Maggie wouldn't stop asking about school the whole next day. There were only two classes. It wasn't like she had a roommate to dish on or crappy cafeteria food to complain about, so she told Maggie about her professors, trying to find the classrooms, and meeting Zach. She didn't tell her about Daryl's awkward way of asking her out, even though that was the only thing that had happened all week to make her smile.
"Oh and you two can play shows together!" The excitement radiating off her sister about a guy she didn't even like was making her uneasy.
Beth was unsure how long Maggie had been going on but that one sentence caught her attention.
"I like playing with Daryl."
"Okay, but if you're dating Zach…"
"I'm not dating him! I just met him and anyway, I don't even really like him." Beth sighed, "Plus Daryl is a way better musician."
"You do know Daryl's almost ten years older than you. He's got a lot of other stuff going on." Maggie tried to make her voice sound concerned, "I don't want you to miss out on anything."
Over the years Beth had gotten really good at tuning out things she didn't want to hear so she just turned Maggie's voice off in her head. Things never made sense to Maggie the same way they did to Beth.
Rick brought his son over for dinner on Wednesday. They grilled out in the small backyard and Beth could feel something missing. When Daryl showed up she tried to pull back on the smile that spread across her face. He followed her into Maggie's kitchen for a plate. There was nothing to do but shake her head when he started eating the potato salad before she could hand him fork.
"This wasn't what I had in mind when you said we should have dinner."
He felt his face heat up and took the fork she was holding. It wasn't what he had pictured their next meeting being either, but he didn't want to pass up any opportunity to be around her, even if it meant being around other people too. "I thought…"
"I'm teasing, Daryl. I'm glad you came." She wanted to say she had missed him.
He didn't want to say how hard it had been to stay away from her, even if it was just for a few days.
They went back outside and he complained that Glenn was cooking with propane and not charcoal, but ate two burgers anyway. Beth made a point to spend time with Rick and Carl and not hang all over Daryl the whole time. She could feel his eyes tracking her while she kicked a soccer ball around in the grass. She was trying so hard not to let Maggie catch her looking at him that she didn't realize Maggie was watching Daryl. She watched the way his eyes followed her little sister's movements. She watched the beginning of a smile tug on his mouth when Beth laughed. Maggie had never seen Daryl like this before, she had always pictured him as a loner on the outskirts of their small group. She started to realize that maybe she was wrong about him. She also realized she had never seen Beth like this before.
Her sister had always had a bit of a disconnect with the world around her, she always seemed content to be in her own little world but all of a sudden it seemed like someone had been able to to reach through to her and plant her feet on the ground. It was hard to say the exact things that made Maggie think that. Maybe it was in the way Beth took care of her place, maybe it was that she didn't seem to need reminders to do the daily things that needed to be done, maybe it was because she didn't have that far off look in her eyes as often as she used to. Maggie wasn't sure, but she thought she knew who to pin it on. So when Daryl mentioned to Beth about some songs he wanted her to hear and she led him upstairs, Maggie didn't say a word.
They stood in the living room. There were fewer boxes, it was starting to look like she really lived there. Daryl reminded himself not to look into the open bedroom, he watched her open her laptop and pull up a playlist.
"I meant what I said." He caught the curious look she gave him and cursed himself for having half conversations in his head. "About going out, sometime. If you want."
Beth smiled at him, she could see his nerves flaring up. She watched him take a guitar pick from his pocket and turn it over and over between his fingers. "I do. I like this too, though." The way he pulls his bottom lip into his mouth makes her want to pull it into hers. "What about Maggie and Glenn?"
"Don't wanna go out with them."
"You know what I mean."
He cleared his throat, "Yeah. You think it matters?"
Beth looked up him. She pushed aside his gruff exterior, how defensive he could be, the way he stood with his arms crossed on his chest, his worn clothes and tired eyes. She saw how he walked her home that first night, not leaving until he knew she was safe. She saw how unsure he could be of himself, the way he hardly ever made direct eye contact, or any other contact. She saw how he went out of his way to make her happy, helping her with the apartment, playing that show. She saw how he made her notice all these things, things she had never seen in anyone else.
"No, not to me."