Chapter 11

"What? No I don't fear her!" Nick shouted. He glared at Dr. Houston. How dare she make the assumption that he would fear Juliette! Dr. Houston stared back at him unimpressed.

"Are you trying to intimidate me, Nick?" She asked.

"No, I'm not. I'm telling you that I do not fear Juliette." Nick emphasized every word. Dr. Houston nodded her head.

"If you don't fear her then why don't you want to talk about her? If you don't fear her then why are you panicking and screaming at me? All I did was evaluating you." Dr. Houston spoke fast and direct. She left no room for argument, buts, ifs, or ands. All Nick could do was growl and fist his hands. She watched him growl and glare at her. She waited until he realized he was being a moron and relaxed. Then she continued.

"Why do you fear her?" She asked in a more calm motherly way. Nick looked away.

"I don't know," he said angrily. "There's something about her. Something's different."

"How is she different?"

"Every time I look at her I feel like it's not her. It feels like there's something different about her. She's my girlfriend and I love her but I'm not so sure now." Nick gave it all up. He found no point in hiding it anymore. Dr. Houston obviously knows what she's doing. She's reading him like a book and he was a cop!

"Did you know that when you had amnesia you didn't like Juliette?" Dr. Houston asked him as she took another sip of her tea.

"Yes, Monroe mentioned that. He said something along the lines of me throwing a tantrum when she came over a couple of weeks ago." Nick recalled their conversation. It seemed surreal to him then that he would treat Juliette like that. To think he had refused Juliette's touch and screamed in her presence was absurd. But when Juliette came to visit it all clicked, well not all of it, most of it. She wasn't what he remembered. She was different.

"The day she came over was the day that we were supposed to meet at my office for you first appointment." Dr. Houston said. "However we met here instead because you refused to leave your room and ignored Monroe because you thought he let her in." Nick couldn't help but laugh at himself. That really does sound like him. He would do something like that. No doubt about it. Dr. Houston laughed as well. Then she looked at her watch.

"Well, I believe that's all the time we have." She drank the rest of her tea and stood up. Nick stood with her. "It's nice to finally meet you Nick. I'm so happy you got your memories back however I suggest we meet for a couple more sessions. Things might get a bit more overwhelming in the long run." Dr. Houston shook his hand and headed for the door. Nick followed her.

"Thank you, Dr. Houston. It was nice meeting you too." He smiled at her once she stepped out onto the porch and turned around. She smiled, waved goodbye, and headed for her car. Nick closed the door and headed back inside. He wondered where Monroe went. The Blutbad had disappeared the moment Dr. Houston started their sessions.

"Monroe?" He called.

"In my room," Monroe answered back. Nick walked down the hall and peered into the open door of Monroe's room. The Blutbad was sitting on his bed reading through Christina's journal. He glanced up momentarily to look at Nick before returning to the journal. Nick stood at the door awkwardly. An urge to sit on Monroe's bed was creeping up on him. The want to curl up against the Blutbad was growing. The urge to sit and the want to cuddle with Monroe was allying together against him. His hand gripped tightly onto the door frame as he stared at the bed then at Monroe's waist. Familiarity shot through him as he pictured himself cuddled up against Monroe with his face pressing into Monroe's hip bone.

"Nick? You ok? You're not getting a headache are you?" Monroe's concern grew as he bolted off the bed. The journal fell to the ground but the Blutbad side stepped it in favor of Nick. He pressed his palm to the Grimm's forehead and leaned in to sniff him. Nick's face heated as he felt a blush sail across the bridge of his nose. He pushed Monroe away and turned away.

"I'm going to go make dinner. Is spaghetti ok?" He didn't wait for an answer before he was charging down the hallway.

"Yeah… thanks…" Monroe's answer was lost to him as he entered the kitchen. His face heated hotter as he pulled out a pot from under the stove and filled it halfway with water. Once it was over the fire on the stove he started opening and slamming cabinets looking for the spaghetti boxes. He slammed the door shut with more strength than needed. There was something wrong with him, extremely wrong with him. He didn't know what but he knew there was something wrong with him. He was responding to Monroe like he was in love with him. Ever since he awoke from his nap called amnesia he wasn't the same Nick Burkhardt that went under. It was all that damn case's fault, it was Jourdenete's fault. Why did she have to conduct her fucked up ritual in Portland? Why couldn't she do it somewhere else? He wouldn't be in this situation doubting his feelings if she would have just stayed away.

Nick stood on his tiptoes to peer at the top of Monroe's fridge. He frowned when he noticed three boxes of spaghetti piled on top of each other staring back at him. He grabbed one and dumped it all into the pot of boiling water.

Who the fuck puts their spaghetti on top of the fridge? Fucked up people, fucked up Blutbad! He knew he was being ridiculous but he was entitled to be ridiculous. The wesen community is just spinning him around and taking him for a ride. They're jerking him left and right then dump him the moment they're bored of him. While the spaghetti was getting its deserved punishment Nick opened up the freezer. He wasn't so far gone in rage that he's forgotten Monroe doesn't eat meat. Lucky for him, they were at Monroe's and the fridge had a lot of vegetarian ingredients to choose from. He pulled out a bag of frozen peas, corns, and cut up string beans. He dumped it onto the counter before digging around for some more stuff to put on the spaghetti.

In no time he found himself sticking his head into the bottom off the fridge and pulling out things at random before setting some things back. He was still muttering to himself angrily and slammed the door shut with his foot as he went in search of a cutting board and knife. The board was tucked away neatly underneath the sink where as the knives were the easiest to spot. They sat quietly on the counter in the knife block. He pulled one out viciously and began chopping away at the vegetables. He used as much force as he could without breaking the board. With each chop that came down he gritted his teeth and released a thought of frustration.

MONROE AND NICK

Monroe cringed every time he heard the knife meet chop board. He knows he should probably stop Nick before he destroys it but his instincts were telling him that Nick would collect his head if he tried. There was no indications that something had ticked Nick off. No one was here to get him so riled up but Monroe had a feeling that his session with Dr. Houston was what wound him up so tightly. When Nick hadn't moved from his doorway like Monroe had expected the Blutbad was worried Nick was slipping back into himself. He was worried he would lose Nick to his child-self suddenly. He was so worried that he did the one thing that made things awkward between them. He had showed his concern and touched Nick. He didn't miss the discomfort Nick was feeling when he bolted and hurried to make them dinner.

Monroe cursed at himself for being so hast to act on his emotions. It was hard for him to see Nick as an adult again after having him practically rubbing himself all over the Blutbad for weeks as a child. However he should have had more self control. He shouldn't have made Nick uncomfortable when he was readjusting to life and dealing with the fact that he spent weeks walking around but it wasn't really him. Monroe cursed at himself as he picked up the journal and laid it open on his bed. It was opened to one of the middle entries. He was at the beginning but he didn't care. He didn't even bother to go back to it. Instead he flipped the book to the last page where Christina wrote him the note.

The bold cursive handwriting stared back at him. It had nothing to hide but it was just as mysterious. He frowned as he fingered the edge of the paper. Why would Christina leave this book with him? Why would she say it would help? Was she trying to say something? Why couldn't she be more direct? Why spin them around in circles of questions and refuse to give the answer? So many questions spun in his mind. He didn't know where to start. Christina was against sharing information with him when they last met. Though she didn't show it she was in a hurry to get them out of her house. She did help them but there was something off about her.

It didn't make any sense why she would share this kind of family secret/mission with people she just met. Was it because Nick was tied into it through the case he was working on or was it because he's a Grimm? He seems to be invited to a lot of these things because he's a Grimm. But for some reason Monroe has a hunch that it's more likely that Nick is connected through the case. Nick himself said that he was chasing a woman whom he now believes to be Jourdenete. However it still doesn't answer the question why Christina brought them in on the loop on what's going on in her life and who Nick was chasing. Wouldn't that just stop her from getting the revenge her family so passionately seeks? Nick is a Grimm after all. It's his job to settle scores and hunt the bad ones.

"Monroe, dinner!" Nick's shout tugs him away from his deducing. He whips his head to look at the open door. Unbeknownst to him he had sat down on the bed and his palm was flat against the sheet of paper he's been staring at for the past five minutes. He pulls away abruptly and tucks the book underneath his pillow.

"Coming," he calls as he shuffles out of the room. The aroma of veggie spaghetti hits him before he sees it. He follows it to the kitchen and smiles softly at the sight that greets him. Nick is wearing his apron and was turning and weaving around in his kitchen like he knew where everything was. It was like he belonged there. A pleasured growl rumbled in Monroe's chest quietly. He moved to the table that had two large glass plates set across from each other. Next to each plate was a glass of wine and on the left end of the table was the opened wine bottle. Monroe sat down at the closet seat and took a sip of the wine. It was from his collection. Nick turned around holding the pot with a smile on his face. He set it down before scooping up the spaghetti and serving Monroe.

"I hope you like it. I haven't cooked in awhile." He said. It sounded like there was more he wanted to say but Nick bit his bottom lip to cut it off. Monroe didn't push. Instead he nodded and waited for Nick to sit before taking a bite. His eyes widened as the taste exploded in his mouth.

"This is delicious. I got to get you to cook for me more often." He commented before shoving a rather large portion into his mouth. Nick laughed as he bit into a small portion of his own share.

"I'm glad you like it. I'm so out of practice I think I was halfway through burning down your kitchen." Nick looked at the stove. Monroe took a peek while shoving the spaghetti into his mouth. There was a slight burnt patch on one of the circular tin foils. He shrugged.

"As long as it doesn't happen, I'm fine. You did cook me this wonderful dinner so we're even." Monroe shoved the last bite of spaghetti into his mouth before going back for more. Nick chuckled before taking a sip of his wine. The room grew silent as they both ate the food contently. Nick chewed at a luxurious pace while Monroe continued to shuffle food down his throat. However Monroe stopped after his third plate to look at Nick. He wiped his mouth before taking a chug from the wine. He ran his tongue over his teeth and coughed a little to help get the food down.

"I've been thinking." He started, as cliché as it was it got his point across. Nick looked up.

"About?" He pressed.

"It doesn't make sense for Christina to bring us in on the loop about her family. She barely knows us." Monroe started. Nick nodded. His attention diverted completely from the spaghetti. "What I don't understand as well is how is that journal going to help you with whatever it is supposed to help you with? Is it supposed to help you solve the case or is it supposed to help you find who hexed you?" Nick shrugged.

"Your guess is good as mine. It did strike me as old that she'd just hand us the journal like that. It seemed kind of sacred to her family."

"That's what I was also getting at. She gives us a journal that's been passed down for generations detailing the lives of many Enchantresses who are on some lifelong journey to avenge an ancestor who's apparently been cheated or whatever by another Enchantress called Jourdenete. What does it have to do with us? What does it have to do with you?"

"Maybe because I'm a Grimm? People tend to think it's my job to sort things out for them." Nick suggested but Monroe shook his head.

"Christina took off without asking you for help. She leaves us this cryptic message in the book and expects us to get it. Why doesn't she tell us what she wants us to know, to do? Why can't she just say it out right and stop with all this cryptic mess." Monroe shakes his head. Nick shrugs and gets up to put his plate in the sink. He returns to sip his wine at a slow pace.

"We'll probably know at the end of this whole mess. We should focus on who hexed me for now. Christina obviously knows what she's doing. I've never met her officially but from what you told me about her she seems like a smart girl. If she needs my help she knows where to find me. It's not like I don't stick out like a sore thumb in the wesen world." Nick offers a crooked smile. Monroe huffs but lets it go. Instead he finishes off his food and pours himself another glass of wine.

"Ok, whoever hexed you…? Could it be Adalind?" Monroe suggested. Then he wanted to kick himself in the butt.

"Nope, did you forget? She's not a Hexenbiest anymore. In fact I haven't seen her ever since then." Nick narrows his eyes as if he's concentrating on something real hard.

"Right, sorry, forgot." Monroe said sheepishly. "If it's not Adalind than it has to be someone we haven't encountered yet. Someone new in town?"

"Or someone who's passing through," Nick tilts his glass towards Monroe. The Blutbad widens his eyes.

"Let's hope whoever it is, is not just passing through. It'll be harder to catch them if they were." He says slowly. Nick nods.

"Don't jinx it." He says with a smirk. Monroe glares at him.

"Ha, ha, ha," he laughs sarcastically. They get up simultaneously. Without confirmation Monroe grabs the left over spaghetti and Nick goes to find some containers. They meet back at the kitchen counter. Monroe held the pot while Nick scooped the spaghetti into the containers and packed them away in the fridge for tomorrow. Just as he closed the fridge door the house phone rang.

"I'll get it," Nick said without thinking and practically dove for the phone. Monroe didn't say anything but instead started washing the dishes. He listened as Nick pressed the call button and breathed a "hello" into the receiver.

"Juliette!" He shouts suddenly, obviously caught by surprise. "What's wrong?" He asks after a moment of silence. Monroe couldn't hear the other side of the conversation but he knew for a fact that Juliette was upset. Nick was supposed to go home with her today but instead he had Monroe take him to go see Christina without telling her. The woman must be furious! Monroe resisted the urge to laugh.

Unbeknownst to him he had entered some kind of war with the red head. He wasn't sure who declared war first but he was in it before he realized it. Apparently Juliette felt her role as Nick's girlfriend was challenged when Nick screamed in her face as a seven year old. And she decided Monroe was the one challenging her for her position. He snorted. He wasn't even sure what gave her that idea. So Nick was attached to him as a child, big deal. Although… Monroe snuck a look behind him at the living room. Nick was rather attached to him as an adult as well. In the hospital their eyes locked many times and there was always a conversation going between them. Juliette noticed as well. Monroe knitted his eyebrows together as he stared down at the sudsy plates.

There was something going there and he wasn't in on it. Neither is Nick apparently.

"Juliette, I had something important to do. I'm sorry I didn't call you." Nick's voice interrupted his inner musing. He rinsed the plate he was holding and perked his ears to listen. Eavesdropping was wrong but his instincts were telling him he better do it or there'll be consequences.

"I know you were worried but—"Nick was cut off. Suddenly Monroe could hear the slight buzz of Juliette's voice. She was getting louder.

"Juliette! Would you just listen to me?" Nick shouted, his own voice getting louder. "What? No! How could you think that? After all Monroe did for you, how could you say that?" Nick shouted after another moment of buzz from Juliette. That's when Monroe placed the pot down and turned off the water. That last sentence caught his interest. He wiped his hands and headed into the living room. Nick was facing the window, his back to Monroe. His hand was on his hip and it was gripping too tight for comfort. Monroe felt the need to dislodge that hand but held back. Nick would most likely sock him one at his present mood if he even went within range of his arm. The Grimm spun around and flares his nostrils as he listened to Juliette vent.

"I can't believe you, Juliette. I thought better of you. How could you say something like that after Monroe risked his life to save yours? I think a little time apart would do us some good. Good bye, Juliette." With that Nick hung up and set the phone back on its pedestal. He looked up in surprise at Monroe, as if only seeing him there just now.

"Sorry, was that a little loud? I didn't mean to disturb you." He apologized.

"No, it's ok. Everything alright?" He asked instead. Nick sighed and looked away.

"I don't know what's gotten into her. We were fine until now." Nick whispered.

"I heard the bit about her saying something about me." Monroe pushed. Nick chuckled without humor.

"Of course you did," he said with dry sarcasm.

"I don't mean to push but—"

"Juliette thinks there's something going on between us. She thinks I'm cheating on her with you." Nick rolls his eyes. "I don't know where she gets these things from." Monroe steps fully into the kitchen and up to Nick. They stare at each other.

"… Juliette hasn't been right in the mind since you rejected her the first time as a seven year old. I think… it hit her hard…" Monroe was finding it hard to concentrate with Nick so close. He didn't even know why he stepped so close to him. It felt right to do so when Nick interrupted him about Juliette's accusations. The way he said it gave flare to something in Monroe. There was something in him that growled in response.

Nick looked up at him, really looked at him. Not with a passing glance or a gaze that was half-hearted and not really there. He was really looking. His grey eyes softened. Some of the anger left and Nick stepped closer.

"I think she's turning psycho on me." He chuckles softly. "She looks different to me ever since I've awakened. As if she's not Juliette but someone's wearing her skin… I don't know why but I'm not as attracted to her as…" Nick's eyes zeroed in on Monroe's lips. Monroe knew that. He saw the glazed over look in the Grimm's grey hues. But he stayed still and silent, waiting for him to continue. "I am to you."

Suddenly Nick was surging forward with his arms wrapped around Monroe's neck. His lips pressed firmly to his and his body melting to fit the shape of Monroe's own form. The Blutbad didn't think. He reacted. His arms snaked around the Grimm's waist, pulling him closer and tighter. He pushed Nick's head back with his own and slanted their heads for their lips to fit better. Nick moaned into the kiss. He pushes up onto his toes to better fit Monroe's height. His fingers weave into the curls at the nape of his neck and tugs. Monroe growls. He pushes Nick back until they hit the wall next to the window. Nick grunts and mewls before lifting his leg up to wrap around one of Monroe's.

He tears his lips away from the Blutbad and breathes in deeply. He stares at him with lust filled eyes. Monroe leans his head forward to press against Nick's forehead.

"Monroe," Nick whispers. The Blutbad swoops in once more to claim his lips.

"Shut up."

A/N: Yes, I did. I dared to end it here! *evil grin* I won't give it you just yet. I'm going to leave you all horny and begging for more before I deal you my final card. I'm sadistic that way. I like to watch you all squirming, wanting it to end but never knowing when it's coming. *dramatic evil laugh*

Leave me a review, I don't care what kind, and I'll write faster. For every review I get I type faster and you all might just get what you want. ;D

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