Then Came You { a pedro pascal fanfiction }

Chapter Ten

I woke up in stages, slowly, like the tide rising and meeting the shore.

The first thing I became actively aware of was the comfortable weight on my chest. I tightened my arms around her, letting my head dip down as I pressed my face into her hair. She smelled like heaven, warm, like citrus and honey baked in the sun.

I blinked rapidly, trying to clear my vision enough so that I could observe the delicate creature on my chest.

Her dark lashes rested on her freckled cheeks, her hair, just catching the light, revealing highlights of red, spread out across my shirt, her plump, pink, lips parted, letting out gentle breaths as her tiny fist clutched a handful of my shirt.

I had absolutely no doubt that if I had seen the man who had broken into her apartment, I would've killed him... which was terrifying, a horrifying concept as someone who had generally been non-violent over the course of their life.

The black, boundless rage I'd felt when she recounted what had happened to her took me entirely by surprise. I didn't know I could feel that infuriated, that willing to absolutely destroy someone without a second thought.

I felt my body tense as I thought about it again and Lucy stirred in response, her eyes squeezing more tightly shut, a small groan echoing out of her parted lips.

"Hey, shh, shh." I whispered, gently tucking her hair behind her ear, "Keep sleeping, sweetheart."

She calmed immediately, letting out a content hum as I gently traced her jaw.

I was in love with her.

That was certain, absolute, non-disputable.

The realization ripped through me and tore my chest open, heavy waves of affection, more than I knew what to do with, flooded my body and I felt my throat grow thick, my eyes welling with tears as I carefully traced her cheek bone, the bridge of her nose, her brow.

What the fuck was I supposed to do now...?

I couldn't act on it, I couldn't. The last time I had loved someone this much all it had brought me was pain, fucking agonizing, unbearable pain. A loss so great that I felt the foundation under me crumble to dust. It had taken me decades to rebuild the shaky foundation I now lived on, never as strong, never as reliable as the first. It wouldn't take much to destroy this one...

Lucy stirred again, blinking this time, and moving her head slightly so she could peer up at me.

My heart ached at the sight of her eyes, gray, and kind, and full of trust.

"Morning." I hummed.

Her cheeks warmed and she pressed her face into my chest.

God, you can't do that, you can't make it so fucking hard for me to pretend to be apathetic.

"Thank you." She hummed against me, her voice vibrating through my shirt, causing goosebumps to erupt along my arms.

"For what?" I whispered, failing to resist the urge to rub her back.

"Taking care of me... again." She moved her head, so she was looking up at me once more.

"You don't have to thank me for that." I said, swallowing hard as I forced myself to begin to sit up, begin to let go of her.

She let out a cry, a heart wrenching sound that broke me to my core as she clung desperately onto the front of my shirt.

"Don't-- pl--please don't." She cried as I immediately settled back down, tightening my arms around her until I felt the tension in her back begin to ease.