gentle as possible. She still hadn't recovered completely from the gunshots, but she was doing a lot better.

Beth sighed when she stood next to Daryl as she looked at the view in front of her. Daryl carefully maneuvered an arm around her waist. She leaned into him in response, placing her head on his shoulder. It was quite obvious to them and the rest of their group that they were more than friends. Everybody didn't think too much of it, but they were a bit surprised.

Beth pulled away a bit to look at him. He stared back into her green eyes. "Do you think everything will be okay now?" Daryl leaned down and gently placed his lips on hers. The kiss was long as the two stood in the same embrace. Daryl tightened his grip on her frame, then pulled away. "I don't know," he answered honestly. She seemed content at that answer and they both looked back at the sky, ready for any obstacle that tried to separate them from each other or their family.

THE END

A/N: Alrighty. The story is over. Wow. Never in a million years did I think one of my stories would have 117 followers and 69 favoriters, but I stand corrected. Shout out to kevkye for being the 100th reviewer! That's awesome! A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL OF MY FOLLOWERS, FAVORITERS, AND REVIEWERS! YOU GUYS ARE WHAT MAKES THIS STORY POSSIBLE! ESCPECIALLY THE ONES IN THE BEGINNING OF THE STORY THAT HAVE BEEN WITH ME FROM THE START AND FOLLOWED ME UP TO 117 FOLLOWERS! YOU ALL ARE AWESOME, THOUGH! Also, thanks to jazznsmoke for editing some chapters in this story and Agent Michie who will hopefully reply and edit this chap so I can repost it. Now, I have two very improtant things to say. One, I will be starting a poll on my profile that involves the sequel. You can vote that they either stay at Terminus or they venture on to Washington DC to find the cure. And two, PRETTY PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE LEAVE ME A REVIEW OF THE OVERALL STORY! IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE LONG, BUT IT WOULD BE REALLY COOL IF YOU GUYS GAVE ME YOUR OPINION! Also, maybe let me know what your favorite part of the story is. And DON'T unfollow. This will be the first place I come to with sequel news, but it won't be for a while. And last, I love you guys so much and thank you all for the support you've given me and this story and my other stories, too, if you're following them. You all are amazing! BYEEEEEE! :)