Two of a Kind (Vance Hopper)

Chapter 19.

    A/N: This episode is going to be deep in feelings, and next chapter we will dive deeper into their pasts to help paint a clearer picture to their actions. I apologize for the quality, but I hope you still enjoy. 

 There was a moment of silence between the two. It was tense, almost like two feral street cats that were scoping each other out. Kitt took the moment to scan his face, trying to read his every move to get a glimpse of what he was feeling. She watched as he tensed up the longer she stayed still, like he was waiting for her to blow up at him. She knew that reaction, and she pursed her lips at seeing the same expression on his face. Her mind was racing, swirling even as he watched for any sign of anger. 

     His eyes were glued to her, watching as confusion crossed her eyes. He didn't see anything to indicate that she was going to be aggressive, but he had reason to be cautious about pushing boundaries. It still fucking hurt to sneeze. He swallowed thickly, waiting for her to make a move. It was almost funny to him how someone as hot headed as him was sitting here, waiting for anything. He refused to interrupt the thought process that she was going through, watching as her eyebrows pulled together causing the bridge of her nose to crinkle as she stared at him as if it was the first time she had ever seen him. 

     She knew she was staring at him, and she didn't even care. It was as if someone had dropped a bomb at her feet and left her to figure it out. She just needed a moment to process the fact she wasn't even mad at him. She had hurt people for less, but she didn't want to hurt Vance, not anymore at least. He was a little bright light at the end of the tunnel for her now, her source of comfort. The sad thing was that she didn't even understand when it had gotten that bad. It's like one day he just appeared and stuck around. She took in a deep breath as she finally moved to go sit on her bed, her back against the headboard. 

     He watched her as she crossed the room, eyes trailing her form as she moved closer. He barely even breathed as she got settled but still locked his eyes onto her. He licked his lips, almost afraid to be comfortable with the angry girl close to him. He had seen her temper, a couple of times really, even seen her in one of her most vulnerable moments, but her silent debate he had not seen yet. He could tell by the way her eyes softened slightly as she looked at him that she was making progress, but wording it was hard. Talking, that was the struggle. He knew it. He watched as her hand moved forward to grasp his, her hold on him gentle, almost hesitant. His eyes flicked up to watch her face as she stared at their joined hands as she squeezed it gently. She wanted to comfort him, let him know she wasn't angry, but she was still processing just what the actual hell this man meant to her. She was terrified of the possibilities of how he could hurt her. It was a big risk, and one that could shatter her at this point in her life, to catch feelings for someone. The conflict was written on her face, and he knew the struggle.

     He squeezed her hand gently and gave a small smirk as her eyes darted up to meet his blue ones. He saw the internal battle, but he didn't care much for it. He had dealt with it before her, and he knew it sucked. The only thing he could really do was wait and hear her out. He knew she didn't want to hear opinions, and she didn't want to hear reasoning, she was just trying to figure out her feelings. It was a lot to process after years after living off of instinct in your own home. She was surviving, not living, and now that she was starting to wake up, she had to process her emotions and piece it all together on her own. 

     He silently pulled her closer, watching as she gave to his silent request. She slid closer until she was tucked under his arm gently, her face tucked into the crook of his neck as he wrapped his arm around her waist. They both sat there, trying to find comfort as they both processed how broken they were. Slowly she began to relax further into his hold, slowly bringing her thoughts from the darker places for a moment to solve another question that had been brewing in her mind. "What were you looking at?" She whispered to him softly after a while in his hold. He had been more than content to just embrace the fiery redhead. His eyes shot to his most interesting find, the photo frame he had picked up. 

     "Baby bottle bitch," he teased, a small smirk playing on his features as he heard her let out an amused huff of air. He knew it was a small action, but a win was a win at the moment. He loosened his hold on her for a moment, watching as she lifted her head to look over at the photo. She had been 5 in the picture, her brother only 9 the day it had been taken. She wouldn't lie, she honestly didn't really remember the day that photo was taken or why, but she did remember her brother and overall, how her childhood had been. Her family wasn't always so complicated, but it had changed once her father started gambling. He had started to lose too much money, and so he started to do whatever he could on the side to fix the situation. It was a gradual. It wasn't like he just came home and started hitting everyone bloody, no, he was just very angry at first. Anything could have set off his rants, and she honestly, she could not remember a time more terrifying in her life than the first time she had sent him on a yelling spree. 

     Her father slowly started to become more aggressive, and it all just snowballed. She looked up at the concerned blonde was staring at her again. "I'm tired," she whispered, her eyes showing just how mentally draining it was just to think about telling him about the past. She wanted to, but she also couldn't help but feel like she was too tired to really have the conversation and give it the full attention that it deserved. She just needed to recharge before she told him. He understood and moved to lay her down, but she clung to him, forcing him to lay down with her. He huffed, playing annoyed but settled next to her as she slowly began to drift off to sleep, silently vowing to let him ask questions when she woke up. He deserved it after all he had put up with from her.