"Michonne," Maggie hit the locker next to her with a clang, barely wincing in lieu of smiling brightly. "You'll never believe what I just found out."

"No?" Michonne hid her amusement, continuing shrugging out of her uniform.

"Let me guess," Sasha piped up eagerly from the other side of Michonne, craning around to see. "We're getting a raise?"

Maggie's face fell a bit. "Well, no…"

"A bonus?" Sasha continued.

"No.."

"A day off?" Michonne contributed, reaching for a cotton shirt from the top shelf in her locker.

"No," Maggie huffed, impatient. "It has something to do with the firehouse. And Valentine's Day…" she baited, smiling again.

"Glenn finally ask you out?" Sasha asked.

Maggie's smile disappeared entirely. "I told you we're friends," she groused.

"Sure," Michonne agreed, turning her head to hide her laugh.

"So are Siddiq and I," Sasha quipped. "We just have sex."

"And go on dates," Michonne reminded her.

"Right," Sasha nodded. "Those too."

"Girls!" Maggie huffed. "This isn't about me, or you, or Siddiq," Maggie said, exasperated. "It's about this!"

She brandished her phone. Curious, her friends stepped closer, squinting at the screen. Sasha began to laugh at once.

"Yes, Mags, yes!" She fist pumped.

"See?" Maggie responded, pleased she'd made her point.

"Ok, so we've got three chances," Sasha began to scheme at once. "If we all bid--"

"We don't want to drive up the price--"

"It's for charity but do you think someone else will--"

"I mean, there's that blonde from dispatch."

"Oh, what's her name again?"

"Lisa? Janice? I don't know."

"She's got nothing on Michonne," Sasha came up for air, beaming over at the woman who had gone quite silent.

"Michonne?" Maggie prompted, looking surprised.

Both women paused to look at their friend. Michonne's locs hung loose, the elastic in her hand dangling idily. She hadn't quite managed to get her jeans zipped up, and her shirt was looped around her neck.

"No," Michonne spoke suddenly, blinking herself back to awareness.

"No?" Sasha echoed.

"I don't want to…" Michonne paused, searching for a way to form the words. "I don't want to do it like that."

"Oh?" Maggie said. "So you're just going to stare at him for another year?"

"Like you stare at Glenn?" Michonne asked in return.

"Hey now," Sasha came to Maggie's defense. "She's got Glenn's number at least."

"Who's side are you on?" Michonne asked, smirking.

"The side where you both get laid this Valentine's Day," Sasha answered matter-of-factly.

"Right," Maggie agreed. "So we're doing this."

"Bidding on firefighters?" Michonne scoffed. "Isn't that...archaic?"

"It's for charity, Ms. High Horse," Sasha laughed. "All the money to benefit heart-disease research. Or something."

"That's not the point," Maggie interrupted. "The point is Rick Grimes volunteered. If you win him, you win a date. On Valentine's Day."

"Which should make this whole song and dance a whole lot shorter," Sasha nodded.

"What do you mean?" Michonne asked.

Her friends both rolled their eyes, ignoring the question in lieu of continuing their strategizing.

"I'll talk to Glenn. See what we're up against," Maggie said.

"I'll take her shopping," Sasha added.

"Ladies," Michonne tried one last time. "I'm not going to bid on a date."

"Sure," they both responded, smirking.

-l-l-l-

"Can you at least put on a tie?" Glenn's appraisal of Rick's outfit put the friends and coworkers at odds at once. "You look like you're going to work."

"This is for work, Glenn," Rick reminded him. He'd sooner take the whole damn outfit off and go home.

"It's for charity," Glenn corrected. "And you want to raise a lot of money."

"By selling myself?" Rick cut his eyes at his friend, swatting Glenn's hand as he made a grab for his uniform.

"Well no one is going to buy that," Glenn scoffed, scowling. "You could have done the whole suspenders thing--"

Rick fixed him with a look that could kill. Glenn wisely silenced.

"I'm doing this because a charity asked me to," Rick made himself as clear as possible. "I'm not taking my shirt off, or dressing like a centerfold, or pretending to be a model--"

"Michonne's out there," Glenn spoke up casually, shrugging his shoulders.

Rick's protests died in his throat. "What?"

"Michonne," Glenn repeated. "She's out there. Maggie says she's coming to bid."

Rick paused. "I thought she had a boyfriend."

"Not anymore," Glenn happily relayed the latest. "Maggie says it's been a month or two now."

"Why are you just now telling me?" Rick asked, irritated.

"Because you were dating what's her face...Janet? Jenna?"

"I wasn't dating--" Rick scoffed. "It was two dinners--"

"Anyway," I caught a look at her," Glenn pressed his advantage. "Red dress, hair down…" Glenn whistled lowly. "Bet there's gonna be a bunch of people wishing they could buy a date with her."

Rick squinted, looking at the wall as though he could see through it. "I should go out there and say hello," he mused.

"Maybe put on a suit and tie," Glenn suggested. "Who knows? She might bid on you."

Rick sighed, considering. "I think I left a suit in my office," he recalled.

"Two of them," Glenn said. "I'd go with blue. Maggie says it brings out your eyes."

"Rhee…" Rick bit back a sigh even as his feet carried him to his office door.

"What?" Glenn shrugged.

"When are you going to ask her out? You know, so you can stop being all in my business?" Rick tossed the question over his shoulder.

Glenn laughed. "Worry about your own dating life, Casanova, and I'll worry about mine. It's not too late to throw on the suspenders."

"Fuck off, Glenn." Rick disappeared into his office, laughing as he shut the door.

"Yes, Captain," Glenn shouted gleefully from the other side.

-l-l-l-

"God," Maggie looked shell-shocked as the trio of she, Sasha, and Michonne huddled in the parking lot. "She was really willing to pay a lot."

The remnant chill of winter hung in the air, biting through their too-thin coats. Michonne shivered, wishing she'd just worn pants, or better yet, stayed at home.

"It's a good thing it was for charity," Sasha observed. "Otherwise that might have been the thirstiest thing I've ever seen."

"When he came out," Maggie laughed, shaking her head, "I don't think I've heard the dispatch women scream like that in my whole life. Could have sworn it was a Backstreet Boys concert."

Sasha snorted, grinning alongside her. "That blue suit...it was a look."

"Don't let Siddiq hear you say that," Michonne mumbled, still shivering.

"Why?" Sasha scoffed. "He knows I love him. Rick looked good though."

"Real good," Maggie agreed.

"Yeah," Michonne sighed, morose. "I noticed." Apparently, so had the rest of the world.

"Cheer up," Sasha patted her on the back bracingly. "He was staring you down the whole time, Chonne."

"Glenn said he only put that suit on because he knew you were coming," Maggie chirped helpfully.

"And now what's-her-face is going to get to enjoy seeing him in it all night," Michonne pointed out.

"Don't pout," Sasha said. "Go back in there and talk to him."

Michonne shook her head. "He's got Jill? Lisa? I don't remember her name. Let them enjoy their night."

"See, this is why ya'll are never single at the same time," Maggie shook her head. "So damn stubborn."

"And cold," Michonne said. "I'm heading home."

"Chonne…" Sasha protested.

"I'm fine ladies," Michonne mustered a smile. "You guys enjoy your night. Maggie, I know Glenn is waiting for you."

She climbed into her car before they could talk her out of it, wondering why she felt so disappointed.

Sasha and Maggie watched her drive off.

"This is bullshit," Sasha spoke up, looking irritated.

Maggie looked towards the door to where Glenn was stationed. "I've got an idea," she said. "Come on."

-l-l-l-

Three beers in and Rick was quickly losing the ability to look attentive.

His date was nice enough. Janet (or was it Jen? Laura?) certainly made for enthusiastic company, if nothing else. Rick supposed he ought to be flattered. The blue suit was apparently a very good choice, one he was sure Glenn would never let him live down. That, and the fact that a woman had paid two-hundred and thirty-six dollars for the privilege of a date with him.

Rick was wondering how many more simpering jokes he'd have to sit through before he could make his escape.

"Navy is really your color, Rick," the blonde attempted to bring his attention back around to her.

Rick hazarded a smile. "Thanks," he said, hoping it sounded sincere. He wasn't thinking about the color blue, but rather, red. Michonne's dress had been a deep crimson, the material something like silk. He bet it would feel smooth beneath his palms.

"So…" she tried again. "Are you seeing anyone, Rick?"

In his mind's eye, he was seeing Michonne, the curve of her lips when she smiled or laughed, the way her dark irises seemed to sparkle when they spoke. She was single now, unattached. He could hear her voice when she bid on him, see the hopeful expression on her face when he'd grinned at her.

"No," Rick heard himself saying out loud. "I ain't."

Before he quite registered what he was doing, Rick found himself outside the bar, breath frosting as he tugged his jacket on over his suit. He fiddled with his phone as he hailed a cab, dialing Glenn's number.

"Rhee," Rick grinned when his friend picked up. "I need a favor."

-l-l-l-

Michonne wandered the aisle of the bodega beneath her apartment, wondering what wine paired best with pepperoni pizza and pining over Captain Rick Grimes.

Red would probably do the trick, though the best bottles were all picked over. She bent down to fish one off the bottom shelf, ignoring the wolf whistle her scarlet-clad derriere prompted from some idiot or another.

"Hey," a familiar Southern accent piped up. "Watch your mouth, kid."

Michonne snapped up, spinning on her heels, the neck of the bottle clutched in her manicured hand.

"Rick?" she asked, wondering if she was already somehow tipsy.

Rick was standing near the doorway of the bodega, clutching a bouquet of battered carnations, his curly hair disheveled, and just a peek of his suit visible beneath his coat.

"Hey Michonne," he smiled nervously at her, going pink in the cheeks.

"What are you doing?" she asked, heart pounding. Her feet began to move without her permission, carrying her nearer to him.

"I was going to buy you roses," he held up the stems as evidence. "This was all they had left. What are you doing?" he asked her.

"I was going to buy wine," she held up the bottle. "This was all they had left." His smile widened. Michonne found herself smiling back. "I thought you had a date," she said.

"Didn't quite make it to dinner. Guess I'll have to give her money back." He didn't look the slightest bit concerned. Rick walked towards her.

"Well," Michonne was close enough to smell his cologne, see the crinkles around his eyes as he grinned. "I've got pizza if you're hungry."

Rick took the bottle from her hand, his smile widening. "I'm starving."

-l-l-l-

The wine might have been cheap, but Rick found that he liked the taste of it quite a bit when it was on Michonne's lips. He bent to kiss her again, moaning when she pulled him closer to her.

"I think we're doing this out of order," she joked, laughing against his mouth.

Rick chuckled, pressing kisses into her neck and collarbone. "Are we?" he challenged. "We had dinner…" he nodded at the empty pizza box on the coffee table. "Drinks…" the wine bottle was somewhere on the floor, blessedly empty. "A movie…" he recounted as the tv flickered in the background, completely neglected.

"And I didn't even have to pay for it," Michonne quipped, tugging at his hair.

Rick chuckled in surprise, pulling her up higher into his arms, thrilling at the feeling of her skin against his. "Next time, I'll take you somewhere nice," he promised.

Michonne smiled wickedly. "But for now…" she prompted, wrapping her legs around his waist.

"Dessert?" he asked, bending to kiss her again.

"Sounds good," she agreed, giggling.