Chapter 49:

'She is right'

"Mom?"

Michonne looked up from her computer to see Carl standing near the island counter. She straightened up, "Yeah?"

"Can we talk?", The teen hadn't said a thing to her since their argument, and after Rick had informed her of why her son was so upset, she had given him a wide berth for his own benefit.

"Sure", She tipped her head towards the bar stool beside her.

Carl took a seat, resting his forearms on the counter, "...I'm sorry… for everything."

Her heart swelled, "Thank you. I appreciate that"

"...I talked to dad, and I know he probably told you everything"

"He did", She reached out and placed her hand on his arm, "I'm sorry, honey. I know it's not a nice thing to go through, but that doesn't mean you get to lash out like that. Where did you even go?"

"I walked around, I just needed a break. Some fresh air."

She released a long suffering sigh, "You had me so worried-"

"I know, and I'm really sorry", He insisted, finally looking up at her.

She gave his arm a squeeze, "We're here when you want to talk, Carl"

"I know", He nodded, "...And thank you for picking dad"

She furrowed her brows at him, "For picking your dad?"

"Yeah… You picked him. Well, us.. because I was part of the deal… and he has to raise me because he made me, but you didn't have to and you've raised me too…so thank you. I love you. A lot"

Michonne's jaw began to quiver as she deciphered what her son's ramblings meant, "Oh, Carl-"

"Please don't cry", He quickly added.

"Get over here!", She ordered, pulling him into her arms. The relief she felt was unparalleled to anything else, and it felt good to finally be able to hold him after knowing how much he was hurting, "Of course I picked you two. I'd always pick you two. I love you both so damn much"

"We love you too", Carl sighed in a happier tone.

"Daddy!", Judith chirped from the hallway.

The teenager looked up towards his sister's voice, "I'm still in a lot of trouble though, right?"

"Of course, honey", She nodded, releasing him, "You skipped school, left the hospital, disappeared for hours, turned up and yelled at your poor, worried mother. Your father's probably going to tear down the house and make you rebuild it with your bare hands"

A quiet chuckle escaped the teenager, and Michonne was glad to see him smile, "Yeah. Got it"

Rick stepped into the room with Judith on his back, the little girl beaming from ear to ear, "Daddy said my Halloween costume is coming"

"Oh that reminds me, I have to get your Woody costume", Michonne returned to computer.

"For who? Dad?", Carl looked to his father with a frown, though the corner of his lips began to turn up into a smile, "You're going to be Woody?"

"And you're going to be Buzz", Rick replied dryly, letting Judith sit on the countertop, "Now, first thang you need to do is get up those stairs, and start working on that bathroom. I wanna' see my smile in those tiles."

Carl's shoulders fell.

"Go on, up you get", Rick tipped his head towards the door, "And be careful, I don't know how long spiders live for but I'm pretty sure the one that was in the attic moved to the bathroom-"

"The one Judith saw when we got back from the cruise? You didn't kill it?", Michonne squinted at him.

"It ran off and daddy watched it go", Judith informed, leaving her father to sigh.

"You're such a big chicken", Michonne sniggered.

"If it's up there, then you have to come help me kill it, dad", Carl looked at Rick for reassurance as he started out the kitchen.

Rick shook his head, "I can't promise that"

"He'll help you", Michonne insisted, and her husband sent her a scornful look, "Go on".

"Daddy, you have a lot of silver hair", Judith tilted her head as she inspected Rick, "How come?"

"Some are from your mother, and some are from your brother", He answered swiftly, retrieving the tub of marshmallows from the pantry, "And I hope you don't give me any"

"How did they give you silver hair?"

Rick exhaled through his nose as he parked himself beside his daughter, "Your mother likes shopping too much, and your brother doesn't like to hold on to his mind"

"Oh…Well, you have a lot, so I won't give you anymore, daddy", Judith's eyes lit up as her father handed her a small handful of the candy.

Warmth radiated from Rick's eyes as he watched Judith, a smile growing on his face, "Of course you won't. You're my little angel"

Judith chuckled at him as she jumped down from the counter, "I know!"

"Go on, go watch your show"

"Okie doke"

Michonne watched the display with a warm heart, though she couldn't resist commenting, "She's going to give you the most silver hair"

"She better not", Rick groaned, strolling over to join her, "You talk to Carl?"

"I did. He apologised, and he said he loves me because I picked you two", She glowed.

Rick chortled as he leaned on the counter, "I'm glad I got through to him"

"What did you say?"

"Nothing…", He looked down at the work splayed in front of her, "What's this?"

"Last minute preparations…", She held up one of the sheets, "I'm actually wanted to talk to you about what happened when you saw Lori? I don't want her trying to use anything against us"

Her husband sneered as he took the paper from her, "She was just talking a whole lot of nonsense"

"What about though Rick? About Carl?"

"Yeah. She said 'he's scared of me' or somethan'-"

"What?", Michonne squinted at him.

"I know, right? I wish he was scared of me, then he wouldn't be a trouble now", Rick snickered at his own joke.

"I don't like that, Rick"

"She can say what she wants, it doesn't mean anythan'. She hasn't got any proof to back it up-"

"I still don't like it", She repeated, taking the sheet back from him, "And we're taking you back to the hospital-"

"What for? I'm fine. I spent the whole day at work with no problems… besides that damn friend of yours turning up"

"She told me", Michonne bit back a chuckle, "The two have you have known each other for far too long now. You can't still be arguing like that-"

"You won't let me arrest her-"

"You can't just arrest her, Rick", She sniggered, about to step past him when he took hold of her wrist, leading her to look at him questioningly.

"Come here", He gruffed quietly, sending a shiver up her spine.

She didn't know why she felt nervous, although she didn't rule out the fact that affection between them had been limited, and she was waiting for him to feel comfortable with her again.

He wrapped his hands around her when she was close enough, lacing his arms around her waist, "You alright?"

She nodded, her hands holding on to his shoulders, "I am. You?"

"Yeah", His head bowed, his face wresting in the crook of her neck.

She let her fingers find their rightful place in his curls, "...We're seeing Aaron this weekend"

A low growl left her husband, "Great"

"Stop that".

"God. I can't stand teenagers. Just look at them. They're like little gremlins"

Michonne nearly spat out her coffee as she chuckled, "Andrea, cut it out"

The blonde rolled her eyes, "Where's my nephew? He's the only one I want to see"

"He's going to avoid us, and Rick", Michonne huffed, looked around the gymnasium, "He knows we don't like to miss an opportunity to embarrass him"

Andrea snickered, "Nice"

"Ladies", Mrs Monroe approached them with a warm smile, "Hope you're looking forward to today's career day?"

"We are", Michonne insisted, "Thank you for having us"

"The pleasure is mine", Mrs Monroe's smile tightened as she glanced behind her, "May I ask were your husband is, Mrs Grimes?"

Michonne frowned as she looked towards the police departments stall, "Is he not here?"

"No. Not yet"

"Ah. Well I'll give him a quick-"

"There they are", Andrea pointed out, tipping her head towards the double doors.

Rick strolled in with Daryl, both wearing similar uninterested looks, leading Michonne to inwardly groan, "There they are"

"Oh, thank God. Let me go brief them, thank you ladies", Mrs Monroe spun on her heel and marched towards the men.

"She's so small, but so fast", Andre sighed, nudging Michonne.

"She is", She agreed, watching her husband eye the small woman suspiciously when she approached the two men.

"Oh look, there's Carl", Andrea pointed to the teen, who was making his way in the hall with another two boys, "Carl! Hey Carl!"

The teen looked at Andrea for only a split second before turning the other way, leading both women to cackle. Michonne shook her head at the blonde, "You are horrible"

"I never said I wouldn't embarrass him"

They both stood on either side of the stall as teenagers began showing interest, and Michonne did her best to make her job sound the most desirable, while Andrea did her best not to snarl at the kids.

"Mrs Grimes! How great to see you", Abraham boomed as he joined them, his smile soon vanishing when he saw the other lawyer present, "Andrea"

"Ford.", Andrea bit back, before turning to the other way.

Michonne frowned at the strange, and awkward meeting, "How are you Abraham?"

"I'm doing great, I get to walk around for two hours instead of teaching these little zombies", Abraham sighed, his gaze sailing over the crowds of students.

"Zombies?"

"Yeah. All they care about is screens. Phone screens, TV screens, computer screens. That's it. They're all a bunch of Zombies"

Michonne couldn't help but see the man's point, as she often had her own battle with Carl and his own phone, "Ah. Zombies…"

"Well I'll be sure to send some of them your way. You have a good day now", Abraham gave her a single nod, before stepping away, "Andrea"

"Ford", Andrea spat, facing Michonne again.

"What the hell was that about?", Michonne queried, frowning at the women.

"We went on a date or two a few years ago"

"What? Isn't he married?"

"Yes! He is!"

"Oh…", Michonne cringed, looking in the other direction, "You didn't have adult time with him, did you?"

"No, sadly, we didn't"

"Sadly?", Michonne raised her eyebrows at her scandalous friend.

"Look at how big he is. His thing is probably the size of a fucking Pringles can"

Laughter burst from Michonne's lips, and she had to force herself to straighten up, but Andrea never failed to make her laugh.

"I was thinking for my birthday… instead of going to a bar... we have a little 'girls only' party", Andrea informed quietly.

"Girls only?", Michonne repeated, fixing the sheers on the table.

"Yes, girls only. I got an email about one of those adult toys parties-"

"Oh my god", She groaned, looking at the woman with a raised brow.

"Great idea, right? You never know, you might see something you like-"

"Stop."

"I'll tell Sasha and Maggie. It'll be fun…", Andrea eyes sailed across the hall, then stopped, "Oh boy. The vultures are circling"

Michonne looked up at her friend following her line of sight over to the police department's table, where a batch of female teachers were gathered. She could just about make out her husband in the crowd, "Just great"

"I'm going over", Andrea breathed, smoothing her shirt as she started for the other side of the hall.

Michonne watched her friend apprehend the crowd, snaking her way through to the centre. She could only imagine what Andre did, or said, to make the women disperse so quickly.

"Hey mom", Carl greeted, joining her with two friends at his side.

"Hey!", She smiled, tearing her gaze away from her friend, "You boys interested in becoming a lawyer?"

"No, we're just-"

"I am", The boy Michonne knew as Mickey stepped forward, with slightly widened eyes.

Carl's face pinched in confusion, "Since when?"

"I'm very interested", Mickey insisted, not taking his eyes off Michonne, "I think it's a very brave and noble profession, and I'd love to know more"

Michonne's eyebrows rose as she looked at the teen, "Wow. That's great, Mickey"

"Thank you, Mrs Grimes", Mickey's shoulders fell as he swooned, a goofy smile spreading across his lips.

"Oh my god", Carl muttered under his breath while he looked on with disgust.

Michonne ignored her humiliated son, "So let me tell you all about it…"

"Now, I understand that this is a very important week for the two of you. You have a court case coming up with Carl's birth mother, and I'd be very interested to know how you both feel about that?"

Michonne glanced at Rick for a second, before looking back at Aaron, "He's probably handling it better than me"

"Oh? And what makes you think that?"

"As silly as it sounds, because I know chances are slim, I still feel like I have more to lose".

"...As an adoptive mother, I get it", Aaron nodded, glancing down at the notepad on his lap, "And what about you, Rick? Can you understand her reasons for feeling this way?"

Rick pursed his lips for a second, "I think that-"

"He thinks that even if the worst was to happen, he'd still be able to stop it somehow so I shouldn't feel that way, because no matter what, he'll save the day", Michonne ejected.

Rick sighed as he continued to stare at Aaron, "Why don't you just cut out the middleman and talk directly to her. She can answer for me"

Aaron bit back a chuckle, "Michonne, we should let-"

"Alright, fine", She held up her hands in surrender, "He can answer… but I'm right"

"So… Rick? Can you relate to anything-"

"She is right. She knows I won't let Lori gain any access to my son", Rick insisted flatly, "So I don't want her to think that's there's even a chance of that happening"

Aaron's eyes darted between the two of them, "I must say, I do like how in tune the two of you are. You've come a long way since our first session, and I'm glad that the two of you are working together to handle this… and I'd like us to have the same approach when it comes to the newest member of your family…"

Michonne knew the day would come where she would have to openly talk about her troubles with her pregnancy, but it didn't make the topic any easier to tackle.

"How far along are you now?"

She gave a little shrug, "Probably four months?"

"Have you gone to see your obstetrician?"

"No. I haven't had any kind of prenatal care at all…"

"I see… and would you agree that that's because of some of the problems you've faced with your last pregnancy?"

She thought about it, "It's possible"

Aaron nodded, "That's perfectly normal. I think there's an expectation that once a woman falls pregnant, that she must instantly feel some sort of bond with her baby, but that's not always the case. It can be very difficult for some, especially with someone in circumstance like your own. But you shouldn't feel bad about that, and you shouldn't be afraid to voice your worries or concerns either, it's nothing to be ashamed about. There are ways that many people around you, not just me, but Rick, your kids, your family and friends can help you. It's not something that can change overnight but we can all help you to take the steps to bond with your baby"

She felt Rick's hand slip into hers, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

"I think maybe getting the baby checked out would be a good start-"

"Didn't I say that? I said that would help, didn't I?", Rick frowned, peering at his wife.

Michonne rolled her eyes, "He did suggest that"

"That's a great suggestion, Rick", Aaron beamed.

Rick snickered as he looked back at Aaron, "I wouldn't be too quick to praise if I were you. That means I can do your job"

The other man's smile fell.

Michonne snorted at him, "He couldn't. We had a bet a couple months ago that he couldn't go a week without getting angry at anyone, and he ended up breaking stuff".

"I did break a few thangs, but I still won", Rick's face pinched in confusion, "And I didn't yell at anyone! You couldn't go a week without spending anythan'- in fact, she said she blacked out when I caught her with my card-"

"I did! I don't even remember what I bought!"

"We're going a little off topic here…", Aaron commented quietly.

"Because you buy so many unnecessary thangs!"

"Unnecessary?!", She narrowed her eyes at him, rolling her shoulders back in the process, "When was the last time you bought yourself a shirt? Or socks?"

He furrowed his brows at her, and she was sure she could almost see the cogs turning in his mind as he tried to recall the memory, "What's your point?"

"Because I buy all your clothes! Everything down to your boxers! I buy them, and the same with Judith and most of the time with Carl! If I didn't, then you'd all be wearing garbage bags! So if I can't remember what I bought then it's because I buy everything!"

Michonne could almost pinpoint the moment Rick stopped listening to her. Her husband looked back to Aaron, " Can you continue please?"

The counsellor huffed, rubbing his temples as he plastered a smile on his face, "Yes! I can… but before we go any further with the steps to help make this pregnancy a little more enjoyable for you both, I'd like to make a small request. I want the two of you to not argue, about anything, until our next session"

Michonne held her breath.

"No bickering, no arguing, no yelling, no name calling…", Aaron sent Michonne a pointed look, "Just calm, polite conversation. Do you think you can do this?"

Rick looked at Michonne as he began to chuckle, "I can, she can't"

She glared at husband.

"You see that?", Rick tipped his head in her direction, "She's thinking about calling me a 'Jackass' as soon as we leave"

"Michonne", Aaron warned, "I want you both to feel as if you're in the honeymoon period of your relationship-"

"He got into a fight on both of our honeymoons. The first one, he punched the waiter. The second one, he punched one of the children's entertainers and our son's ex-girlfriend's dad", She informed with a monotone.

Aaron seemed to be struggling, "Okay, forget I said that. Just try to be nice to each other, nothing but nice"

Rick seemed to be highly amused, "This is gonna' be fun"

She sighed, stroking her thumb over his, "Oh, it will be".