Chapter Text
Waverly was so excited to call and tell Wynonna and Gus back home about their news when they made it back to their hotel room that night. Then Nicole revealed that she had kind of already told them that she was going to do it which left Waverly feeling a little deflated. She did suppose that Nicole would never have asked Waverly to marry her without checking in with the two other most important people in her life first.
“You could always call and let them know you actually said yes?” Nicole grinned as she flopped back onto the bed, pulling her iPad out of the drawer beside her and waving it around in front of Waverly. Waverly jumped onto the bed and hugged into Nicole’s side as Nicole brought up FaceTime. Once it had connected, Wynonna was looking down at the screen with Alice propped up on her hip.
“Hey!” Waverly and Nicole said in unison as both Wynonna and Alice smiled down at the screen. Alice giving a quick wave and Waverly’s heart melting. She really missed Alice, she couldn’t wait to see her again…Wynonna and Gus too, of course.
“Hey! Isn’t it pretty late there?” Wynonna seemed to be checking the time on her phone, it was quite late, and they did have an early flight to catch in the morning, but they couldn’t not go out for a celebratory drink after they had got engaged .
“Yeah, a little but…” Waverly lifted her hand in view of the camera, grinning and showing off the ring on her finger.
“Ah! Yes! Congratulations!” Wynonna squealed as Waverly and Nicole looked at each other, surprised. Wynonna never squealed. She really must have been happy about it. “I thought you’d totally chickened out, Nicole!”
“Nope! Just wanted to do it at the perfect time…which didn’t exactly go to plan since Waverly found the ring box before I even managed to propose but still…” Nicole shook her head with a smile and placed a quick kiss to the side of Waverly’s head. Waverly really did feel bad about ruining Nicole’s big plans, but she just didn’t have it in her to care all that much, they were still engaged.
“Of course she did…” Wynonna laughed as she placed Alice down on the floor. “Oh, Gus just got here! Hold on!” Wynonna placed her phone down and disappeared from the screen. Waverly took the opportunity to turn and place a kiss to Nicole’s lips…her fiancée’s lips. They were interrupted by Gus clearing her throat and they both looked back to the screen a little more red in the face than before.
“Wynonna said you guys had some news…” Gus said, an eager smile on her face and Waverly lifted her hand into view once again. “Oh, girls! I’m so happy for you!”
“Thanks Gus.” Waverly beamed and snuggled even closer in to Nicole as Nicole readjusted the iPad to keep them both in the cameras sight.
“You have to come to town soon, we’ll take you out for a celebratory meal. They just opened up this really nice vegetarian restaurant!” Gus said excitedly but Waverly could hear Wynonna making fake puking noises in the background.
“That sounds great, we were actually thinking about coming the day after we get back?” Waverly and Nicole had already discussed it, they were both eager to see everyone and Waverly wanted to be able to tell Chrissy about their engagement in person. She’d been in Purgatory for the past week and seemed like she was going to be staying a little while longer from the way she was talking, so waiting until she got back to the city would simply be way too long.
“That’s perfect! I’ll make a reservation tonight.” Gus was still smiling so brightly, and Waverly couldn’t help but do the same. She’d known this day was going to come eventually, there really was only one direction their relationship had been headed for quite some time, but the fact that they were there now, well... it felt incredible.
They talked for a little while longer, telling both Wynonna and Gus about their last few days in Athens before Waverly started to feign tiredness. They said their goodbyes, Wynonna grabbing Alice, so she could too, and Nicole stored the iPad away again. She didn’t seem to realise that Waverly had been faking her yawns, but the moment Waverly pulled her in for a searing kiss, a knowing smile grew.
“Did you set the alarm?” Nicole asked breathlessly as Waverly’s lips travelled down from her mouth to her neck. Waverly hummed in confirmation, not willing to take her attention away from Nicole’s skin long enough to speak. “Ever the planner, huh?”
Waverly chuckled, Nicole knew her too well. Waverly had set the alarm while Nicole ordered their drinks earlier, she knew her mind would go elsewhere once they were alone. Waverly slowly lifted Nicole’s t-shirt, only pulling back long enough to get it over Nicole’s head before she was back against her skin. She pressed gentle kisses down Nicole’s chest as Nicole undid the clasp on her bra. Waverly removed it before her lips wrapped around an already stiffened nipple.
Nicole ran her hands through Waverly’s hair, gently moving it all to one side as she let out a heavy sigh. Waverly struggled to pull Nicole’s pants off without removing her attention from Nicole’s breast but with a little help from Nicole, they were quickly kicked off. Waverly had just enough time to let her eyes roam along all the newly exposed skin, beautifully sun kissed from all their time spent in the gorgeous weather, before Nicole pulled her in for a deep kiss.
Nicole worked quickly to remove the clothing still covering Waverly, her lips trailing further down Waverly’s body as she went. Waverly’s head fell back against the bed with a surprised gasp as Nicole’s tongue found her center the second her underwear was discarded.
Nicole worked her tongue in slow circles, which wouldn’t usually have Waverly so close so quickly but with each movement she could feel herself falling faster than she wanted to be.
“Baby...” Waverly moaned, desperately holding onto the sheets to keep herself grounded. Nicole’s eyes met hers without pulling back and Waverly tightened her hold on the covers. “Come here…please.”
Nicole moved back up Waverly’s body, peppering gentle kisses across her skin until she was close enough for Waverly to bring their lips together. She wanted Nicole as close to her as possible; she pressed her thigh between Nicole’s legs and shifted herself to straddle Nicole’s. Waverly wrapped her arms around Nicole’s back and Nicole gripped onto her hips as they rocked against each other.
They found an unhurried pace but with Waverly already being so close to the edge, she knew she wouldn’t last long. She buried her face into Nicole’s neck as Nicole began to move faster against her. Nicole’s quickened breathing and firmer grip on Waverly’s hips told her she wasn’t too far herself, but Waverly tried her hardest to hold on.
“Waves…I’m…” Nicole whimpered into her ear.
“Me too, baby.” Waverly lifted her head to bring their lips together. Just as her own orgasm surged through her, Nicole’s whole body stiffened, and she echoed the pleasure filled moans falling from Waverly’s lips.
“Shit…” Nicole’s head fell to Waverly’s shoulder as her chest heaved with every breath. Waverly let out a small chuckle that Nicole returned as she pressed her lips to Waverly’s skin.
“You asked me to marry you.” Waverly sighed happily as she urged Nicole to move up the bed with her and onto the pillows.
“I did.” Nicole beamed as she rested her palm against Waverly’s cheek. Waverly smiled as Nicole brushed her thumb softly against her skin and she was sure Nicole had never looked so content in all their time together. “And you said yes. ”
“I did.” Waverly nodded with a bright grin, pulling Nicole closer to rest their foreheads together. Nicole sighed as she nuzzled her nose against Waverly’s, she dipped her head and caught Nicole’s lips in a kiss that quickly refueled the fire burning inside her. There was zero chance that they were going to be getting an early night, even if they did need to be up at nearly the crack of dawn for their flight. They could both sleep on the plane.
By the time they were on their final flight of their trip, Waverly’s fears about flying had subsided and she managed to really enjoy her time in the air, a lot more than her first ever flight. It didn’t hurt that when Waverly mentioned that she and Nicole had just gotten engaged, the stewards paid special attention to them and even brought them some free champagne.
After one night back home, sleeping in their own bed for the first time in just over a month, they were on their way to Purgatory to celebrate with her family. Their family.
Waverly called Chrissy on their way and asked if she would like to join them for dinner after calling Gus and asking her to see if they could add one more person to the reservation. Waverly couldn’t wait to tell Chrissy their news, and as soon as she did she wrapped Waverly in a massive hug and spun her around outside the restaurant. Once Waverly’s feet were firmly on the ground again, Chrissy pulled Nicole into the hug as well telling them both how excited she was for them but when she pulled back, her face was suddenly very serious.
“I guess now is a good time to let you know I think I’m moving back home…so you two will have the apartment to yourselves.” Chrissy squeezed onto one of their arms each and Waverly’s face fell. She’d never lived so far away from Chrissy before.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” Nicole pulled her in for another hug, Waverly knew she had loved living with Chrissy as much as Waverly had.
“Yeah, well you guys better come back and visit me!” Chrissy winked as she pulled away, at least Waverly knew she would always be able to see Chrissy when she came back to see everyone else.
“What about Ben?” Waverly asked, she had been a little worried that Chrissy hadn’t mentioned him all that much while they were away. Maybe Chrissy had cooled things off if she knew she was going to be moving back to Purgatory.
“Yeah…things haven’t been so great lately. We’ve both agreed it’s for the best if we call it a day.” Chrissy did look a little upset about it and although Waverly wanted to know what had happened, it just wasn’t the time. Wynonna and Doc had just pulled up and Gus would likely not be far behind. Chrissy would need some privacy and maybe a few drinks before they really got into it.
“I’m sorry.” Waverly pulled her into a hug and leaned in close to her ear. “We’ll talk about it later?” Chrissy nodded and gave her a stoic smile before Wynonna came up and pulled Waverly into the tightest hug imaginable.
“Mama’s got a babysitter, let the celebrations begin!” Wynonna said gleefully as she released Waverly and Doc wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
“Congratulations again, ladies.” Doc nodded to both Waverly and Nicole as they thanked him. He started to walk towards the entrance, calling over his shoulder at the rest of the group. “Gus said she would be a little late, we should just head on in.”
Purgatory’s newest restaurant was surprisingly good, even Wynonna had to admit that the options were amazing even if there wasn’t a single bit of meat on the menu. When it came time to pay, everyone had to fight Gus into letting them split the bill, obviously covering Nicole and Waverly’s share as a congratulatory gift before they all headed back to Gus’ place for some drinks and to continue the celebrations.
Once everyone had a drink in their hand, Waverly pulled Chrissy into the kitchen to talk. She needed to make sure that she really was ok, and the mutual breakup had actually been mutual. She had always worried that Chrissy liked Ben more than he liked her, but they had seemed good together.
“So, what happened?” Waverly leaned against the kitchen counter as Chrissy took up a seat at the table.
“Wasn’t one thing specifically just…I don’t know. We don’t feel that spark that was there when we first got together, I thought introducing him to my dad would take it to a new level…ignite a different kind of spark but it didn’t.” Chrissy slowly turned the beer bottle in her hands, not really looking at Waverly and so she moved to sit down across from her, taking a hold of one of her hands.
“Are you really ok?”
“Yeah…” Chrissy said but Waverly gave her a questioning look when she finally raised her eyes to look at Waverly. “Really I am…it’s just a shame. I did really like him, but I don’t think I loved him and as crazy as it sounds, I’m actually really looking forward to moving back here. Never thought I’d say that three years ago!”
“Yeah…” Waverly bit down the words she desperately wanted to say as Chrissy laughed. She wouldn’t mind moving back too.
“I’m really happy for you, Waverly!” Chrissy tightened her grip on the hand Waverly was holding and gave her a genuine smile. “You guys are perfect for each other.”
“Thanks. I can’t believe I’m going to have a wife! Now, that’s something I never thought I’d say three years ago!” Waverly chuckled reflectively. If someone had told her that this was where her future was headed, there was no way she would have believed them but now, she couldn’t imagine it any other way.
Nicole and Waverly were just packing up the Jeep to head back to the city, thankfully only a little hungover from the celebrations the night before when Nedley’s cruiser pulled up outside Gus’ and he popped out with a book in his hands. Waverly recognised it instantly, it had been Chrissy’s mom’s and Nedley immediately noticed Waverly’s eyes on it.
“Gus wants to make a copy of a few recipes.” Nedley said with a shrug. It made sense that he would hand deliver it, he never would have wanted to let it out of his sight if it left his home. “I hear congratulations are in order?”
“Yeah.” Waverly beamed up at Nicole who nodded down at her with an adorable smile. “Thanks, Nedley.”
“You come to a decision on my offer yet?” Nicole’s head snapped to look at Nedley as he spoke, and she immediately tensed up.
“Um...not yet sir.” Nicole sounded nervous and Waverly was trying to understand what exactly Nedley had meant.
“Well get a move on, if you aren’t coming I’ll have to find someone who is.” Nedley tipped his hat and headed straight inside, knocking on Gus’ door apparently a thing of the past.
“What did he just say?” Waverly’s brain caught up with itself and she turned to look at Nicole head on.
“I was going to tell you…” Nicole said hesitantly, and Waverly widened her eyes.
“Tell me what exactly?” Waverly was sure she knew but she needed to hear Nicole say it.
“Nedley offered me a job…here…in Purgatory.” Nicole said slowly and Waverly didn’t know what to say, she was speechless. “I wanted to talk to you about it before I did anything, see what you thought... but we were just having such a good time while we were away, and I didn’t want to ruin it by talking about coming back to reality…”
“Would you want that?”
“Would you want that?” Nicole took a hold of Waverly’s shoulders gently and seemed to be studying her face for any sort of clue as to how Waverly would answer. Waverly was finding it hard to process the possibility, let alone talk. Nicole wanted Waverly’s opinion on where she should take a job? Her dream job? “I just want to be a cop Waverly, wherever they’ll have me but now…you could come home. See Alice all the time, Gus and Wynonna too. Even Chrissy!”
“Nicole…” Waverly started to shake her head. She couldn’t ask Nicole to do this.
“Baby…you still have family, I don’t want you to miss them.” As Nicole held Waverly’s face in her hands she was sure that she was close to tears. This had to be too good to be true, Nicole would never be happy moving somewhere like Purgatory.
“You would really be happy to move here? Work here?” Waverly asked, and Nicole nodded immediately. “But you’d have to sell your place?”
“Don’t care. We’ll find somewhere even nicer here.”
“You’d miss being in the city…”
“No. I wouldn’t.”
“This town is quiet…”
“I like quiet.”
“Nicole…” Waverly closed her eyes; she couldn’t help but feel if she said yes to this Nicole would end up resenting her.
“Waverly…do you want to be close to your family?” Nicole stroked her cheek until Waverly opened her eyes and saw the most beautiful smile on Nicole’s face.
“Yes, but…”
“No buts!” Nicole shook her head and leaned in close. “I have a guaranteed job here, somewhere I already know you’ll be happy, surrounded by your family and somewhere I already have a bunch of people I want to spend time with.”
“You know they’re your family too, right?” Waverly smiled, and Nicole nodded, pulling her in even closer and resting their foreheads together.
Waverly couldn’t believe this was happening. She thought she was going to have to struggle to keep herself feeling positive about wherever Nicole ended up taking a job but now she didn’t have to worry about that at all.
“I know they are…so, what do you think?”
“I think you’d better go tell Nedley before he offers the job to someone else!” Waverly grinned and Nicole closed the gap between them before kissing her soundly on the mouth. Waverly nodded her head towards the house when Nicole pulled back and she took off, running inside calling after the Sheriff.
Six months later
Their move to Purgatory was relatively seamless, Nicole managed to find an amazing realtor who sold her apartment incredibly fast and they managed to find somewhere new in Purgatory that both of them decided was perfect. It was amazing what someone could buy with the same amount of money out in the middle of nowhere compared to the city and Waverly and Nicole had a whole house to call their own.
They said goodbye to the place where they first met, Nicole started her new job and Waverly slipped right back into Purgatory town life with Nicole at her side as if she’d never left.
Much like Chrissy, Waverly never would have expected that she would want to move back to the town where she grew up but then again, she never anticipated that Wynonna would have a child and decide that staying put in Purgatory was something she actually wanted.
Waverly managed to get herself a job doing some relief teaching at the high school, it was very sporadic for now but with the good impression she was certain she was leaving, she hoped it would lead to something permanent once she completed the year long teaching program she had just been accepted into. She had a good while before she had to go back to studying and thankfully she’d been accepted to an institution only an hour drive from Purgatory. Ever the planner, she was already doing as much as she could to be prepared before she even started the course.
The rest of her free time she used to decorate and fully furnish their house as well plan their wedding. Nicole was usually bombarded with new ideas, colour schemes, cake flavours and flower arrangements every time she came home from work. Waverly worried she was taking everything a little bit too far, but she always saw how Nicole’s face lit up whenever their wedding was the topic of discussion and it eased all of her worries. She’d never been more excited for anything in her life.
The pair babysat Alice at least once or twice a week to give both Wynonna and Doc a break, and a chance to really invest some time in their relationship. It couldn’t have been easy being in a brand-new relationship and then adding a baby into the mix. Waverly wanted them to work out and so she was willing to do whatever she could to help, including having a room in their house where Alice could spend the night whenever the couple needed her to.
“We really should get around to making one of these.” Waverly said, almost absentmindedly to Nicole as she fed Alice some yoghurt.
Trusting her to hold the spoon had been a fatal mistake on their part the first time they had done it and they were not about to deal with cleaning yoghurt off of half the kitchen again. It was typical of Wynonna not to mention Alice’s predisposition to throwing food any chance she got, she had also failed to mention about Alice’s ability to climb out of her cot before the first night she had stayed over.
“Yeah…we really should.” Nicole smiled as Alice hummed along to the radio between mouthfuls. “Maybe even more than one?”
“How about we start with one and see how we get on?” Waverly kissed Nicole’s cheek and Nicole turned quickly to peck Waverly’s lips before she retreated. While they were both distracted, Alice grabbed the spoon and flung strawberry yoghurt all over Nicole and Waverly’s face.
“Yeah...ok,” Nicole sighed as she wiped the yoghurt off of Waverly’s forehead before dealing with the mess on her own face. “Let’s just start with one.” Alice giggled from her high chair and Waverly snapped a picture to send over to Wynonna, Nicole’s yoghurt covered face included.
After Alice was down for the night and the monitor set up on coffee table in front of her, Waverly picked up a book she’d been reading on how to engage teenage students in the age of smartphones when practically all the information they could possibly want was in the palm of their hand.
It was something she had noticed a fair amount of the teachers who’d been on the job for years had no interest in, they simply wanted the phones away from sight while they taught. Waverly had been contemplating taking a different approach when she finally got real control over a classroom. She wanted to use the resources that sat in the pockets and bags of pretty much every single teenager to her advantage. It wasn’t like Purgatory High School had the budget to provide each student with a laptop, but with the right encouragement, her students could start to properly appreciate the knowledge that was literally at their fingertips. She knew it wouldn’t be an easy concept to get the head teacher to accept so she wanted to be totally and completely prepared for when the time came to suggest it.
Nicole went about her nightly routine around the house as Waverly jotted down her notes, ironing her uniform and making her lunch for her shift the next day. They’d lived together for over a year but there was something different about having a proper home with Nicole. A home where they could raise their future children, maybe even get a pet or two.
Once Nicole had finished her tasks she settled on the couch next to Waverly and nudged her foot against Waverly’s thigh. Softly at first and then a little harder when Waverly pretended she hadn’t felt it. She knew what Nicole wanted, she also knew that she was going to say yes but she wanted Nicole to ask her. Waverly set down her book on her lap and looked at Nicole, who was smiling innocently at her.
“What?” Waverly asked with an innocent smile of her own, still patiently waiting for Nicole to use her words. Somehow this had become their nightly routine. She’d done it most nights while Nicole was in the academy but ever since the move when Nicole had pulled something in her back, Nicole asked for one every night without fail.
“Please?” Nicole begged, smiling widely, but Waverly remained unmoved from her position. Nicole chuckled and leaned over, took Waverly’s book and set it on the coffee table before she kissed her cheek. “Please will you rub my back?”
“You do realise you can just ask me instead of poking me with your foot, right?” Waverly scowled playfully as she pushed Nicole to lay down on the couch, standing up so that Nicole could stretch her legs out before Waverly settled on the back of her thighs.
“I know,” Nicole said, her voice muffled as she found a comfortable position for her face to rest while she waited for Waverly to get started. “but it’s much more fun this way.”
“You say that now but just wait until I’m pregnant and I demand foot rubs at least three times a day!” Waverly dug her thumbs into the knots in Nicole’s back, starting low and slowly making her way up to her shoulders as Nicole let out quiet groans each time Waverly hit one of the right spots.
“Baby, I will rub your feet all day, every day when you’re pregnant.” Nicole smiled awkwardly over her shoulder and Waverly shook her head as she leaned down and kissed the side of her mouth before continuing with her task. “You won’t even have to ask!”
“You hate massaging my feet.” Waverly rolled her eyes, she knew this for a fact. She had only been joking about the demand, she never thought Nicole would actually agree to it.
“I do.” Nicole laughed and then winced as Waverly did a final push of her thumbs onto the spot at the bottom of Nicole’s neck which always needed that little extra attention. Waverly finished off her work with a quick kiss between Nicole’s shoulders and lifted herself off of Nicole. “But I’ll still do it.” Nicole pushed herself up, so she was looking Waverly in the eye with a sickly-sweet smile that had Waverly rolling her eyes all over again as she suppressed her own.
“Cause you love me?” Waverly couldn’t hold back her smile anymore.
“Because I love you.” Nicole nodded as she pulled Waverly back down onto the couch and into a kiss. “But also, because you’ll be carrying our child, which is the most amazing thing you could ever do for us.”
“We still don’t know if it’s going to work.” Waverly shrugged, she loved when they talked about their future, she loved imagining it, but she also knew that it wasn’t necessarily going to happen the way that they hoped.
“I know…” Nicole nuzzled her nose against Waverly’s cheek, her soft voice a dead giveaway that she’d soon be ready for bed. “But there are other ways, I’ve always liked the idea of adoption. So, no matter what, we’re going to have a family.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” Waverly sighed happily, they’d have a family somehow and whether she gave birth to their child or they took in one who needed a family to call their own, it would still be their child.
Nicole repositioned herself, her head in Waverly’s lap before Waverly asked if she wanted to head to bed. Nicole just shook her head and told Waverly to pick up where she had left off in her book, happy to rest there for a bit while Waverly continued with her notetaking.
Every now and again, Waverly would catch Nicole looking up at her with a sleepy grin on her face until she was spending more time looking down at Nicole than at her book and she realised it was probably pointless to try and carry on with what she was doing.
“Am I distracting you?” Nicole’s grinned as Waverly let out a long breath through her nose, forcing her eyes back to the page.
“No.” Waverly sucked her bottom lip between her teeth in an attempt to contain the smile threatening to reveal itself.
Nicole turned her head and lifted up the bottom of Waverly’s top. Waverly closed her eyes, knowing exactly what was coming. Nicole’s lips pressed softly against her skin and Waverly blindly discarded the book in the direction of the coffee table and tossed her pen along with it. “What about now?”
“Maybe…” Waverly used her now free hands to stroke gently across Nicole’s cheek with one while the other carded through Nicole’s hair. She’d been meaning to get it cut again but Waverly loved that there was slightly more of it now for her to run her fingers through. Waverly opened her eyes to see Nicole staring up at her, the tiredness that had been there only moments before gone. Replaced by a look that Waverly knew all too well. “Bed?”
Nicole was up and dragging Waverly off the couch so quickly Waverly couldn’t help but chuckle. She knew they might regret the decision to take some time for themselves in the morning when Alice woke them up far too early, but Waverly figured it just meant they would have to make it absolutely worth every second of sleep they would lose.
Every now and then, Waverly had to remind herself that her current situation and the happiness it brought her was actually real. She’d had a rough start, losing her parents and Willa at such a young age had taken its toll but she couldn’t say that her life was terrible. She had Gus and Curtis, she had friends throughout high school, she got into the university that she wanted to go to. She had the best friend she could ever ask for in Chrissy and a great relationship with Wynonna even if she hadn’t been around much, but she had, at one point in her life, resigned herself to the idea that she would never find the kind of love that she had found with Nicole.
Before Nicole, the idea of spending the rest of her life with one person just hadn’t filled her with any sort of excitement. The idea that you’d learn everything about someone, the good and the bad, and that they would learn those things about herself might have even filled her with dread if she had truly thought about spending the rest of her life with any of the people she had dated before she found real, honest love. Being with Nicole though, becoming her wife, filled her with such anticipation for their future she could hardly believe it.
With Nicole’s hand gripped tightly in her own as they ascended the stairs to their bedroom, she couldn’t contain her smile. In a few short months they would be married. However it ended up happening, they would have a child to call their own and they would never stop discovering new things about the other no matter how long they’d been together. Waverly couldn’t wait.