wrenwhitewater:
Growing up, Wren’s house had been filled with memories. Every inch of wall space was covered in photographs, stolen moments that were otherwise forgotten had they not been frozen in time. Her mother was a nostalgic person, valuing family and the love they brought, putting everything on display for visitors just to be given the opportunity to learn about their family. And while Wren respected that wasn’t the way Cade felt, she couldn’t help but feel curious; she’d never seen a picture of either of his parents, didn’t know what he looked like as a child, didn’t know anything, and that’s what had sent her on a spiral of wanting to peek into his storage unit. Her plan was to be respectful, even if Cade was looming in the corner with that same cold look on his face.
“It’s not just about the baby photos,” she grumbled, a scowl on her face as she looked over at him. “It’s about learning about your life. I know everything you’ve told me, but I’m not dumb enough to think that’s everything, and you should know that by now.” With the final raise of her brow, she turned back to the scrapbook in her hands, her thumb running over a picture of a small Cade, standing next to a woman that he seemed to be the clone of. Wren knew immediately that she was his mother, though she chose not to say anything about finding the picture. “You could help me, y’know. It’d be nice to have things of yours around the apartment that don’t look like they’re from a high-end catalogue. You should dig around for a bit.”
This was the exact kind of thing Cade had always feared about getting into a relationship. The fact that he would have to bare parts of himself and his heart that have been kept behind walls for years. Walls that were painstakingly built and would be no less painful being torn away. He kept all of his past locked up for a reason and, of course, he wanted Wren to know about him, to know whatever it is she wanted to know and see whatever it is she wanted to see, but it didn’t make it any less uncomfortable for him. Well, perhaps that was a lie. It was at least a little comforting to know that she was there, but not enough to make him feel comfortable.
“I haven’t dug around in this place for nineteen years and I don’t intend to. I don’t need to see any of this. I know what is in here. I locked it away.” he swallowed, his back still against the metal wall of the storage container.That wasn’t the whole truth. He hadn’t started this unit, his father had. After his mother’s funeral, every photo and memento of hers was taken out of the house and locked away. All Cade had to remember her by were the faded memories of his eleven year old brain and the startling resemblance to her he saw when he looked in the mirror. The same resemblance that was the reason his father couldn’t look at him for years after the incident. So he didn’t know everything that was in there, he had just kept up the tradition. “Until my father died I thought he had just gotten rid of everything of my mother’s. I had just woken up one day and all of it was gone. It wasn’t until I inherited his estate that I learned about this locker. Ever since then, once part of my life ends, everything goes in here. All of my father’s stuff is back in the corner across from my mom’s. Everything from the air force academy and my time served is in that trunk. “ he pointed, his slender finger outstretched “Everything from the FBI academy is in that box. It’s all here.I don’t keep reminders around. “
