Disclaimer: I am neither AMC or Robert Kirkman, so I own nothing pertaining to The Walking Dead.

This story's title and plot comes from the song "Same Tight Rope" by Emarosa, from their album Versus. Vocalist Bradley Walden said this about the song: "Love at first sight is a curse. Sometimes the timing is wrong. Two people eventually belong together, but they're not who they're going to be yet. Who knows if it's ever the right time?" It served as a great writing prompt, and is a beautiful song to boot. Enjoy!


It was an unusually still night. The sound of walkers was distant, somewhere beyond the walls of the small abandoned community they had discovered. Rick sat staring out of the window of one of the homes, scanning the deserted streets for any signs of trouble. The large group had split up into three separate houses, partially for comfort, but to have more vantage points as well. In the house across the street, he could faintly make out Glenn and Maggie near a window. This was, of course, just a place to rest and not a permanent home. After losing Bob and what they had done to Gareth and the last of the Terminus folk in retaliation...they needed to clear their heads. It was going to be a long trip to Washington D.C. If they were to protect Eugene, the man who said he had a cure, they needed to be sharp.

He checked his watch. It was almost time for Daryl to finish up the rest of watch. Somewhere upstairs Rick could hear someone moving around. Probably Daryl, in fact. Carol and Michonne were taking the evening off, per Rick and Daryl's insistence; neither woman seemed to be sleeping much recently. Carol still seemed haunted by what she did to Karen and David, and what had transpired with Lizzie and Mika. As for Michonne...Rick was not quite sure why she seemed unable to rest. Carl was stretched out on the couch, Judith in a makeshift crib of cardboard boxes beside him. The kids, at least, had no trouble getting plenty of sleep.

Rick took a few moments to gaze proudly at his children before heading up the stairs as quietly as possible. He was feeling sleepy, but not as drained as most of his companions. He did not feel the same way they felt about what they did to the Terminus people. No one mentioned it, but he could tell that some felt unnerved by the amount of brutality that was shown to other human beings. Even Sasha, who had been close to Bob, seemed horrified after they were done, even though she had argued not to make their deaths quick before. But Rick could not have let those people live. Did they need to go as far as they had? Maybe not. Rick did not dwell on it though. His lack of empathy toward people who were a threat to his family was something he had finally accepted.

Reaching the top of the steps, Rick found Daryl and Carol talking in low voices to each other. They abruptly stopped once he reached the landing. Rick brushed it off. This was something else he had accepted. Not everyone was comfortable with this new Rick.

"You ready?" he asked Daryl.

Daryl nodded. "Just checkin' in," he replied quietly, glancing at Carol.

Rick nodded. He glanced between the two of them for a few seconds before realizing he had interrupted a private moment. "'Night," he muttered, stepping around them. He headed toward the room that Michonne was in. The bedroom had two twin beds in it and was seemed to have once been a guest room, given its sparse decor. It was not very comfortable, but it was the best they had had for weeks. He knocked on the door, unsure what state Michonne was currently in.

"Come in," she called out. Judging by the clarity of her voice, she had already been awake.

He pushed open the door and took a moment to take in the scene. Michonne sat on the window seat, illuminated by the moonlight from the window and the candles atop the lone dresser by the door. Her katana was propped up against the wall next to her. She looked troubled and exhausted. Her lack of sleep was catching up with her and it showed on her face. Rick was worried about her. She had started opening up to him more, and showing more of her vulnerabilities. However, while she opened up more, it seemed she began processing more of her fears and insecurities. Suddenly seeing these emotions come from someone who had had a killer poker face for the majority of the time they had known each other was jarring, yet…

Rick stepped fully into the room, glad she had not noticed him yet, or at least had not reacted. Since he had been getting to know her, really know her, these past few weeks, the interest he had in her had grown significantly. She had been there for him and his children like no one else had, and it made him see her in a different light. There had always been something there, there was no denying that, but now...it was much different. Fluttering in his stomach every time she looked at him. His heart would skip a beat whenever she said his name. A blush across his cheeks whenever she touched him or brushed against him. He liked having her at his side. She understood him in a way that no one else did. Now, as he stood watching her, he realized what he felt.

"Gonna stand there all night?" Michonne finally spoke, turning and looking at him with a playful smile.

"Jus' thinkin," he told her, rubbing his beard. "You should be restin.' You haven't had a good night's sleep in a week at least"

Michonne shrugged and turned back to the window. "Sleep isn't doing me any favors right now," she muttered.

"Somethin' botherin' you?" Rick took a few steps closer to her.

She hesitated. "Been havin' a lot of nightmares. It's why I haven't been sleeping."

"If this is about what we did to-"

"It's not."

"Are you okay with it?"

She shrugged. "What we did...it might have been a bit much," she said. "We were so emotional over Bob. Maybe they deserved it all, maybe they didn't. But it's over and done with. No good having second thoughts now."

Rick nodded. It was a relief to know that at least one other person felt the same way he did. It still didn't explain why she had been so unfocused these last few days. "So what is botherin' you?"

Michonne didn't answer.

Rick sighed and sat down next to her on the window seat. "'Chonne, I just wanna help you. I hate seeing you like this."

She gritted her teeth. He leaned back to try to force her to look at him. She finally glanced at him and took a deep breath. "I keep dreaming about the night I had to put down my three-year-old son."

He felt his heart sink. Although he had figured out that something bad had happened with a child in her past, considering how she sometimes reacted to Judith, it did not lessen the blow. Rick could not bear the thought of having to put down one of his own. It suddenly made sense why Michonne had been so closed off from everyone; it was her way of dealing with unimaginable grief. "I'm...I'm so sorry," he murmured, looking away from her. "I can't even imagine…"

Michonne continued to stare out of the window, but her expression softened a bit. "I've pushed it aside for so long. Didn't let myself think about it. Now it's all I see every time I close my eyes," she explained. "I just don't understand it. It's just like with Gareth - it's in the past. But this is just...clinging to me."

Rick glanced at her. "It's different when it's somebody close to you. It's different when it's somebody who didn't deserve it. Now, if Judy is upsetting you-"

"No, no...I love Judy." She gave him a small, reassuring smile. "I don't wanna spend time away from her. It's just...gonna take me a bit to process everything. I haven't let myself until now."

"Okay." Rick was internally glad for this. Little Judith had really taken to Michonne as well. "Well if you need anything...don't be afraid to ask. I know how hard it can be, and even if there's nothin' I can do, I'm here."

She nodded and gave him a small smile as thanks. He kept watching her, hoping she would say more. He did not know what else to say to her although he felt he should. It was one of the few times they had alone time, just the two of them, and he did not want to squander it. Rick scooted a bit closer to her and for once she did not instinctively move away.

"Does anyone else know about your son?" he asked.

Michonne shrugged. "Just Carl."

"He knows?"

"Yeah. I told him a couple of weeks ago. Didn't really mean to, it just kind of slipped out." She glanced over at him. "Seemed to help him when we thought Judith was gone."

Rick nodded at her. "Thank you. That means a lot."

She looked down. She fiddled with the edge of her left glove for a while, bending and smoothing out the leather. She took a deep breath and said, "I wasn't kidding when I told you I'm done taking breaks. I don't want to be alone anymore."

"Good. You have a lot of people who care about you here. We all do."

"I know. You mean a lot to me. You all do. I just need to learn to be open to others again. And to love again." Michonne glanced at him at these words.

Rick blinked at her. Her insinuation was as clear as day, and he was fine with it. More than fine, actually. He nodded, grinning. A part of him was unsure if he was ready to open himself to love again. It felt like a tremendously bad time to even consider it. What had happened to Sasha and Bob would make anyone leery. Then again, when would be the opportune time in a world like this? Does one accept that survival is the priority or find happiness before it is too late? He gazed at her, trying to find an armistice between his conflicting feelings. All he knew was that this felt inevitable.

They sat like that for a while, simply looking at each other and enjoying the moment. Finally, Michonne yawned and said, "I can take the rest of watch duty."

"No, Daryl's got it and you should try to get some sleep," he told her. "You're already yawnin.'"

"I don't think I'd get good sleep anyway," she protested.

"Please. Try to sleep. I'll even stay with you until you fall asleep."

Michonne giggled. "Fine. Have it your way, Rick." She got up and walked over to one of the twin beds. She slid under the sheets and curled up onto her side facing him. Rick followed her and knelt down by the bed. Once she was situated, he reached over and put a hand over hers.

"I'll be here if you need me," he said quietly.

She grinned. She kissed him on the cheek and whispered, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Rick sat on the floor, leaning against the mattress. He felt his cheeks grow warm as his heart pounded in his chest. "I'm right here."

She smiled and nodded. Michonne gazed into his eyes for a few minutes until her eyelids seemed to get too heavy for her and fluttered shut. Rick felt himself getting sleepy as well, but he did not want to move. She had been by his side so many times that he felt it was past time for him to return the favor. A gentle knock at the door pulled him from the edge of drowsiness. He turned his head and saw Daryl peeking through the crack in the door.

"Everythin' okay?" Daryl whispered, glancing between Rick and a now-asleep Michonne.

"Yeah," Rick whispered back.

Daryl nodded. "See ya in the mornin'," he muttered. He gave Rick a small, rare smile and walked out, closing the door behind him.

Rick looked back at Michonne and brushed a stray dreadlock from her face. He knew there would be questions about what was going on between them in the morning. He honestly was not sure what he would say. They both certainly felt something for each other, and knew that it was mutual, but they had more pressing concerns most of the time. Rick could not convince himself that it was a good time to move forward with anything. Not until they got to D.C. and got the cure. Not until they could stop running.

He laid his free arm on the edge of the bed and rested his head on it. Someday, he could focus his attention on this woman instead of food and shelter. He looked forward to it. Rick gazed into Michonne's face until he too slipped into sleep.


A/N: Hope you enjoyed! If you'd like, and if I'm feeling inspired enough, I may turn this into a full fic. Still pondering, though... :)