Alexandra held Lucy close and stared out the window as Negan drove the truck behind Matt and the others in the Mazda. She heard Sarah sigh nervously in the back several times and felt the same way as they headed into the unknown. When the warmth of Negan's hand touched hers and he interlocked their fingers she turned to face him.
"You okay?" He asked.
Alexandra nodded. "Yeah."
"I love you."
"I love you too." Alexandra squeezed his hand. "This is a good idea right?" She sighed.
"Mother's intuition," Negan reminded her.
She gave a small smile and looked down at Lucy. "I'm scared Negan. I feel like this is going to be okay but what if it's not?"
"I won't let anything fuckin' happen to you." He looked her in the eye for a moment. "You are my whole world now Alexandra."
She felt a tear slide away from her eye and looked back out the window. "This whole love thing is hard."
"No." He looked back to the road and dodged a stray Walker as it hobbled around on the pavement. "Death is hard. Loss is hard." Negan looked back at her, "Loving you is the easiest fucking thing in the world because I tried to fight that shit and..." He shook his head.
"Okay, I didn't get it before," Sarah said from the back, "But the guy has some good lines Alex. I get it now."
Alexandra looked over at Negan and then managed a quiet laugh.
Negan grinned. "You're perfect for comic relief kid."
"What I do." She sat back and leaned an elbow on the door to stare outward again toward the woods.
Negan's handheld radio went off. "Almost there," Annie's voice came.
He picked it up and glanced at Alexandra. "Okay."
Alexandra took a deep breath. "Here we go."
Negan linked his hand through hers again. "We got this shit baby. This could be the new beginning."
"We could grow old here." She raised her eyebrows.
Negan grinned. "Hot shower again sounds fuckin' great... or a bath." He turned and winked with a smile, making Alexandra grin and look down.
"Thank you for doing all this." Lucy looked up at her with big eyes and moved her arms and legs as Alexandra adjusted her in her arms.
"Doing what?"
"You gave up your old life for me... and Lucy.
"I'd be locked in that fuckin' basement if it wasn't for you girls." He nodded to Sarah in the rearview mirror and she grinned at him.
"I mean before that," Alexandra told him. "You gave me Lucy." She smiled and shook her head. "I never thought a real life was possible. I was just trying to survive. Because of you I feel like I'm living Negan. We have a real life again."
"I didn't think I had anything left in my heart. Not after losing Lucille the way I did. It all happened at once..." Negan shook his head. "I was... fuck, I don't know... Maybe all the shit I did was wrong before..." He looked at Alexandra again. "All I know is I fucking love loving you. Ths new community just might be the perfect start to our life together."
Alexandra smiled. "I hope it is."
"I prefer your F-bombs over this lovey dovey crap, ughh..." Sarah commented, "Get your game face on. We're two minutes out."
Negan laughed out loud. "Listen, you're the Robin to my Batman sidekick, so settle the fuck down back there."
"That's more like it." Sarah chuckled to herself.
Alexandra snickered and smiled when Negan flashed her another wink.. He took a left turn down another wooded back road and in the distance they could already see a pair of tall, steel gates. When the Mazda slowed down in front of them Alexandra sighed and a moment later both cars came to a halt.
"Don't fuckin' get out until I say to," Negan said to both of them. He studied their surroundings - the gates, the walls. Off to one side there were several walkers pinned to wooden stakes that stuck out of the ground. His eyes shifted to two guards perched above them on a platform.
Matt jumped out of the vehicle and waved to the pair of men holding guns at the top of the platform by the gates. He then hurried to the driver's side of the truck as Negan unrolled the window.
"This is it," he told them with a smile. "We'd all like to welcome you to The Manor."
The gates opened and a road opened up to a collection of homes on either side of it. People wandered around the small town and Alexandra thought she spotted the orchard that they had been talking about. Her eyes landed on a blond boy of about six or seven as he ran hand in hand with a blond woman in her thirties. The image was enough to ease her mind and she smiled.
Alexandra squeezed Negan's hand.
"You guys can drive in," Matt went on, "There's a house up on the right. It's a White House with blue shutters, split level... it's all yours."
Negan looked at Alexandra. "No turning back if we go in."
She sighed and shrugged. "Let's go."
I'm Negan looked to Matt, who backed away to allow them to drive. Negan slowly hit the gas and cruised into The Manor. He took in the sights and sounds. Alexandra saw his eyes study the mother with her child and he looked back to her.
Alexandra smiled and looked down at Lucy.
People on the sidewalks glanced in their direction as the passed.
"This doesn't look half bad," Sarah said. She glanced over her shoulder, to the left, the right and in all directions.
"There's a white house with blue shutters." Alexandra pointed up on the right.
Negan continued to take it all in, wanting to somehow memorize every inch of the place. When they arrived to the home he pulled the truck into a short driveway and then hesitated before killing the engine. He then looked to Alexandra.
"Well..." Negan sighed.
Alexandra sighed heavily. "I guess we should get comfortable in our new... home."
"Home," Sarah said from the back. Her door was the first to click open.
Negan echoed the word as he glanced up at the house in the middle of the The Manor. "Home."
