[It's-- awkward between them. There's no way around that because they're trying to relearn each other, to figure out who they are now and how that compares with the person they knew years ago. It's hard because all he wants some nights is to curl up with her in bed, to lay his head on her shoulder and watching their daughter play.
The closest he ever gets is Mako falling asleep on his shoulder during a movie while Eleanor sleeps in her crib across the room and he spends the entire movie just watching her. He hurt her, he realizes that, and he can only try to heal that wound with time and patience and he'll wait for as long as he has to for her.
Fate, or something, pushes his hand. It has him dropping Eleanor off with his sister to babysit and he has to double back to Mako's to get her diaper bag because he forgot it, but he leaves the baby with Jaz because she can manage for a little while. When he gets there, her door is kicked in and there's signs of a struggle and Raleigh stopped carrying a gun a long time ago but he knows how to kill a man with his bare hands still. And he doesn't even hesitate when he finds Mako and her attacker in the bedroom, just sees someone trying to kill her and she's bleeding and he snaps.
So does the man's neck. It's only after that Raleigh realizes he knows this man, that he's from the club and how did he find her? How did he find Mako and is this about him too and--]
[ Things that are broken don't mend easily despite best intentions, despite the desire otherwise, and it's only through patience and time that the wounds can manage to close over. Mako is careful with him, careful with them both, never denying him the right to see his child because she's slowly taking steps towards it; that no matter how she felt at his departure she could never do something so cruel to him.
It takes time, and effort, but they're slowly coming to an equilibrium, learning to come together again, and despite the difficulties there are some things that come easily, like the way he feels beside her when she nods off at a movie, the strength of his shoulder, the warmth of his smile. Raleigh is gentle, he's grown in the two years he'd been gone and so had she, and there were always the rough spots -- but which relationship didn't?
This morning, they feel more like a family than ever, and for the first time she takes that tentative step, trusts him to take Eleanor to Jazmine's for her to babysit for the day while she popped over to the farmer's market to pick up fresh fruit and vegetables -- which was when things had gone terribly wrong.
One of their old compatriots had found her, and had followed her all the way back to the apartment before kicking in the door and catching her by surprise. While Mako is more than capable of handling one angry biker from their old club, the bullet from his gun grazes her side, nicks flesh and the pain, the pain had been shocking. Mako had been out of the life for too long, and she struggled under his weight when the man pinned her to the bed and was right about the finish the job.
Mako's bleeding everywhere, fighting for her life (and is she going to lose? She doesn't know, but oh, Raleigh, Raleigh, take their little girl and run away, don't come home), and suddenly he was hauled off her, a sickening crack reverberating in the room.
It's all over.
Mako stares blankly up into Raleigh's face for a moment, and when he says her name, when she sees the look he wears and something breaks inside her. Raleigh, who had killed for her, Raleigh, who just killed for her again -- because nothing's changed and even with all the hurts they've endured it's never going to change and -- ]
Raleigh. [ She doesn't think, doesn't stop when she straightens up, bleeding and in pain but it's nothing she can't fix, they're nothing she can't fix, and she reaches for him and grips him tight. She might be getting blood all over his sweater but suck it up; she's still struggling to get a grip on herself. There's a dead man in her bedroom, and all that. ] Raleigh. Our baby, where is she?
With Jaz-- oh God, Mako where are you bleeding from?
[He could honestly not care about the fact that his sweater is ruined now-- though it's going to be hard to explain to his sister if she ever sees him like this but they kind of... have to dump the body first so maybe he'll worry about that later.
Raleigh's got her blood on his hands and it feels like his skin is burning because of it, because he almost lost her. He could have lost her. She's so capable of taking care of herself and he knows that but he knows a losing fight when he sees it too and weight goes a long way when you've got the upper hand and Mako is just like a stick.
He can't do this, Mako. Not like this. He can't ever run the risk of losing her again when he barely has her in the first place. It's too much. He needs her, he needs her.]
Where is it? Fuck, Mako, I love you. I'm so sorry.
[ Eleanor is safe and away. Good. And yeah. Yeah, the body. The dead man; they both know enough of disposing a body that it's not a stretch, and Mako is dazed for a few long moments, on the fringes of going into shock before Raleigh's voice calls her back. He needs her, she knows, he needs her and she has to be there for him -- it's the way it's always worked, a lifetime ago.
But here they are, right in her bedroom with a blast from the past and it's as if nothing's changed; the two of them, lovers and outlaws and partners in crime and killers and the knowledge threatens to choke her. You never run away from your past -- but here Raleigh is, solid and strong and distressed he'd saved her from a fight she was going to lose. She feels warm blood trickling down, sticky and uncomfortable and she fights the urge to curl up against him, when she lifts her shirt.
It's a not deep graze on her side -- not fatal, but it'd be a bit of a pain in the ass to treat because it's bleeding everywhere -- inches beneath the scar that had been a souvenir of the first time she'd met Raleigh, when he'd saved her instead of letting her bleed out.
And here, he'd saved her again. Her thumb traces lightly over the puckered scar tissue, reminded of his kindness, before she applies pressure directly to the wound.
I love you, too, she wants to say. I love you so much. Because she does, and there's nothing like a near-death experience to be brutally clear of one's priorities in life. She needs him, he's the last person she'd thought about when she'd been dying and that means the world, doesn't it? It means everything, when the last thought on your mind is your not-quite-ex. ]
Years later, and we're still meeting each other like this.
[That's so not funny. It's so unfunny that Raleigh can't hold back the laughter that spills from his throat, this high pitched sound that sounds more like he's going to cry than anything else. Because it really is not funny, he doesn't care how ironic it is because he-- just can't lose her.
Raleigh closes his fingers over hers on top of the wound on her side, it's bleeding like crazy but it looked more superficial than anything when he glimpsed it earlier.]
That's a shitty joke. Do you have a first aid kit or something? God, you're bleeding everywhere.
[ She almost died, she's allowed to make shitty jokes. But no, it's how Mako copes instead of going into shock, because there's a dead man in her room and Raleigh's so close to freaking out and she's that close to it too because everything's too complicated, all the hurts and feelings and she just wants it to be okay again. She just wants them to be together again because she hates the ache she gets when she misses him so much, when she just wants to kiss him and make it all fine again, please.
There's blood on his hands (in more ways than one) and she's sorry, and Mako fights that wave of sentiment before she gestures to the bathroom. ] Under the sink.
[ She comes to cup her face with a clean hand, making him look at her. It's okay, baby. Baby, it's all right. ] ...I'll be fine. Don't worry.
[She can make all the shitty jokes she wants when she's no longer bleeding, okay? Okay.
Raleigh doesn't think, he just leans in when she touches his face and kisses her gently, on the forehead first and then one cheek and then her mouth, reassuring himself that she's really okay, that she's here, that he got here in time, that they are going to figure this out.
Then he pulls away to get the first aid kit. First they need to take care of her and then they can figure out what to do next. With the bloody sheets, with the body, with the fact that they aren't safe here anymore.]
[ Mako almost chases after him when he pulls away, the sweetness of his kisses a staggering realisation -- you never really know how much you miss a person until they do something that makes your heart skip a beat. She feels the tight clench in her chest that has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that there's a dead man in the bedroom, and she sits gingerly on the edge of the bed, careful not to jostle further.
There is blood, sticky and hot and ticklish down her wrist, and she grits her teeth. Jokes aside, there's far too many things they need to do -- ] Lighter, too. Needle, and dental floss. You know what to do.
[ Mako pauses, after a moment, feeling the oddest pang of deja vu; she hadn't felt like this in so long. Mako might be a mother now, but she hasn't forgotten her training. ] There's a half-open bottle of whiskey. Second medicine drawer to your left.
[He does remember what to do it and for a moment, he curls his fingers so tightly around the first aid kit that his knuckles turn white. Because he's so protective of her that he can't even stand the memory of when she's hurt, much less handle it well when she's bleeding in front of him.
Raleigh returns with everything she asked for, hands her the bottle of whiskey as he sits down next to her.]
Who keeps whiskey in their bathroom? Honestly, Mako.
[ And speaking of old habits, she knows how he doesn't handle it at all, and Mako bites her lip briefly -- he's forgotten how tender Raleigh is, how emotional he can be, and maybe a part of her has forgotten how much she loves him. How truly, how deeply; how she would do anything for him. She pauses, and sets the bottle of whiskey on the floor, the kit on her lap, as is the needle and the lighter, together with the floss. ]
Could you set a kettle to boil? [ She asks quietly. ] Please make me some tea?
[ A distraction, to keep him occupied while she tends to her wounds. She'd seen the look on his face, she'd seen the way his knuckles turn white -- the last thing she wants to do is to expose him to more of this. Protective? Hell yes, she's just as protective of him, too. ]
[Raleigh's not an idiot, he knows exactly what she's trying to do with asking for a cup of tea. And he almost turns her down straight up because he just-- doesn't want to leave her side at all. He doesn't want to go more than two feet away from her for a long, long time and no one could blame him for that.
But he also knows that she'll fight him on it and does he really want to pick a fight with her right now?
He purses his lips for a moment, before he nods slightly and leans in to kiss her forehead again, she didn't protest the last time he kissed her, so why would she start now? They're probably going to actually have to talk about this at some point but it can wait.]
[ Mako doesn't flinch when he kisses her forehead, and it surprises even her, too, that the sweetness of the gesture is accepted (and oddly enough, sets her heart aflutter because this is the worst timing for that to happen), that he's done it before and it's okay, and it's okay now, too, and eventually they'll have to talk about this.
She sees, too, the look on his face and knows that he's on to her, that he's never been fooled by the things she says to him and that's too bad, Raleigh, you're making her tea and you're going to like it. ]
White, with sugar. [ She tells him, and decides to throw in, for good measure. ] I'd like the milk boiled, please.
[ Now go, so that she can stitch herself up in peace. She'll be finishing up when he comes in with the tea. ]
[He's going, even if he's still not that happy about it. But he seems to accept it for what it is and it gives him time to call Jazmine, so that she doesn't worry, so that she knows that something came up and she needs to hang on to Eleanor for the rest of the day with no supplies and no he can't talk about it now but he'll explain it later.
By the time that Raleigh comes back to her bedroom, stepping around the body like it's nothing, he's got more than half a plan in mind about what to do next and he's got her tea and this situation is really fucked up if you think about it too deeply.]
[ Everything's not okay, and that's why they both don't think about it too deeply. Everything is not today, and all of this is so fucked up from start to end that if Mako had been given time to think about it, she'd never stop laughing.
It's a mess, all of it, but at least she's patched herself up, her shirt discarded so prevent the cloth from slipping into the wound while she's getting shit done. When he comes back with her tea, she's more or less ready, and they just -- they need to get rid of the body, and move. ]
...I'm fine. [ She'd even had the time to wash her hands. Blood-free and clean, now. Mako pauses, and takes the cup from him. ] ...And you? Are you okay?
I called Jazmine, she and Eleanor are fine for the rest of the afternoon.
[Which-- is really not an answer to her question and he knows that. It's weird because he doesn't even care that they're going to dump a body and work on disappearing again, that doesn't even bother him. It's almost like second nature, a skill that he hasn't used in a long time but his muscle memory is still there.
Like riding a bike.]
Fuck, are we done dancing around each other now? Please?
[ It's been a long time coming -- it's a given that he would say that, that he, too, would get tired of them dancing around each other. They'd been doing this for months and months now, and there'd always been a barrier, something that's been broken today, finally between them.
They can bury it today, right? All the hurts, all the trespasses, all the pain and regrets. Her gaze softens, because Raleigh's never asked her for anything like that before, and her heart aches for him, for the both of them.
Wordlessly, she sets the cup aside and takes him into her arms, her hand coming up to cradle the back of his head and hold him against her because the ball is in her court, and Raleigh's waited long enough. They both have. She embraces him, finally, and she fights the urge to cry because she's missed him so, so much, and she'd never stopped loving him, not for a second, not for a heartbeat.
Yes, she wants to say, but the words are caught in her throat. Yes. I'm so sorry. ]
[Raleigh lets out a sigh that's nearly three years old when she steps into him, curls his arms around her middle, probably presses on her fresh stitches a little when he pulls her in tight. Thank God, finally, it's a step in the right direction and if someone had to die for it to happen-- well.
He's not sure he's sorry.
She doesn't have to say it because he reads it in her expression, in the way she fits in his arms, in the way where he turns his head to the side and presses his lips to her temple. They're hurt each other, yes, each cutting the other down to the bone and leaving them to bleed but they can make it past that. He loves her too much to let her get away a second time and he's just relieved that it's mutual.]
Kiss me. [ Mako finally says, her words thick in her throat, muffled against his broad shoulder. She'd been thinking about this for the longest time -- of having him in her arms finally, the way he just fits, even after so long.
It's an earth-shattering moment, this homecoming, this culmination of years worth of absence and longing and love doesn't die, not really, not always, and he makes her heart soar in so many ways. Feeling his lips against her skin, she knows it's not enough. Not enough, not now. He presses at her stitches and she fights down a wince because that hurts, baby, but then nothing is going to hurt more than his absence, than the fact that he's not kissing her stupid right now. ]
[There's still a dead body a few feet away from them, they still have to find a way to grab his sister and their daughter and for all four of them to slip away back into the unknown because like fuck is his leaving Jazmine a second time and it's probably the least romantic moment of his entire life and the worst time to be thinking with their crotches.
But he kisses her anyway, taking her by the chin and pressing his lips to hers, hard and demanding and forgiving and exploring and feeling her again. Because he's waited long enough to do this and it doesn't seem possible to wait until after the other shit is taken care of to fix this. To fix them. To be Mako and Raleigh again.]
[ Her face is tipped up to his, and her arms come around his shoulder when he kisses her, heated and passionate and wanting, and for a moment like this they can stay this way -- dead guy's not going to get any more dead, anyway. She knows what they're going to do because they've done this before, and now that she has him by her side they could do this together, them and their family.
For now, her mouth opens against his, letting him in, mapping him out and exploring him herself, letting him know in not so many words that yes, yes of course she loves him too -- she'd only ever loved him. They're fixing themselves and maybe she's just starting to cry a little, stray tears mixing with kisses because the weight that's lifted off her shoulders is incredible, the passion that she remembers from Raleigh -- and it's always, always been him. ]
[Raleigh slides his mouth from hers, so he can kiss along the tear tracks on her face. Fuck, he's missed her so much and he was such an idiot for thinking that he could do without her, because she's the reason he's even still alive. She's the reason he gets up in the morning and does something with his day that isn't waiting for it to be over. That isn't baiting death to just take him already because he's so tired and so lonely that he can't see the end of this.
By the time that he wanders back to her mouth, there's salt on his face too, but he doesn't care about that, just kisses her softly. Because he's in love with this perfect, strong woman and she needs to be made aware of that.]
[ She's not crying, she's totally not crying -- okay, maybe she really is, just a little bit, when the weight of being separated from each other for far too long crashes all around them, and they're more than just a little desperate because that's what people do when they're too far apart for too long.
She'd missed him too, she'd missed the hell out of him, his absence in her life had been excruciating, and even when he had been back, when they'd kept their distance because there was so much they had yet to sort out -- she wanted him, needed him. He's kissing her tears away and it's just like him, isn't it? It's just like Raleigh to be so thoughtful, to be so gentle, and her hold tightens on his shoulder. ]
I love you, Raleigh. [ She murmurs quietly, because he's hurting too, and her lips are against his only for a moment before she's doing the same thing to him, soothing him -- they're not alone, not anymore. ] I never stopped.
[His eyes drift closed when she starts kissing his face and his hands get restless, moving between her shoulders and her waist, just lightly running his fingers over her back.]
Don't be. [ Her hands come up to cradle his face, to soothe him because this is all right; things are breaking apart but they're coming together again, and they're alive and that's all that should matter. She presses her nose lightly against his, quietly comforting. ]
You came back for me. [ And that's the most important thing. ] We'll need to sort that one out later, [ meaning the body, and it's painful, how much she's missed him, how much she still loves him. Shifting against his touch, she easily takes the lead, easing him back against the wall. Old habits never die, eh? ] but that can wait for a little while.
[There's got to be a screw loose in his head, because it's-- really hot that she's pushing him into a wall and running her hands all over him instead of you know, worrying about the body in her bedroom, or being busted for murder or that the old MC knows how to find them.
He sighs against her, leaning in to kiss her quietly.]
I shouldn't have left in the first place. But I'm done running, I promise.
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The closest he ever gets is Mako falling asleep on his shoulder during a movie while Eleanor sleeps in her crib across the room and he spends the entire movie just watching her. He hurt her, he realizes that, and he can only try to heal that wound with time and patience and he'll wait for as long as he has to for her.
Fate, or something, pushes his hand. It has him dropping Eleanor off with his sister to babysit and he has to double back to Mako's to get her diaper bag because he forgot it, but he leaves the baby with Jaz because she can manage for a little while. When he gets there, her door is kicked in and there's signs of a struggle and Raleigh stopped carrying a gun a long time ago but he knows how to kill a man with his bare hands still. And he doesn't even hesitate when he finds Mako and her attacker in the bedroom, just sees someone trying to kill her and she's bleeding and he snaps.
So does the man's neck. It's only after that Raleigh realizes he knows this man, that he's from the club and how did he find her? How did he find Mako and is this about him too and--]
Mako?
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It takes time, and effort, but they're slowly coming to an equilibrium, learning to come together again, and despite the difficulties there are some things that come easily, like the way he feels beside her when she nods off at a movie, the strength of his shoulder, the warmth of his smile. Raleigh is gentle, he's grown in the two years he'd been gone and so had she, and there were always the rough spots -- but which relationship didn't?
This morning, they feel more like a family than ever, and for the first time she takes that tentative step, trusts him to take Eleanor to Jazmine's for her to babysit for the day while she popped over to the farmer's market to pick up fresh fruit and vegetables -- which was when things had gone terribly wrong.
One of their old compatriots had found her, and had followed her all the way back to the apartment before kicking in the door and catching her by surprise. While Mako is more than capable of handling one angry biker from their old club, the bullet from his gun grazes her side, nicks flesh and the pain, the pain had been shocking. Mako had been out of the life for too long, and she struggled under his weight when the man pinned her to the bed and was right about the finish the job.
Mako's bleeding everywhere, fighting for her life (and is she going to lose? She doesn't know, but oh, Raleigh, Raleigh, take their little girl and run away, don't come home), and suddenly he was hauled off her, a sickening crack reverberating in the room.
It's all over.
Mako stares blankly up into Raleigh's face for a moment, and when he says her name, when she sees the look he wears and something breaks inside her. Raleigh, who had killed for her, Raleigh, who just killed for her again -- because nothing's changed and even with all the hurts they've endured it's never going to change and -- ]
Raleigh. [ She doesn't think, doesn't stop when she straightens up, bleeding and in pain but it's nothing she can't fix, they're nothing she can't fix, and she reaches for him and grips him tight. She might be getting blood all over his sweater but suck it up; she's still struggling to get a grip on herself. There's a dead man in her bedroom, and all that. ] Raleigh. Our baby, where is she?
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[He could honestly not care about the fact that his sweater is ruined now-- though it's going to be hard to explain to his sister if she ever sees him like this but they kind of... have to dump the body first so maybe he'll worry about that later.
Raleigh's got her blood on his hands and it feels like his skin is burning because of it, because he almost lost her. He could have lost her. She's so capable of taking care of herself and he knows that but he knows a losing fight when he sees it too and weight goes a long way when you've got the upper hand and Mako is just like a stick.
He can't do this, Mako. Not like this. He can't ever run the risk of losing her again when he barely has her in the first place. It's too much. He needs her, he needs her.]
Where is it? Fuck, Mako, I love you. I'm so sorry.
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But here they are, right in her bedroom with a blast from the past and it's as if nothing's changed; the two of them, lovers and outlaws and partners in crime and killers and the knowledge threatens to choke her. You never run away from your past -- but here Raleigh is, solid and strong and distressed he'd saved her from a fight she was going to lose. She feels warm blood trickling down, sticky and uncomfortable and she fights the urge to curl up against him, when she lifts her shirt.
It's a not deep graze on her side -- not fatal, but it'd be a bit of a pain in the ass to treat because it's bleeding everywhere -- inches beneath the scar that had been a souvenir of the first time she'd met Raleigh, when he'd saved her instead of letting her bleed out.
And here, he'd saved her again. Her thumb traces lightly over the puckered scar tissue, reminded of his kindness, before she applies pressure directly to the wound.
I love you, too, she wants to say. I love you so much. Because she does, and there's nothing like a near-death experience to be brutally clear of one's priorities in life. She needs him, he's the last person she'd thought about when she'd been dying and that means the world, doesn't it? It means everything, when the last thought on your mind is your not-quite-ex. ]
Years later, and we're still meeting each other like this.
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Raleigh closes his fingers over hers on top of the wound on her side, it's bleeding like crazy but it looked more superficial than anything when he glimpsed it earlier.]
That's a shitty joke. Do you have a first aid kit or something? God, you're bleeding everywhere.
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There's blood on his hands (in more ways than one) and she's sorry, and Mako fights that wave of sentiment before she gestures to the bathroom. ] Under the sink.
[ She comes to cup her face with a clean hand, making him look at her. It's okay, baby. Baby, it's all right. ] ...I'll be fine. Don't worry.
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Raleigh doesn't think, he just leans in when she touches his face and kisses her gently, on the forehead first and then one cheek and then her mouth, reassuring himself that she's really okay, that she's here, that he got here in time, that they are going to figure this out.
Then he pulls away to get the first aid kit. First they need to take care of her and then they can figure out what to do next. With the bloody sheets, with the body, with the fact that they aren't safe here anymore.]
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There is blood, sticky and hot and ticklish down her wrist, and she grits her teeth. Jokes aside, there's far too many things they need to do -- ] Lighter, too. Needle, and dental floss. You know what to do.
[ Mako pauses, after a moment, feeling the oddest pang of deja vu; she hadn't felt like this in so long. Mako might be a mother now, but she hasn't forgotten her training. ] There's a half-open bottle of whiskey. Second medicine drawer to your left.
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Raleigh returns with everything she asked for, hands her the bottle of whiskey as he sits down next to her.]
Who keeps whiskey in their bathroom? Honestly, Mako.
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[ And speaking of old habits, she knows how he doesn't handle it at all, and Mako bites her lip briefly -- he's forgotten how tender Raleigh is, how emotional he can be, and maybe a part of her has forgotten how much she loves him. How truly, how deeply; how she would do anything for him. She pauses, and sets the bottle of whiskey on the floor, the kit on her lap, as is the needle and the lighter, together with the floss. ]
Could you set a kettle to boil? [ She asks quietly. ] Please make me some tea?
[ A distraction, to keep him occupied while she tends to her wounds. She'd seen the look on his face, she'd seen the way his knuckles turn white -- the last thing she wants to do is to expose him to more of this. Protective? Hell yes, she's just as protective of him, too. ]
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But he also knows that she'll fight him on it and does he really want to pick a fight with her right now?
He purses his lips for a moment, before he nods slightly and leans in to kiss her forehead again, she didn't protest the last time he kissed her, so why would she start now? They're probably going to actually have to talk about this at some point but it can wait.]
Yeah. What kind do you want?
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She sees, too, the look on his face and knows that he's on to her, that he's never been fooled by the things she says to him and that's too bad, Raleigh, you're making her tea and you're going to like it. ]
White, with sugar. [ She tells him, and decides to throw in, for good measure. ] I'd like the milk boiled, please.
[ Now go, so that she can stitch herself up in peace. She'll be finishing up when he comes in with the tea. ]
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By the time that Raleigh comes back to her bedroom, stepping around the body like it's nothing, he's got more than half a plan in mind about what to do next and he's got her tea and this situation is really fucked up if you think about it too deeply.]
Everything okay?
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It's a mess, all of it, but at least she's patched herself up, her shirt discarded so prevent the cloth from slipping into the wound while she's getting shit done. When he comes back with her tea, she's more or less ready, and they just -- they need to get rid of the body, and move. ]
...I'm fine. [ She'd even had the time to wash her hands. Blood-free and clean, now. Mako pauses, and takes the cup from him. ] ...And you? Are you okay?
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[Which-- is really not an answer to her question and he knows that. It's weird because he doesn't even care that they're going to dump a body and work on disappearing again, that doesn't even bother him. It's almost like second nature, a skill that he hasn't used in a long time but his muscle memory is still there.
Like riding a bike.]
Fuck, are we done dancing around each other now? Please?
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They can bury it today, right? All the hurts, all the trespasses, all the pain and regrets. Her gaze softens, because Raleigh's never asked her for anything like that before, and her heart aches for him, for the both of them.
Wordlessly, she sets the cup aside and takes him into her arms, her hand coming up to cradle the back of his head and hold him against her because the ball is in her court, and Raleigh's waited long enough. They both have. She embraces him, finally, and she fights the urge to cry because she's missed him so, so much, and she'd never stopped loving him, not for a second, not for a heartbeat.
Yes, she wants to say, but the words are caught in her throat. Yes. I'm so sorry. ]
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He's not sure he's sorry.
She doesn't have to say it because he reads it in her expression, in the way she fits in his arms, in the way where he turns his head to the side and presses his lips to her temple. They're hurt each other, yes, each cutting the other down to the bone and leaving them to bleed but they can make it past that. He loves her too much to let her get away a second time and he's just relieved that it's mutual.]
I love you.
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It's an earth-shattering moment, this homecoming, this culmination of years worth of absence and longing and love doesn't die, not really, not always, and he makes her heart soar in so many ways. Feeling his lips against her skin, she knows it's not enough. Not enough, not now. He presses at her stitches and she fights down a wince because that hurts, baby, but then nothing is going to hurt more than his absence, than the fact that he's not kissing her stupid right now. ]
Can we just be kissing right now?
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But he kisses her anyway, taking her by the chin and pressing his lips to hers, hard and demanding and forgiving and exploring and feeling her again. Because he's waited long enough to do this and it doesn't seem possible to wait until after the other shit is taken care of to fix this. To fix them. To be Mako and Raleigh again.]
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For now, her mouth opens against his, letting him in, mapping him out and exploring him herself, letting him know in not so many words that yes, yes of course she loves him too -- she'd only ever loved him. They're fixing themselves and maybe she's just starting to cry a little, stray tears mixing with kisses because the weight that's lifted off her shoulders is incredible, the passion that she remembers from Raleigh -- and it's always, always been him. ]
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By the time that he wanders back to her mouth, there's salt on his face too, but he doesn't care about that, just kisses her softly. Because he's in love with this perfect, strong woman and she needs to be made aware of that.]
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She'd missed him too, she'd missed the hell out of him, his absence in her life had been excruciating, and even when he had been back, when they'd kept their distance because there was so much they had yet to sort out -- she wanted him, needed him. He's kissing her tears away and it's just like him, isn't it? It's just like Raleigh to be so thoughtful, to be so gentle, and her hold tightens on his shoulder. ]
I love you, Raleigh. [ She murmurs quietly, because he's hurting too, and her lips are against his only for a moment before she's doing the same thing to him, soothing him -- they're not alone, not anymore. ] I never stopped.
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[His eyes drift closed when she starts kissing his face and his hands get restless, moving between her shoulders and her waist, just lightly running his fingers over her back.]
I'm so, so sorry.
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You came back for me. [ And that's the most important thing. ] We'll need to sort that one out later, [ meaning the body, and it's painful, how much she's missed him, how much she still loves him. Shifting against his touch, she easily takes the lead, easing him back against the wall. Old habits never die, eh? ] but that can wait for a little while.
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He sighs against her, leaning in to kiss her quietly.]
I shouldn't have left in the first place. But I'm done running, I promise.
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