Disclaimer: I own Reid. Oh, was that a typo? I own Rebeka though. You all know who's mine and who isn't.
Disclaimer: I don't own Reese's Puffs cereal either.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Chocolate Chocolate Tower either. I think that's it.
PLEASE RR! I want to see if I can get at least a hundred reviews for this baby by the time I'm done (three more chapters!), so it would really help if you all could review here!
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Reid didn't have to open his eyes to know that goose bumps were standing up all over his arms. He felt around him blindly for the covers, and found them after a second. He grabbed a handful and began to pull them back over, but they didn't move. This was starting to be more work than it was worth. After another futile attempt, Reid opened his eyes.
Rebeka was sleeping soundly, all the blankets wrapped around her. Reid shook his head and smiled. Of course. He stretched and yawned widely before he sat up. Leaning over Rebeka, he brushed his lips gently on her cheek. She didn't wake up, but Reid saw a hint of a smile play across her lips.
The room around him was light and cheery with the sun up, if not a bit messy. Reid spotted the digital alarm clock of the dresser against the wall. It displayed 8:56. Reid grinned suddenly; now that was a good idea. He inched off the bed, careful not to bounce too much, and grabbed his phone on the way out.
Reid slipped through the door and padded silently down the thinly carpeted stairs. If he wasn't completely awake already, the cold tile floor in the kitchen on his bare feet took care of that.
He quickly spied what he needed. A large square griddle hung above the island with many other pots and pans. He took it down and set it on the stove, turning that on to preheat. In the third cabinet he searched, he found a bowl, and in the drawer above that he found a fork. He crossed over to the refrigerator and pulled out a jug of milk and a carton of eggs. Reid took out two eggs and cracked them into the bowl. He poured two quick splashes of milk in after that and mixed everything together, glad that Mrs. Bailey had taught him how to make French toast. It had been a while, but Reid was fairly sure he could pull off a decent breakfast-in-bed.
He found the loaf of bread in the clearly marked breadbox, and took a few slices out. He plopped the first one in the mixture, covering both sides. The griddle sizzled when he put the bread on. He put three more slices of French-toast-to-be on and waited a minute before he flipped them. He smirked to himself; perfectly golden. After another minute, he put the finished toasts on a plate he found. Then he started the process over again.
After he flipped the second batch, his phone rattled loudly on the countertop. "What's up?" he asked, looking around to find something to use as a tray.
"Did you stay at Rebeka's?" Tyler asked.
"Yeah." Reid spotted a long thin piece of metal on top of the refrigerator. Something smelled funny over here, he noticed distantly.
"What are you two doing?"
"She's still sleeping, so I'm making breakfast." He kneeled on the counter and grabbed the tray-like object.
"Hello? Hello?" Tyler sounded panicked. "I'm looking for Reid Garwin,"
"Shut up Baby Boy."
A shrill incessant beeping startled Reid. He slipped off the counter and landed hard on the tile floor. His phone clattered on the counter above, shutting on itself. The silver-plated rectangular platter crashed on the floor next to Reid's head.
He scrambled to his feet; now the smell made sense. Reid quickly turned off the stove and removed the griddle. The second batch wasn't so much toasted as burnt to a crisp. The smoke alarm was still making an immensely irritating racket.
"Reid?" Rebeka called over the alarm. He turned and saw her enter the kitchen in her sweatpants and a tank top, her nose wrinkled at the smell of burned breakfast.
Reid opened his mouth and paused, glaring at the smoke alarm on the ceiling. It was suddenly quiet.
"Ow!" Rebeka punched his arm. "You could have taken out the battery or something."
"I'm sorry," he said, pulling her into a hug. "It's hard to break the habit."
She sighed. "You're forgiven, of course. But you've got to be careful; you… Ascend tonight."
Reid rested his chin on the top of her head. "I know," he whispered.
They stood there for a moment longer, until Rebeka finally pulled away, looking up at him with a smile. "So, were you trying to burn down the house, or was that just a bonus?"
"Well, if you must know, I was going to surprise you—" Reid tapped the end of her nose, "—with breakfast in bed."
"Aw, I'm touched!" Rebeka stood on her tip toes and kissed his cheek. She looked around at the mess. "Well, since that kind of went down the tubes, how does cereal sound?" She moved around him and went to the cupboard, pulling out a box of Reese's Puffs. Reid grinned.
They ate the peanut-buttery chocolate cereal in silence. By the time they had finished and cleaned up the breakfast mess, it was nearly noon. Reid rinsed the bowls and Rebeka put them in the dishwasher.
"So," Reid began, leaning against the counter, "what are we going to do now?"
Rebeka shrugged. "Dad's at work again." She pointed to the refrigerator where a note was pinned under a magnet. "We can really do whatever we want." Rebeka thought for a moment. "How about we watch a movie?" Reid nodded and Rebeka took his hand, leading him into the living room. She stopped at a small cabinet, which was filled with DVDs. "Take your pick," she told him, retreating to the couch and plopping herself down.
Reid scanned through the titles, searching for something appropriate. He spotted a promising one, pulled it out, and tossed it to her.
Rebeka raised an eyebrow. "The Notebook?"
Reid wondered what he did wrong. "What?"
She shrugged. "I guess I had you wrong; you didn't really strike me as The Notebook type." She got up again and quickly pulled out another movie. "I don't know about you, but I'm not that into the Romance genre." She handed the new pick to him.
"But you're all for blood and guts?" he asked, smiling, and looked up from the Blackhawk Down cover. Rebeka nodded and took it back, inserting it into the player. They both sat down on the couch, and Reid put an arm around her to pull her closer.
A little over two hours later, the credits began to roll. Reid stretched and rested his cheek on top of her head. "Nice choice; much better than some mushy thing." There were parts that even he had to glance away from for a moment. He heard a sniff. "Are you crying?" He brought her face up, and he could see that her green eyes were wet and shining.
Rebeka smiled and sniffed again. "Yeah, sort of. You'd think that after a while it wouldn't affect me so much."
"And here I was, thinking you were this tough gory movie-lover," Reid teased.
"Shut up Garwin." She mimed to punch him, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her close enough to kiss. Reid's hand traveled up her arm and then down her side, coming to rest on her
hip. Her fingers raked through his blonde hair and pulled him closer. Then, much to his displeasure, she broke it, smiling. "I like it when you're quiet."
Reid's stomach grumbled, putting a slight damper on the moment. Rebeka laughed. "It's been a while since breakfast, so sue me." A buzzing sound came from the kitchen, and Reid felt his pockets. "Oh, I think that's my phone." He stood up quickly and went into the kitchen. The phone's vibrating was on the verge of sending it off the edge of the counter before he grabbed it. "Hello?"
"What the hell happened? I've been trying to call you for two hours!"
Reid grinned at Tyler's panic attack. "I burned breakfast," he admitted.
"Way to go," Tyler congratulated his panic disappearing. "But that doesn't explain why you didn't answer your phone."
"We were watching a movie. The sound system here is amazing," he added.
"Oh, well the other reason I called was to ask if you guys wanted to go to Outback Steakhouse with me for lunch."
"Hold on, I'll ask." Reid stuck his head around the corner. "Hey Bek?" he called.
"Yeah?"
"You want to go to Outback with Tyler for lunch?"
There was a loud squeal. "Can we get the Chocolate Chocolate Tower dessert?"
Reid brought the phone back up to his ear and heard Tyler laughing. "I'll pick you up in fifteen minutes, then," said Tyler. Reid flipped his phone shut and went back in the living room.
Rebeka skipped happily over to him. "When are we going?"
"Tyler's coming over in fifteen minutes." Rebeka ran up the stairs, and Reid heard a door slam shut. In less time than he thought possible for a girl, Rebeka joined him again, dressed in a long sleeved t-shirt and dark blue jeans.
She spun around. "How do I look?"
"Beautiful."
Rebeka snorted at the flattery. "Right."
Reid snagged her waist, pulling her body closer to his. "Alright," he amended. "Irresistible."
"Ha, got any other good jokes?" A horn honked from the driveway and Rebeka nimbly slipped out of Reid's arms and ran to the door, almost screaming, "Chocolate Chocolate Tower!"
Reid shook his head and followed her, joining her and Tyler in the front seat.
"He strikes me as the type," she was saying to Tyler.
Reid looked at her suspiciously. "Who are we talking about?"
"Abbot," said Tyler. "Giving her the usual warnings."
"Oh, yeah. Prick," Reid agreed.
They arrived at the restaurant and were seated in a small booth. The waiter got the drink orders and brought them out immediately, and they ordered their food right away.
"So," said Rebeka, "I'm curious. Why do you call Tyler 'Baby Boy'?"
Reid smiled and shrugged. "We're all brothers in every way except blood-relation, and he's the youngest. I don't even know who started it. He complains a lot too," he added, earning a scowl from Tyler.
"And do you have a nickname?" she asked.
"His old reputation gave it to him," Tyler chuckled. "Playboy." Now it was Reid's turn to scowl darkly at the young Simms. Rebeka raised an eyebrow. "But I'm pretty sure it'll go away now that he's got you," he assured her.
"I suppose it shouldn't really surprise me, considering the bathroom gossip." She sipped her soda.
"What do they say?" Reid asked worriedly.
"What's said in the bathroom stays in the bathroom." Rebeka grinned and waved a dismissive hand. "It's an unwritten rule or something. But don't worry your pretty little head, Garwin."
Just then, the waiter came back with a tray full of food and an "Enjoy your meal".
"Do you have any nicknames?" Reid asked when only the discarded scraps of soggy French fries were left on their plates.
"Uh," Rebeka hesitated. "I've only got a few from when I was little."
"Spill."
She sighed. "My dad used to call me Beka-Bean, or Bean for short." She glowered at the mischievous look on Reid's face. "If you ever call me that, I'll drop you so fast your head will spin," she warned, and looked at Tyler. "That goes for you and the others too." Tyler nodded quickly.
The waiter came back. "Would you like any desserts?"
"A Chocolate Chocolate Tower, please," Rebeka said without consulting the boys. The waiter nodded and left again. "It is to die for," she told them happily.
Twenty-five minutes later, they were driving back, stuffed silly with the rich chocolate cake they had eaten. (A/N: the Chocolate Chocolate Tower cake is the greatest thing known to mankind in the dessert category. Mmmmm…)
"Oh man," Tyler groaned again, "that was so good."
Rebeka giggled. "I told you!"
"Hey Baby Boy," said Reid. "Before you burst from that chocolate-induced pleasure, could you drop us off at the old Putnam site? There are a couple more things I should explain before tonight."
Tyler nodded. "How are you getting back?" he asked, though he already knew the answer. He saw Reid looking sideways at him over Rebeka's head, and rolled his eyes. "Okay, but take your time; my mom gave me this huge list of stuff to do before we go to Nicky's tonight – by the way, we're all going to Nicky's for dinner, and then Caleb said we'll wait out the rest of the night at the colony house until you Ascend." Reid nodded once as Tyler came to a stop on a bridge. He and Rebeka slid out and waved to Tyler.
Reid took Rebeka's hand and they walked in silence down the narrow road. The woods began to thin and then there was a large open space in front of them. Rebeka stared at the charred remains of an enormous building. Reid led her off the road through the dry yellow grasses, each step rustling loudly. Broken ribbons of bright yellow-and-black striped caution tape littered the ground.
"As you've probably guessed," said Reid at last when they came to a stop in front of the mess of blackened beams and the scorched skeleton of the back half of the building, "this isn't going to be our first run-in with Chase."
Rebeka nodded. "I wondered how you knew it was him. What happened before?" They began to walk slowly around the site.
Reid took a breath and launched into the story. "Almost a year ago, we first met Chase. He had transferred in, and Pogue disliked him almost immediately; probably because Chase was hitting on Kate. But he and Caleb got along famously… until he used to beat Caleb in a race. Caleb and Pogue figured out who the bastard was: the fifth Son of the missing bloodline." Reid shook his head disgustedly. "Then Kate got really sick, and Sarah told Caleb that she'd been having weird dreams about spiders. It turned out that the sick bastard was attacking anyone close to Caleb – he landed Pogue in the hospital too – and it was all because he was a Power addict. He had gotten his father's Power and since Caleb was close to Ascending, he wanted Caleb's too."
Rebeka's eyes widened. "That's why he looks much older than nineteen; it's because he uses so much."
Reid nodded, and continued, "The day of Caleb's Ascension was the Fall Fest. Caleb put Tyler and me in charge of keeping Sarah safe while he went to find Chase."
Rebeka's green eyes popped even wider. "Why the hell would he do that!"
"Because Chase was going to keep hurting everyone around him, unless he got Caleb's Power. They met here, at the old Putnam Barn. Unfortunately, Chase somehow got Sarah even though she was with us the entire time." Rebeka could tell Reid still hadn't forgiven himself for slipping. "Now the details are kind of fuzzy; Caleb didn't tell everything that happened. So, they met here, and it was only about ten minutes until Caleb Ascended. As far as I know, Caleb got his ass kicked. Then he Ascended, and the fighting was even worse. But Chase was still more powerful, having both his own Power and his father's, and Caleb was still being beaten. But then Caleb received this huge amount of Power, and was able to blast Chase into an apparent oblivion. Caleb's father had willed Caleb his Power. That's why William Danvers died – no Power, no life. Relatively happy ending: Caleb saves Sarah from the burning barn—" Reid waved a hand at their surroundings. "—and Chase is gone. Well, thought to be gone."
Rebeka's forehead wrinkled. "But if Caleb's got his father's Power – and I thought someone said Pogue already Ascended too – and you Ascend tonight, shouldn't that be too much for Chase? Can't you beat him?"
Reid shook his head. "Chase knows, I don't know, tricks or secrets or something. He knows how to get the most bang for his buck, so to speak. Even if we did beat him, he could do some serious damage before it happened."
Rebeka frowned. "That's not fair."
Reid laughed. "No, it's not; but that's life."
The opening chords of 'Slow Ride' came from Rebeka's pocket. She answered her phone. "Hello?"
"Hey Beka, where are you?" Tom asked.
"Oh, sorry, I didn't leave a note. I'm with Reid at the moment."
"That's fine, I was just wondering if you were going to be home for dinner."
"Um, I wasn't planning on it – we were going to meet the others at Nicky's later. Is that okay?"
Reid began to play absently with her strawberry-blonde hair, tucking random strands behind her ear, and then untucking them again.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm glad you've found such a great bunch to be with. Well, have fun then – and don't forget it's a school night."
"Oh, yeah, um, Sarah invited me to stay with her and Kate tonight in the dorm; just having a girls' night," she lied easily to clear her schedule for later tonight.
"Alright. I'll see you after school then."
"Bye Dad." She slipped her phone back into her pocket.
Reid took his own phone out. "It's nearly seven-thirty," he said. Surprised, Rebeka looked over at the filtered sunlight that was already ducking below the tree tops. "I'll see if Tyler's ready yet." Reid placed his free right hand on the small of her back, guiding her out of the overgrown field and back up the road. He hit Tyler's speed dial number.
"You ready?" Tyler said right away.
"Took the words right out of my mouth, Baby Boy. We're coming up to the bridge. Where are you?"
"Almost there." Reid could hear the Hummer's engine rumbling through the woods already, and snapped his phone shut.
XXX
Nicky's was busy, as always. The three of them found Caleb, Sarah, Kate and Pogue at the usual tables in the back.
"Happy Birthday Reid!" the girls chorused. Reid nodded his thanks.
"Technically it's not until tomorrow," said Caleb, pounding Reid's fist. Sarah poked him.
Reid laid a hand on Caleb's shoulder. "That's okay, it just means they get to say it again," he smirked. Rebeka sat down next to Sarah. "What do you want to eat?" he asked, leaning over to peck her cheek.
She smiled and shrugged. "I'm not particularly hungry; I'll just steal yours."
The guys got up and went to order the food. Almost as soon as they had left, Reid's spot was taken.
"Hey, I don't believe we've had the pleasure. You're in my English class." It was the curly haired boy she had seen Reid and Tyler playing pool against the first night – was it only two days ago? Seemed like forever.
"Go away, Aaron," said Kate.
Aaron ignored her. "It's unfortunate you have to sit next to Danvers though. You can come sit by me," he offered. Rebeka privately decided that she'd rather kiss Chase.
"Actually, I'm quite happy sitting next to Caleb, thanks."
"Abbot, are you asking for a beating?" Reid was standing behind him and the soda in his hand was shaking visibly.
Aaron smirked. "Just being friendly, Garwin." He stood up and patted Rebeka's arm. She jerked it away.
"Honey, I'm sorry," Reid apologized as he sat down. Rebeka couldn't help but smile at his unconscious use of the term of endearment. "Dipshit," Reid muttered before biting into his burger. The others nodded in agreement. Rebeka stole a couple fries from his plate. She saw Aaron looking from her to Reid, a scowl disfiguring his features as he put two and two together. Well, one thing could be said for the prick: he wasn't completely stupid.
The group spent a good two hours at the bar. Rebeka managed to get Reid to dance with her, after saying she'd dance with Tyler if he didn't want to come. He couldn't let Baby Boy get away with that. Aaron Abbot also tried to make a move on her, but Reid intervened, tripping him up with a well-placed pool stick.
Finally, Caleb decided that it was time to go to the colony house. Tyler, Reid, and Rebeka split off and went to the Hummer, while the others got in Caleb's silver Mustang.
The hours at the colony house seemed to ooze by. Sarah and Kate started a game of 'I Spy' to pass the time. Soon everyone was laughing at Caleb's inability to pick out Kate's hot pink shirt.
Around midnight, everyone had found a comfy spot and was nodding off. The girls cuddled against the protective heat of their respective boyfriends, who, along with Tyler, were trying to stay wake with a hushed conversation, reassuring Reid that, because of the sudden decline of his Power use, his Ascension should be a piece of cake.
An hour and fifteen minutes later, Caleb woke everyone up and they all went outside, where the Ascension would cause the least damage. Reid stood slightly apart from them, looking up at the sky. Rebeka stood close to Tyler, his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders. Caleb was watching the clock on his phone. "Now," he whispered.
The air around Reid glowed suddenly. Out of the sky came long slow lightning bolts of Power, striking Reid again and again. Caleb and Pogue watched silently. Sarah and Kate had their faces hidden against their boyfriends' chests.
Reid was groaning loudly; they had told him it would be painful, but they hadn't said how bad it would be.
Rebeka was biting her lip to keep from crying out loud. The pain was unbearable. She abruptly fell to her knees. Tyler followed her, holding her as upright as possible while she twisted in agony, holding her head. There was so much Power everywhere; it was all she could do to keep conscious. Her vision darkened – she couldn't see anything.
And then it was over. Reid collapsed on all fours, a ways from where he started. He crawled back to Rebeka, who was slumped against Tyler. "Thanks Tyler," he whispered hoarsely. Reid took her from him and she moaned exhaustedly. They sat on the cold ground in each others' arms; the others decided to give them a little space.
"That sucked," Rebeka sighed.
"You're telling me." Reid laughed weakly. "I love you."
"I love you too."
A/N: Whoo baby, that was a long one! I hope you all enjoyed the fluff in here; I tried to make it fun. So, since you already made it all the way down here, you might as well review, right? Come on, it'll only take a minute! Thank you in advance to all of you who do press that little 'Go' button!