Karen stayed with Chris from the time she got him to bed to the time she decided to sit with him; she pulled the blankets up to his chest, keeping close tabs on his temperature as he still hadn't come round.
She had never seen him sleep before; his eyelids were softly closed, and his broad chest rose and fell slowly, almost in a cautious sort of way.
Karen had pulled up a chair next to the double bed, and placed a bowl filled with tepid water on the table by it; she dipped a cloth into it every so often, pressing it against the unconscious male's forehead and making the ends of his bangs a little bit wet in the process.

Chris had been out cold for some time; it wasn't till late evening when he did slowly come round. His eyelids flickered a few times in the very soft, dim light and he stirred a little under the blankets.
She carefully swept a hand over his forehead and through his bangs, as his stirring came more frequently. He jolted awake, finding himself gazing up at a white ceiling.
"Where am I?" He dimly asked.
Karen smiled softly. "You've been out cold for a while."
"All I remember is blacking out."
She nodded shakily. "Charlie attacked you, Chris." She gazed down at the blankets, in an anxious way. "I was hoping it never came to that."
"But we didn't see him." Chris protested.
"No, he tried something new for a change – he was behind the door."
"A big guy like him could do that?" He felt his head hurt as he made to get up – only to have Karen lay him back down again.
"You should stay here tonight." She supposed. "I don't think you're in any fit state to drive if you've got concussion."
"I am not concussed." He put to her helplessly, knowing that she wasn't very likely to let him go. "And where is he?" He didn't at all want to retaliate, but he was more worried about where Charlie had gone. For all he knew, he could've been hiding in the bathroom waiting for him to wake up and punch his lights out again.
She gazed at him carefully, sliding a few of his bangs, which had dried, back to their proper places. "The cops came and took him, you're safe."
"What did he even hit me with?" Chris rubbed the back of his head where he was hit, feeling it sting a little. "Whatever it was, it was a pretty good shot."
"H-he was drinking." Karen explained shakily. "I don't even know what drove him to do something so stupid."
"It was a bottle?" Not through with wanting to sleep, he sat up so he could look at her better. "He knocked me out with a glass bottle?"
She nodded shakily. "I'm sorry, Chris. It's all my fault that you've been pulled into all this."
"Karen, don't say that." He placed a hand on hers, which was on top of his thigh through the blankets. "This is not your fault. If he hadn't have been an animal to start with, you would never have come to me about it. And is that such a bad thing?"
"I don't know what you mean."

Chris leant forward slightly, allowing the soft lights to filter into his bright blue eyes; in Karen's opinion, they looked breathtaking. "I meant the fact that you came to me about all of it." He smiled a little. "If you ask me, it seemed like you thought I was the best person to come to about things like that."
"Well…you were the closest person I could have ever come to." She put to him honestly. "We were both friends…"
"…And you happened to be attracted to me." He noted, tenderness present in his voice. She was also sure there was an air of audacity. "Well…that's a dangerous mix, don't you think, Mrs Fisher?"
Karen didn't know what to say to that, as Chris gazed into her eyes longingly; he knew that he shouldn't push her into doing anything she didn't want, and he wanted to keep it that way. But the temptation was there…eating away at the pair of them.
"I really wanna do so much to you." He added shamelessly, brushing his finger against her cheek. "But I've got to think about what you want."
She nodded. "I know. But I don't know how long that'll take."
"It'll take as long as it has to." He admitted. "And even if it does take a long time, I'll still be there for you, however hard that'll be for us to hold this in."
"I don't want this to get complicated." She felt his touch blow her away. "But at the same time I don't want us to rush into doing anything we might regret."
Chris drew in a deep breath, pulling himself closer to her. "It doesn't have to be complicated. All I wanna know is whether you'll leave him or not. Because you can't love two people at once, Karen."
Karen nodded shakily.
"So what's your answer?"
"Y-you." She almost gasped out in pleasure when his thumb slid itself along her lower lip. "I want you."
"I want you, too." He said softly. "But I don't wanna hurt you."

She was surprised she had any strength left in her because of how good Chris made her feel; she went to touch him, only to have him swiftly take hold of her hand and link his fingers with hers.
"Don't do it." He put to her quietly. "Unless it's what you want."
She leant further forward, and pressed her lips to his softly; they closed their eyes, savouring the shy yet extremely affectionate kiss.
They softly pulled away, gazing into each other's eyes.
Karen felt almost giddy from pleasure; fireworks exploded all over her at what they'd both done, and she was almost intoxicated. But she knew she couldn't let the impulsive feelings overtake her – she had to take it slow with him.
Chris sat back slowly, trying to make out what she was thinking; he tilted his head a little when he watched her start to undress herself, and he quickly followed.
She slipped into bed beside him as he gave her enough room to get in, and gazed at him unsurely.
"What is it you're not sure of?" He asked her softly.
"I just…I don't know."
He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to his body. "We don't even have to do anything naughty if you don't want to. I'm not going to force you into that."
Karen closed her eyes at the warm feelings buzzing through her; she liked being held like that, it made her feel safe.
"Or do you want that?"
"I want to take this slow."
Chris pulled himself away from her slightly. "So do I, and I'm trying to respect that. But if you wanna take things further with me, I don't have a problem with it."
She nodded steadily. "I do want to take things further with you." She glided her hands down the sides of his slender body, stopping at his hips and snaking her arms around him, pulling him back against her again.
He was almost sure his breath caught in his throat when he felt something glide down from his flat stomach to the spot in between his legs. He gasped when he was given a small squeeze at the most intimate of areas.

Karen smiled softly at Chris's half-submissive response; she felt him squirm a little, and he pulled her beneath him, dexterously sliding himself on top of her. She was taken aback at how quick he was.
"Well…we're in a mess now." He taunted. He was surprised to feel her hands on his hips, pulling him fully down against her. "Are you sure this is what you want?"
She gazed up at him sultrily. "Enough talking." She glided an index finger down the line of his spine. "And more of this." She pulled him further down for a kiss, and their lips crashed together.