Fun fact, I actually started this chapter before the previous one. In fact, I had completely forgotten about the previous chapter before I looked back and saw it. Heh... Anyway, please enjoy!
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When Rex arrived at his apartment, he was surprised to see Sophia (in her pajamas) sitting with her back to his door. He raised an eyebrow. "Soph?" he questioned. The man racked his brain, trying to remember if they had planned to meet today. Had he accidentally ghosted her? Wouldn't he have gotten an angry text by now? Warning bells went off on his head when she didn't reply. "Sophia?"
She finally acknowledged him, raising her head to meet his gaze. "Hi," she mumbled. She was so quiet that if he wasn't part Thanagarian he was sure that he wouldn't have heard her. Sophia Wayne was never quiet.
He knelt to her level. "Are you okay?" he asked gently. His eyebrows creased as he attempted to figure out what was wrong. Had her stalker texted her again? Was she in danger?
Sophia shrugged indolently. "Don't feel so good," she answered. She raised her arms toward him, her blue eyes slightly unfocused. "Carry me?"
Rex was a bit surprised; Sophia never let him baby her. Still, he obliged to her request, hefting her into his arms. He carried her into his apartment and gently set her down onto the couch. "You said you don't feel good?" He ransacked his memories; had she ever fallen ill as a child? He wasn't sure. "What's wrong?"
The woman shivered, clutching her shoulders. "Cold," she complained, jutting out her bottom lip.
Odd, he wasn't cold. A glance at the thermostat told him that it was reasonably warm. Upon further inspection, he noticed that her cheeks were a rosy pink. "Hmm," he hummed, pressing the back of his hand to her forehead. Immediately, he recoiled. "Holy shit," he hissed. "Soph, you're burning up!"
How had she even gotten here? In her state, driving should have been next to impossible and he prayed that she hadn't flown. Where were her parents? Or Alfred! Shouldn't they have been keeping an eye on her?
Sophia gazed up at him with furrowed eyebrows. "But I'm so cold," she reminded him.
Despite his worry, Rex couldn't help the smile that tugged on his lips. Was it his fault she was so cute? "Soph, have you ever had a fever?" he asked.
"Don't think so," she answered. "You'll have to ask my mom." The woman considered this for a moment. "Never mind, ask Alfred."
He shook his head. He was almost tempted to tell her that she was being silly. "Do you know what hurts?" he inquired instead. He should probably get her Tylenol or something to bring her fever down, right? Then again, the pain killer might not get through her immune system.
Sophia shifted, burying her head into the couch cushion. "I feel dizzy," she answered sleepily, her voice muffled. "And nauseous."
Warning bells went off in Rex's head at that. He thought back to the night they had slept together; had they used protection? He couldn't remember. Everything had been going so fast that night and he had been so enthralled with Sophia at the time. Internally, Rex cursed himself. What was he, sixteen?
She peeked out at him. "Are you okay?" she asked, her voice laced with concern. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
He swallowed thickly. "Sophia," he began, his mouth suddenly very dry. "Do you think you could be... pregnant?" He gauged her face for a reaction.
Sophia recoiled slightly, an unreadable expression crossing her face. But it was gone in an instant as she shook her head. "No," she replied tersely. "I'm not pregnant."
The finality in her voice threw him slightly. But Rex ignored this and gave a firm stare. "Sophia, I didn't use a condom," he told her.
Her gaze hardened. "I'm not pregnant," she repeated, a bit more forcefully this time. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Reginald, I was trained by Batman; I know what condition my body's in." She didn't elaborate further.
Apart of him wanted to argue with her (because how could she possibly know that for sure?), but thought better of it. Instead, he pressed his cheek to hers. "Still burning up," he remarked. "Do you want something to break it?"
Sophia- the frustration had slipped away from her face and she just looked tired- shook her head again. "Won't work," she told him. "I'm just gonna have to power through it."
Rex sighed and kissed the top of her head. "I have an appointment across town in about an hour," he said. If he had known she was sick, he would have canceled. "but you can stay here if you want." He wasn't about to let her fly home like this.
"Okay," she agreed quietly, her eyes drooping. He grinned; she was just about sleeping at this point. "Have fun..."
He rolled his eyes. "Not my idea of fun," he replied dryly. He kissed her cheek this time and tried not to wince at how warm it was. "Just get some rest. I have some ramen in the kitchen if you get hungry; it should help you sweat out that fever."
Sophia nodded and held onto his hand for a moment. "Thank you."
Rex smiled at her. "You're welcome." He was tempted to stay with her but knew that he couldn't. She would never let him. So it was with reluctance that he left her.
But as he did so, he couldn't help the dread settled in his stomach.
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Sophia had concluded: being sick sucked.
She felt so weak. Her head was pounding and she felt like she was going to throw up any minute. How normal did people go through this? It was awful. She knew that she'd told Rex to ask Alfred, but going through her memory, Sophia didn't think she ever had been sick. At least, not like this.
She groaned, forcing herself to sit up. She had flown over here from Gotham on a whim; her mother would fuss and she wasn't in the mood to put up with it. She knew Rex would let her recover on her own, so she had sought him out.
As the room seemed to spin, fear crept up Sophia's throat along with last night's dinner. What if Rex was right? Could she be pregnant? She didn't think she was and surely she would know. Right? She shook her head, shoving the thought out of her head. She wasn't pregnant, end of the story.
Sophia blinked, her eyes adjusting to the dark room. At some point after Rex's departure, she had fallen asleep. She unwittingly wiped the drool from her chin, flushing slightly in embarrassment. The only times she drooled like that was when she was in a deep sleep. She was just glad Rex wasn't there to see it.
Her eyes heavy with sleep, Sophia groped around until she found her phone. She unlocked it, checking it for any messages or missed calls. Rex had called her once but had then texted her. There was a message from her mother and, surprisingly, one from Danica as well.
Rex: You didn't answer so I'll assume you're sleeping. I'm on my way home, need anything?
She had to smile; Rex had a way of communicating his affection that she just adored. She quickly replied, 'No, I'm good. Thank you.' Sophia then checked the message from her mother.
Mamá: Didn't see you leave. Is everything okay?
Sophia almost rolled her eyes but thought better of it. Instead, she responded with, 'Just feeling under the weather. I'm with Rex, love you.' She didn't say it nearly as much as she should.
She stared at the unread message from Danica for a while before finally opening it. She scanned the contents slowly, taking her time to process the words there. 'Hey, Soph. Miss you. Can we talk?'
Could they? Of course, Sophia still cared about Danica. Danica was her best friend, her first love, her first time. She would always hold a special place in her heart. However, there was so much loss between them. Seven years apart had changed their relationship. In their youth, Danica had been wild and fun and sporadic; all things she had loved. But Sophia didn't want that anymore. Rex was stable and steady and reliable; all things she wanted and needed. Noël, may he rot in the deepest depths of Tartarus, had taught her that. Until the incident with him, so much of her choices in life had been impulsive.
She was careful with who she gave her heart and body to.
Could she and Danica ever get back to that point? Perhaps. Should they? That was another story. She knew that Danica held lingering feelings and she also knew that she held lingering lust. She didn't think she should see Danica now that she was in a relationship with Rex (she would never cheat, but she knew how things escalated). At least, not yet. It was probably best to wait.
She tossed her phone aside.
Speaking of Rex, the door suddenly swung open. She jumped but relaxed as she noticed the green of his eyes in the dark. "Hey, Soph," he greeted, turning on the lights. She groaned, rubbings her eyes against the harsh light. "Sorry."
Sophia shrugged. "It's okay," she assured him. She yawned, stretching. "I'm sorry for just dropping in like that. I didn't want my mom to worry."
He plopped down next to her, looping an arm around her waist. "It's fine," promised, pulling her close. He absentmindedly caressed her hip. "Do you feel any better?"
She shivered slightly at his touch but snuggled closer to him. "Kind of," she admitted. "My head still feels like crap, but my stomach doesn't hurt as much." She hadn't thrown up once today, much to her relief.
Rex hummed in thought. "That's good," he replied. He pressed his cheek to hers. "Looks like you cooled down too. You must have sweat out your fever."
Well, that explained why she had woken up in a cold sweat. Disgusting. She groaned, burying her head into his shoulder. "Being sick is so gross," she complained. And it made her into a baby. She never acted like this, especially with Rex. "How do you do it every year?"
He shrugged. "I don't get sick that much," he admitted. "But yeah, it sucks. You're lucky; at least you're not hacking up mucus."
She shuddered: gross.
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Rex woke up to violent retching coming from his bathroom. He raised an eyebrow, pulling himself out of bed. It was from Sophia, that was certain, but he had thought she was better. Her temperature had been cool when they'd gone to bed. Had it spiked again? His blood ran cold as he jumped up to check on her.
Hesitantly, Rex rapped his knuckles against the bathroom door. "Soph?" he called. "You okay?" He waited anxiously for her answer.
The sound of her heaving the contents of her stomach answered him. "No," she groaned. The heaving continued.
Panic rushed across his veins, his fists clenching at his sides. "I'm coming in," he announced. He opened the door to see Sophia bent over the toilet, violently retching. He knelt next to her, holding her hair back. He attempted to remain calm to reassure her, but inside he was panicking. He had checked in with her mother; Sophia had never been sick. He had merely assumed that it was a twenty-four-hour bug, but that wasn't the case. Something was wrong.
After Sophia finished, Rex gathered her in his arms and laid her down on his bed. Her eyes drifted closed and he knew it wouldn't be long before she knocked out. The man sighed in relief when she fell asleep and he plopped down next to her, placing a soft kiss on her forehead.
He felt trapped; should he call her parents? That was probably the best course of action. But even if he did, would they be able to help her? Would it be better to bring her to a hospital? God, then questions would come up. No hospitals, then.
The chiming of his phone snapped him out of thoughts. Rex reached over to his nightstand to check the message he'd received. His stomach dropped as he read it, clenching the device in his hand. It took all of his restraint not to crush it into bits.
'Hey, Hawky! Heard the poor princess was sick. I hope it's not anything serious... If you want her cured, do exactly as I say. If you don't, well, let's just say Soph's in for a rough week.'
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The plot thickens! What does Sophia's stalker have in store for our lovely couple? You'll just have to see... Anyway, I hope you liked it and please review!