⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀< ❈Branch's POV❈ >
Branch had his teeth gritted together tightly as he was roused from his sleep. He was once again reminded of the agonizing pain scorching through his broken leg. A cast was cocooned around it and it was propped up on a pillow. He had memories of last night, finding Iris in the forest and fighting off that beastly spider. Finding his daughter had been a struggle. He hadn't been out in that forest for over a decade and hardly found his way around.
Suddenly, the door to his room gently opened up. He noticed it was one of the doctors and sighed. Were they were to draw blood again? Or perhaps lecture him for what he was "doing wrong"?
But the doctor was smiling a bit as she approached him. "Hello, King Branch, how do you feel?" she asked.
"I'm feeling okay," he replied, glancing down at his injury. Everything else in him seemed to be doing okay except for his leg.
"Well, I'm just here to tell you that you'll be released from the hospital today. Also, your family is here to see you." The doctor turned away and left him alone in his room once again.
Branch blinked and laid his head back down on the pillow. He remembered his little argument with Poppy yesterday after Iris' absence had been noticed. He felt instant regret. Why had he yelled at her like that? None of this was her fault. I call her irresponsible. And the thing is, when I said it, I had wanted her to hear it. Geez, I'm such an idiot!
He knew it would be a little awkward seeing Poppy now. But he would make it up to her. An idea was already creeping through his mind on what he could do. But before he thought anymore deeply into it, the door swung open again.
There stood Poppy and Iris, staring at him with concern shimmering in both their gazes. Iris seemed the most relieved.
The young blue-skinned Troll rushed over to her father, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and burying her face into his chest. Branch patted the back of her head and hugged her back.
"I'm sorry, Dad," Iris whimpered against him, the wetness of her tears soaking through his leafy vest. "I'm so stupid! I could've killed you." She lifted her face from his body, shiny droplets sliding from her glistening pink eyes and dampening her cheeks.
"No, no, no," Branch muttered, holding his daughter against him and nuzzling her forehead. "You're not an idiot. I'm not mad at you, I promise. Everyone makes mistakes. I make mistakes, your...mother has made mistakes." He flashed a quick look up at his wife who was watching them with a blank expression. He pushed away another flash of guilt and focused on the crying teenager Troll in his arms. He stroked her face with his hands, using his thumbs to wipe away the tears. He smiled at her affectionately, kissing her forehead a couple times. He felt bad for her. She was obviously traumatized from the event. Branch would leave her alone about it. Originally, he was going to have punishments inflicted upon her. But now...there was no way he wanted to do that. Sure, she needed to learn her lesson. But he knew that experience out in the forest was punishment enough for her. She'd almost been killed and had to watch her father suffer injuries. Watching him hit that tree trunk could've looked very different from her eyes. She could've seen his face hit the wood instead of his leg and then wonder if he'd broken an important bone.
"Were you scared I had died, Cupcake?" Branch asked. Cupcake was a nickname he'd had for her for years. It started when she was still a baby and had muttered her first word: cupcake. He remembered being so excited by hearing her say something for the first time, that he just started calling her Cupcake.
Iris nodded. "You could've died because of me," she muttered, guilt ringing thickly around her voice.
"Shh," he murmured, bringing her closer against him and brushing her pointy blue ears with his hand. "Don't cry. Don't feel bad. I'm okay, aren't I? This is a minor injury." He sat there holding his daughter for a very long time with Poppy watching them from where she stood.
Eventually, the doctor entered the room and announced it was time for Branch to leave. He was given a pair of crutches. At the sight of them, he instantly remembered all those years ago when Creek had attacked him and Poppy so viciously, they'd been thrown in the hospital together. At that time, Poppy had been close to death. But that was also when she discovered her pregnancy. Branch had been so excited and proud, ready to be a father. Now he was one, and it was probably the greatest thing in the world.
He took the crutches, thanking the doctors and nurses for their tender care and led his family out of the building. The chilly air pierced his skin as they stepped out into the open. He could feel fall in the breeze once again, knowing there wasn't much time left of summer. But it was fine. Fall was not a bad season and often brought pretty views from the different colored leaves.
Poppy was keeping her distance from Branch as they walked back to their pod. He felt sad now. He just wanted the Queen to know he was sorry. But he wasn't going to have that conversation around Iris. She did not know her parents had been fighting yesterday. It had all happened again last night after Poppy came rushing over to the hospital. She had tried to sit down and have a conversation with him, but Branch had still been in a terrible mood.
"Branch, I'm sorry! Why can't you see that?" Poppy shouted, tears beginning to glisten in her bright pink orbs. She was sounding desperate and Branch could tell she did not want to argue.
The bright blue Troll glared at her, the stinging pain in his leg only building up his rage. "You didn't want to go out and save her!" he snapped. "I love my daughter in case you haven't noticed and if she's in trouble, I will go and rescue her!" He was trembling now, rage boiling like a wildfire through his veins.
Poppy shook her head. "Branch, that's not the case at all! You misunderstood me!" The tears trailed down her face now. "I was just afraid you'd get hurt. I don't wanna lose you."
"So you'd pick me over your own daughter, huh?" Branch scoffed. "I get we're married, Poppy, but shouldn't Iris come first? Her life is ten times more precious than ours and if you just want to keep me from saving her from possible death, then how can we be together?"
The Queen gasped in shock at his words. "W-what are you trying to say?" she whined. "That we should divorce? No, Branch! I love you! Please!" She was crying and trembling like the was no tomorrow, slumping down towards the fluffy ground and hanging her head low. "Please don't do this..."
Branch watched her, feeling extremely guilty. He had not meant divorce at all. "Poppy..." he muttered, tears beginning to rise up in his eyes.
The pink Troll scrambled to her feet, her eyes wild with fury. "Fine, Branch! Fine! You know, I really thought you were different! When you confessed your love to me, I legitimately thought you were going to be a keeper, but I guess I was wrong! Oh, so wrong!" She turned towards the door, preparing to leave.
"Poppy, no! I didn't mean—"
"Save it, Branch. I don't wanna hear it." With that, the Queen had stomped out of the room, slamming the door loudly behind her.
The memory faded from Branch's brain. He had his gaze fixed on the ground as he shuffled himself forward on his crutches. He hated himself for what he had did, for what he had said. Poppy had just been looking out for him. He knew she never wanted Iris to get hurt and most likely would've sent out a rescue party for her. Poppy was nowhere close to selfish and if anyone knew that, it was Branch.
The family walked on in silence until they approached the pod. Branch let Poppy come forward and open it up, letting them inside.
Iris was still looking shaken from what was happening to even realize the distance between her mother and father. "Hey, Cupcake?" Branch muttered, moving closer to his beloved daughter. "Why don't you go up to your room and get some sleep?" He moved one hand forward but kept the crutch propped under his armpit. He brushed his fingers against Iris' face, smiling warmly. "You just need to calm down."
Iris stared up at him for a few seconds before nodding, turning away and heading towards her room. Branch swallowed down anxiety that was rising in his body like icy water. He had been planning what he would say to Poppy in his apology, but was scared it wouldn't be enough.
He turned, seeing the Troll Queen watching him with a gaze that was mixed with all sorts of emotions—mostly resentment. She backed away from him as he looked at her.
"What do you want?" she asked in a flat tone.
"Poppy, I'm sorry," Branch muttered. "You have no idea how much I hate myself right now. You don't deserve to be treated like that. I'm a complete idiot." He moved a little closer to her as he saw some longing expression fill her pink gaze. "Sweetie, I love you. I love you more than anything in the world. You're perfect, you're beautiful, and you're mine." He pressed himself against her the best he could and felt her lean against him. He swayed slightly but soon regained his balance, flexing his strong muscular arms to hold himself in place. "I never wanted to divorce. I promise. I wasn't thinking straight. I was just stressed out and upset from the deal with Iris." He nuzzled the top of her sweet-scented head. "Please forgive me."
Poppy's arms wrapped around him and she burst out into a gentle cry, pressing her face into the crook of his neck. "I do forgive you, Branch," she whimpered, her voice shaky. "I'm sorry I just assumed you wanted a divorce. I was scared. We...we hardly fight and I didn't exactly know how to handle the situation." She pressed herself harder against him, her warmth seeping through his clothes. He sighed in relief.
"It's okay," he murmured lovingly. "I don't blame you for being scared. Heck, I was scared too." He felt her fluffy, soft pink hair brush against his nose and breathed in her beautiful scent. "Poppy?"
The Queen glanced up at him with an expectant gaze. "Yes?"
"Can I make it up to you?" Branch asked.
"What do you have in mind?" She tilted her head, lifting one of her hands towards her face to wipe away the tears flowing from her eyes.
"I'm not sure," Branch replied, smiling at her. "You decide."
Poppy lowered her gaze, a thinking expression filling her eyes. She suddenly snapped her head up, smirking mischievously and chuckling, pressing her mouth to his. "Oh, I know what we can do," she murmured in a sweet, seductive tone.
Branch pretended to not get what she was saying, despite the smirk already curling one end of his lips. "What would that be?" he asked.
"Let's go to our room."
The end for now! Stay tuned for chapter 8!
Question:
How many times a day do you fangirl over Broppy or Trolls in general?
My answer:
Probably over 100 times a day >_<
Leave your answer in the comments and don't forget to vote!