Chapter 3: Inclination

"He must have ingested even less than we thought, and the other substances we haven't been able to identify didn't cause any problems so far," nurse Titchfield supposed, "he's not comatose," she assured Phoebe, nodding in his bed's direction, "you could wake him up if you needed to, but it's for the best for him to catch a bit of sleep," the nurse whispered with a half smile that was a partly encouraging, and a bit routine.

"Thank you," Phoebe told the nurse as she was left alone with her husband. She scrutinised him bewildered, his colourless features, the drip in the back of his hand, the monitors showing details of his condition. She looked around, making sure the nurse doesn't see her and started looking for her own answers, shaking his shoulder forcefully, "Cole!" If it was another demon that did this, she needed to know, if it was some sort of game, also.

Cole blinked a couple of times, then tried to get up startled when he saw where he was. He only got a few inches up his pillow before he grunted and fell back onto the bed.

"What are you doing? What is going on?" Phoebe gave him a penetrating look.

Cole appeared to be surprised by everything, including her probing and presence. He answered prudently, moving now as little as it was possible, "I don't know...how I got here."

"What is the last thing you remember?" Phoebe sighed, and because Cole looked away, she added a few seconds later, "what did you do?"

"I guess the potions worked to some extent after all. Great. There's some chance then, I just have to work on them a bit more."

"What potions?"

"The ones I tried to kill myself with."

"You are still trying to kill yourself? Don't be absurd."

"Oh, you came to give me a sermon again, is that it?" Tears filled his eyes, "I really lost it, all right? I've tried to move on. But I can't..."

Phoebe groaned as she looked into Cole's bloodshot, green eyes. She couldn't help not feeling sorry for him, "I wish I had the chance to vanquish you before I really fell head over heals in love with you..."

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Phoebe found herself standing on a corridor, one that she would've recognised any time. She was right in front of a door with the number 7 on it, Cole's old apartment, the one he had when he worked as an assistant district attorney. She looked at herself, she was wearing a brown jacket, with a brown dress under it that tightly covered her filled form. Definitely the past it was, she established after sensing her long hair up in a bun. She had no idea how she got there, but had a hunch her wish had something to do with it since in her hand there was a potion vial with another item that she could never confuse with something else, Belthazor vanquishing potion. She was given a chance, by whom, it didn't really matter right now. If Cole wasn't, Prue would probably be alive and assuming she herself remained as she was, cause she came to the past with the knowledge of the future, they could contact Paige as well, even earlier than it has happened. They would constantly have four people to cover for the three necessary Charmed Ones. She got herself together, put the vial into her purse and knocked.

Cole opened his door in a few seconds time with a blue shirt that was unbuttoned, seeming happy to see her, "hi."

"Hi. I half expected not to find you here," Phoebe said, not relying on what she knew about her time travel just yet.

"Yeah? Well, an associate of mine didn't do what he was told so I've still got work to do here."

That gave Phoebe the clue. He was referring to not being able to kill them yet after just having tried to infect Prue with powers that were too much for her. Yeah, at this moment in time he really deserved getting vanquished, but he was already slowing down with his attempts, having been in love with her, "is that a good thing or a bad thing?" She blurted out.

"Both," Cole touched her to draw her inside and embraced her.

Phoebe let herself taken partly playing along, partly feeling relieved that she could give in to her desire to hold him without consequences this time. She knew, this was the second time they made love to each other, but that won't happen, that would make her totally fall in love with him. This time, she would vanquish him. But till then at least she could enjoy that one last hug. In her own timeline, if she would let Cole closer one inch, he would take it as an encouragement and she was having difficulties getting rid of him as it was. Feeling his warm body, listening to his heart, it felt so right. It gave her the sense of hominess.

He leaned down to kiss her fervently as she kissed him back with fire burning on her lips. She didn't even notice her body being lifted into his arms and taken to the bed until he was on top of her, never breaking the kiss. She didn't resist either as his hands went down along her side and pulled her dress up. Not completely conscious of it, but she had decided she would allow this night one more time. This was her Cole, not the one who went crazy over her two years later. She would have enough time to vanquish him later. Her hands slipped under his belt and undid his trousers. Somewhere in the back of her mind she also remembered that they should use condoms. She didn't want another womb raider, a replay at having to vanquish the baby's father. But every logical thought vanished as he began to move rhythmically. There was no stopping this situation from escalating into a centrifuge of passion...

tbc