Falling

beginning

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Robyn felt her heart drop when the sound of her mothers heart monitor flat line.

"No, no, no!" She whispered grasping onto her hand tighter. Her fathers hand clamped tightly on her shoulder. She knew he was hurting too. They all knew that it would happen, but Robyn still had the hope her parents had lost. "Mama, please wake up!"

"Robyn." Her father whispered gruffly. She didn't listen, but instead held her mothers body closer. She felt the warmth leave her body.

A doctor didn't come in. Why would they?  They all called for an evacuation, but her father wouldn't leave her mother. Not in her worst moments, and Robyn wasn't sure if she could either. They were a family, you don't just leave your family behind.

"What the fuck?" Negan whispered looking out the window when suddenly noises came from the lifeless body of Lucille. Only now, it wasn't so lifeless.

"Mommy?" Robyn asked as her mothers body groaned. "Daddy! She woke up!"

The young teen wasn't sure of it herself. But she wanted to hold onto the hope her mother wasn't dead. Then her mother fell out of her hospital bed.

"Lucille? Are you okay?" Negan asked his wife. "I thought you were dead."

Only Lucille didn't respond with her sweet voice, the one that would help Robyn sleep after a bad dream. It wasn't the voice she heard when her father had chased her 'boyfriend' down the street. No it wasn't her mother because her mother had died 5 minutes ago. This was a mindless creature in her body. But Robyn didn't care, she started to kneel next to her mothers body on the floor.

It wasn't until Lucille snapped her jaws that her father pulled her back onto the floor with him. He just lost his wife, he wouldn't lose his daughter too.

"Lucille, it's me," Negan said pushing Robyn behind him. "your husband." Once again, Lucille snapped her jaws and moaned. Robyn watched as her father kissed her mothers head, tears falling down his cheeks. "I'm sorry."

With that Negan grabbed Robyn off the floor and moved the dresser he placed in front of the door during the beginning stages of evacuation.

A yelp was heard from the hospitals halls as a boy was being approached by two men, both snapping their jaws. Negan ran to the rescue while Robyn stared at her mothers carcass that was still groaning on the floor. She saw the glint of her wedding ring. No way in hell was she leaving that behind.

"I'm sorry mama." She whispered as she grabbed the ring off of her finger. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you."

With that she ran towards her father who was sitting on the ground, with blood on his face. She knelt down next to him and handed him her mothers ring. When the boy came back and put two and two together, Negan got up.

"Listen kid, we're all having a shitty fucking day." He said. "Let's get out of here."

With one last look at his wife's room, Negan grabbed Robyn's hand and started to leave the hospital.

Robyn wasn't sure why her father seemed so fine. Apparently neither did the kid. While she was in shock, her father was just there, without a care in the world. When the kid was bit by one of those things, it didn't seem to phase him. It sure shocked her, scared her even. But still, her father was 'fine'.

Apparently that was only the beginning.
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The two met a group while trying to steal some gas. Robyn was dirty, tired, and scared. Sensing that, Negan pushed her behind him while speaking to their leader. When Negan led the group to the pairs new found home, Robyn wasn't so sure.

"What about you Negan?" Paul, their leader asked. "You ever lose anyone?"

"Me? Always been a loner myself." Negan said grabbing onto Robyn's shoulder. "Just me and the kid here, haven't lost anyone."

That hurt Robyn. Negan could tell when he looked into his daughters eyes and saw the tears welling up. She hadn't spoken much since that day in the hospital, mostly just short answers.

The newfound group sat in a circle, enjoying the warmth of the fire and company. Then they were surrounded. The short lived group was dead, the only survivors being Negan and Robyn.

That's how it went. Everyone they meant, they all had some kind of sob story, and they all died. But somehow, the two of them stayed alive.

Then Dwight came along. Snuck up on them while they were eating Rabbit. Negan gave him half and made Robyn eat most of his. Even though he never said it, she was all he was worried about. She became quite and rarely spoke to him. She missed Lucille, they both did. But her death took a larger toll on Robyn. She was her mother after all, they had a bond Negan couldn't replace.

Dwight led them to his camp. When a woman approached him and gave the man a hug, Robyn's heart clenched. She wished it was Negan and Lucille. But it wasn't and with a shake of her head she grabbed her fathers large calloused hand.

Once again, camp was overrun. But this time it was different. Everyone lived, it was the start of something new.

The first kill was when Robyn really sensed a change in her father. Beat someone to death with his bat, right after he whipped the man with a string of barbed wire that is. He was in charge now, there was no questioning that.

His attitude shifted as soon as said barbed wire was wrapped around the bat. Robyn was terrified of the outcome, and then he told the story of Lucille.

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