Take care of it [cw]

He looked at her as she searched his eyes, not really knowing what she was looking for in them. He finished his cigarette and flicked it out in the garden, nodding as she explained. He frowned a bit as she said she had willingly let herself get taken, not sure if that would have been a wise idea if it hadnt been that she was with Darren. He looked back at her and noticed her fiddling, listening to her words. It was interesting to hear her explain the occurrences like she did, like he was looking from another perspective. It was a rare thing for him to talk to people who werent either dumb as shit like Darren or hot tempered like Ethan. He scratched his chin and smiled a bit as she said she was missing a link between the two. To him it seemed rather simple, but she seemed to be looking into the hard details, which wouldnt give her anything. "You're thinking in solids, when you should consider the abstract linings in the portrait you're trying to assemble," he then said with a thoughtful look in his eyes.
He sat there for a while, staring at her as she whispered to then pause for a while. His expression was unchanged for a bit till he burst out in laughter. "Oh, you're a silly girl," Cetas said with a voice of disbelief as a warm grin fell over his lips and he shook his head, "He's in love. And you cant analyze love like that," he elaborated as he shook his head and made a short frown. Still a bit angry about it, but he was more so saying it to make her understand that it wasnt a simple thing. He ran his hand through his hair and looked up at the red sky above them, "Have you been in love before? You'd know what it's like if you had. The unpredictability, the changes you make for that person, and most importantly, how incredible they make you feel," he said as his eyes shortly turned to something softer like he was thinking of someone. He exhaled deeply and shook his head, looking back at her. "The link you're missing is love," he said to move his mind back on the subject.

Feeling how he wanted her was making her feel like she wouldnt function if this tension wasnt going to be removed. Subtle touches that held back on nearing what they both wanted. His whisper so sweet, her head was in a completely different place, yet fully aware of this at the same time. No one had ever made her feel this way. She gasped lightly as his hand moved under her shirt, still being dressed in the all white as the symbol of the confinement she had once been in. In any other instance, she would have wanted out of these clothes right away to feel normal and safe, but the person that made her feel safer than her own home was here with her. She looked at him at his whisper and gulped quietly to herself as she was drawn out of her rebellious lust craved thoughts and pulled back to reality. She nodded slightly as she took a deep inhale right before their lips met again. It was almost bittersweet in a sense, as her body knew what it wanted, but her head had moved in a different direction. His groan made her smile a bit as he moved off her to then help her on her feet. She placed her hands on his shirt as he kissed her yet again, the breath that she had been trying to catch was yet again pulled out of it's regular course and as the kiss ended, she opened her eyes to look up into his. So warm and safe, his eyes had always been. She smiled a sweet little half smile at his words and nodded as she grabbed his hand and stood there for a while, just enjoying holding hands again. She ruffled up his hair with her free hand and pinched her lips shortly, "I've just been waiting to hear you say that again," she said in a low tender tone as she felt her eyes tear up a little, but that was just because she felt so happy again. Whatever had been done to her didnt matter in the moment, but there wasnt a knowing on what it meant for the future. She moved outside and held his hand tight as she looked around.

Emma looked at him, frowning at his words. Abstract? She sat up, still holding his hand, but barely noticing as she looked at him. Was he about to tell her what she was missing? She looked down as he called her silly, not knowing how to take that line. Love. She breathed out at that word closing her eyes as she felt it awfully strange. She could sense his frustration, but tried not focusing on it. She let go of his hand, her hand immidiately starting to tap as she got to her feet. ”Ne’er been in love, ain’t planning on it,” she mumbled and bent down to grab her jacket, pulling it over her arms and moving her hair away from the collar. ”Love is a stupid link,” she mumbled before she looked up at the sky. She didn’t know how much Ethan had told about their home life, but she was guessing not a lot. She didn’t like thinking of it, and would prefer it to remain that way. ”It still doesn’t add up,” she whispered as she tapped her finger against her thigh, barely making a sound as she frowned. She looked to Cetas, hurt behind her blue eyes as she sighed and shook her head. ”I’ll go check up on Darren,” she mumbled before moving to the house again. Emma didn’t like speaking about feelings, especially not with a stranger like Cetas. She kept her tapping rythm as she walked, almost as if it was a drum she was marching towards. Sitting down in front of the sofa she moved some hair out of Darren’s face. ”Ya good?” she asked Darren, her eyes still showing she was distraught, but she was desperately trying to hide it.

Ethan liked her and the way she moved made him want to scream and jump around in excitement. Not giving in seemed to be the best choice for now, even if he really just wanted to get on with it. He stuck out his tongue, squeezing his eyes shut as she ruffled up his hair, a small chuckle escaping his throat. Their hands were reunited and he looked down shortly at their touch, smiling, before his gaze moved back to her eyes. Together they moved out in the forrest and he felt her squeeze his and tighter. ”It’s aight, I’m here,” he chuckled, grimacing as it hurt a bit, but he would never tell her to let go. ”Cetz, Dare and Ems are at that ridiculous mansion of his,” he said. He had a sour taste in his mouth, knowing he had basically left his sister alone with two of his mates; one known to not be good with handling himself around girls and the other being a total dickhead to girls at times. ”We should prob’ly save Ems before we go anywhere,” he said in a chuckle, but you could hear his worry behind it the need to cover it up with laughter. He started moving in the direction he had coming from, looking down at his phone from time to time to make sure they were moving in the right direction. ”So how many livingroom furniture ya think ya old man could turn me into?” he chuckled, nudging his shoulder against hers. He wanted to keep the mood light, and he didn’t want it to be so she felt like she couldn’t talk about Samuel when he was there. Sure, the man had basically promised him to serve his head on a platter if he found him with his daughter, but the rebel in Ethan didn’t really care. Vanessa made him happy, and he thought better to be happy for a while than sad for a lifetime.

"Like hell you wont fall in love," he said with a small smile, he couldnt believe that she eventually would go the road like the rest of them. Probably falling for someone she couldnt have. That was usually how it was, he had seen it all over the place. Darren, Vanessa, Ethan, himself. It felt inevitable. "Love is stupid to you because you havent felt it," he said with a shrug as he looked at her. He seemed quite calm and rather friendly with her. He watched her look up at the sky and made a small grin. She was quite beautiful and he was only seeing that now when she was looking up. He listened to her mumble and sighed as he was still looking at her. He didnt answer but just observed her. When she looked at him, he quickly moved his eyes away like he wouldnt want to be caught in him observing her beauty. He nodded at her words but stayed seated in the grass as she left. He shook his head and rubbed his forehead, "Oh boy," he mumbled as he looked back at the sky, thinking about how she had just looked at it.
Darren was still sleeping as she came in, but woke as soon as she touched his hair. He felt a lot better now, actually being able to see. He moved up to sit in the sofa and smiled a bit at her question as he dried some of the dried blood off his chin, "Hectic," he replied as he blinked a few times, still feeling drowsy from the drug doing it's work and then waking up. "Might need to see a dentist soon, yeah?" he said with a short chuckle as he clenched his teeth, feeling where his tooth was missing. "A gold tooth would be sick, innit?" he asked as he looked at her with tired eyes.

Even though he assured her that it was alright, she was still just thinking about the memories. She was always so good at being caught up in her head about the past, especially good at being caught up in a bad memory. That was why her house was littered with good memories, so she always had a way to pull herself out if needed be.
She frowned a bit as he mentioned Emma being alone with their friends. Darren wasnt that worrisome as she had never really seen him even interact with a girl, but Cetas was a different story. "Yeah, we should definitely get her out of there," she said as she scratched her neck, wondering if Cetas had already tried pulling some shit on her. It wouldnt really surprise her if he had, but you could never know.  She looked around as they walked, her expression a bit distant as she was thinking about how she was taken here. The men had just been pulling at her and despite her attempts of restraint, she wasnt going anywhere else than the hut. His question pulled her out of her thoughts as she scrunched her face with a small smile, trying not to seem too taken by her memory. "He'd pick lamp shades. So he could make a lot, you know?" she said as she chuckled a bit even though it wasnt really a thing to chuckle about, "And he'd keep them lit all day and night just to watch your flesh light up," she added, wrinkling her nose as she looked at him.
She felt more at ease when they got to the city, exhaling a bit deeply as she recognized the streets. "I do have a bad feeling about this though. Samuel is acting different," she said, scratching behind her ear as she was thinking about it. She looked up at the mansion and drew a deep exhale. "I was taken here before the cabin. Cetas was furious," she said as she glanced at Ethan with a odd expression. She should have stopped and talked it out, but her mind was set on getting Emma out rather than dealing with her problem right now.

What he said didn’t really make sense to her. As long as she didn’t get caught up in her emotions with someone else, she was sure to be safe, right? She swallowed as he hit the nail on the head. She had never felt it, that was true. Sure she had felt some love between her and her brother, but it was far from what love others had described to her. She had seen people hurt themselves for someone they weren’t even related to. That seemed so unlogical to her, and that was when she had made up her mind. She moved back to the mansion and seeing that he awoke she smiled. Him speaking about his tooth made her chuckle as she got up, she pushed him a bit back on the sofa and climbed up on him. ”Open, let me see,” she said calmly, placing a hand under his chin. Her thumb she placed on his lower lip, looking in to see where the tooth had been knocked out, she grimaced. ”It’s not pretty,” she said, being rather close to him didn’t really bother her. ”But it’s placed so that if you grin, ya can see it – perfect for a gold tooth,” she said in a chuckle, carefully letting go of his chin, but not really moving.

”Lamp shades? Sound like a nice thing to be,” he chuckled and moved with her. Reaching the city made him a bit more calm, but he still knew that Samuel had eyes everywhere. ”Acting different?” he asked, furrowing his brows as he looked at her. Different could mean a lot of things, but he had a feeling that the unknown part of different was the one to look out for. ”What do ya mean different?” he said. She told him that she had been taken to Cetas before going to the cabin, but why? From what Ethan knew, when she was taken it was straight to whatever site that Samuel had planned for her. He breathed out, wanting to hear more, but maybe it was better to wait a bit. Just until they were alone. He got through the gates with her, holding her hand tighter in his, no intention of letting go when he had finally gotten a hold of her. He stepped through the door, and seeing Emma on top of Darren made him see red for a second. His temper got a hold of him as he let go of Vanessa to grab Emma to pull her off of him. ”What do ya think you’re doing?” Ethan said in almost a growl. Emma felt herself getting pulled off of Darren, sending the guy an apologetic look. ”I was checking his broken tooth,” she said in a calm voice. She look defiantly into her brother’s eyes, but she knew he could see the hurt in them. Would he misinterperet it? ”Now let go of me, or I’ll kick ya ass,” she said, but it didn’t sound convincing. Ethan scoffed, letting go of his sister to check her up and down. ”Where’s Cetz?” he demanded to know, trying not to let his temper get a hold of him, but it was hard when it came to his sister.

As she pushed him back, his arms flew out like he was afraid to fall down on the floor, but he felt the sofa ready to support his back right away. He looked up at her with a confused expression as she chose to sit on him, though he didnt exactly think much of it. He opened his mouth as she asked it and watched her look inside. Darren had been quite well at keeping his teeth from decaying, despite the fact that he had lived most his life in capture. It was hard to ruin teeth when he had lived off healthy things from his time in capture, no sugary food to cause cavities. When she said a gold tooth would be perfect, he started laughing, shaking his head, "Yeah, I'd rock a gold tooth, innit? Nah, I plan on having some witch work her magic and let me have my own," he said as he then tilted his head a bit, "Did you pick up my tooth by any chance?" he asked as he looked at her. He had been too fogged out in his mind to realize if it had been left in the car or brought here by her.
"You'd be dead though," she added with a small frown, not really liking the thought of moving around Samuel's house to see the lamp shades made out of Ethan's skin. "Yeah. Like he wouldnt just let you go if he didnt have some sort of plan going along with it," she said as she sighed to herself. Maybe Emma would be able to figure it out, but there was no way that she would ever let Ethan's sister come near her father, it was already enough that the girl had to deal with their friends. As they stepped in, she was surprised to see Emma be sitting over a drowsy Darren, though Ethan was quick to go pull her off. Darren blinked a few times as he looked up at Ethan, "Allow it, allow it, man. It wasn't like 'at," he mumbled as he shook his head. He pulled himself to his feet and took a moment to get a hold of his footing before he saw Vanessa and nodded at her. He would have gone to give her a hug, but he didnt feel quite as steady on his feet. There was also something in Vanessa's mind that made him a bit reluctant to go, like she was pissed off but trying very well to hide it. Darren could just feel it because he felt raw emotions in the deepest depths underneath people's facade.
Cetas came in after a bit, looking at Vanessa and Ethan before he walked over to Vanessa and pulled her into a short hug. Vanessa seemed surprised by the hug and moved out of his arms rather quickly. Cetas exhaled and shook his head as he looked a bit away, "Sorry, Van," he mumbled but Vanessa just stared at him with annoyed eyes. "Dont talk to me," she mumbled through gritted teeth. She took a deep breath and clenched her jaw before she snatched his packet and went out the balcony door. He watched her leave with sad eyes before he looked to the others. He noticed Ethan's anger and narrowed his eyes a bit, "What's pissing you off this time?" he asked in a tired tone as he looked at Emma and frowned a bit. He shook his head again and shrugged, "I didnt do anything to her," he then said as he looked at Ethan.

Emma couldn’t help but chuckle a little. She was a little rough around the edges, never really knowing where her limits were. ”C’mon a gold tooth would be wicked,” she chuckled and pulled out his tooth from her jacket’s inner pocket. ”Got it right here,” she said with a smile and placed it in his hand, folding his fingers around it. ”Better not lose it a second time,” she said in a warning tone. Ethan pulled her off, making her scoff as she looked at her brother. Ethan gave Darren a sharp look, but it didn’t seem like he was blaming his friend, more so his sister. He let go of her sister, taking a step back, but watching her like she was some kind of wild animal he had to be aware of. Emma looked to Vanessa with a faint smile. ”Glad you’re alive,” she said, knowing it might not sound optimistic, but it was a fact. Cetas could sense that Ethan was angry, of course he could. That demon had seen the hot headed human in action too many times to count at this point. Emma gritted her teeth as she looked at Cetas. ”What the fuck is wrong with you people?” she mumbled before she sat down in the sofa where Darren had been sleeping. ”I’m not some sort of nymphomaniac,” she muttered with a frowning expression, looking at the door where Vanessa had went. Maybe she should go join her? She got to her feet, tossing a pillow at her brother and sticking out her tongue before she got out on the small terrace. She walked carefully to Vanessa, trying to put on a smile, before she stood beside her, looking over the garden. The sky more purple now. ”Wanna chat?” she asked. If she didn’t, they could just stay silent, to her it didn’t matter, she just kept her small tapping motion going against the railing.

Ethan sighed as he watched his sister go out to Vanessa, shaking his head as he tossed the pillow at the couch. ”I’m not scared that ya’d do something to ’er, she’s more than capable of fighting someone off she doesn’t like,” he mumbled running his fingers through his hear, a small grunt escaping his lips in frustration. ”It’s just – all she cares about are ’er getting to play ’er stupid mind games and nothing else,” he said frowning at his own words. He felt like he was badmouthing his sister. ”She doesn’t understand interaction like the rest of us – like talking for ’er is a game, everything you do, she takes and twists in ’er head and places it in a box,” he mumbled, but knew that the others could hear him. He breathed out. ”But I luv that bugger, she’s ma sister,” he said, sighing as he looked at his friends. He could still feel his nerves move in his body, feeling Samuel’s words kick into effect, but he tried to surpress it. ”Just, whatever ya do, don’t let yourself fall for ’er act,” he said looking down in shame. He had seen plenty of guys fall in love with her, but fail to get anything in return. He didn’t want his friends to hurt.

Darren smiled at her and placed the tooth in his pocket, nodding at her warning, "A tennor that I wont," he dared her, but it was more just to say something, than an actual dare. He wasnt going to lose it, not if he wanted it back in his mouth. Vanessa made a half smile that was quite sad as Emma spoke to her, wanting to say something till her eyes fell on her uncle that entered.
Cetas knew his words would come off as wrong, but he was just clarifying to Ethan that he hadnt done something out of ill-intent. That she had thought it meant that she would have been easy was her deal. "That's a dumb question to ask," he said to her words, shrugging a bit, but he was just trying to cover up for the fact that he had realized that he found her quite attractive out there in the garden - The easiest way was to just be a dickhead in his mindset. Darren moved his eyes to her on the couch and frowned at her words, "No on's said that, aight?" he said with a confused tone in his voice.
Vanessa looked at her as she came out, just to be sure it wasnt Cetas. She placed a cigarette in her mouth and lit it, her hands shaking slightly with anger that she was trying to suppress. "Sure thing," Vanessa said in a monotone tone as she stared up at the purple sky, smoking a cigarette. She had missed feeling the smoke in her lungs, the nicotine lifting her brain just slightly above her own mind so she could relax again. It was harder when Ethan wasnt there, but she had to deal with it. She exhaled the smoke into the air and watched it mix with the fresh air above till it was gone. "I dont know what girls talk about," she admitted as she moved her eyes shortly to Emma. Sure she had talked to her good friend Buffy, but that was another case. Buffy wasnt all that girly and on about girl things like boys and dresses. Vanessa liked that a lot, as she had no idea about either of those things. "You were pretty close to Darren in there," she then said just to talk about something that didnt involve herself. "I get the whole deal of having someone to watch your every move, judge you for it. It sucks," she said as she didnt move her eyes from the sky and frowned deeply.

Darren and Cetas both listened to Ethan as he spoke of his sister, Darren wrinkling his nose a bit as he wasnt sure that it was the proper way to speak of a sister, but it did make him a bit worried about the lap-sitting that had just happened. He wasnt that good with girls, let alone reading obvious signs or know when he was getting played. Cetas shrugged and nodded at Darren, "He's the one that should be careful. I've got enough to look out for to be chasing another brother's sister," he said as he moved his eyes to the balcony, watching Vanessa and Emma talk. He frowned a bit and looked back with a look that showed some type of shame that he was trying to hide. Darren was sitting in his own thoughts as Cetas' shame unfolded. Darren's expression changed to being completely aware of where he was and what he was hearing, as he stood up and clenched his fist. In a swift motion, almost like Darren had gained some sort of adrenaline rush that made him act out of complete clear headed sobriety, as he struck Cetas hard along his chin, making the demon stumble back. "You fucking dickhead, yeah?" Darren hissed as he stared at Cetas with flaming eyes. "You told Samuel Prideux everything he needed to know, didn't'ya? Just went right up in there and spilled everything," he continued as he then pointed at Ethan, "Every. Fucking. Thing," he said, shaking his head as he slapped his forehead a few times. Cetas moved his chin a bit to let his healing do it's work, turning his eyes to Ethan as he then frowned, "He's not lying," he admitted as he sighed deeply, but it seemed like he was ready for some sort of fight, like he knew this would happen eventually. He was just waiting for the hot-head to strike.

”I don’t know either,” Emma said with a small chuckle. She was remarkably good at turning her mood around as soon as she was away from things that made her angry or mad, but she was having a harder time today. It was most notably in her tapping, knowing that some people might snap at her for doing the same noise over and over again. She frowned at the mention of Darren, looking at Vanessa with confused eyes. She hadn’t really seen it as something weird, but maybe it was. ”Ethan ain’t too bad, he just tries to look out for me,” she said with a shrug and looked at the sky. Soon they would be able to see the stars, if the light of the mansion allowed it that was. ”He’s just always on my case about guys,” she said looking down to the grass with a small smile. She kept her tapping at a stale rate, more like a form of background music that seemed to calm her. How much had Ethan told about her? She wondered as she leaned forward against the railing, looking down it wasn’t that far of a drop. ”I know I ain’t right in the head, but he still treats me like I’m that girl he knew growing up, ya know?” she said with a small chuckle, running a hand through her shoulder length hair, fluffing it up a bit. Her and Ethan both had very thick hair, but Emma usually just cut hers short and made sure to thin it out. ”I honestly never really know if I have a friend,” she admitted, but didn’t know why she was all of a sudden talking about it. But then again, she knew. She wanted to connect with someone, reach out and find something that could make her experience a real bond, but she was scared at the same time. ”I’m good wiv you, being wiv ma brother,” she finally said, breathing out as she looked to the sky again. Emma smiled, pointing to the sky, but she knew that people couldn’t see it yet. She just knew where the constallations was at any given time because of her mind. ”Cassiopeia!” she exclaimed with great enthusiasm. She giggled a bit to herself. ”Formed by five bright stars, named after Cassiopeia the queen of Aethiopia and mother of Andromeda,” she said, clearly just her mind going off on a tangent, but she needed that right now. ”The legend goes that Cassiopeia was placed in the sky as a punishment by Poseidon, because she claimed she was more beautiful than the sea nymphs,” she chuckled, shaking her head at such an old tale. ”The five stars are named in order of one to five in the greek alphabet; Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Epsilon,” she said pointing at where each star would be placed, before she stopped, frowning and looking down. ”I’m doing it again, sorry,” she said shaking her head to make herself stop. That was when she heard the rucus going on inside.

Ethan furrowed his brow. It was like Cetas didn’t get what he was saying, but so be it. If the guy wouldn’t listen, then he would just have to stop anything from ever happening. He breathed out, trying to get his temper down, but it wasn’t really working. His fists still trying to clutch and the need to punch something was in his body. He watched as Darren got up, striking Cetas with a blow he hadn’t ever seen coming from his friend before. ”What?” Ethan said, his jaw falling to the floor as he watched Cetas’ eyes turn to him. He swallowed, anger and betrayal in his eyes as he moved forward, looking up into his friend’s eyes. ”Fuck I got played,” he mumbled under his breath before he gave Cetas a shove. ”I really don’t deserve her, I know,” he said, giving Cetas another shove, his jaw twitching as he wanted to just go ham, but he didn’t want to. ”I am nothing, I fucking know, but I fucking can’t stop my feelings,” he yelled in anger as he clenched his fist at gave Cetas a punch in the stomach. Ethan was shaking with anger at this point. ”I know I’m gonna die loving her, yeah?” he said giving Cetas another punch. ”I know what your brother is going to do, yet I still can’t move away from her,” he said in a more hurt voice as he gave him a harder punch, this time against Cetas’ jaw.

”Ethan, stop,” Emma said in a firm tone, stepping in to the room again. But Ethan didn’t stop. He kept on punching and shoving at Cetas. His eyes watery as his movements got faster and harder. Emma ran over, grabbing Ethan’s arm, but ended up with a fist to her face. She fell backwards, cupping her face and she looked down, trying not to cry. ”Ems, no – I – I didn’t mean to,” Ethan said, snapping out of it and reaching his hand out to help Emma up to comfort her. ”Don’t you dare touch me,” Emma said in a cold tone, moving backwards before she got to her feet. She still looked down, hiding the hurt and tears in her eyes. Under her hand she could feel that her skin had torn at the blow, making her whince a bit. ”You’re just like dad,” she mumbled before she went out of the room, practically running for the front door. Ethan stood a bit, unable to move as the reality that had just happened came into his mind. He swallowed, wanting to run after her, but he looked down at his knuckle instead, a bit of her blood on one of them. ”Emma!” he yelled in a shaky voice, but he couldn’t move. He was like frozen in time. ”I didn’t … I didn’t mean to,” he mumbled to himself.

"Well, Cetas is the same to me. Always want to see that little girl that he watched grow, instead of the woman I am," she said as she shook her head and smiled a bit. Maybe Cetas was a bit more showey with his way, going as far as to have been beating Darren up instead of pulling her away, had it been her on his lap. She chuckled and rubbed her temple with the cigarette between her fingers, "It's just how it is," she mumbled as she exhaled a bit. Cetas probably wouldnt change, but she could still hope. Emma's words made her scrunch her face a bit as she took a drag off the cigarette, lighting a new one as this one had gotten to it's end. She didnt really care that she wasnt supposed to smoke, that she had quit a couple of months ago after a long battle of relapses and giving up. "Cetas say men only have one thing in mind. It's partly true, but there must be some good ones out there," she said as she glanced back at the living room, only able to see Darren on the couch with a thoughtful look in his eyes. There was a bit of silence between them, Vanessa smoking her cigarette as she looked back up at the sky, fiddling a bit with the lighter in her hand. She turned her eyes to Emma as she spoke and smiled a bit at her words, "Happy to hear that. You might be the only one," she then said with a small chuckle and shook her head a bit at herself. She looked at the sky to where Emma pointed, wrinkling her eyebrows to a frown as she couldnt see anything but purple from the dark blue of night mixing with the redness from the sunset. She looked to Emma as she explained about the constallation she was pointing at, knowing what she was talking about but not exactly in the same detail. She just sat and listened, blowing out smoke from time to time as she looked up towards the sky. The stars were beautiful, but Cetas rarely turned off the lights in the garden to let them all show. Typically the big ones would show, but Vanessa liked seeing them places were light wasnt there to ruin them. She remembered a time in Africa were she went to a quiet place by herself, watching the nightsky away from the cities and their nightlights was a complete different experience. "Dont apologize. You should see the sky when there isnt any lights to ruin it," she said as Emma had finished up, she had been listening but she probably wouldnt remember anything that Emma had told her. She turned her body back as she heard the ruckus, a worried expression in her eyes.

He just watched Ethan, exhaling a bit as he shrugged to himself, "It's true," he said, not trying to extinguish the fire that was clearly burning in the human. He looked down into Ethan's eyes, standing his ground as he kept a neutral expression. He just wanted to stay calm to avoid making things worse, but Darren had already made sure that the damage was done. The first shove was expected, Cetas quickly regained his composure as he looked at Ethan. The other shove made Cetas clench his jaw as his own anger was fueled. He didnt normally let anyone shove him, but this was Ethan, he had to just stand there and take it. The hit made him growl a bit to himself as he gritted his teeth, but he just straightened his back and looked his friend in the eyes. He wanted to grab him and stop this, but that would just make them both end up rolling around on the floor taking punches. He knew he could handle this, and just let Ethan have his moment of blinded anger to himself. Better now than later. He frowned at his last words before he felt the punch at his jaw, making him feel the metal taste in his mouth that he hated so much. Emma's entrance didnt faze Cetas as he kept looking at Ethan. Darren stepped to her, "Ems, allow it" he tried but it wasnt going to help. Cetas took every punch and shove, even though the more blood he felt flowing, the angrier his inside felt. His nose started bleeding at one punch, he felt it run down to his mouth, covering his upperlip.

She watched Emma go in, but she wasnt quite done with her cigarette, so she decided to move over to the glass doors so she could see what was going on. She leaned a bit against the frame as she frowned a bit at the sight of Ethan being over Cetas, but frankly she thought her uncle had deserved this one. Violence probably wasnt the way to do it, yet here they were and Vanessa was too angry to care. It seemed that Emma felt completely different, trying to stop it. She bit down on the bud as the girl tried to grab a hold of her brother that only resulted in a punch right in the kisser. Vanessa groaned and stepped inside with the cigarette bud crushed between her teeth, flicking it out the door before she stopped. It clearly wasnt her place to interfere and she only realized that as she stood by the couch, placing her hand on the sidearm of the chair as she felt her shoulder sink a bit. Cetas groaned with pain as he wiped some blood away from his nose, watching Emma leave before he shook his head at Ethan, "Good fucking job," he muttered as he looked at the blood on his hand, Darren darting after Emma, trying to catch up to her, but it was like the clear headed sobriety from before had slipped up and left him in a state of lightheaded wobbly legs. He grabbed the front door, darting his eyes up to see where she went. He quickly ran down the stairs, trying not to stumble over his feet as he clenched his fists, "Emma!" he called for her, hoping she would hear. He fell over his legs and felt the asphalt scrape his hands as he sloppily tried to take the fall with them, shaking his head, "Get your shit together, Darren," he mumbled to himself.

Cetas had been staring at his bloody hand for a bit before he looked back up at Ethan. He knew a part of him had deserved it, but he wasnt ever that good at receiving a beatdown without at least throwing a punch back. He clenched his bloody hand and grabbed Ethan's collar before he hit him now when he was all caught up in his own mind. He stumbled a bit back, laughing a little to himself, "Sometimes, you amaze me with how dumb you are, though those were some good punches," he mumbled as he snorted the blood back up in his nose, feeling the broken skin on his chin that was slowly healing, but definitely closing up in a bit, it hadnt been that deep. "Yeah, I hate my brother. I hate him more than I hate you being with Vanessa. But you two jackasses couldnt understand, even if you tried. I didnt tell him to get back at you or some dumb shit, you fucking know me too well for that bullshit," he said exhaling deeply to return to his unpredictable calmness. He went over to the table and grabbed a dinnercloth that he started using to dry the blood of his face and hand. "So yeah, I told him. Because if I hadnt, who the fuck would have known what would happen to you? You think you were served a death sentence today, but imagine if he had found out on his own," he almost growled, trying to keep his calm as he rubbed the cloth on his hand, but the blood wouldnt come off.
Vanessa had just sunk down next to the sidearm, resting her chin on the palm of her hand as she stared into the room, not sure how to handle the whole situation. She knew this was bad, that she was going back into the state that feared everything, but instead of saying anything, she just sat there in silence, telling her mind to call it off. Cetas turned his eyes to Vanessa and scoffed, "Even she gets it" he said as he moved his eyes down to his hand again. Vanessa's eyes were darting around for a bit as she scrunched her face, mumbling a few words to herself as she tried not to seem too freaked out, the nicotine helping but it wasnt quite enough.

”You should see the sky through a telescope, or more correctly you would see more of the universe than just the night sky,” she said with a small chuckle. She wasn’t a major in astrophysics for nothing. She breathed out, frowning as she her the things going on inside. She heard how Darren tried to stop her, but to her it just made her want to stop it even more. Sure she could hit Ethan, but it was mostly girly things, and he would usually give her a small push in return. This was different. She felt a small droplet of blood fall from her broken skin as she ran. She heard Darren call for her, and she stopped as she reached the gate, looking back and seeing him fall over. Biting her lip, her tears running down, she didn’t feel like she could just leave him on the ground. She walked over, helping him to his feet and moving them slowly over to the fence, sitting down with him. ”You shouldn’t run,” she mumbled, whiping her cheek from blood that had mixed with her salty tears. She wanted to yell and get angry, but then again it wouldn’t do anything. Instead she leaned her head against Darren’s shoulder, crying silently, just tears streaming and the sound of sniffling from time to time. She couldn’t hide it anymore, and moving didn’t seem like an option. Emma tried whiping her tears away, but every time she did, another tear came out to replace the previous. When was the last time she had felt this hurt? She felt like it was ages ago, but it reminded her of everything. How her father was ruthless, hating how she could never sit still and just let the men talk, how she would get him with whatever he had in his hand when she did something he didn’t want. How their mother just sat by, either too high or too wasted away to even care. ”I’m not weak,” she mumbled, more like a reasurrance to herself, but she kept on crying. She knew that Darren maybe could hear her thoughts, but to be honest she couldn’t hide them when she was feeling like this. It was like with every thought, she got a flashback to being hit, flinching a bit. She sniffled, trying to gather herself, but she just reached out and took his hand. Holding it as she cried and started coughing a bit.

Ethan watched Darren run after Emma, but a sour taste had developed in his mouth. He had hurt his sister. He had been so angry that he hadn’t cared about who was within hitting range, he had just hit to hurt. He didn’t getmuch time to think as Cetas grabbed his collar, hitting him and making him gasp for air at the blow. He tried gathering his breath, standing up as he whiped some of his spit away from his lips. Ethan didn’t care what reason Cetas had. He let him speak, scoffing at his words whenever he felt like it. His eyes darted to Vanessa as Cetas scoffed at her, seeing that she wasn’t doing too well. He walked over, sitting down in front of her with a worried frown. Anger was still in his system, but that could wait if she needed him. Why was she always the one to come before himself? ”Vane,” he said, whiping off his hands in his black jeans as he looked at her. ”Will ya let me touch ya?” he asked carefully, if she signalled yes, he would touch her cheek gently, trying to capture her gaze with his blue eyes. If not, he would keep his distance, but still be close if she needed him be. He sighed, reaching up to his small locket that was hiding under his shirt, pulling it out so she could see it. He couldn’t understand how her mind worked, but the locket had seemed to calm her down in the hut. He sat down across from her, waiting and hoping that she would react to something or anything he did. ”I know I’m a blockhead, yeah,” he whispered in an apologetic tone. ”But I’m here for ya, right? I promised,” he said in a serious tone. His eyes locked on her with a worried expression. He knew that she needed to go home soon, and he would have to find Emma if Darren had failed to do so. ”I’m a fuck up, aight Cetas,” he mumbled. He knew that Cetas had acted the best he could in the given situation, he knew that, because Ethan would’ve done the same if the tables had turned. ”But giving me a proper beat up will have to wait,” he said, looking at Vanessa with worried eyes. He needed to get her home to her happy memories. To her safe space. He breathed out, getting to his feet and helping Vanessa to her feet if she let him. If she couldn’t stand he would have to carry her. ”This is asking a huge favor, but a car to her apartment would be real nice,” he said, looking at Cetas with sincere eyes. He was not in a place to make demands, but he couldn’t just ignore her state of mind right now.

Darren looked up at Emma as she helped him to his feet, a few pained groans leaving his lips as he couldnt stop clenching his wounded hands, thinking tightening the scraped skin would help. "Well, I'm a dickhead, ya get me?" he said with a small smile that quickly disappeared in an expression of pain. They sat down and he felt his wobbly legs shake a bit from the running. She placed her head on his shoulder, but he quickly moved his arm around her, just to make her feel comfortable. He sighed deeply and caressed her upper arm as his other hand held hers, it stung a bit in the tiny rifts from the fall, but he couldnt care less in the moment. He just let her cry, caressing her arm in soft motions to calm her down. "You're not weak Emma," he replied to her whisper as he looked at her with hurt eyes, hearing every memory and thought she bore like a burden. He exhaled in a tremble and shook his head, "You've been through tough shit. It made you strong, alright?" he said, not sure if it was wise to let her know that he hadnt just looked away, when he probably should have. He just wanted to understand, to know what to say so that she would feel better. "Fuck..." he mumbled as he leaned his forehead to the side of her head, closing his eyes. "I wish I could say some wise shit that would make it better. But I aint a smart man, I'm just Darren," he mumbled as he squeezed her hand. "Dickhead Darren who cant keep his nose out of people's head. A proper arsehole, innit" he said, trying not to sound funny, but despite him being very serious about his words, it still came out as if he was joking, making him sigh at himself.

As he neared her, her eyes darted to him before she grabbed a hold of the sidearm, pushing herself further down to hide behind it, biting her lip as she closed her eyes and made a deep exhale. She nodded and let him touch her cheek, but not looking at him. She still felt a bit in control, but she could also feel that the control was slowly slipping up. She looked at the locket as it fell upon his shirt and stared at it for a while. She listened to his whisper and gulped. It was true, but that was what she liked so much about him. The way he was, in every sense of it. His words made her close her eyes as she looked out into the room for a bit like she was somewhere else before she pushed her face onto her palms, "Vanessa, snap out of it," she begged in a vague whisper as her fingernails dug into the soft leather. Cetas just stood back and watched them, confused as to what was going on with Vanessa till he realized. He sighed deeply and ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head a bit. He had been oblivious to what was going on with her. He nodded at Ethan's words and threw the cloth on the table, getting his phone before Ethan had even asked. "Ahead of you," he mumbled as he sent the text and placed his phone back in his pocket.
Vanessa suddenly lifted her head with her eyes wide before she scrambled to her feet as Ethan was offering to help her. She shook her head and covered the sides of her face. "I'm fucking done with this shit!" she yelled as she closed her eyes hard and felt her shoulders shake. Cetas stood for a while with a frown over his face before he suddenly moved, hopping over the sofa to pull Ethan with him behind the sofa table that he knocked over. Right in the second he had kicked the table, sharp shards of dark blood shot everywhere, making Vanessa a bit wiggly on her feet as she felt the holes from the expelled blood harden up quickly around her body, holes in her clothes from where the shards had shot from. She quickly ran for the door, almost wringing it loose from the lock as she darted outside. Cetas groaned a bit as he rolled onto his back, pulling out a shard from his shoulder that had poked out from the top of the small table as she had reacted to whatever it was in her. He looked to the door before he looked at Ethan, "Dont let her get away," he grumbled through gritted teeth as he held his shoulder.
Her head moved so quick around the garden as she ran, looking for the fastest way out of there. She grabbed onto a fence and pulled herself over quickly. She didnt even feel like it was herself anymore, it was some sort of flee-mechanism in her that had just clicked and sent her on an adrenaline-fueled escape. She stopped for a bit as her eyes were darting around, figuring out where she was supposed to run, till her mind just made her run ahead.

She couldn’t help roll her eyes at his statement, but she couldn’t deny his words. She just sat for a while, his arm around her as she felt herself regain the sense of safety. Usually that was something she could snap out of, but it had been a while since she had been hit like this. The caress of her arm made her sigh silently. It was nice, just sitting and letting it out. She knew she didn’t have to say anything, and that was what she liked about Darren. He already knew what was on her mind, so she didn’t need to tell him. ”It made me who I am, I know, but fuck it would have been easier without it,” she mumbled, running her thumb over the back of his hand. His words gave little comfort, but she understood where he was coming from. ”You couldn’t say anything to make it better,” she whispered, looking at their hands. Partly she didn’t like what she was feeling for him right now, but she tried keeping those thoughts down. ”Maybe being a dickhead is what I like the most about ya,” she said in a groggy voice, looking at him as she started coughing again. She closed her eyes, coughing a bit more as her lungs found it harder to get her breath. ”I … I really shouldn’t be running either,” she mumbled, coughing again as she shook her head. She would be fine. She just needed to breathe, she told herself, even though she really needed her inhaler. Emma moved her head down between her knees, trying to breathe a bit normally but she felt like her airways were slowly closing off. ”I might have a high IQ, but I’m a dumbfuck like the rest of ya,” she mumbled, breathing heavily as to not cough.

Ethan felt like everything moved so quickly, Cetas pulling him to the ground and the sound of the blood shards flying through the room made his eyes widen. He heard Vanessa run off, and he frowned. He snapped out of it as Cetas spoke, scrambling to get to his feet and running after her. What was it with all the running lately? He watched her jump the fence, following, but getting his arm caught on one of the spikes, making a long gash along his arm. He grunted, holding the opening close to his body and he kept running. She had a head start, and she was fast, but Ethan knew her better than most. He sped up, seeing her stop made him cut across, running to her and wrapping his good arm around her. They tumbled around, ending up in some bushes, but Ethan refused to let her go. ”Vanessa,” he whimpered, feeling his hurting arm rush with blood onto his shirt. [color=#008080]”Stop running,”[7color] he begged, not knowing if he could run further if she got up. He kept her close, forcing her head down to hear his heart beat. He knew she needed something to calm her down, but what could calm her down when it seemed like her reality was crumbling? ”I'm so fuckin' sorry, I'm so fuckin' sorry,” he mumbled into her hair, feeling himself fall apart as she did. ”I wish I could do something, say something to make you calm down,” he whispered, holding her close, even if she was fighting it. ”I luv ya, Vanessa,” he mumbled, knowing it wouldn’t fix anything, but he wanted her to know if she was to throw spikes from her body again and killing him. Why was it life and death constantly today? Maybe it was just one of those days, or maybe it was just his life from now on.

"I feel ya. I fucking wish that at least one of us could have had a nice place to come from," he said to her mumble and shook his head, feeling angry at the fact that she had to go through all that shit. Her caress was calming, but he wasnt the one that needed comfort. It stung a bit to hear that he couldnt have said anything either way, but he just guessed there had to be some other way. Just sitting here with her and giving her some sort of comfort would have to do something, wouldnt it? He felt like he was churning his head for ideas, but frankly he was clueless, just having to throw out something and hope it worked.
He smiled a bit sad at her words. She was so kind, even when she was hurting, it just made it worse that she was feeling like shit. He let his grip loosen a bit as she coughed, just to not restrain her in case she was going to have a fit. Her words made him realize that she had her coughs for a reason, scratching his neck as he thought of what to do. A car rolled in and the man went inside. Darren listened to her words and chuckled a bit. "IQ is just a number on a paper, innit" he said as he pulled her to her feet, feeling his own legs wiggle a bit but he was going to pull himself together and just do this one thing. He took her to the car and placed her in it before he went behind the wheel. It wasnt that he had a driver's license, but he did know how to go about driving. He looked at the mansion before he took a deep inhale, "Cetas will kill me, but fuck it," he mumbled as he started driving, knowing Vanessa lived a bit too far away to make it on foot.

She was about to run again when he was suddenly over her, making them roll around into some bushes. She felt frozen as she just laid there in his arm, listening to his words that begged her to stop running. But it was all her mind was telling her to do, no direction, no goal, just run. She listened to his heartbeat and felt her lips tremble with her body as she clenched her hands into fists, the fight-reaction ready to be flicked over. It was odd that she could switch between the two, but feeling trapped put her on edge with her unpredictability. His mumble made her close her eyes, tell herself to just focus on his voice, come back to reality and face the uprising issue in her, but her body wasnt following her mind, shaking and trying to wring free of his grip around him, small desperate grunts leaving her lips. Why was she fighting him? She couldnt understand, why her body seemed to have pushed him out of her comfort zone and made him some stranger to her. A spike made it's way out of her palm and she grabbed a firm hold of it, her body wanting to free herself while the mind was begging her to just stay still. His last whisper made her freeze again, her fighting arm going limp as she let go of the shard. She swallowed hard and moved her eyes to him, finally looking up into his eyes. She felt the tears well up in her eyes as she lifted her hands and placed them on his cheeks, her expression filled with sorrow. "Ethan," she whispered as she felt her throat choke up on her words, making her whimper softly to herself as she shook her head, "I made you hurt yourself," she mumbled, her throat barely being able to process the words through the knot that seemed to have taken up all the space. She lightly knocked the back of her head against the soil underneath them as she closed her eyes and took a deep trembling exhale, "I need to go home," she said, keeping her eyes closed as the fight inside her was back on track.

Emma understood where he was getting from, but people who had had a rough upbringing often ended up finding each other. Like they had a sign over their heads screaming that they were hurt and needed someone to relate to. Emma had tried making friends at her university, but most people saw her as the child genius that nobody really wanted to be around, or they saw her as a basketcase that got by on her smarts. ”I’m fine,” she mumbled between her coughs. She really wasn’t though. If she kept it up like this she could have a fit, making it harder for her to calm down. She let Darren help her to her feet, smiling at him as she kept coughing. She knew getting upset about her own cough would only make it worse, but she just couldn’t help it. ”Paper … That got me … Into uni,” she said between her coughs, sitting in on the backseat of the car. She laid down, stretching her back to get the air supply to run smoothly, but at this point it was medicine or passing out. She barely heard his mumble before he started the engine and drove off. Emma didn’t know her way around Gaia yet, let alone Moonlight Falls. Things here just looked the same to her, but she guessed that Doncaster looked the same to others. Emma closed her eyes, her breathing a weak wheezing noise at this point. She hadn’t had an asthma attack in about a year, why today? She had felt a bit stressed about everything, and maybe not getting her puzzle solved, combined with her sporadic running had just set it off. Her tapping got a bit weaker, but it was still there, showing that it wasn’t just something she did of free will.

Ethan felt her struggling under him, holding her even closer and not caring that she wanted to run, because he knew she didn’t want to run. It was just her body reacting to fear. He could hear how she moved her arm around, knowing that she was planning an attack, but it seemed as though when he had told her that he loved her, something clicked in him. He breathed out as she whispered his name, looking into her eyes with a worried expression. ”No, I hurt maself running after ya,” he mumbled, holding his arm to his body, feeling the blood having seeped through to his stomach. It was hurting like hell and he really wanted to complain about it, but on the other hand he needed to keep his cool. At least until they were home. She knocked her head back and he clicked his tongue, shaking his head. ”No need to hurt yaself,” he mumbled and let go of her carefully to get to his feet. He helped her up as well, and seeing that neither of them really cared about the dirt he just took her hand with his good side, giving it a squeeze. ”Let’s get ya home then,” he muttered, feeling a bit drowsy but he would manage. He needed to manage. He took out his phone, shooting Darren a text, asking if he had Emma covered and where they were. Then he texted Cetas, letting him know where they where and waiting for a car to pick them up. ”Don’t run, aight? I’m taking you home, and we’re gonna talk this out,” he said in a slurred voice, watching the car reach them shortly after. He just opened the door for Vanessa, crawling in after her and leaning his head back. A bit of cold sweat on his forehead, his cheeks a little pale, but his heart beating just fine. ”Her apartment,” was all he could really mutter at this point, just holding her hand, entangling their fingers a bit sloppily.

Darren looked at her in the rear mirror as he drove rather fast, not caring much for speed limits. He got to the apartment and hopped out of the car, grabbing the door as he tried not to fall on his face. He opened her door and reached in to lift her out in his arms, going as fast as he could to the apartment, getting them in and her right to his bed that he had given her to save her back from the couch. He grabbed his phone and sent Ethan an thumbs up emoji before he looked at Emma, "Inhalator, right?" he asked, knowing she could just think of it, hopefully thinking of where it was. Even if she didnt, he would just scramble through her bag till he found it, placing it at her mouth as he looked at her, "Here, breathe in," he said as he let her have it. He fell back on his bottom and sighed deeply as he laid on the floor next to the bed, staring up at the ceiling with his heart going crazy in his chest. Today had been stressful to say the least, getting beat up, getting fixed to then this. It was nice to be home and able to relax. He reached for his pocket, grabbing the last couple of pills from Vanessa that he swallowed raw. "It's gonna be fine now," he mumbled as he lifted his hand to grab around hers, wrinkling his face at the stinging feeling of the touch on his wounded hands. He wished he could heal as fast as Cetas, that was such a cheat.

Vanessa heard his mumble, but couldnt believe that it wasnt her fault as well. She shouldnt have run, yet she did and now he was bleeding. She felt his wet shirt against her stomach, knowing the white fabric of her all-white outfit would be marked. He said she shouldnt hurt herself but she felt like she needed the pain, just a little bit to soothe the war inside her. They got to their feet and she held his hand tightly as she closed her eyes, nodding at his words. She wanted to be home in an instant but it didnt work that way. She looked to him as he had sent the texts and gulped a bit at his words, looking a bit around. The feeling of running was still in her system, but now she was determined on making herself stay, her shoulders shaking a bit. She looked at the car as it came and got in when he opened it for her. She looked at his arm and lifted her hands that were suddenly shaking a lot, the strain of not falling apart and give in to her fearful state of mind was hard on her. She ripped a part of her shirt off and started wrapping his arm, trying not to make it too tight, but just to keep it from bleeding out. She curled up next to him and hugged her knees as she looked down, trying to keep herself calm with steady breaths. "Home... safety... Home with Ethan..." she whispered to herself as she closed her eyes hard. "It's gonna be alright," she continued, just mumbling a few comforting words to herself as she stayed close to him.

How Darren did all that he did when she knew he was still hurt didn’t make sense to her. Getting in to the apartment seemed like a blur, rushing out a thought in her mind of where her inhaler was. She closed her eyes as she started coughing again, this time the wheezing following, letting her know she needed it now or never. She felt the piece in her mouth inhaling as he pressed down, making her system calm down and feeling a bit dizzy. A faint smile came over her lips as she felt her lungs finally expand like they were supposed to. She heard the rattle of pills, but could hardly think of it, feeling dizzy from the sudden rush of oxygen. He reached up, so kind words, taking her hand. She felt her heart beat a bit faster, frowning at the sensation, but maybe it was better to ignore. She tugged a bit at him, hoping that he would get the hint. He didn’t, of course he didn’t. ”Lay with me for a bit,” she mumbled with her hoarse voice, giving him a tug until he would give in and lay on the bed with her. She moved over, making room for Darren, before she wrapped her arm around him instead and just laid with her head on his chest. ”I’m not trying something,” she promised. She wasn’t who Ethan thought she was. She took a pillow, tossing it at the door so that it would close. The last thing she wanted was Ethan to look at her when he eventually came home. Had she had another place to go, she would’ve gone there. She swallowed, nuzzling her head against his chest. ”I like ya, Darren – even if ya a dumbass,” she mumbled, closing her eyes to relax. If he fell asleep, she wouldn’t mind. Maybe she would get some rest as well.

The shirt around his arm helped a lot. It was rather deep, but he couldn’t be fucked to go to the hospital. It could probably heal a bit, or else he would have to use his weird ability to keep the blood inside him at least. He wrapped his good arm around her as they drove. ”Yes,” he answered every time she said it was going to be alright. He knew that maybe it wouldn’t, but in the moment it would be. He just had to ignore a potential future where it wouldn’t be. Reaching the apartment he helped her out, guiding her up the stairs and even carrying her when he had the energy for it. Inside he couldn’t hear anything, but he could see Darren’s door being closed. That could mean that either Emma was home or Darren was home. Or both, but he really didn’t want to think about what they would be doing. Ethan had warned his friends, he couldn’t do anything else. He guided Vanessa to the bathroom, turning on the water. ”A shower always helps ya, ya know that,” he said with a smile as he went hunting in their cabinet for some pills that could dull the pain in his arm. He saw some weird TryCell products, some of which he could barely pronounce. One, however, seemed like what he needed. Labelled with hyper healing. He read on the bottle, but he couldn’t see anything warning humans against it. It actually said just to take one if person was of human race. He shrugged, swallowing a pill before he washed it down with some water from the tap. He came out into the bathroom again, but it hadn’t seemed like she had moved much. ”Vane, a shower,” he mumbled with a faint smile. He took of his bloodsoaked shirt, tossing it in the sink and turning on the water to wash out the blood. ”If ya don’t do it, I’m going to join ya and help ya,” he said with a trying smile. Maybe it wasn’t much of a threat, but he would help her if she couldn’t help herself.

Hearing her get to breathe made Darren breathe out as well, feeling like he could finally calm and let the adrenaline move out of his body. He felt so tired after this, that just laying on the floor could be enough to send him in a deep sleep. But he laid there, holding her hand and staying awake, just because he cared more for her well-being than his own. He did that with a lot of people, but he had found Emma to be the one he'd to furthest for so far. He felt her tugging and frowned in confusion as he couldnt really make out what she was trying to do. When she said it, he made an ahhh sound like he had finally realized it. He crawled up into the bed and laid down with a thump, feeling the soft mattress under him was just pure heaven to him right now. He didnt own a lot of things and this had once been Vanessa's guest room, but he had just been allowed to move in. He nodded at her promise and looked a bit up at the ceiling that had small glowing stars attached - It wasnt something he had placed, Vanessa kept those stars over every bed in the house, she said that it was to always sleep under the stars. He glanced at the door and threw his head back as it closed, hearing Vanessa's scrambled mind in whispers made him close his eyes for a bit. He was pulled out of his thoughts as she nuzzled her head on his chest, her words making him raise his eyebrows, "Why would you look at that. I guess I'll have to start getting my arse kicked so you can compliment me some more," he teased but he chuckled a bit and shook his head, "You truly are a bugger, but I laik ya too," he said with a soft smile as he closed his eyes and pulled her a bit closer, placing his arm around her shoulders as he leaned his head onto hers. He soon fell asleep as the exhaustion had kicked in since he laid down on the floor.

Vanessa kept rocking in her little ball as she mumbled, Ethan's assurance was helpful but she also started feeling like she would annoy him if she kept saying alright, so instead of saying it she thought it for a while, but when it didnt help, she would still mumble it, getting another assurance. When they were out of the car, she could still walk on her feet, but it was like she had two left feet that didnt exactly want to step right. They got into the apartment's bathroom she just stopped in the mirror, staring at herself as he went to look for pills, having heard his words but not really moving at all. Her irises were shaking as she seemed to be staring herself down, her fingers scraping lightly against the white pants she wore. She looked like something out of a hospital and the blood wasnt very helpful either. She dug her nails into the fabric of the pants, feeling the fingertips push into her thighs as he came back and reminded her of the shower. She moved her eyes shortly to him and watched him throw his shirt in the sink, but she quickly looked back in the mirror, like something bad would happen if she looked away for too long. His warning didnt seem to faze her as her hands had given up on scraping the fabric, digging her nails into her palms as she finally moved away from the mirror and made a deep exhale, looking a bit around like she was trying to figure out where she was. She started fiddling with her shirt, but her hands were far too shaky to get a firm grip, not that she thought she would be able to lift her hands. She would rather just curl back into her ball and hide.

There was something calming about Darren that she couldn’t really put a finger on. As she nuzzled herself closer, she couldn’t help but smile a bit as he placed an arm around her. She felt her eyelids grow heavy, giggling a bit at his words. ”Don’t go seeking out trouble – ya can just ask for flattery,” she mumbled, yawning a bit as she closed her eyes, soon drifting off into a calm sleep. In her sleep she hugged him a bit closer, breathing calmly as she felt safe with him.

Ethan sighed as he saw her struggle, really hating watching her in pain like this, but he had to get used to it. It wasn’t something he could just make go away with the snap of a finger. He walked to her, his shirt already off, he looked at her shortly. ”Let me help you,” he whispered, hoping she would let him. He turned on the water, but instead of a shower, he turned it to a bath. That might be easier and more calming for her. He placed a hand on her cheek, kissing her forehead gently. ”You’re safe and at home with me,” he whispered against her skin. She felt cold. He caught her eyes, making sure that she was okay with every move he made. First he too a careful grab of her shirt, guiding it over her head and over her arms. He felt his heart beat a little faster. He didn’t think he had actually seen this much of her skin before, but he had to control his stupid boyish urges. ”I’m gonna take the pants now, just stand still,” he said with a small smile, bowing down to help the pants down around her ankles. Everything he did, he made sure to wait and get consent before he did anything else. The last thing he wanted was for her to get put back in that forced state where she had no choice of what to do. Here, she could ask him to stop any time and he would give her the space she needed. ”I nice warm bath, and then we’ll go watch the stars in your room, right?” he said, trying to sound optimistic and making her feel at ease. Getting her out of her clothes, all that was left was her underwear. Maybe it would have been more awkward if for the fact she wasn’t freaked out. ”Do you want to keep them on?” he asked rather carefully. He didn’t know why, because she was in a safe space, but he knew that some women found it hard to be naked around guys. He frowned a bit, either way she chose, he helped her into the bath after. There was bubbles from the soap, and he smiled a bit as he sat down next to the tub, starting to scrub her back. ”I like the bubbles,” he said with a small smile.

She looked up at him at his whisper and felt her lower lip quiver as she looked away for a bit. She was still aware enough in her strong state to feel helpless, but she let him help her nonetheless, despite how it made her feel. She closed her eyes at his kiss on her forehead and told herself that it was fine, he wasnt here to hurt her and she knew that. His whisper made her open her eyes as she looked up at him and silently repeating the words that were said to her. She watched him grab her shirt, and lifted her arms carefully to let him pull it off her. He was so careful with every move, taking it slow so her mind wouldnt go off as it would have had this been a slightly faster pace. She moved her arms a bit around herself, her shoulders trembling as she felt so cold. The exit wounds from the shards she had expelled were already healed, leaving her pale skin untouched by any kind of scar or ugly mark. Samuel had wanted to keep her perfect and she had stayed that way. She nodded at his words and felt the pants move down, closing her eyes shortly as she quivered, but she didnt move and still held her arms around herself a bit. She moved out of the pants and looked at the bath for a bit, frowning a bit worried. She hadnt really had a shower that often when she was moving to her other state of mind, unless it was her sitting under the showerhead in her little safety ball till she eventually got back to her right mind. His optimism made her smile vaguely as she looked at the bath. It seemed so scary to her. So looked back at him and nodded. Watching the stars above the beds and calm down, it was a goal she wanted to work towards.
When he asked about her underwear, she felt her cheeks redden a bit as she looked down, not really sure what to answer. She closed her eyes hard and found it hard to make a decision, but in the end she ended up nodding as it wasnt hers, it would just make her think of that some part of the cabin still held a grip on her. She got in the bath and pulled her knees to her chest, staring at the faucet in front of her as he scrubbed her back, closing her eyes for a bit. She let out a soft exhale and smiled a bit at his words, "You're silly," she said as she looked down at her knees and watched the bubbles float around, wanting to chuckle but finding herself unable to. Her hair felt like a mess, but she just sat there with her arms around her knees. "I hate feeling so helpless," she whispered as she kept her eyes on a set of bubbles floating away. It was always nice to hear him talk when she was like this, his words so comforting. Even when he didnt have to say anything, he still said something that made her more aware of everything, letting her feel less like she was losing her grip with reality.

”Silly?” he chuckled as he scrubbed her back in small circles. He had never really been the one to care for others, well, besides Emma of course. Her words made him sigh, he moved up to sit on the side of the tub, placing a gentle kiss against her shoulder. ”You’re not helpless,” he whispered against her skin, leaning his head against hers. He dipped the sponge down in the water, not making a splash, before he moved the sponge around to her arms. ”You’re one of the strongest people I know, Vane,” he said in a sincere voice. It was true. Few people would have been through what she had and still be alive. He took one of her hands, running the sponge along each of her fingers, warming her up in the process. Hell, had he been through half of what she had, he would have offed himself long ago, not that it was something he would say out loud. He had a great deal of respect for her, for everything she had been through. Even if he was thickskulled, he knew when people were hurting. He whinced a bit as his arm stung a bit, but he could feel it heal quickly. ”Look, I get a scratch and I sound like I’m dying,” he chuckled, taking her other hand to scrub. Ethan still moved at the slow pace. He had gotten good at managing that, but not the slightest better with his temper. He had hoped it would connect, but sadly not. Maybe he truly was like his father. He shook the thought out of his head, looking at her with a faint smile on his lips. He moved the sponge up to her chest, running it along her collarbone. Her skin was pale like a white pearl, almost shining as he rubbed the soap over it. He felt a bit taken a back by how nice this actually was. He had seen something like this in the movies, but he always imagined how the guy would feel bored, but he got it now. Sure, the bath was boring in itself, but getting to take care of someone you cared for like this was something he couldn’t really describe. He let the sponge float for a bit, taking a small cup no bigger than a drinking glass and dipped it under water, filling it. ”Lean your head back a bit,” he said with a small chuckle. He let the warm soapy water run out of the cup and into her hair, away from her face. He did it a couple of times until her hair was soaked. ”Did you actually want me – back in the hut?” he asked with a bit of a hoarse voice. Maybe it wasn’t the best time to talk, but he was curious. Was it just because she wanted to rebel, or was it because she wanted him for, well, him? He swallowed, feeling his heart beat faster at the thought. She had been a bit aggressive, needy and tugging at his clothes like her life had depended on it. He knew it had been right to not give in, but he still had wanted to.

"Yeah, silly," she said, feeling a small smile in the side of her mouth, though it quickly disappeared again as she looked back at the faucet. The kiss on her shoulder was nice, she listened to his whisper as she took a few deep inhales. "It's hard to not believe that I am," she whispered back as he started using the sponge on her arms that made her gasp as she hadnt seen it go in the water. She constrained the flinch before it could even happen, but her eyes did dart back and forth from his face to the sponge. She sat normally again after a bit, letting him wash her arms. She sighed a bit at his words and shook her head, "I dont know why you'd think that," she mumbled as she shook her head again. Frankly she just felt like her head was a mess most of the time, being aware that her memories had been tampered with, yet not fully as some part of her craved the comfort of the childhood.
His argument made her narrow her eyes for a bit as she stared at the faucet, shaking her head, "It's probably hurting ten times more than it would me," she said as she shrugged a bit and let him wash her other hand. The slow pace was keeping her calm, slowly feeling her head clear a little bit by bit. It wouldnt be enough, doing this, but she knew that she would be fine once they laid under the stars, she had a good feeling about it.
She liked feeling her hair getting soaked, like the dirt was slowly moving out already. She closed her eyes and took a bit to just enjoy the feeling before his question made her open her eyes to look up at him. She scrunched her face a bit as she thought about it, moving her eyes back to the faucet, "You think it was some rebellious act?" she asked with a little frown over her brows. It did sound like he thought it had been something else than it was. She exhaled a bit before she moved her eyes up to his again, "I did," she then said in a rather serious tone as she moved her arms back around her knees and held them close to her body. It was an odd question to pop out, but she could understand why he had been thinking as he had been. "It might have seemed like I was trying to push it, and maybe I was," she admitted as she sighed deeply. She lifted her hand and rubbed the side of her face as she looked back at the faucet. "You had just saved me and then you told me that Samuel knew," she said and pressed her arms closer around her knees. "I was afraid.. That I wouldnt ever get to be close with you like that. And I want to," she continued, moving her face down to face her knees as she felt her shoulders tremble slightly.

It was like everything he said she was ready to shoot down, but he didn’t mind. It was like it made sense in a way, needing to explain away something for another thing to make sense in her head. He noticed that he had moved too fast, frowning as he made sure to be extra slow until she calmed down again. ”It’s alright,” he promised her, looking at her, but she wasn’t looking at him. He knew why, she needed to focus, but he really just wanted to look her in the eye, letting her really know that it was alright. He knew that his question maybe wasn’t the most appropriate, but he had been wondering, and maybe it was an easier thing to discuss than what had happened to her while in the hut. He looked down a bit at her question. He really was an open book at times, but he nodded. Honestly, he didn’t want to keep his thoughts to himself, as it seemed to backfire eventually. He noticed her looking down, moving to sit down next to the tub, taking her hand and looking at her. ”If ya had pushed one more time I would’ve given in,” he said in a serious tone. He wanted her too, but it had felt wrong, like he would be taking advantage of her hurt. ”Maybe it was stupid of me, not to give in to what you wanted,” he mumbled, frowning as he looked at their hands. His tumb gently rubbing against her palm. ”I want to be close to ya too, Vane – closer than anything, but I also didn’t want to feel like ya were doing it, just to … Do it,” he said. Those were words not usually said by him. Before Vanessa he would basically jump anything that consented, but with her it was different. He felt like he wanted things to be right, like they had to be perfect and done in a place and way were she would feel safe. He moved her hand to his lips, kissing her fingers one by one, not really caring about the small soap bubbles on her hand. ”Ya almost had me though,” he said with a small chuckle, looking at the small bubbles of the bath. ”I don’t think I’ve felt something like that before – that someone could drive me crazy like that,” he said, shaking his head feeling like he sounded stupid, and maybe he was. He let go of her hand, letting it submerge in the hot water as he got to his feet. ”I’ll grab a towel for ya, aight?” he said with a careful voice, still making sure to take everything at her speed. It was when he was with Vanessa he could finally see how patient he could be, if he really tried. He grabbed a fluffy pink towel from the shelf, pulling it down and unfolding it so that she could move straight into a dry sensation. He wrapped the towel around her, making sure it wasn’t too tight, taking another smaller towel for her hair. ”Imma pull the plug on the drain, ya wanna watch it or just go to bed?” he asked, knowing that visual things were a thing she liked. He could imagine watching the dirt of today wash into the drain could be rather therapeutic.

When he grabbed her hand, she looked up at him with sad eyes, not sure if his words were much comfort to her. Maybe it had been dumb if they had proceeded, but frankly she wouldnt have minded in the long run she thought. Her feelings had been real enough for her in the moment and nothing could change her mind about it. She looked up at him and gave his hand a soft squeeze, "You did what you felt was right," she said as she shifted shortly between his eyes before she looked at their hands again. His explanation made sense and she nodded a bit, keeping her eyes on their hands. It was surprising to hear him of all speak like this, that was something she hadnt expected and it showed as she raised her eyebrows a bit at their hands. She looked up at him as he kissed her fingers, letting a finger move across his lips as she pinched her own slightly. Was it weird that one state of her mind wanted to feel his lips again while the other was shaking with fear? It felt so confusing. "You had me," she admitted in a low tone as she looked at him watch the bubbles. His words were just surprising as the last ones, making her raise her eyebrows slightly yet again. She felt a warm feeling in her chest as he let go of her hand that moved down under the water. She nodded at his words, watching him go as she didnt feel the need to stare at the faucet at the moment. She moved out of the bath, watching the water before she moved over into the towel, feeling happy that he picked the pink one.
She nodded at his question and held her hands up at her chest, clutching the edges of the towel close to her body as she turned to the drain. When he pulled the plug, she watched the bubbles move around as the water slowly drained. She moved her eyes around the water, watching it closely as she just clenched her hands tight. Watching the little whirlwind of water form around the drain made her a bit curious as she carefully leaned down and poked at it, watching the whirlwind disappear only to appear again whenever she moved her hand. When all the water was gone, she looked at him before she moved to the bedroom, opening her drawers to just stare at the clothes in there. She didnt want to wear her pajamas, it wasnt that bad that it required the safety pajamas and pillow fort. She picked out a shirt before she shook her head, moving around till she found one of Ethan's shirts, not caring that he had worn it, pulling it over her hand and getting into some comfortable underwear before she moved over to the bed, crawling under the blanket and feeling herself slowly start to curl up in her ball. She tried to resist, if he had gotten into bed with her, she'd move into his arms and press her head to his chest as she just listened to his heartbeat. She made a deep exhale and moved her eyes up after a while, looking at the plastic stars above. "Is this what life is going to be like now?" she asked in a low tone with a sad frown as she looked at the stars. "Cetas is only waiting to kick your ass eventually. We should be focusing on Samuel, but we're fighting each other," she mumbled, shaking her head. It was a silly thing to ask and especially as she realized her addition was just rubbing it in. She rubbed her eyes and sighed, "I'm sorry," she whispered.
She carefully lifted herself up on her arm as she leaned down and placed a soft kiss on his lips, "I know you're hurting too," she whispered against his lips as she kissed him again. She moved away after a bit, taking a deep breath before she placed a hand on his cheek. "I love you," she said in a vague tone that was almost a whisper, holding her breath a bit as she had felt quite courageous, but now she felt more exposed than ever. She looked down and pinched her lips a bit.

He felt like a dumbass, not giving her what she had wanted, but he nodded at her words. He had done what he felt right, but did it make it right either way? Would anything had changed if they had stayed at the cabin for a bit longer? He hated what ifs, and that was why he had jumped the fence and told Vanessa how he was feeling. It was an awful blend of feeling happy and feeling fear, but he would rather say mind numbing stuff than let things be unsaid. He smiled at her, watching how she interacted with the water slowly going down the drain, and for some reason he liked seeing that childish side of her. He let her go to the bedroom first, he needed to wash his arm, making sure it wouldn’t get infected. His jaw clenched as he cleaned it out, feeling that it was already starting to heal, thanks to the pills. If the pills had a weird side effect, then so be it – he would at least not bleed to death in his sleep. He got in, watching the shirt she was wearing with a half smile. She could make anything look good. He got out of his trousers, just letting them lay where he took them off and crawled under the covers with her. She cuddled herself closer, and he placed one arm under her head and the other around her waist. Holding her close to him was something he enjoyed a lot. It felt like being safe. Like, as long as he held on to her, nothing bad was going to happen to either. Her question made him frown, looking at her with confused eyes, yet he kinda knew what she meant. He let her finish her thought, speaking about Cetas and Samuel reminded him of what was to come. He wouldn’t mind letting Cetas beat him up, but she was right. Samuel was the one they should keep an eye out for. ”Don’t be sorry,” he whispered back, watching as she moved a bit and that was when he felt her lips again. Those damn lips that he wanted so much more of than just kisses, but how could he not? He barely got to answer her words as she kissed him again, and all he wanted was to hold on to that kiss for a little while longer. She broke it, and he opened his eyes rather carefully, a tender gaze behind those blue eyes of his. ”I’m okay,” he whispered. He was partly alright, at least for now and when he was here with her. He felt his breath get heavier as she placed her hand against his cheek. Three words. Three words was all it took to make Ethan know that there was no turning back.

He leaned in, placing a tender kiss on her lips, his arm around her waist loosening a bit as his hands started to move up and down her spine. He broke the kiss carefully, breathing a bit heavy against her lips as he felt the same as in the hut. ”I love you,” he mumbled, his accent still strong, but he made a point to pronouce every word correct. He kissed her again, this time down her face and to her neck. God, he was tired, but he wanted to make her feel like she would know, without a doubt, that he loved her the way he said he did. ”Tell me to stop, if it’s too much,” he muttered against her skin, feeling short of breath. Her scent was so overwhelming and her body feeling a bit warmer after the bath made him feel good. His hand moved from her back and down to the shirt’s opening, moving it up under the fabric. His fingers teasing her stomach a bit until he reached her chest. He gave her a look, wanting to know if it was alright or if she couldn’t handle it in her mind. If she gave her sign to yes he would move his hand up, cupping her breast as he pressed her closer. Her skin was tender and soft, something he needed to be careful with. She might’ve been a demon, but his touch was like he was handling something far more delecate His breathing got a bit sporadic, kissing her gently on her neck, biting her a bit when he felt like it was alright. His thumb moved over her nipple, being careful not to be too invasive. ”Tell me what ya want,” he whispered against her neck. He wanted her, feeling himself getting excited, but he also wanted what was best for her. In his mind, Vanessa came first, and rightfully so.

She was ready to just hide as he leaned in and she felt his lips against hers in such a tenderness that she couldnt exactly describe. Her hands grasped at his shoulders as she dug her nails into his skin when she felt his hands move up and down her body. She gasped softly for air as he broke the kiss, blinking a few times as she looked into his beautiful blue eyes. Hearing his mumble made her heart beat faster and she felt that short whiled freeze she had felt in the forest, but this time she wasnt scared or trying to run - It just felt like her heart had skipped a beat, taking her by surprise once more. His kisses made her sigh to herself as everywhere his lips seemed to touch was tingling with delight.  She nodded at his words and swallowed as she looked at his hand moving under her shirt, his fingertips were enough of a tease to her, he didnt have to add to it. She arched her back slightly as his hands moved up her stomach, closing her eyes and drawing in deep inhales. He looked at him as he seemed to pause, shifting a bit between his eyes as she carefully nodded.
Her hands on his shoulders moved on their own, gliding down to his chest and around to his lower back, pressing him closer as he cupped her breast, a soft moan leaving her already separated lips from her breathing. God was he good with his hands, the dominant side told her as she tried to keep her breathing steady. His lips on her neck, feeling his teeth dig into the soft tissue of her throat from time to time was driving her out of her mind for a bit, letting her body free to react to him. Her hands got more firm with the pressure on his lower back, feeling like she wanted him closer than he could get. She felt so longingly desperate for his intimacy, biting down on her lip quite hard not wanting to moan out loud as his thumb carefully moved over her nipple, striking down hard on a erogenous zone for her. "You, Ethan. All of you," she whispered back to him as she felt that he was quite taken by this as well, running one hand up his back and around to then cup his face gently. She looked into his eyes and felt breathless as she gulped, hoping that her throat wouldnt go dry from all this mouthy breathing that she was doing. Her other hand pressed at him again, she frowned a bit like she was feeling agony, her body moving in the slightest movements against him. "Please," she begged in a slight whimper.