Hello! How are you all? I was fast this time, wasn't I?
Okay, before we go on with my little tale here's a thank you to: Shiloh, Lady Nightlord, Nala162024, CaptainFlyingSparrow, BlueStar33, Aymie Lestrange, JainaZekk621, Mana-Kipagami, Emma, waterdoddesskasey, BabyBlueSkys and SweeneySparrow5! Thank you all for your support. And thanks to everyone who is reading this even if they don't review! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Sweeney Todd!
Chapter 49
Grace sighed and reached with her hand again towards his face, moving his black hair away from his tired face. He kept staring at her, obviously waiting for an answer. She looked at him and moved her hand to his hurt hand again, gently caressing it.
"Come on, Sweeney…" she said again but he shook his head, his hand tightening around the razor, but not moving his hand away from her touch.
"You love me, don't you?" he asked her again, his eyes wide but fogged.
"Of course I do…I'm angry but I love you…" she said softly and he looked at her before looking at his lap again.
"Will you let me see your hand?" she asked but he shook his head.
"No…no…he hurt you…" he muttered incoherently and she became confused.
"No one hurt me, love…" she said but he shook his head again, pointing to himself.
"Him…he always does…I don't want him to…" he mumbled and she swallowed.
"Sweeney?" she asked helplessly.
"No…not now…" he muttered again and she was really worried. She knew he was troubled but this was completely different from his other angry fits.
"Okay, look at me." She said, taking hold of his chin, he looked at her and he cocked his head to the side and stared at her. His eyes transfixed by her blue gaze and he smiled a small smile.
"Blue…" he muttered and she bit her lip.
"Yes, love. Blue. Now, here's the deal. You let me see your hand and then we'll go to bed." She said and he looked at her lips, his eyes calm, gentle but confused.
Without waiting for his permission she took his hand and placed it on her lap. She turned it and opened his palm, moving his fingers away gently. She gasped when she saw that small pieces of glasses were on it and a quite long slash from the razor. She took away the razor and threw it under the bed, not wanting him to hurt himself again.
"God…what did you do?" she said gently as she got up and looked around. The moment she was away he broke out of his daze and grabbed her arm.
"No…where…don't…" he said and she smiled.
"I'll be back. I'm just going to the bathroom." She said as she started walking with difficulty. His eyes followed her every move, his hurt hand lying limply on his knee. She returned shortly and started removing the pieces of the glass one by one. There were two small ones and a bigger one and he didn't even flinch. He just looked at her.
"There…now…" she said as she took the alcohol she had brought from the bathroom.
"Why are you walking with difficulty...?" he asked her and she bit her lip.
"I just gave birth.A few days ago...Remember?" she said gently and he looked at her still slightly swollen stomach and his eyes stayed there, fixated on her slight bump.
"This will sting…" she warned but he just smiled, moving his good hand to move a lock of hair behind her ear, not even feeling the sting she talked about. When his hand was clean from the blood she brought it closer to examine it and she saw that he had managed to make a quite deep cut on his palm with the razor. She took the cloth she had brought and wrapped it around his hand.
"Come on…let's go…" she said as she tried to pull him with her. She took his arm and slowly pulled him towards her. He stood up without a fuss and they walked to the door. He made a noise in the back of his throat and tried to stop her but she cooed at him and stroked his arm.
"We'll just go to the kitchen…Johanna will be there…" she said and he looked at her, his eyes lighting up.
"Johanna?" he rasped and she nodded.
"Come on…I need to stitch your hand…" she said as they walked down the stairs.
They walked into the kitchen and Johanna was back, placing the groceries on the counter.
"There you are! What are you doing up! You shouldn't…" she started but stopped when she saw her father, looking at her intently, his hand bleeding.
"Oh God! What happened?" she asked as she came to him and placed a hand on his arm.
"He hurt his hand. He broke the mirror and he's acting…weird…" Grace said as she sat him on a chair, while Johanna stroked his hair.
"My pet…" he mumbled as he leaned into her touch as Grace left to fetch a needle.
"Dad? Are you all right?" Johanna asked and he smiled.
"No, he's not. I don't know what's wrong…" Grace said as she returned and winced as she sat next to him on a chair.
"Did you have another fight?" Johanna asked and Grace sighed before nodding.
"Yeah…" she said as she took his hand and removed the cloth. She poured alcohol again and then started fixing his hand.
"Can you keep an eye on Maddy?" Grace asked and Johanna nodded, exiting the room.
"Maddy?" Sweeney asked.
"Yes…our baby…remember?" she asked, looking at him.
"Madeline. We call her Maddy…because it's prettier…" he said softly and she bit her lip.
"That's right, love…how about some tea when I'm done, hmm?" she asked as she stitched his hand and he nodded, leaning closer to her face and kissing her cheek repeatedly.
"Don't move now, love…" she said, even though she enjoyed his touch. He obeyed and moved back, his eyes looking from her face to his hand a few times before settling on her face. After sometime she finished with his hand and bandaged it, stunned that he didn't make a sound the entire time. It was like he couldn't feel the pain.
"All done…" she announced and he looked at his hand.
"You stitched it…" he muttered and she nodded.
"Thank you…" he whispered and she smiled.
She stood up and looked at him. His eyes were darting all over the place before finally settling on the doorway, leading to the parlor and bedroom.
"You want to see, Maddy?" she said suddenly and he shot up from the chair, nodding eagerly. She smiled sadly and they walked to the bedroom. Johanna looked up as she heard them, throwing a questioning look at Grace who just shrugged helplessly. Sweeney leaned over the crib and looked at the baby who was still awake. He smiled down at her and she giggled, wiggling in her covers, her small hands reaching for him. Without hesitation he reached for her urgently, picking her up and holding her close to his chest. Johanna looked at him, confused that he was not huffing or growling like usual.
"I'll make some tea…" Grace said but Johanna stopped her.
"I'll go. You shouldn't be up." She said, exiting the bedroom. Grace nodded and made to sit on the bed when she felt a hand on her arm helping her lie down. She looked up and saw Sweeney's worried face or should she say Benjamin Barker's face. It wasn't Sweeney. He was too gentle to be Sweeney and it unnerved her.
What have I said that bothered him so much? She thought as she watched him.
"Sweeney? Sit down." She said as he stood with the baby in his arms. He sat down next to her and looked at Maddy who was trying to reach his white lock of hair. He smiled and leaned closer so that she could reach it.
"Why did you do that, Sweeney?" she asked after a while and he turned to look at her. He shrugged and kissed Maddy's cheek.
"Don't know…" he muttered as he looked at her.
"She's sleepy…" he whispered and Grace looked at her daughter.
"About time…she hasn't slept much today…" she said as he got up and brought Maddy closer to Grace. She kissed her forehead and he placed her in the crib, wrapping her in the covers. He looked around the room with a frown.
"Where is her bear? She can't sleep without her bear…" he muttered and Grace chuckled.
"He's on the dresser." She said and he picked it up, placing to next to Maddy.
Johanna walked in with two cups of tea and placed them on the nightstand.
"Everything okay?" she asked, pecking her father's cheek who smiled at her warmly, stroking her hair as she stood next to him.
"Um…yes…" Grace said and Johanna smiled at her father.
"I'm going to take a bath…I won't take long…I'll clean the mess upstairs tomorrow. Dad can sleep here tonight. I'll sleep on the couch." She said, exiting the room, closing the door behind her.
Grace picked a cup and started sipping her tea, while Sweeney stared at the crib.
"Drink your tea. It'll get cold." She whispered and he sat again on the bed, staring at the cup he held in his hand.
"I don't mean to hurt you…I don't want to …but I can't help it…I can't…" he muttered as he put the cup on the nightstand and took her hand, squeezing it in his own.
"I know…" she whispered, looking at her lap.
"I don't deserve what you give me…I don't deserve her…" he said, pointing at Maddy's sleeping form.
"I don't care." She said and his eyes widened.
"What?" he asked, crawling closer to her.
"I know I yelled at you…but I don't hate you. You should know that by now. But I can't forget so quickly." She whispered and he looked at her, his face pained.
He nodded and she smiled, taking his hand and kissing it.
"What you did today was stupid. You scared me to death." She said, her eyes shining with tears and he shook his head, coming closer to her.
"I didn't mean to scare you." He whispered, his lips a breath's away from hers.
"God, what am I going to do with you?" she muttered, tangling her fingers in his ebony hair. He looked into her eyes before kissing her full on the mouth, his kiss needy but gentle. She gasped as he deepened the kiss, his mouth soft under hers but demanding. The kiss became urgent and his hand moved to the back of her neck, pressing her closer to him.
"I need you…" he whispered, breaking the kiss. She frowned and he kissed her again.
"I need the calmness you provide, Gracie…if I don't have it…I'll loose my mind…" he whispered hoarsely, looking at her in the eyes.
"No you won't…" she said, shaking her head but he nodded.
"I will…if you don't keep me in here…" he pointed to her heart and she took hold of his hurt hand and gently caressed it.
"Come here." She whispered, pulling him into her arms and leaning against the bed. He eagerly obliged, wrapping his arms around her waist and laying his head on her chest. She pulled him further on the bed and he was glad of her warmth that he had missed those days. She pulled the covers around them and kissed his hair gently.
"Don't hurt yourself again okay?" she whispered and he nodded, nuzzling his face into her neck, his nose brushing against her skin.
"Only if you promise not to leave me." He whispered and she smiled a little, tangling her hand in his hair again, massaging his scalp.
"I won't. You're stuck with me now. Unless you decide to kill me of course." She said teasingly.
He moved back and looked at her with hurt eyes, shaking his head frantically.
"I would kill myself first." He said as he kissed her again, his mind in peace for the time being at least.
End of chapter 49
Author's note: Thank you all for reading! She calmed him, didn't she?
Please review! I want to hear your thoughts! :)
