I'll Do The Same { Din Djarin x OC}

Chapter Thirty Two: Requiem

author's note: thank you so much for the love on the last chapter!! hopefully this one is a bit of a break from all the angst and trauma of the past few chapters... enjoy this one!

. . . . .

She wanted to rip herself from the chair, leap into Din's arms and melt into him. But even as she tried to push herself up from the chair, something in her sternum spiked with pain. She felt a cold hand on her shoulder, the droid practically telling her not to move. But to her greatest relief, the droid moved, pushing her towards him.

"Din!" Thell cried again as the droid pushed her closer.

He was lying down, flat against the bed covered in a dark blanket. His items and the Beskar armor were lying on a table beside him, along with several of his weapons. When she came close enough, she could see the bacta patches on his face, the obvious wounds where he had been hurt from the blast and the fight. He was pale, but not even half as much as he had when he had been dying in her arms. There was a blanket covering his body so she couldn't see what he was wearing, but she saw the different tubes running under the material into his skin. Ones like she had had the first few days in the bed.

Din looked as beautiful as she remembered. His facial hair had grown in, darker on his upper lip and scraggly on his jaw and chin. Had it been days, weeks, years since she had last seen him? However long it had been, it was like she was seeing his face for the first time all over again.

The droid pushed her until her knees touched the underside of the bed and she could rest her arms beside his. Din's head didn't move, only his brown eyes flickering back and forth between herself, the droid, and the kid babbling in Thell's lap.

Thoughts and memories hit her one after another, muddled in her brain like fog. She had clearly sustained a concussion during the fight with the droid, and all the details weren't clear. But most were... Like when they had equally risked their lives for each other, Thell standing over Din to shoot at the droid, and him pushing her down before the detonator went off. He must have taken the brunt of the blast, with the condition he apparently was in.

She remembered his speech too, his comments about her eyes and her hair and how warm she was. Mostly she remembered him saying her parents would be proud of her. The thought even brought tears to her eyes.

As Thell scooted right up beside him, her head level with his laying on a pillow, she sensed the droid walking away, closing the door and leaving them alone.

"Hi," she whispered, a bit breathless.

"Hi." His voice was hoarse, like he hadn't used his vocal cords in years.

She wasn't sure what else to say... What do you say to someone that you thought was going to die in your arms, someone that you wanted to stay with for the rest of your life?

Din seemed to be the same, his lep trembling slightly as Grogu peered over the bed's edge to look at him. It was silent save for the kid's small cooing as Thell helped him onto the bed, waddling over to Din's shoulder. Thell couldn't see his face clearly, so nudged herself around until she could. Grogu's eyes were wide, staring back at Din in pure curiosity and wonder. Din hadn't been opposed to the kid seeing his face, hadn't even objected verbally. He only let him wander closer, closer until his hand could just brush Din's jaw. Grogu purred softly, letting his hand run down Din's face and then leaving again. The Mandalorian had always been strong, even in his facial features. But he seemed to break under the kid's touch, his eyebrows twitching as his eyes squeezed shut. His breath shuddered when Thell touched his shoulder, letting her fingertips rest against the dark shirt he was wearing.

"I'm not dreaming... Am I?"

"Dank Ferrik," Din breathed. "I hope not."

"Din?" Thell whispered. She had meant to ask if he was okay, if she wanted them to leave for any reason. But Din's eyes opened again, and he shook his head lightly, hair falling over his forehead.