#alden sutton

– 

A few days later, Y/N was carrying a basket of tomatoes towards one of the tents when she heard someone calling, “Hey.”

She turned to the sound to see the Savior who had been looking at her a few days prior. Scowling, she continued to make her way towards her destination when the voice called louder. Stopping in her tracks, she threw her head back in annoyance and turned on her heel, heading towards the man. 

“Is something the matter?” she asked him, her voice clearly showing her disinterest. She didn’t want to be involved with someone like him. 

“No, just wanted to get your attention,” he replied. “I’m Alden.”

“I don’t care,” she replied. It wasn’t like her to be rude to someone, but how could she not be rude to a murderer? Even if he himself hadn’t directly murdered Glenn, he was still a part of the group of the man who did, he chose to associate himself with someone like Negan. She didn’t care about being kind. 

She turned back around and started walking. 

“Not even gonna tell me your name?” he called out to her. She simply ignored him.

– 

Picking blueberries from their stems and putting them into a basket, Y/N felt someone’s presence beside her. Looking to her left, she saw the Savior named Alden. Rolling her eyes, she continued her work, not acknowledging him. He stood there for a few minutes before he finally spoke. 

“You don’t talk much do you?” he asked.

“I talk a lot actually, just not to you,” she replied. 

“Did I do something wrong?”

“You’re a Savior. That’s what you did wrong. Your leader killed my best friend. Now please go away and never speak to me again,” she said harshly. 

“Look, I wasn’t the one who killed him. And besides, I nev-”

“What did I tell you? Go away. Thank you.”

She hated him. And she would always hate him. They all called themselves Negan, right? So she would treat him as if he was Negan. 

–

Having the Saviors around reminded Y/N of Glenn, of Negan’s brutality. The image would play continuously in her mind and she would find herself either clouded by sadness or by disgust. How could someone do something like that to a person? But morals no longer played a role in society. People like Negan had no morals, and they certainly had no empathy. 

Alden was given special privileges. He had behaved and made promises. Now he was able to roam freely without his hands tied or being watched by a guard. He hadn’t approached her since she told him off, but she could always feel his stare on her back as she worked in the field. Why did he keep looking at her all the time?

She told Tara about him, which lead to Tara giving her a lecture on how Alden wasn’t the one who killed Glenn and Abraham. Y/N knew that, of course. But she couldn’t remove Alden from that association, and so she continued to ignore his looks, even if they made her feel a certain way.

–

Y/N was sat at a picnic table eating dinner when someone sat beside her. She didn’t have to turn around to know who it was. Alden had been trying to talk to her the entire day. A part of her felt bad for constantly ignoring him. But she didn’t like him. 

“What do you want?” she asked him, slightly annoyed. Why was he always bothering her? There were plenty of other people to talk to, plenty of other people who had already forgiven the Saviors they brought in. 

“To talk to you. Is that too much to ask?” he replied. Y/N thought she heard a bit of sadness in his tone. 

“Yes, actually. I told you to leave me alone a while ago and yet you continue to bother me. I don’t know why you keep trying to get my attention, but please stop.”

“I know what Negan did to your friend. But I’m not Negan, despite what you think. I’m sorry that happened to him, I really am. I know what Negan is capable of and I would never do anything like that. I was only a Savior to keep myself safe. I don’t believe in their values.”

Y/N took in his words. She already knew that. But there was a part of her, deep down, that could never forgive Negan, Alden, the universe, whoever, for what happened to Glenn. It isn’t just sadness and loss that consumes her when she looks at him, but the trauma of having to see something like that. She tried to talk to Tara about it, but she could never get the words out. Tara hadn’t been there to see the gruesome scene, she would never understand. 

“You’re right. It isn’t your fault. However, I can’t look at you and not see Negan’s face. And when I see Negan’s face, I see what was left of Glenn’s. You don’t know how terrifying and traumatic it is to see something like that,” she replied, looking him in the eyes. 

“No, maybe I don’t. And I know we’re not…friends or anything but, I’m here for you, if you need someone to talk to about it. I’m in the trailer over there,” he pointed into the distance. 

Y/N truly appreciated the gesture. But if she was going to talk to anyone, it wouldn’t be him. Instead of telling him, she looked down at her food and let him sit there. 

– 

The bright summer days had turned into the gold and scarlet of autumn days. Soon the crops would dwindle and Y/N would have to find another way to spend her time. Unfortunately, seasonal depression had started to sink in. But she couldn’t figure out what exactly was making her so sad. It could be the thought of Glenn and of everyone else she had lost, or feeling like nothing would ever change. The world had ended and there was nothing to hope for anymore. Even if the entire world were to come together and rebuild and repopulate, she wouldn’t be around to see the end of it. 

Some days she sat in her room and stared at the ceiling until the world outside became dark. She had lost so many friends; not just to death but to her own personal feelings. Leaving Alexandria meant leaving her friends behind. The only person she had at Hilltop was Tara, who was usually busy doing far more important things than Y/N ever would. 

And sometimes she was sad when she thought of Alden. Of how she treated him. She let him sit next to her, she let him talk to her. But she never spoke back, no matter how badly she wanted to. He too didn’t have any friends. Sometimes she looked at him as he spoke, not showing any emotion but letting him know that she was listening, and she could see sadness in eyes when he realized she wasn’t going to reply. 

She had accepted the fact that he wasn’t Negan and that he seemed like a good person. But she felt it was her duty to Glenn and even to Abraham to ignore him, because if she became close to him she be close to their murderer. 

But she needed someone to talk to. And a part of her always felt a little happy when he was around her, knowing that someone cared enough to stick around.

Getting out of bed she made her way to Alden’s trailer. She hesitated. Caving in and talking to him would make him feel like he won her attention. She mentally scolded herself for being annoying and knocked on the door.

When he opened the door, he smiled a real smile. Teeth and all. She stuttered.

“I didn’t have anywhere else to go, anyone else to talk to. I don’t want to bother you, seriously, I just…I need to talk to someone,” she confessed. 

“Hey, don’t worry about it at all. I’m glad you’re here. You can talk for as long as you want.”

They sat on the little sofa against the wall and Y/N couldn’t help but spill all of her feelings out. She had never felt so vulnerable. But she didn’t seem to care, either. She cried and he listened. He comforted her and told her to take her time. She couldn’t understand why he was being so nice to her or why it was her that he had attempted to befriend. 

“Can I ask you something?” she asked him.

“Anything,” he replied.

“Why me?”

He hesitated for a moment. “When I first saw you, not only did I think you were beautiful but you also looked so sad. I didn’t know why at the time of course but when you told me, part of me was upset that you hated me so much but I also understood why. You can hate me if you want.”

They looked at each other for a minute. His eyes were so kind, she realized. She felt truly safe in his presence. 

She let out a sigh and dropped her head into her hands. 

“I want to be your friend, I do. But I can’t stop seeing Negan when I look at you. Ever since you and the other Saviors came here, he’s all I can think about. And then I’m reminded of everything else and I just want to stop thinking about it. I can’t go back to Alexandria because I will just be reminded of the horrified look on everyone’s faces, and I can’t stay here because looking at you makes me angry. I know it’s not your fault. Really, I do. But I just can’t,” she cried. 

“Let me change that. I don’t associate myself with him, I never did. Just talk to me and you’ll see that I’m not like him or the other Saviors. Far from it, actually. Give me a chance.”

Y/N thought for a long time. The pros outweighed the cons. She knew she was the problem, the reason why she wouldn’t talk to him. But she also knew she was the one who could change that. 

“Okay,” she said. “Yeah.”

He grinned. 

– 

Months had passed since Y/N made the decision to be Alden’s friend. However, she was started to feel like they were more than friends. They spent a majority of the day by each other’s side, since they really had no one else to interact with. 

She had gotten rid of her hatred for him and for the other Saviors. The only person she hated now was Negan himself. 

She felt better in Alden’s presence. Sadness no longer consumed her, now she was always content, always happy. It was Alden who pulled her out of it, and she would never be able to put into words how thankful she was for him.

The two were sitting on a bench, watching the sunset. 

“Alden,” she addressed him softly.

“Yeah,” he replied, turning his head to look at her.

“Thank you. For everything. I don’t know how to repay you.”

“You could let me kiss you,” he said as his eyes went to her lips. 

“Ok. Yeah.” She leaned in.

She had kissed people before, but none of them felt quite like that. It was soft and gentle, yet she could feel the desire, she could tell he had been wanting to do that for a while. 

When they pulled away they both smiled bigger than they ever had.