This was a prompt from Jaylee8301 on Tumblr. (Check out her amazing Daryl/OC fanfictions here on FF. net!)
Daryl is the one to injure his ankle and Beth takes care of him.
Daryl wasn't going to lie to himself, seeing Beth holding his crossbow was both terrifying him and slightly turning him on. He trailed closely behind her, showing her the basics of tracking. He didn't let on but he was pretty impressed by how quickly she picked up on things. She had already identified, with a little prodding, that it was a walker they were apparently after.
She was getting pretty confident herself. Pretty soon I won't need you at all. Daryl didn't like the clenching in his stomach he felt when she spoke that statement, even if he knew she was joking. He urged her to continue and he followed behind, staring at the back of her head, his eyes focused on her blonde hair and that stupidly adorable braid in her ponytail. If they had been in elementary school and not the apocalypse, then Daryl was almost positive he would have tugged on it and ran away.
They quickly came up on a clearing, both eyeing the walker shuffling slowly through the grass in front of them. Daryl decided he'd take a step back on this one, give Beth the opportunity to really try out the powerful bow. "Go on." He gestured with his hand and a nod of his head. Beth hesitated for a moment before quietly creeping forward, keeping the weapon aimed towards the dead.
Daryl stepped off to the left of her, letting her take the lead. She walked closer towards the walker and when she was about 10 feet away, she stopped and was about to take a shot when Daryl, who was still coming up behind her, yelled out in pain and she heard him collapse on the ground. The noise attracted the attention of the walker and it turned around and started shuffling back towards them. Beth panicked for a moment, and she lowered the crossbow, unsure of what to do. She glanced back at Daryl and saw him on the ground, his ankle stuck in some sort of animal trap. She turned back towards the walker that was slowly getting closer to her and she realized she had to do something. She raised the crossbow again, trying her best to aim it right, and sent a bolt flying. It hit the walker through the neck and it stumbled for a moment, but of course it wouldn't stop. She dropped the bow to the ground and pulled out her knife. She charged towards the walker and stabbed the blade into his skull. The force of the body dropping to the ground was enough to pull Beth's knife free.
She turned to Daryl, who was yanking the trap off of his ankle and she quickly made her way to him. "Oh god, are you okay?" Kneeling down onto the ground beside him, she let her hands hover above his injury.
"'M fine." His teeth were clenched as he spoke, leading Beth to believe he was bluffing.
"It's just bruised, it'll be fine. Let's get goin'." She stepped back as he began making his way to his feet. He slowly tried to place weight on his foot and his eyes squinting was enough to tell Beth he was in quite a bit of pain. She knew how proud he was though, so she wasn't going to push it, for now. Instead, she went back over to pick up the crossbow while he tried to protect his manhood.
At a much slower pace, they continued on their path. Daryl taking a peak at the walker that lay on the floor. He saw the bolt sticking up out of the body and took note of how it wasn't so bad for a first shot. "Hey, grab that bolt, would ya?"
Beth nodded and went to the body. She unsuccessfully tried to yank it free. After pulling a couple times, she put her foot on the body to use as leverage. With one final yank, the bolt was freed and she fell backwards onto her backside. Daryl laughed, and it was the first time Beth had actually heard him really laugh before. She was glad he could still find humor in the world, but she didn't want it to be at her expense. "Shut up."
Every step just seemed to worsen the pain, making Daryl wish they had a car of some sort. At least then he'd get a break. If it had been Beth who had been hurt then he could have at least carried her. The tiny girl wouldn't be much help in giving him a piggy back ride.
After a couple hours, Daryl's ankle was throbbing in pain and he was trying to control his breathing so Beth wouldn't catch on. It seemed he was forgetting how observant she could be. "Still just a bruise?"
Daryl glared at her out of the corner of his eye. "Yep."
"Mhm, okay." She could be so smug sometimes.
Soon, they came up over a small hill and saw a cemetery. Looking beyond the gravestones and statues, there was a house that looked to be in okay position. Both agreed they should check it out, hoping it could be a place to set up camp before it got too dark outside.
Daryl said something about taking care of the people inside and Beth rolled her eyes, knowing he probably couldn't do much fighting at the moment if he was struggling to walk. Instead of damaging his pride, Beth just told him that there were still good people. Not everyone had to be taken care of. His response was less than positive, with him telling her that the good ones don't survive.
There was a moment as they passed through the graveyard. They stopped in front of a stone of a man who had lived and died long ago, but what caught their attention was the word 'father'. They stood, staring at the words, grieving silently. Before he had realized what he had done, Daryl intertwined his fingers with Beth's. She squeezed his hand back, acknowledging that they were now grieving together.
After their nontraditional ceremony, Daryl and Beth slowly made their way up to the small home. "I'll check out the inside, make sure it's clear."
Beth was unamused, she simply crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him with a blank expression. "Really?"
"What?" Daryl seemed genuinely confused.
"You can barely walk but you're gonna go clear the two story house?" Daryl just nodded, obviously not getting the point. "Come on! I can do it."
He immediately shook his head. "Nope, no way."
Beth sighed, cocking her hip out a little bit, now getting irritated. "I'm perfectly capable and you know it! You can barely walk anyways!"
Daryl's eyes widened, surprised by Beth's sudden outburst of attitude. They continued their staring contest for a few moments before Daryl finally decided he'd let her take a shot at it. "Alright."
Beth dropped her hands from her chest. "What?"
Daryl gestured to the house with his hand. "Have at it."
Beth smiled instantly and took off into the house. Daryl stood just inside the doorway, keeping a close eye on things. "You yell if you're in trouble!"
She shouted back to him, already in the next room over. "Yeah, yeah!"
Daryl ended up staying behind while Beth successfully cleared the entire house, finding no one inside. They made their way into the funeral home and ended up finding some supplies they could use to wrap Daryl's ankle.
Sitting on one of the chairs in the viewing room, Beth was trying to convince Daryl to let her wrap his ankle. "Just let me do it!"
"I can do it myself!" He reached out to try and swipe the bandage from her hand, but she moved it at the last second, making him miss. Beth shot him a glare and he dropped his hand to his side. He wasn't quite sure how much he liked this new bossy version of the normally polite girl. "Whatever, just get it done."
Once again, that silly little proud smile appeared on her face. She unlaced his boot before gently removing it, with the sock following behind. When her fingers touched his bare skin, he jumped a little. Even though they had been holding hands in the graveyard, there was something much more intimate about this contact.
He stared down at her as she started the bandage on his foot, wrapping it upwards over the bruised and swollen skin. Even covered in sweat and walker guts, Daryl had to admit to himself that she was beautiful. He could see her brow furrowed tightly in concentration, her teeth biting the side of her lips and he had the sudden urge to kiss her. His lack of confidence is what stopped him. "I wish we had some ice for this or somethin' but the pressure will just have to do for now." In the time he had been staring, she had finished the wrapping and was now looking up at him. Her bright blue eyes staring into his own. She had a questioning look on her face, probably wondering what the hell he was daydreaming about but she wasn't stupid enough to ask and he wasn't brave enough to tell her what he was thinking.
"Thanks." He smiled. It was barely there, but Beth saw it and it put a smile on her face as well.
She stood up, brushing off her thighs and cleared her throat. "Let's see if there's any food around here. I'm starving!" And then she was gone, into the kitchen searching through the cabinets, leaving Daryl alone with his thoughts that consisted entirely of her and how soft her fingers felt on his calloused skin.
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