The One Left Behind

TV Show: Walking Dead

Pairing: Daryl and Beth (Bethyl)

Genre: Romance/ Angst

Set a little after the night of 5X16

NOTE: I can only hope we get Beth back in the Season 6 premiere. If not, they missed out on an awesome story plot.

Ch. 1 Nightmares and Ghosts

Blurred images. Sounds. *Shing* *BOOM*. A gunshot fills the hallway. It echoes and rings in his ears. Blood. Blood is everywhere. Sound of crying. It's him, he's crying. Bang...

Daryl woke up, his only ticket out of that nightmare. He could feel that he was in a cold sweat and felt nauseous. His heart was hammering in his chest. The nightmares had cooled down a while ago but now that he was on his way back to Grady Memorial Hospital, they had amplified quite a bit.

*Yesterday*

Rick stops Daryl. "You don't have to do this."

Daryl stops and glares at Rick, "You're right. I don't have to. I need to do this. You executed Pete. We need another doctor don't we?"

Rick sighed, "We have Maggie and Carol. They learned from Hershel. We'll be fine without him."

Daryl shook his head, "Deanna says she wants someone with experience like Pete. I'm going and it's settled."

Rick's head lowered, "Look, I know you blame me for leaving her behind. But you guys went back and she was gone. She's not-"

Daryl interrupted Rick, "It's my job to get people."

Daryl started to walk off but Rick grabbed his arm. Daryl turned around and Rick stated, "I know what you're doing to yourself. You're looking for something that's not there. It'll tear you apart if you don't-"

Daryl could feel his temper get the best of him, "I'm not goin' over the deep end. It's my job to search and find. It's my job. Isn't what you wanted? For us all to fit in?"

Rick sighed, "And I know why you chose this one in particular. You have to admit to yourself that you're still looking for her. That's why you took the job in the first place. That's why you separated yourself. It hurts, I know but you have to let it-"

Daryl slightly loses it, "Don't you tell me what I have to do. I didn't make the call to leave her behind. I coulda' carried her! We didn't have to leave her in a raggedy ol' car surrounded by walkers. I blame myself, for not knocking you on your ass and bringing her anyways."

"We were surrounded by Walkers. You think I don't feel-"

"I don't care how you feel. We bury the ones we love. We don't burn them, we don't put them in cars, and we don't LEAVE them. We all know she deserved better. Now can I go?" Daryl turned and walked to join Aaron at the front gates.

Everyone around them were wide eyed.

"So you know where this place is located?" Aaron asked as he started up the engine of the car.

Daryl hopped on his motor cycle and revved the engine, "It's a big hospital in Georgia. Grady Memorial Hospital."

Aaron followed Daryl, "Sounds familiar. And what makes you think they'll come?"

Daryl kept a slow pace beside Aaron. "Well, when we asked the first time we didn't have walls and a roof over our head. They have the same thing but more people means more protection."

Aaron nodded, "And you said there was a doctor? "

"That or guy just likes to wear lab coats for a fashion statement." Daryl gained speed and took the lead.

After a few hours of traveling, Daryl gave the signal to take a rest stop and set up camp for the night.

After taking out a few cans of beans, Aaron spoke up, "I heard the conversation with Rick."

Daryl acted like he didn't hear him and kept stringing noise barricades around them.

"You need to talk about-"

Daryl suddenly turned around and walked to Aaron, so close that Daryl was just inches from his face. Daryl's face was cold and glaring. "I'm getting' real tired of people tellin' me what I need to do. I don't need to talk about nothin'."

Aaron nodded and Daryl turned and continued what he was doing.

*Present Time*

Daryl looked around to see if Aaron had noticed his not so heavenly slumber. Aaron had noticed. He was keeping watch.

"So, her name's Beth?" Aaron looked at Daryl with reassuring eyes. Beckoning for him to talk.

"Huh?" Daryl was still getting over the nightmare tremors and Aaron's question didn't really register.

"You kept saying something that sounded like Beth in your sleep."

Daryl realized what Aaron was getting at. At that time, Daryl picked himself up off the ground, slung his crossbow over his shoulder, and started to go into the thick brush of the forest.

Aaron sighed, "Daryl, you can't hold it in."

Daryl turned around and said, "I'm gonna go look for some food."

"We have food." Aaron pulled out a can of beans.

"I meant something other than what's in a shitty can." Daryl continued what he was doing as Aaron just shook his head.

…

Daryl noticed it was almost the beginning of another day. The sun was just barely peeking out. He had been walking for only maybe five minutes and looked around to make sure no one and nothing was around. He found a big tree and sat down much like he did when he had found that barn. He pulled out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it.

He could feel it before it even registered with his brain. The overwhelming sensation in his chest as it started to constrict. He couldn't help but let a strangled whimper escape his lips as he once again took Carol's advice, and just let him feel it. This time though, it somehow felt worse. His dream had made him feel like he had just relived her death all over again. He had tried to move on. People died in this world. Then The tears started brimming his eyes.

He heard a leaf crunch and a twig snap. He whipped around, forgetting about his cigarette hitting the ground, and saw that it was just Aaron.

"See? It feels good to let out some emotion every once in a while." Aaron smiled at him.

Daryl wiped his eyes clean and like a caged animal being cornered, lashed out, "What do you know?!"

"I know a lot about loss-"

"Bull shit. You haven't had what I had taken away from me. Even after you fought so hard to get it back, it just ends up blowing up in your face in the end. Having the only lightness you had in the word just…."

*Flashback Scene*

Daryl was getting closer to Buttons with the rope.

"You used to be someone's huh?"….. "But now….. You're just yours."

"I get it now." Beth stabs Dawn.

Boom. Beth's figure falls to the ground.

"You're gonna be the last man standin'."

"Don't idunno… What changed your mind?"

"You're gonna miss me so bad when I'm gone, Daryl Dixon."

*End of Flashback Scene*

"Daryl?"

Daryl looked up about to say something when a gunshot echoed over the forest and a scream overtook the quiet forest.

Daryl immediately picked himself up off the ground and grabbed his cross bow but a bullet narrowly missed his head right as he raised it.

A very dirty looking man with a W on his forehead held a gun and pointed it at Daryl. "I'd stay still if I were you and lower that cross bow."

"What do you wa-" Daryl started but the man chimed in, "Put down the crossbow, and we will talk."

Daryl hated when he was forced to drop his crossbow. But it was either do it or die so he complied with the man.

"Now, my question first. You haven't seen a cute little girl and a boy run by your path, have you?"

Daryl slightly scowled. He knew what kind of guy he was. And he already didn't like him. Just the way the man looked and said "cute".

"Uh, no. Why?" Daryl questioned.

"No reason. They owe us some food that is rightly ours and I want it back." The man looked Daryl up and down.

Daryl didn't like this guy. Something was definitely off. He gave off a kind of smell that reminded him off the Claimers.

"Oh and the little girl owed me some… other favors." The grotesque smile that filled the man's face made Daryl want to vomit but this is what the man wanted. He wanted to know if the two could hang. If they were to show being against it they might as well shoot themselves in the head.

"Oh really? I haven't seen a piece of ass in seems like months. Was she cute?" Daryl gave cheap smile and played along. Aaron knew what he was doing and just nodded and followed Daryl's lead.

The man kept his smile on his face, "Oh yeah. Real cute. Huge innocent baby blue eyes, nice ass, oh and blonde hair. Her face was all scarred, Looked like she'd been through the ringer if you ask me. She was a real looker, though. Seemed a little young too, the feisty ones really get me goin'."

Daryl's eyes grew wide. He knew it was impossible but…. He decided to not think about it and keep his act up. No matter how hard it was to not rip this man a new asshole. "She does sound like good 'on. Do you have any idea which direction they went? Maybe we can help you track her. I'm good at that kinda stuff. In payment you could let me have a go with the girl." Daryl winked while smiling.

"Hmm, I don't know. I was really looking forward to breakin' her in." The man started walking and Daryl followed with Aaron behind.

They had only walked a few paces when the man stopped suddenly. "Hear that?"

Daryl stopped and listened. There was a dense male scream not too far away.

They all started running towards it. The man suddenly stopped again and said, "Split up. We can cover more ground and hopefully we'll meet in the middle with both of em'."

Daryl didn't like the idea of splitting up but he wasn't going to argue. Daryl went the opposite way of both men and made his way through the thick forest. A walker came out of nowhere and he quickly shot it. He left the bolt he was in such a hurry to get to the poor souls before the man did.

But running while putting another bolt in proved to be not such a smart idea.

He hit something and then fell on top of it. Before he could react the person flipped him over and nailed him in the face. He had apparently knocked their weapon some ways off because they immediately went for it. He definitely felt his nose start to swell. Trying not to think of it he picked his crossbow up and aimed it at them. "Stop! I'm not a threat. I'm not one of 'em."

The person had already gotten their weapon…. It was a crossbow just like his.

He jumped up and aimed it at their back, "If you don't stop I will have to shoot, ya'. It won't be fatal but it will hurt somethin' fierce."

He could hear a feminine laugh come from the person. "I think you know better than anyone else that I'm not scared of gettin' shot."

Daryl was confused until the person turned around. His breath caught and he dropped his crossbow.

A smiling Beth Greene was standing not even 6 feet away from him, crossbow at her side.

Suddenly he felt someone run into him. A teenage boy with a black t-shirt on.

Daryl had been in such a bliss that he hadn't even felt the knife enter his shoulder. All he heard was Beth's scream.