Follow You Down - Bethyl Fanfiction

There Ain't Nothin' Out There

It was endless. There were so many rooms and so much space. Like so many others, Beth's mind boggled with the potential. Daryl walked beside her and directed her to her each room, letting her know of any plans already in place. Beth's fingers trailed along the wall of the hallway, taking in the first new location she had been to for months. 

He took her into a room with a large window that was murky and unclean. Beth headed straight for it, eager for a new view of the outside world. She pulled her sleeve down over her hand but was stopped by Daryl, handing her some cloth that he had in his pocket. She smiled at him, catching those stark blue eyes that so often hid behind his dark hair. He gave her a small smile back. She wiped away what she could of the grime and looked out the window. She could see the fence and beyond into more green forests. Only this time, in the distance, there was a water tower that sat tall amongst what looked like a small town. It was something. Something new, different. 

Beth's eyes were so focused on the view that she jumped a little when two strong arms wrapped around her waist from behind, long enough for one hand to go all the way around her hand clutch her shoulder, the other snaked it's way over her stomach to find her hip. Hot breath rushed through her hair and over her temple. Beth leaned back into the touch, eyes fluttering at the sensation of being held so close.
"I wanna go outside the fence." She whispered to the hunter. There was silence for a moment before Daryl responded, voice low and measured.
"No." Another pause. "S'not safe." Beth frowned.
"I know that. I'm just goin' crazy in here. I feel I'm missing out on everything else out there."
"There ain't nothin' out there Beth." Hearing him say her name had her stomach flip. She sighed and placed her hand over his one that rested on her hip and his fingers tightened their grip. She pictured herself outside the fences of the prison, among the trees. She was at peace in nature, breathing deep without the smell of the damp walls or the tarmac of the courtyard. There was something out there, there was the rest of the world. It might not be safe but if she knew how, she could still see more than what lay beyond the view from the window. But that wasn't an option. She instead focused on the strong arms wrapped around her and the warmth of Daryl's body pressed against her back. 

After a few minutes Daryl turned her slowly to face him, lifting her chin to level with his face so she would look him in the eyes.
"Hey, can I show you somethin'?" He asked, lips pulling up slightly at the corners. Beth raised an eyebrow at his expression and nodded.
"Sure thing, Mr Dixon." She replied, liking the way saying his name like that made his pupils dilate a little. He unravelled his arms and took her hand in a tight grip, leading her out the room and down the hall, skipping multiple doors on the way. She couldn't tell what was coming, but she could feel the urgency in Daryl. 

About halfway down a second hall he lead her to a room with a plaque dictating that is was the Wellness Room. Beth frowned, unsure what a wellness room in a prison would even contain. Daryl opened the door with a bit of a shove, the door apparently a little stiff. 
"I found this, thought you might wanna use it, I know you had one at your old house." He mumbled awkwardly as he went behind a bookshelf. Beth waited patiently by the door. He reappeared and her eyes widened, mouth falling open in shock. Daryl stood, holding out an acoustic guitar. She broke into a laugh and ran over to him, inspecting the guitar. Apart from tuning, it was perfect, almost unused. She took it in her hands and plucked a string, eyes closing at the first musical note she had heard for months that hadn't come from her own mouth.

-

"Oh my God, Daryl!" She squeaked at him, almost bouncing in place as she looked over the guitar. He let the warm feeling spread over his face, smiling at her true, pure happiness. Her free arm wrapped around is waist, face burying in his neck. "Thank you." She whispered to him, placing a kiss on his cheek, raised on her toes. The skin tingled where Beth had kissed him. She pulled away and went to sit on one of the tables, tucking one leg up under herself and began turning the knobs on the end of the guitar's neck, tuning the strings from memory. He wandered around the room as she practised a few chords, testing the strings. He picked up a small mess of metal and turned it over in his hands, as if trying to figure out what it was as Beth laced together a chord pattern and started playing the combination on repeat. He could see her eyes were closed and she was swaying back and forth slightly to the sound. Daryl smiled to himself and continued inspecting his contraption, even when she started to sing softly to herself.

"Born in a hurry, always late
Haven't been early since '88
Texas is hot, I can be cold
Grandma cried when I pierced my nose"

Daryl didn't recognise the words, but he listened to them float through the air, resisting the urge to openly watch her. Beth was clearly lost in a moment of reflection and he wasn't about to distract her.

"Good in a glass, good on green
Good when you're puttin' your hands all over me"

Daryl couldn't help but look up at that moment and she was looking back at him, red cheeked and heavy lidded, smiling to herself. 

"I'm alright with a slow burn

Takin' my time, let the world turn
I'm gonna do it my way, it'll be alright

If we burn it down and it takes all night
It's a slow burn, yeah"

Beth's soft voice carried through the air, dancing through the dust particles. It filled the room and overflowed into the hallway, it's tide rolling in. Once Daryl's eyes were on her, he couldn't look away, letting himself drown. Drawn in like a magnet, his legs took control and he approached her once her eyes had closed again as she sang. 

"In Tennessee, the sun's goin' down
But in Beijing, they're headin' out to work
You know the bar down the street don't close for an hour
We should take a walk and look at all the flowers"

Her whole self was glowing as she sat in the light of the window, completely lost in song. Daryl's body continued to move of it's own accord as she went back into the chorus.

"'Cause I'm alright with a slow burn
Takin' my time, let the world turn"

Daryl's hand reached up towards Beth's cheek, palm open to cup her face. His eyes were fixed on her. She was everything. Everything. Daryl would give up anything for her. He would lay down what was left of his life if it meant she would be safe. He would spend the rest of his days saying, doing, being whatever she needed him to be. This young woman from a nowhere farm in a nothing family had become everything to him. He was mere inches from her and his phantom heart threatened to beat so loudly and so hard, he found it hard to believe they couldn't hear it over her music.

"I'm gonna do it my way, it'll be alright
If we burn it down and it ta-"

He silenced her with his lips, large hand against her warm, soft cheek. He felt her eyelashes flutter open in surprise, but then close again as she melted into him, one hand gripping his top and pulling him closer. He felt her glowing against him. When they parted he kept his forehead pressed against hers. 
"You ain't ever gettin' rid of me Greene." Daryl blurted out in a low grumble, the words forcing through his filter. He watched her smile and then her lips found his again and he happily drowned once more.