I was the first to wake up the next morning. When I opened my eyes, and noticed my surroundings, I'd come to the conclusion that last night hadn't been a dream. It had all been real. She'd chosen me over him. I looked down at the gorgeous girl sleeping soundly in my arms, and smiled. Maybe I'd been wrong. Maybe God didn't like to watch me squirm. Maybe he just liked to use all the bad things to make me realize when I had a really good thing. I decided that's what it was and stuck with it. Sabrina twitched, and pulled herself closer to me. She slowly opened her eyes, and met my gaze. I think it took her a few seconds to realize she was conscious.
"Good morning." I murmured.
"That sounds about right, waking up next to you."
"Awe, I'm blushing, stop it." I said, playfully turning my head. She giggled.
"I could get used to this." She admitted.
"What?" She locked my gaze, and smiled slightly.
"Waking up to you every morning." I nodded.
"Me too." I told her.
"Come on, get up and I'll make up some coffee." She said, trying to roll out of my arms. I grabbed her, pulling her against my chest.
"I don't think so. We're not leaving just yet." I said, pulling her mouth to mine. She sighed against my lips, which sent a vibration straight through my body. I almost lost it. When she pulled away, she ran a hand through my hair.
"You have bed hair."
"Well, I'm sorry I can't put mine up, and have it look perfect when I wake up." I teased, pulling the hair-tie out of her hair, allowing it to fall and splay down her shoulders. She smiled, and kissed me again, before I released her. I followed her out into the kitchen, and sat down at her counter. She turned the coffee pot on, and leaned against the counter, gazing across it at me.
"You're beautiful." I told her. She rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah."
"Are you calling me a liar?" I asked.
"No, that's not what I'm saying."
"Mhmm." I muttered. She giggled. She poured me a cup of coffee and pushed the creamer and sugar towards me. When I was done, she sipped her coffee across from me.
"I still haven't figured out how I'm going to tell him." She said.
"We'll worry about that when the time comes."
"The time's now, Adrian. I'm sure it won't be long until he showed up." She said.
"That's why I'm not leaving." I told her.
"What?"
"When I go back to my place, you're either coming with me, or I'm staying here." I said.
"I don't need to be babysat, Adrian."
"I'm not babysitting you. I'm guarding you. I know he won't dare lay a hand on you while I'm around." I told her. She smiled slightly.
"You seem so sure." She said.
"Because I am." I told her. She shook her head. She went over to sit down on her couch, and I followed, sitting next to her. We sat there, just enjoying each other's company and coffee before she got up to get dressed. I made no move to get dressed just yet. As she was in her room, there was a knock on her door. I hesitated, looking back at her bedroom door. I wondered if she'd heard it. I went to the door and opened it, to find Logan.
"What the hell are you doing here again?"
"I slept here." I said, shamelessly. "Can I help you?"
"Where's Sabrina?"
"She's busy fixing her face that you mangled and destroyed yesterday." I snapped at him. He recoiled a little at my tone. I would have too. I heard her bedroom door open and glanced back. She suddenly became serious.
"Who is it?" She asked. I swung the door open, letting him step inside. He was livid, and I could tell by his face. I slammed the door behind him, and walked to stand by Sabrina. "Hello Logan." She said, keeping her voice hard.
"Sabrina, I'm sorry for-." She cut him off with a shake of her head.
"I can't do this anymore, Logan." She said, pain in her voice.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm resigning." She said, trying to keep her voice steady. She was having a hard time.
"You can't do that. Brina, I'm sorry." She flinched at the name. I wondered if that was some kind of nickname he had for her before he was beating the shit out of her.
"You're apologies mean nothing anymore, Logan. I don't deserve this anymore. I can't take it." She said, trying hard not to cry. I stepped closer to her, and laid a hand on her arm. She looked up at me, and then to him. He was even madder now than he was when I'd answered the door.
"What about the promise you made your father? You're going to fail him? Just like that just because some stupid spirit-using moroi stepping into your life. He'd be so disappointed in you if he knew." She shook her head hard.
"NO! You're wrong. You don't know anything about my father. He wouldn't want me to have to go through what you've put me through for so long. You have no idea what you're talking about, and I'm so sick of you using that to get me to stay with you. I'm done with you, Logan." He started towards her, hands clenched into fists, but I stepped in front of her.
"I suggest you leave… now." I said. He stopped.
"Last chance, Sabrina." He threatened.
"I'm done. I want you out of my room, and out of my life." She told him. A single tear ran down her face.
"This isn't over, Ivashkov." He promised, before walking out, slamming the door behind him. I turned around to find her taking deep, deliberate breathes, trying to rein her emotions in.
"It's okay." I told her, pulling her into my arms.
"I know." She murmured, burying her face into my chest. She shook her head and took a deep breath, stepping away from me. "I'm fine. I'm totally fine." She assured me. It looked more like she was trying to convince herself more than she was trying to convince me.
"It was for the best, you know that." I told her.
"I do. It's still hard letting go of something I was so accustomed too."
"I know it is, but… you eventually learn to live without it." I told her. It was amazing how much my own words pertained to me as well, and I hadn't even realized it. Rose had been a daily part of my life, and after our break-up, I wasn't sure how I'd really go on without her in it. I eventually learned that every day it gets a little easier. The difference was, she has me. When I was going through everything with Rose, I had no one but Eddie, and I could tell it made him uncomfortable because Rose was his friend. I eventually gave up, keeping everything inside. She didn't have too.
"I suppose you would know, wouldn't you." She said, obviously knowing where my mind was. I nodded.
"I would." I told her, taking her hand. "And you have me, and I'm going to help you."
"Thank you." She said, wrapping her arms around my waist. She reached up, and kissed me. I ran a hand through her hair.
"You're welcome."
"I'm going to change and head home, so I can shower." I told her. She nodded.
"Okay."
"Care to tag along, or you want to stay here?" I asked. She smiled.
"I'll be fine on my own. I'm sure you'll be back."
"You know I will be." I told her. She giggled.
"Good." She said. I chuckled, and grabbed my clothes from her room, slipping my shirt on and heading home. When I got there, I quickly showered and changed my clothes. I heard a knock at the door as I ran my gel coated hands through my hair. I went and opened it to find Eddie.
"Where have you been? He asked. "I came to check on you last night, and this morning and you weren't here."
"I was out." I answered simply.
"Sabrina's?" He asked. I nodded.
"I stayed there last night." I told him. He raised an eyebrow, and smirked at me. I knew what he was thinking. "Nothing like that, Eddie."
"Yet." He said, smirking. I sighed, and rolled my eyes.
"Yet." I admitted. I couldn't help myself. The thought of having sex with her was always there. She was gorgeous, and what straight guy wouldn't think that. I didn't feel bad about it. I sighed.
"What's going on with Logan then?" He asked.
"She dropped him."
"Just like that?" He asked. I nodded.
"She showed up here last night bloody and bruised. He beat the hell out of her, and she finally got fed up. She told him this morning that she resigned as his guardian." I explained.
"You got lucky, didn't you?"
"Very, but Voda says it isn't over yet. I don't know if it was a threat to me, or to her… but I swear Eddie, I will go to jail if he tried to hurt her again." I told him.
"Please, no more murders. I think our group has had enough murder and jail cells to last us a while." He told me. I sighed. After hanging for an hour or so, he left. I'd still neglected to tell him that he might be replaced with Sabrina. I wasn't sure how to tell him, not that I thought he'd care, but I just thought I should wait. I eventually started back to her room, but when I got there, I found a note on the door. I pulled it off, and ran my fingers over it. Her handwriting was perfect and so neat, not that I expected anything less.
Adrian,
Meet me our back. I have a surprise for you.
-Sabrina.
I raised an eyebrow, but tucked the paper into my pocket, heading outside. When I walked out the back door of court, I found her lying on a blanket, obviously waiting for me.
"Surprise." She said. I smiled.
"My surprise is you all alone, on a blanket. I don't think it gets much better." I admitted. For the first time, I saw her face flush. I smirked.
"Come here." She said, patting the space next to her. I walked over, and sat down beside her.
"So, what exactly is it we're doing?"
"At midnight, there's supposed to be a meteor shower." She told me. "I like being outdoors anyway, so I figured we could watch it together."
"Good idea." I told her. She leaned over, and kissed me.
"Thank you." She said.
"For?"
"Everything." She said. I shook my head at her.
"You should stop thanking me. I really haven't done all that much."
"You're wrong. You made me see sense for the first time in my life." She said.
"Someone had too, because Logan obviously wasn't beating it into you." I regretted the words once they left my lips, and my entire body tensed. I immediately sighed when I heard her giggle.
"Thought that was going to bother me, didn't you?" She asked. I nodded. "No, it didn't. I'm over it. You were right. I'm a guardian, and I'm supposed to be tough, but I'm also a woman, and beating the hell out of me, definitely wasn't the way to treat me."
"I'm glad you finally get it. I was starting to wonder if you had any brains in there at all, or if all you were was a pretty face." I told her. She flushed again. I lay down on my back, staring up at the stars. She laid her head on my chest, and intertwined her fingers with mine.
"I love this. I love being this close to you."
"I do too." I admitted. I never thought I'd admit to wanting to be close to someone ever again after Rose.
"Does it still scare you?" She asked me.
"To death." I whispered.
"You know I'd never-." I cut her off.
"Hurt me? I know. Rose told me the same thing, and I'm pretty sure she didn't hurt me intentionally. It still didn't make it hurt any less though."
"I've been where you were. I know what it's like. I wouldn't do that to you." She said.
"I hope you mean that."
"I do." She assured me. We laid there for awhile in silence, before the meteor shower started. It was beautiful, and I could tell she was enjoying every second of it.
"You know, I hear about stuff like this all the time, but never take the time to step back and watch it." I admitted.
"It's amazing how beautiful things can be." She murmured, before looking up to meet my gaze. I smiled down at her.
"I was just thinking the same thing." I said, getting lost in her gorgeous blue eyes. They were like oceans and I just wanted to dive right in. I touched her face, barely brushing my finger tips across her skin before descending my lips upon hers. The kiss was soft, and sweet, and held so much. She pulled away, and smiled. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she held her tongue. I didn't push. If she wanted to speak, she would have. She laid her head back on my chest, and we watched the rest of the shower in silence. After it was over, she traced patterns on my arms, smiling as she did so. I heard something far off in the forest behind court. She sat up, obviously hearing it to.
"You heard that?" I nodded.
"I did. Where'd it come from?" I asked.
"I don't know." She admitted, scanning. She stood up, pulling me up with her. "I think we should go in now." I started towards the door when I heard her cuss. I turned back to find a person standing just inside the cloak of the trees, the ward lines.
"You think you'd learn by now, night time is not the time to play outside." The strigoi hissed through the darkness. She smirked at him.
"You'd think you'd learn by now, you can't get through a ward. Why tease when you can't cross it?" She snapped back at him. I watched as he whistled and a googly eyed blonde boy walked up beside him. He was clearly human. He had a silver stake in his hand, much like the one Sabrina had in her hands. The boy stuck it into the ground where the ward lines lay, causing the Strigoi to snicker.
"Think again, dhampir." He said, stepping over the ward.
"Adrian, go." She said, before lunging herself into battle with the oncoming strigoi. I started towards the door, but turned back to her to find her semi-winning. I was scared to leave her, scared she might need my help. "Go." She snapped, when she caught sight of me still at the door. She got the upper hand on the strigoi, but he slowly began weakening her little by little. She was going down, and I could see it. I panicked, not knowing what to do. I did the thing I knew best, being a distraction.
"Hey Strigoi, I'm royal blood. It's me you want." I called. He released her, causing her to fall to the ground. He started after me, but before he reached me, she was on her feet, sticking her stake through his back. He snarled and spun around, swatting her like a fly. It was too late though. The silver as already affecting him, and he hit the ground. I watched as he fell, before running to where Sabrina had ended up on the floor.
"Sabrina? Sabrina, baby talk to me." I said.
"You dumb ass. You could have been killed." She snapped, her eyes fluttering open and closed.
"I was protecting you. You're welcome." I said, smirking. She shook her head.
"I swear, Adrian." She muttered. I scooped her up into my arms, and carried her inside. When I got her to her room, I called down to the guardian desk, and let them know before grabbed a wet wash rag, and cleaning her off.
"I'm fine. You're babying me." She said.
"Some people need to be babied, sometimes."
"Not me." She snapped. I wiped the dirt off her face, and smiled.
"I'm just glad you're okay." I told her.
"I'll be fine." She told me, sitting up. She grabbed her head, and moaned.
"Yeah, getting slapped around like a fly by a strigoi doesn't feel so great." I told her. She growled, but laid back down.
"Get some sleep."
"I want to sleep in my bed." She complained. I sighed.
"Can you walk?" I asked.
"I can't even sit up without it hurting. Do you think I can walk?" She asked, sarcasm lacing her words. I rolled my eyes, and scooped her up into my arms, carrying her into the bedroom.
"Get some sleep, and I'll be back too-." She grabbed my hand.
"Don't leave."
"I need to go home and shower, and I don't have anything to sleep in." I told her.
"You can shower here, and I don't mind you sleeping in your boxers if it means you stay with me." She said. I smirked.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're trying to seduce me." I said.
"No. Seducing you wouldn't be so hard." She said.
"Ouch." I said, clutching my chest. "Trying to say I'm easy?"
"No, but you're not exactly hard to get anyway. Atleast, in my case." She teased. I rolled my eyes. "Just don't go. I don't want you to leave me." I nodded.
"I'll just get a shower when I go home in the morning." I said, undoing my belt. I could tell she was trying to focus her eyes elsewhere, but they kept falling back on me. By the time I was down to my boxers, I crawled into her bed, and laughed.
"It's rude to stare."
"It's rude to be that hott." She said, running her hand down my bare chest. A slight shudder rocked through my body before I captured her lips with mine.
"My ego is going to be the size of Texas if you don't knock it off." I told her when our lips were free of each other. She smiled.
"Everything's bigger in Texas." She teased. I rolled my eyes, and she laid her head against my chest, and sighed. "I could listen to the sound of your heartbeat forever. It's like my own personal lullaby." I smiled and kissed the top of her head.
"Goodnight Sabrina."
"Sweet dreams Adrian." She murmured, before I heard her soft snores fill the room. My own came soon after.