Of course he was struggling with the situation, Matilda was having the hardest time with it as well, but at least for her it hadn’t come entirely out of nowhere. She had been aware of her second life, he had no idea, and now she’d dumped it all on him at the same time. Something she wished she hadn’t had to do, but if they were going to move forward with this relationship she had to. There was no choice. Hearing his mumbles she tried to keep herself from passing out, unable to reply because she had no answer for him. No answer to the situation. He was saying the same things she had when Mason had told her. That they couldn’t control her life this, couldn’t take away her life, her choices, her freedom, but while the Wilkes family had a hold over her where her life hung in the balance, of course they could do all those things. Covering her face with her hand she sobbed loudly, it was impossible to keep it in any longer, her emotions were crashing over her like a tsunami and all she wanted was to hold her boyfriend but that was exactly what she couldn’t do.

“I know…I know they are going to notice eventually. I already…I got sick on Mason when he told me, but luckily he just thought it was from shock.” Ironic that she’d used the word luckily where there was pretty much nothing ‘lucky’ about what they were going through. Her fear that they would do something to her or the baby when they found out about her pregnancy was an ever present dark cloud that loomed over her as of this afternoon, and she had no idea how to fix the problem they were presented with. How they could go on living like a family when someone else was forcing her into a box, a loveless marriage she didn’t want. “Neither do I but…I don’t know what to do…I don’t know how to fix it…I trapped us.” Her body shook until she was driven to grabbing his hand tightly, professing her love, trying to communicate to Niklaus that she wanted nothing more than to be with him despite everything that was going on. If she could wave a magic wand to take everything away apart from the creation of a new family with the blonde the girl would do it in a heartbeat but this wasn’t fairyland. It was a disgustingly real world trail they were facing. As soon as his arms wrapped around her she felt like she could breath better, just like that, in an instant the girl was safe. Even if it was only for the duration of him holding her she at least knew right now that Niklaus loved her, that he wanted to be with her, that their love could potentially transcend the way she’d betrayed him by not revealing her second life earlier. It was a ray of light in the otherwise pitch black darkness. Take a few breaths, she did as she was told, sucking in oxygen through her nose and blowing it out of her mouth, her hands grabbing hold of Nik like her life depended on it. Because it did. “I’m so sorry….I’m so sorry….I love you so much…” she kept repeating through her tears, knowing his own were flowing right now and wishing she could do something to stop them. “I love you more than anything else in the world…we’re going to have a baby….that is all I’ve ever wanted…you’re both all I ever wanted…I love you so much….” Matilda kept whispering it all over and over again as she clung to her boyfriend who really shouldn’t be the one having to console her in this situation. It should be the other way around. “I didn’t mean to do this to us…”

”You need to be careful...” when she told him that she’d been sick after finding out about this whole engagement, Niklaus couldn’t hide his evident concern. Not that it was any different than all the previous times she’d been sick. Niklaus was always worrying, and always wanting to take care of Matilda. “All this stress....it’s not good for the little one. And I know you’re under a lot of stress right now.” he wished he could make all of this stop. The idea of packing everything up and leaving tonight had sounded like an insane idea moments ago, but if there was any way Niklaus could have done that without this “family” tracking Matilda down, he would have done it in a heartbeat. Because his priority was this woman, and her safety. It was crazy to think, that one simple embrace could make someone feel a little better about such a serious, hard to process situation. A breath of air left Niklaus in a sigh the moment he felt Matilda returning the hug. Maybe that was what they’d both needed right now. To just hold one another and let their emotions free. He closed his eyes, listening as Matilda tried to steady her breathing down again. The man still felt like he was in some twisted nightmare that he’d wake up from at any second. None of this seemed real enough for him to believe. In fact, the only thing that felt real about any of this was the touch of his girlfriend. Maybe that’s why it had brought him to tears....because the second she’d touched him, reality hit him hard. He nodded gently as she apologised, and told him she loved him. He was a little lost for his own words, but she knew that he loved her. “We’ll be okay...” he had to believe that. Because if he didn’t, there was no way he’d be able to get through all of this. Right now, there were no solutions to this massive problem, but surely there had to be a way out? His future with Matilda involved her and their child. He wasn’t about to make room for someone else being thrown into it. “This is....a lot for one person to process, Millie.” he told her softly, pulling back only slightly from the hug so he could look at her properly again, keeping his face only inches from her own. “And I’m not okay with any of this. I don’t like that you’re trapped in this other life, or that you--- that you....kill...people, or that they’re forcing you into this marriage...” he shook his head, hand coming up to rest against the side of her face. “...but I love you and I’m not going anywhere, alright? You and our baby--- you’re my family. And no one’s going to take you away from me...”

“I…I don’t know I never mentioned it explicitly but you’re at the bakery enough, I would have thought everyone knew about us, I don’t keep it a secret.” Matilda replied breathlessly, gritting the back of her teeth to stop herself from throwing up all over the place, because this whole thing was making her sick to her stomach. She wanted to tell him she had a way to fix it, that she had a plan, but the girl was utterly helpless in this situation. She had to protect the baby as well as herself now, Niklaus knew that, that was probably one of the reasons he was getting so …. Well there were a million reasons why he was getting upset, angry, she was feeling them all as well. “Nik…Nik I wish it was that simple, I really do. God I wish it was that fucking simple and they’d leave us alone to live our lives because that’s all I want. I just want you, and the baby, everything was so perfect before this.” And just like that she dissolved into hysterical tears again, putting a hand across her eyes as the other one went across her stomach, shaking her head back and forth. “I’m sorry…I don’t want to hurt you, I don’t want any of this…I swear…” She whispered though her fingers as her shoulders heaved with sobs that racked through her entire body. “I don’t even know what I’m going to do about telling them about the baby, I haven’t told Mason yet, because it’s not his business. This is our baby. It’s our family.” There was no way in hell she could ask him to be the boyfriend she kept on the side even if that had been what she’d been holding onto through this whole thing, that somehow she’d still have him in her life. Hell that she’d still be able to be with Nik despite being forced into a loveless marriage with a member of a mob family. Hands shaking she reached out to him, grabbing his hand for the first time in the conversation because she just couldn’t help herself any longer, her eyes were wide and still swimming with tears as she pulled him towards her with the minimal strength she had left inside her body. The small amount of fight. “No. Look at me Niklaus, fucking look at me, I didn’t come here to break up with you. I love you, more than I love anyone else on the planet and if you need to break up with me then I understand but I am physically…physically incapable of breaking up with you because…because…it already feels like I’m being ripped apart inside. That I can’t be near you, or kiss you, that you’re upset and hurting. I never….I never wanted to hurt you I swear.” Her voice was ragged and desperate, she was borderline hysterical as she kept his hand in her own in a vice like grip, like that might actually stop them from having to be apart. Matilda was no longer thinking rationally, she was just seeing a wall of blind panic as tears streamed down her cheeks. “I love you, I love you and I don’t want to be with him, I don’t want to do any of this, I just want you and the baby…and I just…I just…” she broke off, trying to catch her breath as her whole body shook.

“They can’t just take you away from me, Millie. Away from your current life. Who wants to live like that huh? Forced into a marriage you don’t even want to happen. How heartless can people be?” how were they going to move forward like this? There was no way out of this....Niklaus couldn’t think of anyway to protect his girlfriend from the situation she had gotten into. He couldn’t just sit back and let this marriage take place. Millie was his future. Not this other mans. There were so many questions Niklaus needed answers too.  Questions he knew Matilda wouldn’t be able to answer. He could feel tears brimming in his eyes and quickly wiped them away because...what good would come from him crying right now? He couldn’t allow himself to break. This wasn’t Matilda’s fault. This wasn’t a life she’d wanted. She had no control over her own life...people were making decisions for her, demanding she follow rules otherwise she’d be killed. “I don’t know what to do...I don’t know how to help.” he mumbled under his breath, completely lost in his own thoughts. He felt so many things right now. Anger, shock, sadness, confusion....maybe even a little betrayal over the fact that the love of his life had kept this from him for so long. As if his heart didn’t need anymore pain, hearing Matilda crying only added onto it all. He wanted to comfort her, to look after her....try and help her steady her breathing--- but he couldn’t. His eyes remained on the coffee table in front of where they were sitting, his emotions somewhat contained at the moment. It was easier to shut himself off sometimes...than to deal with the mess that was going on in his head. “You can’t hide this pregnancy forever. They’re going to notice eventually...” he was worried though, about this other family finding out because if they did find out there was a baby involved....a baby that belonged to Nik, then who’s to know what they’d do? “How do we live life as a family when you have to be with someone else? Your life is being controlled, Millie. It’s not fair on you, or anyone involved. I don’t want you or our child living a controlled life--- I don’t want our child involved with this mob family.” his hands brushed into his hair, and he sighed softly, exhausted by the events of the evening. As soon as he set them down again, he felt Millie grabbing one of his hands and it was enough to have the man snapping back into reality and finally looking at his girlfriend again. And honestly, that’s all it took....a simple touch and a second of eye contact and those tears quickly came rushing back to Nik’s eyes. Niklaus was capable of many things--- breaking up with Matilda was definitely not one of them. He couldn’t do it. And he wouldn’t do it. What kind of man would he be if he backed off the second things got bad? He was sure he’d do more damage to both of them if he left than if he were to stick around and be there for her. He needed Matilda more than he wanted to admit. Taking his hand away from hers, Niklaus slowly shifted on the sofa so he could wrap Matilda up in his arms, chin resting on top of her head. “Take a few breaths....” his arms weren’t tightly wrapped around her, but that was only because he didn’t want to restrict her breathing while she was clearly in need of air. He felt defeated. Absolutely clueless on what to do now. “I’m not breaking up with you. I’d never do that...” he told her softly. “You know I love you more than anything else in this world. Just breath, Millie...we’ll figure something out...” 

Matilda could tell that Niklaus was trying to find any way to get her out of this situation, but she also knew it her heart that it just wasn’t possible. She could tell him until she was blue in the face but until he had wrapped his head around it, it wouldn’t make a difference. Just like in her conversation with Declan earlier. Until Millie had found a way to process the information she hadn’t accepted it, it was as simple as that. Letting him sit there in silence as she thought about how much this must be hurting him her heart ached with the need to comfort him, reach out and wrap her arms around him as she would if pain had come from something other than her own words. Her own actions. Of course Matilda knew the dangers of her job, she’d thought about them constantly since finding out she was pregnant, but she also knew just how good she was at what she did. It wouldn’t help to express her skill to him obviously but the truth of it was that the risk posed to her was minimised because of how prepared she always made sure she was, how well she knew each step to what she was going to do. Her targets didn’t stand a chance - hell that was why Theo and the rest of the family had hired her, because they knew how skilled she was. Nik didn’t know, but Millie did, she knew her child wasn’t in danger when she went out on a job. Rationally at least. The fear was still there. The maternal fear.

Swallowing hard she couldn’t look at him while she explained the next tangent of her news, hands griped so tightly in her lap her knuckles were turning white with the effort. She felt disgusted at herself, at the situation, she wanted the ground to swallow her up whole. “The Wilkes have a son, well there is a son to one o the family members, his name is Mason and he and I have known each other for a while.” No doubt Nik was going to be expecting her to be about to admit she’d been cheating on him, but oh god, if it wasn’t so much worse than that. “He told me today he needed me to come over, we needed to talk. He never gave me my targets so I didn’t know what the hell he could have wanted but I went, like everything else with this family I didn’t have a choice.” Stressing that one detail was the only thing keeping Millie from vomiting at her own words, her own hideousness. If she was her boyfriend she would be utterly repulsed by her right now. By the situation. “He pulled out a ring, told me that…the higher ups in the family had decided the only way to get him to behave and be a model Wilkes, was to get married. He told me they’d picked me, and I had to be engaged to him. To marry him. That…” Her voice broke as she dissolved under the sensation of mourning she felt at all the things that were being taken away from her by this, from the family she had built with Niklaus. Or was building. “…that the press would get an announcement, we had to be photographed at events together…that I had to play the perfect role. And…and I don’t know what to do…because if I don’t do it…” She trailed off, not needing to say they would kill her again, it had been said enough, it was a given at this point. “I don’t want to do it Nik, I don’t want to…I don’t know what to do….”

Niklaus didn’t think that the evening could have gotten any worse than what it was already. He’d soon find out how wrong he was. He tried not to make assumptions, tried to let her get through the whole explanation before speaking, but how could he possibly stay silent when she was telling him this? “That’s not...” that’s not happening. He wanted to say that, but stopped himself and started over. “...I mean do they know that you’re already with someone? You can’t just go marry someone else Millie...” once again, Niklaus was in disbelief with what he was hearing. He’d already been trying to process the first part of this conversation, and now he was going to have to let this information sink in as well. It felt like someone was squeezing his heart in the palm of their hands. Well, to be more specific....it felt as though Matilda was doing it. And sure, he knew she had no control over the situation, but that didn’t make the hurting any less painful.  “If they’re like family to you, if they’d kill for you then surely telling them you have a boyfriend and child on the way would be enough for them to reconsider this....this marriage.” he could feel his anger rising again, but he couldn’t find it in himself to get angry at Matilda. How could he? When despite all of this, he still loved her with his entire heart. The man was so in love with her that she could have literally stabbed him in the back and he’d still use his last breath to tell her he loved her. The thought alone, of her marrying someone else made him sick to his stomach. What was he suppose to do? How the fuck was he going to help her out of that one? “You’re breaking my fucking heart, Millie...” his words were soft as he turned away from her again, taking a moment to try and think of a way out of this... “What’s going to happen huh? I mean, if you don’t do what these people tell you to do they’ll hurt you, right? This so called fucking family of yours. And it’s not like I can do or say anything that’s going to change a damn thing.” life had been too perfect for Niklaus. He should have known something was going to happen to take that away from him... “So you have to marry this guy and then what happens to us? I’m just going to be the boyfriend you keep on the side? Are you planning on hiding this pregnancy from these people too? I’m not so sure that marrying this Wilkes son while you’re carrying my child will sit well with any of them. And how am I going to explain any of this to my family...” if what she said was true then having this engagement announced by the press would eventually reach his family. His parents knew how much Matilda meant to him....and now he’d have to make up some crazy lie as to why she was suddenly engaged to marry an entirely different person. There had to be one more bomb to drop on him....he sensed it was coming. Is that why she’d come here tonight? To end things with him? “If you’re here to end things with me please don’t drag this out anymore....just do it.” he leaned back into the sofa, hands moving over his forehead. That was the only way to prevent her from getting hurt...and Niklaus would never forgive himself if something happened to Matilda or their child if she ended up refusing to get married for his sake.

“I don’t think so Nik…I don’t think they would let me stop, but even if they did it would just be until the baby was born. We’d have to deal with it starting up again straight after.” The tiny silver lining right now was that the blonde seemed to be settling as the news filtered into him, she still feared him leaving completely but at least he wasn’t shouting anymore, right? “Here…” she reached out when he expressed not knowing what to do, her eyes soft even though they were still full of tears, wishing she could wrap her arms around him and never let go. They could just stay like that forever, completely forgetting everything else around them. Once he’d sat down she went to take his hand in her own before thinking better of it, retracting it onto her lap once more, managing to get her breathing at least a little more under control now. Her head was swimming less as she sucked oxygen in through her nose slowly, letting it out her mouth, chest shuddering less with each one. God, this was only half the story at well, he could have no idea what was coming next. Everyone she remembered the nausea rose in her throat, hurting the person she loved most in the world was ripping her apart inside. How could she profess to love Niklaus beyond anything else when she was persistently hurting him, she should have thought about that before they got together, when she was first falling. But Matilda had been selfish and blocked out that concern in favour of riding the wave of emotions their relationship caused. Now she was paying the price. They both were.

“I work for the Wilkes as a hitman. If I could stop doing it I would stop right this second, but I know too much and they … own me now.  I don’t have a choice.” Her voice was measured as she explained the facts, trying to be as clear as humanly possible because she knew how overwhelming this was regardless. “If I tried to run they’d get me before I even managed to leave the city. And I know that because if someone else did it, I would be the person they’d get to stop them. I wish I wasn’t.” At the question about the Wilkes keeping her safe the brunette’s heart swelled inside her chest, so grateful for that tiny indication of her boyfriend’s care shining through the darkness of the conversation she could have stared crying all over again. She couldn’t though, Millie had to steel herself to reveal the rest of the information he needed, otherwise she’d back out before she’d done it. “I believe they would kill for me, to protect me, they talk about us all being a family. It was what enticed me in the first place…I don’t feel unsafe when I’m around them.” She assured him quietly, nodding her head, lis pressed together as she tried to work out how to launch into the next part of everything. “There is another reason I needed to tell you today though Nik, I found out something this afternoon that…I can’t avoid because I have no choice, but I want to avoid with everything in me. And I don’t know what to do. And I need you, it’s selfish, but I need to tell you honey, and I need us to..work it out together because it’s not just about the two of is anymore, there is the baby to think about too. And I know we both want what’s best for her. Or him.” She paused, waiting for him to speak.

"That gives us some time to work with though...gives us at least eight months to figure something out...” Niklaus was still trying to work out how he was going to get his girlfriend away from this family. If telling them about the pregnancy would put the killing on hold then they needed to do it. Not only for Matilda’s safety, but for their child as well. He couldn’t imagine that being a hitman would be safe, after all. There was always a possibility of things going wrong. Of the target being a lot more prepared for an attack than expected. Thinking about that brought back the memory of the time he’d seen Matilda with the dark bruise to her jawline. The one that the stand mixer had apparently caused. He hadn’t questioned it back then, but now he was thinking that maybe it was caused while on the job....not that he’d bring that up now. It just....made a lot more sense than a kitchen appliance being at fault. He saw her hand reaching out for his, and then watched her take it back as well. It hurt his heart just as much as he was sure it hurt hers--- not being able to hold the other. But Niklaus wasn’t ready for that just yet. If she touched him....if there was any kind of contact, Niklaus knew his emotions would get the better of him. And it would be harder to pretend he was okay, that he was calm. He nodded as she confirmed everything he’d said. It made him feel sick to his stomach when she said that they owned her now. Having any kind of claim on someone like that sounded disgusting. Making her kill for them....Niklaus couldn’t stop his blood from boiling all over again. At least they could protect her though, right? This thought had crossed his mind as well. He was trying to find the positive in this situation, cling to it with all of his might and right now that was the protection that this family provided his girlfriend with. It eased Niklaus just a little bit knowing that she had these people looking out for her. Niklaus was overly protective of his family and loved ones, after all. So Matilda’s safety would always matter to him. “Good. At least they’ll keep you safe...” was all he replied with, a soft exhausted sigh leaving his lips because this night had taken a turn for the worse. His heart stopped in his chest when she said there was something else to tell him. He wasn’t sure that he could take another hit after the information he’d been given moments ago, but at the same time...he wanted to know everything. “Just....just tell me. What is it?” he was definitely not prepared for anymore plot twists thrown into this conversation but he knew too much now....might as well tell him the rest.

For some reason knowing she had a concussion was scarier than speculating about it. What if it just never went away? She wasn’t alone at all, she trusted Niklaus and Kainoa but she just wanted to be home. The floor wasn’t doing any favors and neither did a fairly packed church. “I trust you.” She replied. She missed her cats the most right now. As the medicine set in, the throbbing eased up. Slowly but it was some relief. The church had quieted down only by a fraction… or Eva was losing her hearing… “thank you for staying with me.”

Niklaus smiled faintly at Eva’s words. In situations like this, Niklaus needed people to put their trust in him so he could help them with whatever they needed. He still wasn’t sure of just how serious her head injury was, but he could support her and keep her safe for the time being. “Do you need a blanket or something? You must be freezing...” a few people working in the church had started to pass around blankets so maybe Niklaus could grab one for Eva. “It’s not a problem. Right now I’m just worried about your head....you hit it pretty hard on the concrete stairs outside. Knocked you out for a little while too...” he told her.

“No, I always worry about you, I always will.” It was instinct, the same way he worried about her and the baby, she worried about him and the baby just as much. Okay so maybe she was giving him news that would make for more concern right now, but that didn’t mean he had a monopoly on wanting to protect the other. Her hand went across her stomach as she used the other to wipe at her face. Push the hair that was stuck to her cheek off it, not knowing where they were going to go from here. Her immediate reaction to him wanting a name was to tell Nik that it wasn’t possible, that it was literally impossible to tell him that, but…he was right she had said no secrets and if Millie wanted a hope in hell of winning him back at all she was going to have to do that much. It was the bare minimum after all. The way he called her Millie, he wouldn’t come sit with her on the sofa again, it broke her heart into a million bits all over again. There was such a void between them now and she’d been the one to cause the gaping divide, she’d wedged it open, she just had to close it. She had too.

“Of course I stopped to think about that, I think about it every single second of every single day since I found out I was pregnant. When they recruited me though there was no one else to think about because I was all alone in the world. I know it sounds pathetic but I just wanted to belong again. So badly.” Elbows resting on her knees she put her head in her hands, shaking it slowly, knowing the blonde was making the leaving suggesting as part of a panic reaction. She wasn’t going to let him leave his family, as if she hadn’t caused him enough pain already. “Nik, no. They’d find us, they have resources you couldn’t even imagine. Plus your family are here and this is your home. I’m not doing that to you. We could never get far enough away, we could never stop running either, what kind of life would that be for the baby?” No worse than having a monster for a mother though. A strangled sob escaped her as he rejected herder the first time since the day they had met, not knowing how to handle it, every fibre in her body was screaming for her to go over to him but that physical rejection would be too much. No, she had to give him space. Should she leave maybe? But she couldn’t. She couldn’t leave right now - not when there was so much more to explain.

“They don’t know I’m pregnant yet, Niklaus. I haven’t told them.” A sigh whispered past her lips, finally she looked back up at him, removing her face from her palms her eyes red rimmed. Face swollen from the emotional racking through her in a way it hadn’t in a long time, Mason telling her about the engagement was horrible but having to explain all this to Niklaus was worse somehow. “I don’t want anything or anyone to hurt the baby, you know that right? You believe me don’t you?” The brunette asked earnestly, lips quivering as she waited for a reply, hands fidgeting in her lap. “I want the killing to stop, but I don’t know how.” That came out as a whisper under her breath, blinking back even more tears, pressing her lips together. Alright she had to bite the bullet. “I’ll tell you who they are, I’ll tell you what I know, I promise. Just…please come and sit down. You can ask me anything you want and I’ll be honest. The family is called the Wilkes family…they…they’re like a mob family. I know this sounds mental, I know.” She felt like she was caving into herself, she wanted to know what was going on in the blonde’s head so badly. “I love you so much, I love you so much Niklaus Reign, please …”

"Maybe if you tell them about this pregnancy they’ll let you stop?” it was a long shot, but again, Niklaus didn’t know these people well enough to know that this probably wouldn’t happen. He nodded gently when she spoke about not wanting anyone to hurt their baby, because it didn’t matter that she was a trained assassin who killed people for a job, Niklaus knew that Matilda would be an incredibly protective and loving mother to their child. He knew she’d do absolutely anything to keep their baby safe, just as Niklaus would as well. “Yeah. I do...” his reply was barely audible, but he meant it. “I....I don’t know what to do...” he admitted after a moment. There had been times in Nik’s life when he’d felt absolutely helpless and it was a feeling he’d always hated. Right now, as Matilda was telling him about how she couldn’t get out of this life she’d gotten herself into at a younger age, the man felt this helplessness strongly. How the hell was he suppose to get her out of this? How was he suppose to keep her and his child safe when he was only one person and the people she was working for were apparently an entire mob family? No doubt just as trained to use guns and kill as she was? He couldn’t. Matilda’s last words seemed to snap him out of whatever hold his feet had to the ground and he slowly made his way back over to the sofa to sit beside her again. He stayed silent, lost in his thoughts--- wondering how he was going to help her while still letting all of this news sink in. “So...” he paused, once again struggling to find words. He’d never been in this position with Matilda--- never struggled to form sentences with her. Talking with Matilda had always been easy....so why was it so damn hard now? “...so you work for the Wilkes family as a hitman?” it sounded like he was asking a question, but the man was just trying to make sense of this by saying it out loud. “...and you don’t want to do this, but you’re forced too because they’ll kill you if you don’t?” she was doing this to keep herself alive. Niklaus might not have agreed with all of this, but he was way too deep in this relationship to turn away. Too in love with this woman to allow something this insane pull him away from her. And sure, this might put a bit of a strain on their relationship, but Niklaus knew in his heart that they’d get through this somehow. Once again, Niklaus was falling into the same kind of mind set he had for work. When he was managing to keep himself calm during a stressful situation. “These people you work for---- do they keep you safe? I mean, you kill for them....would they ever kill for you? To protect you?” he asked softly, needing to at least know that Matilda had that safety.

Millie flinched involuntarily when Niklaus shouted at her, she’d never heard him do that to her, and never expected it from him. Then again he had probably never expected to hear she was a trained assassin. The people she was killing, the families of the people she was killing, did Millie think about them? No…not anymore she din’t because the pain it caused was so overwhelming it threatened to consume her. She had taught herself to cut off that part of her life from the part Nik knew, the sweet bakery owner. In her mind they were no longer the same person. “I don’t know what they’d do to you but…I doubt it would be pretty.” She whispered, scared to raise her voice any louder, going to say sorry again before stopping herself. He didn’t want to hear it. Why would he, it wouldn’t make any difference to their situation. To what she’d done to them. The tears carried on rolling down her cheeks as she buried her face in her hands, unable to look over at him as he moved away from her, panicking internally that he’d never come backwards her ever again. That this was going to be it. She’d be left alone with the baby, but no, he wasn’t like that….he would never do that to her. To them. Niklaus was too good of a man for that, that was why this was even more terrible, what she was doing to him. Sitting there frozen with upset she just let him process the information in silence, the only noise the shuddering breaths she sucked in and out, her shoulders trembling along with each one.

“No they weren’t threatening me….I told you because…I had to tell you Nik. I love you. We’re having a baby. I don’t want to keep secrets from you.” Well it was half the truth, she would get to the other half later, right now he had enough to try and get to grips with. “No, no please don’t do anything, I don’t want anyone to get hurt, I don’t want you to get hurt.” She hurriedly replied, jumping to stand up with her hands stretched out towards him, but before she had gotten two steps her vision started to turn wobbly and her head swooped, forcing her to fall back onto the sofa or end up on the floor. Swallowing she griped the edge of the cushion until the dizzy spell had passed, eyes sneezed tightly shut, wishing she had the answers to his questions but knowing full well she didn’t. Why did she choose tonight to spring it on him? Because … of…how was she even meant to explain that part. “They rule my life Nik, they have a strength no one else can match, there is no way to get out of it…the best way to keep the baby safe is to not rock the boat. I wish I had a different answer for you but I don’t…I don’t know what else we can do.” Looking with straggles of hair sticking onto her wet cheeks she reached out again with one hand this time-out bothering to stand up because it would only end up in fainting again. “Please…please come over here. I’m still me, I’m still the same person. We’re still having this baby…” He had said ‘our’ baby which if nothing else was a positive sign in the whole mess of darkness she’d managed to plunge them into. “I am your family, I promise, you are my family too that’s why I told you this. I got caught up with them when I was trying to find a family and if I’d known you were in my future I’d have told them where to shove it. I just…I thought I was going to be on my own forever otherwise. They….they have a vice like grip on me, if I had any choice I would have separated myself from them years ago. I just…can’t. Please believe me.” She begged.

"Don’t worry about me. Right now we need to worry about your safety and our baby’s. You’re the one that’s in this....trapped in this double life with no way out...” he wouldn’t tell anyone else because he still wasn’t sure who these people she worked for were. Then again, Matilda had said she didn’t want to keep secrets from him so...”No secrets, right? If you don’t want to keep secrets from me then you need to tell me everything. You need to tell me who you work for. I want a name.” Matilda was trapped, it seemed, in a situation she had absolutely no control over. She had no way out. Niklaus was stuck between wanting to help her, and just needing some time away from her to process this information properly. As she got up from the sofa a little too fast for her head--- Niklaus took a few steps towards her, instinctively to make sure she was okay. When she sat down again was when he had to stop himself from stepping closer. “Take it easy, Millie...” his eyes remained on his girlfriend as she spoke again, and Niklaus found himself falling into a silence for a moment. Usually Niklaus was good at solving problems fast. Thinking fast to avoid any further complications. And yet, right now he was stuck on what to do. How was he going to get his girlfriend and their baby out of this mess? “You do realise that by ruling your life, they’re going to have some kind of control over our child as well....did you stop to think about that?” he paused for a moment. “What if we leave? We just pack everything up and go--- get as far away from this place as possible?” it wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but running away from all of this sounded like the only way out. If leaving tonight meant that he could keep Matilda and the baby safe, he’d do it in a heartbeat. Even if that meant leaving his parents and sisters. Again, the man wasn’t thinking straight. With her hand stretched out to him, Niklaus cast his eyes down at it for a moment. How could she still be the same person when he knew what she did? Every time he saw her now, he’d be reminded of tonight. Of everything she’d told him. She might have been a professional at separating her two different lives, but Niklaus couldn’t do that. He wouldn’t be able to separate the sweet bakery owner from the trained killer. Going to work now would feel so wrong because while he was out their saving lives, in the back of his mind he knew Matilda would be out there taking lives. His heart broke a little as he shook his head at the offer to come back to her, because rejecting any kind of contact from Matilda was something Niklaus thought he’d never do, ever. But he couldn’t touch her right now. His body wasn’t allowing him to move any further. “The killing--- will that ever stop? The thought of you going out there and...” he paused again, struggling. “...surely now that you’re pregnant they’ll let you stop. You can’t go out there, put your life on the line for them. Not when you’ve got two lives to protect now.” meaning of course, hers and the baby’s. “I don’t want anyone hurting you or our child. If something happened to both of you I don’t know what I’d do.”

He had taken her hand but she knew it wouldn’t be long before that moment was over, the more she explained, the more he knew about who she truly was. Maybe…just maybe it had been something she thought worth doing in order to have the support of a ‘family’ back then but now Matilda was seeing just how much she’d messed up life for her future self. Unable to escape the crime life because leaving placed her in a position to be killed for doing that, it was a catch 22. Quite literally kill or be killed. Seeing his expression falter the sinking feeling her both her chest and stomach just increased, it was the start of her losing him, Matilda just knew it. And understood, she would have been disgusted if the roles were reversed. Swallowing hard she tried to get a grip of herself, shaking her head slightly with her hand across her mouth, sniffing emotionally as he spoke about how she wouldn’t hurt a fly, but that was so far from the truth. She knew she was evil, she knew she was a monster. “I….I do….I am…what you dedicate your life to I do exactly the opposite.” It was ironic, but not in a good way that was for sure. “They give me the name, they tell me where to find them, and I eliminate the problem for them. How do you think I could afford my own bakery at such an early age? They compensate me…each time.” Her hands were violently shaking as this point as she twisted her fingers together in her lap to try and cover that up a little, failing miserably. The brunette had to close her eyes for a second to stop herself from fainting, the fear making her do dizzy. There was no way in hell she had thought as a little girl she’d be sitting across from the love of her life, pregnant with his baby, explaining to him how she was part of a mob family who took out hits on people via her. “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry, I should have…” Should have what? Told him when they met? That was impossible since it would have first of all meant he wanted nothing to do with her, and second of all put his life in danger, while finally revealing her crime history. No way would the Wilkes have allowed her to walk away from that, she’d have posed too much of a risk. Hell telling him now she was putting her neck in line with the guillotine but she had no choice anymore, not now she was so deep in love with him and expecting his child. Oh and being forced to marry someone else to boot. “I can’t tell you who I work for because…I can’t tell you. They’re bad people Nik, I am already going to be in so much trouble if they find out I’ve told you this much, I want to put you in as least danger as possible. I know that sounds dumb considering everything I’m saying but it’s the truth. The Millie you met wouldn’t hurt a fly, she wouldn’t, but the other part of me doesn’t have a choice anymore. I make myself sick, I know I’m a monster, I’m so sorry.” Repeating that wasn’t going to do any good, she had resigned herself to soon seeing the blonde demand she leave and never come back. Her chest heaved as she tried to snatch her breath with a shuddering gasp, brushing her hand across her wet cheeks. “They promised me I would have a family, a support system, I didn’t know what I was getting into…I thought it was something my parents had set up for me before they both left…or died…I thought it was the right thing and by the time I had seen the light it was too late…I’m sorry. God I’m so fucking sorry.” It wasn’t an excuse but she was hoping it would go some way to be an explanation to him because this was going to be a hard pill to swallow however it was framed. “And now, they own me.”

"No, Millie---” Niklaus shook his head, still refusing to believe anything she was telling him right now. It was sending him into a tornado of emotions. His head was spinning. He wasn’t sure how to handle this situation. He couldn’t process what she was telling him. How could he be dating someone three months and not know that she had an entire second life that he wasn’t even apart of? Not only that, but this other life of hers involved killing people. “So what--- if I piss off your boss they’ll eliminate me as well? Do you even think about the people you’re killing? What if they have families, huh?” he was getting too restless sitting down on the sofa so he got up and momentarily turned his back to his girlfriend, his hand brushing through his hair in frustration as he tried to make sense of all of this. It was difficult to even look at her right now. His heart hurt for so many reasons all at once. This was a lot for anyone to take in. This woman was the love of his life. The mother of his unborn child. The person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. And to find out she’d been keeping all of this from him.... “Don’t--- don’t fucking apologise.” his words came out a lot harsher than intended as he turned to face her again, putting a distance between them now that he’d gotten up from the couch. What was the point of apologising? Niklaus wasn’t the type to get angry easy, but right now anger seemed to be the emotion overpowering any other feeling. He was scared, and worried, and hurt, but his blood was boiling. It didn’t help at all when she said she couldn’t tell him who she worked for. “So you’re just going to keep that from me as well? What happens now, huh? What were you hoping to achieve by telling me all of this? Is your boss threatening you? Do you need help?” Nik’s father was a detective...maybe if Millie gave Nik names he could go to his father. But then again, if these people she worked for were as bad as she was saying--- maybe he’d be putting himself and his family in danger by getting involved. Not that he wasn’t already involved now. Matilda was carrying child, after all. She was his family. “How do we get you out of this? Tell me what you need from me, Millie---” Nik wasn’t thinking straight right now. He was in love with this woman despite everything she’d told him. It wasn’t like his love for her was going to just vanish. Part of him wanted to just get as far away from her as possible right now, but the other part of him wanted to protect her and get her away from the people who were making her life a living hell. “You have a family with me, Millie. I’m your support system now so we need to figure out how to move forward from this....get you away from this other job you do.” of course, Niklaus didn’t actually know how incredibly hard that would be for Matilda to do because he was still unaware of how dangerous these people were. And it didn’t seem as if she’d be giving him names anytime soon. “Do you know how fucked up this all sounds? What are we suppose to do? Where do we go from here? What do I have to do to keep you and our baby safe?” there were so many questions he needed answers too, but he decided to circle back to one of the first questions he’d asked her. “Why now? Why did you choose tonight to spring this all on me?”

“You don’t know that.” Matilda couldn’t help but murmur at the blonde’s attempt at reassurance that he wouldn’t hate her, she knew what was coming after all. Taking one more steadying breath she leant forwards to press her lips to his in a soft kiss, hand cupping his cheek, wanting one more before she revealed all because there was every chance she may never get one again after. The thought broke her heart, but she knew it was what she had to do. Starting from the beginning meant literally starting from the very beginning in her book. “So you know when I was younger that I used to hunt with my dad, it was basically the only bonding thing we ever did together, so even though I didn’t love it I would keep going with him as much as he wanted so we could spend time together. My dad left when I was older though, just vanished out of nowhere, and never came back again. Mom said it was something I shouldn’t dwell over because….well his life was somewhere without us now, but we still had each other. She was right, it took me some time to see that, but she was absolutely right. So everything was fine until mom got sick…when she died I was left with no one and my entire family had just vanished like my dad had. And you know how important family is to me.” Her voice was scratchy thanks to all the crying, hand absentmindedly going to her stomach as she spoke about the importance of family because the one thing that slipped into her mind was how much she’d wanted a baby of her own ever since then. A family. Which is what she’d found in Nik.

“I didn’t know what to do so I threw myself into sorting out things for mom’s funeral and my part time job as a bakery assistant here in town. One day a woman came into the bakery asking specifically to see me.” Her chest was clenching with each passing word but she pressed on, trying to ignore the sensation that she was on the brink of throwing up with nerves every time she opened her mouth. “She started talking to me about a job opportunity, told me that she’d known my family before they had all gone, and that she’d made them a promise to look out for me if anything happened to them. It sounded too good to be true but I was grieving, I wanted a support network, I wanted a family. So when she brought up my knowledge of guns and told me that in exchange for working for their business I would gain an entire new family….I was sucked in. Before I knew what was happening…” This was it, this was where she had to reveal to him her second life. The thing that made her a monster. The big she’d refused to show him until now. “There is a huge underground crime situation here in Crystal City, and I found myself smack bang in the middle of it. It was too late though, I couldn’t get out because by the time I knew what was happening I knew too much. And maybe part of me didn’t want to get out because… these people were actually looking out for me when I had no one else. At least I thought they were. I would be given targets, I had to take them out.” It wasn’t very clear what she was trying to explain to him no doubt, her lips trembling as another hot tear spilled down her cheek. “I became a… have you seen Killing Eve? I became like her, like Oksana….Villanelle…I became the person they came to when they wanted to take out a hit. I became a fucking monster.” She broke off, unable to look him in the eye so instead staring at the floor next to the sofa as her vision swam. How was she meant to launch into part two of this little story, it still felt so surreal to her. “And I can’t stop because if I stop, they’ll kill me.”

Niklaus shook his head gently at Matilda’s murmured words because he couldn’t imagine any conversation with her ending with his love for her turning into hatred instead. Their relationship had been so good up until now. They didn’t fight, or argue....and if they did disagree on something it was always just playful banter. Nothing serious. Niklaus was so happy with his life right now, so happy with who he was with and what they had created together. With a baby on the way Niklaus finally felt like he had everything he needed in his life. He returned the kiss, even though the fear in him was beginning to rise, his eyes meeting her own once she’d pulled back to speak again. He didn’t say a word at first, just listening intently while she spoke about her father, and how she used to hunt. Of course, Niklaus had already known this about her--- hell they’d spoken about it the day they’d met. Still, with the information he had....the blond couldn’t work out where this was going or what she was going to tell him. So far, Niklaus couldn’t see any reason to react negatively to her words. In fact, as she spoke about her father leaving he found himself reaching for her hand again and giving it a gentle squeeze of comfort. He kept her hand in his own while she continued on about her mothers passing.....nodding at the mention of the importance of family. He knew what family meant to her. He knew she missed her mother more than anything. And he knew how excited she was to become a mother herself. Family was important to both of them, which was just one of the reasons why they connected so well. His expression faltered slightly as she continued on about this other job opportunity she had, or more specifically the mention of her gun skills. Sure, Niklaus knew his girlfriend had handled guns for hunting as a child, but he couldn’t imagine her with one these days. He was going to cut in and ask her what exactly this business was, but he’d promised not to speak until she’d finished....and he was trying hard to keep that promise. It didn’t mean he was going to hold back on his reactions though. He probably looked very confused right now, or just in utter disbelief as  Matilda said she was apart of some underground crime situation in Crystal City. As if....that was his initial thought. There was no way that this sweet, kind, bakery owner he called his girlfriend was a criminal. This felt like some kind of nightmare. Hearing her say that she was given targets to take out was what initially caused Niklaus to slowly let go of her hand, and lean back slightly, brows furrowing. Surely he hadn’t heard that right. Niklaus’ career choice revolved around saving lives and helping those that needed it. He’d treated so many people who were inches away from death. Lost a few along the way too. The thought of his girlfriend killing people was something he couldn’t wrap his head around. “Whoa, what do you mean--- take them out? You don’t kill people, Millie. Come on...” he knew this was nothing to joke about, but fuck he was really hoping she was about to turn around and say she was kidding. He knew that wasn’t going to happen though. “You wouldn’t hurt a fly...and you expect me to believe that you take out hits for....for who exactly?” he was still trying to process all this information, still in disbelief....which was causing his emotions to be held back right now. “You’re not a monster....you’re not a killer. Taking lives? There’s no fucking way.” he was in denial, refusing to believe any of this was true.

Matilda allowed Niklaus to take the lead because if there was one thing she knew it was that he was probably the most rational thinking one of the two of them right now. Her mind was all over the place, making her scattered, fearful, impulsive, and the way she was hyperventilating from panic was making her head start to spin nastily. When he took her hand she clung hold of it with both of her own, doing her best to calm her breathing as she mumbled an apology. “I’m sorry, I don’t want to scare you.” Then again she was scared herself so it was hard not to have that overflow into her boyfriend as well. It was certainly seeping into the atmosphere right now. “I really….don’t be scared…it’s okay.” Was she telling herself or Niklaus? Even  Matilda wasn’t sure at this point. Once she was sat on the sofa she could at least eliminate the fear of passing flat out on the floor, her pregnancy making her feel nauseous, or was it the worry? She had no idea. Everything was up in the air, everything was so confusing.

As he sat down next to her she reached over to wrap her arms around him, feeling warmth radiating across her temple as his lips connected with her forehead. God he was such a good man, which Ade it even worse that she was going have to at some point drop a monumental bomb on their whole relationship, everything they had built in an admittedly short time but that didn’t make it any less real. “I want you and the baby more than anything in the world too, you’re so perfect, it’s all I’ve ever wanted.” Speaking those words which were so true made her start crying all over again, tears dribbling down her cheeks as she lapsed into silence, grateful for how patient he was. There was a pain in her chest that was creeping down into her stomach from the horrible situation, how she could have pulled the love of her life into something so twisted was impossible to rationalise, it had been selfish. So disgustingly selfish. Matilda had spent so long separating her crime life from her daily life she’d managed to convince herself they weren’t connected but of course they were, one could not be without the other, just like Nik could not be in her life when she only knew about one of them. Sitting up she took a deep breath, taking both his hands in her own, turning slowly so she could look at him with red rimmed eyes. “Niklaus…I need to tell you something and…I don’t even know how to go about it. It’s so…I just don’t know where to start, but you need to know if we’re going to have this baby together, which is literally all I want in the world. With their messy blond or brown hair, and helping us in the bakery, our little mini muffin. But if you hate me when I tell you…I’ll understand that too.” Her whole body was trembling along with her voice as she swallowed hard. “Just promise me you’ll let me tell you the whole story before you…do anything. And it’s nothing about the baby, the baby is fine and I swear it’s yours. I’ve never cheated on you, i swear.”  Because had she been in his situation that would probably be the first fear she’d have. 

The fact that Matilda thought Niklaus was going to hate her after she told him this news was making the blond feel a little sick to his stomach. He was trying not to assume anything at the moment, but it was difficult to keep his mind from doing that. And yes, maybe for a moment he was trying to prepare himself for news that she’d possibly cheated on him. He felt a wave of guilt wash over him for allowing himself to think, for even a second, that Matilda would do anything like that to him. Luckily, with her last words, that thought quickly left his mind. With that now gone, Niklaus was once again confused as to what his girlfriend was about to tell him. They’d been dating for a whole three months now. They’d talked a lot in that time. About their future, about their kids, about family....Niklaus liked to think he knew his girlfriend pretty well and yet, he didn’t know what to expect right now. “I’m not going to hate you...” his words were soft, even though he was unsure of how exactly he’d react to this news. Still, in no world would Niklaus ever hate this woman. She was one of the most important people in his life. She had hold of his entire heart. “Just...um... Niklaus was good at remaining calm in situations that made him stressed or worried, but he was being tested now. “Just start from the beginning and tell me what’s going on. No interruptions, I promise.” words he’d probably soon regret, but he didn’t know that. Matilda had the floor now. This was her chance to explain.

The kiss was an act of desperation, a whimper leaving her throat as her boyfriend pulled away from it, the weight in her chest so heavy it was starting to physically pain her. “I… you might…leave me I don’t know I just don’t want to have to live without you and I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry Nik, I love you, I never want to hurt you ever.” Millie sucked in a shuddering breath, nodding at the idea that they sit down in the lounge so they could talk a little easier. She had no idea what she was going to say to him yet, but at least that would be a sort of base for them. The tight embrace he pulled her into was returned tenfold, nails digging into his back as she clung to him viciously. How were they ever going to get through this, it seemed so impossible to her right now. When they finally started towards the lounge her legs were trembling badly, her arm still holding tightly to her boyfriend as the tears still ran down her cheeks. Her other hand placed flat on her stomach to protect their baby from all the turmoil there was going on outside, the nightmare they were going to be bringing he or she into, it felt so cruel. “You still want to have a baby with me right? You haven’t changed your mind or anything?” It was like she was giving him the chance to get out of it while he still could but she knew in her heart neither of them wanted that. Had the roles be reversed and he had been asking her these same questions she would have no doubt of her answers, but still Matilda felt she ought to ask him just that one last time. Sitting down heavily on the sofa she pulled the blonde down with her, getting as close to him as possible to nestle her entire body against his, sniffing as a tear dropped onto the shoulder of his shirt. “Today has been…a really bad day. I’m sorry I’m being like this. I know you probably just wanted to relax this evening after work.”

"You’re scaring me a little bit, babe...” Niklaus admitted softly, still wondering what she could possibly tell him that’d make him want to leave her? It made absolutely no sense to him because he couldn’t think of Matilda doing anything that would ever put him in a position to leave. She was the sweetest, most caring person he’d ever met. Always surprising him with the little cakes and cookies she baked at Me, Myself and Pie. Making sure he was always fed and happy and taken care of especially after those long tiring shifts at work. What could Matilda have possibly done that needed this much of an apology from her. He could hear the fear in her tone, like she was sure this whole conversation was going to flip suddenly, but Niklaus refused to believe it would go south anytime soon. He loved Matilda with his entire heart. They were having a baby together, starting a small family together. Niklaus hadn’t felt happiness like this in a long time, and his girlfriend was definitely the main source of these feelings. Maybe it was dangerous, to rely on someone else for your happiness, but Niklaus had done just that  “Come on...” he reached down for her hand and gently gave it a squeeze of reassurance, leading her back down the hallway and over to the sofa in the lounge room. He made sure she was sat down before anything else, not wanting her to pass out or anything crazy like that. At the moment it seemed as though she was slowly making her way down that road. She looked a little light headed, and if sitting down could avoid a possible fall then sitting down had to happen before this conversation could continue. “Babe...” her question made his heart hurt. Was she having doubts about all of this? About their child? He couldn’t be sure. “Has someone said something to you?” he sat down next to her, hand still holding tightly onto her own. “You and this child are my whole life, Millie. I want you and this child more than anything else in this entire world.” he let go of her hand so he could wrap it around her shoulders instead, kissing the side of her head. “Hey, no--- it’s okay. You never have to apologise for that. I’m here for you. If you wanna talk about your bad day we can do that....or we can just sit in silence for a little while until you’re ready to talk.” he pressed another kiss to the side of her head, wishing he could just take away all the sadness he knew she was feeling.

Kainoa appreciated Niklaus’ openness to learning and immediately started thinking of songs she could use to teach him. “I’ll have to start finding songs I can teach you, its one of the easiest ways to learn a language whos words are so steeped in culture and tradition. I can think of a couple of mele’s to start out with” realizing he probably didn’t know what a mele was she clarified “mele are traditional songs that hold great meaning, you’ve probably heard them when you have seen hula danced.” It was strange how comfortable she was discussing these things with him, anytime she tried to talk about these things at school she got ignored or scoffed at. Or if actual notice was given she was quickly tokenized and expected to represent all of her culture in its “exotic and untamed beauty”. If one more white boy quoted south pacific at her she was going to scream. She wasn’t surprised that she had been able to keep her head. Keeping calm in tense, and potentially dangerous situations were something her childhood had taught her rather quickly.  Unfortunately, she also knew that this meant that she would be curled up with a bottle tonight as the stress hit her in a delayed reaction. “It pays to keep calm in hectic situations, definitely makes call time easier. If I didn’t suck at science so much I might have become an EMT like you” she joked, finishing off her cigarette and blowing the smoke away into the rain before grinding it out. 

"Sounds like the best way to get me to remember something. Through song lyrics.” Niklaus nodded gently. It was weird, at times, how the mind worked. For example, Niklaus could remember songs from way back in the 80′s, 90′s. Songs that he hadn’t heard in years. If an old song from his childhood started playing, the lyrics would just resurface in his brain so he could sing along. And yet....if you asked the man what he had for dinner two nights ago, he wouldn’t be able to tell you. “Mele..” he repeated after her, as if making a mental note of the word and what it meant. Learning about different cultures had always been something that could hold Niklaus’ interest. He had dreams of travelling to many different places in the near future. Hawaii being just one of them, so having a friend around to teach him about the place was definitely going to come in handy. In fact, talking about it right now was only making him wanna go home and book a holiday there asap. "Takes a lot of control to stay calm in hectic situations.” there had been times when even Niklaus had to remind himself to stay calm when he’d been responding to a call while working. He couldn’t afford to stress out, or let his emotions get the better of him while working because people’s lives were often on the line. Getting through a work shift without stressing out was easy, but often at times that built up stress was what hit him hard when he got home. “I mean, you’ve still got plenty of time to study hard and become an EMT. And if you do become one I’ll have to ditch my current work partner and request to be paired up with you.”

Matilda’s hand went to cover Niklaus’ on her cheek as he cupped her face, his sweetness making it even harder for her not to burst into tears. Everything had been so perfect and now it felt like her life was in freefall. Nodding her head she tried to reassure him of the most important thing first, knowing it would be a concern in the front of his mind. “The baby is fine, the baby is fine, I just need to be with you.” She murmured as her hands remained holding onto him tightly even as they had pulled out of her hug, her breath was shuddering. The ring she knew was in her bag burnt a fiery hole there she wished would go away. It was the tangible reminder of the situation she was in. “Listen to me, listen, I love you so much and nothing will ever change that.” She told him fervently, feeling tears at the waterline of her eyes and silently hoping they didn’t come out.

No such luck, next moment she could feel the hot tears rolling down her cheeks. He was so lovely and she was going to destroy everything they had. He was trying to comfort her but could have no idea of what was making her so stressed, probably would never guess in a million years. “I’m not okay because I just need to be with you, please don’t leave me.” Meant literally and also I the frame of their embrace right now. If he was touching him then he couldn’t go anywhere, that was her rational. “You could do something really terrible and I’d still love you, literally anything could happen and I’d still love you, I want our little family more than anything in the world” She sniffed, throat thick with the tears. Standing on her toes she kissed him desperately, the salty tears mingled with the taste of his lips.

Each sentence that left Matilda’s lips were just adding onto the worry slowly beginning to take over. He shook his head when she told him not to leave her, a thought that had never once crossed his mind since the moment they’d met. Niklaus had known from the start that he needed this woman in his life in any way he could get it. Luckily for him, that had later resulted in a relationship. “Leave you? Why would I ever do something like that? We’ve got all the time in the world, baby. I’m here....I’m not going anywhere...” he was still completely unaware with what was going on right now, but his concern and confusion was growing by the second. “Has something really terrible happened?” had he done something terrible that he was unaware of? “What are you talking about?” okay, maybe now he was starting to realise that he needed answers. Of course, comforting her was his number one priority, but the man needed to know why his girlfriend was crying, and saying all of these things. Before he could speak again, he felt her lips against his own and returned the kiss. Even in situations like this, when he was very confused, and maybe even a little scared...he wouldn’t reject a kiss from the love of his life. He wanted her to know just how much he loved her, and actions spoke louder.... “Baby...” he mumbled into the kiss after a moment, putting a small space between their lips so he could speak. “How about we go sit down in the lounge and you can talk to me, okay? About whatever’s making you this upset....we can figure something out. I’ll help you with whatever you need...” wiping the tears away from her cheeks, Niklaus pulled her into another tight embrace.

The idea of going home right now hadn’t even crossed Matilda’s mind because if she was on her own she didn’t think she’d know how to cope. From the second Mason had revealed the monumental smack in the face that she was expected to marry him the only person on her mind had been Niklaus. The baker wanted to be near him, she just wanted to hold him, because while everything in her life felt so crazy it couldn’t be real, she knew he most defiantly was. They had been planning on seeing each other later that evening after Matilda had locked up the bakery, but those plans had been interrupted, leading her to arrive at his house a couple of hours early. With a shaking hand she had to try three times to get Nik’s key in the lock before succeeding, teeth sunk into her bottom lip to stop herself from crying all over again.

Hearing his voice sent a rush through her entire body, prompting the woman to follow the sound until she came across her boyfriend in the hallway, not even bothering to say hello before she wrapped her arms around him tightly. Burying her face in his chest as she held onto him tighter than she ever had before, a shuddering breath escaping her that threatened to turn into a sob. “I love you so much” She murmured in a muffled voice against his t-shirt, fingers curling against his back as she clung to him like a limpet. “You love me right? You really love me?” Craving the sweet words to provide some comfit as she lifted her face to look up at him, pale cheeks below eyes that were full of genuine distress. Millie didn’t even know if she was going to be able to tell Niklaus the truth about what had gone on that afternoon yet, but she did know it was a ticking time bomb before she literally had no choice in the matter.

Niklaus had just stepped into the hallway when he caught sight of his girlfriend. Within seconds she’d wrapped him up in a hug, and without a second beat, Niklaus was doing the same. “Hi, baby.” he smiled, because at the moment he couldn’t sense that something was wrong, couldn’t see the look of distress in her eyes while her face was buried into his chest. After long days at work, Niklaus always looked forward to the moment he’d get to see Matilda. It was something to keep him in a relatively good mood during those 10+ hour shifts, and having her in his arms right now was exactly what he wanted. It was only when she spoke again that his brows furrowed slightly. “Of course I love you. I love you so much.” he told her softly. Only now, was the man able to make proper eye contact with his girlfriend and as soon as he had, Niklaus knew something was troubling her. “What’s wrong? Are you okay? Is the baby okay?” his hands moved up to her cheeks, resting gently against the sides of her face as he leaned in to press a kiss to her forehead, his instinctive response being to try and comfort his girlfriend even before he knew what was going on. All he knew was that she was upset about something and that was enough for the man. All that mattered to him now was doing anything in his power to fix that, because that’s the kind of person Niklaus was--- always going out of his way to try and make things easier for those that truly needed it.

After finishing work for the day, Niklaus had gotten home and almost immediately fallen asleep. He told himself he’d only rest his eyes for a couple of minutes, but two whole hours later was when he’d actually woken up. It was about 5pm when he’d gotten himself up from his couch, one of his dogs barking away had been the initial cause of the interrupted sleep. Probably a good thing he was woken up anyway because it gave him time to get himself freshened up before Matilda arrived later on that day. He was still in the clothes he’d left for work in, still needed to shower and maybe even get a start on dinner for him and his girlfriend. He thought he’d have plenty of time to do all those things, but by the time he heard the front door of his house being unlocked, he’d only actually managed to get the shower and clean clothes out of the way. Matilda had come over earlier than expected. Not that he minded. In fact, the earlier the better. Just meant that maybe they could cook dinner together later on. Plus, seeing his girlfriend always put him in a good mood.

“Someone’s early----” he called out from the bedroom, ruffling a hand into his damp hair as he made his way out of the bedroom to greet his girlfriend. He knew it was her--- she was the only one with the spare key to his place, after all. They’d made an exchange of house keys with one another soon after finding out Matilda was pregnant. It had come in handy because  Niklaus wanted Matilda to have complete access to his place whenever she needed it. “...not that I’m complaining or anything.” the man added as he headed towards the front of his house to properly greet his girlfriend.