Beth's Old Sweet Shoppe

Chapter 7:

Chapter 7:

Looking at the blood on her wooden floor of the bedroom, she shakes tears from her eyes as she walks passed it to her dresser. A cleaning crew is coming to clean it up, but it won't ever take away what happened. Did it have to end like that? With him dead?

She's asked herself that so many times and all her answers come back to yes...even if it hurts to think that way. That could've easily been her in that body bag last night, if Daryl wouldn't have been shot instead. If they hadn't shown up, they would be finding the candy store closed for a while until they found her body upstairs, bloodied, cold and lying on the bed. So even though it's a terrible ending for Gareth, yes, he deserved to go that way.

Gathering his clothes and shit, she stuffs it into black trash bags and takes them to the thrift store down town so they can go to people who need them, though who wants to wear a dead guy's clothes, let alone an asshole's?

It's Sunday, so going to church, she sits with her father and siblings, along with Carol and Sophia, in their pew. Everyone in town already knows what has happened and all people say to Beth is 'we'll pray for you' or 'at least yer safe now' and some just give her sad faces. She hates this attention and wishes it wasn't this way.

The whole service was about forgiving people's sins and healing the weak. Was that the congressional saying they should forgive Gareth for his ways and Beth's weak and needs to heal? Se shakes her head at this sermon. Stepping outside after it's over she's startled when a Gareth's mother Mary and his brother Alex come charging up to her on the church's steps.

"You bitch!" She points at Beth with a frail finger. "You lil bitch! Who do you think you are!"

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Bane..." Beth tries to step back, but there are people standing in the doorway, blocking her escape. Alex steps forward, angry, but rational, and tries to pull his mother back down the steps away from Beth.

"You killed him you whore! You devil witch!" Rushing back up the steps, Mary smacks and claws at Beth, reopening her stitches on her left cheek with her nails. Beth holds her face as blood starts to drip from her cheek and onto her white sweater that's over he yellow polo.

"Let's go mom!" Alex commands as he drags his crying and screaming mother down the steps and to his car.

"You burn in HELL you bitch! Fucking bitch killed my son! You killed my son!" Getting her in the car, they drive off and the church goers stare at Beth, who holds her bleeding cheek. Going down the sidewalk, she rushes away from the church and down a few side streets until she reaches the familiar fence and opens the gate. She sits on the bench, holding her face until she hears the gate reopen about half an hour later.

"Beth...what are you doing here?" Daryl asks confused until he sees the blood on her sweater that is staining her yellow shirt and the tears in her eyes- then he becomes concerned and rushes to her side, in pain. "What happened?"

"Gareth's mother came to the church and jus...jus lost it in front of everyone. she blames me....she blames me and I think the whole town blames me... I jus can't live like this..." Sitting on the bench next to her, he pulls her into his aching chest and throbbing shoulder, but ignores the pain as he holds her tightly.

"Beth, it's okay...that wasn't on you. That's on Jim and I...do you realize that could've easily been you last night? Beth, you can't blame yerself cause he made rash decisions." He moves her so she can look at him. He's pale and clammy, but he looks concerned and worried about her.

"Daryl...you need to go rest inside. Come on." She helps him up and they walk upstairs, with him leaning on her slightly. Getting the door open, they let Jake outside and she sets him on the couch. "Do you need yer pain medication?"