Breaking point

Disclaimer: They`re not mine. Not making any profit with them. Just having fun.

Ezekiel stood in Maggie`s former office at Hilltop, staring at the wall before him. It was late afternoon, a million different noises drifting in through the open windows. It was always noisy at Hilltop, too many people crowded in a relatively small space. He barely registered it anymore. Lost in his thoughts he studied the Charter in front of him. He couldn`t even remember why he put it up when they got here, it did nothing but remind him of his failings every day.

His fingers reached out to touch the glass where they had signed the Charter. His name. Hers. She had signed the Charter with "Queen Carol". He`d been so proud and happy. And then – Ezekiel closed his eyes, desperately trying to stop his mind from going down that road again, to not think about what happened later that day. To not think about Henry. There was a sound behind him, someone had stepped into the room. Sucking in a deep breath, he turned around.

For a moment, Ezekiel thought that maybe he was dreaming, hallucinating. But no, there she was, standing across the room from him. Carol. She looked terrible. Dirty, bleeding from a wound on her right temple. Crying. His heart broke into a million pieces again seeing her like that. He wanted to rush to her, help her, but he remained frozen in his place, not knowing what to do. Waiting.

"I`m so sorry."

Her words were barely more than a whisper, but he heard her anyway. Taking a tentative step forward, Ezekiel watched her closely, gauging her reaction. When she showed no sign of retreating from him, he slowly walked over until he was standing as close to her as possible without touching her, all the time afraid that she might run away again. But she didn´t.

Looking up at him, she said it again, tears streaming down her face.

"I`m so sorry."

This time, he reached out, pulling her against him, holding her close. Carol buried her face in his neck, her hands clutching at his back, sobbing helplessly in his arms. They sank to their knees together as Carol let it all out, all strength leaving her body. Ezekiel didn`t say a word, not trusting his voice. He just held her, stroking her back, comforting her as best as he could. He didn`t allow his own tears to fall, not now. Carol had reached her limits and now she needed his strength.

It felt like an eternity until she finally calmed down, her sobbing turning into soft little hiccups before she went completely still. Ezekiel thought that maybe she had fallen asleep, but when he tried to move them a little, she grabbed his shirt, not willing to let him go, her face still pressed against his chest. Ezekiel softly tried to make her look at him, but she refused, shaking her head.

"Carol."

She still wasn`t looking at him, but neither was she letting go.

"We can`t stay here like this."

Still no reaction from her. Not knowing what else to do, Ezekiel placed a soft kiss on the top of her head, whispering "Please, my Love."

That did it. Taking a deep breath, Carol got to her feet and he followed her. For a second he feared that she might turn around now, but she just stood there, shoulders slumped in defeat, her hair a wild mess around her face, shielding her from him. Ezekiel reached out, softly tilting her chin up to make her look at him. He needed to see her eyes, needed to make a connection with her. Carol closed her eyes briefly, but then she gave in, finally looking directly at him. The pain in her eyes matched his own.

At a loss for words, Ezekiel took her hand, silently begging her to come with him. And she did. Curling her fingers around his, Carol followed him upstairs and into his room. Inside, he lead her right into the small adjoining bathroom, turning on the shower.

"We need to get you clean."

Taking her silence as agreement, he slowly began undressing her, starting with her gloves. He froze when he slid off the left one – Carol was wearing her wedding ring. His ring. His heart was hammering in his chest at the unexpected surprise. The tiny smile she gave him when he dared to look at her sparked something inside of him that he had considered lost a long time ago. They stared at each other, neither of them able to speak. It didn`t matter. Right now, no words were needed.

Ezekiel resumed his task, helping Carol out of her clothes, then softly pushed her under the shower. She went but then just stood there unmoving, her eyes not leaving his. Not bothering to take off his own clothes, Ezekiel stepped under the shower with her. He started washing her long curls before turning to the rest of her body. Carol let it all happen, glad that she didn`t need to think, didn`t need to act right now.

After the shower, Ezekiel dried her off carefully, then wrapped her into another towel and lead her over to the bed. By then, Carol was barely able to keep her eyes open anymore, exhaustion taking over her body. She slipped under the covers already half asleep, but when Ezekiel turned around her hand shot out, holding him in place.

"Stay."

Her voice was hoarse from crying, her eyes pleading with him. Without thinking, he shed his wet clothes on the floor and slipped into bed with her. Carol immediately scooted closer, snuggling into his side as close as possible. With her head on his chest right over his heart, she fell into the first deep and dreamless sleep in months.

Ezekiel was exhausted, too – both, physically and emotionally. He would have loved to fall asleep in his wife`s arms, but the fear that she might be gone again when he woke up kept him awake. He didn`t know what to make of all this, but where there had been nothing but heartache an hour ago there now was a tiny spark of hope. She had come to him. When the pain had become too much for her to deal with on her own, she had come to him. And she was wearing his ring. Maybe they still could make it out of this together.