The beginning

Chapter 52

I slammed the door shut in Paulie's face and locked it behind me. I hadn't deserved his attitude. It wasn't my fault he had arrived late to his duty and couldn't find me. I swallowed one of the vitamins down with a large glass of water and resumed my book but was once again cut short. I had already seen Sherry and Negan this morning and I didn't think Paulie would be brave enough to knock so soon. I was truly baffled as to who would be visiting me and when I opened the door, I was still just as puzzled.

"Uh, hello?" I waved awkwardly at the two strange women standing in the hallway.

They smiled nervously, "Negan asked us to bring a few things up to your room. Liven it up a little..." I stuck my head out of the doorway and saw a bunch of boxes labelled with all kinds of décor and bedding. "Is now an okay time? We're not interrupting anything?"

"No, not at all. Please, come in." I stepped aside as they began lifting the boxes into my room. I offered to help them but was turned down. The pair even suggested to head out for an hour or two while they got to work.

I quickly headed into the bathroom and changed into some of the workout gear I'd picked up and left them to it. "Are you coming or what?" I asked Paulie, startling him as he sat twiddling his thumbs. "I'm going for a run."

He tried his best to keep up with me as I began jogging the perimeter of the Sanctuary, but eventually he gave up and watched me from some stairs where there were a large number of walkers secured to the fence. I assumed it was a way of deterring people from trying to get in, or, getting out.

I jogged past the chicken coop and gardens, around the back where they kept their vehicles then up the other side that had some storage units, before running by Paulie again. After a few laps I was a hot mess, dripping with sweat and out of breath. "Ready to go when you are," I advised, walking up the stairs towards him.

As we climbed the last flight of stairs, Paulie stopped me. "Are you going to tell Negan that I was late this morning?" He looked terrified.

"No. If he asks, I'll tell him I left you in my room to fix the pipes in my sink. He'll be fine with it, I'm sure."

He sighed in relief, "thank you! I appreciate it..." We turned the corner and saw Negan at the end of the hall.

"I was just coming to find you. You weren't in your room."

"I went jogging," I replied, motioning to my clothes. "Paulie did an okay job at keeping up," I joked.

Negan bit his bottom lip as he took in my appearance. "You look super-hot all sweaty and out of breath...kind of reminds me of-" He paused, turning to Paulie. "You're dismissed for the rest of the day."

He nodded, "yes, Negan. Enjoy the rest of your day."

Without any warning, Negan scooped me up and threw me over his shoulders. He missed the turn to my room and continued down towards his. I was grateful he couldn't see my reaction, because there was no way I would have been able to pretend I was enjoying myself right now. He truly only viewed me as a toy that he could use whenever he felt like it. I knew what I had signed up for. He'd told me upfront, but this was getting ridiculous. He had another half a dozen wives for goodness' sake.

"Is my room not ready yet?" I asked as his fingers began to massage my legs.

"Not yet," he sung excitedly. "Did you like my surprise?"

"I did and I can't wait to see it!" I replied trying to sound appreciative while feeling uncomfortable over his shoulders.

"Good," he replied. I could tell by his voice he was grinning widely. He pushed open the doors to the common room where I saw most of his wives sitting around, having a snack while playing boardgames or reading. "Ladies..."