Prompt: Rick shows off the summer before his senior year. Too bad it's not for his girlfriend.

The summer sun was sweltering, but it did little to dissuade the teenagers gathered at the lake from spending the day soaking up its rays. A few dozen of them were traipsing around the sandy shore, flirting, laughing, and idling with nothing better to do.

Among them was Rick Grimes. He slathered sunscreen on his skin, pretending not to notice the way his friend and teammate was flirting with his girlfriend. They'd been growing more bold with it by the day. Rick supposed he ought to mind, but honestly, he couldn't bring himself to care. Shane seemed less and less a friend these days, and Lori less and less a girlfriend.

"Rick, you're turning red," Lori's voice drew his attention, along with a bit of his ire. They existed only to get on one another's nerves these days.

"That's why I'm putting on sunscreen," he answered as calmly as he could.

Shane chuckled, scooping a hand beneath the mirrored surface of the water to splash them both. "Rick's always red," he teased.

"Shane!" Lori squealed, indignant as she narrowly avoided getting her hair wet.

"Lori," Shane taunted, grinning as he repeated the action.

They began to argue while Rick held in a sigh, reaching for his ball cap to shade his face. Across the water, a car rolled to a stop. Several of his classmates piled out, laughing. Rick's eyes zeroed in one particular figure immediately.

Michonne. He found himself staring at her more often, concocting excuses to talk to with the intelligent beauty. It was hard to catch her alone and harder still to formulate anything good to say. Michonne ran with the honor students, the intellectuals. And Rick…

"Damn it, Shane!" Lori leapt to her feet, all righteous indignation. "You're going to ruin my tan!"

"Already looks splotchy to me," Shane fired back, howling with laughter.

Rick did sigh this time, turning his gaze back to the newcomers. Michonne was laughing with her friends, Her long braids dusting down her back. Rick's stomach gave a pleasant twist when she lifted the hem of her dress, pulling it over her head. Her bikini was bright yellow, a stark contrast to the smooth umber color of her skin. Rick's mouth hung lax, his eyes unmoving.

"Rick!" Shane shouted in his ear, sending Rick jumping.

"What?" he asked, snapping his head around. Lori was glaring at him. Rick ignored it.

"Zeke's here," Shane announced, apparently done with antagonizing Rick's girlfriend. "Let's play a game." He reached for a backpack nearby, jerking out their baseball mitts.

"It's hot," Rick complained, content to sit with his feet beneath the water, thinking about Michonne.

"Don't be a baby," Shane shoved him forward. Rick went under with a splash, reemerging soaking wet. Shane laughed, reaching for Rick's wilted baseball cap. "Now you're cooled off. C'mon."

Rick rolled his eyes, but clambered out. Maybe some baseball would do him good. He yanked at the sopping wet cotton clinging to him, tugging his shirt off and over his head. From across the water, a wolf whistle sounded, drawing laughs. Rick blushed.

"Shut up, Zeke," he chuckled, spotting his friend and teammate.

"Stop strip-teasing then," Zeke countered, already in route, glove in tow.

The group of girls he was with rolled their eyes. All except Michonne. Her dark gaze was on Rick, her lips slightly parted. They flicked over him for a moment. She offered him an appreciative smile. Rick nearly fell over.

"You ready?" Zeke was at his side suddenly, flanked by a half dozen members of the North High Baseball team. Rick turned his attention to them with difficulty.

"Yeah," he said, turning away. "Lori, you want to watch?"

"All I do is watch you play," she answered, eyes still on the Cosmo on the beach towel in front of her.

Rick shrugged, walking away.

The grass beside the lake made a fair enough baseball diamond. They all took their places, eager now. Rick adjusted his cap over his wet curls, squinting at Shane across the rock that served as home plate. Shane crouched, glove out, waiting for the beat up baseball in Rick's hand.

He could sense the eyes of his classmates on him, but none so acutely as Michonne's. She and her boyfriend had joined the crowd, sitting at the water's edge to watch. Rick chanced another glance at her and was met with another smile.

Beaming to himself, Rick wound up. The ball raced past the batter and into Shane's mitt with a resounding smack. In two more throws, the batter was out, and the crowd around them had gotten even larger.

By the time Rick struck the next two out in quick succession, even Lori wandered over to watch. Her gaggle of friends soon joined, whispering excitedly. Rick passed Shane on his way to home plate, trying and failing to hide his smirk.

"Who you showing off for?" Shane asked, grinning back. "You've already got Lori."

Zeke, by contrast, raised a brow, glancing at the spectators. Michonne was looking not at her boyfriend, but at the group of ball players. She'd pulled her hair back, leaving her skin exposed to the sun. Rick wondered whether it was warm to the touch, whether she'd like to be kissed on her bronzed shoulders.

"Maybe it's not Lori," Zeke observed lightly, throwing Rick a pointed glance.

Rick only shrugged, clearing his mind to take the bat. He swung a few times to warm up, listening to the excited tittering of the teenage girls around him, wondering if Michonne was one of them. He found her again as he headed for the plate. She was silent, listening to something Sasha was whispering in her ear. She laughed, flushing prettily.

Rick crouched, eager now. The pitch was a bit outside, but he swung nonetheless, connecting. He watched in satisfaction as the ball went flying off, sailing over and into the lake in short order.

"Damn it, Grimes," Shane barked. "You're showing off and lost the ball."

Chuckling, Rick jogged forward, tossing his hat as he went. "I'll get it," he said, diving in.

The water was cool against his heated skin, a welcome reprieve. Rick cut a clean path through the water, paddling along the sandy, shallow bottom. The baseball bobbed just beneath the surface. Rick grabbed for it, but someone beat him to it, their hand snatching the ball away. He came up for air, staring curiously.

"Hey Rick," it was Michonne's voice that greeted him, a small, secretive smile tugging at her lips.

"Hey, Michonne," he waved, flushing. Beside her, Sasha and Andrea watched interestedly.

"Looking good out there, Grimes," Sasha complimented easily.

"Thanks," he told her, his eyes still on Michonne.

Michonne held up the ball. "You better get back there," she said. "Before everyone loses interest."

She handed him the baseball, her fingers brushing the palm of his hand. Rick grinned out right.

"Might hit a couple more home runs, if you want to keep watching," he told her.

He left them laughing, swimming back to the other side to rejoin the game. Lori was waiting, watching critically as he shook the water off and retrieved his hat.

"What were you talking about over there?" she asked, looking hard at Rick over her sunglasses.

"Nothing," he assured her. He tossed the ball back into play, hastening to join.

"Michonne having fun?" Zeke asked, chuckling.

Rick looked back at her. "I hope so."

"You play like that this year and we're going to make state," Zeke speculated, watching beside Rick as Shane went up to bat.

"Maybe," Rick mused. He had plans for Senior Year. It was time to make some changes around here.

The inning went quickly and Rick found himself back on the makeshift pitching mound, squinting into the sunlight.

"Let's go, Grimes!" Michonne's cheer reached his ears, distinguishable even with the noise of the crowd. Beside her, her boyfriend was chatting with his friend Terry, none the wiser.

Focusing, Rick wound up, throwing another strike with a smile.