Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Bloodlines or Fullmetal Alchemist

Adrian seemed to be in a hurry to get out of the house, rushing to my car when I went to pick him up for our trip. Sonya and Dimitri must have been working on research, with Lee there to help. I had brought Eddie and Jill on my way here, after being told they wanted control subjects to use for their studies. Now, Adrian was free from them for the day, while Jill and Eddie were trapped as test subjects for their pointless study.

"Finally, I was wondering when you'd arrive, Sage," Adrian stated, a grin on his face as he climbed inside. I was a bit tired, considering I had been awake most of the night after having nightmares about the Gate. I couldn't exactly blame Zoe for it, but her words had kept it on my mind. I was sure I had woken her up a few times, with how I had found myself screaming at moments when I got up. She would stare at me with concern in her eyes, looking ready to say something, but stopping at the last second.

I was rather surprised by Adrian's outfit today, but I made no comment on it. He always wore nice clothes, but this time, it looked like he had intentionally worked hard to wrinkle up his outfit. No one could put that many wrinkles in a shirt without effort, so I knew it was intentional. Somehow, I knew it was related to his meeting with his father, but I didn't want to point out anything that would make him upset right now. "Ready for our research trip?" I replied, watching him frown as he sat down inside.

"How did I know you would say that, Sage? I figured that's what you'd be doing while I was with my dad, so I brought along a little present to help," he told me, handing me a small box with a frown. "Careful with it, I'd be rather upset if my ride home passed out from working too hard," he added, as I opened it and saw the philosopher's stone inside.

"Not quite what I meant, but I suppose it will help. I have some news, actually. We have another Alchemist on the job, helping me keep an eye on Jill," I told Adrian, watching him raise an eyebrow at me. "She thinks we are off investigating a potential spirit user in LA. It was the only excuse I could come up with for our trip," I explained, watching him nod as I began driving.

"Works for me, Sage. I'll back any story you give if it helps keep your cover intact. I know the Alchemists wouldn't be too happy about how friendly you are with us these days," Adrian stated, giving me a knowing look. "Speaking of which, what exactly is going on between us these days? I get that you overheard me the other day….but we both know there are plenty of problems that will come up if we actually start anything. My people treat is as a taboo and I have no idea what the Alchemists do to those that break with their stupid rules," he asked, making me sigh, unsure of what to say.

"I don't know. We already have a lot going on…with Ed, and my amnesia. Don't get me wrong, I think you are amazing. You're loyal, brave, honest, and willing to do anything for those you care about. Maybe once we finish figuring all of this out…we can try to move forward," I told him. I know it had to break his heart, hearing that I was backing down. After thinking about this for a day, I had realized that I had let my emotions get the better of me before. I had too much going on to focus on a relationship right now, no matter how right it felt to let myself fall for Adrian.

He closed his eyes, groaning as he leaned back in his seat. "Come on, Sage, don't give me that crap. No one understands you like I do and you know it," he argued, glancing back at me after a few moments. He was right, but I wasn't willing to back down right now. "Look, I don't care how unnatural you think I am. I don't care what nonsense the Alchemists are throwing into your head. No one is going to love you the way I do, Sydney. When I see you, my entire day is brighter. I'm inspired to do great things, not to impress you, but because I want to. That's never happened before, and I know that this feeling isn't going away. Either you're going to have to open your eyes to what's right in front of you, or we're both going to be in an awkward situation."

My grip on the wheel tightened, and I pulled over. This was not a discussion to be had while driving, not when I was getting overemotional like this. "I do see it, that's the problem! Dammit, Adrian, why can't you let this go for just one moment? I know all of that, and I know that we would probably be great together, but I just can't. I have no idea who I used to be, I'm investigating more into magic right now, I've got to research alchemy to solve Ed's problem and my own amnesia, and I've got the Alchemists breathing down my neck because they think I've forgotten what my job is supposed to be! I would be thrilled to start something with you Adrian, but I just can't right now," I stated, my voice growing louder. I felt a hand touch my shoulder, making me turn to see Adrian staring at me with a look of understanding mixed with sadness. He brushed a hand against my cheek, making me realize that I had begun crying over all of this. I felt so overwhelmed right now, I just couldn't deal with anything more.

He nodded, his hand still lingering on my cheek. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. We really managed to make a mess of things, huh Sage? Never a dull moment for us," he commented, sounding darkly amused by the prospect.

I took a deep breath, giving him a weak smile. "Not too badly, most of the mess was made for us. We just ended up responsible for cleaning it up." He nodded, his gaze still lingering on me.

"Well, whenever you feel ready for something, Sage, just let me know. I'll be here, loving you more than any guy ever will, waiting for the day you realize that you should give yourself a break sometimes," he told me, making me nod. He was still so amazing and understanding, it made me want to go back on my word from before and change my mind right now. Glancing at the box in the backseat, I knew that I couldn't though. I had to put my feelings aside, and focus on my problems for now.

"We're meeting with another moroi, aren't we?" I asked, just realizing an issue. I could not risk word of this outing reaching the Alchemists. While it was rare for their kind to come into contact with us, it wasn't impossible. He nodded, so I sighed, already coming up with somewhat of an idea. I clapped my hands together, already aware that this would be a bit painful. Touching one hand to my cheek, I grimaced as I separated the gold from my tattoo, pulling the metal into my hand and forming a neat ball with it that sparkled in the sunlight.

My cheek was a bit red and it stung after the transmutation, but the end result was what I wanted. Instead of the Alchemists' golden lily, my cheek now had a grayish-silver tattoo, faded and rather dull in comparison to the old color. "For all intents and purposes, I was simply a human you befriended in the area. I don't want to risk the Alchemists learning about what I'm doing out here," I told Adrian, watching him nod as he took the gold from me.

"That's never going to stop surprising me, Sage." he commented, giving me a grin as his usual cheerful mood returned. I was glad that the tension had eased, that we were back to acting like normal. Still, I couldn't completely push thoughts of him out of my mind. My check was warm from where he had brushed away my tears, tingling from his touch. I wanted that feeling to stay, even though I knew such sentiments were ridiculous. "Hey, won't that have some side-effects on you? I thought the gold was an important part of the tattoo."

I nodded, touching my cheek gently as I began to pull back onto the road. "The gold is what binds the magic and vampire blood to my body. Without it, the magic will fade and I'll lose the benefits it once gave me. To be honest, I really don't need it anyway. I'm well aware that the public would not react well to the existence of vampires, so I'm not about to go around spouting off secrets kept by the Alchemists," I told him, watching him nod in understanding.

We were actually meeting Adrian's father in San Diego, not LA. Based on what I understood, his father simply believed Adrian was partying in California, up to no good. His family really had low expectations of him, and it made me wonder why Adrian was so insistent on seeing him. The closer we got to San Diego, the quieter he got, stopping his light banter and growing thoughtful instead. Every now and then, I could catch his gaze turning towards me, making me realize that his father wasn't the only thing on his mind. He had plenty of things going on in his life, and his feelings for me were something that neither of us could keep out of our heads for long.

The hotel we arrived at hadn't appeared like much on the outside, but once I stepped inside, I couldn't help but gasp. The back wall of the lobby was almost entirely covered with windows that offered a dramatic view of the Pacific. I was already moving closer, hearing Adrian chuckle behind me. "Take a closer look while I call the old man. Don't forget to keep an eye on your research," he told me, winking as he pressed the box into my hands and walked off, pulling out his cell phone.

I kept the box in my hands, opening it up so that Ed, Al, and Winry could enjoy this view along with me. The view was amazing, and the beautiful weather seemed to make it even more so. The water glittered under the sunlight, and from here, I could see a sparkling pool down below, surrounded by sunbathers. If it wasn't for the fact that I needed to inform Ed and his family of what I'd learned, I would have been tempted to go down and swim for a moment. It would feel amazing in this heat, with cool water running over my skin as I floated on the surface of the water. I set down the box so I could press my hands against the glass window, staring longingly at the water below.

I was so transfixed by the beauty outside that I didn't notice Adrian's return. It took hearing the sound of someone calling for another girl named Sydney to turn. My eyes went wide when I realized how close he was standing to me, just by my side with a slight look of amusement in his eyes. "Sorry, Sage, I didn't want to interrupt. You looked happy for a change," he told me, smiling as he realized that I had been a bit startled.

I was tempted to take a step back, to put a bit of distance between us, but I was already tired of ignoring what I wanted. It had only been a few hours since I told Adrian that I needed time, but having him right next to me, with this amazing view right next to me, it just seemed like this was a bit too romantic to pass up the opportunity. "For a change? I'm happy lots of times."

He raised an eyebrow at me, looking like he was preparing a snarky comment already. "Oh? Could of fooled me, Sage. You've been downright depressing since you lost your memories," he insisted, seeming to change his mind at the last second. It was a bit more serious than he usually was, sounding genuinely concerned for how I was feeling.

I shook my head, smiling up at him as I placed my hand on his arm, stepping just a bit closer to him. "I may have some issues I'm working through, but trust me, I've got plenty of things to keep me in a good mood," I told him, knowing very well that he would understand the hint.

"Damn it, Sage," he whispered, sounding a bit disappointed as he stared into my eyes. "You're not making it easy to keep my distance," he told me, his hand reaching out and touching my cheek. I felt my skin tingle under his hand, and I watched as he leaned down, just a bit closer to me. Part of me knew that I should push him away, that I was still unable to deal with the stress of a relationship right now, but I didn't want to. I wanted to give myself something, just this once. Maybe then, I could move on and get these feelings out of my head.

I moved my hand from his arm, wrapping it around his neck as my other hand moved to embrace him. Adrian didn't need more of an invitation than that, lowering his head down to mine in just one more moment. That was when something amazing happened, something that hadn't ever happened to me for as long as I could remember. I stopped thinking. My mind went blank, and my entire world became focused on nothing but Adrian. His arms wrapped around me, pressing me closer to him as my lips moved on their own against his. I could feel my heart racing as heat spread through my body, wanting more already.

Adrian seemed to sense that, his hand running through my hair and beginning to trail down my back, stopping at my waist. He moved to trail his lips from mine, pressing them against my cheek before a shout interrupted us. "Adrian Ivashkov, what do you think you are doing?" a man demanded, with silver hair and a long face. I felt heat rise into my cheeks, realizing that Adrian and I had been in a rather public place when we started….that.

Taking a closer look at the man, I realized fairly quickly that he was a moroi. Based on the look on Adrian's face, I understood that this was a very bad person to have caught us like this. The man before us must have been Adrian's father, and he had just caught his son committing one of the greatest taboos of their race.

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