72. Moral Support?

       The couple exited the plane and had a Hell of a time getting through TSA. Not only was Nicole chosen for a search in concern of the reason for her switchblade in her luggage, but the guy going through it decided to flirt with Waverly the whole time until he discovered her Sheriff's badge in one of the pouches. She had never seen fear smack someone so hard across the face so hard. She shot him a tight-lipped smile when he looked up at her and he quickly finished up before sending them on their way.

       Waverly leaned against the wall annoyedly as Nicole pulled some money out of the ATM. She had tried to tell her that she was covering everything this week, but the taller one had insisted that since she had paid for the game and the plane tickets that she was gonna pay for everything else. Waverly, though, had convinced (some would call it threatened) her to let them split the hotel cost. 

       “Jeez,” Waverly mumbled the second they stepped foot outside. She pulled the jacket off, tossing it back at her. “It’s April at 5 pm , what the fuck ?” 

       Nicole raised her eyebrows, shaking her head at her with a laugh as she tied it around her waist. She had warned her Texas was hot. And it was roughly 80 degrees out at the moment. “‘Posed to hit 90 on Saturday,” she informed with a wink as she began to stack their luggage in their pre-ordered rental car for the week. 

       “ 90 ?!?”

       “ I’va feeling were not in Canada anymore, Toto .” 

       The brunette threw her a look and they climbed in the car. “Wait, so that’s normal? Just like . . . 90-degree springtime?”

       “I mean, not really . It’s usually from 60 to 80, but 90’s not way uncommon either.” She gave a small shrug. “You get used to it after living here for a while. Just like you are used to snow on the ground half the year. You’d be lucky if you got an inch in a whole year here.” 

       “Really?” 

       “Yep. I didn’t really see snow until I was 6. It snowed 2 inches overnight and it was the coolest thing little me had ever seen.” 

       “Damn,” she mumbled, relaxing back into her seat as Nicole pulled away. She noticed the familiarness as she drove as if she knew where every road led to. And with so, they were quickly at their hotel after they had stopped to get some food. 

       Nicole set her bag by the foot of the bed, looking up at the brunette standing at the big window that overlooked the city. A small smile pushed on her face as she walked over, wrapping her arms around her front. She immediately relaxed back into her as if it were a reflex, feeling her let out a sigh against her back. “What?” She questioned, looking up at her face. 

       She shook her head. “Nothing. I just . . . love it here.” 

       “Mm,” she let out in understanding before turning around. “What d’you wanna do now?” 

       “Truthfully?” 

       “Obviously.” 

       “I kinda just wanna chillax for the rest of the night.” That wasn’t too surprising. She had worked a double shift the day before. “But if you wanna go do something, that’d be fine, too.” 

       Waverly smiled, cupping her cheek and pulling her down into a soft kiss. “I asked cause I’m exhausted and just wanna lay down and watch movies until we fall asleep,” she informed, pushing a final chaste kiss to her lips. 

       “ Great idea.” 

       Waverly giggled as she pulled out of her arms. She set her suitcase on the bed and opened it up, looking up at her with a blinding smile as she pulled out her rainbow unicorn onesie. Nicole shook her head, switching out her outfit for a tank and some shorts.

       They climbed up on the bed and Nicole looked over at the nightstand, turning her head with a furrowed brow. "Where's the clicker?" 

       Waverly looked towards the one on her side, seeing it on the floor. She grabbed it, handing it over as she snuggled under her arm, pulling the quilt up. "I'll give you a pass to say that while we're here," she mumbled. 

       "You wait until the end of the week. I'm gonna sound like I did when I left for college," she said with a laugh. 

       "No you won't. " 

       She nodded as she clicked through the channels. "I dunno why, but hearing other people around here talking all sexy 'n southern rewires my brain." 

       "As long as you don't start chewing on straw, I'll be good."

       Nicole rolled her eyes as she decided on something for them to watch. "I might just for you." 

.  .  .

       The sun had set hours back when the couple finally turned the TV off, winding down for the night seeing that the redhead had already dozed off a few times. Waverly turned off the lamp on her side and let Nicole situate herself before dropping her head back on her chest, getting as close to her warmth as much as possible. "Good?" The redhead asked in a tired slur. 

       "Mhm." 

       "Mk. Ni' night." 

       "Ni' night." 

       The smaller girl slid her fuzzy-sleeved hand up her shirt, gently running it across her stomach before letting it come to rest with her fingers wrapped lightly around her side. She closed her eyes with the goal being sleep, but her brain seemed to have different ideas. Her thoughts were running at a hundred miles an hour. She was having a bit of a hard time wrapping her head around the fact that she was now in the area where her fiancée had spent the first 18 years of her life, but she was so excited for her to let her be apart of her re-exploration.

       But there was also the other side of it that she was extremely worried about. Somewhere in the depths of Dallas was the house that her trauma occurred in. And not to mention that her mother was also in the vicinity somewhere and she knew that was still a rather sensitive subject for her. But Nicole had brushed it all off each time she had questioned if she’d be fine coming back to her homeland the weeks prior to the trip, assuring her that’d she be fine. But that was Nicole. Nicole puts on a brave face for her just so she doesn’t worry. That’s just how she was and it’s probably how she’s always been. 

       She hadn’t really realized she had been stewing over her thoughts until her eyes opened a bit and she saw that 15 minutes had passed since they laid down. But she also noticed that Nicole’s thumb was rubbing her back every couple of seconds, so she knew she was also awake still, and that surprised her a bit. 

       “Nic?” She whispered softly. 

       “Yea, Baby?” She mumbled back. 

       “What’re you thinking about?” 

       Her head rose as the redhead took in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. “How much I love it here.”

       “Mm.” She traced her finger around in a circle. 

       “What’re you thinking about?”  

       The brunette was quiet for a few seconds. “Can I ask you something?” 

       “Anything, Love.” 

       “Are you sure?” She asked timidly. 

       She let out a small huff as she gently rolled them to their sides, scooting her up to be closer to her face. “I’m sure.” 

       She swallowed a little as the redhead looked right in her eyes. “Why . . .” She looked down, picking at a string on her sleeve. “Why do you love it so much? Cause . . . after you told me about it all, I figured you hated it here.” She raised her eyes back up, hoping she wasn’t pushing her too hard. 

       Nicole must have noticed the worry in her eyes because she cupped her cheek, kissing her forehead. “It’s ok,” she assured, her gentle smile slightly illuminated by the lights outside. “I . . . I did hate it for a while. After it happened, all I wanted was to leave. And that’s why I did. But as I got older, I realized how much your childhood means to you. And I did have a pretty good childhood when you take him out of the picture. But, uh. Almost every single bit of who I am is cause of this place. I mean, the Rangers, duh. The reason I can’t stand Canadian barbeque. Cause, Baby, you ain’t lived ‘less you’ve had you some Texas barbeque,” she drawled with a wink. Waverly rolled her eyes, fighting back a smile. “Then baseball. I don’t know how I would have managed if I hadn’t gone to Coppell for high school cause their athletic program is . . . out of this fricking world.” She paused for a second. “And, ya know . . . the other stuff, too. If it wouldn’t have happened here then I wouldn’t have met Nedley and I’d probably be in the MLB right now. And that means . . . I would have never met you. And that- that’s kinda scary to think about.” Waverly smiled, pressing a kiss to her hand. "Think about it like this. You moved back into the Homestead. Did you think you were ever gonna go back there?" 

       Her eyes widened a bit at that, finally making a connection. "No." 

       "And why did you?" 

       "Cause . . . Well, I was tired of living above Shorty's, for one. But . . . I dunno, yea. That house built me." 

       Nicole smiled, tipping her head up into a kiss. "Funny how that works, huh? I guess watching your father get shot really makes a place special." 

       " Oh my God ," Waverly huffed, flipping over. 

       Nicole chuckled, tugging her closer to her front and peppering a few kisses onto her neck. "Love you, Wave," she exhaled. 

       "Love you, too." 

.  .  .

       The couple woke up late, both having gotten a beautiful 10 hours of sleep. They ended up actually getting out of bed a few hours later, heading out the door to go find somewhere to eat. 

       “What’s the plan today, Sheriff Haught?” Waverly questioned as they climbed back in the car after their meal. 

       “ Well .” She backed out of the parking spot. “I was thinking we should take a trip down memory lane.” 

       Her eyes widened a bit at her. “Wh- you mean?” 

       She looked towards her for a second, reading her nervous face. “All the way to the beginning,” she said with a nod, confirming her question.

       “I don’t think that’s-” 

       “I’ve been wanting to do this for a while now, Babe.”

       Waverly stared at her for a couple more seconds. She finally let out a sigh, pushing her hand through her hair. "If you start freaking your shit, I don't know how to get us back to the hotel." 

       "I know. I'll be fine. I almost did this when I was here last time, but I . . . was busy." 

       "Mm, Busy . D'you do some catching up with your 8th through Senior year fling?" 

       She raised her eyebrows at her with a laugh. ". . . That's one way to put it." The brunette shook her head, pinching her hand. 

       They drove on the highway for a bit before somehow ending up on some curvy back roads. She was still trying to figure out how Nicole seemed to have this whole state mapped out in her brain. 

       That thought dispersed, though, when she slowed to a stop outside of a long, bricked house that was the only house for at least half a mile on either side. It was a few acres from the road and there were woods right behind it. 

       Nicole popped her gum, turning her head towards the window. “First house I ever lived in. All the way up to eight years old.”

       Waverly lifted her hand to her face, pushing a kiss into the back of it. “I never saw you as a farm girl,” she smirked, seeing that the other side of the road was just fields for miles. 

       “My mom’s family owns all of that.” 

       “Really?” 

       “It was my grandpa’s, but he died when I was only one or two, so now my uncles run it all as far as I know.”

       “Your mom’s not that old, though?” She said, wondering how he died at a presumably younger age.

       “Yea, she’ll be 47 this year. But he died in a car wreck. And my grandma’s on her third or fourth husband since. She’s a little . . .” Nicole twirled her finger around by her head.

       “ Ah ,” Waverly nodded. “How big is your family?”

       “My mom had two sisters and two brothers, but they aren’t that close. There’s her, Sharon, and then Jeff, Brian, Gloria, and Liz. Both brothers are still around here running the farm, but Gloria is in Oklahoma. Jeff has two sons, Brian and his wife foster kids, and Gloria has three daughters and a son. Liz never decided to settle down, so . . . I don't know if any of the cousins have kids or anything yet.” She gave a little shrug. “My father had a half-sister, Lynda. Never met her. And don’t know or care what’s going on with his parents.”

       Waverly slowly nodded as she intently listened. “Were you close to any of your cousins growing up or anything?” 

       “Me and Jeff’s sons would play together all through growing season, and whatever kids Brian had been taking care of would sometimes join in. JJ was my age and Joseph was two years younger. We’d end up annoying them up by the main farm, so they’d send us over here to screw around in the yard. We’d play football, soccer, baseball, go explore the woods, have mud fights, wrestle, you name it.” She shook her head. “After we left here, we never really saw each other besides holidays, though.” 

       “That’s kinda sad,” the brunette mumbled. 

       “Eh. They didn’t like me playing like the boys anyway, so most of the time I got yelled at for walking inside all dirty.” 

       “I can so see you playing with Barbies, yea,” she laughed. 

       Nicole let out a little snort. “That’d be a sight to see.” 

       “What happened after you moved out? Did they kick him out?”

       “ They beat the shit out of him and then kicked him out,” she informed. “I’m not sure who lives there now.” She could see a couple of cars in the open garage way up there. 

       Speaking of cars. 

       Nicole noticed that a big blue diesel pickup truck was heading their way. It stopped when it got about 10 feet of their car and the door swung open, a muscular guy with a baseball cap hopping out and cocking his shotgun aimed at the sky. 

       “Damn Miller’s are some crazy fuckers,” she muttered to herself as she flicked her blade out and quickly got out of the car. 

       “Nicole!” Waverly shouted with wide eyes. 

       “ Joseph , put that shit away, god damn ,” the redhead snapped. 

       Her cousin squinted at her for a couple of seconds before his eyes went wide at the realization of who it was. He shoved the gun back in his truck before walking towards her. “What the hell’re you doing back here?!” He questioned with a laugh. 

       “Came to see if y’all’d fucked up Gramp’s legacy yet,” she smirked, crossing her arms in front of herself after putting her switchblade away. 

       He rolled his eyes, pulling her into a short hug and smacking her back. “Where’d you end up, Red? It’s been a minute.” His tall, muscular figure was intimidating, especially with his cut-off tank and dirty hands and jeans, but his soft, sky blue eyes and deep dimples made him less scary up close. 

       She rubbed the back of her neck with a small chuckle. “Canada. Been there since I took off.” 

       “Canada, aye?” He laughed, mocking the accent.

       She threw him a playful glare. “I’m a Sheriff. Watch it, Buddy.”

       “No shit?” 

       She nodded with a proud grin. “Been for a couple months now. Small town in the middle of nowhere, but it’s got it’s fair share of idiots to deal with. You’d fit right in.” 

       “Hey now.” His eyes drifted towards the car. “Who’s Cutie?” He questioned, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and lighting one up, offering her the box. 

       She shook her head at it. “Fiancée, so don’t try it.” 

       His eyebrows went up as he tucked it back in his pocket. “So that part was true?” He mumbled. 

       She popped her gum again, shoulders squaring at his tone. “That I’m a sinner destined for Hell? Yep, seems so.” 

       He shook his head with a huff. “I’m not like all them, Red.” 

       She relaxed a bit. “. . . Good.”

       His eyes drifted back to the car and he caught Waverly’s eye, shooting her a wink. The brunette rolled her eyes with a small smile. “She’s not my type, don’t worry,” he assured, looking back at Nicole.

       “She’s everybody’s type.” 

       He threw her a challenging look, lifting his shirt a little and flipping the band of his boxers down. 

       Revealing a tiny rainbow heart tattoo. 

       He fixed it, dropping his shirt. “Like I said, not my type.” 

       Her eyes slowly raised back to his, mouth slightly opened. “And I thought I was the gay cousin,” she mumbled quietly. 

       “So did I,” he chuckled, taking a deep draw of his cigarette and blowing it towards the sky. 

       “Does anyone know?”

       He let out an honest laugh. “D’you think I’d still be working on the Family Farm if they did?”

       That was a fair point. “Why don’t you go then? Be you.”

       He shrugged. “I’m happy here. No one’s ever suspected anything.” He looked towards the person walking up the driveway from the house. “And they think Luke’s my best friend .” 

       “Wait, you live here now?” She gawked. 

       “Yea . . . Sorry . . .” He kicked a rock, tossing the butt of the cigarette towards the field. 

       She shook her head. “No, I don’t care. Shit happens. Just happened to happen on family land.” 

       He offered up a soft smile, but turned his head as Luke stopped beside him. “Hey, Babe,” he mumbled as he leaned into a quick kiss. 

       They pulled away at the sound of the car door opening. “Now hold on a fucking minute,” Waverly started with a confused look on her face as she rounded the car towards Nicole. 

       The men stared back at her with the same look on their faces, but the redhead laughed as she wrapped her arm around her waist, giving it a squeeze. “You learn something new every day,” she smiled, knowing why she was very confused. 

       “Uh, Joe?” Luke questioned from beside him, probably wanting to know who the people standing in front of them were. 

       “ Right ! This’s my cousin, Nicole, and her fiancée, . . .” He looked towards the brunette. 

       “Waverly,” she finished with a smile. 

       The shorter man’s eyes were fixed on the redhead. “Wait, Nicole, as in . . .-”

       “Murderous father Nicole? Yep, that Nicole,” she confirmed. 

       Waverly smacked her stomach. “ Nic .” 

       The Sheriff looked down at her with a shrug. “What?” The younger one rolled her eyes. 

       “Ok. I told Dad I was coming to pick up some tools and he’s gonna come searching for my ass if I don’t get back there.” Joseph pulled his phone out of his pocket. “When are y’all heading back?” 

       “The second,” Nicole informed, taking a step towards him as she pulled her own phone out. “Y’all two wanna do dinner or something before we leave?” 

       “If you’re payin’,” Luke smirked from his position talking to the brunette. 

       “I like you,” Waverly grinned. 

       Nicole sighed, looking back up at the blonde. “Sounds good,” he smiled, sticking his phone back after getting her number. He pulled her into another hug, squeezing her shoulder. “It was nice seeing you again,” he mumbled. 

       She pulled back, smacking his arm. “You, too, Kid. Now go or Uncle Jeff’s gonna skin ya.” 

       He chuckled, pulling his hat off and pushing his hand through his hair. “Wanna ride back to the house, Luke?” 

       He nodded, turning his head towards the couple. “Nice meetin’ you two,” he smiled before walking over to the truck. 

       “You, too,” they both called. He gave them a wave before climbing in. The truck turned up the driveway, so Nicole and Waverly got back in the car and pulled away. 

       “Well then,” Waverly sighed. The Sheriff looked towards her, letting out a breath and shaking her head, obviously also trying to put the last 15 minutes together. 

       After getting back into the actual city, Nicole slowed down as she drove past a church-looking building. “That’s where I did pre-k through 4th grade.”

       “Catholic School?” Waverly grimaced. 

       “It was as bad as it sounds,” she mumbled. 

       They were soon back in Dallas and Waverly was starting to get a little nervous if she was being honest. A little relief lifted off her chest, though, for she pulled into the high school’s parking lot with a devilish smirk on her face. “What are we doing?” She asked slowly. 

       “We’re gonna go bother Coach Carters,” she grinned, getting out of the car. 

       Waverly followed. “Are you allowed to go in the school?” She knew it was after school hours, but didn’t know if they let random people wander around the building. 

       “He’s not in the building.” 

       Waverly looked in the direction they were heading and realized they were going towards the baseball field. “ Oh no .”

       They reached the gate and the man had his back turned as the group of boys were playing catch in the outfield, seeming to be doing their warmups. Waverly smiled widely, seeing that Nicole’s name was in big letters under the scoreboard with a gather of different titles and awards listed underneath it. They slowly entered through the dugout and Nicole got her to stay back as she slowly crept up behind him, snatching the cap off of his head and placing it on her own.

       Coach Carters whipped around with wide eyes as she darted back a few steps. His body relaxed but his face remained shocked as she smirked at him. “Am I seeing things or is Nicole Haught standing in front of me?” 

       “I think you’re seeing things, Old Man.” 

       The grey-haired man laughed as he walked towards her. “Gimme my damn hat back, You.” She giggled as he wrapped her in a hug, setting the hat back on his head. He pulled back after a second, looking her over. “Sheriff’s life has treated you good, Kid,” he smiled, clapping her shoulder. 

       He brow cocked. “You been stalking me, Coach?” 

       He put his hands up. “I’ve just always kept my tabs on you open.” 

       “Mmmhmmm.” 

       He rolled his eyes but noticed Waverly leaning against the fence behind them. “Who’d ya bring along?” 

       She turned her head, throwing her a smile and waving her over. She looked back to Coach Carters. “My fiancée.” Waverly stopped at Nicole’s side, giving the man a small smile. “Waverly, Triple C. Triple C, Waverly.” 

       He threw the redhead a look as he shook her hand. “Craig Carters,” he corrected. 

       She shook her head. “She’s a pain, I’m sorry.” 

       “Tell me about it,” he grumbled. 

       “I’m standing right here ,” Nicole reminded. 

       “We know,” they both said at the same time. 

       “Y’all want me to do it?” Nicole questioned, looking around at all of the eager faces around her. They had eventually gotten around to meeting the team and it was weird knowing that they all knew exactly who she was. 

       “Yea!” They all whooped. 

       Nicole smirked, “Alright. Pitcher and second, get out there.” They jogged out to their positions and she borrowed the catcher’s glove, trotting over to home plate after handing Coach the stopwatch. She rolled her arm around before getting him to throw it a few times to warm her muscles up. “Ok.” She threw it back to the pitcher one last time. “You ready, Coach?” She asked, looking towards him. He gave her a nod. She looked out at the two boys in front of her. “Y’all ready?” They both nodded. “Alright, let’s do it.” She dropped down to a catcher’s stance and let out a slow breath, opening and closing her free hand a few times. 

       The pitcher wound up and pitched it, and she snatched it up, firing a cannonball to the second baseman. It was faster than she had expected. She guessed coaching the Blue Devils last year had helped her out a bit. If a member from the team wasn’t screaming, they were staring at her slack-jawed. 

       She walked towards Craig with a crooked smile as the pitcher and second walked back over. “Holy Hell, Haught, you’ve still got it,” he said with wide eyes, looking up from the timer. 

       “Thanks,” she chuckled, playfully brushing off her shoulder. 

       “1.75!” He shouted, pushing one of her shoulders. 

       Her face blushed a little with a bashful grin. Waverly walked over to her with a giggle, standing up on her toes and pushing a kiss to her cheek. “Y’all wanna scrimmage?” She asked the team with a smirk. 

.  .  .

       They finished up an hour or so later, and Nicole pulled away from the school. “That was fun,” she sighed. 

       “Yea?” 

       “Mhm.” She relaxed back into the seat, but Waverly could see how her posture was slightly rigid as she drove. She moved her hand over to her thigh, rubbing it gently with her thumb.

       “We don’t have to go, Baby,” she said softly after a few minutes. 

       Nicole looked towards her for a second with her jaw clenched a little. “I know. But I want to.” 

       “I know you want to. But it’s not gonna make you any less strong if we don’t.” 

       Nicole slowed down outside of a subdivision. “If I can go and look at the place where everything went down, it’s gonna be a lot easier for me to get through things when I feel like it’s controlling me.” 

       Waverly chewed on the inside of her top lip for a second, looking into her eyes hidden under her sunglasses. “Ok,” she sighed. “Just don’t push yourself too hard, ok?” 

       The redhead cupped her hand over the one on her leg with a squeeze as she drove through the entrance. “I won’t, Wave.” 

       They drove down the road for a couple of blocks before hanging a left and going two more blocks, coming to a stop right outside of Marble Street. The Sheriff leaned her chin on her hand, looking down the road for a few seconds. Waverly decided to leave her be this time, letting her psych herself up however she saw fit. 

       After a minute, she dropped her hand back to Waverly’s that was on her leg, interlocking their fingers as she slowly made the turn, creeping down the road with her eyes locked on the left side of the street. She swallowed as she came to a stop 3 houses before the cul de sac, looking at the 2-story grey house with a garage attachment.

       Waverly watched as she pulled out of her hand, putting the car in park and unbuckling. “Nic . . .” The redhead proceeded to open her door and step out. “ Hey .” She quickly got out and walked around, seeing that she had leaned against her door with her arms folded in front of her. She let out a small breath of relief, moving beside her and leaning back. 

       She stared at it for several minutes, not saying a single word, and Waverly remained quiet beside her. 

       But then the front door opened. 

       A man pulling a bright yellow safety jacket over his other construction attire pulled the front door closed behind him, looking up for a second, but then doing a double-take at the couple standing in front of the house. “Can I help you?” He asked confusedly, slowly walking down the porch steps. 

       “Just lookin’,” Nicole informed, her voice quieter than usual. The younger girl looked up at her face, seeing just how vulnerable she felt just by looking at it.

       “Why . . .?” 

       Waverly felt a little bad because this guy was just trying to get to work, but was now trying to figure out why two women were chilling out in front of his house. “I used to live here.”

       He gave a long nod, raising his eyebrows. “Before or after the Sgt. Haught shooting?” 

       She looked up at the redhead, feeling her tense up beside her. “. . . During."

       The man’s eyes widened, mouth coming open slightly. “ Oh .” She took her sunglasses off, hanging them on her shirt so she could look him in the eye directly. “I-I’m sorry,” he finally managed to get out, running his hand down his beard. 

       She shook her head. “Don't be.” 

       He turned towards the door before looking back at her. “Is there anything you need me to do, or . . .”

       Waverly spoke up, “Just give us a couple minutes out here to look and we’ll go. Right, Nic?” She looked up at the redhead, who gave her a nod. 

       “And who might you be, Miss?” He questioned. 

       “. . . Moral support?” 

       He nodded with a smile, looking between the two. “Alright, well, I’ll leave you two to it. I trust that you’re not gonna try anything . . . Have a good one.- And, uhm, I’m really sorry about what happened here.” Nicole nodded again as a thank you and Waverly gave him a little wave as he walked over to his truck and pulled away. 

       “You ok so far, Love?” The smaller girl asked softly once he was down the road, turning her body and running her hand gently across her stomach. 

       “Yea,” she mumbled with a swallow. 

       “You sure?” Nicole looked down at her with another nod, but the brunette cupped her cheek with a frown, seeing how her eyes were filled with tears and she was biting heavily onto her bottom lip. “Oh, Baby.”

       The redhead closed her eyes, pushing off the car as the smaller girl wrapped her in a hug. “It hurts,” she mumbled softly into her shoulder. 

       “I know.” She pulled back, rubbing her hands up and down her sides. “I’ll drive. Let’s go take a breath, yea?” Nicole let her lead her around to the passenger’s side door before she hopped into the other side and pulled away, driving out of the subdivision and pulling into some restaurant’s parking lot that was a couple of streets down. She parked, turning her body towards her and rubbing her hand on her arm with soothing words as she cried into her hands. 

       Nicole raised her head and looked out the windshield for a minute before sniffling and wiping her face with the bottom of her shirt. “I’m sorry.”

       “No. There’s nothing to be sorry about.”

       “You bring me down here for a fucking vacation and I get all depressy on you,” she grumbled at herself. 

       “Hey.” She tipped her head towards her a bit. “I’d be fine coming down here just so you could do that.” 

       “What, cry like a baby?” 

       “Uh-unh. Look at me.” She cupped each of her cheeks, turning her face all the way towards her. “ You , Nicole Haught, are the strongest person I have ever met. And crying does not make you weak. Now quit beating yourself up over how you express your emotions.” She had always had the ability to scold her while still looking at her with the softest eyes. The redhead sighed as she closed her eyes, leaning into her hands with a nod. Waverly pulled her hands away after a few seconds, turning her body back forward as Nicole interlocked their fingers. Waverly lifted their arms. “Why’re your hands so big ?” She questioned with a giggle, lining their hands up palm to palm, seeing how the top joint of all of her fingers hung above the tips of hers and the edges of her palm were visible on all sides. 

       Nicole cocked an eyebrow at her. “Cause I’m tall?” She guessed. “Why? D’you have a problem with them, Miss Earp?” 

       The smaller girl let out a whimper, hugging her arm to her chest. “Noo. I love them,” she pouted. And she really did. People always found it weird that her hands were one of her favorite features. And it wasn’t because of . . . ya know . That only was a tiny bit of the reasoning. But there was just something about how her hand fit perfectly in her’s and how they were the perfect size when they were resting on her waist. They were always soft and warm, and Nicole had a habit of always having to touch her when they were within arms reach of each other. Whether it be holding her hand or wrapping her arms around her waist or even just resting her hand on her thigh. And it wasn’t her being clingy. She was just being Nicole, making sure she always knew she was right there. And Waverly loved it more than anything.

       “You love them?” She asked with a little laugh, rubbing her thumb on the side of her neck where her hand was popping out of the top of her grasp. 

       “Mhm,” she nodded with a big smile. 

       “Yea, me too. You know why?” 

       “Why?” She questioned, letting it go. 

       “Cause it is the perfect size for me to do this .” She palmed Waverly’s face with a laugh as she pulled at her hand with a whine. She released it, sliding her hand down to her chin and leaning forward into a kiss. She pulled away, pushing their foreheads together with a growing smile. “I think it’s time for some Whataburger.” 

       She had never seen someone shift out of park so fast.