Chapter 1:

Beth pulled into the driveway of her parents old farmhouse, cursing under her breath. Her truck had gotten a flat tire, and she'd barely managed to get it home. New tires were expensive, and she didn't have the money for it. She'd been a music teacher in town, but that wasn't enough money for a new tire. Angrily, she slammed the door to her truck, stomping up to the house. She hadn't even noticed that she was walking straight towards a gruff looking man in a cut off shirt. She bumped right into him startling herself.

"Hey! Watch where you're goin', girl!" He barked. Beth looked up at him, unsure of who he was. She stared at his rough appearance; she wasn't sure if he'd just murdered her entire family, or if he was the new farm hand her father had hired.

"Sorry." Beth muttered. The guy was rude, even if he was a potential axe murderer.

"'S alright." He mumbled. Beth walked up to the house, trying not to make eye contact with him.

"Hey!" He called to her, she turned around. "You're tire's flat!"

"I know!" Beth replied, "I ain't got the money for a new one!"

The man walked up to her, keeping a good distance between them.

"Hey, uh, if you need a tire, well, I know a place to get some." He offered. Beth cocked her head slightly.

"I could use it. I'm kinda broke." Beth said. The man nodded.

"I'll tell you're dad where to go. I work over at Dale's Auto Shop in town. He'll set ya up." The man told Beth. She smiled slightly.

"Thanks. I 'preciate it." Beth said. The man nodded.

"No problem." He said, turning to walk toward the barn. Beth walked inside, looking for her mother. She found her mother in the kitchen, baking cookies.

"Mama! Who is that creepy guy?" Beth asked. Her mother, Annette, looked up, smiling slightly.

"That 'creepy guy' is your father's new farmhand. His name is Daryl Dixon. He's definitely rough around the edges, but he's harmless." Annette said.

"I ran into him just now. He told me where I can go to get a tire." Beth said.

"Why do you need a tire?" Annette asked.

"I've got a flat. I dunno how it happened, but it's flat. I barely made it home." Beth explained.

"I'll talk to your daddy." Annette said, "We'll see about getting you a new tire."

"I can buy it, Mama. I just need a good price." Beth said.

"Honey, we're not too poor that we can't buy you a new tire." Annette said. Beth laughed. Beth wanted to be independent, but Annette wanted to take care of her. That's how her mother was, Annette always wanted to take care of everyone. Beth grabbed an apple from the bowl on the kitchen counter, washing it off and taking a bite. Her father had a small apple orchard, and to her, there was nothing better than fresh apples. She sat down at the kitchen table, and began to do her homework. Beth was about to be a senior in high school, but was taking dual enrollment classes at Georgia State University that summer. She wanted to get a head start on her college credits, and figured that summer classes were the best way to do that. Beth was always a model student; she loved school, and she loved learning. She'd had straight A's in school, and was set to be the school salutatorian at the very least. She had an academic scholarship to Georgia State, so that's where she decided to take classes. She wanted to major in elementary education; she'd always wanted to be a first grade or kindergarten teacher. She loved kids, and she was excited about finishing up her senior year. She was engrossed in drawing Venn Diagrams for her Finite Mathematics course when she heard someone walk in, stomping loudly across the wooden floors.

"Mrs. Greene, when do you think Mr. Greene will be home?" It was the creepy guy from earlier. What was his name? Derrick? No. It was Daryl.

"He should be home in a few minutes. Call me Annette. Mrs. Greene makes me feel old!" Annette exclaimed, pulling a tray of cookies from the oven. She offered Daryl a cooled one and he took it graciously.

"We got a problem over in the pasture. Coyotes found their way through. They got into the chicken coop." Daryl explained. Beth watched him from the table, pretending to be studying. He looked strong, with large arm muscles and broad shoulders. His hair was shaggy, and he looked tired. The right knee in his pants had a hole, but Beth didn't figure he cared much.

"Oh goodness. I told Otis to fix that fence." Annette said.

"Don't worry. I'll get it all patched up by the end of the week." Daryl promised. Beth noticed he was much nicer around Annette. But then again, Annette had that effect on nearly everyone.

"How many of my chickens did they get?" Annette asked.

"Only one. But they got a whole mess of eggs." Daryl told her. Annette frowned, putting another pan of cookies in the oven.

"Thank you, Daryl, for tellin' me about it. I appreciate it. You gonna stay for supper?" Annette asked. Beth was unsure of this man. He could be scoping out the house, planning on making them all his food for the winter. Beth shook her head of those thoughts; she needed to quit watching all those crime shows.

"I'm not sure..." Daryl began. Annette stopped him.

"Since Shawn moved out, we have too many left overs. You'd be helpin' us out, really." Annette said. Since Beth's big brother, Shawn, had gotten married to Anna and moved to Marietta, there was a lot more food in the house. Beth didn't complain, it meant that her Oreo stashed was left generally untouched by anyone except Maggie, who occasionally wanted a midnight snack.

"I reckon I could stay." Daryl said quietly. Beth wasn't sure about this guy, but he didn't seem terrible. She was eager to see where this evening would lead, and more eager to make sure he wasn't going to kill everyone.

By dinnertime, Daryl and Hershel had gone out and begun to patch the fences. Annette had sent Beth to call them for dinner, and Beth wound up giving them a ride back to the house on the ATV. When they arrived at the house, Annette had dinner sitting on the table. Hershel walked up to his wife, kissing her on the cheek and hugging her tightly.

"Miss Annette, what would I do without you?" He asked. Annette smiled.

"Probably go crazy." Annette said. Hershel laughed. Beth loved watching her parents interact, it was always very sweet. Annette, Hershel, Daryl, and Beth sat down at the table, Hershel saying the blessing before they ate. Beth's family had always been a church going family, and she liked it that way.

"Where's Maggie tonight?" Beth asked.

"Out with Glenn. You know how it goes." Hershel replied. Beth's older sister, Maggie, had been dating her boyfriend, Glenn Rhee, since her sophomore year of college. Maggie was almost five years older than Beth, but the two were extremely close.

Beth took a piece of chicken from the plate, cutting into it and taking a bite. She heard her mother speak up, and felt herself blush.

"So Daryl, Beth said you know where to get a tire." Annette Greene was a lot of things, but subtle she was not.

"Yes ma'am. Over at Dale's Auto Repair. He'll get you a good deal." He said. Beth swallowed her food, hoping the conversation wouldn't go any further.

"I noticed Bethy's tire was flat. I've been meanin' to get it fixed for a while, there was a leak in it." Hershel said.

"Daddy, it's no big deal. I can stop by after class tomorrow and get a tire." Beth said. She really didn't want her parents making a big deal.

"With what truck, Beth? Your tire's flat." Hershel replied.

"Daddy, I can change a tire. I have a spare." Beth said. She was the youngest, and she often felt that her parents treated her as such.

"I can do it." Daryl spoke up. Hershel, Annette, and Beth all looked at him. "I'm a mechanic over at Dale's." He added.

"Well, now won't that come in handy!" Annette said jokingly. Beth loved her mother's friendliness, but she wasn't so sure about Daryl.

"I reckon it will." Daryl said gruffly. Beth had finished eating, and asked to be excused from the table. She had more homework to finish, and she wanted to have the weekend free. She retreated to the study, cracking open her English literature book and finishing up Beowulf. She didn't quite understand it, but she was making an A in the class, and that was all that really mattered to her.

"Um, if ya want, I can change that tire 'fore I leave." She heard Daryl say. She looked up, smiling slightly. The more she looked at him, the cuter he was.

"That'd actually be really great, thanks." Beth said.

"I'll go take care of that now, I was about to head out." Daryl said.

"I'll come with you." Beth replied, following him as they walked outside. Beth stared at her '95 Ford F150. It'd been her father's old truck, and he gave it to her on her 16th birthday. It wasn't the nicest, but it was a truck, and she loved it. She had learned how to upkeep the car, just so it'd last a long time. Daryl got the jack, tire iron, and spare out of the truck bed, and set about the changing the tire.

"You get these tires rotated?" Daryl asked gruffly.

"I did it. I rotate the tires every few months or so." Beth replied.

"You've taken good care of this truck." Daryl complimented. Beth smiled; yes, she had take excellent care of that truck.

"Thanks. It was Daddy's before he gave it to me. I wanted it to last a long time, so I learned how to work on it." Beth explained.

"Ain't a lot of people who'll learn that." Daryl said. He didn't seem to be much of a talker. Beth didn't mind, she was shy herself. She could go the whole day without speaking to anyone, she preferred the quietness of her own thoughts. Daryl seemed to be the same way. Within minutes, Daryl was done with the tire, putting on the spare and loading the flat tire into the truck bed. He was covered in grease, and wiped off his hands with an old red rag.

"Thanks for helpin' me." Beth said. Daryl nodded.

"'S nothin'." Daryl said.

"Well, I told your Dad I'd be back tomorrow. I'm gonna head out. Night." Daryl told Beth. Beth smiled.

"Night. See ya tomorrow." Beth said. Daryl turned and left, hopping on to his motorcycle and driving away. Beth still wasn't sure about the guy, but he'd changed her tire, so he couldn't be all bad. She wasn't sure how he'd fair on the farm, but if we was nice to her, she'd be nice to him.

A week later, Daryl seemed to be adjusting to the farm slowly but surely. Beth had been so busy that most days she didn't notice him until he came in for dinner with Hershel. Beth was taking twelve hours that summer, and was very busy. Beth had finally gotten her tire fixed, thanks to Dale, a kind hearted man who helped her out tremendously. It was Thursday, and the stress of school had begun to catch up with Beth. She hadn't gotten much sleep over the past week, and hadn't eaten much, either. To top it off, her father had to go to the other end of the county to deal with a farmer's injured horse, which meant that Daryl was alone. Frustrated and stressed, Beth changed into some old work clothes and walked to the barn, where she found Daryl struggling to carry the load of the work by himself.

"Here, lemme help." Beth said, grabbing a bucket and filling it full of water. The horses needed to be washed down, and Daryl was behind.

"I got it." Daryl huffed, shoveling the used hay out of the stalls.

"Listen, Daddy's gotta work late an' I know it's hard to do by yourself. Lemme help you out." Beth said.

"Fine." Daryl mumbled. Beth always had a job to do on the farm anyway; but Hershel had a small chicken farm on his land, as well as an apple orchard. The work had become far too much for Hershel to bear alone, so he'd put an add in the paper. Beth began to wash the horses off, putting fresh feed in their feed buckets. Daryl had finally finished cleaning the stalls, and Beth helped him put down fresh hay. Beth loved working on the farm, it was relaxing for her.

"Thanks for helpin' me." Daryl said gruffly. Beth smiled. He seemed nice enough.

"I love workin' out here." Beth said, "Don't get to be out here near as much as I should 'cause of school."

"Why you in school durin' the summer?" Daryl asked, "You fail a class?"

"Nope. They're college classes. I wanna have a head start when I start college next fall." Beth explained. Daryl nodded.

"I sucked at school. I'm lucky I graduated." Daryl said.

"I'm no good at sports, and I'm too dorky to be in a club. School's all I got." Beth laughed. Daryl didn't seem to catch her sense of humor. He grunted in acknowledgement, and left the barn, moving on to the next task. Beth ran after him, wanting to see if he needed any help. Why did she care? Wasn't he being paid for this?

"Ya need any help?" Beth asked. Daryl turned around, seeming somewhat agitated.

"Gotta patch that dang fence." Daryl replied. Beth nodded. Daryl was already loading the posts, wire, and post hole diggers into the old farm work truck. Beth helped him, and climbed in the back. They stopped at the first location, and Daryl got out, setting to work without saying a word. Beth got out of the truck as well, and began staking the posts. Daryl seemed uncomfortable, but Beth didn't care. They needed to fix that fence, even if he got annoyed with her.

"How old are ya, anyway?" Daryl asked.

"Seventeen. Why?" Beth replied.

"Jus' wonderin'. You're real young to be in college." Daryl said.

"I'm not that young." Beth said, "How old are you?"

"Twenty six. Just had a birthday." Daryl responded flatly. He seemed entirely disinterested.

"Ah. When's your birthday?" Beth asked.

"June 12th." Daryl replied.

"Mine's in April." Beth said. Daryl didn't seem to care, but she wanted to say it anyway. It was nice to actually have someone to talk to. Beth had only ever had one boyfriend, Jimmy, and they'd broken up her sophomore year. It'd broken her heart, but she'd gotten over it. She didn't have very many friends, but the few she did have, she hadn't seen much. In truth, Daryl was the only person besides her parents she'd talked to all summer.

They'd finished one section of the fence by 5:30, but unfortunately Hershel wouldn't be home till very late. Daryl and Beth decided it'd be best to start on the next section, and they seemed to be making lots of progress. Daryl had managed to dig a hole for a post close to the barn, and Beth had carried the post from the truck to the hole. Unfortunately, she'd overestimated the distance from the hole to her toes. She put the post in what she thought was the hole; unfortunately for her, it was her right foot.

"OW!" Beth exclaimed, "Oh crap! Dangit that hurt!"

"Y'okay? What happened?!" Daryl asked as Beth jumped around. Beth sat down in the grass, pulling off her boot and sock, and revealed three crushed toes. Daryl squatted down next to her.

"What'd ya go an' do that for?" He asked.

"I didn't mean to, Daryl." Beth winced. She'd broken bones before, she'd had stitches, too. This really seemed to hurt though, and she had no idea why.

"You're gonna lose that big toenail." Daryl said, almost amused. Beth shot him a dirty look.

"Won't be the first time. But it really hurts." Beth said. She was trying to be tough, but failing miserably. She'd always had a high pain tolerance, but for some reason, this hurt more than she thought it would. Daryl helped her up, walking her over to the truck. He put her in the cab and climbed in himself, starting the engine.

"Wait—we still have a fence to finish." Beth said.

"No, I have a fence to finish. You'll be in the way." Daryl muttered gruffly.

"I wanna help!" Beth almost whined. She wanted to be out there. She wanted to help Daryl, and her dad. She didn't want to be put out of commission.

"There's no way you can finish. I'm takin' you back. Stop you're whinin'." Daryl barked. Beth sighed loudly, glaring at him. Daryl was frustrating, and she was stubborn. She didn't like not helping.

Daryl carried Beth into the house, sitting her down gently on the couch. He walked out before Annette could come in, and Annette just saw Beth laying on the couch, wincing in pain, with a swollen foot.

"Bethy, I thought you were supposed to be out with Daryl?" Annette asked.

"I was. I crushed my foot on one of the fence posts." Beth said. Annette came over, inspecting Beth's foot. She furrowed her brow and frowned.

"Ooh honey, you broke those three toes!" Annette exclaimed. Beth winced again.

"Yeah mama, I can see that." Beth said flatly. Annette glared at her.

"Not much you can do for that, besides stay off the foot. Sorry honey." Annette said, "I'll go get an ice pack from the kitchen."

"Thanks." Beth mumbled. Beth never liked getting hurt; it always slowed her down. She ran at a fast pace, and disliked anything that could potentially slow her down. Beth wished Daryl had let her continue, but he seemed ready to get rid of her. He didn't seem to like her very much, and Beth had decided she didn't care for him. He didn't seem friendly, and he'd been very quick to dismiss her. As Annette brought Beth an ice pack for her foot, she saw her dad's car finally pull up. Though she wanted to help her father, she was glad that he was home now to finish what she'd started. It was going to be a long summer with Daryl there, and Beth was grateful that her summer classes went all the way into July.