Work Text:
it starts stupid. small. like everything does with him.
“you’re staring again,” you mumble, not even looking up, just poking at the edge of your sleeve like it personally offended you.
“can you blame me?” axel’s voice is light, teasing, but there’s something slower under it tonight. heavier. “you look like you’re about to cry over nothing.”
you huff. “i’m not—” pause. your throat tightens in the middle of the sentence like it forgot how to work. “—it’s just. a day.”
“yeah,” he says, softer now. “one of those.”
you hate that he gets it. you hate it more that you *need* him to.
there’s a quiet stretch. the kind that presses in around your ribs. you keep your head down because if you look at him you’ll actually start crying and that’s—no. no.
his boots scuff closer.
“hey,” he says, crouching down in front of you, tilting his head just enough to try and catch your eyes. “c’mon. talk to me.”
“don’t wanna,” you mumble.
“yeah, i noticed.”
you let out this shaky, stupid half-laugh that turns into something worse halfway through. your eyes burn. you blink hard, but it’s already slipping, already too late.
“…i hate this,” you whisper.
he doesn’t ask *what*. he just sighs a little and shifts, sitting beside you instead, shoulder bumping yours.
“okay,” axel says. “then we’ll hate it together. team effort.”
you snort weakly, but your hands are trembling now, fingers curling into your sleeves like you’re trying to disappear inside them.
“…it just feels like everything’s too much,” you admit, voice barely there. “like i can’t—keep up, or—do anything right, or—” your breath catches again, sharp this time. “i don’t know, i just feel—wrong.”
that word hangs there. wrong. ugly, crooked, unbearable.
there’s a beat.
and then his hand is on yours. warm. grounding. firm in that way that says *i’m not going anywhere*.
“hey,” axel murmurs. “don’t start talking about my girl like that.”
your chest stutters. “i’m not—”
“you are,” he cuts in gently. “and i don’t like it.”
you finally look at him then, eyes glassy, lashes damp, and he just—softens. completely. like something in him melts on instinct.
“…you’re not wrong,” he says quietly. “you’re just hurting.”
your lips wobble in the most embarrassing way imaginable.
“there’s a difference, y’know?” he adds, thumb brushing slow circles against your knuckles. “one’s something to fix. the other’s something to take care of.”
“…i don’t feel like i deserve that,” you whisper.
“good thing it’s not up to you.”
you blink. “what?”
he leans in just a little, forehead nearly touching yours, voice dropping softer, steadier—
“you don’t get to decide you’re not worth taking care of,” axel says. “especially not when i’m right here.”
that does it. that’s what breaks you.
you make this tiny, broken sound and suddenly you’re crying, actually crying, shoulders shaking, breath hitching, everything spilling out all at once like you’d been holding it in for weeks.
“whoa—hey, hey—” he pulls you in without hesitation, arms wrapping around you, firm and warm and *safe*. “easy, easy, i’ve got you—”
you clutch at him like you’re drowning.
“i’m sorry,” you gasp against his shoulder. “i’m sorry, i didn’t mean to—”
“don’t you dare apologize,” he murmurs, one hand cradling the back of your head, pressing you closer. “not for this. never for this.”
you bury your face into his coat, fingers tangled in the fabric, tears soaking through, and he just holds you. steady. patient. like he’s done this a thousand times and would do it a thousand more.
“let it out,” axel whispers. “c’mon. i’ve got you, remember?”
your breathing stutters, uneven, but you cling to his voice, to the rhythm of it, to the way his thumb keeps tracing slow, grounding circles into your back.
“i’m here,” he repeats. “you’re okay.”
it takes a while. longer than you’d like. but eventually the crying eases into quiet sniffles, then soft hiccups, then just…you. shaky, exhausted, still curled against him.
“…feel a little better?” he asks after a moment.
you nod weakly. “a bit.”
“good,” he hums. “that’s progress.”
you stay like that for a second, then mumble, muffled into his shoulder—
“…sorry i’m a mess.”
he huffs, almost offended. “you keep saying that like it’s a bad thing.”
you pull back just enough to look at him, eyes still red, cheeks damp.
“it is,” you say.
“nah,” axel shakes his head. “means you’re human. means you feel things.” a small, crooked smile tugs at his lips. “i like that about you.”
you blink at him.
“…you do?”
“yeah,” he says simply. “keeps things interesting.”
you let out a tiny laugh, still fragile but real this time, and he grins like it’s the best thing he’s heard all day.
“there it is,” he murmurs. “missed that.”
you hesitate, then lean forward again, slower this time, resting your head against his chest.
he doesn’t tease you for it. doesn’t make it into a joke.
he just wraps his arms around you again, gentler now, one hand running through your hair in slow, soothing strokes.
“…stay?” you whisper.
“not going anywhere,” axel replies instantly. “you’re stuck with me, got it memorized?”
you huff softly against him.
“…good.”
he presses a light kiss to the top of your head, barely there, like a promise.
and for the first time all day, everything feels…quiet.
not perfect.
but safe.
and with him there, holding you like you’re something worth protecting.