Hey guys! Here's the Rick/Amy chapter I promised. I was going to just add it to the main story of Defying Gravity but decided that because it's all about Rick and Amy, and Daryl and Molly are actually the main focus, it might be better to make it a one-shot. I might add to it with a series of other one shots if any come to mind later on in the story.

To Newcomers- This is a one-shot based off of my story Defying Gravity. It will not make sense unless you read that first. I would give some background but that would ruin the story for those who want to jump over to the main one. So go read Defying Gravity before you read this!

This takes place in chapter 18 of Defying Gravity; the first paragraph is taken directly from the chapter and continues on to some Rick/Amy alone time. It's been a while since most of us have read chapter 18 so you could go back and refresh yourself if you wanted to, but I don't think it's necessary.

Glenn had joined Carl and Louis with the puppy and T-Dog and Dale were trying to pull together some kind of meal. Unfortunately, most days everyone ate different things, or a bunch of things that didn't usually go together in a meal. Molly noticed Rick's absence and looked around for him in confusion. After a few minutes, she realized he was sitting on the roof of an SUV behind the RV, most likely watching for more herds so they weren't surprised again. Molly bit her lip and made a move to go to the struggling man but a hand on her upper arm stopped her.

"I'll go," Amy said quietly. "He and I have something in common I guess, with Andrea and Lori...it's not the same but I think we can still talk about it and maybe it will help him." She walked quietly over to the leader of their group and looked up at him where he sat on the SUV. "Mind if I come sit with you?"

Rick's eyes moved from their survey of the wreck to look down at her with something she assumed was surprise. "Sure, I guess. If you want to be seen with the likes of me," he replied disgustedly.

Amy clambered up onto the SUV so she could scoot onto the roof beside him before frowning and asking, "what's that supposed to mean? The likes of you?"

"Well I clearly can't do anything right can I? Carol and Miranda probably hate me for letting their girls get lost, and I couldn't even take care of my own wife! How can I be fit to lead you anywhere if I can't even take care of some children and my wife?" Amy could tell these thoughts had been weighing on him for a while, and they spewed from his mouth a bit hysterically.

"Alright, for one thing, children are a lot harder to take care of than adults, so that's a moot point. Also, no one blames you for what happened to Sophia and Eliza, if could have been any one of us that lost them in the woods. Miranda and Carol are just sad, that's all. As for Lori…" Amy paused, she knew that talking about Lori was hard for Rick; at least she assumed it was. "How could you have protected her from what happened? We were all in such a crazy rush to get away from Atlanta, and you had to make sure Carl got to safety. Besides, she was with Shane; you had, and still have, every reason to believe that he would take care of her. Nothing that's happened has been your fault. If we're playing the blame game then it's just as much Morales's fault the girls are lost, it's Daryl's fault Keegan's mom died, and we might as well blame me for not being with Andrea so we could protect each other."

The frown lines in Rick's forehead became even deeper as he listened to Amy talk. It was a while before he spoke again; clearly he was thinking over her words and trying to find some way to refute them. "Thanks Amy, I don't know if I believe you but it helps to know that you've got my back."

Amy smiled and pushed his shoulder with her own, "always. You and Daryl are keeping us all alive Rick, we should all be thankful to you, and I, for one, can never repay you for what you've done for us. I know that you would have gone after Lori if you didn't have all of us to think about," she whispered, looking down at her dirty, chipped nails instead of at him. She'd led a very sheltered life in Florida; her parents barely let her leave the house except for school. And when she'd finally convinced them to let her go to college in Atlanta they'd made it very clear that she was only there to learn. They refused to pay for her tuition if she became involved with boys, sports, or any sort of clubs. So she'd never really had a guy in her life to talk to besides her father, until her trip with Andrea, and sometimes she got a strange feeling in her stomach when she looked at or spoke to Rick.

Rick looked at her and then looked down at his lap. She didn't think he was going to say anything and was preparing to leave him alone when he spoke, "I went through so much to find them again, Lori and Carl, and now she's just... I don't know what to do Amy. I don't know how I should feel. She's with Shane, or she's dead. But either way she's not here with me and... what I'm feeling, it's not what I think I should be feeling."

Amy frowned, not quite understanding what he was saying. "What are you feeling Rick?"

Rick was silent again for a minute and then looked her straight in the eye, "I feel relieved. Isn't that terrible? That I'm relieved that my wife is missing? That she's not here with me?"

Eyebrows raised in surprise, Amy considered what to say. Finally she just said it, "well, why does it make you feel like that? What's different now than it was when you first woke up from your coma and tore off to find her?"

"Carl, I think, mostly Carl. I think he was the one I was really tearing off to find, and she just happened to be with him. You know, like because I was married to her I was obliged to find out if she was alive and safe. Lori and I had been having problems with our marriage for a long time before all this happened. I know that most of the group knows she and Shane were sleeping together at the quarry, but that all started a long time ago too. I shrugged it off because I didn't like confrontation and because I wanted us to work out, for Carl, but...when I got to the quarry and saw her and Carl I felt nothing for her. I wasn't happy to see her or relieved that she was okay. It was like she was a stranger that just happened to be the mother of my son, who I was overjoyed to find alive and happy."

"I'm so sorry Rick. If that's how you feel then why have you been acting like your heart's been ripped from your body?"

Rick shook his head, "I don't really know. I think my behavior has been a reflection of the idea of what's been lost, not what I've actually lost. Lori and I married almost right out of high school. I've spent more of my life with her than without her, so maybe the thought of being alone is what's freaked me out the most. Not to mention I'm an honorable man. It's part of who I am to do what's right even if Lori doesn't deserve my worry or concern. And then there's the effect it's having on Carl, that's what I'm really thinking about I suppose. He and Lori have never really been away from each other. School, sleepovers, and two, week long trips to his grandparents is as far from each other as they've been. I don't know how he's really feeling or how he's going to react to things now that we don't know where his mother is. I think that's part of why I've reacted like this, because I'm worried about how I'm going to raise him, keep him from inverting, and still lead all these people to somewhere safe."

Amy gave him a sad smile, "well you know, you aren't alone Rick. All of us will help with Carl, we'll help raise him and help him come to terms with what's happened. With all these people around to keep him the way he is, you don't have to put so much pressure on yourself." She paused for a little while and they both stared off into the darkness, listening to the insects. The roof of the car they were sitting on squeaked as Amy shifted and spoke again, "How long were Lori and Shane sleeping together?"

Rick gave a faint snort of derisive laughter. "Almost since the beginning. They did a good job hiding it really. I only knew because I knew them both so well. I don't think anyone else ever found out about it, that's how well they hid it."

"They didn't hide it very well at the quarry. I'm pretty sure that everyone else knew about them within the first few days."

"They thought I was dead, I suppose it's only normal that they decided they didn't need to hide anymore. Honestly, I'm not even mad that they didn't keep it a secret; I'm mostly mad that they didn't hide it or at least explain it to Carl. I'm lucky he hasn't asked about it yet, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time."

Amy reached over and took Rick's large, calloused hand in hers, rubbing the skin between his index finger and his thumb with her own thumb. She didn't look up at him at first, just focused on their hands, but when she did look up she realized that he'd been watching her the whole time. Her breath hitched slightly before she snapped out of it and was able to speak, "I'm sorry for what she did to you Rick, you're such a great guy. I can't imagine why she would choose Shane over someone like you. You and Carl will get along just fine without her, maybe better without her because you can be who you are, not who that crazy woman thought you should be."

Rick's blue eyes searched Amy's and he smiled as he gripped her hand in his, silently thanking her for her support. "Maybe you're right Amy; I guess we won't know until we try. Thanks for the talk. If you…" it was his turn to pause, thinking about Andrea and trying to decide if he wanted to get into that. Finally he finished, "if you ever want to talk about Andrea, or anything else for that matter, I'm here."

Amy smiled brightly at him despite the image of her sister that flashed in her mind. "Thanks Rick. I think we should head back for last minute instructions before everyone goes to bed," she said quietly.

Rick nodded, got to his feet on the hood of the SUV and proceeded to jump down onto the ground, slinging the rifle strap over his should so he could help Amy down. As his hands found purchase on her waist and her hands gripped his shoulders and he lowered her to the ground, she couldn't help that feeling in her stomach or the way her eyes refused to look away from his face. Her hands slowly slid down onto his chest and she could have sworn she felt his breath falter a bit and his fingers tighten against her sides. But then he was letting her go, almost as if she'd burned him, and she was brushing imaginary dust off her pants and smoothing her shirt and whatever had just happened between them was gone. Rick motioned for her to walk ahead of him and the two walked back into the light of the camp circle without looking at each other again.

So their conversation that focuses on Lori and how Rick feels relieved was actually supposed to take place with Molly when she first confronts him after Lori and Shane get separated. I saved it for later but it wasn't until very recently that I even decided to use Amy instead of Molly in the conversation. I hope it was okay. I've made Amy pretty naïve for the purposes of this story and it's not that strange that she'd have no experience with guys, at least in my opinion. Not a lot happened physically but I do think it gives a good idea of how things progressed later in the story when they're all reunited.

Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes. I'd really, really appreciate feedback for this because I've never done a one-shot before and just the content was a little out of my element I think. Any comments on Rick's thoughts or feelings are welcome. I didn't want to go into why he reacted/felt that way in my notes but I'd be happy to elaborate in a private message if need be. Let me know what you think!