Michonne released a shaky breath. Marry me. A ring. She closed her teary eyes, drawing deep breaths. "Okay. Uh…uh..." She was stammering, but she couldn't help it. Rick had asked the question, and she had to tell him exactly how she felt about it. "Is this why your heart was racing before, because you were about to propose?" she asked, her gaze shifting between Rick's smiling face and the ring perched between his thumb and index finger.
"Yes."
"You know I turned Mike down three times."
"Yes," Rick replied.
"And that my parents' divorce cooled me on the prospect of marriage."
"Yes."
"Yet, you proposed anyway."
"Uh-huh, sure did." Rick nodded. "You realize I'm the only one who's said 'yes' since I asked this question, right?"
"Oh, I haven't said it yet?" she quipped.
"You know you haven't."
"Is there any doubt of my answer?"
"No." He shook his head. "I considered everything you mentioned before I asked, but I don't have a single doubt. Not about you. Not about us. And I know you don't, either. Although your attempt at tryin' to make me sweat is fun."
She laughed. "I think before this night is over you'll be doing a lot of sweating. Which is only fair because your proposal has completely melted my heart. Oh, my God!" She cupped his face, kissing him deeply. "Yes, Rick Grimes, absolutely yes! I will marry you." She brought him into a tight embrace. Her heart overflowing. "I would marry you a thousand times." She kissed his neck. "I love you so much."
"I love you." Rick slipped the ring on her finger. "A perfect fit," he said, adorning her hand with a kiss. "I will make you happy, Michonne. I promise."
"You already do. I thought I was going to burst when you proposed."
"You played it cool."
"I tried." She looked at her hand and squealed, sounding like a star-struck teen at a rock concert, but she didn't care. "This ring is exquisite, Rick."
"It doesn't compare to you."
"That flattery," she said with a kiss. "It's another reason why I want to marry you." Rick gathered her in his arms, reclining against the headboard. "Tell me more about this ring. It started with your great-great-grandparents?"
"Yep." Rick set his chin on her shoulder, his thumb grazing the ring as he held her hand. "Searching for a better life, they gathered their five children and moved to Georgia from Ireland early in the nineteen hundreds. Grandpa Liam worked hard to take care of his family while Grandma Sarah took care of the home. They didn't have a lot of excess, but he was good with his hands."
"Hmm." Michonne reached back, stroking his curls. "So that's who you got it from," she teased, reaching back and stroking his curls.
"You're bad," Rick said with a chuckle. "Grandpa was a carver and furniture maker by trade, okay, ma'am? He was approached by a jeweler to make some display cases and jewelry boxes for a few select customers. Since his children were all grown and on their own by this time, Grandpa decided to do something special for Grandma to commemorate their twenty-five years of marriage and her recent forty-fifth birthday. So, he bartered with the jeweler for the ring, and nine months later, my great-grandmother was born."
Michonne turned to face him. "What?" she said, even more touched by the significance of this ring.
"Uh-huh. That ring makes things happen."
"It does." She stroked his clean-shaven cheek. "We're getting married, Rick."
"We are. Soon, I hope. I'd like to have a few days of marriage in by Christmas. Maybe even a couple of weeks."
"This Christmas?"
"One and the same."
"You said by then?"
"I did. I don't want to wait, but I'm willin' to put our wedding off until Christmas Eve if you need big and splashy."
Michonne laughed. "Christmas Eve," she said, her laughter increasing and then faltering when Rick's eyes narrowed and head tilted. "You're not joking?"
"No," Rick answered. "I told you, I'm ready. Just tell me what you need, and I'll move heaven and earth to make it happen."
"All I really need is you and the boys. I would like Sasha and Andrea there, Noah, Maggie, and of course your parents."
"And yours," he said.
Michonne rolled her eyes. "We can revisit that."
"Babe?"
"I have to invite them, huh?"
"If you invite your half-brother, you kinda have to invite your parents, yes." He kissed her softly. Eyes filled with love held hers hostage. "Tell me, when can we do this, Michonne?" His finger grazed her cheek, his touch tender and so loving. "When can I make you my wife?"
"Friday," she said, surprising herself with the quick response, and wondering where it came from.
Rick blinked, looking as pleased as she felt shocked. "This Friday?"
"Uh, pssh, yeah. Yeah, sure." She nodded, feeling confidence infiltrate every pore. "Sure. We can have an intimate ceremony with our close family and friends in the yard or the dining room. We'll figure it out, and it will be beautiful."
"Your presence will ensure its beauty." He sighed. "You're breathtaking."
Michonne fought her smile. "You can stop, Rick. I already said yes." She kissed his nose. "Now, about Friday. It's the day before Carl's birthday. Think he'll be okay with this with everything, you know?"
"There's no question about that." His fingers locked with hers. "He loves you, and, yes, he has to grieve Lori, but we're going to be here to help him do it. This ceremony will be good. It's hope. A reminder that his sadness won't last forever, and it will make the holidays and his birthday more than a tragic reminder of losing his mother. We're celebrating our commitment to each other, Michonne. That's the most wonderful thing in the world. How do you think Andre will react?"
"Are you kidding? He'll be over the moon. You know he's crazy about you."
"Like I am him and his mother. And Mike is about him."
"Mike?"
"Uh-huh. We had a really good talk today, and he gave me his blessing to propose."
"His blessing?"
"Not like that. He knew I wanted to marry you, I told him as much the day I met him, and today he made a valid point for why now was the perfect time to ask. While he's away recuperating, he wanted me to keep an eye on Andre. To keep showing the love I have for you and him."
"That's why he wanted to speak to you alone?"
"Yeah. He said now more than ever, the boys needed some happiness, and starting our married life would be just the hope they needed. And he was right, because we are right. Mike is a really good man, but I'm the lucky one, because I have you."
"You're a good man, too, Rick. Mike knows that, and that's why he said what he did. I know he's still hurting about us, and I'm sorry. I do love him, and I always will, but my heart belongs to you. Because he's a good man, I know he's going to find his person just like I found mine." She smiled. "We'll tell the boys in the morning and start making wedding plans." She shuddered at the delight of it all. "We'll be making wedding plans tomorrow."
"Mm-hmm." Rick drew her into his arms, trailing sensual kisses along her neck. "And tonight, I'm gonna put my genetically provided hand skills to work in showing you just how happy I am about that." Rick lowered her to the bed. The promises of pleasure brewing within his orbs of blue made her tingle. "Happy engagement, Michonne."
A knock on the door roused Rick from his sleep. Satiated but exhausted from his glorious night with Michonne, he didn't want to move. He usually rose at six-thirty, but it didn't feel that late. It was still dark out.
Michonne groaned. "What time is it?" she asked, burying her face in the crook of his shoulder.
Rick's sleepy gaze turned the alarm clock. "Six o'clock."
The knocking resumed, longer. "You guys up?" said Carl. "I want to go to school."
"Just a second, son." Rick switched on the lamp, squeezing his burning eyes from the sudden light. He and Michonne sat up. "Did he say school?" Rick asked, as Michonne handed his discarded pajama bottoms.
"Yes." She slipped on her nightgown and robe. "I thought he'd want to take a least a few more days."
"Me, too." Rick pulled on his pants and opened the door. "You want to go to school?"
"Yeah." Michonne came over. "Can one of you drive me?"
"Your mom's funeral was yesterday. I thought you'd want to stay home a while longer."
"So did I, Dad, but I had dream, and it changed everything."
"What was the dream?" Michonne asked, waving him in. Carl settled on the chaise, and Rick sat with Michonne at the foot of the bed. "If you remember and don't mind sharing. I don't always remember my dreams."
"I remember, and I want to tell you. It was about Mom. She came to me, and she talked about you."
Rick found a new reason to love Michonne when her facial expression remained unchanged at Carl's disclosure. Any reference to Lori would inspire an eye roll at a minimum. To hear Lori was talking about her, even in a dream, and she not react to it, showed her level of devotion to Carl. "Really?" she said, with no other commentary.
"Yeah." Carl nodded. "I know it was a dream, but it felt real. She said she didn't want me to be sad. That she was sorry she had to leave me, but that it was her time to go, and even though I wouldn't see her, she would always love me and be with me, just like Dad said. Then she told me that you would help me, Michonne. That when I got sad or needed to talk to her, I could come to you, and you would tell me what I needed to know. That you would make sure I was always okay." Rick closed his hand over Michonne's bejeweled hand. This was a miracle. "She said I didn't have to worry about her. That she was with her parents and my sister. Then she kissed my cheek, and I woke up."
"Your sister?" Michonne said.
"Yeah. Weird, right? But she said it." Carl laughed, a curious, freeing laugh. "I know it was a dream, but…"
"It felt real," Rick and Michonne said.
"So real. Her touch felt real, her scent, real." Carl sighed. "Mom wasn't wearing angel clothes, like in the movies. It was a short dress. Like she was going to a party or something."
"A short dress?" Rick repeated, the stunned look on Michonne's face seemingly reading his thoughts. Lori was wearing a short dress on Thanksgiving with these weird patterns. "What color was it?"
"I don't know. But it had designs on it. Just strange."
"Yeah, I bet," Michonne offered. "My God," she mouthed to Rick. That was the Thanksgiving Day dress.
"When I woke up, I felt…" Carl's face scrunched. "Happy isn't right. I'm not happy Mom's gone, I miss her so much, but I felt better than yesterday. The dream made it better, because it's like I got to say goodbye. She told me goodbye and she hugged me and kissed me." He sighed, nodding. "I feel better. Not as lost. Can I go to school? I don't want to get too far behind."
"You're a good student, Carl, and you only missed yesterday. But, sure, if you want to," Michonne said. "Rick?"
He nodded in agreement. "If that's what you want, yeah, son, I can drop you off."
"Cool. I'll go get dressed." Carl started for the door and turned back. "I wouldn't say no to pancakes for breakfast. I feel hungry."
"Pancakes, pancakes!" said Andre, bouncing up and down in his footy pajamas in front of the open door.
"The gang's all here," Rick said with a laugh.
Michonne swooped Andre into her arms. "What are you doing up so early, my jumping bean of a peanut?"
"I want the pancakes. Is Rick making pancakes? They are yummy, yummy!" Andre rubbed his stomach.
"Yummy, yummy?" Michonne peppered kisses on Andre's neck. "This is yummy."
Andre erupted in laughter. "That tickles, Mommy."
Rick rubbed his hands, wanting to get in on the fun. "Just wait till you get this," he said, taking Andre into his arms and airplane riding him to the chaise, tickling his sides, increasing the little one's hysterics. Michonne joined in.
"Tickle me, Carl!" Andre requested between uproarious bouts of laughter.
Carl rushed over. "You asked, kid." He attacked Andre's feet, sending the little boy howling in the midst of what quickly became a big group hug tickling frenzy. It was Carl's sharp intake of breath and flop to the chaise that brought the impromptu pajama party funfest to an abrupt end.
"What's wrong, Carl?" Michonne cupped his cheek. "You change your mind about school? It's perfectly fine if you did."
"No, I …" His eyes narrowed and his lips twitched with the makings of a smile. "I wanna know what's that on your finger, Michonne."
Andre sat up, searching. "What's on your finger, Mommy?"
Michonne smiled. "Something wonderful," she said.
Rick massaged her shoulder and kissed her hair. "Very wonderful." The boys waking up in such high spirits this morning and Carl's unlikely but amazingly prophetic dream-vision about Lori made their news seem even more like a good omen. "There's something we need to share with you boys."
"Good news, huh?" Carl said with a wide grin.
"We think so," Rick said.
"We're having pancakes!" said Andre.
Michonne chuckled. "Besides that, sweetie," she said. "But you'll get your pancakes."
"Yea!" Andre cheered.
"Are we getting married?" Carl said. "That's it, right?"
"Yes and yes," Michonne answered. "And there's more."
"We need to call some grandparents, boys," Rick said. "The wedding is Friday."
Richonne fluff goes a long way!
~Thanks for reading and stay tuned. ~
