You Could Just Marry Me

Daisy managed to find what she needed with a bit of effort and headed back to Leo's house since he had given her an extra key. She headed out to the backyard to begin digging and adding things to nourish the soil. She was going to focus on doing that for a few days before she planted anything.

Once that was done, she got to work making a pot pie they could have for dinner with vegetables she had found in the ice box. They had those here instead of cellars since there wasn't as much space and they seemed like primitive refrigerators to her.

Technology was much more advanced here in the city. When she checked out the bathroom for the first time, she nearly cried because there was a real toilet, a sink, and a bathtub with running water.

Daisy might miss certain aspects of the farm but she was very grateful to have any modern amenities again. That would make her life so much easier!

She sang as she washed the dishes she had used to make the pot pie and was in the middle of that when the front door opened. Leo smiled at her as he wiped his shoes on the mat before taking them off.

"By all means, don't stop on my account. I've always liked your singing."

Daisy flushed. She had been singing "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day. Not the worst song she could get caught singing but it was still a bit embarrassing. It had been years since he had heard her sing anything before this.

"The music from Ohio is so different than anything around here," Leo continued. "Are they folk songs?"

"…some of them. Most are by professional musicians."

"Music must be very important where you come from for you to know so many songs. Have you been to many performances? You must have to memorize the words so well."

Daisy had been to a few free concerts when she was in college but that was it. She had never forked over cash to see someone live. Why would she when she could listen to music at home much more easily without having to deal with crowds?

"Some," she hedged before changing the subject. "Anyway, how was the rest of your day? Did you finish that paperwork?"

Leo nodded. "Yes. I also had some meetings. If you'll excuse me, I'd like to get out of my uniform. I'll be back in a minute then you can tell me what you've been up to."

Which was exactly what happened when he returned. While she was talking about going into town and meeting with Nia, she was reminded of their potential problem. They needed to figure out what to do about it.

Daisy frowned. She didn't want to make things awkward but it needed to be said. They could never find a solution together if he wasn't aware of it. Two heads were better than one and she was drawing a total blank on her own so she could use the help.

"Hey, Leo…Nia asked me when we're going to get married today and it got me thinking. People at your work are probably going to be bothering you about that sort of thing too, aren't they?"

He let out a small, wry laugh. "They already have. Rumors spread quickly in headquarters. Everyone I interact with regularly knew you were here by the time I got back from lunch. They all want to attend the wedding."

Daisy sighed and set the dish she had washed onto the drying rack. "What are we supposed to do then? I don't want people gossiping about us constantly! All I want is to live my life in peace."

"You could just marry me."

The spoon she was washing fell into the sink with a clatter and she looked at him incredulously. "Are you insane?!"

"Nothing would actually change. It would be a formality more than anything. Appearances are important in the military. Getting married is the easiest way to get people off our backs," Leo said practically.

Daisy furrowed her brow. This kid didn't have a romantic bone in his body, did he? Didn't he want to marry somebody else someday? They couldn't get married just to keep up an act that wasn't even necessary anymore! It had originally been done to fend off her plentiful suitors in town but they weren't here.

Although, in a way, it had become more necessary. A woman in a big city like this by herself would be a target too.

She was safest living with Leo and to do that she had to have some sort of established relationship with him. If they broke off their fake engagement, it would make no sense for her to live in his house.

Getting married had been extremely low on her list of priorities in this world where she would be her husband's property by law. She didn't think she would ever find anyone other than Leo that accepted her as she was either.

But she also didn't want to cheapen the construct of marriage by doing it out of convenience. Though she may not have ever had much luck with men, she was still a tiny bit of a romantic.

"You'd really shackle yourself to me and limit your options like that just so people won't gossip?" Daisy asked skeptically. "Don't you want to fall in love someday?"

Leo looked at her seriously with his mismatched eyes, having taken off his eyepatch with the rest of his uniform. "Not at all. I don't need anyone but you so it really is the most practical course of action. We get to stay together and no one gives us a hard time for it.

"I know you said you wouldn't marry unless it was for love…but you do love me as a person. As I said, nothing will change but a piece of paper so people won't speculate about us doing anything improper. We'll carry on as we always have. Unless, of course, you do care about falling in love?"

"I don't. But I don't know about this, Leo…it's weird."

"What's so weird about it?"

"You're like my little brother! How can I marry my little brother even if it is fake?" Daisy cried in exasperation.

Leo frowned. "I'm not that much younger than you. And I'm more than a foot taller so no one would ever guess you're the older one."

He didn't get it. He was going off of their physical ages. At this point in time, she had existed for thirty-one years while he was only nineteen. She didn't want to be a cougar even if it was a fake marriage.

She sighed. That was her biggest hang up about this but, as he said, no one would ever know. Even he wouldn't. She tried thinking about this from a different angle. Back in her world, people got married to their friends to prevent them from being deported sometimes and it was literally just words on a piece of paper. This could be like that.

Daisy bit her lip. This was crazy. She really shouldn't be rationalizing like this but if it was the only way she got to stay with Leo and live peacefully...

"Are you sure about this?" she hedged. "I don't want to hold you back, Leo."

He crossed the room to hold her soapy hands in his. "You could never do that. You're the only thing keeping me grounded. Really, Daisy, you think too lowly of yourself! You're the most important person in the world to me and nothing will ever change that."

The only thing keeping him grounded? She had sensed deep negative emotions from him on occasion before. Probably related to whatever he ran away from.

Daisy had known for a long time that she was an important existence to Leo as both his savior and someone who showed him kindness at his lowest point. She simply didn't know what had brought him there and had done her best to support him through it without prying so he wouldn't get upset.

He didn't realize how similar they were. For all her false confidence, she was a broken soul too. She had always thought that was why they clicked so well.

Leo was the only person who had ever genuinely wanted her around. She had been tolerated then eventually discarded so many times that she hadn't been able to trust anyone wouldn't leave her until he actually kept his promises.

As much as she hated to admit it, losing him—or, worse, having him grow to resent her—would destroy her. She couldn't let that happen.

Daisy broke eye contact and looked down in shame. "I couldn't live with myself if you came to resent your decision to be stuck with me. It might be better for me to find my own place to live so the rumors won't be a problem.

"This is my mess. We only got engaged in the first place because I didn't want to deal with being harassed all the time. I can't let you throw your life away for my sake. You need to marry someone you actually love, Leo. You won't be able to find them if you're stuck in a fake marriage with me."

Leo's voice suddenly broke through the rather heavy silence. "What if I was in love with you?"