Bless The Broken Road | Woodland Demars
Warnings? broken past, mentions of abusive ex, mentions of a hospital trip, little bit of angst
Requested? Yes indeed! I’m sorry it took so long!
Summary: You had been set out on a narrow path to hopefully find your one true love for years now. However, after an ex makes it so you don’t want to live in your hometown anymore, you move to LA where you meet Woods. And he helps you pick up the pieces.
Word Count: 2,078
“Are you ready to go?” Woods asks and you look over your outfit once more. He comes up behind you in the mirror and wraps his arms around your waist. You smile and lean your head against his.
“You look, marvelous darling,” he says and your smile widens. “Are you nervous?”
“Very, but it’s gonna be fine.”
“They’re gonna love you.”
Today you were meeting the rest of Woods' coworkers and awaiting a big surprise from him. You had met most of the Hi5 crew previously through visits to the studio and hangouts with them and Woods, but not everyone. Woods wanted to take this party as an opportunity for you to meet his work family. Naturally, you were scared they wouldn’t like you all that much.
You had met Woods three years ago when you moved to LA. Sam was actually your childhood best friend and she had been talking about LA and Hi5 for ages now. She knew about your situation back home and offered for you to move in with her. After settling in a bit, you two met one night when she and a few more Hi5 people were hanging out at the apartment.
You had just gotten home from a shift at the library you were working at at the time and honestly you were exhausted. You found Woods sitting in your living room at home and instantly became a little worried.
“Hi!” He greeted and when you still gave him a confused look he remembered that he’s the stranger in your home and not the other way around.
“Oh yeah! I’m Woods. I'm one of Sam’s friends from work,” he continued before standing and walking over to shake your hand.
“I’m (y/n),” you said and he awkwardly smiled and walked back over to the couch.
You were intrigued by him from the start but you never really knew why. That night you said a couple of more words towards the older boy but your past kept up with you and you couldn’t do much to keep the thoughts away.
One of the main reasons you moved from home was to escape your past. Everything that happened there felt like it lurked around every corner and being surrounded by that constantly did a number on you every day. When you moved, as cheesy as it was, everything was new and it helped.
Back home you went through a series of rough breakups and tough family problems that eventually would take a toll on you. The worst was Jacob.
You two were madly in love for months. You spent every second possible with Jacob and thought he loved you just as much in return. Until things started changing. He'd make comments on your weight, ask you to change clothes if he didn't like the outfit, keep you away from friends. The list went on and on and on.
You tried to convince yourself that he did it out of love. That he wanted what was best for you but you couldn't see the issue. However, one night you came home from work a little late after consoling a friend and Jacob snapped.
You fought for what felt like hours, Jacob accused you of cheating and plotting against him. You stepped towards him and with one shove you were sent tumbling along with a glass vase that would end up slicing your hands and the side of your face so deep you had to go to the hospital. Jacob was left behind from that day on.
While the physical wounds healed in a couple of weeks, to this day you were still recovering emotionally. You stayed in your hometown for as long as you could bear but it quickly became too much. You knew that moving was the right choice and it had been for a long time now.
Moving to LA would eventually help you start to refocus on yourself and get back on track as you healed. Therapy, your new friends, and a new job all helped tremendously with that. Woods was a blessing through it all.
After that first night, Woods was around a lot more. He’d come to visit Sam or you’d seen him for a friends night out. You tried to talk to him for a bit but it never worked as your anxiety often got the best of you, until one night after your shift at work.
You loved your job at the library but after this shift you had spent the day dealing with a couple of frustrating parents, getting snapped at by your boss for not getting all of your work done, and overall frustration at the mistreatment of beautiful novels.
Woods was sitting just where you found him the night you met when you walked into the apartment. At this time, you had become comfortable enough to collapse onto the couch near him and relax until you got enough motivation to get up and change.
“You okay?” He asked when you looked like you practically could cry the minute you sat down.
“Yes,” you responded instantly, as your instincts told you too. However, a steady stream of tears betrayed your words and made their way down your cheeks.
“Okay no. I’m sorry,” you apologize. You’ve always hated other people seeing you cry even when it was your family. It was something built into you and while it certainly wasn’t your best trait you couldn’t help it.
As more tears rolled down your face you tried to frantically wipe them away as you apologized through a thick voice.
“It’s okay,” He said coming over and taking your hands from your face. You’re shocked by the action and everything in you ceases for a moment.
“Bad day at work?” He asked slowly letting go of your hands and you find yourself wishing he didn’t.
“Yes, very. I’m sorry it was all just building up and so many things went wrong today and I-”
“(y/n) it’s okay,” he reassures you once more before placing his hand over yours and rubbing circles on the back of your thumb.
You both sat up talking for a while, you explained the events of what felt like a nightmare day from the worst of your imagination and he told you about his day and how it actually wasn’t too bad. The conversation developed and before you knew it you were both just talking. Talking about nothing and everything and about if aliens are real and why the sky is blue and where we came from and why we are the person we are today.
It was the best conversation you had had in a while.
Every time after Woods would come to the house, you and he would end up in a long conversation. It was always easy going and started off about something and you never know where or how you got to the next topic but you did and it just flowed.
And one day, he ended up asking you out. You were beyond nervous at first, expecting things to change or to even end up like things between you and Jacob had but it was the same just in fancier clothes and with food. Everything with Woods was easy. He made you feel free and easy. He was safe and comfortable.
He was there when you still fought with nightmares about Jacob and those insecurities.
You had decided to spend the night at Woods house as you had stayed much later than you expected and he didn’t want you driving so late at night alone. You woke up in a cold sweat from a horrendous nightmare about Jacob finding you here in LA and ruining the happiness you found.
You rose from Woods bed and carefully tiptoed out into the kitchen to grab something to drink before settling into the familiar couch cushions. Your eyes wandered around the room to try and focus on something else instead of the nightmare but you couldn’t help it.
“(y/n)?” Woods called quietly as he entered the living room and you looked up to him standing in the doorway. You smiled at him half-heartedly and he met you on the couch, wrapping you up in his arm instantly.
“What’s wrong my darling?”
“Just a bad nightmare is all,” You insisted but he only half-believed you.
“Like a Jacob nightmare?” He asked. One of the nights you spent talking, you had told him the reason, the real reason, why you moved here. He had been a light through it all.
You nodded and he pulled you even closer till you were sitting in his lap. He reached a hand up to push your hair back behind your ears before leaning and pressing a kiss to your nose and then one to your lips. When he leaned back to look at you he searched your eyes for some kind of answer.
“I just wish I was able to give that time to you my dear,” You admit and he smiles that smile that reminds you that he already knew that. He knows you inside and out and that everything is okay.
“I know. But we’re here now and that’s all that matters.”
You look across the car at that man now, the one who loved all of your broken pieces till you picked them back up and you’re thankful. You take his hand in yours and press a kiss to the back of it and Woods smiles widely at you.
“We’re here,” he announces when we pull into the studio parking lot. He turns off the car and runs around to open your door and extends a hand to you.
You take it and together the two of you walk into the warehouse together where everyone is waiting. With Woods by your side, you quickly realize your nerves have fallen away. At the end of the day, all that matters was you and him.
After making your rounds and meeting everyone in the studio you hadn’t met before, you take your seats as Domarina begins to speak. Woods takes your hand in his underneath the table and squeezes it lightly, a silent communication between the two of you.
“And now our very own Woodland Demars has a few words he wants to say,” she says and gestures to your boyfriend. You look over to him as he stands and offers you a wink in which you give him a confused smile.
“Hey guys, as you know my lovely girlfriend (y/n) has joined us tonight,” he says pointing to you and you wave shyly. “And I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to talk about her for a bit so darling can you come here?”
You make your way up to the makeshift stage with suspicion running through your mind. Woods is practically beaming at you when you reach him and he takes your hand and faces you as he continues talking.
“(y/n) always likes to say that I am her true love and over the course of every long lost dream, and broken heart, it was a northern star pointing to me,” he continues practically reciting the two of yours song God Bless The Broken Road by Rascall Flatts.
“And while the road to finding each other hasn’t been easy, I thank God every day for blessing it because I found you, my love,” he says now talking directly to you.
At this point he’s let go of your hand and he reaches into his pocket and your mind is going a million miles an hour. You freeze as he slowly moves so he’s kneeling down in front of you and you’re rendered speechless as he keeps talking.
“You’re the light of my life and I’m so thankful that I met you on this broken road. And I want you here for the rest of my life. I love you so much and I want to ask if you would do me the honor of marrying me?”
“Yes, of course.”
Woods stands and you dive straight into his arms as he wraps his around your waist tightly. You lean back only for a second to meet in a chaste kiss. When he lets go he slips the most beautiful but simple ring on your finger and you feel like you’re floating on air.
“I will love you to the end of time,” he says pressing another kiss to your lips.
