Thanks RG – was wondering how I’d missed those. They’re very well-done!
That post is great. “Fighting for” is a broad term; I think many can take it as “fighting to be with,” but the alternate interpretation is “putting up a fight on your behalf.” He’s promising to be on her side, and it’s a promise he keeps.
I LOVE that he puts things out there and then backs off. He knows Emma so well – even ten years later – and knows the harder he pushes, the higher go her walls. But even that’s not a totally accurate characterization, since it implies he stops pushing to stop from getting shut out – no, rather, he stops so as to not make her uncomfortable. Because unlike certain other people, getting in someone’s space and making overt sexual advances is not his style. I love (love love love) that his MO boils down to, “I’m here, and you can trust me.” He knows it will take patience, and it doesn’t seem to bother him a bit. He owns the crap he’s done in the past. And for Emma, who is so hard to break through to, he is exactly what she needs. A safe place to think & feel exactly what she does, no expectations.
There’s a reason we only see her truly smile with him. He’s one of the few places in her life she’s ever truly felt safe, and as she works her way through the emotional betrayal that occurred, she returns to that safety more and more. He does that girl all kinds of good.
Come back, NealFire! Emma needs you… WE need you.
(Pretty please?)
Cause this story needs some mending & a better happy ending...