wllcewest:
The silence is almost overwhelming, and Wally doesn’t know what to make of it. There was so much he could assume from it, which thinking about all the what ifs wouldn’t help anyone. While knowing that fact, he does anyway. There was a point in his life when he genuinely thought he could spend the rest of his life with her, but now … that was ruined. Their lives are so different, and he’s not sure that he knows her anymore. While he’s walking around the room, putting the kit away he stops before turning back to look at her again. It hurts to be this close and not hold her the way he would like to. Wally misses their time together, but he had to keep that in the past right? How do you move on? Especially when she says what she does. It doesn’t make any of this easier.
Wally turns back to head over to her, sitting down again, but his arms are crossed over his chest. “You’re welcome. I can handle getting shot, you know that. I appreciate it, probably would have scared my kids.” He admits, with a sigh, unsure how long she would actually be here. “You can stay in here for the night, but you have to leave in the morning.” He wants her to get better before leaving – better enough at least.
she lets out a breath, a mix between a huff and a short laugh, “doesn’t mean you should,” she says simply, and it’s the mention of his kids that makes her finally open her eyes. she likes to see the feelings that come over him when he talks about his children. it made her smile before, though now she catches herself before the ghost of a smile can become anything obvious-- still, she’s slow with this injury. she doesn’t even fully realize how much, “they’re okay?” she asks softly.
she looks around again as he says she can stay, but that only lasts a moment. she hates this part of concussions, when you can’t look around without getting dizzy. she knows it will pass... but she also knows it won’t pass before she’ll need to rest. she sighs, meeting his eyes, and in that moment she feels her words catch in her throat. she’s completely exposed to him, and her mouth hangs open a moment as her thoughts catch up before stuttering-- not something Artemis ever wanted to admit she did, and that’s not even touching upon the shame she felt for the tears stuck in her eyes, “you can run me somewhere else if you want,” she manages to get out, “but i-- i can’t go myself right now.” and internally, she’s cursing every ounce of herself that feels things, because at the moment she feels that she has no control, not in the slightest.











