Ch.28

Daryl always woke up early; he was usually the first one up. So when he woke up and heard the shuffling downstairs and smelled the telltale smells of an early morning breakfast, he was confused. As he made his way to the kitchen he tried to think of who would be up this early. Maggie, Sasha, and Carol usually made breakfast, but Maggie and Sasha were late sleepers and Carol would always wait for them to get up before making breakfast.

When he finally turned the corner into the kitchen he had to stop and make sure he wasn't seeing things. There she was. It was Beth. She was making breakfast for everyone. She had been the last person he had expected to see. He had become so used to seeing her just sitting and staring blankly.

"Smells good. What are you making?"

Beth jumped, turning around to face him, nearly dropping the spoon in her hand. "You scared me."

"Sorry, didn't mean to.," he mumbled.

Beth turned back around and started to stir whatever was in the pot. "It's oatmeal. I put some berries in it to give it flavor."

Daryl nodded and walked over to her, taking the spoon from her hand and tasting the oatmeal, ignoring the way Beth tried to swat him away. It was good, better than the oatmeal they'd been having the past few weeks.

"That's good," he said, tasting it again.

Beth grabbed the spoon from him and smiled. "You have to wait to eat it until it's done."

After a few minutes Beth grabbed two bowls and filled them. She placed them both on the table and took a seat. Daryl hesitated a moment before taking the seat across from her. She started to eat and he watched her. Something was different about her. Something felt lighter. She wasn't acting like she had a dark cloud following her.

"You seem to be in a good mood today."

Beth looked at him and nodded. "I figured I'd try something new. Being sad and pushing everyone away and not doing anything wasn't working."

"What made you come to that conclusion?"

Beth took another bite. "You and Maggie. I finally talked to her."

Daryl wasn't going to push for any more information. If she wanted to talk she would.

"I told her what happened. She deserved an explanation for why I've been the way I've been. She's been putting up with me, and I've sort of been treating her like crap. I just thought that she should know why."

Daryl nodded, starting to eat his oatmeal.

"I think it's better that she knows; better that I talk about it. We talked a little, and I think it helped."

Beth quickly finished eating her oatmeal and he could feel her staring at him.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"For what?"

"For everything you've done for me."

"You don't have to thank me, Beth. I just did what anyone would have done."

"No. You did more. You've kind of been there with me through all of this, and I don't think I've ever really thanked you."

Daryl was about to say something, but he was interrupted when Rick walked in.

"What smells so good?" he asked, looking around the kitchen with Judith in his arms.

"I made some oatmeal. I'll get you a bowl."

Rick looked at Beth strangely and then over to Daryl, trying to figure out what was going on. Daryl just shrugged his shoulders.

"Thanks, Beth."

Beth quickly got up and poured Rick a bowl of oatmeal. She snatched Judith from his arms before he sat down, something she hadn't done in weeks. He didn't miss the smile on her face when Judith squealed with joy at finally having Beth holding her again.

"I'll take her for now, while you eat."

Rick nodded and took a bite of his breakfast. "Don't tell Carol or Maggie or Sasha this, but I think that Beth is a better cook than them. We may have to put her on cooking duty," he joked.

Beth smiled softly. "I'm going to take her into the living room to let her play," she said as she stood up and started walking out of the room.

Rick looked at Daryl questioningly. "She said that she's trying something new," he offered as way of an explanation of Beth's sudden change in behavior.

"Well, I like this Beth a lot more."

When he heard Judith crying from the other room Daryl immediately stood up. "I'll go check on her."

As he walked towards the living room he saw Maggie hastily making her way towards the noise. Beth hadn't been on baby duty since the last time she had cared for Judith and had basically had a breakdown. Everyone had been pitching in to help take care of Judith when Rick couldn't.

He and Maggie both reached the entryway to the living at the same time, and they both stopped when they heard the familiar sound that they hadn't heard in what seemed like ages. It was Beth. She was singing, her soft melody slowly calming Judith.

Sing a song of sixpence, pocket full of rye

Hush-a bye my baby, no need to be crying.

You can burn the midnight oil with me as long as you will

Stare out at the moon upon the windowsill, and dream...

Sing a song of sixpence, pocket full of rye

Hush-a bye my baby, no need to be crying.

There's dew drops on the window sill, gumdrops in your head

Slipping into dream land, you're nodding your head, so dream...

Dream of West Virginia, or of the British Isles

'Cause when you are dreaming, you see for miles and miles.

When you are much older, remember when we sat

At midnight on the windowsill, and had this little chat

And dream, come on and dream, come on and dream, and dream, and dream...

Daryl looked at Maggie, not being able to help the smile on his face. "I think we're finally getting Beth back," he said quietly.

Maggie nodded, still looking at Beth. Judith's cries had stopped and she was now fast asleep in Beth's arms. Both Daryl and Maggie stood there for a few more moments before quietly making their way to the kitchen.

Author's Note: So this chapter is short and kind of uneventful, but I thought that it was needed. It's just kind of here to show that Beth is getting better, that she is finally starting to heal.

The song that Beth sings is "Midnight Lullaby," by Tom Waits. I was wracking my brain trying to think of a good song for her to sing, but nothing I came up with seemed right, nothing sounded like a song that Beth would sing. So, I took a little time and pretty much read the lyrics to every Tom Waits song since Beth has already sung two of his songs on TWD. As soon as I read the lyrics for "Midnight Lullaby" I knew that it was the one!

Also, if haven't had a chance yet, please take a moment and read my newest story, "Changed."

And thank you, thank you, thank you for all of the reviews on the last few chapters. There's nothing I like more than sitting down and reading the reviews I receive on a new chapter. I absolutely love hearing what my readers have to say. So, if you feel up to it, please leave a review.