Song: Don't by Shania Twain
He stares down at the ring in his hand for the millionth time over the past few months. Each time he holds the ring, his heart breaks a little more. He still can't believe he fucked up enough that his wife had left him. But today was different. Today she was coming over to deliver the papers in person for their divorce to be finalized. He feels a tear run down his cheek at the returning thought of it. He can't do it, he can't go through with it. They've only been separated for four months, and she already wants to cut him off. To leave him in the past.
His heart stops when he hears that dreaded knock on the door and he quickly wipes away the tears. He knows she still has the front door key and yet she isn't using it. He swallows hard, getting up from kitchen table. Turning the corner to the door in sight, he sees the top of her head through the little window. The ache was more prominent now, he doesn't want to do this. And yet, here he was.
He opens the door and holds back the tears when he sees her standing there, holding herself stiff as she looks around the property, as if she was taking in all the memories from the many years of them together here. He doesn't say anything when she turns around to face him. "Hey." She tries to smile, a weak lift of the lips. "Can… Can I come in?" It takes him a moment, but he steps aside to let her into the dark house, the way he has been keeping it since that day.
He opens his mouth to try to say something, but nothing comes out.
She's quiet as she looks around the living room, seemingly uninhabited except for the pillow and blanket that are bunched up on the back of the couch. She turns to face him, straightening her back. "Here are the papers." She starts, not pausing. "Everything is all filled out, you just have to go through and sign th-"
"Don't." He croaks out, the tears no longer hiding. "Don't you wish we tried?"
She frowns, not meeting his eye at first, hers trains on the papers she has holding up that he refuses to take.
"Do you feel what I feel inside?" He asks, urging her to meet his eye.
She finally does. "Do you know how hard this is?" She whispers.
He steps back, away from the folder. "You know love is stronger than pride." He wants to yell at her for abandoning what they had, for abandoning him. "Don't let your anger grow."
She looks away from him, closing her eyes, lowering her hand, and with it, the folder.
"Just tell me what you need me to know." He whispers softly. "Cause I want to hear you, I want to be near you." He lets the tears roll freely down his cheeks, not hiding his feelings. She looks like she's going to argue when her head snaps back to look at him. "Please, don't fight, don't argue. Just please, give me the chance to say that I'm sorry." He watches a single tear roll down her cheek. "Just let me love you."
"You had your chance." Her words hurts him in more ways than one. He spent the last few months reminding himself that he was such an asshole for how he acted, for being the cause of the fights. But he had been such a hermit and it had gotten to him.
"Don't turn me away." His voice is raw with emotion, he is sure she can hear it. "Don't give up on trust." He pleads. "Don't give up on me… on us." He begs, he wants to drop to his knees and wrap his arms around her middle and cry. But he doesn't. "We could just hold on long enough, we can do it… we'll get through it." He watches as the tears rolls down her cheeks, one right after the other.
He watches as she just barely starts to shake, her muscles tense to the point that she couldn't hold herself anymore.
"Don't pretend that it's ok, things won't get better that way." He steps forward, raising his hand and places his palm on her cheek. His hand nearly dwarfing her. She doesn't lean into his touch, but she does close her eyes. "Please, don't do something you might regret someday."
She opens her mouth again, presumingly to argue with him.
"Don't." He takes one step forward before pulling her into a hug. She's reluctant for a moment before she sighs and rests her head on his chest. "Don't." He whispers again, resting his head on top of hers. "Don't turn me away."
The house is silence for several minutes before she whispers his name and wraps her arms around his back, holding him as tight as she can. "Mulder."