Typical of Ranger, I thought. I settled down on the couch again but couldn't fall asleep. I got up and got a glass of water. I tossed and turned on the couch for a while, and then rummaged through Rangers medicine cabinet. All natural cough medicine and all sorts of heath crap, but no sleep-pills. I looked in the mirror. Frankenstein meets Godzilla. That's what happens when you're sleep deprived. I shuffled back over the the couch and tripped over my shoes. I landed hard on my elbows, but didn't make much noise.
"Go to bed!" Ranger yelled from his bed. He wasn't angry that I had woke him, but I felt awful.
I climbed into the couch again. Every time I closed my eyes, I felt like I was drowning. I woke up in a sweat every time, too. Mentally, I flipped through my options. I could stun myself and hope I slept. Ruled that one out. I could....oh man...creep under Ranger's sheets.
It's not like he hadn't done that to me. On several occasions he had broke in and joined me in my sleep. He had practically invited me, too. I smacked myself on the head. Why was I even in this problem in the first place? Why hadn't I gotten a job at the button factory like my mom said?
"I like my job." I said quietly."That's why."
I got up to refill my glass of water. I passed Ranger's room. He was sprawled on one side, leaving ample room for me. He'd never know I was there if I woke up early and went back to the couch. The bed looked soft and comforting. I sighed and went to the faucet of the sink. I downed my water and tipped the glass upside down in the drain. I peered at the digital clock on his microwave. 2:14. Enough time to get a decent sleep.
I took a step into the dark. He was snoring softly. On his side of the bed, he was sleeping like a baby. If I disturbed that, he'd kill me for sure. I turned to leave, but felt drawn to the empty space. Almost like it needed me to fill it. I did a mental head slap and walked around the bed and sat on the side opposite Ranger. He had his back to me, so maybe he'd never notice. I slid under the covers and laid on my stomach, my head turned his way. Ranger untwisted himself from the sheets and rolled onto his side.
"Come here." He said softly.
I wriggled closer to him until I brushed against him. He grabbed my hip and held me close. "Babe." He whispered.
My heart skipped a few beats. What was I doing? I closed my eyes and tried to imagine Morelli there next to me. That didn't work, because if it was Morelli, I wouldn't be asleep. We'd be up to no good.
"Scared?" The words brushed my face
"Yes.....but not of you..." I stammered
"Liar." He opened his eyes and slid a stray strand of hair away.
He got me there. I was also afraid that the remaining slayers were going Def Com 4 over my ass. Ranger took his hand off me and turned over. I edged my head over to his shoulder and was peacefully asleep in minutes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
He nudged me awake. I opened my eyes and found him half dressed. "I need that..."
I released his hand that I had grabbed in my sleep. He flopped onto the bed next to me and ran his hand along my body, stopping halfway up my thigh and then back to my shoulder. "What's all this about?" I asked him.
"What's what about?" He retorted.
"All this lovey-dovey stuff." I said
"Just being nice to someone whose days are numbered." He stood up and walked to the door.
I followed him to the kitchen where there was toasted bagels again. He picked one up and bit into it. "So, how many days do I have?"
"As many as I feel like protecting you for." He ruffled my hair and picked something off my breast. He flicked it away and leaned in to give me a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Do I have to go with you?" I pleaded.
"No, the apartment's safe enough. Hal's on door duty today...he's still a little jumbled from last night." Ranger sent me a wolf grin and locked up behind himself.
I made a mental list of what I could do. I needed to talk to Morelli and apologize to Valerie. It was indeed too early to call either of them, so I flipped the television on. I turned to news and watched scenes from last night. It looked worse on the television than it had in real life. Something seemed odd. The telecaster was scanning the area, explaining to the viewers that this was a mess. An odd shape was standing on the shaded playground. Big. Hooded. Norman Carver! I blinked and leaned forward. Yup, it was him.
I grabbed the phone and dialed Ranger. No one picked up on his cell so I tried his pager. Then I dialed Joe. He answered groggily. "What?"
"Joe, its Steph. I saw Carver on the news!"
"What?" His voice was jumpy.
"There's a scene where the reporters wading through the bodies and there he is, standing on the playground. It cuts to Eugene and then back to the reporter, and then he's gone."
"I'll call it in. What's the station?"
"Channel 14." The phone rang in my hand. "I'll hang up. I have another call."
"Bye." I hit the '2' button on the hand set and it sent my to Ranger.
"What's the rush Babe? Nothings on fire right?"
"I saw Carver on the news!" I yelled.
"Tape it next time." Ranger said.
There was a long silence. Ranger usually would have hung up on me by now.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"Thinking...." He disconnected and I sat there on the couch, waiting for the news to come back on.
"If you missed any of the last articles, catch them at 8 on channel 42." The telecaster announced. "That's all the time we have for this morning. Tune in again at 6 PM for more coverage."
I grabbed a bagel from the small basket on the table. I covered it on peanut butter and ate it. I made a mental list. Too early to call Valerie or my mother. I needed to take a shower. I was sore, so I could just sleep. One problem, I'd miss the news. I flipped through all the other channels and settled on child's cartoons. I shoved off the couch and waddled into the bathroom. My face was bruised to high hell. There was blood caked down my arm. I turned the hot water and striped. I was in the middle of washing my hair with Rangers shower gel when there was a knock on the door.
"Babe." The voice called
I shut the water off and wrapped a towel around my body. It hung loosely to my knees, and I figured I was pretty safe. I slowly unlocked the door, and Ranger turned to me, then to Blues Clues, then back at me.
"There was nothing on..." I explained
He took a few steps closer smiled. "I can tell."
He touched my bare shoulder and his finger followed the edge of the towel. I took a step back, and tripped over my clothes. I fell backwards and landed on my side. Ranger bent down and hovered over my face. The smile had gotten wider.
"Ass." I taunted.
"I know Babe." He said, tugging the towel down a little more, hiding my right butt cheek.
He helped me up and left me standing there in the bathroom. He shut the door, and said, "Get dressed, lunch will be here in a few minutes."
Lunch? I just ate breakfast! I turned the lock and slid against the door, clutching the towel at my chest. He'd just seen my ass, and didn't make much of it. No fair, I haven't seen his ass lately. I rummaged through the basket of my clothes. I found a shirt that was clean, a pair of shorts that I'd worn once since Ella had washed them, put on my day-old bra and looked for underwear. Nothing. Damn. I decided to go commando, at least till Ranger left, then I'd steal his undies. I slowly unlocked the door. He was seated on the couch, gripping a sandwich of some sort. The wall clock said 7:56.
I took a seat next to him and picked a sandwich off the plate. There was all sorts of lunch meats in it, and then some sort of yellow-green stuff. I took off the top piece of bread and poked at the gunk.
"Just eat it." Ranger growled.
I replaced the top and closed my eyes. Pretend its a peanut butter and olive sandwich. I nibbled into it. Not bad. I finished chewing and took another nibble. I managed to wear down one of the corners. Ranger shoved off the couch, one hand on my knee and walked off to the kitchen. He returned with two glasses of milk. I set the other half of my sandwitch down on the table
I turned to channel 42 and watched through a few other little stories and then the story of the decade came on. Ranger set the tape up and began taping the interview. I didn't say anything the first time, just glanced over at him. He was taking everything in. It cut to commercials, and he shut it off.
"Saw it." He said before I could get a breath out.
"It's Junkman. I've seen him before. And that was him." I stuttered.
He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer. "Everything's going to be ok. I've got your back."
He pulled my bra back and then let it snap. My back arched and I rubbed the sting away. Ranger was already on his feet and heading to the door. I sensed he had done this before. "Ass." I called after him, and I heard the door click.