AN: A/U – Rated PG-13- twenty-something California ladies Michonne, Maggie, and Sasha throw a party and experience an unexpected surprise…
"Maggie, oh god, look at all this mess. It's going to take all day to clean up and we won't get a chance to hit the beach at all." Michonne pouted to her roommate.
It is Saturday, mid-morning, Michonne and Maggie are cleaning up after the party they threw for their ex-roommate Sasha the night before. Sasha is leaving Crescent City, California on her way to her new job and life in Seattle, Washington.
"I love Sasha and all but never again. I just got the last crasher out not too long ago. Remind me again, whose idea was it to throw the party on the night before she flies out?"
Walking into the living room, Maggie steps over and around trash bag mounds filled with paper cups, cans, and beer bottles. Handing Michonne a mug of coffee, she replies "Why Sasha's, of course."
Looking at each other and clinking coffee mugs, they say together, "Figures."
Suddenly they hear a strange noise coming from the bathroom, causing both girls to jump. Maggie decides to investigate and finds a man in there, sleeping in the tub. She grabs the nearest weapon to her, a plunger, and slowly backs out of the room.
Running to Michonne, she frantically whispers, "There's a man asleep and snoring in our tub!"
"Well, how did he get in there!" Michonne whispers back.
"Hell if I know!" Maggie says wide-eyed. "He could be a friend of Sasha's, or worse, a friend of a friend! I've never seen him before and I … I … hell, did you know any of the people in our house last night?"
Michonne thinks about it, shrugs, and says, "Not really, Sasha is the popular one. Well, let's not just sit here; we have to find out who he is." She moves like she's about to go into the bathroom when Maggie pulls her back.
"Wait! What if he's armed?"
"Well, what should we do, call the police? He could wake up by then." She grabs an umbrella from the stand next to the door. "Follow my lead."
Both girls tiptoe into the bathroom holding their 'weapons' like 'firearms'. Michonne turns on the shower and sprays cold water on the intruder to wake him up. The girls start to scream as the man tries to get up. Maggie shouts rather forcefully, "Put down your weapon!"
Both the man and Michonne look at Maggie, then each other, and burst out laughing. Maggie pretends for a second that her feelings are hurt but gets over it and asks, "Who are you?"
The man stands to his full height with a soaked brown t-shirt clinging to his muscular frame; he lets loose a charming smile and says, "I'm Rick Grimes."
In unison, the girls utter an "Ohhh!", and then fall silent as they take in all of Rick from head to toe.
Rick smirks, taking his cue to continue talking, "Sasha and I grew up together in Atlanta and she invited me to crash here since everyone was wasted last night, all the good places had been taken, so all I had was the tub."
"Bull! Why didn't Sasha introduce you to us?" Michonne asked suspiciously.
"Well, she tried to flag you down, but you were too busy dancing with your friend, um Rosita? And I think Sasha said you had several gin and tonics too many. Something like that," he says as he looks into Michonne's beautiful brown eyes. "And I think you disappeared with Glen, Maggie before I could get introduced to you."
Maggie pipes up, "Ooooh yeah, I remember now. You're that friend that Sasha said was coming in town from New Orleans. Something about being a Chef and coming to work for a new restaurant in town."
Rick still looking at Michonne says, "One and the same. Nice to meet you both."
Michonne blushes and clears her throat. "Oh, I'm, oops, you're all wet. I guess we should dry you off before sending you on your way."
Rick chuckles when Maggie pipes in. "Well, we don't have a dryer but maybe we can try to help dry your clothes by tossing them in the oven. I may have something of Glen's here you can put on. I'll be back."
Maggie runs to go find something for Rick to wear, as he starts to pull off his wet shirt and unbuttons his jeans.
"Oh! Umm... I'll let you get out of those wet clothes. Yeah. Umm if you need any help or me. Or Uhm … yeah." Michonne closes the door and leans against it trying to calm down.
Man, it's been way too long.
Maggie walks down the hall as Rick cracks open the door and Michonne almost falls through the frame. Michonne grabs the wet clothes Rick hands her as Maggie thrusts dry clothes in. "Sorry, it's all I could find! We'll have your clothes dry in a jiff!"
Michonne hears Rick groan through the door, "Are you serious?" and looks at Maggie in wonder as she drags her into the kitchen.
"Chonne, I think he likes you. You should totally go for it!"
"Maggs! We barely know the guy…go for what?"
"You can't hide it. I saw how you were all googly-eyed for that hot bod. He looks good and lord knows that it's been too long for you. When was your last romance?"
"Don't remind me about that…"
Michonne stops short seeing Rick walk into the kitchen in one of Maggie's short blue kimono robes, her eyes traveling straight to his… well-toned legs.
I wonder what the rest of him looks like beneath that thing.
Maggie looks at Rick and tries not to laugh. "I said I was sorry. Glenn took his laundry home and that's the loosest thing I have to fit you." Then she giggles out, "At least the blue brings out the sparkle in your eyes." Rick glowers for a second, but his good sense of humor has him chuckling in no time. "So, what are you girls making us for breakfast."
The girls look at each other and the giggles start all over again.
"We are having Frosted Flakes and bananas," Michonne explains that Sasha handled the breakfast for the trio.
"I can use those bananas…Do you have eggs?" Rick decides to go ahead and put his culinary skills on display.
While cooking and chatting, Rick learns that Michonne is an aspiring writer who is a bartender at a bar nearby, and Maggie is an artist who gets her bills paid working at a department store.
"Rick, this is so good!" Michonne says, her mouth full of banana- chocolate crepes, "I've never had a gourmet breakfast at home before."
Everyone continues eating and Rick basks in the enjoyment of listening to Michonne and Maggie have food orgasms over his French omelets, when Maggie suddenly blurts out, "You should move in with us!"
"Maggie!"
"What Michonne? Another roommate would certainly help with rent. It's either that or give up our wonderful apartment by the beach; and I know you don't want to make that sacrifice."
"But … but … we don't know anything about him. Rick, don't you have a place lined up?"
"Well, I was planning to stay at the YMCA …"
Maggie quickly cuts him off saying, "That settles it! We have a new roommate. Michonne, we can't let Sasha's childhood friend stay on a cot at the men's club when we have room here."
Michonne looks at Maggie and then looks into Rick's hopeful eyes.
How can I say 'no' when he looks at me like that with those dreamy eyes and kissable lips?
Michonne, shaking herself out of her musing, says, "Okay."
Everyone looks at each other and starts to smile.
Meanwhile, in the downstairs apartment Carol Peletier, the landlord, decides to pay her tenants a visit. She's still bothered about all the noise from the party last night and wants to make sure that it is the last time that happens, or they are all out.
At the sound of the doorbell ringing, the girls instinctively look at each other and say, "Ms. Petty!" Maggie turns to Rick and tells him that he has to stay in the kitchen because their landlord is an old-fashioned busy-body who would have a conniption if she found out about him. Maggie runs out of the kitchen to try and run interference with Ms. Peletier.
Michonne goes to the oven and grabs Rick's clothes out with oven mitts. "Ooh, it's hot!".
Rick starts to say, "Look, I don't want to get you, girls, in trouble …", when Carol barges in the kitchen to discovers Rick there.
Startled, she walks back out and leaves the apartment to go get Eugene.
"Eugene! Where are you? I need you to go upstairs and help me."
"What now, Mama?"
"Those girls, those unmarried, young, impressionable girls, have a half-naked young man upstairs in their apartment. I need you to help me find out what is up and kick him out of there immediately."
"Oh Mama, I really don't want to butt into their private lives. He could be Michonne or Maggie's boyfriend."
"Eugene! Do as I say! And he's not. Why would he be naked in front of both girls and wearing such a ridiculous outfit? I think he's a weirdo and he has got to go. Plus, if he's dating those girls, he should do it more proper like, and not gallivant around like some Chippendale's dancer for all of California to see!"
Eugene rolls his eyes and says nothing. Realizing if he just goes upstairs to see what this fuss is about, his mother will leave him alone afterward. Eugene recently met Rosita over at Maggie and Michonne's and doesn't want to do anything to jeopardize the possibilities there.
Rick enters the kitchen to join Michonne, fully dressed when Carol barges into the apartment with Eugene in tow. Maggie runs out to talk to both of them while Michonne and Rick are left in the kitchen.
"So …" Rick saunters over to the counter and stands next to Michonne, who is cleaning the counters and 'fussing' with the non-existent mess Rick left in the kitchen. "Do you have a policy on dating roommates?"
Michonne's face felt like someone has just set it on fire…
No Michonne! Stop that shit right now. It's time you woman up and stop being so shy.
She sucks in her bottom lip and goes for it. "Well, I wouldn't say I have a policy when up until now most of my roommates weren't my preference."
It's Rick's turn to stammer as he finds that he desires most to be held under Michonne's intense glare in more favorable circumstances with fewer people in the next room. As he is about to reply, Maggie saunters in the room and plops down at the kitchen table, "Whew, problem solved."
Both Rick and Michonne turn and look at her as she says, "Ms. Petty was about to kick us all out on our butts, but I handled everything," she said smoothly, does a head toss, and checks her nails.
"What! What happened? You can't tell us that and not spill all the tea," Michonne exclaims.
Rick begins to wonder if situations in this house are always this high-strung.
"Well, after Sasha's party and now a naked man, her words not mine, she said she didn't know if we could be trusted not to have strange men running in and out of our place."
"Oh please, we've lived here for two years and never given her problems before!"
"That's what I said, but she started to go on her high-horse rant. So that's when I told her that Rick was gay."
It was Rick's turn to pipe up, "You said what?"
"I told her you were gay. It's no biggie, she doesn't want girls who are 'sexual' freaks living in the building. And she was definitely against the, and major quote marks here, 'living in sin' thing. So, I told her that you aren't into either of us." She looked at Michonne when she said that last part. "Ms. Peletier bought it hook, line, and sinker."
"But Maggs that's such a lie." Michonne avoided looking at Rick when she said that part. As he started to move a bit closer to Michonne to mutter so that only she could hear, "On both fronts."
"Well, I know that! But Ms. Peletier doesn't have to. Just don't let her see you flirting with girls or bringing them back to our place and we'll be fine. I'm sure you would agree that acting gay and staying here beats living at the YMCA any day."
"Well yeah …"
Maggie cut him off. "Then it's settled. Why don't you go get your stuff and Michonne and I will get your new room ready for you?"
"Fine," Rick agrees, looking at Michonne and giving her the I'm-not-through-with-you-look and heads out to get his stuff out of his car.
"Maggs, I sure hope you know what you are doing. If Ms. Peletier finds out, we are all going to be out on our butts. At least Rick has the Y to go to."
"We have bigger things to think about than that busy body Ms. Peletier. We are doing her a favor by moving Rick in. Rent will be on time. Now; I'm wondering how we can ramp up that chemistry I see between you to get the magic started."
"You better mind your own business, Maggie Greene. You don't see me meddling in your life. I'm fine where I am."
"Well, my life doesn't need meddling with. But you could do with some spicing up. Bet it will help you ease out that writing block for your novel."
Michonne didn't say a word, and they started to clean the apartment again as if all the excitement didn't happen.
It wasn't until later that day when Rick returned with his clothes and bedding and the new roommates settled into their new situation with ease.
As the weeks went by the heavy flirting between Michonne and Rick became very noticeable to Maggie and their close friends. Abraham, their neighbor, whom Rick became friends with, even mentioned it a couple of times. Abe was known as the apartment building's 'ladies' man', so it took a lot of explaining to get Ms. Peletier to continue to think Rick was gay. Eugene on the other hand never fell for it, so he was with the gang in explaining away Rick to his Mom.
On Saturday, the gang, Eugene included decided to hit the Elbow Room for some fun. The bartender, Noah, was a good friend so the drinks were especially good. Before anyone really noticed what was happening, the friends started pairing off into couples and leaving the bar separately. Pretty soon, Rick and Michonne left and walked to the beach to sit and watch the waves.
As they settled in a nice quiet spot on the now isolated beach, Michonne closed her eyes and leaned back to take in the ocean breeze. Watching her, Rick took a deep breath and said, "I want to kiss you."
Opening her eyes, Michonne focused on Rick's. She started to sit up but Rick met her halfway and began to kiss her. What started off sweet and slow grew very deep and passionate when their tongues touched, and the heat of their true feelings ignited.
Rick gently laid Michonne in the sand as he lightly leaned on her. Michonne pulled him closer, wanting to feel his body flush against hers. Her hands began to travel under Rick's shirt as the kiss deepened still. Rick, unable to hide his excitement, placed himself over Michonne and started trailing kisses from her ear, down her neck, to her collar bone. Taking Michonne's body responses and moans as a cue to keep moving, Rick slowly kissed and licked down the front of her minidress, eventually making his way to her erect nipples.
"More, Rick," she moaned, in response to his fluid movements. Michonne longed to bring him closer still, to have him touch and kiss her more.
Hearing her request, and even though he wanted to, "Not here." he told her in a husky voice, Rick decided that this wasn't the place he wanted to finally make love to Michonne.
She knew he was right, but that didn't stop her body from doing a frustrating wiggle, causing Rick to groan and involuntarily dry hump in response. He smirked and said, "Woman calm down or I'll be forced to lift your dress and have you here. Now let's get out of here before Ms. P sends a search party and you won't be able to join me in my bed."
Michonne smiled, "What does this mean for us, Rick? Are you going to have to come clean and move out?"
"I don't see why I would? Part of the fun is finding ways around her; I mean, eventually, we will have to, but I'd rather work on our new relationship instead of worrying about other people."
"Relationship? Does that mean …"
Rick pulled her lips to his for another toe-curling kiss, "If you wouldn't mind a gay boyfriend who can cook and has had a thing for his roommate since he first met her, then yes."
Michonne grinned and bit her lip as if she was thinking about it. Rick groaned, "See! That's how you got me…. Never mind, I'm taking you here, for all the world and beach-bums to see."
Michonne shook her head, giggled, got up, and started to head towards the apartment with Rick right behind. They made it to Rick's room in no time and passionately consummated the beginning of a wonderful relationship.
The next morning, when Maggie and Glen stumbled into an empty kitchen with no hot breakfast, Maggie decided to go wake, Rick.
Glenn quickly grabbed her by the hand, "I think I can whip up a gourmet-style bowl of Frosted Flakes for you."
Maggie seeing Rick's brown t-shirt on the doorknob, caught the hint and followed her man back into the kitchen and asked, "Will that be with soy or almond milk?"