So last chapter was crazy, huh? Well, enjoy the fluff in this chapter cuz next chapter's bat shit wild. Please enjoy!
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His heart was pounding so hard in his chest that he thought it was going to burst.
Rex sped across the highway from New Hale to Gotham, more than sure that he had broken at least five traffic laws. But none of that mattered in his mind. Sophia was in danger and she needed him. He would gladly take a ticket over having her be alone for another second. He just hoped that he got to her in time, he hoped that he wasn't too late.
Finally (finally), he pulled up to Sophia's law firm. Immediately, he spotted her figure perched on the stone steps. Relief flooded through his heart at seeing her alright as he stepped out of his car, rushing toward her.
But upon further inspection, he mentally took a step back. Her usually life-filled blue eyes were a blank gray as they stared out into the street. Her hair which was always kept in a neat bun for work was strewn all over her head as if she had just woken up. Though, that was nothing compared to what he noticed next.
Her blouse was ripped down the middle, her bra on full display. The bare skin of her exposed breasts was marred with painful-looking hickeys that matched the bruises on her arms and legs. Her skirt was ruffled and... and was she missing a shoe?
Bile rose in Rex's throat as he slowed his approach. He had a pretty good idea of what had happened here, but he didn't think he could bring himself to say it out loud. The idea was too horrifying, too unbelievable. "Soph?" he rasped, his mouth suddenly very dry.
Sophia looked up at him as if she hadn't noticed he had pulled up. Her bottom lip trembled as if she were about to burst into tears at any moment. "R-Rex?" Her voice shook with uncertainty. It was if she wasn't sure that he was really him.
He had to do a double-take; was this the same woman that had tried to seduce him on his couch? He blinked hard, trying to get himself to focus. "Hey, baby," he greeted softly, kneeling down to her level. He kept a good distance away from her, trying his best not to scare her.
She gave him a puzzled look (he had never called her baby, he realized offhandedly), but rewarded him with a small wave. "H-Hi..."
Rex evaluated the situation before him; he knew that he had to be very careful not to scare her away. He noticed how her arms covered her revealed chest protectively. "Are you cold?" he asked, already stripping off his jacket. She might have been cold, but that wasn't why he had asked. "Here, take my coat." He offered it to her.
Sophia gazed at it for a moment before reaching forward tentatively. She took the jacket from him and draped it over her shoulders, pushing her arms through the sleeves. "T-Thank you." She seemed to bury herself in the too-large coat.
He gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "You're welcome." He glanced around, searching for any trace of whoever had done this. Though, the pit in his stomach was telling him he knew exactly who had done this.
She peered up at him with her big blue eyes. "C-Can we go?" she pleaded with him. "Please?"
Rex immediately nodded, standing up from the ground. He offered her his hand and she stared at it for a moment before finally taking it. He gently pulled her to her feet and led her toward his car. "You can lay down in the back if you want," he offered. "Or recline the passenger seat. Whatever is cool with me."
Sophia rocked back and forth on her feet. "I... I guess I'll lay down," she decided, shuffling toward the back seat. He made his own way into the driver's seat and started up the car.
Though he was putting on a brave face for Sophia, Rex's knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel. He peeled off away from the firm, his jaw clenched tightly. Rex glanced at Sophia in the rearview mirror and noticed that her gaze was trained onto the car's ceiling. His knee bounced slightly as he realized he had no idea about the extent of her injuries.
He swallowed thickly; had she been raped? He knew that she had been assaulted at the very least, but did she need a doctor. It was probably safer to go that route. He didn't want her hurt. He quickly requested a route to the nearest hospital.
This seemed to register with Sophia as she sat up slightly. "No," she insisted. "No hospitals."
Rex glanced at her. "Soph, I just want to make sure you're alright," he replied, attempting to placate her. "You have to-"
"No," Sophia interrupted vehemently, her voice a little louder. She sat up, her eyes narrowed. "I'm not going to the hospital."
He sighed, pulling over so that he didn't cause an accident. Of course, she was going to argue with him now; she wouldn't be Sophia if she didn't. "Listen, I don't know how injured you are," he explained, trying to keep the irritation out of his voice. "And if you're seriously hurt, I don't have anything to take care of you."
She scowled at him before practically shoving her arm in his face (it was good to know that the firecracker in her was alive and well). "Once we get this off," she began. He assumed she was referring to the black bracelet on her wrist. "I won't need any medical attention."
Rex titled his head. "Why do we need to get that off?" he asked, confused. He knew that she wasn't big on jewelry, but why did she want it off so bad? "And why can't you take it off yourself?"
Sophia huffed, leaning back in her seat. "Can you just take me to your apartment?" she snapped. Her face softened slightly as she lowered her head and peered at him through the hair covering her face. She looked like she was going to burst into tears. "Please?"
Well, how could he say no to that?
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Rex focused on the contraption latched to her arm, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "Damn, this thing's tricky," he remarked, working the tools in his hand. His other hand gripped Sophia's forearms firmly, making sure it stayed still. "Whoever designed this knew what they were doing. It's hard to overload." He had found that the bracelet was an inhibitor collar of sorts, designed to block Sophia's powers.
The woman next to him twisted her hair nervously with her free hand. "So, you can't get it off?"
He gave her a wink in hopes it would put her at ease. "Of course I can," he assured her. "Just be patient and I'll have it off in a second." He continued to work at it until... "Ah-ha, there we go." It snapped apart, freeing her. "Your powers should be back soon."
Sophia rubbed her sore wrist. "Thanks," she said quietly. He swore, never in her life had Sophia Wayne been this quiet. She always had something to talk about, something to share. As a child, he used to find it irritating. Now, he wished she would talk to her heart's content.
"Soph," spoke Rex softly, grabbing her attention. "I know you just went through hell, but can you tell me what happened? I want to make sure you're okay."
Her bottom lip trembled again and he was afraid she was going to start crying. Instead, she took a deep breath and started to explain her story. Her hands shook throughout and he knew it took everything in her not to break down. "I knocked him out and that's when I called you," she finished. She wiped a few stray tears from her eyes.
By the end of her story, Rex was sure that he was shaking with rage. It burned his heart, fighting to be brought out. He'd already guessed the gist of what had happened, but hearing her say it was different. Hearing her explain, in detail, of how the bastard had violated and humiliated her made him want to rip him apart with the talons on his suit.
He stood with his jaw clenched, resolved to beat the ever-living hell out of Holland. But something stopped him; a gentle hand settled on his upper arm. He looked down at Sophia and observed her sad blue eyes.
Almost instantly, Rex felt his anger leave him. What the hell was wrong with him? Sophia didn't need him to defend her honor or lose his temper; she needed him to be there for her. This was about her, not him. He plopped back onto the couch next to her and took her hand in his. He drew circles on her wrist with his thumb, hoping it comforted her. "Do you need something?" he asked gently. "Name it and I'll do it."
Sophia drummed her fingers against the couch. "I really just want to get out of these clothes," she admitted. "The stupid fuck ruined one of my favorite work shirts."
The corners of his mouth twitched with amusement. There was his girl. "You can borrow some of my stuff," he told her. They were going to be big on her, but he was sure that was the last thing on her mind. "Anything else?"
She shrugged. "I guess a shower," she answered. A dark, tortured looked crossed her face, but it was gone in an instant. She looked like she was going to say something, but her stomach growled loudly instead.
Rex chuckled. "Dinner too," he added. "Done. You go take a shower and I'll start on the food." He was glad she was willing to eat, he just hoped that she would continue to.
Sophia gave him a small smile. "Thank you," she said, sincerity radiating from her voice. She made her way over to the bathroom, but not before pressing her lips to his cheek. He flushed, but couldn't help the goofy smile that forced its way onto his face.
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Sophia scrubbed herself as hard as she could.
But no matter how hard she tried, his touch lingered on her skin. She was feeling so much at once: pain, humiliation, rage, fear. She felt like an idiot; Holland had always been a creep. Everything about him had put her on edge. So why hadn't she done something before this happened? She could have prevented it! But like the fool she was, she'd ignored it. And all for what? Her pride. That had been demolished anyway.
She sighed and ceased her intense scrubbing, allowing the water to wash over her hair. She decided to forget about Holland for a moment and move her thoughts to more pleasant things.
Sophia smiled serenely. Rex had been her savior this evening. Perhaps she had defended herself, but it had been him who'd rescued her. Waiting for him, she'd feared that Holland would wake up and she'd have no way to defend herself. Instead, Rex had shown up and taken her to safety.
She knew she had been testy with him in the car, but going to a hospital would complicate things. There would be questions. It wasn't even the fact that it would wound her pride. They'd examine the device on her arm, question her face healing, etc. Her identity- her entire family's identity- would risk being compromised.
Only, it already had been.
She couldn't believe Holland had been her stalker. He'd known that she was the Liberator, he'd known what she'd done in France. But had he been smart enough for that? She had looked into him shortly after returning to the States and he hadn't seemed like a cunning, dangerous guy. In fact, her sources implied that he had cheated his way through school.
When she thought about it, Sophia could remember attending Gotham Academy with him. They weren't around each other much due to their age gap, but she recalled him being notorious among the student body. He had a record for getting high and cutting class. In fact, he was barely lucid half the time.
Could someone like that really grow up to be a stalker and rapist? Something wasn't adding up... She shook her head, turning off the faucet. She just wanted to put this behind her.
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When she came out wearing Rex's oversized T-shirt and sweats (both tied to keep from sagging), Sophia was surprised to see fried chicken, biscuits, and macaroni and cheese set on the table. Rex himself was on his phone, but his eyes lit up when he spotted her. "Hey," he greeted. "Have a seat. You can have as much as you want."
She gave him the biggest smile she could muster and sat down. "You're such a sweetheart," she gushed, genuinely pleased. Most of the people she had dated before had never liked to cook for her. This was a nice change. "It all looks so good."
Rex flushed with embarrassment and pride. "It's not much," he muttered humbly. He gestured to the food. "Dig in." She did just that.
Throughout dinner, the two of them talked about various things. They talked about how dumb they were as kids, how much exes suck, and other random subjects. She had actually learned that Rex was an IT worker and was really good with computers. That explained how he had known how to get that inhibitor bracelet off of her.
They both avoided the subject of what had happened earlier and she didn't know how to feel about that. On one hand, Sophia was glad that Rex didn't want to remind her. On the other, she didn't want him to walk on eggshells around her. But she certainly wasn't going to talk about it. It was better to leave it alone.
At one point, she let out a loud yawn. Rex gave her an endearing smile. "Looks like someone's tired," he commented. "If you don't want to go home, you can take my bed if you want."
Sophia shook her head. "I couldn't do that," she protested. "It's your bed, after all. I'll be fine on the couch." She definitely wasn't going home; her mother would pester her with questions. At least if she stayed over here, her parents could make their own assumptions.
But he shook his head. "Seriously, just take my bed," he insisted. "You know how my dad is, he would kill me if he knew I was letting you crash on the couch."
She had to chortle at that; Uncle John had adored her when she was a child. She was sure that she had been his favorite of all the other League kids (aside from his son, of course). Thinking about it, it never made sense why she and Rex hadn't gotten along when his parents loved her and her mother adored him. "If you really want me to," she relented.
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Rex led Sophia to his room. "I'll be just out there if you need me," he assured her. He watched as she walked over to the bed, her hand skimming the soft comforter. He clenched his jaw as he watched the way her hips swayed when she walked; now was not the time to be a pervert. "I, uh, probably won't sleep tonight, so don't worry about waking me up."
Sophia glanced over to him, curious. "You have insomnia?" She hadn't known that. Her father had insomnia too, she's lost count of how many times she'd found him roaming the manor.
He nodded. "Yeah," he answered. "I usually take a pill for it, but I ran out last week." He shrugged. "Doesn't really bother me though."
She yawned again and climbed into the bed. "This bed is big," she remarked. She raised a suggestive eyebrow at him. "Big enough for two." She looked up at him hopefully.
She wanted to take things to the next level in their relationship. She genuinely liked Rex; he was smart, charming, and caring. He always listened to her and was gentle when he needed to be. And goddammit he was hot! It annoyed her that it was taking her so long to sleep with him.
But as he said, it had to be special. She could get behind that. Right now could be special. Tonight had increased her affection for him tenfold. She could feel the desire to sleep with him swell in her chest. She wanted to make this connection with him, wanted to show him how much she adored him.
Rex swallowed thickly. "You know this isn't the right time," he replied. But every fiber of his being was protesting this statement. 'Someone tried to take her from you,' a voice inside his head reminded him. 'Mark her. Make sure everyone knows she's yours.' She wasn't his and she wished that part of him would understand that. She was her own person and she didn't belong to anyone. "Holland, he-"
Sophia rose from the bed, her red lips curling into a seductive grin as she slowly approached. "There's a special place in Tartarus for Holland," she finished for him. She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Why don't we forget about him, hmm? We have other things to focus on." She leaned up and pressed a searing kiss to his lips.
It took a few moments, but he eventually kissed her back. His hands found her hips and pulled her closer until she was flush against him. He deepened the kiss and her lips curved against his. They seemed to fit perfectly together, her small frame nestled in his larger one. She guided him to his bed and he was more than happy to follow.
Rex dipped her but didn't quite set her into the bed. He gazed into her sapphire eyes, so full of passion and affection. Her cheeks were flushed pink and her hair fell behind her. She was perfect, absolutely perfect.
Sophia smiled up at him, overjoyed that he wasn't shying away. She couldn't think of a better way to rid herself of Holland's touch. She pressed a quick kiss to his mouth. "Fuck me," she whispered sensually.
He shivered, searching her face for hesitation. "Are you sure?" he asked, caressing her cheek. He wanted to make sure that she was ready. He wanted to make sure that he wasn't taking advantage of her.
She raised a teasing eyebrow. "Are you?" she shot back. She got her answer when he all but pinned her to the bed.
Rex wasted no time. He peppered her neck with chaste butterfly kisses which were so different than the painful bites Holland had inflicted upon her. His hands were stationary at her waist as she titled her head back. She clawed at his back, her body tingling with anticipation.
It was then that Sophia realized how desperately she wanted this. She had never craved someone's touch the way she craved his. Her crotch burned with impatience as he took his time with her.
Rex wasn't doing much better. Everything inside of him was screaming at him to just rip her clothes off. He forced himself not to, though. He said this was going to be special and he meant it, dammit. His hands slowly moved up her shirt and he grazed over her right breast. She gasped, arching her chest toward him. His other hand joined in and soon both hands were massaging her chest.
Sophia moaned, practically tearing off her shirt and tossing it onto the floor. Most of the bruises were gone and she hoped he would take advantage of that. His lips trailed from her neck to her breasts and then down her stomach. When he got to the band of her sweats, he tugged on it, silently asking permission. She nodded and he wasted no time in pulling them off.
Rex leaned away from her slightly, gazing at her with an unreadable expression. Sophia's stomach rolled as she looked up at him with concern. "What?" she asked worriedly. "What is it?"
He brushed his knuckles gently against her face. "You are so beautiful," he whispered. She flushed with both embarrassment and happiness. Before she could respond, he captured her lips in another kiss.
Unknown to either of them, there was a soft glow to both of their skins.
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Allow me: FINALLY! FUCKING FINALLY! I figured that I had to give them this. I kind of owe it to them for the shit I'm about to put them through. Anyway, I hope you liked it and please review!