Beth's Old Sweet Shoppe

Chapter 21:

Chapter 21:

Waking up, her throat is scratchy and her body tingles a bit. Earlier this morning the doctor took her breathing tube out and now she feels normal, better even. Turning her head to the side table, she looks at the flowers Daryl had brought her yesterday. It was more than kind of him. She still can't believe he spent 40 minutes doing CPR trying to bring her back. And he said he loved her on top of it all. Looking around the rest of the room, he notices Maggie asleep in the hospital chair by the window and soon enough Carol and Hershel walk in.

"Good morning Jitter Bug."

"Morning..." She croaks and feels so embarrassed of how her voice sounds.

"Haha, wasn't expecting that." Carol says as she hugs the small woman in bed and sits on the windowsill.

"Can I get a drink?" Beth asks sounding like a smoker of forty years.

"Yeah...I get a nurse to bring you so juice." Carol gets up and Maggie wakes up and looks at Beth.

"Yer up. Finally...how you feeling?"

"Like shit..."Beth says and Maggie laughs at her voice. "Shut up!"

"Okay girls. That's enough. Daryl couldn't come in today cause he's putting the case together of Brian, Lerner and Banes. They just brought in Mary who heard about the busy and tried to overdose on heavy drugs...they're treating her right now, but she's most likely going away too." Hershel says as he sits in the other chair in front of Beth's bed.

"Who's gonna be mayor then?"

"That's why I've been down town all morning. They sworn me in..." Hershel says, grumbling a bit, but still happy.

"Congratulations..." The girls say in two very different octaves.

"Here's yer juice. Look who I found wandering around the hallway." Carol smiles as she hands Beth her cup and steps aside so Daryl can come in in his uniform and goes to Beth.

"Morning Beth." He says and they wait for Beth to say something, but e refuses cause of her voice. "Good morning....?"

"Oh just say hi! So you sound like Francis at the general store. Yer fine."

"Haha, what?" Daryl asks, not knowing Francis at all.

"Morning." She says before covering his mouth and he smiles at her. "Don't you dare laugh!"

"I'm not laughing..." He says as his smile creeps wider on his face. Everyone else starts laughing and Daryl's lips just quiver in place and Beth now wants to laugh, but tries to stay serious.

"Oh he's so cute...he's trying to be nice to frogger." Maggie bursts out laughing even more and everyone else laughs.

"Go ahead! Laugh you assholes. laugh at my expense." Beth scratchily growls and they laugh even harder all except Daryl.

"I'm not laughing." He says with a smile and kisses her head and they all stop laughing so hysterically and smile at the adorable gesture.

"Thank you..." She says and he hands her a card. "It's from the guys at the station. They hope you feel better."

Opening the card, Beth smiles at it and hugs Daryl closely.

"Tell them thank you."

"I will. I actually have to get going cause I have to start filing some stuff for the case, but I'll be back later...okay?"

"Okay." He goes to leave, but she still has a hold of his hand. Turning bak to her, he smiles down and knows what se wants, but doesn't dare do it...not in front of everyone. So to get what she wants, she gently pulls his face to her and kisses him before sending him on his way.

When he's gone, everyone is staring at Beth and she smiles.

"He's my boyfriend..."

Later that evening after all the filing was done and after everything seemed to be in order, Daryl races over to the hospital, bring Beth dinner he made in the crock pot at the station.

"Hey beautiful." He says as he walks in. "Throat still hurt?"

"I bit." Her voice is almost back to normal, but not really. "What smells so good?"

"Tri-layer crock pot lasagna." He says as he takes out two Tupperware containers full of hot delicious smelling food. Setting one in front of her with a glass and a fork, she watches him set up the bed table with dinner for two. "It's really hot. You want some bubbly?" He asks and she cautiously looks at him. Ten he laughs as he pulls out sparkling grape juice that's in one of those fake wine bottles.

"Haha...yes please. I was thinking you snuck in some of the good stuff."

"This is the good stuff. Welches, year 2015...mhmm can't find these babies anywhere." He jokes and she laughs even more. Pouring some in her wine glass and his, she can't stop smiling at how cute he is. Picking his glass up he starts to make a toast. "To you, my dear. So beautiful and such a fighter."

They clink glasses and sip and she just shakes her head slowly at him with a smile creeping on her face.

"What?" He asks as he starts blowing on a bit of hot lasagna on his fork.

"You are too cute."

"What?"

"Yer so sweet and cute and... Everything."

"Nah, I just wanna make you feel good."

"I love you." It's the first time she's ever said it to him and she doesn't over think it like she used to with Gareth. Wiping his mouth off and setting his fork in his container, he looks at her deeply. No ones ever said that to him. No ones ever felt that way towards him, even a little. Leaning over he gently kisses her lips and tilts her chin back as he does.

"I love you, Beth Greene." He kisses her two more times before they sit and finish their dinner and grape juice. The whole night he's sitting there, Beth just feels infinite and alive. He's the best thing that ever came into her life.