If there's one thing to be said about Barbara, is that she doesn't believe in fate. Sure, sometimes she thanks the universe or her lucky starts if something particularly good happens (or blames them for bad situations), but honestly she thinks that events are always a mix of randomness, coincidence, choice and opportunity.

So, no, she doesn't think that she and Dick were meant to be together forever, or even together at all. No one is meant to be with anyone. People meet, get along, fall in love, and work to make it work.

And roughly speaking, that's what happened between them. Between meeting and properly falling in love there had been a lot more than simply "getting along", but it happened, eventually. Between falling in love and getting together, a lot of work had to be done. But they did it. They worked, and they worked hard, and they did it because they knew it was worth it. And it worked, in the end, as they knew it would, not because of fate, but because they knew what they wanted and where they were going and so they made it there.

Barbara wasn't meant to be with Dick, but she wanted to.

That's what she ends up saying in her vows, when their wedding comes. I can live without you, but I don't want to, she copies from a TV show as well, the words as true and as meaningful as she can gather. And in the beginning not everyone thinks it's romantic, but they catch on as she goes. And it doesn't matter anyway, because Dick gets it. He understands every word and the way he looks at her only proves that.

And that's what she thinks about when she wakes up every morning, his arm around her waist, his breath tickling her neck, his warmth spreading through the sheets and embracing her whole figure.

She never properly thought about getting married before. If it happened that she'd love someone enough to spend the rest of their lives together, sure, but it was never a thing on her mind. But now she relishes on the moments, the tiny snippets of marriage that they live. The few minutes after she wakes up before he follows suit – because he just senses that she's awake, always – when there's nothing to worry about, no villains at their door, no computers to run; when there's no one to barge in on them unwanted; when his wedding ring presents a different texture on her skin where his left hand is on her waist.

And, yes, she could live without Dick. She had, many times before, when they hadn't worked hard enough. But she really, really didn't want to.

"Mmm… morning." He mumbles sleepily and half into the pillow as he starts to join the waking world. His left arm tightens around her waist, unintentionally bringing her closer, causing her to forget her thoughts for just a moment and turn her head to him, instead of the window.

"Good morning." She replies, just as lightly. Sleep is still lingering on her as well and she thinks briefly about how long it had been since she'd slept in for real.

"The wheels on your brain were working so loudly they woke me up." Dick jokes as he places a small peck on her nose, both the action and the words making her grin. "What's you pretty redhead worrying about?"

Instead of replying, she moves closer. He adjusts himself so he can receive her in his arms, cuddling her on his warm torso, and she sighs contently on his chest. "I love you," is all she says, as if that would answer his question.

And weirdly, it does. He just smiles and kisses the top of her head, murmuring the words back quietly as a breeze against her ginger threads, but she hears them, loud and clear, and she knows he means it just as much as she does, as the gold band that touches her back could prove partially, but as his tone and beating heart leave no doubt of.

And she thinks, before letting his rhythmic breathing rock her back to sleep, that this is what marriage is. This amazing feeling on her heart that she's happy, even though things are not perfect and there're a lot of problems outside of their bed, she's still happy, and she'd choose to want Dick over being meant for him any day, because this, what they have, their happiness, is a result of everything that did together. Their marriage is real and it's good and it's so much better than anything she'd ever imagined she'd get with him.

They fall asleep again, locked in an embrace, secluded in their bed, in their bedroom, in their home, and things might not be perfect, but they are good. And that's all that matters.