#twilightlover2007

Damn, who the hell wasn’t payin’ attention? He knows his darling must have been being careful, because they always are. He does his best not to panic; if they were in a lot of danger, surely the doctors wouldn’t have let them out of hospital. So he does something he doesn’t usually do: swallows his pride. He asks Sebastian to help more with the cooking than he typically does, so that Bard himself can focus on looking after (Name). Thankfully, the household sticks together. While he doesn’t completely neglect his work, he does pay a lot of attention to his sweetheart. Food, pain medicine, anything they might need, he’ll make sure they have it. They’ll be okay, they’ll recover fine, and he’s only too happy to help them along.

An unfortunate turn of events, though with the way some people let their footmen drive, he supposes he isn’t shocked. Still, he’s visibly shaken in the moment, though he retains his quieter, more stoic air as he takes them home. His business is still quite important, but… he’s there if they need anything. Not only does he fully expect Sebastian to make sure (Name) is taken care of, Ciel checks on them frequently. He makes excuses to take a break from his work, and occasionally, he might take his work from his study into their room. Even though he doesn’t feel like he’s good at being… nurturing… he refuses to just let them recover all by themself. He’s there, trying, and that counts for more than he thinks.

Oh, dear, the poor thing! He’s frantic after he hears what happens, although he’s considerably more relaxed once (Name) is back home. As long as they’ve been released, then surely they’re going to be fine. He’s very attentive, because he was scared for a while that he might lose them. Nothing bad is going to happen now that they’re back with him. He runs about doing things like making them tea, putting pillows behind their back and/or under their legs, and giving them massages to keep them from getting sore. It’s also very important to him that his S/O knows how much he loves them, and… he wants them to be more careful after this, alright?

He almost lost them, certainly they can’t expect him to be normal about this?! At least for a while! He sometimes bursts into tears even once (Name) is home again… he knows how close they came to being irreversibly hurt or possibly just gone, that could-have-been grief still crops up. There are bad experiences he’s had that make him worry, so he makes sure that once they’re home, he has plenty of time to look after them. If possible, he wants to get them out in the garden for a while — fresh air and sunshine are good for a body. He fetches them anything they might need, and never fails to remind them that he’s very happy they’re still here with him.

Blast it all, can’t anyone drive carefully?! There are people sharing the roads with carriages, and one of them could have taken his darling away! He’s angry more than anything, though his anger fades noticeably after (Name) comes home from hospital. They’re alright, they’re still alive, everything’s fine. Even though he’s pretty sure they both more than have the right to be angry, it’s better that he focuses on taking care of his beloved. He takes a little leave from service, maybe just a few days or a week, while Phipps fills in for him along with John and Ash. He spends a lot of time just cuddling with his S/O and ensuring they have everything they need whilst they get over the worst of their injuries. He’s here for them… whether they like it or not.

Lord, but no one’s looking out anymore, are they? He could have lost (Name) for good… that’s terrifying. It hits him in this weird spot, because, well, he works with death all day long. He’s starting to get used to it, it no longer fazes him, and then this happens. It brings him back into a fear that his loved ones will die, having brought the possibility into sharp focus. Although he can’t just leave work without consequences, he happily shirks his duties, (perhaps bribing Grell to cover for him), so that he can be at home and care for his sweetheart. His first idea is to offer them a drink, thinking that may dull the pain. Of course, he quickly figures that isn’t a great idea, so he switches to making them tea. Suffice it to say, they get lots of kisses. He almost doesn’t want to leave them ever again! Sigh…

Most of the time when you look at yourself in the mirror, you can’t see any reason why VINCENT would be attracted to you.

Are you pretty? Well, sort of. Maybe. But looking at yourself, thinking about yourself, your mind strips that beauty away for all the things you think don’t make you pretty. Your mind beats at you with two things specifically ― “If you didn’t have these glasses, you would be so beautiful. If you weren’t bigger than other women, you would be so beautiful.”

While you don’t doubt your lover when he says he finds you pretty, you just wonder exactly how he can.

On any average day, you don’t feel too badly about yourself. You go about life, you do everything you need to, and you spend time with Vincent. You’re happy, on the whole.

Sometimes, however, these thoughts just creep into your mind. (Quite obviously, and rudely, without your permission.) While you do your best not to get too terribly down, when these days happen, there must be something about it that shows in your face.

When Vincent walks out of his study and downstairs to where you’re curled up on the couch reading, there’s very little hesitation on his part. He sits down next to you, immediately setting a hand on your thigh. “My, look what I’ve found. Some kind of fairy queen, relaxing with her nose in a book.”

He’s so… silly, sometimes. What in the world does he even mean by that? You’ll never know exactly what goes on in his head. It charms you just the same, though.

“Taking a break from work?” you ask softly. One of the big giveaways, you’re sure, is that you don’t look over at him.

“Mhm. I needed to come see my darling.” He scoots himself a little closer and kisses your cheek. His free hand comes up to rest on your shoulder, the one on your thigh giving a small squeeze. “You look lovely today. As always, of course. But there’s something a bit more special about how you’re glowing today.”

What a flatterer. How can he even mean things like that…? Is he looking at the same person you see in your mirror? What is he doing?

Maybe he knows how you’re feeling today. Vincent is incredibly perceptive, and there are times he’s known what you need before you did. It’s not like he doesn’t give you such over-the-top compliments normally, of course; he just seems to be laying it on thicker than usual.

You lean into his touch anyway, closing your book. If you struggle to find where you left off later, you don’t think you’ll be complaining. “Glowing? It’s probably just the glare off my glasses. Don’t confuse yourself.”

He chuckles. You love that sound more than anything. It’s deep and rich and coats your whole being. “I’m not confused in the slightest, my dear. My eyes are as sharp as ever.”

Before you realize what he’s doing, you’ve been tugged (gingerly) into his lap. “Ah, there we are! Now I can get a close up.”

“Ah―! Vincent, what are you doing??” Regardless, you quickly bury your face against his neck. “I’m… I’m going to break one of your legs or something…”

He laughs again, then presses a kiss to the top of your head. “Oh, don’t be ridiculous. If you haven’t broken any of my bones with all the other things the two of us have done, you simply sitting in my lap won’t do it.”

You feel yourself blushing all the way down your neck, and you elect not to make a response to that particular statement.

Goodness, you just can’t keep you head on straight, can you? Irritating sometimes, especially on bad days, but… but he can handle it! While he doesn’t necessarily have any of your specific issues, he can sort of understand feeling out of control of one’s feelings and reactions and thoughts. He has his own problems, and sometimes that means he’s unable to help with yours. However, he does his best to help if he’s not having a bad day himself. He’s there to keep you on task if you’re trying to get something done, giving you cheeky, teasing little reminders that, “You said you wanted to get this done, remember? You’re getting distracted, sweetheart. Want me to help you focus?” He’s quite shameless in that he uses himself as motivation; every time you successfully get back on track after getting distracted, he gives you a kiss as a reward.

Good God, how can you stand being all over the place like that all the time? He thinks his head would pop off if he had so many things pulling him in every direction. He’s had a bit more practice keeping his thoughts in line, because he has to do so in order to efficiently run a company. If you’re at all interested, he could probably teach you some techniques for staying focused. You’re making his head spin, after all, so he’s more than willing to help as long as you’re open to it. He often uses the ticking of a clock as something to concentrate on, which brings his head to the present and lets him work on whatever’s in front of him. If that doesn’t work for you, he’ll find something else. He just… knows what it’s like, even if it’s not as bad for him, to not be able to settle. Anything he can do to help you with that feeling, he’ll give it a go.

Oh, goodness, she seems so… well, it’s just… she’s always at the mercy of distractions like this? That seems like a rather confusing way to live one’s life. He isn’t sure what exactly he could do to give her any assistance, other than attempt to offer gentle reminders. Even so, his biggest problem in trying to remind her is that he doesn’t want to seem pushy or add one more thing to all the information her mind is already trying to sort through. If she’s okay with him delicately poking at her to get back on task, he’ll try to do that. Writing something? Reading a book? Cooking? He’s happy to be there next to her to either nudge her if she gets distracted or take over if she’s getting flustered. He also is very good at making her feel like this isn’t a nuisance; it’s just something that has to be dealt with, and he doesn’t ever make a big show of dealing with it. He’s just… there for her.

Doesn’t she get exhausted going through life like that? All disorganized and unable to focus on things? That would drive him up the wall! In fact, just looking at her getting distracted makes him a little annoyed. Not for selfish reasons, just because he’s wincing at the thought of anyone living like that, especially someone who he cares deeply about. However, he has no idea how to help her, aside from giving her blunt reminders about getting back on track if he notices her attention is being pulled somewhere else. Blunt may be what she needs; it may not be. He’ll adjust his efforts if she tells him something isn’t helping her. He also has connections with some good doctors, if she wants to go that route. However, regardless, he’ll try to help her out. If he can’t help her, well, plenty more excuse for kisses and snuggles to make her feel better.

It just… makes him sick to think about, you know? For a child who had their whole life ahead of her, someone who had so many people who love her, to be taken out of the world in an instant, it’s unfair. He’s in shock from the news, not only for (Name) and her emotions, but also likely because he’d undoubtedly met her niece. Played with her, spoke to her, sang her songs, looked after her. Even if it wasn’t a long time since they met, he still had a bond with the little girl. There’s no way he’s leaving his beloved’s side, no matter what that means. He’ll hold her and do anything she needs him to do. He has no words of comfort to offer except for something that tastes hollow coming out of his mouth: “At least she’s not suffering anymore. She’s with God now, my love.” Whether or not that’s any solace depends on his S/O. Regardless, he’s here for her. He’s not going anywhere, and if she didn’t know before that she could count on him in times of extreme stress, she knows now that she can.

How, but…? He just saw (Niece) the other day. This isn’t right… it can’t have happened so quickly, can it? He gets hit harder with shock than his S/O, because he’s almost in denial that she’s gone. It’s no question that he’s been around that little girl, gently teasing her and impressing her with his fencing and things like that. Despite that she wasn’t his blood, she was close enough. His focus rapidly shifts from his own feelings to (Name)’s, because after all, this was her niece. She was closer to that child than he was, she spent more time with her. This must be devastating, so he makes sure he’s there for her. He makes sure Phipps and John and Ash can handle everything for Her Majesty, then Grey takes his darling home. If anyone so much as makes a comment that it was ‘only’ her niece (“be thankful it wasn’t your daughter or something, then you’d really be sad”), they’ll find themselves staring down his sword. Whatever she needs him to do, he’ll do it. No questions, no judgment, just support.

Fuckin’… that just ain’t right. It’s not. Everyone else can tell him till they’re blue in the face that the universe works in mysterious ways and all that shite, but that doesn’t change the fact that he doesn’t think an aunt should have to bury her niece, or a mother her daughter. That little girl probably knew him as ‘Uncle Ronnie’, because he loves children and was very friendly with her. Although he might have kept his distance from (Name)’s family in general, because he doesn’t want to put them in danger just by being near them, he came around often enough to know (Niece); he’d always have a piece of candy in his pocket when he knew he’d be visiting his S/O, just in case (Niece) happened to be there too. It makes him angry and sad and he knows he shouldn’t be angry because it was an accident. He just sort of wants someone to blame. Having someone to blame makes it easier… only he knows it really doesn’t. He’ll actually go so far as to shirk his duties completely, (when usually he at least half-asses them) so that he can comfort (Name). He’s bad with comfort, though, so she’s… she’s got to tell him what she needs. If she does that, he’ll make it happen. This is just such a mess, he doesn’t want her to go to a dark place she can never come back from.

What in the world is she…?! Wait!! Just, at the very least wait for him! He’s stunned that he didn’t hear anything… or perhaps he was deep in thought and had just blocked the world out. Regardless, he runs after her almost immediately, wanting to know what she’s heard and what’s going on. The scene hits something in his heart — a person pulling a child out of danger, offering help, wanting to take care with this little one. He… wishes someone had done that for him. So he looks at her in even more of an admiring light than normal. It may be that he gets lost in his own head for a moment, especially if he was thinking about his past earlier. After a moment, though, he shakes himself out of it and tugs off his coat, wrapping it around the child. “Look at you, lad, like a drowned rat! Haha. Let’s go find your parents.” Of course, if the kid happens not to have parents, well… this one is his now!

What in the world… there must be a reason she’s running like that. He won’t stop her, but he does follow after her. Just in case this turns out to be something she can’t quite handle by herself, or if she needs help, he has to be there. While he did hear something himself, he wasn’t fully sure what it was until he catches up with her. To see her pulling a child to safety, someone who could have easily died if not for someone else… it makes him feel something he isn’t sure of. It’s a complicated feeling, and yet, it’s also soft. He’s more worried about her than anything else, which unfortunately includes the child. His cloak is off in an instant, wrapping around her and asking if she’s alright. On the heels of that is an order, “Sebastian, take care of the child. Find their parents and reunite them.” Although he’s not without a heart, he’s infinitely more focused on his girlfriend. He certainly shows a little more praise for her the rest of the day, including giving her small smiles and calling her his brave girl.

No, what was that — he heard it too! He’s actually surprised that his girlfriend is faster to respond to it than he is, so color him impressed. And maybe a little flustered about that fact, that sort of in-awe flavor of flustered. There are no questions, no hesitation, he just follows her. Though he isn’t sure what exactly it was, he knows something is going on, so he needs to be there to give her a hand. Make no doubts, once he sees what’s going on, he jumps into action and is pulling this child out of the river, right along with (Name). It’s a sad situation, though not one that he imagines is particularly rare, so he feels like if they can make a difference once, then that’s something. He quickly pulls the child into his arms, putting his jacket around their shoulders in an attempt to dry them off. Then he carries them, talking to his girlfriend and asking where she thinks they should go to find the little one’s parents, if they have them. He very much takes charge of the situation, wanting to make sure that both the child and his darling are taken care of.

Oh, it’s — wait, it’s for him?? They’re not just showing off their work to him? Honestly, he would have been fine and just as impressed with his S/O letting him fawn over it for a bit. But… it’s his. They made it for him. There’s not one single, solitary moment in his life that he’s felt like someone cared about him, and suddenly… he’s feeling that in abundance. Nobody’s done anything like this for him before. (Name) loves him enough that they actually made something, by themself, by hand, specifically so they could give it to him. As soon as he processes all of that, he might actually cry. He can’t believe someone (and someone he deeply loves) poured so much time and effort into something for him. Of course, he’ll try feverishly to play it off or act like it really isn’t a big deal. However, his S/O is probably going to sleep in the same bed as him, right? So they’ll get to see firsthand how much he loves it; he uses that blanket every night, cuddling up with them, drowsily thanking them, and mumbling that loves them. Who knows? Maybe he’ll have to learn how to make something like this for them in thanks! Until he does, he’s content to just enjoy it and share it with them.

Well, that’s a nice gift… he was thinking about getting something like that for them. They could always share it. Somehow, he completely misses the fact that they didn’t buy it, they made it. He just expects presents which are bought, because that’s what people usually give him. As impersonal as some of those things are, the last time he got anything handmade was… a very long time ago. So long ago that he doesn’t even remember what it was. So when his S/O tells him that this blanket is something that they made for him, he’s stunned. It’s not something he expected. He just… doesn’t quite understand at first? Why would they go to all that trouble, when they could just go out and buy a blanket? It’s not really that he’s missing the point. It simply catches him off guard. Then he thinks more about it. The fact that they spent hours, days, weeks, maybe months making it… they spent time and work on something for him. To him, time is more precious than money; meaning a gift like this means more to him than he particularly wants to show. He’s actually careful not to use it so much that he wears it out. This blanket is only for special occasions, only used for cuddling with (Name), when he’s sick, or when he’s incredibly emotional. It… makes him feel better.

Hmph, well… he isn’t necessarily thrilled by the whole thing. It’s not as if he hates the idea of having a child; it’s just that he doesn’t really feel like he’s able to be a good father. He’s just rather at a loss of how to react. He tries to be very quiet about it, neither showing any excessive joy nor any true dislike of the situation. It also depends on the age of the little one too — he takes far better to an infant or a toddler than a slightly older child. Although he’s busy, he very much does bond with the child in his own way. And he absolutely cares about them. He certainly doesn’t begrudge his S/O for taking them in, even if he might struggle to adjust.

Oh, dear… what a terrible tragedy to have happened. Even if it means this wonderful little child gets to come into their lives, it’s a shame it had to happen this way. Still, he embraces the change, despite the fact that it’s somewhat difficult to learn how to be a parent. His whole life has led up to getting married and having children with his S/O, (as well as following in his family’s footsteps in general), but he finds that he’s not as ready as he thought he was when it happens so suddenly. He loves the little one as if they were his own, though. He spends as much time with them and with his beloved as he can… having someone else to provide for, however, makes him work twice as hard to be able to take care of their new child.

Ah… goodness… he’ll definitely be sure to say a prayer for the little one’s original family. Of course, as bad as it sounds out loud, he sort of views the new child as sort of a… test run? Yes, that sounds terrible! Which is why he probably won’t say it. As excited as he is about starting a family, he’s quite a bit nervous about the kind of parent he’s going to be. Having it thrust on him and his S/O somehow bypasses all his anxiety, because they have no choice but to take care of this child. They have to find a way. So, find a way he will. He’s more than capable of looking after both of them, so all that remains is to bond with the little one. Easier said than done… he’s determined to make it happen, though.

… It’s awful, what happened. And it’s quite a surprise to come home from a long day and abruptly find himself a father. Though, he’s mostly the type to just silently accept things as they are — no amount of questioning or worry or anything will change the reality of what is. So he gently takes the child from his S/O, because he doesn’t know exactly how long they’ve been dealing with the little one as well as their own emotions, and tries to take care of them for the rest of the night. He adjusts fairly well, all things considered; there’s no one who would look at him and think he wasn’t suited to be a father, even if he might doubt himself sometimes. Even though he’s not talkative, he is very much an incredible parent.