A/N: I read ILoveYouLikeWhoa's story, and got a bit inspired by it… There is a little sentence that belongs to her, as she wrote it. It's asterisked! *
No! Her scream echoed in her own mind, as Ariadne jumped straight out of sleep in her bed. There was sweat among her brow, and she gasped, trying to find her totem. When all was right again, she lay in bed, still breathing quite heavily. Her dreams were full of nerves lately, never allowing for a proper night of sleep.
'Hold on, please hold on to me!' Ariadne had cried out, to no avail. Robert could only smile at her, as he released his grip and fell to his death.
It was all that had been haunting her lately. Robert Fischer Jr., and death. A dead Robert Fischer Jr.
She shook herself out of any remnants of the dream, and proceeded to get ready for work. Ironically, for none other than her literal 'dream' man himself.
It had been four years since the Fischer empire had crumbled, by none other than the new heir's hands alone.
"Mr. Fischer, I brought you a coffee-" Ariadne tried to hand it to him, when it was backhanded right back towards her. The coffee scalded her hand, and she let go, spilling the contents everywhere.
"According to friends of the young billionaire, he became distant and abusive after his father's death. A source claims he became self-destructive and harmful to those around him,"* she remembered from the news.
There was an apologetic glint in his eyes, along with much fury, and sadness as he noticed her burnt hand. He held it gently in his own, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, I just—"
"Can't help it, I know. It's fine." It wasn't the first time her boss had been a little out of control.
The pair let their hands stay entangled for a bit longer, before Robert let go to grab some ointment from a personal drawer in his desk. "This may help a little," as he seated her in a chair and tended to her hand.
Although her hand had been lightly burnt, she could only remember trying to hold back a smile.
"Thank you Robert," courage finally getting past her, making her blurt out his name rather than the surname of his.
"No matter," he waved her off, "It was my fault anyway."
For the rest of the night, she had stayed in his office. Somehow, it took four long years for the two to get formal, even though she had been employed under his care for so long. 'Nothing like a little accident to get us closer,' Ariadne supposed.
He had a bit more work to finish, so she looked curiously about at the mundane aspects of the impersonal room. A photo of her late father, she mused, and not much else.
Robert wasn't one to have many people in his life. There was always so much at stake when a person is up so high in the leagues, anyone with such monetary value was always cautious of anyone else taking advantage of them.
She excused herself politely for the rest of the night, and Robert could only smile gently at her as she left the premises.
Not again… Ariadne was in yet, another dream. Robert, no! The dreams had escalated at a personal level, but it was still the same old, same old. The brunette male kissed her one last time, mumbling forgive me, please forgive me. You'll understand, and with that, he moved in front of a busy street at night, her own palms flying to her eyes, not wanting to see this, as she screamed.
She woke up very much unhappily, and sighed. Robert Fischer was definitely getting more erratic at work, as the days went on. Something wasn't clicking with him, and she could tell the signs. The rumors and gossip about this man being unstable were getting more and more apparent. More cases of "proof" were happening at work as well, and guilt wracked her. All from the Inception.
Her guilt followed her to work that day, and she tried to avoid his eye as she passed by him in the hall. Little did she know, Robert's blue eyes bore right into the back of her head from that little notion.
It was the end of a long day, and Ariadne and her boss were the only ones left in the building. She was about to retire for the night and about to notify him, when she noticed how oddly quiet it was behind the doors. She knocked, once. Twice. Not a sound. She bustled around, trying to find the proper key for the room, and entered in to see the man passed out, face smashed against the table. "Robert? Robert!" Shaking the unconscious male rapidly, she looked around and noticed a bottle of pills that were half emptied. Was there the chance he had only taken just a little bit too much?
At least the pills hadn't been completely downed. She tried to drag his dead weight down the building, and eventually gave up. At least she had known where to find the medical aid section of the building, considering she had helped construct the layout for half this building. Placing his body in a wheelchair, Ariadne got the older male into her car and away to his usual hospital they drove to. The staff were all under the same hospital coverage, and his privacy would not be invaded in this place.
Thankfully no one other than staff was around, and she quickly got him admitted, explaining a situation about how he managed to take a little too many pills to try and stop a migraine. The nurse raised a brow at her, but took him in to get his stomach pumped immediately nonetheless.
The staff would stay mum about this, and Ariadne strictly told anyone who was interested in contacting him, to notify her.
Robert opened his eyes up from the pitch black to the white walls of the prestigious hospital room he was in. 'Not quite what I expected,' but what was he really to expect? If life gave him the chance, perhaps the choice to end it. When no one was around to reason with him, he usually did not think things through properly, as many would know. It had been four long years since the destruction of his father's empire. Why had he really done that? There was a lingering thought in the back of his mind he could not quite define. If only someone had been around to stop him. His uncle tried, but his mind was plagued with thoughts of his uncle's betrayal. So much confusion. If only someone had been around for him the other night, but wait—how did he get here?
He tried to remember how he got here, but nothing worked. Was this a dream? He heard a rustle next to him, and he noticed Ariadne in her uncomfortable rest in a chair by his bedside."Ariadne?"
She stirred, and moved at the sound of her name. Blearily blinking back the fatigue, which darkness under her eyes could confirm the lack of sleep. She moved forward immediately, and gasped with surprise. "You're awake!"
A flutter went about in his heart as she rushed to him in haste. He tried to disregard that and mumbled, "How long have I been out?"
Ariadne stilled and murmured, "Around 2 days. Remember the pills you took that night?" Her brow furrowed, "Apparently you took around thrice the dosage recommended…" She looked down at her palms, and avoided looking into his eyes. "Don't worry. I told the doctors to be quiet about it. It won't get out."
He turned away, not sure of what to say. She tried to break the tension a little, "It was quite the adventure, trying to get you passed out from your office to the hospital."
Well, at least that settled how he arrived here. Robert looked at the young brunette, and simply stated, "You should've let it be."
"But I can't." She bit her lip as her response was left unanswered. Moments passed before she said anything again. "I see you die every night. In my dreams." A sob left her, and Ariadne rest her head on the bed. "I couldn't bear to see this happen in reality as well."
Robert Fischer looked at this young girl who was so grieved at what he had done to himself, and guilt filled him again. It was different from before, not with what he had done to the company.
Truth be told, he was a very lonely man. Anyone could confirm that for him. It showed in his office, as Ariadne had noticed. It showed in his demeanour, and it definitely showed itself in his mind. The teary-eyed girl slowly looked up at him, and noticed his eyes looking right back at her. A bit startled, but no fear. Robert wasn't really sure what to do, in this vulnerable state and neither was she.
Ariadne took his hand into her grasp, and gave a weak smile. "I'll be here. You're not alone."
With that, Robert could only reply with a mirrored expression.
Perhaps this was the slow road to recovery. Negative emotions are always trumped by positive emotions, and even this little bit of care that invaded his heart was enough. For now.
A/N: Not sure how I feel about this at all, since I wrote this while I was ill and about to pass out. I think I'll try to fix it about, or just write another story. I do adore this pairing, and I'm not too smart on the Inception story just yet. I'm always confused when I watch the film etc. But I'm learning! And criticism is welcomed, thank you.