My Moonflower, My Love

Chapter Three

 The car ride home was quiet, but peaceful all the same, Dani was resting undisturbed with her head on Jamie's shoulder and hands in Jamie's lap. While, of course, Jamie was tired, she couldn't sleep, she didn't even want to try, she was too worried about the au pair. She held onto Dani's arms, her index and middle finger resting on the spot most optimal for feeling her pulse, focusing on the smooth rhythm of her heartbeat that played out like a slow song, and Jamie knew every word. After staring out the window for a while, Jamie looked down at her wife, she was so still, so quiet, Jamie could tell she was asleep by the pace of her breathing, but her brows were furrowed, as if she was in deep thought, perhaps a deep dream or maybe she was being tucked away. Whatever was going on in her mind, Jamie was hoping it was of comfort, not of fear. They didn't have to be scared anymore, they were free from the horrors of the lady of the lake.

After the bumpy ride home, they finally arrived in front of their home, Jamie gently rubbing Dani's arms to slowly wake up Dani, she didn't want to frighten her, they'd both had enough of that for the night, even for a lifetime. Dani's eyes slowly opened, squinting at the bright light from the rising sun, she looked over to Jamie, smiling sweetly before they exited the car. Dani was feeling a bit off still, not like she had before the night though, it was different now, she thought, and hoped, she was just tired from the events that had unfolded in the past 24 hours.

Walking into the familiar living space, Jamie was quick to usher the tired girl to bed, she got her out some comfortable clothes to wear and then went to get her some tea. As she got back in the room, mug in one hand and glass of water in the other, she set them both beside Dani on the nightstand, covering her up with the familiar sheets, and giving her a soft kiss on the forehead, then nose, then cheek, then finally a proper, loving, kiss on the lips.

"I love you so much," Dani whispered, holding onto Jamie's hand and trying to pull her to sit on the empty part of the bed, once she did, Dani happily leaned forward to give Jamie another kiss.

Without another second to bask in the moment of togetherness, Jamie popped up again, "Alright then, anything else I could do for you? Food! You need food." Jamie decided.

"No, Jamie, I don't want food," Dani mumbled, looking away.
"Oh, drinks!" Jamie stated, walking back to the door once more.

"Jamie, you already got me a drink." Dani reminded her, lifting her hand back up to invite Jamie to the bed, but she didn't budge.

Jamie simply stood at the door, frozen for just a moment, "there ought to be something I can do for you?" Jamie asked hopefully, making Dani smile lovingly at her wife. This was exactly who Jamie was, trying to nurture Dani back to her bright self, just as she does with her plants, doing everything in her power to help, restless until content. Dani could tell Jamie was tired, didn't blame her, they'd both been through a lot in the events leading up to this moment, but the only thing she needed was to have Jamie close.

Between everything that's happened Dani felt guilty, she wishes she'd never had to go back to the lake, her body still ached from the cold, her fingers brittle. She knows she had to do it, waking up next to Jamie, hands around her throat, it lit the fire under her that led her back to the lake. She couldn't risk hurting her most important person, her best friend, the love of her life. She knew she had the choice, go to the lake and allow the lady to take her to the pits of hell that is the lake, or stay with Jamie, living their lives together for however many more years, but she couldn't risk hurting Jamie, even if it meant them spending eternity forever. Dani couldn't take her down, Dani would never.

"Jamie," she sighed, softly, running her fingers through her tangled hair, "the only thing that I need right now is you. So please?" She asked, her eyes droopy as she continued to hold her hand up until Jamie grabbed it.

Avoiding eye contact, Jamie sat beside Dani at the edge of the bed, her hand placed on the au pairs thigh, she could see Dani staring at her out of the corner of her eye, but refused to look back at her. It pained them both, but Jamie felt like she might break. She had always been the optimist, but after losing Dani, even if for just a brief moment, it hurt her more than she could ever put into words. She couldn't help but think that the lady would come back for Dani, visit in the deep of the night, whispering with her hoarse voice for Dani to go back into the lake. To drown herself once more in the deepest part of the haunted body of water. The thought terrified her, if there was one thing in the world she never wants to experience it's losing Dani again.

Jamie also couldn't shake the feeling that, as much as she hated to feel so, she was upset with Dani. She understood that it wasn't necessarily Dani's choice, it was the lady's, but it was partly Dani's choice, she didn't have to go when she did, didn't have to try and leave while Jamie was sleeping with the certainty that Dani would be there when she woke. Feeling upset with Dani like this gutted her, she didn't understand how she could be feeling so selfish? Dani died, her heart wasn't beating, her cheeks weren't full of beautiful color, her lungs were filled with water, she was gone. She suffered for years with the haunting of the lady, yet Jamie still felt upset with her, not mad necessarily, but upset.

"Jamie?" Dani breathed her name like the first breath she took after the water left her lungs, desperate.

"Yeah, love?" Jamie asked, still refusing to turn her head towards the governess.

"Are you not gonna look at me?" Dani's voice broke, all she wanted was to be with Jamie, why wouldn't the gardener look at her? Was she mad? Did she hate her for what she had done?

Jamie didn't answer, just continued to stare at the wall across from them. Dani shook her head, she wasn't crying, she had no more tears left to cry tonight, but she felt like she was crying. Dani stood up quickly, a little too quick as her legs almost gave under her, but she weakly walked out the bedroom door.

"Dani?" Jamie asked, finally looking at her love who was making her way to the bathroom, but Dani did not respond.

Jamie walked to the bathroom door, cursing herself for upsetting Dani after everything she'd been through. Jamie could hear the water running and sighed, assuming the au pair was just taking a bath, so Jamie waited. She sat against the wall across from the door, staring at it. She hadn't meant to upset Dani, she just had a lot of different emotions swelling up in her and didn't quite know what to say to her loving wife. The minutes felt like hours and Jamie was so, so tired, she tried to stay awake, she really did, but sleep began to consume her and she fell asleep, staring at the door, waiting for her lover to walk through it.