Nothing Happens in Sommerville (Part Nine)

Mallory jolted awake at the sound of the front door opening. With bleary eyes, she struggled to an upright position on the bed and squinted at the lit candles illuminating the bedroom. Groaning at the crick in her neck from lying in such an uncomfortable position, she was about to ask Bennet what was going on when she spied a vase of small yellow flowers on the nightstand. Her confusion instantly vanished.

She remembered, now. Picking the flowers and lighting the candles in an effort to brighten up their sparse living quarters. She’d wanted to surprise Bennet after his meeting with the Wall Watchers. Ever since the other compounds had started needing Sommerville’s watchers to come to their aid, he’d been having to pick up more and more shifts. Giving him a romantic evening was the least he deserved after working so hard to keep Sommerville safe.

Plus, Mallory missed him.

He was getting home far later than usual. Mallory must have fallen asleep while waiting for him. She repressed a yawn as she quickly ran a hand through her bright red curls and did her best to smooth the t-shirt she was wearing. The faded band shirt was far from flattering, but it was the nicest sleepwear she'd found in the compound. Still, the sounds of his approaching footsteps chased away any of her remaining exhaustion as she reclined on the bed.

She smiled as he stopped in the doorway. Shock wasn’t a strong enough word for the look on his face as he gaped at the lit candles. In the flickering orange glow, the shadows under his eyes looked more pronounced. There was a haggard air about him as he scanned the room, before catching Mallory’s gaze.

“Mal. . . What. . .” His voice trailed off as if he couldn’t find the words.

Mallory grinned and sat up on the bed. “Welcome home, love.”

Bennet stared at her in disbelief. “Why are you still up?”

His response caught her off guard. “I. . . I was waiting for you. I wanted to surprise you.” She flashed him a coy smirk and leaned forward in invitation. “Did it work?”

Any other night and she wouldn’t have managed to get the words out before Bennet would be on her. She was expecting the same reaction this time. Instead, Bennet stayed where he was, gazing at her like he couldn't understand what was happening. He glanced around the room again, and finally seemed to shake off his paralysis as he approached the nearest candle.

“Surprise me,” he muttered. “What the hell kind of surprise is this?”

Mallory’s mind went blank at the question. It was only when he turned toward her again that she saw the thunderous scowl on his face. Before she could stammer out any sort of response, he blew out one of the candles.

“Do you have any idea how hard it is to get these?” He extinguished three more. “God, how long have you been burning them for? There’s wax everywhere!”

She frowned at the last remaining candle beside her. There really wasn’t that much of a mess around it. “At most an hour, but—”

“An hour?!” Bennet snapped. He yanked the candle from the nightstand, splashing hot wax onto his hand. He didn’t flinch. “These are for emergencies only, Mallory! You know that! How could you be so reckless?!”

The night felt heavier than usual as the only source of light sputtered in front of Bennet’s exasperated frown. He glared at Mallory as he waited for an answer and clearly grew more irritated the longer she remained quiet. She couldn’t think of what to say. She was too surprised by how upset Bennet was.

Was he actually angry about this?

“I just thought—”

“It’s obvious you didn’t!”

The harsh interruption was like a slap in the face. They stared at each other in silence, before Mallory finally had to look away from his irate glare.

“I was just trying to do something nice for you,” Mallory whispered, hating the way her voice cracked. 

Her throat tightened as Bennet groaned loudly before putting out the last candle. Thrust into the safety of darkness, Mallory allowed a tear to roll down her cheek before silently wiping it away. With almost reverent gentleness, she placed her hands on her stomach, fighting back the urge to cry as she felt the faint movements of their unborn child.

It’s alright. Everything’s alright, she told herself. He’s just tired. That’s got to be it. Nothing more.

She could hear Bennet walking to the armoire, muttering swears under his breath as he roughly flung the wooden doors open. Mallory fell back against the mattress with a shaky exhale. Bennet was furious about the candles, that was obvious. But why? It’s not like Sommerville was going to be without new supplies forever. Tye had promised once the other compounds got their trucks fixed, that everything would be back to normal. If Tye was so certain about that, why wasn’t Bennet? 

The bed creaked as Bennet sat beside her with a weary sigh. A low rhythmic drumming broke the stillness as he tapped his fingers on the mattress before glancing down at her.

“I’m sorry, Mals.” He reached for her hand, causing Mallory to turn her back toward him. “I overreacted. I’m sorry.”

Mallory responded by flipping him off. She told herself to ignore the flush on her cheeks at his quiet chuckle.

“That’s fair.” He inched closer and took a steadying breath. “I appreciate what you were trying to do. Really, I do. I just. . . I’ve had a bad night.”

“Well that makes two of us,” Mallory grumbled.

When Bennet placed his hand on her thigh, she didn’t shake him off. Taking it as a win, he gently brushed his fingers up and down her leg. Mallory managed to hold back any reaction other than annoyance, despite how badly she wanted to launch herself into his arms and forgive him. She wouldn’t let him off the hook that easily.

“I am sorry, Mallory.” He laid beside her. “Truly. I let my temper get the best of me, and I shouldn’t have.”

She glanced over her shoulder to glare at him. “Come to that conclusion all on your own, huh?”

Her eyes had adjusted in the gloom, allowing her to catch his cowed grimace. “I know. . .” He took her hand in his. “For what it’s worth, it did look nice in here.”

“I know it did,” she huffed petulantly. “Before you ruined it.”

He kissed her shoulder. “Let me make it up to you?”

Mallory closed her eyes with reluctance. A part of her wouldn’t mind that. But the truth was, she was tired. She’d wanted to talk to him about her nightmares, to have him reassure her and promise her that Sommerville was safe. It wouldn’t matter what he said now, though. His reaction to the use of a few candles had done nothing to soothe her anxieties. 

“I think I just want to sleep, Bennet.”

She could picture the disappointed look on his face as he touched his lips to her skin for a lingering moment. “Okay.”

He was so unnaturally still behind her that Mallory couldn’t relax. Finally, she lightly kicked his leg and murmured, “You can hold me, you know? I’m not mad.”

His arms encircled her before the words had left her lips. In spite of herself, Mallory smiled as one of Bennet’s hands rested on her stomach with a relieved sigh. He pressed a kiss to her cheek and breathed in the scent of her like he needed it to live.

“I love you.” He said the words like a prayer. “I love you so much, Mallory.”

“Love you, too,” she yawned, snuggling closer to him, the annoyed facade already forgotten.

Mallory was starting to doze off when she heard him whisper, “You know I’d do anything for you, right?”

“Mm.” She nodded sleepily. “Know that.”

“Anything, Mallory.”

Something in his tone made her frown. She turned in his arms until they were face-to-face and she could see just how serious he was being. His expression belonged to a man that was haunted by things Mallory couldn’t begin to fathom. She knew he really meant it when he said he’d do anything for her.

And that frightened her.

“What do you—”

He interrupted her again, this time with his lips against hers. Mallory didn’t protest, but her heart pounded at the desperate manner with which he kissed her, as if this were the last time he ever could. When Bennet finally pulled away, he held her with near-suffocating strength. She wrapped her arms around him just as tightly, albeit with some confusion over his frantic behavior.

The minutes ticked away into hours. Mallory didn’t move as she rested her head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat. After some time, Bennet must have assumed she’d fallen asleep as he rested his chin on the crown of her head.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” he promised. “I’ll keep lying—killing—if that’s what it takes to keep you safe. Even when the dome breaks and the walls crumble, I’ll never let anything happen to you. Never.”

It took all of Mallory’s self-control to hold back a scream.