FIC- Lies for Love Part Twenty-Four
Title: Lies for love
Pairing: Thirteen/Cameron, Thirteen/Cuddy
Rating: NC-17
Spoilers: Pretty much zilch. This is set at the beginning of Season 5 when House has his new team but contains nothing about them specific to episodes.
Disclaimer: I own... nada.
Summary: Thirteen can't remain faithful and risks losing everything that matters to her.
( Part One.) ( Part Two) ( Part Three) (Part Four) (Part Five) (Part Six) (Part Seven) (Part Eight) (Part Nine) (Part Ten) (Part Eleven) (Part Twelve) (Part Thirteen) (Part Fourteen) (Part Fifteen) (Part Sixteen) (Part Seventeen) (Part Eighteen) (Part Nineteen) (Part Twenty) (Part Twenty-One) (Part Twenty-Two) (Part Twenty-Three)
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24.
For the best part of half an hour, Thirteen sat in her car. Every time she tried to pluck up the courage to leave she got as far as opening the car door before her nerves kicked in. She sighed. It seemed so pointless to do this, she was almost a hundred percent certain that if Cuddy didn’t slam the door in her face she would tell her to go to hell anyway. Whenever they’d tried to talk about what happened Thirteen always allowed her defences to rise and she verbally attacked Cuddy; something that was an extremely stupid thing to do considering that this was entirely her doing. If she ever managed to leave the damn car then she would have to keep her temper in check and her negative thoughts to herself.
Unlike before when she entered into conversations with Cuddy without really thinking through what she was going to say, this time Thirteen had planned it. She was going to make sure that one way or another Cuddy knew she loved her, and that she was sorry for screwing up their relationship. She was going to apologise for lying and for constantly shouting at Cuddy and making her feel as if she was to blame. If Cuddy still didn’t want to know that was her prerogative, but Thirteen was going to push and push until Cuddy gave her an answer one way or another.
After another five minutes, Thirteen took a deep breath. About to get out of the car, there was a tap on the passenger window. “Cuddy?” Thirteen’s heart skipped a beat as she saw her standing there. She got out of the car, shakily closing the door and locking in.
Cuddy walked around to Thirteen who was standing on the driver’s side. “I’ve been watching you sit there for the past twenty minutes, but I suspect you’ve been here longer than that. What do you want?”
“To uhhh... to talk,” Thirteen stuttered nervously.
“Oh,” Cuddy looked surprised. “I thought you’d come to collect your things. I’ve put them together in a box for you.”
“That’s a bit cliché; isn’t it?” Thirteen attempted a joke.
Cuddy ignored her and began walking back to her house. Taking this as a sign that she was to follow, Thirteen did so, trailing behind. She didn’t know how to start the conversation with Cuddy. She supposed she should be grateful that she hadn’t had to beg to be let in or use the key she possessed, but somehow it was hard to feel gratitude when her things were currently gathered in a box in Cuddy’s hall. It was logical that Cuddy would want to rid herself of them; she wouldn’t want remembering. Thirteen on the other hand wished that Cuddy had been to her place more often so that she had her possessions, which she wouldn’t have wanted to give back. The only thing Thirteen had was the key for Cuddy’s house; something that she would definitely have to return if they split up.
“Here,” They were now inside, and Cuddy handed over the cardboard box to Thirteen.
“Thanks,” Thirteen said meekly, taking the box. “Wow... it’s heavier than I thought it would be.”
“There’s two pairs of your knee length boots in there and a good few CD’s,” Cuddy explained. She walked through to the living room and once more, Thirteen followed.
Once they were sat down on the couch, Thirteen opened the lid, began rummaging through. She spotted a mix CD that she’d made for Cuddy, and she pulled it out. “I made this for you.” She tried to hand it back to Cuddy.
“I don’t want it,” Cuddy refused quietly.
“Oh,” Thirteen said, hurt. “Ok.”
“What did you want to say?” Cuddy asked bravely, her facial expression betraying the fact that she was finding this difficult to deal with.
“I want us to talk without fighting,” Thirteen got straight to the point.
“You’ve said that before. It didn’t work then, and it won’t work now. Let’s just skip to the fight so you storm off; it is your turn this time after all,” Cuddy immediately became defensive.
Unlike she had previously, Thirteen didn’t rise to the bait. “The fight isn’t going to come this time,” she said softly.
Cuddy shook her head disbelievingly.
“Umm... I guess I’ll start, unless you want to?” Thirteen left it for Cuddy to decide, but there was no answer or indication from the other woman, so she continued. “Ok well, the most important thing I came to say is that I love you.”
No reaction from Cuddy.
Thirteen carried on, “And I’m really sorry. Not just for cheating on you with Cameron, but for the way I treated you after, for trying to fool you, for everything. I was a total bitch. I lied to you, and I don’t blame you for hating me. But...”
“I don’t hate you,” Cuddy interrupted.
Thirteen blinked. “Oh,” She gathered her thoughts together. “You know, Cameron said that to me once.” As soon as she’d spoken she wanted to kick herself. Like Cuddy would want to know that.
Surprisingly however, Cuddy faced Thirteen for the first time. “Why?”
“I said to her that she needed to keep her hatred for me secret so that House didn’t find out, and she replied that she hated what I’d done to her, but she didn’t hate me,” Upon seeing the pain in Cuddy’s eyes Thirteen added, “I’m sorry... again. You probably didn’t want to know that.”
“It’s fine,” Cuddy said quietly. “You’re being honest for once. I appreciate it, no matter how much it hurts.”
“You want honesty?” Thirteen hadn’t planned to say what she was about to, but something inside told her it might help. “Cameron found out about you and I being together because... well I called out your name when we were having sex.”
Cuddy shut her eyes, swallowed hard. For a second or two, Thirteen was scared she’d made the wrong decision and revealed too much. But then Cuddy said hesitantly, “So you thought about me when you were...?” She couldn’t finish the sentence, but Thirteen knew what she was trying to ask. They’d touched upon the subject briefly when they talked about the affair, but never in detail.
“All the time,” Thirteen admitted, ashamed. “That’s why I couldn’t understand my behaviour. And looking back, Cameron should have just been my best friend, not my lover. I didn’t have any feelings for her in that way.” Thirteen paused. “I didn’t tell you because I was terrified you would leave me if you found out.”
“So you don’t know why you cheated?” Cuddy asked.
“In a weird way,” Thirteen tried to find the right words to explain. “It was because I was so in love with you. I was scared and I couldn’t come out and say that I loved you because I didn’t know if you felt the same. Then when you did... I was so happy. That’s why I could say it back, because you loved me and I finally felt like I could tell the truth... so I ended it with Cameron.” She stopped talking to formulate the next few sentences in her head.
“Go on,” Cuddy said quietly.
“The first time... it was just a stupid drunken mistake. It was the night I went out on my own, and I was upset about you working and not being able to spend time with me. Then the next time I promised myself it wouldn’t happen again but it did. And then again and again until I stopped promising myself it wouldn’t happen and started promising myself you wouldn’t, couldn’t find out.”
“Did you really think you could keep it a secret?” Cuddy shook her head. “You know the truth always comes out in the end.”
“I didn’t want to hurt you,” Thirteen told her. Taking the chance, she placed a hand on Cuddy’s, thrilled when she didn’t pull away. “And I didn’t want to lose you because you’re the only person I’ve ever loved.”
“You’ve never been in love before?” Cuddy looked doubtful.
“No. Every person I’ve ever been with has been so wrong for me. Most of them have treated me badly and when I finally ended up with you... you were nothing like any of them. I didn’t know how to deal with it.” Thirteen moved closer to Cuddy. “The few times I have dated someone decent I always fucked it up deliberately before they weren’t so decent anymore.”
“So what... you hurt me before I hurt you?” Cuddy guessed.
“I suppose,” Thirteen agreed. She sighed, prepared herself for what she was about to say. “Look, I love you more than anything, Lisa. I want to make it up to you if you’ll give me another chance. That is... if you still love me?”
“Of course I still love you,” Cuddy whispered.
“So... there’s a chance?” Thirteen asked hopefully. When Cuddy didn’t reply; she took the opportunity. Snaking an arm around Cuddy’s waist, she began to kiss her, tentatively at first, allowing Cuddy to pull away if she wanted to. Except she didn’t.
However, there was no response either. Thirteen brought a hand up to Cuddy’s face, and gently traced her thumb over Cuddy’s cheekbone, down to her neck. She could feel Cuddy’s pulse rapidly beginning to increase, and so she knew this was having some sort of an effect on her. Moving towards her, Thirteen pressed her chest against Cuddy’s and continued to kiss her, gently nibbling on her bottom lip.
“Stop,” Cuddy said eventually, and Thirteen didn’t hesitate in obeying her. “I don’t want this to be the end but at the same time, I don’t know how I can ever trust you again.”
“What do you need me to do?” Thirteen saw an opportunity and took it.
“For a start you can withdraw your resignation. Running away isn’t going to help,” Cuddy instructed her.
“Fine,” Thirteen agreed.
“And you have to not retaliate if House tries to wind you up,” Cuddy continued.
Thirteen sighed. “Ok, but only because that’s what you want. If I had my way I’d take away his Vicodin for the next year.”
Cuddy smiled, giving Thirteen a little hope for the future. “And you know it goes without saying you have to stay away from Cameron.”
“Ok,” Thirteen nodded. “But if she talks to me...”
“Tell her she can’t,” Cuddy said harshly. “If you want this to work then you have to agree to that.”
“Of course I want this to work, and if that’s what it takes... so be it,” Thirteen shrugged, saddened slightly. As bad as she felt for Cameron; Cuddy was her main priority now.
“There’s something else,” Cuddy stated. “I came to see you last night... it was quite late. About one?”
“That was you?” Thirteen showed surprise.
“Yeah. I uhh... well I wanted to talk to you but you didn’t answer. Why?” Cuddy watched Thirteen, waiting for her answer.
Thirteen didn’t even consider lying. If Cuddy found out later on then she’d never give Thirteen another chance. “I was with a girl.”
“Oh,” Cuddy tried to hide her upset, but didn’t do a very good job.
“I was trying to forget you, so I went on a self-destruct mission for a few days. Slept around... got drunk... that sort of thing. Cameron made me see sense. She told me she spoke to you and that I should tell you how I feel,” Thirteen admitted.
“That’s pretty much what she told me,” Cuddy raised her eyebrows in surprise. “That’s why I went to yours.”
“Does it bother you?” Thirteen asked, scared to hear Cuddy’s answer.
“The fact that you slept with other people?” Cuddy checked.
Thirteen nodded.
“Of course it does. But we weren’t together so I can’t hold it against you,” she said tentatively. “And considering what happened between House and I, I don’t think I can judge you for that. So it bothers me, but it doesn’t matter.”
“Good,” Thirteen was relieved. Somewhat reluctantly she asked, “Is there anything else you want to know?”
“No, I think that’s it,” Cuddy allowed Thirteen to hold her hand. “For now.”
“Good,” Thirteen grinned, not able to stop herself. She’d been given another chance! Leaning towards Cuddy again, she moved to kiss her.
“Wait,” Cuddy warned, holding up her other hand. “I want us to move slowly.”
“I can’t kiss you?” Thirteen asked anxiously.
“I...” Cuddy looked torn.
Thirteen seized her chance. Crushing her lips against Cuddy’s, she didn’t give her a chance to say no. This time Cuddy responded and as she moaned, Thirteen slid her tongue into Cuddy’s mouth. It was a desperate, hungry kiss that Thirteen had craved for so long. She wanted to never let Cuddy go, she wanted to be with her forever. It seemed that Cuddy felt exactly the same way as there was no longer any hesitation, just passion as she ran her fingers through Thirteen’s hair, pulling her closer. Thirteen copied Cuddy’s actions, taking things one step further and bringing Cuddy onto her lap so that there was closer contact, more intimacy.
Though Cuddy went along with this for a few minutes, she eventually stopped kissing Thirteen yet again, though she did remain sitting on her lap. “I can’t go further... I’m sorry but I’m not ready for that now,” Cuddy said openly.
“It’s ok,” Thirteen promised. “As long as it takes.”
Cuddy smiled, her first true one since this whole mess had begun. “We can... we can do what we did on the first night, can’t we? I know it’s not time to sleep yet but we can just stay like this?” She leant her head on Thirteen’s chest, lying across her.
“Of course we can,” Thirteen wrapped her arms around Cuddy, holding her in a protective stance. “I’m just happy to have you back. I didn’t... I never thought that you’d take me back.”
“I didn’t think I would either,” Cuddy admitted. “Not in a million years.”
“I’m glad you have,” Thirteen said earnestly. “You’re completely amazing for even contemplating giving me another chance.” She clung to Cuddy. “I just... I want us to be happy.”
“Me too,” Cuddy whispered against Thirteen’s skin.
Smiling, Thirteen felt some of the fear and worry inside her dissipate. It was going to be ok.
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Pairing: Thirteen/Cameron, Thirteen/Cuddy
Rating: NC-17
Spoilers: Pretty much zilch. This is set at the beginning of Season 5 when House has his new team but contains nothing about them specific to episodes.
Disclaimer: I own... nada.
Summary: Thirteen can't remain faithful and risks losing everything that matters to her.
( Part One.) ( Part Two) ( Part Three) (Part Four) (Part Five) (Part Six) (Part Seven) (Part Eight) (Part Nine) (Part Ten) (Part Eleven) (Part Twelve) (Part Thirteen) (Part Fourteen) (Part Fifteen) (Part Sixteen) (Part Seventeen) (Part Eighteen) (Part Nineteen) (Part Twenty) (Part Twenty-One) (Part Twenty-Two) (Part Twenty-Three)
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24.
For the best part of half an hour, Thirteen sat in her car. Every time she tried to pluck up the courage to leave she got as far as opening the car door before her nerves kicked in. She sighed. It seemed so pointless to do this, she was almost a hundred percent certain that if Cuddy didn’t slam the door in her face she would tell her to go to hell anyway. Whenever they’d tried to talk about what happened Thirteen always allowed her defences to rise and she verbally attacked Cuddy; something that was an extremely stupid thing to do considering that this was entirely her doing. If she ever managed to leave the damn car then she would have to keep her temper in check and her negative thoughts to herself.
Unlike before when she entered into conversations with Cuddy without really thinking through what she was going to say, this time Thirteen had planned it. She was going to make sure that one way or another Cuddy knew she loved her, and that she was sorry for screwing up their relationship. She was going to apologise for lying and for constantly shouting at Cuddy and making her feel as if she was to blame. If Cuddy still didn’t want to know that was her prerogative, but Thirteen was going to push and push until Cuddy gave her an answer one way or another.
After another five minutes, Thirteen took a deep breath. About to get out of the car, there was a tap on the passenger window. “Cuddy?” Thirteen’s heart skipped a beat as she saw her standing there. She got out of the car, shakily closing the door and locking in.
Cuddy walked around to Thirteen who was standing on the driver’s side. “I’ve been watching you sit there for the past twenty minutes, but I suspect you’ve been here longer than that. What do you want?”
“To uhhh... to talk,” Thirteen stuttered nervously.
“Oh,” Cuddy looked surprised. “I thought you’d come to collect your things. I’ve put them together in a box for you.”
“That’s a bit cliché; isn’t it?” Thirteen attempted a joke.
Cuddy ignored her and began walking back to her house. Taking this as a sign that she was to follow, Thirteen did so, trailing behind. She didn’t know how to start the conversation with Cuddy. She supposed she should be grateful that she hadn’t had to beg to be let in or use the key she possessed, but somehow it was hard to feel gratitude when her things were currently gathered in a box in Cuddy’s hall. It was logical that Cuddy would want to rid herself of them; she wouldn’t want remembering. Thirteen on the other hand wished that Cuddy had been to her place more often so that she had her possessions, which she wouldn’t have wanted to give back. The only thing Thirteen had was the key for Cuddy’s house; something that she would definitely have to return if they split up.
“Here,” They were now inside, and Cuddy handed over the cardboard box to Thirteen.
“Thanks,” Thirteen said meekly, taking the box. “Wow... it’s heavier than I thought it would be.”
“There’s two pairs of your knee length boots in there and a good few CD’s,” Cuddy explained. She walked through to the living room and once more, Thirteen followed.
Once they were sat down on the couch, Thirteen opened the lid, began rummaging through. She spotted a mix CD that she’d made for Cuddy, and she pulled it out. “I made this for you.” She tried to hand it back to Cuddy.
“I don’t want it,” Cuddy refused quietly.
“Oh,” Thirteen said, hurt. “Ok.”
“What did you want to say?” Cuddy asked bravely, her facial expression betraying the fact that she was finding this difficult to deal with.
“I want us to talk without fighting,” Thirteen got straight to the point.
“You’ve said that before. It didn’t work then, and it won’t work now. Let’s just skip to the fight so you storm off; it is your turn this time after all,” Cuddy immediately became defensive.
Unlike she had previously, Thirteen didn’t rise to the bait. “The fight isn’t going to come this time,” she said softly.
Cuddy shook her head disbelievingly.
“Umm... I guess I’ll start, unless you want to?” Thirteen left it for Cuddy to decide, but there was no answer or indication from the other woman, so she continued. “Ok well, the most important thing I came to say is that I love you.”
No reaction from Cuddy.
Thirteen carried on, “And I’m really sorry. Not just for cheating on you with Cameron, but for the way I treated you after, for trying to fool you, for everything. I was a total bitch. I lied to you, and I don’t blame you for hating me. But...”
“I don’t hate you,” Cuddy interrupted.
Thirteen blinked. “Oh,” She gathered her thoughts together. “You know, Cameron said that to me once.” As soon as she’d spoken she wanted to kick herself. Like Cuddy would want to know that.
Surprisingly however, Cuddy faced Thirteen for the first time. “Why?”
“I said to her that she needed to keep her hatred for me secret so that House didn’t find out, and she replied that she hated what I’d done to her, but she didn’t hate me,” Upon seeing the pain in Cuddy’s eyes Thirteen added, “I’m sorry... again. You probably didn’t want to know that.”
“It’s fine,” Cuddy said quietly. “You’re being honest for once. I appreciate it, no matter how much it hurts.”
“You want honesty?” Thirteen hadn’t planned to say what she was about to, but something inside told her it might help. “Cameron found out about you and I being together because... well I called out your name when we were having sex.”
Cuddy shut her eyes, swallowed hard. For a second or two, Thirteen was scared she’d made the wrong decision and revealed too much. But then Cuddy said hesitantly, “So you thought about me when you were...?” She couldn’t finish the sentence, but Thirteen knew what she was trying to ask. They’d touched upon the subject briefly when they talked about the affair, but never in detail.
“All the time,” Thirteen admitted, ashamed. “That’s why I couldn’t understand my behaviour. And looking back, Cameron should have just been my best friend, not my lover. I didn’t have any feelings for her in that way.” Thirteen paused. “I didn’t tell you because I was terrified you would leave me if you found out.”
“So you don’t know why you cheated?” Cuddy asked.
“In a weird way,” Thirteen tried to find the right words to explain. “It was because I was so in love with you. I was scared and I couldn’t come out and say that I loved you because I didn’t know if you felt the same. Then when you did... I was so happy. That’s why I could say it back, because you loved me and I finally felt like I could tell the truth... so I ended it with Cameron.” She stopped talking to formulate the next few sentences in her head.
“Go on,” Cuddy said quietly.
“The first time... it was just a stupid drunken mistake. It was the night I went out on my own, and I was upset about you working and not being able to spend time with me. Then the next time I promised myself it wouldn’t happen again but it did. And then again and again until I stopped promising myself it wouldn’t happen and started promising myself you wouldn’t, couldn’t find out.”
“Did you really think you could keep it a secret?” Cuddy shook her head. “You know the truth always comes out in the end.”
“I didn’t want to hurt you,” Thirteen told her. Taking the chance, she placed a hand on Cuddy’s, thrilled when she didn’t pull away. “And I didn’t want to lose you because you’re the only person I’ve ever loved.”
“You’ve never been in love before?” Cuddy looked doubtful.
“No. Every person I’ve ever been with has been so wrong for me. Most of them have treated me badly and when I finally ended up with you... you were nothing like any of them. I didn’t know how to deal with it.” Thirteen moved closer to Cuddy. “The few times I have dated someone decent I always fucked it up deliberately before they weren’t so decent anymore.”
“So what... you hurt me before I hurt you?” Cuddy guessed.
“I suppose,” Thirteen agreed. She sighed, prepared herself for what she was about to say. “Look, I love you more than anything, Lisa. I want to make it up to you if you’ll give me another chance. That is... if you still love me?”
“Of course I still love you,” Cuddy whispered.
“So... there’s a chance?” Thirteen asked hopefully. When Cuddy didn’t reply; she took the opportunity. Snaking an arm around Cuddy’s waist, she began to kiss her, tentatively at first, allowing Cuddy to pull away if she wanted to. Except she didn’t.
However, there was no response either. Thirteen brought a hand up to Cuddy’s face, and gently traced her thumb over Cuddy’s cheekbone, down to her neck. She could feel Cuddy’s pulse rapidly beginning to increase, and so she knew this was having some sort of an effect on her. Moving towards her, Thirteen pressed her chest against Cuddy’s and continued to kiss her, gently nibbling on her bottom lip.
“Stop,” Cuddy said eventually, and Thirteen didn’t hesitate in obeying her. “I don’t want this to be the end but at the same time, I don’t know how I can ever trust you again.”
“What do you need me to do?” Thirteen saw an opportunity and took it.
“For a start you can withdraw your resignation. Running away isn’t going to help,” Cuddy instructed her.
“Fine,” Thirteen agreed.
“And you have to not retaliate if House tries to wind you up,” Cuddy continued.
Thirteen sighed. “Ok, but only because that’s what you want. If I had my way I’d take away his Vicodin for the next year.”
Cuddy smiled, giving Thirteen a little hope for the future. “And you know it goes without saying you have to stay away from Cameron.”
“Ok,” Thirteen nodded. “But if she talks to me...”
“Tell her she can’t,” Cuddy said harshly. “If you want this to work then you have to agree to that.”
“Of course I want this to work, and if that’s what it takes... so be it,” Thirteen shrugged, saddened slightly. As bad as she felt for Cameron; Cuddy was her main priority now.
“There’s something else,” Cuddy stated. “I came to see you last night... it was quite late. About one?”
“That was you?” Thirteen showed surprise.
“Yeah. I uhh... well I wanted to talk to you but you didn’t answer. Why?” Cuddy watched Thirteen, waiting for her answer.
Thirteen didn’t even consider lying. If Cuddy found out later on then she’d never give Thirteen another chance. “I was with a girl.”
“Oh,” Cuddy tried to hide her upset, but didn’t do a very good job.
“I was trying to forget you, so I went on a self-destruct mission for a few days. Slept around... got drunk... that sort of thing. Cameron made me see sense. She told me she spoke to you and that I should tell you how I feel,” Thirteen admitted.
“That’s pretty much what she told me,” Cuddy raised her eyebrows in surprise. “That’s why I went to yours.”
“Does it bother you?” Thirteen asked, scared to hear Cuddy’s answer.
“The fact that you slept with other people?” Cuddy checked.
Thirteen nodded.
“Of course it does. But we weren’t together so I can’t hold it against you,” she said tentatively. “And considering what happened between House and I, I don’t think I can judge you for that. So it bothers me, but it doesn’t matter.”
“Good,” Thirteen was relieved. Somewhat reluctantly she asked, “Is there anything else you want to know?”
“No, I think that’s it,” Cuddy allowed Thirteen to hold her hand. “For now.”
“Good,” Thirteen grinned, not able to stop herself. She’d been given another chance! Leaning towards Cuddy again, she moved to kiss her.
“Wait,” Cuddy warned, holding up her other hand. “I want us to move slowly.”
“I can’t kiss you?” Thirteen asked anxiously.
“I...” Cuddy looked torn.
Thirteen seized her chance. Crushing her lips against Cuddy’s, she didn’t give her a chance to say no. This time Cuddy responded and as she moaned, Thirteen slid her tongue into Cuddy’s mouth. It was a desperate, hungry kiss that Thirteen had craved for so long. She wanted to never let Cuddy go, she wanted to be with her forever. It seemed that Cuddy felt exactly the same way as there was no longer any hesitation, just passion as she ran her fingers through Thirteen’s hair, pulling her closer. Thirteen copied Cuddy’s actions, taking things one step further and bringing Cuddy onto her lap so that there was closer contact, more intimacy.
Though Cuddy went along with this for a few minutes, she eventually stopped kissing Thirteen yet again, though she did remain sitting on her lap. “I can’t go further... I’m sorry but I’m not ready for that now,” Cuddy said openly.
“It’s ok,” Thirteen promised. “As long as it takes.”
Cuddy smiled, her first true one since this whole mess had begun. “We can... we can do what we did on the first night, can’t we? I know it’s not time to sleep yet but we can just stay like this?” She leant her head on Thirteen’s chest, lying across her.
“Of course we can,” Thirteen wrapped her arms around Cuddy, holding her in a protective stance. “I’m just happy to have you back. I didn’t... I never thought that you’d take me back.”
“I didn’t think I would either,” Cuddy admitted. “Not in a million years.”
“I’m glad you have,” Thirteen said earnestly. “You’re completely amazing for even contemplating giving me another chance.” She clung to Cuddy. “I just... I want us to be happy.”
“Me too,” Cuddy whispered against Thirteen’s skin.
Smiling, Thirteen felt some of the fear and worry inside her dissipate. It was going to be ok.
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