Captain John Price x Reader

Thirty-Four

With your arms locked, you and Price walked down the city center's main shopping street and pretended to look at all the windows.

Every now and then he'd stop and make you look longer so that the two of you could have short, casual chats and exchanges of opinions.

It really did feel like some couple time.

For the first time in years you felt normal.

Strangely enough, you felt comfortable. Especially by his side. He made you feel calm, without the need to be your outgoing, bigmouthed self.

The bake shop was a few meters ahead, but Price seemed in no rush. He was good at pretending to be a normal guy.

The workers were still unloading freshly baked goods. The entire street smelled of soft bread with crunchy outsides and sweet treats like cupcakes and cookies.

You could already feel the hunger eating into your stomach walls.

If the Germans knew how to do one thing it was how to make bread. It was insane how many varieties they had.

And every single one of them seemed to be perfection in its own kind of way.

"Shit, I'm hungry...", you mumbled.

Price huffed.

It was a soft sound, almost as if he was enjoying your little neediness.

"I'll buy you something after.", he said and stopped in front of a window that was packed with jewellery.

You glanced up.

"Trauringe.", you read. "My German isn't good, but that's definitely nothing we would want to look at."

With his attention turned towards the engagement and wedding rings that were sparkling behind the safety glass, he shrugged.

"Just because you don't need it doesn't mean you can't admire the beauty of it, eh?", he asked, his attention caught by a pair of rings.

They were simple, no stones or extras, just two small bands of silver. Or platinum, it was hard to tell apart.

Your eyes lowered as you noticed how interested he was in them.

A deep breath escaped you.

"I know we should stay professional and keep private stuff private.", you huffed, amused by your own foolishness. "But do you got someone waiting at home to put a ring on?"

His eyes moved to the watches.

A silver one with a leather band was already shimmering on his wirst, so he couldn't have been in need of one.

It felt like he was trying to get you to forget he had looked at the rings.

Your grip around his arm loosened.

Strangely, he tensed, so that your hand wasn't able to slip away further.

"Never had the time to care for such things.", he admitted in a low voice. "I don't know if I ever will be someone's husband."

Something inside your chest got heavy.

You knew you'd never be someone's better half. Having a significant other in the first place seemed like something of the impossible.

Let alone marriage.

The job wasn't meant for that.

Sometimes you still regretted the decision.

"Do you want to be?", you asked and glanced at the rings.

He did have good taste, nothing too fancy but still flattering enough for someone to be happy to wear it.

He managed to tear his eyes away from the window and look at you.

With his lips pressed into a thin line, he breathed out. His chest rose and fell in a calm way.

Swallowing hard, you couldn't help but take in every little detail about him.

There was a small mole on the tip of his narrow nose. Whenever he gifted you his cheeky, passive aggressive smile, it pulled together and almost disappeared.

But in that moment it seemed like the most remarkable thing about him.

"Everyone needs someone at some point, innit?", he asked back. "I mean... Who wants to die on the battlefield, knowing nobody will ever grief your death?"

A bitter snort made your chest tremble.

"You want to be married so that others will feel pain when you die?", you turned away, freeing yourself from him. "Cruel."

His hand twitched. But he didn't reach out to grab and pull you back.

"Not really. I just... don't want to die lonely."

"Hm. Luxury."

Not being able to hide the disappointment that was growing inside your chest, you turned away to walk towards the bake shop.

He was longing for something every human being did at some point in life.

But at the same time he wanted something that you didn't even have the option to want.

It hurt to know that he had the privilege to care about such things. At the same time you knew that it wasn't his fault.

A younger version of you had made decisions that now came around to bite you.

In the end it didn't matter if you were crying about it or not. Nothing would change.

And it was your fault. Now all you could do was live with it.

Taking in a deep breath, you closed your eyes for a moment and gathered your thoughts.

It felt like chaos was raging inside your brain while your stomach felt like it would turn any moment.

Again, you took a deep breath.

The air tasted like rain. It smelled of iron.

The voices calmed down.

Then you turned back to meet Price with a smile.

It was a bad gimmick and he was probably smart enough to see through it right away.

But you needed to make the people around believe everything was fine.

"We can discuss marriage another time, honey.", you offered him your hand to take. "I think we've got more important things to take care of."

For a moment his bright blue eyes were glued to the palm of your hand.

His breathing was calm, but a shadow inside his eyes showered that there was something bothering him.

He reached out and grabbed the hand.

The difference in size made your heart jump.

He really did have paws like a grizzly. But they felt surprisingly soft.

Only the tips of his nails were slightly chipped, probably due to work.

"Let's go, luv.", he breathed a kiss to the top of your head. "Let's not loose our head about it, eh?"