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Vi was perched on a bar stool, a half-empty glass in front of her, laughing along with her sibling and friends. Music thumped through the dim space, people shouting over each other, the smell of spilled beer thick in the air.
"Glad you're finally starting to go out again, sis!" Powder cheered, clinking her glass against Mylo and Claggor's.
Mylo laughed, nodding. "How's the married life with Caitlyn, Vi?"
Vi's eyes lit up at the mention of her wife's name. She suddenly straighten up, like when you tell a puppy you have treats.
Vi’s cheeks flushed, and she grinned like an idiot, swaying slightly on the bar stool. “Oh…Caitlyn?” She breathed, voice softening, a dreamy little smile tugging at her lips. She picked up her glass, twirling it like it contained some profound secret. “She’s…she’s—ugh, she’s…amazing, okay? Like, ridiculously amazing. Smart, beautiful, annoyingly perfect…like, she knows how to make me…me…better or something.”
Powder and Mylo exchanged a look. “Better? Is that possible?” Powder teased.
“Shut up!” Vi waved a dismissive hand, almost knocking over her glass. “I’m serious! She’s…ugh…she’s incredible. And I…oh god, I miss her so much right now..” Her voice cracked dramatically, and she leaned forward, elbows on the bar, hiding her face in her hands.
Mylo’s brow furrowed. “Miss her? She’s at home, isn’t she?”
“Exactly!” Vi threw her hands up, gesturing wildly. “And I’m here, surrounded by…by people who are loud and annoying and…ugh..” She kicked at the stool, sending it scraping against the floor.
“I just want to be with her..I want to see her stupid little smirk when she reads something she likes, I want to…ugh…” She flopped back onto the stool, letting out a long, theatrical sigh. "I miss my wife."
Powder giggled, leaning over. "You're such a loser, sis! You're soooo in love."
Vi hiccuped "O-of course I am! She's amazing, she's.. everything. And.. recently she started showing, she's finally got—" she hiccuped. "—a baby bump showing. I love it. She looks like a pregnant mongoose. Especially when she wears my shirts and her tummy is showing."
Claggor laughed, patting Vi's back affectionately. "A pregnant mongoose, Vi? Really?
Vi flopped forward again, her head nearly hitting the bar. “I can’t…ugh, I can’t deal with it! Every time I think about her little bump, I just…my heart explodes or something! And she…she’s so…so patient with me. And soft. And smart. And…ugh, everything!”
Mylo raised an eyebrow. “Soft, huh? Since when are you into soft?”
“Since her!” Vi shouted, throwing her hands in the air, almost sending her glass flying. “She’s soft in all the right ways! Like…like a marshmallow…but not in a dumb way! You know? She’s…she’s perfect and I’m a mess and it’s painful!”
Powder doubled over laughing. “You’re literally crying over Caitlyn right now!”
Vi’s eyes welled up. “I am! Because I love her! And I miss her. And she’s probably at home, just—just existing, looking all cute and pregnant, maybe thinking, ‘Vi’s probably drunk again…ugh.’ And she’s…she’s the best thing that ever happened to me!”
Claggor groaned. “Can someone hold her before she falls off the stool?”
“I’m fine!” Vi protested, waving her arms, then dramatically flopped sideways again, hugging her glass like it was Caitlyn. “I just…ugh…why did I ever leave her alone? I should’ve stayed home. Stayed home and stared at her all day."
Powder leaned closer, still giggling. “Vi…do you ever stop?”
“Nope” Vi said, voice cracking again, throwing her arms toward the ceiling. “She’s…she’s everything! My wife, my…my best friend, my…” She hiccuped, covering her face. “…my pregnant mongoose!”
Mylo burst into a laugh, unable to keep a straight face any longer. "I'm telling Caitlyn you called her a pregnant mongoose."
Claggor shook his head, laughing. “You’re insane, Vi. Absolutely insane."
"Insanely in love," Powder corrected, already scrambling to find her phone. "Alright, lover butch, we're calling your wife before you start crying to the bartenders."
Caitlyn had been halfway through folding laundry when her phone buzzed on the table.
She glanced at the screen—Powder—and felt a flicker of concern she couldn’t quite place. Vi had promised she’d be home later, a little tipsy maybe, but happy. Caitlyn smiled to herself at the thought… then answered.
“Hello?”
The noise hit her first—music, laughter, clinking glasses—followed by Powder’s barely-contained giggling. Caitlyn had just opened her mouth to ask what was going on when—
“…Hi.”
Vi’s voice. Soft. Barely there.
Caitlyn stilled completely.
She knew that voice. The careful one. The one Vi only used when she was overwhelmed, drunk, or feeling far too much at once.
Her expression melted immediately. “Vi?” she asked gently. “Is everything alright, darling?"
From the another line, Vi sniffled.
"I miss you."
“Oh, love,” Caitlyn said softly, carefully, like she might startle her. “I miss you more, sweetheart."
That earned a quiet, choked sound from the other end. Powder’s muffled “oh my god” carried faintly through the speaker.
Powder cheerfully informed her that Vi had been “crying about you for twenty minutes,” Caitlyn was already smiling, warmth spreading through her chest.
“Are you drunk?” Caitlyn asked, amused.
The immediate "No" followed by a quiet, defeated "Yes" made her heart ache in the fondest way.
"Would you like me to come pick you up, love?"
There was a pause on the line—long enough for Caitlyn to hear Vi’s uneven breathing, the distant thump of music, the scrape of a bar stool.
“…You would?” Vi asked quietly, like the idea itself was something fragile.
Caitlyn smiled, soft and certain. “Of course I would,” she said. “I always would.”
Vi sniffled again, voice wobbling. “But you shouldn’t. You’re tired. And pregnant. And I left you alone like an idiot.”
Caitlyn’s hand drifted, as it had so many times tonight, to the gentle curve of her stomach. She rubbed small, soothing circles, grounding herself. “Vi,” she said gently but firmly, “you didn’t leave me. You went out. That’s allowed.” Her voice softened. “And I’m not alone. I’m right here. We’re right here.”
There was a tiny hitch in Vi’s breath. “…You’re too good to me.”
Caitlyn chuckled quietly. “You say that every time I do the bare minimum.”
From somewhere near the phone, Mylo stage-whispered, “She’s smiling like an idiot, by the way.”
“I am not!” Vi protested weakly, then quieter, “Okay, maybe I am.”
“Alright,” she said gently. “Here’s what’s going to happen. Powder, Mylo, and Claggor are going to make sure you get your jacket on. You’re going to let them walk you outside. And I’ll come get you.”
Vi hesitated. “Promise?”
“I promise,” Caitlyn said without missing a beat.
Powder made a triumphant noise in the background. “Alright! Jacket’s on! She tried to hug the coat rack!”
“Hey,” Vi muttered, affronted, “it looked lonely.”
Caitlyn smiled, already moving toward the door, keys in hand. “I’m on my way,” she said. “Just sit tight for me, okay?”
“Okay,” Vi said, sounding calmer already.
"Alright, give Powder's phone back, love. I'll come get you."
“Okay,” Vi said again, softer now, like the word itself was a promise. “I’ll be right here.”
A sleek car pulled up to the curb, headlights dimming as it slowed, and before it even fully stopped, the driver’s door opened.
Caitlyn stepped out.
Vi’s breath punched out of her like she’d been hit.
There she was. Real. Not a drunk hallucination. Wrapped in her favorite coat, hair pulled back a little messy, one hand instinctively bracing her lower back as she closed the door. The streetlight caught her just right, soft halo around her, and Vi felt her chest crack open.
“Oh,” Vi whispered, voice breaking. “Oh—there she is.”
Caitlyn’s eyes found her immediately.
Everything else seemed to fade—the street, the cold, Mylo’s muttered commentary. Caitlyn’s face softened the second she saw Vi sitting there, eyes glassy, shoulders hunched like she’d been holding herself together by sheer force of will.
She crossed the distance quickly, carefully.
"Hi, love," Caitlyn said, smiling. "Looks like you had a fun night." She laughed, eyeing Vi up and down, from her messy hair to her untied shoelaces.
Vi surged to her feet, wobbling dangerously, and Caitlyn was there instantly, hands steadying her, warm palms on her arms.
She leaned into Caitlyn without thinking, forehead bumping into her collarbone. Not dramatic, just tired. And clingy.
Caitlyn's arms wrapped around her instantly, her hand rubbing comforting circles on her back.
"Hi," Caitlyn greeted Vi's siblings. "What did you guys do to my wife this time?"
Powder rolled her eyes dramatically. "Your wife's being insanely sappy."
Vi barely registered Powder talking. Her brain was busy rebooting around the fact that Caitlyn was right there.
“I was fine,” Vi muttered into Caitlyn’s coat, voice muffled. “They bullied me.”
Caitlyn hummed like she didn’t believe her for a second. “I can tell.”
Vi snorted, then immediately leaned back in again. Her forehead rested against Caitlyn’s shoulder, fingers curling into her sleeve.
Claggor chuckled, shaking his head fondly. "You've changed her a lot, Caitlyn."
"Yeah," Mylo nodded, arms crossed. "You turned her into an absolute baby."
Vi lifted her head for a second to glare, only to nuzzle closer against Caitlyn.
“Hey,” Vi slurred, muffled against Caitlyn’s shoulder. “I can still hear you.”
“And yet,” Mylo said, unimpressed, “you’re clinging to her like she’s a life raft.”
Vi huffed. “She is.”
Caitlyn snorted softly, one hand still steady at Vi’s back. “You’re doing wonderfully at proving their point, love.”
Vi shifted, just enough to rest her chin on Caitlyn’s shoulder and squint at her siblings. “You’re all bitter."
Caitlyn gave her a gentle squeeze. “Alright. Let’s get you home before you fall asleep standing up.”
“I’m not asleep,” Vi muttered, yawning.
Caitlyn raised an eyebrow. Vi didn’t bother arguing.
They guided her toward the car, Caitlyn firm but careful. Vi stumbled once, caught herself on Caitlyn’s arm, then decided walking was overrated and leaned more of her weight there.
“Are you doing okay, sweetheart?” Caitlyn asked.
“Yeah,” Vi said. “I can already feel the raging hangover I'm gonna go through tomorrow.”
Caitlyn huffed a quiet laugh. “That sounds like a problem for future Vi.”
“Future Vi is gonna hate past Vi,” Vi muttered, squinting as Caitlyn helped her into the passenger seat. She fumbled with the seatbelt for a second before giving up entirely and letting Caitlyn do it for her.
By the time Caitlyn slid into the driver’s seat, Vi had already slumped sideways, forehead pressed against the window. She watched Caitlyn through half-lidded eyes.
Caitlyn chuckled, seeing her tough wife look like such a soft puppy.
"Darling, lift your head off the window for a second so we can say goodbye to your siblings," Caitlyn said, tucking a loose strand of hair behind Vi's ear.
Vi groaned but did as she was told, peeling herself off the window with exaggerated effort. She squinted out at her siblings like the light personally offended her.
Powder snorted. “Text us when you wake up so we know you didn’t die.”
“Mylo,” Vi added, pointing at him vaguely, “don’t tell Caitlyn about the mongoose thing.”
Mylo grinned. “Absolutely telling her.”
Vi groaned, rolling her eyes.
"And you!" Vi shouted, pointing at Powder. "Go home. It's late."
Powder barked a laugh. “You do not get to parent me right now. You're literally hammered!"
"Yeah? Well I have a wife who'll come pick me up!" Vi said proudly. "You, young lady, do not have anyone who'll deal with your shit."
"Fineeeee," Powder dragged the word out, her arms crossed like an angry teenager. "Stop rubbing your happy marriage in our faces!"
Vi slumped back into Caitlyn’s side with a sloppy grin, half-lidded eyes glinting with drunken pride. “Not rubbing it in…just…sharing the glory,” she mumbled, voice muffled against Caitlyn’s jacket.
Caitlyn chuckled, one hand resting protectively on Vi’s back. “You’re lucky I love you, Vi,” she said softly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
Vi snorted, hiccuping lightly. “Lucky…yeah, okay. Very lucky. You…you’re perfect. And soft.” Her words trailed off, turning into a contented sigh as she rested her head fully on Caitlyn’s shoulder.
Caitlyn laughed, shaking her head. “Alright, love,” she murmured to Vi, voice warm and steady, “let’s just get you home before you fall asleep on the dashboard."