This is a follow up to 'Family Man', following on from the idea of Benny and the Courier having a life together on the condition he gets her pregnant. Hope you enjoy, op!
*
For a long time after Annie is born, Benny refuses to touch either of the women in his life. His little girl is just so damn fragile, and he's scared that with his skill set, he's gonna squeeze her too hard to drop her or somehow mess shit up and make her cry. It's a good four weeks before Kate can talk him into holding their daughter, and when he does, he feels something splinter in his heart. Later, lying in bed in the dark, he puts his heart back together again, and finds that a part of it has been irrevocably lost. It's locked up in the bundle swaddled in the craddle at the bottom of the bed, and it's never coming back.
For a month after that, he can't bring himself to kiss Kate, or touch her, because it hits him that she's someone's daughter, too, and he nearly killed her.
He gets over it, eventually, but not before a second shard of his heart has been tucked safely into Kate's keeping for good.
*
Annie's not exactly a quiet baby. He doesn't have a clue how to deal with it, how to stop her crying, because his usual methods don't work. He begs, he barters, he tries to bribe the kid but it all results in nadda. He turns to Kate, who scoops the baby up and holds her, and shooshes her, and puts her to sleep in her arms.
Benny spends the longest time convinced he's a terrible father. Kate takes him to bed one night and lays him down, her hands on his chest and in his hair, and she tells him it's going to be alright. He doesn't know why she's so sure, and tells her so. Kate laughs, quietly, because neither one of them wants to risk waking Annie up.
"You're an idiot," she says. In the darkness her eyes are glinting and she has never stopped being that ferocious, terrifying slip of a thing that cheated death and brought him to his knees. This is the last thing he thought he'd want - the quiet life - but ever since that day at The Fort, when she stood over him with his life in her hands...It was different. It was different from how it had been in The Tops. She had let him go, and she had followed him and found him - and she had let him go again. She had taken her chance for revenge and thrown it back in his face, casting out mercy like alms. From that day, he'd never really looked back.
"I don't love you," she tells him, because that's their thing. They say it because it's impossible, after everything, that they could have fallen in love. But here they are, in harmony, and they have created a child Benny thinks could easily be the most precious thing in the wastes.
He says "I don't love you either, you crazy broad," and thinks that maybe he could learn this daddying shit after all.
*
By the time Annie's first birthday rolls around, Benny can barely tear himself away from her. She's practically growing before his eyes, and frankly, that's incredible. She's starting to wise up, too, and pretty soon he's sure she'll start to take after him. He's got thoughts of a little family empire burning at the back of his mind. He doesn't mention this to Kate at first. He isn't sure she won't take it wrong, won't think he's back to his bad old ways. Truth be told, he's not sure he ever left those ways behind, but the world moves on and Benny's never been a man not to move with them.
“I’m going to leave one day,” Kate tells him, with a kiss to his temple, just as she’s serving up the cake. “I’m going to take her and go. Back to Vegas. Back to the others. Don’t you think Boone would make a great father to her?”
He waits until she’s put the tray down, before grabbing her wrist tight and pulling it behind her back. “I’ll follow you, baby doll,” her murmurs lovingly into her ear. “I’ll tear the city apart and I’ll find you and I’ll kill you quiet in a lonely little room, and take my baby back.”
Where The Apple Fell 1a/1
*
For a long time after Annie is born, Benny refuses to touch either of the women in his life. His little girl is just so damn fragile, and he's scared that with his skill set, he's gonna squeeze her too hard to drop her or somehow mess shit up and make her cry. It's a good four weeks before Kate can talk him into holding their daughter, and when he does, he feels something splinter in his heart. Later, lying in bed in the dark, he puts his heart back together again, and finds that a part of it has been irrevocably lost. It's locked up in the bundle swaddled in the craddle at the bottom of the bed, and it's never coming back.
For a month after that, he can't bring himself to kiss Kate, or touch her, because it hits him that she's someone's daughter, too, and he nearly killed her.
He gets over it, eventually, but not before a second shard of his heart has been tucked safely into Kate's keeping for good.
*
Annie's not exactly a quiet baby. He doesn't have a clue how to deal with it, how to stop her crying, because his usual methods don't work. He begs, he barters, he tries to bribe the kid but it all results in nadda. He turns to Kate, who scoops the baby up and holds her, and shooshes her, and puts her to sleep in her arms.
Benny spends the longest time convinced he's a terrible father. Kate takes him to bed one night and lays him down, her hands on his chest and in his hair, and she tells him it's going to be alright. He doesn't know why she's so sure, and tells her so. Kate laughs, quietly, because neither one of them wants to risk waking Annie up.
"You're an idiot," she says. In the darkness her eyes are glinting and she has never stopped being that ferocious, terrifying slip of a thing that cheated death and brought him to his knees. This is the last thing he thought he'd want - the quiet life - but ever since that day at The Fort, when she stood over him with his life in her hands...It was different. It was different from how it had been in The Tops. She had let him go, and she had followed him and found him - and she had let him go again. She had taken her chance for revenge and thrown it back in his face, casting out mercy like alms. From that day, he'd never really looked back.
"I don't love you," she tells him, because that's their thing. They say it because it's impossible, after everything, that they could have fallen in love. But here they are, in harmony, and they have created a child Benny thinks could easily be the most precious thing in the wastes.
He says "I don't love you either, you crazy broad," and thinks that maybe he could learn this daddying shit after all.
*
By the time Annie's first birthday rolls around, Benny can barely tear himself away from her. She's practically growing before his eyes, and frankly, that's incredible. She's starting to wise up, too, and pretty soon he's sure she'll start to take after him. He's got thoughts of a little family empire burning at the back of his mind. He doesn't mention this to Kate at first. He isn't sure she won't take it wrong, won't think he's back to his bad old ways. Truth be told, he's not sure he ever left those ways behind, but the world moves on and Benny's never been a man not to move with them.
“I’m going to leave one day,” Kate tells him, with a kiss to his temple, just as she’s serving up the cake. “I’m going to take her and go. Back to Vegas. Back to the others. Don’t you think Boone would make a great father to her?”
He waits until she’s put the tray down, before grabbing her wrist tight and pulling it behind her back. “I’ll follow you, baby doll,” her murmurs lovingly into her ear. “I’ll tear the city apart and I’ll find you and I’ll kill you quiet in a lonely little room, and take my baby back.”
“Promises, promises,” she purrs.