Chapter Thirty-six: Unexpected Setback

Getting back to the barn, I sat at the table as everyone else filed out. I'd looked in the mirror and knew that I had some explaining to do. But I wasn't the only one. I'd left my mark on Abe, only I felt like his would be accepted while mine would require unfounded worry.

"I'm alright." I told Rick as he took my face in his hands. "It was just a…misunderstanding."

"Who?" He asked and then did a double-take at Abraham. He met my eyes again, "Really?"

I shrugged a shoulder at him, "He pissed me off."

He smiled and shook his head. "Yeah."

"Aaron was right." I told him. He nodded and bowed his head. "Everything was where he said it was and it has preserves on it." He met my eyes again. "Take a look."

Following him, we started to unload everything that was in the RV. There were cans of vegetables, fruit, spaghetti rings, pineapple juice. Food that would last us a while. And with juice we wouldn't be as thirsty as we had been. We piled it all up on the table at the back of the barn. Rick stood in front of it, clearly thinking.

He turned to Aaron, motioning toward the goods, "This, this is ours now."

"There's more than enough." Aaron told him.

"It's ours whether or not we go to your camp." Rick clarified.

"What do you mean?" Carl asked. "Why wouldn't we go?"

"Excellent question." I frowned, crossing my arms.

"If he were lying or if he wanted to hurt us…but he isn't…and he doesn't." Michonne told him. "We need this. So we're going, all of us. Somebody say something if they feel differently."

"I don't know, man." Daryl told him. "This barn smells like horse shit."

Rick looked at me. I stepped closer to him. "This is a good thing, baby. Michonne is right. We need this. We're going."

"Yeah." He nodded. "We're going." Then he turned to Aaron. "So where are we going? Where's your camp?"

"Well, every time I've done this, I've been behind the wheel, driving recruits back." He replied. "I believe you're good people. I've bet my life on it. I'm just not ready to bet my friends' lives just yet."

Michonne stepped up to him, "You're not driving. So if you want to get home, you'll have to tell us how."

I moved to him, squatting down in front of him. "I know that you're uneasy. You should be. You're one against all of us. But I am going to ask you to just tell us what we need to know." He just looked at me. "I want to trust you. I really, really do. But you need to help me. Meet us halfway."

"Linny." Rick said.

Looking at him, I stood and moved to the side. He pulled out a map and was looking at Aaron expectantly.

Aaron sighed and reluctantly answered, "Go north on Route 16."

"And then?" Michonne asked.

"I'll tell you when we get there." He replied.

Rick looked at the map before pointing at a road, "We'll take 23 North. You'll give us directions from there."

"That's – I don't know how else to say it – that's a bad idea. We've cleared 16. It'll be faster." Aaron replied.

"We'll take 23." Rick stated. "We'll leave at sundown."

"We're doing this at night?" Sasha frowned at him.

Rick turned toward everything, "Look, I know it's dangerous. But it's better than riding up to the gates during the day. If it isn't safe, we need to get gone before they know we're there."

Sighing, I nodded and ran my fingers through my hair. He had a point but at the same time I had a bad feeling about this. If Aaron thought 23 was unsafe then I wanted to believe him. I wanted to trust that he wouldn't send us to our deaths. If he did that then he would die as well. What would his motive be? What would be his plan to get away?

"No one is going to hurt you." Aaron told us. "You're trying to protect your group, but you're putting them in danger."

Rick turned toward him, "Tell me where the camp is, we'll leave right now."

"Rick." I said sternly. He just looked at me. "Aaron." He looked up at me but didn't say anything. Sighing again, I paced away before coming back to them.

"It's going to be a long night." Rick stated. "Eat. Get some rest if you can."

I watched him as he walked from the barn, Michonne moved after him and I was only a few steps behind them. Reaching the barn door, she was just standing there, watching him as he started to search the car.

"I'm thinking you, me, Linny, and Glenn drive with that guy. Carl and Judith are safer in there." He said looking at the RV. She didn't say anything. "You okay?"

"When you said that we were going…was that for real?" Michonne asked him. "Or are you just trying to get this guy to tell you where his camp is?"

He stood, "We're going."

"Whatever it takes to get there." She told him. "Just as long as we get there."

"When you first came up on the walls outside Woodbury…what did you hear?" He asked her.

"Nothing." Michonne replied.

"And Terminus?"

"Nothing."

He nodded at her. "Sometime tonight, we'll be outside his camps walls. And without seeing inside, I'm gonna have to decide whether to bring my family in. He asked me before what it would take for me to believe it was real. Truth is…I'm not sure if anything could convince me to go in there. But I'm gonna see. I'm gonna see." He confided in her.

"It doesn't mean anything." Maggie said from over my shoulder.

"What?" I asked her.

She smiled at me, "You were wearing a very jealous expression."

"They're close. They were close before we were." I stated.

"Where's this coming from?" She asked.

"I don't know." I told her. "Sometimes I wonder."

Michonne and Rick came back, Michonne slipping inside while Rick didn't hesitate to put his hand against my face, snaking his arm around me as he kissed me deeply and passionately. He took my breath away and I leaned into him, putting my hand against his face as I wrapped my other around his neck.

"Wow, baby." I told him.

Then Maggie whispered in my ear, "No need to wonder. He's all yours."

Grinning, I shoved her away from me. Rick shifted me to the side of the barn, leaning against me, pinning me. Running my fingers through his hair, I smiled at him, unable to stop staring at him. He leaned in and kissed me again. Slowly this time, parting my lips with his tongue, brushing it against mine as he deepened it.

"I saw you." He smirked at me.

"What?" I asked him.

"Watching me talk to Michonne." He replied. He brought his face to mine, feeling his lips brush mine but he didn't kiss me. "I find you really sexy when you're jealous."

Laughing, he joined me, kissing me again. Taking his face in my hands, I continued to kiss him, wanting to do more. "If this pans out and we get our own room, we are not coming out for days. I am going to be selfish and we are going to just spend time together."

"I think I can handle that." He nodded and then was kissing me again.

Making out for a while, when we finally stopped, I pressed my forehead to his, once again taking his face in my hands. "I am in love with you." I whispered to him.

"Me too, baby." He whispered back. "I love you."

Everyone was starting to settle down, splitting off into smaller groups. There was whispering and glancing before some started to fall asleep. I wasn't sure how I felt about sleeping. I wanted to and yet was a little to wired to. I'd slept good after the storm and felt awake enough despite the traveling we'd be doing tonight.

"Here." I told Aaron, offering him a drink of water.

He took it graciously, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." I smiled at him. "You feeling okay?"

"Yeah." He replied.

"Does your head hurt?" I asked next.

"A little but nothing unbearable."

I nodded at him, smiling, "Good."

"You seem like a good person." He told me. "You all do."

I laughed at him, "No we don't. Some of us have seen too much. Been out here too long. And I'm right along with them."

"You're a good person." He told me with a hard tone.

Meeting his eyes, I nodded, "I like to think I am. But you don't know us, Aaron. You might think you do because you've been watching us, but you don't." He nodded. "You seem like a good guy." I smiled at him. "And I want so very much to believe you and trust you and go with you. But I'm also terrified of being led to our death. I've trusted before and it hasn't panned out."

He smiled and nodded, "I'm telling you the truth."

Keeping his eyes for a long moment, I nodded, "I think you are."

"Linny." Rick said from behind me.

I looked at him and nodded. Looking back at Aaron, I put my hand against his face, "It's gonna be okay. I won't let anything happen to you."

"Are you like…co-leader or something?" He smirked.

"Or something." I smirked back before standing and going to Rick. "You okay?"

He nodded, "Yeah. I just am still unsure about him."

"I'm not." I smiled at him.

He smiled and nodded again, "You do tend to be a decent judge of character."

Laughing, I wrapped my arm around his neck, playing with the hair at the nape of it, "I like you."

He chuckled and brought his face closer to mine, "Took you long enough."

"You sacrificed me, remember?" I smirked at him. "Kinda legit when it comes to reasons to hate someone."

He sighed and nodded at me, "Yeah. Never again."

"Good." I smiled and kissed him.

"Linny?" Carl said from next to me.

"Sweetie?" I said putting my hand against his face. Seeing the seriousness in his eyes, I nodded, "Wanna go for walk?" He nodded at me. "We'll be back." I told Rick, putting my hand on his arm.

He nodded, "Be careful."

"Of course, baby." I smiled at him.

Wrapping my arm around Carl, we walked from the barn. We made it down the road, nothing but the sound of nature surrounding us. I didn't know what he wanted to talk about and I wasn't sure if he did either. It might have just been an excuse to get away for a few minutes.

"You should be sleeping." I told him. He nodded. "You okay? You called me Linny and you haven't done that for a while." He nodded again. "You gonna say anything about what's going on inside that beautiful head of yours?" I asked rubbing the hat on his head as a gently pushed him away from me.

He smiled, "I want to believe him. I want to trust him."

"Me, too."

"I know." He nodded. "But Dad doesn't want to trust him. But he's going along with it because the rest of us want to go."

I sighed and nodded, "He is. But he knows it's for the best. He might be leery about it but he knows that we need to know. We need to see this community."

He nodded. "I want to see it."

"Me, too." I beamed at him. "God, Carl, what if it's all true and we can have a home again? Walls. Safety. That's all we've ever wanted and that's all I want for you and Judy and your dad and everyone."

He nodded again, "Me, too."

I grinned at him, "You and your dad nod a lot."

He laughed and nodded, "I've noticed."

Laughing, I nudged him before wrapping my arm around his shoulders, pulling him into me. We walked and talked, enjoying each other's company. We even came across a few walkers that we dealt with, almost feeling like we needed to keep up the practice of taking them down. Something that was a necessity and yet the thought of being able to take a break from them was so tempting I could cry.

"Thanks, Mom." Carl told me as the barn came back into sight, he arm firmly around my waist.

"Any time, Carl." I replied, taking his hat off so I could press a kiss against his hair before putting it back on again. "Remember that. No matter what, I'm here for you. Even if it'll make me mad or if you think it sounds crazy. I'm here for you."

"I know." He told me, looking up at me.

Meeting his eyes, I couldn't help but swell with pride as I saw the trust in his eyes. The feeling that he looked up to me the way I was sure he looked up to his mother. Then I felt a sudden wave of guilt. I hoped she would be okay with him calling me 'mom'. I hoped that she would be okay with me loving him like he was my own. Loving her husband. Loving the life that she should have had.

"What are you thinking?" He asked me.

Looking at him, I sighed, "I was actually thinking of your mother." He just looked at me questioningly. "I was hoping that she would be okay with everything that's happening. With you and your dad. And Judith."

"She would." He told me. "She'd be relieved to know that we had someone who was looking out for us."

"Good." I smiled. "I hate that she's not here though."

"Me, too. But…we can't change what happened."

"I know."

"I know you know." He smiled. "You've lost people, too."

My mind went through the list of them, making a long moment pass before I replied, "Yeah."

When we reentered the barn, it was quiet, nearly everyone sleeping. Going to Aaron, I sat next to him, leaning my back against the post that he was tied to. Rick frowned at me but I simply raised a brow and smiled at him. Carl laid next to me, resting his head in my lap. Putting his hat over his face, I wrapped my arm around him, shutting my eyes, falling sleep to the rise and fall of his chest underneath my arm.

Being shaking awake, I looked up to see Daryl. Smiling, I put my hand against his face, shutting my eyes again as I felt his lips against my forehead. Making a soft noise, he nodded at me. Waking up Carl, we both got to our feet. Daryl was still in front of me, pulling me against him. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I hugged him tightly. He took my face in his hands and brushed my bangs out of my eyes.

"You okay?" I asked him.

He nodded, "Yeah."

Smiling, I took his head in my hands and pressed a kiss against his forehead, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm just anxious about this whole thing. How it's gonna go down. What we're gonna find."

"We're gonna find a home." I smiled at him. He smiled and hugged me again.

"Let's move." Rick announced to the barn.

He stepped forward and gripped Aaron, getting him on his feet. Turning to him, I took Aaron's arm and smiled at Rick. He nodded and let go of him. Taking him to the car, I made sure he was buckled in before I got in next to him. Michonne was next, getting in on my other side, leaving me in the middle. Glenn sat behind the wheel and it seemed to take ages for Rick to come. I hadn't even said anything to Carl or the others. Every time we were split up could be the last time we saw each other. But that wasn't the case. Not this time. We were going somewhere where we could finally live and thrive. I was so excited. I felt like a kid again.

We started out and Rick started to look through the car. He opened the glove compartment to see several license plates, showing them to Glenn before he looked over his shoulder at Aaron.

"Um, I'm trying to collect all 50 states. Put them all on a wall in my house." Aaron told him with a smile.

I looked at him with awe, smiling as I looked at Michonne. She asked the question we were all thinking, "You have your own house?"

"Mm. See for yourself." Aaron told her kindly.

I took the pictures from his pack, leaning closer to Michonne as we started to go through the ones we hadn't seen. They had solar power. Houses with yards. Streets. We looked at the walls again. They had…everything.

"Why don't you have any pictures of your people?" She asked him.

"Oh, I took a picture of the whole group, but I didn't get the exposure right." He told her. "When I tried to develop it later, it just –"

"Did you ask him the questions?" Michonne interrupted him.

"I didn't even think about it." I frowned.

"No." Rick replied.

Michonne looking at Aaron, "How many walkers that you killed?"

He frowned at her, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Answer her." I told him.

"How many?"

It took him a long time to reply, "I don't know. A lot."

"How many people?" She asked next.

"Two."

"Why?" I asked him.

"Because they tried to kill me." He replied.

Smiling, I nodded at him, seeing Rick shifting up front, "What is it?" I asked him. He held up a sound enhancer. "Are you serious?" I said and looked at Aaron.

"You were listening to us?" Glenn shot at him.

"I already said I was watching you." Aaron stated. "Yes, I was listening."

"It means his people could have one, too." Rick stated. "They could've heard our plan. This isn't safe."

"Damnit." I said and ran my fingers through my hair. "There goes that trust."

"Shit!" Glenn yelled as we all braced ourselves.

There was a hoard of walkers in the road. There was no time to stop, barreling through them as fast as we could.

"Glenn!" Rick called.

"They were right behind us." He stated. "They would have hit us. Now they can get out."

Looking behind us, I couldn't see the RV. It made me anxious and yet happy, hoping that they got away okay. Either way, we were still barreling forward, blood covering the windshield so thick that it was impossible to see out of it. There was carnage as well, having hit so many walkers that we finally skidded to a stop.

"Rick." I said reaching for him as he got out of the car. "Damnit." I said and pushed against Michonne. "Go. Go!"

Getting out of the car, we looked behind us. There were no lights. The RV was gone, leaving us alone with a car full of walker and several still coming toward us. Looking at Rick, he was staring at the darkness behind us.

Quickly moving to him, I gripped his arm, "They got away. They're fine."

Glenn got on top of the car, "She's right. They got away."

"All right, we'll circle back and find them. Let's go." Rick told us.

Aaron looked concerned, "They're okay?"

"Yeah." Michonne told him.

Glenn rushed to the front of the car, starting to scrape the walker blood and gore off the windshield before he got back in. The rest of us got back in, Rick pulling out the map, looking for a way to get us out of here.

"All right, we can take a left a couple miles up 23. Jefferson Avenue." Rick told Glenn.

"Jefferson Avenue." Glenn repeated.

"We gotta get out of here." Aaron said a bit frantically.

Glenn tried to turn the engine over but it wouldn't start.

"We gotta get out of here." Aaron repeated louder.

"Let me see what I can see." Michonne said getting out of the car.

I sighed, "Me, too."

"Linny." Rick stated.

"She shouldn't be alone." I told him and slid out.

Michonne was at the front of the car and I swiftly joined her, pulling limbs and gore out of the grill to try and get air flow. Yanking an arm out of the hood of the car, I fell backward, looking into the sky as a flare shot into it. My heart started to race, Michonne going back to the open door, only to watch her get knocked backward. Getting to my feet, I rushed toward her as Aaron came out and took off into the woods. Looking at Michonne, she was fine, not hesitating to rush after Aaron.

"Aaron!" I called, following the sound of him. The woods grew silent, making me stop and listen. "Shit." I whispered, pulling my knife out. "Aaron?" I said softly.

Moving forward, I kept moving in the direction we had seen the flare, knowing that he was going to be moving toward it. His arms were tied behind him. He wouldn't be able to defend himself against the dead. Taking a deep breath, I kept moving, hearing a sound and swiftly moved toward it. Aaron was attempting to fight off a walker, keeping it at bay, but he wouldn't be able to for long. Rushing up behind it, I stabbed it, yanking it away from him.

"You okay?" I asked putting my hand against his face. He nodded frantically at me. "Turn around." I commanded and he swiftly spun. I cut the ropes that had bound him, turning him back toward me. "You sure you're okay?"

He nodded, "Yes. Thank you."

"Linny!" Glenn said, my arm being grabbed.

"Glenn." I said gripping him back.

"You okay?"

"Yeah." I nodded. There were gunshots and both Glenn and I turned toward the sound. "We gotta go."

Glenn looked at Aaron, "Run if you want. I got other things to worry about."

"We can make it together." Aaron told him. "But we can only make it together." Glenn frowned at him. "You said that. I was listening."

Looking at Glenn, I gripped him, "We gotta go."

He looked at me before Aaron, "Let's go."

Rushing toward the gunshots, my heart was racing. Nothing could happen to Rick. Or to Michonne. We couldn't lose anyone else and when the gunshots stopped, I felt like my legs were going to fall off with how fast I was attempting to move. When movement finally caught out eyes, we could see Rick and Michonne, surrounded by walkers. Pulling my gun out, I started to shoot them, being careful not to get too close to my family.

"Rick." I said and rushed to him.

"Linny." He said taking me in his arms. Then he let me go and looked at Aaron.

He put his hands up and put the gun he had been using on the ground. "If you really wanna tie me up again, that's fine, but hurry up."

Rick picked it up, "There's no time. We're going that way."

He put his hand on the side of my head before we were rushing down the path. We eventually came out onto the road. Looking at the closest sign, Route 16 was printed on it. Looking both ways, we had no idea which way to go.

"Where are they?" Rick asked.

"I don't know." Aaron replied.

"If this is a trap to get us back where you want us, your people are gonna die tonight." He threatened as he started down the road again. The rest of us swiftly following him. "The flare was toward the water tower."

"Rick." I said with worry.

He nodded at me, "I know."

He took my hand, keeping it for a long while as we jogged down the road. We kept our eyes out for any walkers or danger that might be lurking in the shadows. Reaching the water tower, Rick started to whistle, all of us listening intently for a response. When one finally came, I ran faster, coming round a corner, darting down the road as Daryl stood in the middle of it.

"Daryl." I said throwing myself into his arms.

"Caroline." He said holding me tightly.

"Dad!" Carl yelled and rushed to his father.

"Carl!" He said embracing his son. "Your sister okay?"

He nodded, "Yeah. Yeah, we're fine."

"Eric? Eric?" Aaron said rushing inside. We followed him, watching him dart into the back. "Eric?"

"In here." A new voice called back.

"Eric!" Aaron called and rushed toward the sound of his voice.

Rick moved to follow him. "Hey." I said gripping his arm.

He looked at me and went anyway. Following him, we both stopped in the doorway, seeing Aaron at his friend's side. He had been hurt, his leg elevated as he was propped up against some cushions. There was a small wood stake that was acting as a splint for his ankle.

"I'm okay. It's like a volleyball injury." Eric told Aaron. "It's a broken ankle. At least that's what Maggie said. I like her." Aaron looked like he was going to breakdown. "It's not a big deal."

"Oh, my God." Aaron said with shock.

He knelt down, bending over and touching Eric's leg. "I'll just go to the infirmary when we get back."

"Oh…"

Then Aaron was kissing him, making me grin at him, "That explains a lot." I whispered to Rick. He just looked at me.

"When I saw that flare go up, I – I thought…" Aaron started.

"You were worried, were you?"

"Yeah."

"This is your fault, you know?" Eric grinned at him.

"Is that so?" Aaron said laughing lightly.

"Because I love you. And because when I'm worried, I do stupid things. And when I do stupid things, I wind up underneath a rust bucket surrounded by roamers who roll a rear passenger tire onto my left ankle." Eric explained.

Smiling, feeling like I was now intruding on their happy moment, I put my hand against Rick's shoulder before we rejoined the rest of our group. Going to Maggie, I wrapped my arms around her neck, hugging her tightly.

"You good?" Abraham asked as I let her go.

"Yeah." I smiled before looking at Rosita, putting my hand on her arm. "You good?"

She smiled, "Yeah."

"Excuse me. Excuse me. Everyone." Aaron said as he came back into the room. "Thank you. You saved Eric. I owe you. All of you. And I will make sure that debt is paid in full when we get to our community. When we get to Alexandria. Now, I'm not sure about you, but I'd rather not to any more driving tonight. Maybe we can hit the road tomorrow morning."

"Agreed." I smiled, feeling a little relieved, looking at Rick.

"That sounds fine." He nodded. "But if we're staying here for the night, you're sleeping over there." He said pointing in the opposite direction of Eric.

"Rick." I frowned, shaking my head.

"You really think we gotta do that?" Maggie asked him.

"It's the safe play. We don't know you." Rick replied.

"The only way you're gonna stop me from being with him right now is by shooting me." Aaron told me.

"We're not going to shoot you." I said taking a step in front of Rick.

He moved around me but Glenn swiftly stopped him, "Whoa. Rick, he told us where the camp is. And he really was only traveling with one other person. They're both unarmed. One of them's got a broken ankle. I want us to be safe, too. I can't give up everything else. I know what I said, but it does matter."

Rick looked at Aaron and nodded, "All right."

He disappeared and we all looked at each other. Everyone was already starting to settle down. Grabbing one of the bottles of water, I went back outside and started to rinse as much blood from my skin as I could. It didn't take long for Rick to appear, sighing heavily as he stepped up to me.

"What are you thinking?" I asked him.

"I'm still unsure about all of this." He told me.

Nodding, I shook my hands to dry them, moving closer to him. "I know, Rick. But this is a good thing. This is something that we all need. I know that you think your way is safer and will keep us alive longer, but it also keeps us segregated and in a constant state of survival. This might mean a life for all of us." He nodded. Taking his face in my hands, I moved even closer to him, "I really need you to give this a chance. Please, baby."

He wrapped his arms around me, "I will."

"Thank you." I smiled and kissed him.

"Let's get some sleep." He told me.

"Do you honestly think I'm going to get any sleep tonight?" I smirked.

He sighed, "Always worried about everyone else."

"We need to be safe and I've gotten pretty good at not sleeping." I told him.

"I know." He replied. "We need to work on that."

"We can when we get to Alexandria. Aaron has his own house, Rick. A house!" I told him excitedly. "What if we get to have our own home? Just imagine how amazing that would be. It would mean everything to us. An actual roof over our heads. Supplies. Safety for our family." I couldn't help but feel a little high at the thought. "I just…can't even wrap my head around what that would mean."

He smiled, "I like when you get excited."

"I wish you'd get excited more." I smiled back at him. "Baby, this could be a turning point in our lives. In our story of survival. This could be everything we ever wanted. This is amazing!" I said getting even more excited. He nodded, clearly not buying into my excitement. "Look, Rick, if anything goes wrong you know we can get ourselves out of it. But Michonne is right when she says that we need this. We owe ourselves to see what's out there." He nodded again. "Aaron is a good guy. Eric is a good guy. Most gay guys are." He actually chuckled at that. "If anything, we can see what kind of decorating they've done."

He smiled and shook his head, "You always make light of things."

"I always make you smile." I corrected him. "We all need a few more smiles and a little less seriousness. If we can't find a reason to smile then what the hell are we saving ourselves for?" I smiled, running my hands up and down his chest.

He smiled and kissed me, "Thank you."

"I love you."

"The bloods gone. Let's get some rest." He said running his fingers through my hair.

I leaned up, brushing my lips against his, whispering, "I can think of something else we could do." He laughed, his hand slipping under the base of my shirt as he pressed his lips against my neck. "We have a bed right here."

"And what about the others?" He asked, his lips moving to the other side of my neck.

His beard was rough and yet sent tingles through me as he gently sucked my skin, feeling his tongue run up to my jawline. He gently bit me before taking my mouth in his. I could hardly remember to breathe let alone find the words to answer him. He just laughed and walked me to the camper door, opening it with his lips still against mine.

Stepping backward into it, I pulled him with me, pulling him to me as we moved backward to where the bedroom was. Laughing, he closed the door clumsily, lifting me into his arms. Wrapping my legs around him, I had his head in my hands as he laid me down, his hand warm against my back.

"We shouldn't be doing this." He told me.

"Nope." I smiled as I ran my fingers through his hair.

He grinned, "You're a bad influence on me."

I arched against him, "God, I hope so."

He laughed and then his lips were against my neck again. Moaning, I just wanted him against me. I wanted him naked and I wanted his cock inside of me. It'd been too long and I wanted to not only just enjoy him, but take his mind off of everything. A little endorphin release would do him good right now. Not to mention all the other happy feelings that sex could bring on. As a side note, we might actually get some sleep afterward.

Pulling his shirt over his head, I did the same, lying back as his lips found my stomach. His hands gripped my ribcage, his tongue trailed as his lips made their way back up my body. Shuttering underneath him, I gripped his hair, so ready for what was about to happen. We were both breathing hard as he fought against each other's pants, laughing before we finally got the job done. Lying naked on top of each other, he paused, staring down at me. Smiling, I trailed my finger from one side of his face to the other.

"I love you." He told me.

"I love you, baby." I replied.

"Thank you." He whispered.

"For what?" I whispered back, kissing him gently.

He smiled and kissed me deeply, "For being you. For not letting me grow hard. For…everything."

Grinning at him, I arched against him, my body pressing against his, "I can think of a way you can repay me."

He laughed before he was kissing me again. Our arms and legs were entangled as he finally pushed inside of me. We both shuttered, moaning in sync as we moved against each other, our lips never parting. Breathing each other in, he rocked against me as I remained locked against him. His hips rubbed against mine. Sweat making every movement fluent and more amazing than the last. Climaxing, he came right after, resting himself on top of me. The coolness of the air made steam start to lift from our heated skin. Knowing that we'd be cold before too long.

Once we'd caught our breath, he propped himself up on his arm and looked down at me. I felt like I was glowing, bringing him to me so I could kiss him. He smiled and didn't disappoint, his lips moving with passion against mine. He parted from me long enough to find a blanket and then he was with me again. Tossing it over us, I was pinned between the wall and his side, not wanting to ever move. He was warm and the coolness of the wall felt nice. His arm was wrapped around me tightly as he stared at the ceiling. I could see that the glow of sex was already starting to wear off and our situation was coming to the forefront of his mind.

"Baby?" I said softly.

"Yeah?" He replied.

"Could you do me a huge favor?" I asked.

He looked at me, "Yeah, baby, anything."

I smiled at him, "Could you just be here with me and not think about tomorrow or today or the past or the future. I want you right here in the present where you just had some damn good sex with an amazing woman who finds you irresistible and amazing and gorgeous and –"

I was silenced as his lips crashed against mine, making me laugh. He was grinning when he finally leaned away from me again. "I'm here with you, Caroline. I'm always with you. I just can't help but feel like I'm being slightly irresponsible for not being with the others."

"I think they'll understand." I smiled and laughed lightly.

"I think you're right." He smiled. "Wanna go again?"

Grinning, I rolled over him, ravaging his mouth as my hand slid down his body, reaching between his legs. "I'll go until neither us can walk anymore."

Knocking on the RV door woke us the next morning. Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly as I nestled closer against Rick's side. Opening my eyes, I lifted my chin, looking at him. He was still sleeping. Sleeping possibly the soundest I've ever seen. Giving myself a mental pat on the back, considering it was me who was sleeping next to him.

"Baby." I whispered. He shot up, making me jerk backward, falling from the bed and hit the floor. "Ow." I said as my shoulder blade pulsed with pain. Sitting up, I picked up his belt, glaring at the buckle of it. "Bastard." I said and dropped it.

"Sorry." Rick smiled from the bed.

Looking up at him, his eyes were on my breasts. Leaning back, I shimmied slightly, speaking lustfully, "Like what you see, cowboy?"

He rolled out of bed, flattening me against the floor, "I sure do, ma'am."

Laughing, I wrapped my arms around him as he pressed his lips to my neck, biting it before running it tongue along the spot. Then the knocking got louder.

"Come on you two lovebirds! Time to move!"

"Okay!" I called to Abe. Rick dropped his face into my neck, groaning. "I know, baby." I said and combed my fingers through his hair, pressing a kiss against his temple. "Time to get back to reality."

Getting dressed, I erased our presence before sighing, looking up at him. He smiled and slowly leaned into me, opening his mouth and took mine. Kissing me passionately, I leaned against his chest, gripping his shirt as he pressed his lips to my forehead. Turning, he took my hand as we walked to the door, letting ourselves out. Stepping down, the day seemed brighter and I couldn't help but smile. Abe was standing there with crossed arms, looking at us as a parent would their child.

"I'm glad you guys got your kinky time in but, breakfast is in there and we're all getting hungry." He told us. "What are we gonna find inside?"

Smirking, I put my finger against his chest, "Of all the people here, I'd think you'd be high-fiving me and not chastising me."

He leaned toward me, whispering, "Secretly I am, but Rick's involved so somebody has to play dad."

Laughing, I shook my head at him, starting to walk away, "You're like third in line for that role."

"What?" He frowned. "Who's before me?"

"Glenn is first. Then Daryl. You? You're not top dog around here." I grinned as I walked backward.

"I might be!" He frowned.

"Go eat and stop pestering me." I laughed and turned around. Going inside, I swiftly moved to where Carl and Judith were. "There are my babies."

Carl smiled at me, "Have a good night?"

"Yes we did." I grinned as I took Judith from him. She shrieked and bounced against me. "How about you? You two get some sleep?"

"Probably more than you." He smirked.

I winked at him, "It was a good night."

He laughed, "Gross. But good."

Pulling him into a hug, I pressed a kiss against his hair. "You all ready to go?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "While you two fooled around, the rest of us made sure we were ready."

Laughing, I nodded, "Alright, alright. Let's eat and get moving."

Doing just that, we enjoyed the feeling of full bellies before we all loaded ourselves back into the cars. We didn't look back as we started out, making it a ways before the RV started to smoke and we ended up on the side of the road. We all got out, looking around as Abraham and Glenn talked about what they were going to do. Glenn clearly knew was he was doing. Now all we had to do was wait for him to finish.

Lying on top of the hood of the car, Rick was on one side of me with Michonne on the other. I was taking in the sun, trying not to let my anxiousness show. I wanted to get to Alexandria. I wanted to see the walls and meet the people. I wanted to see what we could potentially be calling home.

"The fight's over. You've gotta let it go." Michonne told Rick. "I know it's hard. After it's kept you warm and fed and…alive. But that fight…it turns on you. You've gotta let it go."

"That's what Bob was trying to tell me back at the church." Rick replied. "What to risk. When it's safe. When to let someone in." He sighed, his hand finding my thigh. I put my hand over his, rubbing his skin with my thumb. "The rules keep changing."

"They did for me." Michonne stated.

The RV was up and moving again. Sitting up, I slid from the hood, turning to my boyfriend and sister. "Ready?" I smiled.

"Before we get going, I gotta – I gotta take a moment." Rick stated, taking my hand as he moved away from the car.

"You okay?" I asked as I pressed my shoulder against the back of his. He nodded. "Still worried?" He nodded again. "Afraid of what we'll find?" He nodded again. "Afraid that it's going to be quiet and be just as big a letdown as every other place since the prison?" He stopped and looked at me. I took his other hand, smiling at him. "Baby, I know you're worried and afraid, but we have to hope that Aaron isn't lying and that what we find will be so much better than we could have imagined. We're gonna be okay, Rick. We are."

"How do you know?" He asked.

I smiled, moving closer to him, "Because we're together. You have me, Rick. You have me and I have you. We have Carl and Judith. We have our family. We'll deal with whatever gets thrown at us and we'll be okay."

He nodded and kissed me, "I love you."

"I love you." I smiled, kissing him again. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Lay all your doubts and fears on me, baby." I told him. "I can take it and I will make you smile and see you through everything because I love you. I love everything about you, even your faults."

He smiled, "Same is for me, Linny."

"Even when I'm mad at you, I love you. Even if I don't agree with you, I love you. Even if you are afraid of what we're about to do, I love you." I told him matter-of-factly.

He kissed me, wrapping his arm around me, "Thank you."

"I'd do anything for you." I stated. "If I haven't made myself clear yet, I love you."

He pressed his face into my neck, "I love you."

"Let's go." I smiled.

Going back to Michonne, she smiled at me, pulling me into a hug before we slid into the car again. This was it. The homestretch. Before the day ended we would reach Alexandria. A place that we might be able to call home. Looking over my shoulder, I looking at the RV, knowing that my family was in there. My kids were in the back seat and I smiled at Carl as I gently touched Judith. They were going to have a safe place to call home and be able to grow up in as normal a way as possible. This was it. Our moment.

My heart was racing as we rolled up to the gates. They were impressive. They looked sturdy and safe. Safe. Gripping Rick's hand, I took slow deep breaths to try and keep myself from completely freaking out. He was staring at the gates just as hard as I was. We were listening intently as we waited to hear something from the other side. There had to be something. This couldn't be like all the other places. There had to be –

There.

It happened.

The sound of laughter hit our ears. Playful screams accompanying them.

Children.

There were children here.

Then the sound of people talking filtered to our ears. Aaron had been telling the truth. He had a community where there were people and children and gates and safety. From right here, listening to them, it was almost as if the world had ended here. Looking at Rick, I felt him relax. He heard it, too. We did it.

"You ready?" I smiled at him.

He nodded, "Yeah. Yeah."

Getting out, my stomach was fluttering with anxiousness and happiness. This was it. This was the moment we had all been waiting for. The moment where our lives changed. We were going to be given the greatest gift anyone in this world could ever be given.

I moved to Rick, both of us listening to the life that was on the other side of these gates. I took his hand, being patient even though I wanted to run and see what was on the other side. Rick looked at me before opening the backseat, taking Judith from inside. He took my hand, looking at the gates again.

"Hey." I said to Carol, wrapping my arm around her as she stepped up to us.

"You ready?" She asked.

I beamed at her, "I don't think I've ever been readier."

She pressed a kiss against my cheek. Then she was looking at Rick. "Even though you were wrong, you were still right."

He nodded at her. Smiling, I hugged her tightly, resting my head against hers. She moved away from us, leaving the three of us together. Then I felt an arm around my waist and embraced Carl.

"Let's do this." I smiled, looking at Rick.

He nodded, smiling, "I'm ready."