As always, thank you to everyone who is reading and subscribing to this story ... I really appreciate it :)

And, a Special Thank you to alice_weekes, IWillEatYourFace, Nuthouse86, JustThea, and CharluvsCarl, for commenting on the last chapter - you all seriously rock! I love you all!

And, now back to our story ...
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Daryl's POV –

The rest of the night flew by, and I couldn't wait to talk to Beth. I didn't know what the hell I was gonna say, but I needed to let her know the truth. And, the truth was … I felt everythin' she did.

I wasn't sure if she was gonna forgive me for actin' the way I did, but I spent the rest of the night and early morning thinkin' of what I was gonna say to her and what I could do to make it up to her.

What can I do to fix this? Will she give me another chance?

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Mornin' finally came and Rick, Karen and Sasha came out to relieve me, Glenn and Tyrese.

All I could think about was Beth, and I just couldn't wait another moment to see her; to talk to her. So, instead of going straight to bed in Cell Block D; I stayed in C and went upstairs towards Beth's room. Glenn was already ahead of me; I could hear him and Maggie talkin' bout somethin' and it sounded serious.

Sounds like Glenn's gettin' an ear full this mornin' …

Maggie raised her voice, she sounded distressed … or maybe angry and I wasn't goin' near that with a ten foot pole. So, I walked passed their cell and to where Beth and Judith were. The sheets were still up covering her doorway, so I quietly pulled them aside and looked in.

To my surprise, Judith wasn't in there. But, Beth was …

She looked like an angel sleepin' there.

She looked so peaceful, so I didn't want to wake her. I couldn't help the smile that crept up on my face. Jus bein' that close to her made me feel alive and my heart beat faster. But, bein' that she was still sleepin'; I figured I wouldn't wake her … I'd let her sleep. Gettin' rest around here was somewhat of a luxury and I wouldn't take that from her; even if I felt like I was burnin' alive on the inside from how badly I wanted to talk to her.

I'd head to bed and just talk to her when I got up. Then … then I'd finally tell her how sorry I was and tell her how I felt.

Never felt like this before, and there was no use in denyin' it anymore … Beth had a hold of me somethin' crazy.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

When I woke up and all I could hear was Judy cryin' … screamin' actually. And, I could hear her all the way from Cell Block C.

She usually doesn't carry on like this; wonder what the hell is wrong with her?

I got myself up and sat on the edge of my cot. A sudden wave of anxiety hit me. Here I'd wanted to talk to Beth so bad all night, but now that I was minutes away; I got hit with a bad case of nerves. My stomach was upset jus thinkin' bout what the hell I was gonna say to her. And, even worse … worryin' what she might say back.

Would she forgive me?

Would she understand?

I sure as hell hoped so. I hoped she would give me a second chance, even though I had been actin' like a damned fool recently.

I got up and figured I get myself lookin' presentable for Beth. But, when I looked in the mirror ... I saw an old man in the mirror looking back at me. The scruff on my face and the bags under my eyes; I found myself wonderin' what exactly that woman saw in me.

Hell with it …

I was never one for lookin' pretty anyways.

I splashed water on my face, brushed my hair back with hands. Hell, I even put on a clean shirt and pants; laced up my boots and headed towards Cell Block C.

When I walked into Cell Block C, I could see Carol had Judith in her arms and was walkin' back out towards Cell Block B.

"Carol!" I yelled to her.

I'm surprised she heard me over all that cryin' …

She immediately turned around and gave me a quick smile. I darted down the stair towards her, and she held her hand out; tellin' me to stay away.

Her eyes told me somethin' was goin' on.

"The hell, Carol?"

Carol held her hand up again, the look of concern plastered all over her face. Her eyes looked tired and red, and she looked down right tired.

She coughed several times before replying.

"Daryl … ya head on back to D block for now, ya hear?"

"Why? What the hell's goin' on?"

She coughed a few more times.

"Hershel's gonna need to have a word with ya. Rick was already down there earlier, and they decided that they should move several people outta Cell Block C for now."

I listened and I heard somethin' strange…besides Judy's cryin' … Cell Block C was quiet.

"Why the hell would he do that?"

I looked on anxiously as Carol wiped her nose with her other sleeve and rocked Judy in her other arm.

Damn, Carol's out of it today!

And, with Judy's cryin'; I was seriously losing my patience.

"Come on, woman. Out with it!"

She bit her bottom lip and she looked away; attempting to find the words to say whatever the hell it was that she needed to say. I anxiously looked around the room and looked back down towards Carol.

"You look like shit anyways." I paused. "Where's Beth? How come she ain't takin' care of
Asskicker today?"

She started to pat Judith on the back; tryin' to soothe her, but she just kept cryin'.

"Daryl …well, that's what Hershel's gonna wanna talk to ya about." She paused and put her lips to Judith's forehead. Her eyebrows furrowed. "Shit! She's already startin' to feel a warm."

"What's goin' on here? Y'all sick or somethin'?"

Carol look up at me.

"It's Beth." She paused. "Beth's been moved to Cell Block A … she's real sick, Daryl."

"What'd ya mean she's real sick?" I paused and ran my hand through my hair.

What the hell? She was fine just the other night …

"Wait, wait, wait …" I paused in disbelief. "She's been moved to A? That's death row, Carol!

"What the hell?!"

I immediately started to run and blew right past Carol and Judy and headed straight for Cell Block A. I could hear Carol yell in the distance.

"Daryl, wait …"

Less than a minute and I was at Cell Block A, and was met by Maggie at the entrance.

She looks worried as all hell, I thought to myself.

"Daryl! Ya shouldn't go in there …" Maggie held her palm up to my chest.

"What's wrong? … What's wrong with Beth?"

"She's real sick." Maggie started to whimper. "Daddy quarantined her … and a few others in here…"

"Why the hell would he do that?"

I could feel myself start to panic.

Maggie started to cry a little.

"She coughed up blood this mornin', Daryl … I thought she just had a cold, but …"

I started to pace. "Well, what's wrong with her?"

"Dunno, yet. Daddy just wanted to make sure that we keep whoever's not feelin' well away from the rest of the group for now."

"Well, what's she got the flu or somethin'? Ain't he overreactin' just a little bit here?"

He had to be! Hershel was always overly cautious like that.

Maggie shook her head; she was obviously very distressed … even more so than usual. She'd been a damned rollercoaster of emotions lately; maybe she was overreactin' too.

"He's just bein' safe … I think." She whimpered. "Glenn's outside talkin' with Rick and some of
the others. Rick did say he wanted to talk with ya bout it."

I shook my head no.

"No! I ain't jus gonna sit around waitin' here for Rick." I walked over to the entrance and tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"It's locked." Maggie chimed in.

"The hell?" I slammed my fist down hard on the door a couple of times … wanted to make sure
Hershel could hear me and let me in.

There was no question … I was going to see her.

"Daryl, please … daddy said we should stay out here for now."

I banged my fist on the door and windows of A Block and yelled for Hershel.

Then, I heard Carol's voice come from behind me. She finally made her way over here, and she still had little Asskicker in her arms.

Maggie called out before she got too close.

"Carol? Ya might wanna keep Judith away from here."

Carol pressed her lips again to Little Asskicker's forehead. She looked up at Maggie and replied.

"She's startin' to burn up now."

"What?" I reached down and felt her forehead and she did feel hot. I looked up at Carol and she looked more than just concerned.

"Jesus Christ!" I looked back down at Judy and she obviously didn't feel very good.

Carol nodded towards the cell block doors. "We already got a few others from Block C in there. Ester, Harold …" She coughed. "And, Bob's little girls, Lizzie and Mika." She coughed a few times. "I'm headin' in there now; gonna bring Judy here to Hershel."

I nodded nervously, not knowing what to say.

Beth …?

Now Judy …?

Finally, Hershel came to the window and looked out at us. He could see Carol holding Judy and he wiped his brow.

He walked over to the window. "Carol? How's Judy doin'?"

Carol walked over to the window.

"She's real warm Hershel. I think ya outta take a look at her.

"Damnit!" Hershel paced behind the glass. "Alright." He put his hands on his hips. "Maggie, darlin'? Can you go tell Rick that I've admitted Judy and Carol into Block A?"

Maggie and nodded and put her hand on my shoulder and tried her best to smile. Then, she walked back out towards the exit for the prison yard.

I could barely get the words out of my mouth. "Wha …What is this Hershel?"

"Daryl … I dunno yet. Could be the flu or bacterial … I jus don't know yet." He looked over at Carol and motioned for them to come to the door.

"The hell, Hershel?"

He replied calmly to me. "It's alright, son. We'll get this figured out."

He opened the door and let Carol and Judy in. When I tried to reach for the door, Hershel pointed a handgun at me.

"I can't let ya do that, Daryl." He paused. "Ya can't come in."

"What the hell, old man?"

I can't believe he's pullin' a gun on me …

Hershel closed the doors.

"I'm gonna need some things … if I'm gonna be able to help everyone here."

I nodded. "Sure, sure … of course. Whatever ya need … I'll get it."

I ran to one of the desks nearby and rummaged through the drawers. I grabbed a pen and piece of paper and then Hershel started to rattle off names of medicines, medical supplies and equipment and other cold and flu remedies that he wanted us to pick up and bring back.
"There's a pharmacy in Grantville that's outta the way. Just off Main Street. And, there's a Veterinarian college near Woodbury too."

"Glenn and I raided a CVS a little while back. I know they still had medicine in there."

I paused thinking back to the last time we were there, the Butterfingers, and my little run in with all those walkers.

Hershel nodded. "Well, that's good. One of the pharmacies may have Tamiflu or Zanamivir." He spelled them both out for me, making sure I got the right spelling of the medications. "Both are anti-virals and would be helpful. Put those two on the top of your list."

"Okay …"

Hershel tried to fake a smile. "If ya can find em, it's really gonna help alleviate the symptoms if this is in fact a flu. If not, I listed a number of antibiotics that will work just fine and will help with any secondary infections."

"Is Beth gonna be alright?" I asked Hershel quietly.

He gave me a faint smile. "She's gonna be just fine, Daryl. Don't ya worry bout that right now. You just gotta focus on the supply run and gettin' back here safe." He paused. "But, to be on the safe side … I am gonna need some of those medical supplies and equipment from the school. Beth and a few of the others are little more progressed; she might need em."

"I'll get em, Hershel. I promise."

"Thanks, Daryl."

I could hear the sound of boots running through the walkway … it was Rick; he had came storming into the Block A.

"Hershel!" He yelled out. "How's Judy?"

"She's gonna be fine, Rick. Jus gave Daryl the list of things we need here."

Rick turned to me; he looked real upset.

"Daryl … I …" He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I need you and Glenn and maybe one other person to go on a run for this stuff." He paused and with a look of desperation in his eyes he continued. "I need your help, Daryl … Judy's real young…" He started to cry a bit. "We gotta get the medicines and get em here fast."

"Of course, Rick. I'm plannin' on leavin' right now. Tell Glenn and whoever else is going to pack their bags and get the truck ready."

Rick put his hand on my shoulder. "Thanks, Daryl. Thank you."

"Well, don't thank me yet. Jus tell em to get that damned truck gassed and ready to go. We're headin' out in 20."

"Alright, I'll tell em."

Rick ran out of the room and I walked back over to the glass with Hershel.

"Don't ya need to be gettin' ready to leave, son?"

"I'm gonna leave and I'll bring back everything on your list." I paused and put my hand on the window. "But, I wanna come in and see Beth, Hershel."

"Beth …?"

"Yes." I looked up at him and bit my lower lip. Wonderin' if he understood why it was so important.

"I can't let ya in, Daryl. If it's this contagious, you'll get sick. Ya ain't gonna be any good to us if ya get sick."

"I jus wanna see her … jus for a minute." I saw Hershel had put a bandana over his nose and mouth to protect himself from gettin' sick. So, I pulled my bandana out of the back of my jeans and showed it to him. "I'll be careful … I'll be quick."

"One second is all it'll take, Daryl." He placed his hand on the glass. "I'm sorry …"

"Damnit, Hershel. You're in there!"

"Daryl, we all got jobs to do. This is mine … and you've got yours."

I knew he was right, but it just didn't feel right leavin' her without sayin goodbye.

"I know …" I stuffed the bandana back in the pocket of my jeans. "Alright. Well, can ya at least tell her that I wanted to come in and see her?" I paused. "And, tell her I'll be back soon."

"I will, Daryl. I'll tell her."

I nodded and walked out towards the yard. I looked back at Hershel behind the window; he waved then turned around and walked away. I couldn't help but feel that things were spiraling right now.

We need to act fast …

I ran to my cell and grabbed my bag and ran back to the yard, where Glenn was waiting … and so was Nick.

"Where the hell do ya think you're goin'?" I tossed my bag in the truck. I could see there were already two bags in the back seat. "What? You think you're ridin' with us?"

Nick nodded yes. "Rick asked if I could go with ya guys. Said ya needed one more man on your crew today."

"Did he?" I grumbled angrily.

I was really not in the mood to deal with this guy. Not with everythin' goin' on.

Glenn walked over and stood in between us. I hadn't noticed it, but Nick and I were almost chest to chest. My fists were balled and I was nearly ready to punch this fuckin' guy.

"Daryl?!" Glenn pulled me aside. "Daryl! Hey?! Ya know we might need another hand on this one. If we gotta go to this Veterinary College, who knows what we might find there."

I knew Glenn was right, but I hated that this jerk was going to be goin' with us.

"Alright?!" Glenn asked me again forcefully.

We didn't have time for this now. I'd suck it up … for Beth. Hell, I know he likes her, so he's gonna be all in on this run. Maybe we can use him?

"Yeah … sure. Whatever. But, if he gets in the way …"

"I ain't gonna get in the way, Daryl. You know that." He paused and put his hands in the air. "I jus wanna help out."

I walked back over to the truck.

"Uh, huh …" I started to load a couple of full gas cans in the back of the truck, while Nick continued.

"I heard Beth wasn't doin' so good."

I immediately began to feel myself pulse with anger. Anger for him. Anger for Beth. Anger for this whole damn situation.

It ain't enough we gotta deal with all this shit. But, now this? It ain't fair …

'No, she ain't. So, the quicker we get in and outta these places the better."

"Got it. That's why I'm here. Anythin' for Beth."

His comment was like nails on a chalkboard, but I let it slide. Another skilled man on the crew might just save her life. So, for Beth … guess me and Nick would have to squash our shit for the time bein'.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

We'd been on the road for hours now. The run had been a total success so far, and we had already made it to both the pharmacies and picked up most of the medicines and supplies on the list. Even found that Tamiflu and the Zanamivir Hershel was goin' on about. I couldn't believe our luck.

"Think this enough?" Glenn paused. "Maybe we should head back and drop this off?"

I looked over at Glenn, and he did have a point. The faster we got the Tamiflu, Zanamivir and other items back to the prison; the better it would be for the rest of the group and those who were just startin' to feel sick.

"We still gotta get the rest of the supplies on the list, Glenn."

I didn't want to really argue with him, but Hershel had mentioned the medical equipment and supplies from the vet hospital were for Beth and a few of the others that were already real sick. I couldn't go back without the stuff Beth needed.

Nick was sittin' in the jump seat in the back of the truck. He leaned up towards the front of the cab of the truck.

"Hey, I could always head back." He paused and looked at us both. "Ya know? I can take the meds back to the prison, while you two get the rest of the supplies at the vet school."
Glenn looked over at me and shrugged his shoulders.

That's not that bad of an idea.

I nodded, that wasn't a bad idea at all.

"Alright. That works for me." I looked over at Glenn. "Work for you?"

Glenn thought about it for a second and nodded in agreement. "Yeah … that works for me."

I drove for another five or ten minutes, when finally I saw what I was lookin' for. I pulled into an old gas station that was located right next to a used car lot. The gas station had a few cars parked in the lot too.

I looked over at Nick before jumpin' out of the truck. "One of these cars should have enough gas to get back to the prison."

After checking several of the cars, we found a car parked on the side. It was older, which I figured would be a little easier to hot-wire. I checked the gas gauge and it looked like it was full.

Glenn and Nick stood outside as I leaned underneath the dash and ripped the wiring from below the steering wheel. I swiped the red and green wires together and it started.

Thank God for small favors …

I motioned for Nick to get in.

"Whoever owned this car never got a chance to get the hell outta here. Left it with a full tank, poor devil. Should be more than enough to get ya back to the prison."

Nick and Glenn went back to the truck and grabbed the bags of medicine and supplies; then he tossed them in the back seat and sat in the driver's seat.

"Go ahead and pop the hood." I paused. "Wanna make sure ya got oil and water in the engine. Don't want ya breakin' down on the way there."

I propped open the hood and checked the fluids, spark plugs and hoses.

"Looks good. Shouldn't give ya any trouble."

"Thanks, man."

I just nodded. "Now, make sure you go back the way we came. If anythin' does happen, we'll be able to catch up with ya on our way back. Got it."

"Sure do." He paused. "Don't worry, I'll get everythin' back."

"Oh, I know ya will."

I slammed the hood of the car down and slapped it with my palm. "Ya already to go."

Glenn leaned down towards the driver's side window.

"We shouldn't be long. Maybe another couple of hours. Let Hershel and everyone know."

"I will."

Nick nodded to us both and drove off down the road back towards the prison. Glenn and I walked back to the truck and hopped in.

I looked over at Glenn and started the truck.

"Alright. Let's get do this ..."

Glenn nodded anxiously and looked out at the road. "Should only take us 45 minutes to get there."

"I'll make it in 30." I grumbled.

I hit the gas and we sped off in the opposite direction; headin' towards the vet school and away from the prison; away from Beth.

END CHAPTER ELEVEN

Notes

Originally, when I outlined this story, I had planned on only Beth (and maybe Judy) getting sick; however, when I started watching this season I was super excited to see that there was an infectious/contagious disease infecting everyone ... so, I just changed the storyline a bit and made it so that multiple people got sick ... not just Beth.

However, in this story, I just wanted to make a nod at the disease that actually swept the prison this season. the one in my story is not the same thing as the one depicted in the last couple of episodes, but like any strain of influenza ... it can still be deadly if symptoms aren't treated and managed.

So, let me know what you think; like it, love it, hate it ... let me know your thoughts. If you've got a moment, please leave me a note or comment on your way out ... I'd love to hear from you all :-D

** I've got Chapter Twelve started ... So, as soon as this chapter gets 5 reviews - I'll get the next chapter up within 24 hours! I know, I know ... I'm a sucker for comments and reviews. But, every time I see a new comment ... it literally puts a smile on my face (swear). Plus, they keep me motivated and inspired to keep working on the story, so I'm hoping to hear from all of you out there reading this story ... l love you all ;-)

Here's a Teaser Chapter Twelve: Daryl and Glenn make it to the vet college and start looking for the last of the supplies on Hershel's list. However, this part of the supply run won't go as smoothly as the first part did ... Daryl and Glenn are going to encounter some obstacles along the way ...

P.S.
I don't want to get too many upset PMs, so I wanted to remind you all again ... Please don't worry too much ... I love Daryl and Beth together as a couple and if you've read Maggie's Nightmare, you know that they do end up together. They still have some obstacles to overcome that are both internal and external. They're gonna have to fight for it ... fight for each other ... it'll just make them stronger in the end - promise :))

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Best,
Dahlia