Between
And then it was there—between them—and neither had really known how to handle that.

Minor 2x14 spoilers

They had come together after a threat, a challenge, and a daring impulse.

And then it was there—between them—and neither had really known how to handle that.

The thing was, they were both too damaged, and bitter, and guarded and too lost in past heartaches—it defined them in all the wrong ways—to ever let themselves believe in the possibility of anything good coming out of it

So they each told themselves it wasn't anything beyond what it was; physical release, temporary distractions, and meaninglessly fleeting moments.

And it worked, in a way that didn't really work at all, because to them love—real love—were two very different things.

He wanted allusions, and guarded happiness. The beauty of love; which was gentle and devoted and was not tainted or tempted by the darkness. And one that he could keep with him and never has to fear its loss.

She preferred honestly and, with it, harsh passions; reckless and unyielding. For her heart to be stolen by it. To truly be able to feel it and know it's there. She wanted a love that could make her fearless and safe. And that would never, ever abandon her.

Again, this is what they told themselves they wanted.

But what they didn't seem to acknowledge was that they were just hiding the important words amongst all those superficial ones. They used words that they could hold on to, and cling to, because they thought it would protect them. In the end, their hesitations came down to two little facts.

He feared loss.

And she feared being abandoned.

It was as simple as that.

And yet, regardless of their futile excuses, neither could quite let the other go. So it became an endless cycle of back and forth, give and takes, wanting and having, lies and truths.

Love and hate.

And that was before things got convoluted and so much more complicated between them—a real series of predicaments.

A curse broken, a family reunited, a true love returned, a trip home for mother and daughter, a heroes' triumphant return with some villains in tow, a full-time parenting gig, a setup, an act of revenge, a loss of memories, a deal forcibly honored, and a trip to the big apple.

And one revelation that neither of them, not even him with his cursed gift, could have foreseen.

A family affair, if ever there was one.

As they stood by that window, both beyond psychologically drained and emotionally exhausted, they shared a simple yet heated look and knew.

That it was done—between them—because it had to be.

And for two people who'd d told themselves that it had never really been about love at all.

It still felt a little too much like heartbreak when it was over.

Author's Notes:

Another depressing story completed. It seems I'm incapable of writing these two as happy at the moment.

I wasn't originally planning to but I decided to sit and write today. I wanted to try just writing freely and not nitpick on the editing process and this is the result of that. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. There's probably a bunch of mistakes but the point of writing these oneshots was to practice various styles and processes of writing. I just hope I've been somewhat successful.

For this story, I started working on just before Manhattan and then completed it as and after I watched it. So the flow of the story took an unexpected shift at the end (I actually intended for a happier ending—I know, shocker). I'm not sure if it worked out too well the way it turned out and a small part of me wants to write more for it but there's a bigger part that feels it's finished. – I listened to that one, hence the posting.

Thanks again for reading. To my reviewers; you're the best. To all you readers; you're pretty great too.

P.S- Happy stories are coming...hopefully.