My head was throbbing when I awoke. The bed underneath me was soft and comfortable, but my body ached as I rolled over. The scent that lingered on the pillow was familiar. The smell of pine brought images of massive forests and a tall Russian.
"Dimitri." I sighed, sinking further into the mattress. "Wait! Dimitri!" I called out for him.
I heard footsteps approaching quickly as I sat up in the foreign room. The smell was familiar, but that was the only thing. Dimitri burst into the room with a panicked look gracing his gorgeous face, when his eyes took me in sitting up in the bed, his face relaxed.
"How are you feeling?" He asked tentatively, slowly stepping into the room and perching on the edge of the bed.
"My head hurts a little, but I'm fine." I answer truthfully. "Where am I?"
"You're in my room, in my house."
"You're house in Russia, right?" I clarified remembering the last few hours.
"Yes. My house in Russia." He confirmed with a small smile. He reached toward me to smooth down my tousled hair.
"I must look like a mess." I groaned, flopping backwards onto the bed and covering my face with one of his pillows. I breathed deep, capturing his scent. He eased the pillow away from my face, moving to sit beside me. He turned his torso toward me and placed one arm on the other side of my body, effectively trapping me underneath him. He leaned over my face, locking his eyes with mine and holding my gaze.
"You could never look like a mess, Roza." His smile grew timid. "You're beautiful, no matter what."
"You really think so?" I asked trying not to act shy, but his gaze was intense and earnest.
"I don't think so, I know so. You're the most exquisite creature that God has ever made." He breathed, tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear, his eyes followed the movement of his hand. His eyes flicked back to mine before he started studying my face.
I could feel myself reacting to the intensity of the moment. His tongue darted forward to wet his lips and my eyes focused on the sudden movement. The atmosphere in the room became electrified. There was an ache in my chest and it took me a moment to realize that I wasn't breathing. I let out a shaky breath and drew air back into my lungs. His eyes glanced down at my lips before locking back to my eyes.
"May I kiss you, Roza?" Dimitri asked in a breathless whisper.
"Please." My voice held a hint of desperation in the one word, but my answer was strong, which is surprising considering my lack of oxygen.
The arm that was stretched over me came up as his hand moved to the side of my face. My breath hitched as he began to lean down. I desperately wanted to close the distance, but my body was frozen, waiting for him to come to me. His brown eyes were watching me closely and I could feel his heart hammering in his chest.
His hand tangled itself in my hair and he pulled me closer.
"Roza." He practically prayed before his lips lightly brushed mine.
The ever-present Buzz jolted my body at first contact. My skin was alive as his other hand came up to my face, pulling me toward him.
The kiss was perfect.
It was soft and gentle, yet hard and hungry.
My hand reached up and found its way into his hair. The feeling of silk entwined in my fingertips was magical. His tongue snaked its way out of his mouth and gently traced my bottom lip. The sensation was so pleasant that it made me gasp, which allowed his tongue to glide into my mouth. I moaned at the intrusion and pulled Dimitri closer.
I cautiously stroked my tongue against him. The taste of him was sweeter than I imagined. He smelled of pine but he tasted like honey. He pulled away to take a deep breath and then gently pecked me on the lips. The same giant smile that was plastered on his face was no doubt also on mine.
"You're magnificent." He breathed, still trying to catch his breath.
"You're not too bad yourself, Comrade." I blushed. He chuckled but his smile grew even wider.
"Are you okay?" He suddenly turned concerned and ran his eyes over my body, as if to check for physical injuries. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm okay. Better than okay, actually." I winked up at him. "I am a little hungry, though."
"Then you're in luck. Mama just finished making lunch. I was on my way to check up on you before I got slightly distracted." The last part was said a little sheepishly, but I wouldn't have traded the distraction for anything.
"Well, we better not keep your mom waiting."
He stood and offered me his hand as I climbed out of his bed. He pulled me close and ran his fingers through my tangled strands in an attempt to smooth them down, that or he really just wanted to touch my hair. Both could've been just as likely.
"So beautiful." He muttered to himself before clearing his throat and taking my hand. "Come on, Beautiful, I want you to meet my mama."
The nervous feeling of meeting his family was back. Dimitri must have sensed my anxiety because he turned around and cupped my face in his large hands.
"She's going to love you, Roza. Don't worry." He pressed a soft kiss to my lips, erasing any anxiety I had. I smiled and let him lead me downstairs.
"How did I get upstairs?"
"Oh, I…uh…I carried you." He answered rubbing the back of his neck and not meeting my gaze. "You collapsed and I didn't just want to place you on the couch, so I took you upstairs." I stood on my toes and kissed his cheek.
"Thank you."
"No problem, Roza." When we entered the kitchen, Dimitri's mother was finishing transferring the food over to the table. "Mama? This is my Roza."
'His Roza? I think I can live with that." I mentally sighed in delight.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Roza. I'm Dimitri's mother, Olena." She stepped forward wrapping her arms around me. I hesitantly returned her hug.
"It's nice to meet you, too, Olena. I apologize for earlier, it was just a lot to take in."
"I understand, dear. You don't have to apologize for anything, though you did give Dimitri a fright." She smirked over at her son.
"Really, Mama? Did you have to tell her that?" He sent out, but I don't think he realized that I could hear it, too.
"Yes, I did."
"I think you forget that I can hear you, too, Comrade." Dimitri's eyes widened.
"You shouldn't have been able to hear that. I sent that specifically to Mama."
"Well I could hear you without even trying." I responded aloud.
"It's because you both are so strong." Yeva pipped in as she moved into the space. "The closer you two become, the stronger you will get. Eventually you won't have to try to communicate, it will become second nature. Tough times are to come, but as long as you have each other, both of you will make it out alive."
"Dimitri, what does she mean?"
"I've no clue, Roza. She's clairvoyant, so she must have seen something. It would be wise to heed her words carefully."
I nodded in response.
"Well how about we eat?" Olena broke the silence.
"Yes, please. I'm starving." I stated and Dimitri chuckled at me. "What?"
"Oh, nothing. Just that you eat more than all the other Projects combined."
"It's not my fault I use so much energy just by existing." I huffed.
"That's not what I was getting at." He defended.
"Then what were you trying to get at?" I asked raising an eyebrow at him. "Think carefully about your answer, Comrade." He swallowed cautiously.
"I was just observing that you have a healthy appetite and it will be appreciated here."
"Good answer."
He smiled down at me and led me over to the table and pulled out a chair for me to sit in. None of the food in front of me looked familiar, but Dimitri assured me that I would like it all.
"These are all my favorites." He confessed to me as he piled food onto my plate.
"Which is your absolute favorite?"
"This bread." He stated, tearing off a piece for me to pop in my mouth.
"It tastes a little like pumpernickel." I chewed thoughtfully and smiled widely.
"That's because it's a modified version of pumpernickel, but has cocoa powder in it, too, amongst other things."
"Well you definitely can't go wrong with adding more chocolate." I joked and he laughed, his eyes alight with joy. We chatted throughout the rest of lunch. I learned more about Dimitri's childhood and about life in Russia. I felt at home.
Before I knew it, Dimitri was looking down at his watch.
"We need to get going soon, before someone misses us." He walked over to me, wrapping an arm around my waist. "Will you be able to get us back or do I need to picture the place?"
"I'll be able to do it." I stated confidently. I turned to Olena and Yeva. "Thank you so much for lunch, Olena, and thank you for having me. I look forward to seeing both of you again. Babushka." I said nodding in her direction, she nodded back.
"Ready?" Dimitri asked me after he'd hugged his mother and grandmother goodbye.
"I was born ready, Comrade." I wrapped my arms around his neck as he pulled me close by the waist. I pictured my room back at The Academy, Dimitri's arms wrapped around me and me curled up against him.
I sighed and started the materialization process. The silence that surrounded us let me know that we were back in my room. I started to pull away, but Dimitri's arms tightened around my waist, locking me into place.
"Are you alright, Dimitri?" I look up at him worry lacing my words.
"I'm wonderful." His smile grew as he looked into my eyes. "You're amazing. I'm so glad that you met my family, well some of my family. It's been a long time since I've seen them, so thank you for taking me."
"You don't need to thank me, Comrade, I enjoyed meeting them and getting to know more about you." I respond truthfully. "I had fun. Other than the whole fainting thing."
With the fun that I was having, I had almost completely forgotten about my mother and father being Projects. Dimitri was a Project. My eyes widened in shock as I fully comprehended what was happening.
"You're Project Y." I whisper in awe.
"I am." He answered.
"If you're a Project, then why are you working for the Guardians?"
"For a lot of reasons."
"Those reasons being?"
"Hiding in plain sight is easier and safer than running all the time. If I work for them, I know what they're doing and can help in throwing off leads. And I was recruited to take care of certain Projects." He listed.
"Which Projects have you been recruited to take care of?" I asked.
"You."
"Me?" He nodded. "Why were you recruited to take care of me?"
"You are special. My superior called me and rushed the selection process for me. She said that they had found the offspring of two powerful Projects and that the girl was extremely powerful especially considering she was underaged. Apparently, your mother was friends with my boss and had told her, if her daughter ever turned up here, that I was to be contacted and rushed here."
"So that's why you were assigned to me and only me?"
"Yes. It was made very clear that I was to protect you, even if it meant deceiving the Guardians, not that I had a problem with that."
"You did all this to take care of me? You didn't even know me. Why would you do that?" I pondered skeptically.
"I did it because Abe asked me to."
"You mean my father is still alive and you're still in contact with him?"
"Yes." I frowned.
"Then why am I still in here? Why hasn't he gotten me out."
"Because you have friends here and he didn't want to pull you out of a place without being able to get your friends out. He has a place for you to go, but not means to get you and all your friends out of here without having all the Guardians tracking everything."
"That makes sense. I don't want to leave anyone here, and since it's just me and my friends left, I don't want to leave without bringing everyone else."
"And he knew that. He's waiting until it's safe."
"It will be soon. I'll make sure of it." I vowed.