Dead Man Walking | Rick Grimes

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After about ten minutes, Daryl pulled away from me and flashed me the smallest of smiles. He's not okay whatsoever – his offputting smile is evident of that – but he will be eventually. Daryl leaned forward and kissed my forehead before quickly scrambling to work on his crossbow. Shortly after, the group started to stir and wake up. I walked back to where Rick was and smiled as his eyes opened. Rick reached up and wrapped his fingers in my hair, pulling me down to kiss me softly. I pulled away before I got too excited and bit my lip, still in disbelief that this man was mine. Judith fussed and rolled over, her front getting dirty.

"It's like every time I look at you guys, you're always making out," Selena groaned from her spot on the ground, her hands rubbing away at her face. I cocked an eyebrow at her, taking in her current predicament. Her back was against Carl's chest, and his arm was around her waist, holding her close.

"Better us than you guys, right?" I teased, earning a chuckle from Rick as he sat up and propped Judith next to him. A deep groan came from beside Selena, and Carl stirred, his eyes not opening once.

"June, isn't it too early for you to embarrass me?" His voice was thick with sleep, and he remained motionless, seemingly unaware of how he was cuddling Selena.

"It's never too early to embarrass you, Carl Grimes," I retorted, motioning to the two teenagers. Selena's eyes widened as she finally realized her position and quickly sat up. Carl's arm fell from her waist and landed in her lap, and I could see it dawning on Carl as to why I was teasing them.

"Nope," Carl grunted and turned over, never opening his gorgeous eyes, "I'm going back to sleep and forgetting that any of this happened," Despite his efforts to conceal it, I could see the light twinge of pink on the tips of his ears that poked through his hair. June-1, Carl-0.

I leaned against a beam and remained quiet as Selena combed her hair with her fingers absentmindedly. Rick watched as Judith sat up, her hands gripping the dirt and letting it go, her eyes wide with curiosity. Carl still kept his back towards us, but I could tell how his back rose and fell that he wasn't asleep. Plus, he mumbles in his sleep, so there's that. Everyone around us was up and ready, but the barn remained quiet. They may be wondering how long we'll stay in this area before returning to the road, and that's a good question. How long can we rest here before needing to head out? Taking a look around; not very long.

"Hey," The barn doors creaked open, and Maggie slowly entered, "Everyone," My eyes hardened as a man entered behind her. He looked clean and well-kept, meaning he had a camp nearby. "This is Aaron." I jumped to my feet, racing along with Rick as he cocked his gun and looked at the stranger. Everyone's on edge, pointing their weapons at the singular man. "We met him outside. He's by himself," I studied the man, ready to pounce at any slight movement. Daryl walked forward and started to pat the man named Aaron down, "We took his weapons, and we took his gear." Aaron looked around at us, his eyes lingering on Rick and me a bit longer.

"Hi," He breathed. "It's nice to meet you," Aaron took a step forward, making everyone cock their weapons or take a cautionary step back.

"You said he had a weapon?" Rick asked, his eyes never leaving our strange guest. Maggie walked forward and produced the smallest handgun I had ever seen. Rick inspected the weapon, checking the chamber before handing it to me. I holstered it in my waistband and continued to stare, wondering why this man was here. "There's something you need?" Rick asked.

"He has a camp nearby," Sasha explained, "He wants us to audition for membership," Audition for membership? What the fuck? Does he want us to do magic tricks or sing and dance for him?

"I wish there were another word for it," Aaron said, his hands still up to show that he was harmless, "Audition makes it sound like we're some kind of a dance troupe," He flashed the smallest of smiles at us, "That's only on Friday nights," I shook my head at his small joke and bit back a smile, "Um, and it's not a camp. It's a community. I think you all would make valuable additions, but it's not my call." A community? Like reinforced gates and enough food and water for all the residents there? Like what Noah had previously? I couldn't lie and say that it didn't pique my interest. If we can make a living there, why not try?