Jack Hyde woke with a start, a hand immediately going to rub a sore spot on his head. He lay on the floor, surrounded by the empty beer bottles that he had discarded in the early morning hours.
"Fuck..." he groaned, while rubbing at the tender lump on the side of his head.
While the evening was fuzzy, he knew that Anastasia had punched him in the groin, a searing pain ripping through him as he fell to his knees. He didn't remember much after that, but judging by the pain in his head, he was sure he'd been knocked out with something.
"Anastasia!" He yelled through the house, only to be greeted with a maddening silence.
He stood, walking to her room and then pushing the door open.
Empty.
With a growl, he made his way through the house, pushing open all of the doors, only to find that he was alone.
She'll be back, he thought. She always comes back. And I'll be here waiting.
Christian felt warm, warmer than he generally did when he slept. A small opening of his eyes reminded him that the source of warmth was none other than Anastasia Steele, curled in the same exact spot she had been when she fell asleep. The sunlight shone in through the curtains on his living room windows, and he turned his head, escaping the light hitting his eyes.
She was sound asleep, breathing deeply as her face sat against his chest, next to one of the burns that was forever engraved in his skin. He reveled in the fact that he could now enjoy touch, unlike years ago when he panicked at the very mention of a hug.
Taking the moment of silence to himself, he acknowledged how beautiful he thought she was, even though her cheek was now turning a brilliant shade. The very sight of it reminded him of earlier in the morning and he gripped her tighter.
"I'll keep you safe," he had said to her, and he had meant it.
Feeling his leg beginning to cramp, he attempted to move, only to find that his back had cramped as well from being in the same position through the night.
"Shit.." He groaned, and with his movement she began to stir.
She blinked slowly, almost as if hoping to recollect why she was there in the first place. She immediately lifted her head, turning it to Christian who raised his eyebrows.
"Morning.." He said softly.
"Good morning, I'm sorry.. you must be extremely uncomfortable." She said, before turning her head away from his own. "I bet my morning breath is also great, sorry."
He gripped her tightly once again, pulling her closer to him. She turned her head once more, mere inches away from his own. "You're fine." He said, "I shouldn't have let you leave last night. I should have asked you to stay, I'm sorry."
"Don't be," she breathed, a blush creeping on her face.
Having her so close was intoxicating, and though he knew he still shouldn't, he lifted his head toward her, his lips pressing softly against hers. As if she had been waiting, she immediately melted into him, their kiss slow and passionate rather than hot and heavy as it had been the night before.
Ana melted into his kiss and she once again pushed away the negative thoughts that were seeping into her mind. For once, she found herself in the moment, relishing in his touch.
He gripped at her, once hand raising to rest on her cheek. She couldn't help but wince, his fingertips brushing the mark that Jack had left on her.
"Shit!" He exclaimed, closing his eyes tightly. "I'm so sorry, I don't know what keeps coming over me."
"It's okay," she pulled back, maneuvering her way off the couch. "Honestly, it probably wouldn't keep happening if I didn't keep laying on top of you." She said with a small and nervous chuckle.
Christian frowned, before grabbing her hand and kissing the tips of her fingers. "I like when you lay on me,"
His voice was low and rough, making her blush. Her teeth began to tug at her lip before she remembered the split in it, and winced. She watched as he stood as well, and took the moment to let her eyes trail over the man she had just spent the night with. He was cut and lean, his abs going down into a perfect V that ended in his sweat pants. The only blemish she could see were three small marks, that almost reminded her of cigarette marks.
Grabbing her phone, she glanced at the time before opening a text she had received from her sitter. The text assured her that all was well with Teddy, especially after Ana had hurriedly called in the middle of the night. With her sitter Andrea, she knew that Teddy was safe. Her husband was not only a security officer on campus, but Jack Hyde had no idea who either one of them were.
She finally looked up once again at Christian, admiring the flexing of his back muscles as he pulled a tee shirt over his head. "I'll need to leave soon to pick up Teddy, but my car is at Kate's."
"I can drive you there, just let me know what works best for you." Christian replied to her. He reached over once again and let his finger run over her split lip, grimacing as she winced. "Ana, I still think you need to report this. He can try to go after Teddy, but he's not his son."
"Jack Hyde is a master manipulator Christian. I just need to figure out what I'm going to do now." She ran her fingers through her hair, taking a deep breath to steady herself.
She figured she would ask Kate to stay with her, but also knew that Jack would have no problem making his way to Kate's since he'd been there before. In fact, that would probably be the first place he'd go today to look for her and Teddy.
"Coffee?" Christian questioned, the smell beginning to fill his townhouse as his automatic coffee maker began percolating.
"Yes, please." Ana wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly aware that her bra was still upstairs in his room. "I'll just.. be right back."
She could feel his eyes on her as she ran upstairs.
Christian pulled his mug from his cabinet, the same mug that he used daily. Looking at the faded design, he realized he should probably invest in a new one. He poured in his coffee, topping it with a splash of cream and looking at the time.
7:42am
For only having three hours of sleep, he felt oddly awake, most likely from the onslaught of emotions and excitement from earlier in the morning.
Christian felt frustrated that she didn't want to report him, but in some way he understood. Elena Lincoln was also a master manipulator, using whatever situation she could to turn it away from her.
Until we finally got her that is.
He sipped his coffee, grabbing his phone from where he typically left it the night before. One missed call from his dad, most likely to ask about him coming for Christmas. He rolled his eyes, ignoring the missed call and going to check his school email account.
A quick note of apology to his students for the day was sent, along with a cancellation of class. He was sure they wouldn't mind, and were probably excited to get some more sleep and time to study.
"I'm really sorry to have gotten you into this mess," he heard from behind him, and turned to see Ana walking into the kitchen. He could see she'd put on her bra, her breasts no longer pushing against the fabric of her shirt.
"Don't be sorry, I just want to make sure you guys are safe."
She let out a small harsh laugh as Christian stood and grabbed her a mug. "I appreciate that. I honestly can't believe I've put myself in this position. All of mine and Teddy's stuff is still in that house, I can't stay with Kate because I don't want to bring that to her, and I-"
"Why don't you stay with me until we get this figured out?" Christian was surprised by words coming out of his own mouth and saw by her expression she felt the same way.
She paused while pouring her coffee, turning her head and speaking slowly.
"Christian, I know what happened last night and this morning was... great, but... you're my teacher. I can't risk you getting in trouble." He watched as she fidgeted with her fingers, and he appreciated her concern.
"Anastasia," he said firmly, "At this point, the most important thing is keeping you safe, like I said. You're safe with me, and I think as long as neither of us run around on campus together, or the divulge the secrets of... what happened, we'll be fine. You're only in my class for two more months."
Christian watched as she stared at him, debating his proposition. He was unsure himself why he proposed it, but it felt like the right thing to do. He wouldn't let her, or her son, be homeless and he wasn't about to watch her go back to Jack Hyde.
"Let me... think about it. Are you able to bring me to Kate's now?"
Christian sat in his Mercedes while Anastasia stood at the door of baby sitters. After much convincing, Anastasia had grabbed her car seat, placing it into his own car. His logic was sound, his concern that Jack Hyde could have easily tracked her car probable. In fact, Kate and Elliot were moving it to the other side of campus, away from Kate's home.
He watched closely, concern written all over the face of her sitter. He was unsure what Anastasia was saying, but she pointed toward Christian and he gave a small wave. When he saw a small toddler come outside though, he sat up a little straighter.
The boy was young, no older than three, with a heap of brown hair on his head. He immediately gravitated toward his mother, and she lifted him with ease. As if filled with concern at such a young age, he lightly touched her injured face. Christian gulped as she brought him to the car and immediately opened the door, stepping outside.
"Do you need help?" He asked, inwardly slapping himself at such a silly question.
"No thank you, I do this all of the time." With ease, she placed the boy into his car seat, strapping him in.
"Should he be facing forward?" He asked nervously, a behavior not common for Christian Grey.
Anastasia laughed, shutting the door and getting into the passenger seat. "He's just begun facing forward, he's hit the right height and weight. Christian, it's fine."
With a nod, he went back to the drivers side, getting in and glancing back at the little boy staring at him with curiosity.
"Hello," Christian said, much to Ana's amusement.
The little boy lifted a hand and waved, "Hi." He said in return, his voice high and sweet.
"He can talk?"
"He's almost three. Yes, he can talk." Ana narrowed her eyes at him, "Have you never been around a toddler?"
With indignation in his tone, Christian spoke again, "There's never been a need to be around children. When I was at GEH full time, we didn't have time for family gatherings, and now I just... haven't." He finished lamely.
As he began driving, Ana sat silent, staring out of the window. The toddler in the back was fully amused by a toy in his hand and would occasionally giggle.
"To go back to your suggestion, of letting us stay with you... toddlers aren't all they're cracked up to be. The terrible twos are a real thing." She finally said, her voice full of nerves.
"Children don't bother me Anastasia. I may be ill-experienced around them, but I don't mind them."
"Okay then."
"Okay then?" He asked, turning his head momentarily toward her while driving.
"I'll take you up on your offer, but no longer than a month. I don't need to be indebted to anyone else."
"So, you're staying here with him?" Kate asked Anastasia, unable to hide the worry in her voice.
The two sat in Christian's living room with Teddy, while Christian left with Elliot to grab a pizza. Anastasia sat on the floor, surrounded by the toys that her son was playing with. She loved how at ease he seemed, the feeling radiating toward her, staunching the panic attack that had yet to come.
Upon returning to the townhouse, both Kate and Elliot were surprised to see her with Teddy. Kate was even more surprised to find that they'd be staying for a while.
"Yes," Ana replied matter-of-fact. "I know you'd offer me to stay with you, but Jack knows where you live, and honestly I don't want to put that on you."
"He'll probably show up anyways."
The thought had crossed Anastasia's mind, but thankfully her best friend was currently safe at her side.
"Either way, do you think this is a good idea Ana? He's your teacher. I mean, trust me - I don't care, he seems like a great guy, but I don't want this to cause any issues with school." Kate continued, taking the opportunity to ruffle up Teddy's hair.
"It won't. This is purely just a situational thing, and honestly I feel safe with him." Ana replied, reaching up to touch her cheek. She winced, the sensitivity and soreness even worse.
"I want to kill him Ana."
"I think he was going to kill me." Ana whispered, much to her friends horror. She, herself, felt the horror bubbling inside of her.
"Why didn't you tell me this was going on? I mean, I had my suspicions, but you kept telling me everything was fine. I could have helped you sooner and to be honest, you shouldn't have let Teddy be around that."
Anastasia closed her eyes, willing the tears not to overflow. "He wasn't... this way with Teddy, or when Teddy was around. I think in his own sick way, he loves Teddy." She could hear her friend begin to retort, and so she lifted her hand as if to stop her. "I know, I know. I'm an idiot. I know I am." Her eyes opened, and tears streamed down her cheeks. "But Kate, I didn't want to put this on you.."
"Ana, I didn't mean to make you upset. I'm sorry, that was insensitive of me." Her friend crawled on the floor toward her, before embracing her in a hug.
The Mercedes hummed as Christian drove down the road, his car now carrying the aroma of pizza.
"You offered to let them stay with you? Christian, you hate kids." Elliot chided, giving him a 'serious' big brother look.
Christian scoffed in return, "I don't hate kids. I've just never been in a situation where I needed to be close to them."
"Christian, I asked you once if you wanted kids... you're response was a loud FUCK no."
"I'm not adopting her child Elliot, i'm letting them stay with me. It'll be fine."
"You might want to stop those late night make out sessions with her then."
Christian gave Elliot a side glance and watched as his brother took the moment to stare out of the window.
"Honestly," Elliot looked back toward him taking a deep breath, "You've just worked very hard to live this new life. I know you're doing the right thing, hell I'd do the same thing, but I don't want you ending up losing your job over this."
"I won't." Christian reaffirmed, although he wasn't sure if he was trying to convince Elliot or himself.
