Hi. So this is After Sleepers. Working on the assumption that after their little chat in Helen's office, Nikola decided to get blind drunk - you know, soul crushing depression and all. And since he's no longer a vampire, he can get drunk. That was too good an opportunity to pass up on.
Once again, thanks for all the fabulous reviews! This part is dedicated to all the South Africans reading out there, hope everyone had an awesome public holiday and I hope all your long weekends are epic. If you are reading and are South African, drop me a "Whatsup bru, howzit?" :) Sanctuary fandom in SA is a very lonely business.
Anyway. Here it is! Please keep reviewing! It makes me so very very happy!
xx
Part 8 – After Sleepers
"Hello?" Helen squinted at her clock. It was almost four o'clock in the morning. Who the hell could be calling at this hour.
"Hello Hel-hic-len."
Pushing herself up in her bed she brushed her hair back out of her face, a deep frown on her face.
"Nikola? Is that you?"
"Yep."
"What are you doing? You're three rooms away from me!"
He giggled uncharacteristically down the line.
"But isn't this more f-fun?"
"Niko. It's four in the morning. I was asleep."
"Shall I come over there and help you get b-back to bed?"
She rolled her eyes.
"How many bottles of wine have you had?"
"Erm...uh... Does t-that one in y-your office count?"
"Nikola. I'm going back to sleep now."
"OK. I'll b-be there in one and a half minutes."
"No Niko. You need to stay in your room and get some sleep. Stop drinking and just go to sleep. I'll see you in the morning."
"Helennnn... I'm in your Sanctuary"
"I know Niko. You're in my guest bedroom."
"No, I mean, I ended up here this w-weekend anyway. Like we'd planned."
She sighed and rested her head on her fist.
"Yes, you did. Even after you deceived me by not telling me what you've been up to. Now you need to rest, please."
"I-I was planning on telling you when we were together this weekend Helen! I wanted to show you all that I'd a-accomplished."
She scoffed at this.
"You turned innocent children into vampires Nikola. That is not an accomplishment. Now, please, I'm tired. I'm going to hang up now."
"But I need to tell you something H-Helen." He swigged from the wine bottle he had in his hand.
She sighed heavily, who knows how long this could go on for.
"What Nikola?"
There was a brief pause in which Helen heard Nikola swallow a mouthful of wine.
"I love you."
He heard nothing on the end of the line for a few seconds and was beginning to fear she'd hung up on him. Helen's heart clenched painfully in her chest, why did he have to be drunk right now?
"Niko..."
"I m-meant it in Rome."
"Please don't..."
"I will never stop meaning it."
"Nikola..."
"Helen..."
"Don't..."
"OK. OK. I won't."
Silence.
"Helen..."
"I said don't."
"I know."
"Goodbye Nikola."
"I want to be with you Helen."
"Niko..."
"I know, I know, Don't."
"Then why did you?"
"Because I've been in l-love with you for over a century."
"You know we can't do this."
"Why not!"
"Niko, you're drunk, you don't know what you're saying."
"Why not!"
"You know why not."
"No. No I don't. I'm all out of r-reasons Helen."
"Niko..."
"Seriously. I'm all out. G-give me one good reason why I shouldn't come over there right now, right into your bedroom. Tell me why I can't press you into that mattress of yours, why I can't run my hands over you, why I can't p-press my lips against yours, why I can't caress your bare skin, why I can't press my tongue against you, why I can't taste you, why I can't slide my fingers gently into your..."
"Nikola that's enough!" She felt herself growing hot with embarrassment and to her great displeasure, arousal.
"It has never been enough Helen! We've never been enough. God. I've never even kissed you p-properly. Not like I've always wanted to."
"Don't do this."
"Helen," he sobbed, "I can't do this anymore!"
"Nikola. This is just the wine talking. You haven't been this drunk in over one hundred years. Please, just get some rest"
"It is not the WINE! This is the first time I have a-actually told you what I FEEL Helen!"
"Nikola..."
"All I want is you. It's all I've ever wanted, I have no time to wait for you anymore Helen. I'm dying. I n-need you to know."
"Niko, you are not dying..."
"Yes I am. I'm mortal. I'm dying. And all I can think about is how much I want to be there with you. How much I want to watch you while you s-sleep, to wake up to your face in the morning, every morning..."
"Stop..."
"...How much I want to whisper that I love you as you wake up. To be the first and the last kiss you receive in a day. Every day..."
"Nikola stop!"
"...To be there for you when you need someone to c-cry against, to hold you in my arms when you need to be held. To show you how much I care..."
"I'm going to hang up Nikola."
"No you won't. You won't because this is possibly the most r-real conversation we've ever had"
"Nikola this is getting out of hand. Please..."
"Oh g-goodness. Something the great Helen Magnus can't control!"
"Nikola!"
"Face it. I love you. I'm IN love with you. I know you love me b-back Helen. I know it. I can feel it. I don't care if you deny it. I know it's true." She heard him take a long swig of wine on the other side of the phone. She sighed. He wouldn't remember this in the morning, she knew it, he was way too far gone. She made a decision quickly.
"Fine. You're right. I do"
"What?"
"I love you Nikola, I always bloody have. Even when we were back at Oxford, I thought it would be you proposing to me you know. Not John. I knew you first, but you were too slow. You were too much of a gentleman. Why couldn't you just have demanded that I marry you instead? I would have you know. I would have dropped it all for you."
Nikola sat, stunned on the other end of the line.
"R-really?"
"Yes."
"Helen. I... I want to be with you... you..." she heard him start to falter. She sighed and shut her eyes.
"We'll talk about it tomorrow Niko."
"No, not tomorrow... I'm coming over there."
That was not the desired reaction.
"Nikola! No, you're too drunk. You won't remember darling. Please. Tomorrow."
"But I need to see you Helen. I need to touch you. I need to kiss you."
She was sorely tempted to let him.
"You can tomorrow, when you will remember. Please darling, go to sleep."
"Do you want to be with me?" he unashamedly hiccoughed.
"Yes Niko. Of course I do."
"I need you so much Helen."
"Niko..."
"Tomorrow!...we'll be together tomorrow?"
"Yes love. Tomorrow."
He smiled as his eyes drooped sleepily.
"I love you." he whispered.
"I love you too."
She heard him mumble incoherently before he fell asleep. She sighed and replaced the receiver in its cradle. The only way to get him to go to sleep would be to agree with him, to placate him. To tell him she felt the same. To feed him a pack of lies until he dropped it. It was the only way.
Oh. If only they were all lies. If only.
:'(
