Hey guys! This is - unfortunately - the last chapter of Burning. I hope you guys have loved this story as much as I've loved writing it. I've got a new story on the way called Doppelganger and that one is . . . different again. I've got summary up for it up in my bio. Anyway, enjoy, and thank you to everyone who reads my stories! You guys are amazing!
Zoe waited for twelve hours in the hospital waiting room. Although the knowledge that Dan was alive – breathing and his heart beating – Zoe couldn't get the same image out of her head, of Dan hunched over on the ground outside the factory. Not too long after that, the fire brigade had come and put out the fire. After a thorough search, they'd confirmed what was already common knowledge – Crime Minister and Mastermind were gone. Zoe knew that Steinberg had to have been there at some point – she remembered seeing the old man while she was there, although she couldn't remember when she saw him. Then the ambulance had come and taken Dan. Then Aneisha had hugged Zoe and then the both of them were crying. Aneisha's tears were born of relief while Zoe's were just a release of all her pent up emotions from the past couple of days – all the fear, stress and all the other emotions she'd been feeling since she'd woken up to the smell of alcohol and cigarettes – all released in one moment.
When they got to the hospital, Zoe was convinced that she wouldn't do anything until she saw Dan. Somehow, Aneisha convinced her to have something to eat and to drink something. By some miracle, she managed to get Zoe to sleep too. Reluctantly, the redhead curled up beside Aneisha and fell asleep. A nurse walked past and then stopped, her kind hazel eyes watching Zoe. "Do you want me to make up a bed for her?"
Aneisha shook her head. "She's waiting for her . . ." She trailed off, glancing down at Zoe. She couldn't really say 'boyfriend' because she had no proof of that. Sure, they'd kissed outside the factory, but that had been a spur-of-the-moment type of thing.
"She's waiting for her friend." Aneisha told the nurse, who shrugged and walked off. Aneisha sighed and glanced down at Zoe, who whimpered softly in her sleep as her eyelids twitched. She whimpered again. After this happened a few more times, Aneisha's tired mind finally registered what her friend was saying.
"Dan." Zoe whimpered.
Aneisha sighed and touched Zoe's shoulder lightly, so she wouldn't wake. "He'll be okay, Zo. I know he will."
Zoe's only response was to whimper Dan's name again.
When Zoe woke up about an hour later, she looked up at Aneisha, who shook her head. None of the doctors had come out to say that, you know, he was alive.
For next few hours, Zoe tried to do anything but think about Dan. It was practically impossible – every time she started to think about something else, she remembered how it had felt to kiss him, the way his mouth fit against hers, the way he held her – as if she were something precious and should be protected, but she had no doubt that he knew that she was just as strong as he was.
"How are you holding up, Aquila?" Raphael asked, snapping Zoe out of her reverie.
"I just want to know what's going on. I hate not knowing." Zoe replied.
"Lupo is strong. You'll see." Raphael said before walking off.
"Did he seriously just call you tequila?" Aneisha asked. This earned her a small smile from Zoe.
"Aquila." Zoe said. "It means eagle. In Italian. Lupo means wolf."
"So you're an eagle and Dan's a wolf. What does that make me?"
"Aneisha." Zoe replied. Both girls smiled.
"Since when do you speak Italian?" Aneisha asked.
"Raphael trained me at SKUL." Zoe told her. "He likes to speak in Italian so I had to learn Italian to understand him half the time."
Aneisha smiled as Tom walked towards them, sitting on the floor at Zoe's feet. Zoe placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and sighed. "How are you holding up, Tom?"
Tom shrugged. He looked as worried as Zoe felt, his brown eyes tired, but too concerned about what would happen to Dan to sleep.
A balding man with kind eyes walked out, scouring the room quickly. He walked towards Tom, Zoe, Aneisha and Frank, all seated near one another in the waiting room.
"Daniel Morgan?" The man asked. Zoe nodded and Tom tensed, bracing himself for bad news.
"He's stable. He only had minor damage to his lungs and he's left arm is burned but he got really lucky." The doctor said. "He'll live."
It felt as if a massive weight had been lifted off of Zoe's shoulders and felt as if she could cry in relief. Instead, she took a deep breath. "Can I see him?"
The doctor looked like he was about to say no, but then he noticed the look in her eyes – a look only worried girlfriends and wives wore. He simply nodded and Zoe got up, following as he walked down the hallway. He stopped in front of one certain door and pushed it open, gesturing Zoe through. "Take all the time you need."
"Thank you." Zoe said. The doctor smiled and closed the door as he walked out, leaving Zoe alone in the room with Dan. Her eyebrows drew together as she took in his appearance. He was asleep, a breathing mask covering his mouth and nose. His hair had been washed at some point – instead of being black, it had returned to its usual golden colour.
Zoe sighed heavily, sitting down in the chair beside Dan's bed. She noticed how long his eyelashes were – the blonde hairs brushing against his cheekbones lightly. She noticed that he looked younger when he was asleep – the muscles in his face more relaxed. Zoe glanced at his left arm, bandaged from his shoulder to his wrist.
"I love you, Lupo." Zoe whispered. She curled up on the chair, watching the rise and fall of his chest. She tried to ignore all the tubes sticking out of his hand as she fell asleep, her eyes focused on the rise and fall of his chest.
When Zoe woke up, she could feel eyes burning into the side of her face. She sighed and turned her head so she could meet Dan's eyes. He was watching her with an almost curious expression playing in the depths of his sapphire eyes. Zoe's chest tightened and she swallowed thickly, trying to force her tears back. He was safe, he was alive, so why did she still want to cry?
Zoe pulled her knees up to her chest and tried to deep, level breaths. They ended up as a sob and Zoe whimpered softly as Dan managed to pull himself into sitting position. He reached out and touched her cheek, brushing his fingertips across her cheekbone. Zoe's eyes flickered open as her hand found his, her fingers brushing across the back of his hand.
"Dan, we thought you were dead." Zoe said softly. "I saw the whole place go up in flames and you – you were still in there."
"Hey, hey." Dan said softly, brushing her tears away. "I'm okay, see? I'm alive."
"Yeah, but Dan – you nearly weren't. Your arm is burned from shoulder to wrist because KORPS want me. It's my fault."
"No, it's not." Dan said. "Zoe, none of this is your fault. It was my own stupidity that did it."
Zoe nodded as Dan's hand slipped from her cheek. She watched his eyes and asked, "What happened? How'd you get out?"
Dan's brow furrowed. "I . . . I'm not really sure. I remember that there was a guy . . . and he had a flamethrower. He burned me with it, but then I managed to give him the slip. But he did tell me . . . something . . ." He trailed off, but then his blue eyes widened.
"Daniel, what do you know?" Zoe asked, leaning forward in her chair. Dan sighed and looked back at her. "They told me about that fire . . . the one at the SKUL base."
"I told you about that fire." Zoe said. "What could they tell you that I can't? I was in it. I survived it."
"That fire wasn't an accident." Dan said. "KORPS set it on purpose."
Zoe took a deep breath. "That makes sense. I mean, they're KORPS. They kill people for sport. They – they –" She broke off, tears welling in her eyes. It was one thing to know that KORPS enjoyed victimising people. It was an entirely different matter, however, when you were the one being victimised.
Dan sighed and shifted over. "Come here, Zo."
Zoe, brushing her tears away as she moved, rose from her chair and slid onto the bed beside Dan. Dan wrapped his uninjured arm around Zoe's shoulders and Zoe rested her head on Dan's shoulder.
"I love you, Dan." Zoe said softly, glancing up at him. A smile tugged at the corners of Dan's mouth and he turned his head to kiss the top of her head. Zoe's cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink and Dan smiled, his hand moving from Zoe's shoulder to her cheek, guiding her mouth to his. He pressed his mouth gently to Zoe's, his long fingers resting on her cheek. Zoe kissed back tentatively, her own delicate hands resting on Dan's chest.
"I love you." Dan murmured against Zoe's mouth. He felt her smile against his mouth and he pulled away so he could see her face. Her eyes opened and he watched as a small smile found its way to her mouth. "Oh, Dan. I'm so glad you're okay."