Rick's Ruby

Chapter 13

"I was really starting to wonder if I'd ever see you again." Ruby said as Paul dropped his stuff on the floor of her room and came to sit next to her on the bed.

"You know better than that. I wasn't going to stop till I figured out what the hell happened." He said, pulling her into another big hug. "So, these people, you like them?"

"I do. Kept me safe, and they're actually sane." She said, flashing the whites of her eyes. "Sounds like you weren't as lucky."

He grimaced, letting her go after a moment. "That's putting it mildly. They wouldn't bug me alone, but get a group of them together and they'd give a group of walkers a run for their money. If you'd have gone there..." He trailed off and she put a hand on his arm.

"I didn't, so no worries. Come on, don't think about it."

He nodded, looking around the room. "You got a set up here, don't you? Never would have thought it, looking at the outside of this place."

"Rick's idea. He thought if we made the place look abandoned we'd be less likely to receive visitors."

"Good idea. If it weren't for the sign, I'd have just kept going. I'll have to thank, who was he? Daryl? Not the friendliest guy in the world, huh?"

"Outwardly, maybe not. But he's a good guy. He was showing he how to use that crossbow he's got, said I wasn't bad."

"Well, you picked the gun up pretty fast when I showed you. I'm not surprised. You always did catch on in a hurry." He said with a grin and she shrugged.

"Good teachers, that's all." She smiled back with a shake of her head. He noticed the vanity, the electric razor on the top and the pile of Rick's clothes on the floor, and he narrowed his eyes.

"Got a roommate, Starlet?" He asked in that overly protective, big brother way he did.

She chuckled. "I'm not actually sure. That's all Rick's stuff."

"Really?" He raised his eyebrows at her, waiting for her to go on.

"He found me, Paul. At first, I wasn't sure about him, but he'd actually... pretty great."

He gave her a flat look when she used the exact same phrase that Rick had used to describe her in the yard. "Pretty great, huh? He better be, if he's got eyes for you. I can break him apart."

"I know you can, but please refrain. He's working through some stuff here, wouldn't want to make it worse."

"What kind of stuff?" He asked grimly. He knew she always found exactly the most difficult situation to plant herself right in the middle of.

She shrugged. "His wife is upstairs, his son. It's a really long story, please don't cause a fuss."

"I think you better finish that sentence." He said dangerously and she quickly filled him in on the situation with Rick and Lori, and told him about everyone else in the house. He listened patiently, his anger ebbing as she finished. Finally he let out a long sigh and looked at her sideways. "So, you like him back?"

"A hell of a lot." She nodded and he shrugged.

"Ok, then. Whatever makes you happy, Starlet."

They emerged from the room when she led Paul to get cleaned up, and when she came back downstairs, she found T still on the couch, looking out into the front yard through the slats in the windows.

"Anything else out there?" She asked and he looked back at her, shaking his head.

"Nah. You get your boy settled in?" He asked, not really wanting to know if she was going to be sleeping in the same room. He'd thought about pushing Rick to let his emotions for the girl fly, and here this big guy was going to come in and kill any hope Rick had. The thought was less than fun.