It had become apparent in the 15 minutes that Charles had spent in Jackie's company that she was no closer to forgiving him for hurting her friend than she had been the last time he had seen her.
"She shouldn't be long, only popped out for a bottle of wine. Or 10 knowing Molly" he attempted to joke.
She smiled sarcastically whilst eyeballing his struggle to his feet.
"I'll get us a beer"
"It's okay, you sit. I remember where the fridge is"
She excused herself and returned with 2 beers. Handing him one before taking a long sip of her own. She'd been a good friend to Molly the entire time he'd known her. A frequent visitor to their home and a bridesmaid at their wedding. And a shoulder to cry on when it all went to shit. She would never forgive him. As much a Molly made it out to be a joint decision at the time, she watched her fall apart and rebuild herself after Charles. She didn't want to have to do that again.
"I'm sorry about your leg Sir" she supposed it was the polite thing to say in the circumstances.
"Thanks Jackie. And I'm not Sir anymore. You didn't even call me sir when I was still a captain. We were friends"
"We were never friends. Molly is my friend and she might have a short memory but I don't. I might have know you'd latch on to her now your out of options"
He opened his mouth to defend himself but what could he say. He couldn't argue with the version of events that Jackie kept.
"Sorry you two, couldn't get parked"
They all exchanged a few minutes of small talk before Charles excused himself. She had done her best to make him uncomfortable and succeeded but he was happy for Molly to have some girl time. She was a rock to him and he recognised that she needed a break.
He also needed some alone time to process how he was feeling.
He could only describe the latest phase of emotions as grief. He was grieving the limb he had lost, the life he wouldn't have because of it. Grief for the ease of pulling on any old pair of trousers without wondering if they'd fit his prosthetic. Grief for being able to get up in the middle of the night without reaching for the nearest walking aid because it's too much hassle to put your leg on and you can't sleep in the sodding thing. For taking a shower comfortably without fear of falling because you can't get the stupid thing wet. A small price to pay to be alive some might say but he grieved them all the same.
Molly, his ever present, optimistic ray of sunshine tried her best to help him see the light and some days he did. But most days he didn't.
He was heavily reliant on therapy to keep him on an even keel, the same battle with ptsd raging through his brain again but this time he recognised it himself and remembered what it had cost him last time. He couldn't allow that to happen again.
He smiled to himself as the sound of Molly's girly giggles carried through the house. As long as he had her, he would be okay.
-OG-
It didn't go unnoticed that he barely left the room during Jackie's stay. Molly padded her way excitedly to their bedroom, coffee and toast in hand.
"You not feeling well or somethin'?" She quizzed him, concerned.
"I'm just tired that's all. And I wanted you to enjoy some girly time, you deserve the break"
She ran her fingers through his messy curls "I don't need a break from you ever again. I had a four year one remember... didn't like it"
