Afton Random Books

Main AU: Sentimental

[Vincent A. x William A.]

-VL-

Vincent seemed uneasy recently, he noticed it. It was stated obviously, his husband was quieter and more serious, stricter. Vincent was worried about something.

He placed his empty coffee cup on the dining table, then his eyes turned to the man he was thinking about, wiping a wet glass that had been washed earlier. He noticed how the wrinkles on Vincent's forehead deepened, his lips pressed together tightly, and his purple eyes sharpened, his jaw tightened and he noticed the man's shoulders tensed as well. William folded his arms across his chest, still watching Vincent carefully.

He waited, waiting for Vincent to finally pour out his thoughts, why did he look stressed. He didn't want to force Vincent to talk, he would have denied it and said he was fine. Vincent wasn't as good at lying as his son-in-law, after all he could feel Vincent's aura was unsettling. Even though nothing has happened at all lately, their lives were going well even though things can't be said like that. Even so, it seemed that now he could deduce the most basic issue that was causing Vincent to be concern.

"Darlin—"

The sound of glass shattering rang out as the pieces fell to the floor, he was momentarily taken aback—Vincent had just broken the glass just because he gripped it tightly. The black-haired man's forehead wrinkled even more, then he sighed tiredly, turning on the water faucet to wash his bloody hand. It wasn't long before he ran his palm over the broken glass, he used his power to lifted even the tiniest shards into the trash under the kitchen sink without him having to manually clean them up.

"Are you okay?" William asked, now feeling distraught about his husband; Vincent didn't do anything to his wound but sat across from him.

"I'm fine."

Vincent's answer didn't relieve him at all, even though he knew Vincent's regenerative power could heal those small scratches quickly. He saw how the wound began to close in Vincent's palm. William exhaled, got up from his seat and circled the table towards Vincent. "What happened?" he asked gently.

Vincent seemed hesitant to say it, his mouth had opened—as if to answer, but he closed it again and let out a frustrated sigh. "It's just—it's a little—it's just all felt—I don't know." He ran out of words to explain, then rubbed his face tiredly for a while, he exhaled again slowly, trying to calm down while William was still patiently waiting for him to speak. "This whole situation is stressing me."

William didn't answer, he knew Vincent would continue as he pulled a chair to sit near Vincent. "I just don't know what to do," his husband said again, this time in a quieter voice. "The situation with Jane and the children, Vanessa and her sister, I can't reach Vanny again for the last few years, I can't find Devian anymore, then Victor ...." As his sentence ended, his voice trailed off, William knit his brows while Vincent bit his lower lip nervously. "Then the issue with other dimensions, someone is trying to destroy the balance of the multiverse and we still don't know who the culprit is." Vincent pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling exhausted.

He realized that there were too many problems that his husband was carrying alone, many issues that still couldn't be resolved. He couldn't blame Vincent for going out a lot and rarely spending time with him anymore, because Vincent also showed that he was trying to spend as much time as possible with him, with their little family. William smiled warmly, he patted Vincent's shoulder briefly before holding the man's hand gently.

He leaned towards Vincent who was still looking at the dining table, his other hand moving to hold Vincent's cheek. That made Vincent finally turn to him. At least making William quite surprised to find how the eyes that were always looking at him lovingly were watery, he stood up and hugged Vincent tightly. It seems all of this was burdensome for his husband.

"What if I can't protect all of you ...?"

He could feel how his clothes were getting wet with tears when Vincent hugged him tightly back, as if he didn't want to lose him at all. He smiled a little, stroking Vincent's shaking back. "We'll be fine my love, there's nothing to be afraid of," he whispered softly, he was sure Vincent could still hear him. "We'll get through this together, don't worry."

Vincent's grip on his shirt tightened, William could tell the man was trying his best not to sob. "But what if I fail ...?" His sobs started to sound. "I don't want to lose my family, I don't want to lose the children, I don't want to lose you, William ...."

"You don't have to face this alone, Vince." He ran his fingers through the black strands of his husband's hair, stroking it gently. "I'm still here, I will help you, I will always be there for you."

Vincent didn't say anything more after he spoke, only continued to hug him tightly, but he could tell Vincent was calming down.

His strength may not be as great as Vincent's, but he can still protect him back.