𝙲𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚙𝚜𝚎 | 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝟸

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙵𝚒𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚎𝚗

𝙴𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚊

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The laptop was on our coffee table as I worked on sketches for the fall line of King Clothing.

Mickey went out this morning with Steve, walking the building that the Barnes were trying to destroy. The summer storm still raged on outside, rain hitting the window and echoing around the room. I worked better in silence, but the sounds of the water hitting my window made the day move quickly. Colored pencils were scattered around the couch, my feet tucked under me as I finished one of my first sketches, looking over my shoulder when the front door opened.

"Hey babe," Mickey chuckled, walking over and dropping a kiss on the top of my head, a smile crossing my mouth, dipping my head further back and letting him peck my lips. "Those are good," he tapped the drawing, my eyes instantly dropping to where I had sketched a few outfit ideas out, "fall collection?"

"Just an idea," I shrugged, closing the sketchpad when he went over to the kitchen. I pushed up on my knees, looking at where he started to grab some items out of the refrigerator. Mickey was dressed in business casual, something I wasn't used to seeing from him. A pale yellow button-up rested on his upper body, tucked into some black slacks, which hugged his figure like a second skin. It wasn't fair that he was so beautiful without even trying. "How was the building?"

"Needs a lot more work," he opened up his arm when I crossed the room to stand next to him, letting my body mold into his side. In the privacy of our four walls, it was nice to have this intimacy with him, the domesticity was something both of us weren't used to. I took a piece of his sandwich off his plate, taking a bite before putting it back down when he let out a little chuckle, his chin resting on the top of my head, "Have you heard of Julianna doing anything recently?"

A random question, but I shook my head, looking up at him again.

"She said she needed to come over and talk to me," I ran my fingers across his lower back when he let out a tired sigh, "I swear, the kid never fails to make me stress out," Mickey stepped back, creating space between him and the counter, with a swoop of his arm I was standing in front of him, my head resting on his chest as he laid his chin on the top of my head, "You'd think dad would actually step in now that I'm married, but nope, couldn't care less."

I wrapped my arms around his waist, in my short time getting to know Mickey, I realized how much his little sister meant to him, he didn't mind giving things up if it meant that she was going to be okay, and have choices, and it would be a lie to say that it wasn't a sweet thing to learn. Mickey had a giant heart, but most of it was reserved for his little sister, he had raised her and made her the person she is today. Mickey did that, he raised one of the sweetest people I've ever met and he was still hard on himself over it. "Mickey," I sighed, letting him lift me onto the counter, standing between my legs, "You're all she's ever had, if you stepped away completely, it would break her heart."

He tugged on my shirt, "Is this mine?"

I looked down at the gray t-shirt I was wearing, smiling when I looked up at him again, "Yes, it's more comfortable," I pushed his shoulder gently, his laughter filling the air around us, "Don't change the subject."

"It's not so much that I don't want her to come to me," Mickey twirled a strand of my hair around his finger, a slow breath leaving his lips, "I've never really had an identity outside of taking care of Julianna, then you came into town and I felt guilty for even taking a second to think of someone else, I needed her to be my priority. Every night until she was seventeen I had her crawl into my bed with nightmares of her mother leaving her, she was so scared I would leave her too," I reached up to stop Mickey's hand, linking our fingers together, "Now you're my main priority, yet I have the nagging guilt that Julianna will resent us, you, I don't want that."