Blake blinked open her eyes groggily, and gave a small moan of tiredness.

Her body felt stiff and her still aching ribs felt like they had only got worse overnight, but despite this, Blake felt wholly alive.

As though over the space of a few hours and a good rest later, she felt like a new person. The weight of the world having been lifted from her shoulders.

And it had been.

For months on end, she had to live with the impending dread that she might get home…go back to her house in Alexandria to find David in an angry mood about nothing. Ready to take it out on her in any way he deemed fit.

But all that was over now. And as much as she was sure she was expected to be sad about his dismal demise…she wasn't.

She felt, in a strange way, freer than she had in a long time.

But even so, as Blake brought herself up onto her elbows, bleary-eyed…giving a frown, suddenly remembering just where she was.

Blake was not back in her room on the third floor, but she was instead up here, in Negan's quarters. On Negan's bed…still in the heavy white bathrobe she had fallen asleep in.

Blake shifted around to peer at the spot next to her on the bed…but there was no sign of the tall, bearded Saviour in question.

Nothing but a small dusty imprint of where his boots had led across the pristine white bedsheets the previous evening.

Had he really slept beside her last night? With no hint of trying to goad her into having sex with him either?

That certainly was not something she had expected from the dangerous leader of the Saviours. Had she just imagined the whole thing? She wouldn't have put it past herself in her exhausted state.

Blake rubbed at her eyes tiredly…and pulled herself up into a neat sitting position, looking around.

She was alone…the illumination from the window casting a bright white light on the room and on the empty sofa and armchairs across the large, open-plan space

In the daylight the room was far more modern that Blake first had thought, with grey walls, ornate lamps and large green plants littering the area. She gave a small sigh as she noticed Negan's barbed-wire covered baseball bat lying abandoned on the coffee table….as if it were the most natural place in the world for it to belong.

The weapon she had partly used to end her boyfriend's life not even twenty-four hours ago.

But before Blake could dwell on any of this further, the large oak door leading into the room suddenly swung open, and in stepped Negan…tall and looming, his usual black leather jacket shrugged easily over his sloping shoulders.

A wide grin slipped onto his face as he suddenly caught sight of her, sitting there on his bed.

"Well, mornin' sunshine," he said in a charmingly gruff voice, kicking the door closed behind him and strolling towards her.

He held out a plastic plate of hot food, as he arched his back, eyeing her, smirking.

"Thought you might be hungry…" he murmured in a low drawl.

Blake peered up at him for the first time properly, pulling her robe around herself just a little defensively, suddenly wholly aware that she was very, very naked beneath it.

But Negan, catching this, gave an immediate chuckle.

"Hey, don' mind me. You wanna get your titties out in here, then be my guest," he said in a teasing voice, causing Blake to scowl up at him, huffing.

"I wasn't-" she started, before she narrowed her eyes and snatched the warm plate from his grasp. "Just…..shut up."

Negan laughed loudly.

On the plate in Blake's hand was a small stack of limp looking pancakes. But all the same, Blake hadn't eaten since yesterday. And for the first time in a long time, she finally realised how much of appetite she actually had.

Six months of mistreatment and vile words would certainly do that to a girl.

She placed the plate down beside her on the bed and tore apart a piece of the dry pancake with her fingers.

"Now no getting' crumbs on my bed, Doll-face," said Negan pointing at her, in a voice of faux-warning. "An' don't think I'm fuckin' jokin'!"

But Blake flashed him a frozen smile, as she placed a piece of pancake in her mouth.

It was dry and didn't taste of much, but it was warm and surprisingly moreish.

"So…am I going to get breakfast in bed every day?" she asked in an innocent tone, after a couple of long moments of silence, raising her eyebrow up in the tall, dark-haired man's direction, fiendishly.

Negan grinned, showing her a line of white teeth.

"Uh, do I look like a fucking servant to you?" he asked incredulously, placing a hand to his chest in a gesture of mock-defensiveness. "I mean, Jesus, Sweetheart. I try to be fucking nice, and you just take advantage."

Blake chuckled, shifting her bare feet against the sheets below her, taking another bite of pancake.

A moment of long, drawn-out silence seemed to fall over the pair of them, but it wasn't an uncomfortable one.

Blake finished off the last of her plate of food, brushing the crumbs from the bed as Negan stared over at her grinning, his hands shoved into the pockets of his grey pants as he rocked back on his heels.

"So…." Blake finally uttered, her eyes flickering up to him after a second or two….looking a little tentative if truth be told.

She blinked her eyes, and cocked her head, giving Negan a small smile.

"…no coffee?"

At this Negan gave a whining laugh of approval.

"Well shit, Peaches," said the tall, tanned saviour shaking his head and surveying her with twinkling eyes. "You are fucking lucky I have a soft spot for ya"

Negan pointed at her, tugging on his bottom lip with his teeth.

And for the briefest of moments, Blake felt her breath catch momentarily in her throat. But she hurriedly pushed this feeling away.

"Look, I'll get Laura to bring some up for you," he said easily, stretching his back with a groan, his eyes still fixed to hers. "But in the meantime, Doll-face. If you wanna take another bath, I mean, I would be more than willin' to join you for that one. I could even scrub your back for you….massage those aching shoulders of yours."

But Blake rolled her eyes, smirking, and pushed herself from the bed.

"As tempting as that sounds," she said smirking and getting to her feet. "I thiiink I'm all bath-ed out."

Her tone was simpering and teasing, and she glanced up at Negan before bumping her shoulder with his as she sauntered past him.

"You can get Laura to bring that coffee to my room," she finished, wrinkling her nose as she smiled up at Negan teasingly.

Blake was glad about all this….their pointless sniping at each other.

Acting as normal, as if yesterday had never happened.

Negan, of course, grinned back, giving a gentle huff, as Blake tied the robe tighter around herself and made to head out of the door, ready to make her way back to her own room, three floors and few hallways down.

But before she could reach the door, she felt Negan's sudden hand reach out, grabbing her upper arm gently, stopping her in her tracks.

He had turned around and was stood beside her now, his face much more serious that it had been a second or two ago, his chocolate eyes boring into hers.

Blake gave a sudden, gulp the atmosphere in the room changing slightly.

"You sure you're alright, Peaches?" asked Negan suddenly in a low voice. "Coz' I mean, as badass as you were last night…you still fuckin' killed your own fi-an-ce by feedin' him to those dead pricks out there. An' I know how much that type of thing can kinda screw with your head."

Blake stared back at Negan for a long second before nodding.

She was ok.

In fact, she felt better than she had felt in a long, long time.

But did that mean she was over it? Now that she wasn't quite sure of…

"I'm fine," she said in a sudden quiet voice, reassuring him. "I just…"

There was something else she wanted to say, but she could not quite find the right words at this very moment.

But she gave another nod instead, her eyes drifting around the room. Looking anywhere but at Negan right now.

"…I think coffee would help."

She wrinkled her nose again and grinned up at him once more.

That soft, mild and warm atmosphere filling the room once again as Negan smiled back, chuckling.

He gave an enormously sarcastic roll of his eyes.

"Alright, alright…" he said raising his hands in defeat. "One coffee comin' right up, your Majesty."

Blake bit her lip, turning on her heel and headed out of the door…

But what she didn't see was Negan's face stare after her as she left the room, a large admiring, devoted smirk, plastered across his long, bearded features, as he watched her go….still wearing his bathrobe as she went.

It wasn't even twenty minutes later, that Blake, having just got showered, was stood in the corner of her room, doing up the last couple of buttons on her navy shirt.

She gave a sigh, glancing into the mirror, just as she had the day before…looking back at her hollow cheeks and her purple ringed eyes.

But today she could have sworn she looked fresher….felt more alive….

There was today, colour to those cheeks and after having a good night's sleep, the bags beneath her eyes had all but disappeared.

But there was nothing that could be done about those bruises. No. It would take a few days for those, and her broken bones, to heal.

Blake was convinced she had done even more damage to her sprained wrist after using Lucille yesterday, so she planned this morning, to take a walk to see Dr Carson to check up on it.

She had all but completely forgotten about Negan's promise of coffee when the door to her room was suddenly shoved open, and in walked the tall-dark haired Saviour himself.

He looked as haphazard and as thrown together as always, with legs that seemed far too long for him, a dazzling grin at his bearded face, and a knife at his belt.

"I thought you were sending Laura," said Blake eyeing him suddenly, as her fingers danced cross her buttons, doing them up to her collarbone neatly, as Negan's eyes, she was sure, lingered there for a long second.

He gave a sudden chuckle.

"Oh by all means, Doll-face," he said ignoring her comment, and approaching her with that cocky walk of his. "Leave those buttons open…"

He almost groaned the words causing Blake to roll her eyes and tut as he stopped close to her, pressing a mug of hot black coffee into her hands.

She pursed her lips, staring up at him.

"In your dreams….errand boy…." she said in a mocking tone, taking the coffee cup and pushing suddenly past him, moving over to the large bureau which sat near to the window, and picking up a hairbrush. "Listen, shouldn't you be out there…"

She shrugged giving a frown and taking a sip of her coffee, glancing back over at Negan.

"…I don't know…..killing people and taking their shit or something? Isn't that what you do."

Negan marvelled at her, spinning around on his heel to face her, arching his back as he did so.

"Well, ok there Ms 'I've got a taste for killing people now'," he said in a loud, incredulous voice. But it might fuckin' surprise you to know, that that is not in my regular day job."

Blake cocked her head at him, narrowing her eyes.

"Really?" she uttered in a scathing voice of utter disbelief. "What is then? Bringing me coffee?"

She shot him a teasing look, raising both eyebrows in his direction, as she pulled the brush through her long damp hair, lifting the coffee cup to her lips again and taking a long sip.

But Negan just grinned back, his teeth gritted together.

"Listen, Peaches," began the tall Saviour, moving over to her slowly, leaning his long face into hers, coming to stop just a breath away. "As much as you really got me goin', using Lucille like that last night...you have gotta be careful usin' that smart-mouth tone with me, because I cannot tell you how hard you are makin' me right now."

Blake pursed her lips, sensing the utter goading in his voice, as she stared up at him.

"Ugh...you're despicable," she uttered finally, shoving him away with her hand and moving away from him once again. "And I don't have a taste for killing people, by the way."

She stopped in her tracks.

"Last night...that was...different..." she uttered with a reassuring nod.

That was the truth. Or at least she hoped it was.

Although Blake still felt pretty shell-shocked about the whole thing. As though it hadn't really hit her yet what had truly happened.

"Well, like I've said before," said Negan strolling back across the room, his boots chinking as he went. "Remind me not to get on the wrong side of you, Doll."

Blake glanced over at Negan to see him pointing back at her smirking.

She rolled her eyes.

"Listen, I've got to go and see Dr Carson," she said taking a final sip of her coffee before placing it down on the nightstand beside her bed. "Why don't you go bother someone else instead."

"Ooh, buttercup," said Negan wrinkling his nose, his tongue poking through his teeth. "Can I just say, I am thoroughly enjoyin' our repertoire today."

Blake tutted, moving over towards the door, giving a sigh.

"Was there anything else you actually wanted?" she said in a faux-tired voice, her eyes drifting back over towards the tall, dark-haired, intimidating Saviour.

But in a blink of an eye, Negan's face became suddenly serious.

"Actually….." he said dragging a hand down his bearded face and giving a heavy sigh. "There was somethin' I wanted to ask you."

Blake gave a tiny gulp, the atmosphere in the room having changed once again.

It was as if since last night, something had changed between the pair of them. An unspeakable sort of bond.

"Y'know, if it's whether or not I wanted to be one of your wives," she said a little nervously, talking fast and giving a brief unsure smile. "Then just so you know, the answer's still no."

But Negan's dark eyes remained fixed to hers, as he took a heavy step towards her once again, coming to stop less than a foot away from her.

Blake looked up into his eyes, full of something she couldn't quite put her finger on.

And her stomach jolted….as Negan suddenly spoke.

"I was gona ask if you want me to take you back to Alexandria?" he asked his voice full of low concern.

Blake stopped suddenly, her eyes widening. Never expecting this. Not from Negan of all people.

"I mean Rick is still a HUGE prick, don't get me wrong. But I fully fuckin' understand that it wasn't your decision to come here. An' just so you know, I don't fucking offer this to a lot of people, Doll-face. But you're just a special exception," uttered Negan in a low growling voice, his gaze earnest. "An' I fucking like you...enough to see you go...if that's what you want."

Blake stared up into Negan's chocolate eyes for the longest of moments. Fully contemplating what he was asking her.

He was giving her the choice.

Giving her freedom.

The absolute opposite of what David had ever, ever offered her.

But was this what she wanted? Right now? Of course it was. It had to be, right?

But before Blake could nod and agree, she felt a pull in the back of her chest. Something stopping her from doing so.

She parted her lips slowly, taking in every inch of Negan's features, before giving one last gulp.

"Ask me tomorrow," Blake said in what was merely a whisper.

And with that she turned on her heel and headed out the door.

Leaving it at that.

But in the hallway, still illuminated from behind by the light of the doorway, the caramel-blonde woman paused for a long second.

"Oh, but…uh….if you're wondering what to bring me for lunch," she called back over her shoulder at him. "I'm kinda in the mood for chicken and collared-greens...errand boy."

And with that, Blake smiled to herself as she heard Negan give a laugh behind her…as she disappeared off down the corridor to find Dr Carson.

Sorry I know that wasn't the best chapter. More to come soon though, if you still want to read?

Thanks to bhanna, Xmidniteangel15X, FrendsWithTheMonster, skwarlogirl12, Dollfacex94, Shadowlover1222, leahscil, GStunning42, Keward2592, Booboo, JudithMosalii and whereshadowplays for reviewing.

Have a good weekend.

Please review! :)