LithiumWolff

Now didn't feel like a time to be joking at Octavia stood up pacing around before facing Lars again. ❝ The other guy? The other goy you say! You were literally stabbed Lars! ❞ She could feel her eyes well up with tears. ❝ This isn't something to joke about! ❞

"No major arteries." His breath was uneven but blood loss did make him a little dizzy. "I'm sorry, okay?..look at me. Paramedics are on their way." This is what he got for being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Selene rolled her eyes so hard it was a miracle they didn't get stuck. ❝ Oh, wow. A graze. That's so much better. ❞ She leaned in anyway, brushing his hair aside to inspect it herself before flicking his forehead. ❝ You know, normal people don't use 'the bullet barely hit me' as evidence that they're fine. ❞ His stupid grin made her want to laugh and strangle him at the same time. ❝ And don't flatter yourself. I'm worried because if you pass out, I'm the one who's gotta drag your oversized ass somewhere. ❞

Making a face, he looked back at his ex. They were a thing a long time ago, then ended up on two opposite sides of hit people. It was still nice knowing that Selene wasn't able to pull the trigger either. Ryker didn't even think about it, his answer was no. "But it's true, the bullet barely hit me." The look on his face, trying to get her to smile. Maybe it worked underneath all that tough girl that was on the outside. "Yeah, you won't be able to carry me." Agreeing with her. Now stuck with her for who knows how long, so he ought to make the best of it.

❝ I’m not talking to you like you’re a child, Ryker, ❞ Liliana said quietly, her voice gentle despite the ache behind it. ❝ I’m talking to you like someone who loved you, got hurt by you, and is trying to figure out if it’s safe to believe you again. You saying you’ll do whatever it takes for Alex means something to me—it does—but trust isn’t built because someone gets angry that it’s missing. It’s built because they keep showing up, even when it’s hard. So don’t tell me who you were or who you are. Just… let me see it. ❞ It was hard trusting him, trusting that things could actually change. Sure, people do change over the years but to her it still felt like it was yesterday no matter how much her heart still loved him.

It was easier to talk over the phone than in person, at least that's what it felt like in this moment. She couldn't see his expression or the hurt in his face. Mostly just him being disappointed in himself and the situation he put himself in. Ryker chose to be a criminal and he did time for it. Letting her speak, he listened. Wiping his face. "Still. You don't trust me. I am not going to hurt Alex, I promise you that." If he did hurt their kid that was it, he wouldn't be able to live with himself. "I'm not perfect and I've made mistakes. Most people don't give me a second chance but you did." So that had to mean something. "How is Alex today?" Casually changing the subject.

Elena's eyes snapped open long before the rest of her body caught up. The ceiling above her was cracked concrete, damp with condensation, and somewhere water dripped in a slow, maddening rhythm. Every muscle screamed when she tried to move, wrists rubbed raw where restraints had only recently been removed. Then she heard the voice. Don't panic. Guards hate that. Her gaze slid toward the man against the wall. Bruised knuckles. Split lip. The kind of exhaustion that settled into someone who'd stopped expecting miracles.

He noticed the fear look in her face, but it was only for a second. Gage had literally been through hell, maybe this was his own personal hell. The guy was scared of death, but he did what he had to do even if it meant being entertainment. The chains were on them but loosely, loose enough for them to walk freely amongst the cell. They each had a mattress but shared a toilet, sorta like prison. "Well, there could be monsters still up there." Saying it so casually. This was the new world they lived in and there were no exits.

"Oh, but then they'd have to change the whole 'beauty is pain' thing and then how would we function?" She asked with a lifted brow. Most days she was stuck in a corset that made it hard to breathe...but it kept her posture perfect and her figure pleasing to the eye. Those things had been important to her mother. Delilah settled herself on the bed next to him, turning on her side so she could face him. "We wouldn't even have to touch if we didn't want to." But she didn't move away from him.

"I did not see it that way." Nodding his head then, now completely understanding that saying. "Makes sense." Arching a brow playfully. It was nice seeing her out of a corset, no boundaries. Later he would have to figure out how to undo a corset. Eyes on her when she laid facing him. "Do you want to?"...dragging the word a bit, "We don't have to." Dragging the second sentence gives her the choice if they touch or not. Even if he was the man and had 'authority', he wasn't like most men. Slowly he moved a piece of her hair out of her face like some romance move that had been done for decades.

There would always be a partial guard up when it came to people, wanting to protect them from her, from the world. She knew how hard it was to live, how not every vampire or supernatural creature was a demon, was a monster in the world that deserved to die, Malia didn’t deserve it. Evelyn. Even Gage. None of them deserved the struggle or pain, none of them asked for this life. It made her jaw tense up thinking about the whole idea. The Order, the people here. ❝ She is older sure, though I will always look out for her, she can’t come after me. She won’t think, she’ll just act. So thank you. ❞ That was the thing, Malia had a short fuse, she would react, kill without thinking about what could happen, similar to what Alice once before did in her darker years.

That was only if shit hit the fan. Malia was more than capable of taking care of herself, and protecting herself. But some strong warriors still needed backup and to stop them from doing something stupid. If he were to even stop Malia, she might hurt him in the process to get to her mother. Him and Malia didn't get a long at first but things were better now. Mutual respect to say the least of what they held. "It's what family is for, right?"

"You are a nerd, but that's okay," she grinned. Her brother used to stay up all night playing video games if she didn't intervene. On the weekends she hadn't minded so much, but during the week she'd had to hide his controllers. "Me, too." Carsyn grinned up at him as his eyes slid shut and for the time being, she returned her gaze towards the movie until she, too, fell asleep. In her sleep, she curled up against his side, arm slipping across his waist.

Gage listened to Carsyn speak. Soft enough for him to dip into a deep sleep. Arm hanging loosely. Not a lot of toss and turning since he was out of it from the mix of weed and beer in his system. Blacked out completely until morning. Waking up he blanked and rubbed his eyes. Remembering that he fell asleep with her in his bed but only sleep. Taking one of his arms back he reached over on his side for the water bottle that was there, being very thirsty from his dry mouth. The effect of the weed from last night.

❝ Don't you fucking dare go to sleep! ❞ Selene smacked his chest lightly as her heart basically felt like it dropped to her stomach. ❝ Sorry my ass, you gave me a heart attack. ❞

He couldn't do it. Ryker couldn't bring himself to kill his ex. They worked for different bosses that put the other as a target. How fucked up is that? When both corporations realized neither were dead, they put action in their own hands. Hunt them down. The problem? They were the best assassinations in their unit.

"I am very glad to hear that, I will always be your big spoon." He couldn't help but smile, placing a small kiss against his lips before slipping out of the bed. "Nope, won't even notice. Come on then, we can make them together, that's a romantic thing to do right?"

Jack wasn't ashamed of being the little spoon. He liked being held by Aiden, more than he would like to admit. "Romantic?..well if there's food, I'm in." He smiled, "It's like food dye right?..except it's not. It's blood." Following Aiden down to the kitchen.