Title: Snapshot
Flavor: Longmire { TV }
Staring: Walt Longmire/Vic Moretti {with mentions of others}
Spoilers: 'Population 25' 'Harvest' 'Counting Coup'
Rating: Safe for all to enjoy
Word Count: 1,778
A/N: It's been over two years since I've had the urge to pick up a pen and write.
It had been a string of bad days for the both of them.
At one point, Walt thinks Vic is dead and vice versa. There is a whole mess of other knots along that string, like that moment in the hospital and the fact that Sean has disappeared. Vic knows it is of his own accord because of the evidence left at the scene.
She finds Sean's wedding ring and a note on the kitchen table. A note mind you, not a letter, a note with three words
- I'm done pretending –
It's a kick to the gut and the pain is sharp. Yet, in the next breath, there is relief.
It could have been a hell of a lot worse.
It could have been hours and hours of going round and round, yelling and crying and arguing and ugly accusations.
In the end, the results would have been the same.
Still, she waits for Sean to return, waits in their bedroom, staring at his empty wardrobe and dresser drawers.
At the first sign of light she gets tired of waiting.
-fuck this-
She calls Ruby at home, telling her, - not feeling too good – and makes half a promise to keep in touch before she hangs up. Her day is spent changing the locks and packing up the rest of Sean's stuff.
Driving into work, Walt tries to shake off the anxiety that has taken up residence on his shoulders. It's been twenty-four plus hours since he's seen or heard from Vic. He's been respectful of her space but, - enough's enough now –
He parks across the street from the station house. Halfway across the street, he catches glimpse of Vic's car, loaded up with boxes. It's a piece of a previous conversation – deputies have been replaced before – that makes him walk trying not to look like a man who is worried or in a rush.
He takes the steps two at a time. Imagine his surprise when he sees the source of his apprehension sitting on the bench at the top of the landing.
"Vic." His tone is more a question then a greeting.
Her response is a sad smile. When he moves closer, he tries to ignore the dark circles under her blood shot eyes. He casts his eyes down to her hands, finds them clenched into fists.
She looks away while she chews on the inside corner of her lips, her tell that she's thinking, so he doesn't push.
She clears her throat before looking back at him, telling him, "I'm gonna take another day off."
" 'K. You ah…going somewhere?"
"No."
"Everything okay?"
"No." She closes her eyes, let's go of a deep breath, pushing out the words, "Sean left."
"Left?"
"Left…," she opens her eyes looks down at her hands, "…as in packed up most of his belongings…except for this," unclenching her fist to show him Sean's ring.
Walt tips back his hat while trying to come up with the right thing to say. The best he can do is, "Sorry."
"S'not your fault."
"You sure about that?" A loaded question that's out of his mouth before his brain can hit the kill switch. He braces himself when she stands up, eyes wide and head tilted. He is blessed with the ability to keep a neutral face. It comes in handy here because she's studying his face like a piece of evidence.
"Oh, hey Vic." The voice behind them belongs to Ruby. "Feeling better?"
Vic blinks first, relaxes her face and stance, looking past Walt, telling Ruby, "I thought I was."
"Well…you can't rush these kind'a things," Ruby offers as she walks into the office.
"Yeah," Vic say, just before Ruby closes the door to the office.
Turns out Ruby is a blessing in disguise. Otherwise, they would have said something that neither one of them should be saying. She takes the opportunity to make a move towards the stairs. She stops half way, saying over her shoulder, "Do me a favor?"
Before he answers, "Yeah," he takes a few steps closer to her. She turns to face him, asking, "Just keep this between us…for now?"
"Okay. Now I have a favor to ask you." Vic gives a questioning nod. "You'll answer the door when I stop by later on."
Vic looks over his shoulder, "I don't know."
"Sometimes the worst company you keep is with yourself." There's a little lift in his lips, "Or so I've been told." And he has, by her, on several occasions.
"Fine." She relents, making her way down the steps.
Vic takes the long way home, meaning, she goes to where Sean works. Using the spare key to his car, she loads the boxes into his car.
She doesn't bother to leave a note.
After her run, a shower, having something to eat and two beers, she does what she's been putting off all day…she calls her mother.
"Lem'me guess," her mother says, "it's complicated."
"This time…yeah…it is."
"So he's jus gone? Jus like that? Typical Irish."
"Mom!"
"What? How many times has he accused us, and by us I mean Italians, of being drama queens?"
"Mom, seriously?"
"Jus' sayin' is all. Listen, I can be out there tomorrow if you…"
"No," Vic cuts in, rubbing her forehead, regretting the call, "I'm good. I just wanted you to know what's going on in case he shows up there."
"You know what he'll get if he shows up here…"
"Mom…please…just…don't…okay?"
"Fine…fine…have it your way. So…anything else goin' on out there I should know about?"
A knock at her door around seven o'clock lets Vic know that later has arrived. She's a bit thrown off when she answers and sees Ruby standing there.
"Hope you're hungry," Ruby says, holding a large bowl of mac-n-cheese, "made your favorite."
Right behind Ruby is Ferg, with three pizzas. Behind him is Cady, with two quarts of ice cream. Henry follows Cady with two cases of beer. Vic squints her eye at him asking, "Aren't you in enough trouble?"
"In for a penny, in for a pound."
Before Walt can cross the threshold, Vic places a hand on his chest to move him back outside. She half closes the door, in a heavy whisper asks, "What time is the rest of Absaroka county showing up 'cause I don't think I have enough beer."
"Vic, " is all Walt get out before Vic cuts in with, "So what? Me saying don't tell anyone was what…just some wind passing through your ears?"
"I didn't tell anyone."
"Really?" Vic says, not believing him.
"Really, I didn't."
"What exactly did you say then?"
"Well…," Walt pauses to hook his thumbs in his pockets, "when people started asking where you were these past few days, I told them you weren't feeling too good…and they wanted to know what they could do to make you feel better and, well, here we are." He moves a step closer to her adding, "You're always doing for them," nodding to the house full of people, "let them return the favor."
Vic bites down on her bottom lip as she moves aside and opens the door for Walt. She's not usually a quick forgive, but later in the night, when she catches Walt's eye, she mouths, 'thank you', welcoming the distraction.
The Ferg and Ruby are the first to call it a night. They leave Henry content in the recliner, Walt bookended by Cady and Vic on the couch, watching a movie the girls have seen a thousand times.
At the conclusion of the movie, Cady stands to stretch, says, "We should have another movie night."
"That would be great, " Vic says, copying Cady's movements.
"I look forward to that," Henry says, eyes closed, arms folded across his chest.
Cady has a smile on her lips when she asks, "Who said you were invited?"
Henry opens one eye, "I am offended."
"You'll get over it," Cady says, extending her hand, "c'mon…let's get you home before someone comes looking for you."
"What about him?" Henry asks, nodding at a softly snoring Walt.
"You can leave him here, " Vic says, "help me get him stretched out."
Cady takes Walt's legs while Vic takes his shoulder. Very slowly and gently, they get him on his side and Henry tosses a blanket over him. After some quiet conversation at the door with Henry and Cady, Vic locks up for the night.
She thinks about going up to her bed, but honestly, she's not ready to face the bedroom just yet. She turns off the lights, grabs a blanket from the closet and slips into the recliner, still warm from Henry's body.
Walt is pulled from a dreamless sleep by the aroma of coffee and semi-burnt toast. He opens one eye and comes face to face with a denim kneecap. He blinks a few times, looking up to see Vic sitting on the coffee table in front of him.
He begins to stretch and Vic cautions, "Careful you don't knock over my lamp with those size twelves." He grumbles something as he takes his time getting up to the sitting position. He rubs his eyes then looks over Vic's shoulder, points at the TV asking, "So, did Johnny get the girl?"
She hands him a mug of coffee, saying, "Oh, yeah. Johnny and Baby go on to live happily ever after."
"Phew…there's a load off my mind."
They sit and sip quietly until it's been too quiet for too long. She breaks the silence with, "Thanks, Walt."
He's looking down in to his mug, "For?"
She's looking at the top of his head, "For not saying anything…for last night."
There's a one shoulder response from him, followed by, "It'll be okay." He looks up and adds, "You'll be okay."
She looks away because there are words like, - as long as you're here I will be – threatening to come out. She shakes her head to clear it before looking back to tell him, "Ferg called. The neighbors by old man Johnson's are complaining about a strange odor coming from his property…again."
"Yep," he places his cup down on the table, "time to go to work."
She stands, "Bathroom is down the hall on the right," then heads to the kitchen. He lets her take a few steps before stopping her, "Vic."
She turns, juts out her chin in response. He clears his throat, "Thanks."
She relaxes her position, "For?"
He looks down, kicks at some imaginary object on the floor allowing time for the kill switch to kick in. Finally he looks up and says, "Everything."
This morning when she smiles, it's genuine.