Yes, Daddies

she is asleep

Caspian

She is asleep.

I stand by the window at first, my back half-turned to the bed, watching the city lights flicker beyond the glass while the steady rhythm of machines fills the silence behind me. The hospital room smells sterile, clean in a way that feels wrong for someone like her, like she doesn’t belong in a place that feels so empty but neither does she belong where she came from.

My jaw tightens and I glance over my shoulder at her.

She hasn’t moved since Zavian stepped out a few minutes ago, her body curled slightly under the sheets, one hand resting near the IV line, the other loosely fisted like she’s holding onto something even in her sleep.

She looks small, smaller than she should. She's so fragile and I don’t like it. I don’t like any of this.

I push away from the window and walk toward the bed, slower this time, my steps quieter, like I don’t want to disturb her even though she’s already lost somewhere far away.

I sit down beside her bland for a moment, I just watch. Her breathing is uneven.

Then I notice the shift. It starts with a tension and my eyes narrow slightly. Something isn’t right as evidenced with the twitch of her fingers. Then, her brows pull together faintly, like something is bothering her: A dream and it's not a good one. I lean forward a little, my gaze fixed on her face.

“Asena?” I murmur quietly.

No response but her lips part slightly, and then…

“No…” The word slips out soft and broken and my chest tightens.

Her head shifts weakly against the pillow, like she’s trying to get away from something.

“Please stop…” she whispers and my expression darkens.

Whatever she’s seeing, it’s not just a dream. It’s memory and a painful one at that. I don’t touch her yet and I just watch because something in me needs to see this, needs to understand.

Her breathing quickens and tears start slipping from the corners of her closed eyes and my heart aches.

“No… please… I didn’t mean to…”

Her voice cracks, small and trembling, like a child’s and suddenly, I see it. Not with my eyes but with my mind because I’ve read the file. I know the patterns and now I hear them in her voice.

She's in a closet. It's dark and small. She's a child crying quietly because she’s learned not to be too loud.

“Please… I’m sorry… I won’t do it again…” she continues and my hands curl into fists.

“Please… it’s dark…” her voice breaks completely and something cold spreads through my chest.

“Dad… please…”

The word hits differently. She's pleading and she seems desperate.

“Let me out… please… I’m sorry…”

I inhale slowly, but it doesn’t calm anything. It makes it worse because I can hear it; the hunger, the fear and the loneliness.

“Mom…?” She whispers, softer this time. “Mama…?”

My jaw clenches. Her mother was gone and so, I know for a fact that she isn't referring to her birth mom.

“She can’t hear you,” I mutter under my breath and her head shakes weakly.

“No… no, please…”

Then another name.

“Elena… please…”

I go still. Elena, her stepmother. The one who replaced everything that should have been hers. The one who watched, allowed and encouraged all the abuse.

My eyes darken as I imagine what I will do to them.

“Wake up, Asena,” I say quietly and her fingers clutch the sheets now, tighter.

“I didn’t mean to spill it…” she cries softly. “I didn’t… I’m sorry… please don’t…”

Her body jerks slightly like she’s bracing, like she’s expecting something.

“She spilled water,” I mutter, disbelief laced with something darker. “And you starve her for it? You lock her in the closet for it?x

My grip on the edge of the bed tightens. I know what happened. I've read the file and she was just eleven then.

“I’m hungry…”

The words are so small and so fragile and that’s it. That’s the moment something in me snaps and I move. I reach for her without thinking, my hand wrapping gently around her wrist.

“Asena,” I say, firmer now. “Wake up.”

She doesn’t for she’s too deep in it.

“Please… Sophia…” she whispers, her voice trembling. “Don’t… please don’t take it…”

My expression hardens.

“She won't take anything from you ever again,” I mutter. “Not anymore.”

She lets out a small sob.

“I’ll be good… I promise… I’ll be good…”

“No,” I say quietly, shaking my head. “You don’t have to be anything for them.”

Her breathing turns uneven again, sharper now, faster and her whole body tenses.

“Stop!” She cries suddenly, louder this time. “Please… stop…!”

That’s enough.

I move immediately, sliding closer and pulling her into my arms despite the IV, despite the wires, despite everything.

“Asena.”

Her body is shaking now and tears are streaming down her face.

“No… no… no…!”

“Hey!” I pull her closer, one hand cradling the back of her head carefully. “You’re safe. Wake up.”

She gasps and her eyes fly open and then she screams.

The sound tears through the room, raw and broken and filled with something that shouldn’t exist in someone like her and I tighten my hold instantly.

“Hey, hey, it’s me,” I say, my voice low but firm. “It’s me. You’re okay.”

She’s trembling in my arms, her breath coming in sharp, panicked bursts as her eyes dart around the room.

“No… no… please…” she whispers, still halfway lost.

“You’re not there,” I tell her. “You’re here. You’re safe.”

Her gaze finally lands on me and for a second, she doesn’t recognize me and that hits harder than I expect. Then slowly, slowly, something shifts.

“Caspian…?” She whispers.

“Yeah,” I say, softer now. “It’s me.”

Her face crumples and then she breaks. She buries her face into my chest, her fingers clutching at my shirt as sobs tear out of her, uncontrollable, relentless.

I hold her tighter. Careful not to hurt her but firm.

“I got you,” I murmur. “You’re okay.”

She shakes her head against me and her grip tightens.

“They…” her voice breaks. “They locked me… they left me… I was so scared…”

“I know,” I say quietly.

“You don’t know…”

“I do,” I cut in and she freezes at that.

“I know enough,” I say, my voice low, controlled. “And that’s more than enough.”

Her lips tremble.

“They hate me,” she whispers.

My jaw tightens.

“No,” I say. “They don’t deserve to feel anything for you.”

She stares at me.

“What they did to you?” I continue, my voice dropping colder. “That’s not hate. That’s something worse.”

Her breath catches.

“And I don’t tolerate it.”

She blinks at me, confused.

“What… what do you mean?”

I don’t answer right away because I’m already thinking, already planning, already seeing all the ways this ends for them.

“They will pay,” I say finally.

Her eyes widen slightly.

“Caspian…”

“No,” I cut her off, my tone firm but not harsh. “You don’t get to defend them.”

“I’m not…”

“You are,” I say. “Even now.”

She goes quiet and I soften slightly, just enough.

“You don’t have to anymore,” I tell her. “Not with me.”

Her gaze drops.

“I don’t know how not to,” she admits.

Something in my chest shifts.

“Then you learn,” I say. “And I’ll make sure you do.”

She lets out a shaky breath and then, slowly, she leans back into me. I adjust my hold, one hand resting gently against her back, the other still cradling her head.

“It’s over,” I murmur. “They don’t touch you again. Not ever.”

Her fingers curl into my shirt again, but this time it’s not panic. It’s… trust.

We hug for a while before the door opens. I don’t look up immediately for I already know who it is. Zavian steps in, his presence quiet but heavy. He takes one look at her and his expression darkens instantly.

“What happened?” He asks.

I shake my head once and he understands. He steps closer, his gaze lingering on her before shifting to me and anger flickers there.

I meet his eyes and I shake my head again. Not yet. His jaw tightens slightly but he doesn’t argue. Instead, he moves to the other side of the bed and sits down. He reaches out, brushing a hand lightly over her hair.

“Asena,” he says softly.

She shifts slightly, turning her face toward him just enough.

“Zavian…” she whispers.

“I’m here,” he replies and then, without a word, he joins us.

One arm wraps around her from the other side, pulling her just enough so she’s between us.

S

After a while, she shifts, looks at me and kisses me.