...
She sat with him the entire night, holding him, sharing the pain. It was awful, it was comforting, painful, and full of compassion, all at the same time. It all felt so natural as if they had always been connected like that. Beyond the pain, she could see deep inside his mind. Like a vast stream images raced by, feelings, nothing to grasp completely, but enough to give her an idea. Enough to understand. Enough to... feel as he felt, see as he saw. Enough to share her own mind, too. To open up so he could see, and escape his agony.
Bonnie realized then that their bond was deepening. Evolving. That it was more now than a barely managed connection, more than a botched link. And she was falling for this Silveren, this Eternal.
...
When the first morning light peeked in through the cracks of the wooden planks, Bonnie had barely gotten any sleep. But when she looked down and saw that Enzo was still sleeping, she had to smile, relieved. He had needed it, desperately.
She inhaled deeply, shifting her weight as best as she could, her body sore and tired and in need of a change of position. But she regretted it instantly when Enzo blinked at her, already waking up, too. He looked at her, confused and a little displaced for a moment, but she could see the memory return and cloud his eyes.
"Good morning," she said with a smile as he abruptly tried to push himself up. She placed a hand on his chest, gently but firmly, shaking her head. "Easy now."
"I'm sorry." His voice was dark and raspy from sleep. "For last night. I…"
"You don't need to apologize. For anything."
He clenched his jaw. She could see, if not hear, him think. He was trying to rebuild his walls, she could feel the pain ease up on her side and it was a relief. Still, she shook her head once more.
"Don't. Not yet. I can take it a little longer. You need the extra time."
"You are too good to be true. You deal with me. You share… this." With a grimace, he lifted his left arm ever so slightly. "Can I at least say thank you?"
She smiled, nodding. "Nothing wrong with that," she allowed, "though it's also not necessary."
His face finally showed the smallest of smiles, just a slight curl at the corners of his mouth, but it made her feel warm inside nonetheless.
"Maybe you're not real after all," he muttered, now finally sitting up, touching her face, tracing her mouth with his thumb.
"I'm a Golden. The enemy," she reminded him. "So, I'm not exactly a perfect match for a Silveren. If I wasn't real, don't you think your mind would have left out that strange little detail? Made me a cute little Silveren girl instead?"
"You don't know my mind all that well, love." He smiled, but the expression didn't last. "Well, aside from the pain..."
She sniffed, rubbing her nose in a shy gesture. It was time for the inevitable. "Speaking of… I didn't want to disturb you last night, but… we really need to check your arm."
He rolled his eyes, pressing his lips together. It was obvious that he would have rather continued ignoring it, but she wasn't going to let him.
"Come on," she cajoled, helping him up slowly. With a hanging head, he reluctantly followed her into the tiny bathroom situated at the end of the small hallway. She made him sit down on the toilet, and carefully rolled his sleeve back. She looked up into his face and noticed that he seemed lost in thought. She couldn't help but watch him for a few more seconds, before she forced herself to gain his attention by calling out to him. "Alright. Let's take a look. I'll have to take the bandage off..."
He made a face but nodded anyways.
"Let's get it over with, doc."
She snorted, but didn't say anything, just went about her work.
She carefully unraveled the torn fabric, marveling to herself how this was possible. How her feelings for him had just blindsided her, coming out of nowhere. Now she was sitting here, taking care of a Silveren Eternal.
She thought of Damon then, too, and her heart skipped a beat. He was still there, in her heart, in her thoughts. What had gone so horribly wrong between them? Maybe in a different time, a different universe, they could have had a shot at happiness together, could have at least stayed friends. But this was their universe, their world, and that chance had passed without them being able to grasp it, if it had ever been there to begin with.
Now it all actually seemed to have been for the better: the bonding, Damon's betrayal of sorts. Because Bonnie was happy. For the first time in forever she was happy.
"That bad, huh?"
She was jolted out of her musings when she heard his voice.
"Well, it's... not pretty."
They both chuckled a little awkwardly before turning serious again. Bonnie swallowed, then continued with her work. She had brought over some alcohol, some clean cloth and water and did her best to try and clean the wound and salvage what she could of the bandage. He held his breath when she took it off, and just sat there, waiting quietly and patiently as she washed it thoroughly, then patted it dry with a towel. It was almost like a normal piece of cloth, a normal bandage, except it was slightly thicker, with a sheen so unnatural that it confused her. How were they even made?
"We'll have to hang it up to dry," she informed Enzo, focusing back on her task at hand, feeling bad as she did, because she knew what that entailed: more pain. But he was a trooper and simply nodded resignedly, letting her get on with patching him up and putting a normal bandage around his arm in the meantime.
Thankfully, the dog hadn't done too much actual damage, but it had still penetrated the skin and the marks were weirdly gleaming just like the rest of Enzo's arm. She looked at him sympathetically.
"Done for now," she announced.
"Thanks. Just don't expect me to be of much help with anything today," he said with a lopsided unhappy grin, and following an impulse, she kissed his forehead and hugged him briefly.
"I'll take on some of it again, if you let me."
Their gazes locked, hers firm, his pained. She could tell that he wanted to say no, didn't want her to go through that again, so she put a finger over his mouth to stop him. Let me…
And he nodded almost imperceptibly, then let his head drop against her, letting her hold him close.
...
They didn't do much that day. Stayed inside, huddled together on the couch, holding each other like two people that only had each other in a too cold and barren world.
Every so often, Bonnie half forced Enzo to have at least a few small bites.
"You need to keep up your strength," she told him, and he grimaced in reply but took the bread she offered and bit into it halfheartedly, staring at her.
"Happy now?" he asked grumpily, and she gave a nod and smiled.
They tried to sleep as much as possible, and waited. Bonnie kept checking on the bandage and when it was finally dry, after another long and grating night, she did her best to quickly wrap it around his arm, worrying her lips as she did.
The bandage was torn badly, she had to use some tricks to make it work at all. But even then, it was still too short. The blazing sheen had crept up Enzo's arm yet another inch or so, and they exchanged a glance when they noticed it, a sinking feeling making Bonnie swallow hard. Enzo looked at her apologetically.
"I guess I'll just have to get on this task, get myself a new bandage." He made a face. "I'll go by myself. It'll—"
"No," she interrupted him. "You're not getting rid of me so easily.
He smiled at her mildy. "I'm not trying to…"
"Well then. We are doing this together."
"We'll have to ride into Silveren territory…"
She looked at him challengingly. "So?"
His smile only widened. "You're a tough cookie, Bonnie Bennett. But. You're also a Golden, and I'm not sure I can protect you when it comes to it."
"I guess I'll just have to watch out for myself then," she stated, adding, "didn't you say I had fight in me? Time to see how true that is." She smiled as she said it, and he pulled her in for a hug, where she breathed in his scent for a moment.
No. She wouldn't let him go alone. She wouldn't stay behind. They were in this together now. They were one.
…
They allowed each other a few more days. Just enough for Enzo's wounds to finally heal a little better, for Bonnie to rest, for them both to bond and pretend the world was a better place. Without war; a world where they shared a home together, filled with happy sounds and music and reading.
For almost a week they lived in a happy bubble, reluctant to ever leave. But they knew they would have to go eventually, knew it was time, so they packed up and got ready to leave.
Once morning came, they would set out into the unknown again.
Before then, however, they wanted to enjoy one last peaceful night. Bonnie was in the kitchen, trying to make them something out of the few cans and boxes they had left, when Enzo tossed her a bag, nodding at it. "Do me a favor, love? Would you wear this for me?"
She frowned at him with a suspicious smile before she opened the bag slowly, fingers stiff and clumsy. She gasped when she saw what was in it: the little black dress she had seen at the store that very first day. The one she had dreamed of wearing, knowing full well she would never need dresses like that again. She would never be dancing or going to fancy dinners.
"What…" He must have seen her, she realized, must have seen her touch the dress too longingly. He was perceptive, that much was sure, and she smiled.
He smiled back at her knowingly. "Just… try it on, will you?"
She gave him an incredulous look. "Right, because this is totally an occasion for this kind of outfit."
Smiling, he nodded. "Of course it is. We were enemies. We survived a week together in this freaking shack. I call that a reason to celebrate in style."
She chuckled lightly. "Oh, in style, huh? Well, I better get on this then," she said then walked over to the bedroom, winking at him briefly before closing the door. Why she even agreed to this, she didn't know.
When she was alone she took a deep breath, sitting down on the bed for a moment, lightly following the seams of the dress, touching its intricate details, feeling its soft fabric. It was prettier than anything she had ever owned, or worn.
What if it didn't fit, if she looked ridiculous? She scoffed at the idiocy of that thought. It didn't really matter, did it? It was just for fun anyway. She would put it on. They would both get a good laugh out of it, then she would take it back off.
Taking her time, she undressed, then took the dress and slipped it on, surprised to find that it fit her pretty decently. Suddenly, she felt stupid, but braced herself and opened the door anyways.
...
A gasp escaped her at what she saw. She hadn't expected any of it: a few candles burning. An assortment of food on the table. Enzo wearing a nice high collared button down shirt and slacks. Smiling briefly as she walked closer, his expression soon changed into something more… desiring.
She tilted her head, smiling, a slight heat creeping into her. Swallowing, she forced herself to speak.
"You planned all this?"
He shrugged. "It's all this town would give me," he said, finally standing up to meet her. "You are gorgeous," he breathed, and the look he gave her made her cheeks flush even more. "May I have this dance?"
Bonnie chuckled, amused. "Didn't know you were such a romantic... We don't even have any music. Unless you plan on singing and dancing simultaneously…"
He shook his head. "We don't need music." He wasn't smiling anymore, and she could feel all his desire in addition to her own. It was a little overwhelming. And a little hot.
Suddenly shy, she stared up quietly as he took her hand and walked her over to the middle of the living room, where there was enough space to dance. She felt stupid and ridiculous. What were they doing here? Playing a happy couple? Ignoring the glaring truth? She was still a Golden and he a Silveren soldier. He was an Eternal, and she a would-be-future-nurse. They had nothing in common. Their people were at war with each other. Days ago they hadn't known each other, and when they first met, they had hated each other. He had even accused of mind-raping her.
And now here they were, getting ready to dance? Of all things...
But he was so sure of himself, so sure of this, that she couldn't not give it a try.
And as they waltzed across the room, very slowly, very intimately, she leaned her head against him, listening to his heart beat, losing herself in the moment, and she wanted it to last forever.
…
They ended their dance with a kiss, a chaste kind of kiss, lips barely touching. Gentle and soft.
But soon after, Bonnie found herself almost hurling herself at Enzo, her mouth opening wide, her tongue foraging, finding his, continuing the waltz, turning it into a tango. Because she needed this. To be close to him, to make sense of their bond, of those confusing feelings in her head that she wasn't sure were only hers.
She needed this, needed him.
Looking up, she saw Enzo lick his lips as he took her in, just watching her, and her body began to tingle.
"I want this to last forever," he muttered, stroking her hair absently.
The tingling feeling grew.
"Me too."
