So I got this idea for a Shane story. I hope y'all like it. I'll post the first few chapters and wait for some reviews. Let me know what ya think!
6 weeks earlier
"SHANE!" the young dark haired beauty squealed as she took off in a run toward the deputy. She jumped into his waiting arms as he spun her around. "What are you doin here?" she asked when he set her back down.
"Hey baby girl. We gotta talk for a minute, Nic." His face was deadly serious. Nicole frowned slightly as he led her to a stone bench. The two sat down. She grabbed his hand, sensing something was wrong.
"You're scarin me Shane. What's goin on?" She asked.
"It's Rick. We were involved in a shoot-out and he was hit." He stared at his hands, she noticed they were shaking. Her panic started to rise.
"How bad? Is he. . ." she couldn't bring herself to finish that sentence.
"He's in a coma. The doctors can't tell us much more. Ya gotta come home with me." He tells her. "We need you."
She paused. She hadn't been home since she graduated college. She avoided that place and all its memories like the plague. Hell, half the time she avoided her own family.
"I don't know Shane. I gotta lot of stuff piled up on my desk. We have serious deadlines comin' up." She stands and turns away from him, not able to look at the pain on his face.
"You're his sister. You gotta be there for him." Shane whispers. "If anyone's gonna help him come back to us, it's you. He misses you every day."
"Shane, I left for a reason. Rick is my brother and I love him but I don't know if I can go back to that place." She tried to plead with him, make him see how scared of that place she was.
"Yeah, ok. I get it. Your life here is better. Just forget I said anything. Lori will call you with an update." His voice turned cold and he stood up. "Carl misses you too."
Her heart broke at those words. She missed her brother and nephew something fierce. They were the only thing that could bring her back to King's County. She sighed, defeated.
"Fine. Come with me to the office so I can pick up some work before I go. I mean it Shane, if there's trouble back home, I'm blaming you. She better not start with me or so help me, I'll beat the holy hell outta her." She turns to walk away. He stands there stunned; knowing this had been a long shot. "Well let's go. Don't stand there with your mouth hangin' open." She turns on her heel and marches off.
3 days later
"You're jokin' right?" She shouts down the hall way at her sister in law as the brunette stomps away.
"God, I hate that woman!" Nicole stomped her own foot and turned back into the family waiting area. The nurses stare at her, having witnessed the little outburst. Nicole mumbled an apology to the mean looking nurse behind the desk before heading over to Shane and Carl.
"Auntie Nikki, where'd mom go?" Carl looked at her with big, bright eyes. She looked over his head at Shane. He gave her a ghost of a smile. He was paler than normal and thinner, she was starting to worry about him.
"She just needed a break honey. This whole thing has been tough on her." She fought the urge to roll her eyes and laugh at her lie. She knew where Lori was going. Everyone knew Lori cheated on Rick. Rick even knew; he just couldn't face it. Divorce wasn't an option. "Why don't you get ready? JoAnna will be here any minute." She found herself thanking God for the older woman that had lived next door to the Grimes since Carl was born. Nicole couldn't stand the thought of her nephew keeping vigil at Rick's side with her. Carl disappeared into Rick's room to grab his things and Nicole reached out for Shane's hand.
"Y'all right there officer?" She asked him, moving into Carl's vacated seat to be closer. He slid his arm around her shoulders and she leaned into him.
"I just don't understand what she's thinkin. I mean, I get that you two have history but he's her husband for God's sake." He mumbles into her hair. She gets a small thrill down her spine.
"I don't wanna talk about her anymore. Do you wanna run and get something to eat? I could use a change of scenery." She really just wants to make sure he eats something finally.
"Yeah, I gotta head into work in a few hours, might as well eat something now." He tells her before he stands up. Carl comes back through the door from his dad's room, joining them in the lobby. Shane helps him get his coat on as Nicole checks in with Nurse Meanie to let her know where they were going in case a miracle happened.
The trio walks outside into the chilly night just as JoAnna pulled up to the entrance. Nicole drops down in front of Carl.
"We'll get through this kiddo. No matter what. I ain't goin' anywhere." She kisses his cheek and opens the door for him. Shane stands with her as the car pulls away and they head out to the café.
Present Day
The hot, spring sun beat down on the water and the reflection was almost unbearable. Nicole sat on a log at the edge of the small lake. She washed laundry for over an hour with Jacqui.
"Let me guess, you're stuck doing Shane's laundry again?" Jacqui asked her, noticing the annoyance on the younger girl's face.
"Of course. Ya know his ass can't be bothered to do it. He's a sneaky bastard too. This time, he emptied out my laundry bag, filled the bottom with his clothes and stuck mine on top. I wondered why it seemed like the bag filled up overnight." Nicole huffed, tossing another shirt into a basket sitting next to her. She wiped the sweat off of her tan forehead.
"I think next time you should just throw his dirty clothes right back in his tent. Let that shit bake in the hot sun all day, it will take forever to air out. He won't do it again." Jacqui laughed loudly.
Nicole shook her head with a smile. Out of the corner of her eye, a small bundle of energy bounded down the hill followed slowly by her sister-in-law. The irritation she already felt grew into a very audible groan. Jacqui turned to see what had interrupted their rare relaxed moment. She leaned on her elbow, bowing her head in frustrated when she sees Lori heading their way.
"This should be fun." Jacqui whispered. Carl reached them at full speed, a look of excitement on his face.
"Auntie Nikki, will you go swimming with me? I'm sweaty!" He asked in an almost giddy voice.
"I gotta get these clothes out on the line and if I'm all done with enough time to spare, I'll run back down here and we'll swim." She ruffled his shaggy hair. "I like your hair long. It's kinda cute ya know?"
"Mom wants me to cut it." He whined a little. "Tell her she's wrong."
"Oh no, I ain't gettin in to it with your ma over that." She shook her head and finished scrubbing Shane's shirt before tossing it in the basket. "Go swim over there; I don't want your dirt all over my clothes. Don't go outta my sight though. Got me young man?"
Carl splashed her before running off along the shore. She growled at him as he made it out of her arm's reach. He laughed and stuck his tongue out at her. She watched Lori make faces at the interaction between her son and his aunt. The older woman sat down on the other side of Jacqui. The two exchanged pleasant greetings while Nicole ignored her.
Nicole hurried to finish washing her clothes and leave. She wordlessly packed up the basket full of her clothes and Shane's before marching back up to camp. Dale waved to her from his normal perch on top of the RV as she made her way back up the hill. She dropped the heavy basket onto a chair next to her tent and started pinning clothes out on the line. She finished hanging them fairly quickly and contemplated tossing Shane's still wet clothes into the dirt. She sighed, knowing full well she'll hang them up for him.
The dark-haired man chose that moment to walk through the door of the RV, slamming the screen against the side of the vehicle. Leave it to Shane to make his presence known. He walked over to her, a cocky half-smile on his face.
"Whatcha doin beautiful?" He greeted her as she hung a pair of his boxer shorts.
"Some son of a bitch threw his dirty clothes in with mine again. Next time I should just throw 'em into the lake. See how he likes digging his shit outta there." She gave him a look from around one of his shirts.
"Damn, sounds like a real dick. You just let me know when you figure out who it is." She smacked him with a wet tank-top before throwing it at him. He barely caught it before it hit the ground. She turned to walk away from him without finishing.
"Do your own fucking laundry deputy." She called out with a wave. He jogged over to cut her off.
"Aww sweetheart. Don't do this to me. Ya know you're the only one that can hang my clothes up the proper way. I'd die if you just walked away now." He over-exaggerated with both hands over his heart and puppy-dog eyes. She pushed him away and started walking again, a confident smile forming on her lips.
He dropped to his knees in the dirt. "Please Nic. Please do my laundry. If you walk away now, who knows what will become of me. You won't leave me like this will ya?" She heard chuckles from Glenn and Jim who are nearby and working on Shane's jeep, checking the fluids.
"Knock it off, jerk. You're making a scene. You owe me asshole." She stomped over and began tossing the rest of his laundry over the line. He jumped up in one swift movement and leaned over to give her a kiss on the side of her head. A shiver ran down her spine and she hoped he didn't see it.
"You see Lori anywhere around?" He asked expectantly, she sighed dejectedly and pointed toward the lake, sending him on his way. He turned away, walking toward the hill. A toothpick hung from the corner of his mouth in that sexy way Nicole liked.
She finished hanging his laundry and checked in with Amy and Andrea to make sure they could handle dinner before heading back to the lake for a swim with Carl. Stopping in her tent to grab a pair of shorts and a tank top, she laughed at her perfectly packed luggage. She was one of the lucky ones, when the world fell apart she was already packed for an apocalypse. She lived out of a hotel room for months, waited for her miracle. One she never got. She waited at that horrible hospital putting up with her whore sister-in-law the entire time; just to lose her brother in the end anyway.