—Negan's POV —

Shit, I'm dreaming. And it's that same goddamn dream, again.

I'm standing outside my old house. But this time, I don't fuckin' go inside. I just stand on the sidewalk and look through the fuckin' window as my dream kids sit at the kitchen table with their homework.

"They're beautiful," Lucille's familiar voice says from my right in almost a whisper. I didn't even fuckin' know that she was there.

I hesitate to look down at her, in case she looks fuckin' sick, but she doesn't this time. She looks exactly the same way she did the last time I had this dream, alive and beautiful. "Yeah. They are." I clear my throat and hang my head in shame. "I'm fuckin' sorry... for forgetting about..."

She just shakes her head at me. "Don't be, Negan."

"You deserve-"

"-you drinking yourself to death because of me every year?" she finishes my sentence. But that's not what I was gonna fuckin' say.

"No. You just deserve... I don't fuckin' know. More. More than me just forgetting about you."

"Moving on doesn't mean forgetting." She grabs my hand and holds it softly in her own. "You need to move on, Negan."

I turn my head from Lucille back to the window and see Chuck walk up to the kids, leaning over them like she's helping them with their homework. And she's heavily fuckin' pregnant again. And she looks goddamn gorgeous.

"Do you know what she's dreaming about right now?" Lucille asks.

I look to her and shake my head.

"She's dreaming that she's all alone. And she's afraid."

"Shit. She's having a nightmare?" I turn to look through the window at her again. "I should fuckin' wake up." As soon as I say it, I realize that it's fuckin' crazy to think that dream Lucille somehow knows what's happening in real life, so I turn back to her. "You don't know what she's dreaming. You're not even fuckin' real."

Lucille shrugs a little and smirks in that way she always did when she knew she was right. "I'm real enough to know that it hurt her last night to think that a piece of your heart still belongs to me."

"I hurt her?" I scratch at the back of my neck at the fuckin' thought. "I love her more than fuckin' anything. I never want to hurt her."

"I know that. And I know, despite that, you're still afraid to let me go. I want to tell you that it's okay to. We had our time together, but I don't want the memory of me to cause a rift between the two of you." She moves to stand in front of me. "You started to move on the second you found her. That's why you forgot the anniversary. That's not bad thing," she stresses. "But you have to release your guilt to let go fully." She lays her hand on my cheek and I swear I can feel the warmth from it. Like she's really fuckin' here.

"You were so good to me and I was a piece of shit," I mutter almost to myself.

"You weren't, Negan. You made some bad choices. But we had good times. More good than bad."

"You were happy?" I ask, almost not wanting to hear the fucking answer.

"Of course I was happy. Were you?"

"Yeah."

She gives me a sad smile. "Do you remember the day that Chuck dropped off the pie to our house?"

I nod.

"I knew that day that she was meant for you."

"Lucille-"

She rubs her thumb across my cheek, shutting me up. "It's okay, Negan. I was okay with it. A few months after that, when my cancer came back, I knew it would take me in the end." She pauses. "And I was scared, of course. But I knew you would find happiness again, in time. With her."

"I feel like such a fuckin' dick for loving her sometimes," I say as I look into Lucille's warm eyes. "Because I never would have fallen for her if you hadn't died. It's like I'm happy you're fuckin' gone. And it makes me feel like shit," I choke out. Fuck. Saying all this shit to Lucille- or a Lucille facsimile, I fuckin' guess- has me fuckin' emotional.

She wipes the tears falling from my eyes. "Loving her doesn't mean you loved me any less. I know that. I want you to love again. I had you for my time and she'll have you for the rest of yours." She hugs me softly and it feels so fuckin' real. "I love you, Negan. I want you to be happy," she whispers in my ear.

I squeeze her tight and it feels so familiar. Like I just fuckin' hugged her yesterday instead of years ago. "I loved you so much, Lucille." I pull back from her and cradle her face in my hands. "Even though I fucked it up, I really did love you."

"I know, Negan." She holds my face in her soft hands as I move mine to her hips. "Loving Chuck will never change that." She tilts my head down to kiss my forehead. "Be with her."

Her words stick with me as I slowly wake up. I'm in the bedroom at Alexandria and it's still fuckin' dark; I've probably only been sleeping for a couple of hours. As I wake up more, I can feel that my fuckin' eyelashes are saturated with tears. I was fuckin' crying in my sleep.

Shit. That dream...

I hear Chuck whimpering beside me and I turn around to look at her. She's laying on her side with her back to me, so I lean over her shoulder to turn on the bedside lamp.

I whisper near her ear, "Wake up, baby girl." I pull her shoulder down gently so she's laying on her back. "It's just a dream, Chuck," I say quietly as I push her hair off of her face.

She whimpers again, but slowly wakes up. "Ugh." She rubs at her eyes. "Sorry I woke you."

"It's okay, baby girl." I lean back over her to kiss her forehead as I caress her cheek with my thumb. "What were you dreaming about?" I move back a little, but I keep my face close to hers.

She takes a deep breath with her eyes closed. "I was outside... in the forest. There were biters closing in all around me. I kept screaming for help, but no one was there."

Holy fuck. That's what Lucille said. I mean, I guess what she said was fuckin' vague, but Chuck's dream definitely fuckin' fits. It has to be a fuckin' coincidence, though. Like I could hear her making noise and fuckin' made assumptions in my dream. Right?

I try not to sound fuckin' shocked. "Really?"

She looks up to me, but her expression turns fuckin' confused. "Are you crying?" She wipes my still damp eyes with her fingertips.

"Yeah," I don't lie, "I think I was in my sleep."

"Why?" she replies in that sweet, concerned voice of hers.

I move so I'm cuddling her body with my ear to her chest. She wraps her arms around my shoulders as soon as I settle in and kisses the top of my head.

"I was talking to Lucille," I whisper.

"In a dream?"

"Yeah. She..." I take a deep breath, "I love you more than anything, Chuck. You fuckin' know that, right?"

"Yeah, Negan. I know. I love you, too."

Shit. I'm afraid to tell her about my dream. I'm afraid she'll think I'm fuckin' nuts.

She starts to run her hand over my hair when I don't say anything. "You don't have to tell me about your dream if you don't want to," she says quietly. But I can hear the hurt in her voice. Lucille must've been fuckin' right. It hurts Chuck when I'm fuckin' closed off. Especially when it concerns Lucille.

I move over her again so I can look at her. "She... Lucille... in my dream, anyway, wants me to be with you. She wants me to let her go so we can be fuckin' happy together."

Chuck just looks back at me like she doesn't know what to fuckin' say. "You... Lucille was your first love. You don't have to-"

I cut her off. "I want to... move on. I just want you, Chuck." I put my hand on her belly. "And our baby. And I'm so fuckin' sorry if I ever made you feel second best."

"You didn't. I know Lucille will always be important to you. And I'm fine with that. When I think about it." She takes a deep breath. "I know I shouldn't- A-And I know it's stupid to feel..." she thinks of the right word, "jealous, I guess. But..." she looks up at me, "I can't help it sometimes."

"Oh, baby girl." I bend down to kiss her. "You know my heart is yours. Fuckin' all of it."

She smiles and wraps her arms around me, pulling me down on top of her. "I'll take good care of it, if you take care of mine," she whispers.

— —

When Chuck wakes up in the morning, Negan is still snoring softly beside her. She glances at the clock and sees that it's just past 8am.

Negan must've needed the rest; he usually doesn't sleep in. I know he had a weird dream last night. Maybe he didn't get to sleep for a while after it. Well, I won't wake him up.

You know what? I'm gonna make him breakfast for a change. Maybe he'll like that.

Chuck quietly gets out of bed and goes downstairs in her pajamas. Aaron had dropped off some food yesterday, before Negan got in, so Chuck looks at what ingredients she has available. She decides to make some French toast and bacon.

Though she's not the best cook, she has seen Negan make the dish before, so she just copies what she remembers. It goes well and she feels like she's done a pretty good job with it. The slices of French toast are keeping warm in the oven, the bacon is crispy and waiting on a plate on the counter, fresh milk from Hilltop is poured in glasses on the table, and the bottle of maple syrup sits between the two place settings.

Chuck turns around to go upstairs to wake Negan up for the meal, but she's a little startled to see that he's already standing in the doorway, dressed in his boxers and a big smile on his face. "How long have you been standing there?" she asks with a start.

"A while." He wraps Chuck in a hug and kisses her.

"You could've helped out," she responds, not at all serious, though.

"But you were doing just fuckin' fine on your own." He moves further into the room and slips the potholders onto his hands, opening the oven to get the hot plate out of it.

They eat the meal comfortably, enjoying the lazy nature of the day ahead of them.

"We're gonna head home today, sometime, but there's no real fuckin' rush," Negan comments after taking a bite. "I want you to relax a little bit before we get on the fuckin' road."

"Oh, I can't wait to get home and see the nursery. Finally," Chuck replies excitedly.

Negan's face drops, but he doesn't say anything.

"What?" she asks.

Negan swallows his bite. "You didn't see the nursery... before?"

"No."

"I thought that's where they fuckin' took you."

She shakes her head, realizing that she never actually told Negan exactly what happened the day she was kidnapped. "I, uh..." she scratches at her face, "I was going to go in there when I saw the doorway cut out. But Conner came through and... shoved me in that trunk. I never saw the nursery." She hangs her head at the thought of that day. "The whole thing only lasted a few minutes, I guess."

Negan reaches over and takes her hand in his. "You can fuckin' tell me what happened when you were at the compound. Okay?"

She nods. "Eldritch just... scared me more than anything. He didn't really do anything. But- It was just how he talked. And how he looked at me. I was just afraid of what he could do, you know?" She shakes her head. "It doesn't matter now because it's all over."

He lets out a heavy breath and squeezes her hand soothingly. "I'm never gonna let anything like that fuckin' happen to you again, okay? You don't have to be afraid."

She looks up at him and nods.

Negan leans back and takes another bite. "But you might still have to wait a fuckin' bit before you can see the nursery," he brings it back to the original topic.

"Really?" she huffs in disappointment.

"It was kind of a fuckin' mess."

She looks at him in confusion. "Mess?"

He just shakes his head. "I'll get it cleaned and perfect again. I fuckin' promise."

Chuck can tell that there's more to the story, but he doesn't want to tell her. She decides not to push him for any more information. She's not sure she wants to know, anyway.

After they clear the dishes, they dress in some new clean clothes that Aaron had dropped off yesterday, a pair of dark wash jeans and white T-shirt for Negan, and some actual maternity jeans and a sweater for Chuck.

"I want you to stay here for a little bit while I get some shit done," Negan says as he throws their dirty clothes into the hamper in the closet.

"What?" Chuck calls out quickly, disappointed that Negan wants to separate from her again.

He looks back at her, almost shocked. "I know, okay?" He walks back over to her and runs his hands up her arms. "It'll only be like a fuckin' hour. I promise. Then we can lounge around."

She lets out a huff. "I just got you back," she whispers dejectedly. "And you were gone all day yesterday."

"I'm sorry, baby girl." He kisses her forehead. "One hour," he reiterates, "then I'm all yours the rest of the day."

"Okay."

He gives her a kiss then leaves.

True to his word, Negan comes back about an hour later. "Honey, I'm home!" he announces as he walks through the door.

Chuck looks up from the random book she had found and smiles at him. "That's pretty corny, Negan."

He just shrugs with a smile on his face. "Come on." He holds his arm out to gesture for her to come to him. "I want to get on the radio to tell they guys we're gonna head the fuck home today. Wanna come with?"

Chuck stands from the couch. "Yeah. I'll go. But if you're getting on the radio now, what were you just doing?"

He pauses. "Business," he answers with a smirk.

"Bad business?" she asks, not really knowing what else he would have to work on.

He answers, "Good business."

They meet up with Eugene in the radio room as he fiddles with some of the equipment. "Hi, Eugene," Chuck greets happily.

Eugene looks up from his work momentarily. "Hello, Chuck. Negan," he greets back in his monotone voice.

"I need to use the radio," Negan calls out.

Eugene looks back up to him. "We had a minor kerfuffle regarding some stripped wires that were in contact where they shouldn't be, but I have replaced said offending wires and am just about ready to screw this back shut."

"Do you need help?" Chuck offers.

"That's a negative." He puts the cover back on the unit and starts to screw it back into place. "I will have this done in a jiffy, as they say."

Negan gives Chuck a look as if to say, "That guy's weird," but Chuck just shrugs. Eugene is a little weird, but he likes a lot of the same things she does.

"Did you guys find any more comics?" Chuck asks as he finishes up.

"I may have some complete series and graphic novels I could lend you."

"Cool. I could send some your way, too. When I get back."

He stands up after plugging everything back in. "That would be copacetic."

"Are we good to go?" Negan butts in.

"Yes, sir," Eugene answers and steps aside so Negan can sit in the chair. He switches the radio to The Sanctuary's channel for Negan, then exits.

Negan pushes the button on the microphone. "Who's on the horn?"

"It's Laura, sir. I'll get Simon."

A moment later, Simon gets on. "What's up, boss?"

"I want to head home today. Tell the doc to be fuckin' ready to give Chuck an ultrasound as soon as we get the fuck back."

"Sure thing, boss."

"And get some guys to check the roadways and make sure that shit is clear for us. Then they can escort me and Chuck home."

"Yeah, okay. I'll tell 'em."

"And stress to them to be fuckin' thorough. And I mean thorough."

"Okay. It'll take a bit so sit tight."

Negan turns back to Chuck. "Looks like we got some time to kill."

They decide to walk the grounds, since the weather's not that chilly yet. And especially since Chuck hasn't really seen much of the neighborhood.

"You cold?" Negan asks.

She looks up to him with a smile. "Nope. I'm good. I love this sweater weather. Fall is my favorite."

"I know it is." Negan leads them to a bench near a pond in the center of town. He props Lucille up on the end of the bench and throws his arm around Chuck's shoulder.

Chuck leans into him. "It's really nice here."

"If you like this suburbia shit, I guess," Negan responds, not exactly enthusiastically.

Chuck giggles at his reaction. "But no place is as good as The Sanctuary."

"Is that so?" he teases.

"Yup. And I happen to know the boss, so you can trust me," she jokes back.

"Do you, now?" he teases and pulls her into him to give her a kiss. But when he pulls back, his face is more serious. "Listen, when we get home, some things are gonna be different."

"Different how?"

"The wives are gone. They moved downstairs."

Chuck furrows her brows. "Really?"

"Yeah. I should've done it fuckin' sooner. You're the only one I want."

Chuck smiles. "Yeah?"

"Of fuckin' course, Chuck. You're my girl."

She can't help but smile. "Well, you're my guy."

"Damn right I am." He kisses her again.

Chuck giggles, but her thoughts bring her back to what Negan had just told her. "Are the wives okay?"

"Yeah. Kayla's with her boyfriend. And Sherry's back with Dwight. Frankie and Tonya have been staying with Simon, so they'll need their own fuckin' room when I get back, I guess. I'm sure Simon wants them outta his hair."

Chuck thinks about what it will be like living away from the women that she has grown to see like family. It saddens her, but at the same time, she wants the women to be able to live their own lives. And that just wasn't an option for them before, really. Now, they can live more for themselves, which makes Chuck happy.

"So, no one's been living upstairs?" Chuck asks.

"Just me."

"By yourself?"

"Yup."

"What about the cats? Are you taking care of them."

Negan chuckles. "They moved downstairs with the wives. Well, former wives. The girls, I guess," he settles on the new name.

"Can the cats move back upstairs when we get back."

"Of course, baby girl. I just... I wasn't in the fuckin' position to take care of them while you were gone."

That worries Chuck. She hates to think about how upset Negan was during this whole thing. And it makes that familiar guilt bloom in her chest. "I'm sorry-"

"Don't apologize, sweetheart. It wasn't your fault." He runs his hand down her cheek. "The top floor is gonna be just for us now. And our family." He sets his hand on her belly. "We got all those rooms to fill with our fuckin' kids."

Chuck laughs. "Let's just get the first one out before we plan on any more. This one might be a terror."

Negan chuckles. "Fair enough. Just know, we always got the fuckin' option."

"You know, you wouldn't like the prospect of having a bunch of kids if you were the one that had to push them out of one of your orifices."

Negan laughs a hearty laugh. "Maybe."

"Definitely." She giggles.

"The fact that you're gonna push that baby out for me makes me love you so fuckin' much. You have no idea."

Before Chuck can respond, Negan shifts himself off of the bench to kneel on one knee in front of her. He grabs her hand in his and looks right into her eyes. "Chuck, will you fuckin' marry me?"

Chuck laughs in confusion. "Negan! We're already married!"

Negan stands and pulls Chuck up with him. He turns around and points across the way to a building with a steeple. "They got a fuckin' church here. And a gen-u-ine man of the fuckin' cloth named Gabriel. Let's do it fuckin' proper."

"You want to?"

"Fuck yes, I do!"

She smiles up at him and nods. "Okay, then. Let's do it." She's not exactly sure what a surprise wedding with just her, Negan, and the priest will entail, but she's excited, nonetheless.

Negan takes her hand in his and the pair excitedly walk to the church. Negan opens the door for Chuck, but when she walks through, she's surprised to see everyone sitting in the pews, except for Gabriel, she assumes from the collar, who is standing in the back.

Chuck stops in her tracks and turns back to Negan, realizing what exactly the business was that he did earlier. "So this is what you were doing this morning? Setting up a surprise wedding?" she whispers.

"Yup," he answers with a smug expression on his face. "Stay here." Negan runs ahead to stand by Gabriel, propping Lucille up close to him. Chuck is initially confused at what he's doing. When Aaron comes up beside her with a small bouquet of wildflowers, she realizes why Negan went ahead.

"Is it okay if I walk you down the aisle?" Aaron asks.

Chuck's eyes instantly well up with tears. "I'd love you to."

Aaron hands Chuck the bouquet and loops his arm around hers. "Ready, Chucky?"

She looks down the aisle at Negan, who is looking back at her with the biggest smile on his face. "I'm ready."

Aaron nods to a woman sitting at the organ at the front of the room and she turns to start playing. The familiar melody of the Bridal Chorus rings through the church and everyone stands to watch Aaron lead Chuck down the aisle toward Negan. When she gets to the front of the church, Aaron kisses her on the cheek and takes his seat by Eric in the front row.

"You okay?" Negan whispers as he wipes her cheek of a tear with his thumb.

"I'm perfect," she answers.

Gabriel clears his throat. "I didn't have a lot of time to prepare, so I'll just go by my memory. It's been a while since I've done this."

"I don't give a shit what you say as long as you end with, 'You may kiss the bride.'"

Everyone chuckles at that. Including Chuck. She can tell Negan is very excited about this.

Gabriel begins, "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Negan and Chuck." Gabriel pauses to look at both of them. "They have come together in this world full of strife. But even so, their love has shown brightly over adversity. Over hardship. Over the hatred that seems to thrive in times like these. And like it says in Proverbs 10:12, 'Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.' It is more important now than ever before that we come together and love one another. 'Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.' 1 Peter 4:8."

Chuck had never been religious, but she's actually getting choked up at Father Gabriel's words. Negan quickly swipes the tear from her cheek before it can fall and takes her hands tightly in his.

Gabriel continues. "It's easy to focus on our troubles. Especially now. But we have to remember, love will always find a way. Through everything, love will survive. This union is testament to that. And that love is never more evident than when two people decide to bring a child into the world." He gestures to Chuck and looks between her and Negan. "I am available for baptisms," he jokes and everyone laughs.

Gabriel continues. "Would you like to recite your own vows?" he asks the couple.

"Yes!" Negan calls out while Chuck looks on, far less enthusiastic about the idea. "What?" he asks her.

Chuck shrugs a little, looking from the people in the pews back to Negan. "I don't know what to- I don't have anything prepared."

"Neither do I." Negan lets out a breath. "Well, just fuckin' listen, then, cuz I got shit to say." He clears his throat and looks directly into Chuck's eyes. "I know people might think our relationship now is a little fuckin' weird considering our past, how we met. But I don't give a shit. You were always my girl. Even if it was in a different way back then. I always wanted what was fuckin' best for you. And you're what's fuckin' best for me. Before you came back into my life, I was going through the fuckin' motions. But, you gave me something more to fuckin' live for. More than just fuckin' surviving because the alternative is marginally fuckin' worse." He moves his hand from hers to cup her cheek. "And I know, this whole 'marriage' shit, I've fucked it up before, but, I promise you, I swear, I'm not gonna fuck this up. Not with you. Not with our kid. All I want to do is make you happy for the rest of my life. Give you and our kid every-fuckin'-thing you could ever want." He takes a deep breath. "I just love you so fuckin' much, baby girl."

Chuck tries to hold back the tears that are threatening to fall. "Oh, Negan, I-" She's at a loss for what to say.

Negan wipes her cheeks. "It's okay, sweetheart. You don't have to say anything. We can just get to the kissing part." He chuckles.

"No, I- I want to say something, too." She takes a deep breath and clears her throat. "No one in my entire life has ever made me feel the way you do. I always thought love would never come to be because... I never thought I was good enough for someone else to love me. But you make me feel good. You make me feel beautiful and smart and funny. And wanted. I never thought I fit anywhere, but I think that's just because I fit with you. We fit together perfectly, somehow. You know?" She takes another breath. "You saved my life. More than once. And more than one way. You were my friend, my best friend at a time when I was struggling. Now, I'm living a life I never thought I would and it's all because of you. You make me feel loved, happy. You made me a wife. And you're gonna make me a mom to your child. I never thought any of that would happen to me." She clears her throat and giggles in nervousness. "I'm sorry. I'm rambling. These are, like, the worst vows ever." She looks out to all the people who are looking squarely at her and thinks about how stupid she must sound to them.

"It's perfect," Negan quickly responds. "What you said is beautiful as shit."

Chuck laughs, but she can see that he's a little misty eyed. "You think?"

"I fuckin' know." Negan turns to Gabriel. "Come on, Father. Get to end."

Gabriel clears his throat. "The rings?"

"Oh, shit. I almost forgot." Negan shoves his hand in his pocket and produces two gold rings. One is a plain band and the smaller one is inlaid with diamonds. He hands the larger one to Chuck and keeps the other delicately between his fingers. When Chuck looks up at him with a questioning look, he just smirks. "It was a busy hour this morning."

Chuck realizes that Negan must've set all this up and gone out to get these rings in the time he was gone.

Gabriel looks to Chuck. "Do you take this man, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for as long as you shall live?"

Chuck smiles. "I do." She lifts Negan's hand and slips the ring on his finger.

Gabriel turns to Negan. "Do you take this woman, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for as long as you shall live?"

"You bet your fuckin' collared ass I do." He lifts her hand. "I hope the goddamn ring fits," he mutters before he slides the ring down her finger.

"It's perfect," Chuck whispers. She stares at it for a moment before looking back up to Negan, who has a big smile on his face.

Negan turns back to Gabriel and does the "wrap this up" hand gesture.

Gabriel takes his cue. "Uh. Without further ado, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss-"

Negan doesn't even wait for Gabriel to finish before he pulls Chuck into him and crashes his lips onto hers causing the audience to laugh and cheer.

Chuck giggles and pulls away when Negan shows no signs of stopping. "Negan!"

The whole room laughs harder.

"Fuck yeah! We're married!" Negan beams.

"That was probably the shortest, most swear-y wedding of all time," Chuck comments and she can hear the crowd chuckle.

Negan turns to the audience. "Let's go fuckin' party!"

"Party?" Chuck asks.

Negan gives her a smug smile. "It was a very busy hour this morning."

Everyone heads off to the backyard of one of the houses, which is set up with tables and food.

"Sit down, sweetheart," Negan says to Chuck. "I'll get us some food."

As she heads to the table, people come up to her and congratulate her. She thanks them all politely. When Negan comes back with the food, they eat, all the while socializing with the Alexandrians.

Even though people are congratulating the happy couple, they are also celebrating the successful battle on Eldritch and his people, as well as the next step forward in the two groups' alliance.

The party doesn't die down when the people from The Sanctuary arrive. They join in the festivities for a short while, until Negan instructs everyone to get ready to get back on the road. Chuck and Negan say their goodbyes and meet with their people by the cars, including Dwight, who was cleared to travel by Siddiq. He has some broken ribs and bruises, but isn't in too bad of shape.

"Alright, people," Negan calls out to his saviors. "Me and my wife are gonna take this car here," he points to a blue sedan, "and I want y'all to act like this is a goddamn presidential motorcade. I want cars on all sides protecting me and her. We know that Eldritch's play was to have his men fuckin' kamikaze into us and I do not want that to happen with Chuck in the car. Everyone get it?"

The saviors all give their "yes, sirs" and everyone piles into the cars. But the whole time Chuck is dwelling on what Negan has said.

Chuck waits until Negan has pulled out of the gates before she speaks up. "Why are you worried about an attack? You said it was all over."

He flicks his gaze to her for a moment before looking back at the road. "I'm just being fuckin' cautious."

"Eldritch is dead, right?"

He hesitates. "It's over. You don't have to fuckin' worry."

"But he's dead... right?" she presses.

Negan lets out a little huff. "If he was in that building, then he's fuckin' dead."

"'If'?" Chuck repeats. "You didn't see him?"

"I didn't see any fuckin' bodies. Everyone in that goddamn building either turned into one of the dead and got led off or they were ripped apart so much they were just meat."

Chuck's breathing picks up. "So... he might still be out there?"

Negan places his hand over hers in her lap. "You have nothing to worry about, okay? All his goddamn men are dead. His fuckin' dead army is gone. Eldritch has been fuckin' neutralized." He moves his eyes to hers. "I promise."

"What if he comes after-"

Negan interrupts. "I am gonna make damn sure that no one can ever fuckin' get to you ever again. He will not come after you. You're safe, you understand?"

"I was gonna say, what if he comes after you? What if he ambushes you when you're out? When you're going to Alexandria? Or Hilltop? What if he gets to you, Negan?"

"Don't worry-"

"I know you're doing your man-'I gotta protect my family. No one takes away what's mine'-thing. But I almost lost you just as much as you almost lost me. And I can't just yell at everyone to make sure you're safe. I can't keep you home and put guards on the doors. I have to let you walk out of our room every day not knowing if you'll come back. And now you're telling me that the man gunning to take you down is still out there? And that I shouldn't 'worry' about it? How can I not? How can you expect me to just be okay with this?"

Negan seems a little shocked and runs his hand over his hair. "You're right. I'll fuckin' stay with you more now. We got rid of all the communities that paid me tribute. And I can always talk with Alexandria and Hilltop and all the fuckin' outposts on the radio. Okay, sweetheart? You're gonna be fuckin' sick of me I'll be around so much," he jokes, allaying her fears.

"Really? You're gonna hang out with me all day every day?" she jokes back.

"Yup. Me and you are an officially. married. couple now. We gotta do boring married couple shit."

"Like what?" she asks, wondering what he'll come up with.

"Sunday crossword."

"No papers," Chuck retorts.

"Looking at paint swatches."

"No hardware stores."

"Judging the next door neighbors for their tacky ass yard decorations."

Chuck giggles. "We live in a factory on a floor by ourselves."

"Getting our fuck on at noon."

"That one we can do."

They finally pull through the Sanctuary gates and park the vehicles. Before Negan and Chuck exit their car, Simon is right there waiting for them with his arm casually around his back. His whole face lights up when he sees Chuck.

"I'm so glad you're back, kiddo," he calls out as he steps to her.

"I'm very happy to be back, too."

Negan comes forward and claps Simon on the shoulder. "You take care of the place while I was gone?"

"Yup. I got all the guys back at their stations at the outposts. All the shit we brought back from Eldritch's compound is cataloged and stored. Filled our armory back up and then some. Oh, and, uh, me and some guys cleaned the nursery all up, too."

Chuck lets out an excited gasp. "I can see it?" She turns to Negan.

"After the ultrasound." Negan looks to Simon. "Is the fuckin' doc ready?"

"He should be," Simon answers. "But, uh," he pulls out his hand from behind his back. In it is a metal picture frame. "I asked the doc if he could print a picture out and he said he could, so I rooted around storage and found this for you guys."

Chuck takes it from his hand and looks at it. Written on the left side are the words "Baby's First Picture" and the right side has a sample ultrasound picture. "This is so nice." She smiles up at Simon.

"You're welcome, kiddo." He takes a half step toward Chuck but stops.

Chuck takes the initiative and wraps her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. "Thank you so much. It's perfect."

"Alright, alright," Negan interrupts. "I wanna see my fuckin' kid and confirm it's a boy."

Chuck laughs and separates from Simon. "Okay, Negan. Let's go."

The couple quickly makes their way to the infirmary and gets set up to get the ultrasound. Chuck jumps up on the exam table and lifts her shirt to expose her baby bump. Carson applies the gel and smooths the wand over her belly.

"Come on, doc," Negan starts impatiently when Carson says nothing. "Tell me how my son is."

Chuck starts to get a little worried that Carson is keeping quiet, but from what she can see of the ultrasound, everything looks okay. But, then again, she doesn't have a ton of experience, only what she's read in books, really.

"Everything looks normal," Carson finally says and Chuck lets out a sigh of relief. "But the baby is a girl. Not a boy."

Chuck smiles. "A girl," she whispers then looks to Negan. His expression is unreadable. "Are you disappointed?" Negan was so sure about the baby being a boy that she doesn't know how he'll take this news.

Negan's face suddenly lightens and he lets out a laugh. "Fuck, no, I'm not disappointed! That's my little princess!" He bends down and kisses Chuck's forehead.

"You wanted a boy, though."

Negan shrugs. "I'm fully on-fuckin'-board with this little girl right here." He points to the screen. "And look at that face. Beautiful just like her mama."

Chuck laughs. Even though the baby looks very much like a baby now, with facial features and hands and all, there's no way to tell what she actually looks like. "She might look like you."

"Nah." He stares at the image. "But she's fuckin' perfect."

Carson prints out the picture and puts it in the new frame for Negan and Chuck while she cleans the gel from her stomach. She takes the picture from him when she's finished and hugs it to her chest.

Negan comes up behind her and pulls the picture away from her so he can look at it from over her shoulder. "Fuckin' perfect."

"Is there a place for this in the nursery?" Chuck asks.

"Should be."

"Let's put it up then."

"Why don't we eat dinner first."

"No!" Chuck responds quickly. "I'm not waiting a second longer!"

Negan laughs. "I'm just fuckin' joking!" He grabs her free hand and starts to lead her upstairs.

When they get to the nursery door, Chuck doesn't wait for Negan's approval and pushes past him to open it, swiftly walking into the middle of the room. Her eyes take in the sight of it all. The walls are a light teal hue surrounding a plush light gray carpet. A beautiful dark wood crib with matching teal linens sits along the left wall. To her right is a cabinet and changing table, completely stocked with diapers, powders, wipes, and everything else the baby would need. The back wall has large windows covered in matching dark wood blinds and lace curtains. Underneath the window is a bookcase stocked with children's books and trinkets. The wall behind her has a dresser and toy chest, both completely filled, Chuck's sure.

All of the walls are decorated with pictures and paintings of cute cartoon animals. But it's the pictures that Chuck focuses on. Her mother. Her father. Aaron. Her grandparents. They're all there. Just when she's about to ask about how Negan got them, she focuses on the rocking chair in the corner by the windows.

"Oh my god," she whispers and walks toward family heirloom that she thought she'd never see again. She runs her fingers lightly over the arm on it, feeling how smooth and worn it is from years of use.

"You like it?" Negan asks gently from behind her.

Chuck can't stop her tears from flowing as she turns to face him. "It's more perfect than I ever could have imagined."

Negan wipes the tears from her face and kisses her. "I'm so fuckin' happy you like it."

"I love it." She sets the ultrasound picture up on the bookshelf and sees one of her family photo albums. "You went to my house and got all this stuff?" she asks as she runs her finger over it.

Negan moves to look over her shoulder. "Yeah. You said you wanted that chair so I got it for you." He tilts his head to kiss her on the neck, eliciting a giggle from her.

"Thank you, Negan. For all this." She turns around and drapes her arms around his neck. "It's amazing."

"Everything for you, Chuck." He kisses her sweetly. "We can start thinking about fuckin' names for the baby, now. Now that we know it's a fuckin' girl."

"Well, what do you have in mind?" Chuck asks, even though she already has the perfect name picked out.