Chapter Content Warning: Minor mentions of animal death

Thanks to Dante helping make phone calls and letters, Martie was able to transfer all her completed credits from her years she had completed back in college, to help her at least obtain some sort of degree after attending more classes at the same school Dante was attending. It meant she'd have to compromise and attend a few less protests and rallies, but she was alright with it.

Her friends weren't willing to stay on campus as long as she was, so when they informed her they would be leaving town, with or without her, she realized she'd need a place to stay. Dante admitted he didn't use his couch very often. He could get used to sometimes seeing her asleep on it in the mornings, snoring as she was splayed under a blanket, Janis sound asleep on top of her.

Dante, or at least his immune system, was still not all-accepting of the dog in his apartment, but so long as Martie kept them out of his room, he'd tolerate it. After all, whenever he was in class, and she wasn't, he could only imagine how bored and lonely she got sometimes.

He knew how hard it was for her to decline the offer to travel on the road again with her friends. To instead settle with him while he pursued his masters and she at least pursued the ability to say she finished school.

She chose him. Over everything else. He'd always be appreciative of that.

Neither of them really ever could pinpoint when they had transitioned from friendship to something in the realm of dating. Before they'd really considered each other anything other than a close friend, they'd been quite cuddly with each other. But that was probably just the weed. And the fact that Martie was very affectionate to everyone who she considered a friend.

He liked how fun she tried to make things for him. How she lived life with a little more spontaneity than other people he knew. She pulled him out of his comfort zone, but never prevented him from going back in it. He decided drugs weren't his thing. She was okay with that. She still smoked her cigarettes outside on the fire escape, and shared her brownies with friends.

They never really had a first date. There just had been instances where one would invite the other to do something outside of the apartment, and they would come back late in the evening. On some occasions, nothing happened. On others, there was kisses and other affectionate gestures. On one instance, they'd slept together, his first time, and Martie still ended up returning to her place on the sofa, a situation that left Dante absolutely confused for weeks.

She always complained that he never called her by her nickname, only on a few occasions. He found it too informal.

Eventually, she found it endearing.

After graduating, they'd talked about finding another place of their own to live, some place cheaper until they both had jobs. Martha wasn't too eager on tackling that, but for Dante's sake, she did. Only on the conditions it not be for a factory or something that benefited the things she'd protested against over the years. Fair enough.

Eventually, she'd taken his invitation to move off the couch, and to sharing a bed with him.

Their second place together wasn't a place they could stay for very long, it was a place for rent, at most for six months. There were still boxes stacked in storage, they didn't even put out any decorations in the place.

At least there was a bed.

Martha eventually relented, and got herself a pair of glasses, replacing the violet lenses in her sunglasses with soda bottle lenses, and it was a relief that she could stop sprinting across the street to read large posters whenever she was out. Dante told her he was just glad he didn't have to worry about her going blind and wandering into traffic. She'd shoved him off the couch, spilling popcorn everywhere.

She still went to protests, but she didn't travel for weeks on end for them. The most she'd been gone from Dante since they'd moved in together was four days, and it was to visit her ailing parents in Beach City, for closure.

They'd discussed moving there, for sake of job opportunities. Martha knew there was a pretty decent housing market there, they could find some place to call home there eventually.

About three weeks before they'd decided on a house, Janis, old and stiff legged, had settled on her favorite spot on the couch one last time, and just never woke up. Martha had cried all day. Dante hated to see her so sad. He'd offered to help her get another dog in spite of allergies. She didn't want another dog. Janis hadn't just been a dog, she'd been a lingering piece of her wilder life, and now that she was gone, it was a sign it was time to settle down further.

Martha had laughed through her tears after they buried her old friend that she would have to call and give the Governor the bad news.

Months after the move, Martha had found a job under a housekeeping service. It irritated her to think she'd be having to possibly get humiliated or ordered around by slightly wealthier people, but it paid well. And eventually she could get a better job, she figured.

Dante worked at a software programming company. Computers were a new thing these days, but his skills proved useful to the business. He took pride in that.

When they weren't at their jobs, and weren't exhausted from the day, the two would go out, either to walk on the beach, to wander the town, or to even drive somewhere to be together. Or they would stay home, and make use of their couch or their bed, and not leave it for hours.

Dante had gotten Martha a cat on their third anniversary together. The animal hated everyone and everything except the redhead.

"Good. Fight the power", she had whispered to the animal, who she named Malvina. Dante wanted to know where the hell she was getting these ideas for names. Wasn't 'Fluffy' a good enough name for a cat?

"Fluffy is a shit name," she'd answered back.

Eventually, one evening, he'd introduced Martha to his parents. Things had gone smoothly up until her history had been brought up, and the two parents had waited until Martha left the room to privately discuss things with their son, voicing their concerns. She was a lovely woman, yes, but what if she was a step away from becoming a full blown drug addict? What if she had more criminal charges? Illegitimate children?

Dante told them Martha had seen hell and visited more than once, and made it back with fearlessness on each trip. He'd be there to greet her when she returned.

He wanted to keep her.

When Martha had returned, she told Dante she wasn't feeling well, and needed to go home.

Dante had been silent the entire drive home, too deep in thought to notice his girlfriend's concerned expression.

"So I have something to talk about."

"You're kidding, so do I," Martha teased softly as she rest on the couch having done so at Dante's insistence once they'd gotten home from his parents'. They'd both been silent in thought for at least two hours.

"How important is it?"

"Really important."

"Same," he nodded.

"How about we both talk on the count of three?", Martha suggested, sitting up a little on the couch to look at him as he sat on the floor next to her.

"Alright. Three," he confirmed, reaching for her hands.

"One."

"Two."

'Wait, Dante, you hate odd numbers. Four. Say it on four,' he thought to himself.

"Three."

"Four." "I'm pregnant."

"Will you-", Dante cut himself off, paused, stuttering in shock, "Y-you're...?", then cursed, "Damn it, Martha!"

"What?!", she almost looked panicked, "Look, it was an accident okay?! I took a little test at your parents' place, and it was positive! It was probably from that night in the van at that music festival two months ago, where you put your shirt on backwards and-"

"No not that!," he looked angry, "You stole my thunder!"

"I did what?!"

"How can I ask if you want to get married without it now sounding like it's a shotgun wedding?!", he yelped sounding sincerely worried, "I mean I know your parents are dead now but MY parents are going to be breathing down my back until we die, that I didn't wait until marriage to- well you know! How can I ask you now?!"

Martha stared at him in shock, then began to laugh and cry at the same time, "Dante, oh my god, you-", and flopped against him, kissing his stupid adorable face, wiping her eyes, "I think you just did. And it's a yes."

"O-oh...ok!", he flushed with relief, returning all the kisses he was receiving.

After the initial shock had worn off for both of them, Martha had teased that now it was a race to see what would happen first, for them to be married, or for them to become parents.

"Are you ready for this though?", he'd asked, "We talked about this and we both said we could wait but- are you really ready to go through with this? I mean- having a baby?"

"Are you?"

"I suppose. But only if you really want to..."

She hugged his arm, smiling as she kissed his face, "Good. That's all I needed to hear."