There's plenty of people who think that what I did next was rash but it was the best idea I had at the time…I got lucky, I guess. Everything turned out good in the end, didn't it?
"Should be fine…in a few days…"
"Don't worry…strong…be okay…"
Jim floated in and out of blackness for a while. Nothing hurt; not physically at least. When sentences began stringing together, making sense, they broke his heart. He could hear his mom talking to him. "Jim, I need you to wake up, okay?"
Was he asleep? If he was, why couldn't he wake up? Jim didn't understand.
He could hear Chloe; she was there all the time, talking to him. "Jim, please be okay. Why have you been asleep for so long?"
As Jim floated closer to the surface, he could feel pain; his head, neck and right shoulder throbbed. He groaned. "Jim?" His mom was there, speaking to him in a soft whisper. Jim forced his eyes open; he was in his bedroom, lying on the bed as early morning light poured in through the window. The sun was just rising. His mother stood over him, her face tight and tired with worry. She sighed when her son's eyes settled on her. "Oh, Jim, welcome back."
Jim groaned again; his head was killing him. "What happened?"
Sarah sighed, gently resting a hand on his forehead, checking for a fever. "After you saved Vivian from her kidnappers, you were chased by the police. They thought that you had kidnapped her; you lost control of that death trap board and the two of you fell off-"
"Wait, where's Chloe?" Jim jumped up, but cringed as his shoulder and neck protested.
Sarah rushed to push her son back down, shushing him as she did. "She's fine, just some scrapes and bruises. Just look," she said, indicating to the foot of Jim's bed. He rolled his head to the right, not wanting to try and lift it again, for fear of bringing back that splitting pain. Rolling it wasn't very comfortable either, but it was the lesser of the two evils.
Jim glanced down at the foot of his bed; Chloe was there, her upper body resting on the space just below his feet, her right arm under her head like a pillow, her left arm resting in front of her face. Her legs were folded under her mid section in a chair that was pulled up against the bed. Jim saw that her left arm and leg were bandaged; he also saw that she was sound asleep.
"She hasn't left your side since the doctor let her in," Sarah whispered, walking toward Chloe's sleeping form quietly. She pulled a blanket off the foot board of the bed and draped it across the girl's shoulders. "I think this is the first time she's been asleep in three days."
"Three days?" Jim asked, his voice rough from lack of use. "How long have I been-?"
"Today's day four since the…incident," Sarah said, walking back to her son's side. She gently brushed his bangs out of his face. "Apparently you're not as hard headed as we all originally thought."
Jim laughed a little, stretching some as he did. His shoulders cracked, relieving the tension in them. His movement shook the bed lightly, and Chloe stirred. She groaned, rubbing the back of her left hand across her face before opening her eyes. "Mrs. Hawkins..?" she asked sleepily, lifting her head off her arm pillow.
Sarah gave the girl a small wave before motioning to Jim. "Vivian, he's awake."
Chloe(Vivian?) stopped mid eye rub, her eyes jumping to Jim. When she saw that he was awake, her face was flooded with a beautiful look of relief. "Jim!" She stood quickly from her chair, knocking it to the ground before taking a step closer to him. The blanket hug loosely around her shoulders. "I'm so glad," she said. Jim saw that her eyes glistened lightly, but she quickly wiped them with the back of her left hand.
Jim nodded toward her, not trusting his ability to move his arms without ending up in pain. Sarah shook her head lightly, sliding her hands under Jim's left shoulder. "C'mon, let's try and get you upright."
Jim pushed with his arms as his mother helped him to sit up. He was grateful that it didn't hurt nearly as bad as he thought it would. Once he was upright, Sarah stood back from him, her hands on her hips. "Do you feel up to eating something?"
Jim thought for a moment, running his right hand through his hair; he could feel a large lump on his head from where he had hit the ground. He nodded, running his hand down his head and to his neck, which was sore and felt like it needed to be cracked. "Well, then I'll be back in a few minutes," Sarah said, turning to Chloe (Vivian?) before she left the room. "Keep an eye on him; make sure he doesn't try to escape."
Vivian (Chloe?) laughed as Mrs. Hawkins left the room, leaving the two young people alone. Vivian looked back to Jim after watching his mother leave. He had scooted back and was leaning against the head board, looking Vivian over as she stood before him. She was in a light brown long sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up that was obviously not hers and a dark blue skirt that fell just below her knees. Her hair was loose and flowing down her back. Chloe( Vivian?) blushed lightly when she noticed Jim's gaze traveling up and down the length of her body. "I'm uh," she started, clearing her throat before continuing. "I'm really glad you're awake."
Jim sniffed, rubbing his eyes. When he dragged his hand across his face in his usual way, he noticed that he didn't have a shirt on; he was dressed in only a pair of black pants. Now it was his turn to blush, although his was lighter than Chloe's( Vivian's) had been. "Chloe, erm," Jim started, looking over her bandages while trying to decide what exactly he needed to call her.
"It's Vivian," she said, wringing her hands together. When Jim raised an eyebrow at her, she cleared her throat before walking toward the bed. She took a seat on the edge of it and then, after deciding if it was okay, rested her right hand on Jim's bare abdomen. "I…remember…everything."
Jim smiled. "Chloe…Viv-that's great! So you remember your family, your life before…"
Vivian gave an uncertain laugh mixed with a sigh as she cast her look down Jim's chest in an attempt to avoid his eyes. "Yes. I er…I remember why I ran away from home." She brought her gaze back up to meet Jim's. His eyes gave her a questioning look, wanting to know why she had run away and put herself in danger by traveling alone. "I'm…engaged to be married to an awful man. He's vile and…disgusting. He treats dogs better than people especially women. I ran away right after I met him, I…I watched him hit his little niece in the face. I couldn't just sit there and let myself be given to that monster!"
Vivian stood up and began pacing the room, running her hands through her hair. "Jim, I understand if you don't want me to stay here; I mean, my father's on his way, and if you don't want any trouble I'll leave, but….I just…I'll just have to run again; I refuse to go back to be forced to marry that…that!"
"Vivian!" Jim shouted to stop Vivian's rambling.
"What?" She shouted back, surprising both of them. She released a shaky breath, squeezing her eyes shut. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm just…" She walked back over to the bed, sitting on her knees beside it and pressing her face into the mattress. "Jim, I'm scared," she said, her voice muffled.
Jim leaned forward despite his protesting muscles and gently set his right hand on her back. "What can I do?" he asked, rubbing her back.
"I don't know!" Vivian said, half exasperated and half frantic as she brought her head back up. "Until I'm married, my father owns me; he tells me where to go and what to do. He wants me to marry Lord Randall because it will gain him more lands! I can't go against him. I'll be in enough trouble when he gets here. Refusing to get married is sure to get me… hanged or something! Until I'm married, my destiny is in his hands; after that it passes to my husband, which is an even more frightening prospect."
Jim reached and gently brushed a few strands of hair out of Vivian's face as he thought. Her destiny was determined by her father until she was married. Then it was determined by her husband.
Husband…
"Husband!" Jim said, suddenly coming up with a solution to their problem. "Vivian…you belong to your father till you're married, right?"
Vivian nodded a little, straightening as she sat on her knees. She raised an eyebrow as a smile spread across Jim's face. "Jim…what are you thinking?"
Jim suddenly swung his feet to the floor, yelping slightly when his bare feet came in contact with the cold floor. "We need to go see Captain Amelia," he said, pushing himself to his feet. He was a little wobbly from having been in bed so long; Vivian jumped to her feet, steadying him with her arms around his torso. Jim looked down at her, a faint smile on his lips. "Go get dressed in something nice."
"Jim, what are you-?"
"Vivian, I know what you need to do to keep from having to marry that guy," Jim said, hobbling around the room, looking for his military best dress uniform pieces. They had been scattered between his closet, clothing trunk and the bag he still had beside the door. "You've got to get married."
Vivian moved in front of Jim, placing both of her hands on his bare chest. "Jim, first of all, you shouldn't be up and about yet, and second of all…" she paused when she grasped his idea. "That's actually a really good idea, but who on Montressor would want to marry me to keep me out of an unwanted marriage? There are no 'take back'sies in marriage! They can't just save me and then get unmarried to me!"
Jim wrapped his hands around Vivian's wrists, gently pulling her hands off of his chest. "I know that Viv," he said, stooping down slightly to look into her eyes. "I know this is crazy, but this is the only thing that's bound to work. If you're married, you belong to your husband."
"I know that!" Vivian sighed in exasperation, shaking her head before looking up into Jim's blue eyes again. "That's part of the problem!"
Jim released Vivian's right wrist, using both of his hands to hold her left hand. "No, it's going to be part of the solution. Vivian, if you get married, then your father won't be able to force you to go through with your arranged marriage."
Vivian rubbed her eyes in frustration with her right hand. "I. Know! There's just one problem with your plan Jim: There needs to be a groomfor there to be a marriage! And he kind of has to want to marry me!"
Now it was Jim's turn to get exasperated. "Don't you get what I'm trying to tell you? I'm going to marry you!"
The look Vivian gave him was hard to describe; it was an odd mix between disbelief, bewilderment, joy and confusion. "Jim…I think you need to lie back down. You're…you're saying things that…"Vivian began stuttering as she tried to push Jim back toward his bed.
Jim took hold of Vivian's chin with his left hand. "Viv, do you trust me?"
Vivian stared up at Jim, blinking as she tried to comprehend what exactly was happening. "Yes, of course, with my life, but Jim, I-"
Jim kissed her lips quickly; when he pulled away, he held her face close to his. "Do…you…trust me?"
Vivian released a breath as she looking into Jim's blue eyes. She nodded, replying with a breathy, "Yes."
Jim pulled away from her before gently pushing her toward the door. "Then go and get dressed in the nicest thing you can find. We're going to go to Captain Amelia and get her to marry us."
Vivian gave a breathy laugh mixed with an exhale as she stood in the doorway. "I can't believe we're doing this," she said. Jim began moving around his room, his legs firmer than before, searching for his best dress. "What about your mom?"
Jim froze as he reached into his closet. He hadn't thought about what Sarah Hawkins would say or do. He rubbed the back of his neck as he thought. "I'll talk to her," he said, turning to face Vivian as she stood in the door way. "I'll go talk to her now. Go get dressed."
As Jim started out of the room, Vivian grabbed his arm. "Are you sure about this?"
She glanced up into Jim's eyes, searching them for the answer. He smiled back, stooping to kiss her forehead before nodding. "It might seem crazy and reckless, but…I know it's the right thing to do."
Vivian smiled, releasing his arm and quickly walking down to her room and closing the door. Jim moved quickly, walking down to the stairs and descending them with relatively amazing speed considering he had only a short time before hand been unconscious in bed. It was too early for guests to be up, so the dining room was empty. Jim could hear his mother in the kitchen.
Jim burst into the room, not really thinking his next statement through all the way. "Mom, Vivian and I are getting married. Today."
Sarah dropped the plate she had been holding; it fell to the ground and shattered. "What?" Sarah walked up to her son, pressing a hand on his forehead. When she found that he didn't have a fever, she looked into his eyes. "Jim, what's going on?"
Jim turned and walked out of the kitchen, his mother on his heels, explaining his plan to her. By the time he had finished explaining things to her, they were standing in his room as Jim moved around, dressing in the most formal military uniform he could find. Blue pants, black dress shirt, blue jacket and black boots. Sarah was shaking her head. "Jim, I love you… I really do…But I think you've finally lost your mind!"
Jim scoffed as he checked his appearance in the small mirror he had hanging beside his closet. "Mom, I know it sounds crazy but…it's the right thing to do."
Sarah put her hands on her hips. "Jim, you're about to get a quickie marriage to a girl you've known for a month! And if you really want to get technical, you haven't really known her seeing as she didn't even know who she was!"
Jim walked out of his room and toward Vivian's bedroom door. "Mom, I really hate to say this, but I'm doing this whether you like it or not." Jim knocked on the door, waiting until Vivian invited him inside before he opened it. He found her standing in front of her bed wearing a very formal black dress. Jim raised an eyebrow at her. "Black?"
Vivian gave him an apologetic look. "It's the nicest thing I have. I'm sorry."
Jim shook his head. "No, it's perfect; you look beautiful." She did look beautiful. The black dress had long lace sleeves, a tight fitting bodice, and a long skirt which trailed the floor behind her. The neck line was a slight 'v', accentuating Vivian's erm….bosom very nicely. Jim stepped into the room as Vivian began braiding her hair. "You ready to go?"
"Oh no you don't!" Jim had almost forgotten that his mother had followed him into Vivian's room. "As much as I don't like this plan," Sarah said, walking into the room and pausing to look up at her son. "I can see there's no changing your mind. And no son of mine is going to marry someone who is dressed in black. C'mon Vivian; you can wear my wedding dress."
Sarah gently took Vivian's arm and began leading the young woman out of the room. "Jim, I want you send B.E.N. to go and get Amelia; have her and Delbert come to the inn. Then I want you to stay down stairs. You're not allowed to see Vivian until the…ceremony. If you want to call it that. Now c'mon Vivian. We've got to get you dressed."
As Sarah pulled Vivian out of the room, the young woman looked at Jim, a small smile on her face. Jim smiled back, suddenly nervous. Part of him thought he was dreaming; how could something like this seem to be working out for the best? He wasn't sure. What he was sure of was that he needed the Captain to get to the inn as soon as possible. Jim ran down the stairs to find B.E.N.
Woo! Because my readers are so awesome, I decided to update ahead of schedule! I really hope that you liked this chapter; I love it! The whole, 'yeah, I like you, and you know this will be better for you in the end, so will you marry me' thing is just…happy making!
R&R and I will try and get more to you soon! I love you guys! You're reviews and comments are wonderful; I'm always excited to post a chapter to see if you all will like it!
Enjoy! Until Next Time! XXOO~BBTM
