The street became more and more littered as they approached the building, lined with strewn paper and fallen bricks from the derelict buildings. They remained relatively close together as they walked, Daryl had his crossbow raised and ready although the streets, whilst a mess, were relatively free from walkers.
As they approached the building, Rick stopped them, raising his finger to his lips. His eyes wandered to Daryl, who nodded, Beth taking in the tension of his body. An odd sense of pride ran through her as she saw the way Rick, their unquestioned leader, looked to Daryl for confirmation and back-up.
Rick pulled the doors to the building open, raising both his gun and a flash-light and aiming them into the dark corridor beyond the door.
Daryl hung back, levelling himself with Beth.
'Stay b'me.' He said sternly to her, placing one of his hands on her shoulder, his voice low. Beth nodded once.
With Daryl behind her, Beth walked into the dark, stuffy confines of the corridor beyond the door.
The stench of death hit her instantly. The building was dark and full of dust, but even Beth could tell that someone – perhaps even more than one person – had been moving through the dust, and recently, too. There were several patterns of clear, obvious footprints imprinted into the carpet, and not the typical dragged out type usually left by walkers.
The footsteps led them upstairs and down a long, dark corridor. A makeshift washing line hung strewn up across the only window at the end, blocking out the days fading sun so that it was hard to see where they were going. The door to an apartment at the end of this corridor stood open and the footsteps seemed to come from within it, but upon inspection, they found it empty.
'We must've missed him,' Rick said quietly.
'Slippery son of a bitch.' Michonne growled, shaking her head.
'Check all th'rooms,' Daryl said, waving his hand out around him.
Beth, who had been standing in the hallway further back from the group, was distracted by a sound coming from the ground floor. As silently as she could, she tiptoed over to the stairwell and peered down. The foyer was dark and she could make nothing out, but something told her something was down there. She glanced back over her shoulder to see they were still inside the room. She considered calling out, but she didn't want to draw attention. So instead, Beth drew her knife from her hip and stepped out onto the stairs, descending them in silence, her small hand holding onto the cold railing.
The foyer was as empty as they had left it. Beth stood on the bottom step and peered around the room, her eyes sweeping over the forgotten sofas, the dead plants, the dust covered glass of the front office. She was about to turn around and head back up when she heard a scraping sound. She narrowed her eyes to look, listening. Slowly, she stepped down onto the floor, and began to walk across the room.
As she headed towards the closed front doors, Beth heard the noise again. She barely had a chance to react when she felt a hand close over her mouth and grab around her waist, pulling her backwards. Beth's eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat as she was drawn back into the dark, stuffy confines of the side office. A large hand covered her mouth and nose so all Beth could breath in was the stale smell of skin and sweat. She kicked back against her assailant, panic rife in her chest.
It hasn't attacked me, it's grabbed me, it's not a walker she thought hurriedly. Although she didn't know if that was better or worse.
Then a voice spoke to her, a dark southern drawl that forced all the hairs on her body to rise and her blood to run cold.
'Yer with the prison lot, ent ya.'
Then Beth found herself turned around to face a face she hoped she would never see.
The Governor looked at her through his one good eye, dark and full of menace, his lips drawn into a tight, grim line.
'Get off of me!' Beth cried, attempting to release herself from his strong grip, his hands wrapped firmly around one of her wrists, the other still on her waist.
The Governor closed in on her, baring his teeth.
'You're a pretty little thing, ent ya,' he growled, his breath warm of Beth's face. 'Where's y'sheriff Rick?'
Beth shook her head attempting to pull herself back.
'Your people destroyed me' he growled, his face darkening.
Beth flung herself forward, the knife in her free hand managing to lunge at his face. To her surprise, it connected, slashing a deep laceration across his cheek. Dark blood spurted to the surface instantly, at the same time the governor jumped back, his hand flying to his face.
'You bitch!' he cried as Beth ran for the open door, throwing herself out into the foyer, panting.
'Daryl!' She cried, sprinting for the stairs.
She grabbed the railing and ran up the steps, crying out loud for either Daryl or her sister. As she reached the first floor, she ran into a new pair of strong arms, only these ones were wanted.
'Beth!' Daryl's voice seemed to stroke her soul, 'wha's goin' on?'
'The Governor!' She cried, 'he's downstairs he – he grabbed me -' she didn't get a chance to finish as Daryl had pushed her aside and jumped down the stairs. Suddenly Rick was running past her, both men heading down the stairs, then Michonne was past in a flash of dark hair and sword.
Maggie grabbed Beth, pulling her to look at her. Beth stood with her sister's hands tightly gripping her forearms, her chest heaving with her breathing.
'What happened?' she asked softly.
'I heard something – I went to see I, I thought it would be a walker – it was him. He grabbed me and pulled me into the office.' Beth rushed to say.
'Is that your blood?' Maggie asked, her tone serious.
'What?' Beth looked down at her hands, her eyebrows raising, 'oh, no!'
Suddenly Daryl had reappeared in the hallway, his own face dark and his eyes narrowed. He grabbed Beth's arm and spun her around to face him, tearing her from Maggie's grip.
'Are y'hurt?' he asked roughly.
Beth shook her head.
'There's blood, a hand-print on th'glass and floor.' Daryl said.
'I cut his face,' she said, breathless, her eyes wide as she looked at the swirling darkness in Daryl's blue eyes.
'You cut him.' He repeated.
'Yes,' she said, 'I cut his face.'
Daryl grabbed her wrist and rose her hand to see the knife which she was still holding, the line of blood on its blade and her hand.
'Where is he?' Maggie asked.
'Gone,' Daryl said, his eyes momentarily flicking from Beth to Maggie above her head.
'How did he get away?' Maggie asked.
'He run,' Daryl said simply, 'But Rick an' Michonne have gone after him.'
He looked back down at Beth.
'What do we do now?' Beth asked.
'We wait,' Glen said from behind them. Beth turned to look at him.
'I'll go after them,' Daryl said, heading back towards the stairs.
'No,' Beth said, reaching out as if to grab him but her hand fell empty.
He stopped to look at her.
'Stay here,' she said, her eyes imploring.
'I can hunt him,' he said.
'Rick and Michonne have gone' Beth said, feeling Maggie lay a hand on her shoulder, 'if we have to wait – I'd rather you were here. I'd feel safer.'
She felt Maggie lightly squeeze her shoulder.
Daryl looked from Beth to the others, his eyes uncertain. Then he sighed, and nodded.
'Alright,' Glen said, breathing out a sigh, 'we set up camp and wait for them to come back.'
'Do you think they'll find him?' Maggie asked.
'S'gettin' dark,' Daryl said, shaking his head.
'Maybe,' Glen said, 'but they'll come back here if they don't.'
'So we wait.' Maggie said.
'So we wait.' Glen nodded.
. . .
The four of them huddled together in the sitting room of the end apartment, closing the door behind them and closing out the frigid air of the corridor beyond. Beth sat on the floor, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on top of them.
She felt shaken and tired; the walk had been long and her feet were sore, and the adrenaline from her unexpected run in with the governor had worn her out. As she sat there on the floor she felt small and vulnerable, the true terror of the world drawing in on her. She thought about the danger she had stupidly put herself in, and felt her breath begin to catch. She felt too hot. Subconsciously, she picked up a small, circular token that lay beside her on the carpet and began to turn it over in her hands.
'Backgammon,' Daryl said, watching her.
'Mm,' Beth turned her head to look up at him.
He crouched down in front of her, resting one of his hands on her drawn up knee.
'Y'okay?' he asked quietly.
Beth nodded, but her eyes began to fill with tears.
'Sure?' he murmured.
'I don't know -' she breathed out, 'just a bit shaken.'
Daryl nodded.
'Y'left yer mark on the bastard,' he said with a smile, 'from the looks o'the blood down there.'
Beth smiled lightly at him.
'Yer strong,' Daryl said firmly, his eyes narrowing, 's'why yer m'girl.'
'I am?' Beth asked weakly, her heart jumping into her throat.
Daryl smiled at her, nodding lightly.
'Course,' he said.
As the sky outside grew darker Maggie and Glen lit some of the candles within the room, casting them into an orangey, flickering glow.
'We should get some sleep,' Glen said, gently patting Maggie's arm.
'The bedrooms are clean enough.' Maggie said.
'I'll sleep out here,' Daryl said, gesturing to the sofa as he pulled himself up straight, 'keep check.'
Maggie nodded, linking her arm with Glen's.
'Beth you want to sleep in with us?' Maggie asked.
Beth looked over her shoulder to her sister, her tired eyes, and smiled.
'No, you're alright.' She said. 'There's another room.'
Maggie nodded.
Beth leant her head back onto the cushion behind her, letting her head fall back and rest against the softness. Her eyes closed shut as she let out a sigh, stretching her legs out in front of her, relieving the stiffness that had accumulated in her overworked muscles.
'Get yerself to bed.' Daryl said seriously as her sister left the room.
Beth pulled herself up from the floor with a yawn.
Daryl handed one of the larger candles to her, which she took carefully. She gave him a weak smile before stepping into the smaller bedroom. The room was dark but it did not smell stale, the way she thought it would.
This must have been the apartment he stayed in, she thought, rubbing her hands up and down her arms. It was not a comforting thought. She walked around the room, taking the little sphere of light with her, allowing it to illuminate sections of the room, showing a simple double bed, bedside cabinets and a wardrobe which looked as though it had been ransacked. She sat down on the edge of the bed, putting down the candle on the nearest cabinet. A bedside lamp stood next to a photo frame, which she picked up and turned over in her hands.
She smiled to herself as her fingers ran over the rough texture of macaroni pieces, glued crudely to the frame with a sprinkle of glitter. A child smiled a gap-toothed smile up at Beth through the dried pasta. It was always strange, she thought, to find a remnant of the world before.
Beth pulled off her outer clothes and boots and crawled onto the bed and sat cross-legged in the middle of it, the thin blanket over her lap. She looked across to the door she had left ajar, seeking comfort in the light flickering of the candles from beyond. Her bedroom was closest to the sitting room, so she twisted her head to see if she could see Daryl outside. The longer she sat there, unable to see him, the stronger the sense of unease began to grow within her, the unfamiliar and silent surroundings giving her anxiety to go with the foreboding feelings of fear the governor had set in her.
'Daryl,' she called gently.
She heard his boots pad across the carpet, then he appeared in the doorway, opening the door and letting the light from the candles beyond spill into the dark bedroom.
'Can you stay with me?' Beth asked, biting her lower lip.
Daryl seemed to look her up and down, but the majority of his face was cast in shadow. He walked towards her, putting down his crossbow on the end of the bed.
'Y'okay?' he asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed beside her.
'I guess I'm a little afraid,' she admitted, biting at her thumb nail. She tried so hard not to be seen as a dumb, frightened child, but the dark room and the tall building full of the dead wasn't making that easy for her – she was sure she could hear them, scuffling about on the floors above them.
Daryl nodded, understanding.
Beth moved the blankets aside, creating a space for him beside her. Daryl looked down at the mattress. She could see him swallow, his jaw muscles twitch and his throat constrict. Slowly, he kicked off his boots, then climbed into the bed beside her, the wrought iron frame creaking slightly under his weight.
He lay down on his side beside her, allowing her to put the blankets back over him and sidle up close to him, pushing her body close to his, if only to steal the warmth he was generating. Daryl looked into her eyes as he gently stroked the blonde hair on her head, watching as her eyes began to sleepily flutter shut.
'Do you think we'll find the governor?' Beth asked quietly as she looked into his own eyes.
'Yeah,' he said, clearing his throat slightly.
'Rick and Michonne?' she asked.
'I dunno,' Daryl said, 'if they don't, I will.'
Beth turned her head to look at him. His face was set and his eyes were dark. She swallowed, her heart beating faster; she believed him.
She appreciated the way his hand moved over her hair, gentle and soft, comforting her in a way she never imagined he would – or could.
'Hey,' she said, opening her eyes again to see he was still looking at her, 'do you remember the first time I came hunting with you? And we got trapped in that house? We spent the night in a bed a lot like this.'
'Mm,' Daryl's eyes searched hers through his lashes.
'You wouldn't get in it with me, though,' she said, smiling at the memory, 'look how far we've come.'
''s it a good thing?' he asked quietly.
'I think so,' Beth admitted, 'you're a lot more open now.'
'With you,' he said, 'yeah.'
'Do you think I've changed you, Daryl Dixon?' Beth whispered.
Daryl regarded her for a while, a smile playing on his lips.
'I guess,' he said, his hand moving down to stroke her jaw, 'made me see people ain't all bad.'
'I can be a little bad, if you like,' Beth teased.
'Stop it,' Daryl laughed, rolling over onto his back. Beth sidled up to him, laying her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him.
'You've changed me too, y'know,' she said softly, her hand stroking up and down his stomach.
'No' fo'the better,' he mumbled.
'Yes for the better.' Beth said, twisting her head to look up at him, appreciating the line of his exposed throat as he lay looking at the ceiling. 'I'm stronger when I'm with you.'
Daryl looked down at her. Beth rolled her body until she was almost lying atop him, her chin resting on her hands which lay flat on his chest, one of her legs laying in-between his.
'No-one paid any attention to me before you,' she said, 'I faded into the background. You saw me. You brought me out.'
'You saw me.' Daryl said.
'Everyone sees you, Daryl.' Beth chuckled.
'Not the way y'do.' he said, shaking his head slightly.
Beth moved herself up to kiss him, capturing his lips with hers. He kissed her back, his lips moving to meet hers, his stubble rubbing against her soft skin. He moved his hands down to her hips, sending tingles running through her core as his hands made contact with her exposed flesh. Gently, he pulled her onto him, her legs sliding either side of his, her hands finding their way up to his hair.
'You do bad things t'my head,' he murmured, looking up into her sparkling eyes.
'Do I?' Beth asked innocently, but she gently pushed her crotch into him, watching the ways his eyelids gently fluttered.
'Dunno wha' I'm s'posed t'do wi'you, Greene.' He groaned.
'I can think of a few things,' Beth murmured, leaning back down to kiss him.
The kiss deepened, their tongues finding one another, Beth finding her own body moved without her knowledge, her hips bucking and pressing down against him, denim against denim as he moved against him. His hands dug into her skin, his nails digging into her flesh, gripping at her thighs and pulling her as close to him as she could be. She groaned into him, breaking away from the kiss to bury her face in his neck, breathless.
She looked up, her face flushed, her breathing heavy, to look into his own deep blue eyes, which were regarding her heavy with lust.
Beth sat up so she was straddling him, her hands gently running over the bulging fabric of his crotch as he looked up at her, breathing heavily.
She could see him swallow, his own face flushed. Watching him, Beth took the hem of her tank top and pulled it off over her head, leaving her sat on top of him in only her bra. Daryl's breath hitched as he watched her.
Then, in one deft movement, he had rolled her off of him and replaced himself on top, his body now weighing down on her, pressing her into the mattress beneath her. He looked into her eyes before leaning down to kiss her again, his mouth rough against hers. Beth pushed the vest from his shoulders as he kissed her, with his help, removing it from his body. He paused briefly to yank his own t-shirt off before resuming the kiss. Beth trailed her hands down his back, basking in the glory that were his rippling back muscles, feeling them move as he moved, turning her weaker than she already was, until she began to wonder if she would ever be more than a puddle in the middle of the bed, melted. As her hands moved over his back, her fingertips ran over the deep puckered skin of the scars that ran across his back, and Beth assumed they were a constant reminder of the abusive upbringing her had suffered through. The scars only made her love him more, however, appreciating the strong man he had become despite them. She wrapped her legs around him, joining her ankles across his back, and using her legs to pull his down closer to her.
'I want you, Daryl Dixon.' Beth breathed.
Daryl lightly shook his head, his face looked pained.
'Stop beating yourself up,' Beth whispered, 'you think you're no good for me – you are. And I want you.'
'Not here, not wi'ya sister so -' he stammered, but Beth reached down and ran her hand over the hardened notch in his pants.
Daryl breathed out a sigh, closing his eyes. Beth could see the pain in his face, the indecision that covered every inch of the rugged face she had grown to love. She reached up to stroke it, her fingers running across the stubble of his beard. He tilted his head lightly to her touch, sighing. His body was so warm and firm against her, her insides squirmed, her own body feeling hot and flushed.
She pulled his head down to her, drawing his mouth back to her own, kissing him passionately. To her delight, he kissed her back, his breaths becoming more and more rapid.
The hot space at the meeting of her thighs was beginning to throb as she lay beneath him, his warm, bare chest against her own flesh. She tightened her arms around him, groaning lightly. Daryl moved his lips to her throat, suddenly biting down, hard. Beth cried out a gasp, her hips bucking.
Daryl moved back to look at her, a smile on his lips.
'Don't stop,' she breathed, her eyes half shut.
She heard him breathe out a laugh, then moved back down to her neck, biting down the supple flesh again.
Beth bit down on her bottom lip, stopping herself from making any noise out loud. She tightened her thighs against him, pulling his growing crotch down to her own, panting. She didn't understand entirely what she wanted, but she wanted him. She dug her nails into his chest, leaving deep, crescent shaped scars in his skin. Daryl groaned against her.
Breathing in, Beth rolled from beneath Daryl to the side of the bed and grabbed her discarded backpack. Unzipping it, she pulled out the box of condoms, then moved back to Daryl, sitting back on her heels are regarding him with playful yet apprehensive eyes.
He looked at them, his own eyes widening, pushing himself into a sitting position.
'Where did y'get them?' he said, his voice rough.
'Pharmacy,' Beth said, her lips hitching up into a smile. She raised one questioning eyebrow as she looked at him. He was chewing on his bottom lip, his eyes narrowed. Beth tilted her head.
Daryl sighed and took the box from her.
'Y'just carry these around with ya?' he asked, making her blush.
'Not exactly,' she said, but he smiled over at her.
He pulled her towards him, pulling her onto his lap and into another passionate kiss, his hands roaming freely over her body, tightening on her ass. Beth wrapped her legs around him, her crotch rubbing against his jeans, sending yet more shivers through the length of her body until she felt herself moaning.
As he kissed her, Daryl moved his hand down her body to the zipper of her jeans, which he undid, tugging at the rough fabric. Giggling, Beth stood up on the bed, steadying herself on the mattress, and began to pull her pants down. Daryl watched, his own heart in his throat, as she shimmied the dark denim down her long legs, kicking them away from her to land on the floor.
Daryl placed his hands on her hips which were right in front of his face, and pulled her forward. She stumbled slightly, but then her crotch made contact with his face, as he rubbed his chin across the fabric, feeling the growing dampness beneath it. Feeling a little vulnerable, Beth wriggled free and sat herself back down, falling to the mattress beside him.
Daryl moved across her so he was facing her, placing his hands on her thighs. Beth moved in to kiss him, gently moving her body lower until her back hit the mattress and Daryl was laying over her, his hands now holding his upper body up either side of her chest.
He moved one hand down to her crotch, his rough fingers stroking the exterior of the fabric, feeling her moan into his lips. He pushed the fabric aside as gently pushed his fingers into her, risking two this time, feeling her squirm beneath him as she adjusted, her breath hitching in her throat. If they were going to do this, he knew it was going to be difficult. And the very last thing he wanted to do was to hurt her.
He gently moved his fingers within her, stroking at her hot inner walls whilst his thumb gently circled her most sensitive spot, pulling back from her to watch as she groaned lightly, her eyes shut.
After a while, in which his own crotch was beginning to throb painfully, Daryl unzipped his jeans and pulled them off, discarding them onto the bedroom floor. He pulled his boxers down too, allowing himself to finally come free of the fabrics restraints, feeling the brisk air against his skin.
Beth couldn't help but let out a little gasp at this new sight, a sight she had, admittedly, fantasized about before, but never imagined actually seeing. She was reminded, as she lay there with him above her, how much older than her he was, and as she watched him slowly move his hand up and down his length, she wondered how on earth that was supposed to fit inside of her. Her lower stomach seemed to squirm at the idea, suddenly put off by it.
'Y'okay?' Daryl asked in his low, rough voice, bringing Beth back to the reason she was here in the first place – that goddamn voice.
'Yes,' she breathed.
'Y'want to?' he asked her.
She looked into his eyes and nodded, wriggling to slide her underwear down her thighs.
Daryl nodded back, then took the condom he had put out on the bed beside them, propping himself up on one elbow to open the packaging.
Beth watched as he pulled it down over himself, her bottom lip wedged firmly between her teeth. He glanced at her again, his face apparently nervous, as he took himself in one hand and guided himself to her opening. Beth involuntarily opened her legs wider for her, taking in a deep breath as the very tip of him found her. He pushed himself in, an uncomfortable feeling as the tip of him seemed to force her apart, but once the very head was in, Beth found she could breath a little easier.
Daryl gently stroked her face, pausing just inside of her, his breathing heavy. Beth watched him, her own breathing stunted, as he began to push himself further inside of her. It was a look she could never had pictured in her wildest dreams; his eyes were heavy, his lips lightly parted, his cheeks flushed beneath the stubble. There was something intimately vulnerable about him as he positioned himself, and Beth found herself stroking his arm as if to soothe him.
A painful tearing sensation hit her for a split second, followed by the overwhelming feeling of being far too full. She wriggled slightly beneath him, trying to adjust to this new, alien sensation between her legs.
Daryl rocked his hips slightly, half way in her, trying to calm his breaths as his head exploded in a thousand thoughts. Biting his own bottom lip, he moved into her as far he could before he began to very slowly rock, moving himself back and forth until her own mounting pleasure allowed her to grow wetter around him, allowing him to slide to rest of the way in with comparable ease.
Beth gasped as he settled against her, an indescribable feeling in the pit of her stomach that caused her to push herself down onto him, squirming.
Daryl began to thrust then, his movements slow and methodical at first as they figured each other out, working out what hurt, what felt uncomfortable, and what worked. He stopped to kiss her every few moments, reassuring her and checking she was alright, as well as keeping himself in check. As she began to relax around him, Beth wrapped her arms around his neck, letting herself melt into his body as his rhythm began to build speed, until she felt she could move her hips too, rolling them in time with him.
It wasn't long until they were both panting, the initial awkwardness and unsure movements having broken now that they both understood one another. Beth's finger's dug into the flesh of his back as she gasped aloud, Daryl grunting as he thrust into her, sweat accumulating over his body. His hair hung down into his face whilst Beth's own blonde hair lay spread out over the pillows as she gasped for breath.
The wrought iron bed creaked around them, the posts beginning to rock back and forth as Daryl moved against her, the headboard banging against the wall. But neither of them cared. Both parties were too wrapped up in one another, in the ecstasy of the pleasure they had finally succumbed to with one another, that Beth was soon crying out loud, moans now loudly joining the gasps that left her dry throat whenever she forgot to bite her lips closed, which was often, for her head was too lost in Daryl who was too lost within her.
She had never seen Daryl let loose in such a way, except perhaps when fighting. His face was dark, his eyes lidded, the muscles in his arms tense and rippling, his own guttural sounds joining hers, an intimate melody combined with the creaks of the bed.
Both their bodies were flushed with heat as their flesh hit each other, sweat slick across their skin. Beth's nails dug deeply into Daryl's back, adding their own crescent shaped cuts to his existing scars as Daryl thrust into her, knocking her small body further up the bed with each movement. Beth arched her back, pushing her chest close against his, her legs drawing him as close as they could, her moans of pleasure obscured slightly as she bit down on her own bottom lip and Daryl's shoulders.
Daryl moved himself back slightly so his hand could work on Beth, acknowledging that his own pleasure was close to its peak, his thumb roughly circling her mound until she was gasping for air, spasms running through her legs whilst he too panted roughly, his heavily lidded eyes looking down at the young girl in the bed beneath him. The feeling in Beth's lower stomach was almost too much for her to bare, but now the deep-mounted pleasure within her was building.
'Oh, god,' she found herself moaning, forcing herself as far down onto him as she could, her body squirming under his touch. Her whole frame was laced with sweat, her small breasts jiggling rapidly as Daryl shook her body, her head bouncing up and down from the pillow she lay on.
'Daryl,' She gasped, trailing off into a loud moan, which she tried to muffle through biting down on her arm arm.
'You good, girl?' he panted, his own voice rough with pleasure.
'Yes, oh my – yes!' she gasped, scrunching her eyes shut, the sound of his rasping voice almost enough to send her over the edge alone. She flung one hand over her face, but Daryl grabbed her wrist and forcefully pulled it way.
'Lemme see y'face,' he gasped, as her back began to arch.
She tried to answer him, but the only sounds that left her were throaty, guttural, animalisation moans, filling the air around them as she panted uncontrollably under his touch. Having only experienced orgasm once before, the feeling was still knew to her, but she vaguely recognised the build up as it forced its way down through her. It waved through her as Daryl rocked into her, feeling herself constricting around him, a feeling she had never experienced nor could have ever imagined. The feeling broke over her in waves, arching her back and causing her to cry out loudly, louder than she had intended to, but losing herself in the throws of ecstasy as she chased her orgasm, leaving her throbbing and soaking, her entire body shaking with the effort.
Daryl himself groaned louder than her should have, uttering single syllables and what Beth believed was her own name. Her whole body arched and bucked as she came around him, lights bursting in-front of her eyes at the sheer intensity of the pleasure that coursed throughout her.
With a grunt, Daryl's own body grew tense and stiff as his own orgasm shattered through him, causing him to groan loudly, forcing himself inside of her as deeply as he possibly could until he was entirely spent. Beth lay beneath him, panting into his slick skin, whimpering.
After a while, the pair of them gasping for air, Daryl rolled off of her and fell beside her, his chest heaving with his attempted breathing.
Neither of them spoke as they lay naked, staring up at the wall, sweat dripping into their lidded eyes and falling back into their tangled hair.
'Fuck,' Daryl breathed after a moment, running his hand down his face.
'Yeah,' Beth sighed. She pushed her matted hair out from her face and grabbed the blanket up from where it had fallen on the floor amongst their fit of passion.
'Y'okay?' Daryl asked, turning his head to look at her.
'I have never been better,' Beth grinned.
Laughing, Daryl leant across the bed to kiss her, this time softly and slowly, a welcome and thankful kiss of gratitude and love after their passionate and heavy love making session.
'Hope y'sister di'n hear that,' he said, his voice rough and low. He cleared his throat as Beth let out a breathy chuckle.
Beth curled up on her side facing Daryl as he lay on his back, sleep suddenly jumping up and taking her, exhaustion engulfing her and forcing her eyes closed without another thought, like the flame of a candle being snuffed out.
Daryl watched her sleep for a while before getting up and cleaning himself up as best he could. As much as he longed to climb back into bed with her, pulling her into his arms, he figured it best for him to stay on the sofa. If Maggie or Glen woke up and found the sitting room empty and him in bed with their little sister... it wasn't a conversation he really wanted to have just yet. He was pleased to find he didn't feel in the slightest bit guilty, though, as he pulled his clothes back on. Beth lay in the centre of the bed, her hair matted and sprawling out over the pillow around her. Her face was still flushed and covered in a light sheen of sweat, but Daryl honestly thought she looked beautiful. He was hit then by that thought, by the comforting knowledge that he felt for Beth. He had slept with her, and it was probably a bad idea, but he didn't regret it.
He left her to sleep soundly with a smile on his face, settling himself down on the sofa, his eyes fluttering shut, his soft breaths joining those of Beth's in the now silent apartment.