Here's To Us *Damned Coda* Matt Murdock*

10) In the shadow of a goodbye

Vera hadn't set her alarm, so she woke up on her own and without waking up Matt. That was rather rare; when sleeping together, she was usually the one getting up earlier, but always was too loud, disturbing his sleep.

Vera smiled goofily as she watched his peaceful, content expression. Matt usually had circles under his eyes, sometimes even bruises – now there was nothing. She had received a response to her instant message from Danny; he was apparently happy for them and reassured them he was watching over Hell's Kitchen just like Matt wanted. It was a logical explanation of why Matt had been so calm about leaving – he had simply passed the duty to someone else. Vera wasn't angry he had kept it from her, she was just glad it worked out. Because she was on cloud nine now – and Matt seemed content too.

She knew that this... idyll would end the moment they would be back in New York. They would still be happy, but the everyday rush and work and his other work would be consuming their time together. This was sort of a vacation. And Vera was enjoying every freaking moment.

They were supposed to meet with their friends for the cleaning up at noon, which provided everyone enough time to sleep off their hangover. She had wanted to stop by while she was in Czechia, mainly to remember her beloved Grans, but she had not quite figured out when exactly she would do it; this seemed to be a good opportunity. It was only half past nine; maybe she would be back before Matt would wake up.

The moment Vera rose from the bed though, his eyes cracked open. Her heart made a startled jump.

"Are you trying to sneak away, Ms. Machackova?" he asked sleepily, accusation in his voice.

"I am not, Mr. Murdock."

He hummed dubiously, closing his eyes again. Vera smiled, leaning into his space, kissing his temple. He made a noise that sounded more content this time.

"I'll be back soon, Matt. You can sleep," she assured him. Before she could stand up again, his hand caught her wrist.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. I just... I wanted to... I'm going to the graveyard." His eyes snapped open, his grip getting tighter before loosening.

"Okay."

Vera realized he was disappointed she was leaving him behind. She sighed, sitting on the bed by his waist, caressing his arm. His expression grew curious.

"I could take you with me, to... introduce you to Grans if you wanted to. It's just... I thought you would rather sleep."

"You thought I wouldn't want to go?" he frowned.

"It's a graveyard, Matt," Vera stated matter-of-factly, shrugging. It was pretty simple.

"Do you want me to go?"

She shrugged again. Did she? Sure, Grans was special to her, but... well, it was a grave. Matt had taken her to his father's grave when she had asked, but that was a little different. Then again.... She sighed.

"If you want to... yeah. But only if you want to."

Matt pushed up to kiss her good morning and it was the only answer she got.

---

It wasn't a disaster. It wasn't a pleasant experience either. It was a graveyard visit, permitting Matt to learn a little bit about Vera again – this whole trip do Czechia seemed to be about him exploring her personality and what had defined it.

She walked in their backyard first though, picking daisies, knowing Grans had loved them. Matt didn't comment, but Vera saw the smile he had tried to hide. Of course she cried when she was lighting up a candle; his inconspicuous smile turned sad at that.