48... Charity x Vanessa if you can (but your pick if you can’t!)
48. i called you at 2am and i need you
“He won’t settle,” Vanessa breathes into the night. Johnny shifts restlessly in her arms, reaching for Charity.
Charity is already reaching back. She takes him without looking at Vanessa, holding him up high on her hip. “Well hello there, Johnnybobs.” She bounces him a little, pressing a kiss to his sweaty forehead. “Are you giving your mummy a hard time, hmm?”
The cool night air slips around her ankles and she shivers a little. She takes a step back into the house, nodding at Vanessa to follow her. She can hear the door shut softly behind her and curses herself. She should have taken a moment to shove the duvet off the couch; to pretend like she hasn’t been sleeping here since Vanessa took Johnny and slipped back into Tug Ghyll like she never left.
Charity doesn’t sleep anymore, but when she does, she dreams of Vanessa’s will, her name struck from the record.
“He kept asking for you,” Vanessa explains. Charity looks at her but Vanessa is picking at the small crumbs on the table, idly pushing them around. “I know it’s so late and I’m sorry that-”
“No bother,” Charity says carefully. She runs her finger down over the soft skin between Johnny’s eyes. “He’s my night owl, aren’t you?” She smiles at him and presses her forehead to his. “Is that what you want, then? Some milk and a good cuddle?”
Johnny shifts further into her, his hands burying into her hair. He’s getting heavier by the second, eyes fluttering closed with each breath.
Charity looks between him and the couch, but Vanessa slides in, pushing the duvet to one side so there’s space enough for Charity to sit down. By the time she settles into the cushion, Johnny is dozing, snoring softly. She looks up at Vanessa, grinning widely. Her smiles fades a little when Vanessa looks back at her.
“I’m sorry,” Vanessa says. She clears her throat. “I’m so, so-”
Charity shushes her softly, reaching for her hand. She holds it tightly, pulling until Vanessa rounds the couch and sits down next to her. Johnny hangs between them, hands around Charity’s neck and head on Vanessa’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Ness.”
Vanessa blinks, eyes already filling with tears. “I’m so sorry, Charity.”
Charity holds Vanessa’s hand tighter. “In the morning, yeah?” She waits for Vanessa to nod and she squeezes Vanessa’s hand. “We’ll talk about it in the morning.”
