The Cataclysm {Rick Grimes x Male! Oc}

Chapter 16: Can it be?

"They say when you meet the love of your life, time seems to just stop; and that's true. What they don't tell you is that when it starts again, it moves extra fast to catch up."
-- Daniel Wallace

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As they waited for Glenn's return, Arthur separated himself so he could try and think of a strategy to get everyone out of the city. There had to be a way out. He knew that if they thought hard enough and creatively enough, they'd be able to pull off the impossible.

"I'm back. Got a guest plus four geeks in the alley." came their scavenging sir's voice through their radio. But Arthur kept thinking for all their sakes.

When he heard his group talking to the "guest" Glenn had brought back, the marine couldn't help but grow mildly curious and infuriated enough by what this person's careless actions had caused. "Every geek for miles around heard you popping off rounds." he heard Morales say.

"You just rang the dinner bell." said Andrea, their voices growing closer with every step taken.

"Who in the actual fuck was so astoundingly stupid that they just had to bring Hell on Earth down on us all?" Arthur demanded as he rounded the final corner leading to the front  shop. "Do you have any idea what you've--" The man in question then turned around. "-- done... Rick?" he whispered, a tsunami of disbelief and torturous hope thrashed through out his entire being in the time span of mere milliseconds; mind, body and soul.

His lost love felt as though his heart had stopped, then exploded with heart wrenching relief. They both felt as though they could finally breath after drowning in grief and longing and heart broken loss for such a long time. "Holy shit..." After only a few seconds of frozen disbelief, they both quickly walked forward and desperately held each other like never before. They were both crying and even laughing here and there. They peppered each other with kisses and affirmations of grateful love, basking in the fact that they were truly reunited once again.

"I thought you were dead. I didn't know what to do. I barely even got out myself. I'm so sorry. If I knew--" Arthur tried to explain, until he was quickly silenced.

"I'm here now. That's all that matters. I'm here. None of anything was your fault." he promised with a smile.

Arthur then pulled away to look him in the eyes. "The others are safe, too. Lori, Carl, Shane, Logan. They're back at camp." he said with the first smile he'd had since before Rick got shot.

Rick felt overjoyed by the news, "Where's your camp? At the refugee center?"

Jacqui couldn't help but scoff. "Yeah, the refugee center. They've got biscuits waiting in the oven for us." she sarcastically said.

Arthur looked at one of them Rick didn't know. "Hey, T-Dog, why don't you try the C.B. See if you can contact the others."

He shook his head after a long moment of fiddling with the device's controls. "Got no signal. We should try the roof."

They then suddenly heard the sound of a rifle being fired. Everyone looked up, most with very annoyed expressions. "Oh no. Is that Dixon?" Andrea asked in a knowing tone.

Arthur practically growled in outrage. "Who else?" he asked rhetorically, still regretting the decision allowing him to accompany them into the city in the first place. Without hesitation, everyone quickly ran for the roof to confront the situation head on.

The moment they walked outside, Arthur took the lead. "What the fuck is your problem, Dixon?" he exclaimed with intense fury. All he could think about was getting Rick out of the city to be reunited with the rest of his family. Nothing else mattered.