❝ I LIKE A WOMAN
THAT TAKES CHARGE ❞
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"I've never been so grateful for a salad." Vincent hummed as he slid his tray across the cool metal bars. "Before this shit, I wouldn't have even touched one of these things."
Vada scrunched her face and giggled, watching as the food lady scooped a clump of mashed potatoes onto her tray. She bit her tongue and eyed the beautiful salad, all with fresh vegetables from the sanctuary's garden that they had grown that week. Vincent was practically salivating over the food. He kept an intense stare on the plate, not giving one glance to the girl he conversed with.
"It's just lettuce, V," Vada mumbled asy they strode to an empty table. Vincent finally glanced up only to shoot a fleeting dagger at the girl.
"Planted and grown by god himself." He jabbed his fork into a piece of lettuce, onion, and red pepper, taking no hesitation to shove it in his mouth. Vada crossed her legs and rolled her eyes, gently stabbing into her food.
"So, Negan, then?" Vada smirked, stifling a laugh as she held her palm over her mouth, stopping the leaf lettuce from tumbling to the table. Vincent's head shot up and he furrowed his shaggy eyebrows.
"I take that back." He shoved another forkful into his mouth and moved onto the potatoes. They were lumpy and horribly cooked, Vada almost gagged piling the second serving into her mouth. But with her rumbling stomach, she blocked her nose and continued on to satiate her hunger.
Vincent stuck his tongue out and made a gargling noise. "They should stick to what they know. Frozen shit." Plunging his finger in his mouth, he gagged and scrunched his nose. Vada laughed and silently agreed, snorting under her breath as her eyes crinkled. She collected Vincent's plate and stacked it atop her own, shuffling to the corner to put them away. She wiped the bits of onion off her pants and noticed a man in her peripheral vision, eyes locked on her. He was glaring, his eyebrows furrowed and his lips formed in a thin line. Vada squirmed uncomfortably and hurried back to Vincent.
"Dude, I think he saw you gagging. He looks like he wants to kill me." Vada glanced back at the man quickly and was not pleased to see he was still staring. Vincent followed her gaze and narrowed his eyes.
"The hell is up his ass?" He pushed his hair back and furrowed his eyebrows. Vada shrugged and played with the sleeves of her shirt.
"I don't know. Doesn't he work in the kitchen? I think I've seen him back there before. You know, everyone knows we busted in there that night." Vada hugged herself with her arms and uncomfortably glanced at the kitchen staff.
"Well if you go missing at least I'll know where you are." Vincent raised his eyebrows and shifted his gaze to the shady man. He glared at him and turned back to the girl.
"Don't joke about that. Oh my god. He's scary." Vada shifted her feet and fiddled with her dry fingers. As a nervous habit, she picked at her nail and bit her lip, squirming and trying not to glance back at the chilling guy.
"He looks like Hannibal Lecter. You know, baldish, scrunched kinda face. All he needs is a little blood and guts in his teeth." Vincent mumbled under his breath, clasping his hands together. He averted his gaze to the man and creased his brow when he noticed he was still staring.
"Vincent! You are not helping." Vada exclaimed, widening her eyes in the slightest. She then stifled a laughter. "Sure hope he's not anything like Hannibal Lecter. Or I'm never eating the meat they serve here again."
"It's probably what they do with all the bod-" Vincent started, but was cut off by a disembodied voice.
"Vada." His grumbly voice sounded, hands flat on the table as he towered over them. Vada's eyes shot up, startled by the husky and rough voice. Negan tilted toward the girl, his eyebrow creased and tongue poking between his lips.
"Negan." She spoke shortly.
"Come with me. You've got shit to do." He grumbled, scratching at his chin which was just beginning to stubble. Vada furrowed her eyebrows and averted her attention to Vincent.
"Guess you've got to deal with Lecter yourself. Good look. Stay in one piece." Vada joked, lips twitching, but with Vincent's stiff posture he only gave a faint smile. She sighed and bit her cheeks, standing up and trailing beside Negan.
The man snaked an arm around her waist and shifted his gaze, jaw tightened as his eyes landed on the creep. The lanky guy jerked and averted his gaze when he noticed Negan. Negan furrowed his brows and leaned back.
"Who the fuck is that creep?" Negan asked, slowly tugging at Vada to follow him. He pulled her close as they exited the caf. "Looks like he just murdered a family of fucking five."
"I don't know. Probably because we were making fun of the food." She jerked her shoulders and shifted her gaze. Negan tilted his chin and laughed in huffs, his voice deep and raspy.
"You know how to make a fucking enemy." Negan shook his head. His strides were long and Vada struggled to stay by his side. "You're gonna get yourself hurt."
"I can protect myself," she mumbled, crossing her arms over her chest and shortening her steps. Negan was forced to slow down as he strolled beside her. "Where are we going?"
"I got you a job." He stopped in his tracks. The hallway was vacant and his deep voice echoed through the dark corridors.
"What?" Her eyebrows furrowed. "I have a job."
"You're fucking wrong if you think you're keeping it." He propped his elbow on the cement wall and grinned, twisting his foot into the damp grounds. Vada bit the inside of her cheek and frowned, shuffling on her feet. She was upset that she'd been deprived of her previous job, but figured she was in no position to start arguing about it. She was walking on eggshells around the man and although they'd had their good moments, there was still a looming threat swirling around her mind. The punishment that he had yet to give her.
"So what? Am I cleaning toilets now or something? That my punishment?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips. Negan grinned down and her and pushed himself off the wall.
"Fuck no. I'm not that much of an asshole." He pivoted on his heel and began to walk again.
"You've bashed people's heads in." She deadpanned. Negan's back raised with huffs of laughter and he stopped in front of a pair of large double doors. Vada recognized it as the sanctuary's library.
Negan swiveled and abruptly stopped, placing his hands on the metal knob. He glanced at her and mumbled, "librarian got herself knocked up. Need a new one."
A jolt of excitement burst through Vada as she followed Negan through the doors. She figured if she wasn't outside the walls the only place she'd want to be was surrounded by books and people who loved books. "I'm gonna be the librarian?"
"Yup." He turned around, finger tapping at the edge of Lucille. "Sign out books, suggest books, find books. Thought you might know a thing or two."
"I do." Her lips twitched and she looked around the library. It was vacant and smelt strongly of old paper. As she took a quick glance around, she noticed most of the books were tattered and stained, other than the ones her and Vincent had scavenged not too long ago. The amount was scarce and the rest were manuals, which nobody used unless they needed it for a specific job at the sanctuary. "You're gonna have to pick up some more books, Negan."
"This not good enough for you?" He asked, jerking his head and biting his tongue. He leaned at an awkward angle as he ran the tip of his finger along a compact stack of old novels.
"Why don't you use the ones in your room?" She furrowed her eyebrows. Negan spun and leaned against the old bookcase. She stood stiff, hoping it wouldn't topple over with the man's weight.
"Because they're fucking mine."
"So is everything else here." She raised her eyes to the ceiling and huffed. Trailing behind the counter, she ran her hand along the edge and looked back up at Negan. He was gazing intently at her, hand stroking up and down the base of Lucille. He popped his lips and swung the barbaric weapon over his broad, leather covered shoulder.
"Got a point," he murmured, trailing slowly to the other end of the counter. Vada bent down and opened the cupboard below the surface. It was stacked with torn up books, worn to the point of being unreadable. It was a sad sight to see and Vada wondered how they had gotten so wrecked and unrecognizable. She picked one up and began flipping through the yellowing pages, but she couldn't make out the title.
"You know." Negan peered down at her and teetered over the counter. "I've always had the librarian fantasy, fu-"
"Screw off, Negan." She interrupted him, snorting under her breath. She squinted at the book intently and then threw it back in the depressing pile. Negan raised his eyebrows and puckered his lips, blowing out a sharp breath of air. She propped her arms against the edge of the counter and gazed up at him, eyebrow cocked.
"Fuck. That was hot. I think I need some fucking ice." He tightened his jaw and shook his head, ends of his lips twitching up into an insolent grin.
Vada rolled her eyes and rested her chin on her clammy palm. Negan gripped the edge of the counter and leaned forward, smile still evident and irritating. Vada raised her fingers and combed through her mangled, perspiring hair. "Goddamn, it's hot in here."
"It's the sexual tension." Negan said nonchalantly, leaning Lucille against the counter. He ambled away and sat, legs sprawled, at one of the round reading tables. Vada's lips turned upward at the sight of the man, his size in such a small chair that was meant for children.
"Whatever helps you sleep at night." She snickered, shaking her head slightly. Negan's aimless flirting and innuendos had become a regularity for her. He could say the most vulgar things and it wouldn't faze her in the slightest.
"Oh, it does." His grin showcased all his perfectly straight teeth, tongue running along the top row. Vada rolled her eyes to the ceiling and propped herself on the counter.
"You have something to say for everything, don't you?" She grinned, resting her palm on the cap of her knee. She gave a sly smirk, tilting her head to the side. "Or do you just spew out obscenities and hope women will jump into bed with you?"
"Little bit of both with crossed fingers, sweetheart." He jerked his head and leaned back in the chair, propping his legs on the short table. Vada cocked an eyebrow and jumped off the platform, ambling over to him.
"You're gonna fall, jackass," she said in a nasally tone. Negan bit his lip and gazed up at her, arms crossed over his chest.
"You'd just love to see that, wouldn't you?" He teased, tilting the chair back further. Vada snorted and rolled her eyes pivoting on her foot and stalking over to the bookshelf.
"I'm not denying it." She picked up a book and flipped through it, paying no heed to the man. Negan slammed the chair back down with a thump and got onto his feet, steel toe boots thundering on the wooden floors. Vada's eyes flickered up and she raised her eyebrows when he strolled towards her.
"Do I start today?" She asked, closing the book but keeping it between her fingers. Negan sighed and leaned against the shelf perpendicular, tongue poking at the insides of his cheeks.
"No. You'll start tomorrow." He shook his head. Vada dropped her gaze to the floor and nodded. "And I've got some fucking work to do."
He spun on his heel after a fleeting eyebrow raise and strolled towards the door. Vada jumped at the sudden departure and furrowed her eyebrows.
"Wait!" She stopped him as his hand gripped the metal knob. He glanced over his shoulder, cheeky grin on his lips. "Where are you going?"
"Why? Am I leaving you all hot and bothered?" He jerked his head and leaned against the door, popping his hips out. Vada scowled and did the same against the bookcase.
"Just curious." She rolled her hips and shuffled on her feet. Negan licked his lips and grabbed Lucille, clutching the weapon tightly and swinging it over his shoulder.
"Alexandria."
"What?" Her eyes widened. "And you didn't think to tell me?"
"Why the fuck would I?" He furrowed his eyebrows and flung himself off the door, the tip of Lucille bouncing against the hard floors with each step he took.
"It only makes sense." She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. "And you're early. It's only been like, four days."
"Your daddy didn't hold up his end of the deal last time." Negan tilted his chin upward. "So we're going to collect our shit early this week."
"I want to go." She took a step forward and Negan grinned widely, holding a hand out to stop her from walking further. She slapped it away and stood her ground.
"Fuck no." He asserted.
"You told me I could go if I just asked." Her angered, thin-lipped expression faltered to a frown. "Don't be an asshole."
"You can't get mad when I treat your dad like the prick he is." Negan's lips curved. Vada scrunched her face in a wry manner and stepped back, emitting a disdainful scoff. "That's what I fucking mean."
"No different from how you usually act. I'm coming." Her lips formed a thin line and she stood tense, her arms over her chest and her breathing controlled. Negan slowly stuck his tongue from his teeth and curved his lips, bending his knees forward.
"I like a woman that takes charge." Negan's eyes flickered down. Vada let out an exasperated breath and shoved him gently to the side.
"Let's go."