A/N: First off, Happy New Year! Secondly, I'm so sorry for the long wait on this chapter. The holidays were crazy but now that they are done with, I should be back to my regular updating schedule. (I also wrote and posted two one-shots between this chapter and the previous one, so if you're looking for something else to read... :) )

This is my longest chapter yet so I hope it slightly makes up for the wait.

I hope you enjoy it! And reviews are always greatly appreciated!

It's nearly sunset and there's still no word from Merle. Beth's worried, not even knowing exactly what he had taken off for, but she assumes it had to deal with his "business". And in that line of work, bad things happen to people all the time, right? That's what she always assumed. Merle is tough and he can hold his own, she never had a doubt about that. But sometimes, things happen. She just hopes that they didn't happen to him.

Daryl's reaction is so completely different from hers. He doesn't seem concerned in the way that she is, it's not fear that overtakes him. If Beth had to categorize it as anything, she'd say it was anger. Now, Daryl's never been one to talk about his feelings all that much, at least not really to her, but she picks up on it. He's grown quieter as the day went on, he snaps at her for no reason, for little things. He smokes more cigarettes in a half-day than she even thought possible. He's upset, she knows that. And while she never really brought it up all day, she finally hits her breaking point when he growls at her for taking too long in a fast food joint restroom.

"Will you just call him already?" Beth bites back at him, ignoring the looks they get from a family of four when she raises her voice. Daryl looks momentarily stunned by her outburst but his face soon turns sour.

"'Scuse me?"

"Call him, call Merle. Ask where he's at and make sure he's okay, so you can stop acting like a two year old." Daryl's face reddens and he leans in close enough so that she can feel the heavy, quick exhales from his nostrils. But Beth holds her ground, she doesn't step back or cower. Daryl doesn't scare her. And she is done with him today.

"That what you think, you think I'm scared he's dead?" His voice is lowered and it's not because of the mom and dad escorting their children to another table on the opposite side of the restaurant.

"Well, what else would it be?" she counters. Daryl snorts and turns away from her, heading for the door.

"You know nothin'. I ain't afraid of nothin'." He pushes it open with too much force and Beth stomps out there after him. This conversation isn't over, not until he realizes he's being a complete dick to her and she doesn't deserve it.

"Oh, we back to this now? You gonna get all defensive and shove me away? Make us take ten giant steps backwards?"

"Back to this? Girl, I've always been this! I always will be. I didn't magically change, least of all 'cause of you! There ain't no us."

His words hit her hard, like a Mack Truck flying down the highway, so punchy that she stops in her tracks and hesitates with another step. He seems to realize what he's said too because he looks over his shoulder and slows down his own strides in the middle of the parking lot.

"He's your brother. Of course you care, of course you're worried."

"What the hell d'ya know? Merle always does this! He always disappears, ever since I was a kid. He leaves me hangin' and he runs off. And then in a few weeks or months or a year, he'll pop up again, like nothin' happened." Beth listens, moving her lips to try and say something in reply but she can't. She doesn't have any words of comfort or explanation in the moment. "Always pops back up when he needs somethin' or when whoever he's usin' gets sick of bein' used. That's Merle."

"He'll come back..." Her voice rises towards the end, almost a question. And he snorts at her.

"Don't change the fact that he leaves. Not that you'd get it, you're the one who left your family to go roadtrippin' and have a party." Beth stills at his words, the pumping of her blood seeming to slow. "Gettin' tanked at seedy motels with strange men. Trailin' after 'em like a lost puppy. Kissin' 'em." All of a sudden, the blood rushes to her face and her hands clench at her sides. She advances towards him and her unforeseen jolt of confidence seems to catch him off guard, because his back straightens as she nears.

"Don't you take out your anger at Merle on me! You don't get to do that. That isn't fair!"

Daryl scoffs and waves her off; she thinks maybe he wasn't expecting that, that maybe he thought she'd back down and take his heat. But no, she wasn't about to play that game. She wasn't gonna let him demoralize her or diminish... whatever it is they have together. An uneasy silence hangs over the parking lot.

While she won't accept his displaced rage, his words to resonate in her head. She thinks of herself, running away, leaving her family. And what did she expect whenever she decided to go back home? That things would just pick up how they were, that everything would be okay with her father, with her sister? No, it'd be completely naive to think so. And if Daryl's reaction is any indication...

He's pacing now, hands on his hips and head tilted down. He kicks a pebble across the asphalt before moving back towards his truck.

"Okay. So he's gone. What do you do now? What do you do when he's not around?" It seems like a dumb question, but Daryl is calmer at least. He's not as aggravated anymore, he looks defeated, and Beth wants to embrace him so badly. She takes a few steps towards him, waiting for his feet to slow or still.

"I'unno." Finally he stops and she cautiously slides her arms around his torso from behind, hugging him loosely at first. Once he relaxes into her touch, she tightens her hold and he lets out a long shaky breath. "I just always waited around for him to show up again. To get outta jail, come off his bender."

Beth thinks of Merle, of his charming grin and the way he had slung his arm around her and treated her like family. How she fell for it, that some part of her thought the three of them would be on the road together for a while and have adventures or some other callow, childish notion. All she feels towards Merle right now is disappointment and maybe a slight taste of bitterness. Perhaps because she wonders if she is like him.

"He's got the bike," she whispers against the leather of his vest, the fact randomly occurring to her. She had grown quite fond of it. And to her surprise, Daryl's body rumbles with a small bout of laughter, like thunder in his chest that vibrates into her bones.

"He always takes the damn bike."

They are somewhere outside of Montgomery, smaller towns that pop up and disappear before you can blink. It's nice, Beth thinks, it's quiet. There's peace and the stillness of fall, but there's life and people. There's still a touch of the outside world that sometimes she thinks she may forget altogether if her and Daryl drove off the map far enough. And that might be okay, at least she likes to imagine. He's good company, when he's not having a fit or snipping at her caring or even for something outside of her control. Beth laughs to herself and he throws her a curious look from the inside of the truck's back window.

They're pulled over, Daryl claiming something's off with his steering, so he's fiddling around with the thing. And for there being a possible problem with his only available mode of transportation, he's pretty composed. Maybe it was because of his Merle breakdown over a week ago.

She's sitting in the truck bed, going through both of their bags and sorting clean clothes from the dirty ones. So domestic, yet weirdly out of place, she muses. They're basically living out of their cars and she busies herself with mundane chores. It became a regular routine and she oddly enough found she had favorites of his clothing. She always made sure his collared cut-off shirt was washed as soon as possible; his arms were something else in it.

There's a hand-painted sign propped up alongside the road, and another one down a ways, if she squints. Neatly printed bright red letters, just slightly crooked towards the end. FINAL MOVIE IN THE PARK: TONIGHT, OCTOBER 24TH.

Was it that late already?

"I missed Maggie's birthday," she thinks aloud, sitting up a bit straighter as she moves to her knees. Every hair on her body stands up on end and her heart thumps in her ears.

"'Hmm?" Daryl hums, poking his head outside, eyes squinted in the bright sun.

"Maggie's birthday, I missed it." She recalls every year in her mind, one by one, as far back as her memory allows. "We've never missed each other's birthdays. She always came home from school or I visited her if she was away... I never miss her birthday." She had thought about it before, back in Jackson or Little Rock, some damn town where she was roaming around like some useless vagabond. But it slipped her mind, she missed it.

"Just another day." Daryl sounds so blasé about it, like it's no big deal. He doesn't even bother to hold his eyes on her and all she can do for a second is stare at him, confused, her lips parted.

"It's not just another day. We never miss each other's birthdays, Daryl." He heaves a heavy sigh and she's just waiting for him to come back at her with something that stings, but he doesn't. He nods his head and grips the top of the door frame, flexing all his fingers, like he's unsure of himself. But he looks calm and almost empathetic.

"Write her another letter, then." They never talked about the postcard, but that wasn't anything new. She never told him what she wrote, she never even told him thank you for it. They never seemed to talk about anything at all after the fact, with the exception of Merle leaving. And while that had been therapeutic in some sense (he truly seemed less uptight), nothing else had been touched on yet.

There's a part of her brain that tells her to argue with him but what's the point? She doesn't want to bicker. She just wants the swirling guilt in her stomach to go away. Maybe a letter will help with that. "Yeah, maybe I should."

"Or give her a call." That's the end of the discussion and suddenly she needs to stretch her legs. The piles of sorted clothes go forgotten for the moment and she hops out onto the ground and wanders in the field alongside the road, thinking of homemade cards and trick candles and meticulously wrapped presents.

Daryl says he needs to take the truck to a shop, something about the steering column being off and she doesn't argue. He tells her she can go off if she wants and they can meet up later, once he's done getting in checked out. It's tempting, to go exploring; there's some Civil War landmarks around and the scape sure is pretty. But she finds herself longing to spend the day with Daryl, at least being there for him; while his blow-up a few days back indicated that he was pretty used to it, she still found herself wanting to keep him company. And not just for his sake. Maggie had been on her mind all day and she didn't really want to be alone. Too much thinking gets done when she is all by her lonesome.

While he's talking to one of the local mechanics, some guy with a dice tattoo on his neck and the name Axel embroidered on his jumpsuit, she wanders into the lobby. There's a few banged up chairs, some well-read magazines scattered on a rickety old table. Music seeps from a small outdated boom box in the corner, a song about moonlight and moss in trees, something she vaguely recognizes, and the melody sticks with her. And there's a payphone too, tucked away in the corner, behind a small divider sticking out from the wall. Her stomach lurches at the sight.

She should call home, she knows she should. It's nearly noon so someone will be inside if she calls the house. And if nothing has changed with Maggie, she'll have her cell phone tucked in her back pocket, mainly for purposes of keeping in touch Glenn throughout the day. Somehow the thought of talking on the phone terrifies her ten times more than writing a silly little postcard; maybe because she doesn't feel like she has a valid excuse for leaving home in the middle of the night, with hardly any kind of goodbye.

She inches over to the phone and picks it up. Dial tone. There's some spare change in the bottom of her purse and she feeds in the coins before dialing her sister's number.

It rings and rings and time seems to slide to a halt. The music fades out to a fuzzy static and her body suddenly seems so heavy, she has to lean against the phone box. And then her sister's familiar voice is there, on the other end.

"Hello?"

There's a part of her that wishes Daryl would waltz into the lobby now, an excuse to hang up and forget all about this. But oh, how good it is to hear Maggie's voice, even just a few syllables. Tears spring to her eyes and she takes in a deep breath through her nose.

"Hi, Maggie." There's a pregnant pause and she's wondering if she's about to get screamed at from across state lines.

"Beth? Beth, is that you?" And Beth is all but sobbing now, resting her forehead against the cool metal box.

"I'm sorry I missed your birthday."

"Where are you? Oh my god. Is everything okay? I'll come get you, just tell me where you are." Maggie sounds more frantic than emotional and Beth can her rustling in the background, like she's digging through a drawer or a closet, trying to find something. Beth wonders if it's a pen to write things down or a jacket to throw on, like she's gonna bust out of the house as soon as she's off the phone. That would be a lot like Maggie.

"I'm sorry I missed it," she repeats. It's all she can think about.

"Beth, it's okay. Tell me where you are. Are you safe?"

"I'm fine, I promise. I... I'll come home soon. I don't know when. I just have... stuff to do. And then I'll come home." It wasn't a lie. She always intended on coming home, sometime. Even though the longer she was out, the harder it was to imagine coming home with no problem at all. It stretched out, with every day, filling her with more fear and terror and anxiety. Seeing the amount of animosity Daryl carried for his brother, for leaving and abandoning him with no notice. Was she that bad? She might be.

Maggie sighs heavily and it's shaky; her voice cracks. "Please, just come home. We miss you and we just want you home. Daddy's..." she trails off and Beth wipes at her eyes with the side of her hand.

"Are you mad at me?" It sounds so childish, she realizes, especially in the soft nearly broken voice she asks it in. But she needs to know because all she sees is fuming, heated Daryl pacing and throwing his arms around like a broken windmill.

"What? No, I'm not mad. We've been so worried, so worried." Beth's breathing begins to even out and when she turns her head, she can see Daryl and the mechanic through the large window, standing in front of the truck. "I will come get you right now. Please." Now Maggie is the one whispering and what Beth wouldn't do for a hug from her sister right now.

"I love you. I miss you. Tell daddy..."

"I will." There's a part of her that wonders why Maggie isn't arguing with her more, isn't pleading with her to stop being stupid and come home right now. There's no chastising. It's surprising but there aren't words for how much she appreciates it. That doesn't stop her from speculating why her sister is being so accepting though. "Please. Soon, Beth."

"Yeah. I love you," she repeats again, Daryl's form growing bigger and bigger as he approaches the door to the lobby.

"I love you." And Beth hangs up. Daryl wanders into the lobby, the door slowly pulling shut behind him. He looks a bit peeved; there could be imaginary steam coming from his ears.

"Stuck in this shithole for a few days," he speaks up, walking towards her though his paces slow as she hurriedly wipes at her eyes. But she knows it's useless, she knows her eyes are still watering and probably rimmed with redness. "You okay?" His tone is strange, it's not detached like she's grown accustomed to. It's gentler. She forces herself to smile big until it softens into an actual genuine one after gazing at him for a moment, his eyes peering out from his too long bangs and his shoulders pulled back like he's willing to beat the shit out of whoever or whatever it was that made her upset.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She lets out a long breath and straightens up, pulling on the strap of her bag. "So, we're stuck here? What are we gonna do to kill the time?"

Daryl shrugs and he looks outside before throwing a cautious look her way, a near smile ghosting his lips. "Can I drive your car?"

She lets him have the keys and can't bite back her smile when he curses and has to adjust the seat and mirrors completely. Somehow the image of him with his knees nearly to his chin is just too comical.

"Not that it's my place, but how are you gonna pay for your truck?" He doesn't say anything for a long while, just stares straight ahead, and she wonders if he's choosing to simply ignore her because she could see him doing that. It's a legitimate question; she can't imagine it's cheap and if she can assume anything, it's that he probably has hardly any more money in his wallet than she has in her own. Finally he glances at her from the corner of his eye and he straightens up in his seat. She remembers then, how could she forget? The drugs.

"Don't be judgin' me." Daryl's voice is oddly soft; still gruff and a bit muddled together, that will never change. But he does sound a bit... ashamed. And she's about to tell him that she's not, she's not judging him, it's just concern. It will come off as judgement anyway, though.

"I thought Merle had all the drugs," she replies, keeping her voice quiet too. It seems to fit the topic at hand.

"Had some stashed in the truck."

"I just wish you wouldn't-"

"I know, you damn near told me a hundred times already," he spits back, braking so hard at a red light that she grips the armrest between them. "You think I can just settle down somewhere and get a normal job, that ain't how it works. That's not how it is with me. Can't just put on a tie and get a job."

"Have you ever even tried?" she retorts, her chin high and her gaze so intense, she could very well burn holes into him with just her look. Daryl grunts and she can't help but roll her eyes. She's not judging, she's really trying not to.

"Anyway, I ain't sellin'. We're tradin'."

"Oh, so bartering is more acceptable than selling."

"Girl." His tone is like a warning and she hates it when he talks to her like that. But she drops it, for now. She's had a whirlwind of emotions already today and it wasn't even sunset. Silence fills the car for a few blocks as they drive, heading nowhere as far as she knows, and they pass more of those homemade MOVIE IN THE PARK signs. He probably won't be up for it, doesn't seem like his sort of schtick, but for everything that's happened in the past week or so, she wants a little bit of normalcy.

"They sure are pushin' this movie thing," Beth states as they drive past yet another sign, looking over at Daryl expectedly. His face contorts and she knows he's still a bit peeved at her nose being all up in his illegal business, but he gives into her request anyway.

"Yeah, yeah. Just 'cause they might got food, and I'm hungry."

It's a nice little set-up; the screen was stretched out at the base of a hill that was cluttered with families and groups and some couples, spread out on blankets and lawn chairs. There was in fact food, much to Daryl's delight; hot dogs and popcorn and even hot cocoa. They're playing The Wizard of Oz tonight and it may seem silly, but it lifts Beth's spirits in a way she really needed. She hasn't seen the movie in some time; it always was one of her favorites when she was little.

"Do you like The Wizard of Oz?" she asks once they are settled down on the grass, off-center from the screen but still with a decent view. Daryl's shoveling a hot dog into his mouth like he can't eat it fast enough and she has to smile at how endearing he is in the moment.

"Yeah, used to watch it every year as a kid, on TV," he replies between chews, his cheeks full and round.

"Really?"

"My ma loved it a lot..." He seems to stop mid-thought, swallowing the last of his food and looking down at his lap. Beth senses the shift but she still reaches over and wipes a bit of mustard from the corner of his mouth, caught in the hairs there. Daryl looks over at her suddenly and oh, how she wants to kiss him.

"You mad that I kissed you?" she inquires, her voice so soft he wonders if he can hear her. But something passes over his features and she knows he has; she contemplates if she should specify but he knows just what she's referencing. Hell, he was the one who threw it back in her face not too long ago.

"Not mad. Never said that."

"But you didn't want me to." It's not a question and he starts to squirm, little movements like the jittering of one of his crossed knees and tapping of his fingers.

"Didn't say that neither." Her eyes bore holes into him and she knows how uncomfortable he is. But the air needed to be cleared sometime, right?

She remembers the night so well, even if she was a bit buzzed. The way she brazenly slid into his lap and pressed her body against his, kissing him with all sorts of pent up lust and confusion and loneliness. She had been bold, showcasing a different kind of brashness than what she did with him now. Because back then, he was almost a figment of her imagination. She didn't know him, she'd only spent a day with this strange man yet she was so compelled to feel more of him. And now here she was, a month later, having spent nearly every moment with him. Traveling across state lines and picking up pieces here and there about him, until he wasn't just a figment. Daryl is fleshed out now, he's real, and while she certainly doesn't know all the ins and outs to him (he is quite the enigma, she decides), she still knows him. And he still causes that swirl in her stomach, she still catches herself gazing at him for longer than she should. And she finds herself wanting to know all those ins and outs, to learn every bit about him, the good and the bad.

"Then... what?"

The screen lights up and the crowd of people cheer as the film begins to roll, their voices slowly drowning out and Beth has to commend the world on its timing. She's still peering at him and finally, he tilts his chin up towards her.

"What's a girl like you doin' hangin' 'round me?" The sweeping opening tune of 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow' almost wipes out his words but his eyes are clearer than she's ever seen them. So she doesn't even hesitate when she wraps a hand around his arm and scoots closer, her fingers sliding down his warm skin until they find his hand and link together with his own.

"You like havin' me around, yeah? You told me that before." Daryl's eyes drop for a moment before he looks back up at her and for any surliness he's shown her in the past, right now he looks so nervous and unsure. "I like havin' you around too. I like bein' around you. And roamin' around with you." His fingers twitch against the back of her hand. "Why were you so kind to me, back then, when we met?"

Daryl shrugs but he doesn't let go of her hand as they settle intertwined on the small patch of grass between them. "Was lonely, I guess. Merle took off. And you were there, drunk as a skunk." Beth lets out a laugh and he cracks a grin at her, one that lights up her insides.

"I was lonely too." Her confession seems to stun him, his expression shifting. "But I'm not here with you now because I'm lonely. I guess I've learned so much about myself, since we've met. And it just hasn't felt like the right time for me to go home yet. I still... there's still things I wanna do and I wanna experience. And being out here with you, that's one of the things I'm not ready to give up just yet."

A grey-haired woman in front of them turns around just then and shushes them, her eyebrows knitted together. Beth sheepishly mouthes an apology before the woman turns forward and places her hand on the back of the young girl beside her.

When her attention falls back to Daryl, he's practically gawking at her and her cheeks heat up under his fixed stare. It's not boldness that has her leaning into him this time, it's certainty; sureness that it was in fate's plan to have her meet him all along, that leaving and being away from home would be a nonstop, difficult adventure, but it had a purpose. So there's no hesitancy when she presses her mouth to his and he kisses her back like it's there last moments on Earth. Maybe it is. Maybe it will be. If that's the case, she's at peace, because she made that phone call and she has learned something about herself and she has found some sort of... affection. Something more complicated than friendship but deeper than lust; a connection and mutual tenderness. They weren't dependent on each other but they enhanced one another, they made each other's loads a little bit lighter.

She pulls back only when she needs a breath and she never really noticed his eyelashes till now, as they flutter and dance. There's a giggle from in front of them and when Beth turns her head, the young girl is watching them with the widest grin she's seen in some time. Daryl notices too and clears his throat, head ducking down, but Beth simply accepts the color that flushes her cheeks and laughs with the girl.

There's little talking between them the rest of the movie; he seems enthralled, like he's seeing a film for the first time and she can't help but relish in the nostalgia that washes over her during it. She sings along, murmuring, and he holds her hand throughout the whole thing, like they're on a real date or something. She feels brighter again and it's nice. And when the movie ends, they stay put as families funnel out, dads carrying their sleeping children and moms leading their kids through the mass of people, listening to their endless strings of questions.

Daryl looks sleepy and she's about to offer to pay for a room for them, it's the least she can do since she really hasn't held up her end on that expense line. But other words tumble out of her mouth instead.

"You know I only give you a hard time about that... stuff because I care, right?" It's a direct question and she expects him to squirm or at least look away. But he manages to glance over at her. She still can't read his face though.

"Why?" is all he asks, his voice low amidst the chattering voices and happy shrieks of children. He's plucking out blades of grass and for some reason, his hands are mesmerizing.

"Why what?

"Why do you care?"

"I just do. I just... care about you."

She kisses him again, this time it's slow and fluid. The whole world stops around them.