Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy, Richelle Mead does(:
RPOV:
Two weeks later
I woke up suddenly with a gasp. I took several deep breaths, then snuggled closer to Dimitri, who was sleeping next to me. He shifted in his sleep so his body now completely curved around mine, creating a barrier between me and the rest of the world. His arms tightened around me, pulling me even closer. I sighed quietly, letting my mind drift.
Dimitri and I had been here in Hawaii for the last five days.
After Victor had died, Dimitri had picked me up, and he and Abe started to leave, calling retreat. I'd clung to Dimitri like a koala bear to a tree, but half way to the doors I remembered Mia. Actually, I saw Mia, and screamed for Dimitri to get her. He had let me go and we'd run into each others arms, hugging.
"Rose, we need to go!" Dimitri yelled above the racket.
"No, not without Mia!" I screamed back.
Dimitri looked at Abe for a moment, communicating with their eyes. Abe nodded, and a man came up behind Mia, hoisting her up. She screamed at the same time I did.
"Shh, Roza, he's one of ours," Dimitri murmured, picking me up again. He walked close to the other man, Mason I later learned, so that Mia and I could hold hands. We latched onto one another, not letting go until it was time to be put in the cars.
Mia went with Mason, while Dimitri put me in the back of his car. When he went to set me down, I clung to him.
"Don't leave," I whimpered. I had the terrifying thought that if he let me go, they would grab me and drag me back. Never again would I go back. Never.
Dimitri hesitated, but nodded. He started to move away again.
"Where -?" I started.
"You have to let me go so I can sit down myself," he said with amusement.
Reluctantly, I let him go briefly so he could jump into the Jeep, but as soon as the door closed behind him, I was stuck to him like a fly to fly paper.
We had driven quickly out of city limits, the Nevada sun setting behind us. I didn't remember much of the ride; all I knew was Dimitri was next to me and I was safe.
We'd driven what seemed to be half way across Nevada when we finally arrived at Abe's house. It wasn't too big, but it wasn't small either. I had been half asleep when Dimitri carried me to my room. As he was about to leave, I hung on his arms, asking him to stay. Ever since that night, Dimitri slept with me, keeping me safe. Nightmares would wake me up, as per usual, but I had long ago learned not to scream, so most of the time my waking hadn't disturbed the others. Abe and I got to know each other during the week, and both Mia and I had begun to be comfortable in the house, but it was a long road to recovery.
About a week after we escaped, in the middle of the night Abe woke us up.
"Rosie, Rosie wake up," Abe shook me gently. My eyes snapped open.
"What?" I mumbled, still half asleep.
"You have to get dressed and packed," Abe murmured back.
Next to me, Dimitri was already sitting up, swinging his legs out of bed.
"I've been called to a 'conference,'" he continued. "I don't know if I'll come back. I'll claim revenge, but no promises. I'll do my best to come back, but I want to know you're safe."
"Where are you putting me, Baba?" He had asked me to called him 'dad,' but I wasn't comfortable with saying it, so we had compromised; I know called him dad in Turkish.
"Kiz...you'll see. Dimitri, Mason, and Mia will go with you. That's all. Stay safe, alright?" Abe kissed me on the forehead and began backing up.
"But Baba-" I grabbed his arm. "How will I know if you're alright? What about mom?" We hadn't gone back for mom because they knew where she lived, meaning they knew where I would be, which meant my mom would have been in danger. Abe assured me that we could go back to her once everything blew over. We all knew that what was happening now was a possibility, and in all honesty I was surprised it took so long.
Dimitri was already moving around the room, packing the essentials. Of course, that was all I really had; I hadn't wanted to go out of the house and Abe hadn't argued, so Dimitri had gone a short trip to the local story to get me some clothes and other necessities. It had been a short trip because about 40 minutes into it, Abe had no longer been able to distract me, and I had began to panic, crying out for Dimitri. It had been so long since I was safe, and then it was always with Dimitri, that I was terrified of being away from him. What if something happened to him? What if they came back and took me? What if Abe's body guards started touching me, hurting me? All these possibilities and more made my head spin and my heart race with fear to the point where I had locked myself in my room until Dimitri came home, ten minutes later, and got me to open it. As soon as he came in, I had jumped on him and not let go all day and long into the night, when I finally fell asleep. I had even taken him to the bathroom, but he had turned around. Normally, I would have been embarrassed, but thoughts of someone else walking in while I was using it, taking advantage of Dimitri not being there, had erased all shyness in me.
Dimitri was done in a few short minutes, and we were all bundled up into what had now become Dimitri's Jeep. Abe kissed my cheek goodbye one last time, and we were on our way.
We drove for 16 hours to an airport in California, stopping only for food and bathroom breaks. Mason and Dimitri traded off half way there so Dimitri could sleep, me curled up in his arms - his choice - and Mason driving with Mia next to him.
After we arrived at the airport, we immediately jumped on a flight, flying for 5 and a half hours to Hawaii.
Both Mia and I had been able to relax more here, without reminders of our life, than we had been at Abe's house. There'd been no word from that world, but Dimitri had assured me that that was a good thing.
"It means that Abe is alright and doesn't want to risk anyone finding you," he had told me after one of my nervous breakdowns. "He will be alright, Roza. Don't worry so much." Then he had kissed me on the forehead.
Since the last time Dimitri had kissed me while I was still Victor's, we hadn't had any kind of intimate contact. Sure, we slept in the same bed in each others' arms, but that was for safety purposes; I couldn't sleep otherwise. He hugged me with the occasionally affectionate kiss on the cheek or forehead, but never anything that would be considered...romantic. I knew it was because a, I was his boss's daughter, and his boss was always just down the hall, and b, he didn't want to push, but I wanted to have that. Maybe not all the way...okay, there was no maybe; I don't I could handle anything more than a kiss for the next ten years, but I still wanted that connection we had. I craved feeling loved, and taken care of. Dimitri always made me feel safe, and sometimes, when he was very relaxed, he let his emotions slip out by putting an arm around me and pulling me into his chest, or cuddling with me while watching a movie, but nothing more. And that was taking its toll on me. While I didn't want to jump into a relationship - I was way too damaged for that - it made me believe that I was too damaged to be loved.
I had never been insecure about my looks; I never had the need to. But with Dimitri holding me at an arm's length emotionally, it made me think that I wasn't pretty enough to be closer. I felt like I was ugly, inside and out. Who would want someone like me, someone who slept with so many guys, who was used for her body? I loathed myself. I couldn't look in the mirror, because I would always cry about how used my body was. I never told any of it to Dimitri, just let him hold me. I wanted so badly to pour my heart out to him, but I was afraid that he would confirm all my fears, and never touch me again.
Mia, on the other hand, was dealing with things a bit better. Her and Mason had gotten closer over the two weeks they had spent together, and it always made me feel better when I saw them talking, or hugging, and especially when I witnessed their tentative flirting. Mason understood Mia's boundaries and never pushed her. I could tell that there was love blossoming between the two, and that made my heart ache even more. I never let it on, preferring instead to be happy for Mia and encourage her. At least one of us was finding love.
I sighed again as I thought all this. Dimitri stirred next to me.
"Mmm, go t'sleep," he mumbled, his sleepy voice sounding adorable. He pulled me closer to him, as if it was possible. My face was pressed into his chest, filling my nose with the mouthwatering scent of him. I smiled; I'm sure he felt it against his skin because he pulled me even closer, burying his face in my hair. One of his legs was slung carelessly over mine, trapping me to him, but it didn't bother me; I felt safe and happy surrounded in a cocoon of warm limbs and Dimitri's scent. Letting my eyes drift close as the happy feelings filled my heart, I fell asleep again with a smile on my face.
A/N: Sorry for the long wait! Well, it wasn't that long, but still. So...this is the second to last chapter! Next chapter is THE last chapter! What do you think? Thank you all for your wondrous reviews! And I forgot to do this last chapter, but THANK YOU TO Nellyrose1994 FOR REVIEWING EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER! YOU'RE AWESOME! Tell me what you think!