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Much love!
-A
Three:
"My Beffy, I's thirsty." Said two-and-a-half year old Judith Grimes, indicating that her sippy cup was empty.
"What would you like to drink, baby doll? Juice or milk?" Beth asked, taking the cup from the toddler and walking to the small kitchen.
"Juice!" Exclaimed Judith, clapping her hands together. Tonight, Beth was watching Carl and Judith so Rick and his girlfriend could go on a date. Carl, who had been Beth's buddy since he was born, was playing video games in the living room, while Beth and Judith built a fort.
"Hey, Aunt Beth! Do you think we could go on a walk?" Carl asked, entering the kitchen. Beth poured apple juice—Judith's favorite—into her sippy cup, giving it back to the toddler.
"Dank you, my Beffy." Judith said, toddling off to play with her blocks. Beth turned her attention to Carl, who was still awaiting an answer.
"I don't see why not, kiddo. We've got a few hours of daylight left. Why don't we get Juju and head over to the park?" Beth asked.
"Awesome!" Carl said, running to grab his younger sister, "Come on, Judy! We're gonna go play at the park!"
"The park! The park!" Judith echoed, running to find her shoes.
Beth enjoyed nights like this, where she didn't have to focus on work. She enjoyed playing with Carl and Judith. When Lori was alive, she insisted that Carl call Beth, Maggie, and Shawn "aunt" and "uncle", having lived with them since Hershel and Annette were married. It pained Beth's heart to know that Carl and Judith wouldn't be able to have their mom around. Lori, a nurse, was coming home from working a late shift; leaving at three in the morning. She was heavily pregnant with Judith, refusing to take maternity leave until absolutely necessary. She stopped for gas on the way home and was attacked by an escaped convict, a man named Andrew, for all the money she had in her wallet, and her car. Judith survived an emergency c-section, but Lori never woke up from her coma. Four days later, she was pronounced brain dead, and taken off life support. Rick took it the hardest, believing his wife would get better. Beth, too, had been utterly devastated at the lost of her cousin, who might as well have been her older sister. Every chance Beth got to spend time with Carl and Judith, she did, telling them stories of how many times their mother got her out of trouble, and saved her from Maggie's temper.
The three arrived at the park, playing first with the ducks. Judith was fascinated, mimicking their "quack" sound as much as she could. Beth had brought bread for them to feed the ducks with, and even Carl was enjoying the time.
"I used to be scared of geese." Carl admitted, "One bit me once. I don't trust 'em."
"I don't either." Beth replied, trying to be serious, "Geese have an agenda."
"Exactly! Dad said I was just bein' a weenie, but he's never been bit by one of those things! It stole my sandwich, too!" Carl exclaimed. Beth laughed. Suddenly, she looked around, realizing that Judith was nowhere to be seen.
"Judy?" Beth called. She looked at Carl, and both began to panic.
"Judith?!" Beth asked again, looking for her.
"Judith Abigail Grimes, where are you?!" Beth exclaimed, visibly starting to shake with fear. What if someone had taken her? What if she'd fallen into the pond somewhere?
"Hey, Beth! You lookin' for someone?" Came a familiar voice. Beth turned around to see Alex, another pathology resident, holding Judith, smiling widely.
"Alex! Oh my gosh! Where'd you find 'er?" Beth asked.
"Oh, uh, she just kinda wandered up to us. She wanted us to feed the ducks with her." Alex explained.
"Oh. Yeah, sounds like her." Beth replied, sighing heavily.
"She your daughter?" Alex asked.
"Niece. This is my nephew, her brother Carl." Beth introduced.
"Oh, hey man. I'm Alex. I work with your aunt." Alex said, shaking Carl's hand, "This is my brother, Gareth, and my girlfriend, Kayleigh, by the way. We just came out for a walk."
"Oh, hi guys. I'm Beth Greene. Or, Dr. Beth Greene, I guess. That sounds weird, doesn't it?" Beth asked. She and Alex had gone to medical school together, and she'd heard all about Alex's brother.
"Nice to meet you, Beth. I'm Gareth; the artsy of the Turner brothers." Gareth said, chuckling.
"Artsy?" Beth asked, somewhat flirting with the cute man.
"I've got a PhD in literature, I teach at Georgia State." Gareth explained.
"Oh! Okay. It's nice to meet you. Guys, thank you, for finding Judith for me. Her daddy would kill me if I lost her for good." Beth said, relieved.
"No problem, Beth. She's a cool kid! I think we could be pals." Alex said, high-fiving the toddler still in his arms. Beth reached and took her, Judith seemingly unconcerned with scaring Beth half to death.
"Well, we'd better get going, next time I'll bring a leash for her." Beth joked. She said goodbye to the brothers and Alex's girlfriend, walking back to her apartment.
"Juju, why would you scare me like that?" Beth asked.
"I sorry my Beffy. I thought you were right behind me." Judith explained, apologizing.
"It's alright, Juju. Just be careful next time. Not everyone is nice like Mr. Alex or Mr. Garrett. Some people will snatch ya right up." Beth warned.
"Okay, my Beffy." Judith said, hugging Beth. Beth set her down in the apartment, sitting on the couch next to Carl.
"Your sister scares the bejeezus outta me sometimes, Carl. I don't want anything to happen to her." Beth sighed.
"You an' me both, Aunt Beth." Carl said, concentrated on the video game before him.
A Pixar movie, a pizza delivery, and one spilled apple juice later, Rick returned for the kids. Though Beth was tired, she loved spending time with the only children who didn't terrify her.
"Were they good?" Rick asked, picking up a sleeping Judith.
"Of course. Juju did pull a Houdini and disappear at the park, though. Luckily a friend of mine knew who she was belonged to." Beth chuckled handing him Judith's bag.
"Yeah, she ran away from Michonne the other day at Carl's ball game. We found 'er over near the dog park playin' with a Saint Bernard." Rick replied.
"Wait. Who's Michonne? Isn't she the SVU detective?" Beth asked.
"Oh...Yeah...That slipped. We've been datin' for a few months now." Rick said sheepishly.
"Six,to be exact." Michonne said, walking up the hall.
"Oh, I thought you were gonna wait in the car?" Rick asked, quite surprised.
"And miss meetin' the famous 'my Beffy'? Never!" Michonne joked, flashing her trademark smile.
"Well, I'm Beth. And you must be who Juju refers to as "Shawn"." Beth laughed.
"She is a talker, I'll give 'er that." Michonne said, hugging Beth. Carl came down the hallway, yawning slightly.
"We ready to head home? Aunt Beth beat me twice at Call of Duty. I'm tired of losing to a girl." Carl teased, punching Beth's shoulder slightly.
"Yeah, yeah. We're headed home. Thanks for watchin' the kiddos, Beth. Dunno what I'd do without ya." Rick said, hugging her.
"Probably go crazier than you already are." Beth quipped.
"Probably. Night." Rick said, walking with Michonne, Carl, and Judith down the hall. Beth decided that since it was nearly midnight, she would hit the hay. The went through her usual routine, washing her face, getting into her baggy t-shirt and shorts, and heading to bed. The silence was deafening, making it hard for Beth to fall asleep.
Yeah. I should definitely get a cat. Or dog. Or boyfriend. Or Beta fish. Beth thought. After counting sheep unsuccessfully, Beth finally began to fall asleep, staring at the ceiling, hoping for a peaceful, restful sleep.
Unfortunately, she was awakened early the next morning by a banging on her door. Her head was pounding, the clock said 6:00. Who is that? Beth thought, irritated. She walked to the door, not even bothering with the peephole. If it was a burglar, she figured, then they wouldn't be banging on the door.
When she opened it, however, what she found was much, much worse.
"Yo, doc!" Daryl said, looking at her obviously disheveled appearance, "I need to talk to you."
"And this couldn't wait until, maybe, I dunno, noon?!" Beth asked, annoyed.
"Listen, we got a suspicious death at an apartment 'bout a mile away. Might wanna pretty up." Daryl said, gesturing to her appearance.
"I'm a resident." Beth replied sharply.
"Technically, Dr. P said you're a fellow. So come on, let's go." Daryl said.
"Dixon, seriously, the sun is just barely up." Beth hissed.
"It's been up 'bout thirty minutes. Now put on your doctor clothes, little mascara wouldn't hurt either, sunshine." Daryl said, walking in and sitting on the couch.
"What the damn hell are you doing?!" Beth growled.
"Waitin' on you to get ready. Tried callin', didn't answer your phone. Rick's meetin' us, come on." Daryl said.
"I could slap you right now." Beth said, walking over to her coffee pot.
"But that'd be assaultin' a police officer, an' you're too pretty for prison." Daryl said.
"Do you have any manners?" Beth asked.
"Don't have to, most of the people I talk to offed their wife or husband for insurance money." Daryl replied.
"I don't have a husband or a wife. I don't even have a cat." Beth said, slipping on her "work clothes" in her bedroom.
"Obviously. There might be more food in your cabinets if ya did." Daryl replied.
"You're going through my cabinets?!" Beth asked, coming down the hallway.
"Lookin' for somethin'. Man's gotta eat." Daryl said.
"Ugh. No wonder no one wants to work with you. You're a raging, arrogant asshole." Beth muttered.
"But amazingly self aware." Daryl quipped.
"Why me? Why not Alex or Rosita or Sasha or hell, anyone else?!" Beth asked.
"Easy. Jenner told me he wanted your help." Daryl replied, popping the last pop tart in his mouth.
"You're eating my food?" Growled Beth, hands on her hips.
"Your mat said 'welcome'." Daryl said.
"Ugh. Whatever. Let's go." Beth said, grabbing her purse. Daryl followed her out, and the two hopped in his unmarked Charger. Beth had to admit, he did seem like a Charger guy. Glenn's was a patrol car, Daryl's wasn't. She supposed those were the perks of being a detective. They arrived quickly, and Beth flashed her "Fulton County Medical Examiner" badge. They let her in without query, and she walked over to Jenner, who was taking notes.
"Hey, Dr. Greene! This one is a doozy." Jenner said, leading her back to the crime scene.
"Um, how?" Beth asked.
"Oh. Seems our couple had a spat. I think, technically, in the state of Georgia, it's still legal to kill a man with a cappuccino machine." Jenner explained.
It seemed the victim had been bludgeoned, beaten, and then scalded. It wasn't a pretty scene, and Beth guessed that it hadn't been too long since the man died; rigor mortis hadn't quite set in.
"People die like this often?" Beth asked Jenner as they loaded the man into a body bag.
"Not too often, 'death-by-cappuccino' isn't something I've ever seen." Jenner laughed. The two began to lift the body, but found it difficult. The body bag was slippery, and Beth almost dropped his feet.
"Greene, do not drop this man in front of his kids." Jenner ordered quietly.
"They're adults!" Beth hissed.
"Still. They're father's barista mistress had the last laugh, they're not too happy." Jenner replied. The two got the body into the van, and Jenner, leaving Beth at the apartment to sign last minute paperwork. Once she was done, she realized, that even though her apartment was only a mile away, she'd been driven by Daryl, and he was now with the murderess barista down at the police station. So, Beth decided that she'd wait on the front steps of the apartment, and debate seeing if Maggie wanted to get breakfast, because Daryl had eaten the last remaining pop tarts.
I need to go buy groceries. Beth thought.
Maggie wasn't answering the phone, so Beth decided that, eventually, she'd just walk home. In the meantime, she'd try to beat her current score on Flappybird, and contemplate getting a pet when she was out.
"Yes! 91! I did it!" Beth exclaimed, trying not to draw too much attention to herself.
"Hey! I'm sorry—Beth, right? You're friends with my brother, Alex. You had the runaway niece." Beth heard a voice say. She looked up to see Alex's brother, Gareth, smiling.
"Yeah! Yeah. Oh geez, I'm sorry, I look so weird. I assisted a death not long ago, my ride left, and my sister isn't awake yet. I only live a mile away, but someone ate all my favorite pop tarts." Beth explained, "Oh crap, I'm rambling, aren't I?"
"No, no, actually, I was on my way to breakfast. Wanna join me? It's not pop tarts, but I'm sure we could manage." Gareth suggested. Wait, a guy was actually talking to her? Not run off by her awkwardness? Beth shyly tucked her long bangs behind her ear, blushing slightly.
"I'd love that, actually. I didn't plan to be up this early...A certain homicide cop decided to bang on my door before the sun was up." Beth said.
"By any chance, would his last name be Dixon?" Gareth asked. Beth raised a curious eyebrow.
"Oh my Lord, how do you know him?" Beth replied, her jaw nearly hitting the floor.
"He lives next door to me, and he freaked Alex out. A lot." Gareth explained.
"He has that effect on people. So, where we goin'?" Beth asked.
"I was headed to a little diner. Greasy food, but, the atmosphere is nice and it's pretty cheap. Plus, I'm a sucker for hashbrowns and gravy." Gareth admitted. Beth walked beside him, purse in hand.
"Yeah, me too, actually. Most people tell me that's really weird, but there's nothing better than hashbrowns, gravy, biscuits, and a nice cup of coffee." Beth said.
"Black, or cream and sugar?" Gareth asked.
"Before med school, cream and sugar. After, black, cream and sugar, in an IV, pretty much any way I could get it." Beth joked.
"Yeah, I used to pretty much drink half coffee, half milk before I got my PhD. But long nights writing a dissertation about William Faulkner will do that to ya." Gareth replied.
"Faulkner? You seemed like a Hemmingway man to me." Beth teased. Gareth laughed, flashing a handsome smile.
"Hemmingway? Everyone writes about Hemmingway. Besides, Hemmingway is depressing." Gareth said, opening the door of the diner for Beth. The two sat in a booth next to the window, ordering nearly the exact same thing: hashbrowns, gravy, biscuits, sausage, and coffee.
"So, Beth." Gareth said, sipping his coffee, "What made you want to go to medical school?"
"Well, I always wanted to help people. I worked at a nursin' home in high school, even did bingo night for 'em. My daddy lost his leg in a car wreck my junior year of high school, doctors saved his life. I guess, I wanted to do that too." Beth said.
"Why dead people, though? I mean, for Alex, it was easy. Our dad died really suddenly—the only way we got closure was through an autopsy. It was a pulmonary embolism, ten years ago. Alex wanted to help other people have closure." Gareth explained. Beth felt a sad smile tug at her lips.
"Well, my cousin, Lori, she lived with us growin' up. She was pretty much my big sister. She was an ER nurse and she was comin' home from a late shift one night. An escaped convict wanted her car, so he attacked her in a gas station parkin' lot. She was pregnant at the time, with my niece, Judith, the little runaway at the park. Lori never got to meet her. She was pronounced brain dead, died a few days later. She had the guy's DNA under her fingernails, they were able to nab him." Beth said, taking a bite of biscuit.
"I'm really sorry, Beth." Gareth said, his dark eyes meeting hers.
"It gets better, I just wish Juju had time with her mom." Beth said.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. Our sister, Emily was twelve when he died. He wasn't there to teach her how to drive, or for her high school or college graduation...None of that." Gareth replied, a hint of sadness in his voice.
"Well, you were. Alex was. It doesn't change things, but, it does help to have people that care." Beth declared. Gareth smiled.
"Yeah, it does. I mean, my mom is the toughest woman I know. Three kids, by herself." Gareth laughed, finishing his hashbrowns.
"What does she do?" Beth asked.
"She owns a restaurant, the Railroad Cafe in Macon, where we're from. It's an old railroad depot, she fixed it up, turned it into the best barbecue place in town. People drive all the way from Atlanta and Augusta for it." Gareth said proudly, "What about your parents?"
"Well, Dad is a veterinarian, Mom is a kindergarten teacher. Both of 'em love what they do." Beth said, "Of course, all of us do. Maggie, my sister, is a lawyer. Shawn, my brother, owns his own surveying company. Of course, you and Alex are both doctors." Beth said, smiling.
"Yeah, Em is kind of the black sheep, I guess. She's a hippie. The big scandal was that she ran off to Oregon, and she's married a hippie named Sam. Mom was, to say the least, pissed beyond all reason. Alex and I went out to see them over Christmas, though." Gareth said, chuckling.
"Oh yeah? How was it?" Beth asked.
"I like savin' the Earth just as much as the next person, but good Lord, they live in a yurt." Gareth said, waving his hands.
"A yurt?" Beth laughed.
"Honest-to-God, a yurt. They have a greenhouse, they sell produce at the Farmer's market year round. Em has a degree in physics, and she is living in a yurt, selling tomatoes and cucumbers, making hippie furniture." Gareth said, this time laughing loudly, "But, they have no debt, and they have enough to pay for Sam to finish nursing school. So, they're doin' alright, I guess."
"Yeah, if anyone was the black sheep, it was me." Beth joked.
"You?" Gareth asked.
"Yeah. Shawn and Maggie are both married, or engaged. I don't even have a pet. But I was considering getting a cat today, which still might happen." Beth said.
"I'm pretty boring, too. Everyone assumes because I'm a college professor I must have this really cool looking apartment with antique furniture. My idea of antique is buying from the Goodwill and praying it doesn't have bedbugs." Gareth quipped.
"Wow, we're a couple of squares, aren't we?" Beth asked, clutching her sides from laughter.
"Totally. A couple of wet blankets." Gareth agreed. The two enjoyed breakfast so much that they'd exchanged phone numbers, and planned to have breakfast again the following morning. Beth was elated; for the first time in a very long time, she had conversation with another human being that didn't involve work, or Maggie's sex life. It was a good feeling, to have a friend, or something more. Beth wasn't sure, but as she walked into her apartment, a feeling of giddiness overtook her, and she began squealing as she ran down the hall, sliding in her socks. The first thing she did was call Maggie, and tell her to promptly "get her butt over here", so that she could tell her.
Maggie arrived minutes later, sporting what Beth referred to as the 'Maggie Rhee weekend uniform': sweat pants, a baggy t-shirt, a half-ponytail, and her glasses.
"Bethy, what's got you so worked up?" Maggie asked, sipping on her travel cup full of Mountain Dew.
"Mags, I went on a date this morning. AFTER I carted off a dead person. And the dead person was intense too, got killed by an angry Starbucks barista." Beth laughed, eating a Reese's candy bar she'd socked away in the junk drawer.
"A date? Beth Greene has a date?" Maggie asked.
"Yes. I know, Satan must have ice skated into work today." Beth said, laughing loudly. Sure enough, Gareth had already text her, making Maggie laugh as well.
"Bethy, I would've never guessed it. Is he cute?" Maggie asked.
"Yes. Very. He's adorable, really. And, he's a literature professor. His brother works with me at the morgue." Beth explained.
"Ah. Wow. Successful family. I approve." Maggie said, taking a piece of beef jerky from her purse and eating it. Beth gave her a curious look.
"What? I like jerky." Maggie quipped.
The two sisters watched a movie before Maggie went home, and Beth was, again, by herself. However, after today, she didn't mind the quiet, and she decided to spend the rest of the evening in her baggy t-shirt and short shorts, listening to random Disney musicals while cleaning. A knock at the door jolted her from her rendition of "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride", and she ran to the door, answering without looking at the peep hole—again.
"I swear I'm way too popular today." Beth huffed, opening the door. Much to her chagrin, it was Daryl Dixon, again, standing there, with a familiar face—Rick's friend and King County Sheriff, Shane Walsh.
"Dixon, what the hell? Can't you knock or something? Seriously?! And Shane, what are you doing here?!" Beth asked.
"Listen, I didn't wanna barge in an' Rick's down at the station, sent me over here. We gotta lead. Seems there've been a few untimely deaths over in King County, an' ol' Sheriff Walsh here is now involved on our investigation, needs copies of your notes. Carol said you had the most thorough ones." Daryl explained.
"Well, Miss Bethy, long time no see." Shane said, greeting her. Beth rolled her eyes, huffing loudly as she let them both in. She and Shane had dated a year prior, before he ran for Sheriff. Rick didn't approve, neither did her father, but Beth soon learned that Shane wasn't the "settling down" type.
"Yeah, yeah. Come on in. I scanned in the notes, I'll give you both copies." Beth said, firing up her computer and printing out copies for them both.
"So, Beth, it's been a while since I last saw ya." Shane said, looking around Beth's apartment.
"A year. That's when we broke up." Beth reminded him.
"You dated her?" Daryl asked.
"Yes sir, I did. Wonderful young lady, she was." Shane said.
"Why don't you tell ol' detective here why we broke up?" Beth asked sarcastically.
"I can't even 'member why we broke up now, darlin'." Shane teased. Beth wasn't amused, especially since this was the second time Daryl Dixon was in her apartment that day.
"Because, detective, the sheriff here is a great big ol' bag of dicks." Beth said, smiling as she handed them both folders.
"Oh, honey, you don't gotta be like that." Shane said, trying to sit next to her. Beth wasn't having it, and moved to the kitchen.
"Bag of dicks? That's a new one, doc." Daryl chuckled.
"Oh darlin', why you gotta go cuttin' me down in front of an upstandin' lawman such as Detective Dixon, here?" Shane asked.
"Yeah, well, next time, don't sleep with the nurse that takes your stitches out. Here's your copies, gentleman. Now, get out of my apartment. I know how to make accidents happen." Beth said, narrowing her eyes. She shooed them out, after Shane tried to make small talk.
"Alright, doc, we're goin'." Daryl said, opening the door. Shane walked down the hall, but Daryl turned around.
"What is it?" Beth hissed.
"For the record, I think he's a great big ol' bag of dicks, too." Daryl said, turning to walk away. Beth shut the door, smiling just a little bit. It had been a day for Beth Greene. She'd never had such a lively life before her new job, and now, she was starting to like the slower pace she had before. She'd taken it for granted, and she missed it. However, she still enjoyed being a pathologist, and she still enjoyed working with the police department. Maybe she could tell Gareth about the annoying homicide detective? Maybe she'd finally pick out a beta fish tomorrow? For Beth, the possibilities were endless. Beth finally crawled into bed, letting her body relax as her eyelids grew heavy. It had been a crazy start for the new medical examiner resident, and she hoped it was just a fluke.
But Beth Greene new there were no coincidences in life, so she let sleep overtake her, and hoped that Daryl Dixon would leave her alone for a little while.