He never thought he would be here. He never thought he'd ever be in a position of power. He never wanted to be in charge of anyone but himself. It was always him vs the world from the beginning of his life. Maybe it was when his friends started calling him Jesus when he changed. That name for him meant a lot. It meant a new beginning. It meant a rebirth.

Jesus stood on the balcony staring down at the court yard of hilltop. Everyone was milling about. Enid was showing the new group around. They seemed like they were a mess, but he welcomed them with open arms. Tara walked up next to him with her clip board. He hated that clip board.

"Theres five of them." Tara said, "They seem like they can carry their own weight."
"Good." Jesus turned around, "Deaf?"
"One. I don't remember any sign language." Tara chuckled. Jesus shrugged.
"It'll all come together. We'll figure it out." He smiled at her. "Life will find a way, Tara." She shot him a look he was all too familiar with.
"Tammy Rose and Alden wants to talk to us about Expanding the walls." She said reading off of her list, "We need to start thinking about Winter. We also- "
"Tara, we have this all under control. Don't worry. Why don't you talk to Alden and Tammy?" Jesus smiled walking back into the house. Tara followed behind.
"Uh because it's not my job. I didn't get voted in; you did." She said. Jesus looked at her. "What?"
"I'm going to go for a ride. See what I see." He said walking downstairs.
"What? No. We have too much shit to do." She said.
"And it will get done. I promise." Jesus said walking to the stables, "I believe in you, Tara. You can handle this." Tara shook her head with large eyes as he mounted the horse. She threw her hands up with frustration as Jesus rode away. Jesus chuckled to himself as he left hilltop. Tara got stressed too easily.

He rode down the road, eyes looking around him. There usually weren't too many walkers in the area anymore, but you never knew. With the luck they've had in the past, Jesus was always on alert. Half a mile down the road, Jesus pulled the horse off the road to a dirt road. This ride always made him happy. Riding through the woods always set his mind at ease. Maybe it was the cooler temperatures or the sounds of nature, but he loved it. Jesus slowed his horse down when they approached the clearing. Off in the distance, he saw his curly hair friend sitting on a log. Jesus jumped off the horse and tied it up.

With every stealth bone in his body, Jesus crept through the long grass. He felt like he was a lion in the savannah stalking his prey. In one swift move, Jesus threw his arms around Aaron's neck. But the man was ready for him. In an instant, Aaron grabbed Jesus' arms around his neck and flipped the man over onto his back, knocking the air from his lungs.

"Did you think I didn't hear you?" Aaron laughed extending his hand to his friend.
"I was hoping not." Jesus took his hand and hoisted himself up. "Here. Found this for Grace." Jesus took out a book from his coat pocket before he took it off.
"Great. Thank you." Aaron said flipping through it, "Now that the reading this has finally clicked for her, she dosent stop reading."
"Well, that's a good habit to have and you know the Hilltop has a great library. Bring her over sometime." Jesus said with a smile. Aaron clicked his tongue.
"If Michonne- "
"Gracie is your daughter, not Michonne's." Jesus said, "Bring her to the fair at the very least." Aaron sighed. "Bring her to the fair, Aaron." They sat there in silence for a while.
"Want to train?" Aaron asked. Jesus shook his head.
"Can we just…. I don't know, just sit here?" Jesus turned his blue eyes to Aaron, "I just need a break." Aaron nodded.

"I understand." He said. They sat there for a moment when Jesus grunted.
"Is there a scratch on my back?" Jesus lifted up his shirt.
"Small one." Aaron chuckled touching it causing Jesus to shiver. "Man up. Youre fine."

"It's your fault." He said.
"Probably." Aaron said, stroking the red mark on Jesus' back. He glanced over his shoulder, "Sorry." Jesus smirked pulling his shirt back down.
"No reason to be sorry." He said. Jesus stared at Aaron who was staring off into the distance. He enjoyed this time he spent with Aaron. He wished they could do it more often. Maybe after the Fair things would change around here. "What are you thinking about right now?"

"You." Aaron said. "And I'm sorry for that."
"Stop saying sorry." Jesus said to him with a half-smile. Aaron chuckled. He always felt like he was apologizing to Jesus. He always felt like he was awkward around him. Twenty years ago, Aaron was still in the closet and dreamed of finding the perfect guy. He always felt weird and awkward trying to talk to men. He felt like they were always judging him. It wasn't until he went to college, away from his family, he felt free. Although he was still awkward. He was the boy reading the graphic novels on the corner, not out at the clubs meeting people. It wasn't until After her graduated college, when he met Eric. Oh Eric. He missed that guy almost every day still. It may have only been seven years since he passed, but it felt like yesterday. Every time, Gracie would do something cute or hit a milestone, he wanted to tell Eric. They had talked about children before everything went down. Eric would have made a terrific father. But then there were moments like this, moments when he was sitting here with Jesus, that he didn't think of Eric. It made him feel guilty. But it's been seven years. It was time to move on, right?

"How is the new group? Magna?" Aaron asked.
"Theyre getting along fine, I think." Jesus said, "I didn't really say much to them. I just wanted to get here. I enjoy our time together." Aaron smiled at him.
"I do too." He said. Without even thinking, Aaron reached over and took Jesus' hand. He linked his fingers with his and Jesus didn't pull away from his friend. It had been a very long time since he felt this connected to another man. He had resided in the fact that he would forever be single. He was fine with that, especially in the type of world they lived in now. But this simple touch and reignited things deep down inside of him he had forgotten about. "S- "
"Don't apologize." Jesus held his hand tighter. Aaron blushed., "Come on. Let's walk." Jesus pulled Aaron to his feet. The men walked through the field. Aaron bit his cheek looking at Jesus. Two feet in or nothing at all, he thought.
"I'm going to kiss you." Aaron said. Jesus stopped walking and looked at him.
"It's about time." Jesus couldn't help but to chuckle. "I've been waiting for a while." Aaron arched his eyebrow.
"Oh yeah?" He asked, heart racing in his chest. He felt like he'd have a heart attack. Jesus nodded as Aaron let go of his hand. Aaron looked deep into his blue eyes (the eyes that always made his pulse quicken). Without even letting this moment pass, He slid his hand across Jesus' jaw line to behind his head. He loved doing that. He loved being in control. Aaron pulled Jesus close to him and hovered above his lips for a moment. Jesus' breath was caught in his throat being this close to Aaron. He smelled like mint and it was intoxicating. He could hear his heart in his ears as Aaron teased him.
"Enough." Jesus reached up and grabbed Aaron's face and pulled him against him. Their lips met. It was a gentle kiss at first. Jesus drank in the taste of Aaron on his lips. He tasted the same way he smelled, and it made Jesus want to faint. Aaron deepened the kiss, bringing Jesus even closer to him. Jesus pressed his body as close as it could get against Aaron. The men stumbled slightly, not breaking their passionate kiss. A small groan escaped from Aaron's throat. It had been way too long since he had kissed someone like this. Jesus pulled away, panting. "Walker."

"Huh?" Aaron licked his lips. They were tingling.
"Walker is coming." Jesus said still holding onto him tightly. A smile crept across Aaron's face.
"Come on. We need to get back home before dark anyway." He said, not wanting to separate from this man. Jesus placed a soft kiss on the side of Aaron's mouth. Aaron sighed with happiness. This was exactly what he needed in his life right now.