If I could count the amount of times Daryl and I had argued over stupid, menial things I'm sure the number would be in the thousands, but somehow we managed to sort things out, we always had time to. This time, I wasn't so sure.

It began, like usual with him saying something that I didn't agree with and me trying to put him in his place, simple, right? Wrong. What could start out as a good old debate always, without fail, flared into a full on argument that actually drew the attention of some of the people who sat nearby. Once or twice someone would have to intervene, only ask if we were okay or if there was a problem and it wasn't long before Maggie found out.

"What's this I'm hearin' of arguments between you and Daryl?" Maggie raised an eyebrow and I could feel heat rise to the back of my neck, it just felt like she knew everything that had happened between us, which was something that I could not allow to happen. She tilted her head slightly as she waited for an answer and her hair brushed against her shoulder, I'd forgotten how long it had grown. When she had first had it done, only a few weeks before mama got ill actually, she had hated it with a passion. She swore that she loved it now, but I could still see the way she looked at mine or even Michonne's locks enviously, it just made me realise how trivial things were back then, a haircut could reduce my sister to tears, but she could kill a living man without batting an eyelid. Strange world we live in, really.

"It's arguments over my trainin', Maggie." I sighed softly and bent down to pick up Judith. It seemed that washing duty had been given to one of the newbies, thank god. I always hated that job.

"Don't lie to me, Elizabeth." Her voice was sharp, but there was a hint of mischief there too and I knew that she knew everything.

"How did you find out?" I sighed softly and bobbed Judith on my waist who was trying to grab at the braid in my hair.

"Lots of careful observation." Maggie replied, but it was obvious she could barely contain her grin.

"You're okay with it? You seemed like you hated him …" I swallowed slightly, this was all new territory for us, Maggie had never approved of my boyfriend's so why would she approve of someone maybe over twenty years my senior? (He still hadn't told me how old he was.)

"Bethy, this is the happiest I've seen you since all this began." Her hand brushed my cheek softly as she tucked a few loose strands of hair behind my ear, her smile was sad and she looked much older than she really was and it made my heart ache as I thought of what this world had done to her.

"He does make me happy." I agreed and looked at Judith, who promptly gurgled as if she agreed. Judy was such a happy baby, it was a nice to have in the prison sometimes. "Daddy can't know, you know he doesn't … Approve of Daryl just yet for stealin' Nelly that one time." I couldn't help but giggle, my daddy was so protective over his horses, even in the apocalypse.

"Of course, of course." Maggie rolled her eyes and sat on my bed with me for a while.

She was a natural, playing with Judith. I'd always been the more maternal one out of the two of us, but the way she looked at the baby actually filled me with a sense of pride, perhaps she would have a baby? Suddenly the memory of losing Lori hit me hard and I had to clench my teeth to stop myself from saying anything to Maggie, I just wanted her to be safe.

"Don't ever have a baby, Maggie. Not yet, anyway."

"What?" Her eyes widened in surprise and a little bit of disgust, actually. "Me have a baby? Here? Are you kiddn'?" She couldn't help but laugh and my sister has the most infectious laughter out of anyone I've ever known. Daddy used to say she could light up the room with her laughter, even if it was filled with people who hated her guts. Before long we were nearly crying from laughter, it felt like the old times again just with the addition of a very confused baby.

"Wha's so funny?" A gruff voice asked from the doorway and with a stereotypical 'eek!' I stopped laughing.

He made me so nervous. I liked him a lot more than Jimmy and Zach, anyway if that was to count for something. I could argue with him about the time of day, but still sneak into his room at night to cuddle with him until I fell asleep before he nudged me awake so that we didn't get caught by someone doing patrols. I thought back on how I used to hate his guts, how I wished he had died when Andrea shot him in the head, how I was … happy when Merle died. But all of that was before I learned that his favourite colour was a sky blue and that he's still mad at the fact he didn't grab his favourite hunting boots when everything started. It was before I knew he was unlike any individual I had ever had the pleasure to meet.

"Nothin'!" Maggie winked at me as she left, obviously she gave Daryl a quick nudge in the arm as she left.

"That was … Odd." He frowned and shut the curtain that acted as the door to myself before cupping my face and giving me a quick kiss. Kissing him was better than anything I had ever been able to imagine. It wasn't like the awkward fumblings Jimmy and I had experienced, with painful gropes and sloppy kisses that trailed my neck. It was full of caring and compassion as he stroke down my sides and gently stroked a thumb across the scars on my wrist, it was the gentle and tender kisses that he sneaked upon my forehead when no one was looking, but perhaps most importantly it was the way he said my name. He made it sound like a pool of sunshine that no cloud could shadow.

"Hm?" Was all I could answer as he took Judith from my lap and quickly spun her around. "What was that?"

"Maggie?" He shot a quick glance to me as he swung the baby slowly through the air, eliciting a scream of joy from her lips. "She winked at'ya an' nudged me?" He set Judith on the floor and tipped over her toybox in order to help her find her red cups that she adored.

"Oh, yeah, she knows." I swallowed hard, it wasn't like she was actually going to tell anyone, besides maybe Glenn and he was scared of her wrath so if he ever told Daddy he knew that Maggie would kill him.

"Wha'?" His eyes widened with such a new sense of fear it was actually comical. "How?"

"She called it 'careful observation'." I rolled my eyes slightly, but couldn't help smiling at him it seemed to relax him anyway.

"But your daddy-"

"My daddy won't find out'" I raised an eyebrow slightly as I dropped my voice to a hushed whisper and walked closer to him.

"Hm…" He quickly wrapped an arm around my waist, but I could tell his eyes were on the curtain.

"Daryl…" I sighed softly and rested a hand on his cheek so that he would turn to look at me again. As much as I loved how protective he was of both me and himself it was exhausting trying to get him to relax sometimes.

"I 'aint a bad guy." He planted a soft kiss on the tip of my nose and then in between my eyebrows and then my forehead before enveloping me in a tight embrace.

"How long have I be tryin' to tell you that?" I smiled against his chest and chuckled gently at him.

"Sh." He shrugged and squeezed me slightly tighter.

"I wouldn't, Carol will be round soon to look after Judy so that we can train."

"Ah. Okay." He swallowed hard and I could practically feel him gulping.

"What?" I frowned slightly and sat back on the bed.

"Nothin' she's jus' bein'-" Rather than finish his sentence he decided to shrug to tell me how they were right now.

"Oh…" I nodded slowly and pulled open the curtain, where Carol stood waiting.

After an awkward greeting, Daryl and I slipped past her in the doorway and went out to the yard to train. It wasn't really training anymore really, I mean, it was, but it was mainly just him giving me tips and making me do laps so that I could outrun a walker. He knew how much I hated running, so of course he made me run more laps than usual today and when he finally allowed me to finish we sat on the courtyard grass for a few minutes.

None of us saw the group of people who stood on the opposite side of the gates, cutting at the fences with large wire cutters. I don't remember who was supposed to be on duty, I don't think anyone did. If we did have someone on patrol we probably could have prevented it.

"Get down!" Daryl shoved me backwards before sheltering me with his own body and I instinctively put my hands over my head as I tried to shelter myself from the flying bits of debris that came flying in our direction, but that still didn't stop the rock that hit my head and knocked me out cold.

When I came to there was fire. And screaming. So much screaming. Daryl, who had been on top of me, was nowhere to be seen. I sat up and could tell by the incessant groaning that walkers had started roaming our home. I felt for my bow and arrows and quickly fixed an arrow into the notch of my bow. It was a miracle that there wasn't a walker feasting on me whilst I was out. It seemed, instead, that they had found their way over to the children and other helpless people who had been trapped by rock and had begun to scream.

"Daryl?!" I allowed myself to give a quick shout, it shouldn't distract the walkers too much. How could I be thinking like that? Walkers had just broken into our home and instead of helping my new family I was busy focussing on keeping myself alive. But isn't that what Daryl had told me? If you can't help make sure that you survive? With shaky steps and a shakier hand I let loose an arrow on a walker that was beginning to get too close. Find someone, get out.

It was actually daddy who found me, his leg hindered his get away slightly, but he agreed to come with me to search the prison for anyone else who was still there. I walked slowly, as not to tire him out and went down to the closest cell block I could find. Judy should be there with Carl …

I left my father outside the cell block, somewhere safe with a flimsy, but stable gate protecting him before breaking into a sprint. Judy was the main concern, that's if Rick and Carl hadn't found her first, of course. As I turned into the block a bullet pinged so close to my head I could feel the heat from it, instinctively I turned back for cover and again notched an arrow into the bow and waited. I waited until I heard footsteps come towards me before I swung out from my hiding space and almost let loose on the arrow. Thankfully, I didn't.

"Beth!" It was Daryl. Relief swarmed me and I nearly dropped to the floor infront of him, it was probably his arms that were gripping my shoulders to steady me that stopped me. "Y'need t'go!" There was a sense of urgency that unnerved me, his eyes were wild and his grip tightened. "Wait for me at our place, okay?" He kissed my forehead hard and went to leave.

"No! Daryl, no! You're not leavin' me again! I'm comin' with you!" It probably wasn't the right moment to take a stand against him, but there was no way I was going to let him fight this on his own.

"This 'aint time for heroics!" His voice grew and grew with each word and his desperation radiated from him.

"Then why are you insistin' on goin' alone?!" I screamed to match his voice, it was then that I realised that I didn't want to do this because I wanted to help him, I was doing it because I couldn't do it without him.

"'Cause I fuckin' love you!" His voice was so loud it was a roar above the gunfire and we both fell immediately silent straight after. "Now get your daddy an' the kids you can find an' take them to our place." His eyes were brimming with tears, not even from sadness I realised, but fear. "I need y'to go, okay?"

In response I wrapped an arm around his neck and kissed him hard. It didn't take long for my tongue to find his and we were stood, perpetually frozen in the moment. His hands stroked down my side one more time and my fingers laced through his hair before we broke apart.

"I love you too." I whispered, before running away to find survivors I wasn't sure even existed.