Chapter 12

Tyana hobbled slowly into her hotel room, Jeff following her closely. He closed the door behind her and rushed to help her when she tried to pick her bag up off the floor. She smiled at his sweetness and thanked him. Sinking onto the bed, she propped her crutches up against the bedside table. She pulled a new pair of pants and a top out of the bag and then noticed Jeff staring at her from where he stood near by.

She laughed gently, "What?"

A smile crept onto his sexy lips and he grinned cutely, "Nothing, just looking at'cha"

Tyana blushed at him and embarrassedly looked down to the bed cover. She still had yet to learn how to accept a compliment without turning beet red.

She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling, "Thanks for everything Jeff. I realise we don't know each other very well but it means a lot to me that you'd go to all the trouble of making sure I'm ok"

Jeff smiled ecstatically, "It's ok. And besides, what else was I supposed to do? Leave you to fend for yourself?" the questions were rhetorical but Tyana answered them anyway,

"Most would…"

Jeff closed the gap between them and sat beside her on the bed, "Well not me, not who I am" he nudged her gently in the arm and she chuckled at his child like expression.

They stared at one another for a moment until Tyana inhaled deeply, breaking eye contact by quickly glancing down at the fresh clothes in her lap.

"You should really get to going, don't wanna miss your flight…" their eyes locked again and Jeff beamed softly,

"Right, 'cause that would be…bad"

She nodded, "Yeah, bad"

Another silent moment passed where they simply watched one another and Jeff was the one to sigh this time.

"Ok, I'll call to check you're ok later, yeah?" he suggested, planning on doing it anyway no matter what her reaction was.

Her head moved up and down, "Ok, if you remember"

"I'll remember, count on it" He nodded with her and smiled before reluctantly getting up to leave. Before his feet moved to carry him away from her Tyana clasped his right hand in hers. He turned back curiously to her warm smile.

"Thank you Jeff" She reached up and hooked one finger into the collar of his shirt, pulling him down so that his face met hers. She kissed his cheek gratefully and briefly trailed her hand down the side of his face. Jeff's lips parted at her touch and he fought to keep his eyes open and his lips to himself.

"I'll call you later, rest up" he smiled and left her alone, his unwillingness to leave visible.

Tyana waited until the door closed behind him and carefully reached for her original communicator, the pains of last nights fight returning full force.

"Tyana, where've you been, I've been waiting for your report since you left last night" Bret asked of her annoyed, his previous worry over her health fading when he saw she was fine, bar a few cuts and bruises.

"I got the card Bret don't worry" she told him, holding up the grey chip. "Only, I picked something else up too…" she showed him the bandaged leg. "Got carved up like roast beef on a Sunday"

"Oh Ty…are you ok?" Bret's brow creased with worry, suddenly feeling guilty for being so short with her only seconds earlier.

"Yeah, it kills like…well, it hurts. But otherwise it's ok 'cause ya know I got the card and bitch got kicked by Jeff" she chuckled, remembering how Jeff had pushed her away and she'd ended up being knocked unconscious.

"Jeff, you mean the person you keep running into? The one that's been phoning you?"

"Uh-huh, him. It's beginning to creep me out with all the coincidences. I mean me and the latest were in serious kick ass mode out the back of the club you sent me to and she's got me on the floor with this knife poised over me right? And then Jeff comes out and totally saves the day…of course it would have been more helpful if he'd come out before the whole stabbing a knife into my thigh thing but ya know, better late than never right?"

Her thankful smile faded when Bret's reaction to her story wasn't what she was hoping for. He stared at her grimly, and she knew whatever was coming wasn't going to be good.

"Tyana I don't think you should see this Jeff man again, he's distracting you from the mission"

She stared down at the small screen incredulously, "Excuse me?"

"You heard me—you're already hurt so your end of the mission will be on hold for God knows how long but it'll take even longer if you insist on mixing with Jeff"

"Why?"

"Because he distracts you! I've seen your face when you speak to him—you forget about everything. But the mission aside if you continue to befriend him you're putting his life in danger"

"I'm doing no such thing!"

"Tyana I'm sorry but you are. Your injury only proves how much harder this is getting and you've got two more cards left now and if you don't focus you'll be in worse condition than a cut and a bloody nose. Now if you keep dragging him into this then—"

"I'm not dragging him into anything. If he wants to hang out then—"

"TYANA! You're not to mix with Jeff Hardy again and that is an order!"

"But—"

"-No buts. For the sake of both of your health's and the mission, you are from now on forbidden to speak or see him again. Is that understood?"

"I'm not 17 you can't tell me what to do!"

"Tyana you're forgetting you may not be a young girl any more but you're under my watch and my command which means I'm responsible for you and anyone you come into contact with and I refuse to allow my loose actions to effect others negatively. Now I'm sorry but it's got to be this way."

She held her chin high and steadied the quivering of her bottom lip with her teeth. She wasn't a teenager any more; crying like a child wouldn't solve anything.

"Fine, whatever you say, sir."

"Tyana I'm really sorry but it's for--"

"The best, yeah, I know…if you'll excuse me then Bretski some of us irresponsible injured have to rest so that we can once again put our lives on the line for the sake of others in return for frail all. Have a great morning!" she turned off the device before Bret could straighten things out and threw it carelessly to the end of the bed where it only just stopped before sliding off to hit the floor.

"Forbidden to see him…how old does he think I am …not my frailing father" she mumbled angrily as she pushed herself back onto the bed. She screamed in pain when she moved her leg too fast and with all the anger rising she picked up the closest thing to her and hurled it to the wall across the room. The vase smashed with a scream of pain and Tyana seethed through her tears as they began to fall angrily. She ran her shaking hands through her hair and exhaled deeply to calm herself.

Jeff would phone that night, she could feel it.
And she would answer.

Forbidden or not…this was her life.