"If you don't have hope, what's the point of living?"

~Beth Greene

Freedom.

He nearly laughed and threw his arms in the air as he tasted the word. So long, Alexandria! He was never going back! He was free! Free from its citizens, its leader, and most of all his past.

He had no weapon and no plan, but screw it all! He was barreling down the open road towards a new life. One that did not have Rick or any of the others in it.

In a world filled with the dead, Glenn had never felt so alive as he did at this moment. At least not for months.

He wanted to tilt his head back and take in the night sky, but he had to pay attention to the road in front of him. The last thing he wanted to do was crash into a walker or crash in general.

But his mind struggled to stay focused on the dark road ahead. What had happened in the time since his first night in the cell and the present were on rewind as he pushed further into the great unknown.

~

He had refused to talk to any visitor since that night. His heart ached so bitterly that he couldn't bring himself to speak. Grief and disappointment had stolen his voice.

All the people who visited him came in and out like a revolving door. They began to blur together as did their words and questions. Only vague recollections remained. He didn't even know if they came the same day. Time had come to a halt... Or better yet it ceased to exist.

His first visitors were Abraham and Sasha.

He could remember the sorrow in their faces; he could hear the obvious guilt in their questions.

Glenn just turned his back towards them, unable to meet their inquisitive gaze. He stated at the wall, feeling tears drip down his cheeks. He had to hold back his sob from the pair.

"Glenn," Sasha pleaded, grabbing onto the bars. "Please look at us."

But Glenn stayed silent and in the same position.

"Look at us! Dammit!" Abraham boomed. But Glenn didn't budge.

He didn't know how long they stood there, but a new voice spoke to him.

"I'm going to make sure you get out of here."

Even for Michonne, one of the people he trusted most, he was silent.

"Glenn," She stated forcefully. "You don't belong here; this cell wasn't made for people like you. But I need to know you're still a part of us. I need to know you're still the Glenn I know."

Glenn cast a side glance at her, but went back to his original position.

It was nighttime when Tara came.

"I don't know what to say... But I don't want you to suffer like this. You gave me another chance at life... And you deserve one too."

Glenn nearly replied that time.

"We need you back. It isn't the same..." Tara sniffled.

One visitor he didn't expect to see was Morgan. He had come with Rick, who was often here to guard him.

"He shouldn't be in here, Rick," Morgan looked incredulously at the prisoner. "This makes me want to tear down the cell with my bare hands, knowing I was a part of this."

"It was how it had to be..." Rick replied stoically. Morgan brushed him aside as he stepped in closer towards the bars.

"Glenn... Rick told me about what happened. I could hardly believe it... Why? You, of all people?" Morgan thought about the time when he was in Glenn's place, thinking how maybe he could possibly reform Glenn.

"He won't answer. He never answers..." Rick lowered his head, placing one hand on the bar.

Glenn wasn't sure what month it was. He knew winter was nearly over because the days were getting warmer. He knew that he had been in the cell for a while because his facial hair was growing. He could feel it.

He decided he would speak then when he saw Sherry standing alone.

"H-How long has it been?" His words came out coarse due to the absence of speech.

"Nearly two weeks," Sherry shifted uncomfortably.

He never spoke to her again after that.

"You were the one who convinced me that there was still good in this world. That there was still hope. Hell, I owe everything to you. My life, my freedom, my marriage," Sherry cried. "I want to help you see the same!"

Dwight never came.

Neither did Carl.

Gabriel showed up several times; maybe as much as Rick did. Glenn had expected him to get him to repent for what he had done. But he did the opposite. He would ask Glenn questions. They were often questions about his life before the apocalypse. If not, they were questions about Maggie.

"What do you think she would think of who you are today?"

"...She would probably hate me."

"Does that bother you?"

"Yeah. But if she were here, I wouldn't be behind this cell."

"I will continue praying for you. We all will. I have changed my ways for the better and I believe you can too. You're hurting right now and that is when we're open to the biggest change."

Glenn didn't answer back.

One particular day, he supposed it must have been early in his imprisonment because the pain of betrayal was at its height, an interesting scene took place. It was one of the few times he was on his feet, pacing the cell.

Rosita walked in, but didn't notice Rick at the time. She was too focused on Glenn.

"Rosita, can I talk to you after you're through here?" Rick approached her. Rosita startled at the man, but agreed.

"Hey," She stated firmly, "Glenn, you're stronger than this. When Abe, Eugene, and I met you back in Georgia, we saw a strong and caring man. We didn't see whatever the hell this is."

Glenn for sure wasn't going to respond to that.

"Come back to us!" Rosita grew impatient with his silence. "I know Abe believed that the new world would need Rick Grimes in it, but it needs a Glenn Rhee too!" She was on the verge of tears.

Rick took Rosita's hand into his own, looking at her curiously. She didn't notice this, but Glenn did.

"What did you want to talk about?" She exhaled shakily, turning her head towards the man beside her.

"Not here. Outside. It's about... what I did...I haven't had a chance to explain myself and-"

"Rick, it's okay. You've been busy with so much. I knew it wasn't the right time to talk about it," She walked outside of the room with him, sneaking glances of Glenn as she spoke.

'That wasn't strange at all,' Glenn mused.

One person who hadn't shown up since his first night was Negan, and Glenn couldn't have been more thankful. He couldn't imagine having that devil plaguing his mind too.

But Irene had filled his spot. She was constantly there to bring him his meals.

Like him, she never spoke.

Until the night of his escape.

He had been imagining leaving this cell and entering back into the world, no matter how decayed and awful it was.

He never thought it would come into fruition. But for the first time in forever, fate decided to grant a pleasant opportunity in his life.

It happened the night he was studying his pocket watch. This wasn't anything unusual as he did this nearly every night.

But this was the night that the hand started ticking again.

At that moment, Irene had arrived with his dinner. If there was one thing Glenn had to say about Rick's governing, he at least knew how to treat his prisoners. Sure, he wasn't eating any five-course meal. But they weren't revolting heaps either.

The sandwich on the floor was proof of that.

It was then that determination returned his lost voice.

He bit into the sandwich, savoring every bite. "You should have been a chef instead of a doctor."

"I'm better with pills than I am with food," She smiled at him. "Plus, I am more useful this way."

"Irene," Glenn placed down his sandwich, nearly halfway done with it. "Why are you volunteering to do this? Don't you hate me?"

Irene moved in closer as he approached the bars that separated them.

"I do hate you. But I am trying to learn to forgive."

"I don't deserve your forgiveness. You should hate me," Glenn placed the palm of his hand on the bar, grazing her fingers with his.

"I hate myself more for ever believing you were good. For..." She stopped herself from continuing.

"For helping me get better?"

"No," Irene shook her head, feeling her heart pound. "For starting to like you."

Glenn paused. "I was beginning to like you too," He smiled at her earnestly.

"W-What?" Irene drew back from the cell in shock.

"I felt drawn to you when I first saw you. I-I can't explain it," Glenn reached out his fingers towards her through the opening.

"You did?" She could feel the air getting thicker and warmer with each passing moment.

Glenn nodded. "Yes. I thought I couldn't be with another woman again. And now I won't ever be able. I ruined everything. I ruined your life."

Irene approached the cell again, hesitant to get near him. His eyes met hers in the pale moonlight, seeming to glow with excitement.

"Just this once, can I touch you? Can I hold you?" Glenn reached out to hers.

"I can't open this door."

"You don't have the keys?"

"I do, but I'm not allowed to."

"Rick wouldn't know. Please, Irene," Glenn whispered.

She slowly unlocked the cell, trembling as she did. She shouldn't be doing this; this would only lead to trouble. Why wasn't she saying no to this?

This would only ruin her plan.

Her mind was telling her to leave and go back to Netanya, but her heart nor her body were letting her.

Glenn gently took her hand before wrapping his arms around her. Before she could process what was happening, his mouth forcefully pressed against hers.

No! She didn't want this! This wasn't why she was here!

She struggled to break out of the tight grip that held her in place, feeling the kiss getting more passionate between them. Irene used all of her strength to push Glenn off of her before he went in deeper.

She stared wide-eyed at the man, feeling a lump rise in her throat as she gulped in deep breaths.

Glenn's eyes still shone in excitement as he walked up to her, kicking the tray towards her.

She expected him to try and kiss her again and she tensed up, but he walked past her and yanked the keys out of the lock.

"You planned to escape just by kissing me?!" Irene shouted, latching onto his arm and pulling him back. "You think you fooled me?! In a few minutes, you're going to fall to the floor and-"

"And die?" Glenn asked sardonically. "But I'm not the one who swallowed the pill."

Irene felt her heart stop at these words. "Y-yes, you did! Your sandwich! I put it in there!"

"You did." Glenn gazed down at her unsympathetically as her eyes shone with tears. "I knew something was wrong when you came that first night. I knew you weren't giving me food out of charity." He twisted out of her grip, leaving her to sink to her knees as she screamed.

"NO! NO!" She tried to vomit up the poisonous pill, gagging herself and coughing unsuccessfully.

Glenn could feel someone's eyes on him as he neared the exit; somewhere in the dark Negan was gleefully watching this scene.

"I WILL KILL YOU!" Irene suddenly rushed forward with one last attempt at vengeance. On behalf of Netanya and her Oceanside sisters, she would be the one to make sure the scalpel pierced Glenn's heart.

Glenn dodged her attack, shoving her hard against the wall. The scalpel fell to the floor with a clang as Irene reached out towards him desperately. She could see that her vision was beginning to get blurry and the room was beginning to spin.

"Glenn.... please..." She muttered as he shut the door, leaving her in complete darkness.

~

He had to leave Alexandria quickly. It was a surprise no one had heard all the commotion they had made, but he knew that this wouldn't be the case for long.

He didn't look back once to see if anyone was following him; only focusing on the task ahead. Get to the gate, get a ride, and get far away from here.

He had gotten past the gate easily since no one was manning it. Not since the days of The Saviors had anyone patrolled. They took for granted that sometimes threats come from the inside.

The difficult part was getting the cars to start. He tried to start two of them to no avail. He settled for Daryl's motorcycle, which had also somehow come out of the battle unscathed.

He paused as he hotwired the bike back to life, thinking that maybe he didn't have to do this. That he could walk back into Alexandria and everything would be okay because he saw a glimpse of hope.

And for a moment he saw a life filled with color. Filled with laughter, love, and happiness.

But most of all, filled with hope.

Because hope would always return again and again.

Yet it was anger that guided him to rev up the motorcycle and drive off.

~

Just as he was gaining a sense of ease from his reflections, radiant headlights off of several huge vehicles turned on. He startled, trying to slow down before he smashed into the objects. His momentum was too fast that the bike skidded and he tumbled off onto the pavement.

He sat up; his skin burnt and sore from the impact. He stuck out his bloody and scraped arms to avoid being blinded from the bright lights. The scene triggering his memory of the last time he was surrounded by shining lights. Last time.

Who the hell was this? Were they...Saviors? Glenn's heart dropped as a terrible sense of dread came over him at the thought.

And it only increased when several people climbed out of the vehicles carrying guns. He still couldn't make out who they were as the lights created silhouettes of their figures. Their weapons were now pointed at him; he was completely at their mercy.

"On your feet!" A woman's voice called out to him. He did so, slowly and painstakingly, but showing no fear. The woman, or the one he assumed to be the one who spoke, came in closer.

"Are you from the Alexandria community?" She questioned, lowering her gun to her side and gesturing for the others to do the same.

He nodded; shock taking his ability to answer the woman. She stood a few feet away from him; her face unreadable but finally visible.

Glenn felt dizzy and thought maybe he had died and he was in the afterlife. Because there was no way this was real.

The woman broke into a run, practically leaping into his arms. He could only stand frozen as she enveloped him into a hug. She gazed into his face in amazement, wiping his tears as she did when they were children.

"Glenn... I've found you..."