Disclaimer: I do not own 'The Walking Dead'.
Chapter 4: No Way Back
Daryl is back on track, and now it's time for the daily shores. He and Beth grab a bag, a couple of supplies and go out to look for water and some food.
It gets colder and colder as time goes by. Luckily, they were able to find a good wellspring within just a mile from the cabin, and filled all of their bottles. Daryl got three squirrels, and Beth got another one, with a little help from him.
"We should get back before sun's gone." Daryl says, looking at the sky.
"Okay."
On the way back, they gathered enough wood to make a bonfire.
They go inside. Daryl sets the squirrels on the kitchen stand again.
"Can you light the fire?"
"Sure!" Beth takes the wood and gets the fire going.
"Done." She comes back to tell him.
"Clean these squirrels like I taught ya, I need to do somethin'."
"Umm, okay…?" Beth takes on the squirrels.
Daryl takes this metal pot he found within that pile of trash and cleans it with a rag. He then takes one bottle of water, the pot and goes to the bonfire.
By the time Beth is finished cleaning the second squirrel, Daryl comes back with this steaming hot water.
"Here." He puts it on the stand in front of Beth.
She looks at the pot, then at him. He doesn't say anything. So she asks.
"We're creating new recipes today?"
"Your shower."
Beth smiles unconsciously. She looks at him, as it if were the best gift she'd received in a lifetime.
"Go before's too cold."
She just nods and runs to the bathroom. It's got just enough room for one person to fit in, and has just one tiny window close to the ceiling with a very small opening. She takes off her clothes and leaves them on top of the toilet. She pours the hot water over her naked body, making every drop count. She feels safe, and warm, and at home.
After bathing, she opens the door a little bit and calls Daryl, who was now cleaning his knives and arrows.
"Can you… bring me a blanket? I forgot."
Daryl takes one off the pile and gets it to her, with his head turned in the opposite direction.
"Thanks." She rolls herself up with the blanket and gets out of the bathroom.
"Umm, can you turn around?"
He faces the kitchen as she puts on the last change of clothes she had, not clean, just a little less dirty. A yellow blouse and a worn out jeans.
"Okay, I'm done."
He goes back to the kitchen to get the squirrels.
"Thank you." Beth says smiling, while they eat. Daryl doesn't answer.
"You should go too, we still have a few minutes before the sun's gone."
"I'm fine." He says before taking a bite.
"I heat up the water for you." Before he can say anything, she runs to the bathroom to get the pot and fill it with water from another bottle.
She returns to the fire, and holds the pot over it.
"I don't need that."
"You do." She says in a serious tone.
A couple of minutes later and the water was boiling.
"Here, your turn."
He takes the pot without saying anything and goes inside. Beth stays by the fire, warming up.
About ten minutes later Daryl returns, looking fresh and clean.
"Wow, who are you?" She says.
"Hm."
"You smell that?"
"No."
"Exactly. Nothing. We don't smell anymore."
Daryl laughs timidly.
"Daryl. I mean it. Thank you."
"Let's go inside."
When they're just about to go, Daryl stops and looks at the sky.
"You hear that?"
"Okay, now I don't get the joke."
"It ain't no joke. Look." He points at a flock of birds flying away fast on top of the trees.
"Somethin startled 'em... C'mon."
The night has finally come. They roll themselves up in blankets to escape the cold, and sit each against a wall, facing each other. The cabin would be almost completely dark, if it wasn't for the moonlight.
Beth starts to sing, to repel the boredom. At first, kinda shy and reluctant.
"Morning, bathtub, my skin soft and hot…"
Daryl looks at her, he's not so much of an audience, but the way the world is now, someone sings, you let them sing. Maybe it really wards off the bad spirits.
Then she lets it all out.
"I was sure you were right, but you're not…"
He realizes her voice is actually very beautiful, and the silence of the night makes her resonate inside the cabin. And it all sounds angelic.
"I hide from phone calls, under the warm water, malice desist, no it woefully recurs… And it plays like daytime TV shows, I confuse you…"
"I tell you not to love me, but I still…"
She suddenly stops and breathes deeply.
"Why d'ya stop?" Daryl asks.
She looks at him, but takes a few seconds to answer. She felt this song was appropriate to the situation. Maybe too well. She knows what comes next in the lyrics, but doesn't want to say it. This weird feeling takes over her.
"I'm sorry… I… I forgot the lyrics."
"Hm. I like it."
She smiles. They go silent for a couple of minutes.
"Hey, umm…" She smiles timidly. "What you did for me today, I know I can't stop talking about it, but… Thanks again."
"I told ya, it was nothin'."
"Yea… You know it wasn't." She stands up and goes closer to him. Then she sits against the wall on his left.
"I was watching you sleep last night."
"You creep." He says while squinting his eyes at her. She doesn't care about the insult and smiles.
"You looked so peaceful, you know? Even though you said, you were having this bad dream. That's why I fell asleep. Your presence… It's so… comforting."
She starts moving her hand, like if she was just about to do something, but then gives up. Daryl notices it. He doesn't know exactly what she meant with all of that, but in a way, he also felt comforted by her, and her singing. He isn't a man of many words, he doesn't know how to say anything like the way she does, so he finds a way to express that in gestures.
He takes her hand.
Beth is stunned. Her heart immediately starts pounding, her cheeks blush and this warmth grows inside of her from head to toes.
'Does he… Does he feel the same?' She thinks.
She turns her head away from him, so that he doesn't see her blushing.
'What do you mean, Beth? What is it that you feel?!'
She is so embarrassed she doesn't even look at him. But she holds his hand tight. It's rough, and strong. She likes the touch of it.
Daryl also feels the difference of her skin. Smooth and soft, untouched. He thinks for a second how different their lives were. The hell he used to live in, while she was in paradise. But how alike they are now.
Suddenly, they hear a clicking noise outside. Daryl lets go of her hand to get his crossbow.
"Stay here." He tells her.
'Always.' She thinks.
He opens the door and goes out to check. Apparently no walker around. He steps on the grass smoothly, as quiet as possible. He prepares the crossbow.
Beth closes her hand, and takes a big breath. 'What have you gotten yourself into Beth? He doesn't see you that way...'
The noise continues. Daryl carefully checks the surroundings of the cabin. Nothing. But he still feels something isn't right.
He goes around it again, a little further into the woods this time. The clicking seems to have stopped, and it's all quiet again. He turns around to go back.
That's when he hears a scream.
It's Beth.
"Goddammit!" He says to himself, now running towards the cabin.
He was only about three hundred feet away, but it seemed like the biggest distance he'd ever had to run.
'I'm comin'. It's okay. I'm comin' for ya. Hang in there.' It's the only thing he could think of in that moment.
He gets close to the cabin, sees the door wide open and runs inside.
"Beth!" He runs in yelling.
But there was a man waiting for him by the door, that grabs him right after he enters.
He holds a knife to Daryl's neck.
"Drop your weapon." The man says.
Daryl sees Beth being held by another man, who points a gun to her head. Both seem to be on their mid-30's or 40's. The one with Beth is fat and wears a green cap.
"Drop it, or he'll shoot."
Daryl resists and tries to defend himself, but the man pushes his knife even closer to his neck, making a slight cut.
"Daryl!" She yells. But the man holding her hits her in the head with the handle of the gun.
"Shut your fuckin' mouth, bitch!"
It makes Daryl even more pissed, and Beth starts crying.
"Wanna get her killed?! It's the same thang to us, alive OR dead." Both of them share a laugh. "Drop the fuckin' weapon!"
Daryl's nerves are about to explode. He throws the crossbow on the floor.
"There ya go… there ya go… Good boy."
Beth is looking at him, sobbing.
Trying to keep calm, he looks deep into her gloomy eyes, as a way to tell her it's going to be okay.
"Now. Ya gonna stay right here with me, while my brother and your... 'friend' have some fun."
The more Daryl moves, more he craves the knife into his neck.
"One sudden move, you and your girl are dead. Ya hear me?"
Daryl doesn't say a word.
"Imma get that as a yes. Go on, Mikey." He says to his brother, the one holding Beth.
"C'mon 'ere sweetie. Ya havin' a good time with Mikey tonight." He says while holding Beth and tying a piece of cloth around her mouth. She fights, but Mikey is much stronger than her.
"Leave 'er alone!" Daryl yells desperately. But his struggle is useless.
Mikey throws Beth to the ground, sits on top of her and ties her hands with another piece of cloth. Then he points the gun to her head again.
"One move, one fuckin' word, and she's dead. Got it?" Mikey says looking at Daryl.
Daryl starts to lose his mind. The scene, the situation messes with his head.
Beth is on the floor. Mikey is now holding a gun to her head, and opening his pants with the other.
Daryl is breathing heavily, and his eyes are wide open. He feels numb. Unable to save her. Unable to look. Unable to look away.
Beth screams nonstop through the cloth, her face is red and her eyes are swollen. She struggles, but it is useless against all that weight.
Daryl has to think fast. He has to stop this before something happens.
'I can't let it happen to her. I can't. Think, dammit, think!'
He has to act fast, but carefully. One wrong move, his throat is slit and Beth gets shot.
'I have to risk it, ain't no other way.'
The adrenaline takes over his entire body. His vision is blurry. He looks at his crossbow. Triggered. He has a plan.
"Don't pretend ya don't enjoy it, I know you do." Mikey tells Beth, while lifting up her shirt and laughing maliciously. Daryl is watching closely.
In the one second he tilts his gun to the wall, Daryl hits the back of his head on the man holding him, with all the anger he had, making him fall behind. He then quickly grabs his crossbow off the floor, shoots Mikey in the head, turns around, jumps over the other man who was already aiming to stab him, and sticks an arrow into his right eye.
It all happened within seconds. Daryl is still on top of him, holding the arrow, looking at his face. He hadn't seen his face yet. He's glad to ruin it.
He stays there for a few a seconds more. His head is spinning, his blood cells are running a marathon inside his veins. He takes a big breath, and it all becomes real again. He listens to Beth's groaning.
Daryl gets up and goes straight to Beth. Mikey's body is fallen over her. He moves it to the side and starts untying the cloth of her mouth. She doesn't say anything. Then her hands. After the last knot, she immediately jumps on him, holding him tight. She is still crying and shaking.
He holds her back.
"I gotcha. It's okay. You're fine… You're fine."
She is sobbing over his shoulder.
"I wouldn't let anyone… You're safe. We're safe now."
"D… D… Don't… Don't… let me…Don't let go."
"I won't Beth I won't. I'm here."
He holds her tight for almost an hour, until she stops crying. They are both sweaty, Beth got blood on her hair. Daryl's neck bled onto his shirt. They look at each other, but neither know what to say. They're just glad to be okay.
Beth looks around. She stares at Mikey's corpse with disgust, and quickly looks away.
"We should… clean this mess." She says quietly.
Daryl checks the gun on the floor. No ammo.
'I should've known. Bastards.'
They take out the corpses, but leave them nearby.
"It's too dark. We take 'em away tomorrow mornin'." Daryl says. Beth nods.
They go back inside, where it's all still bloody, including themselves.
"So much for that shower." Beth says, crestfallen.
"We still got that one big bottle. Let's clean up."
Daryl rips the tip of his shirt and pours water into it. He cleans Beth's face, and then her hair.
She can feel his rough hands against her skin again. It feels good, and she's not afraid to show it. Almost unconditionally, she closes her eyes each time he touches her hair.
"Now I need to see your neck, patch it up."
"It ain't that bad."
"I need to see it anyway."
She sees two cuts, they really aren't deep, but can cause an infection. She grabs the alcohol and tears a bit of her own blouse. cleans the wound and covers it with the rag. It stings, but Daryl doesn't fuss about it.
They move to a spot by the kitchen, that has no blood on the floor, and sit there, against the stand. Beth folds one of the blankets to make a pillow, and lies on the floor.
"Daryl."
"What?"
"Come… stay with me. Please."
He isn't reluctant at all. He knows how she feels right now. After what she went through. What they went through. She needs to feel safe.
He lies beside her, and holds her.
She tries not to think about earlier, but that won't happen very soon. She starts crying again.
"It's okay. I'm here."
"I know… I… Thank you."
"It's okay."
She turns to him. They now face each other. She touches his cheek gently. Their hearts are pounding so strong, they're almost palpable.
'I tell you not to love me, but I still kiss you...' She sings. As she sings, the crying stops.
"Wha…"
Before he can finish the sentence, she kisses his lips. Lightly, soft. Hers are kinda shaking with nervousness. It's a brief, gentle kiss. Then she pulls away.
Their eyes meet. They don't say a word.
She nestles into his arms, closes her eyes, and sleeps.
Daryl has to stay awake on guard, but he sees how calm she is, even after all that's happened. And he understands. He feels the same.
He kisses her forehead, and joins her.