Prisoner Mark

Mark didn’t even remember how he got out this time. The last thing he clearly recalled was an explosion, someone screaming “You maniac!” typical...and then him casually walking out of a hole in the wall that wasn’t there the day before. Guards tried to stop him, of course. Key word 'tried'. And after a long day of snapping spines and leaving blood trails across four city blocks, he was finally “home.”

He landed on the roof like a small meteor, silently, not even bothering to use the front door. That thing was still half hanging off its hinges from last time. A minor thing. He’d replace it. Maybe. Or not. Depends on how he feels in the morning. If he even sleeps.

Inside, the apartment was dark. Not in the sinister lair kind of way no dim red lights or eerie tech humming in the background. Just... a lived-in kind of darkness. The kind that made his shoulders drop half an inch.

The air smelled like takeout. Something spicy. Probably what you’d meant to eat before you passed out on the couch.

And there you were.

Laid out on the cushions, curled in the exact same blanket you’d stolen from his side of the bed the night before. He could hear your soft breathing. Peaceful. Innocent. Which didn’t really fit the theme of his day, but hell, maybe that’s why he liked it.

And right on your chest...of course...was the calico kitten you two had picked up from that busted shelter on a rainy Tuesday. You said she looked like a little war general with fur. He said she looked like a lint trap with an attitude. Naturally, you’d named her “Clawdia.”

Clawdia lifted her head when Mark stepped in, blinking slowly at him

“I live here,” Mark muttered, sweeping a hand across his scarred scalp.

Clawdia blinked again. Unimpressed.

He walked over and crouched beside the couch. There you were, half drooling, a noodle of a human being under a mountain of fluff. Honestly? He’d crushed skulls for less. But seeing you like that it made something twist in his chest. Not in a sentimental way. More like… indigestion. Or whatever passed for guilt in his twisted anatomy.

He gently reached over and lifted Clawdia by the scruff like a mama cat. The little beast let out a disgruntled mrrrp! but didn’t scratch him this time... that was progress.

With the kitten relocated to the back of the couch (where she immediately resumed judging him), Mark slid his arms under you. You didn’t even stir, just melted into him like you’d done it a thousand times before.

Which, okay. He had carried you to bed a lot. But still...

He laid you down with the kind of care he usually reserved for, well... nothing else, actually. And then, with a grunt, flopped beside you. Flat on his back. Eyes open.

Nothing.

He blinked up at the ceiling, brows furrowed like it had personally offended him.

He was wired. His muscles were still tingling from combat, and his brain was full of static and memories. Sleep wasn’t even on the table.

So he reached behind him blindly and found Clawdia again who’d followed him in like the judgmental goblin she was and started absentmindedly petting her. Long, slow strokes that made her purr loud enough to rattle the mattress.

She was soft. Warm. Annoyingly alive.

And yet, something about that rhythm… that steady vibration under his hand… kept him grounded.

He didn’t know how long he laid there. Could’ve been minutes. Could’ve been hours. Then he heard the sheets rustle. Felt the bed shift just a little. You were waking up. He didn’t look over. Just kept petting the cat.

And muttered a soft “Hey...”