#yegxds

[greathonk]

Zaneeta's hair was held back, wrapped in an old scarf, as she cleaned. Tommy had returned and the two had moved into his home, along with her husband's two younger siblings. The house had essentially been deserted and was in dire need of a clean. It was during this clean that Zaneeta found a box. She lifted the lid and pulled a few envelopes from within. One of them was addressed to her in Tommy's familiar handwriting. She sat down, running a finger along the envelope's edge.

@yegxds​

Tommy sat down with a heavy sigh, resting his crutch against the table. “Zaneeta, I’m home!” He called, “I’ll be there in a minute!” He had just returned from visiting the Emporium. The walk home was a short one, but an exhausting one. While he hadn’t gotten back to work, he had things to do at home and he was happy for it. Cleaning up his house – their house – would help him put all he had seen behind him. At least he hoped.

[greathonk]

Zaneeta hummed happily as she approached home, a skip in her step. Despite parental objections, she had moved in to the Djilas household. With both of Tommy's parents gone, her husband was the head of the house anyway. and it made it easier for Tommy to take care of his younger siblings. She stopped suddenly as her hand reached the door knob. Through the window she could see two men sitting at the dinner table. She hesitated, unsure of what to do.

@yegxds

Tommy stared across the table, trying his hardest to process the apologetic ramble coming from his father. He had shown up and was waiting for Tommy outside when the younger Djilas had run home during his lunch break to pick up more staff paper.

Tommy panicked at the sound of footsteps; his father trailed off at the noise. Tommy jumped to his feet, counting his blessings that his siblings hadn’t come home yet. “Come on in, Zaneeta,” He called, “It’s our home, after all.” He shot a pointed glare towards his father, “My father is visiting.”

[greathonk]

❝I can’t stop shivering.❞ @yegxds

@yegxds

“You may be coming down with something,” Tom frowned, grabbing a blanket from the cabinet. He draped it over his wife’s shoulders, sitting next to her on the bed and holding her tightly, “Is it just shivering? Anything else?”

[greathonk]

“Will you grow it out again or do you think you will keep it short?” @yegxds

@yegxds

Tommy had just tied his bathrobe tightly around himself - a gift of the Shinns in honor of his return - as he looked up at his wife to see if there was a particular answer that she favored. He ran a hand over the hair; it felt like ages since it had first been shorn so closely to his scalp. “I don’t know. I’m just glad to have it clean. Really, truly clean.” He let out a long sigh as he limped over to the closest side of the bed.

[greathonk]

❛❛ Shh, shh. It’s okay. You’re alright. You’re safe now. ❜❜ (@yegxds)

@yegxds

The smell of clean sheets was what woke him. He had been dreaming of mud, of drowning in it. The muffled sound of gunshots above him. He gasped at the slight scent of clean bedding, desperate for air. As he became aware of the world actually around him, he realized that he was actually freezing. It wasn’t the mud, though; it was sweat. He curled into himself with a start at the sound of Zaneeta’s voice. He cleared his throat, struggling to catch his breath, “I’m sorry, I…bad dreams.” He said with a sigh; the reason she was prodding him awake was obvious – it had been the same all week.