Chapter 11

The group had been fighting through the herd for hours. The optimism Michonne felt this morning after her conversation with Rick had faded along with her energy. Her shoulder was aching worse than yesterday and they still had a ton of walkers to fight off. She looked over at Rick who was trying to herd a group of walkers in another direction away from some Alexandrians who were outnumbered when all the sudden she heard a voice in the distance. They all turned searching for the person yelling, then she spotted him; Daryl was standing on the perch by the front gate about ten feet above the herd. "OVER HERE!"

Michonne could hear an engine revving from the other side of the gate accompanied by Abraham's voice, "THIS WAY ASSHOLES"

Half the herd started moving in the other direction while Rick and the others kept fighting their half.

/

The following hours saw more fighting until the herd was no longer a threat. Now that it was safe enough for everyone to back to their homes, Rick, Carl, and Michonne took Judith back to their house. After she put Judith in her crib upstairs, Michonne went downstairs to join Rick and Carl who were sitting at the kitchen table in silence, too exhausted to even talk. As she walked into the kitchen she grabbed some snacks from the cabinet and set them on the table.

Carl shifted in his seat so he could lay his head on the back of the chair, "I don't even remember the last time I ate but I'm so tired I'm not even hungry."

As soon as she sat down she could feel herself drifting off, "You know what, I'm going to bed."

As tired as she was, she also just needed some time alone. She grabbed a pack of crackers off the table and headed upstairs.

/

Rick and Carl had both drifted off a while ago when they were woken up by Daryl's bike outside. They both sat up in their chairs as Rick reached for the cookies on the table. Carl listened to Daryl park his bike and climb the steps up the porch until he opened the door. They both turned as Daryl stepped into the kitchen and took the seat Michonne had left. "Man, I don't know about y'all but I could sleep for a week," he said as he grabbed a jar of peanut butter, "I could also eat a horse." Daryl started dipping crackers into the peanut butter when he turned to Rick with a full mouth, "Where's Michonne?"

"She went to bed already."

Carl had this feeling all day that he had interrupted something last night between Michonne and his dad. He always thought there was something different about their relationship. They both acted kind of strange when he walked into the living room last night and then she immediately left. Maybe it was because he was tired or because he knew his dad would never talk about it voluntarily but he decided to ask, "Is there something happening with you guys?

Rick was shocked by Carl's question. He didn't think that Carl had noticed anything last night. He didn't know what to say because he wasn't sure what was actually happening between himself and Michonne. He replayed the events of last night in his mind, the kiss, then the talk in the bathroom. Something definitely happened but he wasn't sure how to explain it to his son so he decided to just tell the truth.

"Yes."

He looked up to see Carl's smirk and Daryl's raised eyebrows.

"RICK GRIMES, YOU SLY DOG"

Rick felt the blood rush to his cheeks, "Alright, shut up"

Carl was trying not to laugh but he had never seen his dad embarrassed before.

"I'm happy for you dad."

Rick gave him a look of appreciation, "Thanks, but I don't know what's gonna happen."

"Well you know how I feel about her either as a friend or a stepmom."

Daryl let out a stifled laugh as he tried to cover his mouth.

"Okay now you're just being mean."

They all went back to their snacks as Rick's thoughts focused on Michonne.

The more he thought of her the more he realized that he was happier last night than he had been in a very long time. It really did make a big difference when you had somebody, the world didn't seem quite as threatening. Michonne was his best friend as childish as that sounded. He trusted her with his life and his children's' lives and nothing meant more to him than that in this world. All the signs seemed to point to her but what if she didn't feel the same; after all, he was the one that kissed her and she kind of brushed off the topic in the bathroom. Now that the herd is has been taken care of they would have less to distract them. They would have to really talk about it sooner or later. All of the sudden he felt Carl and Daryl's eyes on him. He looked up to see both of them smiling.

"Do you love her?"

Carl was asking all the questions tonight, he thought. The moment in the RV a couple days ago flashed in his mind, the moment of comfort and solace he shared with Michonne. Once again he didn't know what to say but his face must have given him away because Carl and Daryl both looked at each other and let out a collective "mmhmm."