#para: corey

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @charlottexmiller

When they'd agreed to give each other space, there'd been an agreement that they'd try to only talk if there was an emergency, so the moment Corey's phone had blown up with Juliana saying Corey had to get to Dallas, that something was wrong with Charlie and the baby, Corey knew they were in deep shit.

The three hour flight to Dallas felt like the longest of Corey's life. They were practically gripping the seat handles the whole way there, projecting all their nervous energy onto the poor bastard who'd been assigned the seat next to them. The first flight out of LAX and down to Dallas Fort Worth had no Wi-Fi, so Corey was left with nothing but their own thoughts, not even able to retrieve any updates about how their wife was doing. Juliana hadn't given them very much information. She'd clearly got an earful about all the shitty behaviors Corey had and the fights they'd had over the last few weeks (months), and was less-than-pleased with her sibling-in-law. Who the fuck could blame her? Corey was an asshole, and the stress of the pregnancy had taken a sledgehammer to their marriage to the point that they'd agreed it was better to spend a few weeks apart while Charlie visited her family. The only thought that was running through their head was that this was their fault. Somehow, it was Corey's fault.

They couldn't stomach Charlie's brother giving them a ride from the airport, couldn't face spending any amount of time in an enclosed space with a member of Charlie's family. The hospital was going to be bad enough, so they'd had a friend give them a ride, rushing to the hospital right from the airport. They followed the instructions the receptionist had given them to get to Charlotte's room, slowing as they approached the hallway to check the door numbers on the rooms. They took a breath as they approached her door, knocking quietly before walking inside. Clayton, Charlie's brother, was sitting by her bed, giving Corey a nod as they entered.

"Hey, Jules said your flight landed." His usual playful, jovial demeanor was gone, just like Corey's seemed like it had been for months, but this was more serious, more severe. Something was really wrong. Charlotte could hardly look at them.

"Yeah, I came right here." They lowered their gaze towards the suitcase they'd hastily stuffed with clothes. "Can we..."

"Yeah, I'll let you guys talk." Clay withdrew from the room, and Corey delicately approached the bed, taking the seat he'd once occupied. They could tell Charlie had been crying. Even under the sheets, it was clear how much her belly had grown in the last few weeks.

"Charlie..." Corey said, voice hollow and cracked, extending a hand to hesitantly over hers, squeezing it. "I'm here, I'm right here, it's okay." Shit, it wasn't okay, though. Corey could tell it wasn't okay. "What... what's happening? Jules just said something was wrong..."

[matthewbaudelaire]

Location: Corey's House in Mystic Grove With: @magicvet

Matthew had seen and experienced unimaginable terrors on the night of Halloween and had been horrified when he'd seen his Uncle Corey among the group of people who had been unceremoniously whisked away to that hellish corn maze but incredibly relieved when by the end of it all, he was okay. The man was and always would be such an integral part of his life, a person he greatly admired and appreciated, it felt like always that Corey would be there and Matthew was suddenly faced with the hard reality that one day he may not and that terrified him. Matthew might not always show it for he had great difficulty when it came to expressing his feelings in this way but he had so much care for the older man. Corey was the second person Matthew would check in with after the events of Halloween night, the first person being his brother, Asher.

"Hey, Uncle Corey," Matthew would greet the older man after arriving at his house, smiling felt hard to do yet he managed it, forcing the expression though it felt unwelcome, he didn't want to give his uncle more cause for concern. "How are you? I brought you some herbal tea," he held the metal cannister in one hand and gave it a little wave before offering it to the older man.

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @charlottexmiller Charlotte was usually the one who was awake earlier. She was out doing yoga or her workouts, her business meetings that started at 9am or earlier. Today, Corey had made sure they were up earlier, creeping out into the kitchen before the sun was up. The nice thing about the big house was the kitchen wasn't right outside the freaking bedroom, less likely for the noise to travel. When they crept back into the bedroom after completing their handiwork, they slid the tray onto the bedside table. They grinned, watching her stir awake as they stroked her hair. "Good morning, birthday girl, or should I say 'birthday wife'?" Corey smirked, leaning into her to give her a good morning kiss. "I made you coffee, and a breakfast so healthy, even Bruin won't try and steal it," they added, pointing out the acai bowl they'd made from scratch.

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @charlottexmiller

The trip to Philadelphia had been fun, but exhausting. Corey loved being around sports people, people who shared their passion and had big personalities. Even better, they didn't have to hide their relationship anymore like they had done all those months ago at the All Star weekend. They'd just been able to be Charlie's partner, proudly, happily, openly.

It was hard to believe that a few weeks ago, this trip had been such a bone of contention between them. Corey was so happy watching Charlie work, watching her be so talented and professional, her bright personality and her intelligence seeming to make her the focal point of every room she entered, even above the athletes themselves. To Corey, Charlotte Miller was the star of every show.

Corey had been smart enough to take the morning off, knowing they would want to sleep in a little, but Bruin, Silver and Pirate tended to argue against that philosophy. "No late mornings when you have pets, huh?" Corey yawned, pulling on their jeans and a hoodie. "Come on, dumbass. Lemme take you out to pee."

They did just that, having their morning cigarette while Bruin sniffed around out in the yard and did his morning business. Corey finished the smoke, making their way back inside. Charlotte was in the kitchen, presumably making coffee and breakfast. The echoing of a chiming doorbell rang through the house, prompting a few barks from the large dog. "Yeah, yeah, quiet. I got it." They weren't expecting anyone, but the mail delivery carrier greeted them with a smile. Same person had been coming to the house for what felt like decades.

"How ya doing? This one needs a signature."

"Right." Corey signed the little tablet without much of a thought, only looking at the label when they wandered back inside.

"Babe? This is for you," they said, haphazardly dropping the envelope onto the counter while they reached for the coffee pot. "Is that bacon?"

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @charlottexmiller

Charlie was only home half the week right now, splitting her time between Miami and their hometown in Texas. Corey tried to take a couple days off when she was home, to make those days their 'weekend', or at least reserve them for working from home, which right now largely consisted of making music or answering business calls in their home studio. Today, though, the two of them had made other plans, and Corey was very much dragging their feet. Their alarm woke them that morning, and they'd stolen a few cuddles and kisses before hitting the trail with Bruin, coming back home covered in sweat from their woodland trail walk.

They found Charlie meal prepping in the kitchen, immediately slipping in behind her and snaking an arm around her waist, burying their face in the space between her neck and shoulder and giving her a little kiss on her jawline, a squeeze on her perfect butt. Bruin's noisy lapping at his waterbowl really added to the atmosphere. "Mm, hey there," they smirked, reaching to steal a cherry tomato from the salad she was making and tossing it into their mouth, practically swallowing it whole. "How much time do we got? You should come shower with me." Corey was usually pretty affectionate, but since she'd been back, Corey was just so grateful to have Charlie around that they could barely keep their hands to themselves.

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @charlottexmiller

Corey's default when it came to dealing with difficult emotions was avoidance. It wasn't something they were proud of. They had somehow made their way through the night, smoking on the back porch before vanishing into their studio with a six-pack of beer. They didn't know Charlie had spent the night in the spare room with the kids. They just wanted to make sure she'd be asleep by the time they finally made their way upstairs. They fell into an empty bed, the void in the space next to them hitting them like a knife in the gut, a sight they'd have to get used to. They buried themselves in work, in the studio, in the gym.

They took Bruin for a hike every morning before vanishing into their workshop or onto a construction site, they hid in the studio, or at a club or a bar. They downed more alcohol than they should've been able to consume. None of it made Charlie leave their mind for long. All they wanted was to bury the pain of their loss, and still, there it was, gaping like a bullet wound. Every time their phone buzzed, they hoped it was her. Even when it was her, the ache didn't go away. It only intensified. Their messages were related to logistics; Charlie arranging when was a good time to come over and get her stuff, and Corey responding.

Corey had planned to be out of the house by now. They would load Bruin into the back of the 4Runner and hit the park or one of the trails before it got too dark, but time got away from them, and now they were faced with the reality of not only running into Charlie, but Charlie seeing another woman at their house. Corey could only watch as the two of them walked past one another in the driveway, their visitor giving Charlie a polite smile, a nod, a 'have a nice evening' as she made her way down the driveway to her car, pulling out past Charlie's white Audi. Not saying anything, Corey simply turned back into the house, leaving the door open for her and starting to collect their jacket and Bruin's leash. "You still have your keys. You can lock up when you're done," they said, having to force their tone to be neutral. They still hadn't really looked at her. It was too painful.

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @charlottexmiller

"Can I ask you a question, Uncle Corey?"

"Hm?" Corey glanced up from the emails they were answering on their phone, eyes falling on the five year old girl in front of them. It'd been a long night, and Corey had kind of hoped the kid would be asleep by now after a trip into Dallas to watch Disney on Ice and a McDonalds on the way home, but there she was, sitting on a cushion next to the coffee table with a coloring book while a basketball game played on the TV.

"You just did, but I'll give you one more," Corey answered with a chuckle. They'd agreed to watch the kids for the night so Juliana and Ryder could go out. It wasn't really Corey's idea of a good time, but they'd never let the kids know that. They had fun together, but overnight stays were more challenging. Corey liked their privacy, liked to be able to cuss and fuck and watch TV shows that had violence and sex. Charlie should've realized they weren't parent material. Having the kids around only proved that to Corey, but Juliana was family. Family did each other favors, like when Juliana and Ryder took Bruin for a week while Corey went to Miami with Charlie.

"How come we call you Uncle Corey?"

Corey wrinkled their brow, puzzled. "Huh. I dunno. I guess 'cause me and your aunt Charlie are getting married. I never really thought about it before. You don't gotta if you don't want to."

"No, I mean, how come we call you Uncle instead of Aunt?"

Wow. Kids really said the damnedest things. Corey gave an awkward chuckle, rubbing the side of their neck. "Just like it better, I guess. I don't like girl words." They weren't really sure how to explain it any clearer to a kid.

"It's not very nice that there isn't a real word for it, is it?" Sadie pondered, carefully coloring in the tiger's black stripes. "I know you're not a girl, but you're not a boy, either."

[cowboy-tumbleweed]

Starter For: @softdrabbles (Charlotte)

The timing couldn't have been worse for their stupid disagreement. They were supposed to be enjoying Christmas together, and instead, it was as if the two of them were constantly walking on thin ice around one another, avoiding the elephant in the room. Corey did their best to stay clear of the subject in the few days leading up to Christmas, and their gift for Charlotte's niece and nephew gave them a good excuse to be out of the house. Juliana and Ryder had taken the kids away to visit Ryder's family for the run-up to Christmas, so Corey was free to build the kids the treehouse and toddler-friendly jungle gym in the yard without ruining the surprise. It kept them out of the house, out of trouble, kept them staring at the mailbox or their cell phone or their email account waiting for the results of their genetic testing to arrive, kept them from pissing Charlotte off, or at least they hoped so.

Christmas rolled around, and the whole Miller family pouring into the farm house, exchanging gifts and stories, watching the daytime football together. The family embraced Corey, but seeing them like this was just another reminder to Corey that they were alone, that their mom was sitting in the same box they'd received from the crematorium because Corey didn't even know what to do with her ashes. One thing about Christmas, at least, was that there were lots of things to build and assemble, so Corey was happy to take on that role, to be in the shed putting the wheels on new bikes, making sure handlebars were tight enough and foot pedals attached. They were happy to painstakingly string and tune the kid-friendly guitar Sadie had got because she was so into her new Uncle Corey and their band. It kept them busy, kept them from thinking too damn hard. The kids kept Corey busy.

Corey felt eyes on them. They felt the familiar gaze that they'd first experienced on this very property back when Charlotte's grandparents had still been alive and owned it. They lifted their head to see her standing there as they looked up from the dollhouse they were working on, screwdriver in-hand, beer sitting on the counter in the shed. "Dinner bell tolls or whatever?" they asked, chewing the inside of their lip and nodding. "Okay. Just, uh, lemme get these doors attached. If I stop half way through, I'll lose my damn mind."