Daryl trusted Rick. He trusted his word, his plans, his integrity. Rick Grimes was a good, solid man, capable of enacting a good, solid plan. He had genuinely been pleased and relieved to see Daryl safe and well at The Hilltop, and neither man was ashamed to admit to shedding a tear or two at their reunion. They were family now – more than that. The end of society solidified certain bonds that went beyond friendship.
Rick had listened intently and openly to Daryl's story, and had been more than happy to go with him and Jesus – and a few other of his most trusted – to The Kingdom.
The leader of which – or King, as he appeared to call himself – was wary of them at first, but he invited them in and heard them out, anyway.
He told them they were coping, surviving, but the longer they spoke, he confessed the pressure of keeping the real struggle under Negan from his people was becoming too much. He did not want to answer to this Tyrant, nor continue to give up half of his goods, but until Rick and his men had arrived at his gates, he had not seen another way.
Daryl had said his bit. Rick had offered Beth's scrawled note and plan, and the three connecting communities hashed it out until the sun had faded from the sky. Daryl listened in mostly silence, but he grew antsy as Rick and Ezekiel agreed on a slower, steady approach.
Daryl was not one to take on a crowd, but he voiced his concerns to Rick.
'Starve them out.' Rick said. His voice was soft, as if he were reading out a question from a paper to a confused student. But firm, too. This question had an expected answer, it wasn't one that was up for interpretation. 'That's what Beth said.'
'What yer suggesting could take weeks.' Daryl said. 'We don't know how many supplies they have. How many preserves. They could be prepared.'
'They could.' Rick agreed. 'But they'll have to fight their way out eventually, and when they do, we'll be there to pick off the ones the walker's don't get to.'
Daryl clenched his fists. Unclenched them.
'We do any more than take out the perimeter and we put Beth at risk too.' Rick said softly. 'She's in there with them.'
Daryl knew Rick made a good point, but he knew Beth. She was rash, impulsive. It had driven him crazy back at the prison, never quite knowing what she would do, where she would be. But she had laid the foundations of this plan for them, he had to trust she had thought that far ahead. He had to trust that her line of thought would be in key with his. He couldn't see her sitting by idle and waiting to be saved. If the dead got inside, she would have prepared for that.
And whilst she was reluctant, Maggie agreed with him.
Daryl hadn't intended to go to her, but she had found him as he had been stewing out in the inky dusk. She had found him by the light of his cigarette, and they had talked.
Rick was not a law maker, but what he said usually went, and Maggie was reluctant to actively disobey him.
But she could see that Daryl had already made up his mind, and she was not someone to let a man go alone. Even Daryl Dixon.
As the others headed back towards The Hilltop, the two of them hung back, scoping out vehicles.
Maggie laid a hand on Daryl's forearm before he turned to climb into a large truck; he flinched, but not as much as he might have done a year ago – six months ago.
'Are you sure you want to do this?' She asked him softly. She was different to her sister, but her accent held enough of the southern belle that he loved to wrench painfully at his guts. The last time he had seen Beth she had been sporting an impressive bump in the middle of her small frame, and he knew how quickly these things happened. If that bastard in leather and his damn bat made him miss the birth of his child – a child he never dreamed of having – then the flesh eating creatures at his door would be the last of his worries.
'Yeah.' He said, nodding once firmly.
'Okay.' Maggie nodded back. 'I'll follow in the car behind you. You do what you do, then you get to me as fast as you can, okay?'
Daryl nodded, grateful.
Beth had risked her neck to get him out, he wasn't about to leave her to starve for weeks while Rick and this King made their plans.
–
An explosion from somewhere seemingly both far away and very close jolted Beth from her sleep; she sat up, her hand on her chest as if she could still the shocked juddering of her heart through it. The muffled sound of rubble falling reached her, and she looked around her darkened room, trying to force her sleepy brain to catch up.
Screams and shouts took over then, but she couldn't quite place where from. She spun herself to the side of the bed and pushed herself up slowly, one hand on the side of her expanding stomach.
Boots crashed against the hard floor outside her door, but before Beth could understand what that meant, they had passed and were receding.
She pulled some clothes on and dug her feet in to her boots, listening. It sounded like the noise was coming from beneath her, a mixture of voices, some shouting, some screaming. It was hard to make out, just a cacophony of noise.
More footsteps outside; Beth ran to her door and banged her palms against it, shouting out for someone to hear her, to let her in on whatever was happening, but they had passed.
She smacked her hand on the red of the door in anger, then turned back around to face her room.
Gunshots echoed then. Slowly at first, then faster, each one punctuating through Beth's already fraught heart.
What the hell was happening?
She paced for a while, trying to make out any sense within the sounds that reached her. Shouts, crashes, gunshots.
She spun around as she heard more footsteps approaching; she ran to her door and was about to call out when they stopped. She paused. The lock of her door turned, clicked, and then pushed open.
She stepped back, unsure who to expect.
She had not expected to see Marie's dark head appear.
'What's happening?' Beth asked as Marie held out a hand to her.
Marie shook her head.
'I'm not sure.' She said. 'But I think the dead have gotten in.'
Beth took a deep breath in through her nose; she nodded.
'Negan is down there dealing with it.' Marie said.
'It's now or never.' Beth said.
'Now or never.' Marie confirmed.
Beth took Marie's slightly shaking hand, and followed her out into the corridor; they took a left and hurried past Negan's meeting room, hurrying for those two double doors at the end. The sounds were louder out here, but Beth tried not to think of the carnage that might be happening beneath her.
They reached the doors and Beth pulled them open, panting.
They swung inwards, revealing a gradually lightening sky – and a horde of the walking dead.
Beth paused, looking down into the courtyard, her hand flying to her mouth to stop her from gasping.
Beth's eyes drifted slowly from the new gap in the fence, following the tire marks gouged into the mud, bits of fence and walkers strewn around them. The tracks led to a van which was still slowly smoking, the front half of it currently out of site as it ploughed into the wall of the building, a wall which was still crumbling down around it. Walker's had been knocked all over, but they were making their way over to where the truck had destroyed the wall, filing in through the gradually widening gaps around it.
It was luck, Beth supposed, that the impact had knocked the bottom steps away. Although she knew that with time and incentive the walkers could easily pull their selves up and onto the remaining stairs to reach the door she currently stood at – luckily for her, only a few had seen her, and as they begun to readjust their course, she stepped back and shut the door firmly.
She leant back against it, breathing hard.
'We're trapped.' Marie said.
Beth shook her head, thinking hard. This was what she had wanted, but clearly she hadn't thought it all through. With the walkers surrounding the doors, the Saviours were trapped – but so was she.
'Negan's meeting room.' Marie said slowly. 'It has a balcony. Looks out onto the east side of the building.'
Beth nodded, her face scrunched in concern.
'I know,' Marie said slowly. 'It's ten - twelve foot in the air.'
'And I'm 7 months pregnant.' Beth said.
Marie looked at her, her face sweaty. Beth bit her lip, unsure of where to go. They could follow this corridor down into the bowels of The Sanctuary and try to find another way out, but there was no guarantee they would get anywhere. The dead could have infiltrated the lower levels by now, or The Saviours could still see and stop them.
'All of the walkers are going to be drawn to the front.' Beth said. 'They're drawn to noise and each other. Negan's balcony – it's our best bet.'
'But how…' Marie said.
'Uh maybe – a rope or – or bedsheets – all tied together.' Beth said, feeling stupid.
But Marie was nodding.
'Have you ever done that before?' She asked.
'No.' Beth admitted. 'But I've seen it done in films. It can't – it can't be that hard, right?'
'Alright.' Marie said. 'There's five beds in our quarters. We can use those.'
Beth nodded, then gestured for Marie to lead the way.
The two women hurried back to the Wives rooms, acutely aware of how risky their plan was. A Saviour could come back any moment and catch them trying to escape – she touched her face as she thought it, images of Dwight's mottled skin flitting before her eyes – Negan himself could even return. If they succeeded in making their rope, the whole thing could break on them, letting them drop five, ten, twelve feet to the solid ground. They could badly injure their-selves, Beth could risk her baby …
But staying put was a risk, too, especially now the place was full of walkers.
Neither woman spoke as they sat in the common area Beth had devised the first half of this plan in and threaded the sheets together. Beth knew they were both thinking over the worst scenarios, but she didn't see much point in making distracting small talk – it was dangerous, there was no denying that. Dangerous and stupid. But the best plans were, weren't they?
When they were satisfied the sheets were tied as tight as they could be, they bundled them all up and carried them together back to the meeting room, silently praying no-one would catch them.
'The other wives.' Beth panted as they dropped the sheets down in front of the doors that opened out onto Negan's balcony. 'Where are they?'
'I don't know.' Marie admitted. 'I checked all their rooms when I woke up – they weren't there.'
Beth didn't know what this meant, but she didn't have time to think it over.
'Tie the sheets around one of the table legs.' Beth said. 'It's metal, it should hold it.'
Marie nodded and crouched down to do so. Beth stood back, her hands absently rubbing circles over her belly as she watched.
'Ready?' Marie asked; her voice was shaky.
Beth nodded.
Marie swallowed.
'I'll go first.' She said. 'Then if you slip up or fall – I'll be there to catch you.'
Beth opened her mouth to argue, but Marie's face was set, so she just nodded.
They opened the doors and stepped out, looking down; the growls of the walkers was loud, but Beth had been right in surmising that none would be around this corner yet. She glanced over to the fence beyond to check there were none out of bounds, either.
Marie looked at her.
'Ready?' Beth asked.
'Yeah.' Marie said. She shook out her arms and cracked her neck. 'Let's go.'
Beth watched as she swung one leg up and over the rails of the balcony, then the other, positioning herself on the other side. She gave Beth a determined nod, then gripped hold of the make shift sheet rope. She tugged on it a little first, then she slowly moved into a crouch, leaning back so that it was holding almost all of her weight. Once she was certain it would hold, she stepped off, one foot at a time.
Beth held her breath as the rope thinned as her weight pulled it down; her knuckles were white against the rails as she peered over. Marie moved slowly, her knees tightened around the rope, her hands gripping on for dear life. Beth felt her heart plummet every time she took a hand away to move down.
Somehow, by some miracle, Marie made it to the floor.
She looked up at Beth and gestured for her to follow, not trusting herself to speak.
Beth took a shuddering breath, and turned to straddle the rails.
It was difficult with her stomach in the way, but slowly, she got the other leg over; standing on the wrong side of the balcony with the tips of her boots in between the rails was enough to turn her stomach, her hands gripping the rails so tight she thought the skin would break.
She inched her hands towards the rope and gripped it, trying her hardest to steady them, and tried to remember what she had learnt in gym class all those years ago.
She slid one foot out and found the rope with it, linking her foot around it, then she leant back the same way Marie had done.
Taking a deep breath, she moved off of the relative safety of the balcony, and let herself hang.
Her arms burned almost instantly at the strain of holding her up, but she had no choice. This wasn't gym class, she couldn't just give up. She couldn't risk falling, either. It was no longer just her she had to worry about, but a baby, too.
With this thought clear in her mind, she pushed through the discomfort and one by one, hand under hand, made her way down.
She fell to the floor with a huff, her hands raw and her arms burning.
Marie pulled her up and into a tight bear hug.
'You did it.' She said, her voice raw. 'You super woman.'
'Come on,' Beth panted, her hand on her side where a stitch was building. 'We have to keep moving.'
Without looking back, the two of them headed towards the chain link fence.
Beth had hopped up walls, jumped over fences and climbed buildings since the fall, but all before she had been carrying a good few extra pounds around in a prominent bulge in front of her.
These last few weeks at The Sanctuary had weakened her – she knew it. She felt less strong, her muscles felt weaker, and her belly had only grown larger.
She looked up at the fence and tried to swallow these thoughts.
'We get over this and all we have to do is run.' Marie said.
Beth nodded.
Together, side by side, they linked their fingers through the fence and pulled their-selves up, poking the toes of their boots through. It was hard, and the fence swayed, but they made it to the top. Beth's arms screamed in protest as she pulled herself up onto the bar at the top, but Marie helped her as best she could, and together they managed to turn around and begin the descent.
As they moved, walkers had begun to wander around the side of the building, either bored of waiting out the front or drawn by their clamouring and puffing.
Seeing them, they made a beeline, and Beth could only be thankful the fence was between them.
They hurried, none the less, knowing a walker could easily reach through the gaps and grab them or knock them down.
A walker was less than a foot away as Beth's boots hit solid ground; she stumbled, clutching her stomach, and took several steps back.
The two woman stood for a moment, sweat clinging to their bodies, as the walkers pushed their snarling faces up against the fence.
Outside and open, Beth was suddenly aware that they were unarmed. She cursed.
'We get in to the woods and we stay low. We move slow and quiet.' She said, not looking at Marie but into the glassy eyes of what was once a woman as she tried to get through the fence and to them.
'Alright.' Marie nodded.
The two women turned their backs on the desperate walkers and on The Sanctuary – for what Beth hoped would be the last time – and headed into the cover of the woods.
Beth didn't think her heart would stop hammering erratically until she was safely within the walls of The Hilltop – maybe not even then.
Neither of them spoke for some time as they picked their way over and through the under brush, trying to stick to trodden paths as best they could. Beth stopped them at any noise, not wanting to risk their chances. Being snuck up on by anyone, dead or alive, was not in their best interest.
The sky lightened and the sun rose as they walked; the woodland around them became clearer, but the sky remained mostly hidden by the canopy, which helped ease Beth's nerves a little.
There were stretches of open space between The Sanctuary and The Hilltop, which the women crossed with heightened anxiety and swift silence, but thankfully these spaces were not too abundant.
Beth understood that Marie was relying on her getting them there safely, and Beth did not want to admit that she was relying on mainly guesswork to lead them – she had only been to The Hilltop once, and never made the trip from it to The Sanctuary. Thankfully time with Daryl had taught her how to navigate her surroundings, and she was fairly confident they would get there in time – she just wasn't certain how much time it would take.
The sun was high in the sky and Beth was starting to struggle by the time she saw The Hilltop in the distance; it was such a relief, such a flood of emotion, that her feet drew to a stop.
'Beth?' Marie said, her own voice hoarse and ragged.
Beth tore her eyes away from the far away wooden surroundings of the Hilltop and looked to the other woman, seeing how pale her face was beneath the accumulated sweat, a glistening contrast to her white, chapped lips.
'We're almost there.' Beth said, feeling the fatigue wash over her as she stood, almost swaying on the spot. 'I can see it.'
Marie nodded, closing her eyes for a moment.
Beth reached out and took her hand, squeezing it. She couldn't count her luck yet, but they were so close.
The woodland dropped off as they reached the road, dry and dusty.
The doors opened before they had even got to them, and the man Beth recognised as Jesus came running out.
'Beth!' He called as he approached them. 'You're here! God you look – come in, come in!'
Beth didn't trust her raw throat to speak, so she just followed him in.
A few people turned to look as they walked through the grounds, but Beth them very little mind – every inch of her body ached, her thighs burned, her feet rubbed raw in her boots.
Jesus led them into the main house and into a back room, where he offered them a seat.
Beth fell onto the sofa and leant her head back, closing her eyes. She felt sick to her stomach and as her body got used being still, her head began to throb. To her absolute delight, Jesus returned with a pitcher of water and two glasses.
'Go slow.' Jesus said as both women greedily drank. 'You're probably extremely dehydrated.'
He sat forward and watched them for a moment, allowing them some time to recover – Beth was unsure how long they had been walking for, but it was now past midday and they had escaped before dawn. Beth drained her glass then sat back, letting the liquid settle in her stomach as she took a few deep breaths.
'How are you here?' Jesus asked after a moment.
Beth looked at him.
'We got out.' She said. 'I thought – I mean I assumed – the wall was down.'
Jesus was nodding.
'You thought right.' He said, his lips quirking into a smile. 'Daryl got here about a week ago with your note. I took him to The Kingdom.'
Beth nodded, her heart feeling strangely light at the sound of Daryl's name – it was her first confirmation that he had escaped. That he was alive.
They hadn't seen each other in weeks, but they were still connected – she had still managed to get that note to him, and he had listened to her. Trusted her.
'Uh, Jesus?'
Beth looked up to see Gregory in the doorway to the room, looking nervously over at Jesus.
Jesus sighed, looked to Beth and Marie, then got up. He followed Gregory out of the room, but Beth could hear them speaking out in the hall in hushed tones.
Marie leant across the space between them and took Beth's hand in hers.
'Beth,' she said, her eyes wet. 'Thank you so much for getting us here. I never – I never would have gotten out without you.'
Beth squeezed her hand back.
'You would have.' She said.
Jesus returned after a while.
'Come on, let me show you were the bathroom is – you both look like you could do with a good wash.' He said.
Beth chuckled, but he was right – she smelt awful.
Jesus led them to one of the bathrooms on the ground floor and offered them some clean clothes, then left them.
'Come and find me back in the room when you're done.' He said. 'I'l show you were you can bunk.'
'Thank you, Jesus.' Beth said, trying to convey just how serious she was in her voice. 'Really.'
Jesus just smiled.
'You're good people.' He said.
He left them then in one of the largest bathrooms Beth had ever seen – the floor and walls were ornate marble, with a free-standing bathtub in the middle. Beth would have loved to have climbed in and let the water wash over her, but the timing wasn't right. Instead, she filled one of the basins with hot, soapy water, peeled off her sticky clothes, and washed herself as best she could without removing her underwear. Marie did the same.
Feeling a little fresher, both women pulled the new clothes on and found Jesus again.
'Better?' He asked.
They nodded, grateful.
Jesus took them back out of the house and across to the trailers Beth had seen before; he opened one and led them inside.
'You can stay here.' He said. 'As long as you like.'
'Hey,' Marie said, clearing her throat. 'That man, earlier – who was he?'
Jesus chuckled.
'Gregory.' He said. 'Don't worry about him.'
'He doesn't want us here, does he.' Beth said.
'No.' Jesus said. 'He doesn't.'
'Why?' Marie frowned.
'He's scared.' Jesus said honestly. 'Scared Negan will come after you here.' He shrugged. 'He might. But it's okay. We're not going to stand by and let him take what he wants, any more.'
Beth and Marie exchanged a look; the last she had seen of her family they had been cowering beneath a man that had beaten and killed to put on a show for them. She could not imagine how the last couple of weeks had been for them.
Jesus had already delivered food to the trailer, so he left them to it.
Beth picked at the bread at first, her stomach still unsure, but then as she began to eat, she found she was starving. They sat across from each other at a small round table, eating in silence, until Marie pushed her plate away and sat back.
'I can't believe we're out.' She said.
Beth nodded, wiping the back of her hand across her mouth.
'I know.' She said; it still didn't feel real. 'I'll sleep like a baby tonight.'
Marie smiled at that.
'How is the baby?' She asked.
Beth rubbed a hand over the top of her bump.
'Fine, I think.' She said. 'It's been kicking. I was worried earlier, but I think it was just as tired as I was – it's up and about now, though.'
'It.' Marie chuckled. 'Makes it sound – I don't know – not human.'
Beth smiled, shaking her head.
'I don't want to conform to a sex,' she said. 'I might get attached to it and turn out wrong.'
'You're worried you'll be disappointed?' Marie asked.
Beth shrugged; she wasn't really sure herself.
Three hard knocks on the trailer door made them both jump. Beth looked across the table at Marie, seeing the way the colour drained from her face too.
It's not them she thought, they wouldn't knock.
But she couldn't help think it.
'Beth!'
The voice that called through the door had her up and out of her seat in a second – she ran to the door, pulling it open to see a face she had thought of almost every second she had been away.
'Daryl!' She cried, throwing herself into the arms of the man that stood before her.
He smelt like fire and ash, but beneath that was the usual musk Beth knew and loved. He was without his vest – Beth knew that was still on Dwight's undeserving back – but everything else was right.
His arms found their way around her back, pulling her close and snug in to him. She breathed in his scent, feeling the heat of his hands on her back. She could feel the scratch of his stubble on the top of her head, his breath hot on her skin.
She pulled back from him to take him in, her eyes hungrily searching his face.
His own blue eyes took in her face, then dropped to her stomach; he let out a low whistle.
'Damn, girl, you've blown up.'
'Hey!' She chuckled, her own eyes dropping to the bump between them.
'Beth –'
Beth turned her face then to see Maggie – and behind her Glenn.
She pulled back from Daryl – a little begrudgingly – and went to her sister, drawing her into a hug too.
'What are you doing here?' She asked her, as her sister pulled back to stroke her hair behind her ear.
'Let's get inside.' Maggie said, gesturing to the trailer behind them.
Beth nodded and stepped back into the room; Marie was standing beside the table now, looking nervously between each new face.
'This is Marie.' Beth said. 'She was one of Negan's … wives.'
Maggie went to the other woman and drew her into a hug, drawing out a surprised 'oh' from Marie.
'Thank you.' She said, letting her go. 'Thank you for looking out for my sister.'
Marie just nodded, looking a little surprised.
Maggie and Glenn pulled out chairs and sat with Marie at the table. Beth sat down too, but Daryl stayed standing, his arms folded across his chest as he stood at the window. The sun had set, but the sky was not yet too dark to see.
'How are you here?' Maggie asked, reaching across the table to hold Beth's hand. 'How did you get out?'
'No,' Beth said, looking up and over at Daryl. 'You first.'
Daryl looked at her, his eyes searching her face like he wasn't really sure she was real.
'Got yer note.' He said. 'Got out.'
'And?' Beth pushed.
Daryl sighed and walked over to the table.
'Came here, told Jesus t'get Rick. ' He gestured with his chin to Maggie. 'Rick didn't come alone.'
Maggie nodded.
'Jesus told us about The Kingdom, an' he brought us to it. To Them.' Daryl said. He looked to Beth. 'Where'd y'get the name?'
'Marie,' Beth said, looking to the woman on her right.
Marie smiled tentatively.
'I knew it was a community under Negan.' She said. 'That's all.'
'You were right.' Daryl said. 'Strange guy thinks he's a king. Big ol' community though. Him an' Rick talked it all over for a long time. We wanted t'go in, guns blazing. I gave 'em yer note.'
Beth nodded.
'But Rick didn't.' Daryl said. 'He's scared.'
'Rick is?' Beth frowned.
'You should see him,' Maggie said softly. 'He's a broken man, Beth.'
Beth looked to her sister. She swallowed.
'He had a plan t'wait it out. But I couldn't.' He looked at Beth, his eyes burning her. 'Not wi'you in there.'
Beth sighed.
'Me and yer sister, we found a truck.' He shrugged. 'We did what we did.'
Beth laughed softly – she had seen the truck buried deep into the falling bricks of the wall.
'We heard the crash.' She said. 'It knocked out the stairs but we used the distraction to get out.'
Daryl was nodding, and Beth knew he was relieved enough to have her back that he wouldn't push for more – yet. Whether she would tell him she had climbed out of a first floor window with a rope made from sheets, she wasn't sure.
'We couldn't risk coming straight back.' Maggie said then. 'We needed to stay by and make sure it had worked. But now that it has – they'll be depleted. Hopefully Saviours will die in there. But either way, we're taking them on.'
Beth felt Daryl lay a hand on her should then; she reached up and lay her own hand on top of it.
'We got the people.' He said.
–
The trailer they had been given had two small bedrooms off of the main room, and Marie insisted each couple took them, whilst she slept on the sofa. It was the same trailer Daryl had been brought to when he first arrived, but Beth very much doubted it held any comfort for him.
Beth felt a little uneasy leaving her out in the room alone, but Marie insisted she was fine, so she retired to one of the rooms with Daryl; the room was small, barely a foot between each twin bed, but it was perfect to sleep off the pressure of the last few days.
She flopped down onto one of the beds with a sigh as Daryl sat himself down on the one opposite.
Beth lay on her back, hands resting on her belly, breathing softly. She glanced across at the man on the other bed, his eyes on her. They were serious, darker some how, and the skin around them seemed more weathered than last time. Beth let her eyes wander over the face she loved, taking in the scruff of his beard, the hard line of his lips, the deep crevices of his forehead.
She offered him a smile, and his face seemed to soften a little.
'I can see you spiralling.' She said softly.
'Hm.' Daryl grunted, and Beth could see him picking at his nails as his hands hung across his knees in the space between the beds.
She reached out and took a hand in hers, stilling the nervous tick.
'I don't know what you went through in that cell,' she said quietly. 'But you're out now.'
'Fuck t'cell.' He said. 'I'd spend a year in tha' place if it meant you were safe.'
Beth smiled, but she felt a lump in her throat. Slowly, she pushed herself up, grunting a little at the effort it took.
'We're okay now.' She said. 'Whatever happens next – well.' She shrugged. 'It happens. But tonight we're okay. And we need to sleep.'
He let out a low chuckle at that; he leant forward and placed a hand on her thigh, sending a jolt of heat into the centre of Beth's belly. God, she had missed him.
'Get some sleep.' He said.
Beth yawned then, as if Daryl's order had suddenly informed her body just how tired it really was. She turned herself around so she could kick off her boots and remove her bra, then she leant forward and planted a kiss on lips she was desperate to see smile.
'You too,' she said.
Daryl went to argue – she could see it in his eyes – but she quietened him with another soft kiss. It lingered a little longer this time, revelling in the soft warmth of the skin, the light scratch of his beard.
'I mean it.' She said quietly as she pulled back. 'We both need rest.'
Daryl sighed, then he toed off his boots and laid back – Beth knew better than asking him to take anything else off. In their home in Alexandria he would sleep in less – occasionally – but the hard years still wore on him, and he had never shaken that fear that he would need to get up and go at any given moment. Beth knew the feeling herself, and she couldn't argue with him now, in this trailer in a community they were not familiar with, after everything they had been through. Boots would have to do.
Once she was settled in the bed with the blankets pulled up to her chin, she turned to her side as best she could, to look at the man in the bed beside her.
Wriggling, she removed one arm and reached across the gap to him. Daryl was lying on his arm, his eyes on her, but he reached his free arm out and took her hand.
'Can we just stay here forever?' She yawned as Daryl's calloused thumb rubbed circles across the back of her hand.
'We can do whatever y'want, girl.' Daryl said quietly, his voice low and rough; it sent shivers through Beth, even as she felt herself slipping into sleep. She knew it was wishful thinking, and tomorrow would bring a new day and a whole new load of obstacles, but for now she allowed herself to believe him, to enjoy the feel of his hand in hers, the warmth and comfort it provided.
Her eyes fluttered shut as sleep took over, but the smile stayed on her face.