#connor is scrunched up so I need to use the extra space to my advantage

[patbwaifs]

small amount of background work before i hit the hay

[juicy-cookie]

Through The Valley - Chapter 11

AO3 Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/10075958/chapters/25424970

Tags: @rickdixonandthefandomlifeposts @embracetheapocalypsewithme @kinkozan @lupienne @theblack-wolf @lovingzombiechaos @dragonracer @miiraal

Pairing: Negan X OFC

We interrupt our previously scheduled broadcast to show you something much more interesting. Follow our heroes, Liz and Nate, a happily married couple from Fredericksburg, on their adventurous road trip through the Virginian countryside.

“Negan, I need to talk to you.”

Her request sounded lame in her own ears. Lilly hadn’t talked to Negan in weeks and she hadn’t imagined this to be their first conversation after ignoring each other since her fuck-up with the shed. If it were up to her, she would have kept up the silence between the two them a little longer, since she was still incredibly embarrassed about the whole thing. But Jax had been adamant about her going to Negan.

It seemed to become a recurring situation that Lilly confided in her leader. To his credit, she had yet to hear anything back from other people about her past, her secrets and her thoughts. Maybe she really could trust him, she thought as she sat in front of him and studied his face. Lilly had feared that he would dismiss her. That he would still be angry with her. Apparently, though, her own eyes hadn’t deceived her when she had seen herself in the mirror earlier. She really had to look like absolute shit with the way Negan was looking at her as if she was about to collapse any moment.

“What’s wrong? Are you sick?”

No cussing. He really was concerned.

“I’m not feeling well.”

“Yeah, I can fucking see that, Lil. What the fuck happened?”

Oh good. She felt much more comfortable with potty-mouth Negan than with soft-spoken Negan.

“Well, I have been feeling a little uncomfortable lately…”

“Babe, you look like you’re about to throw up on my fucking desk. How about you stop beating around the fucking bush and tell me what the fuck is wrong with you?”

She sighed. He was right. He deserved knowing what was going on. Or at least some of it.

“Okay. I’m in pain. A lot of pain. And I’m sick all the time and I can’t eat and I just feel like total crap.”

“Have you seen Dr. Fisher about it?”

“Yeah, but he says he can’t help. I need an ultrasound. That’s why I’ve come to talk to you. I wanted to ask you if I can go to the Hilltop.”

“Why the Hilltop? What the fuck am I keeping Fisher here for if he can’t help you?”

“Well, as I said, he said I need an ultrasound. And Dr. Carson is a gynecologist, so…”

Negan’s eyes widened in realization.

“Oh my fucking God. Are you fucking pregnant?”

“What? No! Of course not. I mean, unless I somehow managed an immaculate conception. But no… not pregnant. It’s just… It’s an ongoing issue and I really need to have it checked out. Please? I’ve got it all planned out. They don’t know me at the Hilltop, so I can just say I’m from the Kingdom and…”

“Yeah. Good plan. Pack up some shit. We’ll leave in an hour.”

“Okay. Wait… What? We?”

“Yes, we. I’m coming with you.”

“No Negan, you can’t. It’s too dangerous. Jax can come with me”

“Fuck no. You said it yourself that Jax is fucking useless out there. They don’t fucking know me at the Hilltop either. No one at the other communities has ever seen me. I’m coming with you. This is not up for discussion, Lilly.”

He had the same look like back when they were fighting about who would go to the shed. As if he was daring her to keep arguing. But Lilly was tired. Tired of fighting. Tired of the pain. And tired of herself and her stupid tendency to shut people out. Negan wanted to help her and if she was being honest with herself, she appreciated having someone as big and intimidating as him to go on this trip to an unknown community with her. Not to mention the warm feeling she got thinking that he cared about her. Even if it was just because she was a good scavenger.

“Okay. I’ll see you outside in an hour.”

She went upstairs to her room, took another ibuprofen, washed herself as thoroughly as she could and packed a backpack with some essentials in case they would have to stay the night there. The dull abdominal pain and the nausea made her sluggish, so it took her the full hour to get ready and go downstairs to meet Negan at the car. Jax was waiting for her at the front door. He already knew that Negan would join her on her little trip.

“Promise me to be extra careful. And don’t tell anyone where you’re from. And do exactly as the doctor says. And come back here, no matter what he finds,” Jax was holding her in a fierce embrace and put special emphasis on his last sentence by looking her deep in the eyes. He knew why she needed that ultrasound.

“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry. We’ll be back tomorrow.”

“If we don’t hear from you until tomorrow night, we’ll send some people for you. I’ll talk to Carson and Dwight.”

“Okay. Take care. I love you, okay?”

“Love you, too, Lil. Have a nice trip,” he said with a conspiratorial smile and a wink that caused her to roll her eyes.

Negan was waiting for her next to one of the cars in the front yard. He was talking to Carson, no doubt to give him some last minute instructions and to threaten him that he would end up on the fence if the Sanctuary burned down in his leader’s absence. Lilly threw her backpack and her bow and arrows on the backseat, where Lucille and Negan’s own backpack were already waiting and climbed into the passenger seat of the silver sedan to wait for her travel companion. She wasn’t exactly looking forward to the two hour car ride. Sitting made the pain worse. But at least she would have good company. If they got over the initial awkwardness of being in close proximity after several weeks of ignoring each other.

Lilly watched Negan through the front window. His body language left no room for arguments while he talked to Carson. He accentuated certain words with his hands, all the while straightening his back to take advantage of his full, ridiculous height and getting just a little too close for comfort with people. The thought made her smile. His lack of boundaries when it came to personal space made everyone else uncomfortable and it would have bothered her, too, if it had been anyone else but Negan. She didn’t mind him getting close to her, though. She liked counting the lines around his eyes, or focusing on the dimple on his chin.

Negan turned around in that moment and caught her staring, which made him grin and her blush. Damn him and his ability to read her like an open book.

“You done swooning over me, or do you need a picture?” he asked with his signature cocky grin after taking his seat behind the wheel. Lilly knew just how to wipe it off his face:

“I already have one in my room. Remember when Dwight found that polaroid camera and I took pictures of everyone? You asked me if I rather wanted a dick pic and I told you the camera doesn’t have that good of a zoom.”

“Oh… right. Heh…” Mission accomplished.

Jax and Connor opened the gate for them and waved while Negan steered the car towards the road that would take them through the industrial zone and to the highway to Hilltop. The awkward silence Lilly had feared about had settled firmly between them and she fiddled with a loose thread on her jeans while the houses outside became sparse and were replaced by fields and trees. Fortunately, her fearless leader wasn’t the type to just sit in silence.

“So… you really have a fucking picture of me in your room?”

“Yup. You and everyone else who is important to me. You are all on my wall.”

“Huh… and why don’t I have a picture of you? It’s only fucking fair, you know.” If Lilly didn’t know any better she would say it was his turn to blush now.

“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “I can give you one when we get back.”

“Can I get a nude one?”

“No.”

“Dammit!” But he laughed, apparently happy with a G-rated photograph after all.

“Won’t your wives give you hell for having someone’s picture on your wall? Nude or otherwise?”

“I’ll leave it in a drawer and just take it out when I need it.” His cocky grin was back.

“Dude…” Lilly scrunched up her face in disgust.

“What? A man has fucking needs…”

“Ha! Fucking needs.” They both broke into laughter. “ Seriously though, you’re way too greedy. Why do you have to jack off to a picture of me, or anyone else for that matter, if you have five chicks waiting to take care of your dick?”

“Because they’re not you.”

That shut her up. Her heart had given an uncomfortable flip. She stared out of the window, concentrating on the landscape that was draped in spring flowers, trying to make sense of what Negan had just said. He seemed to be just as deep in thought as she was, so they drove in silence for a while. The view outside Lilly’s window soon became repetitive, though, even with the occasional walker clumsily stumbling through a blooming meadow. She decided that she would rather stare at Negan. Surely, he was used to it by now.

“How is the pain?” He asked her with a concerned side glance.

“Bearable. Though maybe I should have brought a hot water bottle.”

“You said it’s an ongoing issue. So what the fuck is it that you have?”

“I had some issues with my uterus a couple of years back and had to have surgery. I just want to know if maybe there’s something going on with the scar tissue, or if it has come back.”

“If what has come back? Like an infection?”

“No… it was cancer.”

Negan visibly paled and rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. Lilly had expected him to keep asking questions, but he stared straight ahead, his jaw clenched and his knuckles white on the steering wheel. She was grateful for the silence this time. It had been the darkest time of her life back when she had spent her days and occasional nights at the hospital and she didn’t want to think too much about what would happen if the doctor found something again.

“Negan, listen. I’m sorry about the food at the shed. I still feel so bad about it. You gave me a home and a family and a purpose and I screwed up…,” Lilly broke the silence after a while.

“Well, at least you’re fucking resourceful, that’s for damn sure.”

“Yeah, but only because of my stupid trust issues.”

He sighed and rubbed his jaw. “Look, I fucking get it. You wanted to see if Sanctuary really was a place to stay. But I would have thought you had become comfortable enough to tell me about this shit a little fucking earlier. What with you pretty much being my right-hand man. Well, woman…”

“I’m your right-hand woman?”

“Who else? Dwight? That fucker would have my fucking head on a platter if he had the fucking balls to get rid of me. And you’re the only fucking person in this whole fucking factory that works her fucking ass off without asking for anything in return.”

“You’ve already given me much more than I could have ever hoped for.”

“See, that’s what I fucking mean. Now I just have to find a way to get you to suck my dick and I’d be the happiest fucker in the entire fucking apocalypse.”

They both shared a much needed laugh before Negan continued. “Is that the reason you didn’t talk to me for so fucking long? The pain?”

“No, I was just too embarrassed to approach you. And I thought you were still furious with me.”

“Turns out I can’t stay angry with you for very long.”

“Well that’s good to know,” she smiled, “Shit. I was such a bitch to Seth.”

“He’ll get over it. Just tell him you were sick. Maybe help him with the fucking points lists or something.”

“Yeah, good idea. So, I’ll get my old jobs back when we get back?”

“As soon as you feel well enough to start working again.”

“Thank you Negan.”

“You wanna thank me? Let’s talk about this brilliant fucking idea of mine again where you suck my dick…”

Lilly slapped him on his arm, not without noticing the massive muscles that made up his bicep and the way his face lit up as they kept joking and flirting with each other. It seemed like everything was back to normal as they got closer to their destination. When Negan took them off the highway and onto the country road that led to the Hilltop, Lilly told him to stop the car for a moment.

“Let’s go over the plan again. We’ll say we’re from the Kingdom. They don’t have an ultrasound either, so it won’t be suspicious that we travelled here. I’ll tell Dr. Carson about my issues and that Dr. Lozano from the Kingdom sent me here to get checked out. Oh and we can’t take our weapons with us, the bow and arrows are too recognizable. You definitely have to hide Lucille so no one can spot her in case they look inside the car.”

Negan didn’t look too happy about abandoning his beloved bat. Lilly couldn’t blame him. She had never asked Negan why he valued her so much, but it was obvious that he had a sentimental reason to do so. Plus, entering a community that wouldn’t exactly welcome them with open arms if they knew who they really were, without weapons, made Lilly uncomfortable, too.

“Should we tell them we’re married? Friends? Siblings? What do you think?”

“Oh, definitely fucking married,” Negan happily exclaimed, “If I finally get a fucking chance to call you wife, I’m gonna fucking take it. Maybe you’ll get used to it.” He winked at her.

“Seriously? You just declared me your right-hand woman an hour ago and you’d trade that for some pussy?”

“Fuck, you’re right. I’d have to redefine the whole job description,” he mused, “Meh, totally fucking worth it.”

“You say that now. And then you regret it because we’re not compatible.”

“Okay, A: I am fully fucking confident that you are a fucking beast in bed. Trust me, I have like a sixth fucking sense for this shit. And B: It seems like you have given this a fair fucking bit of thought,” he said with a shit-eating grin that made Lilly blush again.

“Can we focus on the task ahead? Which is lying our way through Hilltop so I can get a medical examination,” Lilly tried to change the topic and Negan chuckled. “We need fake names. They know you…”

“...and fear me...”

“...and they’ve probably heard of me, too, by now. You can call me Elizabeth.”

“Middle name?”

“Yeah. Lillian Elizabeth Richards, nice to meet you. What should I call you?”

Negan looked at her intently before he answered, as if trying to figure something out.

“Nathan.”

“Oh, I love that name.”

“My mother would be fucking delighted to hear that.”

“That’s actually your name?”

“Yeah. Nathan Egan.”

“Nathan Egan… Wait… N. Egan, Negan!”

“Clever girl,” he smirked, “My first teacher at elementary school fucked it up and it kinda stuck. And now you have the fucking privilege to be the only fucking person alive to know my real name.”

“Negan is still your real name. And don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me. Gotta keep the mystery.” Lilly did feel privileged, though. The thought that he had shared this detail about himself with her, and only her, caused some butterflies in her stomach to get a little too excited.

“Heh, yeah. Is that all then? Or do you need my dick size, too?”

“I already know the approximate size of your dick, thank you very much. I think that’s all for now. We can just improvise the rest, right?”

They drove the last couple of miles in silence, until their destination came into view on the distant hill that gave it its name. Negan parked the car about 200 yards away on the side of the road that led to the gates and they climbed out of their seats and took their backpacks. Lilly watched as Negan hid Lucille and her bow and arrows under a blanket and locked the doors and then they faced the impressive walls of the Hilltop.

“Ready to go, Liz?”

“Ready when you are, Nate.”

They both chuckled and made their way up the hill, both silently taking note of the guards on the wall and their spears. One of them addressed them as soon as they got close enough to the gate.

“Who are you?” he yelled down at them, his spear raised threateningly.

“We’re from the Kingdom. We’re here to see Dr. Carson.” Lilly yelled back.

“I don’t know anything about visitors from the Kingdom. Don’t you have your own doctor?”

“It’s an emergency! I need a gynecologist. Can you ask him if he’d be willing to see me?” Lilly was surprised that Negan had kept quiet so far. She could sense him tense up next to her. He hated when he didn’t immediately get what he wanted. The two guards on top of the wall put their heads together to whisper to each other. Then the first one yelled down at them again.

“Wait down there!” and he disappeared.

Lilly and Negan looked at each other and Lilly gave Negan what she thought to be a reassuring smile. After a couple of minutes, the giant gate opened and a man appeared. He was wearing a coat and a wool beanie on his head, his long hair visible underneath it. Where the guard had looked suspicious and even hostile, this one had kind eyes and he greeted them with a smile.

“Welcome to the Hilltop! Kal said you asked for our Dr. Carson? Are you sick?”

“I am. I’ve been feeling like shit for a couple of days now. Dr. Lozano said I need an ultrasound.”

“Okay. Well, we’re always happy to help our friends from the Kingdom. I’m Paul Monroe. But my friends call me Jesus.”

“I’m Elizabeth and this is my husband Nathan,” Lilly introduced herself and a grinning Negan. She wasn’t sure if her leader was just trying to be friendly, or if he liked the sound of her calling him ‘husband’ a little too much. “We come with King Ezekiel’s blessing and he sends his regards.” Lilly figured that was pretentious enough for the eccentric leader of the Kingdom while Jesus lead them through the gate and into his community.

“How is the old rascal?” Jesus asked as they walked past a fire pit, some tents and towards a row of RVs.

“Oh, you know him. Happy with leading the community in his own special way,” Lilly grinned at the bearded man, “And always concerned about the well-being of his subjects. Which is why he sent us here.”

“Right. Well, Harlan, Dr. Carson that is, he’s busy doing his daily rounds right now. We still have a lot of common colds and that blizzard caused some frostbites and one case of pneumonia. We also have two pregnant women here right now. I’ll tell him that you’re here, though and he can have a look at you later. You’re welcome to stay inside while you wait. You’d have to give up your weapons, though.” He pointed at Lilly’s machete and Negan’s knife.

“Of course. No need for them in here, anyway, right?” Negan finally decided to join the conversation. They both took off the weapons from their belts and handed them to Jesus. “What about your leader? Gregory, is it? You gonna tell him we’re here? Will he talk to us?”

“Oh, uhm… no, I don’t think so. Gregory doesn’t really concern himself with who comes and goes. He doesn’t like to be troubled as long as there aren’t any problems, you know?”

Negan pursed his lips. He looked like he had swallowed a whole lemon. Lilly was rather indignant herself after hearing about how bad of a leader that Gregory person was.

Jesus excused himself to go look for Doctor Carson and told them to feel free to explore.

“Did you keep that butterfly knife in your boot?” Negan asked Lilly with a side glance while they watched Jesus walk towards the tents.

“Of course. I’m not some fucking amateur. Do you have your gun?” Lilly answered while grinning up to him.

Negan patted his leather jacket where the small gun was hidden in his inside pocket and returned her grin with one of his own. “Wanna go sleuthing?”

“Fuck yeah!”

“I fucking love it when you say that motherfucking fucker of a fucking word.”

They made their way across the muddy lawn and dirt road and found themselves in front of some pens with livestock. Some of the pigs and sheep had already given birth and Lilly couldn’t help but squeal in delight at the sight of the little piglets and lambs. She ran over to the sheep enclosure and reached over the wooden fence to pet some of them.

Negan joined her and leaned back against one of the poles with his back to the animals, carefully studying his surroundings and the people that were either busy working or looking at Lilly and Negan with unabashed curiosity.

“Have you seen those fucking fields? Probably corn and wheat and shit. I feel much better about taking half their stuff now that I see how fucking well they’re doing for themselves. They even have a fucking cow for fuck’s sake. When was the last time you’ve seen a fucking cow?”

“Yeah and this place is huge,” Lilly mused while smiling at a tiny lamb that seemed to take a liking to her, “I wonder how they manage to keep all this up and running when their leader is obviously an idiot.”

“Probably that Jesus guy. He seemed like he has his shit together. Noticed how they got him instead of that Gregory fucker to come talk to us?”

Lilly nodded and then giggled when the lamb started suckling on her little finger. Negan turned around to look why she was laughing and he smiled when he saw her having so much fun.

“Never thought I’d wish to be a fucking lamb.”

Lilly gave an exasperated sigh, but before she could reprimand Negan for his inappropriateness in front of a minor, she heard a voice behind them.

“Hello! Welcome to Hilltop.” They both turned around and found that a middle-aged woman with blond curls had addressed them in a ridiculously cheerful voice. “I’m Gina. I’m responsible for the meals here. Word has it you’re here to see Dr. Carson? He’s a great doctor, you’ll feel better in no time. I just wanted to welcome you. It’s so nice to see people from other communities here and such a lovely couple as you two…”

Lilly immediately felt overwhelmed by the barrage of words coming from Gina, but Negan was looking happier than ever. He threw his arm around Lilly’s shoulders and pulled her close. She had no other option but to snake her own arm under his open leather jacket and around his waist so as not to lose her balance and land face-first in the mud.

“Why, thank you Gina. My lovely wife here and I are real fucking happy to be here with you today. Such a quaint little fucking community. All this shit you got here? Color me the fuck impressed!” Negan’s grin couldn’t possibly be any wider, but Gina looked quite shocked at her new acquaintance’s colorful vocabulary.

“Oh, uhm… yes, it’s rather nice here. I mean, given the circumstances. I heard the Kingdom is a good place to live, too.”

“It fucking is, Gina, it fucking is. We’re all happy as fucking clams down there.”

“Right, uuuuh… well, I hope you’ll be staying for dinner. We’re going to roast a sheep and I’d love for you to try our vegetables.”

“That sounds fucking great. My Lizzie here fucking loves sheep, don’t you sweetheart?” He squeezed Lilly’s shoulder.

“Yup. I’m a sheep lover. Thank you so much for the invitation Gina. I hope we’ll see each other again after my appointment.” Lilly had obviously succeeded in making the situation less awkward, as Gina looked much happier when she went back to work. Lilly looked up at Negan who had yet to release her from his half-embrace. “You’re enjoying this way too much. You know that, right?”

“What? Just having a nice fucking chat with the locals while on vacation with my beloved wife.”

They took a walk around the big house in the middle of the community and commented on the people and buildings until they got back to the gate. There was a blacksmith located next to it and after her initial shock of seeing a real blacksmith hammering away next to a furnace, Lilly watched the bulky man work in silence for a while. Negan was standing next to her with his arms crossed, looking deep in concentration. Suddenly, an image popped up in Lilly’s mind, of Negan himself working inside the shack. He had taken off his shirt and his abs and arm muscles glistened with sweat as he swung the mighty blacksmith hammer repeatedly over his head and onto the anvil. He would then stop for a moment to wipe the sweat and dirt from his brow and his eyes would meet hers and…

“Hey! You okay? You’re not gonna fucking faint on me, are you?” Negan was leaning down to study her face with a very concerned look.

“Huh? Oh… no, no I’m okay. I think the ibuprofen has stopped working, though,” she mumbled, feeling the heat rise in her face and in certain other regions of her body. She silently cursed herself for having momentarily slipped into a cheap romance novel. It was true, though. She was starting to feel more uncomfortable by the minute and she was sure the abdominal pain would be back in full force in about half an hour.

“Come on, let’s find somewhere you can sit down and rest.”

Lilly didn’t think that anyone would have guessed that Negan could be so caring. He took her to what seemed to be community tables in front of the main entrance to the house. They sat in silence for a while, still observing the people of Hilltop, but Lilly felt Negan’s gaze on her a couple of times. She hoped he didn’t worry about her too much.

As the sun slowly started its descent, Jesus came back and told them that Dr. Carson had finished his rounds and that he would see them now. He took Lilly and Negan to one of the trailers, knocked and opened the door to a fully equipped examination room, complete with a stretcher, ultrasound unit and even a gynecologist chair. Lilly became acutely aware of Negan’s company and turned to tell him to wait outside, but he had already squeezed his large frame through the door. As was usually the case, his presence immediately dominated the entire room and despite looking almost comically out of place in there, his entire body language conveyed that leaving would not be an option for him.

Lilly shrugged inwardly. There was no way, of course, that she would get a gynecological exam in front of him, but she guessed that throwing out her ‘husband’ for an ultrasound would look a little suspicious.

“Hi, I’m Harlan Carson. You must be Elizabeth and Nathan.” The man shook both their hands and motioned for Negan to sit on a chair and for Lilly to get to the stretcher next to it. Dr. Carson looked nothing like his brother. Where the latter was short, skinny and a little mousy, this Carson was tall, muscular and had a confident air about him.

“Jesus told me you came all the way from the Kingdom. I’m curious to know what caused Carla to send you here.” Carla must be Dr. Lozano, Lilly thought.

“I’m experiencing abdominal pain that got progressively worse over the last couple of days and I feel sick all the time and very weak. I’ve had a hysterectomy six years ago, so I got a little scared. Dr. Lozano told me to see you for an ultrasound and that since you're a gynecologist, you’d know what to look for.”

“And what was the cause for the hysterectomy?”

“Stage IA endometrial adenocarcinoma.”

“Right. Radical hysterectomy?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, well the good news is that your survival rate is excellent, especially with the surgery, but I’m sure you already knew that.”

“I’m still worried about every little ache and pain, though.”

“Naturally. I’m sure the lack of medical care nowadays doesn't exactly help with your fears. Let's have a look at you then. Lie down on the stretcher and pull up your shirt a little, please.”

Lilly unbuttoned the checkered flannel shirt she was wearing over her gray tank top, and did as Dr. Carson had told her. She peeked at Negan, certain that he would be giddy to get a look at her exposed midriff. He was quiet, though, his gaze fixated somewhere on the wall opposite of him. He looked sweaty and he kept twisting his hands in his lap. She reached out to touch his arm and he jumped a little.

“It's probably nothing to worry about. You'll have your wife back in perfect health in no time.” Even Dr. Carson had noticed Negan's nervousness. Her leader’s brows furrowed, obviously not very pleased with being caught in a moment of weakness. Lilly smiled at him. She didn't know why the situation affected him like that, but she'd try her best not to let Negan blow their cover.

Dr. Carson squirted some of the cold and gooey ultrasound liquid on Lilly’s belly, turned on the machine and started moving the probe back and forth. As per usual, Lilly didn't see shit on the little black and white monitor and Dr. Carson kept his face neutral. After pushing and prodding here and there, the doctor seemed satisfied and handed Lilly some wipes to clean herself. He then put his palms on her stomach and applied some pressure on different parts of her lower abdomen. “Tell me if it hurts anywhere,” he asked while examining her and when he reached her waist, she finally gave a loud yelp.

“AH! Fuck that hurt,” she yelled and then immediately felt Negan's hand on her forearm.

“Hmm… You said you feel nauseated? Fever, too? Loss of appetite?”

“Yeah, all of that.” Lilly had a hard time concentrating with Negan's thumb stroking circular patterns on her arm.

Dr. Carson went to the counter with medical equipment behind him and came back with a small plastic cup. Lilly sat up to take it.

“I'm going to need a urine sample. The bathroom is right over there.”

Lilly disappeared into the tiny bathroom and tried to concentrate so as to pee into the cup and not on her hand. She could hear Dr. Carson’s low voice in the other room and then Negan's much louder one, but she couldn't make out what they were talking about.

After she had managed to squeeze out some pee and washing her hands thoroughly, she went back to the two men. The doctor took the cup from her, put it on the counter and unwrapped what looked like a small strip of cardboard which he dipped into the cup. Lilly sat back down on the stretcher and watched curiously as the doctor pulled the strip back out and examined it.

“Just as I thought. There's nothing wrong whatsoever with your reproductive organs. You've got a kidney infection.”

“A kidney infection?” Lilly and Negan replied in unison. Lilly stared at Dr. Carson in disbelief. A kidney infection was good, right? Well, maybe not exactly good, but at least better than a tumor. A breathy laugh escaped her lips.

“Yeah. They're nasty, but easy enough to cure. Couple of days on antibiotics and you'll be good as new. I'm just wondering, though… I don't want to criticize a colleague, but your doctor really should have thought of a UTI first before suspecting cancer and recommending an ultrasound. Panic doesn't help anyone, especially nowadays. You should talk to her when you get home.”

“Oh I fucking will, fucking trust me on that,” Negan growled and Lilly grimaced. She hoped they wouldn't have to go look for a new doctor soon.

Dr. Carson handed her a small package with pills.

“Here, take one in the morning and one at night until the package is empty.”

“Oh no, we've got antibiotics at home. I can't take those from you.”

“It's alright. I'm happy to help. And you really should start taking those as soon as possible so the infection doesn't get worse. I'll just tell the others to ask for one crate of apples more next time we trade with the Kingdom.” He winked at Lilly and she thanked him profusely. Even Negan shook the doctor's hand before they left the trailer. He seemed visibly relaxed now that they were out of the examination room. Or maybe he was happy that she would be okay?

Jesus was waiting for them outside and after telling him of the diagnosis and how relieved she was, he invited them to stay the night and join them for dinner.