Summary- A major family event is made all the more special by an unexpected snow storm and a special surprise.
This one-shot is based on a picture prompt from the Richonne Just Desserts 25 Days of Richonne Challenge. Be sure to check out all the stories from the fabulous group of writers! Enjoy!
Rick jerked his head up from the tabletop, startled by the sudden commotion somewhere behind him. Disoriented, he attempted to wipe the unmitigated exhaustion from his eyes, only to grow more confused by the sight of the fidgety figure in his kitchen.
"Sorry!" whispered Denise, who up until that point, had managed to keep her own drowsiness at bay. Embarrassed by her clumsiness, she shook her head, then started fumbling to clear the shards of broken glass from the sink.
Rick's short-lived bout of amnesia was instantly replaced by the inundation of memories of a few hours ago. Michonne's uncharacteristic complaints of pain; Carl darting out of the house moments later to fetch the doctor; Judith's relentless queries, and his own bewildered helplessness. Having experienced both the best and worst the first two times, Rick's emotional state during the birth of his third child had fallen somewhere between exuberance and paralyzing fear.
"God, I suck," mumbled Denise, just as Rick approached from the side.
"I'm gonna have to agree with you there," he shot back, obviously poking fun at her self-deprecation. "I mean, rushing over in the middle of your dinner, delivering our baby, and taking care of Michonne-"
"Don't forget talking you off the ledge," she interjected, finally feeling comfortable enough to poke fun at Rick Grimes.
"Exactly," he drawled sheepishly, nudging her in the shoulder as he took over the clean-up duties. "You're the worst."
"I'm fucking tired is what I am."
"That makes two of us," he replied. "How long was I out? I don't even remember sitting down - Is Michonne ok?"
"She and the baby just fell asleep...they're fine. She told me not to wake you. I think you got about half an hour until I happened."
"I guess we're even then?" he grinned, knowing he would never be able to repay her for everything she'd done for him. "You're welcome to crash here or I can walk you home if you want to sleep in your own bed."
"Nah, I'm good," she declined, wiping her hands on a dish towel before grabbing her coat and medical bag and making a beeline for the door. "Come get me if you need me, but everything seems to be fine. And bundle up..it looks awful out there."
Abetted by the glaring light of the moon, Rick watched as she trudged through what he estimated to be at least 3 inches of snow. After confirming that she'd made it inside, he crept into the downstairs bedroom and found Henry, swaddled in his bassinet which was pushed against the bed, with Michonne right next to him. Their faces exuded calm and content - neither revealing the hours of strenuous work their bodies had just gone through.
Rick figured he had at least an hour window to get some rest before the gauntlet of newborn rearing resumed. Fully aware that his role was the easier of the two, he knew he needed to be able-bodied and vigilant to ensure that the two beautiful beings beside him would get nothing but the best he could offer, but he couldn't bring himself to close his eyes just yet. He remained standing, taking in as much of this view as the hallway lights afforded, allowing his mind to indulge in the quietude of early dawn.
When the pull of slumber overtook him, he eased his way under the covers next to Michonne, and skimmed her forehead with his own, careful not to wake her. He closed his eyes and exhaled deliberately, finally letting go of consciousness, and with it, the relentless fear he'd begun shouldering all those months ago.
After what seemed like only a few minutes, the shadows gave way to daylight, while the silence yielded to laughter.
"Daddy, Daddy!", cheered Judith as she hopscotched to the window to pull back the curtain. "Look at all the snow!"
Rick, groggy and bleary-eyed, instinctively brought his index finger up to his mouth in a futile attempt to shush his daughter.
"It's ok, Rick," assured Michonne, tousling his flattened curls with her free hand as she nursed their baby. "We just got up a little while ago. Someone was hungry."
"I'm hungry, too!" added the boisterous four-year old. "Carl is making pancakes and a surprise!"
"Pancakes and a surprise?" exclaimed Rick, tickled by his daughter's infinite supply of energy.
"And snow!" she added, as if proclaiming the news for the first time. "Oh, and a baby brother of course!"
"Of course," Michonne played along, glancing over at Rick, who at this point had scooped up Judith in his arms. "I'm really curious about the surprise."
Just then, Henry detached, having fallen back to sleep despite his sister's best, albeit unintentional, efforts.
"Come on, let's go," whispered Michonne as she edged herself off the bed, still cradling her newborn.
"Chonne-" Rick pleaded, but she was clearly having none of that.
"I need to get up and moving," she protested, amused by Rick's occasional tendency to coddle her. "Doctor's orders."
When they rounded the corner into the kitchen, they were greeted by a doting son/enthusiastic older brother and the delightful scent of decadence.
"Is that hot chocolate I smell?" asked Michonne rhetorically, as if she could ever mistake its aroma for anything else.
"Surprise! Dad and I found these on a run a while ago," Carl enthused, shaking the packet for emphasis. "We were saving them for a special occasion or snowy day. Pretty sure this counts as both."
"Well, aside from everyone in this room, there's nothing I need more than chocolate," Michonne declared, surprising no one in the process.
"Trust us," Rick asserted, positioning a freshly poured, warm mug on the coffee table in an effort to entice her to sit down on the couch. While he reached out for Henry and cradled him in his arms, he added, "We know."
"What's that supposed to mean?" she queried, grabbing the mug as soon as her hands were free.
"It means that we love you," he deadpanned, sitting down beside her.
"Damn right you do," she averred, maintaining her faux-serious expression for only a few seconds before the urge to indulge won out. After the first heavenly sip, she put down the cup and scooted over to her husband, who seemed riveted by the grooves on their son's tiny fingertips. Carl, who couldn't get over the fact that he now had a brother, squeezed beside his Dad, while Judith, never one to be left out of anything, nestled next to her mother.
"Do you think everybody is going to come over to see Henry?" asked Carl, unashamed to admit to himself that he was loving every second of this cozy family moment.
Michonne smiled at the thought, but silently thanked Mother Nature for the unexpected yet welcomed blanket of solitude. "I'm sure they will eventually, but unless Denise trudged out in this storm last night, going from door to door, I think it's safe to say that no one knows yet."
"Who's going to tell them?" queried Judith, the sole member of the Grimes family who actually wanted the job.
When all eyes turned toward him, Rick feigned indignation, pointing his fingers inward against his chest.
"Who me?" he challenged, letting a sly grin escape as he nodded in the direction of the snow covered panes. "Have you looked out the window?"
After everyone rolled their eyes, Rick gazed into his beloved's, transfixed by the stories they told and the ones yet to be written.
"I think we can keep it to ourselves just a little while longer," he drawled, before planting a gentle kiss on his little boy's head. Hovering there, he lowered his voice to barely a whisper and added, "Baby, it's cold outside."