You'd hoped he'd fall asleep. Partly why you agreed to go with him, cos you know he needs rest and won't get any today unless you get him away from it all and relaxed enough to let his guard down for a little while.

You half open your eyes and look over at him cautiously. He's resting with his back against the brick wall by your side, and his face is starting to relax at last. You can see the dark circles under his eyes, the pallor of his skin so much more worrying than the paleness of winter or lack of food. You've been watching his skin get more translucent, bloodless over weeks now, as he's having more and more trouble sleeping.

You don't usually go for underhand tactics, prefer it all out in the open. But for his sake, cos you know how he gets under scrutiny and pressure, you had a quiet word with the others, telling them never to wake him when he does nod off, if they can help it. You've arranged it so he always sits in the front of the car with you when you're driving cos you've noticed just how deeply he sleeps then, how much better, more himself he is after that, every time. That's why you're here now.

That, and you needed time out yourself. Life's been more stressful since the farm fell than ever before. You feel it more every day, and the tension is starting to get to you. You're having trouble sleeping yourself, and the thought of food makes you queasy more often than not. You don't mind giving most of your small rations to Lori and Carl.

Out scouting with your hunter is the only time you feel truly at peace right now. He always knows when you're at breaking point, and whisks you away. You're so grateful, but you don't know how to tell him. Not that he needs to hear it. In fact, not needing to talk when you're out with him is one of the best things about the whole experience. Out here you can let him take the lead. He knows his stuff, and he keeps you safe. And sane.

Your feelings for him are confusing, you admit that much to yourself. Not that you have any designs on his virtue. You're sure he'd not mind if he knew you like men as well as women, but you don't think he'd be terribly keen on you trying it on with him. Though, who knows? Sometimes you catch him looking, and his eyes seem full of longing…

Or maybe you're just imagining it cos you haven't had sex in so long. He doesn't seem the type to go much for intimacy. Oh, you're sure he needs it just as much as anyone, but probably not from you. Although…

Oh, never mind. Keep your pants on, Grimes. You've got a wife, after all, and you should be grateful your family is still intact after all of this. At that thought you almost scoff out loud, but you stop yourself. He needs to sleep a bit more, and you don't want to startle him back to wakefulness.

You glance at him again. He's deeply asleep now, head lolling to one side a bit, against the wall. You suppress an urge to pull him against you, make him more comfortable. He'd not go for that, you know that.

He looks so young, asleep. Hardly older than Carl. Of course he's not your son, but still, he's your responsibility, just like they all are. But somehow it feels more personal with him. Like he's more than just a member of the group. He feels like family, in a very real sense. You've become closer since the farm, probably closer than you and Shane ever were. Different, but close nonetheless.

And it's not just you feeling protective over him. He's such an asset to the group, such help to you. He really is your right hand man. You trust him, you rely on him, and increasingly you seek his counsel. Cos he's smart, and has a level head. Not university smart, but not just streetwise, either. He can see beyond the obvious, and he doesn't let his judgement be clouded by fear. He's good people, and even more importantly, he can tell the good from the bad with more accuracy than even you, a lot of the time.

Oh, he can get scared, all right, and gets stressed out about things. And he's not so good when he does. But they're different things from what the rest of you get scared of. Sometimes, not so easy to deal with, either. He was all done in after Sophia, and you still wonder just how bad things got for him then.

On a couple of occasions, when you've been changing clothes or washing in close quarters you think you saw scars on his legs and belly. Old scars, but they make you wonder about his past. And he always hides his back, that's just second nature to him, and you are sure that's cos of scars as well. He's also lost quite a lot of weight, though recently you've noticed he's eating better again, when there's food, and the main problem now seems to be his insomnia.

You can see his brow crease a little now, and he gives a twitch, then a low moan. Bad dreams, you all have them. Still, you wish you could do something to take his away right now, make his sleep as untroubled and restful as you can.

It's not to be, not this time.

There's a rustle in the undergrowth opposite your vantage point. You can hear dragging footsteps, a groan, a thump. He jerks awake next to you, instantly alert. His eyes meet yours as they open, and despite the walkers shambling towards you across the expanse of grass he takes a moment to look at you with tenderness, like he knows what you did for him just now. Then he gives you a tentative smile, which is a better thank you in your book than a hundred words. You smile back.

"Feel ok?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Sure. Shall we?"

"Guess so. Shame…"

"Right? C'mon…"

You both rise and walk quickly around the side of the building, away from the walkers, away from your shared moment of peace.