Chapter 22:

~Connor Pov~

Dria was pale like a corpse...

Will has shouted at least an eternity at Adrian and me. I really wanted to skip that part where I had been a horrible boyfriend and even a worse friend but Will had all rights to shout at me.

A soft whimper came from my sun princess and Adrian tensed.

He was about 24 hours awake but he won´t leave her side.

"I told her that she was hurt. But she won´t ever listen to me. I told her she should heal herself first. But she never had been afraid of blood so she ignored it." He told me silently, caressed her face gentle.

Apollo did really forget who he was! He really thought Dria was his sister...

Maybe that´s what Dria had planned when we left them alone...

But did she really want to forget me? Or was this a bad coincidence?

"You love her. I can see it in your eyes and every little gesture. Why don´t I remember you? You have to know her before but I can´t sort you anywhere." Adrian told me, looked at me with those eyes I loved so much in Drias face.

"I do. But I don´t know why you can´t sort me. Maybe I wasn´t this important to you? Or maybe you have been hit on your head worse than you thought?" I tried to explain.

"Don´t... Knowing will expose him... Sun will burn... Screams, blood, tears... Stop it... Please! It hurts so much... Stop it..."

Dria woke up, had those green eyes which creeped me out like nothing to compare with.

"Hush, little one. Everything´s going to be alright. Just don´t worry. No one will be hurt." Adrian told her firmly and she relaxed slowly.

"Promise?" "Promise."

They were like real siblings but I knew they weren´t.

Dria looked at me and sighed.

"I don´t know if I can handle all this now but I know that you mean something to me. Don´t know what or even how you could but it is what it is." "Take your time."

It wasn´t me pushing her in the direction I wanted her to be in.

Everything was her own decision and I would deal with it.

"As long as you won´t send me away I will stay by your side, Dria." I told her although I saw in Adrians eyes how much he hated this idea.

"Are you sure, Hon´? We don´t know this guy." "But my heart knows and I trust my feelings, Brother. Never doubted them." She told him forcefully and I smiled slightly.

That was my girl.

Never doubting what she stood up for.

"Don´t smile like this! I´ll watch every step you take!" He warned me and my smiled became cold.

"As I will return this favor, sunnyboy." I said with cold eyes and voice.

"Boys, please, stay at an age of nearly adulthood." Dria sighed und both of us glared at each other.

We weren´t quite juniors from our behaviour...

"Then maybe stay 10?" She asked giving up on us and I chuckled.

"Don´t worry, Princess. Won´t hurt him." I promised and smiled just for her benefit.

She shyly dropped her gaze and Adrian rolled his eyes.

"She needs some rest. You should leave." "I slept the last 24 hours just fine but what did you do, Adrian? Maybe we should do a shift change." I tried to compromise.

"No." "Adrian, please, he is right. You are pale and your eyes are tired. Please take a nap and afterward you can return, deal?" Dria asked him worried and I looked closer.

He was pale... Except his cheeks. They burned red.

Maybe he had a fever?

"Two choices, stupid: One, you take a nap. Two, I will heal you and will need to take more rest because it´s exhausting." Dria told him fiercly and I chuckled.

She knew exactly what buttons she needed to hit.

"Ok, ok... I will go. But I will be back soon." He warned, I think, both of us.

But I couldn´t tell for certain.

After he left, I sat down besider her bed and looked at her causaly.

"You know, it´s mean to know that I know you but not in what kind of relationship we are. I hope a kind, but I don´t know for sure and I take the guess you won´t tell me." She told me briskly, pouting.

"I won´t, you are right. But I can be whatever you need. I always am whatever you need. Need a strong shoulder to cling to, I will lend you my shoulder. Need a friend listening to you, I will lay down everything else and listen to you. And so on." I told her gentle, winked at her when she turned red like a tomato.

"But I really need to know..." "You don´t. You wish to know but that´s it." I answered honestly, caressing her cheek like a reflexe.

It was as normal as breathing for me and she huddled against my touch with closed eyes.

Maybe it would work out just fine and both of us would come out of this trouble unharmed.

"Connor, please!"

I chuckled about her begging me but I kept quiet.

This time I would be really strict about it.

There was the need of keeping her safe and maybe her words meant giving her back memories would bring chaos to the world and hurt my sun...

The dying sun could be as much her as her father.

Both were kind of significant for the sun.

"You should rest a little bit more. I won´t move away till you send me away." I told her gentle and sat beside her bed.

I knew exactly that Will wouldn´t interfere because he knew as much as Travis how much I suffered over the loss of my sun.

"But... What if anybody comes in? You aren´t a child of Apollo..." "Yeah, but your Dad allowed me being in any time I want to be at least 6 months ago." I chuckled and my sun smiled shyly at me.

Maybe she would recover faster than I thought she would.

"You´ll be on guard, right? Don´t be stupid... If anybody will harm me you´ll run." She told me and I just kept quite and smiled.

That I would never ever promise her. I would fight for her forever and ever.

If I loose her again I would probably dy with her.

"Sleep, my dear. I will keep an eye on you while you rest." I promised her and gently stroke her cheek again.

She huddled against this touch but closed her eyes and fell asleep the next moment.

Will came in a few minutes later and his eyes were worried.

"The boy, Adrian, he isn´t her brother, right? She never mentioned him before." Will asked skeptical and I sighed.

"He is now. But wasn´t the day before. You won´t believe me a word if I tell you the truth so just believe you are siblings. Well, half siblings."

His gaze went blank and I knew he was trying to decide if he trusted me enough to let the subject go or if he wanted to push any further.

"He isn´t a real danger, Will. I would not let him near her if he was."

"I heard the two of you argue. You don´t like him." "Nothing personell on him but I don´t. Let it go, Will. Please. It´s not safe knowing everything."

He sighed deeply and sat down on Dria´s other side.

"I missed her a lot and now she doesn´t even remember one of us. Not even Micha... What will happen when her memories get back?" "If they get back. I hope it won´t destroy her. She would never forgive herself forgetting about Micha." I said with a deep growl in my voice I couldn´t hide because it was all Apollo´s fault!

He had the opportunity to destroy Nyx a long time ago when she harmed the other daughters he had. Why didn´t he do that?!

Now it wasn´t just him being threathened but Dria! All her siblings and even my twin brother and his girlfriend! No one could make me hate him more then I already did.

If it would be me I would kill him myself for being an asshole father to my girl!

"Connor? Are you alright? Your hands are shaking..." Will asked me cautiously, tried to catch my eyes with his but I avoided him.

"I am fine."

He wasn´t believing my words, I could sense it but I wouldn´t explain a thing to him and he knew that.

I wasn´t stupid.

Telling him how I felt about his stupid father wasn´t a smart move so I would keep quiet.

Both of us kept the silence between us and thought about whatever.

It wasn´t my part to let Will know about Adrian/Apollo.

But I needed to have a talk with my brother and maybe I would have to talk to Dad myself as well.

Maybe he could turn the situation into light.

I couldn´t deal with it without any information.

But first I had to wait for Adrian to wake up and take a seat next to Dria.

Although I hated the thought of him near her I had to let it happen.

Dria wouldn´t be happy about me if I did something stupid like killing her "twin brother".

So I waited a few hours next to my girl until a sleepy Adrian came slowly into the room, waved me away with a light smile full of unsaid words.

He was thankfull although he didn´t like me.

Well this favour I couldn´t return.

I wasn´t thankfull for him being here.