The Ballads of Rebirth (Arthur Morgan x Reader)

On A Sunny Day There Was a Railroad Car

Lee was distant. Even in your shared bed, it felt like sleeping next to a stranger. His kisses felt like he was imagining something else. And all you could do was watch.

He would brush you off when you would ask if he was okay. Lee's father was the only one who acted normal, like his diagnosis had never happened. The only thing that ever gave away that Lee's father was sick was the occasional pain in his side that caused him to nearly double over. You were glad Mr. Rinascita was living in the now, and not like he had received his death sentence.

Mr. Rinascita had once told you, "A person cannot get any sicker by being happy."

And perhaps that was true, and perhaps that was what made Arthur's death more bearable. Arthur wasn't happy in his last few days, and he had kept you at an arm's distance, even though he embraced everyone else. He had lived his life with you and it was time to live his life with those he had pushed out. Arthur loved you more than he had loved anything else, but to lessen the pain of his death was even more painful than his actual passing. But you had found someone who eased that pain further, a man who brought butterflies to your chest every time. You had buried Arthur, and you were hoping Lee would not have to bury his father like you had.

Arthur was your man for so long, he was your beginning, and you had been his ending. But Lee was your ending. You loved two wildly different men, from two wildly different periods of time in your life, and for that you were grateful, to have the opportunity to love two men who loved you so dearly.

One night though, about a week and a half after the diagnosis, Lee was rather loving, like a switch had been flicked and he had returned to his old self. You were closing up the store after a particularly slow day, and he came right to your side.

You eyed him suspiciously, while he snuck quick glances at you, averting his eyes everytime you noticed him looking. You shyly smiled, watching as his handsome face became flustered.

The late March setting sun fell through the windows, creating a warm glow that covered the entire store.

"My dad wants to see us get married, before he, uh, you know.." He trailed off, setting the broom on the counter. You stared at him, stunned, feeling suddenly very strange.

Your eyes followed his every movement, not finding words. He nervously fidgeted with his hands, regretting his bold actions.

"I.. I was just thinking maybe.." Lee sighed, leaning against a shelf that held candy. Lee had a sweet tooth, you stopped putting butterscotch out on the counter because Lee would just eat it all.

"Gosh, this is hard." He laughed, glancing over to your frozen stance, but only for a moment, it was only for a second that his dark eyes fell upon you, as if he would look too long and you would crumble underneath his gaze.

"My dad sure as hell doesn't have all day, and there's no use in waiting," Lee walked over to you, painstakingly slow. He stopped mere inches from you, and you could almost hear his heart beating wildly against his chest.

He looked nervous, more nervous than when you saw Arthur a year before in this same position.

"I know we haven't been together for long, but I think you're the one I want." Lee's strong hands cupped your face, and you gingerly closed your eyes.

"Would you, Mrs. Morgan, do me the honor of marrying me?"

Joy filled your heart. Excitement, love, a thousand things.

The ring was beautiful, a gold band with a small diamond in the center.

"You can love me even though I was an outlaw? You can love me even though I've already been married?" Tears sprung to your eyes, that reflected the diamond in his hand.