"So how's things with Keera?" Volt tossed this question, out of the blue, about a week later, when he and Kou were watching tv in their break room, between shifts. Kou had been taking a swig of his beer at the time, and, bottle still in his mouth, cocked a sideways glance at Volt. He swallowed quickly, and spoke.
"What do you mean, how's things?" He frowned a bit.
"You're dating her, aren't you?"
"No, we're not dating." Kou wasn't sure if that was the correct answer. They'd spent nearly every waking, non-working moment together in the last week. He'd even passed out at her place one night when they'd been drinking. He and Keera had become firm friends in the last few days. But dating? She wasn't really his type.
"You're not?" Volt frowned at Kou. "You're practically living with her..."
"No, I'm not," retorted Kou, snappily. "We're just friends, and that's all. She's not my type."
Volt's crimson eyes widened. "You're fucking joking, right?"
"Volt," Kou began, patiently. "My type is the tall, thin blonde type that can do more important things with her mouth than talk. My type..."
"Shut up." Volt glared at him. "Just last week you were whining how you wanted to be in love again, and all that crap."
"Well, who needs love?" Kou bantered. "Keera's a terrific companion. All I need is a good bedwarmer, and I've got the best of both worlds."
"Supercilious asshole." Before Kou could even begin to tease Volt about his vocabulary, Volt continued. "A nice girl like Keera, and you're just using her. Leading her on."
"It's not like that!" He began to get defensive, now.
"Hell it isn't! Maybe she's not your type, but how do you know she doesn't have feelings for you?"
Kou closed his mouth, stung by the thought.
"Fact is, I know a guy who was here last night when she met you here. He wants to meet her. He's a good type...wouldn't lead her on, like you are."
"I told you..."
"Fuck you. Selfish little bastard. If you were any kind of a friend, you'd (a) stop monopolizing her, so other guys wouldn't be scared away, and (b) be glad that she has the chance to meet someone who would care for her. But NO, not Kou. Kou's got to have everything, even things he doesn't want..." Volt tensed, and trailed off as Kou shot to his feet, a flush on his cheeks.
"I. Told. You. That...."
"Your shift, Volt." Sion trotted up the stairs and grabbed a beer out of the fridge, and swung into his favourite chair, all in one easy motion.
Volt stood, and walked right past the unmoving Kou, who gave him a shove. Didn't make much difference -- Volt was a brick wall, and a shove wasn't going to move him. He did stop, however, and turn slowly towards Kou, who was facing him with angry eyes and clenched fists. He didn't care. He wasn't afraid of him. But he was surprised that he'd been able to get under Leifoh's skin like this, and rather liked it. He narrowed his eyes and stared Kou down, uttering one word: User.
With a roar, the normally-unflappable younger man launched himself at Volt, aiming a punch right for the throat -- if not for a football-style tackle from lightning-fast Sion, there would have been a brawl. As it was, Volt stepped forward and pulled Kou out from under Sion, lifting him by his long dark hair, and flung him against the wall. Kou struggled to get up, but Volt twisted Kou's leather vest in his meaty hand and pinned Kou tightly. He leaned in and hissed, "You're nothing but a cheap user. You're treating a nice girl like shit, and it's going to stop. Here and now. She meeting you here again tonight?"
Eyes wide, Kou nodded.
"Then you decide. Right here and now. When she shows up, do I introduce her to my friend, or are you going to start treating her right?"
"I...I don't know..."
"You'd better know, by the end of my shift. Two hours, Leifoh. That's it. And then I want an answer. Understood?"
Kou nodded quickly.
Volt released him, and stared hard at him for a long moment. Then, with a final glare, he went downstairs for his shift.
"What the hell..." Sion rose from the floor, brushing himself off. "What did you do to piss him off like that?"
"Nothing. Never mind." Kou grabbed his beer, and went to sulk in the corner, ignoring Sion.
***
Keera got out of the cab, and thanked the driver. She didn't feel safe walking the streets at night unless Kou was with her.
She'd just gotten her hair highlighted, and was wearing a cute new outfit -- rather revealing, but cute. While Kou always told her she looked great, she wanted to look especially nice tonight...they'd planned to go out to dinner after his last shift.
She was enjoying herself so much these days. Kou was a ton of fun, and so easy to talk to. Indeed, once they got going, they could literally talk for hours without getting bored. She hadn't made any more headway into finding out about his past, but she had hopes that someday she would. He wouldn't even tell her what the tattoos meant.
Ah, well. Someday she would find out. For now, however, she was content to just be with him.
She suspected that she was falling head over heels in love with him.
Keera was reasonably sure that Kou had feelings for her, as well. He must have, she reasoned. Otherwise, why would a gorgeous hunk like him spend so much time with her?
As she entered the bar, she spotted Kou over by the bar, talking to a tall blonde girl. He was smiling and flirting with the young woman. Keera didn't mind...she knew that was part of his job, and he tended to be a bit flirtatious, by nature. She was, as well, so she didn't worry about it. As she approached him, however, and he spotted her, his expression changed from pleasure to surprised guilt.
"Keera...you're early..."
"That a problem?" She wondered about the bruises on his face -- there must have been trouble. "Are you ok? Were you in a fight?"
"Yeah, sort of. Look, can I talk to you for a moment? Over here?" He motioned her over to under the stairs. It was the only place for a bit of privacy in that bar.
"What's up?"
"Well, I want to...damn, but you look great tonight! I love that dress!"
"Thanks." She laughed, and flushed a little. "What do you want to talk about?"
"Well," Kou looked away. In fact, he wouldn't meet her eyes. She had a bad feeling about this...
"I don't think we should see each other anymore."
"Fine." Keera turned around and walked away. That was her way. Never beg, never plead, never ask why...just go. Kou watched her go, stunned.
"Where's she going?" Volt's harsh voice pulled him out of his reverie.
"Uh...I don't know...uh..."
"What?"
"I don't know. I told her that I didn't think we should see each other anymore, and she said "Fine" and walked out. She didn't ask why, or anything?" Kou stared at Volt, bewildered.
"But I was going to introduce her to..."
"Fuck off, Volt. I don't want to hear about it." Kou walked upstairs, to retrieve his jacket. His shift was over, and he just wanted to go home.
As he shrugged into his leather coat, he remembered the reservations he had made for them at Le Muncherie, one of the best restaurants in town. Kou sat down on the couch, and pulled the silver-and-turquoise bracelet he had bought for her birthday out of his pocket, and just stared at it, sadly.
Maybe he'd made the wrong choice, when he'd told Volt that he would back off. But the other option was a more serious committment, and something in him had panicked at the thought. He hadn't been much of a husband before...
Ruthlessly, he pushed that thought down, as he did with any memories of his much-better-forgotten past.
He sighed as Volt came upstairs, and stood, staring at him. He stood up, himself.
"Here," he said, tossing the bracelet at Volt. "If things work out for her and that guy, tell him to give her this as a gift. I bought it for her birthday. She loves turquoise." Head bowed, he left to go home, leaving Volt staring after him. Slowly, Volt smiled, and put the bracelet away in his locker. After seeing the look in Kou's eyes, he decided that he wouldn't be introducing Keera to anyone else, anytime soon.
***
She was so mad, she didn't bother to call a cab home. It was only a few blocks, anyway, and the cold air might help cool her off a bit.
What an idiot she'd been. Of course a guy like Kou could do a lot better than her. Why had he even wasted her time in the first place? Just playing, obviously. Guys like him liked to boost their egos by playing around like that. She shouldn't have been so surprised. Or so hurt. She should have seen this coming.
Wiping angry tears away, she looked around, and realized that she'd taken the wrong street. Pretty dumb, Scott, she thought to herself. Still cursing, she turned to retrace her steps. She hadn't gotten far, however, when she noticed the sound of footsteps behind her. Throwing a swift glance over her shoulder, she noticed three men behind her, and began to panic...the streets around her weren't the safest, and here she was, alone in the dark. Cursing her high heeled shoes, she began to run. Behind her, she could hear the guys laughing, and running after her.
***
Kou had meant to go straight home, but couldn't resist taking a detour, one that would lead him past Keera's house. Maybe she'd be home, and he could explain everything to her. Maybe she'd even listen.
Every time he thought about the scene at the bar, he felt like he was going to cry. He'd thought maybe they could stay friends, but it was obvious that she was angry with him.
Maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe he should have told Volt...
Was that a scream he'd just heard?
Probably. This wasn't the best neighbourhood in town. He continued walking, only to stop short when he heard it again.
Dammit, he thought. He wasn't a cop. But it sounded like a woman screaming, and...
And the hell with it. He broke into a run, into the direction that the sound had come from.
***
"Dammit! Little bitch!" The largest of the three pulled his bleeding hand away, examining the spot where Keera had bit it. It was taking the other two all of their strength to hold her down. Keera screamed again, and intensified her struggles...they weren't getting her without a fight!
"Here," the big one muttered, and ripped her dress right down the front. One meaty hand tore her bra off, cutting her skin where the fabric pulled the most, and ripped her panties, as well. "Hold her still!"
"I'm fucking trying to! Little wildcat!"
As the largest tried to lower himself onto her, she managed to get her leg up, and belt him in the gonads with one pointed shoe.
"Aaaaghhhhh!!!" He screamed, and covered himself, sinking to the ground. Keera let loose with another scream, but her throat was getting hoarse, and one of her assailants had an arm around her neck, cutting off her air.
"Hold her," the other one said. "I'm gonna break both her legs, so she can't kick..."
He didn't get a chance to finish the sentence. A vicious punch from Kou slammed him face-first into the brick wall of the alley. Kou slammed his head into the wall a couple more times for good measure, checked to make sure the other guy was out, then turned his attention to Keera and her attacker.
"Fuck off, man. Don't come any closer." The kid held a knife to her throat.
"Let her go, I'll let you go. Hurt her, I'll damn well kill you." Kou's voice was ice-cold deadly. "Let her go."
"No way, man. Get away from me!" At that moment, Keera fainted, surprising the teen enough that he dropped her. Kou seized the moment, grabbing his wrist and twisting it until he heard the bones break. He was surprised when Keera, tattered and half-naked, pushed him aside and planted a fist of her own into her assailant's face. For a moment, he stood there, stunned, as tears poured down her dirt-smeared face, and her breath hitched. She was trying hard not to cry.
"Oh, here." He stripped off his coat, and wrapped it around her. "You building's over there...can you walk that far?" Head down, she nodded. "Come on, then," he cooed softly, arm around her.
***
Keera soaked in the hot bath, letting the steaming water ease her aches and pains. She was fine, she'd insisted to Kou, and didn't need to go to the hospital. Merely bruised.
He'd still insisted on accompanying her inside, and running her a bath. He was in the kitchen right now, whipping up something to eat -- whatever it was, it smelled delicious. She didn't know he could cook.
Her aches and pains were fading, thanks to the hot water and the painkillers Kou had make her take. And, truth to tell, she wasn't all that shaken up. It had been terrifying, but these things happened. It was her own fault for not taking a cab home.
No, it was the ache on the inside that was bothering her. Kou was being kind to her, and she had to admit, he'd really been a knight in shining armour when he'd rescued her, but her mind kept returning back to the scene in the bar. Where he'd dumped her.
That part had hurt more than anything else could have, tonight. She wasn't the most trusting of people. Hell, her ex-husband had pretty much beaten all of the trust out of her, years ago. But Kou had seemed...well, special. Not to sound corny, but he had. He'd seemed to be different from all the rest. And she'd trusted him the moment she had met him.
Why had he dumped her? She'd thought things were going so well. Was it that blonde back at the bar? Perhaps that was it. He came into contact with so many women, every night that he worked. Perhaps she just didn't measure up to any of them. That was probably it.
Against her will, Keera had started sniffling again, when there was a tap at the door. She tried to stop crying, but when Kou poked his head in, there was so much concern on his face that it was as if a dam had burst, and she started bawling.
"Kee...Kee, are you ok? Oh, I knew we should have gone to the emergency room..."
"No, no," she sobbed against his warm chest. It felt wonderful, his holding her so close. "I'm ok."
"Ok," he soothed. "Just let it all out, love. Go ahead. Just cry it all out..."
"Don't call me that."
"What, 'Kee'?"
"No." She sobbed even harder, unable to stop herself. "Don't call me 'Love'."
Kou went completely still. He hadn't even realized that he had called her that.
"Sorry." He stood. "Whenever you're ready to come out, I've got a snack ready."
"I'm not hungry."
"Fine." His gaze was remote. "I'll leave, then."
He went to turn away, but the expression on her face stopped him. "What is it?," he asked, gently.
She took a deep breath. She hated to ask him for anything, but..."Don't leave. Please?"
He paused, then nodded. "Are you getting out of the tub?"
"Yeah."
He dug some fluffy towels out of the closet. "Need any help?"
"No."
"Ok. I'll wait here, though, just in case." He turned around, to afford her some privacy, and tried to ignore the sounds of her towelling off.
Finally she touched his arm. "Ok. I'm going to go put some clothes on."
He looked down at her, so short and so fragile-looking in those big, puffy towels, struck by the vulnerability in her eyes. Without a word, he put his arms around her and pulled her close.
Screw Volt, he thought, snuggling her in his arms and pressing a kiss onto her wet hair. He would talk to the other bouncer tomorrow. Because he was staying here with Keera, tonight.
*****
TBC!
"What do you mean, how's things?" He frowned a bit.
"You're dating her, aren't you?"
"No, we're not dating." Kou wasn't sure if that was the correct answer. They'd spent nearly every waking, non-working moment together in the last week. He'd even passed out at her place one night when they'd been drinking. He and Keera had become firm friends in the last few days. But dating? She wasn't really his type.
"You're not?" Volt frowned at Kou. "You're practically living with her..."
"No, I'm not," retorted Kou, snappily. "We're just friends, and that's all. She's not my type."
Volt's crimson eyes widened. "You're fucking joking, right?"
"Volt," Kou began, patiently. "My type is the tall, thin blonde type that can do more important things with her mouth than talk. My type..."
"Shut up." Volt glared at him. "Just last week you were whining how you wanted to be in love again, and all that crap."
"Well, who needs love?" Kou bantered. "Keera's a terrific companion. All I need is a good bedwarmer, and I've got the best of both worlds."
"Supercilious asshole." Before Kou could even begin to tease Volt about his vocabulary, Volt continued. "A nice girl like Keera, and you're just using her. Leading her on."
"It's not like that!" He began to get defensive, now.
"Hell it isn't! Maybe she's not your type, but how do you know she doesn't have feelings for you?"
Kou closed his mouth, stung by the thought.
"Fact is, I know a guy who was here last night when she met you here. He wants to meet her. He's a good type...wouldn't lead her on, like you are."
"I told you..."
"Fuck you. Selfish little bastard. If you were any kind of a friend, you'd (a) stop monopolizing her, so other guys wouldn't be scared away, and (b) be glad that she has the chance to meet someone who would care for her. But NO, not Kou. Kou's got to have everything, even things he doesn't want..." Volt tensed, and trailed off as Kou shot to his feet, a flush on his cheeks.
"I. Told. You. That...."
"Your shift, Volt." Sion trotted up the stairs and grabbed a beer out of the fridge, and swung into his favourite chair, all in one easy motion.
Volt stood, and walked right past the unmoving Kou, who gave him a shove. Didn't make much difference -- Volt was a brick wall, and a shove wasn't going to move him. He did stop, however, and turn slowly towards Kou, who was facing him with angry eyes and clenched fists. He didn't care. He wasn't afraid of him. But he was surprised that he'd been able to get under Leifoh's skin like this, and rather liked it. He narrowed his eyes and stared Kou down, uttering one word: User.
With a roar, the normally-unflappable younger man launched himself at Volt, aiming a punch right for the throat -- if not for a football-style tackle from lightning-fast Sion, there would have been a brawl. As it was, Volt stepped forward and pulled Kou out from under Sion, lifting him by his long dark hair, and flung him against the wall. Kou struggled to get up, but Volt twisted Kou's leather vest in his meaty hand and pinned Kou tightly. He leaned in and hissed, "You're nothing but a cheap user. You're treating a nice girl like shit, and it's going to stop. Here and now. She meeting you here again tonight?"
Eyes wide, Kou nodded.
"Then you decide. Right here and now. When she shows up, do I introduce her to my friend, or are you going to start treating her right?"
"I...I don't know..."
"You'd better know, by the end of my shift. Two hours, Leifoh. That's it. And then I want an answer. Understood?"
Kou nodded quickly.
Volt released him, and stared hard at him for a long moment. Then, with a final glare, he went downstairs for his shift.
"What the hell..." Sion rose from the floor, brushing himself off. "What did you do to piss him off like that?"
"Nothing. Never mind." Kou grabbed his beer, and went to sulk in the corner, ignoring Sion.
***
Keera got out of the cab, and thanked the driver. She didn't feel safe walking the streets at night unless Kou was with her.
She'd just gotten her hair highlighted, and was wearing a cute new outfit -- rather revealing, but cute. While Kou always told her she looked great, she wanted to look especially nice tonight...they'd planned to go out to dinner after his last shift.
She was enjoying herself so much these days. Kou was a ton of fun, and so easy to talk to. Indeed, once they got going, they could literally talk for hours without getting bored. She hadn't made any more headway into finding out about his past, but she had hopes that someday she would. He wouldn't even tell her what the tattoos meant.
Ah, well. Someday she would find out. For now, however, she was content to just be with him.
She suspected that she was falling head over heels in love with him.
Keera was reasonably sure that Kou had feelings for her, as well. He must have, she reasoned. Otherwise, why would a gorgeous hunk like him spend so much time with her?
As she entered the bar, she spotted Kou over by the bar, talking to a tall blonde girl. He was smiling and flirting with the young woman. Keera didn't mind...she knew that was part of his job, and he tended to be a bit flirtatious, by nature. She was, as well, so she didn't worry about it. As she approached him, however, and he spotted her, his expression changed from pleasure to surprised guilt.
"Keera...you're early..."
"That a problem?" She wondered about the bruises on his face -- there must have been trouble. "Are you ok? Were you in a fight?"
"Yeah, sort of. Look, can I talk to you for a moment? Over here?" He motioned her over to under the stairs. It was the only place for a bit of privacy in that bar.
"What's up?"
"Well, I want to...damn, but you look great tonight! I love that dress!"
"Thanks." She laughed, and flushed a little. "What do you want to talk about?"
"Well," Kou looked away. In fact, he wouldn't meet her eyes. She had a bad feeling about this...
"I don't think we should see each other anymore."
"Fine." Keera turned around and walked away. That was her way. Never beg, never plead, never ask why...just go. Kou watched her go, stunned.
"Where's she going?" Volt's harsh voice pulled him out of his reverie.
"Uh...I don't know...uh..."
"What?"
"I don't know. I told her that I didn't think we should see each other anymore, and she said "Fine" and walked out. She didn't ask why, or anything?" Kou stared at Volt, bewildered.
"But I was going to introduce her to..."
"Fuck off, Volt. I don't want to hear about it." Kou walked upstairs, to retrieve his jacket. His shift was over, and he just wanted to go home.
As he shrugged into his leather coat, he remembered the reservations he had made for them at Le Muncherie, one of the best restaurants in town. Kou sat down on the couch, and pulled the silver-and-turquoise bracelet he had bought for her birthday out of his pocket, and just stared at it, sadly.
Maybe he'd made the wrong choice, when he'd told Volt that he would back off. But the other option was a more serious committment, and something in him had panicked at the thought. He hadn't been much of a husband before...
Ruthlessly, he pushed that thought down, as he did with any memories of his much-better-forgotten past.
He sighed as Volt came upstairs, and stood, staring at him. He stood up, himself.
"Here," he said, tossing the bracelet at Volt. "If things work out for her and that guy, tell him to give her this as a gift. I bought it for her birthday. She loves turquoise." Head bowed, he left to go home, leaving Volt staring after him. Slowly, Volt smiled, and put the bracelet away in his locker. After seeing the look in Kou's eyes, he decided that he wouldn't be introducing Keera to anyone else, anytime soon.
***
She was so mad, she didn't bother to call a cab home. It was only a few blocks, anyway, and the cold air might help cool her off a bit.
What an idiot she'd been. Of course a guy like Kou could do a lot better than her. Why had he even wasted her time in the first place? Just playing, obviously. Guys like him liked to boost their egos by playing around like that. She shouldn't have been so surprised. Or so hurt. She should have seen this coming.
Wiping angry tears away, she looked around, and realized that she'd taken the wrong street. Pretty dumb, Scott, she thought to herself. Still cursing, she turned to retrace her steps. She hadn't gotten far, however, when she noticed the sound of footsteps behind her. Throwing a swift glance over her shoulder, she noticed three men behind her, and began to panic...the streets around her weren't the safest, and here she was, alone in the dark. Cursing her high heeled shoes, she began to run. Behind her, she could hear the guys laughing, and running after her.
***
Kou had meant to go straight home, but couldn't resist taking a detour, one that would lead him past Keera's house. Maybe she'd be home, and he could explain everything to her. Maybe she'd even listen.
Every time he thought about the scene at the bar, he felt like he was going to cry. He'd thought maybe they could stay friends, but it was obvious that she was angry with him.
Maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe he should have told Volt...
Was that a scream he'd just heard?
Probably. This wasn't the best neighbourhood in town. He continued walking, only to stop short when he heard it again.
Dammit, he thought. He wasn't a cop. But it sounded like a woman screaming, and...
And the hell with it. He broke into a run, into the direction that the sound had come from.
***
"Dammit! Little bitch!" The largest of the three pulled his bleeding hand away, examining the spot where Keera had bit it. It was taking the other two all of their strength to hold her down. Keera screamed again, and intensified her struggles...they weren't getting her without a fight!
"Here," the big one muttered, and ripped her dress right down the front. One meaty hand tore her bra off, cutting her skin where the fabric pulled the most, and ripped her panties, as well. "Hold her still!"
"I'm fucking trying to! Little wildcat!"
As the largest tried to lower himself onto her, she managed to get her leg up, and belt him in the gonads with one pointed shoe.
"Aaaaghhhhh!!!" He screamed, and covered himself, sinking to the ground. Keera let loose with another scream, but her throat was getting hoarse, and one of her assailants had an arm around her neck, cutting off her air.
"Hold her," the other one said. "I'm gonna break both her legs, so she can't kick..."
He didn't get a chance to finish the sentence. A vicious punch from Kou slammed him face-first into the brick wall of the alley. Kou slammed his head into the wall a couple more times for good measure, checked to make sure the other guy was out, then turned his attention to Keera and her attacker.
"Fuck off, man. Don't come any closer." The kid held a knife to her throat.
"Let her go, I'll let you go. Hurt her, I'll damn well kill you." Kou's voice was ice-cold deadly. "Let her go."
"No way, man. Get away from me!" At that moment, Keera fainted, surprising the teen enough that he dropped her. Kou seized the moment, grabbing his wrist and twisting it until he heard the bones break. He was surprised when Keera, tattered and half-naked, pushed him aside and planted a fist of her own into her assailant's face. For a moment, he stood there, stunned, as tears poured down her dirt-smeared face, and her breath hitched. She was trying hard not to cry.
"Oh, here." He stripped off his coat, and wrapped it around her. "You building's over there...can you walk that far?" Head down, she nodded. "Come on, then," he cooed softly, arm around her.
***
Keera soaked in the hot bath, letting the steaming water ease her aches and pains. She was fine, she'd insisted to Kou, and didn't need to go to the hospital. Merely bruised.
He'd still insisted on accompanying her inside, and running her a bath. He was in the kitchen right now, whipping up something to eat -- whatever it was, it smelled delicious. She didn't know he could cook.
Her aches and pains were fading, thanks to the hot water and the painkillers Kou had make her take. And, truth to tell, she wasn't all that shaken up. It had been terrifying, but these things happened. It was her own fault for not taking a cab home.
No, it was the ache on the inside that was bothering her. Kou was being kind to her, and she had to admit, he'd really been a knight in shining armour when he'd rescued her, but her mind kept returning back to the scene in the bar. Where he'd dumped her.
That part had hurt more than anything else could have, tonight. She wasn't the most trusting of people. Hell, her ex-husband had pretty much beaten all of the trust out of her, years ago. But Kou had seemed...well, special. Not to sound corny, but he had. He'd seemed to be different from all the rest. And she'd trusted him the moment she had met him.
Why had he dumped her? She'd thought things were going so well. Was it that blonde back at the bar? Perhaps that was it. He came into contact with so many women, every night that he worked. Perhaps she just didn't measure up to any of them. That was probably it.
Against her will, Keera had started sniffling again, when there was a tap at the door. She tried to stop crying, but when Kou poked his head in, there was so much concern on his face that it was as if a dam had burst, and she started bawling.
"Kee...Kee, are you ok? Oh, I knew we should have gone to the emergency room..."
"No, no," she sobbed against his warm chest. It felt wonderful, his holding her so close. "I'm ok."
"Ok," he soothed. "Just let it all out, love. Go ahead. Just cry it all out..."
"Don't call me that."
"What, 'Kee'?"
"No." She sobbed even harder, unable to stop herself. "Don't call me 'Love'."
Kou went completely still. He hadn't even realized that he had called her that.
"Sorry." He stood. "Whenever you're ready to come out, I've got a snack ready."
"I'm not hungry."
"Fine." His gaze was remote. "I'll leave, then."
He went to turn away, but the expression on her face stopped him. "What is it?," he asked, gently.
She took a deep breath. She hated to ask him for anything, but..."Don't leave. Please?"
He paused, then nodded. "Are you getting out of the tub?"
"Yeah."
He dug some fluffy towels out of the closet. "Need any help?"
"No."
"Ok. I'll wait here, though, just in case." He turned around, to afford her some privacy, and tried to ignore the sounds of her towelling off.
Finally she touched his arm. "Ok. I'm going to go put some clothes on."
He looked down at her, so short and so fragile-looking in those big, puffy towels, struck by the vulnerability in her eyes. Without a word, he put his arms around her and pulled her close.
Screw Volt, he thought, snuggling her in his arms and pressing a kiss onto her wet hair. He would talk to the other bouncer tomorrow. Because he was staying here with Keera, tonight.
*****
TBC!