A/N: So, I've had a rough past couple of days and unfortunately, I really haven't felt like writing, and I hate when I feel this way because I love to write, but I just don't have the energy to do so. I honestly wasn't going to post this at first because I feel like it's not my best, but I should also stop being so hard on myself. Hopefully, this isn't as rough as I think it is. But anyway, sorry for the small rant.

The title comes from the lyrics from a song called "Lay Your Worry Down" by Milow. I actually found that song the other night and I got the idea for this story while listening to it.

Day 16: One Comforting the Other

Title: Lay Your Worry Down On Me

Chimney cleaned up the mess from their takeout dinner and put the leftovers in Maddie's refrigerator. He took his time while he did; his thoughts were distracting him.

Something was definitely wrong with Maddie. They both had been quiet during their whole meal, and that was very unusual for them. They hadn't even talked about their days at work.

And Chimney was sure that Maddie had been crying before he showed up.

He didn't know what to do. He really wanted to ask her if she was okay, but he didn't even know if she would want to talk about what was bothering her. And then, he'd feel terrible for even bringing it up. Chimney didn't want to cross any lines and make her feel like she had to talk about something.

Maybe she just needed to be alone. He decided that he was going to ask her if she wanted him to leave. If she didn't feel like having company, then he definitely didn't want to stay there and bother her.

He walked back to the dining room and Maddie was still sitting at the table. She was drawing circles on the table with her pointer finger.

Chimney cleared his throat before he spoke. "Maddie?"

She looked up at him and she looked exhausted and sad. Seeing her like that honestly hurt Chimney in more ways than he could describe.

"Do you want me to go?"

Maddie looked up and stared at him for a minute before she shrugged. "I know you didn't come over to see me like this. I'm sorry I'm not very talkative or happy today."

Chimney shook his head. "Hey, don't be sorry. I was only asking if you wanted me to leave because I didn't know if you wanted to be alone or not. I had to ask because I don't want to stick around and bother you if you need space right now."

"You could never bother me, Chim," Maddie said quietly.

He gave her half a smile before he made his way over to the table. He stood behind the chair that was diagonal to Maddie's.

"I don't want you to go, but maybe you should," Maddie said after a few moments of silence.

Chimney tilted his head in confusion, and before he could even ask what she meant, Maddie stood up and rushed out of the dining room.

He walked quickly behind her, but then he decided to slow down because he didn't want to make her uncomfortable or scare her.

She was already halfway up the stairs when she stopped to look at him. She shrugged and she shook her head.

"You really should leave. I don't want to bother you with my problems," she said, her voice strained. She was obviously trying not to cry.

Maddie ran up the stairs, and Chimney rushed over to them. His left foot was on the bottom stair when he decided that he wasn't going to run after her… not without her permission.

He had never even been upstairs, and he viewed that as her personal space. He definitely didn't want to invade it.

"Maddie," he said loud enough for her to hear. "If you would've told me to leave because you needed space, I would've gone as soon as you said the words… but I can't leave just because you think you'd bother me if you talk about what's on your mind. You could never bother me."

He heard sniffling, and he knew she was crying.

"Chim," she said, her voice breaking. "Worrying about me isn't supposed to be your job."

Chimney closed his eyes and gripped the railing. It took every ounce of strength he had to not run up to her.

"I worry about you because I… I care about you so much, and anything you say isn't going to make me stop. I'll always worry about you."

She didn't say anything, and all Chimney heard was more sniffles.

"Maddie," he tried again. God, he hoped he wasn't being too pushy. He didn't mean to be at all. He just couldn't stand the fact that she was upstairs alone and crying.

"In the time that I've known you, we've had a lot of fun together. If you asked me to tell you about all of my favorite memories with you, we'd be here until next month. There's been so many good times, and I love every single second with you… but I also need you to realize that I'm just not here for the good times. I'm here for everything… the good, the bad, the ugly… and what I mean is, those inevitable times where we'll argue, and we'll be mad at each other for a little bit… but I'm not going to stand here and let you think that you bother me with your problems or that you think I'm not supposed to worry about you. If you need someone to talk to and a shoulder to cry on, then I'm your guy. I'll be always be that guy for you."

He heard the floor creak upstairs for a few seconds, but then, it stopped.

"Maddie, you actually have no idea how much I want to run up these stairs to get to you, but I won't without your permission. I just want to see your face. Please."

God, he knew he sounded desperate, but he just wanted to comfort her. He just wanted to make her feel okay again.

She appeared at the top of the steps and instead of coming down, she sat at the top of the stairs. She wrapped her arms around her knees.

"You can come up," she said.

Chimney rushed up the stairs, taking two of them at a time. He sat a few steps below Maddie and turned so he could face her.

She was silent for a minute or so before she spoke.

"You'll probably think I'm crazy if I say what's wrong. Even a part of me thinks I am," she said.

Chimney shook his head. "I won't. I'd never judge you."

"I had a bad day. I've actually had a bad week. I've just been good at hiding it until today… but I've always been paranoid about Doug finding me, but the last week or so has been really bad...sometimes when I'm in traffic on my way to work or when I'm at the store, I look around, and I feel like I'm being watched. I haven't seen him, but I also feel like he's the one watching me…. I don't know how to explain it exactly, but when I was with him, I always felt scared, like I had to be prepared to run at all times… and I haven't felt that way in a while, but I've been feeling like that lately. I don't have proof, and it's not like I can go get actual help from the police. Four million people live in this city, Chim. They'll just tell me I'm being too paranoid… and maybe I am. I don't know."

Chimney looked at her, and he could see just how scared she was. He hated knowing that she couldn't do anything without looking over her shoulder.

And if she felt that something was wrong, then he was definitely going to take what she said seriously.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do," she continued. "I'm tired of being scared all the time. I don't want to run anymore."

Maddie ran a hand over her face to wipe her eyes.

Now, Chimney definitely wasn't one to actually want to inflict pain on others, but he really wanted Doug Kendall to suffer for everything he had done.

"I don't want you to run either. Leaving will only make people worry about you more. Maddie, I can't…" he trailed off.

He was about to tell her that he couldn't live without her, but he stopped himself.

But god, it was true. If Maddie left, he knew he would spend every waking moment wondering if she was safe.

"We can talk to Athena. I know she'll believe you, and she'll even keep an eye out for you… and Buck and I can make sure you get to and from work… and I can go with you if you need to go somewhere. We'll figure it out."

Maddie let out a breath and shook her head. "But that's exactly the reason I should leave, Chim. I can't let all of you take time out of your lives to babysit me. I'm not that important."

"Maddie, don't say that. You are important."

"Not enough for people to waste their lives on me."

"You are important," he repeated again. You're- You're important to me."

"But Chim, I can't let any of you be involved in this. He'll make sure he hurts everyone who helps… Athena, Bobby, Buck… you. I'm not going to stand around and let him hurt them… and you…" She finished, shaking her head. "I could never forgive myself if something happened to you. I know I keep talking about leaving, but the truth is, I don't want to. I love it here. I love being with my brother. I love the friends I have, and I'm happy. But I also have to be honest with myself and admit that it does make me selfish for not wanting to leave."

"Maddie, I don't understand. How are you selfish by being happy?"

She sniffled and wiped her face again. "Because if I left, I'd definitely be able to protect everyone, but since I'm not leaving, no one's safe."

Chimney moved up the stairs so he could sit right beside of Maddie.

"You're not selfish."

"I am," she whispered before she began to cry. "Because I love you, Chimney, and you're supposed to want to protect someone you love, and I want to so much, but I also can't leave because I can't live without you… but I'm also just setting you up to get hurt if I stay. That's why I'm selfish."

Maddie's words echoed in his brain.

She loved him.

She wanted to protect him.

And she couldn't live without him.

It was a lot to take in. He had never heard someone say all three of those sentences to him before.

He just wanted to tell tell her how much he felt the same things for her.

"Maddie, look at me," he whispered, slightly out of breath.

She looked at him, and he raised his hand to put it on his cheek… but then he decided that might not have been the best idea, so he rested it on his lap again. Maddie noticed what he was planning to do, and she grabbed his hand and held it.

"You're not selfish for being happy or being in love… Nothing is going to happen to us. We'll be fine. There's only one of him."

"But you don't know him," Maddie argued. "He's really smart."

He shrugged. "Well, he doesn't know us, and I know he's not smarter than all of us together."

Maddie shrugged. "I don't know."

"I do," he said. "He's not going to get past all of us."

Chimney let out a breath as he stared at their hands. "And I'm glad you don't want to leave because I can't live without you."

He looked up at her. "The one person I'm concerned for is you. Your safety is the only thing that matters to me… because god, Maddie... I love you too."

She gasped and moved closer to him. Chimney was sure that she was going to kiss him. He stayed as still as he could. She kissed his cheek instead, but she didn't linger for too long. It all happened so fast that he was still trying to process what happened as she pulled him closer for a hug.

Maddie Buckley had kissed his cheek, and he definitely wasn't disappointed because she hadn't actually kissed him. He just felt lucky that she even wanted to put her lips on his skin.

"I'll do whatever I have to do to keep you safe," he said a few minutes later as he was still holding her in his arms. "I already told you that none of this would scare me away. I just wanted to make sure you remembered that."

"You're so good to me," she whispered.

They pulled away from each other, but Maddie immediately scooted as close as she could get to him. She rested her head against his shoulder.

"Everything will be okay. I promise."

If Chimney was being honest, he usually hated promising people. It seemed like it never worked out. But in this case, he had to make an exception and promise Maddie that everything would be okay because he would make sure it would happen no matter what.

That was one promise Chimney would never break.

A/N: I honestly love how I made myself emotional by ending this one basically the same way I ended the story in chapter 14, except Chimney was the one who promised this time. But thank you so much for reading. I really appreciate it.