UNIVERSAL IC CONTACT

[failedparenting]

[There's no personalized message, just a robot lady voice telling you to leave a message for a John Winchester at the tone.]

Comments

[failedparenting]

[Fuck. Oh fuck fuck fuck.]

No, Mary. No, I didn't- I mean, I lov-

[Oh God, how does he fix this?]

That's not what I meant, baby. It just feels like whatever we do, something's trying to split us. The angels, all the goddamn secrets, Dean...what'll happen next time?

[momchester]

[She can't even answer for a long, painful moment. She just slowly slides down the wall to the floor and draws her knees to her chest, feeling young and very, very small. She doesn't know the answer. Nothing like this has ever happened to her before. Marriage was always supposed to be something beautiful, something perfect- it was never that, but at least at home they thought it was. The shine stayed on, even if someone else put it there, and they were happy sometimes.

A whisper:] I want to go home.

[Clearing her throat and speaking up louder.]

I can't give up because of them. Whatever happens, John, I want it to be because we decided it. I'm not letting them hurt us and I'm not letting them win. Whatever decisions we make, we make them ourselves. I married you, not them.

[failedparenting]

[He sighs loudly and leans back against the wall. He's almost inclined to agree with her. Hell is waiting for him back home, but at least he wouldn't have to deal with all this doubt and longing.]

Would it really be our decision? Anything between us, it'll all go back to this Cupid shit.

[momchester]

I don't care. [Some determination threads back into her voice.] Screw them. It happened- there's nothing we can do about it.

[failedparenting]

[He makes some sort of noise in agreement, but he isn't really listening.]

What do we do now?

[You're the one that's good with feelings and relationships, Mary. He has no clue where to go from here.]

[momchester]

Keep going like normal. Maybe what he said about amplifying what's already there was the truth- maybe it wasn't. We still need to treat this like we were before. Deal with our problems like- like adults.

[There's some strain in her voice. Or, okay, a lot. She's sick and tired of having to be the adult in a relationship with someone 20 years her senior. She doesn't know everything and she wishes people wouldn't expect her to.