"V-GR!"
V-Gr Flinched, his hands over the keyboard of his space pod's control panel. Willow was home from work early.
"You would not believe this!" her eyes had shifted from brown to bright red, "Some old man tried to get me fired!"
Cobalt listened from his room. He'd never heard his mother shout before in the 4 months he'd been online. It scared him.
"What happened?" V-Gr closed what he'd been working on, turning his full attention to his girlfriend.
"He told me he wanted an assortment of daisies, but he didn't tell me he was allergic!" she was screaming, her face heated so much it showed on her face, "And then he blamed it on me! I should've known, he said! You've ruined my face he said! I can't breathe he said! He tried to call my manager and tell me I almost killed him! I couldn't believe what I was hearing! I was so sure I would be canned!"
Cobalt shrank. Why wasn't V-Gr doing anything? Why was he just letting Willow scream at him? Every once in awhile, he would make a small comment between her outbursts like, "I see." or "How awful." but otherwise he didn't speak. He was completely calm, his eyes a placid shade of white, and the whole time Willow was shouting at him, he kept a stern look in his eyes, but his mouth was a small, patient frown.
Why didn't he fight back?
Finally, Willow lowered her voice a bit, "He just-! I can't believe him! I can't believe he almost succeeded! What have I ever done to him!? I'd never seen him before in my life!"
V-GR nodded, "What a bigot."
"Ugh!" Willow rubbed the sides of her head, "I need a nap..."
"Mkay."
She slammed the door hard. Hard enough to rattle the whole pod.
When Cobalt was sure she was gone, he came out of his room, "D-Daddy?"
"Oh!" V-GR's eyes darkened to red, "Did you hear all of that? I'm sorry, Coby..."
"Why did you do that?" Cobalt hovered from his bedroom door, "Why did you let her yell at you?"
"Oh, well..." V-GR exhaled, "Because...she just needed to vent."
Cobalt tilted his head to the side, "Vent?"
"She was angry and frustrated, so she yelled at someone she trusts." he explained, "She's been doing it for years, it's no big deal."
"It sounds like one..." Cobalt frowned, "Isn't that unhealthy?"
"Sure it is, but it's better than bottling it up and never letting it out." V-GR knelt down so he was at eye-level with his son, "She's already seeking help for her short-temper. There's no need to make it worse."
"How can you stay so calm!?" Cobalt tried not to shake, but since he was so young, it was literally the worst experience he'd ever been through, "She was screaming at you, and you let her! You didn't do anything!"
"Because anything I tried to say would've just made it worse." V-GR placed his hand on Cobalt's cheek, "Shhh...it's okay...I'm just used to it by now, you'll be used to it too..."
"A-are you..." Cobalt sniffed, burying his face in V-GR's outstretched hand, "Are you gonna t-talk to her...?"
"Hey, don't cry!" V-GR pulled him into a hug, "Shhh...don't worry about it, okay? She'll be back to normal in no time, you'll see!" he sat back on his knees, rubbing circles into Cobalt's back, "Shhh...I'll knock on her door, and if she doesn't answer, then I'll wait a little longer. If she tells me to come in, then I'll go inside. See? It's fine, everything will be just fine..."
Cobalt's hands were fists behind V-GR's back, "...will she ever yell at me...?"
"What!? No! No!" V-GR pulled back, "Cobalt, she's not going to yell at you! I promise! If she ever yells at you, then I'll eat my words!" V-GR laughed without any humor, "She only yells at me because she knows I'll get it. When she looks at you, all she sees is someone she gave everything for. Okay? She'll never yell at you. I. Swear."
Cobalt squeezed his eyes shut.
"Hey..." V-GR took both his son's cheeks in his hands, "Repeat after me. Okay?"
Cobalt nodded.
"I'm fine."
"I'm f-fine..."
"I'm safe."
"I'm safe..."
"And this isn't a big deal."
"A-and..." he choked.
V-GR was patient, "Say it."
"U-um..." he gulped, "And this isn't a big deal..."
V-GR stood up, "Good."
"I'm fine, I'm safe, and this isn't a big deal..." Cobalt repeated, "I'm fine, I'm safe, and this isn't a big deal..."
"Watch me, okay?" V-GR slid towards the bedroom door, "I think it's been long enough..."
Cobalt shrunk back.
He knocked two times.
At first there was no sound, so V-GR made to walk away.
"C-come in..."
V-GR sighed in relief. Casting a glance at Cobalt while he put a finger to his lips, he slid the door open.
Willow was curled up in a tight ball, her eyes back to their usual brown color. She was sad.
"Hey, Baby." V-GR lay on the bed next to her, "Feeling better?"
"I'm sorry..."
"Willow, we've been over this." V-GR shook her shoulder, "You've been really good! You haven't yelled at me for more than a year! That's progress!"
"Shut up!" Willow hid her face from him, "You never make me angry, and yet I always vent to you...why do you keep putting up with me!?"
V-GR let himself smile, "Because I love you." he pulled her arm gently until she turned to face him, "Listen to me, okay? You need to let it out on someone, it might as well be me."
"How can you stay so calm!?" Willow buried her face in the pillow, "Don't I ever scare you?"
"Ah, um..." V-GR bit his lip as he thought, "...you...did at first. I called your dad that first time, and he told me what to do."
"M-my dad...?" Willow looked into his eyes, her frown deepening, "I'm so sorry, I just...my temper is so bad! I hate it! I wish I could control it!"
"Hey." V-GR wrapped his arms around her, "You accepted me. You nearly got yourself killed because you love me. You risked everything for me. I think I can stand to be the shouting dummy every once in awhile." he kissed her screen, "Mm. I have never, 'put up with you'. I love everything about you, including your refusal to take things sitting down."
"I don't like yelling at people!"
"And one day, you no longer will." V-GR brushed his fingers over Willow's cheeks, "You're assertive, not aggressive. I can tell."
"Ah...stop..." Willow couldn't help but smile.
V-GR laughed, "You are so cute!"
"No I'm not!"
"Hahaha! See, Coby?" V-GR rolled over, "She's calm now!"
"Coby!" Willow jumped out of the bed, rushing over to her son, "I'm so sorry...I hope I never yell like that again..."
Cobalt searched her eyes for the rage that he saw before, but every trace of it was gone, replaced with genuine worry and regret and sorrow.
"I-It's okay, Mama." Cobalt rubbed his eyes.
"I will never yell at you! I promise!" Willow grabbed his hands, "I'm so sooo sorry!"
Cobalt hugged her, "Thank you. It's okay, really. It just scared me a little, but I'm okay!"
V-GR hugged both of them, "There you go! Hey Cobalt, what did I tell you before?"
"Huh?" he scrambled for the words, "I-I'm fine, I'm safe, and this isn't a big deal."
"Good." V-GR said to him.
"I won't hurt you, okay Coby?" Willow said, "I promise."
And she would hold that promise.
Thank you guys so much for the reviews that boosted my motivation enough to update this again! All three of you! It really means a lot to me! ;u;