“It doesn’t have to be everything. Give whatever you can or want to give us. And like I said, take all the time you need.”
“I’ll take a few more days…and that’s it.”
Severo sighed, and moved close enough to gently tug the Nymph out of his seat into a hug. “You make it hard to be the shining white knight, you know that?”
Seri laughed. “I don’t need a shining white knight to rescue me. I need a companion who will stand by my side as I kick the shit out of my dragon.”
He chuckled, despite feeling unsure about all this. “I’ll be that companion, as long as you let me.”
“Shit!” Skya squealed.
Seri groaned and pulled out of his arms.
“Can’t blame that one on me,” Severo chuckled.
The Nymph glared. “Is reminding me that my daughter's first word was the f-word really something you want to do right now?”
“Ahh, yes, umm…shutting up now.”
“That’s what I thought,” Seri grunted.
Severo hummed softly as he walked down the hall towards the apartment he shared with Seri and Skya. He had found the cutest green frog onesie while out. Was he supposed to go to ‘that’ store? No. Seri had technically banned him…but he hadn’t listened. There was a sale! How could he pass up going when there was a sale?
Severo paused mid-step, a few feet from the door when he heard it. A baby crying…a cry of fear. Rushing to the door, he hurriedly scanned his eye to open it. Running in, he slammed the door closed behind him. Severo didn’t bother removing any outer clothing, he just dropped his bags, uncaring where they fell as he yelled, “Seri?! Skya!”
Skya’s screaming, ear piercingly painful now that he was inside, continued on. He stumbled to a stop, looking around the room. His eyes widened when he finally caught sight of Seri collapsed on the floor by the coffee table. Skya was in her playpen, standing there face red, crying her heart out for her daddy.
Rushing to Seri, Severo shoved the table out of the way. The tablet that had been sitting on it slid to the floor, but he ignored it, focusing on the man. Gently, Severo rolled the Nymph over. The man's whole body was trembling, and his breathing was coming in and out fast. His nose and eyes were red, and tears were running down his face. Seri’s eyes were open, but he didn’t seem to see him, or anything at all…
What the hell had happened?!
As much as it killed him, he pulled away from Seri and went to Skya. Seri was alive. He had to calm Skya down before she hurt herself, or them. Not to mention, before they attracted attention. These walls were thick, but…a Water Nymph's voice would likely cut through easily.
Scooping Skya up, he held her close to his chest as she continued to cry. “Shh, my gummy bear. It’s okay. Oh-Oh is here.”
“OH-OH!” she sobbed.
“Daddy is going to be okay, shh.” He rocked her.
He wasn’t sure how long it took, but it felt like it had been an eternity by the time she had settled down to sniffles. Gently running his hand over Skya’s curls, he took her back to the last room on the left—the nursery. They had started using it for her after he and Seri had become intimate.
Kissing her on the forehead, he laid her down in the crib, and made sure the baby monitor was on before closing the door. Next, he headed into their room, quickly tossing off his outer wear as he grabbed the other baby monitor.
Returning to the living room, he set the monitor on the coffee table and sat on the floor, pulling Seri into his arms. He began to rock him just like he had Skya.
“Seri,” he gently called. “Seri, come back to me. It’s safe, I promise. I don’t know what happened, but I promise you, it’s safe.”
Severo kept talking, babbling on, as he continued to rock the man. He flinched when Seri suddenly let out a heart wrenching sob.
“Seri. Seri, it's okay. I’m here. It’s okay.”
“I…wrote it down,” Seri cried. “I tried…I couldn’t…” The Nymph sobbed harder, his words cutting off.
“I’m so sorry I wasn’t here to hold you,” Severo whispered. “I’d have held you through each word you wrote.”
“I-I didn’t…I d-didn’t want you to see me like that. I didn’t want anyone to see me like that! I got it out…I did…but then…it all…it just h-hit me, and I couldn’t take it… It was too much. A-and I couldn’t get away. Skya!? I heard crying…but I?—”
“Shhh, Skya’s fine. She’s in her crib. By the void, Seri, there is no shame in what you are feeling and experiencing. You’ve been through so much. The only people who should feel any shame are the ones who stood back and did nothing.”
