≡ = offering a place to stay overnight ; finn/aster (okay hopefully this didn't send like five times and tumblr doesn't eat this ask, also oops if i've already sent this symbol before)
after hours of wandering, aster’s trembling hands rapped at the church doors.
“please, finn… please, please,” her whisper frenetic and desperate as her knocks began to mimic the tone, “open the door, please, please –” her breath hitched in her throat when a rustling, her erratic state left her unsure of where it came from. her eyes were wide – wider than usual, those bug eyes looked watery and frightened. “oh god, finn, please –” her curled fist peeked out from the much too long sleeve of her knitwear. well, it’s not her knitwear.
it belonged to ashley, though it clung to her petite body like a dress because she looked cold when they were together. by the end of their time, aster had an unsettling feeling that it had been too … normal. that she felt like he would drop her off at her apartment with a minute hug because her doorman would be watching. that she would wake up and make a kale smoothie while texting him, then head for tactical training. and when aster felt things got too real or too normal, she did something destructive.
that was how she ended up wandering around the wooded areas of cheyenne, her thoughts like a car at a hundred something miles per hour. they took her to a world of her own, but a harsh reminder came when she had to pull a knife – again, and again, and again. it wasn’t the blood of the long dead that upset her, she had been accustomed to corpses since her promotion to detective. she didn’t have a chance to remember what made her run, the door creaked open.
finn said nothing – a furrow of her brows and the corner of his lips down-turned as his fingers gripped at her shoulders gingerly, she didn’t flinch at his touch. he wouldn’t hurt her, he wouldn’t lay a hand on her if it wasn’t for comfort. he didn’t need to convince her of this, aster placed her trust in his hands without thinking about it. he seemed to be someone that would handle it with care. their bodies were swallowed up in the inky black of the church, door closed behind them.
they’d all but abandoned the pews when their acquaintanceship changed – they were friends now, the blonde smiled when she thought about it. they were honest to god friends, they spent time together and he knew little secrets about her. she liked to think she knew his too – or that she came the closest. for all intents and purposes, one could call finnegan stokely her best friend. they spent nights talking, aster often laid on the floor the pews faced and gave him friendly smiles – open, welcoming, new.
her legs were crossed and she made herself comfortable on the floor, thumbs swept underneath her eyelashes to ensure she wouldn’t cry – she hated being this scared, she hated wearing it on her sleeve. with this in mind, she should have returned to the station and curled up in a duvet at the corner of the holding cell. however, she didn’t want to be alone. aster didn’t want to be alone, and she came to finn – he didn’t hesitate to wrap his arm around her shoulders.
finn knew better than to ask about what had put the fear of the devil in this woman; this wild and stubborn woman. it was noble of him to comfort her when she was in tears, but even better: it was noble of him not to talk about it, not to address it because he knew it was something she felt uncomfortable with. instead, he rubbed at her arm gently until her body found stillness.
“i wasn’t ready to go home,” she mumbled before she cleared her throat, “… i’m too scared.” of a lumbering man in the woods with a knife, and she was aware of how reminiscent that was of a b-rated horror movie.
he offered her a soft smile and she hoped it didn’t have an apologetic air to it – please, please, please, please, she didn’t open her mouth but she was pleading with slumped shoulders. a pat at her arm, “you don’t have to go home if you don’t want to.”
for all intents and purposes, finnegan stokely could be called her best friend – and he was the very first one of those that aster had found.
