#topofthelake

You turned around in her embrace, arms moving naturally to find their place around her broad shoulders, as you pushed up on your toes to meet the blonde's height and press your lips to hers. It was sweet and simple, a display of how much she'd been missing you while she was busy all day at work, lasting for a few moments before you were first to pull away. "I missed you..." she mumbled and gazed down at you with puppy dog eyes.

"I missed you too, Mir," you replied softly, unable to hide the smile that tugged at your lips at the sight of your lipstick faintly smudged against her mouth. It made your heart swell with affection, and a blush began to work its way across your cheeks and down your throat. As the vegetable stir fry began to crackle in the pan, you spun back around to face the stove to push the spatula around. "How was work?"

Miranda sighed quietly, unable to keep herself from frowning ever so slightly as you pulled away, though she didn't quite want to let go of you. Her arms slid down to wrap around your waist once more, and her palms cradled the softness of your stomach as she leaned her chest against your back to perch her head against your shoulder to watch you cook. "Hectic, as always," she nuzzled her nose against your cheekbone, desperately growing clingy, which she often did after a rough day. "But I'm fine now that I'm with you..."

You chuckled, feeling the comfortable weight of the blonde's head against your shoulder as you continued to stir the sizzling vegetables. "I'm glad I can make you feel better, then," you whispered, your voice barely above a breath, not wanting to disturb the gentleness between the pair of you.

It was moments like these —such mundane domestic tasks— where you'd find solace in each other's presence. Her life was fast-paced and constantly moving, yet the simpleness of coming home to just.. you made her heart soar. Miranda could never see herself 'settling down' before you came into her life, but the thought of it being with you was enticing enough. She began to get lost in a dream-like trance, a happy grin plastered across her face, and all she could do was squeeze you tighter when you suggested she go take a shower while you finished up with dinner.

Miranda sighed contentedly, her grip on you tightening ever so slightly, but still gentle. "And miss out on the chance to help you cook?" she murmured, her voice laced with fondness. "I think I'll stay right here. . ." And once more, her lips met the top of your head as she hummed happily. Miranda began to lightly sway the pair of you to an invisible rhythm while you cooked.

Of course, you knew better. By her 'helping', she simply meant distracting — not that you minded much. You’d happily be distracted if it meant being engulfed in her affections. Her presence was a balm to your tired soul and vice versa, soothing away the fatigue that'd accumulated after a long day.

"You know," she began quietly, her tone light and playful but sincere, "I could get used to this... coming home to you every day, I mean." The warmth of her words seemed to radiate from the blonde, beginning to spread throughout your chest. "Though your cooking is definitely a plus," she added lightheartedly, causing you to laugh.

You knew the older woman would survive purely off of cigarettes, stale beer, and Chinese takeout if you weren’t around to take care of her. If she couldn’t throw it into the microwave to reheat it? She wouldn’t touch it. You happily spoiled her with weekly home-cooked meals and treats that never lasted longer than a few days in her fridge.

Miranda reached towards one of your hands and began to slowly spin you around to face her once more, and you obliged, turning the stove on low before finally turning your body in the direction she wanted. She kissed the back of your knuckles as your eyes met and grinned proudly at the blush that adored your precious face. As her lips pulled away, you stepped closer, hands coming to rest at her sides, and tugged her closer until your bodies met.

Your head found itself along the comfortable space of her shoulder, feeling the gentle rise and fall of her chest against yours, while you listened to the comforting thrum of her heart and softness of her breathing; getting impossibly lost in the scent of her. The two of you were content with being in each other's silence, allowing you both a chance to unwind as you continued to sway together, your breathing falling into sync with hers.

The blonde remained the lead in swaying your bodies together in a waltzing motion, the hand not holding yours traced idly along your waist, lightly stroking your skin as it moved. She enjoyed the calming effect your body seemingly had on hers, muscles easing and exhaustion fizzling into nothing. Sapphire orbs peered down at you, drinking every detail to memory when you weren't paying attention.

The soft cadence of Miranda's voice broke through the silence, whispering against the shell of your ear. "I don't know what Gods I must've pleased to deserve you," an uncharacteristic vulnerability crept into her voice, you knew, leaning up to stare at her sympathetically as she continued. "I just- I dunno. I really, really love you.. I don't want this feeling to end, you know? Like, what if I do something.. wrong, and you decide you've finally had enough of me and leave like the rest of them because I’m too much to handle—"

Before the blonde could finish her babbling, you leaned up to press a reassuring kiss to her lips, hoping to soothe the insecurities that lingered within her soft heart. A tender smile formed on your face as you pulled away, bringing a hand up to cup her face, brushing your thumb gently against her cheeks.

"Hey," you began softly, trying to regain her focus. "Listen to me.. You have nothing to worry about when it comes to that, okay? I promise you, you aren’t too much to handle, I love the way you are just fine. You deserve all the love and affection in the world and more. There is nothing you could ever do wrong that would make me even think about leaving you, do you hear me? I love you, all of you, the good and bad. . My angel, flung out of space."

By the way her eyes searched yours, looking for any hint of deceit or doubt, you could tell it wasn’t often she received such assurance in the past. She was the one constantly putting in the work, the one chasing after the other, the one fighting to make things work—never having someone be the one putting in the work for her. And then there was you. It was a foreign concept to Miranda, but one that she was more than willing to learn to accept.

Tears threatened to form in her eyes as the words sank in, as if some invisible weight had been lifted off from her shoulders, relinquishing her of the pent-up insecurities that'd been plaguing her. You could feel the weight of her vulnerability while holding her in your arms. She gave your hand two tight squeezes, as if to say 'thank you for loving me when I struggle to love myself', without needing to verbalize it.

You understood. Old wounds took time to heal, but she was worth waiting for. Worth tending to.

The next few minutes were spent gently murmuring and crooning soft nothings into her ears, pressing the slowest, most gentle kisses across the apples of her cheeks until her aching heart settled. Soon, she was back to smiling, returning the show of affection by spinning you around and dipping you low — hands clutching onto you tightly as she pulled you right back up soon after, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

She released you as the timer on the oven rang, silently ushering you to the table so she could plate up dinner while you sat and relaxed for a moment. Plates were laid out, scooping a hearty helping of stir fry onto both, making a pit stop to the fridge to snag two beers before she'd make her way over to where you sat — a certain pep to her step that wasn't quite there before now.

Your chin rests against the palm of your hand as you watch her move around the familiarity of the kitchen, the sight of her not-so-graceful movements bringing hearts to your eyes and a fluttering to your belly. Miranda grinned down at you as she placed the plate in front of you, quirking up a brow at the way you stared at her, but making no comment as she quickly began to chow down; talking with a mouthful about something she remembered happening at work she’d been excited to tell you about all afternoon.

. . . you definitely could get used to this.

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A/N: You know it's serious when you gotta pull out the Carol reference.

Viv kept doing sad Miranda stuff in the server, so naturally I felt the need to dabble with some fluff. This is my first time writing both Miranda and 'fluff', so do keep that in mind. She's just so sweet, and I definitely imagine Mir to be the clingiest little baby <3 mwah love her