Okiedokie then everyone, this isn't quite the last chapter, there will be an epilogue next week, but I just want to thank you all for keeping with me throughout all this. The Corona situation has been kind of sketchy, and my personal life has kind of gone nuts in the midst of it, and this has been one of the few things keeping me remotely sane, so thanks. I hope you've all enjoyed this remake, and hopefully I'll manage to get around to finishing something else and posting it one day. Who knows? Now, enough from me, I hope you enjoy this week's chapter, and I'll see you at the end. - J
Chapter 30: Unshakeable
They kept her in hospital a lot longer than she'd have liked. She supposed it was sensible, given her various injuries, malnutrition and the rather extensive list of psychological issues she'd apparently developed, so she bore the constant testing with only minimal sulking.
It was kind of weird, following a lot of years of repressing her issues, to actually talk them through with a trained professional. The doctor was a good guy though, not too touchy-feely, and good at deciphering her ramblings. He was also pretty upfront about his 'secret' task of making sure she hadn't actually switched sides or something, which was pretty obvious, but it was nice he wasn't trying to hide it.
Apparently he cleared her, so she kept her job and wasn't arrested, but she was placed on leave while she continued physio and yet more therapy. It was deeply irritating, but at least it meant she could actually go home.
During her time at the hospital she'd had a few visitors. All of her team from the London office had made at least one appearance each. Six, in particular, had leapt into the room with the enthusiasm of an excitable Labrador and tackled her, which was both adorable and painful, but she appreciated the gesture. Jenny came by on occasion, often with cookies, which was very sweet. Hell, even Isabela dropped in once, if only to let them know that Kelly would be allowed to work from the London office while Soph was handling recovery. Apparently, taking a couple months torture to save your boss' life came with some rewards, who knew?
Jones, of course, was in every day, either working on her laptop in the corner of the hospital room or coming by after work to sit with her. Really, as much as Soph hated hospitals, she hated Kelly having to spend so much time in, what had to be, the least comfortable chair in the world. She'd protested, obviously, but the woman just gave her that stare that made it very clear she wasn't going anywhere and Soph had to admit having her nearby was comforting… She really didn't like hospitals.
Just over a month after her return, she finally stepped back into their flat with a great sigh of relief. Kelly chuckled quietly behind her.
"Glad to be back?" She smiled and Soph shot a grin over her shoulder as she wandered further into the living room.
"You have no idea." She moved to the window and smiled down at the familiar view. Around training, her job, and then the last few months, she'd only actually spent maybe three months in the flat itself, but it was still oddly comforting. The place just… felt better. Soph let a smile pull at one corner of her lips and it only grew as arms wound around her waist, gently easing her back against the other woman.
"Welcome home." Lips pressed to the side of her head, and Sophie hummed contentedly.
"It's good to be back."
The moment was shattered as her stomach gave a loud rumble, pulling a laugh from the pair of them.
"Hungry?" Jones smirked and Soph chuckled.
"Always." She shrugged and stepped away. It was true, with how much weight she'd lost, she was hungry a lot at the moment. The doctors had kept her on a very strict diet back at the hospital, to make sure she didn't make herself sick, but they'd cleared her to start eating normally again now and she honestly hadn't realised how much she'd missed Kelly's cooking.
It was a little depressing, but Soph couldn't cook if her life depended on it; even toast seemed to go from bread to burned implausibly fast when she was in charge of the toaster. Meanwhile, Kelly had revealed yet another thing she was annoyingly good at.
"I'll make some dinner." Jones squeezed her shoulder as she passed and Soph grinned.
"I'm going to get changed. White is not my colour." She gestured to the white tracksuit bottoms and vest that had been her outfit for the last month. Kelly smiled.
"All your stuff's where you left it." She waved her off and Soph turned heel to head to their bedroom.
She allowed herself to be side tracked from her mission the moment she stepped inside, landing a running dive onto the bed and bouncing on the comfortable mattress with a grin. Goddamn it was good to be home.
She sprawled out across the covers with a deep sigh. The hospital bed was comfortable enough, but they insisted on rubber sheets (for all patients, not just her, she checked) and the mattresses were firm even for her taste. She and Kelly had put a lot of effort into getting just the right bed for them, and choosing the right covers. They'd actually argued for a while over what colour to pick, Soph wanting black, obviously, and Kelly wanting red. In the end, they'd compromised with a black duvet cover and red pillows, or vice versa depending on which were in the wash. She noted that they currently had a black duvet cover, and had to wonder if it was intentional. It probably was. They hadn't talked about it yet, but it was pretty damn obvious the woman felt bad that Soph had been left in that prison for so long. It was far from her fault, but Sophie had no idea how to help her see that.
Scrubbing her hands over her face, she rolled to her feet; she really did want to get out of this hospital crap.
All her clothes were indeed where she left them; the now considerably shallower walk-in as tidy as it ever was. They'd played about with the space after they'd moved in, cutting it in half and hiding the back with a secret panel to keep all their gear and weapons, but the first half was still clothes. Sorting through, she grabbed a black and grey long sleeve-T and an old pair of jeans, before heading off into the bathroom. She needed to shower off the hospital smell.
As soon as she caught sight of herself in the mirror, her plans changed. Her hair was truly appalling.
She spent the next twenty minutes correcting the travesty, then jumped in the shower to wash off the mess. Her shower gel and shampoo were a welcome sight, but it didn't quite take the edge off of the mess of new scars she'd gained… She supposed she should be used to that sort of thing by now, but it wasn't just her back anymore. Granted there were new ones there too, but now the rest of her had some to match. The bullet hole in particular was a delightful sight. Still, she couldn't stay under the hot water forever, so she dragged herself out, a faint smile finding her face as she ruffled her hair with a towel. It was the wrong colour, no trace of the red she used to have, but at least the style didn't make her look like the missing member of the Beatles anymore. Her eye caught the new scar going through her brow and she snorted. They gave her a list of her injuries, some she remembered getting and others she didn't, but that one… She wasn't going to tell anyone she did it to herself while trying to escape.
She hurried up getting dressed, realising she'd been gone for near-on an hour but when she finally returned to the kitchen, Kelly only smiled.
"Looks good."
It wasn't easy. Even with therapy, Soph needed a lot of work to move past her time underground. She slept heavily medicated to keep the nightmares at bay, and jumped at every irregular sound. It was just as well she wasn't currently licenced to carry firearms. Meanwhile, Kelly had to go back to work, but honestly, she was torn over how unhappy that made her. On the one hand, the woman was very good at wrangling her back to sanity when she was struggling, but on the other, being in such a constant state around her was starting to do bad things to her self-esteem. It was all in her own head, obviously, Kelly wasn't one to make her feel bad about anything, but she felt like she might need to handle some of it alone.
Four months, two weeks, and four days after she came home, she tossed her sleeping pills into the bin.
Two weeks of managing to sleep through the night without them had been hard won. At first she simply failed to fall asleep at all, then when she did, nightmares plagued her two or three times a night. She still had them now, sometimes, but they were no worse than those she'd had in the past, and no more frequent. She had been cleared by her doctors to leave physio, and though she still had some way to go before she was back to the standard she considered acceptable, she could finally see the muscle definition returning to her arms and stomach. She could also finally bare to actually look at herself in a mirror again, which was definitely progress. Given the effects of her time in that hellhole, she had found it a struggle to look too hard at herself at any time. Her face, she could just about manage, but anything below her neck had very nearly triggered anxiety attacks for some time. To that end, she'd returned to her old habit of sleeping in a long sleeve shirt and shorts, and, probably more noticeably, hadn't done more than kiss Kelly since the night before she was taken captive.
Jones hadn't commented, because of course she hadn't, but given how frequent they used to be, it was safe to imagine she'd certainly noticed. Her therapist had a lot to say on the topic, cautioning her against doing anything she didn't feel ready for and constantly reminding her that a 'dry spell' in this sort of situation was entirely normal. Of course, she knew all that, and she'd forced herself to take things steady because of it, but over six months was too damn long, and now she could bare to look herself in the mirror again, she wasn't about to wait a minute longer than she had to.
Sadly, Jones was out of the country, so she still had a few more days of bouncing around the flat like she'd downed too many energy drinks before she could finally follow through on her mission.
She did have an idea of how she was going to spend it though, and it was definitely something that was far past due.
The hairdresser around the corner was very helpful in finding her exact shade of 'fuck-you red', and after three appointments (the first two had been spent bleaching her hair to the point where the dark crimson would actually take) she finally stopped looking like her dad and found her own reflection smirking back at her.
With that done, she resolved to clean the flat, change the sheets on the bed and have the world's longest shower, just to keep herself from bouncing out of her skin while she waited. Idly, she recalled a time when two nights away from each other was a hard fought struggle, when she'd get antsy and twitchy after less than a week without Kelly. Her behaviour now was oddly nostalgic in that sense, but as she stared out of the window, she felt oddly calm. Jones was due home any minute; the setting sun her current distraction as she nursed her first glass of whiskey in months.
She'd been on edge all day, struggling to choose an outfit, doing her hair, then redoing it because she'd scrubbed her hands through it since and messed it up, but now, she was still. None of it mattered, really. It didn't matter what she wore, whether she'd chosen a bathrobe or the jeans and flannel shirt she'd settled on. It didn't matter if her hair looked great (though it certainly did), and it didn't matter if the bedsheets were red and black or black and red. Kelly loved her enough to stay beside her as she struggled through her issues, back at St. Trinian's and again now. She loved her enough to put up with her bizarre logic and terrible taste in TV shows. She loved her enough to spend over a month sitting or sleeping in a terrible hospital chair just to keep her company.
And Soph loved her just as much.
It didn't matter if they went to bed tonight and did nothing but sleep, because they loved each other anyway, and that thought pulled the smallest of smiles to her lips as she heard the door click behind her.
"Hey, loser." Kelly's typical greeting only made her smile grow, but she didn't turn around, her eyes still on the horizon as it changed slowly from bright orange to deep red.
"Damn, you're still coming back here?" She snarked back and took a long drink, keeping her smile as the quiet sound of footsteps made their way across the room toward her. Still wary of her boundaries, Jones didn't step up behind her, instead she moved to her side, a light hand on the small of her back their only contact as she stood beside her.
"Yep, can't get rid of me that easy." Her grin was audible and Soph drained her glass, setting it to one side before turning to the other woman.
"Hm, shame that." She flashed a grin and wound her arms about the other woman's waist.
For half a beat, Kelly seemed to actually tense, obviously unsure as sharp eyes scanned over her face. Apparently not finding what she feared, she relaxed, and returned the embrace.
"Looks good." Long fingers pushed through her meticulously styled hair and Soph smirked.
"It felt like time." She leaned into the touch and the taller woman beamed.
"I won't lie, it was weird waking up next to your dad for the last few months." Jones' taunted and Soph recoiled, taking her hands back with a grimace worthy of an emo presented with a tracksuit.
"God! Why?!" She gave an overdramatic shudder while Kelly laughed, far too amused with herself.
Soph scowled, folding her arms tight across her chest to pout while Jones struggled to stop laughing.
"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't resist." She just about managed to tone it down to a stifled chuckle but Soph was unmoved, maintaining her sulk. Eventually, the other woman stopped laughing long enough to offer a vaguely apologetic smile, moving closer to pull her back into her arms. Sophie didn't resist, but didn't relax her hunched posture.
"Hey, come here." Lips pressed to the side of her head and she felt the tension leave her shoulders just a little. Kelly must have too, since she pulled her closer, pressing another kiss just below her ear.
"Feel better?" Her tone dropped low and Soph couldn't help but allow a small smile.
"Maybe a little." She hummed and let her shoulders relax, tipping her head to one side almost instinctively as Kelly's lips continued their decent. Damn, she'd missed this.
Yeah, fuck taking things slow.
She spun around, throwing her arms around the taller woman's neck to pull her down as she met her with a bruising kiss. Without a moment's hesitation, Kelly's hands wound tight in her shirt and began dragging her back toward some destination or other. Frankly, Sophie did not care, she was busy finding and undoing the world's smallest zip at the back of the woman's dress, and delighting in the feel of silky skin beneath her hands as she pushed it down to pool on the floor. It was stepped over, forgotten, and suddenly Soph felt overdressed, growling against the other woman's lips.
They reached the sofa and she pushed Kelly back to sit down while she undid the first few buttons of her own shirt, rapidly growing impatient and just yanking it off over her head. She was pretty sure she popped a button doing it but who gave a fuck? Kelly's eyes were dark as she looked up at her and Soph was genuinely concerned her legs wouldn't hold her for a moment. To be on the safe side, she dropped herself into the woman's lap, a knee either side of her hips, and reclaimed deep red lips in a fiery kiss.
Warm hands trailed over her skin, a path of heat following in their wake that pulsed in her veins and set her hips rocking forward. As soon as they did, nails dug sharply into her shoulders and she startled herself as a moan rumbled from her throat. She froze for a moment as blood rushed to her face but arms wound tight about her waist as if to keep her from bolting and their kiss turned gentle, calming. After a moment, she pulled away and hid her face in the other woman's neck, cursing internally. It shouldn't be embarrassing…
"I've got you." A warm hand settled over the back of her neck as soothing words floated by her ear, barely louder than a whisper.
"I missed you." She spoke on a sigh, certain Kelly would know she didn't just mean for these last two weeks.
"Show me?" Delicate fingers wound in her hair and an edge of challenge carried on the dark, playful tone. Soph couldn't help her own wolfish grin.
"Yes, ma'am." She nipped at the skin beneath her lips and her grin only grew at the shiver she felt in the body beneath her.
She bloody would.
Honestly, she couldn't have told you how long later it was that she found herself staring at the ceiling. They'd made their way to the bedroom at some point, after having rolled off of the sofa rather hilariously to the floor, but now they simply lay sprawled across the bed, both too overheated to burrow under the covers.
A gentle smile found her lips as she rolled her head to one side, settling her gaze on the woman beside her. She loved her so much, it was bloody ridiculous. They hadn't bothered to turn on the lights as they'd staggered in so the only light was that coming in from outside. In the glow of the streets below and the moon above, Kelly looked almost unreal, and it honestly almost hurt for Soph to look at her. The fuck did she ever do to deserve this woman?
"You're staring." Jones smirked without opening her eyes and Soph grinned.
"Yep." She scooted closer, leaning down to press a kiss to her shoulder.
"Such a creep." A lazy hand rose to tangle in her hair and Soph hummed in agreement, nipping lightly at the skin beneath her lips, grinning as she was immediately batted on the back of the head.
"Nu-uh, not again. We still have sedatives in the house and I am not afraid to use them." She opened her eyes to scowl and Soph chuckled, pressing one last chaste kiss before settling down on her side.
"I'll behave." She smirked and Kelly rolled her eyes, turning over to face her.
"Never in your life." She sighed fondly. Soph managed a huff that might have been laughter, too distracted by the eyes now on hers to offer much more.
She must have been silent for too long as eventually Kelly smirked.
"What're you thinking about?" She arched a brow and Soph gave a half-hearted shrug.
"Kind of waiting for the credits to start rolling." She chuckled and the other woman joined her.
"This is your happy ending?" Eventually she manged a smirk and Soph considered for a moment, eventually shaking her head.
"No." She sighed and leaned over, claiming a gentle, lingering kiss, before dropping back down on her side.
"Happy ending are for stories that are finished. This is more… The end of a chapter." She grinned, a little sheepish in the wake of her cheesy sentiment, but Kelly only smiled that soft little smile of hers.
"I love you." She sighed wistfully and Soph couldn't help but beam.
"I love you." Shifting closer, she retrieved the duvet from where it was tangled somewhere behind her and pulled it over the pair of them. They were pointing the wrong way, and she was pretty sure the pillows were scattered on the floor somewhere, but right now, in this moment, she had never felt more at peace.
This wasn't the end of their story, how could it be? They were barely past the beginning. However, no matter what awaited them in the future, it had better get ready, and definitely think twice before fucking with Kelly Jones and Sophie Daniels.
They were unshakeable.
I'm going to miss these two, they're a good method of venting my need for adorableness. I hope you've all enjoyed reading, and I hope to see you all again next week for the Epilogue. Thank you again for reading, you guys have all been great, and I hope you have a good week. - J
