Hold Onto Me

Summary: Max wakes up in his own bed for the first time in a long while.

He woke to the sound of his name and a hand shaking his shoulder. It was light, but steady, and Max groaned against the thought of waking up, pressing his face a little deeper into his pillow as he did. The mattress shifted beneath him and his sleep addled mind tried to place exactly where he was. Not the little apartment that he'd been staying in since Georgia had told him he needed space and not the couch he'd spent the last couple of weeks on, that much he had put together by the time he felt a soft kiss pressed against his temple. He pried his eyes open to see his wife leaning over him. That's right. He was home. In his own bed with the woman he loved. No wonder he wanted to hang onto just a few more minutes of peaceful sleep.

"Max?"

Georgia's voice was bordering on worry and Max blinked, trying clear the sleep from his eyes so that he could focus on her. He turned, his movements sluggish as he shifted onto his back so he could look directly up at her, and offered a smile. "Good morning."

A little of the worry eased from her expression and he saw all the signs of her trying to mentally work herself back down from something. "You're usually up by now."

Then it clicked. The worry, the fact that he was sleeping in his own bed again…. It wasn't that their separation had been some nightmare he was finally waking from, it was that they had crossed over into a new challenge. As he watched her leaned over him, waiting for a response to her statement, memories of the night before flooded back in. The dance, the overwhelming fear, and finally the confession that he had only had the strength to give with her arms wrapped around him. He had been terrified for a moment when she had sunk down, relying on him to hold her up, and he thought he had made the wrong call. She was strong, though, and braver than he felt facing this. They had held onto each other until the cleanup crews had needed them to lock up. Still, even as they left, she hadn't let go of him, her arm looped through his as they walked out and her hand slipping into his in the cab. She hadn't let go.

"Max?"

He blinked again, pulled back from the memories and he reached up to run his thumb along her cheek. "I thought-" He stopped, his voice scratchy and raw and he cleared his throat. "I thought I'd go in a little later this morning." He tried for a smile. "I've been told I need to slow down."

The worry lines deepened at that and Max propped himself up on his elbows. She met him there, the kiss tentative at first, but he reached up and his fingers curled into her short, blonde hair as she tilted back against her own pillow and he leaned carefully in, never breaking it. Max felt her long fingers against his skin as they wrapped around the back of his neck and pulled him a little deeper into the kiss.

They broke after a long moment and he found her staring up at him, her eyes glassy. She blinked and a tear escaped down the side of her face as she reached up, her palm against the side of his face. "I don't want to lose you," she whispered, her own confession strained.

"You won't. I'm right here," he swore and pressed another quick kiss to her lips before settling down next to her in their bed. Georgia nestled closer, holding tight and he felt himself relax a little more. Helen had been right. He couldn't do this alone, no matter how hard he'd been trying. He didn't have to now, though. He'd told her and no matter how terrified they both were, they had each other. They were holding on, and as long as they did, Max knew he had the chance he needed to survive this.

Notes: Of course it would be last night's episode that would pull me into writing for this fandom too. I do not have the time, but they're just so darn cute, so here's my compromise: very short one shots. It may be one, it may turn into something like I wrote for the Keens over in the Blacklist fandom. I think there are something like 150 of those now? We'll see...