A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews! I also really have to thank Dust for putting up with my 3 AM brainstorms!

Chapter 26: You're Under My Skin

Adela woke up to the sunlight in her eyes. She groaned and rolled onto her side, where her glasses were. She put those on and sat up. "How the hell did I get here?" she asked aloud. "What time is it?"

She grabbed her watch and glanced at it. It was 8:30 in the morning. 'I never get up this early!' she thought. 'What happened last night?'

She got out of bed and took her hair out of her braid. She ran a brush quickly through her long locks before running to the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she was done, she went in search of Dave.

She knew he wasn't in his room, as his bedroom door was wide open. She searched the kitchen and living room. She still couldn't find him. She looked out the window and saw his car still in the driveway. "Where is he?" she muttered under her breath.

She was about to go back upstairs when she heard the distinctive clunk of metal meeting concrete. She opened the basement door and went into the unknown.

She found Dave in the middle of a workout session. His back was towards her again. She smiled, just watching him lifting weights. He was shirtless again, which made Adela smile.

She waited until he put the heavy object down before saying, "So this is how the Animal gets into shape!"

He quickly turned around. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Not long. I just woke up." She walked over to him and gave him a kiss. "What happened last night?"

"You fell asleep watching your favorite movie!" he replied. "When the movie was over, I carried you to your room."

"I'm sorry," she said. "I barely slept at all the night before."

"Ah, so that explains everything. Why you didn't want to go anywhere else last night."

She nodded. "But like I said, we have two days!"

He kissed her. "That we do. So, go eat, shower, whatever you need to do. I'm taking you to D.C.!"

"Sweet!" she exclaimed. "Give me an hour, okay?"

"Take as long as you need," he said. "I'm going to take a shower."

They walked upstairs together, but separated once they got to the kitchen. Adela looked around the cabinets until she found a box of Cookie Crisp, her favorite cereal. "How the hell did he know?" she asked aloud, then thought about it. "The next time I see Liana Kerri McFadden, I swear I'm going to kill her!"

She quickly poured the cereal and milk into a bowl. She stood at the counter and ate it. She put her bowl in the sink, then went into her room. She grabbed her black MTV shirt and a pair of jeans and set them on the bed. When she heard the water stop, she walked into the hallway, almost running into Dave.

"Watch it there, Dela," he said, laughing.

She looked at him, wide eyed. He was standing in front of her in nothing but a towel. She put her head down and blushed furiously. "Dave, for the love of all that is holy, please put some clothes on! You're putting impure thoughts in my head!"

He laughed even harder. "Then imagine what happened last night when you fell asleep on me!"

She blushed even more. "I think I'd better take a shower," she said, inching her way towards the bathroom.

She still heard his laughter as she practically ran into the bathroom. 'Get a grip, Adela,' she thought when she closed te door. 'It was just Dave in a towel...with nothing else on underneath!' She groaned. This was going to be a long day.

She took her shower, wrapped her body and hair in towels, then walked back to her room. As she turned the doorknob, she heard Dave's door open. She froze, not knowing what to do.

"Now who's the one putting impure thoughts in my head?" Dave asked.

She blushed, quickly opened the door, and went in her room. "Well, THAT was embarassing," she muttered. She quickly dried off, but before she could put her clothes on, Dave knocked on her door. Sighing, she wrapped the towel around her body. "What?"

"Are you ready yet?"

She laughed. "No!" She threw the towel on the bed and quickly got dressed.

"How about now?"

"No! But I am decent!"

He opened the door and saw she was telling the truth. He shook his head and laughed. "Ready, now?"

"Almost!" she exclaimed, exasperated. She walked over to the dresser and put her long hair in a ponytail. "Now I'm ready!"

"Took you long enough!" he teased.

She just looked at him. He was dressed in a basketball jersey and jeans. A black baseball cap adorned his head. Adela's thoughts raced around in her head. 'He's getting under my skin!' she thought.

"Are we just going to stand here all day or are we going out?" she asked.

He slipped a pair of sunglasses over his eyes, making it difficult for Adela to find out what he was thinking. "Come on, Adela," he said. "Unless there was something you needed to do."

She thought about it for a second. "Oh, shit! I forgot to call Li! Just give me five minutes, Dave, then we can get out of here. I promise!"

He walked over to her and kissed her. She felt as if her insides turned into jelly. When he broke the kiss, she stared at him, trying to regain any logical thought. "Five minutes, Adela," he said jokingly, then he left her room.

She snapped out of her stupor, grabbed her cell phone, and speed dialed Liana's cell phone.

Her voicemail picked up. Liana had changed her message. "It's Liana. You know what to do."

"Li, it's Dela. I guess you're at work. Call me later, okay?" She hung up, then went downstairs to the living room, where Dave was sitting. "Ready, sweetie?" she asked.

He got up and nodded as he grabbed his car keys from the end table. "So, how's Li?"

She shrugged. "I got her voicemail."

They walked out together in the bright sunlight. He locked the front door, then unlocked the car. They got in and drove off, this time going to the nation's capital.

"You grew up around here, right?" she asked him.

He nodded. "My mother used to wake us up really early. We'd go get donuts then watch the sunrise at one of the memorials."

"Us?"

"Yeah, I have a younger sister," he replied.

She smiled. "I didn't know you had a sister!"

"We learn a little more about each other every day, huh?"

She laughed. "Guess you're right." She settled back in her seat.

"So, tell me something, Adela."

"Like what?" she asked.

"Something I don't know about you."

She laughed. "I was a daredevil when I was little."

His deep laughter rang through the car. "You? A daredevil? I don't believe it!"

"Oh, it's true. The ER staff back home knew me by name before I was five years old! I've broken my elbow twice. I've lost count as to how many stitches I've gotten," she said, laughing.

"And then you grew up, huh?"

She stopped laughing. "Yeah," she said, eyes downcast. "I guess I did."

He put a hand on her knee. "Want to hear something I did when I was younger?"

Her head snapped back up. "Okay, but this better be good."

"Oh, I think you'll like this one. My best friend and I would dress up in suits on Friday nights and show off to all the girls in the neighborhood!"

Adela laughed. "Did it ever work?"

He stopped to think about it. "I guess it didn't!" he said, laughing along with her.

They spent most of the ride telling each other about their childhoods until Dave asked, "So, where do you want to go?"

"Could we go to the zoo?" Adela asked, eyes shining.

He smiled. "Okay, the zoo it is."

"Yay!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands. "I get to see the monkeys!"

He laughed. "That's your favorite animal, I take it?"

"Oh, come on! They're the only species on Earth that can fling shit and get away with it!"

He laughed harder. "What am I going to do with you, Adela?"

"Uh, love me no matter what?" she said, batting her eyelashes.

He reached over and took her hand. "You know I do," he said.

They finished the ride in silence. After they parked the car, they walked to the front gate and entered the zoo.

"Let me guess, Adela," Dave said. "You want to see the monkeys first."

Adela nodded. "You know me well."

They walked hand in hand towards the Amazonia Exhibit. Adela looked around at her surroundings and gasped when she saw something new.

"This place is amazing!" Adela exclaimed as they walked.

"You really don't get out much, do you?" Dave asked her, amused.

"Oh, shut it!" she said, smiling. "Hey, look! Monkeys!" She pointed to one of the enclosures where a few small black monkeys were hanging out in the trees.

"I see you found your kind!" Dave said, laughing.

"Ha, ha. Very funny."

He watched Adela out of the corner of his eye. Her excitement just radiated off of her, making him smile. 'You're getting under my skin, Adela. And it hasn't even been a day!' he thought.

She looked at him. "What's up?"

"Nothing," he said. "Just thinking about some stuff." 'Like how you've affected me so much in the past month,' he thought.

They stayed there for a few more minutes until Adela took Dave's hand.

"Sick of the monkeys?" he asked as they walked away.

She nodded. "Time to see the tigers!"

They wandered around the zoo until they found the tigers. "Wow," Adela breathed. "They're beautiful."

"Just like you," Dave said.

He watched her, waiting for her reaction. Adela looked down at the ground, her cheeks turn a bright shade of pink.

"Hey," he said gently, putting a finger under her chin and making her look at him. When she wouldn't look him in the eyes, he kept going. "I mean it, Adela. You are beautiful."

She finally looked at him before replying, "And you, Dave, are under my skin."

He wrapped his massive arms around her before giving her a kiss, right in front of everybody. When they broke away, Adela hissed, "Dave! Everybody's watching!"

He grinned. "Let them," he said before kissing her again.

A/N: You all know what to do! Please review.