Since their first proper date, Beth and Daryl had been pretty inseparable, spending most nights sitting down to a family style dinner with Jax or when Beth was able to get a hold of a babysitter, driving out to the middle of no where to make out like a couple of teenagers in his truck. It had only been a couple of months but it was obvious that the two were developing very strong feelings for each other and things were going pretty well for the couple - well, except when they the weekends came upon them and they went off to work, Daryl would find a silent rage bubbling up inside of him, leaving him feeling physically ill. He had been lucky, if one would call it that, the last few weeks because they had Beth filming some solo things and as much as he hated himself for it, he found himself actually getting turned on by the thought of it, however he much rather would have had a ticket to the private show, but while her occupation might have been utterly sinful, Daryl hadn't gone farther than first base with the woman. Merle hadn't known about Beth yet, and it was getting harder to hide where he was at all the time, but if he had known that Daryl was actually courting a porn star, he would have let out a booming laugh in disbelief before no doubt questioning his brother's sexual identity for not having fucked her yet. So that's why Daryl found himself ready to rip the building apart when he showed up for work at the studio that morning and saw on those damn security monitors Beth on her knees, in nothing but a pair of black underwear, in front of a nothing no name pretty boy, with her hands on his thighs, his in her hair, and his dick shoved in her mouth. The image on the screen was one of horrible quality but he didn't miss the way Beth pulled back slightly when the guy pulled her down just a bit too far on his shaft, most likely making her gag. Daryl himself felt a gag in his own throat and he knew he had to leave before he ended up in handcuffs. He hurried towards the door, Max calling out to ask where the hell he was going. "Sick." Daryl had thrown back over his shoulder just before leaving.
In the parking lot, he got to his bike but he was breathing heavily and he coughed, trying to get rid of the taste of bile in the back of his throat. He wanted to erase that image from his mind but it seemed like every time he blinked, it was permanently tattooed across the back of his eyelids. The emotions flowing through him cycled rapidly between blinding rage and disgust. But it wasn't disgust for Beth he felt, no not like some would, for doing what he did, because in that sense Daryl felt respect, knowing deep down that she was just doing what she had to do. He felt disgust though, that another man would be able to put his hands on the beautiful woman he so badly wanted to claim, that he would be allowed to experience her body in ways that Daryl could only dream about. He just needed to get out of there, get far away from that building for the time being, and so he hopped on his bike and drove.
Daryl didn't even know where he was going until he realized he had driven to a run down bar a couple towns over that he had been to a few times. On a normal day, ten in the morning might have been a little early to start drinking, but right now, he felt it was as good a time as any to get shit faced. Inside the bar, he was not surprised to see it was almost empty, save a few rough looking men and a few even rougher looking women, but he shrugged it off and sat down, quickly ordering some whiskey.
It didn't take long, but three drinks later, Daryl felt the alcohol freeing the fury from his body, finally allowing his fists to unclench. "Women. Am I right?" The guy from a few bar stools over spoke from behind the beer he had been nursing since Daryl arrived.
Daryl raised an eyebrow and gave a nod but he was in no way about to have some heart to heart with some random drunk. Instead he carried on a conversation with himself inside of his head. It mostly consisted of him reminding himself over and over again that it was just a job, like anything else, and it wasn't like she felt anything for those guys. When he felt like he could actually come back to reality, and he had calmed himself down well enough with his mental pep talk and booze, Daryl paid his tab and exited the bar. He hadn't realized that he had pretty much been their all day, but he knew when he walked outside and saw that the sun had already set. Guess time really flies when you're trying to convince yourself you can be with the woman of your dreams.
Beth hadn't seen Daryl around work all day, and that made her furrow her brow in confusion as she wracked her brain to try and remember him telling her something that would explain him not being there. He hadn't gotten the day off and it wasn't like him to miss a shift, she knew he needed the money as much as she did. Back in her regular clothing, with her purse hanging off her arm, she walked into the lobby to find Max. "Let me walk you to your car." She nodded, giving him a small thanks.
"You seen Daryl around today?" She questioned, trying not to be completely transparent. No one around here knew that they were together, Beth herself wasn't even so sure that's what her and Daryl would call it, but she knew they didn't want anyone to know because it would risk both of their jobs.
Max shrugged. "Came in for all of ten minutes before he bolted, sayin' something about being sick." He didn't seem too concerned but Beth just hummed a response and bit the inside of her cheek. She had just been with Daryl last night and he seemed just fine to her.
She thanked Max again as he shut the door to her car and then she pulled away, trying not to obsess over Daryl. To be honest, she was worried. But when she arrived at home to her sweet little boy, who threw himself at her waist, burying his face his her stomach with giggles vibrating throughout her, Beth put on a smile of her own and pushed the thoughts aside. It wasn't long before Daryl had shown up, just in time for dinner, and it was then that Beth's smiled became real instead of forced. She still had her questions, but those would come later. Instead they sat down to eat with Jax filling most of the conversation with mindless talk of dinosaurs and werewolves as Beth pushed the food around on her plate and Daryl feigned interest, both of them too preoccupied with their own troubles.
Later that night, after Jax had been read to sleep tucked tight into his own bed, Beth and Daryl sat on the couch, his arm stretch out across the back cushion, and Beth sat facing him with her knees tucked underneath her and her hands folded together in her lap. "Where were you today?" She was proud of herself when it came out pretty casual.
Daryl brought his thumb up to his mouth to chew on the skin and Beth had to stop herself from pulling it away. "Just needed some air for a while." She raised an eyebrow at him, not wanting to accept the answer. "It's fine now, nothin' to worry 'bout." He twitched his fingers and brushed them over her shoulder.
"Mhm." He could see by the look on her face that she was still unconvinced. "You sure you're okay? Just ain't like you."
It made him smile just a little bit, hearing her say something wasn't like him, and she could say that, because she did know him. "I just freaked out." Beth knew immediately what he was talking about, and she knew this had been coming, but it didn't end how she thought it would have, because here he was sitting on her couch and she would have figured that Daryl'd be long gone by now. "But like I said, it's fine now."
She nodded, finally seeming convinced of his response. "Okay, good." Was all she said before she kissed him, soft and sweet. In a perfect world, or a fairy tale, this is where their story would have ended, leaving the audience to come up with their own happy ending and epilogue, but this was real life and nothing was that simple. Soon their gentle kisses turned hot and wanton as they usually did, but instead of pulling back, both of them seemed to be content testing the boundaries of how far things could actually go and neither one of them was backing down.
Daryl was quite annoyed moments later and a bit uncomfortable when Beth pulled away from him, now on his lap, grinding against his ever growing erection, with her shirt and bra pushed down exposing her perky breasts that he had just been worshiping with his mouth. He was a little less annoyed when she revealed that she had pulled away to sit down between his knees, elbows on his thighs, hands brushing across the hair on his belly leading down below the waistband of his jeans. His cock twitched when she unzipped his pants and palmed him through his boxers, and for a moment he wondered if this was even happening, but even if it was a dream, he didn't want to wake up any time soon.
She leaned forward over him and he felt her hot breath on the skin just above his pubic bone, and then her tongue poked out, trailing along the tanned flesh. She laid her head down on his hip, enjoying the feeling of the rough dirty denim against the sensitive buds on her chest. He could tell this was different with him, the way she moved, the way she reacted, the way she teased, and Daryl knew that it was her way of showing that she wanted him, and not anyone else. See, Daryl knew that, but still when she finally undid the button on his pants and pulled his warm pulsing dick out, and wrapped those soft pink lips around it, his mind went dark. The images from earlier had returned and now instead of seeing the sweet pretty woman before him, showing him love with her mouth, he saw the other version, the one with her on the floor sucking someone other guy's dick for money - barely legal prostitution. "Fuck." He put his hands on her shoulders and shoved back, Beth having to catch herself with her palms on the floor behind her.
"Daryl? What's wrong?" But she knew.
"I can't do this, Beth." He didn't have to explain and she didn't try to run after him. Instead she sat, still on her knees, the carpet rubbing the taut skin raw, pulling her bra and shirt back into place, and allowed a few tears to fall. This was exactly how Beth pictured this ending, and the worst part was that she couldn't even feel anger at him for leaving her their like that, because she understood. Good things like Daryl Dixon weren't meant for her life.
Obviously I can't REALLY end it here, and hopefully you all saw this drama coming from a mile away. Don't fret dear friends, they will get their happy ending. Let me know what you thought!