Submitted by siancore via tumblr: You and Me by Lifehouse

You And Me on YouTube: watch?v=mktKCuAeq64

Word Count: 988

This morning, for the most part, wasn't any different from any other morning. Michonne woke up at her usual time, before dawn made her glorious appearance. She continued to lie down, taking a mental account of all her tasks for the day. Though things were typical and as mundane as ever, there was one thing that clashed with her routine. She consented to avert her eyes' attention from the ceiling to a slumbering Rick. It was her first time staying the entire night with him in his bedroom.

They'd been sneaking around for months now, hiding their intimate moments from others in the group, Carl in particular. Michonne didn't want to risk Carl walking in on her in his father's bed for fear he'd view her differently. It was never her aim to take his mother's place but she desired to be a part of his life and did not want anything to interfere with that, especially something like this.

Rick was their leader and she refused to allow herself to be a stumbling block for him to do his job to his best ability and she certainly didn't need or want him worrying about her well being. She respected Rick's judgment and wanted nothing more than to see him succeed. She'd do anything to keep him and the group afloat, even if it meant denying her something she really wanted.

She never thought about days of the week as she use to because time was a funny thing nowadays; tricky even. She wouldn't even know what day it was had not someone from the camp reminded her every day. It wasn't really too much of a concern anymore in regards to the events of the day but it was very much a concern when it came time to talk about where a person stood with someone else. She wasn't sure why she didn't want to admit that she was in love with Rick. It wasn't fear of rejection or even a fear that if she admitted to be so something terrible would happen. Maybe she just wasn't fully ready to move on. Maybe there was some other fear lurking in the shadows of her brokenness.

The battle between her head and heart was in constant flux, pushing and pulling her physically and mentally. She didn't want to fall for Rick and honestly she had no intentions to but the man got under her skin with confessions of needing her by his side and trusting her with his and his children's lives. That was something she wished she had before. Something she'd always longed for and needed but never received.

Sometimes she thought she was undeserving but Rick would always come around and say something to rescind any notions of that. She recalled the first time he kissed her. Though impulsive, the kiss itself was gentle and sweet. The imprint of his mouth on hers was more than just a memory. She often sensed that first kiss, the taste of his tongue melding with hers. It was still there.

She'd been on guard at the perimeter of the camp they stayed for a while when a herd of walkers besieged them. She barely got out alive, when Rick saw her fall, a decaying walker inches from gnawing a piece of her arm, made its way up her body. Before Michonne could muster enough strength to fight the walker off Rick's large boot rammed into the face of the undead, hauling it a few feet into the air. She shuffled backwards on her elbows, gasping for fresh oxygen to reoccupy her lungs. Rick ferociously and repeatedly stomped the skull until it resembled road kill before making his way to Michonne. He helped her on her feet and immediately began to examine her arms and shoulders for scratches or bites before stating that she was alright. Shortly after the group managed to take out the rest of the herd, they made their way back to their tents. Rick pulled Michonne aside, asking her to come inside his tent to talk for a few minutes. After a brief conversation about what happened at the perimeter, Rick asked Michonne to stay with him a little while. In that moment he confided in her a little more about seeing Lori just after she passed. Michonne shared that she, even to this day, still had conversations with Mike. Before she realized it, admissions of affection and endearment arose and she found herself in Rick's embrace, his lips sealed with hers.

"What's the matter," Rick announced, breaking Michonne's train of thought. "I've been staring at you for the past ten minutes."

"I thought you were asleep," Michonne admitted, as his question caught her off guard.

"I was," he confessed. "What you thinkin' about?"

Michonne's eyes locked onto Rick's bright blues and she moved her fingers to her lips. She hesitated before answering, "Us."

Rick reached across Michonne and grabbed his pants from the bedroom floor, retrieving his watch from the pocket. He examined the timepiece, squinting to make out the time.

"It's still pretty early," he began. "If you want, you can ma-"

"No," she cut him off. "I'm ready."

Rick rolled onto his side, propping his head up on his hand. "You sure," he asked staring at Michonne as he caressed her jaw with the back of his free hand.

"Yeah," she simply replied. "I'm all in… with you. If you want to tell everyone, I'm okay with that. There really is no point in keeping this to ourselves anymore. Things are good now. We can push forward together. I'm very much okay with that now."

"I've been watitin' for you to be okay with this, with us," Rick smiled before kissing her once more. "And even if you weren't, I'd still wait. I knew you'd know when the time was right. I trust you."

"I know," she agreed. "And I trust you too."

A/N: Thank you so much Siancore. I'm a Lifehouse fan and this song has always been a favorite. It really does fit Richonne nicely. I hope you enjoy it! Thanks so much for the rec! :)