Life in Fae Valley

Chapter 5: Part 3

Natalie's attention was brought back to Ziggy when a soft, almost choked sound came from him... He was fighting back tears, mouth pressed shut tight while his lower lip wobbled. These were people he hadn't seen in years... People who'd lived their lives without him and had moved on. Forgotten about him and his missing friends... He always knew it was inevitable, yet it still hurt him. Natalie slowly wrapped an arm around him and let her head rest on his shoulder, taking hold of his hand once more.

"It's okay, Ziggy... I'm sure people who love you are still out there. You said you had a brother, right? We can go find him" she suggested softly, using her free hand to wipe away his tears, the man slowly nodding a bit. "It' looks like everyone's preparing for a party down there, Zigs. Let's go give them a real reason to celebrate."

Quietly, they walked down into town, earning a few curious stares as they walked hand in hand. Brandy himself paused, his gaze hardening for a moment as he saw them holding hands yet his expression softened up again as he saw Natalie's expression and gave a soft nod, walking over. She gently let go of Ziggy's hand and leaned up a bit to give Brandy a kiss, her boyfriend returning the gesture before taking a moment to look at Ziggy who stared back.

There was silence for a moment before Ziggy nearly leapt out of his skin as a voice yelled his name, a second later a short male with hair that nearly completely hid his face knocking him over in a big hug. The man that hugged him had started to cry, Ziggy gently shifting the mans hair out of his face before starting to cry too and hugging him back.

The brothers, Ziggy and Elliot had been reunited, Elliot crying his heart out since for the longest time he had thought his little brother was deceased. Eventually, they both managed to stop crying and sat leaning their foreheads together, having a whispered conversation where they simply caught up with one another.

"ZIGZAG?! IS THAT YOU?"

Ziggy yelped as he was then tackled over again by a woman on rollerskates who hugged him tightly, squealing in delight before hitting him in the shoulder. "We were so worried you nincompoop! We thought you were dead!" She yelled at him, tears in her eyes as Ziggy stared at her for a moment before it finally clicked into place who this was.

Lizzie, his brother's girlfriend. Or perhaps wife? There was a ring on her finger. Shit he'd missed a lot. "I'm sorry, Liz... I really didn't mean it... I was kidnapped... But thankfully Natalie found me!" He chuckled, hugging his brother and Lizzie close to him, taking a moment to catch up with them both.

Lizzie wasn't his sister in law yet, but Elliot had proposed to her two years prior. Unfortunately they discovered they couldn't have kids, but were still planning to adopt in future after they were married. Ziggy had started to cry when he finally noticed his brother was missing a hand, taking a lot of reassurance to get him to calm down and let him know it wasn't in an accident and was done by a doctor, as Elliot had contracted cancer in that hand and had to have it amputated to stop it from spreading.

Brandy and Natalie watched the trio for a moment before they moved away to give them some space, holding hands as they walked together down the street in silence. Natalie was nervous to say the least of her boyfriend's reaction, after all she did disappear for almost two hours then walk back as if nothing happened with someone who'd been missing for the past 10 years.

"Brandy, listen I'm sorry but-'

"There's no need to a-apologise, pumpkin. I ain't upset, if that's w-what you're wondering. If anything, I'm r-relieved. Ziggy and Elliot are m-my cousins, everyone was distraught when Z-Ziggy and his pals went missing. You did g-good, plus I trust you."

She blinked a bit in surprise when she heard him but smiled and let her head rest against his arm as they walked, closing her eyes a bit as she felt him give her hand a gentle squeeze. He was understanding, and that simple statement meant the world to her. He trusted her. That trust was something she never wanted to break... Yet she knew the conversation couldn't end there.

She knew her boyfriend by now. He'd push his own feelings aside if it meant the comfort of others. "I initially invited Ziggy to stay by us, but now that he's with his brother again, he can stay with them... I don't want you to ever feel like you're forgotten in any part of my decisions, okay? I know you trust me and I trust you, but I also want your decisions and feelings to be validated as well. I love you, Brandy, nothing will ever become between that."

He glanced down at her for a moment before chuckling and stopping to pick her up, holding her close in his arms. "For a killing m-machine, you sure are sweeter t-than sugar, pumpkin. I love you too Natalie, ain't nothin' ever g-gonna stop that."

They stared at one another for a moment with warm smiles before startling as Eddie yelled at them, "JUST MAKEOUT ALREADY!" Natalie laughed a bit while Brandy had a furious blush on his face, trying to hide it a bit behind his hat before glancing around, then down at Natalie again.

"Might aswell."

"Pardon?-"

Natalie's words were cut off as she was suddenly dipped back, a loving kissed pressed to her lips while one of his hands held onto the back of her head, the other on her waist. Her eyes fluttered closed as she wrapped her arms around Brandy's neck, a happy sigh escaping her lips as they were intertwined in this intimate moment, faces gradually growing flushed.

Once they pulled back for air, the couple stared at one another for a moment before nodding and clearing their throats, fixing each others clothes for a brief moment.

"Home?"

"Definitely. Let's g-go."

Eddie chuckled some as he'd been the only one to watch these scene, watching as the couple practically ran back home together. He slowly rolled his eyes and sipped his beer as he sat back on the bench, wrapping an arm around Missy as she sat down beside him. "Where are those two lovebirds running off to in such a hurry?"

"To fuck like rabbits probably. And people used to call us the frisky couple in town" he chuckled, softly kissing his wife's cheek as they sat comfortably together, Missy's head on Eddie's shoulder.