Author's note: Ok, this chapter's for Rain, I needed to add the romance, but originally this was written as a part of an actual novel I was working on. I scratched the novel idea which didn't have the romance until the end so now I played around with it and here it is. Hope you like it.
Chapter 5Unspoken
Setting the trey on the bedside table Leo glanced at the girl resting peacefully in the bed. He knew she needed to rest but right now he wanted to see if she could hold down the soup. She'd need her strength to keep the fever from coming back again. There was no way he'd let that happen. That's why he'd stopped in the bathroom for vitamins and some nausea medication.
Moving to the side of the bed he sat down once more and lifted a ginger hand to test her forehead, half afraid of what he might find. Yet her skin was not hot, but rather simply warm to the touch. That was good, he then let his hand linger a moment before sliding from her brow to her cheek. Her skin was just so soft, like her very heart. Both were reasons he wanted to take care of her, not only now but forever. Why had he been so afraid of her feelings? He knew love, knew it could win, and it would. He'd have to work at it probably but he could make her fall for him, he new he could. He just knew it.
***
As the edges of sleep reseeded the first thing she felt was the warmth on her cheek. She didn't know exactly what it was but she liked it. Tilting her head she realized it was a hand and slowly her memories returned. Then she knew and with out thinking she nuzzled the fingers.
There was a sigh, was that longing she heard? From Leo? Why? Was he worried she'd lapsed back into the fever? May be, just maybe he wanted… No, he'd never shown any interest in her, not since that very first day. No, that wasn't true; there had been that time with Caroline Pickets… And there time when she'd saved Cassie. His morphed face had been replaced in her vision by his true face, with the tears… she'd come back… And when she'd come back… There were many reasons, then why had she always been so sure he didn't love her like she did him? Heavens, she had to be delirious, he did not love her. After all he was leaving Mirinoi for earth soon and…
"Kendrix, I…" His voice as soft, as if he didn't want to awake her and so she stayed still then, waiting to see just what would happen now.
***
He'd thought she was coming around for a moment but then she'd not changed a thing but for the way she turned into his hand. Leo wished she'd down so awake. In sleep one could do many things unknowingly. If she'd just do that when she was well and… Now he tried to think of what he'd say to her when she was better, how he'd convince her to take a chance with him.
"Kendrix, I… I um have been meaning to ask you something." He began closing his eyes; it was so much easier like this, with her unable to say no. "We've been friends for some time now and well, I um was wondering if you'd like to um go out sometime you know like on a date?" God, that sounded so lame. He sounded like he was sixteen again, asking out his first crush. The thing was this was more important than asking Alicia Cooper to the spring fling. Yes, it was, he loved Kendrix, loved her so much it was driving him crazy. Then he tried it again.
"Kendrix listen I was thinking and would you want to go grab dinner sometime?"
"Well, only if you stop repeating yourself." The soft voice replied and he jumped drawing his hand back as if he'd been burned.
"Kendrix?"
"Hmm?"
"You're awake?"
"Well, I usually don't agree to date someone I love when I'm sleeping." She said and he found her soft eyes were now open and smiling up at him.
"You…"
"I have loved you for sometime now and I didn't think you cared, what with your leaving and…"
Leo could only stare down at her. Was she for real? The thing was he knew she was no longer suffering from the fever, her skin had been cool. How then could she be saying this? How could she think he didn't feel the same? Yet, he knew, his love had been a closely guarded secret, one none but he knew.
"I'm not going anywhere." He said taking her hand and meeting his gaze they shared a smile.
TBC
***
Well, what do you think?