It was much later when Dom was helping Kel stumble back to her room. The alcohol he had consumed was making his mind cloudy and his tongue fuzzy but he was still in a better way than Kel was at the moment. They had been laughing about Alanna escorting her earlier that evening when suddenly she had stopped and stood awkwardly still.
"Kel, what's the matter?" he asked. He was holding her by the elbow to help steady her and tried to get her to move forward again.
"Dom, I think-" was all she said before she stumbled and fell to her hands and knees behind a bush and proceeded to vomit.
Dom sighed. He knew she couldn't could her liquor. He knew he should have cut her off sooner. He kneeled beside her and put his hands to her forehead to keep her hair from her face. He wrinkled his nose at the smell of sour alcohol, but refused to move until she stopped heaving. He sat back on his heels and waited for her to collect herself.
Kel looked back at him over her shoulder. Her face was flushed, partially from alcohol and partially from embarrassment. Her eyes were fever bright and reflected the stars in the darkness. Her smile was crooked. He looked at her and took in the determined set of her jaw, the dusting of freckles over a delicate nose, and long eyelashes that cast shadows on her cheeks whenever she blinked.
Suddenly his head felt clearer than it had in years. He had lost the ability to breathe and his chest constricted painfully. He coughed to clear the words that had caught in his throat. "Come on, let's get you to bed," he managed to say. She nodded her agreement.
He helped lever her onto her feet. She took a moment for the world to stop swaying before she took a step. Dom managed to catch her when her legs gave way. He held her close to him and he marveled at the feeling of her body pressed against his. She wasn't soft like the ladies he was used to. She was wonderfully solid. His breath caught when she laid her head against his chest as she slipped into unconsciousness.
Dom sighed and managed to gather her up into his arms. His senses were on overload. He was acutely aware of how she was curled up against him. Of how her hair tickled his neck, face, and nose when the wind caught it. Of the steady rise and fall of her chest.
He made it to her room in no time at all now that he wasn't trying to keep her staggering in the right direction. He managed to open the door. With Kel still asleep in his arms, he crossed the room to lay her in bed. He removed her sword belt and her boots.
She stirred and grabbed his wrist as he was pulling the blankets up to cover her. He looked into her face. Her eyes were still unfocused as she looked at him and smiled. "Are you going to stay with me tonight?" She asked.
Dom shook his head. "You need to get some rest."
She seemed about to argue until her eye lids got heavy again and fluttered shut.
He took one last look at her before he left for his own room.