Chapter 12:

"…Before we part ways, I would like the three of you to clear the air. I know none of us want a repeat of this incident, or the previous fights you've all had. So, talk"

Rick looked from his mother, to Shane, then Mike, who sat glaring at him from across the dining room table.

"Well, to be honest, I had a problem with you because you had a problem with my best friend", Shane shrugged.

All the parents looked at Mike.

He frowned, "I had a problem with him because he kept interfering in my relationship"

The parents all looked to Rick.

Rick sat staring at Mike for a moment before sighing, "I wasn't interfering, you just didn't like that I was close to Michonne-"

"You were calling her stupid names, always calling her over when I was with her, you even got her name tattooed on you while I was with her!", Mike leaned forward, looking at Rick disbelievingly.

The parents all looked wide eyed at Rick. His mother's jaw hung as her eyes darted up and down her son.

Rick groaned as he looked to her, "I'll explain that later"

Her chest slowly rose, as if she was trying to calm an outburst, though she nodded in agreement.

He turned back to Mike, "Alright, I was a little bit of an ass-... Jerk. I was a jerk. But so were you, so let's just agree on that and call it even"

Mike glared at him.

"We won't bother you and you won't bother us. Simple", Shane shrugged again.

The parents looked to Mike. He wore a pensive expression, his finger tapping on the varnished wood table. Rick was about to sigh again when Mike nodded in agreement.

"Okay? So we all agree? No contact at all?", Shane's mother stressed as she looked at her son.

"Yeah" The three teens all answered dryly.

"Good" Mike's mother looked slightly more pleased than she did when they first arrived at their house.

While Rick was glad to leave his old nemesis's home, he was dreading speaking to his mother afterward. He had had a reasonably good day, he completed all his tests in school without wanting to fall asleep, he bought his suit for the prom, he even managed to squeeze in some time to joyride with his friends before arriving at Mike's, so he really just wanted to go home and spend time with Michonne. Though his mother had other ideas.

"You have a tattoo?"

Rick sighed, "Yep."

"Of Michonne's name…"

"Yep."

"What on earth possessed you too-"

"I wanted it, so I got it. It was literally that simple"

"You do realise-"

"It's permanent? Yeah. That's the whole idea"

His mother stared at him from across the kitchen counter, "Rick-"

"I know what you're gonna say, but it's already done so...", He threw his hands up in the air as he walked out the kitchen, "Night mom"

He almost ran up the stairs so she wouldn't call him back.

"Hey"

Michonne smiled at him from his bed, where Rocky was hoping all over his sheets, "How'd it go?"

He locked his door and nodded, "Pretty good. His mom hates us, but we expected that"

"Yeah…"

He changed into his sweatpants before climbing into bed with her, "You know Sasha asked Daryl to prom?"

She stroked Rocky on her back as she smirked, "Yeah. They're cute together"

"Yeah… my mom knows about the tattoo by the way"

She raised her eyebrows as she looked down at him, "How?...Mike?"

"Yep"

She groaned as she let Rocky hop off her lap and on to the floor, "What did she say?"

He shrugged, "Not much. Didn't really give her a chance to"

"Are you going to tell them about us?"

His eyes slid from the ceiling to her, and he repositioned his head to face her, "You want to?"

She raised her eyebrows at him again, "It's really up to you. They're your parents, you know how they'd react"

"Yeah… maybe... we'll think about it"

"Alright"

"I wanted to talk to you about tomorrow... We're picking up Lori"

He groaned and pulled a pillow over his face.

"I knew you wouldn't mind"

…

"Aren't you gonna miss me Mrs Niedermeyer?"

"God no! I can't wait to see the back of you!"

Rick's jaw dropped open as he stood staring at the Principal.

"Even if you failed all your classes, I would have made sure you got the hell out of here, one way or another"

He gave her his best unimpressed look.

"I've told you plenty times before, you're smart and I hope, I just hope that one day you actually think about something, long and hard, before you actually do it. Now for the last time, get out of my office Grimes!"

He shook his head as he turned to leave, "I honestly thought we had a bond Mrs Niedermeyer-"

"Out!"

Rick walked down the school hall feeling nostalgic. He never thought he'd miss his the building, but it was strange to think he wouldn't be spending a majority of his time there anymore. He decided to go to the area he loved the most, the wall.

"Hey Rick"

His looked over his shoulder to see Jessie approaching him with a large smile.

"Hey Jessie", He couldn't help but scan the area quickly, as he didn't want to be caught talking to her.

"So we're all done!"

"Yeah… we are" He slowly began walking with her towards the front doors of the school.

"So… What's the plan after prom?"

A strange sound almost escaped his mouth, "Uh, I don't actually know. We haven't talked about it"

"Oh okay… well who are you going with? I mean I'm going with Pete...He asked me but, if you wanna hang out then I can ditch him-"

"I have a girlfriend Jessie", While it felt good to say it out loud, he hoped he didn't sound too harsh.

Her eyes sprang open as her steps faltered, "Oh… Oh really?"

He bit his lip as he nodded, holding the door open for her as she walked through.

"Well…I guess I can figure out who she is...but I thought you weren't ready relationship? You said you wouldn't make a good boyfriend?", She squinted at him.

A small groan left him, and he continued to look ahead, "You think you'd make a good girlfriend to someone you didn't want to be with?"

Her head jerked back at his reply, and she looked everywhere else but at him. He usually didn't like to be so harsh when it came to letting girls down, but he took his relationship seriously, and he wanted to make that message clear.

"Well I gotta go"

Rick didn't bother to say goodbye, as she was already walking away from him. He knew he'd be put in at least one more awkward situation before he left the premises. He released a long sigh and headed over to the wall, where his friends were already sitting around, and his mood instantly changed when he saw Michonne laughing with Shane.

"Hey man! I was just telling Cha-Cha here about the time we almost gave Mrs Maryhill a heart attack when we ran across her lawn naked"

Rick's smile dropped as he looked at Shane, "Alright first, don't ever call her that again. And second, don't ever tell that story again"

Michonne and Shane side eyed each other before they burst out laughing. Michonne rubbed Rick's arm as she did.

"See, I told you he'd get all serious if I called you that", Shane grinned at the two of them.

Rick sighed as he said dryly, "Funny"

She rested her head on his shoulder, "Don't be like that"

He looked down at her and his heart melted as she smiled at him.

"We leave at eight so you have to be home at six the latest okay?", She planted herself in front of him as she handed out instructions.

"So that leaves me… five and a half hours to do what I want", He grinned his devilish grin at her.

"Yep… after you drop me home"

"Yes, Cha-Cha"

….

"Oh look at you! You look so handsome! Oh wait, come here-"

"Leave it, mom"

Rick tried to bat his mother away but she was stronger than he originally thought. His father stood taking pictures of them both as they battled it out at the bottom of the stairs. He rarely took interest in wearing a suit, he always thought it was too formal and restrictive, but he couldn't deny that he felt good.

"Oh well, don't you look beautiful!"

He and his mother stopped to watch Michonne walk down the steps. Rick's heart was in his throat as he scanned her from head to toe.

"Oh! Frank get a picture of her!"

Rick tuned his mother's voice out so he could focus purely on his girlfriend. She looked like a dream as she smiled nervously at them, wearing a white strapless form fitting dress. Rick easily pictured her walking towards him as if it were their wedding day. He was speechless.

After being forced to withstand countless pictures, they were finally freed from his home. He just wanted to gaze at her in peace, though his attention was divided dangerously between Michonne and the road.

"You look great"

"I look great? Have you seen yourself?"

"Oh stop", She smiled as she nudged him..

"Don't do that, you're gonna make me crash"

The two of them laughed as they began their journey to pick up the rest of their friends. Rick almost regretted not wanting to go to prom in the first place. The way Michonne was dressed enticed him greatly, and he didn't think that was possible, as he always loved how she looked any time of day.

….

"You haven't danced with me"

He lip curled as he frowned, "Sorry"

"No you're not", She huffed as she sat down beside him.

She was right, he wasn't. He slipped his hand around her waist and pulled her closer to him, "You've been dancing all night, aren't you tired?"

"No."

He smiled and rested his head against hers, his lips brushing her ear, "You know I don't like dancing"

She turned and looked at him, her eyes glistening from the lights around them. He was losing himself as he gazed at her, and he didn't mind. She reached up and rested her hand on his neck, her thumb stroking his jaw. His body stirred at the contact.

"Michonne-"

"Let's get a room"

He felt as if the music stopped and it was only the two of them in the hall. His eyebrows slowly rose, as his eyes stayed locked on hers, a wave of pressure crashing over him.

"...you want-"

"I do".

She was eerily calm about her request, which made Rick wonder how long she had been thinking about it. He didn't move, he just stared at her for a while as he tried to gather himself.

"Do you realise-"

"Yes. I do"

She stood from her seat, holding out her hand to him and he took it without even thinking about it. She led them to the exit, and he complacently followed. His mind was racing, he questioned if he should talk her out of what they were doing. He didn't want her to feel pressured into having sex with him, though, truth be told, his will to uphold his original decision was becoming non-existent. Once he got them a room, they made their way to the elevator.

Rick stood quietly in the elevator, his eyes straight ahead, his mind racing.

Michonne giggled and planted herself in front of him. She tilted her head to kiss his cheek, softly, making her way along his jaw. He closed his eyes as he basked in her touch, resting his hands on her hips.

Somewhere between leaving the elevator and reaching the room, his need to talk to her vanished. As soon as they closed the door, his suit jacket was off and he all but lunged at her, kissing her feverishly as they made their way to the bed. His fumbled around with the back of her dress, and almost cheered aloud when he finally found the tiny little zip.

Rick remembered a time when Michonne was climbing into his bed at home, wearing a t-shirt dress that wasn't that long, so when she bent over he saw a slither of her cheeks in her pink underwear. It was an image he would revisit sometimes. He came to realise that as much as he appreciated that view, it wasn't anything compared to what he witnessed in that moment.

She wore a tiny little black thong with a black strapless bra, both lace. She stepped out of her dress, and pulled off her heels. Rick's head tilted as his eyes covered every little millimetre of skin.

"You ready?"

He didn't answer her and his eyes didn't leave her as he made quick work of removing his shirt and vest. She crawled into the bed, giving Rick the best view he had ever had, and unhooked her bra. He nearly got himself stuck in his zipper when she did. He felt like he was about to lose his virginity all over again, which he considered desperately ironic. If all his blood hadn't travelled to his member, he would have seen the symbolic side of things.

He took out a condom from his wallet before ridding himself of his pants and boxers, allowing his dick to throb freely. She pulled off her underwear and opened her legs to accommodate him. His hooded eyes snaked their way up and down her body as he moved above her.

He kissed from her mouth to her neck, sucking and biting at her skin when he leaned down, his weight on one of his forearms as he slipped his other hand down to her legs. He traced his fingers up and down her thigh, then over her crotch, instinctively stroking at her lips.

"Are you alright?"

Her eyes fluttered open and focused on him, she nodded.

His eyes were still on hers as gently ran his fingers up her slit, causing her to take a sharp intake of breath.

"Okay?", His eyes scanned her face for answers.

She nodded.

His index finger traced around her clit, "Tell me to stop if you change your mind, okay?"

She nodded, and he slowly slid his finger down to her opening, slipping the tip of his finger inside, causing her hips to tilt. He caught her lips with his as he pushed his finger deeper, but stopped when he heard a small whimper.

"It's okay"

"Are you sure?"

"I am"

He was still very unsure as he continued to finger her slowly. He wanted to explore her, pleasure her the best ways he knew how, but he was treading on new ground, and he wanted to test the waters first.

By the time his fingers were covered in her wetness, she was moaning in his ear, gyrating against his hand and It made him throb in anticipation.

He kissed her cheek before he sat up and removed his index finger from her. After ripping the wrapper, he pulled out the condom and slid it on, still feeling apprehensive about what he was about to do. He leaned over her once he was covered, eye scanning over her face again. His length was aching at the thought of being inside of her but she looked nervous.

"Michonne…"

"I'm ready"

He watched her for a whole minute before nodded as he shifted back to one forearm, and took himself in the other. He gave her a soft, sweet kiss as he aligned himself, then slowly pushed in. He was met with the some small resistance which caused her to gasp, her legs clasping around his waist. He waited, not only to give her a moment to adjust, but also himself.

He rested his forehead against hers as he began to move again, pushing as slowly as he could as she clung to him, a small cry leaving her lips. He only relaxed a fraction when he was completely buried inside her, feeling a mixture of guilt for hurting her, and immense pleasure for how tight she was.

"You okay?"

She nodded again as she bit her lip. He took a deep breath and started moving again, but not as slowly. He felt as if he was only prolonging the pain if he did, and he wanted her to get as much pleasure as he was. Little cries escaped her as he did, and he wished he could tune her out, he wanted to stay focused on not hurting her too much and not releasing himself too quickly.

"It's like you were made for me", he whispered as moved to her neck, sucking on the skin again while he picked up the pace.

He could feel himself being coated in more of her passion, so he was glad they were moving in the right direction.

"Does it still hurt?", He panted into her neck.

"A little", She breathed.

Her voice made him involuntarily thrust harder, forcing her nails to dig into his back.

"Sorry", He kissed along her neck in a way of apology for his lack of control.

He relaxed a further fraction when the cries turned to moans. He moved his hips in a circular motion as he continued to devour her neck and chest. Her fingers combed their way through his hair and he immersed himself in the sounds that left her mouth. His circular motions turned to thrusts and she gasped again.

"Is that alright?"

"Yes", Her voice broke in a way that made his dick jerk inside of her.

He could finally relax completely as relief filled him. He thrust harder, hoping he could make her have an orgasm for her first time. The thought of it made him more determined. He slipped his hand down between her legs, finding her bud again, and rubbing in quick clockwise movements. Her back arched as she released a guttural moan. He was losing his focus again.

Her breathing changed as her nails almost pierced his skin. He sucked on her neck when he felt her walls tighten around him, causing him to lose himself too, he didn't think she could get any tighter. His movements faltered, his shaft pulsed as he came hard inside of her. He never knew feeling a girl come undone could be so sensational, but it was.

He lay on top of her, trying to gather himself, but he was spent. Very well spent.

He rose his head to look at her, "You okay?"

A small smile tugged on the corner of her lips, "Yeah"

He felt like he deserved a badge of honour, "You liked it?"

"Yeah… it was better than I imagined"

He had never been more proud of himself. He dropped his head again and kissed along her cheek, experiencing a new level of happiness that he never thought was possible.