As Siobhan got ready for work she could feel the butterflies in her stomach. It was Monday and finally, the day of her meeting with Vivian. The moment the older woman had handed her that scrap of paper Siobhan had desperately wanted to call her. When she hadn't been able to, terrified that Roger would hear her, her heart had felt so heavy. When Viv had caught her in the carpark and insisted on a 'work meeting' she'd felt like she'd been given a second chance and she'd been looking forward to it ever since. Previously, seeking and cultivating friendships had never been important to her but now all she desired was someone to talk to. The staff at the nursery despised her for the most part, Roger always sent her in to deliver bad news so he didn't have to. Recently, Siobhan had noticed that Marjorie didn't seem so hostile towards her anymore, but she really wasn't sure if she was imagining it.
As she tried to do up her necklace, she sighed with annoyance when the clip wouldn't catch. At that moment, Roger walked into their bedroom and said "what time will you be back later?" Siobhan turned to face him and replied "I'll be back around three o'clock, I have a meeting with a parent and then I need to prepare some memos." He looked her up and down and snapped "fine, I'll see you at three. Don't make me wait for you." As he turned on his heel, she thought about asking him to help her with her necklace but when she realised that he'd have to touch her neck to do so she decided against it. She was still trying so hard to convince herself that he loved her but that task had become harder every day. If he loved her, why didn't he want the best for her? Why did he hurt and humiliate her? It was getting more and more difficult for Siobhan to make excuses for the way that he treated her.
Driving to work Siobhan listened to the radio, finding solace in the cheery chatter and upbeat music. At least she knew she'd be safe and unharmed for the next few hours. She was excited to see Viv, her presence felt so soothing and she genuinely felt like she could talk to her. Once she'd arrived at the nursery she headed straight to the family room and waited, jumping up immediately when she finally heard a knock on the door. Viv was there waiting for her, holding two takeaway coffees and smiling warmly. "Hello Vivian." Siobhan knew she could call her Viv if she wanted to, but they still barely knew each other. As she stepped aside to let Viv into the room, she wondered if she she'd made the right choice. What was Viv going to ask her? Siobhan was an intelligent woman and she knew that her new acquaintance had seen right through her, she very clearly could tell that the blond was struggling. Part of her wanted to immediately tell Viv what was happening but she knew that she'd never really do that, at least not yet.
Once they were settled in their seats, Viv looked at her, eyes twinkling and said "so, Siobhan. How are you?" Her question was so sincere and genuine it made Siobhan's stomach feel funny. Mustering up a weak smile she replied "I'm ok, how are you?" For a little while, the two women chatted about nothing in particular, simply allowing themselves to get comfortable with the other's company.
Eventually Viv asked Siobhan something that stopped her in her tracks. "Do you have any hobbies?" Siobhan was acutely aware that Viv clearly knew the answer was no, she'd previously commented on the fact that the only place Siobhan was without Roger was work. "I...well I used to like horse riding when I was younger. I like reading but I've not done that for a while." Truthfully, Siobhan couldn't bring herself to read anymore, she'd always liked romance novels but now, they gave her a headache. She looked down at the floor to avoid Viv's gaze, she'd never felt more pathetic.
"Do you watch TV?" Viv brushed past her red flag of an answer effortlessly, the last thing she wanted was to hurt Siobhan. It was painfully obvious to her that the blond was suffering in silence and all she wanted to do was help her. The situation was unbearably delicate however and she knew that she needed to handle Siobhan with care. Clearly nobody had ever done so. When the blond looked back up at her, Viv smiled encouragingly and nodded as Siobhan told her that she liked Desperate Housewives, often watching it on repeat. Viv thought that show suited her, glamorous women mostly living a lie, trying their best to deal with the secrets they kept.
Before either of them could believe it an hour had passed. Viv had to get to work, or she honestly would have sat with Siobhan for as long as the blond wanted. As the the two women prepared to say goodbye, Viv suddenly looked intently into Siobhan's eyes and simply asked "are you happy Siobhan?" She didn't even know why she'd asked that, she knew exactly what the answer would be. Maybe she just wanted Siobhan to really think about the question and accept the reality she'd been trying so desperately to ignore. Siobhan's big blue eyes looked right back at her as she quietly replied "I can't answer that."
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TO SHIELD A SERPENT (TNN - SIOBHAN/VIV)
Fanfiction**WORK IN PROGRESS** How can Viv help Siobhan?
