Chapter Text
Beth doesn't reply to Daryl’s text that night. She’s not trying to play hard to get or anything –that ship sailed when she had sex with him on the kitchen counter less than an hour after meeting him- it’s just that she isn’t sure when she can see him again. All she knows is that she needs to talk to Jimmy first; she owes him that much at least.
So instead of hitting reply to Daryl's message like her fingers are itching to do, Beth scrolls down to a message from her boyfriend. She sends him a text asking to meet her for breakfast tomorrow at a diner in town.
The giddy butterflies in her stomach turn to lead as she ruminates over what is going to happen next. She’s going to break up with him. She knew that for certain when she kissed Daryl, but being sure doesn’t make it any easier. If she’s being honest with herself, she’s known it wasn’t working for a while. It isn’t just because of Daryl, but she’d be lying if she didn’t admit he was the catalyst for why she needs to do it right now. He showed her things inside herself that she didn’t know were there and she can’t turn away from that. Even so, she doesn’t want to hurt Jimmy, and there’s a heavy feeling in her chest when she climbs into bed.
As she stares at the ceiling with her eyelids growing heavy, her mind drifts to those impossible blue eyes and broad shoulders and the butterflies break out from beneath their lead prison. A small part of her hopes she isn’t being reckless by throwing away what she has to chase the unknown. But a larger part of her doesn’t care if she is. If you can’t be a little reckless when you’re eighteen, when can you?
The sun is tickling Beth’s eyelids when her phone vibrates loudly on the nightstand.
It’s Jimmy, and Beth can’t help the flash of disappointment at who it isn’t. He says he’ll meet her for breakfast and does she want him to swing by and pick her up. No, she doesn’t think that’s such a good idea. She’ll ask her brother Shawn to drive her, her sister Maggie will pry into why Jimmy isn’t picking her up, and she’s never been good at keeping things from her sister.
Two hours later and she’s watching Jimmy’s face twist in confusion as she tells that him she wants to break up. Across from him in the booth she can practically hear the cogs turning as he simply stares at her for an uncomfortably long time. Her fingers tighten around her coffee cup as she waits for the shock to wear off and the words to sink in.
“Is this because of when we did it?” Jimmy asks, leaning forward and lowering his voice to a whisper.
Beth’s mouth falls open but no words come out.
“Because if you’re not ready – we can wait,” He says earnestly.
Oh. But I’m ready for so much more than you can give me.
Beth shakes her head quickly.
“It’s not you, it’s me,” She explains and immediately cringes at how cliché that sounds.
But it isn’t him. He’s a good boyfriend. He’s kind and attentive. He’s everything a girl could ask for. He’s just not what she wants. She doesn’t know why, all she knows is that he isn’t. And she didn’t even realise until what she does want knocked on Rick’s door and glared at her. Now she’s wanting in ways she didn’t know were possible and she can’t seem to stop.
Jimmy is frowning deeply, but Beth thinks he looks more confused than upset. His expression is unchanged when they leave the diner twenty minutes later after a few awkward questions that only served to confound him further.
Was it something he did?
No.
Was it something he didn’t do?
No.
Does she still want to go to prom together?
No.
He doesn’t ask her if there’s someone else, as though the notion hasn’t even occurred to him, and she isn’t sure how to feel about that. She settles on feeling grateful that she doesn’t have to lie to him.
Because there is someone else. Or at least she thinks that there could be.
And now she is free to find out.
The rest of the weekend is uneventful in comparison. When she gets back from the diner, Beth takes Nervous Nelly out for a long ride to clear her head. After that she gives Nelly a thorough grooming and mucks out the stalls. By the time she’s done Mama is starting on dinner and she helps out. She spends the evening tinkering on the piano, playing songs she hasn’t played in a while and figuring out a few new ones. After Church, she spends the whole of Sunday helping her daddy and Shawn with repairs to the barn. By the evening her body aches from a hard day’s work and her mind is wonderfully clear from thinking as little as possible.
She’s just sunken into a hot bath when her phone vibrates against the bathroom tiles, the screen glowing in the candle lit room.
Reaching down, she grabs it on the third ring and very nearly drops it in her lap when she reads Daryl's name on the screen.
She hesitates for a moment before sliding her finger across the screen to answer the call.
"Daryl. Hi."
"Hey," His voice is low and gritty in her ears, sending a shiver of excitement down the back of her neck.
"Was wonderin’ when I'd hear from you," She says softly as a smile works its way across her face.
There's a pause on the other end of the line that makes Beth’s heart beat faster.
"Wasn't sure if you-"
"I'm sorry I didn't text you back," She interrupts, "I wanted to. I jus’ needed to do somethin’ first."
Daryl grunts and she imagines his tongue flicking out to wet his lips. She remembers the feel of them, surprisingly soft, against her mouth, her throat, her…
"I can't stop thinkin’ about you," He murmurs.
The smile on Beth’s face stretches impossibly wild. Butterflies erupt in her stomach and she tightens her grip on the phone as her entire body thrums with excitement.
"Yeah? What you been thinkin’?" She asks as she sinks down into the tub.
"Been thinkin’ ‘bout how smart you are,” He says, rough voice rumbling through the receiver and into her bones, “An’ beautiful."
Beth hums as a flush spreads across her cheeks, "Anythin’ else?"
There’s a pause that makes Beth hold her breath.
"Been thinkin’ ‘bout how good it felt bein’ inside you," He says thickly.
Beth inhales sharply and clutches the side of the bath. Her elbow knocks the dog eared paperback balanced precariously on the edge into the tub with a splash.
She gasps, sitting up and reaching into the water, "Oh shit!"
Daryl grunts, "What was that?"
"I jus’ dropped my book," She sighs, pulling a face and shaking the pages out over the side.
"Sounded like water," He says and she imagines his brow furrowing in confusion behind his wild hair.
"I'm in the bath," Beth explains distractedly as she gives up and lets the drowned novel fall onto the bath mat.
The line goes silent.
“Daryl?”
“Girl, you're gonna be the death of me,” He finally responds with a heavy exhale.
Beth snorts.
She listens to him draw in a tight breath before clearing his throat roughly.
"Tha's quite an image," He murmurs, voice thicker than before and stroking down Beth’s spine like a physical touch.
"One you'd like to see?" She asks and her heart immediately starts to pound because she can’t believe she just said that.
Daryl exhales heavily against the receiver.
"Girl, I wanna see as much of you as possible, clothes on or off," He all but growls.
Beth’s pounding heart soars.
"How ‘bout this Friday?" She says as the idea pops into her head, "I ain't babysittin’"
"Friday’s good," Daryl answers quickly, "What d’you wanna do?"
Beth's mouth twists, fingers tracing circles on her navel. What does she wanna do?
"I could come over to your place," She suggests, "Order food or somethin’"
She definitely has somethin’ in mind and it isn't food.
"Alright," Daryl says after a short pause, “Sounds good.”
"Okay," Beth grins, her whole body buzzing with excitement, "Text me your address.”
Beth’s week drags by waiting for Friday to arrive. Even more so when the news that she and Jimmy have broken up makes its way around school. Guys are suddenly looking at her for a little longer and girls are asking her what’s wrong with Jimmy, he seems so nice. After what feels like an eternity, Friday finally arrives. She spends an hour picking out an outfit that looks casual, but not too casual, and doesn’t make her look too young, but doesn’t make her look like she’s trying to look older. For the first time in her life, Beth lies to her parents. She tells them she’s going to a party and will stay at a friend’s afterwards. They smile and tell her to have a nice time, does she need a lift? She gets her daddy to drop her off at a house where there is a party happening tonight and orders an Uber while waving goodbye. Her stomach somersaults as she slides into the backseat.
Her heart is pounding in her chest by the time the driver pulls up to Daryl’s building. Stepping out of the car, she recognises the pizza place on the corner as the one that Glenn works at. She doesn’t think she’s ever been to this part of town before. Her eyes swing over to Daryl’s building and there he is, sat on the steps, smoking a cigarette.
Her heart stutters when their eyes catch and he rises to his feet, dropping the cigarette and crushing it under his boot as he steps forwards.
“Hey,” He nods, darting eyes rippling as he takes her in.
Beth beams back at him, “Hey.”
His piercing blue eyes track her face and she lets her own eyes wander. He’s wearing dark jeans and a plain t-shirt that clings to his shoulders in a way that makes Beth’s stomach flip. His hair is a little fluffy and he smells faintly of soap. When he swallows, she follows the line of his throat down to his jutting collar bones. She had forgotten just how big he is as her eyes drift across his chest.
“You wanna come up?” He asks, a small crease forming on his brow as a beat passes and he waits for her to answer.
“Yeah, I do,” She nods eagerly.
The relief on his face is instant, brow smoothing as his mouth twitches and he turns towards the building. He holds the door open for her and she takes a deep breath as she steps through it. She follows him up the stairs and they climb them in silence, Beth’s gaze drifting around the stairwell curiously. When they reach the second floor Daryl stops and pulls his key from his back pocket. He holds the door open and Beth smiles at him as she follows him through it.
“Wow you're really tidy!” Beth says, looking around, “My brother Shawn is a total slob, there'd be pizza boxes everywhere.”
Daryl bites his thumb, watching her as she shrugs off her jacket and slips out of her shoes.
“So, did you wanna order some food an’ watch a movie?” He asks, burying his hands in his pockets like he doesn’t know what to do with them.
Beth turns to Daryl and raises an eyebrow.
“So, like, Netflix and chill?” She flashes him a teasing smile.
Daryl frowns, “Huh?”
“You know, it's what people say when they invite you over to hang out but really they jus’ wanna have sex,” She explains with a laugh.
Daryl's eyes flare as he stares back at her.
“Can we get Chinese?” Beth asks, tilting her head at Daryl's frozen expression.
“Daryl?” She prompts when he continues to stare at her blankly, nostrils flaring.
“Yeah. Yeah, sure,” He starts suddenly, tongue flicking out as he digs in his pocket for his phone.
After asking Beth what she likes to eat, Daryl ends up ordering nearly half the take out menu. He grunts dismissively when she offers to pay half as he sits on the couch and retrieves the remote from down the side. Beth perches on the edge of the cushion next to him as he brings up the movie channels. They quickly decide to put on the film that's premiering that week, which neither of them have seen, and are less than thirty minutes in when the door buzzes.
The movie is quickly forgotten as Daryl sets out their steaming food on the coffee table. Beth grabs a pair of chopsticks and digs in, not realising how hungry she was until the smell of sweet and sour fills her nose.
She’s busy chasing three spring rolls with half a carton of egg friend rice and four slices of sesame prawn toast when she glances up to find Daryl staring at her.
“What? Do I have somethin’ on my face?” Beth asks, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
Daryl shakes his head.
“You eat,” He states, sounding surprised.
“Um yeah, I also walk and talk,” Beth grins, reaching for another spring roll.
Daryl huffs a laugh, “I've never seen a girl eat like that.”
“Oh,” Beth freezes, eyes dropping to the spring roll in her hand.
“No, I like it,” Daryl says quickly, “You're not tryin’ to impress me by pretendin’ to be somethin you're not.”
“You're not impressed?” Beth asks with a teasing smile.
The corner of Daryl’s mouth slides up, “I am.”
“‘Cause I ain't tryin’?” Beth grins, leaning back on the couch.
“Somethin’ like that,” He murmurs, eyes dropping to her mouth.
“What if I tried to impress you?” Beth asks, turning her body to face him and tilting her head back to give him a challenging stare.
Daryl narrows his eyes at her, lips twitching.
As his hot blue pools burn into hers a simmering heat is ignited at the base of her spine and it makes her want to be a little bold.
“I don't think-“
Beth crosses her arms over her body and grabs the hem of her top, then pulls it up and over her head in one smooth motion, exposing her naked chest.
The atmosphere changes in an instant. The smirk falls from Daryl's face and is replaced by flickering eyes and flaring nostrils.
“Careful, girl,” He murmurs, voice dangerously low and rough as it scrapes out of his throat.
“You don't like what you see?” She asks, heart pounding as she holds his gaze and straightens her spine. On a deep inhale, her chest expands towards him, pink nipples tightening into hard peaks as a shiver runs down her spine.
“I like it a little too much,” Daryl growls, shifting in his seat as his eyes roam across her torso, “Might not be able to hold myself back.”
“Don't hold back,” Beth says, voice firm, and his eyes snap back up to hers.
“Beth-“
She edges closer, pushing up on her knees and bringing her bare chest level with his face.
“Don't. Hold. Back,” She repeats as his shuddering exhale blasts across her sternum.
Daryl stares at her for a tense moment, eyes flickering wildly as they remain locked deliberately on her face. Then his gaze drops like a stone to the delicate, pert breasts in front of him.
When he suddenly pushes up on his knees, Beth’s breath catches in her throat and her eyes grow wide as she watches his hands fall to his belt and tug it open. Shoving his jeans down, he reaches into his boxers and pulls out his hard cock.
Beth stares at the sight of his erection as it bobs between them, straining with his barely caged need for her. There's a beat and then she's diving forward and taking it in her open mouth. Daryl groans brokenly as she wraps her soft lips around him, sliding down his thick length until his cockhead nudges the back of her throat and makes her eyes water.
She did this once for Jimmy on his birthday. She remembers kneeling between his legs and taking his half hard cock in her mouth. His hands had remained at his sides and he'd been so quiet she'd looked up to see if he was enjoying it. His eyes were closed, brow slightly furrowed like he was concentrating. On what? She'd wondered. Things had got a little more interesting when he'd finished with a grunt, spilling his cum in her mouth. He'd thanked her and told her it was ok to spit it out, because swallowing was slutty.
Things couldn't be more different with Daryl. His hand is tangled in her hair and he's fucking in and out of her mouth like it's her cunt, making moan after delicious moan. When she looks up he's watching her with wild eyes, nostrils flaring as they connect with hers.
"Jesus Christ, girl," He gasps, "You're gonna destroy me."
Beth’s lips curl around his twitching cock. She sucks harder and harder until Daryl whimpers and his hand tightens in her hair sending pricks of pain burning across her scalp. He yanks her head back until she slides off his cock with a wet pop.
“Turn around,” He growls and she doesn’t hesitate.
His huge hands shove her skirt up to her waist before reaching between her legs. Beth whines as his thick fingertips rub across her aching clit.
After finding her wet enough to slide his fingers through the evidence of her arousal, Daryl roughly pulls her legs apart and slams his cock between them, burying himself deep inside her tight cunt.
Beth cries out as he slips between her tight walls, aided by the wetness of her mouth and her desire for him. Her entire body trembles from the intensity of the sudden stretch as she’s stuffed full with his solid heat.
Daryl lets out a strained moan like he's been punched and Beth turns to look back at him over her shoulder.
"Fuck," He gasps, his fingers twitching where they're curled around her upper thighs as he pulls them further apart.
A deep flush colours his face and neck as he eases back out of her, chest heaving with his laboured breaths. His eyes connect with hers just as he fucks into her again, and her mouth falls open as the breath is driven from her lungs by the force of his thrust.
She sees the doubt flicker across his lust blown eyes and doesn’t let it settle. Arching her back, she brings her thighs flush against his and moans as the angle drags his cock across the back of her clit.
His eyes scan her face and he growls deeply at the pleasure he finds there. He drags his cock out almost to the tip before slamming back into her, building up a relentless rhythm spurred on by her moans as he pounds into her again and again. He’s pounding into her hard, so hard her pussy throbs and sings in sweet agony. Beth is teetering on the brink of overstimulation. Her ears are filled with the pounding of her own heart and Daryl’s ragged pants. Her clit pulses like it’s going to explode any second and her pussy burns from throbbing.
Suddenly, Daryl brings his palm down across her ass-cheek with a resounding slap. Beth's skin burns hot and her walls pull tight just as he thrusts inside her.
"Oh my God," Beth moans.
"You like that?" Daryl pants as he pistons in and out of her.
"Yes, oh God, yes," She gasps.
Daryl grunts and his hand comes down to strike the other cheek, making Beth's walls tighten again on impact.
"Christ," He moans as he forces himself inside her constricting hole.
"Daryl, I'm gonna-" Beth cries as his cock drags across the back of her clit and her thighs start to shake.
Daryl's huge hand presses down on the small of her back, holding her in place as he jackhammers into her fluttering cunt.
"That's it, girl, that's it, wanna feel you come," He groans as her walls tremble around his cock.
His next brutal thrust strikes something inside Beth that makes her clit burn with the raw intensity of the sensation. She screams as her walls clutch and she comes so hard her eyes water.
“Oh fuck, fuck, fuck,” Daryl roars, hips shuddering as his cock is caught in the hold of her violently orgasming cunt.
His fingers tighten on her hips hard enough to bruise and he howls as his cock swells and bursts, releasing an explosion of come inside her.
Daryl falls forward with a groan and presses his lips against the nape of her neck. He stays there, panting against her skin as he tries to catch his breath.
Beth whimpers into the couch cushion as her hold on his cock loosens and he slowly drags himself out from between her swollen, pulsing lips. Her stuttering breaths fall in line with his and she anchors herself to the feel of his chest pressed against her back as hot and cold shivers pulse through her liquid body.
“Jesus Fucking Christ," An unfamiliar voice rasps, snapping her abruptly back into consciousness.
Beth looks up through half lidded eyes to see an older man with Daryl's cheekbones and piercing blue eyes standing in the doorway.