A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, follows etc. I really do appreciate it and love hearing from you all. Some of our faves make an appearance in this instalment; as do some of our not-so-favourite people. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

The humming of the desk fan broke through the silence of the otherwise quiet afternoon; Michonne, with her drawer open, retrieved a handful of M&Ms and popped them into her mouth. She was staying back after school was out so that she could finish up some work that she had been neglecting since she had been tasked with organizing the Expo. Michonne could not wait until she was able to get home and unwind after a rather testing week.

She pushed the stack of papers into her bag, closed the drawer and moved to turn the fan off; she was startled to suddenly see someone standing in the doorway of her office. It was Jase Dixon.

"Jase, you scared me," she said to the teenager.

"Sorry, Miss Harris. I didn't mean to. I was just wonderin' if we could talk for a minute," he said.

Michonne sat back down and gestured for him to sit as well.

"Sure. What did you want to talk about?"

"It's about the Careers Expo next week. I wanted to know if you needed someone to be a helper on the day. I heard some of the others sayin' they were helpin' and they said to come and see you, so…"

Though all of the other student helpers had been meeting for a few weeks now and assisting Michonne in their spare time, she would not turn Jase away.

"I'd be delighted to have you help me, Jase. What a great idea," said Michonne enthusiastically.

She had waited for this particular student to show some sort of interest in his school work or the school community, so when he decided to approach her first, she was so very pleased. The teenager smiled shyly and averted his eyes.

"Thanks, Miss Harris," he said.

"I'm having a meeting with all of my helpers at lunchtime on Tuesday in the library, so come along then. We'll work out what everyone needs to be doing and where you can fit in. We're going for pizza after the Expo, make sure you get this signed by your father," she offered as she retrieved a permission slip and handed it to the teen.

"This is great, Jase. I'm so happy that you came to see me," Michonne said honestly causing her student to smile.

"I won't let you down," he offered.

xXxXx

"I hate being at school after school hours," said Andrea as she and Michonne set up yet another table in the gym, ready for the Expo the following morning.

"Andrea, you're a school teacher…"

"Really? Oh my goodness, there goes my life," she replied sarcastically as Michonne shook her head.

"Seriously though," Andrea continued. "Doesn't it creep you out being here when school's out? That's why I never liked going to school dances."

The blonde woman said contemplatively.

"Really?" asked Michonne.

"Yeah. That and the fact that I always wound up with more than one date," she laughed.

Michonne looked at her friend questioningly.

"What can I say, I had an active social life!" Andrea explained to which both woman laughed loudly.

"Speaking of which, did you call Deputy Dreamy over the weekend or send him some nudes?" she joked.

"Actually, surprising as this may sound, I didn't call or text or sext that man at all," Michonne said good-humoredly.

"Gosh. You're no fun!" said Andrea as they stopped and looked at their handiwork.

"That should be enough tables," Michonne stated. "If we need anymore, the helpers can grab them."

Andrea nodded and said, "Don't forget to reserve the table closest to the bathroom for the Fire Department."

"I know, Sasha already texted me twice to remind me," Michonne said with a smile. "Besides, Fire and Sheriff's Department need the most space around them for foot traffic."

"So is Rick Grimes our friend now, because that's why Sasha gets to have her stall in a good spot with a lot of room; or is it because you want to get him away from the others so you can have him to yourself?" Andrea asked jokingly.

Michonne rolled her eyes.

"You're crazy! You know it's because of how popular their stalls are…"

"Yeah, Deputy Hot Stuff is gonna be very popular indeed!"

"Stop!" said Michonne.

"What are you gonna wear?" asked Andrea.

"What I normally wear to work," said Michonne.

"No! You've gotta spice it up a little," Andrea said animatedly. "Have you ever seen how the actors playing teachers in the pornos dress?"

Michonne's eyes went wide.

"What? Since when do you watch porn?" Michonne asked with her arms folded.

"Eugene and I were doing a little spicing up of our own…"

"Uh, I don't need to hear this…"

"I'm keeping it clean! So, we were watching this porn clip we downloaded one night, and it was one of those sexy teacher ones…"

"Sexy teacher?"

"Yeah, you know, where she's got her hair up in a bun or ponytail, has on glasses and six inch heels and her blouse is always unbuttoned too far,"

"Right, and this is what you want me to wear?" Michonne asked.

"Yes, minus the heels because there's no way we can be on our feet all day and wear fucking heels! Anyways, we were watching this porno and the sexy teacher was writing math equations on the board before dropping the chalk and bending over…"

"Okay, I get where this is going," said Michonne.

"Well, I don't get the appeal of it, so I asked Eugene what guys liked about the sexy teacher trope and he said it was the dominance of a woman in an authoritative position,"

Andrea nodded her head and smiled.

"Okay, that makes sense," said Michonne, entertaining the conversation.

"I asked him if he thought the clip was hot and what he liked best, and Michonne, if you were there you'd have laughed," said Andrea, laughing almost hysterically.

"What did he say?" Michonne queried.

"He said the hottest thing in the whole clip was the equations that the sexy teacher was writing were all correct!"

Now Michonne joined in the laughter with her friend.

"So, wear a too-tight blouse, short skirt and put your hair up; and maybe some glasses too so Rick can imagine you throwing them off, letting your hair down and…"

"Stop! I get it," said Michonne.

xXxXx

Michonne walked up the corridor until she reached the reception area of the school; Leanne was there early and offered the younger woman a polite smile.

Morning," Leanne said.

"Hi Leanne," she responded.

"Oh, you look nice today," the older woman said, taking in her appearance.

While Michonne did not dress inappropriately as Andrea recommended, she did however wear her hair in a ponytail, wore a tight skirt that came just above her knees and left the first few buttons of her blouse undone enough to see her silver M pendant which hung from a silver chain. It was nothing revealing, but Michonne did feel confident and attractive. In honestly, she hoped that she looked appealing to a certain Sheriff's Deputy, though she would not admit it to Andrea.

She offered Leanne thanks and commented on her appearance favourably as well before explaining registration for the day. All vendors and guests had to sign-in at reception and were then to be directed to the gym.

"If anyone needs help, please call our student helpers on the PA," said Michonne as she handed over the clipboard with the registration log fixed to it.

Just then, someone came through the front door.

"Looks like your first one's here," said Leanne as she smiled at Rick Grimes.

He took off his hat, nodded to Michonne and then Leanne who watched the two of them amusedly.

"Mornin' ladies," he said with his eyes fixed on Michonne.

"Good morning, Rick," Michonne answered, "You're early."

"Yeah, I needed to see you," he said and Leanne almost knocked over her pen holder as she pretended not to be listening to them.

Rick and Michonne looked in her direction and then back at each other. Rick cleared his throat.

"I needed to see you because I've been assigned someone from the Academy who's gonna be shadowing me; is it alright if she tags along today and if so, can I grab the paperwork?"

Rick asked, knowing he could have easily called Michonne yesterday but opted to meet her face-to-face as he knew he might not have time to talk to her throughout the day.

She nodded.

"That's fine. I'll leave the paperwork with Leanne and just get her to complete it when you guys arrive," she offered with a smile.

Rick looked relieved.

"That's great, otherwise I would've had to cancel today, and I didn't want to do that to you," he explained; Leanne sat up straight in her chair.

"Or the kids," Rick added quickly.

Michonne smiled at him once more.

"It's no trouble at all," she replied. "I'm glad you didn't have to cancel on us."

They stood silent a moment.

"Rick, I have to run; but I'll see you later. We have an area reserved for you, so when you come back, see one of our student helpers and they'll show you where to set up," offered Michonne.

Rick beamed at her.

"Thanks, see you later."

xXxXx

The gym was abuzz with activity; there were stalls set out everywhere and the sound of chatter coming from all directions made it somewhat difficult to hear. Michonne, along with a number of other teachers, supervised the area, ensuring that the students were on their best behaviour. Students from the twelfth grade were the first to be allowed in to the gym; they had roughly one hour to visit with each stall, gather the information on the check-list as part of their assignments and talk to professionals about how the pathway to their careers began and where it led them.

Senior students usually had some idea of the area they were interested in, and would visit those stalls first then float around getting information for their classes. All up, Michonne had arranged for eighty-five vendors, departments and organizations to be in attendance. She had a variety of industries represented; agriculture; armed forces; medical; cosmetic; engineering and retail among others.

They were already twenty minutes into the Expo before Michonne made her way to the back wall of the gym near the bathrooms where the Fire Department, US Army and Sheriff's Department were situated. The lines were a lot longer than a few of the others as students were drawn to the people in uniform whom they felt had exciting careers.

Michonne stopped a moment near her friend Sasha, a firefighter, and listened to the types of questions that students were asking. She was happy that a number of the female students were asking about careers that were traditionally for men and still male dominated. Michonne placed a hand to one of the student's shoulders to get their attention and said of her friend: "Sasha's a hero, you know. She saves people's lives; I think you could be a hero too."

Her friend smiled as did the students and Michonne moved on to the next table, which was the Army. Two men, one wearing a badge that read Stookey and the other Ford. After speaking with them briefly, Michonne ascertained that Abraham Ford was a soldier and Bob Stookey was a medic; the students were mainly asking them if they had seen any action while deployed on tours overseas. Abraham spoke to them in animated fashion as he spoke of his experiences.

Finally, Michonne ambled over to where Rick and the trainee were set up; the young woman's name was Tara. She was closer in age to many of their students so Michonne thought that she had arrived at the perfect time to engage them and give them an idea of what it takes in law enforcement. Michonne stood and listened to the conversations that were being had there; Tara was excitedly explaining what her training at the Academy was like while Rick discretely glanced at the attractive teacher.

Michonne could feel Rick's eyes on her, but tried as hard as she could not to look at him while Tara was speaking. After a moment, she finally relented and locked eyes with the handsome police officer. Rick smiled almost shyly at her and she returned the smile in kind. While the students were enthralled by Tara's story, Michonne moved to the side of the table where Rick was.

"How's it going?" she asked.

Rick sat up straighter and nodded.

"So far so good. Glad Tara's here, she's been doin' most of the talkin'," he chuckled.

"Really? I hope you're not getting bored," she said.

"No way," said Rick. "I'm givin' away the freebies and doin' the fingerprint cards."

Rick held up a piece of rectangular cardboard that had five smaller rectangles of even size printed on to it. Written on the card was King County Sheriff's Department and In the event of an emergency call 911.

At that moment, Rick saw an opportunity; he offered Michonne a charming grin before speaking.

"Hey, did you want me to fingerprint you? As a souvenir?" he asked with a playful gleam in his deep blue eyes.

Michonne, feeling playful herself, smiled and nodded.

"Sure," she answered eagerly. "Why not?"

Rick placed the card down on the table, opened the ink pad and then held his hand out for Michonne's. Her hand sat tentatively in his as they both felt a tingling sensation at the contact; Rick smiled and then spoke.

"We'll do your thumb first," as he guided her thumb to the ink pad and then to the card.

Michonne pressed down firmly and then repeated until all of the rectangles were filled with her prints. She looked down at her fingers which were marked with the dark ink and then back at Rick.

"Here," he said. "Let me help you with that."

He held his palm upwards and Michonne rested her hand in his once more; Rick then grabbed some wet wipes and proceeded to clean away the ink that stained her fingertips. She realized that she was holding her breath while he rubbed carefully and slowly. His touch was surprisingly gentle regardless of his obvious strength; the entire moment was very intimate and Michonne felt her extremities growing warm as Rick's eyes darted from her hand to her face.

She could have quite easily cleaned herself up, but allowed Rick to do it all the same; unknowingly craving the same contact with him as he craved from her.

"All done," Rick said with a smile.

"Thank you, Deputy," she said as she hesitantly drew her hand away from his.

They held each other's gaze.

"Don't mention it," he said huskily.

They remained silent as Rick handed the card over to Michonne; she offered him another smile and continued to stare.

"Hey, Miss Harris," asked Lily, one of the student helpers who was in charge of photography. "Can I get a picture of the two of you?"

Michonne looked at Rick.

"Is that okay, Deputy? It'll only be used in our newsletter and on our website," she said.

Rick was usually camera shy, but since it was Michonne who was asking; Michonne whom he felt an incredible attraction to, he agreed to it.

"Where'd you want us?" Rick asked the teenaged girl.

"Umm, by your banner will be good," she answered as Michonne shifted to stand in front of the banner and Rick stood beside her.

"Here?" asked Michonne as Lily focussed the camera lens.

"Um, squeeze in a little closer; I want to get only the banner as the backdrop because the color of the gym walls is ewwy," the girl replied and Rick chuckled.

The two adults edged closer together and their shoulders were now touching; while it was a very innocent photo opportunity, Rick was fully aware of their proximity and how he could smell the lavender in Michonne's hair. Lily looked at them through the lens once more.

"A little closer," she said. "Miss, you should stand in front of the Officer a bit. Like, get his shoulder behind you. Officer, maybe put your arm over Miss Harris."

Rick looked at Michonne and she nodded. She then shifted so that she was positioned slightly in front of Rick. He went to put his hand at her shoulder, but instead opted to press it tentatively to her waist; she did not flinch or bat his hand away, so he relaxed.

"Okay, that looks good," said Lily. "Aww, the two of you totally make a cute couple! Now smile."

Both Rick and Michonne smiled genuinely and brightly as the camera clicked two or three times.

xXxXx

The day was drawing to an end and most of the vendors and organization personnel were packing away their materials since the Expo had officially concluded. The school principal, Carol Peletier, thanked all of the visitors, staff and students; she also congratulated Michonne on a well-run Expo.

A few of the helpers had begun to clear the chairs away and Michonne glanced around the gym; her eyes fell on Rick Grimes once more, who was now stood talking to a blonde woman who Michonne recognized as a hair stylist from the salon. They were engrossed in conversation and the woman threw her head back when she laughed at something Rick said; she pressed a hand to his shoulder and gave it a playful nudge. Michonne, though uncomfortable, still watched their exchange and wondered why it was bothering her a little. When Rick's eyes locked with Michonne's, she looked away immediately at being caught staring at him.

"Ugh. Who's that?" came a voice from behind her; it was Andrea and she was witnessing the same display.

"I don't know, forgot her name," said Michonne.

"Okay, well are you gonna go and ask Officer Friend-with-Benefits out or what before Supercuts over there does?" asked Andrea.

"Goodness, Andrea," said Michonne as she faced her friend. "If I wanted to ask him out, I would…"

"Shhh, Rick's coming this way. Ask him to go to pizza tonight, and then text me with the gossip!" said Andrea as she rushed away.

"Hey, where's she off to in a hurry? I came to apologize about givin' her that ticket," Rick said; which was only half true. He wanted to talk to Michonne again.

They heard Andrea reprimand a student by saying: "Hey! No running in the gym!"

"It's the gym, Miss; we always run! You can't do nothin' to stop us!" came a retort.

"Well, you have a valid point but…I'm an English teacher so no using double negatives in the gym!" and then Andrea was gone.

"As you can tell, she's weird," Michonne explained.

Rick chortled.

"So," he said.

"So," replied Miconne.

"Today was a good day?" he phrased it as a question.

"Yeah it was. I'm pleased with how everything turned out. And thanks again for coming along; it was great. The kids had fun. I had fun which is odd because it's a work thing which isn't usually meant to be fun but it's so good having other grown-ups around and now I'm just rambling," said Michonne, a little flustered.

Rick smiled at her.

"Thanks for havin' us," he offered.

They went quiet and then both spoke at the same time.

"Sorry. Go ahead," said Rick politely.

"I was just gonna say, I'm taking the student helpers for pizza as a thank you tonight and I wanted to know if you maybe wanted to join us?" Michonne asked hopefully.

"I'd love to," Rick started. "But…"

"A but; of course there's a but. Sorry, I shouldn't be askin' you to come along. That's silly of me…"

"Michonne," said Rick. "It's okay. Let me finish."

They shared a smile. She nodded.

"I can't go with y'all for pizza tonight, but I'm free on Saturday night if you wanted to go out somewhere and do somethin'. Just the two of us," said Rick, his stomach doing flips of anticipation.

Michonne failed to hold back a wide grin.

"That sounds great," she offered.

Rick let out a breath he was holding.

"Great," he smiled. "Ah, I have your number so I'll give you a call when I arrange somethin'."

"Fantastic," replied Michonne. "Can't wait."

"Alright, well we're gonna head off so I'll be seein' you soon," said Rick.

Michonne watched him walk to the exit; before Rick stepped out of the door, he turned to look back at her. He put his hat on his head, dipped it and then gave Michonne a wide smile.

A/N: More to come!