He came on to me. He came on very strong.

Rick stared at Shane through a haze of red as Michonne's stunning words and the rapid beating of his heart echoed in his head. His skin tingled, face burned, thoughts raced. Shane. His best friend and confidante, his son's godfather, Lori's lover, and the source of Michonne's tears. Rick's hands squeezed into tights balls. Michonne's tears.

He could forgive Shane almost anything. Sleeping with Lori, that news hurt, because it was Shane's betrayal, but he could've forgiven that, too. Even together, he and Lori were over long before she spread her legs for Shane. The dynamics were different. But getting confirmation that his closest friend, the man who was like another brother to him, had intentionally set his sights on the love of his life, that he brought Michonne pain, there was no forgiving that. Never.

"There's no way I'm leaving you alone with him, Rick," Michonne said, her tone hurried, desperate. "We don't keep secrets. If you need me to leave, then you don't need to do this."

"Then you'll have to stay, 'cause I need to rip his fucking head off!"

Michonne screaming his name was the last thing Rick heard before charging Shane and tackling him to the floor, a raging bull reacting to the inflaming flash of red. His closed fist connected to Shane's face with a series of thunderous smacks. "You son of a bitch!" Michonne words and his racing pulse continued their haunting echo in Rick's head, stoking his fury, making him oblivious to the weight on his back and everything else. The blood oozing from the corner of Shane's eye, his nose, and lips fed Rick's desire to see even more. His hand throbbed, but he didn't care. "How the hell could you!" He came on to me. He came on very strong. Rick continued landing blows, fighting the new tears burning his eyes. "Why, Shane? Why!"

A flash of light and loud shattering of glass froze Rick's hand mid-punch. "Rick, that's enough! You're gonna kill him." Michonne raced over from the broken lamp she'd smashed. She lowered his bloody hand and pulled him away. "He's not fighting back."

Shane groaned. "Let him kill me," he mumbled through swollen lips and whimpers, his bloated left eye closing more by the second. "I deserve it."

"Damn straight!" Rick thrust his size-ten cowboy boot into Shane's side and spat on his curled body. "But you're already dead to me." Michonne stepped between them, trying to keep Rick back. "You hear. You are dead to me!"

"I'm sorry, Rick. Michonne, I'm so sorry."

Rick grunted. "The hell you are. If you were sorry, you wouldn't have touched Michonne!"

Shane favored his left side, struggling to crawl to the ottoman about a foot away. Rick hoped the kick had broken a rib. "Please, buddy," he said, grunting and groaning with every movement, before slumping against the overstuffed footstool and gripping it like it was a life preserver. "Please just…"

"Please what, huh? Let you explain? How the hell can you explain any of this? You knew everything, Shane, everything! And you do this to Michonne, to me, to us, man." The knot in Rick's throat tightened. A stubborn tear rolled down his cheek, breaking the gate for several more. "Twenty-nine years. Why?"

Michonne smoothed away his tears. "Rick, shh, listen to me. Calm down." She rubbed his forearm, her soothing voice and the gentle stroke of her hand sending the savage beast in him deeper into its lair. "There's only one way to get the answers you want. You have to hear him out. You two need to talk."

"He hurt you." Angry, disappointed, and sad, Rick sniffled as he looked at Shane. "We have nothing more to talk about."

"He came on to me, but he hurt you, Rick. He grabbed me and touched me, tried to kiss me…" She closed her eyes, releasing a shaky breath. "And I…"

He cupped her cheek. "Michonne?"

"I'm okay."

"No, you're not. You came out here crying."

"I did, because I see the bigger picture. I feel what I feel, but this situation is about more than me. There's a decades' long bromance involved." Her fingers grazed his swollen, battered knuckles. Rick winced. "The pain you bring here won't help the pain you're feeling in here," she said, pressing her hand to his chest. "You have to deal with that pain. Talk to him. Andrea and I will…" Michonne looked around. "Where is she?"

"Right here." Andrea exited the kitchen with several packages of frozen vegetables. "Thought these would come in handy." She dropped two beside Shane and grunted. "You look like hell," she told him before handing the final package to Michonne. "For Rick."

"Thanks." Michonne placed the pack of peas on Rick's hand. He flinched from the icy contact. He'd hit Shane hard. His hand felt sprained. He might've broken a knuckle or two. "You talk to Shane. He needs to do this, and you need to hear it." She kissed him sweetly. "I love you."

"Still?" he said, glancing at his injured hand and then Shane.

"Always." She placed his free hand on the peas and caressed his cheek. "We'll be in the kitchen."

"Stay." Rick kissed the palm of her hand. "No secrets. I need you to hear this with me."

Andrea moved around Shane and picked up her purse from the couch. "I'll leave you all to talk, and –"

"No, you stay, too," Shane demanded in weakened state. He placed the wide package of broccoli to his side and the frozen corn on the ottoman, resting the swollen left side of his face against the cold pack. "You talked so much before, tell Rick how bad I felt at the bar. You barely mentioned that part."

"Because what happened tonight made it moot." Andrea crossed her arms, her nostrils flaring. "Feeling guilty, feeling your misery in the bar didn't keep you from putting the moves on Michonne tonight, did it?"

Shane closed his eyes, moaning. Rick figured it was from equal portions of pain and guilt. The red haze of anger had become glowing ambivalence. He wanted to aid Shane and punch him, make him feel better and so much worse, a brand new struggle with the calming of his rage.

"Why didn't you tell me, Andrea?" Michonne asked. "Why didn't you mention any of this to me?"

"I wanted to make things as painless as possible for everyone, and I just… I really didn't believe he would do it." Andrea shook her head, frowning at Shane. "I thought he loved Rick enough to do the right thing. Humph. I was wrong."

"You weren't," Shane said.

"I was," she countered. "We're here."

Rick met Michonne's gaze. They were right about them. The two had made an impression, clearly unwanted, on each other, and Andrea was thoroughly disappointed in Shane and herself. He had really screwed up everything.

"Getting Rick a quick divorce was your request, Mish, and I was going to get that for you, because I love you and for all you've done for me. With Lori threatening Shane, I thought this confession was ripe for –"

"Wait a minute," Rick interrupted. "With Lori doing what?"

Shane groaned. "Sit down, Rick, so we can –"

"I don't want to sit." His sore hand now a fiery numbness, Rick tossed the package of peas to the couch and curled his arm around Michonne's, needing to feel her close. "Just explain so we can go. What threat?"

"Lori threatened to tell you about us if I didn't help break you and Michonne up." Shane grimaced, his body like a limp noodle with his top half slumped on the ottoman and his legs stretched out on the floor. His breathing labored. He did look like hell. "Said if she lost you, I would lose you, too. She had me tell her everything I knew about Michonne."

"She came to my office yesterday, and by the time she left, I knew she'd had an affair," Michonne explained.

"Did she tell you?" Andrea asked.

"In a way. I used deductive reasoning. Rick called when Lori was there, and she was very curious about why we mentioned Shane's name, but I didn't make that connection. She got a call as she was leaving, and it made her very unhappy."

"That was Shane. He got on his phone after we had a little talk at the department. I figure that's when you told her about the confession and me, right?"

"I had to act fast." Shane whimpered softly, blood trickled from his nose and stained his teeth. "You didn't give me much choice."

"Lori gave me signed divorce papers last night," Rick shared.

Andrea blinked, doing a double take. "She did what?"

"I didn't get the chance to tell you that part."

"She did them at home," Michonne said. "Used an online template."

"Don't trust it," Shane said weakly, his breathing heavier, tone softer. "She's up to something."

"We figured that, but we don't know what," Rick said. "You're her partner in crime, Shane. Tell us what it is."

"I don't know."

"Bullshit."

"We spoke by phone yesterday. She told me Michonne knew about the affair, but not that it was me. She sounded different, strange, and said she would do what was best for her. That she wasn't afraid of what Michonne and Andrea knew. I hadn't talked to her since. That's it, Rick. That's all I know."

"Call her."

"What?"

"Get her on the phone!" Rick grunted. The numbness from his hand gone and the ache back with a vengeance.

"And say what?"

"That getting the signed divorce papers has given Rick second thoughts and he's moping here," Michonne suggested. "We all know she's up to something. This is a way to confirm you don't know what it is and show you want to help us find out."

Rick nodded. "Works for me," he said.

"My cell is on the corner –"

"Call her on the landline, so we can listen in on the desk phone. We can make sure you're not up to something and keep her from being suspicious of you talking the whole time on speakerphone when I'm supposed to be here moping around." Rick retrieved the cordless from the kitchen and punched in Lori's number when Shane made his way to the couch with his frozen vegetable pack. "It's ringing," he said, handing Shane the phone before joining Michonne and Andrea who were already huddled around the handset at the desk.

Lori answered in the middle of the third ring. "Hello," she said.

"It's me. Why didn't you tell me about the divorce papers?"

"Shane?" She sighed, disappointed. "I thought you might be Rick. You never call from the house phone."

"My cell died."

"Are you drunk? You don't sound yourself."

"I have a bit of headache. Might be coming down with something." He flinched, holding the phone closer to his puffy face. "Why didn't you mention these divorce papers yesterday?"

"With your newly discovered need for confessing, I'm not in a hurry to run anything by you. Did Rick shout it from the rooftops or something?"

Rick rolled his eyes. If Lori was trying to be subtle in her quest for answers, she failed.

"No shouting," Shane said. "He uh, he took a sick day. I came home and he was staring at those papers. Said he might've been wrong. That having the signed papers was giving him second thoughts."

"Did he now?" she said, her glee unmistakable.

"Yeah, I was stunned. He's in his bedroom all lost and confused."

"I wished I would've said something when he called for Carl earlier, but I didn't want to seem anxious." Lori laughed. "This was easier than I thought. Told you I'd do what was best for me."

"Giving him divorce papers?"

"Giving Rick what he thought he wanted by setting him free. I told him Michonne had won when I handed them over. I think that did the trick. He went on and on about how much he loved her and how wonderful she is, but it's a fantasy he'd made up because I stopped throwing pussy at him, as you say, a few weeks after I started giving it to you. But Rick loves me, and always will. I tried to tell Michonne he was coming back to me, but she wouldn't listen. No, she was so confident, so certain of this fairytale love she shared with my husband. But their story is over." Lori snickered. "It's a lesson she'll have to learn the hard way."

Michonne's hand on Rick's and her shaking head prevented him from exploding at Lori's infuriating words. "Not yet," she mouthed, clutching the phone in her hand.

Rick nodded. Michonne had yet to steer him wrong, so he drew quiet, deep calming breaths and stayed silent. Listening to Lori's crassness and belittling of their love was as hard for Michonne as it was for him, but they could get through this torture together.

"What if Rick finds out about us," Shane said. "It could still happen."

"How?" Lori tsked. "Michonne suspects an affair, but she doesn't know anything for sure. She threatened to tell Rick there was someone else if I didn't. I didn't, and she couldn't have if he's reconsidering the divorce. He was so stunned by the papers I signed, I doubt he went back to her last night. I eliminated the need for her lawyer friend by drawing up the papers myself. And if Andrea were to say something, you could just deny it. She's a step above the stranger Michonne is, and you're his best friend. It's not like we took pictures, and lying is the least you can do for not telling me about Michonne in the first place while fucking me like there was no tomorrow. And as it turned out for you, there was no tomorrow." She released a cleansing breath. "By the end of the week, Rick will be back in our home and bed where he belongs, and we can forget Michonne Rameau ever existed. Maybe I'll burn the comic book Carl can't put down. Rick should've never introduced them in first place. I told him this was a phase. Oh, well, I better call him now. See how the poor thing is doing without me."

Michonne nudged Rick's arm. "Now," she mouthed, pressing the speakerphone button and returning the handset to the cradle.

"No need for the call, Lori," Rick said, as Shane turned off the cordless to end the echo effect. "Thanks to you, poor Rick is just fine." Rick winked at Michonne. "Someone here wants to speak to you."

"Hello, Lori, it's Michonne. You mentioned a lesson for me. When is it I can expect the first class?" she quipped. "I'm a big fan of a wide and varied education. You know, you're never too old to learn."

Lori gasped. "What is this?" she bellowed. "Shane, what have you done?"

"A good – a good thing," he answered with a shiver. "For a change."

"My lawyer was listening in, too," Rick said, "and I think she's gonna have some papers for you to sign real soon. Is that right, Andrea?"

"Yep," Andrea replied. "Tomorrow soon."

"This isn't it over, Rick. Not by a long shot."

"No, it's been over, Lori, it's about to become official now. You need to understand, and I mean to really get this, I am in love with Michonne. It's not a phase or a fantasy. It's real and forever. I am never, under any circumstance, coming back to you."

"This is because I was with Shane."

"No. I sincerely want you to find happiness. If it's with Shane, fine, be with him. You should know he made a pass at Michonne tonight, so I'm not exactly sure where his heart lies when it comes to you."

"He – He what?" Lori stammered. "Where is that bitch! Michonne, what have done to them?"

"Bitch?" Michonne laughed, loud and exaggerated. "Are you looking in a mirror, Lori? Because all of this is a mess of your making. All of it! The word is 'no,' and you should have said it to the right man."

"Said the woman fucking my husband. Don't worry, Michonne, you and Rick will be hearing that word from me a lot. Get ready!"

"Damn it, Lori! Don't make this any uglier than it's already gotten. Think…of…Carl," he said, punctuating the three words to get across the threat he meant, the familiar refrain having more meaning after the discoveries of tonight.

"I think of everything, Rick. Everything!"

"You can't win."

"But I will. You'll see." The call ended suddenly, signaling Lori had hung up.

Rick shook his head. This day that had started so beautifully had turned into a night from hell. He extended his arm to Michonne. "Let's get outta here."

Michonne linked her with Rick's. "Andrea, you coming?" she said.

"Yeah." She glanced over and Shane. "I'm coming."

Shane adjusted the frozen pack at his side, wincing in discomfort as he stood from the couch. "Rick, listen, I'm sorry for all I've done, all you've heard, but I love you, man. Your friendship means everything to me. It's the most important—"

"Stop." Rick groaned into his hands. The awakening beast inside him growing more restless with Shane's every word. "Stop."

"Yesterday, you said it was thanks to me that you met Michonne. That my pulling over her car changed your life and you'd always owe me for that. Do you remember?"

"I do. And right after I met Michonne, I got back into our squad car and I told you she was the love of my life, and your response was that I was cheating on Lori. Do you remember that?"

"Rick…"

"Shut up! When I told Lori about Michonne, that I wanted a divorce, she assumed I was cheating, too. Your call on her reaction was spot on, now I know why, but her biggest response came in you knowing about Michonne." Rick laughed sardonically. There were clues everywhere and he'd missed them all. Blissfully ignorant of the chaos all around him. "She was out with 'friends' on Friday, but the call tonight confirmed it was you she was with. You."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop saying that."

"It was just sex. It didn't mean any –"

Rick scoffed. "You don't get it. You being involved makes it mean something. I'm still coming to terms with you and Lori. Whatever it is or was I can deal with it, but tonight with Michonne…" He brought his left hand to her face, gently caressing her soft features. A haze of tears blurred his eyes and slowly rolled down cheeks. "She is my heart." He fingered a dangling loc. "She's beautiful and strong, and she's hurting, because of you. And I see it." He lifted her chin when she lowered her gaze. "I see it, Michonne, and I feel it." He returned his attention to Shane. Standing, seemingly swaying; his face pummeled and bleeding; eye swollen shut, a wounded mess in every way. Rick could've killed him, and it scared him that he still wanted to.

"Tonight, you put your hands on her and made her afraid, but she set aside her pain for me, because she loves me that much. You say you love me, but you hurt the one I love most. What kind of love is that?" Rick flexed his aching hand. "I want to finish you, but beating you to death won't make me feel better or fill the void I'm feeling for my best friend, my brother. 'Cause see, I do love you, Shane, but right now I hate you just as much. I can't stand to look at you, because I don't understand you. Why did you do this?" Rick wiped the tears from Michonne's cheeks. "Why did you hurt this woman? My woman. My love." He turned to Shane for answers. "Why?"

"I don't know." Shane groaned, bringing his hand to his puffy, reddened face. Wiping tears from the eye not swollen shut. "There's something that makes me – Ugh." He reached for his head. "I don't… I don't feel ri…" His eye rolled in his head, and he collapsed to the floor.

An eerie chill raced down Rick's spine and a strangled sob lodged in his throat. "Shane?" he murmured.

Michonne's arms tightened around him as Andrea raced over to Shane's still body. "Call 9-1-1!" Andrea shouted. "This is bad."

~Thanks for reading~

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