𝙈ichonne wasn't letting Adalyn in to see Rick. After the whole 'Adalyn pulling a gun on him', situation, Michonne figured it'd be best if she just stayed away for a while. Adalyn supposed that she understood, but she didn't have to be happy about it.
Deanna was planning a meeting to figure out what to do with Rick. She had wanted to take Adalyn off of inventory duty for taking a gun. But Olivia had talked her down from that. Adalyn was just doing what she thought was right. No ammo had been wasted. The gun hadn't even left her hand in between being taken and put away. Adalyn had logged the event, for Christ's sake.
Adalyn thanked Olivia profusely for the help. She wasn't sure she would have been able to convince Deanna. Words were hard at that moment. She had almost shot Rick. Had pressed the gun to his head, had told him what would happen. And he had kept going, knowing full well that Adalyn might have shot him right then and there.
Only when Michonne left did she visit him.
He was laying on a mattress. Bandages covered his face, hiding the cuts and marks. He looked tired but he still sat up at the sight of her. "Addy," he said.
"Hey," she answered. She stood a safe distance away, close to the door. She didn't think he'd do anything, but she wanted to be able to make a quick exit if need be.
"You okay?" he asked her, seeing the expression on her face.
"I should be asking you that," she said. "You got thrown out a window."
Rick nodded. "Yeah, but I'm fine. You aren't."
"You lost it," she said. "You went crazy out there."
"Someone had to deal with it."
"Not like that."
Rick sighed, but Adalyn kept going. "You pulled a gun on me. You aimed it at Deanna and Reg and Spencer. You could have hurt someone you didn't want to hurt. And then what would have happened? We'd all be kicked out. You want Carl and Judith to go back to not having anything?"
"No," he said.
"I was so ready to shoot you, Rick. I would have killed you right then and there if Deanna had given me the order. Do you understand that?"
He nodded slowly. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I understand."
She swallowed hard, looking at the floor. "You should have stopped."
"Pete shouldn't have tried anything."
"Shut up."
He set his mouth in a thin line, shocked by the statement. "Really," she said. "Just shut up. You should have known better. These people, they aren't like us. Pete isn't like us. He doesn't know the rules of the outside. He doesn't know that it's shoot first and ask questions later. None of them do."
"They're weak."
"I know. But we aren't. And we know better."
She ventured closer to him, standing tall, strangely confident. "You screwed up," she stated. "You screwed yourself, and maybe all of us, over. If Deanna decides that we all get punished for the bullshit you pulled, I will hate you forever."
Rick shook his head. "No," he said. "No, you won't. I know you, Addy, you can't hate anyone."
"You don't know shit about me," she said. "This place, this is good for us. Good for me. I needed this. If I hadn't come here, God knows what would have happened to me. Gods knows what I would have done to myself. People, a home, a community, I needed all of that. If Deanna kicks you out, I'm sure the others will go with you. They're loyal. I'm loyal. But if Deanna says I can, I'll stay. I'm not leaving unless I'm forced."
"Addy- -" he began.
"Don't 'Addy' me. You won't be able to change my mind. You messed up. That's not my fault. I'm not dealing with the consequences."
Rick sighed. "All right," he said. "But we won't know until this meeting."
"My decision is already made," Adalyn said. "I just need to hear Deanna's. Whatever she says, I'm following it."
"I get it. But if this goes south, I'll be sorry to see you go. Carl would miss you. You'd miss him."
She nodded at that, biting her lip. "He'll learn to deal. I will, too."
"What'll you say to Abraham and them?"
She shrugged. "I already planned to leave them once. Abraham may not have been happy then, but now..." she swallowed. "I don't know. I may just not tell him. Let you all set out on your own and he'll realize what happened."
Rick snorted. "I'm sure he'll be thrilled to learn that."
"It's not set in stone," Adalyn said, tone clipped. "Deanna has to make her decision. And if she decides that you stay, great. I stay, too. If she decides that you leave, the others will follow, but I stay. And if she decides everyone leaves..." A deep breath that seemed to send a shiver down Adalyn's spine. "I plead my case. I haven't caused any problems. The only thing I've done wrong was grabbing that gun, and I'm damn happy I did it. I'm sure Deanna will understand."
Rick just stared at her. She sighed, moving closer. "Where'd you get the gun?" she asked.
"I found it outside," he said. "I didn't bring it in. I kept it."
"That's a lie and we both know it."
Rick shook his head. "It doesn't matter," he said.
Adalyn said nothing. She just nodded stiffly and left without another word.
