Just a little something that struck me and had to get out of my system. Short, sweet, and something a little different from what I usually write I suppose. Hope y'all enjoy it, and let me know what ya think.

The past couple nights, Tara had stayed up talking to Abraham. It was something to do to pass the time since she couldn't sleep. However, she currently resided the edge of a rickety dock. By herself, in the middle of the night. The others weren't too far, where they had set up camp. Most likely the same scenario of Abraham keeping watch while everyone else got some shuteye.

Tara twirled her bare foot, her toes gliding overtop the water. She wondered what this Terminus place might have in store for them. After meeting Brian and leaving the apartment, seeing and going through what she had experienced, she only hoped it would be something good. And for Glenn's sake, she hoped his wife was there, along with anyone else that might have escaped.

A sudden creak gave way just behind her in that moment giving her a startle. Luckily, instead of falling forward into the lake, she managed to climb back to her feet and face her unexpected guest.

"Sorry." Rosita put her hands in the air in surrender. "Sorry. Didn't mean to spook you."

Tara smiled. "It's fine. No worries." Her eyes flitted over Rosita's body momentarily, noting that she was no longer sporting her shorts, but pants. She felt a blush creep up her neck as she recalled Abraham's words the other night. How he had noticed her staring down his girlfriend's shirt.

And in a fit of embarrassed panic, Tara clumsily tried to turn back to the lake and in the process, tripped over herself. Only Rosita had just barely caught her by the arm and kept her steady.

"How's your knee?"

Tara only realized then that she had let out a hiss of pain. She caught a sympathetic look of pain scrawled across Rosita's face as she kept a bracing arm around her.

"It… hurts," Tara admitted. "But really, it's fine. No biggie."

Rosita slowly took her arm back after looking Tara over. She eased herself down onto the edge of the dock much similar to how Tara had been before she came over. "That whole incident was completely melodramatic. But you, still wanting to keep going? For Glenn's wife? You're tough."

"Almost have to be now." Tara hesitantly sat down next to her. "He could have left me. He didn't even know me. But he helped. I just feel like I owe him this much."

Rosita fell quiet as she worked her boots off and set them aside by Tara's. It was a few moments before she replied, "He chose to do that because he's a good person. But it doesn't necessarily mean you owe him for that."

Tara felt as though she struck a nerve with Rosita the way she had paused before answering, her voice seeming a bit wavering. She thought it best to just remain quiet and enjoy her presence, but she couldn't stop her mouth from blurting out the next string of words: "Why'd you come down here?"

Rosita shrugged. "Sleep is overrated. And you looked lonely."

"What about Abraham?" Tara inquired, quickly glancing over her shoulder and back towards where the others were camped out.

"What about him? He's too occupied keeping an eye on Eugene."

"Oh…" Tara looked over to her and frowned. She seemed sad, staring down at the water. "I guess I just assumed you'd rather be over there with him instead of here with me, is all."

Rosita shook her head. "It's… kind of a long story. I don't really want to get into all of it."

"Understandable. I'm sorry."

Tara returned her stare to the water and continued to swirl her feet around. The last thing she wanted to do was invade Rosita's personal space against her will. So, she figured the rest of the night would be pretty quiet after that. Just the sound of wilderness.

But Rosita didn't keep the silence for long.

"Abraham's a good guy. And… I felt like I owed him something too."

Tara's attention was brought back. "Is that why you're trying to help get Eugene to D.C.?"

"It was before Eugene. I don't even think Eugene knows. No one does…" Rosita propped her hands behind her back and sighed. "Abraham found me at a bad time in my life. The group I was with had gotten overrun and he saved me. I felt like I owed him. At least something. But there wasn't a whole lot I could really offer. So, I gave him the one thing I could."

"You slept with him?"

"I tried to. He refused. But he kept me with him. Kept me safe. I didn't find out until later that he was still getting over the loss of his wife." Rosita forced a small laugh. "I felt like such an ass… He's a good guy."

Tara tried to sift through the information that had just been given to her. "Do you still feel like you owe him something?"

Rosita rolled her lips, immediately drawing Tara's eyes to them. "No, not so much anymore. We just work together now. We care about each other and we watch each other's back. But that's it."

"Makes sense."

Silence fell over them then, Tara at a loss for what to say next. She wasn't even quite sure how she felt. Nervous was definitely one. Maybe hopeful, for a close second.

Rosita shuffled back to her feet without a word. Tara just assumed she said what she felt she needed to say, girl talk was over, and she was going to get some rest before morning. But when she slowly turned her head to glimpse over at her, her eyes grew wide.

"What are you doing?"

"Well…" The smallest giggle bubbled up from Rosita. "For starters, I'm taking off my shirt."

"I… can see that." Tara blinked. She watched, eyes glued, as Rosita slid her shirt off over her head. Her eyes followed Rosita's hands to her belt buckle. "Uh, isn't it a little chilly to be taking a dip in the lake at this hour?"

"A girl's gotta have fun, right?" Rosita shimmied her pants down to her ankles and stepped out of them. And there she stood, in just her bra and panties, baseball cap still atop her head. "Care to join me?"

A smile crept across Tara's face. She hobbled to her feet, trying not to become too eager. She removed her layer of clothes all while watching Rosita prep to take the plunge. She watched her remove her cap and set it aside with the rest of her clothes before pulling her hair out of her pigtails and throwing it all up into a bun on top of her head.

Tara stumbled slightly as she found some difficulties getting her jeans off. And just for that amount of time her eyes had been averted from Rosita, when she looked back, she saw her remaining clothes in the pile and a perfectly shaped, naked ass. Tara froze up and watched Rosita jump into the lake in a small cannonball, some water coming back up to splash her.

"Skinny dipping?" Tara was now in her own bra and panties, her face flushed.

"The only way I know how, in the apocalypse." Rosita smiled. "Nobody wants wet clothes."

Tara slowly turned her back to Rosita. It suddenly felt so unfair. She had to get naked in front of her and jump in while she had missed all but Rosita's ass. She felt super self-conscious, but reached back to unfasten her bra anyway.

"Come on, girl. Don't tell me you can't swim," Rosita taunted.

"I can swim." Tara quickly threw her bra with the rest of her clothes and slid her panties off. She covered her breasts, embarrassment having returned full force, and hastily jumped in. When she emerged to the surface, she gasped.

"Oh yeah, I guess it is a little chilly."

"Um, just a little!" Tara exclaimed. She wasn't sure whether she should try and keep her arms wrapped around her, strictly using her legs to keep her afloat, or if she should just swim normally.

Rosita's laugh echoed off the dock bringing a smile to Tara's face. If anything, jumping into a cold lake in the middle of the night, naked, was well worth that.

"What if the guys see us?"

"Oh well. Let 'em. It's not like we have digital cameras and social media anymore. Eugene would just want to stalk you."

Tara forced a nervous laugh. She tried not to notice how the water bobbed up and down around her, displaying her well-defined collarbones. How a strand of her hair had fallen out of the bun and hung down in her face. Or how the moonlight seemed to make her eyes glow.

Tara closed her eyes. "I just want to be honest and say I… like you. A lot. And you make me nervous. I know you said you care about Abraham and—" She was cut off mid ramble by the press of Rosita's lips to her own. Her eyes shot open, unbelieving. She was so shocked that she couldn't even really reciprocate the kiss properly.

Rosita pulled back with a smile. She tucked the stray piece of hair behind her ear. "I know. I like you too."