Chapter 12

March 26, 2014

Sherry waited at the Mitchell's front door with cookies in hand. She knew that Yolanda was at the infirmary and that Jenna was also at school. When the door opened, Sherry wasn't surprised to see Kevin greet her with a smile on his face.

"What a pleasant surprise this is!" Kevin exclaimed and opened the door wider for her to come inside, "I take it you know my family is out and about."

"I do," Sherry replied and walked past him into the house, "I'm actually here to see you."

Kevin nodded with a grin and strode towards his kitchen. "I'm sure that you're aware that you aren't the only one with observation skills."

"I'm sure the episode I had a week before tipped you off as well," Sherry joked while glad their friendly banter never faded even if it had been nearly over a year since she spoke with him in a therapeutic setting.

"I don't like to assume much but I take it that's why you're here now, correct?" Kevin questioned.

Sherry nodded while not expecting the silent tears that followed. "Um… I just need to clear my head again…"

"If you don't mind me asking, why did you stop seeing me? You had plenty of time to converse with me on your visits to Alexandria. Did you feel you were at a place where you found peace?"

"I guess I thought I could sort through stuff myself," Sherry replied already knowing the psychological lingo that she associated with Kevin, "And I tried. I really tried doing it on my own."

"You make it sound like my profession inconveniences me," Kevin acknowledged, "A personal trainer isn't put out at their own gym because someone asks them for help. That's their job. Same goes for me."

Sherry sighed and finally gave him the cookies in hand. "I didn't know how else to pay you."

"Usually I form a special trade with others," Kevin said with the cookies in hand, "But in your case, I will make an exception. My services are free to my previous patients from Sanctuary."

"I'll pay with desserts anyways," Sherry responded with a grateful smile. Kevin was truly one of the most genuine people she knew, "Thank you for talking to me."

"Where should we get started?" Kevin questioned and leaned against the counters, "I'm all ears."

…

Dwight stepped through the door as he heard several voices throughout the house as they either giggled or spoke quietly amongst each other. The last time he stepped inside the infirmary was when he was technically Alexandria's prisoner of war for half a day. The distant memory made him grin slightly as he thought of far he had come from such distrust between his now-friends.

"Barbara!" He called as the voices in the other room fell silent.

"Hey, Dwight," Christy answered as she walked into the front hallway of Alexandria's little hospital to greet him. "Is there any reason why you are here? Are you hurt?"

"Oh," Dwight blurted when realizing his presence at a hospital couldn't have more implications than just that, "No, actually. I was wondering if I could talk to you in private for a moment."

"Me?" Christy inquired with an eyebrow raised, "About what?"

"I need a favor," Dwight started but looked around the room to see if they had enough secrecy. Seeing a few Alexandrian's in close proximity, Dwight cleared his throat and looked to Christy expectedly. "If I caught you at a bad time…"

"No, not at all," Christy informed, "I was actually about to start my lunch break with Terri and Yolanda but if they are okay with me leaving…"

"You are fine," Yolanda responded as she poked her head from the kitchen, "We'll just see you in an hour. If you happen to pass the school on your walk, tell Jenna that I'll be home earlier than I usually am." Terri's voice quietly rang from the kitchen as well as Yolanda glanced to her old friend. "I guess let Terri's boys know as well."

"Okay, I will," Christy said with a smile and followed Dwight out the hospital as they walked towards her house, "Alright, I think we're alone now. You going to tell me what's going on?"

Dwight pulled a small ring box out of his pocket as Christy immediately grinned upon knowing what it was. "Well, I'm flattered, but I think I already have a boyfriend."

"Har har," Dwight replied sarcastically, "I need you to do some planning for me."

"What kind of planning?" Christy asked.

"If I escort you outside the walls to get supplies for specific items, would you be able to find things that seem right for a special event?" Dwight inquired.

"Special event?" Christy teased, "Does this special event have a name?"

"I think we both know what kind of special event I'm talking about," Dwight said and rolled his eyes, "Nothing extravagant. Sherry wouldn't like it."

"I have an idea of what she would like," Christy enthused while unable to hide a grin, "Can the rest of our friends tag along? Doing a supply run for something of this magnitude is not a one-woman job."

"Invite whoever you want," Dwight replied with a smile as he looked at the box before putting it back in his pocket, "Just make sure everyone you tell keeps it hush. There is still the possibility that she could reject the whole idea altogether."

"She won't," Christy said confidently.

"Don't get my hopes up," Dwight remarked and took a deep breath.

"Does it feel right?" Christy boldly asked.

Dwight didn't answer at first as he tried to think of when it didn't feel right. The image in his head of him and Sherry slow dancing in the abandoned mansion years ago came into his mind as he knew then and there that his feelings for her delved deeper than simple infatuation. "It always felt right."

"She'll say yes," Christy reiterated her confidence from before and smiled while heading towards the school, "Let me know when you want to do the supply run and I'll take it from there. Give me a date and it'll all be taken care of!"

AUTHOR'S NOTES, TRIVIA, & FACTS -

#1 - And "Shortest Chapter" Award goes to…