Marron cradled her baby boy to her chest, reveling in the weight of his tiny body and his sweet new baby smell.
The last twelve hours were little more than a blur. It was still dark out when her water broke that morning. Now the sun was sinking beneath the horizon, bathing her hospital room in a soft amber glow as the last of friends and family departed. The silence, accentuated by the occasional hum of medical equipment, was a welcome reprieve from the excitement of such an auspicious day.
She was simultaneously overwhelmed by exhaustion and filled with an indescribable joy. She hadn't slept or showered. Her hair was damp with sweat, pulled into a messy bun atop her head. And there were probably dark circles lining her eyes.
But none of that seemed to matter. In that moment, everything was entirely, painfully perfect.
The mattress dipped as Trunks carefully settled in beside her on the hospital bed. Marron didn't even protest when his arm curled around her like a steel band, enveloping her in his familiar presence.
"He's perfect, Mare." Trunks whispered, giving her an affectionate squeeze. "You were a badass today."
"I was, wasn't I?" She couldn't stop the little laugh that slipped out as she gazed upon their sleeping boy. His chubby cheeks. His button-like nose. The slightly upturned bow of his lips. The almost surly little crease in his brow, so very reminiscent of the expression his father wore when he slept.
Some part of her had imagined them sharing a special moment like this, probably more than once if she was being honest with herself. Perhaps a little further into the future and under very different circumstances, but a moment like this all the same.
For a fleeting instant, the warmth of this shared connection between the three of them is a soothing balm to the wounds of the past. The weight of unresolved emotions lifts momentarily, allowing them to revel in the miracle of a new life.
Marron closed her eyes for what felt like just a brief second, but when she opened them, the city lights were shining luminously against the backdrop of a velvety dark sky and, according to the clock on the wall, it was well past midnight.
It suddenly dawned on her that there was an emptiness in her arms that wasn't there before. Abruptly, Marron sat up, wincing at the soreness in her body.
"Shh."
She turned to discover Trunks in the rocking chair beside the bed, a finger pressed to his lips. A wave of relief rushed through her at the sight of their son dozing peacefully in his embrace. Her attention flicked back to the elder hybrid. His steely blue eyes were sharp and focused despite the exhaustion lining them, There was the slightest furrow in his brow that told her something was on his mind. It was a little thing, a tell that even Goten sometimes missed.
Trunks carefully transferred Boxer to his hospital bassinet. Marron's heart squeezed at his softened expression as he ran a hand over their son's capped head.
Satisfied that the baby wouldn't stir, Trunks took a seat at the foot of the bed, turning his gaze on her.
"I've stepped down as CEO of Capsule Corp."
"What?" That was the last thing she'd expected to hear him say. He'd spent most of his life preparing to take on the position. Now he wanted to walk away? Just like that? "Why?"
He shrugged, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "It just feels like the right thing to do."
Marron's brow creased. "Where is this coming from?"
"My heart hasn't been in it for a while… I don't know if it ever really was. Besides, Bulla really stepped up while I was… away. She's a natural. She'll do the job better than I ever could."
"If you don't want to be CEO anymore… what do you want?"
"You." He nodded toward the bassinet. "Him. I'll figure out the rest later."
Marron's shoulders stiffened involuntarily and the tentative aura of calm surrounding them evaporated.
In the haze of everything that had transpired that day, for just a little while, she'd allowed herself to forget. To pretend his abrupt exit from her life was nothing more than a bad dream.
She didn't possess the fortitude to have this conversation. Again. Especially not after the bomb he just dropped on her in addition to everything else that had transpired that day.
He shuffled closer, taking her hand in his, clearly not missing the shift in her demeanor. "I know I've hurt you, and I can't change that. But If you'll give me another chance, I'll do everything I can to fix this. I wasn't ready before, but I am now."
She tried to imagine it, falling back into their old routine. Mornings spent sitting in his lap as they went over his daily itinerary and sipped coffee at the breakfast table. Nights spent in a haze of frenzied love making or slow, sensual caresses.
But then her mind drifted as it always inevitably did; to the pristine white gown tucked out of sight in a box beneath her bed. All those feelings she had carefully packed away with it came flooding back. The raw sting of rejection. The humiliation. The confusion. The loneliness. The longing.
All those nights spent wishing he would just come home.
She got her wish.
Her prince was home. Begging forgiveness. Saying all the things she wanted to hear.
Maybe the person she was seven months ago would feel happy, or perhaps even relieved.
But she wasn't that woman anymore. She couldn't let him hurt her like that again. She wouldn't survive it.
Marron's gaze drifted to Boxer, and her heart swelled so sharply she thought her chest would burst.
She couldn't let him experience that. Not ever.
Steeling herself, she turned her focus back to Trunks, and what she saw broke her heart all over again.
The unfiltered hope written so plainly on his handsome face. It killed her, knowing she had no choice but to extinguish it.
She pulled her hand from his, shaking her head. "No."
A heavy silence dropped between them.
He started speaking but faltered, as if the words were physically trapped in his throat. His features twisting into an expression of anguish that felt like a blade to her belly. As much as he had hurt her when he left, this somehow felt worse.
"I know that's not what you want to hear. I know you've been waiting for things to just go back to normal between us. But—" The baby in the bassinet stirred, and she paused. When she was confident that he was still fast asleep, she continued, lowering her voice. "You broke my heart. You broke my trust. He doesn't change that. You had so many opportunities to tell me what you were feeling and instead of doing that, you disappeared. For months! You literally left the planet! How do I know you won't do that to me again?"
Unable to bear the weight of his gaze on her any longer, her eyes dropped to the blanket pooled in her lap.
"I'm sorry." He said, and she could swear that his voice cracked ever so slightly. "I'm sorry I left. I'm sorry you had to go through all of this alone. If I could take back all the pain I caused you, I would. But I can't. All I can do is try to make it up to you now. Tell me what I need to do to fix it, and I swear I will."
The same apologies and promises echoed over and over and over. Maybe he meant every word. Maybe he didn't. Part of her wanted nothing more than to believe him, to pull him close and never let go.
But she knew herself, and if she gave into those feelings, she would always be waiting for the other shoe to drop. Waiting for him to burn her all over again.
And there was no way she could live like that.
"I don't think there is anything you can do to fix it."