AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for the favs, follows and comments. Here's the second chapter.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Walking Dead or its characters
Apologies in advance for any spelling and grammatical errors. Thoughts in Italics
Touched by an Angel
Chapter 2
It was a cold morning when Beth lays in front of the fireplace circling around job vacancies. She had been looking for a placement in the city to start the process of becoming a Social Worker but the cut throat environment out there she experienced wasn't for her. She decided to look for something closer to home but there wasn't much of anything of that scale, so she had started to look in the local paper for something temporary until the right position came along. Something's bound to come along, her inner self kept telling her.
"Patience is a virtue." She agrees back to her thoughts, keeping up her morale when the task of searching for something she could do and enjoy doing it was becoming challenging.
She had set herself a goal to find at least a couple of jobs to apply to before the morning ended so had started as soon as the paper was delivered up at the long gravelled drive at the entrance to the farm in her PJ's, boots and wild hair at 6am. She hoped to get an interview before the end of the week, the sooner the better. She loved helping around the farm but she just needed something different.
"Warehouse Operative, Plumber," She reads aloud "Tree Surgeon, Dental Nurse Receptionist!" She says a little high pitched wrinkling her nose.
She was afraid of the dentist which reminded her, she's got an appointment coming up but has been avoiding it like the plague. "I'm not that desperate, not yet anyway." she shudders at the thought clenching her mouth tightly together as she runs her pen across onto the next page.
"Barista, Sales and Customer Service Assistant…Undertaker!?" Scrutinizing the job description and seeing the starting salary for a junior, she was quite surprised. She deliberates for a second knowing beggars can't be choosers and it was different but in the end, shakes her head. The memory of when she was a wee little child comes rushing to the forefront of her mind.
She was six and had peeped into the open casket to say goodbye and take a look at Old Mr Dale who always carried humbugs in his smart jacket pocket and shared them with her and the other children at Sunday Service. She got spooked by the Undertaker asking her what she was doing at the end of the funeral service, making her jump and in her haste of trying to get down and before she knew what was happening, the lid of the casket swung shut taking her down with it. When she was face to face with Old Mr Dale whose one eye popped opened and closed again, aroused the loudest and sharpest shrilling scream from her tiny little lungs thinking he had risen from the dead. Watching those scary movies with Shawn and Maggie when their parents went out at dinner had been a huge mistake. A thought suddenly struck her which made her shiver like somebody walked over her grave. Her body jerks as she shakes away the feeling and moves along.
"Waitress, Fishmonger, Retail Assistant - oh!" said Beth, jumping up onto her knees and staring at the advertisement held up in front of her.
Millie & Tillie's Boutique were hiring. It was the cutest boutique in the area, split on three levels for women, children and one floor dedicated to shoes, handbags, jewellery and even home-wear. She's purchased a number of garments and accessories from there over the years which are her most favourites amongst her treasured articles of clothing in her wardrobe and costume jewellery in her vanity box. She'd always thought she'd be a helpful and great sales assistant.
"You could sell ice to an Eskimo if you put your mind to it!" That's what the man had said laughingly once they shook hands.
She stepped in accidently one time and struck a deal which gave The Greenes a secured account for three years. Their new customer was from the newest chain of restaurants that had opened up all around Georgia and his company wanted to purchase home reared cattle and organically grown produce from one of the local farms in this known area. There had been a mix up with dates and times, her daddy and Otis were in Athens on other business and she could see the man wasn't going to come back another day, he looked important and didn't have any more time to waste. He asked how far The Blake's farm was from there and she knew the reason why. It was the next farm over, a little over a mile away. She sprang into action, talking like she knew what she was talking about, just remembered the jibber-jabber her daddy and Otis talked when negotiating with other businessmen. She said anything she could remember so her family got the account and not Philip Blake who would rub it into her daddy's face like he had done once before. It could have been a stroke of luck or her disarming smile and sweet talking that had won the businessman over and that was three years ago and they'd renewed the contract for another six consecutive years just recently. And she was a people's person.
Her daddy walks into the lounge to see her concentrating hard, in deep thought until she's smiling delightedly. Daddy hobbles over with his walking stick to look over Beth's shoulder to see what had returned that smile to his daughter's face which has been missing the past few weeks. His face drops unpleased.
All that education and she wants to stack rails and serve snotty size zero women with sticks up their asses? Dear Lord, HELP!
"Honey, you sure you don't want to join daddy running the farm or at the clinic?" Herschel asks stepping back, scooting Pugsy the Pug to move before he got squashed under his ass as he takes his seat in his armchair. He lets out a long groan propping his leg up on the stool. Mornings were always the hardest. Diabetes was catching up to him and his leg, the doctors had said may need amputating up to his knee. Once that happened, he wasn't going to be able to do all the jobs he's done all his life and it worries him.
More than anything, Herschel Greene wanted his clinic to be a family run clinic. They were the best and always had returning loyal customers. Like the farm, the clinic was his pride and joy but it was the business he built up from scratch and he wanted to pass it down to his children to be jointly run by them once he retired. Shawn and Maggie the head veterinarians with Beth managing the business side, the staff and clientele if she didn't pursue the social work line of work because not only was she a people's person, she was an animal's person too - everyone loved Little Bethy Greene for her kind and warm presence no matter who they were. The farm was too big for Beth to run alone and he needed to think if it was sustainable in the future and just have Otis running the place and hiring more outside help.
Annette walks past carrying freshly washed linen, clips Herschel across the head to leave Beth alone. He pouts at his wife whilst rubbing his head and returns his attention back to his youngest smiling to herself, contemplating a career in retail and not the career she's spent so many years studying and accumulating a debt on. She had a farm or a veterinary she could have a career in - she could pick one or the other, he hoped it would be the clinic. He feels another migraine coming on thinking of the student loan and the interest that's accruing and the regret Beth'll have once she comes to her senses when she's chin deep in hangers, empty boxes and crate paper.
"Daddy, you know the answer to that!" Beth says over her shoulder with a sorry smile and gets to her feet, plonks herself onto the armrest of the chair and wraps her arms around his neck. She plants a little kiss on the balding patch on the top back of his head. She rubs her arm on his crown buffing it up and takes a look down.
"The future says - don't worry because your Bethy has a goal, whatever job she has now up until then is temporary so don't despair Worrying-Wart-Hercules!" She coos wobbling Herschel's round jelly belly and gets serious, "The future says you need to hit the gym and cut out those second helpings at supper and the midnight snacking's - you know what the doctor said!" She drops one last kiss on his head, springs up, grabs the phone and takes off up the stairs.
Herschel slumps into his cushioned seat taking a heavy sigh watching Beth climbing the stairs "It was worth one last try!" He grumbles disappointed leaning on his elbow, his palm pressed deeply into the side of his cheek.
"Hey Mr Grumpy, have a little faith in her!" Annette says standing behind her husband, combing down his hair with her fingers that Beth had just messed up. She chuckles when a stubborn strand of hair refuses to go down, she decides to lick her thumb and finger and comb it up to give him an Alfalfa look.
Herschel grumbles beneath his breath.
"The ability to wait for somethin' without gettin' angry or upset is a valuable quality in a person," Annette says smiling up at Beth's retreating back, she had a little set back with breaking up with Zach and lost her motivation for a little while but had found it again and more so the last couple of days.
"I have faith in her, I just worry more about her than Shawn and Maggie, she's my little girl." Herschel says knowing Beth was too innocent and trusting for her own good at times.
"She's my little girl too and when she's good and ready, she'll get to where she's gotta be and as her parents we have to just support her in the decisions she makes and trust she'll make the right ones." Annette says comforting Herschel, easing away his worries as she massages his shoulders. "Our little girls a woman now, she's got a good head on her shoulders and she'll know what she wants. If she's got the passion, she'll go after it and get it and we'll embrace whatever it may be – capisci?"
Herschel nods with a hum as they watch Beth walking around the landing and into her bedroom.
"I think this year will be Beth's year!" Annette says confidently kissing her husband's balding patch on the top back of his head.
"Hey Beth, momma's losin' it, she just told me the funniest thing!" Maggie scoffs walking into Beth's room with bed hair, crop top inside out with one leg of her skull printed sleep pants riding over her knee.
"What's that?" Beth asks putting the finishing touches to her messy topsy tail twist.
Maggie freezes momentarily seeing Beth in a cute white patched lace peplum top, black knee length skirt, a pair of black high heel slingbacks and her face beautifully made up.
"Holy shit, momma wasn't kidding!" Maggie runs her eyes from the top of Beth's head to her feet.
Maggie flops down onto the bed, burying her face into the palms of her hands "Tillie and Millie, you actually want to work for those two mean girls – really?" She mumbles.
"Oh c'mon Maggie, high school was so long ago, they're successful business women now, they don't have time for all that mean girl stuff and they have a great shop!" Beth defends "Besides, it's just short-term."
"Beth, it's their parents to start off with and I'd rather shovel horses shit and be knees deep in cow's dung!" Maggie practically growls standing up, folding her arms and shaking her head.
Glenn walks in half asleep with the same messy hair and a towel loosely wrapped around his waist.
"Whassup?" He asks yawningly and rubbing away at his eye.
"Beth wants to work for Tillie and Millie!" Maggie snaps without taking her eyes off of Beth whose rolling her eyes as she slips on the pair of diamond studs her parents gifted to her on her twenty-first birthday. It gave her all the glamour she needed.
Glenn stops rubbing his at eye and is wide awake, "Why would you wanna do that?" He asks in disbelief.
"Isn't it obvious Glenn!" Beth laughs, grabs hold of her wallet and shakes it, letting out all the invisible money, "That's why!" she snaps her purse shut and tosses it back into her handbag.
Glenn doesn't hang around. He turns around and practically runs out the room, his towel getting caught on the doorknob in the process. He shrieks when it slips off revealing his tight little buttocks clenching together when the cold air hits it. Maggie lets out a dirty little laugh as Beth lets out a whistle throwing him a wink when he looks up. Glenn covers his frontal area as he pulls the towel off the knob with rosy cheeks and stampedes down the landing back into Maggie's room.
"Glenn, put on some damn pants for goodness sakes!" Shawn complains as he enters the family bathroom wanting to upchuck his cornflakes. He's seen Glenn's little soldier more than he'd liked to have ever seen or admit to have seeing.
A couple of seconds letter, Glenn returns and presents Beth with a wad of notes rolled up, bound together by an elastic band.
"If you need money, we've got a little saved up for a rainy day and you need it more than we do right now! Take it and don't be in any hurry to pay it back!" Glenn insists grabbing Beth's hand, placing the money into it, closing it shut and pushing her hand back to her.
Beth's face softens staring at the money, she grabs her handbag and gives Glenn a hug before handing his mattress savings back.
"You guys need it for the house. You never know when you'll get a leaky roof or broken gutter, or a drafty window that needs replacing but more importantly, babies aren't cheap!" She reminds them.
When Beth pulls away, she kisses Glenn on the cheek and sets off for her interview which was at noon. She wanted to drive into town and slip into the library to prepare herself with some research on the company and the new lines the boutique had in stock so she knows what she's talking about. Tillie and Millie were mean girls back in high school but a lot of time has passed since the days they terrorised her and they were all grown women who shared the passion of fashion and she wanted to impress and more than anything, she wanted a job and she needed an opportunity.
Glenn stands there watching Beth go. He had a sister but they were never close. He was much closer to Beth than he was with Suzy and he sends Beth all his positive wishes and energy so she succeeds in getting a job and hoping she can finally settle down and not move to Atlanta or somewhere else around the country. Maggie had worried Beth would move away one day if she didn't find anything close to home. If Beth, moving away was to become a reality, he knew the family would be devastated if she left. He knew he would be.
Maggie watching her husband, can't believe how lucky she is. She loved that he thought of her family as his family and she couldn't wait to start a family of their own. She'd never been the maternal type but Glenn has opened her eyes to a life she never knew she wanted until now.
"C'mere, my sweet sexy hunk of a man!" Maggie growls yanking Glenn's towel and tossing it into the air, it lands on the ceiling fan.
"Maggie!" Glenn squeaks, jumping up to grab at it but it was too high.
Maggie watches mischievously and then Glenn's running to the door and slamming it shut. He doesn't have time to react when he turns around and Maggie's on him like white on rice and pushing him over onto the bed. He drops onto his back on Beth's soft bed watching Maggie pulling off her crop top and her sleep pants following pursuit.
"Mags, we shouldn't be doin' this in here, it's wron-" He cuts off with a whine once Maggie slips down his suddenly hardened length. It was like magic only Maggie could perform.
"We could stop?" Maggie asks innocently batting her lashes, grinding against him and then ever so slowly pulling off.
"No!" He says louder than he should, pulling Maggie back down for a sloppy kiss and letting out a moan once she's seated back down on him.
"Thought not!" She grins wickedly getting her way and begins making love to Glenn.
She's come off the pill and it was only a matter of time and with the way they've been going at it, she'd be pregnant very soon.
"Yes!" Maggie chants picking up speed and swinging her hand in the air.
Glenn watches Maggie slack jawed in awe, moving with her rhythm thinking it would be even hotter if she was swinging her cowgirl hat above her head and upon hearing Maggie yelling YEAHAAAAAAAAA! it was his undoing.
"I'm so glad you guys are movin' out into your own little freak house!" Shawn pounds angrily on Beth's door hearing them from the bathroom which was right next door. "And burn those damn sheets before ya leave for work!" He says when he slams the door shut which only makes Maggie burst out laughing and Glenn is up and pulling off the bedding not wanting to get his ass kicked because one of these days, he knew Shawn would bury him into the ground.
A/N:- I hope you join me next chapter where we catch up with Daryl and Co.
