A/N: Okay, I don't know if I made it clear for you guys… When Beth said "My heart has only ever belonged to one man" she meant him (Daryl). PLEASE don't be angry at Beth… Yet! Haha!

Anyways, I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far!

A Case of the Blues: Chapter 6

Beth had arrived at work early the next morning to help take her mind off things. She had barely slept the night before, and every time she tried to replace the thoughts of Daryl with her fiancé Jimmy, her thoughts betrayed her and they strayed back to Daryl without her noticing.

She worked as a librarian in the local university. She always had a love for book, and only now did she understand why her heart had always longed for a book to read.

"Yer the cutest geek I ever saw."

The words found their way into her mind as she remembered Daryl saying them. A small smile began to play at her lips as she looked at all the books surrounding her.

A pair of arms began to slide around her waist as a man's head burrowed into the crook of her neck. She jumped slightly at the sudden touch, but she relaxed as she realized who it was.

"Jimmy, what're you doing here?" She asked him, forcing a smile onto her lips.
"I just thought I could treat you to lunch today. All these ridiculous books must be suffocating," he whispered, his voice tickling her ear.
"I'd happily live in a house made of books, Jimmy. You know they're my passion," she half-heartedly complained, sticking her bottom lip out. "But lunch sounds good."

He released his grip from her. "Meet you at twelve, geek." He walked off before she could answer.

"Well at least Daryl thinks I'm a cute geek," she mumbled under her breath. "Sounds good!" She said loud enough for him to hear.

She continued to work throughout the morning in a gentle rhythm until a strange, but familiar looking man walked in. He looked as though he was looking for somebody.

"Can I help you?" Beth asked, a little nervous. The man looked over at her and smiled and began to walk over.

"Yes, I believe you can, lil miss. I wan'ta talk to you in private, is that okay, Beth?"

He knew her name? She felt like she had seen this man before but she just couldn't put a finger on it. She nodded reluctantly and gestured for him to follow her. She walked into the back room and shut the door behind them. Silence filled the room.

"Ma name is Merle." She remained silent, and he continued, "Merle Dixon?"

Beth gasped at that, and covered her mouth with her hand. "You're Daryl's brother? You were the man at the diner with him that night!" She felt the nerves begin to drain from her body.
Merle laughed. "Yep, that was me, lil Bo Peep. Ya sing good," he smiled. She smiled in return but slowly felt her nerves creeping back up.

"Is everything okay? Why are you here?" She asked, picking at her nail.

"Why'd ya leave my baby brother all those years ago?"

She sighed. "I had no choice, Merle. My parents had me watched 24/7. There was no way I could've seen him. I grew up and I forgot about him… Or at least I thought I had."

"Look girl, I can understand 'ya growin' up an' movin' on, gettin' engaged an' all that shit. But ya can't truly look me in th' eye an' tell me that you ain' in love with my baby brother?" He smiled slightly. She smiled in return, but couldn't meet his eyes. She fiddled with her engagement ring – something that she seemed to be doing quite a lot of lately.

"It just needs time, Merle. Time will help figure things out."
"Time will make it worse! He's never goin' to get over you. And no matter how much ya hope that ya will... you'll never get over him. You're goin'ta wake up one day and realize what you've done, and you're going to regret the time you wasted apart from him for the rest of your life. Mark my words, lil Bo Peep."

Beth looked up at him then. His sudden outburst grabbed her attention, and now her eyes couldn't leave his. She tried to bargain with her choices. "I can continue to exist, and he can continue to exist, but we don't exist together. We can't exist together, Merle." She paused. "I'm engaged."

"And he's heartbroken. Try an' tell yerself what means th' most to ya. Daryl, or that lil' pansy-ass ring on 'ya finger." He grabbed the door handle and left the room.

She did not know what she wanted, knew that it was dangerous and that she should rest content with what she had, but she knew an emptiness deep inside her, which began to ache. All she knew now was that her lunch with Jimmy was going to be their longest lunch yet.

** THREE HOURS LATER **

Twelve o'clock was ten minutes away and Beth's heart was pounding out of her chest. She had no idea how she was going to break this news to Jimmy. "Oh, by the way, Mr Fiancé, there's a man that I've known for twenty years but I haven't really known him but I saw him the other day and I think you and I should break up". Yep. This was going to be a disaster.

She finished up and headed outside to find Jimmy waiting by his car. She began to nervously twist the ring on her finger as she approached him. She faked a smile.

"Hey, Jimmy."
"Hey sweet cheeks." She cringed.

They drove to the café in relative silence, Jimmy occasionally making small talk. Beth couldn't bring herself to speak, frightened that she'd mess everything up. All she could think about was how she wished it was Daryl driving her to the café, and not Jimmy.

They arrived at the café after a ten minute drive. He guided her inside with an arm around her waist, making her feel slightly suffocated – something she hadn't felt before. Was it possible to suddenly fall out of love with someone? Or was she never in love with him in the first place?

They headed to a table and sat down after ordering two coffees and sandwiches.

"So, how was work?" Jimmy asked, taking a sip of his drink. He winced at the obvious heat, but acted as though he wasn't hurt. Beth fought back a laugh, knowing she needed to be serious. She looked up at him and spoke.

"Jimmy, we need to talk," she spoke quietly, trying to keep her voice from wavering. He looked back at her now with nothing but love and fear, and she instantly felt guilty. She was about to break this man's heart. But, as she looked at him now, waiting on her next word, she couldn't do it.

Beth knew that she had made a huge mistake.

"Baby," she began, inwardly cringing at her word-choice, "do you think that we could, I dunno, postpone the wedding?" He looked at her now, a look in his eyes that she couldn't read.

"Why?" He asked, still giving her a look that she had never seen before.
"I just… I just think it would be nice to wait a little longer. Make sure the plans are perfect, you know?"

He shook his head. "We've been planning the wedding for two years, Beth. How much longer do you need?"
"An extra month," she blurted out. "Please Jimmy, just one more month, and then we can get married."

He nodded slowly and continued to drink his coffee. The sandwiches arrived and they ate in silence. The next month was going to be the craziest month of Beth's life.

A/N: Okay.. NOW you can be sorta angry at Beth ;) Sorry sorry sorry! Please don't kill me. THIIIIINGS CAN ONLY GET BETTEEEERRRRRR ;)