I had been at the sanctuary for about a week now.
I had fallen into a pretty decent routine.
We went scavenging every morning and I worked my ass off for them.
I think Simon was beginning to take a liking to me, he even let me lead the group one morning.
But even after all my hard work and all the supplies I produced, I was still kept in this cell.
Negan didn't believe that I quite understood the rules or his system yet.
But I think it was just because he wasn't exactly sure what to do with me.
I did have more freedom than when I first got here though.
I used that time to try and talk to Dwight, but he did a good job of dodging me.
Anytime I actually saw him, he was right by Negan.
All the other times, he was nowhere to be found.
But I would try again today.
I knew that I wasn't going to get anywhere with Negan.
He didn't talk about the past, he just kept a casual attitude about most things.
Which kind of pissed me off.
Just as I had told Simon, I didn't owe him anything.
But he owed me. At least, some sort of a decent explanation.
I was sliding on my boots as I mulled it over.
It was almost time for Simon to come get me, but he didn't.
I waited around for about twenty minutes before I started pacing.
I paced across the floor of the cell for about thirty more minutes before my cell door opened.
It wasn't Simon, it was another man.
A boy really.
He looked younger than I was, with short brown hair.
He gave me a bright smile.
"Hi, I'm Kyle. Simon sent me to let you out for the day" he bounced around happily.
I watched him closely, wary of what was really going on.
"We aren't going out today?" I asked, tilting my head.
He shook his head, keeping a boyish smile.
"No, Simon said that he and the boys had to take care of some business with Negan, so they are gonna be out today"
He explained as he backed out of the way to let me out.
I walked out into the hall, but turned back to face him as he closed the door to my cell.
"Business? What kind?" I inquired.
"Well, I'm not sure exactly. Some kind of run in with another group" He said casually.
But my heart sank.
Another group?
Elaina, Marcus..
I felt sick to my stomach as I thought about Negan finding them.
"Kyle, have they left yet?" I asked quickly, placing my hands on his shoulders.
He stumbled back, as if he was scared of me.
"I uh, no. They are loading up the trucks now." He muttered.
"Perfect" I mumbled before taking off down the hallway.
I rounded the corner and ran to the door at the end of the hall, hitting it a bit hard as it swung open.
The last of the men were loading into the trucks, heavily armed.
I looked down to see Negan at the front, getting in.
Dwight was on the other side of the truck and seemed to be the only one who noticed me.
I started to walk forward but he shook his head, giving me a look.
"About how many miles we got?" He called to Simon who was in the truck behind them.
"About forty or so" Simon returned.
I let out a sigh of relief.
It wasn't them. Our group wasn't that far from where we were now.
That was Dwights way of letting me know my friends were still safe.
But why was he looking out for me?
I backed up to the door and quickly sank back into the building before anyone noticed me.
I had free range for the day, but I wasn't gonna push my luck.
I decided to check out the store that was set up.
Simon had explained how the points system worked plenty of times, but I wanted to see for myself.
The area was well populated.
Everyone was moving about, talking, laughing.
They seemed so happy here.

I walked up to the lady who was sitting at the desk at the front of the makeshift store.
She smiled warmly at me.
"What can I do for you, Darlin' ?" she asked with a thick southern accent.
I rubbed at the back of my neck, "Oh I'm just looking.." I started.
She nodded, "You're new. It's okay. Have a look and if you need anything, let me know"
She was too kind for this place.
I walked past the desk to the little area set up behind her.
There were shelves filled with stuff, and boy was it a mess.
It drove me nuts looking at it and I wondered if I would get in trouble for arranging stuff.
She must have sensed my annoyance,
"It's a mess, I know. I asked the boys to clean it up back here, but they don't listen. I've gotten a bit too old and frail to move the big stuff or reach the things on the top shelf.." she began, shaking her head.
"I don't mind doing it" I offered with a slight smile.
She shook her head, "I can't offer you nothin' for it, darlin'" she seemed sad.
I tilted my head, "No, you don't need to give me anything. I don't mind helping out"
She mulled it over for a moment, "Alright, darlin'. If you really want to.."
I nodded quickly.
"I'm Beth-Anne, by the way. You're Elizabeth, right?" she asked.
How did everyone know who I was?
"Yes, I am. It's nice to meet you." I replied with a warm smile to match hers.
She just nodded and sat back down.
I began to pull everything off the shelves to organize them.
Deciding that, before I put everything up, I would dust off the shelves.
I put all the books, magazines, etc. together. I moved on to small necessities, like toiletries and makeup and such.
I moved all the miscellaneous things into a more organized system.
The store now had more room.
More room for the stuff I brought it.
I thought to myself. It made me laugh.
Once I was finished, I let out a content sigh. Looking over my work one more time.
This made me miss Elaina.

"Elaina, seriously. This isn't right" I whined as I watched her stacking up cans of food randomly.
She looked back at me, shrugging her shoulders.
"It's all canned food, it's all the same." she said with a shrug.
I shook my head, "Get down, I'll take care of it" I sighed.
She laughed at me, stepping down off the step ladder.
We had a huge basement under the building we were held up in.
It had plenty of storage space and we tried our best to keep it well stocked.
That didn't mean everything had to be in a mess.
I stepped up on the step ladder and began moving around the cans of food.
"So I was thinking about something.." Elaina began, shifting around.
"What is it?" I asked casually, not looking away from my work.
"I think I want to have a baby.." she blurted out.
I dropped about three cans of food, they rolled to her feet.
"You what?" I questioned, turning to look at her.
She shrugged, looking up at me as she handed me the cans back.
"I think we have a good thing here. We're safe here and well stocked.." she looked down.
I set the cans down and came off the ladder.
"Elaina, I don't know. Have you talked to Marcus about it?" I questioned.
She nodded, "Yeah, he's really excited about the idea." she looked up at me and smiled.
That made me feel sick to my stomach.
I had come to terms with the fact that Marcus loved her, but it still stung.
Now the idea of them starting a family together seemed to just pour salt into the wound.
"I don't know when. But it's just something we have been thinking about. I wanted to see what you thought?"
She reached out to place her hand on my arm.
I placed my hand over hers, squeezing it.
"It's not really up to me, Elaina. But if it's what you want, you know that I'll support you"
I tried my best to smile at her.
"Hey, you're gonna be the God Mother, you know that?" she teased, playfully nudging me.
That made me smile.
"Well of course, I wouldn't let you have it any other way" I teased.

"Did you find anything you'd like?" Beth-Anne's voice startled me away from my thoughts.
I spun around to face her.
"Uh yeah, I'd like this book, if that's okay?" I asked, grabbing it off the shelf.
It had a blank cover and seemed kind of old and worn, it peaked my curiosity.
She smiled and took it from my hands, nodding.
"Yes, of course." she replied and we walked back over to her desk.
I walked around in front of her, watching her.
She pulled out a binder, flipping through a few pages until she found my name.
She scribbled something down beside it and closed the binder.
"You're all set" she said happily, handing me the book.
"Thanks" I smiled down at her and took the book, making my way back towards the hallways.
I knew the building had a library set up, but I didn't wanna read there.
It was a slower day, so it was most likely full of people who were finished working.
I just wanted to be alone.
I climbed the little set of stairs and made my way back towards my cell.
My door was still locked and I wasn't sure where Kyle had gone off to.
So I just sat by the door.
I read for a little while before I ended up dozing off.

I jerked away when I felt someone kick my boot.
"Rise and shine, Lizzie" Negan cooed.
He was kneeling down beside me, just inches from my face.
I blushed a bit at being caught.
"Whatcha got there?" He gestured to the book in my lap.
I quickly closed it.
He smirked, "Aww, is it something dirty?" he teased, leaning in closer to me.
I sat up, trying my best to back away from him.
He laughed, the sound echoing in the hallway.
"Ah I'm just messin' with ya!" he moved back and stood up.
I tucked the book under my arm and stood.
"You waited by your cell like a good little girl, didn't ya?" he drew his words out to torment me.
I broke my gaze away from him, which only amused him more.
"I was gonna put you back in it, but I'm feeling generous."
He began to pace around in front of me
"You waited so patiently for me to get home. Plus I heard you cleaned up my store for me"
He stopped moving and returned his gaze at me.
He stepped over closer, making me step back until he had me pinned against the wall.
He placed his hand beside my head, leaning forward.
His face was just inches from mine.
"Trying to impress me with all this hard work, doll? Cause I gotta say, it's working"
his tone was soft, but I felt like his eyes were going to burn a hole in my soul.
"I'm just pulling my load. If I have to be here, I'm gonna make it count. Isn't that your motto?"
I pushed, keeping my eyes locked with his.
I wasn't gonna back down and cower away from him.
Maybe if I was some other girl, who barely knew him.
But I did know him.
He gave me a bit of a frown, "Get. You get to be here. Not have to" he corrected.
It sure as hell felt like I had to, but I wasn't gonna press it.
"Now, back to my point. You have been working so hard for me. It's time you reap the benefits. I had a room set up for you and I think you're really gonna love it" his tone was teasing, but the look in his eyes hinted at something more serious.
He backed off of me and motioned down the hall.
I followed him to the staircase that led to the level with the bedrooms.
I expected him to stop on the second of third, but no.
We walked on a little more before stopping and walking into one of the halls.
His room was on this floor.
We walked down the hall to the middle and he stopped, motion to the room on our right.
"Ladies first" he cooed.
I looked up to him for a moment before slowly opening the door.
The room was a decent size.
It had a bed on the left, and though it was small, it looked so inviting.
Beyond that, on the back wall, was a little counter area.
A sink, microwave and a few extra cooking things were placed neatly on it.
There was even a small door for a closet and one for a small bathroom.
Only this floor had private bathrooms.
To the right was a sitting area.
There were a few shelves on the wall with books and then there it was.
By the window was a paint set.
A blank canvas was set on the isle, a few extra canvases were stacked against the wall.
A small table was set to the side of it with paint, brushes and a few extra bits.
My eyes widening as I took it all in.
I jumped when I felt Negan's warm hands grip my shoulders.
He leaned in close, his breath tickling my ear.
It made me shiver slightly.
"Maybe we don't have to forget everything that happened" he spoke softly.
Like he was trying to keep it secret.
He only let the intimate moment linger for a few seconds before he squeezed my shoulders.
"Well, buttercup. What do ya think?" he asked rather loudly, leaning back.
I turned to him and couldn't help but smile.
"It's perfect, really.." I looked up at him.
He smirked, "This is why I force the rules. You do good, you work hard, you get the fucking benefits"
I nodded to him, as if I was starting to understand.
Even if I still didn't understand him.
I turned away and walked over to the canvas, running my fingers over it.
"I'll leave ya to it then, pumpkin'. But don't stay up too late, cause tomorrow is gonna be a big day!"
His laughter filled my small room and I found it oddly comforting.
He left my room, closing the door a bit hard behind him.
I was left to my thoughts once again.
I set the book I had purchased down on the shelf and smiled.
Everything was neat and clean.
I walked into the small bathroom and flipped on the light.
Thank God for actual power and running water. I thought to myself.
I looked at myself in the mirror.
It was odd, I hadn't really stopped to look at myself and I was almost unrecognizable.
My long red hair was messy.
I'll visit Beth-Anne soon and buy a brush. I decided.
I leaned in closer to the mirror, looking over my face.
I gently touched my cheeks.
My freckles had popped out a bit from being in the sun.
I looked good. Not in a narcissistic way, but I looked healthy.
I wasn't starving, I wasn't running. I didn't immediately fear for my life, at least not because of the Walkers.
Maybe things could be good here.

R & R is always appreciated! I'm so excited for this story and writing more on Negan. (I dunno, it makes me emotional?) Anyway, I hope that you are all enjoying this story!