Thanks for the notes of encouragement. I see one person is reading! LOL. I guess that's enough. :)

Fascination

Brenda came to a stop in the dirt path as the sight of the small hut came into view.

"You've got to be kidding me."

"It's secluded. It's what we need," he noted as he walked past her.

They had arrived on a larger island then took a boat to the one they were on now. These collection of shacks were made for their privacy as each was surrounded by jungle.

"Is there running water?"

"Of course there is," he muttered as the door opened. She stepped in and it wasn't as bad inside as it looked from the outside. There was a living area with chairs, then a separate room which she followed him into.

Jason was checking the surroundings; the windows, exits and other security notes. The bedroom was closed off well and it wasn't until Brenda stopped next to the bed that he noticed there was only the one.

He inwardly sighed but it wasn't unusual to sleep in the same bed with her after the past few weeks. Now it was mandatory.

"Well." she stated, tossing the bag full of the clothes they had bought onto the floor. "What's for dinner?"

Brenda curled into the sheet that lightly covered her. Jason had been doing chores, checking windows or something or other since she went to bed. She was pretty sure he was waiting for her to fall asleep and then he would lie down.

It was past midnight when he finally settled into the bed and the only sound was that of the fans that cooled the room. She slowly opened her eyes as she lay on her side and looked at him in the moonlight. He looked still, trying to rest and she wondered how someone could live in constant awareness like he did. And why had he promised to take care of her if he hated her so passionately? Why had she even thought of the idea? He had already saved her life and risked his own for her, which she couldn't get out of her head. What bothered her most was the question: was he doing it all to keep her safe for Sonny's sake or was it something else? She mentally shook herself. It had to be for Sonny.

Jason's eyes opened, as if to take another survey of the new surroundings, but turned his head to face her suddenly. She had shut her eyes when his opened, after the initial shock and she tried to breathe slowly.

"Brenda."

She resigned with a sigh. So he had seen her. That was his job, after all: to notice things. He waited, a questioning look on him.

"What?" she snapped at the blatant inspection.

"Why are you still awake?"

"I'm in a strange place, on some obscure island, running for my life from mobsters. Am I allowed to be a little agitated?" she rebuked, even though most of it was made up. Sure, she was a little worried but nothing as much as she let on.

"Yeah, well, you don't have to worry. I'm here so nothing's going to hurt you."

Brenda stared at him, a little in awe; Jason had that unique talent of saying something that would ordinarily sound so precious and amazing and making it sound like it was simply a fact and she should stop her whining, or something. 'I would never let anything happen to you.' 'I'll make sure he never finds you.' If he'd stop sounding so damn condescending all the time, he may just sound as though he actually cared.

"What?" Jason said with exasperation after she stayed glaring at him and he rubbed his face.

"Nothing. You're just very good at being Jason."

He exhaled, watching the ceiling, knowing he would regret this later but asking anyway. "What are you babbling about?"

"You're great at playing that role. You're The Guy. The one that always says the right thing and does the right thing and can do no wrong-"

"Do no wrong?" he interrupted, glancing aside at her. "Brenda, please. You know what I do."

She waved that off. "I'm not talking about that. I mean you do no wrong by the people close to you. You're like... this knight in shining armor. I've seen all those girls who fawn over you, they fall for it hook, line and sinker."

"Are you finished?"

"They fall for the whole heroic thing but they can never deal with the reality, can they?" she murmured, feeling sorry for him suddenly. "They want the fairy tale to keep going. But it doesn't."

Jason exhaled again his impatience and she continued.

"They don't know you really."

"Yes, they do."

She rolled to her back to stare up at the ceiling, as though she hadn't heard him. "I remember when I was with Sonny, there were nights he would come home from doing something that he didn't want to do or felt he had to do... and there was this shadow over his eyes. I always assumed it could be anything: regret. Sadness... Shame."

Brenda let her eyes glance at him and he was glaring up at the ceiling as well.

"As exciting as it may be to those girls at first, they don't know what it's really like," she stated. "Do they know deep down you're ashamed?"

"They know what they want to know."

"Which doesn't include anything outside of you riding up on your white horse and saving them," she added.

"I don't do what I do to look good in front of girls," he snapped.

"I believe you. That's just a side bonus, right?" she teased. "Come on, Jason, admit it. You love those girls fawning over you. The only problem is, you've gotten so good at playing knight that you're nearly losing any semblance of human emotion that you may have. You're not a soldier all the time."

"Yes, I am," he stated and turned to see her. "That's my job. That's what I do."

"People are not their jobs!" she tried to explain.

"I am."

"You care about people, I know you do. Sonny and Carly, for some God only knows reason..."

"Yeah, so? I'm not made of stone, you know I'm human. I can't help caring about people," he snapped.

"But you would try your damnedest not to be human," she noted. Jason faced the ceiling again and a stretch of silence carried out. He felt the sheet moving slightly above her toes which were now idly bouncing.

"Do you care about me at all?"

Jason's immediate reaction was so snicker and give her that same malicious glance they usually shared. It was what was familiar and he didn't want that to change, especially after the way his feelings had changed.

She went on before he could react. "Would you care if I died? You know, if someone came in a shot me."

"Brenda-" he knew she was trying to cover now, making fun of the pretty serious question she had asked.

"I'm just saying, your protectee would be dead. You'd feel a little bad, right? And for Sonny, I'm sure. You'd be sad for him and-"

His hand came up in a general silencing act and she stopped. He turned to see her and replied, "I would care if something happened to you."

"Really?" She allowed a small smile. He tried to stop his own reaction to smile at her obvious satisfaction that he felt for her and he only mildly succeeded, conceding the edge of a smile as he turned back forward and closed his eyes.

"Go to sleep."

Brenda grinned to herself and exhaled as she lay back, glad she finally knew she was one of the few people that Jason actually cared about. She was completely happy at the idea.

...