Disclaimer: I don't own the show TLW or the characters yada yada yada.

Who Said Love Doesn't Hurt

Chapter 3: Compromising Positions.

Two days past before Lanina felt more like herself and was able to walk around the tree house without feeling dizzy. To her surprise and gratitude, these strangers had taken care of her during those two days and she was extremely grateful. Without them she was sure that she would have died out in the jungle, though she prided herself for being a little resourceful. Lanina was constantly thinking of her family, wondering what they thought had happened to her. Had they sent a rescue party to try and find them? Were they thinking about her right now, as she was thinking about them? Would she ever get out of this place? She had an eerie feeling that she wouldn't, considering that the others hadn't been able to find a way out for three years. To take her mind off those depressing thoughts she went through her bag, looking for some clean clothes. She had been stuck in the same attire for six days and she felt like her skin was crawling. She found another pair of shorts and a blue tank top and started to undress when she decided that she wanted to take a shower before she put on clean clothing. She wondered if anyone would be able to tell her where she could wash when she remembered that everyone had gone out to do his or her own thing. She looked around the living area and saw Malone, who seemed to be writing in a journal.
"Ahem, Malone?" she questioned, not wanting to disturb him but her need for a shower bulldozed over that courtesy. When he looked up at her she asked, "Do you know anywhere that I can get cleaned up?"
"There's a water basin you can use. It's underneath Marguerite's dresser."
"Um I meant something that I could bathe in, like a lake or something."
"Oh, okay. There's a small pond nearby, I'll take you there. Just got to get my gun." Malone walked away, grabbed his rifle and strode toward the lift, waiting until Lanina was in and lowered them down. The pond was only a little ways from the tree house, in a secluded spot surrounded by large brush and trees.
"I'll, uh, just stand guard over there behind the bushes and you can take your bath." Malone left Lanina to stand by the pond and disappeared behind some shrubbery. Lanina thanked him loud enough for him to hear and removed her clothes, jumping into the pond and taking her clothes with her to wash. After she had cleaned her clothes and left them to dry on a rock, she relaxed in the cool water, floating on her back and admiring the blue sky. Then she just started swimming around, liking the feel of the water against her skin. She was having such a good time she forgot all about Malone. Meanwhile the forgotten man wondered why it was taking Lanina so long to finish. All of a sudden he heard a shriek and thought something had happened to Lanina. He ran to the pond and was unprepared to see her naked and playing around in the water, not in any danger at all. Malone, like an idiot, stood there, unable to turn away. Lanina, sensing that someone was watching, turned toward Malone, her eyes widening in surprise. Neither said anything, then reality set in and Lanina ducked down into the water, only her head visible now. Malone turned his back on her, letting out a string of apologies. Lanina didn't know what to say. The shock of Malone seeing her in her birthday suit left her speechless. She may be nineteen but that doesn't mean that she's promiscuous. She had not even dated yet, let alone let a guy see her naked. But in that second their eyes had made contact she had felt something, a pull of some sort and that had made her feel warm inside. But she sure as hell wasn't going to tell Malone that and quickly swam to her clothes, putting her clean shorts and shirt on, not bothering to dry off. She cleared her throat to alert Malone that she had gotten dressed and walked up to him until she was a foot or so away from him.
"I'm really sorry that I walked in on you like that. I swear that I didn't mean to do it." Malone let it out in a rush, hoping that she wouldn't be mad at him.
A small smile lifted the corners of Lanina mouth, his transgression ancient history. She walked closer to him, her embarrassment gone. He is so cute when he starts to blush like that she thought.
"It's no problem. Besides, it's not as if you rushed in on purpose, right?" Lanina had a wily smile now, enjoying playing around with him, having never done it before. Her parents would kill her if they saw how she was acting after a man she barely knew had just seen her naked. The smile left her face as fast as it came, her playful mood vanishing.
Malone had felt a grin curve his mouth at her coyness, but the moment he saw the instant change he stopped grinning, feeling as if it were his fault. "No, I really didn't mean to run in on you." After an awkward pause, Malone said, "Come on, I'll take you back to the tree house."
Lanina gathered her washed clothes and walked back to the house with him in silence, her mood still sour. As soon as she got off the lift, Lanina remembered to leave her clothes on the rails to dry a little bit more, then went promptly to her borrowed room, forgetting all about Malone while she was deep in thought. Malone still thought that what happened was the cause for her dour mood, though he was starting to wonder why, seeing as he had apologized. Now that he thought about it, it didn't seem to be that big of a deal considering he had stood there for only a second until he had turned around.oh what the hell, I'll just go apologize again he thought, what could it hurt.
With that in mind he went up to Lanina with an "I'm sorry" in mind when he saw her crying. Oh great, I reduced her to crying. He sat down beside her on the bed and hesitantly patted her on the back, and apologized over and over for making her cry.
Lanina looked up from her crying, wiping at the tears on her cheeks. "What do you mean for making me cry? It's not your fault I'm crying Malone. I just miss my home, my family."
Malone felt relieved that he wasn't reason behind her sadness but felt bad all the same that she was miserable.
"Don't worry Lanina. You'll get back home to your family. Just be patient."
"But I've just got this unshakable feeling that I won't be leaving the plateau. That I'll be stuck here forever." Lanina decided that she had to stop feeling sorry for herself and dragging Malone into her self pitying mood and abruptly got up, heading for the kitchen. She may not be able to do much for the people who had taken care of her but she was going to make them a meal they'd never forget. Besides, it would take her mind off missing home and give her something to do.
Malone had gotten up with her and was wondering what she was up to. Her disposition had changed somehow and he didn't know why, until he saw her head for the kitchen and was relieved she had found a distraction. But all the same, he hoped she didn't cook like Marguerite. He didn't know if his stomach could take it.
That night, when the others had come home, a cozy dinner was waiting for them. She had put the grub together with whatever she could find. She had discovered some meat, and though not knowing what kind it was, cooked it anyway with some spices she had located. Then she gathered up some vegetables to make a salad.
When everyone gathered at the table she said, "I just wanted to thank you for all you've done for me. Since I can't pay you with money, I thought I'd cook for you as payment instead."
Roxton took a bite of his meat and let out a sigh of contentment. "Thank God someone can cook around here. I thought I'd never get another decent meal again." He announced all this with a devious smile aimed at his dear Marguerite.
The look that Marguerite sent Roxton would have had anyone without balls of steel writhing in pain on the floor. Luckily Roxton was used to her death glares and in return sent her one of his most charming smiles. All the bluster went out of Marguerite then, ending with her smiling at him. Lanina watched the exchange between the two and had to grin. They really love each other she thought.
Malone interrupted her train of thought when he complimented on her cooking, "This is a really great meal. Thank you." He sent a warm smile her way. Lanina returned his smile with her own, feeling an affectionate glow surround her. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their meal, except Veronica, who noticed the connection between Lanina and Malone. She knew that they had agreed to just be friends but she didn't know that she would start to feel jealous now that he was directing his affection somewhere else. She hadn't thought that he would fall for anyone so soon and was surprised to learn that she wasn't prepared for the feeling of abandonment at the thought of him looking at another girl the way he used to look at her. But maybe she was construing things. Maybe there wasn't anything at all between them. The thought soothed her mind for the rest of dinner. After dinner, everyone sat around and relaxed, all full from the large amount of food they had consumed. Eventually, Marguerite and Roxton excused themselves and went off for a walk, saying they needed the fresh air. Everyone knew that they wanted time alone and bid them goodnight. Challenger crept back to his lab, declaring that he had more work to do. That left Veronica, Malone and Lanina sitting together in an awkward silence. As Lanina looked at both Veronica and Malone, she noticed that they seemed highly stressed around one another. She could definitely feel some chemistry flowing back and forth and wondered what had happened between the two. From the way they both had kept glancing at one another at dinner told her they had feelings for each other. How deep, she couldn't say but if the look on Malone's face was any clue, he had strong feelings for Veronica but was suppressing them for some reason. Sensing the mild animosity that was coming from Veronica directed at her, Lanina excused herself and went to her room, feeling as though a heavy weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The tension had been so thick you could have sliced through it like butter. Glad to be out of that atmosphere, she sat on the bed and began searching through her pack for her c.d. player. She had brought it with her on the trip as a precaution, in case she got bored and needed some distraction. She had gotten one of those solar powered ones, so they would thankfully last her for as long as she was on the plateau.