AKA various people finding out about the engagement. Follows the Cups version. because, canon, though some might be read for both. Fluff all around. Mostly Vera's POV, one part of Matt's.

Probably requires some knowledge of the other Defenders, at least vague – but if you read 'Damned', you're fine.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Hey, have you heard…?

.

Jessica and Trish:

Vera almost dropped the coffee cup when she turned to hand it to her customer; because instead of dark hair and sunglasses, she met a camera. And Jessica had her finger on the shutter release.

"What the hell?" Vera complained, watching the PI incredulously.

Why would Jessica take a picture of her? Why Vera of all people? And didn't even try to be subtle about it?

The woman lowered her camera, smirking. It was almost surreal, seeing her without the dark glasses, which would protect her hangover eyes from light.

"Trish's gonna be pissed, you know?"

Vera's eyebrow shot up, finally placing Jessica's cup on the counter. "Why?"

This day had seemed good so far – despite the absence of sleep, Vera hadn't mess up any order, people had been returning her shiny smiles and had been leaving tips and Terri had been poking her ribs every half an hour or so, shooting her conspiratorial looks. And Matt had stopped by too, kissing her over the counter with no shame – when Terri had bantered, he had shut her up with 'I have every right to kiss my fiancée, Theresa'.

"Because you didn't tell her. She hasn't talked a hole into my head about it – and she would if she knew, she loves that shit," Jessica explained matter-of-factly, opening the cup, spicing it with the drink of the day. Vera watched her, clueless.

"Didn't tell her wh-" She froze in the middle of the sentence as Jessica's eyebrow rose lazily, looking at Vera's hand and back at her face as if Vera was an idiot. "Oh. I— come on! I literally got engaged like… nine hours ago. And if I go from when I got the ring, it's even less."

"I really didn't need to know that. Congratulation, or something. Don't let him fuck with you just because he put a ring on your finger, you're your own fucking person. See you around."

And with those words, she was gone. Vera would swear she saw a hint of a smile on her lips though.

Vera called Trish on her way from work, honestly afraid the PI would tell her before Vera got a chance. Trish was obviously in the middle of something, exasperated male voice admonishing her for accepting a call. She didn't seem to mind.

"Noooo way! When, how? We need to get coffee-"

"Miss Walker, am I bothering you?!" Vera heard the man in the background.

"Yes, as the matter of fact." Honestly, Vera was not even surprised by Trish's reaction. "Give me a minute to deal with this. It's a potential interview, a high-class engagement."

"What?" Vera shrieked, horrified.

There was a short silence. "Don't worry, I just needed him to shut up and leave. So, coffee?"

.

Terri:

Say that Terri hugged the shit out of Vera when she walked through the door of the café was an understatement; Vera couldn't breathe, her chest squeezed in a vice.

Terri wanted to know everything, but Regina came too and the café was filling with customers and while her friend was impatient, she was also morbidly curious and wanted to wait until they had enough time so she could learn every. Single. Detail. And Vera would comply with her wish (except the few things Vera really couldn't share).

"Wait, so he just asked you? Just like that?" Terri asked incredulously over a hot chocolate they had in MDDC.

Vera smiled goofily. "Yeah."

"That's… okay. Okay. Whatever."

"It was incredibly cute, Terri. I mean, he seemed to be genuinely sorry, he said he wanted to make it perfect and he fucking stuttered, Terri, Matt Murdock stuttered, imagine that."

Vera was still processing. Matt had proposed. Matt had freaking proposed. And while it probably wasn't a perfect story to tell, because it didn't exactly match the idea of a magical proposal, Vera loved it. She couldn't imagine it happening any other way. Matt had made it unforgettable without being aware of it. Of course, the other thing that would take her maybe even longer to process was what had ensued, because holy shit she couldn't believe that he— just, whoa, she hadn't see it coming. She bit her cheek at the formulation.

"He asked you in the middle of the night, wearing his armour," Terri complained in a low voice.

"Well… yeah. But he didn't wear the gloves and the helmet at least. And have you seen him without it? You just want to run your fingers through the wild mess of his hair-"

"Excuse you, have you seen his ass in that thing? … Of course you care about the hair. You cannot appreciate the precious gift you were given…"

"As the matter of fact, I can-"

"Eww, okay, TMI!" Terri cried out. "Kidding. Damn. One day I'll get him drunk and touch that thing-"

"Ooookay, that's TMI. My fiancée. My hair. My a— everything," Vera hissed and Terri burst out laughing.

"Possessive…. I'm really happy for you, you know that?" Terri offered with an honest smile and Vera smiled back.

"Thanks, Terri."

.

Nina Larkin:

Vera met Nina at the post boxes. The woman acted like always – except after a greeting and a smile, she lowered her eyes and her cheeks went pink.

"Hey, Nina. How you're doing?" Vera asked, her mind racing. Why would Nina blush?

It took Vera about five seconds to turn red too. Jesus Christ. She really had been loud that night hadn't she? Ježišmarja. She couldn't look her neighbours in their eyes for god knows how long now.

Vera tried her best to pretend she didn't notice Nina's consternated look and coloured cheeks. She opened her post box, getting the mail out. Bills. What else was new?

"Uhm. Good…. Oh, well, that explains a lot," Nina murmured and Vera's gaze shot to her face. Nina was still blushing, but her smile was more genuine this time, reaching her eyes.

"I'm… what?"

God, she was embarrassed. She wanted to sink through the floor. She should use window to get to her apartment now, shouldn't she? At least for few days? Matt was using her window as an entrance almost every night, it couldn't be so hard, could it? She could carry groceries in her backpack…

"I guess the ring on your left hand is there for a reason?" Nina teased and Vera's heart jumped.

Oh. How was it people noticed it so easily? It was a thin ring, one simple stone, beautifully enclosed between two thin tentacles. It was freaking gorgeous, that was undeniable, but nothing huge and extravagant that would draw attention, but for some reason, it did.

Vera smiled automatically, her hand subconsciously curling into loose fist. She cleared her throat. "Yeah. Uhm, yeah."

"Suits you. Congratulation." To Vera's surprise, Nina pulled her into gentle hug. "Just keep it down next time, would you?" Nina whispered and Vera buried her head to Nina's shoulder with a whine.

She did not just-

Nina patted her back. "It's okay. I get it."

"Oh my god…"

.

Vera's family:

Vera didn't waste any time. She was happy, she wanted to share and her mother – her whole family, honestly – would never forgive her if she kept something like this from them for long. She texted her mum if they could Skype call and while Vera wasn't aware it had sounded urgent, it apparently had, because her mum was calling her five minutes later.

Vera kept hiding her left hand, talking casually, slipping a question about the rest of the family. She could hear Petr's shout from somewhere when her mum called out, and both men of their family joined their conversation soon. Vera took a deep breath and dropped the bombshell.

Mum's reaction didn't surprise her. Of course she cried and called her her babygirl like a million times. Dad's reaction Vera had predicted right too, he just… asked her if she was sure. When she said yes, she was fairly certain he was still processing.

What was really weird was her brother's behaviour. He smirked, sipping his coffee or tea or possibly protein drink or whatever, looking almost unimpressed.

"So he really did it, huh?"

Vera's eyes went wide, eyebrows up, jaw down. What the hell did he just say?

"Wh— what?"

Petr shrugged as both of their parents shot him a look. "What? He said he was serious about you. I indirectly asked him if he was getting any ideas when attending the wedding-"

"You asked Matt whether he WANTED TO MARRY ME when we were in Czechia?!" Vera burst out, horrified.

Jesus Christ, what the actual hell?! Her mind raced, wondering when could that possibly happened, because she doubted they just slipped in into the conversation about Matt being a vigilante-

"In the morning. When we slept over at your place and you two were talking in the kitchen. I walked right into the middle of it, didn't I? He looked like he got— ježišmarja, Petře…"

She face-palmed. No wonder Matt had looked like he had received an electrical discharge. Jesus, she was lucky he hadn't gotten on the first plane back to New York.

"I didn't ask him that… but he looked a little spooked, which was hilarious. Until he gave you the really wide grin and the gross kiss-"

"It wasn't gross-" Vera protested. It was pretty amazing, they had done it several times since that.

"No, it was actually kinda cute and I'll deny it if you ever remind me I said that. Now show me the ring again, Mechy-girl."

Vera obediently exposed her hand again, shielding her still shocked face from the camera.

.

Anna, Jitka, Marky:

The next people on her list were Marky, Anna and Jitka. Vera knew it was late evening in Czechia, but she tried their conversation anyway – after all, it was Saturday.

Me: Are you here?

A: Yep.

J: Yes.

Vera waited few more minutes, but Marky didn't respond; she wasn't online then. Guess Vera had to wait with the big news.

J: What's up?

Me: The ceiling. Never mind.

Another conversation window opened without Vera doing a thing. Anna was texting her in private. Vera's eyebrows rose.

A: What's going on?

A: Are you pregnant? :-o :-o

A: Are you getting married?!

A: Are you getting a dog? :-D

A: Are you moving in with Matt?!

A: All of this above?

Vera snorted, but ignored her friend in order to be fair and tell them all at once.

A: I'm calling Marky right now to get her ass here or I'm going crazy!

It could be one minute later when Marky joined their conversation.

M: Hey.

Vera felt honestly sorry for her, imagining Anna's phone call and the volume her friend had probably spoken. Vera sent them a photo with her hand in front of her face. Left hand, obviously.

A: I KNEW IT!

J: Whooooooa, congratulation. It's gorgeous! :-*

M: Congratulation! xxx

M: Told you you needed to be there for the bouquet tossing :-P

Me: Ha, ha… thanks.

A: Yeah, yeah, congratulation and everything

J: When. Where. How.

J: Spill it.

Vera grinned and started typing. She was approximately in the middle of her slightly alternated non-Daredevil story, when Anna's private conversation opened again. Vera read it, rolled her eyes and continued her work without bothering to answer.

A: But seriously. Are you pregnant too?

.

Foggy and Karen:

They called another meeting at Josie's. Vera wasn't particularly fond of the bar, but she knew Matt was – it was his special place with Foggy and later with Foggy and Karen. Vera was sure that in a good company, she would be fine; she questioned the claim when she needed to touch the greasy door handle to get in.

And then she saw Karen enthusiastically waving at her from Foggy's arms, while Foggy was beaming. So they finally got together. Guess they had multiple reasons to celebrate tonight. Vera subtly shoved her left hand into the pocket of her coat.

"Took you long enough," Foggy hummed when she approached their table and she just managed to raise an eyebrow.

"Seriously, Foggy? You probably wanted to ask Karen out since the day one, and you're lecturing me about being late?" Karen grinned and Vera turned to Matt, pecking his lips. "Hey, Matt."

His fingers curled in her hair, keeping her on place before she could withdrew, kissing her properly. Something warm immediately spread in her abdomen, his lips reminding her of the previous night.

"Hey."

"Uh, okay, Murdock, okay. We're not having a competition of who can turn grosser, alright? We might get arrested for public indecency." To prove his words, he simply gave Karen a small kiss on her cheek.

Vera smiled and stripped her coat, careful not to expose her ring too soon. They deserved their moment as well. "So. I feel like saying congratulation is appropriate?" she offered and Karen smiled at her warmly.

"Thank you, Vera."

"I'm pretty sure she was talking to me, Karen. I mean, come on. I had to take all the courage! What did you do?" Foggy complained teasingly and Karen gave him a look while Vera sat next to Matt.

"Oh, I don't know… I said yes?" Karen noted sarcastically and Foggy pouted, then shrugged and kissed her lips. What was that about not getting indecent?

Matt watched them with honest uneven smile and Vera just couldn't resist smiling too.

"So, how did it happen?" Vera wanted to know when they finally got their hands— well, lips off each other.

Foggy made a face and Karen giggled. "He drunk dialled me."

"Noooo, Karen, don't," Foggy whined, wanting to bang his head against the table, changing his mind in the middle of the motion as if he realized that he didn't want to have whatever was on the table on his forehead too.

"He was smashed. But he told me he was thinking about me for a long time and he really, really wanted to go out with me-"

"That's not what I said-"

"You don't remember what you said, you just remember you called me and talked non-sense. He came to The Bulletin the next morning, well, morning, with bouquet of lilies and apologized and apologized and apologized. I took him to an anti-hangover lunch and… things just… happened," she said, shrugging, giving Foggy a sweet smile.

"I'm pretty sure I said something about me being into you since the day I saw you in handcuffs-"

"Kinky."

Foggy shot Vera an exasperate look and Karen snorted. "Yeah, you did. You also said you wanted to strangle Matt for flirting with me-"

"You were flirting with Karen?!" Vera turned to Matt, horrified. Matt gaped.

"I didn't-"

"Really, Murdock? Didn't? It was back in the day. She was translating Spanish, missed a word, he filled her in, she asked him if he wanted to do that instead of her and he said, I quote: No, I like listening to your voice," Foggy explained, the memory apparently still bitter.

Vera was scandalized.

"I— she has a nice voice," Matt defended himself as if it was going to help him. It really didn't. "And I needed to focus on the client! Heartbeat and stuff, so I didn't want to translate for Foggy…" he added miserably, feeling Vera's anger spiking.

"Nah. He's with you now, Vera. He just had his lines. I like your voice. Would you walk me around? Can I touch your face…"

Vera raised her hands in defensive gesture. "Eww. Not helping, Foggy. Let me have at least some illusions about him, okay?"

"HOLY SHIT!" Karen cried out and Vera realized her mistake, shoving her hands under the table again.

Matt grinned, reaching for Vera's hand, running his fingers over her knuckles in apology. Well, it wasn't like he should be apologizing for flirting with people, before. It just stung her, the voice thing. But she needed to swallow the bile, because… well. It was Matt's version of telling people they had pretty eyes or something. Vera wasn't the only one in the world who could have a nice voice according to him. However, she was the only one with a ring on her finger; she could live with that.

She lightly pressed her lips against his cheek, causing his smile to grow wider.

"Karen?" Foggy questioned her burst out.

"Hands on the table. Now," Karen demanded, eyes wide, excitement all over her face. Vera smiled and slowly let her hands hover above the table, because no, she was not touching that surface. Karen reached for her left hand – no, she lunged for it – and claimed it for herself, examining the ring.

"Murdock, you slay dog!" Foggy gasped, his gaze flickering between his best friend and the ring, his mouth hanging open.

"I'm pretty sure that the idea of the ring is the exact opposite," Matt hummed, ears red; his equivalent of blushing.

The corners of Vera's lips twitched. Dork. How could she be mad at him for flirting with Karen? Mad at this incredible human being? For something that was in the past and so petty? He was a walking flirt, shamelessly charming, that was a fact. Vera knew that; hell, she was one of his victims.

"Okay, smart-ass. When did that happen? Spill it."

"Talking of spilling, you guys want another drink?" Karen asked, already rising to her feet. Foggy nodded while Matt refused. Vera asked for a cider – she knew it wasn't safe to drink anything that wasn't in a bottle here. "Don't start without me!"

"Wouldn't dream of it."

.

Danny:

They left Josie's after midnight, tired, but smiling, pleasantly buzzed. She followed Matt to his apartment, because he insisted on her sleeping over. Vera welcomed it – ever since he had come back, they had been doing it when the time allowed it, ranging between her and his place. She thought he preferred his place for obvious reasons, but it was unpractical for her; it took her more time to get to the café in the morning and waiting for him in his bed until he would came back from patrol was a little weird.

They didn't go straight to bed or bathroom – for some reason she didn't understand, he had fell scarily quiet during their walk –, pulling her to the couch instead. She obediently seated by his side, letting him draw her close, resting her head on his shoulder. He placed a light kiss to her hair.

"Vera?" he hummed, most likely aiming for casual or maybe absent, but god knew why failing. Vera tensed – this was serious. If Matt failed to sound as if nothing was happening, something really bad was happening. Did he hear something during their walk? It would explain the silence.

"Hm?"

"Would you- would you move in?" he asked, voice quiet, tentative. "With me?" he added quickly as if it wasn't clear, still timid.

Vera blinked in surprise. Well, that was better than she had expected; it wasn't bad at all, it was actually good. And it made sense. They were basically living at two places at once and they were about to get married; thinking about it, they took the steps in the wrong order when starting with the engagement. She was not complaining at all.

Her lips spread in an unwitting smile and she raised her face to him, scanning his very lame poker face. He was scared. He actually seemed more afraid to ask if she wanted to live with him in one apartment than staying with him for the rest of their lives.

"Yeah."

His lips parted in silent shock, his eyes soon smiling though. " 'kay."

Vera didn't think she had ever heard someone saying 'kay' with so much emotion. Her smile grew wider and she lightly kissed his mouth.

"Love you," she breathed. He shook his head when she retreated, catching her lips again.

"Love you more."

His lips sunk to hers, his hand finding her waist, shifting in his position, guiding her to settle on the top of him, one hand on her hip, the other on the back of her neck to press her against his body. She was soon nestled in his lap astride, short of breath and slightly dizzy as Matt apparently decided that action spoke louder than words and he was rather showing her his excitement about another of her yesesthan expressing it verbally. She opened her mouth for him, meeting his tongue, melting into him, her hand clutching at his hair. God, she loved him.

She didn't notice when his hand had slipped under her clothes, but his skilful fingers found the fastening of her bra, obviously offended by its presence, unclasping it. Impatient. Vera didn't blame him, sensing his arousal very closely, the feeling of being wanted just pouring gasoline into the fire in her abdomen. The alcohol probably helped too, but Jesus, she had to bit her lip to silence a whine when she lost the contact of his mouth on hers, his lips moving to her jaw and throat.

"Jesus, guys! Sock on a door knob would help!" startled voice yelped somewhere above them and Vera jumped, snapping her eyes open.

It was unnecessary; she knew exactly who that was.

With her face completely red, she pulled her t-shirt down properly and tried to do her bra again, presumably subtly. She was failing, so Matt did it for her. Vera thought she was about to die of embarrassment and wanted to rearrange her position into something more decent, but she was already feeling legless and the shock just made her unable to move – not to mention that if she actually climbed up from Matt's lap, she would expose how very invested in their actions he was.

"Danny, you know this is my apartment right?" Matt asked calmly as if he just didn't have a hand under Vera's t-shirt, clasping her bra. Apparently, he agreed with her not moving though, because his other hand remained on her hip, silent plea to stay exactly where she was. Maybe Danny would take a hint if they didn't move.

Ha! Right. No chance in hell.

"You keep the rooftop doors unlocked for me!"

"Not just for you. But—okay. New rule. You call ahead if possible, this cannot keep happening. I understand that if you had been injured-"

Matt kept talking but Vera noticed Danny was staring at her. Precisely at her left hand resting decently at Matt shoulder. She mentally prepared for-

"HOLY DRAGON! IS THAT AN ENGAGEMENT RING?!"

Vera pressed her lips together to stop herself from grinning. She pretty much failed, but she didn't really care. She was entitled to be a little euphoric.

Matt licked his lips, supressing his outrage at his speech being ignored. "Yes, Danny, it is indeed an engagement ring."

See, Danny was the Iron Fist, but the grin he gave them when confirming his theory? Much brighter and shinier than his fist. His eyebrow wiggled suggestively.

"Okay. Got it. Not wanted here. Please, continue," he gave them his blessing, spinning on his heels, the door clicking behind him.

Vera let her head fall on Matt's shoulder.

"We're never living this down, are we?" she murmured, his sigh being enough of an answer. He placed a kiss on the side her neck, comforting, with no heat. She smiled, turning her head, softly meeting his lips again.

They found the way back to the previous pace in no time, Vera undoing his shirt for a change before he had a chance to strip any piece of her clothing. He hummed contentedly when she ran her fingers over his chest. She wriggled in his lap just to tease. He bit her lip in return, wordless warning not to fuck with him, otherwise he would let her know who was in charge. The corners of her lips twitched at the idea and she did it again.

"Oh and congratulation!" the voice from earlier added, shouting from the opened door and Vera yelped, while Matt shouted "For God's sake, Danny!", his outburst followed by the Danny's playful laugh and another click of the door.

"Vera, love, move," Matt asked her somewhat gently while straining the words through his teeth.

Vera huffed, freeing him and watched him pace up the stairs and lock the door. As he walked down, she stood up, meeting him halfway. He stripped the undone shirt, letting it land on the floor, sliding his hands under her top, removing it too. Palms on her waist, he spun her, pressing her against the sliding door to the bedroom, mouth on hers.

"If he's coming back through a window or the front door, I swear I'll get him on the next plane to Cambodia," Matt growled, the dangerous vibration of his voice making her heart jump. He didn't give her a chance to react, lunging, taking her mouth with no shame or mercy, his fingers getting more and more daring.

"And I'll pack his stuff," she breathed when he was kissing a path down her neck, his lower body almost merging with hers despite their clothes still on.

He stopped abruptly, freezing. It took him full five seconds to level his face with hers, wolfish smile on his lips.

"That's why I'm marrying you."

.

Father Lantom:

Matt was early in church on Sunday. Vera stayed in his apartment overnight (still only his, because while he had asked her if she would move in and she had agreed, it would take some time to make the apartment theirs), she had a morning shift and he hadn't go out that night, so he didn't feel any need to sleep in. He knew Father Lantom was about to have a service, he could hear him in the back getting ready, and Matt could also hear his heart lightly speeding up when he found him sitting in one the pews already. The priest didn't make his way to him though; the church was slowly filling with people.

Matt listened to his words, letting them wash over him. He prayed and thanked to God for things going well lately. For her saying yes; to both of his proposals.

The priest wavered at the space with the candles when people started leaving. Few of them stopped to talk to him quietly and Matt tried his best not to eavesdrop. He wanted to share the best news he would ever have with him, but didn't want to bother or keep him from doing more important things. He smiled when Father Lantom called out his name in barely audible whisper, inviting him to come to him.

"I would say I haven't seen that smile for a while, but I'm not sure I've ever seen it. What's on your mind, Matthew?" the priest teased him lightly and Matt let his smile spread even wider.

"Good things," he answered evasively, his hand subconsciously reaching for the candles – their heat was just amplifying the feeling of pure joy that kept springing in his chest.

"That's a first."

Matt huffed a silent laugh. It wasn't entirely truth – almost every time he had talked about Vera, it had been a good thing. But this was the best. Vera… Matt didn't ask much about the time when he had been gone – neither Vera, neither the priest – only having the knowledge of Father Lantom meeting her, probably several times. Helping her. Matt didn't know what kind of help the priest had provided, but it might have been vital. It might be thanks to him that she had stayed in New York for all Matt knew. It occurred to him he had never thanked the man – and while he was sure it wasn't needed, it felt right.

"I wanted to thank you, Father. For… taking care of Vera when I wasn't here. We haven't… I'm not sure what you did, but… she said you helped. Thank you."

"You know you don't need to thank me, Matthew," he said, traces of admonishing in his voice. The priest's work – his mission – was to help people and Matt should be aware of that. And he was.

"I know, Father. But I hope I can still express my gratitude," he offered, bowing his head. The priest sighed, but his body gave him away. He was pleased.

"Well, I am an intermediary of our Lord. I hope you expressed your gratitude to Him as well…" The older man titled his head and Matt could feel his searching gaze. Any other day it would feel uncomfortable. But not today. Not yesterday. Not for a while. "It was a joy to meet such a remarkable young woman, so it was not exactly an unpleasant interaction."

Matt knew for a fact that it couldn't be completely true – Vera wasn't a believer. If something had drawn her to a church, it could have been nothing nice. Yet, the corners of his lips rose higher.

"'Remarkable'. That's one way to describe her."

"I met her on this very spot," the priest continued to Matt's surprise. Matt's mind already raced, wondering where the confession headed. "She was reaching for the candles too. A little lost, surprisingly chatty. She wasn't sure if she could light one."

Matt's head snapped up on instinct. "For who?"

"Do you really need me to say it, Matthew? For a man, leaving to protect his loved ones, fighting a war. I told her she could. She started coming here then. Once or twice a week."

Matt lost the ability to speak. Vera had been coming to his church regularly. To remember him. To send him hope. That was one hell of an attitude for someone who supposedly didn't believe in God.

"She's never said," he admitted quietly, his voice hoarse. Something grew in his throat. He would always find something new, wouldn't he? Another reason to love her?

"Well, I wouldn't expect her to do so. We talked a little from time to time. She has… a particular way of seeing the world. She's a good woman, Matthew. Kind-hearted. But brave, passionate. Faithful too. And… it's rare to find someone who loves us for – or despite of – all we are. Treat her well, give her a reason to stay," he advised wisely and Matt couldn't help but beam.

Of course he knew these things. That was why the one moment he just couldn't have kept his mouth shut anymore and had bluntly asked her if she would marry him. It had gone better than expected. Though the word expected indicated he had planned it, which he really hadn't, not like that.

"I hope I already have."

Matt could tell the moment the priest figured out the puzzle behind Matt's high spirit.

"Ahhh.I see. That is a good thing, indeed. My sincere congratulations, Matthew," he told him honestly, voice warm. Then he inclined into his space, lips barely whispering in conspiratorial tone. "I shouldn't be telling you this, but you do deserve something good in your life. Send her my regards. I'll be happy to meet her over a latté again, even if she has nothing weighting her soul down at the moment."

Matt's smile faltered slightly at the idea of what could have been weighting her soul down when she had come to the priest. He breathed in and out. "Thank you, Father. I'll make sure to pass the message on."

Father Lantom squeezed his forearm lightly. "I'm happy for you, Matthew. Both of you. She deserves good things too."

Matt just nodded, taking the hint and making his way out.

"Oh and Matthew? You realize someone needed to take care of Jack Murdock's grave while you weren't around, right?" he called out silently and Matt turned back to him sharply. But the priest was already leaving, so Matt walked to the graveyard as he had attempted, wondering

Why would Father Lantom say something like that? Of course Matt was aware of that. The grave was perfectly taken care of, he just never found himself to thank the priest for that. But Father Lantom obviously didn't want him to express gratitude, Matt had done that once today and the older man had been reluctant to accept it.

Matt stopped dead in his tracks when he realized what the priest had implied. And of course. Of course, it should have hit him sooner.

He approached the tombstone, running his fingers over it, like always. It had been impossible to catch her scent, even when he had gone to the grave for the first time after his return – wind, rain and dew had taken it away. There was no way he could have sensed it then, let alone now, after six months. But he would swear he could nevertheless.

And when he did, he cried.

.

Claire:

Vera was scared to death. She knew she just couldn't be so lucky. Of course things had been fucking going too well. They had gotten engaged. There was no way anything wouldn't fuck up soon; maybe she had been even counting on it.

But this? This was a lot of blood.

She had called Claire. At least Matt had been conscious when Vera had started stitching him up. Still conscious when Claire had arrived. Still conscious when Claire had assured Vera he would be fine and she had helped Vera to finish her work.

The nurse didn't even think he needed a transfusion; Vera wanted to do it anyway. Matt said no, because if Claire, who usually yelled at him for being suicidal, was rather calm, he sure didn't need it. Vera gritted her teeth, watching in horror Matt sitting up.

"Jesus, Matt, you shouldn't be moving," Vera protested, lightly touching his bare shoulder, not wanting to hurt him further by fighting with him when pushing him back down. He took her gloved hand, pressing light kiss above her wrist, the nearest spot where her skin was uncovered.

"I'm going to be okay," he reassured her softly, sounding tired, but apparently with enough energy to pull her to his side, making her sit down on the couch. Not that she resisted, she really didn't want him to use more strength than was necessary or to move at all actually. He pressed another kiss to her hair when she carefully rested her head on his shoulder.

"Well, I guess my assistance is no longer required. Don't let him do any acrobatic shit for few days. Lots of liquids, rest-" Claire named, putting her gloves off.

"-and if he gets worse, feverish or something, call you or call 911, no matter how loud he protests. Gotcha, Claire. Thank you. I— I probably overreacted, didn't I?" Vera admitted sheepishly, apologizing.

Claire waved it off. "Hey, I get it. You're just being responsible – even when I believe you could do this without my help, because you did most of the job, there's nothing wrong with doubts. Whenever you feel like you can't do this by yourself and you need some backup… I'm just a phone call away."

Vera smiled gratefully. "Thank you. Really. It means a lot."

Claire shrugged, tossing the gloves to a garbage bin. "You called me after almost six months of my Matt-the-vigilante bullshit vacation. No offense, Matt, but it's nice not to stitch you up all the time. So we're good."

She closed the first aid kit with satisfaction; and she seemed to freeze. Matt at Vera's side tensed.

"You son of a bitch," Claire hissed, shooting him a look. Vera didn't understand. "Matthew Michael Murdock, how could you nottell me!"

Matt gulped so loudly Vera could hear it. She quickly looked at him, wondering what he hadn't told Claire. Was there any other injury Vera hadn't notice before? She retreated, scanning his whole body, then turning to Claire, puzzled.

Claire pointed at Vera. "You, you could have mention something too, you know."

Vera was still confused and Claire sighed, pushing the kit away. Oh. Vera had taken the ring off before pulling on the gloves. The ring had been hidden under the lid of the kit. And Claire just revealed it.

Nope, they hadn't told her yet. Oops.

"We're engaged…?" Vera said hesitantly and Claire seemed unimpressed.

"You don't say."

"Sorry."

Claire rolled her eyes. "Apology accepted. Congratulation," she added with bright smile. Matt relaxed.

"Thank you, Claire. For your help too," he expressed his gratitude, watching the nurse with honest eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I'll drink to that tonight. No alcohol for the two of you though," she muttered under her breath, ruffled Matt's already messy hair playfully, patted Vera on her shoulder and walked out of her apartment.

"Well. Guess that's everyone." Vera stripped her gloves too, tossing them on the table in a roll-up, careful of not staining the table more than it already was. "Taking the couch tonight? I'll get you a blanket."

Because of course he could barely walk on the top of everything. Getting him to bed while avoiding his other injuries would be a nightmare.

She didn't wait for his answer, rising to her feet to find the blanket. His hand found hers to keep her from walking away. She looked at him in surprise.

"You'll be here with me?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Matt. We can both fit on my couch, but I really don't want to rip any of your stitches or you to be in more pain than you already are."

"Please?" he asked quietly, sounding incredibly vulnerable – the kind of vulnerability that had nothing to do with the stitches in his abdomen. His face was twisted in a strange grimace.

Vera sighed, caressing his hand before she let go. She took the kit, returned it to its place and went for the blanket. She would not sleep on the couch with him. But Jesus, the face he made. As if the idea of her sleeping in another room actually hurt him more than the bloody cuts and totally busted ankle.

Matt was still sitting when she gave him the blanket, covering his bare shoulders. He was scarily pale, absolutely rigid as she moved around, throwing away the gloves, offering him juice and water. She placed the glass in front of him, kissing his temple.

"At least sit with me for a while?" he pleaded, voice barely a whisper, obviously understanding she wouldn't comply with his previous wish.

"You really should get some sleep, Matt-"

"Did you change your mind?" he breathed, knuckles white as he was gripping the blanket tightly.

Vera froze halfway from him face, frowning. "About what?"

His Adam's apple jumped, his lips pressed together, but otherwise he didn't move. She retreated, baffled.

"About… about us."

And that was punch right to her gut. "What?" she choked out. "Why would I-"

"This. Me getting hurt, you playing nurse in the middle of the night, scared shitless. And… and…" his voice trailed off. Matt's eyes didn't work, but she couldn't help feeling like he was staring at one particular place on the table.

Oh. Shit. She hadn't put her ring back on. His ridiculous fear suddenly made sense, especially with him sleeping on the couch as if he was in disgrace and she refusing to be by his side. It was absolutely twisted logic, but it was still logic. She sighed, making her way to her bedroom, followed by his weak voice whispering her name.

He thought it was a yes. Oh, Matt.

When Nina had been cleaning her apartment after the fight with Stick – and it felt like eternity since then – she had revealed an old camping mat fallen behind the wardrobe. The previous owner had been probably using it when working out. Vera didn't really care. She took it, stuffed her pillow and covers under her arm and walked back.

Matt was observing her, eyes glassy, corners of his lips turned down. He tilted his head curiously though when he realized what she had brought. She let it fall on the ground, pushing the table away, and making up her new bed in front of the couch.

His lips parted, but he still didn't let out a word when she put the ring back on. And yep, he had tears in his eyes by the time she sat down next to him.

"Listening to my heartbeat right now?" Vera asked, waiting for his nod, his expression transforming in pure awe. "Good. Gimme you hand."

Matt obediently let her take his hand and place it on her chest. That way, he could feel her heartbeat too. The corners of his mouth twitched as if he wanted to smile. His sad imploring eyes softened.

"I'm not going anywhere. Sorry to disappoint." He wanted to say something, but she was faster, her ring finger pressing against the back of his hand to make him feel the metal on it. "That's an engagement ring, not a wedding one, I know. But I agreed to marry you. As far as I know, there is some line about being together for better or for worse. And I'm in, for both."

He let out a small laugh, wincing when the motion probably caused him pain. "Okay. Okay."

Matt reached for her jaw tenderly and she immediately gave in to the light pressure, meeting his lips halfway.

"You're the most amazing human being that has ever walked the Earth, you know that?" he whispered, touched, running his fingers over the area where he felt her heartbeat the strongest. "And I love you. God, I love you so much, you have no idea."

"I thought we established that I actually do," she breathed back, kissing him few more times. "You seem to struggle with acknowledging that I love you that much back."

He smiled brilliantly. "It never gets less astounding."

"Feel the same way here. I guess we deserve each other after all," she offered, caressing her nose with his, placing one more kiss, this time on his forehead.

"Guess we do."

When she was falling asleep, his arm hanging from the couch so she could hide his hand between her folded palms, she still found it hard to believe that they did. But somehow, it was the truth.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Okay. So. That.

Have a personal favourite? Honestly I am torn between Karen and Foggy and Danny…

Where to next? There is a third larger part of Damned happening. It's called All Roads Lead to Hell. So if you're interested... find it either on my profile, or under DD and Defenders crossover.

Much love.