Crimson Rain Chapter 10, a walking dead fanfic

A/N Thanks for reading! I hope my fellow American readers have a great Thanksgiving! If you're enjoying the story, please favorite, follow, and review!

Msgemgem: I'm having some fun with cliff hangers lately, kind of like the show, haha! And it is an unwritten rule about his bed. I'd written out most of this chapter before I posted the last one, and you'll find we're on the same page ;) Enjoy!

EmilyAnnMcGarret-Winchester: Crimson gets a little fiery in this one, so I think you'll be happy with it!

Celia azul: The dark side isn't always a bad place to be! If you're a Star Wars fan at all, I decided I wanted Darth Vader to be my dad many, many years ago when I wanted A New Hope for the first time and I was 9.

Bamby0304: I have a huge Negan problem too. I mean really, everyone should hate him, but I just can't. Not with that filthy, hilarious mouth of his and that gorgeous grin. This story helps me release my unhealthy obsession with him ;)

Enchantmentanjel: I think Negan can be perfectly sweet when everything goes his way. Which you'll quickly see it doesn't always and we have our good, old fashioned, slightly psychotic Negan in this chapter. Enjoy!

Charlie2193: Thanks for stumbling on to my story! I'm so glad you love my characters and I hope you continue to enjoy it. Trust me, I'm a huge Daryl fan so he will make a grand appearance when the time is right.

KEZZ 1, aishiteru naru, MistahJ's Kitten, kagomesdance, and Guests: Thank you all for your reviews, I hope you love this next chapter!

The haze of sleep was still washing over her as Crimson woke from a deep slumber. Her eyes were still closed, heavy from sleep, and she was warm and comfortable from the blanket and the warm body surrounding her. No matter how they fell asleep, Daryl always managed to wrap himself around her, like he was afraid she'd sneak off in the middle of the night and never return. She smiled to herself and stretched when she felt his manhood pressing against the back of her thigh through his jeans. She thought it was strange that they were both clothed since they always slept naked until she finally opened her eyes and saw a room she didn't recognize. It was large with a window, dark mahogany entertainment stand with a large TV, fireplace underneath it, and the same high ceiling that Negan's floor had.

Negan… she remembered getting into the elevator with him and nothing after that. She slowly turned her head and confirmed that it was Negan wrapped around her and her chest tightened. It took everything she had to not burst into tears right there. How on earth had she thought he was Daryl? It had been nearly 2 years since the last time she woke up and expected to find him next to her. Suddenly the idea of another man's hands on her made her sick. What was she doing with a man who was the absolute opposite of everything she loved about Daryl? Daryl may have been a rough redneck with an explosive temper to those who didn't know him, but underneath it he was loyal and kind and beautiful and loved her so deeply that sometimes she'd forget to breathe when she looked into his eyes.

In that moment she wanted nothing more than to see him again. She knew he was dead. And not the kind of dead that got back up. No, he would have never allowed himself to turn into one of those disgusting things. He was the right kind of dead, probably got himself killed trying to save Merle. The whole world might have gone insane, but Daryl Dixon would have found her if he were still alive. Accepting his death didn't make her feel any less guilty about waking up in another man's bed, especially a man who couldn't even respect her enough to leave her alone when she asked, a man who asked her to join his god damn harem of women like she was some kind of whore.

She had no clue how she'd ended up in Negan's bed. He had obviously taken her to his bedroom when she passed out in the elevator. She was slowly sliding away from him, trying to move him as little as possible when his arm tightened around her.

"It's only 7," he grumbled, his voice low and deep in his tired state. "Go back to sleep." Crimson sat up, his arm fell around her hips and into her lap.

"Where are we?"

"My bedroom. Now go back to fucking sleep." He cracked his eyes open just in time to see her wiping at the tears that never quite fell. "What the hell's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, I'm fine, other than waking up in a strange bed with you. And why am I in your bedroom, in your bed, with you?" Negan grumbled something about 'stupid fucking questions' under his breath as he came to terms with the fact that she would not be going back to sleep.

"Relax, you were so god damn exhausted that you passed out in the elevator. I didn't have my keys on me to take you to your room and lock your door so I just brought you here. Nothing happened. I could have put you on the couch and let you wake up with the biggest fucking kink in your neck but I'm a gentleman."

Crimson noticed she was fully clothed, she even still had her now very dirty socks still on. She wasn't sure why his bedroom was empty when he left it last night to come down to the clinic. She'd assumed a man with three wives never slept alone.

"A gentleman would have taken the couch! What the hell is wrong with you? You don't just carry an unconscious woman to your bed and climb in with her! Why aren't any of your wives here?" she asked.

"Will you stop fucking yelling? It's too damn early for that shit woman. And trust me doll, it takes a gentleman to put you in bed and not rip those clothes off and fuck you into oblivion. My wives don't sleep in my bedroom. Don't even let them in here."

"You call me 'woman' again and I'll turn your ass into one. Why don't your wives sleep here?"

"This is my space, where I don't have to listen to them whine and groan and bitch about stupid god damn shit I don't give a flying fuck about."

"I'm going back to my room to change and go get breakfast. I need coffee or I'm never going to get through the day."

"I know a great way to wake up. It'll put me in a real fucking good mood." He pulled her back down to the bed, slipping his hands under her shirt to massage her sides while he kissed the back of her neck. She was trembling against him and she wasn't sure if it was shame, desire, or both.

"Stop," she grabbed his hands and he let her remove them from under her shirt. "The only reason I'm in your bed was because I wasn't conscious when you brought me here."

"Fine," he turned her face towards his own and kissed her quickly. "Go get your damn coffee. I'll see you at the main doors at 8."

"Stop kissing me," she told him as she climbed out of his very comfortable California king sized bed and padded over to the bedroom door.

"Why? You weren't complaining last night. In fact, I remember you taking some damn initiative and kissing me."

"That was a mistake, I was tired and I wasn't thinking straight. It won't happen again. I'll see you downstairs." She closed his bedroom door with a little more forced than she meant to. Oh well, maybe a slammed door would sink the message in a little further. She heard him chuckle to himself behind the door, like he wasn't taking her seriously. "And keep your damn hands off of me you chauvinistic asshole!" she yelled through the door.

She was almost to the hallway when she heard his bedroom door slam open and Negan's booming voice stopped her in her tracks. He was standing in the door way in an untucked white t-shirt and jeans.

"What the fuck did you just say to me?" he was livid.

"I can't dumb it down for you anymore," she snapped. "Keep your filthy hands off. Of. Me."

"Don't you fucking speak to me like that. Maybe I've been too lenient with you. Spare the rod, spoil the child and all that shit. I'm getting real fucking sick of this hot and cold bull shit you seem to find so amusing."

"Stop coming on to me like I'm a bitch in heat and there won't be any bull shit to deal with. What are you going to do? Hit me with your bat? Smash my head in until there's nothing left? Go right ahead big man, kill your only doctor, obviously your ego is larger than your brain." He grabbed her arm with bruising force but she didn't back down. She struggled under his grasp, trying to pull her arm free. "I said keep your hands off of me!"

"You'll shut that pretty little smart mouth of yours if you know what's fucking good for you."

"Fuck you, Negan!"

"God, I get so fucking hard when you scream at me like that."

He pulled her against his chest and Crimson saw his mouth descending on hers. Before their lips met, the resounding echo of her palm across his cheek filled the room. Her eyes grew wide as she realized what she'd done. His grip on her weakened with his own shock, enough for her to wrench her arm from his hold and flee his office. She pulled the door shut behind her as she ran out, like it might stop him from coming after her. Her heart was pounding so hard that she could barely breathe, the sound of blood rushing in her ears was all she could hear, and the tears starting to well in her eyes blurred her vision. She didn't even see Sherry until she ran straight into her.

"Oh, sorry!" Crimson exclaimed.

"What's going on, I heard yelling?" Sherry asked, taking in Crimson's wrinkled clothes, messy hair, and puffy, tear filled eyes. "What were you doing in Negan's office so early?"

"We were, um, just having a slight disagreement. There was an emergency in the clinic last night, I fell asleep before I got back to my room so Negan took me to his."

"You slept in his bed?" Sherry looked dumbfounded.

"Yes, but it wasn't like that, nothing happened. I have no interest in becoming a wife, no offense."

"No one goes into his bedroom, like, no one. Not wives, not lieutenants."

"He said something about that. Look, it was a one time thing. He was just doing a nice thing after I patched up one of his Saviors who'd been bitten."

"You should be careful. Negan's not a guy you want to mess around with." Sherry looked concerned. "You don't play games with him, he plays them with you."

"I don't want to play anything with anyone. I just want to do my job and mind my own business."

"If he's bringing you into his bedroom, it don't matter if anything happened or not, because it's gonna. He's not gonna let you walk away from him."

"Well, I just did. It was nice to see you again, but I need to get down to breakfast before heading out."

"Be careful," Sherry warned.

"I always am when I'm outside."

"I meant in here. Walkers aren't the most dangerous thing anymore. If you're smart, you'll just do what he says. People who don't, they end up on that fence."

"Oh, well, thanks," Crimson answered awkwardly as Sherry disappeared behind her bedroom door.

Crimson needed a shower, but she didn't want to walk downstairs to her room just to grab clean clothes and then come back up, so she headed straight for the wives bathroom at the end of the hall. She showered quickly so she could get down to breakfast with enough time to actually eat after she went back to her room to change into clean clothes and grab her gun and knife.

The walk to the cafeteria was a little different this morning. Usually she just minded her own business, occasionally smiling at someone if they looked at her. Today, almost everyone that she passed greeted her. There was an overwhelming chorus of "hi," "hello," "good morning," and "mornin', Doc" when she stepped out of the elevator. It was making her uneasy, she was never very good in social situations with people she didn't know. She went to stand in the back of the line to get her oatmeal when two different people told her she shouldn't be in line and pointed her straight to the front.

"Mornin', Doc!" the cook greeted. "How 'bout some eggs an' toast? Bread jus' came outta the oven."

"Oh no, you don't have to go to any trouble for me," Crimson said. "Oatmeal is just fine."

"Ain't no trouble at all! Take a seat, I'll bring it straight out to ya with a hot cup of coffee. Cream and sugar?"

"Yes, thank you." Crimson was puzzled, but she looked around to find an open seat. All of the tables had at least one person, and she wasn't a fan of sitting with strangers, though several people were waving her over to different tables. It was like she was the new kid at school, except she was already popular. She spotted Bud at a corner table, flipping through an old, worn magazine while he was slowly eating his breakfast. He looked up as she sat down.

"Good morning, Bud," she said.

"Hey, Doc," and answered after he swallowed a mouthful of oatmeal.

"Ok, I need you to tell me what is going on? Everyone is being extremely friendly this morning, and most of these people I've never even seen before."

"Well, they all saw you at the meeting so they know you. There were some rumors going around about your kamikaze stunt, running into that house by yourself and taking down all 3 walkers before anyone else got inside. Then last night, you saved Jerry's life. We've had to cut off legs when people got bit before, and they didn't all make it. Jerry has a wife and a kid he takes care of, so a lot of people are grateful to you."

"I was only doing my job."

"Well, when that job is saving people's lives, you should get used to the attention."

"Here ya are!" the cook interrupted, setting a plate full of eggs with 2 large slices of butter-covered toast.

"Thank you, but you really didn't have to… sorry, I don't think I've caught your name yet."

"Greg, and it's no problem ma'am! Just'a thanks for saving Jerry. His wife an' mine are real good friends." He ran back to the line before she could say anything else.

"This is just weird. I mean, things are usually a bit strange around here, but this is out of the ordinary."

"Get used to it, Doc," Bud said. "People like you now. You're a nice girl and you saved someone a lot of people like. I already liked you myself."

"Thanks. Hey, would you mind if I ride with you today?"

"Sure. You aren't riding with the boss?"

"We had a… slight disagreement and I'd just rather not today. I need to check on Jerry before we head out, I'll see you at the gate." She downed the last bit of her coffee, pushed her empty plate away from the edge of the table and made her way over to the clinic. She was moving a bit slower, trying to really get her bearings since this was her first trip to the clinic by herself.

Nancy was napping on a rolling chair, her head resting on her arms on the counter when she walked in. Another woman Crimson didn't know was sitting next to the still sleeping Jerry, holding his hand. The woman looked up when she walked in and beamed at her.

"Good morning, Doc!" she said quietly. Crimson smiled and gave her a nod. "I just wanna say thank you for what you did for my husband. I know it's not enough, but it's a start. I'm Claire, and if there's anything at all that I can ever do for you, it would be my honor." Crimson had already grabbed the stethoscope that was hanging on the wall and was checking his vitals.

"You really don't need to do that. It's my job, and what any decent human being who was capable would have done."

"There ain't a lot of decent human beings left in this world, so thank you. How's he doing?"

"His heart and lungs sound good. We'll change the bandage tomorrow, I don't want to risk reopening anything by changing it today. We'll have a better idea of how it's healing then. I'll check back in later today when I get back."

She left a short note for Nancy instructing her to continue giving penicillin every 6 hours and to have her radioed if anything happened that she couldn't handle. Crimson had barely shut the door to the clinic when someone grabbed her left arm and dragged her into the room across the hall. She had her knife in her free hand and pressed against the person's abdomen before the door slammed shut and she realized it was Negan who had her pinned against the wall by her arm. The heated look on his face, along with the small welt on his left cheek and Lucille in his other hand, didn't give her the urge to put her knife down.

"What part of 'keep your hands off of me' did you not understand?"

"I'll put my fucking hands wherever the fuck I god damn well please."

"And I'll spill your guts all over this nice, clean floor if you don't release me."

"I wasn't planning on hurting you, I don't enjoy hurting women like some sick fucks, but if you keep threatening me then I'll do whatever I need to, to put you in your place."

"Put down that bat and I'll put my knife away," she said. Negan cocked his head, but leaned Lucille against the wall.

"You keep calling her 'that bat' and you're going to hurt Lucille's feelings. She's already a little thirsty after that little very ina-fucking-ppropriate display of yours this morning."

Crimson tucked her knife back into its hip holster.

"Your strange split-personality projected onto a barbed-wire covered bat is as creepy as your god complex."

"And you're cheeky ass attitude and lack of appreciation for all I've done for you is wearing my god damn patience thin. The only reason you're even standing right now is because you haven't been stupid enough to pull one of your PMSing bitch stunts when anyone else was around. So I'm shutting this shit down, now. You do what I say, when I fucking say it. No arguing, no throwing shit, no threatening me, and if you ever slap me again that'll be that last fucking thing you ever do."

"And you wonder why I told you to keep your hands off of me?"

"Shut your fucking mouth and get to the gates. We're leaving." He practically dragged her down the halls and through the main doors, she struggled to keep up with his long, hurried strides. He finally released her arm when they reached the trucks. Negan climbed into a cargo van, the passenger seat empty, and popped his head out to ask her what the fuck she was doing when she walked over to Bud's truck.

"I'm riding with Bud." Jason was sitting in the passenger seat. "Would you move to the back, please?" she asked him.

"Yes ma'am," he gave her a smile and moved to the back, kicking someone else out of the truck. The poor guy looked a little panicked when he realize the only open space was in Negan's van. Negan tossed the keys at him and she heard him say,

"You fucking drive, I'm not your damn chauffer."

"You sure you shouldn't be riding with the boss?" Bud asked her as the trucks started rolling down the road.

"And miss out on your company? Not a chance," she replied with a smile and a wink. Bud chuckled. "Now please tell me that someone here has an iPod to plug in so we don't all have to sit here in awkward silence since the new doctor chick decided to ride with you fine gentleman." They all laughed, and Jason reached forward to hand her his iPod from the back.

"It's got some good stuff on it. Just don't break it, it's so hard to find an iPod that works and actually has good music on it."

"I promise I will be extra careful with it. Now, how about something fun?"

She plugged it into the stereo and decided to look through the newest songs first. Well, they weren't so new now, but the newest music available at the end of the world. One song finally caught her eye. Bad Girlfriend by Theory of the Deadman. She used to loved to dance to it at the bar. Daryl said the song was written for her, minus the leaving alone, being stoned, and gold digger parts. After a couple drinks and a few shots, she could get a little wild. Sometimes she'd wind up on the bar dancing with a couple of other girls, other times some random guy who didn't know her and didn't know Daryl would get handsy and she'd knock his ass to the ground if Daryl didn't get to him first. And she always went home with him. She was going to play the song, and then get him out of her head. She couldn't afford to be so weak anymore.

The music started and a couple of guys in the back started rocking their heads to the beat. Crimson smiled and sang along.

My girlfriend's a dick magnet
My girlfriend's gotta have it
She's hot, can't stop, up on stage doing shots
Tip the man he'll ring the bell, get her drunk, she'll scream like hell
Dirty girl, gettin' down, dance with guys from outta town
Grab her ass, actin' tough,
Mess with her, she'll fuck you up
No one really knows if she's drunk or if she's stoned,
But she's comin' back to my place tonight!

She likes to shake her ass
She grinds it to the beat
She likes to pull my hair, when I make her grind her teeth
I like to strip her down
She's naughty 'til the end
You know what she is, no doubt about it
She's a bad bad girlfriend!

Red thong, party's on, love this song, sing along
Come together, leave alone, see you later back at home
No one really knows if shes drunk or is she's stoned
But she's coming back to my place tonight
I say
No one really knows just how far she's going to go
But I'm gonna find out later tonight

Doesn't take her long to make things right
But does it make her wrong to have the time of her life
The time of her life
(My girlfriend's a dick magnet)
(My girlfriend's gotta have it)

She's a gold digger
Now you figure out it's over, pull the trigger
Future's finished, there it went, savings gone,
The money spent

I look around and all I see is no good, bad and ugly,
Man she's hot, fixed to be the future ex-Miss Connolly!

"Well Doc, you got yourself a pretty voice to match that pretty smile," Bud said.

"Hell yeah she does," Jason added.

"Thank you gentleman. What would you all like to hear next?"

The rest of the 40 minute ride was spent with the playlist set to random, and conversation between Crimson, Bud, and Jason. The other 2 men in the back were mostly silent, she didn't even know their names. She found out that they weren't actually going to the Kingdom. The leader there, King Ezekiel, kept his bargain with the Saviors as a secret from most of his people. They met in an empty parking lot for exchanges. Apparently Ezekiel was quite eccentric. He tried to speak in old English, called his men knights and they dressed up in makeshift armor and rode horses, and he kept a pet tiger. She was disappointed to find out he didn't bring said tiger to the exchanges.

"Alright, Doc," Bud said. "We're here." The Saviors caravan parked and Crimson hopped out of the truck with the other men. There were several men, dressed as Bud and Jason had described, and one man with a thick beard and heavy dreadlocks she guessed to be the self-proclaimed king.

"Who is this most fair maiden?" Ezekiel approached her with a cool confidence. "How have I not been graced with your presence before?" He held his hand out to her. She took his to shake it, but he bowed to her and kissed the back of her hand instead.

"I'm Crimson. I'm new around here, it's a pleasure to meet you." Ezekiel released her hand and stood back up when Negan came storming up.

"We aren't here for you to woo my fucking women. Only three pigs and a bushel of apples two weeks ago left my Lucille here a little hungry." Negan swung the bat around in his hand to emphasize his point. "I've been doing you a damn great service keeping the dead pricks down to a minimum in your area. I really expect you to be more thankful than three skinny pigs and some fucking apples. Now I've had to come all the way down here to see what the fuck is going on."

"You have my most sincere apology," Ezekiel spoke. "We had to wait for several sows to finish weaning their piglets before we could slaughter more. As you can see, we have six of our finest for you today, as well as potatoes, carrots, and peaches to make up for our poor delivery last time."

"Those had better be some damned good peaches or…" the sound of a high powered rifle round firing cut him off. Crimson automatically hit the ground belly down, hands covering her head. From the corner of her eye, she saw the other men, both Saviors and Knights, slam themselves to the ground or behind a truck for cover.

"Doc!" Bud called out to her.

"Crimson!" Negan yelled, falling to his knees beside her. Several men surrounded him, shielding both of them with their own bodies. She didn't understand what Negan was doing until she saw the blood pooling around her. She looked down to find it was coming from the brand new bullet hole in her right shoulder.