Chapter Text
Natalie was sick to her stomach when she woke up. Everything had felt so… real this time.
Lucas.
Her parents.
Chris.
The sting of her scars.
She sighed. Then, she glanced next to her.
Leo was still sound asleep.
…and adorable. His soft snores warmed her heart.
She took a look at the time.
Four forty-five…
Natalie slid out of bed. She may as well get up at this point. It wasn't as if she would be able to get back to sleep.
Padding out of the room, she closed her bedroom door with a click. She wandered in the hall, headed to the living room.
Two dog crates sat side-by-side, with one being two feet wide and tall, and the other being about three times the size.
Her dogs dozed off, happily. Their tails thumped against their plush dog beds, and Roscoe chewed on his large chew toy in his sleep.
She smiled. Natalie walked into the kitchen, and put the kettle on. Then, she got her cup ready - with her mango and passion fruit tea bag - for the water.
She picked up the dog bowls and began to get them ready. She scooped a quarter cup of dry food and dumped it into the small bowl. Then, four cups into the larger one.
A small tin of meat got scooped into the first bowl, and a larger for the second. She added some fixings that she knew they liked - soft berries, vegetables, vitamin capsules - and put the two bowls in the fridge.
The kettle had boiled, and she smiled.
She filled her cup up (a white mug with the words "Paint Water" in bold letters) and let it steep. She added a little bit of cold water and gave it a quick stir.
She carried the mug through to her art room (which sat just off of the living room), and set it down by her desk.
A plethora of potential masterpieces were scattered about the room - drawings, sculptures, models - all half-completed.
She'd finish them when she got the inspiration to, she had promised herself. But inspiration never seemed to strike.
Natalie took a sip from her tea.
She loved Leo - deeply, truly, more than anything - but, she knew that oftentimes, love like how she felt didn't last.
He'd fall out of love, or get bored of her, or just… find someone better.
…and she knew that she'd have to resign herself to that.
After all, if you love something, you set it free, and if it doesn't come back, it was never yours to begin with.
Her stuffed giraffe stared at her.
"Don't do this to me, Rocky…" she sighed.
The pink and blue stuffed animal simply kept staring with its big, bug-like eyes.
She sighed.
Had she really lost in an argument to a stuffed animal?
Fine.
Well…
For as long as she had been with the demigod - patching him up when he fell into her neck of the woods - he had never given any indication that he wasn't anything less than hopelessly, irretrievably infatuated with her.
He helped her get to sleep when she so often failed to.
He made her feel so safe, so found, in a world where she always felt lost. Leo was a sense of consistency in an always-changing environment.
Their lazy sways in the kitchen when cooking and baking as music blared in the background made her feel like a princess.
She would listen to him venting about his childhood - the ostracization he faced at the hands of his family, the horrors he encountered in Foster care, memories of his mother (and how very few there sadly were) - and would assure him that he was safe, happy, in the present.
While he would hear her tragedy of a life, he would always find the best way to support her.
A smile fell onto her lips. She took another drink of tea.
She heard a whimper behind her - one of the dogs was up.
She got up and wandered to the crates.
Jeremy stared up at her with his big eyes.
The seven year old chihuahua was practically her child. She bent down and unlocked the crate softly.
"Alright, little legs, but be quiet. You don't wanna wake up your brother, do you?"
Jeremy sneezed. Natalie chuckled.
"You want up?" She whispered.
The dog waddled into her arms.
"There's my little guy." She chuckled.
Then, she thought.
It'd be a good time to get him out…
She slid on her old crocs and threw on a hoodie. Jeremy got his harness on and his leash clipped to it.
He wagged his tail.
Natalie opened the door and took a few steps outside. Jeremy followed her.
Jeremy waddled about, yapping happily. Natalie chuckled. Her little guy was such a vibrant ball of life.
The grey (or blue, as he was actually called) dog ran up to a tree nearby and barked.
Leo had found himself quite taken with the dogs when they had first met. Jeremy was a little guy that adored heat, and Roscoe just loved… anyone.
He had actually taken the time to learn both of their walk routes so that he could do it when she was sick, or at work.
…that was sweet.
A cough at the door caused her to look back.
"Mornin', Nat," Leo smiled sleepily.
"Hey, Leo."
"What're you doin' up for?" He asked.
"Woke up, couldn't get back to sleep. Nightmare."
Leo's smile quickly fell.
"You could've woke me up."
"Nah, it's alright. I managed." She shrugged. "Not really a big deal."
Leo sighed. "Nat, I'm your boyfriend. We live together. I love you. I want to be with you."
That warmed her heart. Leo leaned against the doorframe.
"I don't mind being woken up for cuddles if you have a nightmare."
"Really?" Natalie asked.
"Really." Leo nodded. "Now, what was it about?"
Natalie shifted nervously.
"I'd rather not talk about it here. Or right now. I… I don't think I'm in the right headspace to do that."
"Alright, babe. You don't need to tell me." Leo nodded. He held his hands up. "You wanna come back inside? It's freezing out here."
"It's not that cold," refuted Natalie.
"It's like a walk-in refrigerator." Leo argued. He folded his arms.
"It's practically summer weather in Vancouver."
"-and I'm from Texas, where snow basically sentences everyone to death."
Natalie rolled her eye. "Can't you raise your own body temperature, Mister Super-sized McShizzle, Bad boy Supreme?"
Leo looked away from her.
"...I plead the fifth?"
Natalie chuckled as she and Jeremy walked back into the house.
"You're a dork." She said. Leo wrapped an arm around her waist.
"Ah, but I'm your dork." He pressed a kiss to her scarred cheek.
Natalie chuckled. She unclipped her dog from his leash and let him waddle about. Then, she and Leo walked to the kitchen.
"Alright." Natalie clasped her hands together. "What do you want for breakfast?"
Leo smiled and put his head on top of hers. He held her hand gently.
"I think you know," came his sing-song reply.
"Crêpes? With the chocolate sauce?"
Leo nodded.
Natalie smiled.
"Only for you, Sparky."
Leo grinned back. He pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.
"Then I must be the luckiest guy in the world."