EVERMORE ─ marvel

III. Stress And Exhaustion

Chapter Three
Zy'aire

I was in need of a break after the World Security Council meeting. I feel like that's all my life has become: meetings. My days are packed with them. I asked Baba the other day if he had this many meetings when he first became king and he chuckled to himself. He said yes, and he promised I'd get the hang of it, that eventually it will be easy.

With how stressed I've been, it's been hard not to wonder if it will ever get easier, if it was just easy for him because he was a better—no. No I won't go down that road again. I'm just stressed out, I'm sure I'll get the hang of it. I've only been doing this heavy of a work load for a couple weeks. It will get better. It has to.

Knowing my stress levels are high enough to bring back my crippling self doubt, I felt the need to pay a visit to my lovely fiancé. That title still makes me smile ear to ear. I can't wait for the day we make things official, when I ask her to marry me for real, when we can get married and she can help me through all the stressful stuff that makes me doubt my worth as king.

I find Livy standing in the hallway outside a patient's room, ending a phone call, her expression grave. It was no surprise to anyone that in only a few months she managed to finish her masters degree. She's now working at the hospital as a resident doctor, which she has to do for two years before becoming a fellow, then she'll go on to become an attending doctor in the family medicine field. She's in her lab coat now, a stethoscope secured around her neck, a shiny new badge gleaming with her name on it. I've never felt so proud of her.

Once she catches sight of me, her face lights up, both in delight and surprise. I jog the distance between us and pick her up off the ground, holding her tight against me, feeling her laugh rumble against my chest, her arms wrapping around my neck.

"What are you doing here?" She asks me once I set her down. Instead of answering right away I lean down and kiss her full in the mouth, not caring how many nurses and doctors pass by and gawk at us.

After a minute I pull away, leaning my head against hers, swallowing hard, trying to catch my breath. "Do I need an excuse to come see the woman I love?"

Livy surveys my expression, and within seconds, asks: "Did the meeting go that bad?"

I shake my head. "Not any better than usual. I guess the several bad meetings back to back made me want to pay my fiancé a visit." I tell her, whispering the last part so no one hears.

Livy smiles to herself, a small blush grazing her cheeks at me calling her that. It doesn't last long though, her smile and flushed cheeks vanish as quickly as they appeared. She can tell what's really bothering me, she can always tell.

"You are more than up to the task, Zy. Have some faith in yourself. You're trying your best, and your best is good enough."

"I know," I say, more to myself than to her. "When things get overwhelming it's hard not to doubt myself."

"That's what I'm here for," She whispers, caressing my cheek with one hand, running her fingers through my hair at the base of my neck with the other. "To tell you that you are the greatest king Wakanda has ever known, and your strength is an inspiration to your people, especially to me."

I grab onto the hand that's touching my cheek and guide it towards my mouth, kissing her knuckles, her fingers, her palm. "I love you." I tell her, meaning it with every inch of my soul.

She reaches onto the tips of her toes and lightly brushes her lips with mine, placing a kiss on my nose before pulling back. "I love you, too. How about you come by after my shift, we can go have a nice dinner somewhere. My treat."