Some Day One Day (Maylor AU)

Chapter 24

The professor sat there in silence, staring at the headmistress like she was the one who lost her wits instead of her new friend. The woman sitting before him was acting very unlike the Chrissie he knew and tried his hardest to love, but she could say the same about him. Even though they lived in the same house, worked at the same university, and slept in the same bed, it was almost like they didn't know each other. At least, not like they once thought they did. Hell, even Brian couldn't recognize himself these days. He hadn't ever since—

"I think it'll be good, Brian," Chrissie murmured, drawing the professor out of his thoughts by setting her feet down on the ground and wandering over to one of the bookshelves embedded in the wall—the soft click of her heels reverberating off the walls as her finger dragged along the dusty spines. "Maybe a night apart is what we need to get back to the way things used to be."

Brian's eyebrows furrowed together. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not an idiot, Brian." She turned to face him, the smile that curled her lips upward just moments ago now gone. "I know what you've been thinking about—I mean, you said it yourself last night—and I know that if things were different, you'd be with him right now. The only reason you're with me is because of what happened."

"Chrissie—"

"Look, I've been through this before; I know what it looks like. I see it in your eyes and—" the headmistress scoffed, closing her eyes and having the tears that began to blur her vision stream down her cheeks, "—and I just don't want history repeating itself."

The professor stood up and crossed the room, attempting to join his wife only to have her slip around him and escape to the opposite corner. He sighed and muttered, "You don't have to worry about that."

Chrissie chuckled in disbelief, folding her arms over her chest and shaking her head. "Oh, that makes me feel so much better. Thank you, Brian, really."

"I mean it, Chrissie. I'm not like him!"

"Oh, you're exactly like him!" she cried, spinning around to reveal her glistening eyes and dampened cheeks, "For fuck's sake, Brian, I know you—"

A sharp knock echoed through the office, cutting her voice off and attracting both the professor's and headmistress's attention to the opened doorway where John stood. He held his books close to his chest and wore a concerned expression on his face. "I'm sorry, is this a bad time?"

"Yes, Mr. Deacon, I'm afraid it is," Chrissie mumbled, swiping at the streams that streaked her embarrassed blush and sniffling, "Can whatever it is that you need to discuss with me wait until tomorrow?"

"Of course," he murmured, his apprehensive eyes flickering over to the despondent professor. He didn't maintain the inquisitive gaze for long, though, shifting his attention back to Chrissie and saying, "I'm sorry for interrupting. I didn't know—"

"It's alright, John," the headmistress snapped, a small grin pricking at the corners of her previously quivering lips and sending the hesitant student off with the promise of seeing him tomorrow. Thankfully, the boy closed the door on his way out, giving the couple the privacy they needed to continue their conversation that had taken a rather painful and unexpected turn. Surprisingly or unsurprisingly, it was Brian who first broke the silence that blanketed over the two of them—disturbed only by the ticking of the small clock situated at the corner of the headmistress's desk that read 3:40.

"I'm not him, Chrissie," he repeated, his voice just above a whisper and his eyes reluctant to meet his wife's. He held onto one of the bookshelves and took in a deep breath, explaining, "I would never hurt you the way he did. I couldn't. I can't."

"Only because he's not here," Chrissie choked, the tears she'd suppressed when John entered the room returning with full force. Her hands came up, disguising the ugly expression her face contorted into as she tried to stop the despair that washed over her.

Driven by a combination of compassion and guilt, Brian flew across the room and took his wife into his arms, holding her body that trembled with sobs close to his. They stood there like that for a while, the headmistress trying to calm herself down while the professor racked his brain for something he could say to save their struggling relationship.

The two had been living in a world of fantasy up until this point, trying to make the most out of what happened. God knows that it wasn't what either of them wanted—at least not so soon—but they'd made their choices and had to live with the consequences, and the only way to do that was to put on brave faces and act like the couple everyone expected them to be.

It wasn't difficult when they busied themselves with getting married before Chrissie started to show, making it on time to the necessary appointments, decorating the nursery, and learning as much as they could about parenting from books their close friends and families recommended. However, once Liz arrived, those roles that Brian and Chrissie knew they had to take on came to the forefront and hit them harder than they anticipated. It was taxing, being married so quickly and having to raise a baby girl shortly thereafter, but they didn't have another choice...at least, not one that wouldn't be wrong.

"Hey, look at me," Brian croaked, pulling away from his wife and bringing his hands up to her reddened cheeks. He stared right into her bloodshot eyes, seeing all the sorrow they contained, and said with as much conviction as he could muster with a breaking and conflicted heart, "What matters is that I'm with you now, okay? That's all that matters, Chrissie, and nothing is going to change that."