He made tea and brought her a cup before he took a seat next to her. "Do you wish to talk about it?" She looked sullen, like she really didn't want to talk about it. He could understand that. He always found it difficult to admit to a mistake and he could tell by her demeanor that she knew she had done something wrong. She surprised him, though. She always did.

ME: Mera was defeated. She was dripping wet, sullen and dejected, overwhelmed by the guilt eating her up inside. She was sorry certainly for what she had put Diana through, and knew she would have to talk with the Wonder Woman later. But she was more remorseful for the torrential hurricane she had unleashed, putting the humans in harm’s way. It was slowly sinking in just what she had done in the midst of her fury. For now, she sat, replaying the evening’s events over and over in her mind. He had pulled out a chair for her at the kitchen table. She sat slumped in it, staring at her hands. She listened as he moved about, locking the front door, his footsteps as he returned and hovered beside her. He was so close she could feel the heat of his skin, and she sighed as he reached out and touched her, running his fingers through her damp hair. You’re soaked.

It was strange, the way it felt to feel his fingers touch her. He seemed to absorb her excess moisture through his fingertips, and she could feel herself drying out with each gentle touch. She was surprised at the way he took care of her. She knew that it was the swamp monster who stood before her now, and not May’s lover, and she wondered why he felt the need to look after her in this way. It seemed to carry more weight than a penchant for cleanliness. Was it herself that felt a stir of longing at his touch, or was it her host? Her eyes fluttered shut, and she could still feel him even when he finished wicking the water from her skin and clothes, moving towards the stove to make tea. He brought her a cup, taking a seat next to her, and Mera hesitated before enveloping the cup in her hands. The heat soothed her. He asked if she wanted to talk about it, and in all truth she didn’t. She knew she had done something wrong, but she had never been the type to admit to mistakes. Maybe it was partly May who allowed the words to begin spilling from her lips, looking like a reluctant child. She spoke slowly and softly, told him of her outing with Diana, stopping by the grocery store for sustenance and by happenstance running across Arthur Curry himself. “I saw him. I saw him and I lost it. I saw him, but he didn’t see me. He was with another woman. He wasn’t looking for me. They brought him back and he wasn’t looking for me.” She shook her head. She was struggling to keep her emotion out of it. “I confronted him, but it wasn’t him. He was different. They changed him. He said I had no right to be furious with my king. Like I was some common peasant. Like he could order me to do anything.” She was quiet. She could still hear the rain outside. “Like I had no right to be upset. Like my feelings didn’t matter. Like I was a child. Do you think me a child?” `

Alec Holland listened to Mera's retelling of the earlier events of the day. He knew that there were always two sides to a story, but he also knew that she was telling him her truth. What she was telling him was what she sincerely believed to be the truth. He was certain that she didn't have the ability to read Arthur's mind, to know that he neither cared nor wanted to look for her. But he didn't doubt that the man was changed from the person who had left her all those months ago, before they ever really got to know one another. He tried to think about how he would feel if the roles were reversed. If he'd had Abigail and then she disappeared and another Abigail took her place. It wasn't exactly a foreign concept, something akin to it had happened to him before, but he knew that he would respond in a similar way. Alec was not as destructive as Mera had been, but he had other ways of expressing his frustrations, and though he may not have raged or brought the rains down, he could sympathize.

He sipped his tea as she spoke and he felt himself curling his lip at the distasteful way Arthur had reacted to Mera. He was her queen, his beloved, and he had treated her as if she were nothing but a common peasant, and a child at that. She asked his opinion and he sighed. "I think if what you say is true, that he must not be the man that you once knew. No one who truly loves you would speak to you in that way. You must recognize that this man who is not your Arthur, is not worth the energy it takes to exact revenge." She looked weaker and weaker as the night wore on. It was clear to him that the extreme use of her powers had drained her. He reached out and took her teacup from her, setting it on the table. "Come, you need to rest. You look like a tulip that survived a hurricane." He helped her to her feet and then guided her to the bedroom Alec shared with May. It confused him to hell and back that the two of them had been thrown together in this world because of their human counterparts, but he knew one thing for certain. Mera was an exceptional woman who didn't deserve to be treated like a common peasant. "And for the record," he said, as he guided her into the bedroom, "I do not think you a child."

ME: There was something soothing and reassuring about the way he listened to her, recounting her evening. The way he reacted when she spoke about Arthur, and his response. She could tell he was upset with how Arthur had treated her. She took a tentative sip of her tea as he replied, a heavy sigh on his lips. He mustn't be the man she once knew, he told her. No one who truly loves you would speak to you in that way. There was something about his words that struck her. He was right. He was always right it seemed. It was the only conclusion that Mera could draw, that something had changed in Arthur, something had gone wrong somewhere in the process of shifting. She could no longer rely on her husband for comfort and security. Their lives were no longer the same, and the thought was foreign and scary. The only thing that even made sense anymore was sitting right in front of her. “And how should someone who loves me speak?” Her voice was barely audible.

The man who was not her Arthur was not worth the energy, he told her. If he wasn’t worth the energy, Mera had no idea what to do with herself. So much of her identity had stemmed from Atlantis, from her time with Arthur. Now here she was, sitting in front of a swamp monster and feeling all too vulnerable. She was feeling weaker with every passing minute, exhausted and sickly from the great expense of her abilities. She had managed to finish her tea just before he reached for her teacup, setting it aside. She looked like a tulip that had survived a hurricane, he told her, and the comparison brought a half hearted smile to her lips. She needed to rest, and she knew he was right. It was why she didn’t fight it when he helped her to her feet. Mera was not used to allowing someone to take care of her, but for some reason, she was letting him now. It wasn’t just the snowflake and her feelings, but it was something deep down, something that was leaving her looking at him in a different way. She followed him when he took her hand and led her to the bedroom. She all but collapsed onto the edge of the bed, sitting there weakly as he pulled a t-shirt for her out of a drawer. She needed to get out of her wet clothes, but she was far too distracted by him. And for the record, I do not think you a child. Her blue eyes followed him. “Then what am I?” `

Alec, the Swamp Thing, eyed Mera when she asked how someone who loved her should speak. It irritated him, not because she asked, but because no one had spoken to her lovingly enough for her to know the answer to that question already. "With kindness and respect and love," he said gently. He could sense that she was fragile. She was losing what she had once thought to be her entire world. The people and the place that she had been familiar with were no longer familiar. Arthur was not the man that she had fallen in love with. Alec felt sorry for her. He didn't pity her, but he knew that losing her identity had to be exhausting and upsetting. He helped her into the bedroom and pulled a shirt out of the drawer. He began to remove her shirt, waiting for her to stop him, but she never did. Her clothes were only slightly damp now, but they would be uncomfortable to sleep in, so he pulled the shirt up over her head and set it on the bed next to her. He reached behind to unclasp her bra next, then bunched the clean, dry shirt up and pulled it over her head, urging her to put her arms through. When that was done, he pulled down her pants and panties and pulled off her shoes. He gathered everything and set it aside to take to the laundry room for washing.

He guided her under the covers of the bed and then sat on the edge. "I think you're a woman," he replied to her question. "A powerful, independent, capable woman. And I don't think that you need a man who is going to belittle and demean you. You don't need anyone. But that doesn't mean it's going to be easy to forget him. You were in love with him once, perhaps you still are. It may take some time for that to change, and maybe it never will. But love is not meant to hurt you and I think the sting will wane as soon as you let it go." He smiled and brushed his hand over her forehead, moving hair out of her face. "Get some sleep, Queen Mera."

ME: She couldn’t look away from him. She was fascinated with the sight of him, reaching out to help her remove her shirt. Mera didn’t stop him. She wondered if she were even capable of doing the act on her own, she was so weary, but that wasn’t why she didn’t stop him. She was too busy reflecting on his answer of kindness and respect and love. On the way it was making her feel, to have someone take care of her. She could not recall a time when Arthur had done the same for her. Or anyone. It had not been the way of things growing up, and Arthur had always needed looking after more. Suddenly, she could understand the peace her host felt whenever this man touched her. She watched him steadily as he unclasped her bra and guided the shirt over her head, as he undid the zipper on her pants and wriggled the rest of her damp clothes from her body. Had this been anyone else, Mera might have protested and tried to do things herself. Instead, she didn’t argue when he guided her underneath the covers. She curled up into a ball as he sat on the edge of the bed. She could almost feel the heat of his skin, his hand millimeters from hers, and it was doing things to her she couldn’t explain. She was a woman, he said simply. Powerful, independent, capable. It was an answer she didn’t expect.

Mera arched a brow, silent as he spoke of men belittling and demeaning her. You don’t need anyone. What overwhelmed her the most was the fact that he was right. She had forgotten what it felt like, to be independent. She had loved Arthur enough to forget the life she had left behind, to lead a people. It wasn’t beyond her reach, to carve out a life of her own, and Mera was sitting with that knowledge as she listened to him, musing about forgetting. No, forgetting was out of the question. Arthur had made too much of an imprint on her life. But as she listened to him, she began to wonder if it were possible to let him go. You were in love with him once, perhaps you still are. It may take some time for that to change, and maybe it never will. But love is not meant to hurt you and I think the sting will wane as soon as you let it go. Mera swallowed roughly, unable to help the swell of emotion that threatened her at his words. She hid it well. She had an excellent poker face. But she couldn’t help but reflect on the fact that she had been in love with Arthur, and how love wasn’t so easy to forget. Maybe she never would, but she couldn’t deny that she had been falling out of love with him for months now. This evening felt like the icing on the cake. Maybe this was really it, maybe it was time she and Arthur went their separate ways.

Alec brushed hair out of her eyes, and told her to get some sleep, and Mera could not stop herself. As his hand withdrew, her fingers tangled with his. The part of her that was May ached to touch him, but it wasn’t just the snowflake’s desire that drove her. It was her own. “Stay with me?” Mera breathed. She couldn’t explain the way she felt as she watched him climb underneath the covers next to her, exhaling a shudder of a breath as his warm body curled against hers. She could feel his breath against her neck, and she sighed, allowing herself to melt against him. She danced her fingertips along his forearm, trying to settle her mind enough to succumb to her fatigue, but all she could think about was the man who was holding her close. Somehow, she wasn’t surprised when she felt his growing erection, his cock pressing against her in such a way that she couldn’t help herself; Mera smirked. She couldn’t resist wiggling her ass a bit, pressing herself against his boner and enjoying the way he groaned in response. That was when she snapped and threw all caution to the wind. This man clearly wanted her, and if she were to be honest, so did she, and she wasn’t about to throw away the opportunity. She bit her lip, weaving her fingers with his and lifting his hand to her breast, the invitation clear. “Touch me.” Mera breathed a sigh at the feeling of his strong hand gently massaging her breast, and it didn’t take long for her to cave into her need, tipping her head back far enough to kiss him. Her kiss was soft and tentative, growing in desperation. He tasted earthy, a hint of sweetness that kept her coming back for more. `

—

ME: May could feel herself start to shake again as she walked down the hallway. She wasn’t fond of hospitals. Just walking down this hallway gave her the creeps, and it said something that she had suffered through this feeling for hours already, just to make sure he was okay. Alec had been out cold for some time, enough time for his sister Jasmine to meet them at the hospital. May had been getting coffee in the cafeteria when Jas texted her that he was finally awake. She was quick to secure two cups of coffee in to-go cups before hurrying back to his room. But now, as she approached it, her footsteps slowed the more her nerves manifested. She couldn’t help it. He was okay. Obviously, he was, if he was awake. She knew this logically, but she still couldn’t help but have this physical reaction to her environment, to the day in general. She had managed to wash his blood off her hands since they arrived, but there was a blood stain of his that had landed on the hem of her shirt, and she couldn’t stop looking at it.

When she approached his room, she stopped just outside the door, hearing the authoritative voice of a doctor. She waited until the doctor and his nurse left the room, and was surprised when soon after Jas followed. She smiled at the young woman, who told her she was going to find something to eat. May nodded, telling her that she’d sit with Alec for a while and offering her a coffee, but Jas turned it down in favor of wherever she was going. Which was how she found herself peeking into Alec’s room with two cups in hand. It was somehow a relief to see him smiling at her, sitting up in bed. She couldn’t explain the emotion it gave her. She felt it as he gestured her closer, as she set the two coffees down on a bedside table, but especially as he reached out and squeezed her hand. Thank you. May’s brow furrowed, enveloping his hand in hers as she moved closer. She didn’t know what to do with his words of gratitude. She had only done what she knew he had done for her. She nodded, her face slowly crumbling until the emotion was too great and she couldn’t stop herself. May perched herself on the edge of the hospital bed, before nestling herself into the crook of his arm, curling her little body into his side, trying to be mindful of his injuries and the tubing he was connected to. She buried her face in his chest. “You scared me,” she told him matter-of-factly, albeit somewhat muffled. “There was all this blood coming from your head.” She was valiantly trying to hold in the tears, and was failing. They trickled down her cheeks without sound. “You were out cold.” `

Alec watched the petite brunette from his hospital bed as she set aside the coffee she had in her hands and climbed onto the hospital bed next to him. He lifted his arm so some of the tubing and wires were out of her way and then curled his arm around her as she snuggled into his side. He had far from expected to see not only the emotion on her face as she spoke to him, but that she would want to be close to him enough to climb into his bed. He had thought almost nothing about how he must have scared May. It wasn't as if he had done it on purpose, but it was becoming clearer, the more time they spent with one another, that they were coming to care for each other. Although it had been long before they started spending so much time together that she had nearly drowned, he had felt a similar upset at the idea of her being hurt, or worse, dying. He had to imagine now, that it must be much worse for May, now that their attachment was a bit stronger than it had been then. He used his other hand, his arm crossing his body, to brush brunette locks from her face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He was certain she already knew that. He wouldn't knowingly or willingly go into a supply closet that had been full of noxious fumes if he'd known it was full of them beforehand. He also hadn't been the one who created the fumes in the first place. Being a chemist, he knew precisely what would happen if the two compounds mixed. His assistant, however, was not a chemist and didn't know that bleach and ammonia were not to mix. "I'll be alright," he reassured her. "They put a stitch in my head to keep me from bleeding to death." He meant it in a teasing way, but he realized as soon as he said it that it wasn't all that funny. "I have very good doctors, May. You don't need to worry. I promise I'll make a full recovery." He didn't know how he could promise such a thing, but he did. He didn't want her to worry. She had enough on her plate with her demanding career and her father. "Don't you worry about me." He didn't expect she would heed his words, but he gave it a valiant effort anyway.

ME: May sighed as she snuggled into his side. There was something soothing about being able to feel him pressed against her, his arm curled around her. It helped ground her from the adrenaline that had been running through her veins. She could feel him, see him, hear him, and know he would be okay. It was such an instinctive reaction, to want to crawl into bed next to him, and it was a new and novel feeling. She pondered it as she laid there, peering up and studying his face. She smiled softly as he reached out, brushing strands of hair away from her face, and when he apologized her brow furrowed in response. I didn’t mean to scare you. “I know,” she murmured. Accidents happened. But she still couldn’t help the way the whole incident had made her feel. He would be alright, he reassured her. They put a stitch in my head to keep me from bleeding to death. His choice of words made her smirk, hearing the teasing in his voice, but it quickly faltered. He was right, it wasn’t all that funny, not when she really got to thinking about it.

He went on to tell her that he had good doctors, that she didn’t need to worry, and she was certain her temptation to argue played on her features. I promise I’ll make a full recovery. Don’t you worry about me. But of course she would worry. It was impossible to promise such a thing, for there to be no fuel to her fears. May bit her lip, frowning. She couldn’t promise that she wouldn’t worry about him. She had so much other nonsense going on in her life, but especially now, after what she had just witnessed, it felt impossible. For a moment she had considered the possibility that something really could harm him, and it frightened her. “Can’t help but worry,” she murmured, her fingers dancing along the pattern on his hospital gown. “I’m rather fond of you, you see.” She could feel his fingers combing through her hair, and it made her smile. “If I don’t worry, what else am I supposed to do?” `

If there was one good thing about disasters, it was that it seemed to bring out the best in people. When the threat of death or serious injury was at hand, people apologized, forgave and professed their love and adoration. While May certainly wasn't professing her love, she was letting him know how much she cared and how rattled she was by his accident with the way she had come to see him at the hospital and the way she was now cuddled into his side. Although they had spoken about caring for one another, it seemed as if her confession of being fond of him was a step beyond that. Or maybe he had a head injury and he was just reading into it. Either way, he wasn't about to voice a complaint. He just tightened his grip on her against his side and leaned down to brush his lips over the crown of her head. He winced a bit when he put his head back against the bed, but the pain was fleeting and it had been worth it. "I'm fond of you too," he said, a smile on his lips and in his voice as he closed his eyes for a moment. The drugs he'd been given made him sleepy and it took a little doing to keep himself awake, even in the presence of his beautiful companion.

"If you don't worry, you can spend your energy on other things, such as digesting your favorite foods, swimming more laps and yelling at more adolescents." He teased her lightly because he liked getting a rise out of her. She was easy to tease because she reacted to just about everything he could throw at her. He hadn't realized how fun it was to give someone a hard time until he got to know her better. He didn't have the best relationship with his family, and even growing up he had been a bit isolated from them. And the time he had been spending with May was more time than he had spent with one woman at a time ever in his life. He was too weird and too smart and too intimidating for many of the other women he'd tried to get to know and they hadn't stuck around long enough for him to get to this point with them. But May had. He didn't know why or what he'd done to deserve her company, but he was grateful.

ME: May didn't know how to explain it, but there was a lot she didn't know how to explain when it came to her and Alec. She had come to care for him deeply. Maybe it wasn't necessarily love, not yet, but after what she had witnessed, she couldn't ignore what she was feeling. She felt drawn to him. If she were to be honest, that feeling had been in place for some time. These past few months, it had only amplified, and she was trying not to let it scare her. There was something about his presence that grounded her, and it wasn't necessarily a feeling she had felt with anyone before. This wasn't a road she had ever expected to go down with him, especially after nurturing her psyche back from her last relationship. But as she cuddled into his side, sighing at the way he brushed his lips over the crown of her head and held her tight, May knew she had it bad. I'm fond of you too. It felt like her heart swelled three sizes at his words, and she couldn't explain that either. She just knew she was smiling, and he was holding her tight, and she didn't want to be anywhere else.

He was obviously drugged and sleepy, and May could tell he was fighting to stay awake. He went on to tell her about all the things she could spend her energy on instead of worrying, and his sleepy, teasing voice only made her smile grow as he spoke. …such as digesting your favorite foods, swimming more laps and yelling at more adolescents. He already knew her far too well, she decided, a snort of amusement on her lips. “Is that all you think I do?” May teased right back. “Yell at teenagers and eat food and swim laps?” She paused, her eyes soft as she gazed up at him, reaching out and ticking her fingertips gently over his beard stubble. “I won’t worry as long as you actually rest,” she told him, although she knew it wasn’t a promise she could keep. She couldn’t help but worry about him. “And as long as you let me snuggle you a little while.” With those words, her head nestled into the crook of his neck. She wasn’t about to get out of this bed for anyone. She needed more time, time to be held by him and recalibrate her senses. `

Alec closed his eyes and shrugged. "I think it's a lot of what you do," he returned, a smile on his lips. He knew it wasn't all she did, that she had other interests and did other things, but it was fun to tease her a bit about the things he knew were important to her, the things she did often. He gave her hip a gentle squeeze where his hand rested, his other hand dropping to rest across his middle. He was tired. He had been told to expect to be extra tired over the next few weeks, along with a handful of other things to be aware of. It was inconvenient and irritating to be an invalid, but if he had to suffer through it, he was glad to have May next to him. May, despite their somewhat tumultuous beginning, made everything better. She was the sunshine of his day.

"I'll rest," he told her, reaching out with his free hand to curl his fingers around hers and hold her hand against his chest. He felt bad enough to abide by his promise, too. Feeling out of sorts would make it easy for him to limit his activities to reading, lounging, and eating. He chuckled and it rumbled in his chest. "You can snuggle as long as you like," he said, "Or until the nurses kick you out." His arm tightened around her and he turned his head to angle his lips against her cheek. With a smile, his eyes closed and the monitor tracking his heart rate evened out to a steady beep as he dozed a bit, with a petite brunette cuddled into his side and a feeling of contentment despite his recent injury. May had that effect.