Hey y'all! I'm back again! I would like to take a moment and thank each of you for your follows/favorites/reviews! They mean the world to me! Nothing kills a story faster than a quiet audience but y'all have been great! Thank you for that. Here's a little more to our story now and I hope you all enjoy it!

They didn't travel for too long before Merle pulled off of the main road and down a side road. He seemed to know the area well so she relaxed in her seat and trusted him to keep them safe. It was weird how much she already trusted the man even though she could actually say she didn't know a whole lot about the him. Of course, growing up she had always tended to trust people until given a reason not to. That was a big difference between her and Maggie. Maggie was always skeptical, never afraid to speak up and question things whereas Beth liked to believe that deep down there was good in everyone.

She believed that about Merle too. Even though he acted the way he did, she knew that somewhere deep inside of the man there was something good there. She saw glimpses of that in Daryl, more so now than when they were at the farm. She had seen it in Merle too even though he probably wasn't aware of it. The first day of her training when she had drunk her water too fast and threw up everywhere, he had held her hair back from her face. Sometimes it was the little things that counted the most. She looked around as he pulled the truck into a clearing of sorts and switched off the engine.

"Welcome ta target practice darlin'," He drawled.

She giggled. His mood seemed to have improved since they had left the prison grounds. He exited the truck and opened the rear door to get some things. She crossed over next to him, keeping an eye out for any lurking walkers. She knew she needed the practice up close, but she wasn't exactly eager for it either. It was one thing to stab them through the fences at a safe distance and a completely different thing to stand face to face with a walker without a barrier of any kind. She knew that Merle had been right earlier when he had scoffed at her as she had stabbed the walkers through the fences. She wouldn't learn anything that way. She watched as he attached a piece of paper to one tree and set several empty cans on top of several stumps.

He walked back over to her and handed her the gun, "Alright. We gon' try fer them cans first an' see how many ya hit. Remember how I told ya ta hold tha gun. There's gon' be a slight kickback so don't jump or you'll throw yer aim off," He instructed.

She nodded and stood where he instructed her and aimed for the first can. Her arms were trembling slightly. Suddenly his voice was right near her ear and she jumped a little at how stealthily he moved, "Tighten up," He murmured. His hand reached around to lift her arms up an inch and his boot nudged her feet further apart. She tried not to think about his powerful, muscled, leg so close to hers and concentrate on the task at hand but it was hard.

She cleared her throat and lined up the shot as best she could before gently squeezing the trigger. Even though Merle had warned her, the impact of the bullet firing from the gun and the loud sound caused her to jerk slightly and she took a couple of steps back into his solid chest.

He chuckled, "Ya don't listen very well, do ya darlin'?"

She made a face, "I do listen. I won't flinch next time," She promised.

He pushed her forward with his hand until she was back into position again, "Prove it," He ordered, his eyes shooting her a challenge.

She steadied herself and let out a slow breath, calming herself. She squeezed the trigger again. She didn't flinch this time but she didn't hit the target either. She glanced back at Merle who nodded towards the cans, "Keep goin'. I wanna see them cans fly," He said.

She turned back to the row of cans and fired off another shot. The can spun a little, but didn't fall off. She smiled at the fact that she had at least managed to graze the can. She snuck a glance at Merle who was sweeping the area with his eyes. She focused back on her task and kept going until she finally managed to hit two cans consecutively. Feeling empowered, she bit her lip and fired towards the last can, sending it soaring into the air. She pumped her fist in the air, feeling more proud of herself than she had in a long time.

"Time ta put those practice shots ta use girl. Ya rang tha dinner bell an' here comes ya first guest," He pointed to a walker that was making its way across the field in their direction.

Her heart started to pound in her chest. She wasn't sure if she was ready for that yet. She wanted to keep shooting at the cans. They didn't move and they definitely didn't try to eat her for dinner. She lifted the gun and tried to focus on the walker. It was limping slightly but still moving fairly easily regardless. She could hear its raspy groans and it never ceased to make her skin crawl. It's milky white eyes seemed to stare into her soul as it drew closer to her. She braced herself and fired a single shot, missing the walker entirely. It was getting closer now and making her nervous. Her eyes darted to Merle who was lounging against the truck, seemingly without a care in the world. She swallowed and took aim again before firing another shot. This time it hit the walker in the arm, sending it stumbling back a few steps.

"Yer over thinkin' it," Merle's voice said from behind her.

She sighed in frustration, "It's hard to focus when it moves!" She said, her eyes never leaving the walker.

He chuckled, "Well it ain't gonna stand there lookin' pretty while ya try ta aim. Slow yer breathin'," He instructed.

She sucked in a deep breath and nodded, trying to do as he said. She tried again and this time the bullet hit the walker in the chest. She felt herself growing frustrated. She angrily aimed again and pressed the trigger but it only clicked and nothing happened. She was out of bullets and the walker was about a foot away from her and closing in fast.

"Merle!" She yelled in panic. "I'm out of ammo!"

She began walking backwards as the walker reached for her, its grimy hands trying to grab her. Merle brushed past her and as she watched he rammed his blade into the head of the walker and twisted, bringing the walker down to the ground before pulling his blade back out. She felt herself shaking. She set the gun down on the hood of the truck and crossed her arms, trying to calm herself. Merle grabbed a rag from the truck and wiped his blade clean. She felt his eyes on her but she wouldn't look at him. She was startled to feel a small tear trickle down her cheek and she frantically swiped at it as more followed.

"Ah hell girlie. Ain't that bad," Merle grumbled.

She sniffed and shook her head, "I want to go back. I can't do this Merle. I'm not cut out for this kind of thing."

He scoffed, "What tha fuck ya talkin' about? Ya gonna let one walker scare ya off? What happened to tha girl moments ago who shot down them cans? Or tha one who ran them laps 'round tha prison? Ya jus' gonna give up?" He stood right in front of her, his face an expression of frustration.

She didn't know what to say. She thought she could do this but then a minute ago with that walker, she had panicked. Instead of trying to reload the gun, she had chickened out and called for Merle to save her. She didn't have the same kind of guts that Michonne or Maggie had. Maybe she was useless. She turned to go around the truck and get back inside but Merle planted his hand against the truck and his blade on the other side of her so that she was trapped.

"Let me go," She said.

"Fuck no! We gonna finish this. I only get one time ta take ya out an' let ya practice an' ya ain't quittin' on me. So quit yer bellyachin' an' reload tha damn gun," He ordered.

She shook her head, "No. It's a waste of time."

His eyes burned into her and he lowered his face so that it was inches from hers. She could feel the warmth of his breath upon her face but she wasn't scared. Oddly enough, she found herself wondering what it would be like to kiss his lips and have his strong arms wrap around her.

He smirked, "Thinkin' deep thoughts?"

She nodded shyly, but said nothing, her eyes still fixated on his lips. Something in his expression changed and he lowered his head until his lips grazed hers just a touch. She shivered and parted her lips slightly. She felt his hand wrap around the back of her neck and he held her still while he increased the pressure, trapping her bottom lip between his teeth lightly. Her breathing increased and she wanted more. She tried to reach for him but he held her firmly with his hand. He pulled back to look at her, "Try'na get me shot darlin'?" He drawled.

She shook her head, her ability to speak momentarily forgotten. He released his hold on her and turned away to retrieve some more bullets from the truck. Scanning the area, he came back to her and handed her the bullets for her to load. She was a little disappointed. Was that it? He had barely touched her but she could still feel the heat from him all over her body.

He leaned back against the truck, "Let's get on with it. Told ya we wasn't done yet," He remarked.

She just stared at him, the bullets in her hand forgotten, "That's it?" She asked.

He laughed then and she thought it sounded very sexy coming from him. "Tell ya what girlie, ya hit that circle I drew on that paper there an' maybe I'll kiss ya again," He said.

She raised her brow at him, "Seriously?" She asked.

"Do I look like I'm jokin'?"

His face was serious. She turned back around and looked at the paper. It was farther off than the cans were and she wasn't so sure she could hit it, much less some circle on it that she couldn't even see. She found herself extremely excited about the possibility of another, hopefully longer, kiss though. She focused on slowing her breathing and aimed at the paper. She squinted a little and bit her lip as she concentrated. Closing her eyes, she pulled the trigger. The sound of the shot ricocheted through the woods and she opened her eyes to look. Merle walked over to the paper and took it down from the tree, bringing it back with him. At first she didn't think she had hit it at all, but then in the corner of the paper she saw where a piece had been torn off.

"I didn't hit the circle," She was a little disappointed that she wouldn't get her kiss and it showed.

He smirked, "Did damn good though considerin'," He said. "Might let ya have that one," He looked around and then back at the truck. "Let's get inside and head back. Too damn quiet here and I don't like it."

He gathered up the guns and they climbed into the truck. She was a little bummed about going back to the prison but she understood the need for safety and precaution with the Governor being out there somewhere. Merle cranked the truck and put it in gear but as he began to drive the truck suddenly sputtered and died. He frowned and tried to start the truck again but it wouldn't crank. He reached under the steering wheel and popped the hood.

"Stay here an' keep an eye out," He commanded before he exited the truck.

She watched as he made his way around to the front of the truck and lifted the hood. She felt the truck shimmy a little as he stepped on the front bumper to get a better look. He was quiet for several minutes and she looked around nervously for any walkers. Hopefully he could fix whatever the problem was fairly quickly and they could head back towards the prison. She tried to think about how long it would take them if they had to walk back. They hadn't driven very far but walking was a different matter entirely. She didn't think they would make it back by dark. She didn't relish the thought of spending the night outside in the open and vulnerable to attacks. Finally Merle shut the hood and climbed back inside the truck. He had a look of irritation on his face and she grew very worried. She held her breath and waited for him to say something.

He sighed and turned to her, his steel-blue eyes cutting into hers, "We're fucked."

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