Red

Chapter Thirty Six

TWO WEEKS LATER...

Veronica POV:

I'm asleep when the storm starts. 

I wake almost immediately, having heard the first crack of thunder. I've always been a light sleeper, and I used to wake up all the time when I was a kid, terrified of the flashing lightning and the thunder that would practically shake my room. Now it's just something that keeps me awake. 

Chandler is asleep next to me, in far less pain than she was a few weeks ago. The doctors are happy with her progress and say that she's doing so much better because of where the bullet entered. It nearly hit her stomach, but it didn't (thank God, because you only have fifteen minutes after your stomach is punctured before you die). The thing that nearly killed her in the hospital was blood loss. Besides that, they got the bullet removed, and she's been taking her pain meds and antibiotics, so the recovery has been good.

I lay in bed, hearing her breathing softly beside me, and decide that I want to find something to do if I'm not going to fall back asleep (as I assume I won't). I get out of bed carefully, leaving the room and going to the kitchen. I had left my phone out last night, charging it on the counter. We had been watching a movie in the living room (Chandler wanted to leave our bed), and I had left it here when I'd gone to bed. I unplug it, attempting to sneak back to the room so as not wake MacKenzie. As I'm going back to our room, however, I hear a door creak open at the end of the hallway.

"M-Mommy?" I hear MacKenzie say in the dark.

"Why are you awake, silly girl?" I ask, and she walks towards me down the hallway. I flick the hallway light on, and she stands in front of me, ginger hair messy and hazel eyes wide.

"It's loud," she explains, and I can see that she's absolutely terrified. There are even tears on her face. She's just as scared of these storms as I used to be.

I crouch down so that I'm at eye-level with her, and I take her tiny hands in mine. "Hey, it's okay," I tell her. "You're safe. We're inside. Nothing's going to hurt you in here."

"Can I come lay with you and Mama?" she asks. "I-I'm not scared, but... Mr. Whiskers is scared." She holds up her favorite stuffed cat, something that Duke had given her when she turned two. I smile at her, ruffling her hair. 

"Sure," I tell her. "You and Mr. Whiskers are more than welcome to come and lay with us. Mama's asleep, though, so we have to be quiet and gentle, okay?"

"Mama's not asleep," MacKenzie says, sounding confused. She points behind me, and I see that Chandler is moving around in the bed. At first, I think she must have heard us and woken up, but then I see her reach next to her and mutter something. 

"Sawyer," I hear her mumble. I walk into the room, and MacKenzie follows behind me, looking sort of nervous.

"Chandler?" I whisper. She's tossing and turning, and the light from the hall sheds some light onto the bed. I can see her face contorted in fear. Oh, God. She's having a nightmare. Another loud crack of thunder causes her to sit bolt upright, and her eyes flash open, and she lets out a strangled cry.

She's hyperventilating, and I hurry over to be next to her, wrapping my arms around her as she sinks into me. She's crying. My poor Chandler. MacKenzie approaches us, a scared look on her face. 

"Mama? Are you okay?" she asks softly, and I move over in the bed so that she can get in next to me under the covers. She sits, watching, eyes wide.

"Mama's okay, Mac," I tell her. "She just had a bad dream." I turn my attention to Chandler then, putting an arm around her and pulling her closer to me. "Shh, it's okay. I'm right here. I've got you. You're okay."

"H-He shot you," she manages. "It all seemed so real, and then I heard the shot..."

"That was thunder," I assure her. "No one has a gun. You're safe. I'm safe. I'm not hurt, see?" I take her hand and press it to my side, running it across my abdomen. "I'm okay."

There's another loud crack of thunder, and MacKenzie and Chandler both get closer to me. I put my arm around MacKenzie, kissing the top of her head.

"It's okay," I tell them. "Everything's going to be okay. Go back to sleep, both of you."

MacKenzie snuggles into my side, and I pull her closer. Her breathing slows, and she's asleep first. I can still hear Chandler's slightly labored breathing in the dark, however.

"Are you okay?" I ask her.

"It was just a dream," she breathes.

I push back her hair a bit, kissing her. "It was just a dream," I repeat.

"I don't know if I'll be able to go back to sleep," she mutters.

"I'll stay up with you," I tell her.

"Yeah?" she asks.

"Yeah," I reply, and I take her hand, interlacing our fingers. "Sleep is for the weak, anyway."

This earns a laugh from Chandler, who leans her head on my shoulder. "It sure it, Sawyer," she replies. "It sure is."

***

THE NEXT MORNING...

Chandler POV:

"Mama!" I hear MacKenzie exclaim, and I open my eyes to see her standing by the bed, hair wild and a bright smile on her face. "Breakfast is ready," she tells me, and I smile, attempting to sit up but finding it slightly difficult. While I do feel better, I'm still pretty sore. "Mommy's going to bring it to you," she explains.

"Oh, is she?" I question, sitting up and wincing as I feel the sharp pain in my side. I lean against the headboard with a sigh, and MacKenzie crawls into bed with me, leaning against my good side. She knows the difference, and I'm glad for that.

"Yeah, she made pancakes," she says. "She said she was going to put chocolate chips in mine." She grins, and I laugh.

"You really like chocolate, don't you, kiddo?" I ask.

"Mhm," she agrees, nodding. 

The door opens, and Veronica walks in with a few plates of pancakes on a tray. She sighs, smiling as she sees MacKenzie leaning against my side. "Did you wake your Mommy up?" she asks MacKenzie.

"Maybe..." MacKenzie replies, looking guilty. 

I laugh. "Was she not supposed to?" I ask.

"Well, it was supposed to be a surprise," Veronica says, putting the tray down on the nightstand and handing me my plate. She had put blueberries on it, knowing how much I love blueberries. She hands me a fork, and I grin.

"This is the best non-surprise I've ever received," I reply. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," she says, smiling.

Veronica hands MacKenzie her plate, and she looks absolutely ecstatic about the chocolate chips on the pancakes. 

"Thank you, Mommy!" she exclaims, attempting to start eating it with her hands.

"You're welcome," Veronica replies. "Don't you want to use a fork?"

"Oh," MacKenzie replies with a giggle, and Veronica hands her a fork.

As I look at MacKenzie and back at Sawyer, I smile to myself. 

What a cute little family I have. 

***

A/N:

Sort of angst with fluff at the end! I hope you enjoyed it! The rest of this book is honestly going to seem like random one-shots that are with the Chansaw family and Duke and Mac (occasionally). Where did Martha go? I don't know, honestly. Probably travelling in Europe or something. I'm going to start the one-shot book today, and I will put the rules (I guess?) for the suggestions as the first chapter, and then you guys can start suggesting things with your favorite Heathers ships and things! As always, leave a vote if you liked it and comment if you want to!

Thanks for reading!

-LittleMissBlitz