When the illness broke out in cell block D Sally was a nervous wreck. Michonne had been injured in her attempt to help and afterwards he scolded her for rushing into the situation as Beth wrapped her foot. "You're gonna wake Judith." Beth said as she glared at him. His first instinct was to tell her to fuck off but he just kept his mouth shut. "I'm sure Rick needs you with something."
"Whatever." He walked away and went to find out the latest developments. Herschel called a meeting and told them about the severity of the illness. When Karen started coughing they knew something had to be done.
"You sure you want to go?" Daryl asked as they were fixing up Zach's car for the trip to the veterinary college.
"Yeah why?" Sally looked at him and Daryl squinted at him before averting his gaze.
"You've been glued to this place for a while. You might not be at the top of your game."
"My game is tighter than virgin pussy." Sally quiped. Daryl snorted.
"Lately you're been extra squirrelly - especially about Michonne. She can handle herself - you're gonna end up burnt out if you try to—
"She's pregnant." Sally interrupted. Daryl stared at him for a few seconds.
"Congrats." He said. "It's yours right?" Sally gave him a look and Daryl put his hands up. "Just thought I'd ask. There was an issue with that with the last baby born into the group."
"Yes, it's my baby. Which is why I'm killing myself to keep it and the woman carrying it safe. If that means keeping her from catching some crazy flu or what have you then I'm going to keep going until that kid is old enough to carry me around." He stood up from checking the tire pressure and wobbled a little. "Shit…" His head spun for a second but he soon regained his footing. He noticed the concerned scowl Daryl was giving him and he smirked. "My blood pressure will do me in before anything else does." He joked. Hypertension ran in his family and with everything going on he was sure his spiked quite a few points in the last few days. Ironically it was too low when he was a child - if he stood up too fast he could feel all the blood rush from his head and he'd black out sometimes. But this was different. He moved to take a step and it was suddenly so hard to move. He felt lethargic and his head pounded so hard he thought it might split in two. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. All of a sudden it felt like there was a lit match stuck in his throat. He coughed to clear the sensation but once he started he couldn't stop. He fell to his knees and doubled over.
"Shit - Sally!" Daryl called and moved to help him up. "Damn you're on fire." He felt Daryl's hand on his back and heard him call for Rick before he passed out.
"You were fighting the symptoms all day." Herschel explained as he placed a cool cloth on Sally's forehead. "Your body finally couldn't take it anymore."
"Shit, I'm gonna die before my baby even gets bigger than a dime." Sally said and groaned. He noticed the change in Herschel's expression. "What is it?"
"I didn't know Michonne was pregnant."
"I was going to snag some prenatal vitamins for her on the trip - you'll have to tell Daryl to get them when he and Bob get back."
"Michonne went with them…"
Sally was amazed when he nearly beat the flu on his own. He was up and walking around - helping Herschel with the other patients by the time Bob came back with the medicine. They insisted on giving him a dose of the vaccine before they opened the 'A' block doors and let him out. He headed to his cell to get a change of clothes. He was just pulling his clean shirt over his head when something exploded. The blast knocked him off his feet and he fought to stay conscious as his cell caved in. When the rubble settled he checked himself for injuries. He then grabbed his sword cane and headed out.
The yard was a complete war zone. People running, bullets flying everywhere and he was pretty sure there was a tank coming closer to the second gate. He killed a walker that was about to grab Beth and she ran back into the prison. He spotted Tyrese for a second and then he heard Rick screaming for Carl. The tank stopped and seemed to exploded from the inside and he saw Daryl shoot the driver in the chest. Beth came out and ran into Daryl and they took off in the direction the bus had gone. His attention was suddenly of Carl and Rick who were struggling to get going. He caught sight of something metallic in the field and ran towards the gate.
"Michonne!" He yelled as loud as he could but started coughing. "Michonne!" The only thing that came his way was more walkers.
"Sally!" He turned around when Carl pulled on his shirt. "I need help! Please help my dad." Sally took one last look at the yard before he turned to Carl and Rick. He pulled Rick's arm around his shoulders and helped him walk. Once they were out of the prison Sally could hear Rick's groaning.
"My ribs…" He said as he clutched his side.
"What happened back there?"
"We can't stop yet. Come on." Carl hurried them along. He led the way and kept moving until Rick yelled at him to stop. They secured a house and Sally witnessed a rather tense conversation they had about someone named Shane. He never really asked about the people they lost or anything that happened before he and Michonne joined the group. They were nearly at each others throats and Sally almost asked why until he realized neither one of them had Judith with them.
"Shit." He sighed. The day was royally fucked. He couldn't think about it. His head was starting to hurt again and Rick was wheezing and barely on his feet. "Lay down Rick. Let me look at you." He instructed. It was the only way to end the tense stare down between him and Carl. Rick had always been particularly calm towards Carl - all the time but Sally could tell he was about to say or do something that would scar them both. And he wouldn't be able to take it back.
"I'm going out—"
"No!" Rick and Sally said in unison. Carl gave them a very defiant look before he headed back upstairs to see what else had been left in the house. Rick let out a deep sigh as Sally unbuttoned his shirt. He put his ear to his chest.
"I don't remember being such a handful when I was 15." Rick said.
"Boy scout like you… Deep breath in." He said. There wasn't any wheezing in his lungs so Sally leaned back and tested the bruised area of his ribs. Rick gasped and tried to twist away when Sally touched the third and second to last ones.
"Oh God!"
"Okay. Okay. Just a little longer." Sally said as he continued to prod. "No grinding - they're not broken just bruised to hell." He moved lower and pressed to Rick's abdomen. "Anything?"
"No."
"Good. No internal bleeding." Sally said before he buttoned him back up. He had made it a point to learn the signs of common injuries and treatments from Caleb and Hershel. He had also been eager to pick Bob's brain but gave the man space until he settled in. He learned a lot - mostly to keep himself busy and useful.
"What about you?"
"I'm fine. I still have a phlegmy cough but—"
"No I mean when you were a teenager. You ever pull stuff like that on your father?"
"I was raised by my mother but I'm sure she didn't approve of me running coke for the neighborhood. When I came back with my first gang tattoo she sent me off to my uncle's farm for two years." Sally said. Rick snorted, he recalled Sally had several other tattoos - apparently the two year vacation didn't take. "Rick what happened?" He asked as he checked his face. The man could take a beating that was for sure. He was in pain but nothing was broken. Rick told him everything - how the Governor came back, killed Herschel, how Michonne killed him. "She's alive. I knew I saw her."
"Did you see anyone else? Anyone with Judith?" Rick asked.
"Daryl and Beth. Maybe someone on the bus…" Sally answered.
"You got out of 'A' block."
"Barely in my cell two seconds before it caved in on me." Sally said as he attempted to clean Rick's face. "The Governor came back just to stir shit up? Take us out?"
"He wanted the prison." Sally coughed and cleared his throat. "You should rest." Rick moved to get up and let him have the couch but Sally pushed him back down.
"We both should." He insisted. "I'm sure there's a bed upstairs. I'll sleep in a minute." Rick seemed to pass out more than fall asleep. Sally ate something and was about to head upstairs to check on Carl when he came back down. "Where are you going?" He asked as he watched Carl check his gun. Sally suddenly felt exhausted and Rick's even breathing reminded him just how nice it would be to sleep. He leaned back against the couch.
"Out." Carl said shortly. Sally gave him a look.
"No, not by yourself."
"You can barely stand." Carl said.
"You… are not…" Carl looked over when Sally trailed off. He was asleep that fast. Carl rolled his eyes and left.
Sally didn't wake up until later that night. He could hear Carl sobbing and panicked at the scene in front of him. Rick was sprawled on the floor and Carl was there, crying with his gun in his hand. "What did you do? Are you alright!?" Sally rushed over and checked Carl for bites before he checked Rick. He was still alive. They were both fine. "Oy, dios." He sighed and took a few seconds to breathe before he put Rick back on the couch. He turned to Carl when he didn't stop crying. "Shh… he's alright. Come on." Sally tried to comfort him but he wouldn't stop sobbing. He didn't know what to do - he didn't know anything about children. By the time he was a teenager it had been pretty much beaten into him that boys don't cry. He was the man of the house his whole life and that meant being strong and never shedding a tear. Carl started making an odd sound like he was having an asthma attack. Sally knew he didn't have that but it freaked him out. Carl had never acted like this around him before - he always had Rick to console him. If Sally tried he might push him away and run off without thinking. There was a thunk outside and Carl suddenly clung to him. "It's just a walker." He moved to look but Carl wouldn't let him go. "Carl—"
"Don't leave!"
"Shh okay. I'm not. I'm just going to have a look. Come on you've faced walkers before. Remember how brave you were? We gotta look to see if there's just the one." Sally tried to reason with him. Carl looked in the direction of the noise before he looked up at Sally again.
"Okay." He said but he didn't let go of Sally as they got up. Sally pulled back the curtain enough to peer out at the porch. The walker knocked against the window and Sally jumped back and grabbed Carl. When they realized what they were doing they looked at each other and chuckled. "See, just one. No sweat." He patted Carl's back and they gradually let each other go. They sat in silence, waiting for the walker to forget they were there and leave. Carl fought sleep - his head bobbing until it finally lulled back and to the side against Sally's shoulder.
Sally couldn't go back to sleep afterwards so he stayed up, listening to them breath and talk in their sleep. Carl started whimpering for his mother. Sally put his arm around him and he went quiet. Rick woke just before the sun came up fully. He blinked at the sight of Carl halfway in Sally's lap and couldn't help but chuckle. Sally glanced at him. "There was a walker." He said.
"There had better been - it's the only excuse I'll accept for you cuddling with my son." Rick said and snorted.
"Jealous?" Sally teased. "You know you're my one and only." Rick laughed and ended up coughing. "How are you feeling?"
"Thrashed." Rick said.
"You look like a million bucks." Sally said. "A million bucks that's been through a wheat mesh."
"Thanks." Rick got up and went rummaging around for food. Carl jumped awake and looked at Sally like he was trying to remember who he was.
"Morning sunshine." He said.
"You stayed up all night?" Carl asked - his cheeks flushing a little when he realized he had been cuddling with the other man. Sally just shrugged.
"I slept all day." He rationalized. They looked at the door when there was a knock. It was far too coordinated to be a walker and when Rick took a look he smiled at the two of them.
"You seem awfully cavalier about me finding you guys." Michonne mentioned as she searched the house for something wear so she could wash her clothes. Sally just shrugged from where he stood in the doorway.
"It happens a lot. I'm starting to think you have some kind of tracker on me." Sally said.
"It's called love." Michonne said sarcastically and batted her eyelashes at him. He flipped her the finger. She smirked for a second before she went back to searching the closet. "Can't help but notice… Judith isn't here." she said quietly.
"Rick said she didn't make it." Sally said. He closed the door to the room so they could talk in private. "They found her car seat, covered in blood - no sign of her or the other kids."
"Carl made it." Michonne said.
"He's tough." He shrugged. "Those other kids were from Woodbury. Their dads weren't cops, they've been protected since day one. Might as well have thrown them in a wolf's den." Michonne went quiet and he mistook it for her normal silent behavior. He turned to leave the room until he heard her sharp intake of breath. "Mi-mi? It's alright." He moved to hug her.
"I lost the baby." She said and his hands stopped short of touching her.
"What?" He asked. Michonne turned to him when he sounded truly confused. Realization washed over his features a second later.
"Did you really just forget!?" She yelled at him and gave him a hard push.
"I—wha— there's been a lot going on since you took that test." He started. "I nearly died from the flu, the Governor - there was a fucking tank!"
"You bastard."
"Michonne I'm sorry." She glared at him. "I really am. Jesus, give me a break. Things went from zero to five hundred. One day we're happy, safe in our bed and the next I'm drowning in my own blood or running for my life. I didn't even know you survived - we were just trying to get through the night here." Michonne crossed her arms. "How do you know you lost it?"
"The week you were sick… I got my period in a big way. Only way I could deal with the cramping was to keep moving - go on the run for medicine. I couldn't sit there and lose you both. It's gone Sally, our baby is gone." She started to cry again and he embraced her. It was jarring to see her so emotional. Before when she had her cycle he would never be able to tell until she let him know they couldn't have sex. This wasn't normal PMS. She had been excited to have his baby and he could tell it killed her to miscarry.
"It's alright." He sighed. "Maybe it's better this way." He bit his lip when she shoved him away. He'd have to explain that one - right after she removed her foot from his ass.
"The fuck!?"
"All those kids are dead Michonne!" He was suddenly screaming at her. "They can't survive in this world. I sat there teaching them Spanish when I should've taught them how to use a gun and run for their lives. Luke, Lizzie, Micah - they were torn apart by walkers… if they were lucky they lived long enough to starve to death. You know what is waiting for them out there if they're on their own? People. People who see a defenseless child and instead of helping them they take advantage. Is that what you want?! It's only a matter of time. Even with you around look what happened to Andre—" Sally was caught off guard when she punched him. He went sprawling back into the wall - knocking pictures off and making a small book shelf fall over. It hurt a lot more than he thought it would. Especially when she did it again and again. He deserved her anger for what he said but he wasn't about to let her keep hitting him. He grabbed her wrists and held them in one hand as he got up.
"Let go of me!" She tried to kick him but he dodged it and slammed her against the wall.
"Calm down."
"Fuck you!"
"I don't want to hurt you."
"You already have! You son of a bitch! How dare you - you son of bitch!" He gave her a firm shake and it made her dizzy for a second.
"Look around! We have nothing now. Barely any food, barely any shelter, no doctors, no medicine. Without the prison we are worse off than we were at the airport. Remember that? Running from walkers and psychopaths in storage units! Really think you can do that while 8 months pregnant? You'd die, the baby would die and for what!? Open you eyes god damn it - you're upset over losing something the size of a grape."
"How can you not care!?"
"Because I still have you! That's all that matters now. As long as I have you…" He trailed off and looked away.
"Sally…"
"I can barely function without you - if something happened while you were giving birth or if something happened to the baby… I don't know what I was thinking in the first place. I should've never indulged this from the beginning."
"What?"
"Babies… dealing with kids. That isn't who I am. It's something I had to be for a time. That time is over. It's over and there's no going back. I'm not going to take back what I said." Sally said. Michonne thought she saw something die inside of him. His brown eyes going dark for a moment as he turned into someone else right before her eyes. "I should've put my foot down - you wouldn't be hurting now if I had." He suddenly realized he was still holding her arms and let her go.
"It's nobodies fault. Clearly the time wasn't right." She said after a very long moment of silence. "It's okay that you cared for it. You don't need to shut that part of yourself down to cope."
"It was barely a month developed—"
"It doesn't matter. You cared and that's okay." She said. "Three weeks, three years. It was yours and you cared."
"I did."
"What did you want to name it?" She asked as she sat on the bed.
"No." Sally refused to answer. "We can't do this - not now."
"It's the perfect time. Believe me - it'll definitely help. It won't hurt to dream a little - it'll give us something to hope for. I still think about Andre - growing up, being 6'5 - still calling me mommy even though he's thirty. How happy he would've been to have a little brother or sister."
"…Javier."
"…" Michonne looked at him.
"I wanted a boy so I thought of boy's names first." He admitted. "I'd let you pick it if it was a girl."
"Let me?" She asked and he gave her a look. "Lucky for you… I like that name."
"Great." He snorted.
"Our girl would've been named… Juniper."
"Like the planet?"
"That's Ju-pi-ter. Ju-ni-per is a plant." Michonne said. "Juni for short."
"She'd wonder why daddy called her 'Hun-i-per. But I'd be the only one who could."
"Of course." Michonne said. "Javier would look like you."
"But he'd have your color." Sally added and she smiled. "Huniper would look like me too put she'd have huge, thick hair."
"I'd braid it." Michonne said. She moved down to the floor where he sat down and he put his arm around her.
"No matter what we'd be okay."
"We're okay now." Michonne sighed. "Everything will be."
