Tapestry of Scars

Collaborative Therapy

A/N: This one is the lightest chapter yet. Still some dark themes, but peak Emison fluff (at least for this fic). And I know what you're thinking: "What is this 'happiness' you speak of?"

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Chapter 14:

Collaborative Therapy

Emily stopped by the motel to drop off the things Caleb gave her and then stopped to pick up a pizza for dinner.

Alison breathed a sigh of relief when she heard her walk through the front door. She'd just finished unloading the dishwasher. It felt so domestic. But she'd found that when she kept her mind busy it didn't become occupied with terrible thoughts about things that could happen to Emily, or terrible things Emily might do to herself.

"Honey, I'm home." Emily walked into the kitchen.

Lupo ran over to greet her. He had his eyes on the pizza box in her hands.

"That is not for you." Alison scolded him.

Emily chuckled as she put the food down on the counter.

"I did get something for him though."

Emily reached into the bag she was carrying and pulled out a smaller bag. It was plain toasted bread. Lupo loved bread. And Emily liked making him feel like he was getting to eat dinner with them, so she always picked a little something up for him. She broke off a piece of the bread and handed it to him.

"You're undermining me in front of the dog." Alison frowned.

"You're cute when you're mad." Emily reached out and took her hand. She pulled Alison towards her. She pressed a kiss against her lips. When she pulled back she looked at her with a smile. "Hi."

"Hi." Alison put her palm against Emily's neck.

The motion was so simple, but it was full of meaning. Emily had learned to take comfort in the little intimate moments they shared. Things had been different since her suicide attempt. Alison was very gentle with her. She knew the importance of when and how to touch her properly. She knew how to make Emily feel comfortable.

They'd yet to have sex again. Emily was intimidated with the idea of it given the way their last encounter had gone. They'd had a few heated make-out sessions, but Emily always stopped it before it escalated. And Alison followed her cues.

Emily was learning to love in a way that she never had before. She looked at Alison and she saw the whole world. The blonde was the best thing that had ever happened to her.

The therapy and medications were dulling some of her pain, but she still struggled. She still had nightmares, but she wasn't as panicked when she woke up, because she knew that they were just shadows of her past. And though they were painful, she didn't allow that pain to take away her power. Her panic attacks were slowly becoming less frequent. They were still intense, but she'd learned techniques to help keep her from spiraling.

She knew that the pain would never go away completely. Her doctors had told her numerous times that it could be managed, but there was no cure. There was no simple fix for emotional scars. They couldn't just throw medications at it and make it go away. It was something Emily would be working on for the rest of her life. And she understood that.

"How was work?" Emily asked. "You save any more dumbasses dying under the railroad tracks?"

"It was quiet today."

"Look at that. You've managed to cure the population of its depression." My girl.

"Mmhmm." She nodded and gave her another kiss. "Where were you today?"