"Denial helps us to pace our feelings of grief. There is a grace in denial. It is nature's way of letting in only as much as we can handle." - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

"Shit!" It was a strange thing, hearing such an ugly word come out of such a pretty thing. The curse laced with desperation still managed to sound delicate. However, the young woman currently wrestling a walker was anything but.

The pale thin arms held the body at bay, while it's rotten jaw snapped at her, frantically trying to tear at any piece of exposed flesh it could reach. The girl was really reconsidering her decision to raid the abandoned gas station. All she had managed to get out of the minor mission so far was a pack of matches and a chocolate bar that seemed to have melted and re-hardened several times, now currently in the former state.

Grunts came from both parties, as the blonde utilized the adrenaline flowing through her body to hold the corpse at bay with her dominant arm, while reaching for the knife on her hip with the other hand. Grasping the handle between her fingers, she pulled it from it's sheath. Rearing back, she slammed the shiny blade into the side of the soft skull with a huff. She would definitely never get used to the sickening squelch that came when the knife made contact.

There was no need to pull the metal out of the walker's head, as it came out on it's own when the body crumpled to the floor. The woman's face twisted, disgusted as she wiped the thick dark blood on her already filthy jeans.

"Well, that was stupid." The rough voice sent slight chills down her spine, but there was no sign of fear showing on her features, only annoyance was present on her face.

"Shut up." She mumbled as she sheathed her weapon.

"Come on, Beth. Didn't I teach ya better than that?" Turning around, she saw him leaning up against the counter, feet crossed at the ankle, crossbow slung over his shoulder, hands grasping at the strap.

"Yeah, that did us a lot of good." She huffed, careful as she stepped over the walker she had killed moments before, continuing her search through the ransacked store. Her haul so far had been pitiful.

"Don't be bitter, girl. It ain't suit ya." It was really grinding on her nerves, how he seemed to be the voice of reason these days.

There was no reply from her, just silence as she furrowed her brow in concentration, pushing aside a couple spilled bottles of motor oil to see if anything was hiding behind. What little hope she had left dwindled as she came up empty handed shelf after shelf.

"Can you believe how stupid some people are? World goes to shit and they waste their time stealing the fuckin' cash." She stood up on her toes to peak over the aisle to see him now behind the counter, fingers poking inside the open register was still met with no reply from Beth. By now he knew that she preferred the silence, but that didn't stop him from continuing. "Man, I'd kill for a Twinkie right now." Beth's stomach growled at his words as he let out a chuckle.

"How can you be so damn cheerful right now?" She stopped scavenging a few feet away from him and put a hand on her cocked out hip, full of fire as always.

He put his hands on either side of the register, leaning forward on his palms, drawing Beth's already short attention span to his tanned biceps. The sight used to make her mildly swoon, but now in her depressed state, all she could focus on were the patches of dirt present on his skin. He needed a bath even more than she did. "Everyone needs a candle in the darkness, Beth."

She dropped her arm to her side and straightened out her leg, the false icy exterior melting aware. Closing her eyes and hanging her head, she sighed. It was long, shaky, and therapeutic. "I miss you, Daryl."

She could hear it in his voice, that he was now smiling, which was something that used to bring a grin to her own face, but now only brought on an ache in her chest. "I miss you too, Beth."

Opening her eyes again, she looked back up. Her eyes met nothing, just as she knew would happen. Daryl wasn't there and never had been. Not for a while. She bit her lip and adjusted the small straps on her backpack, hiking it up on her back before heading for the door. The confined space of the convenience store now felt as though it was suffocating her.

Pushing open the front door, she was temporarily blinded by the sun. Blinking away the black spots in her vision, she continued on down the highway on foot. Beth never really had a destination in mind. It took everything in her to just barely survive.

All alone, with only her thoughts to keep her company, Beth wondered when Daryl might show up again. It was becoming more frequent that she would 'see' him, most likely due to her isolated existence, and Beth knew that meant anything but good news. But on the other hand, she figured if you're going to go crazy, the perfect time might be during the apocalypse.

I know it's short, but I wanted to get this out tonight. Continue? Don't continue? Love it? Hate it? Let me know...

I've been a horrible author and I'm sorry. Life is kicking my ass but I really want to get back into writing and this was the idea that got me into gear.