Negan woke with a small start, blinking his eyes open and letting out along puff of air, almost as though he had been holding his breath for hours.

The canopy above him was already bathed in a warm Fall sunlight, and looked like a daydream with the lightest dust particles floating in the bright and airy space above him.

Negan shifted his long legs beneath the bedsheets, smacking his dry lips together and turning his head to the side, more than expecting to see both his gorgeous girls lying there beside him.

But the dark haired Saviour gave a small frown, seeing at once that the bed next to him was empty, leaving nothing but rumpled white bedclothes to his side.

A wave of sudden panic flooded his body almost immediately, and he pulled himself up into a sitting position with a startled jerk, staring quickly around.

But he needn't have looked far, as to his utter relief, he instantly spotted Blake standing in front of the mirror, just inside his closet door, tying her hair up into a long and neat ponytail.

Her green eyes met with his in the reflection in the mirror and he noticed her give a soft smile.

"Morning," she said in a gentle voice. "Or should I say, afternoon."

Negan glanced around, lifting his tanned hand and running his fingers through his tousled dark hair.

"What time is it?" he asked in a low, hoarse-sounding voice.

But Blake turned to him now, lowering her hands from her hair.

"Almost noon," she murmured, picking up a steaming mug from the table in the centre of the room and padding over to the bed, placing it onto Negan's nightstand. "Luckily you're coffee's still hot."

The dark-haired Saviour's eyes flickered over Blake's face as she came to perch on the mattress beside him.

She looked far more her normal self today than she had yesterday, dressed in blue jeans and a white tshirt, and there was something more settled about the way she held herself. Like the weight of the world had been lessened from her shoulders overnight.

"You're a damn angel, you know that, Darlin'," Negan murmured, blinking at her in awe.

For she was.

She was heaven to him, through and through. And no matter what happened in their lives she would always be that to him. The light to his darkness. His own fucking saviour here.

"I know," she replied back lightly, with a teasing shrug of her shoulders.

At this Negan grinned at her, bringing his knees up slightly beneath the sheet and coming to rest his forearms against them.

"So fuckin' modest," he commented back with a smirk, lifting his chin a little. "That's what I like about you."

Blake pursed her lips, shaking her head back at him bemusedly, as Negan gave a look over her shoulder, seeing that the room was empty save for the two of them.

"Pipsqueak alright?" he enquired easily, as Blake gave a nod.

"Yhhhm," we've had a busy morning while you've been asleep," she said in a goading voice. "She had a bath, we had breakfast, we painted for a little while and then I took her back up to the girls for the day."

Negan cocked his head, staring at Blake, his smile diminishing a little.

"You should be fuckin' restin', Sweetheart," he said with a small frown of concern.

But Blake merely shook her head.

"I'm fine," she said in a quiet voice. "I'm happy to be keeping busy."

Negan gave a nod, pondering this for a long moment, before letting out a small sigh.

He really couldn't argue with her, he knew that. But all he wanted was to see her fucking safe and happy.

"Sounds like Beansprout is making sure you are," he said in gruff tone, his eyes meeting with hers.

And for a moment Negan was convinced he saw a sadness in her eyes.

Was she pondering just how busy they would have been with two kids to take care of, like he was right now?

But the dark-haired man gave a hard gulp, dragging his eyes away from her, and instead, reaching over and distracting himself with his cup of coffee.

He brought the hot mug to his lips, relishing the bitter drink as it slipped gratefully down his dry throat.

"So," he said finally lowering it to his lap and cupping it with both hands. "Am I gonna be gettin' a hot cuppa' somethin' from you every day, Peaches?"

He raised an eyebrow in her direction flirtily, watching as Blake flushed, the tops of her cheeks turning pink.

"I think I should be the one getting lie-ins and cups of coffee, asshole," she purred, wrinkling her nose up him.

Negan smirked back taking another sip of coffee, before dropping his mug back down to the nightstand with a heavy sigh, just as Blake eased herself to her feet once more.

"Guess I should be gettin' my damn ass outta bed," he huffed, running a hand over his still tired face.

These last few days had certainly taken it out of him far more than he had realised. But the strain seemed to have lifted a little from him today, just as it seemed to have done with Blake.

"Guess you'd better," Blake smiled, moving back over towards the mirror to fiddle with her hair once again.

The tall Saviour stared after her. She was everything he wanted in his life. Perfect for him.

Negan eased himself from the bed, peeling the covers off of himself before getting to his feet and padding over towards her slender form on bare feet.

He moved behind her now, sliding an arm around her slender waist and pressing the side of his cheek against hers.

"You wanna come in an' join me in the shower, Darlin'?" he asked with a small growl. "Help scrub Daddy's back?"

He watched at Blake's pink lips curved up into a smile, but she shook her head.

"Maybe later…" she whispered back, sliding out of his grasp easily.

Negan stood up straight and let out a puff of air, watching her as she sauntered over towards the window.

He hoped she was fucking ok. He knew how hard all of this had been on both of them, and their loss was one that would take time to heal. But they would get there, he was certain of it.

A late morning turned into early afternoon, and by the time Negan finally emerged from his room, he was hand in hand with Blake making his way downstairs, the pair of them smiling like school kids as Negan cracked joke after joke at the expense of his closest lieutenants and himself of course.

Blake was almost positive he was only doing all this to make her smile, but she certainly wasn't about to complain about that.

The pair of them rounded a corner, as Blake nudged him with her hip.

"As if you were ever innocent, Negan," she scolded him in a teasing tone. "I'm guarantee you were probably vying to become top-dog of this place from the start."

But Negan gave a chuckle, squeezing her hand just that little bit tighter.

"Damn. Am I that fuckin' transparent?" he mused cocking a dark eyebrow up at her.

But Blake smirked as they headed down the stairs together.

"Oh most definitely," she commented back in a simpering voce, waving a hand in his direction airily. "I mean, you do walk around wearing a leather jacket and carrying a baseball bat, baby. It's certainly...a look."

Negan arched his back, marvelling at her as she finished.

"An' what the fuck does that mean?" he said offering her an incredulous look in return. "You sayin' that after all this time you don' like what Daddy's wearin', Doll-face? What? You'd prefer me in a plaid shirt and some damn stonewash denim pants?"

But Blake gave a laugh, her eyes twinkling.

"Not quite," she smiled back. "I'm just saying that if this was a movie, dressed like that, you'd definitely be the bad guy."

At Blake's side, Negan pursed his bearded lips together for a lengthy moment before huffing.

"Yeah, the bad guy with a heart of fuckin' gold, an' a damn tongue with talent, Darlin'," he replied in a wolf-like tone, leaning in and brushing his lips against Blake's ear causing a shiver to run down her spine.

But she brushed him away playfully.

"I think you forgot to add arrogant to that list," she murmured, causing Negan to tug her closer to him and press a chuckle into the side of her head.

God she loved him.

And his touch only reminded her how loved she was in return.

It was hard to believe that just six months ago, life was a lot different. David was still alive, Blake was suffering, anxiety-ridden and abused...and Negan was here, alone, having only his wives and his lieutenants for company.

But here and now, it was as though the pair of them had never been apart. They fit together so well. Both so devoted to one another it was outstanding.

Negan had changed Blake's life, and despite what the events of the last few days had done to them, there was no turning back.

He was hers, and she was his, and nothing would change that.

They had both lost something they wanted so badly. And despite there being many ways that a turning point in their lives, like this, could take them, they were still here….still strong. The king and queen of this place.

They arrived at the bottom of the staircase, heading through the doors that led into the large dining hall.

It was just after lunchtime, and although the place had settled down significantly compared to the usual hustle and bustle of the noon hour, there were still plenty of people milling about to make Blake take a deep breath, steadying her nerves a little.

It was the first time she had been in a room with this many people since it had happened, and she knew that all eyes would be on her, offering her pitying stares, whispering behind their hands, or avoiding her eye completely.

She had been through this before, with work colleagues and friends, so why would these people be any different?

But as Blake gave a shallow gulp, walking through the expansive room, it surprised her to see that she was not met with any of these things, but instead, faces turned her way almost immediately, and people she knew, both by face, and by name, offered her bright and warm smiles.

Blake clutched onto Negan's hand just that little bit tighter, noticing him apprehensively look her way, checking on how she was coping with all this.

She half expected Negan, as he had done through the early stages of her pregnancy, to wrap her up in cotton wool and try and keep her hidden away and safe from the world. But the dark-haired man did none of this, instead allowing Blake to take the lead, which she appreciated wholeheartedly.

But the pair of them, making their way through the large open-plan room, stopped suddenly as three young girls, both of about eight years old, came bounding up to Blake.

They smiled shyly and held a large piece of paper out towards her.

"We made this for you," said the first little girl with her hair tied up into a neat black braid.

"We bought the glitter pens with our own points," said the second girl, with curly blonde hair, puffing out her dungaree-clad chest proudly.

Blake, with eyes flickering over the girls, caught off guard, tentatively took the card as the pair stood expectantly before her, paying no attention to the intimidating figure of Negan stood beside her.

But the blonde woman felt her heart instantly swell, as with trembling hands she prised open the card….

It was emblazoned with a butterfly across the front drawn in multicoloured glitter, with 'Get Well Soon' written in large gold letters along the top. And inside Blake saw that the beautiful card had been signed by almost everyone Blake knew…..all the workers, the lieutenants, even people she had barely ever spoken to, everyone taking the time to sign their names and write sweet little messages of condolences and care for her and Negan and Mia.

She felt tears instantly prick at her eyes and she lifted a hand, feeling her bottom lip quiver.

At once, Negan's hand moved to her spine, as he stared down at her, concerned that she was getting upset.

But Blake shook her head, covering her mouth with hers fingers.

"We're sorry…" said the little blonde girl. "We didn't mean to make you cry-"

But she didn't get the chance to finish, as Blake suddenly pulled both of the kids into a tight and warming hug.

"Thank you both so much," she whispered out quietly, closing her eyes.

And she meant it. She really did.

It warmed every inch of her to know how much she was loved, not only Negan now, but by the people she considered friends and family here.

Finally letting go of the two girls, she stood up straight, wiping her eyes again as they both smiled widely and bounded happily away.

Blake felt Negan's leather-clad arm slide around her shoulders, as he tugged her close to him, pressing his stubbly lips to her hair, kissing her firmly.

"I always told you you were a goddamn queen, Darlin'," he murmured in a low voice, causing Blake to give a smile of her own, staring down at the card once again.

It truly was beautiful, and in all her life Blake had never received anything so kind and caring from anyone.

She was touched and from the bottom of her heart, she adored these people who had found themselves here, through circumstance and tragedy, and who had all suffered in different ways. And yet here they were, taking time out of earning points to survive, to give her this.

Blake stared around with watery green eyes, clutching the card to her chest and smiling at everyone she passed, as her and Negan made their way over to the serving tables at the far end of the room, where crackers and fruit and some sort of pork dish was on the menu.

Blake knew of course she needed to get her strength back, still feeling a little shaky and weak, barely having eaten anything these last few days. But had very little appetite, she grabbed an apple nevertheless, as Negan was cornered by one of his lieutenants DJ for an update on the outposts.

Blake, feeling too tired to hear anything about the other communities, or the outposts, or the Saviours' current position, wandered away, taking a small bite of her apple and heading over towards the large set of double doors over to her left.

She peered out through the small window streaked with grease and grime for a short moment before pushing open said-door and walking slowly out into the warm afternoon air.

The sunshine felt good, and she turned her face toward the sun and closed her eyes for a brief few seconds, savouring the feeling of warmth against her skin.

It wasn't until now that she realised how much she had missed this, being outside, being able to breathe…

She blinked open her eyes and looked around, finding herself in the garden she loved so so dearly.

It was a strange thing to see life and work here carrying on as normal.

Plants were getting potted, seeds sown, and all this going on without her, just as she had wanted it to.

It was funny to think that no one else here had spent the last few days feeng what she had been feeling, going through what she had been going through, but she was glad in a way.

The world would not stop turning just because she had lost a baby.

Life went on, just as it had done all those years ago when the world went to shit.

Blake gave a long sniff, clutching her arms around herself tightly, the card still held tightly within her grasp, just as a voice behind her suddenly spoke.

"Nice to see you back," came the sudden low and drawling voice of Eugene just over her right shoulder. "Tomatoes are comin' up a treat, an' we just picked the first crop of maize. Only a small yelid this year but it'll get better, I can assure you."

Blake nodded, not quite knowing how to reply to Eugene's shpiel.

"Thank you," she merely murmured in response, giving him a = small smile, but Eugene came to stand shoulder to shoulder with her, looking out across the garden.

"No need to thank me," he said promptly, his voice level, without, what seemed like, even a shade of emotion to his voice. "I was just helping carry on what you started. But I'm afraid my presence couldn't quite match up to yours. An' I just wanted to say...to let you know wholeheartedly, that you are loved by each an' every one of us, myself included. Although try not to make it sound so soppy in front of Negan. I do have somewhat of a reputation to uphold."

But despite what seemed like a lack of any sort of humanity in Eugene's voice, the look in his eyes, as the mullet-wearing man stared Blake's way, told a different story.

A one of utter care and fondness for her.

Blake felt her throat go dry as tears threatened to prick at her eyes once more, but she steadied herself, nodding back at the long-haired man.

"Thank you, Eugene," she repeated yet again softly, thanking him now for a completely different reason. And satisfied with that, he turned on his heel, disappearing away inside once more.

Blake let out a small sigh, moving over to a quiet part of the walled garden where a bench had been painted and placed into the shade in her absence.

She sat down, placing the handmade card to her side, before eating her apple in the peace and tranquility the small space offered.

Blake wasn't quite sure how long she had sat there for, long after her apple core sitting beside her on the arm of the bench had turned brown anyway, feeling so at peace for the first time in at least a week, that she barely even noticed the tall and looming figure of Negan crossing the small garden towards her.

The few people milling about here and there bowed their heads as he passed, but offered him nothing more than tha, as he sloped by them, Lucille brought up onto his shoulder and a hand running over his bearded mouth.

"You alright, Peaches?" he suddenly asked in a gruff voice that broke Blake from her contented daze.

Her green eyes landed on him finally, seeing that he had stopped just a foot or two away from her, his face fixed and curious-looking, as he arched his back, staring her way.

But Blake gave a small, nodding smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she uttered gently, sucking in a deep breath of air and appreciating the quietness of the garden for a few seconds.

She shifted along the bench a little.

"You wanna sit down?" she offered, hoping that he would say yes.

Negan didn't reply, but took up her offer anyway, easing himself down onto the wooden bench with a hiss and propping Lucille up against his leg.

He draped his arm around the back of the seat around Blake's shoulder and leaned back lazily, taking in the view of the tranquil garden.

"Jeez, Sweetherat, you have made this into a beatiful fuckin' space, you know that?" he said after a few short moments, marvelling at the lush green trellises, and the bees that were buzzing around the bed of blooming honeysuckle and hot red chilis near to them.

Blake smiled, pressing herself closer to him and coming to rest her head against his shoulder as his arm slid around her sender shoulders, tugging her to his body.

He smelled like leather, and crisp apples, and musk, and Blake felt herself aching with love for this man who had given her so much.

"Pfft. You were the one who trusted me enough to take my idea of making a garden and make it into something real," she muttered back in a voice that was barely more than a whisper now.

She placed a hand to Negan's bony knee.

"Darlin'..." he said after a moment, but he wavered somewhat, his words hanging in the air.

Blake shifted her head from his shoulder and gazed up at him with interested green eyes wondering why he had paused. But the dark-haired Saviour let our a heavy sigh, his dark orbs meeting with hers.

"...shit, why did I not get to meet you fuckin' sooner, huh?" he said his face full of want and sadness and loss, that made Blake's heart contract.

She brought her hand up to is bearded cheek gently.

"I coulda' taken you away from that piece-of-shit fiance of yours, given you a place with me a long time ago," he continued with a pained frown, looking like he wholly regretted everything that had brought him to where he was today. "I cant fuckin' stand the fact you were treated like utter shit by that prick, an' by those assholes back at Pleasant-as-shitsville, when everyone here….hell, I've seen the way they look at you. I mean, jesus, you've made this place better…. made ME better."

There was an honesty in both Negan's voice and his gaze now, as he placed his gloved hand on top of hers, still resting on his knee.

But a smiling Blake gently shook her head, stroking across his cheek bone with her thumb.

"No regrets," she scolded him softly. "We're here and we survived. That's all that matters."

Negan gave a nod, parting his lips, but still staring at her, his eyes searching her face, as though she was the rarest of jewels.

This was the man who had been so angry at the world, with an outlook so very bitter and twisted, that it amazed her to think of how far he had come in such a short space of time.

But Blake knew, that she had probably saved him, just as much as he had saved her.

"I think I want to come out here tomorrow," the blonde woman said finally, dropping her eyes to their clasped hands. "Get back to work on the garden…"

But she preempted Negan's reaction before he had even said anything.

"Look I know you're gonna say its too early…" she said shaking her head stopping the dark-haired saviour before he had even had the chance to speak. "But I want to….please."

And Negan frowned at her long and hard for what felt like a lifetime in Blake's opinion as she held her breath anticipating what he was going to say in return….

But he finally let out a small aggrieved huff, pressing his tongue to his inner cheek.

"Alright, fine," he growled a little irritably. "Hell, you know you don' need to ask my permission, Peaches. But take it easy, ok? Fuckin' promise me."

And Blake, with a soft smile gave her own, nodded in return, before resuming her position, resting her head against his shoulder once more, closing her eyes and enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sunshine. Settled beside the man she adored with all her heart.

Aww fluff.

Thanks to Kara315, CLTex, Shin Maxwell, torey43, LJH, Guest, AvidReader, Guest and Guest for reviewing.

I'm not sure when I'll update next, rapidly losing motivation now that the series has ended….:/ I'll try for next week. I have planty of ideas for exciting things to come but struggling to write it at the moment. Boo.

Please review and let me know what you thought of this chap.