Alpha:…omg why am I sharing these again?!
Disclaimer: same as the first.
Many Worlds One Shot Collection
Liquid Salt (Hope/Lightning)
"I'm sorry Mr. and Mrs. Estheim…"
The white haired locs of a man in his late thirties, recently turned thirty-nine in fact, blew in the crisp December air. He was looking out to the golden-red and purple horizon of Gran Pulse with silent morbidity.
Not faraway from him, sat his wife of eighteen years hunched over, staring into the same sunset. Pink tendrils blowing with the wind, each strand turning white and gray as the days passed but it never stopped her from looking more beautiful in his eyes.
But he knew enough to know Light was evading him, still choosing to carry her burdens alone, and blaming herself, willing to sacrifice her needs to take full responsibility. Always forgetting that, it wasn't just her burden either; it was his too. Silly woman sometimes tended to forget that he was here for her when she needed someone to lean on.
He saw the browned, crumpled leaves, weak and unable to withstand the unbearable winds any longer snap silently to be whisked away in the wind.
It didn't silence the silent sobbing coming from the woman a few feet away.
On one hand alone, Hope could count the precise number of times, he ever bore witness to his wife's silent tears.
When she thought she lost Serah forever in her crystallized form.
At their wedding.
And when Sazh passed away one year ago.
This was one of those few instances in which he was privy to those tears now as silent as she tried to make them. It was useless the quavering breath was carried with the wind back to him.
He walked in stride to her side. Giving her a due moment of silent grieving before taking it upon himself to comfort her within the confines of his arms.
"I wouldn't have made a good mother anyway, not like Serah—" it was the very first thing; full of bitterness that came out of her mouth after she stopped shedding a part of her pain.
He grimaced at the finality of which she said it, "That's not true, this time was a bad one, we can try—"
"There isn't a next time Hope!" he held a sad expression at her outburst. She was trying her best to quell the shuddering he could hear easily in her voice, "You heard what he said, I'm too old, I waited too late!"
She wanted him to understand the severity of the situation he knew. Light didn't want to hear anymore hopeful suggestions about their predicament. She didn't have to though, he knew how upset she was about it, he was too.
"Yea, I heard what the doc. said, you're not old, and—"
She was refusing to look at him, blue eyes filled with unshed tears, looking out to the horizon as she sat on the cold grass, "I wasted away my time, making excuses…I don't deserve you, You've never asked much from me even when we first met…and I ruined it for you Hope!"
He couldn't endure to continue to look into her eyes, such sadness laid there that he never saw before from his wife. She stared at him with very apologetic eyes, again blaming herself because their last chance for children was permanently taken away.
He knelt behind her, taking her in his arms and holding her as tight as he could, not wanting to let her go. He felt Lightning bury her head within his chest as she continued to speak.
"I knew you wanted children, I've always known and now I can't even give you that! I'm- I'm less of a woman because of it!"
The vehemence in her voice spoke volumes. She was afraid. Light was afraid he would leave her for good, find someone more capable.
Someone fertile for childbearing.
"You didn't ruin anything for me and I'm not going to just up and leave you Light for someone younger just because it seems like we're unable to have our own child. And I know you wanted a child too."
She quieted as he continue to speak, doing what he could to console her, reassure her he wasn't going anywhere, "We've always been in this together, maybe it was just not meant to be but it doesn't mean I'm going to leave you!" his hold on her tightened as he felt her fingers fist around the fabric of his light green sweater. He pulled her back to stare in her eyes, still glassy looking from her tears.
"I love you too much to do that to you!" he pulled her back to his chest, planting a kiss on her forehead, his voice growing soft, "Foolish woman, you should know this by now."
"I know, I'm sorry."
"There's nothing to apologize for," he smiled at her, the both of them getting up from the ground.
Lightning watched as his smile grew wider and his eyes brightened with the sign that he was thinking of something, "We can try for adoption if you'll like?"
She softly smiled towards him, "I'll think about it."
He watched her make her way back into their home with a little more strength to her spirit, "I know you'll make a great mom."
She turned around with a smile that she was trying to keep from blossoming fully on her face, "Hmm, you'll make a great dad."
With that she walked through the sliding doors leading to the kitchen and was soon out of sight.
Hope knew they'll make some child very happy.
Alpha: wow…this always makes me sad…