Tonny x Julia Fanfic

Forgiveness

     Tonny sat despondent in his office for at least a week, maybe more— he'd seemed to have lost touch with time. Even if Julia hadn't succeeded in killing him, she'd definitely crushed his spirit.
     Dotty had come to visit him a few times throughout that week, but even her and Bob's comfort did nothing to assuage his pain. He felt responsible. Had what Kamille said really been true?
     "So instead of threatening her, ask yourself what you did wrong!"
It stung worse than the dagger wound. His hand rested tentatively over his left eye. It was fully healed, but some makeup and blood was still smudged around it. He hadn't had enough energy to clean up. He felt despicable. Perhaps he deserved to be in this crazy circus, and maybe he should have died.
He knew his thoughts were far-fetched, but there was something eerily comforting in blaming himself. He ran his hands across his desk, a few loose papers scattering across the floor.
A noise made him jump out of his own mind, and Dotty appeared in the doorway. Her curvy silhouette peered in, her gold eyes round with concern.
"Tonny? Can I come in?"
"Uh- yeah. Just, er, let me clean up a bit." He replied, trying to sound brisk.
"Okay, just tell me when."
Letting out a sigh of relief, he picked up a few of the papers he'd knocked over and tried to put on his cheery persona. C'mon Tonny, they're all worried about you.
Putting on his hat always made him feel more performer-esque, so he tipped it onto his head and forced a smile.
"Alright, you can come in, Dotty." He said, poorly attempting to wipe a few makeup smudges off his face.
Dotty took a seat at his desk, which caught Tonny off guard a bit if he was being honest. She clasped her hands together with a very professional expression on her face.
"For the circus's sake, and yours, I really need you to pick yourself up and go talk to Julia."
"But- I just... She tried to kill me, okay!?"
"I think this is just a misunderstanding, Tonny, and maybe if-"
Tonny interrupted her with a wave of his hand. He took in a deep breath before he spoke, "Fine. Just stop lecturing me, Dotty."
Looking satisfied, Dotty smirked. She stood up from his desk, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"We just want to see you happy, we do. And we won't see you smiling again until you get some closure. So go talk to your girl."
"Dotty." Tonny groaned.
She gave the ringmaster a wink before slipping out of his doorway. Placing his head in his hands, he slowly collected himself. I'll just wash up a bit, and then I can figure something out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He'd just finished up, and stepped out of the shower in a towel when he heard a knock. Is she really coming to lecture me again? I told her I'd talk to Julia.
"Just- uh- hold on one sec!" He called.
He was surprised at the voice that answered him, "K!"
It was a nervous squeak more than anything, but it was definitely Julia's voice. He felt his heart skip and he immediately pushed it down. She tried to kill you for God's sake?
But, unfortunately it seemed he couldn't reason with himself in her presence and as soon as he was dressed, he raced for the door.
"Tonny..."
Julia burst into tears at the sight of him, flinging her arms around him.
"Shh... Julia, Julia... it's okay."
"I tried to kill you, Tonny! Of course it's not okay!"
Tonny hugged her tighter, running his hand in small, soothing circles on her back.
"You can explain everything later. Just calm down first." He cooed.
Her body heat against his, her head on his chest— it all felt so nice. It felt more reassuring than any words. Tonny couldn't deny that he cared about her deeply, but the question was whether it was a good thing to feel this way. Should you really be in love with someone who tried to assassinate you?
     Julia wrapped her fingers along his shirt, and Tonny could feel his face flush. The pair stayed like that for a few moments until Tonny's shirt was throughly cried though.
      With a soft sniffle, Julia murmured, "I lied about my contract. None of this was ever about Sahed."
     "What are you talking about? Then who gave you your contract?"
     "That... that thing in the attic. It gave me the knife, too." She admitted hesitantly.
     "You're not making any sense, Julia. How do you even know about it?"
     "It opened the door for me, after you... let go of Mr. Finnegan."
     Tonny's expression dropped. He instinctively ran his hand through her bangs, pushing them out of her face and wiping her tears.
     "I'm so sorry, Julia. It's my fault you're here. It's my circus that killed you."
     Julia didn't say anything. She just nodded, and stepped out of his embrace.
     "So, if Sahed didn't give you your contact, and the creature in the attic did—"
     "It's said I have one year to live unless I kill you!" She blurted.
     Tonny froze, his jaw agape. Julia looked guiltily down at the floor, her foot drawing awkward circles as she awaited his response.
     "I know you probably hate me for everything, Tonny, and I get it... but please understand I had to."
     Anthonn shook his head, his hand resting behind his neck.
     "Why didn't you tell me? We could've figured things out together?"
     "I was afraid for my life!" Julia protested, "And I still am..."
     Tonny leaned forward, embracing Julia once more, his hand resting on the back of her head.
     "I won't let anything happen to you; just promise you won't lie to me again."
     She smiled, tears stinging her eyes, "I won't."
     He smiled softly back, his round eyes offering comfort.
     "So how long do you have left?" Anthonn asked after a moment. 
     Julia hesitated for a moment, "8 months."
"Shit... Julia, I'll make sure nothing bad happens to you. You'll get to stay here as long as you want, with me, with Kamille, and with all the other circus performers."
"Really...?"
"Really."
Julia stopped crying, just latched onto Tonny and didn't let go. The pair was unsure of how long they stayed entangled in each other's arms, but neither party complained.
"But, I have one condition." Tonny said after a moment.
"Yes- anything."
"You have to become my assistant. I want to keep you close."
Julia seemed flustered for a moment, but slowly nodded as she processed his offer.
"Yeah, I think I can handle that."
"Then I'll have Kamille draw you up an outfit," he replied with a grin.
To be quite clear, Tonny didn't need to give Julia a new outfit, but the idea of them matching was too good to lose. He tried to hide his face for a moment, then with a slight cough, returned to making eye contact with her.
"What about Sahed," Julia pressed, "what's going to happen to him?"
"I won't hurt him, I promise." Tonny said begrudgingly.
He could see how much Julia cared about Sahed, even after he'd manipulated her and strung her along for his own gain. It made his blood boil. He balled his hands into fists,
"I'm actually going to go see him today."
"Don't do anything rash!" She called after him.
He left the office, slamming the door behind him, leaving Julia unsure whether that conversation went better or worse than expected.