A/N Thank you for stopping by for some Easter Bethyl. No angst here, just fun, fluff and loves beginning. Enjoy!
Jelly Beans, Bunnies and You
It's a springtime Saturday morning and the weather is perfect for a nice long bike ride. Maybe he'll ride all the way to the mountain. He won't attempt to ride up the mountain though, not with this bike. It's not made for dirt, and besides he just spent a good part of last night in his garage polishing it.
He doesn't really care if he goes anywhere, or nowhere at all, after the work week he's had it'll be nice to just get out and ride. Daryl Dixon almost has a smile on his face.
He went a little off track before he ever got started. He stopped at the bakery for a coffee and a bear claw. A man's got to fuel up, but there's nothing stopping him now. Except for this stop sign. He waits as an old man and his dog cross in front of him, and he's just about to take off when he sees it happen.
Up ahead on the right is an apartment complex and there's a blond woman walking out the front door of one of the units. What catches his eye and makes her hard to miss is the oversized white laundry basket she's carrying. She's obviously struggling with the weight of the damn thing, and just as he's hitting the throttle on his bike and she's stepping off the front stoop, disaster strikes. The woman somehow misjudges the step and goes ass over tea kettle right off it. She seems determined to hang on to the basket while she goes down hard, and the basket ends up on top of her.
He pulls the bike up to the curb in front of her place quickly dismounting and hurrying toward her. That's when he sees what was in that damn basket, shit, it's like the Easter aisle at WalMart exploded all around her.
She's trying to get herself to her feet as he bends down and reaches a hand out to her, "Here, lemme help ya."
Just as they grasp hands she looks up and immediately they recognize each other, "Oh, hey, Beth, you okay? Oh shit, no you ain't. C'mon, lemme get ya." He reaches under her arms and pulls her to her feet, and fuck, she's got tears running out of her eyes, shit. "Sorry you're hurtin'," and he gives no warning before picking her up in his arms and carrying her through the still open apartment door.
Beth's tears are burning, oh no, don't cry, stop please. She's so embarrassed. All she can say when he sets her down on the one and only chair in the place is, "I can't worry about myself right now. I have to get the candy over to the church hall. I need to be there helping."
"Helpin' what?"
"There's an Easter Egg hunt and party after services tomorrow. I'm the person who's supposed to be in charge. I have to follow through. I'd never forgive myself if the kids didn't get to have their party."
He's a little overwhelmed by all of this himself, shit, he was just going for a ride, but there's no way he'd flake out on this woman. "A'ight, let's take this one thing at a time. Lemme get ya settled in here, then I'll get the candy picked up. We can go from there. Whaddya say?"
"Yes, thank you so much Mister Dixon."
"Nah, this ain't the office and I'm just Daryl. A'ight, sit. I'll be right back." Thank God no one watered the lawn yet today, all the plastic eggs and the bags of candies, the tiny fluffy bunnies and fuzzy chicks, all of it looks just fine.
00
You know how it is when you know someone, but you don't really know them? You've interacted on several occasions, you know each other's names, you've exchanged all the pleasantries, but it's not like you're friends or anything. You only know them in that setting.
All of that is true, except, if you give it some thought, what you actually do know is something very important about them, and that's how they treat people. Once you know how a person treats others, you have a window into the person they are.
Now, what if every time you see that person you feel a little tingle and your heart beats a little faster, because, well, you're kind of, sort of, definitely attracted to this person?
That's just fine, everyone gets a little crush from time to time, but what if it feels like more than a simple attraction? More than an innocent low-key crush. What if you really, really, really want to…well you know…you're just wishing like crazy this person would suggest that the two of you, oh I don't know, go have a coffee or a burger, take a Sunday drive, catch a movie, anything.
Sure, that would be great, but maybe the reason they don't ask is because they're not interested in you the way you're interested in them? Although, you could swear by the way they look at you, they're feeling what you're feeling.
Nobody's making any moves though, you both just keep feeling those feelings and thinking that maybe someday when the moment is right, you'll make the first move. The trouble with that is, it's been a year and the right moment has not yet presented itself. Either that, or it could just be that you're both a couple of big chickens. That's it Beth Greene, you're chicken.
Daryl Dixon is in the same boat.
It all began about this time last year. His office manager, that is to say his one and only office employee, a woman named Carol, was out with the flu. If she wasn't, she would have been the one to go to the county office to get a building permit for the remodel on the sheriff's house, which Daryl was getting ready to start.
The permit couldn't wait, that would hold up the job. It was business that needed to be taken care of so, Daryl just did what had to be done. He went to the county office himself. He was feeling grumpy about the whole thing. He expected it to be a huge pain in the ass. There would be the waiting in line and being asked a million asinine questions, like he hadn't already answered them all on the damn form. Shit like that.
What he didn't expect was the pretty little blond clerk at the window who was all smiles and said, "Everything looks just fine Mister Dixon. Let me get your paperwork and permit, oh, and will you be paying with a credit card today?"
Damn, he wanted to tell her she could have all his money and everything he owned, but all he could say was, "Um, company check."
"Okay, just a moment please." Her name was printed on a small nameplate stuck to the side panel of her service window, Beth Greene. Beth, shit, even her name was pretty.
She hoped he didn't notice the way her hands were trembling when she handed him the permit and his receipt. She smiled, "Thank you Mister Dixon, I hope the job goes well." Her face was as hot as fire, she hoped he didn't notice that either.
All he could manage to spit out was, "Yeah, um, thanks, um, Ma'am." Ma'am? Holy shit you dumbass. She's about 22. Fuck. "Um, I mean Miss." Oh my goodness, he's the sweetest, and every bit as nervous as her.
Issuing building permits is pretty boring work, as a rule, but when a roughly handsome man with crystal blue eyes and a slow drawl is asking for one, well that's an entirely different matter. Did anyone besides her notice Mister Dixon's build? Holy cow, he looked strong enough to pound nails with his fists.
Ever since that day getting building permits ceased to be Carol's job. Daryl told her, "There's no reason I can't pick em up myself. I'm always out anyway."
Carol just smiled to herself, after all, she'd been to the county office many times and she knew about the pretty woman who works there. She'd never ask him, but she would have bet money that Daryl was smitten, "Okay, that's great. I hate going to the county office."
Sure, over the course of the year things got a little more relaxed. Beth didn't tremble and Daryl didn't sweat, but beyond exchanging a few pleasantries, like, "How are you today?" "Gosh, it's been so hot out, hasn't it?" "How's the new bakery at the strip mall coming along?" "Did you have a nice weekend?" That's it. Nice and all, but no one ever mentioned going to get a coffee, or a glass of wine, or even just go out for a nice drive. He never asked for her phone number, and although she had access to his from the building permit forms, she would never call him. Not just because it would be unethical, it's against all the rules and she could lose her job, besides that, she'd die of embarrassment.
00
He brings in the basket in, and that's when he sees there are two more big boxes filled with Easter goodies. The entire apartment is overwhelmed by Easter. Well, yeah, I mean, if you could even call it an apartment. It's really nothing more than a bedroom with a mini fridge with a microwave on top of it, a hot plate, an easy chair, a dresser and a night table. Shit, he feels like he barely fits. He gets it though, rents are high, "Lemme get the first aid kit from the bike and have a look at ya."
"You keep a first aid kit on your motorcycle?"
"Yep, got to. If I have to lay it down I wanna have somethin' for the scrapes n cuts n stuff."
"Oh, I see. It's dangerous."
"Yep, it's as dangerous as carrying giant Easter baskets fulla candy."
Her cheeks turn bright pink and he walks closer, resting his hand on her shoulder, "Hey, I's just kiddin'. Sorry. Lemme go get that kit." Fuck, why is he such an asshole.
Oh Beth, stop being so delicate, "It's all right. I knew it was a joke."
Her wrists hurt, her palms are scraped, there's a hole in the backside of her new jeans, and she's not telling Daryl Dixon this, but that was a hard landing and her butt hurts. Bad. He checks her ankles and wrists like he knows what he's doing, even her elbows and her knees. Then in that gruff scratchy voice of his he tells her, "It don't look like anything's broke, but you're gonna be sore as hell for a few days. That concrete's got no give at all."
"I'll say, everything hurts." She didn't really mean to say that, she hates to complain, "But I'll be all right, and besides, I need to get to the church. Everyone is waiting for me. I have all the treats."
So much for his Saturday ride to the mountain, "Yeah, well, you ain't driving anywhere today Beth Greene. I'll give ya a ride."
"On your motorcycle?"
Who knows what comes over him next, he's even smiling when he says it, "Not today Beth, but I'll take ya real soon. Right now, I'ma go get my pickup. Be back in 15 minutes."
"You don't have to do that Daryl."
"Yeah, I do."
Every inch of her hurts, like she got run over by steam roller like that cartoon coyote, but still, as soon as he's gone she manages to hobble to the tiny bathroom. She's got to be sure she's presentable for gosh sake. After all, she and Daryl are finally somewhere together that is not a government building.
She splashes cold water on her face. Dabs on a little moisturizer and puts on just a hint of mascara. That's the easy stuff, but what about this crazy hair? She settles on a ponytail because there's no time for flatirons and curling irons and styling products right now. The painful part is getting out of her now torn jeans and putting on a fresh pair.
She's just sitting back down when the knock comes, "Is that you Daryl?"
"Yeah," and the door opens. The first thing he does is scold her, "Ya oughta keep that locked all the time. It ain't safe."
Oh, so he's a worry wart. "Yes, I should, you're right." Really? He has a point.
He looks around and asks, "So what goes? The basket and the two boxes?"
"Yes please, and I'm so sorry."
"Sorry? About what?"
"Sorry I've ruined your day."
Oh baby, if you only knew how bad I've been wanting to spend my time with you, "Don't be sorry, it was an accident, besides, when I was a kid I got more than one handout from some church group on holidays. It'll be nice ta think I'm helpin' some kids get a nice treat."
Oh, that sounds like it could be a very dark story, she wonders if she'll ever hear it all. Well, it won't happen right now for sure. "It's very kind of you Daryl. I don't know what I would have done if you weren't here. I'd hate to let everyone down." What she would have done is call her Mom to come get her, the candy, the fluffy bunnies, the fuzzy chicks, all of it and take her to the church hall. No offense Mom, but this seems a little more exciting.
He tells her to wait, then loads the boxes into that back seat of a shiny black pickup truck. When he comes back the last time he asks, "Where's your door key?" She hands it to him, he takes it from her and sweeps her up in his arms.
"Daryl! What are you doing?"
"I'm takin' you to the pickup, right after I lock your door."
He gets her in the pickup, fastens her seat belt, and when he gets in the other side she smiles over at him, "I've never had such a thoughtful Uber driver."
"You're welcome."
Then it hits, guilt. She can't lie to him, even if it's only a lie of omission. It's still not being truthful, "I'm sorry Daryl, I should have called my Mom, she would have some and picked me and the stuff up."
Shit, he's glad she didn't, "No need for your Mom ta be caring all this heavy stuff either."
Aw, a knight in leather.
He doesn't carry her into the church hall, he's smart enough to know those church ladies would be talking about it for the rest of the year. Instead, she wraps an arm across his shoulders, he wraps an arm around her waist, and he escorts her inside. It's not romantic and yet holding each other this way is a lot of closeness for them. They've wanted to give each other a hug for a very long time. He settles her on some crappy metal folding chair and asks, "Ya alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine, thank you.".
There are about eight ladies waiting at the church hall and one of them is Beth's Mom, oh shit. She's real nice and all, but Daryl can read it in her eyes, she's wondering what her sweet daughter is doing with a crusty looking asshole like him. He doesn't blame her. Anyway, she's finding out because as soon as Beth introduces him she starts right into a rapid fire version of everything that happened earlier, "Thank goodness Daryl was there Mama."
Mama nods and doesn't even try to hide the fact she's thoroughly scoping him out, deciding whether to give him a chance to prove he's not a complete asshole, or just run him off now.
Daryl does his best to smile when he asks Beth's Mom, "I got alotta stuff in the truck Ma'am, why don't you tell me where it goes and I'll carry it in."
"Oh, well thank you Daryl, right on that far table if you could."
Once he's hauled Beth's stuff, a couple of the ladies ask him to bring in the table settings and tablecloths, napkins and other stuff they brought. Shit, he thought this was his day off.
He doesn't take off when he's done, he doesn't want to just leave Beth here and go. Shit, he's finally getting to spend time with her. So, when he hears them talking about the fact that the Easter festivities include a pancake breakfast for the whole congregation tomorrow, right here in the hall, and that they need to set up all the folding tables and chairs, Daryl volunteers. After all, he's slipped into more than one pancake breakfast as a kid. Payback time. "Manual labor is my field of expertise, why don't you ladies lemme do all that for ya."
The church ladies are all impressed by his willingness to help, while their husbands are out fishing, or watching the ballgame on TV. It turns out this rough looking man is not only willing to help, he's not even complaining about helping. And just look at those arms. Everyone's a little tiny bit jealous of Beth. They'll pray on that.
For Daryl's part, there's only one woman in the church hall he wants to impress, and when he sees her smiling at him he's encouraged to keep doing what he's doing.
With all those ladies working, and no doubt this isn't the first time they've done all this, they get the whole thing setup and decorated in just about three hours. It doesn't even look like a church hall anymore. It looks like the Easter Bunny's headquarters.
Beth's Mom mentions, "All we have left to do is hide the eggs in the morning."
Daryl has no idea what the fuck is wrong with him, well yes he does, it's the little blond next to him that has him saying, "I could come help ya if ya need me. I ain't ever done that, but you just tell me what ta do and I'll do it."
Over the course of the day he's won Mama over, "That is so nice of you Daryl. No wonder my daughter's looking at you that way. Yes, please. Can you be here at seven?"
Sunday mornings are his time to sit out on the back porch, drink his coffee, have a couple smokes and read his hunting magazine, "Yes Ma'am. No problem, I'll be here at seven."
Then she turns to her daughter and says, "I guess we're ready to go Beth, I can give you a ride home."
Daryl is quick to say, "That's all right Ma'am, I'm goin' that way, I can take her."
Once they're in the pickup he asks, "I'm starving, wanna go get some barbecue? Or we could have something else, whatever ya like."
Yay! She was hoping he'd ask, "Yes, I'd love to have barbecue Daryl."
They take a booth and she feels a little thrill when he doesn't sit across from her, he slides in next to her. She orders the pulled pork sandwich and he asks, "Ya sure that'll be enough?" She assures him that it will be, then he orders the full barbecue sample platter with every kind of meat a person could think to barbecue, and extra cornbread, smiles at her and says, "I'll share." Ah, he makes her smile.
He feels like he's driving extra slow on the way back to her place, well that's because he is. Neither of them really wants this time together to end. Maybe that's what helps him get the courage to ask her, "Ya know, I got a big comfortable sofa at my place, we could sit and watch TV if ya wanted. I got ice packs and a heating pad too," he self-consciously shrugs his shoulders adding, "I gotta go though. I need ta get home and feed my dog."
"You have a dog?!"
"Yeah, his name's Rufus."
"I love dogs."
"Good, then come meet him. He ain't a mean dog, he's real mellow."
Her smile lights up the cab of the truck, "I'd like that very much, under one condition."
He's confused and slightly terrified, "Condition? Like what?"
"Well, I've been waiting and hoping and I'm getting a little tired of that, so now I'm just going to ask, are you ever going to kiss me Daryl Dixon?"
"Yep, right now and more later," and he leans in for a long, slow and tender kiss.
When he draws away and smiles at her she asks, "And can we go on that bike ride next Saturday? I'm sure I'll be better by then."
"Girl, we can go on that bike ride every Saturday," and he leans in for another kiss to seal the deal.
Happy Easter Everyone!
A/N Thank you so much for reading, I hope you'll leave a comment. There's a cute Easter Chapter Photo on my tumblr blogs, gneebee and bethylmethbrick, please have a look. I'll be back soon with more Bethyl love, and I hope you'll be here too. Until then remember, I love ya large! xo gneebee