The title is cringey and makes no sense, and the ending sucks, but it's okay. You know what's not okay though? Hating on Lori, so if you've got any hate for her after everything that's been going on, take it somewhere else cause I'm not having it.
For those of you who still decide to read: I hope you enjoy! Please bear with me, as this is the first time I've ever written for these characters I love so much, so if they seem off, they probably are, and I hope you enjoy it anyway!
It was no secret to anyone that Abigail Stanton and Henry Gowen had become friends. After she'd convinced a judge to release Henry from prison, a bond that had admittedly already been there, though ignored, had been strengthened, and the two had started to spend more and more time together as the weeks and months passed. And though it was strange, and a little unsettling, for many of the citizens of Hope Valley to see their current mayor spending so much time with and trusting their former one, the first one or two stern admonishments from Abigail on the subject had stopped most of them from commenting, at least unless they were sure their mayor wasn't within earshot. Needless to say, it wasn't uncommon to see the two walking through the streets together as they currently were.
"So, how's the cafe doing?" Henry made it a point to ask her every once in awhile. Ever since he'd sold his share of the business, he worried about her financial stability. There was no reason to, really. Bill still owned half of the cafe, and every time he asked, she said business was good. Not to mention, she was also getting the mayoral salary. But for some reason, there was always something within Henry that made him worry about Abigail. A need to know she was alright. Bill had once asked him why he cared so much about her, and he still had yet to figure out that answer for himself.
"The same as last time you asked." Abigail replied good naturedly with a knowing smile as she looked at the ground. At one point, it would've made her angry for a man to ask her such a question for no reason. But this was different. This was Henry. Henry, who despite all of his character flaws, had always shown some level of worry and care for her, even when they were completely at odds with one another. It was something that had been simultaneously confusing her and causing strange flutters in her stomach ever since Noah had died.
"I'm sorry." he chuckled in that gravelly tone of his, igniting the fluttering once again. "I just like to be sure, that's all."
"I know you do." the smile on her face grew, the beginnings of a blush creeping onto her cheeks. It seemed that was also a common occurrence when she was with him. "And I appreciate it. But I promise I'm doing fine." Their conversation soon turned to other things. How things were at the saw mill, the latest on Elizabeth and baby Jack, Clara and Jesse, Lee and Rosemary. Anything and everything under the sun that they could think of to speak about was covered, as was the usual for their walks. It made for quite a sight for those who observed the two individuals, to see them so obviously trying to prolong the inevitable moment they would have to part ways.
"Look at them. It's like they think it's their last day on earth together." The words were mumbled in a scoff as AJ Foster leaned against one of the beams supporting the stagecoach stop as she watched the two strolling leisurely up the street. Thanks to Bill's favor with the prosecutor in her trial, she'd been let off with a bare minimum punishment and had returned to Hope Valley just six months earlier. Bill thought it was her sole intention to see just how much she could grate on his nerves. AJ thought it was her chance to turn over a new leaf as she'd promised.
"Abigail's just too nice for her own good. Won't tell him to leave her alone." Bill muttered, not looking up from the file he was holding.
"You don't believe that." AJ rolled her eyes, gripping the beam to swing herself around to face him. He still refused to look up, but the set of his mouth told her she was right. He didn't believe that, but he wanted to. "You've just still got a thing for her and a hatred for him."
That finally got him to look up. "I do not have a thing for her." he said indignantly, glaring at her. She smirked at him, a gloved hand lifting to rest against his chest.
"Do you have a thing for me then?" she raised an eyebrow, her smirk turning into a grin. His glare didn't budge, though his hand did, wrapping around her wrist to remove hers.
"No."
"Right. That's why you kissed me before I went to jail." His eyes widened, and he began to splutter so much, she almost laughed.
"I was delirious! Filled with poison!" he finally managed to spit out.
"The anti-venom was already in your bloodstream by then." she practically sang, loving every second of his flustered state. It was like a game to see how far she could push him before he stormed off to sulk within the confines of the jailhouse.
Bill opened his mouth to retort, probably to once again tell her that there was absolutely nothing between them, but was cut off by the arrival of the stagecoach. The two had been expecting Elizabeth to be inside, returning from taking baby Jack to visit her family in Hamilton, so it was, needless to say, more than surprising when a blast from the past stepped out instead.
"Nora?" Bill asked, incredulity coloring his tone. It had been nearly three years since Nora's, for the most part unexplained, departure from the hospital in Union City. He knew she'd been in a state of panic after the accident, and he'd left her there under the pretense that, for some reason he couldn't even begin to fathom, she would want to be there if and when Henry woke up.
It had been a shock to return to the hospital and find her gone with nothing but a note with a simple I'm sorry written on it in her elegant scrawl in Henry's room. Privately, Bill thought that had played a big part in what made Henry so subdued and compliant upon being told he was being arrested again back in Hope Valley. Of course, there was the fact that he genuinely didn't seem comfortable with Ray Wyatt sending an assassin after AJ, but he had already seemed...less like himself ever since Nora's departure.
"Hello, Bill." Nora's voice was as soft and sweet as ever, though this time, it was both a relief and a puzzlement to detect she wasn't there for him.
"What...are you doing here? It's been nearly three years, and no one's heard a word from you." He could feel AJ's eyes on him, silently questioning, but he ignored her for now. God only knew she'd corner him and shoot off a barrage of questions at the first opportunity she got anyway.
"I needed some time...after the accident, I didn't know what to do, and you know what happens when I'm hurting and don't know what to do." she admitted. It was the second time she had truly acknowledged that the way she'd gone about their marriage after Martin's death had been wrong, even if it was indirectly.
"You still didn't answer my question." He folded his arms across his chest, studying her. As far as he could tell, she didn't have any kind of mischievous ulterior motive, and it only increased his need to know why she would show up after so long.
"I came to see Henry." she shrugged slightly. "Do you know where he is?"
"Henry. As in Henry Gowen?" AJ finally spoke up, her voice rising half an octave in incredulity.
"Yes...and you are?" Nora raised an eyebrow at the other woman, her body already tensing in defensiveness.
"AJ Foster. I'm the woman that provided the evidence that put him in jail where he belonged." AJ answered with no small amount of sass.
"Alright, alright. Henry's right over there with Abigail, alright? So if you're here for him, you best get going before he heads back to the saw mill." Bill intervened before the conversation could turn into something he really, really didn't want to deal with. Nora and AJ continued to study one another with narrowed eyes for several moments before the former finally turned without another word.
The moment Henry and Abigail both saw her was almost fascinating to watch in a strange sort of way. They both stopped walking, and Henry blinked several times, as though trying to ensure he wasn't dreaming. If Bill wasn't mistaken, he thought he could see Abigail's face fall, an expression that was nearly identical to, though more pronounced than, when she'd discovered he was still married.
"Henry!" If she wasn't so graceful and elegant as she was, it wouldn't have surprised anyone if Nora had started running toward him. But, as it was, she walked with every bit of grace, elegance, and confidence toward the man, who took a few steps forward but stopped in his state of shock at seeing her. The moment she reached him though, it was like his mind kickstarted. She was barely a foot away when she threw her arms around his neck, and his wrapped around her waist, clinging to her as she buried her face against his shoulder. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."
"What?" he frowned a little, still holding her tightly to him with his cheek resting against her temple. "What for?"
She drew back the tiniest bit, a soft, watery smile forming as she moved her hands to rest on his cheeks. "I left. You were hurt, and I left." She glanced down at his leg, the faint limp she had noticed in the few steps he'd taken at the forefront of her mind.
"No, no, that was my fault. All of it." He lifted one of his own hands to gently brush his thumb across her cheek, catching an escaped tear. "I only thank God you weren't hurt."
Abigail watched the entire scene unfold, the fluttering in her stomach turning to an unpleasant clenching as she watched Henry embrace the woman who had practically ambushed her over Bill just a few years ago. She looked down at the ground without knowing why she was feeling whatever this was she was feeling. Whatever it was, she didn't know how to deal with it, so she decided she wouldn't. She would go to work, and she would ignore the feeling for as long as she possibly could.
Stepping away quietly, she made her way to the cafe, busying herself with washing dishes and cooking food and pouring coffee. Eventually though, as was bound to happen in a small town like Hope Valley, someone noticed that her demeanor was off and stopped her. It was just her luck that the someone happened to be Hope Valley's very own fix it girl Rosemary Coulter.
"Abigail!" The former New York starlet waved her over to where she and Lee were sitting, a bright smile on her face as always. Abigail mustered the most cheerful and convincing expression she could, making her way to their table with her coffee pot in hand.
"Rosemary, Lee. So nice to see you." she said. "Can I get you anything else?"
"Oh no, no, sit down." Rosemary insisted, gesturing at the seat in front of her.
"Oh, no, I wouldn't want to intrude on your dinner." she half laughed, trying her best to sound normal. It was just herself, Rosemary, and Lee in the cafe, but that was two too many people for her liking.
"Oh, please, you wouldn't be intruding." Rosemary waved that off, ignoring Lee's attempts to keep her from intruding. "Come on, sit." With a soft sigh, Abigail conceded, setting the coffee pot down and sinking into the chair across from Rosemary.
"Now. Tell me what's wrong." Lee sighed loudly, leaning back in his chair with all the knowledge of a man who knew his wife was not going to stop talking anytime soon.
"Nothing's wrong, Rosemary." Abigail told her with a small shake of her head.
"Something's clearly wrong, Abigail. You're not acting like yourself. You haven't been since…"
"Since?" Abigail raised an eyebrow.
"Since," the three of them turned their attention to the front of the cafe at the sound of Bill's voice as he and AJ entered. "Nora got into town." Abigail rolled her eyes, standing up and lifting the coffee pot again.
"That is ridiculous." she scoffed, heading into the kitchen to put the coffee away and then behind the front counter. "Why would Nora arriving affect me?"
"Because she's after your man?" AJ offered cheerfully. Everyone turned to look at her, and she just stared back at them. "What?" Bill made a disgruntled noise, grabbing her by the shoulders and lightly pushing her down into a chair.
"Is there a reason you're following me around the whole town?" he muttered, blessedly giving Abigail a reprieve for the shortest of moments.
"Because I know it irritates you." the woman replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "But seriously, Abigail. You should do something before that woman steals Henry away. Though I'm still trying to figure out what exactly it is you see in him."
"Henry is my friend." Abigail shook her head, not meeting any of their eyes as she worked on her inventory list. "What he does when he's not with me is completely his business, and he is allowed to see whomever he pleases."
"Mhm…" Rosemary hummed. "And, uh, is that why you're pressing down so hard on that paper there's going to be an ink stain on the next five pages at least?" Abigail immediately pulled her pen away from the pad of paper, looking down and finding that Rosemary was right.
"Abigail…" Bill sighed. "Do you have feelings for him?"
"Does it matter if I do?" she asked in return, busying herself with rearranging the pastries on top of the counter.
"Well of course it does!" Rosemary spluttered indignantly. "You can't let that, that-"
"Careful." Bill cut in. "This is still my ex-wife we're talking about."
"Nora! That's where I know that name from!" AJ piped up again suddenly. "God, what is it with women you like and having a thing for Henry Gowen?"
"Does that mean you have a thing for Henry Gowen?" Lee asked. She made a disgusted face, seemingly to Bill's great delight as he began laughing. She glared at him as he continued to laugh until a smug smirk formed on her face, and she leaned back in her chair.
"Yeah, yeah, keep laughing, Avery. You realize all you're doing is basically admitting you like me, right?" That sobered him up real quick, his laughter being replaced by a scowl. The others started laughing then, Abigail included. Everyone let the subject of Henry drop for awhile until finally they all departed.
"So, how do we plan to get those two together?" Rosemary asked as soon as she and the others had left Abigail to go about closing up the cafe.
"Rosie." Lee groaned, rubbing his face with his hands. "No."
"Oh come on, Lee!" she pouted. "Romance is in the air!"
"No. We are not getting involved in this."
"Well, actually, I would like to." AJ commented, causing Bill to stop in his tracks.
"Absolutely not." he grunted. She turned to look at him, lifting a brow and folding her arms across her chest.
"And why not?"
"Because...because you can't set Abigail up with Henry!" he replied in slight frustration.
"Why not?" Rosemary questioned, moving to stand next to AJ. "She likes him, he clearly likes her. I see no problems."
"The problem is that it's Abigail and Henry!"
"Yes, it is. And they clearly see something in one another, so we're going to make it happen. With or without your help."
"So...you and Abigail?" Henry nearly choked on his drink at Nora's question, paired with a soft and innocent yet mischievous smile that only she could pull off.
"What about me and Abigail?" he asked, coughing a little.
"Have you asked her to dinner yet?" she prodded, reaching across to poke him gently in the arm.
"Don't know what you're talkin' about, Nora." he shook his head, taking a sip of his whiskey. She gave him a knowing smile.
"Oh come on, Henry, I know you. You care about her." Nora said softly. She gently placed her hand over his. "You deserve to be happy. You should ask her."
"What about you?" he asked in return, half looking up at her. "You deserve to be happy too."
"I'll be okay." she smiled, albeit a bit weakly, moving closer so she could rest her head on his shoulder and loop her arm around his. "You and I just weren't meant to be. Not like you and Abigail. In another life, maybe. But in this one...in this one, I think it was always going to be the two of you. So ask her, alright?"
His only answer was to lean his cheek against the top of her head.
"So, we're all in agreement on the plan, yes?" Rosemary asked the small assembled group.
"No." Lee and Bill said simultaneously, only to be ignored.
"We are." AJ nodded, holding a single finger up behind her when Bill tried to speak up once more.
"This is a bad idea." Lee interjected again. "What if you're wrong, Rosie?" He immediately regretted those words upon seeing the look on his wife's face.
"I am never wrong, Lee." He sighed, raising his hands in surrender. "Now, we need to get this show on the road, so suck it up and move out!" And so, they did, though the two men did so even more begrudgingly, if that were possible, seeing as they were tasked with getting Henry to the cafe while the women were supposed to stand guard by the cafe to ensure Abigail didn't finish cleaning up and go to bed before they got him there.
Walking into the saloon, Bill nearly groaned and turned to leave when he saw the close state in which Henry and Nora still sat. However, the thought of facing Rosemary's wrath should he not even try, he walked with Lee over to the table, prompting Nora to lift her head from Henry's shoulder just the slightest amount.
"Bill...Mr. Coulter. Hello."
"Nora, Henry." Bill nodded. "We, uh, we need Henry to come with us."
"Where to?" Henry asked, not releasing Nora's arm as she frowned softly at her ex-husband's words.
"The cafe. Abigail, uh, needs some help, we said we'd try to round up an extra pair of hands." Lee answered. Slowly, Nora's frown grew into a small smile and she gently untangled her arm from Henry's.
"Go on. Maybe this is the opportunity for you to do what I said, hm?" He just looked at her for a moment before pressing a gentle kiss to her cheek.
"Thank you, Nora." he said quietly. She just nodded, watching him stand and head towards the door with Lee, though Bill stayed back for a moment.
"Nora...what is it you told him to do?" he finally asked. She shrugged a little with another small smile.
"Something he should've done long before now." she answered. Bill studied her for a few more long minutes before simply nodding.
"Take care of yourself, Nora." And with that, he exited the saloon and made the short trek back to Abigail's to watch the end of Rosemary's plan either blossom and grow or crash and burn.
It occurred to Abigail when she heard the front door that if she wanted to be alone after hours, it was pertinent to begin locking both doors after all the customers had left, especially on nights like that one when all she wanted to do was sit down and cry without knowing, or rather refusing to admit, exactly why she wanted to.
"We're closed!" she called from the kitchen, not looking up from the plate she was scrubbing with perhaps more force than absolutely necessary.
"Abigail?" She nearly dropped the plate when she heard Henry's voice, quickly drying her hands and making her way back out in the dining room and stopping when she saw him.
"Henry...what are you doing here? I thought you'd be with Nora." she said quietly, hating the fact that she couldn't seem to force her voice up to a normal, casual volume.
"She's, uh, back at the saloon. Bill and Lee said you were lookin' for some help." It was strange to see Henry act so, dare she say, nervous, and her eyes traveled to the front window just in time to see five faces quickly disappear.
"I'm sorry, Henry, it seems a select few of our friends have brought you here under false pretenses. I never asked them for any help." she shook her head, smoothing her apron if only to have something to do with her hands.
"Oh...well, uh, I guess I'll be going then. I'm sure you wanna get to bed." he nodded, fiddling with his hat in his hands as he avoided her gaze.
"And I'm sure you want to get back to Nora." she replied softly. She was slightly surprised when he shook his head, finally looking up at her again.
"Nora...she actually was tellin' me to come over here too. Told me I should do somethin'. Says I should've done it a long time ago, and I think she's right." She'd seen him look serious before, but this was something different entirely. There was still an element of nervousness and insecurity underneath, and it was making her feel more nervous as well, the strange fluttering returning with such an intensity that it almost took her breath away.
"And w-what is that?" she cleared her throat, trying her best to keep her voice from shaking and failing. Her teeth sank gently into her lower lip, her head tilting upward slightly to meet his eyes as he stepped a little closer before answering.
"What I should've done a long time ago...is told you how I feel about you. And asked you...if you'd be willing to give me a chance and let me take you to dinner." His eyes were honest and vulnerable, and her breath hitched as she realized she was truly hearing the words she'd been reluctant to admit she wanted to.
"W-what about Nora?" she whispered, needing to be certain this wasn't going to turn out like it had with Bill.
"Nora and I...we're friends. She was my only friend for a long time, back before I started trying to get on the straight and narrow. She was the only one in town who didn't look at me like I was less than the dirt beneath her feet, and to this day I still don't know why because I can't blame a single person in this town for hating me. And yes, she and I had something between us, long before I came to Hope Valley, and briefly last time she was here. But that's in the past, and we both agree we aren't what we used to be. The only person I want….is you, Abigail."
"Henry…" she could see that he was bracing for a rejection, and she immediately stepped closer to him, bringing her hands up to gently cup his cheeks. "Kiss me."
It was clear he was shocked, but the feeling only lasted for a moment before his hands were sliding around her waist to settle on her lower back and pull her almost impossibly closer. The first touch of his lips against hers had heat spreading out from her belly all the way up to the top of her head and down to the tips of her toes. It was unlike anything she'd ever felt before, even with Noah, and it made her wonder why they had waited so long to do this. She just wanted to freeze the moment and stay there forever, but they broke apart upon hearing an unmistakable squeal from outside, followed by four different voices shushing the first.
"I can't help it! I just love romance!" Rosemary's voice was quiet enough but still carried through the window Abigail distinctly recalled leaving open just a sliver to help cool the dining room while she cleaned.
"And that's great, honey, and you were right, but we don't want them to hear us." Lee's voice came soon after, presumably followed by a trademark satisfied look from Rosemary at being told she was right. Then of course came a comment from AJ.
"Don't you wanna do that with me, Bill?" Followed by a resolute "No." from the sheriff that Abigail knew, from experience walking in on the two, would be contradicted as soon as they were alone in the jailhouse.
"Is now a good time to tell you all that the window is open?" Both Henry and Abigail began to laugh at the sound of the slight panic that ensued after Nora's words, their foreheads resting gently together.
And with the sounds of their friends' lighthearted bickering in the background, Henry kissed her again, finally feeling at peace in the world as their hearts beat as one.
Feel free to leave me a comment! I take constructive criticism, just don't be a jerk about it. If you'd like to see more WCTH stuff from me, let me know, as I do have a couple of other ideas, but I'd like to see how this does first. Also, feel free to tell me your favorite pairings! I'm always down to talk about ships for this show, as there are so many that could be and are so cute and wholesome.