Hi everyone! Hope everything about your summer's been good so far... Was in the middle of weird spell while writing this, sorry about editing.


Chapter Nine – Asleep

"… Sing me to sleep

I don't want to wake up

On my own anymore…"

– The Smiths


"Ah!" Ada spun around to face the voice that had just breezed softly into her ear. "Eric goddamn it!" She yelled balling her fist up and punching his familiar gorgeous face with everything she had.

"My nose!" He cried, fangs extended in shock.

Ada dropped the laundry, drawing her hands up to cover her mouth, eyes wide and worried. "Eric! Oh gosh! Eric, I'm so sorry!" She rushed forward pulling his fingers away from his face so she could see the damage she'd done. "I didn't mean to, I just, I was so..."

"Angry, clearly..." Eric finished for her calmly pushing her worried touches away, holding her hands in his own to keep her back.

Ada relaxed a little, she could see his nose had already healed. "Yeah..." She shrugged not really wanting to delve into what had put her so on edge as he peered down at her, his blue eyes filled with concern.

"You are hurt..."

'Mentally? He can tell? Oh wait...' Ada followed his cool eye line down to where her hands were clasped in his. Under the icy circles he was tracing over her skin Ada could feel the sting of the punch that she had laid on him. 'Ow...' She winced noticing that the skin on her right knuckles had split a little. 'That's gonna be annoyingly painful.' Ada hated getting cuts on places that bent and re-opened healing wounds.

Eric moved his grasp away, the sting on her reddening hand worsened without his frosty touch easing the burn.

Ada looked up shamelessly about to ask for his hand back, but what she saw him doing made her stop. He pricked his index finger with one of his fangs, it seemed that in the scuffle Ada had forgotten to be afraid of them, she certainly wasn't forgetting now. Ada backed away slightly, drawing her wounded hand towards her chest as Eric tried reaching for it again. He must have seen that Ada's green eyes were fixed on the sharp points, there was a retracting click and he raised his bleeding finger as though the explanation would be self-evident, moving towards her he spoke, "Here." He reached for her right hand.

"What are you doing?"

"Here," he tried again though Ada pulled away again. He stopped stepping towards her and simply held out his non-bleeding open hand. "Trust me..."

"Trust you? You just cut yourself like it was nothing..."

He stood still as a statue. 'And one more loss at a staring contest...' She shuffled forward put her burning right hand in his cool one. His finger had healed, his fangs clicked out and he cut it again before bringing his the finger towards her torn skin. Ada clenched, already beginning to pull back, "I don't... ah, I don't..." She didn't know what would happen, but the fear of turning or getting addicted was creeping up inside her, she had heard stories… 'you're such a dork … is that even enough blood for turning or developing an addiction?' She asked herself.

"Don't worry little one. It will heal you. Look..." He rubbed what felt like a chilled balm on her hurt skin and as she watched, green eyes aghast, her knuckles healed in his hand. They felt amazing, they looked brand new and perfect, so much so, Ada almost wanted hit them against something to mark them up. 'I miss my scars.' She examined her fresh knuckles 'Kind of...'

"Wow..." she craned back her head to meet Eric's gaze, she didn't know what to say, so what came out of her mouth was: "Your awesome blood is way cooler than my boring blood..."

He inhaled as though he were relishing some pleasing morsel, "Your blood is not boring..."

'Ok...' Ada tugged away from him.

"Just gonna take this…" she pulled her healed hand into her chest again "...back now" his fangs were extended again and came to strike her notice again. The intensity in his gaze was making all of her actions feel rehearsed and wrong at the same time. "Oh look! The laundry." She leaned over picking up the laundry bag she had dropped. Swallowing as she tried to push past her own awkwardness she spoke, "So you've been losing a lot of blood... um, when I woke up your eyes and nose had some around them... what else happened?" She straightened up and stared at him, figuring it was a good a time as any to ask she nonchalantly added, "Oh yeah and you were in my bed...?" wanting to know but oddly frightened of what he might say.

The out of the blue response he provided came after a short pause. "Do you know you talk in your sleep?"

"I-" Ada took a breath before deciding to be defensively offended, "I do not!" She exclaimed up at him.

He grinned, a playful smile that lighted his face from his lips to his eyes, so warm that Ada felt the chill that had grown in her bones from her meeting with Niall, leech away.

"You do, little one." He took the bag of clean clothes from her to carry. "How could I move in time for sunrise whilst you entertained me so? Mumbling things…" his lighthearted grin widening as he went on, "the odd grumbles were worth the trouble for the sweet things you said…" he began listing her insensible rambles, as they started walking back to apartment "…'my itchy toes!', 'those are my peanuts!', something about a something from 'Morgoth'..." he teased Ada "… truly lovely phrases to hear tumble out of another's mouth…" as his eyes slid down to her mouth. The cozy heat that had sparked in Ada flared, taking away even the smallest sliver of cold left in her.

Strangely enough it did not feel entirely uncomfortable, rather it felt like something glowing, keeping her safe and reassured. A sweet flame that that he was feeding, tending to and distracting her with. 'That's a whole lotta description Ada, are you penning the next great American romance novel?' She coughed, reacting physically to her thoughts, 'Romance?' She shook her head at Eric to show that it was a simple cough and not to worry.

As she eyed him Ada forced herself to resolve at least this thing, 'It's not romance … what then? Friendship?' She went on thinking as she chuckled at Eric's continued depiction of her alleged sleep-talk. 'Friendship,' she thought resolutely. 'And friends help each other. So I guess I'm gonna have to figure out how to help him… and he'll have to help me…' Ada resisted shivering, moving a little closer to Eric's side and away from the darkness that edged around her light.


By the time they made back to the apartment Ada had squished the rational voice in her head that reminded her that Eric could not protect her in the daytime, which appeared to be when Niall preferred to show up, and that she couldn't in any practical sense protect the blond giant as was made apparent that very morning with Niall as well. She had cut those arguments out her mind as they entered her crummy apartment and she let the warmth she felt while Eric told her about herself burn what was left of them away.

However the voice that told her Eric had yet to eat would not be so easily silenced. Ada took the laundry from the vampire. 'Shit sticks!' Turning on her lamp, just as Eric shut the door, 'I still have no money! Crap, crap, crap…' she thought to herself, shaking the clean clothes out the laundry bag on to her bed '…cr… what's that?' Tumbling out with the last of Eric's clothes was something Ada did not expect… a roll of what looked to be 100 dollar bills with an 'N' marking the paper band holding the bills together.

"What is it?" Eric asked, he had already grabbed his shorts and t-shirt off of the pile and changed by the time Ada had looked up. She noticed that the ginormous man no longer seemed to have any qualms about wearing relatively 'new' clothes.

"Money." Ada spoke hardly believing it herself, she looked back to the wad of cash she was now holding between the fingers of her freshly healed right hand. 'Should I?...' she thought of the lovely old man, 'I'll pay him back… How? You don't wanna see him again…' Ada wrestled with her moral compass for a moment before deciding. 'Screw it.' Her green eyes flicked to an interested yet patiently waiting Eric. 'Hungry vampire first, then questions of conscience… and bills...' She added with a wince, pocketing the money, moving quickly to put the laundry bag and cleaning products back into the bathroom.

"Ah… I woke up too late…" Ada tried side-stepping all Niall related topics, instead choosing to explain what she was planning on doing, as she return to address the attentive blond vampire "… so, I'll go get you some blood…" Ada deciding to take some of the heavier text books out for this trip, readjusted the strap of her previously book heavy bag, looking back at the pensive looking vampire.

"Now?" Eric asked. "Truly…?"

There was some question in the way he was watching her, it hit her that he had known, or at least detected that she had been unsure of what to do with him the night before. 'Crap… certainly explains why he runs after me…' she thought how to dispel his doubt.

"If you're gonna stay here you'll need some…" Ada nodded, glancing at the time. "Next bus for Wal-mart should be in a half hour…" she sighed, rolling her shoulders, "better get going."

"I'll accompany you." He stated firmly.

"No, it's probably not a good idea for you to go out at all..." she tried reasoning with the obstinate looking giant, "with people looking for you…"

"I insist." The wall of a man blocked Ada as she attempted to walk around him towards the door.

"Well," she huffed, planting her hands on her hips and barely resisting the urge to stomp her foot. "So do I."

Ada saw the boyish smirk on his face for a spilt second before the world became a blur and she felt her stomach drop out.

'He must have taken the stairs.' Ada was wrapped in his arms turned towards him, her chin dug in his chest as she craned her head back to look up at his forward facing head. 'Stop thinking about sinking into the lines of his body! Be upset! He's carrying you against your will…' she was about to voice her protest when the wind picked up and chilled her. 'Why is it so win…' she felt her heart stop as she glanced around, as much as she could with Eric's restrictive grip, to catch her bearings and looked down. 'Oh god…'

"OH GOD!" Ada clambered up Eric's frame fastening her arms around his neck and knotting her legs around his waist as tightly as she could, if he were human Ada was certain she would be crushing him, but he was not human, as made evident by the fact that they were currently flying. "Oh god, oh god…" Ada breathed against his shoulder, tightening her hold at her elbows making sure to lock her arms around his neck.

"Shh, little one, just hold on to me. I won't drop you… I swear it."

With eyes closed eyes, Ada clung to him. His words, his smell, his body, the warmth that pulsed in her as his cool voice soothed her. Even though she was burying her face into his shoulder and couldn't squeeze him any tighter Ada felt as though she were slipping.

"Now where is this 'Wal-mart'?"

'Wal-mart?' She breathed deeply, swallowing her fear, making herself talk but also making sure to keep her green eyes shut. "It's ah… South I guess…" she spoke through clenched teeth. 'You can speak Ada! Ask him to put you down.' She tried but the tension had returned and overtaken her mouth.

"Ada." The voice sounded as though it was right in her ear. "Ada, we are here…" she pried her eyes open, to her side she saw green leaves and brown bark. Breathing in relief, Ada realized they must have really landed as her lungs filled with air her mind caught up with what had just transpired '…he landed…' Her arms and legs were still locked around his huge body.

"Oh gosh!" She dropped her legs and tried pushing herself out of his hold by bracing herself against his shoulders. His steel grip held fast around her waist while Ada tried to keep her wits about her, which in her current position was fairly difficult. 'How do you wind up pressed against him all the freaking time?'

As much as she tried, Ada couldn't move without his cooperation. "Eric…" she looked up at him exasperated, only to find that, his calm blue eyes made her fall still. Ada could see his nostrils flaring as he inhaled then slowly, far too slowly, he let her slip down his form until her feet touched the ground. Ada shivered, she couldn't seem to move her eyes from his, 'Can't feel my legs, my knees are gone…'

A car backfired shocking Ada out of her stunned state. She jerked away from him running her hands through her brown hair and trying not to act too jittery. He had landed them in the trees next to the Wal-mart parking lot.

"I better go… and before you even say it: You. Stay. Here." Ada added definitely pointed at the spot he was standing, "We can't ris…"

Clearly she didn't need to explain the whys, as Eric agreed without her finishing, "I will stay. You just hurry back." His heavy gaze, under his wind mussed hair, was beginning to pin her to one spot again.

'Brain! Ada brain!'

"Right, I'll be right back." With that she left the wooded area, trying to look as casual and natural as possible for someone wandering out of the bushes.

She rushed to the familiar aisle in the store, this time holding a basket, 'How many do I get?' She looked at the chilled bottles, 'he's staying awhile…' eventually she piled two packs of different flavoured blood into the basket. 'I'll get more if he needs it.' She quickly grabbed some vegetables, pasta, milk and cereal for the week before heading to the cash registers.

Waiting in line it occurred to Ada that this had been the first time she had been truly alone in a while. 'With craziness suddenly banging at your door every living moment of the day…' she wondered how she had not gone insane. 'One thing at a time, maybe I'll go nutso later…' Ada thought to herself '... and it'll be all your fault, lil' nut,' she patted her stomach, remembering what Niall had said about the smell and the potion… She shook her head, 'I don't believe him…' Ada thought paying for her items. 'Niall be damned though' she couldn't help the joy the rose in her as she found she had enough cash to pay for the expensive bill.

Eric had waited in the bushes, his blonde hair still ruffled and his expression relieved at her return.

She had no words but Ada could not help but want to blush and smile back at him. He held out his arms, at first Ada thought he wanted carry one of the bags but then he curled his fingers gesturing for her to come into his hold.

"No." She stared at him in disbelief. "I not flying again… the bus is right there…" Ada nodded towards the general area of the bus loop.

"I will have to follow you flying or on the ground, either way I would be seen by many people at that slow a pace." He grinned as though he'd already succeeded, Ada tried to reason that the plastic bags wouldn't withstand the journey. Eric simply scoffed and shrugged, and if he hadn't already won what he said next clinched it. "Come along Ada…" holding out his arms, smiling so her knees vanished again "…let's just go home."


So hope you liked it. Again… felt weird while writing. Sorry about editing.