On the Ninth Day of Christmas: A fic for everyone!
“I…” Sophie stumbled as she began her tale. Nate had given away a huge piece of himself for Christmas. It was only fair to meet him halfway. But the mastermind could tell it was harder for her. Whatever it was, she didn’t like that she was sharing it.
“I was three when my parents divorced,” she said, “Well it really wasn’t a divorce pursay. My mum… my mum left and my dad… well, he wasn’t exactly the same after that. I was the only girl, three older brothers. And I grew up watching my dad and the rest of them go through some pretty gruesome relationships.”
She chuckled darkly. Nate could see the tears glistening in her eyes, the rims slowly growing red with the weight of those tears. Even her shoulders slumped as the weight of the past returned to them. Yet the tears couldn’t fall. She wouldn’t let them and she trudged forward as if nothing was happening.
“My oldest brother actually got a girl pregnant when they were still in secondary school,” she recalled, “He did the right thing. Quit school, found a job and took great care of her and the baby. He started drinking to relieve the stress and they were just horrible together. And that was when I swore I would never get married.”
She paused, taking a very big sip of the whiskey Nate had poured. Her black eyes refused to look at any of them at that moment. They were cast down upon the counter, hiding away any sign of disturbance. Her hair fell to obscure her features too, protecting her from them in some way.
“Then I met William.”
She shrugged and swept her hair back. This was her idea after all. Nate could tell she was trying her very best to be honest with them. She was a professional grifter. The smallest piece of her past could have the greatest consequences. His hand itched and his head growled. He wanted to end her pain, tell her to stop. But she needed this. They all did.
“He was such a breath of fresh air,” she cried, “I’d never met anyone like him before and I honestly couldn’t tell you when the con stopped. I didn’t even realize…”
Her black eyes found his before she could even finish her sentence. Guilt shined brightly throughout them and a single tear fell down her cheek. Nate couldn’t fight the impulse anymore. His hand shot out and latched onto hers as if it had a mind of its own. He was rubbing circles into that beautiful hand with his thumb, hoping to give her some comfort.
“I bought him this silly little game we both had when we were kids,” she explained, “It had spirals coming up out of it and your players had to build bridges in order to walk across them. We were probably the only losers in the world who loved that game and I thought it would be a good idea, so I could… It was Christmas and I had stolen something from the wrong person. They finally found me and I…”
The guilt in her eyes was unbearable.
“I had to run,” she said wiping away a few tears as she spoke, “Long story short that didn’t end well and well… here I am!”
“Did you ever tell him?” Parker asked. Nobody needed verification. They all knew what she meant.
“No Parker,” Sophie sighed, “I never really got the chance. I… I still have my wedding rings though. I just can’t bring myself to get rid of them even now.”
“Love is forever,” Nate said. The others were staring at him in shock but he didn’t care. He just kept rubbing soothing circles into Sophie’s hand, silently reassuring her that everything was going to be okay. “Sometimes death just gets in the way.”
Sophie beamed. “I did learn a very important lesson though.”
“What?”
There was just a hint of sin on her lips, it made that smile of hers dangerous. Yet her eyes were shining and he couldn’t quite bring himself to feel scared. He just felt like she needed him. That was enough.
“Marriage isn’t exactly a bad thing,” she shrugged, “You just have to be honest about yourself and your feelings right from the start.”
“So you’re saying that you’re open to the idea of it, then?” He asked, his lips curling upward and the fearful looks coming from everybody else.
“We’ll see,” she said.
Nate couldn’t help the grin on his face as he listened to everybody tell their tale. He had finally asked the one question in the world he’d feared for several months. He went on a boat trip just to make sure that was what he wanted and that he could stick to that kind of commitment all over again. Now she said she was willing to give it a try too.
The box in his pocket felt heavier now. He could barely contain his excitement. She didn’t need to know yet. It was time. They had one last job to do before it would be time to go. He just hoped she would be willing to meet him all the way.
“I was three when my parents divorced,” she said, “Well it really wasn’t a divorce pursay. My mum… my mum left and my dad… well, he wasn’t exactly the same after that. I was the only girl, three older brothers. And I grew up watching my dad and the rest of them go through some pretty gruesome relationships.”
She chuckled darkly. Nate could see the tears glistening in her eyes, the rims slowly growing red with the weight of those tears. Even her shoulders slumped as the weight of the past returned to them. Yet the tears couldn’t fall. She wouldn’t let them and she trudged forward as if nothing was happening.
“My oldest brother actually got a girl pregnant when they were still in secondary school,” she recalled, “He did the right thing. Quit school, found a job and took great care of her and the baby. He started drinking to relieve the stress and they were just horrible together. And that was when I swore I would never get married.”
She paused, taking a very big sip of the whiskey Nate had poured. Her black eyes refused to look at any of them at that moment. They were cast down upon the counter, hiding away any sign of disturbance. Her hair fell to obscure her features too, protecting her from them in some way.
“Then I met William.”
She shrugged and swept her hair back. This was her idea after all. Nate could tell she was trying her very best to be honest with them. She was a professional grifter. The smallest piece of her past could have the greatest consequences. His hand itched and his head growled. He wanted to end her pain, tell her to stop. But she needed this. They all did.
“He was such a breath of fresh air,” she cried, “I’d never met anyone like him before and I honestly couldn’t tell you when the con stopped. I didn’t even realize…”
Her black eyes found his before she could even finish her sentence. Guilt shined brightly throughout them and a single tear fell down her cheek. Nate couldn’t fight the impulse anymore. His hand shot out and latched onto hers as if it had a mind of its own. He was rubbing circles into that beautiful hand with his thumb, hoping to give her some comfort.
“I bought him this silly little game we both had when we were kids,” she explained, “It had spirals coming up out of it and your players had to build bridges in order to walk across them. We were probably the only losers in the world who loved that game and I thought it would be a good idea, so I could… It was Christmas and I had stolen something from the wrong person. They finally found me and I…”
The guilt in her eyes was unbearable.
“I had to run,” she said wiping away a few tears as she spoke, “Long story short that didn’t end well and well… here I am!”
“Did you ever tell him?” Parker asked. Nobody needed verification. They all knew what she meant.
“No Parker,” Sophie sighed, “I never really got the chance. I… I still have my wedding rings though. I just can’t bring myself to get rid of them even now.”
“Love is forever,” Nate said. The others were staring at him in shock but he didn’t care. He just kept rubbing soothing circles into Sophie’s hand, silently reassuring her that everything was going to be okay. “Sometimes death just gets in the way.”
Sophie beamed. “I did learn a very important lesson though.”
“What?”
There was just a hint of sin on her lips, it made that smile of hers dangerous. Yet her eyes were shining and he couldn’t quite bring himself to feel scared. He just felt like she needed him. That was enough.
“Marriage isn’t exactly a bad thing,” she shrugged, “You just have to be honest about yourself and your feelings right from the start.”
“So you’re saying that you’re open to the idea of it, then?” He asked, his lips curling upward and the fearful looks coming from everybody else.
“We’ll see,” she said.
Nate couldn’t help the grin on his face as he listened to everybody tell their tale. He had finally asked the one question in the world he’d feared for several months. He went on a boat trip just to make sure that was what he wanted and that he could stick to that kind of commitment all over again. Now she said she was willing to give it a try too.
The box in his pocket felt heavier now. He could barely contain his excitement. She didn’t need to know yet. It was time. They had one last job to do before it would be time to go. He just hoped she would be willing to meet him all the way.