flourish_or_perish | MHA #7 | Thursday Evening

It had been a long, long, long few days of following space trails and watching new friends die and putting old boyfriends in carbonite. And regardless of one's position as the chaser versus chasee in this space chase, Faye kind of thought everyone had earned a little rest. And maybe some forgiveness.

Maybe especially her. Especially since she had caught a cold in all of this, so who was the real victim, here? (Did it matter that she wouldn't have caught a cold if she hadn't run off to a frozen crime moon? Psh, no.)

So, once everything was settled and the Razor Crest was landed and all bounties returned for their twenty dollar reward and such, Faye led the way back to her apartment. And Stark's, next door, but she was kind of hoping he'd just come in with her. Even she wasn't so dense (or in denial) to not realize she had a lot more explaining to do.

And what's more, she actually kind of felt like she owed it to him. She wanted to talk, even if it was hard.

So when they got to their doors, she lingered before actually making herself say the words. "You're coming in, right?"

[for the alien I just modded]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Stark did need to hear it. He might need it repeated, later.

"Please don't." He would not do well if he had to go through this again. "Once was hard enough."

He had no intentions of letting go of her anytime soon. Not unless he had to. He was tired but if he had to stand here all night he would.

"Mistakes can be corrected," he added quietly.

"I didn't expect you to come after me," she admitted quietly. "No one's ever come after me before."

And there was the admission that she had done this multiple times. She had done this to people they'd met, even. Edward had told them!

"I had to try," Stark said. "I didn't think I'd find you but I had to try. I wouldn't have been able to, without Din."

He owed Din a huge debt. He had no idea how to even approach that.

"You're important," he added, as if that explained everything. Maybe it did. Of course he'd come after her. Anyone who hadn't had made a mistake, clearly.

"I'm not, but thanks," Faye replied, managing a wobbly little smile at that. "And that's a whole other thing -- I don't...."

How to phrase this.

"I'm not anything. I don't know who I am," she said, fairly earnest for Faye. "I'm three and a half years' worth of trying to figure my shit out and calling that a personality. I don't -- how could anyone love me, when I don't even know who me is, you know?"

It wasn't exactly poor self-esteem so much as just an ongoing, perpetual identity crisis. And Faye was willing to accept that he felt about her the way that he did, but maybe that would go some way in explaining why she was having such a hard time with it.

Particularly when you considered that Whitney had known a completely blank slate, without even those three years' of cobbled-together personality traits.

Stark shook his head a little and took a step back, rather reluctantly loosening his hold on Faye so he could look at her properly.

"Of course you're something. You're you. And you can figure that out," he said. "You have time. I haven't always known who I was. Just what, sometimes. But if you...I'll be here. If I can help, with learning who you are."

Edited 2021-09-17 21:51 (UTC)

"But you heard him," Faye protested softly. "I didn't mean to find -- you know I thought he was dead, but he'd know, if anyone would." Or the doctor would, but Faye wasn't optimistic about finding that guy. "I don't know what's me and what's just...made up."

But, that being said, she had heard what Stark said and even amidst those protests, the what registered. "And I...I'm sorry I made you do all of that, but I'm so glad you were there for Gren." Even if she'd only known the man for a matter of hours.

"I heard him," Stark agreed. And he'd wanted to hit him for you, Faye! "And I know you thought he was dead. He lied to you." Hence the whole desire to hit him. "About that. He could have still been lying. And even if you are just 'made up'...I like the you you've made up. I don't know that I didn't make myself up, sometimes." He definitely had, sometimes.

"I'm sorry we couldn't save him but I was glad I could help him," he continued in a softer tone. "Glad I could make it easier. He went where he was meant to go. That, at least, I'm sure of."

Look, the wanting-to-hit-him thing was very appealing. It would be even more so when she figured out who else he'd wanted to hit.

"Then everyone ended up where they were meant to," Faye decided. "Whitney's in jail." And now Din had half a tank of gas and, like, space Applejacks for Grogu. "Gren's...where Gren went." Titan. But elsewhere, too.

"And I'm here." And that had her closing the distance between them again to carefully tilt her head up to press a kiss to Stark's cheek.

Whitney had a very punchable face. Maybe it was the eyebrows. And the other one just had a very punchable air about him. Good thing he was off in space in another version of the galaxy and unlikely to trouble Stark any further.

"You are here," he said, lifting his hand to brush his fingers over the spot on his cheek she'd just kissed. "And you're staying." It wasn't a question that time. Just a statement of fact.

"I was so worried."

"I know you were," Faye said gently. "There really wasn't much reason to be. I mean, other than that I left in the first place. But it wasn't so bad, on Callisto. If you guys went by the Bebop, first, Jet probably made it sound really bad."

Oh, Jet, that worrywart.

"You leaving was enough," Stark protested. He'd panicked just from that! "I was...I was left behind before and it was happening again and that was more than enough. And then we found you handcuffed. After you got into a fight. I had plenty of reasons to worry. But it wasn't Jet. Jet was helpful. And Edward. I liked them. And the dog." Ein had been helpful too, if being adorable and pettable counted.

"But you're here. And you're fine." Was he reassuring himself of these facts by repeating them? Absolutely. Putting his hand out to brush back her hair and cup her cheek was also a reassurance.

MHA #7 | Thursday Evening

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject