2. A Little Bit Yours, continued
AN: A heartfelt thank you to those of you who took the time to leave a few kind words behind. A shout-out to the guest, you know who you are, and dillie60 who spoke up in response to the ignoramus, you know who you are, who could not appreciate the story for what it is, as I've said before if you don't like my stories, feel free to write your own. The Richonne fandom is dwindling and we all know the reason why.
As soon as she stepped out of the bathroom, Michonne heard her phone buzz. A quick glance at the screen and she rolled her eyes. She had no intention of engaging Rick any further because she was already pissed at him. They needed new boundaries, something he didn't seem to comprehend, she no sooner erected them only for him to encroach on them.
The evening had reset. Freshly showered, she took the time to pamper her body and applied cocoa butter to her skin. But as she relished in the moment enjoying the rich scent and the feel of the cream against the silkiness of her curves her mind strayed. She felt his touch which was heavier than hers. Her ex enjoyed applying lotions, oils, and whatever, it didn't matter as long as he was touching her. Michonne shook her head to expel such thoughts and quickly finished applying the lotion to her body.
After, she dressed in her favourite black and purple silk PJ shorts and camisole top.
Despite being pissed at Rick, she felt conflicted by the hurt he wore like a suit of armour but was thankful his self-restraint held because she knew his temper. He was angry. It was an awful situation to be in but she reminded herself, she did nothing wrong. If anything, it was his disrespect of her personal boundaries that caused him to see things he couldn't unsee, which reminded her of the video she saw of him two years earlier.
As she stood there staring at the now darkened phone screen, the phone vibrated once more, another text popped in, another quick glance and she sighed, not him too, she thought. She was definitely not in the mood to engage neither Rick nor CJ.
Instead, she pulled on her robe and left the room. She walked down the hall towards the foyer and ascended the staircase to check on her boys.
Michonne entered the semi-dark space into Andre's room and immediately she heard the tell-tale sounds of her son sucking his thumb. It was his version of comfort, so they allowed it because it was only done whilst he slept. They tried to break him of the habit but to no avail and they knew he'd eventually grow out of it, so eventually they gave up removing it. She stood over her son and adjusted his covers. She allowed her fingers to gently caress his silky black curls as she admired the caramel coloured profile of her ex-husband. Michonne bent and kissed Andre's cheek. "Sleep tight, sweetie," she whispered. She then quietly crossed the room and opened the adjoining door which led to RJ's room.
Michonne walked over to RJ's bedside and gently pulled the covers which covered his head back to reveal his honey coloured complexion; his features were a blend of both of his parents. RJ had her eyes and broad flat nose, his father's lips and his chestnut curls but he had her mannerisms. After retucking his covers, Michonne kissed his forehead and caressed his cheek. "Sleep tight, sweetie," she whispered then exited the outer door into the hallway avoiding extra movement through Andre's room because he was a light sleeper like his father.
When Michonne returned to her room, she retrieved her phone from the vanity where it laid and sat it on the night table next to the bed. She then crawled into bed and turned on the television to find out what happened downtown. From what she could gather, it seemed a parked vehicle loaded with homemade explosives was responsible for the accident. The investigation was ongoing so the details were sketchy at best. She channel-surfed for a bit but found nothing new when she flicked on the movie channel and found an old favourite of hers, The Bodyguard; it was the scene in Miami where the tension between Frank and Rachel was at its breaking point and it caused Michonne to chuckle uneasily because she hated the fact that Rick could still get under her skin so easily. Frustrated by the situation earlier, she picked up her phone and unlocked it.
...
Rick: WTF? You're fucking our pool boy? Is he even old enough to be engaging in such activities?
Michonne shook her head. She couldn't believe he waited outside her home to snoop. Boundaries. Boundaries. Boundaries. His behaviour was positively escalating. What next? She wondered.
Rick had just pulled into his underground parking spot and turned off the car engine when Michonne finally replied.
Michonne: What exactly are you accusing me of, Rick?
Rick: We watched him grow up, Michonne.
Michonne: Exactly, and now he owns his own business. Are you saying that I'm old, Rick?
Rick: No, babe, never. I'm just saying I was shocked when I made the connection.
Michonne: Don't you have lives to go save?
...
Already engaged, Michonne's eyes naturally fell to the next unread text, which was unavoidable.
CJ: Your husband's fuckin' insane.
Michonne: What do you mean?
CJ: Can you believe the fucker waited on the road for me and followed me home?
Michonne: He did what?
CJ: I get it. I'd be pissed too if I walked in on my lady with another man, but fuck, I wouldn't stalk his ass—just roll up my sleeves and slug it out—get it over and done with, but stalking? Although, I gotta admit, back there I was surprised he didn't rip my fucking head off when he found us together.
Michonne: Just ignore him.
CJ: That's easy for you to say, the only reason he didn't attack me was because you were in the room with us. The man's dangerous. What do you see in him?
Michonne: He's harmless. He didn't hurt you and he followed you home. I'll talk to him.
CJ: Do you hear yourself, Michonne? You're still making excuses for him. Are you still in love with him?
Michonne: What? Don't be ridiculous.
CJ: There you go again answering a question with a question. If that so, Michonne, then why don't you ever let me stay over even when the kids are with him?
Michonne: It's complicated.
Minutes went by but when CJ failed to respond, Michonne sighed and placed the phone back on the night table and turned out the lamp. Almost immediately, the phone rang and she answered, "Yes?"
"Complicated how?" he asked.
"If he wouldn't sign the papers before, do you really think he's going to sign them now that he knows about you?" she retorted.
"I think you allow him to continue with his bullshit because you're still in love with him but you haven't forgiven him yet."
"Rick's my problem, not yours, I'll handle it."
"I see, so it's 'me' and not 'us' and he's 'your problem' as opposed to 'our problem'?"
Michonne sighed. She deserved that realizing she should have stuck to her earlier conviction and not engage either man that night. "CJ, how's what you want from me any different from what he wants? Does what I want matter at all? I didn't promise you anything. I'm getting out of a marriage, I'm not ready to settle down with anyone—it's too soon. We talked about this before we started hooking up."
"But are you really trying to get out of your marriage? It's not like I proposed marriage, Michonne. We have a good time together and you make me laugh. You've helped me through the pain of losing my father as I am sure I've helped you through the pain of losing your daughter, but I'd rather we end this now than continue this weird-ass triangle bullshit that we seem to be in."
"We're not in a triangle of any kind, CJ. I'm just not ready for any level of commitment beyond what we have right now because I have other priorities in my life."
"I beg to differ, the man walked into your home and into your bedroom like he still lives there."
"And I reprimanded him for doing that. You were only in the bathroom not in the shower so I'm sure you heard me."
"Sweetheart, what I'm hearing are just pretty words to say that what we have now, is all I can ever hope for. It was good while it lasted, but eventually, I'm going to want more—like your heart, something that's clearly still his. If you ever get free and I'm available, we could revisit this, but for now, I think we should stop this madness." and with that, the line went dead.
Michonne pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at it in utter disbelief. Like, did he just do that?
...
Michonne: WTF, Rick?
Rick: What do you mean, babe?
Michonne: First of all, don't call me that. Second, I thought you were heading directly to the hospital to save lives, not skulking around my neighbourhood stalking people.
Rick: I needed to know just how much I've lost?
Michonne: Seriously? Jealousy doesn't look good on you, Rick.
Rick: You know what looks good on me, Michonne? My wife looks good on top of me and under me not with another man.
Michonne: Good night, Dr. Grimes.
Rick chuckled at her response. He was no longer Rick, but Dr. Grimes. He knew the context and how it was intended, but at the same time, there was a history in her chosen name for him because 'Dr. Grimes' was only ever used in particular setting such as when they attended either of their work functions and sometimes in their bedroom, so he took full advantage of the situation in his reply.
Rick: Are you flirting with me, Mrs. Grimes?
Rick chuckled at her non-response and placed his phone in his locker and locked it. He had accomplished his mission, and it was time for him to be serious, knowing that Michonne had dispatched her boy toy for the night certainly left him in high spirits. He still believed there was time to turn things around; he had to do better and show her they were better together rather than having meaningless sex with other people.
It was time for him to assimilate into the hive as such he scrubbed in for one of the many surgeries he would perform that night.
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