Too Far Gone // D. Dixon

chapter fifty-seven

Things had straightened out. Alexandria had been fixed, Hilltop had been repaired, the Kingdom was back to the way it was, even the Sanctuary had become new again. Things were okay, not just okay, but good.

They were on their way to talk to Negan, he'd finally awoken from his state.

"We know you're awake." Michonne stated, making Negan smile with his eyes closed. Maren let out a breath she'd been holding in. At least he was awake and alive, that had to count for something.

"Never said I wasn't." Negan replied, his smile still present.

"Good..." Michonne said, "Because we need to tell you some things...and you don't have to open your eyes now but you're gonna open them soon. We're gonna make you watch what happens..."

"And this isn't about who you killed. No, we killed people. This is about what you did to us, what you did to so many people...how you made people live for you, how you put people under your boot." Rick spoke.

"I saved people!" Negan raised up, his voice very hoarse. Michonne was quick to silence him, holding his throat in place.

"Carl pictured something better. All of us working together, something bigger than all of us. And you'll have a job too." Rick spoke, moving to Michonne's side.

"Yeah, you get to be a part of it. You'll be an example of what this will be." Michonne spoke to him, her voice soft yet firm.

"We're not gonna kill you, we're not gonna hurt you..." Rick said quite plainly, "You're gonna rot in a cell."

"For the rest of your life, day after day." Michonne continued.

"You are gonna be evidence that we're making a civilization, something like what we had, something we're gonna get back." Rick was stern, shifting his gaze between Negan and Michonne.

Michonne smiled, "And you get to watch it happen...and you get to see how wrong you were about what people can be, about what life can be."

"You, alive, is gonna help show people that things have changed. Keeping you breathing earns another way, a better way..." Rick spoke to Negan, "That's the part you'll play."

"So maybe after all this..." Michonne stepped away, "Maybe you're good for something."

They had been harsh, but Maren knew this was a sacrifice she would have to make. The others had forgiven her for not doing more to help them, they knew that he was her father. They had known that fighting back and fighting against him wouldn't have changed anything. They had long since forgiven her. 

And so as Rick and Michonne left, only Maren and Daryl remained to speak with Negan.

Negan's brow furrowed as he stared back at Maren, his throat raspy as he asked, "Did you mean what you said? When you said we aren't too far gone...did you mean it?"

Maren drew a deep breath before responding, her voice firm, "Yes. The things you've done, you can come back from it. I know you can."

Negan looked back at the ceiling, "And you're on board with this shit? The whole locking me in a cell for the rest of my life to...how did he put it...rot."

"Don't act like you don't deserve it," Daryl spoke up, his voice laced with lingering resentment, "You're lucky that Rick trusts Maren enough not to kill ya."

"I want my son to get the chance to know his grandfather," Maren answered, her hand tightening around Daryl's as her gaze remained locked on Negan, "You are going to fucking change, Dad. If not for yourself or for me...do it for him."

Negan's brow furrowed as he processed Maren's words, the weight of his past actions bearing down on him. He turned his head to meet her gaze, a glimmer of hope and vulnerability flickering in his eyes.

"Do you really believe I can come back from all the shit I've done?" he asked, his voice roughened by years of hardship and regret, "After everything I've put you through, how can you still have faith in me?"

Maren's expression softened, her hand tightening around Daryl's as she considered her father's question, "Because you're my dad," she replied, her voice steady and resolute, "And despite everything, I know there's still good in you. You just have to choose to let it out."

Negan nodded, taking in the moment as he watched Maren and Daryl with a newfound expression. He would try.

                                                                              - TOO FAR GONE -

So much had changed since then. The world felt different now, like things would get a little easier, far easier than they had been.

With Negan locked away in a cell in Alexandria, the tensions between the communities had started to dissipate. However, the people of Alexandria still worried that he might somehow find a way to escape, and almost nobody wanted the responsibility of watching him 24/7.

That's why they had sent Daryl to accompany Maren each time she went to bring Negan his daily meals. It wasn't that they didn't trust Maren, but they didn't trust Negan to not try and manipulate her in some way. And so, there she sat, her very pregnant belly protruding as she leaned against the concrete wall in front of her father's cell.

"Morning, Dad," Maren spoke, her voice warm and gentle as she brought a tray of eggs and fresh fruit, "You hungry?"

Negan turned his head, his gaze falling upon his very pregnant daughter. He nodded silently, taking the tray as she slid it into the cell through the bars. Maren watched him, feeling a strange mix of emotions. She hated that he was stuck in here, but she knew what would happen if he was let out - somebody would surely try to kill him, and she couldn't bear the thought of that.

"How's the baby?" Negan asked, as he took a bite of the crisp apple. Maren smiled at the question, reaching down to tenderly rub her swollen belly. That had become a habit of hers.

"Good," Maren spoke, "Siddiq says any day now. Daryl and I have a bet going on...he thinks this week is the week but I'm not feeling it. Something tells me that I've still got another week in me."

Negan chuckled at that, "And I thought you hated gambling."

"No," Maren laughed, the sound music to Negan's ears, "I just hate losing." The pair shared a laugh, but suddenly Maren's expression changed, contorting in pain as she grabbed at her stomach.

"Ah!" Maren yelped, leaning back against the wall as she tried to catch her breath, her face a mask of agony.

"What's wrong? Is it the baby?" Negan asked quickly, moving his tray aside as he reached through the bars, desperate to comfort his daughter. At the sound of Maren's distress, Daryl came rushing down the stairs.

"I'm okay..." Maren spoke, her breathlessness still evident, "Just Braxton Hicks contractions, I think." Daryl nodded, but didn't look convinced. He sat down next to Maren, handing her a bottle of water which she gratefully accepted, taking a few long sips.

Daryl watched over her like a hawk, brushing the hair from her face and placing a gentle hand on her forehead to check her temperature. Maren seemed to relax under his tender care, and Negan couldn't help but be struck by the genuine affection and concern that Daryl showed for his daughter.

"I was wrong about you, Dixon." Negan spoke up, his voice uncharacteristically soft, "You take good care of her. I know it took all of this shit for me to finally see that, but I do. You two love each other, and I'm so fucking sorry I ever doubted you."

Daryl met Negan's gaze, holding it for a long moment before responding, "When a Dixon makes a promise, we keep it. I promised ya that I'd always keep her safe, an' that ain't ever gonna change."

"And you have," Maren looked up at Daryl, a loving smile on her face as she touched his face gently, "I never doubted you for a second." Daryl leaned down, placing a tender kiss on her forehead, but suddenly Maren yelped again, another contraction hitting her.

"Okay..." Maren spoke breathlessly, "I was wrong...this is real."

"The baby's comin' now?" Daryl asked quickly, his voice laced with nervous anticipation. Maren looked up at him and nodded, her expression a mix of excitement and trepidation. Daryl sprang into action.

This baby was coming, and Daryl was determined to make sure everything went smoothly.