Sunsets and Sunrise (Chris Evans Fanfic)

Let Me Go

When Chris lands in Atlanta to film the last Avengers movie, paparazzi swarm the airport. Just yesterday, the news of his and Fiona's divorce had hit the press. So, naturally, everyone is curious as to the cause of their break-up. Reporters are much more intense with the hounding given that it's a married couple that's separating ways.

Chris shields himself from the cameras and doesn't answer any questions thrown at him. Who left who, if anyone of them had been unfaithful, or if they tried to sort things out for the sake of their 2-year-old son are a few inquiries being asked by the reporters. His management team hired extra people to guard him and so far, they're doing a mighty job at barricading his way out of the airport and into the SUV that will take him to his hotel.

When he is finally inside the vehicle, the memories of a few months ago flood his mind.

FLASHBACK (July-August 2017)

Chris closed the door to the driver's seat of his car. Fiona was sitting, without uttering a single word nor looking in her husband's direction. They had just finished a session of marriage counseling in Boston and were now headed back to Sudbury.

Although he was busy filming for Avengers in the southeastern part of the country, he made it a point to fly to Massachusetts every weekend for the counseling sessions. During the course of the time that he and his wife agreed to try and work things out for Andy, Fiona and their son stayed with the Evanses in Sudbury.

She didn't want to her mom and sister to suspect something was up if she went home to Newton all the time, especially now that she and her husband were struggling to reconcile. On the other hand, Lisa had welcomed Fiona with no conditions. Chris' mom was more a mother to her than her real one.

It was their second session with the counselor on that day, over a month after the fateful event. She was still having difficulty to open up her emotions while he was determined to salvage their marriage. He was willing to do anything to get his family back in his arms. He was willing to do anything for her to forgive him.

During the next few weeks of counseling, the drive from and to Sudbury was challenging. All they did was make small talks about their son. For the most part, the trip was silent. At home, Fiona would usually keep to herself in a separate room. She allowed her son to stay with his father, though. After all, Chris was only there for a limited time before he went back to Atlanta for weekday shoots. She wouldn't join meals. Sometimes she would excuse herself and drive to Sweet Escape, her patisserie-slash-cafe in Newton.

Lisa might have been heartbroken about her daughter-in-law's actions, but that didn't mean she hated her. She understood completely especially after learning what her son's mistake was. In fact, the Evans matron was already preparing herself if and when Fiona decided to put her foot down and end the relationship.

She always saw the huge burden in Chris' wife's eyes. That even if she wasn't saying anything, her love for her son and the want for him to have a normal life clashed so fiercely with the depth of hurt caused by her husband's betrayal. Most days, Fiona would emerge from her room, either with puffy eyelids or eye bags or both. The once quick-witted woman couldn't even have a decent conversation without asking her mom-in-law to repeat what she was saying every single time.

By the second weekend of August, after another marriage counseling session, Chris entered the car, again, after Fiona. When he shut the door to the driver's seat, his heart sank in an instant. Her sobs shot the worst fear inside him.

"I am... the worst mom," was all that escaped her lips. Her right hand, frantically wiping her tears.

Chris held her free left hand, but she withdrew from the touch in an instant. He, then, shifted from his seat to face her. "You aren't, Fi." Regardless, he had anticipated what she would be saying next, so his heart was sinking even further.

"Chris, I want a divorce," Fiona said between sobs.

He may have foreseen what she wanted to say, but that didn't mean the blow of the statement would no longer hurt him. Truth be told, the pain of knowing was even worse, because now, after she uttered those words, what he was dreading was confirmed.

Her dilemma, on the other hand, sprang from the love for Andrew and the grief from being betrayed. "The only reason why I'm doing this is for our son, nothing more. I would sound selfish, but is it really worth sacrificing my sanity to give Andy an illusion of a perfect happy family? Will we not all end up unhappy and miserable in the end?"

When Fiona also shifted from the passenger seat to face her husband, her eyes watered even more, her voice cracked even further. "If I give this marriage a chance, I'm sure I will always be doubting you. I won't be able to trust you, anymore. Every time that you're away, or I'm away for work, I will always have that image in my mind. I would lose my sanity thinking who are you with? Are you sleeping around? Are you flirting with other women?"

Chris hated to admit it, but she had a point. If she were only to stay in the marriage for their son, that might even make things worse. There was no one to blame but him. She loved him unconditionally. She made him happy, supported him no matter how his acting has taken so much more of his time. But all he ever did was broke her trust.

So, no matter how difficult it was to ask, he asked just the same. "What would you have me do?"

Now, she was the one who grasped his hands. Tears streamed down her cheeks. And with their streaming was her heart being crushed into a million minute pieces. "Please let me go," she pleaded.

The desperation in Fiona's tone reverberated. It cast a lingering darkness in his entire being. Alas! There was nothing else left to say or do.

PRESENT

Chris is drinking with RDJ at the latter's penthouse. If there's someone in the industry whose advice he values, it would be the Iron Man actor.

"So, you're really getting a divorce," Downey asks.

His nod is tentative, as if it's uncertainty would make his current predicament make a total 360-degree turn.

"Not your idea, I suppose," RDJ speaks again.

"But my doing." Chris reveals.

Robert hesitates to say what's in his mind, but he figures, it's the real reason Evans is there, drinking his misery out of his system, for him to be a hundred percent honest. "I can't say I'm surprise." When the Bostonian shoots him a heartbroken but curious glance he continues. "Well, it's just you're still like you're old self even after you got married. I know we're supposed to be true to our identity all the time. But perhaps, not when it comes to partying too much."

"You mean, I party as if I was still single."

"Yes. I was thinking, then, it's gonna bite you up in the ass, sooner or later.And bite you and sting you, it did." RDJ sips in the bottle before giving Chris the piece of advice he desperately needs. "I know how your wife loves you and adores you. I've seen how she looks at you and speaks about you every time we have those barbecue with the family occasions. So, naturally, she is definitely broken after what you did. But I have to ask one thing."

Chris nods.

"Are you positive there would be no one else but her after this mishap of yours?"

He opens another beer bottle before answering Downey. "A hundred percent."

"Then, the divorce wouldn't matter. Give Fiona the space she needs. Right now, she thinks divorce is the best because she's hurting a lot. But time will always heal. Always. If you truly regret what you did, the best way for you to show her you won't be doing what you've done ever again is to wait until she's ready to forgive you. Then, maybe, when she's even more ready, she might realize she could never love anyone else but you."

Chris keeps what RDJ said in his mind and heart. He is an asshole for hurting the one woman who truly loves him in spite of and despite his past shortcomings. But now, more than ever, he needs to be extremely patient. Until Fiona's ready to fall in love with him all over again. Hopefully.