AN: Aww mushy moments and nakedness commences. Although, since the nakedness does not yet involve Kevin, many will probably be disappointed... Yet, feedback? :) inspiredthoughts@hotmail.com ******** Curiosity Killed... Chapter Twenty-Nine ******** Okay, so I wake up alive, even if I don't feel alive per se, I'm too freaking sore. Go figure. Cologne fills my nostrils. I cough and try to sit up, hoping I don't open my eyes to Lydia. I better not be a Vampire or I'm going to be pissed off. I'd remember drinking blood though, right? It's not like it'd be an experience you could forget, unless you manage to block it out. I doubt I'd be that lucky. Large, warm hands gently push me back down onto the bed. I start to freak out until the voice speaks. "Easy child, easy, you're safe..." I know that voice. Bastard, remember? "Liar," I whisper through cracked lips. Knuckles brush my cheeks. I whimper when they hit the scratches and they still. "I'm sorry Cat, I'm so sorry. I'm such a... I'm just so sorry. So sorry." "Lydia?" "Shh, just rest." My eyes are still closed but I shift a little, wincing as my bruised neck and face protests, vigorously. I hate my face. "Kevin?" I ask softly. He's quiet for a long minute. "Yes Cat?" I swallow with difficulty. "Protect me?" Trembling fingers gently frame my face, mindful of causing me more pain. Such a gentleman. "Always Cat, always." Sometimes Mr. Dumb Pants isn't that bad. I just have to be unconscious first. Lucky for me I seem to be unconscious a lot around the Backstreet Boys. He kisses my brow with a tenderness I'd swear was real if I didn't know better. Lucky for me I know better. Why am I so damn unlucky? ********************************************************* This time I'm determined to stay conscious. It helps that I wake up to AJ singing. I like AJ. He has a wonderfully sexy voice and a cute little pointed goatee. And tattoos. I can't get them because, eww, needles, no thank you, but I like them, especially on finely muscled arms. Like AJ arms. Lightly muscled, tattooed AJ arms. "Have I mentioned lately that I love your singing?" I croak out. He cackles cheerfully and settles carefully on the bed as I slowly open my eyes. "How you feeling Kitty Cat?" he asks as he smoothes back my now matted bangs. I'm sure the rest of me is just as big of a mess. "Pretty, pretty AJ." He grins easily, though his expressive brown eyes are worried and drawn. "Yeah, they should make me into a game." "And give you a crown..." "Yeah, I'd look great as a Princess." He grows somber. "You sure like to give us scares on a fairly regular basis. Think you can keep yourself from serious harm? I'm tired of having to sit and worry at your bed side." "Water," I demand crossly, suddenly annoyed at being berated for something that totally isn't my fault. Sure I provoke Lydia, but she's crazy all by herself, thank you very much. He sighs but obediently fetches a glass and presses it to my lips. I drink in small sips before gratefully sinking back to the pillows. "Not my fault." "I know darling. I know. You just made me worry. And your surprise guest didn't help settle things down at all." I squeak. "Oh shit!" AJ smiles ruefully. "Oh shit is most definitely right. Although it helped quiet Crazy Lydia down some." Pretty, blunt AJ. He shouldn't say things like that about his sire, but he does anyway. You have to love an idiot. I groan and gingerly rub my forehead. "Okay, before I get a migraine, how exactly am I alive? What's happened since then? And how long have I been wussy and not conscious?" "Calm down Kitty Cat. Brian woke up right before Lydia had her evil way with you." Gee thanks for THAT mental imagery. AJ continues, "He pounced her. Kevin and Nick were in the rooms next door and broke the door down. Good thing cause Brian couldn't have handled it on his own. You've been out of it for two days. Ellis Von Berg showed up last night, proclaiming herself a Council member and your protector. She was less than amused when she found out she was a day or so late to properly protect you. Lydia and Kevin both got a blistering scold." "Where's Lydia been kept?" AJ chuckles. "Brian volunteered his bus. They've kept her locked and barred in. Brian was pissed off. You should have seen him Cat. I don't think I've ever seen him that livid." "Are they all okay? Lydia isn't exactly a lightweight." His wearied eyes showed a glint of sudden, wicked delight as a smirk curled his full lips. "Apparently we aren't the lightweights everyone thinks we are. Brian has a split lip, black eyes, and cracked rib. Kevin got a sprained arm and Nick got three fingers broken but don't worry, they'll be as good as newly dead in a week or so. There's some perks to being a bloodsucker." "Well good." We stare at each other for a long moment in silence before bursting into laughter. I end mine with painful wheezing but, still, it feels good to laugh. I'm not a serious gal and I've been way too straight laced for close to a month now. Mr. Dumb Pants is going to turn me into a grownup if I'm not careful. Perish the thought. "All right," AJ sighs, "it's my job to get you down to breakfast and get some food in you. You up for that?" I snort disdainfully. "What do I look like, an infant?" I stubbornly swing my legs out of bed, stand up, and sit back down, hard, as my vision swims dangerously. AJ peers at my pained face blandly. "Would you like your bottle of warm milk now or later?" "Screw you," I gasp. He chucks my chin and winks impishly at me. "Whenever you're up for it, I'm game." "Oh Aje..." "Come on, don't get maudlin on me now. Let's get you dressed." So, since I'm incapable of standing, let alone dressing myself, I suffer through the embarrassment of AJ propping me up and dressing me like an overgrown doll. Okay, not so overgrown since I'm like midge size but, still... "No mini skirts." "Ahh, come on Cat, you have the best legs, and your wound is almost scarred over. And..." "NO. I want pajama pants and a sweatshirt." AJ sighs but comes back in a few minutes with the requested items, face screwed up in disgust as he aids me in committing heinous fashion crimes. "I'm surprised this isn't freaking you out, me undressing you and all." I roll my eyes as I put my arms up and let him pull my borrowed shirt up over my head. "Well gee, this is the second time I've woken up in clothes that aren't mine and, even though I'm wonderfully talented, not even I can change while unconscious. It's probably safe to assume that a few of you have seen my naked before. And let's not forget the whole shopping fiasco. Basketball breasts, remember?" He gently slips the sweatshirt on me. "Oh I won't be forgetting in this lifetime." Coming from an immortal, that's some promise. "Let's get your pants off." "You're enjoying this aren't you?" AJ yanks my too big pants off with a flourish that makes me smile tiredly as he bares his even, non fanged teeth. "Immensely."