find our way back... part 7
hey y’all! this has been a long time coming i know. i’ve been dealing with a lot of mental health issues and i’ve recently come back from being in patient at the hospital for it. But i’m feeling a little better and i’ve got part seven out for y’all! i hope you enjoy!
Tag-list: @pprettyboyreid @genuisgub @ataidyl @andiebeaword @dreatine @cncopmwhoore @sixx-sic-sixx @nanocoool @kookiescooky3 @fatefuldestinies
~~If you want to be tagged on this, let me know!~~
Warnings: illusion to sexual assault (nothing explicit, but implied)
Summary: Dinner at the restaurant doesn’t go as anyone planned.
No one spoke. Heads buried in menus, tension that could be cut with glass filled the rectangular table they all sat at. Persephone sat at the head of the table, the rest of the team on the long sides, leaving the seat opposite of Persephone empty. Penelope eyed the menu, biting her lip. Everything was too expensive. She looked up, glancing at Emily who sat across from her. Emily was nibbling on the soft bread one waiter had brought out for them. Her eyes looked up to David’s who was sitting next to Penelope. David rolled his eyes at the two girls before letting out an appreciative hum.
“So, Persephone,” David started.
“Please, call me Seph. I think the only person that calls me Persephone anymore is Diana.” She let out an airy laugh, trying to diffuse some of the tension. The rest of the team laughed along.
“Seph,” David corrected. “Do you come here often? What would you recommend?”
“I haven’t been here since the owner’s son remodeled the place,” Persephone looked down at the menu. “But, considering they have the same cooks, I’ve always enjoyed their Baccalà alla vicentina. I’d also recommend the Penne all'arrabbiata if you’re a vegetarian.”
The team nodded, their heads returning back to the menu. Looking over at the two items she recommended (the two highest priced items), Persephone could see the apprehension in everyone’s faces.
“If the price is the reason for all the furrowed brows, I would like to iterate myself: this is my treat. I would never pick a place I couldn’t afford.” Persephone rose her hand, getting the attention of a waiter, who held his finger up.
A waiter walked up to her, a small pad of paper in one hand. “How may be of service?” He smiled, his eyes disappearing.
Persephone tilted her head at the man. His round face felt familiar. “Excuse me, do I know you from somewhere?”
The man let out a nervous laugh. “I work many jobs. You might have seen me from one of those.”
Persephone narrowed her eyes, but let it go. “Hmm, maybe… I would like for you to bring the best bottle of wine you have, please.” The waiter bowed, leaving the table. The silence was back. Persephone drummed her fingers against themselves, looking around at the table. Everyone’s eyes were darting around the table, silent arguments going around.
“So, JJ, Will, how long have you two been married?” Persephone asked as the waiter came back pouring the wine in everyone’s glass. JJ looked up clearing her throat.
“Oh, uh, about five years now.” She grabbed her glass, taking a sip. Persephone smiled at her.
“How long have you and Spencer known each other?” She asked back. JJ wanted to ask how long they’ve been married, but she was still in denial about it.
“Oh, man. It feels like forever. I was sixteen when we met.” Persephone took a sip from her drink. “He was eighteen, heading back to college.”
“Wait, you’ve known Spencer for twenty one years?” Penelope asked.
Persephone did the quick math in her head learning how old Spencer was to his friends. “Yeah, I suppose so. It feels so much longer than that.”
“So it’s true, are you two married?” Luke chimed in from the far end of the table.
“Mhmm, fifteen years on Friday.”
The entire table erupted in exclaims and gasps. “Now, wait a minute, Spencer joined the FBI when he was 22. He was working at the Bureau for two years before he married you?” Emily’s hands moved up and down, calming the table down.
“He wanted to make sure he had a steady income and was able to take care of us before he married me. We were engaged for two years.”
“Why?” Tara asked before realizing how insensitive she sounded. “I mean, why get married so young?”
“Sorry I’m late.” Spencer walked up to the table, a small gift in his hand. He looked over at Persephone, silently pleading her to not say anything else. Everyone looked over at the other end of the table, gawking at Spencer.
“I cannot believe you Spencer! Fifteen years?!” Penelope looked over at him, her hands placed on the table.
Spencer looked over at her, guilt written all over his face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t say anything because our jobs are dangerous and if anybody found out about them… I couldn’t do that.”
Spencer had been standing outside the restaurant for thirty minutes. He was listening, debating if he wanted to make an entrance or not. He really didn’t want to be here, but the fear of Persephone saying something and him not being able to stop her, made him move his feet.
“So why did you get married?” Spencer pulled the empty seat, the one directly across from Persephone on the small side of the table. They looked at each other, having a silent conversation. The team looked between the two of them, trying to figure out what they were telling each other.
“Why does anyone get married?” Spencer asked, still looking over at Persephone. “I love her.” Liar. Persephone’s eyes twitched.
“I was pregnant.” Persephone spoke, breaking eye contact with Spencer, looking at Tara, who had asked the question. Everyone looked at Spencer, not wanting to believe he had an entire secret family and no one knew about it.
“No one knew about this?” Matt asked, looking at the four people who had been on the team the longest. They all shook their heads, waiting for an answer from Spencer.
“Technically, Gideon knew about it.” Lie. Spencer told the team, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Hold on,” Penelope waved her hands in front of her. “I need an explanation.” She looked over at Persephone. “Seph, please explain.”
“There’s nothing to explain.” Spencer started, but JJ held up her hand at him.
“Nope, people that hide an entire family from their friends, don’t get to speak.” JJ looked at Persephone. “Yes, please Seph, explain the story.
“There really isn’t much to it.” Persephone took a sip of her wine. “I was twenty years old, pregnant, I couldn’t tell my father. He would have disowned me, I went to Spencer for help and he offered to marry me.” Persephone shrugged her shoulders.
Persephone ran back to her house. Her dress was tattered, her hair had fallen out of its usual tight bun. She avoided her father who was working out on the field and Spencious who was collecting eggs from the chickens. She closed her bedroom doors, running to her closet. She tore off her ruined dress, shoving it as far as she could in her dresser, pulling out clean new items. She wanted to take a bath, but she couldn’t. Her father would ask her why and she couldn’t bring herself to tell him what had happened at the market.
“Perse? You back?” There was a knock at the door as she was pulling the dress on. “I didn’t see you come in.” Her father was standing on the other side of the door.
“Oh, yes I just came back.” She wiped a few stray tears, smacking her face slightly, bringing some color into her cheeks. She opened the door.
“Are you alright?” He was concerned for her daughter. He could tell something was wrong, but he didn’t want to pry in fear she would shut him out all together.
“Oh, yes, I rushed to change, a drunkard spilled his beer all over me at the market and I rushed back to change.” Persephone smiled, hoping he would let it go.
“Alright, Spencious made dinner for tonight. It’s ready now.”
Dinner was quiet. Persephone played with the food on her tray, moving it around, her long sleeves, getting dirty from touching the food. Her father kept glancing over at her, but didn’t say anything. Spencious just looked between the two, wondering what happened between them.
“Spencious, this meal is quite delicious. Who taught you how to cook?”
“Kore has been giving me lessons.” Persephone looked up from her name being called.
“Yes, it is good.” She mumbled.
“You haven’t even touched it.” Spencious laughed, stopping as Persephone glared at him.
“I’m not hungry. I’m going to clean up.” She left her plate on the table, heading to the kitchen where she started cleaning the pots Spencious used to make dinner.
Spencious looked over at her father. “Cleon, is everything alright with Kore?” He asked quietly, not wanting her to overhear.
“I’m not, sure, I’m going to head over to the market, see if anyone could tell me what happened. You watch over her?”
Cleon over the past four years warmed up to Spencious. True he begrudgingly accepted him into the household, but Spencious was a hard worker and cared for his daughter in his absence. Cleon thought of Spencious as his own son (although he would never admit that).
Spencious nodded his head, bidding Cleon a goodbye. Spencious walked into the kitchen, watching over her as she washed the same pot twice, then again. He sighed, closing the water spout. She didn’t even notice. He took the pot from her hands, grabbing her wrist. She flinched away from him, pulling her arm back. Spencious looked at her. She kept her distance from him, looking down, her hair covering most of her face. Spencious gently took her hand in his, pulling up the sleeves of her dress. His mouth opened slightly, looking at the hand sized bruises that were beginning to form.
“It’s nothing.” She pulled her hand back, the sleeve dropping. Spencious took a few steps forward, wrapping his arms around her. She gasped at the gesture, but clung to his sides, letting out a sob. Spencious whispered in her ear, that everything will be alright.
“It won’t,” Persephone sobbed. “Father won’t look at me the same. He won’t be able to marry me off and I’ll end up on the streets!” She tightened her grip around his shirt. Spencious stroked her hair.
“That’s not true. I know at least one person that will still want to marry you.”
Persephone looked up at Spencious. The sun had started to set behind him. The reds and oranges of the sunlight had wrapped around his body. His eyes looked down on hers, a soft smile playing at his lips. His hair had grown out from the last time she cut it, falling slightly past his shoulders. When she first met him, she thought he was a shy, scrawny boy, but working on the farm, he started filling out a little, gaining more confidence. She grew to love him at first as a friend, but in this moment, she realized she had fallen in love with him.
“Who?” She asked softly. Spencious looked down at Persephone. Her eyes were shiny from her tears, her face flushed. Her nose was redder than it usually was and her hair was growing out. She hadn’t been cutting it, hoping the weight would pull her curls down, but they hadn’t. They were still prominent as ever and as he ran his fingers through it he couldn’t help but notice how soft it was. Spencious kept his distance from Persephone from the beginning. He wanted to hate her. After she led him back to her small village he knew wouldn’t ever be able to go back to his troop. He wanted to hate her for that, but watching as she danced while making breakfast, singing to the chickens as she grabbed eggs, and her excitement to try anything new, he just couldn’t. He fell in love with her within the first year of living with her, but never said anything. Maybe he was too scared, but in this moment, he spoke up.
“Me,” He looked her in the eyes, daring her to say he was lying. They stared at each other in silence. Persephone didn’t know what to say. She wanted to say that he was lying, just to make her feel better, but looking into his eyes, she knew he wasn’t. He had meant it. Her cheeks reddened at the thought of marrying him, but she didn’t know what to say.
“I guess,” Persephone swallowed the lump in her throat. “I guess, I wouldn’t mind that.”
“I didn’t offer to marry you because you were pregnant.” Everyone’s head turned to Spencer, his eyes were narrowed and his fingers were clenched.
“Then you chose a real inopportune time to tell me.” Persephone spoke.
The team glanced around the table, wondering if they should say something or not. The workers seemed to disappear, feeling the tension across the table. Emily looked over at JJ and Will, hoping they would say something, anything.
“So, you have a daughter?” Will cleared his throat.
Persephone hummed. “Yeah, strong willed, smart, witty.”
“I’d love to meet her.” Emily asked.
“She’s actually in Italy,” Emily and Penelope shared a look. “Visiting her grandmother before starting college.”
“Really?” Penelope sipped her wine. “What’s her name?”
“Annette.” Spencer shot his head up.
“I didn’t realize Annette went to Italy.”
“Mhmm, mother had asked, and if you came around more often, you would have known.” Persephone raised her eyebrow, daring Spencer to contradict her.
“If you had called, I would have come.”
“Oh, sorry I didn’t I had to call my husband for him to come home.”
“So, why did your mom want your daughter to visit?” Emily asked, trying to keep the conversation going.
The couple stared at each other from across the table, a little longer, before Persephone looked away. “My mom wasn’t always around and even less when I moved here with my dad. I think she’s trying to get that relationship back.”
The waiter came back asking if people were ready to order.
“Do you want me to order for the table?” Persephone asked, noticing the look of hesitation around the table. Everyone nodded, Penelope holding back the urge to ask the million of questions she had. When the waiter walked away, Penelope talked before the tension could become too much.
“That’s a really pretty dress.” Persephone looked down, smoothing it down. “Where is it from?”
“Oh, this was custom made for me. I’ve had it for years now.”
“Really? That’s amazing. Do you have a lot of custom made clothes?”
“Not as much as I used to. How the times have changed.” Spencer scrunched up his nose at the comment.
“Yeah, they have, haven’t they?” Spencer mumbled under his breath, unnoticeable to anyone but Persephone.
“I didn’t say anything?” Spencer eyed her.
“Maybe not, but you’re thinking something I can see it all over your face, Spencer.” She said his name with venom.
“I was just agreeing with your statement.” He was trying not to start anything with her, but he had so many things he wanted to say and do it was hard. He hated how his first instinct was to be angry with her, but he wanted to try with her, but she was just so stubborn.
“You must have been very well off in Italy. What made you want to move?” Rossi asked, moving past the tension.
“Oh, you know the usual I suppose. Teenage rebellion, affairs, among other things.” She waved her hand.
“I don’t know of any teenage rebellion that results in having to leave your country.” Emily joked.
“It does when your family is very well known.”
“Royal blood known.” Spencer had started putting two together. Persephone looked over at him and nodded her head, confirming.
“So you’re like a princess?” Penelope’s eyes widened.
“Not anymore. I haven’t been for a long time now.”
“But you still reap the benefits.” Spencer was upset. He tried not using old money unless it was an emergency and to have Persephone use money from her past lives, rubbed him the wrong way.
“You could too.” Persephone’s voice was softer this time. “We are married.”
“Doesn’t feel like it sometimes.” Spencer mumbled. Persephone’s eyes hardened.
“Then here.” She pulled her ring off, tossing it across the table. He caught it quickly, looking down at the ring. “Since you’ve felt that this marriage hasn’t felt real, maybe I’ll find someone else that will.”
Persephone got up from the table, starting to walk towards the exit.
“You can’t leave. We’re still married.” Spencer got up to follow.
“That hasn’t stopped you from being an adulterer, why should it stop me?” She turned around, flicking him off and leaving the restaurant, leaving her card at the check out.
