“I wholeheartedly approve of adding this to the treatment plan,” I said, kissing him.
A contented sound left him as our lips parted. “That helped, but maybe not quite enough.”
“Noted, the patient is requesting additional intervention. What else do you think would help?”
“I think you need to kiss me all over.”
“All over, huh? That sounds like an advanced treatment, but I’m all about patient advocacy. First we check vitals,” I said, pressing a kiss to the column of his throat. “Pulse: steady.” Ipeppered the line of his jaw with more kisses, then one on the tip of his nose. “Respiration: sweet and steady, trending toward content.” I placed a peck on both cheeks, feather-light. “Color: flushed and decidedly adorable.” I kissed the corner of his mouth, then the corner of the other side for symmetry, then finished with another, deeper kiss on his lips. “You were brave tonight. So damn brave. And so badass,” I said between kisses.
“Not until you showed up. When he came into the room, I got so scared. I froze. I let him control me, the way he always did. I wasn’t brave. I was a coward. I sat in silence. I let everyone down and I let myself down.” His voice broke, collapsing into heaving unrestrained sobs.
“That’s not truth talking, it’s that cruel voice in your head, and it’s lying to you. It’s time for our game of flip the script, yeah? Running into your abuser without warning, in your safe space, would shake anyone. Just staying in that room with him for over an hour took a kind of courage most people will never understand. And when your body and mind finally caught up, you acted. You protected yourself. None of that says weak to me. Every second of it says strength. It says resilience. It says survivor.”
“But I didn’t do anything right. When I tried to run after we got outside he caught me. When I tried to shove him away he hit me. I forgot every maneuver you taught me until you were right beside me. I’m as useless as Vincent always said, relying on other people to give me strength. Without you, I’m nothing but a sniveling weakling. I need you to make me brave.”
I cupped his face, careful of the bruise, forcing him to meet my gaze. “You are none of those things and you didn’t need me to make you brave. I just reminded you what existed in you already. Everything you did you did on your own. You broke his grip. You sent him to the pavement. You protected yourself. You got free.I didn’t do that, you did. You were not a failure. Not today, not ever.”
His throat bobbed, and his eyes shimmered bright with fresh tears. “God, I’m sorry. Things were light and perfect. I don’t know why I’m falling apart like this now.”
“It’s the adrenaline crash,” I said, wiping his cheeks. “Your emotions can get a bit haywire after a fight like that. Let them come. Cry, shake, rage, fall apart if you need to. I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.”
He sniffed, searching my face. “You sure I’m still brave like this?”
“Angel, bravery doesn’t mean you defeat physiology. How about this, we watch the video and you can see for yourself. Knowing Shawn, he’s already sent it. What do you say? Want to see how kickass you were?”
“Yeah. Okay. Show me.”
I fished his phone off the nightstand. Predictably Shawn had not only sent the video, but also a string of sparkly emojis, three crowns, and a queen energy activated GIF.
“I like him,” Oliver said. “You work with good people.”
“I do. I’m lucky to have a team that rallies like they all did tonight.”
“I’m glad you have that kind of team. People who show up for you the way you show up for everyone else. You deserve that. Now don’t keep me in suspense. Let’s see what Shawn was raving about.”
I hit play.
Oliver tucked himself into me, head resting beneath my jaw as the footage began. His mouth dropped open as he watched how he reacted to my voice, executing every maneuver perfectly. The flip. The strike. The clean disengage. The sprint toward safety. My chest puffed with so much pride it was a miracle my shirt didn’t split open.
“That’s me,” he whispered when the video ended, his eyes wide.
“It is you,” I said.
He rewound it and watched again. “Look at that! I did it. I really kicked his ass.”
“You did,” I said, grinning because damn, watching him see himself as the badass I already knew he was? Top-ten life moment. Easily.
He watched it again. By the fifth time, his mouth curved into a smirk. “Shawn was right. I will definitely be referencing that footage later for alternative purposes.”
I buried my nose into his hair. “Alternative purposes?”
“Purely therapeutic self-care.”
“Like to boost morale?”
“That’s one way to put it.”
“I like that idea,” I said. “You could schedule motivational rewatches every night before bed. Fall asleep replaying how badass you are. Build confidence, positive self-image, all that.”
