Title: Sensitivity

Pairing: Double D x Marie Kanker

Fandom: Ed, Edd n' Eddy

Summary: When Marie has a fight with her sisters, a certain sockhead is there to comfort her.

Words: 1,045

A/N: I had never intended to write for this fandom but boyfriend and I were discussing our cosplay and the idea popped into my head and I mentally wrote the first paragraph.

Marie exhaled a sigh as she dropped her weight onto a log that sat on the ground on the far side of the park. She drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her thin arms tightly around them. Her pale face was hidden partly by her cobalt blue locks and partly by being buried in her army green cargo-clad knees. Her slender fingers tightly gripped the fabric of her pants as she recalled the happenings that led to her sitting outside, alone, shivering in the cold but too proud to go home and fetch a jacket.

Marie had had another fight with her sisters. As all three of them were short-tempered, this wasn't an unusual occurrence. But the subject of the fight was new, and Marie was more sensitive than she let people witness, so her sister's cruel words had injured her heart.

Lee, the oldest of the trio, was undeniably envious that the middle child was the only one who'd made any progress in their pursuits of dating one of the Eds. Marie had recently come clean to her sisters (and her boyfriend had come clean to the rest of the cul-de-sac) that she was officially dating Double D. No one supported them. Lee and May despised their sister for finally getting what she wanted when they didn't have a chance at getting their crushes' hearts. Ed, Eddy, and the rest of their friends mocked Double D for "settling" with a Kanker sister.

Lee had called Marie a traitor and then insisted that Double D had only given in to dating her out of fear and not because he had genuine feelings for her. Marie had screamed, called her older sister a long string of obscenities, and stormed out the door, wanting to get as far away from their trailer as humanly possible before her wall of toughness broke and she let the tears come crashing through.

Marie glanced up, lifting her head just enough to ensure that the park was truly and completely empty before tucking her face away in her knees. A sob fell from her lips, the first sound she'd made since slamming the door to her trailer. Once the first cry came, the rest poured out of her like a rainstorm, and she didn't even try to stop it. Her body shook with sobs, tears pouring from her eyes and staining her cargo pants. Goosebumps raised on her arms from the cold, but she was too distracted by the hot tears streaming down her face. In the back of her mind, she knew that Lee was jealous. She knew that her sisters were trying to make her feel bad for being happy. But a small part of her brain wondered if they had been right. Her insecurities, the ones that she suppressed in front of everyone, including her sisters, bubbled to the surface, making her question every conversation and every encounter she'd had with Double D.

Did he really like her? Was he just afraid? Was he faking it?

Soft footsteps sounded on the gravel, and Marie froze. Who was coming to the park in this chilly autumn weather? Whoever it was, she certainly wouldn't let them see her cry. She tensed up, prepared to tell the intruder to go back to the cul-de-sac and leave her the hell alone.

The intruder sat beside her, and she immediately recognized the warmth and scent of freshly laundered clothes.

Double D.

A hand rested on her back, rubbing soft, soothing circles into her skin through her thin black tank top. Upon feeling how cold she was, the arm connected to the hand wrapped around her, tugging her to a warm chest.

"What's wrong?" a soft voice inquired, and the familiarity of it nearly sent Marie into tears again. She turned, angling her body towards his, and buried her face in his pale neck. He wrapped both arms around her, a frown settling on his lips when he heard her sob. He took hold of her legs and draped them over his lap, gently rocking her back and forth until her crying subsided and her breathing evened out.

"Is it your sisters?" Double D questioned quietly. Marie sighed softly. He always knew what she was thinking.

She managed a small nod.

Double D exhaled a sigh. "Did they find out about me?"

Again, she nodded.

"I told my friends, too."

She glanced up at him. Surely he wouldn't bother telling his friends if he were ashamed of her?

He smiled softly, lifting a hand to caress her cheek and wipe away the tear tracks. "They weren't happy about it. Most of the cul-de-sac hates me now, but they'll get over it."

Marie's thoughts wandered back to what Lee had said, and her lower lip quivered with the threat of fresh tears.

"Shhh," Double D cooed, resting his head on hers. He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. "What did your sisters say?"

She inhaled deeply, trying to calm herself enough to speak. "Lee called me a traitor, and she said that you're only dating me because you're afraid of me."

Double D snorted a laugh. "Marie, I'm not afraid of you. You're very intimidating, but I've gotten to know the real you. I want to date you. I like you. Lee is just mad that Eddy runs at the sight of her."

Marie allowed herself a small giggle. "I knew she was just angry and trying to upset me but…"

"You were concerned she might be right," Double D finished for her. He knew about her insecurities and she had expressed being uncertain of his feelings for her when their relationship began. His hand grasped her chin, tilting her head up to meet his gaze. He rested his forehead on hers.

"I love you, Marie Kanker. I don't care what anyone else says."

With that, he pressed his lips to hers, gently pouring all of his emotions into a kiss. Marie returned it, hesitantly at first. Once she felt how much he cared for her, she pressed back, wrapping her arms around his neck and settling herself on his lap. His arms wound around her waist, and there they stayed, sitting in the park, sharing kisses and cuddles until nightfall.