Gareth's POV

"...so, Sadie showed up, and then what?"

"I told her about how they were trying to take ALL our medicine when they said only HALF our stuff."

"Why?"

"She was claiming that she'd been making sure they stuck to their agreement of only half."

"And did she?"

"..well...better than that, I guess. She made them return even more than what would've been half, she said it was for the trouble they caused."

The voices of Deanna and, what sounded like, the kid who'd had the balls to try to shoot Negan played from the downstairs TV as I made my way back down from settling Alex down to find Sadie laying across the couch as she watched it.

I walked over quietly til I was right up behind her where I could gently sneak my hands over her shoulders.

"Still watching those, huh?"

She chuckled as she turned to look up at me. "Well, trying to, anyway."

"What's stopping you? I chuckled back. "Is that why you've been down here all evening?"

"This!" She laughed, grabbing up one of my hands. "...keep it up, and I will be down here all night. This is a terrible distraction!"

"My apologies then." I chuckled. "...so, I guess that means you won't wanna take a break from it and come with me?"

"I really shouldn't." She sighed. "..I wanna get through the rest of these before tomorrow so I can go over Deanna's bright little idea with everyone before we go up to The Hilltop tomorrow."

"Come ooonnn, it'll just be a minute." I pleaded. "...there's somethin I wanna show you."

"Well, thaaat is gonna take a lot longer than just a minute, you little sneak!" She snickered, smacking my hand as I put it back down.

"Ow! Very funny." I teased. "It's just a little something I've been wanting to show you since you got back."

"God. Make me feel bad, why don't ya?" She muttered under her breath, trying not to laugh as she reached for the remote to pause the tape. "Fine, you get one minute, and that's it."

"I'll take it." I chuckled, stopping her briefly when she stood up to follow me. "You gotta hide your eyes though, it's a surprise."

"Gareth- " She started to protest.

"Just humor me."

She rolled her eyes, but decided to humor me in covering them anyway.

"That's my girl." I placed my hands over her shoulders so that I could guide her from

behind. "This way, towards the garage."

"...Aaaand stop right here." I instructed once I'd brought her to the garage door. "...now reach out and open the door."

"Kinda hard if my eyes still have to be closed." She pointed out.

"Fair enough." I admitted, taking her arm to guide it towards the knob. "...right there."

"This better be worth it." She chuckled, turning the knob and stepping through the doorway.

"Have I ever let you down?" I chuckled as I waved for the dog, who'd been patiently waiting here up until now, to come running over….as if his giddily wagging tail wasn't an indication that he needed no invitation. "...you can open them now."

As she slowly took each hand off from over her eyes, she did a onceover around the garage, seemingly suspiciously as it took her a minute before she finally looked down

"Gareth, if this is some kind of- " She stopped mid sentence when the eager mutt, now at her feet, began whining excitedly as his tail continued to swish back and forth.

"Who are you?" She beamed, now kneeling to the dog's level. "You are just the cutest little thing, how long have you been in here?" She looked back up at me. "How long has he been in here?'

"Only about half the day." I chuckled. "I found him roaming around, just outside the gate while you were gone, thought he'd make a nice surprise for you when you got home?"

"Seriously?" She beamed again, laughing as the equally eager mutt was now licking most of her face. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him close to her as she looked back up at me. "...You really are the best, Gar. You know that?"

"I try." I sort of shrugged, smiling back at her.

"Well, you succeed….a million times over." She reaffirmed.

"I'm glad you like him." I chuckled. "..and now that you are back, maybe you can think of a name for him. Theresa and I have just been calling him the dog, and Alex won't stop insisting he's a Presley."

"Oh, is that so?" She laughed. "...well, he definitely looks like a Presley. A slightly miniature one, anyway. He didn't have like a collar or anything?"

"Not unless it's invisible, anyway." I joked

"Very funny." She chuckled as she returned to giving him head scratches.

"I try." I teased, watching as the lovable mutt's tail continued wagging nonstop. "...anyway, he did have a little bit of a mark near his neck. Theresa thinks he might've pulled himself out of one of those breakaway collars or something."

"So, you're a little runaway, are you?" She cooed to the mutt. "Hmmm? Like Joan Jett?"

He seemed to perk up even more at the sound of that, as if he could understand what she was saying to him.

"Oh, you like that, do you? Joan Jett? Jett? Is that what we should call you?"

She scratched him again behind the ears as he whined happily.

She smiled even more widely back at him. "Alright. Jett, it is then.

She started to stand back up onto her feet as Jett finally pulled away from her, still sitting diligently by her side.

"Alright, your minute is officially up now." She laughed. "...I really do need to get back to those tapes eventually. I only have a couple more."

"Awww, and disappoint Jett?" I fake whined. "He's been waiting all day to meet you."

"Disappoint him? He gets to watch them with me." She smirked, reaching down to pet him. "Don't you, boy?"

"Alright, you caught me." I teased. "...Maybe I'm disappointed because I haven't seen you for most of the day either."

"Hey, guilt tripping me after a distraction like this, is not a good look on you, Mister." She teased back.

"I see, so you would rather him stay in the garage all night. That's kind of harsh, don't you think?"

"Such a baby!" She laughed, shoving at me playfully. "A very welcome distraction is still a distraction, nonetheless."

"Fair enough." I finally admitted.

"Atta boy." She praised somewhat jokingly. "Why don't you go on upstairs then? I'll meet you up there in a little bit, when I'm done."

"Fiiiine." I sighed, snickering as I snuck up behind her and kissed her along her neck when she turned around to return to the couch. "Just don't take too long."

"If you're lucky." She teased, smacking at me playfully again.