I do not own any of the TWD characters.

Let's Go to the Woods

Once Beth had gotten some food into her at the doctor's office, she perked up a bit and starting asking some pretty important questions.

Can I get in a hot tub? Sadly, no she couldn't - so the whole hot tub thing for their getaway had been shot to hell.

Can I still ride my horse? No - let's just not risk a fall.

Can I ride the bike with Daryl? No - same reason as above.

Can I eat whatever I want 'cause I really think I could eat just about everything in sight right now? Within reason - don't go crazy.

Can Daryl and I still have intercourse? Daryl thought he'd keel over right there on the spot, but he must admit, he was glad she asked. Yes, again. Don't go crazy - just stick to normal, safe sex.

Hmmmmmm. Normal, safe sex thought Daryl. What the hell is that?

They'd had to make an extra stop before they left town that Daryl had not counted on - the drugstore. Dr. Wells had gone ahead and written Beth some prescriptions for prenatal vitamins and iron - Beth was spot on about being anemic. The Dixons stopped at the drugstore where Daryl went to the prescription counter which left Beth to wander the aisles. Somehow, as usual, Beth ended up in the school supply section - Beth loved the school supply section. That's where she decided to grab some notepads, a relaxation coloring book, markers, colored pencils, and some nice writing pens. You would have thought Beth had won the lottery when she deposited the items on the counter with her prescriptions. Daryl had already added several candy bars and a couple of sodas to the pile.

Daryl was getting a much later start than he wanted, but hey, they just might spend a few extra days up in the mountains - he felt like he had everything squared away back at home. He and Beth sure had a lot of things to discuss and some decisions to make as far as how in the hell they were gonna pull off having another Dixon to raise at this point in their lives. It seemed like it took them forever to actually get on the road to wherever it was Daryl was taking Beth. All she knew was that they were headed northeast, because that's the direction they were headed on the interstate. Beth had also figured out that they were staying in a cabin and that they would be stopping at a grocery store once they reached their destination. She knew this because she was currently making a grocery list. Daryl smirked across the seat at his wife because he knew how much she loved to make lists. This particular list was color coded and included little drawings by each heading. Beth had drawn a deep freeze beside the word "frozen foods" and roll of paper towels by the heading "paper products".

"Ya breakin in your new markers and colors little girl?" he teased his wife before rubbing his hand up and down her thigh.

Beth blushed. "Oh hush up" she laughed. "I love markers and pens. And crayons. And glue. But not glitter, no glitter."

Daryl barked out a laugh. "I know Babe. I know!"

They were both reminded of the time Jacob found Beth's box that contained the glitter collection - every color of the rainbow and then some. Jacob had proceeded to dump said glitter into the air conditioning vents all around the house. He was so proud that he'd chosen a different color for every room. No one really knew he'd done it until the fall nights got chilly and they had to turn on the heat in the house. Well, you can imagine the excitement when glitter of various colors was spewed from every vent in the house.

Daryl and Beth both laughed as they talked about how long it took to get all that damn glitter cleaned up. Beth had vacuumed and vacuumed until she'd just about lost her damn mind. Merle and Dary had used the sticky cloth that painters use to clean walls before they paint to wipe baseboards and walls. Carol and Maggie went through dozens of lint rollers, running them over people and furniture. Even then, the shit was still everywhere. In the carpet, the window treatments, the furniture, their clothing - it was everywhere! Daryl feels pretty certain they ate no telling how much glitter over the next year. For years, they were finding glitter in their scalp, on their cheeks, in a coffee cup - fucking glitter everywhere. That was the closest Daryl Dixon ever came to whipping one of his children. That thought made him sad and uncomfortable and Beth could tell his mood had quickly changed and she knew just why. Way back when it had happened, she had had to talk Daryl off a ledge.

"Daryl" Beth touched his hand. "I know what you're thinkin - I can read your mind."

Daryl tried to act like he really need to concentrate on the road in front of him hoping Beth would drop the subject.

"Don't ignore me" Beth bossed. "The boy needed a whippin, I was more mad at you for not giving him a spankin than you were mad at yourself for wantin to."

"Beth, told ya when we started havin kids" Daryl spoke calmly and quietly "wouldn't be no whippins in my house."

"I know" Beth acknowledged. "I love you Daryl Dixon. You're the best Daddy in the world."

Daryl smiled the sly grin he always did when his wife embarrassed him. "Only spankins I'm dishin out are in the bedroom."

Beth laughed, but then she really caught the giggle bug. "Wonder if that's safe enough for Dr. Wells"

"Dammit Beth" Daryl huffed. "Tryin to drive here - cut that shit out."

"Okay, okay" Beth muttered, but was still snickering. "Wonder where biting falls? Reckon biting would be safe - long as we didn't break the skin?"

Daryl gripped the steering wheel so hard he thought it may break in half. So, of course in classic Dixon style he tried his best to change the subject. "Hey, can ya look up our grocery store options?" Daryl asked Beth. "We're heading to Cherry Log, Georgia."

"Sure" and with that Beth was distracted and busy on her next project. "Ya wanta do a pick up order if I can find a WalMart?"

"Yes" Daryl answered quickly. "That would be awesome - less time in the grocery means more time with you." Beth smiled and continued scrolling away at her phone.

Beth looked up from her phone long enough to ask Daryl a question. "Hey" she started, "I can't get a pick up time till ten o'clock tomorrow mornin. That okay?"

"Hmmmm" Daryl thought a minute and rubbed at his chin. "Go ahead and put the order in. I packed a cooler of drinks and a few snacks - we can find a deli or country store or something to grab some supper 'fore we head up the mountain to the cabin."

Beth nodded silently and started entering grocery items, checking her list every now and then to make sure she didn't leave anything off. After completing the check out process before logging off the app, Beth stretched a bit and then laid her head against the window.

"Sleepy?" Daryl asked after a few seconds.

"Mmmmhmmmm" Beth answered, barely able to keep her eyes open.

"Take ya a nap Babe" Daryl told her. "We got at least a good hour 'fore we get there."

"I'm just gonna rest my" Beth began but then stopped talking. Daryl glanced over and she was out.

With Beth asleep, Daryl had plenty of time to get all worked up about this baby coming. He'd get himself worked up, and then he'd talk himself back down. The worst of his worries, even though he and Beth were still in shock at the thought of becoming parents again, was the fact that he was terrified that this pregnancy would end like the last two. He didn't think Beth could emotionally survive another miscarriage and he damn sure couldn't. That wasn't the only black cloud hovering over his head - the very hint that something may happen to Beth would most definitely be his undoing. Daryl Dixon was fairly certain that he would not survive without his wife. The last two weeks of not sleeping beside her, talking to her, holding her, laughing with her, hell, even arguing with her had proven that fact.

According to the GPS, they were getting close - he'd turned off the interstate thirty minutes ago and had already been through the Chick-fil-A drive thru. Daryl could definitely tell the change in altitude. He began to shake Beth's leg gently. "Hey Baby" Daryl said quietly. "We're gettin close - oughtta check out the sky. Sun's goin down - the colors are beautiful."

Slowly Beth roused from her nap. "What?" she asked and rubbed her eyes.

"We're almost there" Daryl told her again. "Ya didn't even wake up at the drive thru" Daryl laughed. "I got ya a lemonade."

Beth smiled and wiped the drool from her mouth. "Oh my gosh - love their lemonade. Thank you Daryl."

"welcome" he passed the cup to his wife. "Got me a couple sandwiches, you nuggets and a side salad, a shitload of waffle fries for us ta share, and brownies for dessert. Lots a brownies."

"I can't wait to eat" Beth said. "I'm starvin!"

Sure enough, just as Daryl had told Beth that they were almost there, he made the final turn onto the road the tiny cabin was located on. Daryl was lucky to have been able to find anything this time of year on such short notice and the honeymoon cabin that had been cancelled by someone else at the last minute (unfortunate for someone, but not the Dixons) was just what they needed.