Just a bit of bittersweet post-book softness. I don't own any rights to If We Were Villians. Enjoy!

She often lay awake in bed, watching the gentle rise and fall of Oliver's breaths as he slept soundly beside her. As she watched him, she wondered what he was dreaming about. Was it her? Was it him? Was he even dreaming at all? Ever since leaving jail, she noticed he slept a lot lighter than he used to when they were back in college. If she shuffled across the bed even slightly, he would instantly wake and ask if she was okay. Or maybe he always used to do that and it was just another thing she'd never taken much notice of before; there's a lot you take for granted when you don't know you're about to lose it. Maybe that's something she should have spoken to James about before he... left. She really should have seen it sooner; how he cared for Oliver in the same way she had done, and still did. Maybe then, her and James would have gotten along a little better. Maybe she would have finally understood him. Maybe she could have stopped him from making the decisions he had done. But it was too late now. James was never coming back. So it would just be her and her broken little Oliver, trying to muddle their way through this new life together. She knew he still clung to a tiny fragment of hope that James was still alive, that they might even be reunited one day. She held no such belief herself but, if that sliver of hope was what allowed Oliver to continue waking up each day, damned would be anyone who tried to take that from him.

"What are you thinking about?" Oliver's soft voice broke Meredith from her thoughts as she looked down to see him smiling sleepily at her.

"Nothing," she lied with an easy smile, leaning down and pressing a gentle kiss to Oliver's forehead.

"Are you sure?" he looked up at her, his eyes full of warmth and concern.

"I'm sure, my dear," she waved off his concern "go back to sleep,"

Oliver frowned but said nothing further, clearly not believing her but not wanting to push her either. Instead, he rolled towards her and settled himself in the crook of her arm, draping an arm across her waist and pulling her closer to him. Within moments, he was asleep once more, a peaceful smile resting on his lips. She absentmindedly stroked her fingers through his soft hair and returned herself to her thoughts. She wished she could take away all of his pain as easily as she could coax him back to sleep. But, despite everything they shared and how much she knew he loved her, she would never be James. She could never fix him the way James would have been able to. So, instead, she would gently hold Oliver through the rest of his life and maybe, just maybe, he would heal enough to be able to let it all go. For now, Meredith was content with what they had and she vowed to love him every day until then.