Michonne looked at the house and hoped whatever happened inside, would provide a solution to their situation.
She never intended this to go like this with Rick. When they met he initially annoyed the crap out of her. He seemed to be the polar opposite. It wasn't until they returned home that she realized his name came up constantly in her mind. Then the phone calls turned longer, more intimate, more meaningful. It felt like it was out of her hands. Rick just happened and after the weekend with Andre it solified her feelings for him.
She had feelings. Deep feelings, scary as it was to admit she swallowed her pride and allowed those feelings to lead her. Now it led her here. The home he had shared with his wife for nearly twenty years. A small voice inside her wondered if it was possible to compete with that. They had spent a lifetime together.
Michonne checked her phone quickly and felt grateful Sasha was her partner when it came to work. She was updating her every step of the way as she prepared Jessie for the toughest day that was about to come. The stress of the case, the stress of her own personal life made her lightheaded.
"Hey." A very deep voice said, snapping her out of her haze. She turned around to see a man with a four pizza boxes, he was standing there at the bottom of the porch stairs.
He had a dark thick beard and full head of hair. He seemed rough around the edges with his distinguished features. The type of guy you would look at and wonder if he was going to be trouble. He kept staring at her, studying her from head to toe.
"You must be the other woman."
She narrowed her eyes at him and his bold statement, "You must be the former best friend."
He climbed the steps and set the pizzas on the nearby table, "Shane Walsh."
Michonne nodded, keeping her distance, "Michonne Anthony."
He casually walked closer to her, and now leaned against the porch railing, "Rick is here?"
She nodded again.
Shane kept his eyes on her. He was surprised to see such a captivating woman, not understanding how on earth Rick bagged her. Not that his ex best friend was bad to look at, but she just seemed way out of his league. Her tight black outfit hugged her perfectly and she seemed so poised. He could tell the way she carried herself she had a lot of self confidence.
"And you're standing here, why?"
She looked back at him now, trying to figure him out, "Because they need to talk. You have a problem with that?"
Shane laughed, her quick witted personality did not go unnoticed, "Chill. I'm not here to start an argument."
Michonne was silent for a minute before turning fully to look at him, "Why are you here then Shane Walsh?"
"I'm here for Lori," He was direct, clearly not shying away from confrontation "She feels like she is alone in this."
He had her full attention now, "And you're a good shoulder to cry on?"
Shane raised his brows at her, she had balls, "Wow, you really want to get smart with me when you're as equally to blame."
Michonne wasn't having it, "What are you saying?"
"You and my brother," He pointed at the house, "He was a married man who was fine with his life. Then he met you and a couple months later the word divorce is mentioned. Don't be blaming me for stuff, when you were doing the same exact thing. You were probably a great shoulder to cry on since it led to divorce."
"He would have divorced her anyway because of her lies. It doesn't matter if I was in the picture." She felt like she had to spell it out to him.
He tilted his head, as if needing to study her from a different angle, "He told you that?"
"He told me enough from your past," Michonne paused, gathering her thoughts, "You two did something that isn't just hurtful. It's something that changes you as a person. You can't get that back, ever."
Shane stopped to think about her words. He didn't like the fact that she thought she knew better.
"I ain't here to justify my actions to you alright?" He clenched his fists as his body tensed up over her judgy attitude, "You don't know us. You don't know our history. Rick... He ain't just a regular Joe. He is wired different. You'll see."
She sighed loudly. She didn't care to hear other people analyzing him. It didn't matter. Michonne knew him as he was today.
What a fucking catastrophe this was.
Shane broke the silence with a low laugh as they waited out there and stared at the front door, "Why does this feel a bit insane?"
"A bit?" Michonne said back to him, "More like completely insane."
He continued with a sarcastic tone, "It's like one of those bad hallmark movies. You know, all that's left to do is shack up together and leave them in their misery."
He winked at her and a loud snort escaped her. She had to laugh at that because it was so absurd and funny, it did feel like their lives were a part of a bad script. Shane seemed to be as obnoxious as Rick described him to be.
As her laughter died down, the front door flew open, practically coming off the hinges.
Rick lunged at him, every fibre in him yearning for blood. Michonne felt like everything turned slow motion as Lori shouted for Rick to stop.
"You shouldn't be here." He spat as he held his former best friend by the lapels of his shirt and pushed him roughly against the railing, a post behind Shanes back thankfully stopping him from falling.
Shane smiled back at him, "Good to see you too."
Michonne wasn't afraid to go between them, she was mostly concerned over Shanes well being as she saw that same look on Ricks eyes that he had back in Las Vegas when he handled that one jackass.
She put her hand on his wrist, squeezing him tightly, "Rick."
His whole body felt like it was on fire, in the worst possible way. His ears hummed as the rage that had been there for years finally unraveled. Shane was like a mirror. He shaped him into the person he was today. He was there every step of the way and it was the worst kind of betrayal when Rick realized he wasn't as important to him. Rick held him on a pedestal and Shane chose Lori over their brotherhood. When he did that he also chose to be a enemy instead of a friend. He wasn't jealous over Lori, it was more of being jealous of Lori. Shane was supposed to be on his side. After all these years he had hoped he knew better. They were supposed to be friends for the rest of their lives and share this journey until the end.
As it all unraveled in his mind, he could hear Michonne chant his name softly beside him. Her hand still around the wrist that kept a firm grip on Shane.
Shane just stood there, accepting his fate. It seemed like he expected it. He didn't fight back or yell. He just looked at him calmly while he practically choked him out.
"Rick," Michonne said once more, "please let him go."
He finally looked at her, his eyes wide with shock and shame.
"It's okay," She reassured him and felt him already loosening his grip on him, "I'm fine. You're fine."
Lori kept barking behind them, but neither could register her voice as they stared at each other. He knew he had crossed a line and he felt weak for it. His emotions got the best of him.
He let go of Shane, roughly, pushing him and backing away. His ex best friend grunted in discomfort, his back ached as it slammed against the post.
"You still got it in you." He cleared his throat and straightened his shirt. Sweat dripped down his forehead and his chest heaved as he tried to regain his composure.
Rick gazed down onto his shaking hands and then back at her face. He felt like he was slipping somewhere and it wasn't an option anymore. He wanted to be better for her. Michonne was more important in this moment than his rage. His kids didn't deserve to go through it again.
He inhaled deeply and said to her, "Let's go."
She followed him, no questions asked, consumed with the thought of making sure he was alright. Nothing else mattered. They were in sync, minds and hearts connected in a way that nobody could understand.
As they crossed the yard Lori shouted, "You are the one who should have stayed away! You are the one who walked away, so stick with it!"
Rick stopped. It was a low blow.
He turned around, his words coming out slow and clear, "You want to act like a victim huh? When you got him here? Try again, Lori."
"Don't come here. If you need something, contact my lawyer," She screamed, her voice cracking between words, "I'm not letting you make up your own rules as we go, so stay away from me and the kids. We are done here."
"Lori." Even Shane tried to reel her in. He could see she wasn't rational right now.
Michonne knew she was out of line when she initially came there, but under the circumstances she figured nothing could make this more worse. Lori rightfully harbored ill feelings towards them, but she didn't understand why Ricks hurt wasn't valid to her. Shane being here was a testament of how little Lori cared for how he felt. She watched Rick walk ahead towards the car, ignoring the remarks from Lori. The way his face crumbled at the mention of his children, it sparked a rush inside her. She was not done here.
Michonne stopped and turned around, looking at Lori, dead in the eye, "You have no idea what you've done."
She shook her head at the words as a way of dismissing her. Lori really couldn't stand her. She despised her.
"No, you really don't," Her voice held power as she continued, unwavering, "His lawyer will drag you in that courtroom. I'll make sure you get nothing, I'll dig up everything from your past, every single dirty little thing, every mistake, I'll smear your name so that you won't find work in this state again. You told me I was cold. You really want to see what I'm capable of? and don't think this is about Rick. I'd do it for your kids, so that they didn't have to live with a hypocrite like you."
Rick stopped mid strive and turned around to look at her. His eyes caught Michonnes for a second and he had never felt so damn loved in his life.
"That's enough." Shane stepped in, defending Lori. Afraid it would turn into a full blown brawl between the women.
"And you," Michonne narrowed her eyes at him, "You've inserted yourself into this fucking marriage years ago. Stop dragging her around and leading her on. Be fucking honest about your feelings because this whole we are friends bullshit is getting old."
He was throughly impressed with her direct feedback even though he didn't like it.
"We aren't perfect in this," this was her last attempt on diffusing the situation, she looked at Rick and then back at Lori who was hurt, "We were selfish, I get that. We fucked up, but he hasn't spoken badly of you two or what you two did. If you want to play this game and see who does things dirtier I'm all for it, but you better know I'm going to win. It's going to fucking suck when Carl and Judith are the ones who have to see it all unfold. They don't deserve that."
Lori was numb. She stormed back inside the house and the door slammed as she did so. Shane was speechless.
Michonne walked back up to Shane and handed him a file," Give this to her. Her friend needs her help tomorrow."
Shane took the file and nodded. He didn't understand what was on it, but it seemed important and she had earned his respect. His eyes stayed on Ricks as he stood on that porch.
"Thank you." Michonne said back politely and turned her back to walk away. Rick walked over to the passenger side and opened the door for her.
She smiled at him as she climbed in.
Their battle for today was done.
"You think she'll come around?" He whispered from behind her as he massaged her shoulders.
She kept her gaze forward, watching the sky turn darker by the minute as evening set in. Daryls backyard was starting to look like a garage sale as he hauled boxes back and forth into storage. Connie and Carol carefully organized everything, everything was labeled and thought out while Daryl did the labor. Dog ran along, keeping close to Connie as always. Michonne loved watching their new normal.
She felt a blinding headache coming. She tried her best to digest what was said and done. His hands worked on her shoulders and she leaned into his soft touch as they sat there admiring the peaceful landscape.
"I don't know," She was tired of not knowing anything, everything was up in the air and it frustrated her, "Lori is in pain. She is not thinking straight, and when people are guided by anger they do stupid things. They get themselves more hurt."
He felt powerless. He knew, he absolutely knew that he had wronged Lori, but he didn't expect her to go this far. He hated the fact that his kids had to possibly witness their parents tear each other apart.
"I should've done something about this years ago," his voice conveyed how defeated he felt, "If I knew..."
"Rick," She turned around, his hands dropping as she escaped his grasp, "Sure, you could have done better, but Lori should have also done better. Don't blame yourself. You grew apart. It happens to the best of us."
He stared deeply into her dark eyes and smiled, "I don't understand you."
"What?" She chuckled.
Rick smiled and dropped his gaze, shaking his head.
"What?" She repeated, not understanding where his mind went.
"I just..." He lifted his gaze back up and it locked with hers, "I don't understand what you're doing with me."
Michonnes eyes lit up, "Rick, come on."
"I mean it," He grinned now, "I don't think I've ever met someone so good at everything she does."
"Only good? Not brilliant?" Her voice was teasing as she wrapped her hands around his neck.
"Ohh, that's reaching now," He played along and leaned in to kiss her.
The world seemed to disappier around them when they found each other. The sweet moment was cut short by Daryls grunt.
"Hey lover boy," The sweaty man pushed them apart and dropped a box in his lap, "I need your help, get your ass up."
Rick gave him the middle finger as he walked away without another word.
She laughed at them, "Why does he always say he got it, but then he orders you around anyway?"
Rick scratched the back of his neck, "I think we both do that for some reason."
They smiled at each other, there were these moments of normalcy between them that made everything else bearable. No matter how insane and messy it was, it felt right. It made it all worth it.
"Man we got a problem!" A familiar voice boomed as Negan stormed to the backyard, "A big ass problem!"
Both Michonne and Rick raised their brows at him.
Negan was surpised to see her there, "Where the fuck did you come from?"
"A city called Atlanta, ever heard of it?" She relaxed in the lounge chair and chuckled. Unbothered by his shocked expression.
He shook off the confusion and looked at Rick, "You're not gonna like this-"
He interrupted him, "Shane. I know."
Negan looked at him like had lost the plot, "The fuck man? You're gonna let that slimy goofball sleep in your bed?"
"I don't care Negan," Rick scoffed, "He is a piece of shit, but it ain't worth it."
"It ain't worth it?" Negan was flabbergasted and turned his attention on her, "What the fuck did you do to him?"
Michonne raised her hands in playful surrender, "Oh yeah, sure, blame the woman. Besides he tried to beat his face in, so don't worry Rick is still very much Rick."
"Jesus, I almost lost my faith in you prick," He tossed his leather jacket on the other lounge chair and lighted a cigarette, "How do you wanna do this then?"
Rick gave him a look of disapproval, "We ain't going to do anything."
Negan winked at him, "That's the Sheriff talking right now?"
He groaned back and dropped the box Daryl had given him, "Nah, Negan. I mean let it go. Let Shane be."
"You want me to handle him?" He breathed out smoke, like he was a gangster from goodfellas. He just happened to look plain silly when he did it.
"No," Rick rolled his eyes hard, "You ain't doing shit. Let it go."
Michonne watched their banter and chuckled to herself. It was amusing.
"You think he will rat us out?" He blurted out, and quickly tried to patch the mistake he made, he glanced at her, "I mean... Forget I said that."
Michonne raised an eyebrow at Rick, "Is there something I should know?"
Rick wanted to smack this idiot and his big mouth, "It's nothing. Negan is speaking about things he doesn't know nothing about. Old stuff. It's resolved."
She didn't feel like his answer was genuine, "Rick. Is there something he could tell Lori and they could use it in court against you?"
"No." He said back with confidence.
"Wait, back up a bit," Negan stumped his cigarette, "what do you mean in court?"
"Lori is gonna try to get full custody, but it's not gonna happen." Michonne recapped for him casually and then turned her attention on Rick again, "If there is something..."
"I promise. It's nothing like that." He hoped she took his word for it.
She nodded at him, choosing to trust his judgement. She had to relinquish control and trust this time. She really trusted Rick, but sometimes her past made her more paranoid and it caused her to make bad decisions.
"What the fuck! " Negan shouted dramatically, "She thinks she'll get our little rascals? Hell no!"
"Yeah it isn't happening," Rick smiled brightly, "I got the best advisor in my team. I'm not worried."
Michonne smiled back, trying her best to keep her curiousity in check as she wondered what was Negan referring to earlier.
"Y'all gonna stand there and do nothing?" Daryl yelled with his gruff voice.
Negan grumbled, "I should'a stayed home."
"Nobody asked for you to come asshole!" Daryl yelled back.
Michonne watched them exchange middle fingers and then looked back at Rick, "You really need new friends."
Rick laughed.
Carl kept staring at the cold pizza on his plate. It was strange. Shane sat across from him and his mom stood there, leaning against the refrigerator, deep in thought. Judith thankfully was still away and didn't have to be apart of this circus.
He could tell Shane was shocked by how much he had grown. How all of a sudden that small kid he left behind was practically an adult. Carl didn't feel anger, rage or anything in between. He mostly felt nonchalant over the whole thing. It had been awhile since they had seen each other and he had craved for this moment since he disappeared on him, now it just didn't bring up any feelings at all. He looked different, older, in a way that life hadn't been kind to him.
"I know this is..." Shane cleared his throat, "awkward as hell. A lot has happened."
Carl exhaled, exhausted over this drama his parents managed to create, "Awkward? That's the word you wanna go with?"
The sarcasm in his tone was evident.
He vented, "We could also use words like insane, immature, embarrassing, dramatic and stupid to describe this freaking love square you guys got going on."
"Love square?" Lori questioned carefully.
"Dads got her and you got him," Carl fired on, "A love square."
Shane unintentionally laughed at the smart comeback the kid had. She shot him a look and he did his best to reel himself in.
"Look," Shane catched his breath as he tried to sound more serious, "I know I fucked up Carl. Man to man, I should have never left without goodbyes. I don't blame you for hating me for it."
"I don't hate you," The boy with the beanie said with determination, "I don't give a shit anymore. I don't care about you enough to hate you."
Lori narrowed her gaze towards her son, she was shocked how direct he was being, "Carl..."
"No, mom," he muttered, " You and dad can sort this out without bringing me into it. I'm not gonna sit here and have pizza with him like it's normal."
"I'm only here as a friend. It's not like that between us."
Carl looked back at Shane, "Sure."
"Carl, please don't." Lori pleaded now and took a seat in the kitchen table. Trying to reach for his hand, but he pulled away.
"You guys can sit here and pretend all you want, but I'm not doing it anymore," He looked at his mom and then at him, "You two like each other. Dad likes Michonne. Get the freaking divorce and move on already. When you're ready to be honest about this then we can sit down and eat."
Carl pushed his chair back and gave his mom squeeze on her shoulder, "I love you, but I'm done being in the middle."
He walked out of the kitchen and left them wondering what had just happened.
"That's the Rick in him," Shane chuckled as he looked into the distance, "always looking out for others. The kid probably hates my guts, but for you, he puts that aside."
Lori didn't say it, but her body language was tense. She didn't understand why Shane was praising Rick. Maybe it was the guilt in him, but it irritated her.
"Carl has a good heart," She took her sons plate and tossed it into the sink, "Unlike his father who literally brings his new shiny toy around and then expects me to be understanding."
"I don't think they meant bad by it," Shane shrugged, knowing he was on thin ice, "I'm here. So isn't that the same thing?"
"Are you on his side or mine?" She snapped as she fixed the dishes, "And no, it's not the same thing! He is screwing her."
"Well we did-"
"No!" Lori turned around, shutting him down, "What we did doesn't even come close to that. Besides I took accountability soon as it happened, Rick played me for years. He just settled for this and soon as he found something better he tossed me aside like everything I did for us meant nothing. I sat across from him and took every single snide comment for years. I practically ran this household for five years straight afterwards. I made sure he had a clean uniform, he had lunch and dinner. I was trying to build our relationship from the ashes and he played along until he found her."
She nearly shook from anger. It seemed to consume her whole body. The anguish was there and she couldn't contain it at all. This was a road she had never imagined she would have to take on. Rick was never supposed to walk away.
"Lori," He got up and walked up to her, "Rick did you dirty, but you have got to see the bigger picture."
"What bigger picture?" She was a wreck, "I got nothing! I gave him everything and I got nothing!"
He hated seeing her like this. He pulled her to him, the tension in her face and body left in his arms. This was how it always was. She cried about Rick and he comforted her. He knew Lori wasn't in love with Rick, this was more about letting go and it scared her to death. Shane kissed her head sweetly and held her.
"I know it's tough," He whispered into her hair, "But I got you. I always got you."
It was a shock when he got the message. Rick didn't like hiding things from Michonne, but this obstacle he had to destroy by himself. It needed to be resolved.
He drove the same road he had driven countless times and thought about turning around. It could end badly.
As he finally arrived, he noticed him already standing there.
"I didn't think you would come."
Shane looked at the dark water, the same waters that held a lot of memories. This was their spot.
Rick stayed near his car, hoping that the distance made a difference. Maybe he could control himself better.
"What do you want?" He asked.
Shane turned around and faced him, "I know you ain't happy with me. I know it isn't going to make a difference if I try to make things nice."
Rick laughed dryly. He couldn't take him seriously.
"Your girl," Shane mentioned Michonne and it made Rick immediately alert, "She got a good point when she told me to stop bullshitting."
"Shane, just get to the point." He demanded.
"I love Lori," He stood proudly, feeling a lot lighter having said it out loud for the first time, "And I ain't leaving her behind when she is struggling, but I also don't want to fight you every step of the way."
Rick wasn't surprised by his confession. It was like saying the sky was blue. Of course he knew Shane loved Lori. It was clear to him from the moment they had betrayed his trust. They didn't have the guts to admit it to themselves or to him back then, but just because he was with Michonne it didn't make him more understanding and accepting of their relationship.
"And you think we should just forget about it? How everything went down and be friends again?" Rick raised his voice, "I don't care, you two go on and do what you gotta do, but I ain't playing nice when I don't have to."
Shane laughed, throaty and low, "Oh, but you do."
He stared back.
"Your girl," Shane continued, stepping a bit closer, "She is a lawyer right?"
"Forget about it," Rick waved his hand in frustration and turned towards his car, "this is fucking waste of time. I have better things to do."
As he opened the car door, Shane said a name that he hadn't heard in a long time, "Huntley."
Rick stared back at him, wide eyed and slammed the door shut. He took threatening steps towards Shane who didn't even flinch.
"What do you want?" He growled, anxious over the fact he brought it up now.
Shane knew it would hit him hard and he hoped he didn't have to go this far. This was a secret that he promised to take into his grave, but for Lori and her road to a better life he would burn that last bridge.
"Give Lori what she wants. Make this a little easier for her. Give her the house, primary custody. Don't stress her or the kids with your new life," He didn't hold back, "It's the best for all of you. Step back."
Rick couldn't look at him without wanting to break his face at the moment, this was the part of Shane he despised. He was a problem solver like he was, but Shane had no moral compass and it had caused trouble before.
"You were there with me, so was Negan," He grunted, his jaw tight, "You go around spreading this it's all of us, not just me."
"I don't give a shit if it lands on me," Shane meant it, "I got nothing to lose. Negan wasn't even there, he cleaned the mess sure, but he didn't even know what went down earlier."
Rick thought about it, feeling his stomach drop as he imagined Michonnes reaction to the darkest secret he had. She could leave him.
"Rick," Shane looked at him directly, "You are happy right? Go for it. Let me take care of Lori. You still got your kids on the weekends or something. I'll make sure of that. Carl is almost an adult. Just let them live with their mom and move on."
"You think blackmailing me is the solution?"
His ex bestfriend was relentless, "I'm giving you everything you need on platter right now. Take it. Let's start over."
They stood there staring at each other as the nature around them reminded them of the summer nights they would spend here as kids. They were simpler times.
Shane said what he had wanted to say and climbed into his jeep, he rolled down his window,"Tell your girl Lori will be at court tomorrow. I got through to her. It ain't all bad Rick. Lifes what you make of it. Accept this and we all will be fine."
As his car disappiered into the woods Rick wanted to scream until his lungs gave out, but instead he chose not to. He would not crumble and give up. One day, Shane Walsh would face his karma, but today he chose happiness and light over his dark clouds.
300 reviews. Wow. That's amazing, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for your encouragement and lovely messages as I battle with difficulties. It has been tough I'm not going to lie. I will try my best to update weekly, but there might we delays due to my personal life.
Until next time lovely people! Have a nice week!