Andy couldn't sleep, yet she was exhausted.

Everyday that Luna was with her this week was a fight. She had to fight with her to go to school, to eat the dinner she made, to even go to bed... Possibly the two most stubborn and hardheaded people fighting, not a good mix.

Then the small amount of time where it was like the time before everything, Luna would practically be attached to Andy's hip, wanting to sleep with her, wanting to be held constantly... She wouldn't even let Andy go to the bathroom alone. It was a wonder she didn't want to shower with her too.

It was wearing them both down.

They were slowly but surely falling down a spiral and it was only going to get worse.

And it didn't help that when she walked into the beanery to get a drink of water, Robert was also doing the same thing.

She chose to ignore his presence, going to the refrigerator and grabbing a bottle of water, then going to lean against the counter.

"You did great work today." He spoke quietly, referring to the call they had earlier that day. Nasty house fire that Andy pulled not only an older man out of but a baby too...

"I do great work everyday." She replied, not caring even a little bit how much anger laced her voice or how upset he was going to get over that remark... She was tired of him acting like this. Hot and cold with her, the constant mixed signals, like he was trying to make everything okay in his own little screwed up way.

"Insubordination."

"Excuse me?" She asked, wondering if she heard him correctly.

"I've been patient, but I've had just about enough of the insubordination... It affects morale." He spoke, his tone now matching hers.

Only rolling her eyes, she wasn't going to say anything more, so she bit her tongue and began to walk out. But against her better judgement and the fear of making him mad subsiding...

"Okay you know what," She started, sitting the bottle of water down on the island, her hands resting on either side of it. "You're the one who let personal matters interfere with work, I've been walking on eggshells around you for weeks. I'm sick of it Robert. I'm tired of wondering if you're going to blow up if I say one word or breathe a certain way... I'm sick of not knowing if you're bad mouthing me on reports just because of what happened between us... This was all fine, it could've been fine if you wouldn't have made it so bad... If you would've just been honest and-"

"Oh cut it with the promotion crap, Andy." Robert cut her off, his voice raising slightly, it sounding now more like it did when he first became their captain and they were in his office when he found out Luna was his daughter.

Seems like a lifetime ago, so much has happened since then... So much more hasn't though...

She didn't know that Ripley had gave Robert an ultimatum, he'd left that part out when explaining everything. He knew if he told her he had really no say in the matter, she would've took matters into her own hands and most likely would've lost her job by the end of it. So he took all the blame, knowing it probably wasn't the smartest choice, but he wanted to protect her.

"That's what this is all about!" Andy exclaimed, not even worried about waking anyone up at this point, she was seething, she wouldn't be surprised if steam wasn't coming out her ears right now. "It all comes back to you promoting Maya over me... I'm not even mad about that anymore, you lied to me Robert, for weeks! You didn't tell me the truth."

"You didn't tell me you were pregnant, you lied to me for almost five years Andy!" He shot back... Realizing how that had nothing to do with the conversation, but he was angry now. He also realized he probably shouldn't have brought that up, but it was too late now.

"Don't you dare make this about me keeping my pregnancy from you." She said through her teeth, moving closer to him, they were practically in a standoff. "You said you didn't want commitment, it was just sex, that's all it was... I didn't want to have kids, neither did you, but it happened, and I was scared and alone, I thought it was better if I didn't tell you, I didn't think you'd care. So yeah, I may not have told you about our daughter for years until I absolutely had no other choice, but I had a damn good reason for my actions."

"And I have a damn good reason for my actions, I was trying to protect you..." His voice trailed off at the end, both of their chests heaving with how worked up they were getting.

Not the time Robert, don't you dare tell her you're in love with her... Don't make things worse...

That's where his mind went, of all places.

"I don't need protecting..." Andy said in almost a whisper, their faces just inches apart.

She wanted to kiss him, make this all go away, make it all stop. The arguing, the passing Luna back and forth, the trying to hate and love him at the same time... It was exhausting and she wanted it all to stop.

She just wanted to kiss him.

But if she did, that would solve nothing...

Or she could kiss him, then they could talk about it later.

Andy, conversation is key in a relationship, makeup sex does nothing, it just complicates things further in the future.

Yep, that's where her mind was at this point in time.

All she wanted to do was kiss him...

She missed him, way more than she was willing to admit.

"It's kind of hard not to try and protect the person you love."

He did not just say that...

He did not just say that...

He really just said that.

Her jaw dropped, it was really the only thing she could really think to do... She was stunned, confused, scared, but happy? And yet she still turned around and walked away...

He literally just said he loved her, and she knew he wasn't lying, she could tell when he was lying... And she didn't say anything and turned around to walk out the door.

But she loved him too, and she needed him to know that.

So right as her hand grabbed onto the door handle to the beanery, she stopped herself and turned around...

Before she knew it, she was slamming her lips against his. This kiss was feverish, their lips moving against each other's like they'd kissed a thousand times before, it was a familiar yet such a new feeling.

They never wanted it to end.

This pure bliss and amount of emotion behind this moment made everything stop. It was just them, nothing else could bother them right then.

Andy pulled away slightly, looking up into his eyes, almost for reassurance, she wanted him to say it again. And she didn't have to even ask, he knew.

"I love you."

And in a split second her lips were back on his. She'd never loved someone like this, she'd never even been in a relationship since Luna was born... This was uncharted territory.

They went from yelling at each other, practically loathing the other, to him admitting he loved her and now they were kissing in the beanery.

Completely normal.

They pulled away from the kiss only when they needed air. It was a split second decision but Andy decided to admit it as well, there was no use not to anymore.

"I love you too."

A/N:
alright we can all cheer now... forgive me for everything🥰

also, two updates back to back? never heard of that before.

and another thing, 12k reads???? WHAT. thank you thank you thank you. love ya and your momma's for making ya.