Yes! I got up this chapter in two weeks! It's a bit short because I can't really make the idea longer without adding a whole new event, but I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, or their personalities.

I trust you.

Even now, at 2 am in the morning, the thought still lingered. It had clung to his mind throughout their late lunch and the rest of the afternoon. Seeing her leave did nothing to abate the constant nagging in his mind.

'How can she trust me? Me, her ex-professor, the snarky git who could never resist poking fun at her eager brain and diligence. But then, she doesn't really know me anymore, does she?' he added belatedly. Of course not. She remembered nothing of him.

He pushed himself up to plump his pillow violently, punching it a few extra times for added fluffiness. He sounded as if he viewed her as a potential lover. Disgusted with himself, he turned so that he was facing the ceiling.

Not that anyone could ever think he was potential lover material. Even with the time turner incident and all the complications of finally accepting his more youthful appearance, he knew for a fact that he didn't look any more handsome. He never was one of the pretty boys.

Unless he smiled, he supposed. Wasn't that supposed to make anyone look better?

Urgh. Him, smiling. What a thought, so early in the morning.

He kicked at the twisted covers around his legs. He most certainly did not feel like smiling right now.

Absently, he picked at a loose thread on the waistband of his pants. She could make him smile, he thought. She did it a lot. It was a bit difficult to resist the pressure that made the corners of his lips twitch when she beamed at him.

He growled. Bloody woman.

"You don't look too happy."

Severus snorted at Jane's observation. "Thank you for stating the obvious."

She had come by extremely early, ruining any chances of actually getting any sleep at all. It didn't help that she was so perky. Why was she so damn happy, anyway? Her bright, radiant face should have been illegal at nine in the morning.

"Oh, come on. It's not so early. What is it with you and the mornings?"

Severus only wrapped his hands around his coffee cup, looking sullenly at the dark, steaming contents. She sighed at his lack of response, taking her own cup of decaf so she could watch him from the opposite side of the table. It was silent, broken only by her silent sips of her beverage. Severus jumped when she suddenly slammed her mug onto the table. She planted her hands firmly on the wooden surface.

"What's wrong with you? I asked you yesterday to tell me what was bugging you then, and you wouldn't. Now you won't either. I trust you, why don't you trust me?"

Those words again. Severus was honestly confused. Why did she keep saying it?

"I do. Trust you , I mean."

"Well, it sure doesn't seem like it. Why don't you tell me what's bugging you?" She looked up in exasperation, as if seeking patience from the ceiling, the lowered her gaze back to him with a steely glint in her eye. "Okay, you know what?"

"What?"

She glared at him for interrupting. "That was a rhetorical question."

He waved her on.

"It's too early for this. If you're not going to be good company, I'm leaving."

He rubbed at his face with the palm of his hand. "I'm sorry."

"What?"

"I'm sorry," he repeated warily.

She settled back into her seat, muttering something about men. "Honestly."

He shuffled over to the sink, dumping his coffee. He wasn't feeling up to the caffeine rush this morning, he decided.

"I'm gonna go shower." Damn, he was so tired that his words slurred together. They never did that; he was always precisely articulate with his syllables. "I'll be back down in an hour or so."

He headed up the stairs, thinking of the icy needles pouring from the showerhead and waking him up. He paused at Jane's small interruption.

"Do you need me to do anything?"

"No. Just…enjoy yourself outside or whatever."

Stripping so that a trail of clothes led from the bedroom to the bathroom, he climbed into the shower. His head rested against the cool tiles as he watched the rivulets of water chase each other down.

Why was he so tired? Insomnia had never affected him this way before, even in the long term. Shivering, he turned the water until it was nearly at its maximum heat level. Rubbing his arms, he gave up on trying to warm up in the sauna that had evolved around him. He pulled away the shower curtain and blinked.

Where his trail of clothes had been, only the clean floor tiles remained. He spotted his pajamas hanging from the back of the door and frowned. Where had they come from? He was certain he had left them lying on the bed earlier.

Feeling embarrassed that Jane might have walked in on him showering, he scrubbed at his cheeks with the fluffy white towel (that now felt like sandpaper) before slipping into his bedclothes. Silently opening the door, he padded out into the hallway. It was silent downstairs.

Flopping onto his bed, he sighed. He stared at nothing for awhile and was about to get up and find Jane when said person popped up at the door.

"Are you okay?" Her voice was anxious.

He propped himself on his elbows. "I suppose. Why?"

She gave him a suspicious look that assessed him, then walked in.

"Do you have a fever?"

He grumbled something unintelligible in response. She sighed, then gently pushed his shoulders back onto the bed. She said nothing as she left down the hall. A moment, her voice floated over.

"Where do you keep the medicine in this house?"

He fiddled with the corner of a pillowcase. "I don't really keep any."

He could have sworn that he heard her sigh again. Collapsing back onto the bed, he closed his eyes, his ears following her around the house.

Her bare feet padded down the wooden staircase then seemed to disappear in the thick carpet of the hallway until they hit the hard floorboards of the kitchen. He could hear her shuffling around, the clunk of a mug and the rush of the faucet. A kettle bounced a bit on the stovetop. The whispering of cloth and paper, then the scrape of a chair. He listened closely as the minutes stretched by. Suddenly, the kettle whistled and hummed, and the chair legs scraped the floor again. He heard a gurgle, then the metallic clank of the stove once more. Hearing her climb back up, her steps more cautious this time, he cracked open and eyelid.

"Tea?"

She nodded, reaching for a piece of paper. Placing the mug of hot liquid down, she folded the sheet into a makeshift coaster, then inserted it between the base of the cup and the tabletop.

"Let it cool down a bit. It's still hot."

His lip quirked up at her evident concern. As if he didn't know that something right off the stove could burn, he thought. Still, it was nice to have someone worry and fuss, if only a bit.

The bed dipped as she hesitantly perched on the edge. Feeling tired once more, he shifted a bit, then closed his eyes again. The pleasant aroma of tea wafted over, and he nearly drifted to sleep when a sudden thought came to him. He didn't open his eyes as the comment left his lips.

"Are you bored?" he murmured.

"No." He felt a cool hand brush his forehead. "Just rest."

Sweet oblivion overcame his senses and enveloped him.

When he opened his eyes, the room was cool and dim. He blinked for a moment, disoriented and feeling slightly muggy and slow. The curtains were drawn closed, but by the color of the light filtering through, he judged that it was still midday. He made a mental note to thank Jane (who had disappeared) for her consideration.

Pushing himself up and swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he rubbed his eyes. He certainly felt more awake than he had earlier. If any drowsiness still remained, it was the common after-effect of a nap.

He stood up, noticing that the mug of tea still sat on his bedside table. Wrapping his hand around it, he grimaced. Cold tea. Sniffing the contents, he wrinkled his nose. He decided to bring it with him downstairs. Tea that had been subjected to a microwave wasn't the best (what kind of food or object subjected to the appliance was?) but in the end, it was still a cup of tea saved from the waste.

Unlike his dose of coffee.

Heading downstairs, he arrived at the kitchen to find Jane at the kitchen table, bent over a book. At the sound of his footsteps, she tore her attention away from the text before her to look up. Her face brightened.

"You're up."

He nodded slightly, aware of her eyes following him. Opening the microwave, he placed the mug inside and punched a few buttons. With a click, the appliance began to hum.

"Sorry for being such a grouch," Severus eventually said. "You didn't have to—"

"Of course I did," she interrupted.

"I could have taken care of myself." He studied the cup, slowly spinning in circles and rotating off center.

"Not well."

He turned to face her. "What do you mean, not—"

"Just thank me and tell me I did a good job. By the way," she added, "your tea's done."

The microwave chimed three times. Reaching forward, he removed his cup. Taking a seat opposite hers, he sipped at the drink.

"You know, there's still water in that kettle." She watched the constant motion of his mug, lifting up to his lips and falling down again. "Why not just dump the old stuff out and put in new water?"

"I absolutely detest tea that's been twice boiled."

She shrugged. "Anything's better than the microwave."

"Hmm." His gaze rested on her as she closed her book and stowed it to one side. "Have you had lunch yet?"

She glanced at the digital numbers on the oven's clock in surprise. "Oh. No, not at all. Is it really two already?"

"It would seem so."

"I suppose I should put something together." Briskly, she got up. In that one move, she took complete control of his kitchen. Severus found it slightly amusing and she bustled about. "What do you have?" she peeked into the fridge.

"Well, there's some leftover potatoes, as well as eggs and mayonnaise."

"Potato salad. Sounds good to me. Do you have any bread?"

"It'd be pretty odd if it were in there, wouldn't it?" he asked dryly as he watched her rummage through the drawers of the fridge. "However, you're in luck. I happen to most of a pack of sandwich bread in the back."

"Good!" She pulled out what she needed. "Potato salad sandwiches."

He raised his eyebrow at the idea but said nothing. He was about to get up and assist her when his movement caught her eye. She waved the spatula about.

"Just sit and rest. I can handle making a couple of potato—"

At that moment, a dollop of mayonnaise flew off, landing directly in Severus' tea. The fluffy stuff floated as Severus inspected it.

"Strange concoction. Nice aim, though."

Jane giggled helplessly behind her hand. "I'm so sorry! I'll make you another cup of tea."

He waved her off. "No need. I'd rather not have a cup of tea that's been microwaved and twice-boiled."

Washing off his cup, he placed it on the dish rack. He then turned towards the bread. "Do you want this grilled?" He gestured to the slices on the plastic wrapping.

"Hmm? Sure. I didn't know you had anything to grill the bread; I was just going to toast it."

"Trust me, it'll be way better this way."

In fifteen minutes, lunch was served. Both sat munching hungrily on their quick lunch.

"Heavenly." Jane delicately licked a few crumbs from her fingers.

"I'm not sure about heavenly, but it certainly is enjoyable." He reached for another sandwich, picking one on the side of the half-empty platter. Jane stopped eating to watch him with unveiled amusement.

"Hungry?"

"Ravenous. It's two o'clock."

"And that explains your stomach?" She raised her eyebrow in a way that was disconcertingly similar to his own. He ignored her and bit a large chunk of the sandwich.

"Of course."