This is just a short epilogue to show some last cute moments between Daryl and Beth.

I can't thank you enough to those who have read this story and stuck with this story and gave it a chance. I loved writing it so much but this story was exhausting for me in a lot of ways and I am honestly excited to move onto something else that won't seem to rub so many people the wrong way. Thank you again for everything. I know there are so many who love it and I can't thank you enough for your kind words and support through this.

…

Chapter Thirty.

"Well," Beth beamed at him as they walked out of the diner, her hand immediately going to his and twining their fingers together.

"It still don't count, Beth," Daryl gave her a slight frown, reading her mind.

She nearly laughed. "Why not? It was dinner and I didn't pay. Sounds like a date to me. And look. I'm wearing a dress."

"You're always wearin' a dress," he said. "And it don't count 'cause there were five other people with us and Dale picked up the check."

She couldn't hold it in any longer and she laughed now.

After work that evening, Dale had wanted to treat everyone out for dinner and it been such a fun meal, Axel and Martinez trying to up one another with ridiculous stories and sometimes, Beth was laughing so hard, she felt as if she was going to start crying. And she was happy that things between her and Zach weren't as awkward as they had once been. He had begun dating a girl from the community college and he seemed to finally accept that Beth and Daryl were very much together and he had never really had a chance anyway even before they were.

She liked Zach though. They were close in age and they listened to much of the same music and had spent some of the meal talking about their newfound love for Vance Joy. Apparently, he was coming to Atlanta and Zach had offered to get three tickets for himself and the other two for Daryl and Beth. Beth had suggested he get another ticket and bring the girl he was dating along as well.

"A double date," she said with a smile.

It had been raining that morning so Daryl had driven them to work in the pickup truck. And nearing it now, Daryl unlocked the passenger side door and pulled it open for Beth. She stopped and smiled up at him but didn't get in.

"I told you, Daryl. We've already had our first date. I think we're probably up to our tenth date by now, at least," she said.

But he just shook his head like the stubborn man he was. "None of those ten times counted," he reminded her, thinking she was being the stubborn one. "Our first date isn't gonna be gas station food and eatin' it on a rock by a body of water."

"Sounds perfect to me," she just kept smiling up at him and he did his best to frown, telling himself that he wasn't going to give in even though she had the prettiest smile he had ever seen on a person.

He had promised her a date and they were going to go on a date, damn it. The timing of it all just never seemed to line up and he still couldn't think of what they should do. Rick had mentioned – when Daryl had casually asked him about it – that a typical first date was something along the lines of dinner and a movie. And Daryl supposed they could do that. It sounded easy enough. Except in the back of his mind, he remembered a comment Beth had made a long time ago about how all they seemed to do together was eat. Daryl didn't want to do something they did all of the time.

The ride back home was mostly quiet except for Beth singing softly along to whatever song was on the alternative music radio station he usually had it set to. He didn't know the song – didn't know most of the music she liked – but she had declared it to be one of her favorites and he made sure to listen to it closely. Sounded like some British guy sinking; something about a cornerstone – whatever the hell that was. But Beth sang with a soft smile on her face and he was reluctant to turn the truck off when they got home, not wanting her to stop her singing.

Harvey was in his pen, bahhing the instant he saw them, and Beth went to greet him as she always did every night with hugs and kisses and asking if he had been a good lamb though how he could have possibly misbehaved was still a little beyond Daryl. Daryl went to the shed where they kept a trashcan full of oats Hershel had given them and he scooped some more into Harvey's bowl even though he spent his days eating the grass around him while Beth went to get him some fresh water from the pump. Harvey wasn't interested in any of it though now that they were home and Daryl opened the gate door to the pen, the lamb trotting right out and following Beth up to the front door of the trailer.

Inside, Daryl sank down into his arm chair and grabbed one of his books – he was trying to read through Dracula right now and he didn't hate it so far – and Harvey stretched down at his feet like any dog would do. Beth went into the bedroom and came out, wearing a heavier sweater, and she went to the keyboard, sitting down on the stool and beginning to work on the song she was in the middle of writing.

It was a quiet evening like they always had. It was a quiet life but it was theirs and it was better than anything they could ask for.

…

On Thanksgiving, it snowed, and Beth shivered and pressed herself against Daryl as if they had moved to the South Pole overnight. The trailer did have heat and he had two space heaters, too, but Beth's teeth kept chattering and he suggested they get to her dad's house earlier than they were expected.

And when they got to the Greene farm, Beth raced inside where she kept wearing her hat, coat, gloves and scarf on for at least another half hour until she deemed herself at a warm enough temperature again. No one else was there yet and Hershel was in the kitchen, basting the turkey as his first and second wives had both shown him throughout their marriage and Beth would help with the stuffing and the mashed potatoes and when Maggie arrived, she would be in charge of the sweet potatoes. Daryl looked at Beth sitting on the couch and he hesitantly approached her.

There were some days where he still felt unsure about all of this. He knew it was a stupid thing to think, of course, but he could never seem to help himself. And he knew that there would always be that part of him that would doubt this whole thing because he had gone his entire life without something good like her and he knew it would probably take the rest of his life getting used to it; because he saw Beth being in his life for as many days as he had left in this world.

"Hey." He stood in front of her and she lifted her head, giving him a smile. "If you wanna stay here… with your pops for the winter-"

"Don't be silly," Beth swiftly cut him off as if she had been expecting all along for him to say something like that. "You know me. I'm always cold," she then reminded him. "I'm just going to get some heavier sweaters and socks. I'll be fine, Daryl," she said and he nodded, his eyes lowering to the floor, and she stood up in front of him. "Hey," she said softly and he looked at her. She gave him that same small smile and her arms circled around his waist. "Guess you'll just have to find some other ways to keep me warm," she said with a twinkle in her eye.

Instead of smirking, Daryl quickly glanced to the kitchen before back to Beth. "Quiet," he said. "Don't wan' your dad to hear. You're a good girl, 'member?" He said.

Beth laughed softly as if she couldn't help herself. "I'm still a good girl, Daryl. But I'm pretty sure my daddy's figured things out between us."

Daryl instantly felt the tips of his ears turn red and Beth laughed again before standing up on her toes and pecking him on the lips.

"What do you know?" She then smiled faintly. "Already so much warmer."

Daryl smirked a little at that and he glanced to the kitchen once more to make sure that Hershel hadn't suddenly appeared before he lowered his lips back to Beth's and gave her a longer kiss, his fingers tangling in her hair, keeping her head to his.

…

Thanksgiving that year at the Greene farm was a full house.

It was Hershel, Beth and Daryl and then Shawn was coming in from Savannah and Maggie and Glenn were driving in from Atlanta as was Rosita, carpooling with them since her own family was in Texas and after all of her personal issues, she didn't have the best relationship with them. Merle and Annie were coming with their one-month old son, Hank. Annie usually cooked a Thanksgiving meal but with the newborn, she was so exhausted and Hershel insisted she come over and let someone else do the cooking. Rick had been invited, too, but he was with the kids and with Lori, too, today – the two deciding to try and work things out between them; to see if things could be worked out.

Daryl stood in the doorway of the living room, drinking from a can of Ginger Ale and looking at all of the people crowded in there, talking and laughing, and passing baby Hank around.

It was still overwhelming to him at times – to be included in something like this; to want to be wanted by so many people in one room. He wondered if it was one of those things he would ever get used to. He didn't know. He did know that he wanted to get used to it though.

He smirked as Merle barked at Shawn, telling him to not touch his baby until he put hand sanitizer on. Daryl had suspected that Merle would be a good dad and so far, he had been right. It seemed like the curse of the Dixon name was finally broken.

And as that thought entered his head, his eyes instantly found Beth in the room. She was sitting in one of the two chairs next to the window, Rosita sitting in the other, and the two girls were leaning into one another, giggling and whispering, and as if she knew that he was looking at her, Beth moved her head to look at him. Her smile brightened the instant their eyes locked and she looked to Rosita, saying something, before she stood up and Daryl watched her coming his way.

Without a word, she came to stand beside him, her arms slipping around his waist and, and he dropped his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled into his side. She smelled like a mixture of buttercream and gravy and he couldn't help but turn his head and nuzzle his nose into the hair at the top of her head, taking a whiff. Beth closed her eyes and smiled and snuggled even closer. He tightened his arm as if she was going to step away at any second and he didn't want her to go anywhere.

It had taken him a while – too damn long – but he knew now that without Beth, he hadn't had much of a life and now that he had her, he wasn't letting her go anywhere without him.

"Been doin' some thinkin'," he said, his nose still to her hair.

"Hmmm?" She tilted her head up slightly.

"'bout our first date…" he took a moment. "How 'bout we get your dad to watch Harvey and we get on my bike and just drive? See where we wind up."

Beth didn't say anything to that at first. She just tightened her arms around his waist and squeezed them around him. "I think that's the best thing I've ever heard," she said. She then tilted her head up to look at him. "Although it won't be our first date. I told you. I think this will be our eleventh."

Daryl just smirked and shook his head a little, his nose going back to her hair. "Stubborn brat," he mumbled and she laughed softly.

"I love you, too," she then said in a soft whisper and he tightened his arm around her.

…

The End.

Thank you so much for reading and please review one more time for me.

One last author's note (even though I really hate having to explain myself): I didn't write this story for conflict or drama. I was going to include Karen to add just that before I realized that it would ruin the story I was trying to tell and I deleted it.

Daryl and Beth had their issues and were working to overcome them. That's all it is and they found love with one another. I feel like there are a ton of other Daryl/Beth stories that have plenty of drama in it if that is more your thing but that's not what this story is about. I feel like every day life can have enough drama in it without adding things to it.