Disclaimer: "I do not own Teen Wolf. The show, the characters, and any quotes from the show belong to Jeff Davis and his amazing team of writers. I only own Nixie, and anything I make her do or say."

Chapter 8: Episode 4x8

Kira looks to Stiles across the table and asks, "Is three enough?" He nods, "Depends on how many cameras the hospital has. But I think so."

Liam looks to Scott and asks, "Are we really doing this?" Scott affirms, "We're doing it. Tonight." "But… isn't it kind of dangerous?" Stiles looks up and says, "Yeah, it's incredibly dangerous. And borderline idiotic."

Looking down at the three laptops before them, Liam asks, "And… we're not telling Nixie?" Stiles, Scott, and Kira all look at each other, and then Scott says, "She'd never agree to it. She'd consider it too much of a risk. And it might be our only shot at figuring out who the Benefactor is. So no… we're not telling her." And Stiles adds, "Hence the 'borderline idiotic' part."

Sighing, Liam asks, "Have you guys done something like this before?" Stiles asks, "Something dangerous? Or something idiotic?" And then Kira answers for him, "I think it's a yes to both." Liam looks uncertain, so Scott tells him, "You don't have to be part of this, if you don't want to."

He looks up and immediately replies, "I'm not scared." Stiles looks at him and asks, "Of the plan? Or of Nixie?" "The plan." Smiling, Stiles says, "Good. Then you're only borderline idiotic. Like the rest of us." And as he pats Liam on the shoulder, Liam grins at the sentiment that Stiles somehow manages to put behind those words.

Then Stiles turns to Scott and says, "If we do this though, we don't know what's coming for us. And if something truly terrifying starts popping up on the monitors, I'm calling Nixie immediately. You know that, right?" Scott nods, but then Kira asks, "How do we even know something's definitely coming?" Scott answers, "Because the tape from Garrett's bag said 'visual confirmation required'." Stiles adds, "And Simon said the same thing. Right before McCall shot him in the head. He said he couldn't get paid by the Benefactor, until he had proof that you guys were dead."

Nodding, Scott says, "So, the idea is, what if you kill someone on the dead pool, but you can't send the proof?" Kira answers, "You don't get paid." Then Liam asks, "How does that get us any closer to the Benefactor?"

Scott replies, "He still needs to know if the target is really dead." And Stiles adds, with a hint of worry in his voice, "Especially if it's someone high on the list." They all look to Scott at that, but in Scott's own head, he can't help seeing Nixie's name. Nixie's name was on the list. And she was worth the exact same amount that he was. It's why they had to do something about it, and sooner rather than later. Because if enough people came after Nixie for the money… well, there was only so much she could fight off if she was on her own.

Liam then says "So, if he wants visual confirmation…" Scott nods, "He's going to have to come get it himself."

As they all look around at each other, they know that this plan is crazy. It's dangerous and crazy. But, Scott comforts himself with the thought that, even if they didn't get anything out of this… he wouldn't actually be dying.

Of course, if Nixie ends up finding out what they're attempting to pull off without her… she just might slap him in the back of the head hard enough to kill him.

"You did what?!"

Nixie understood better now why Lydia had been keeping her occupied all day long. Sure, Lydia genuinely wanted to better understand her powers, how to use them, and how to help save her friends. But still… Nixie hadn't understood what they were doing really.

And now she did. Lydia was the distraction to keep Nixie from wondering what everyone else was doing. And what everyone else was doing… was completely insane.

As Nixie prepares to yell into the phone again, Natalie comes out of her hiding spot, startled by the sudden anger she saw on Nixie's face. Nixie stares at her for a moment, and then calms down enough to say, "Hi Natalie." Lydia spins around to look at them, and then asks, "Mom! What are you doing here?" Natalie simply asks in return, "What are you doing here?"

Then she looks at Nixie and asks, "And who are you yelling at?" Nixie points to the phone and says, "Stiles." And that's apparently all the answer that Natalie needs, because she turns her attention back to her daughter. Nixie glances at Lydia, who nods that she can handle her mom. Then Nixie steps outside the dock house and asks Stiles again, "You did what?" Sighing, Stiles answers, "We stopped Scott's heart. Mostly. He's still alive, but clinically speaking, he appears dead. And… you know… he looks very dead. But he's not dead! Very not dead!"

Pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to control her own voice, Nixie asks, "What is the idea here, exactly? Is his heart still beating?" "Yes. Yes, absolutely. Just… very slowly. Maybe six beats per minute. Or… maybe less. But in any case, yes, it's still beating. And the idea is to catch the Benefactor when he comes to get visual confirmation for himself."

Nixie nods, "And how long can Scott stay like that?" "Forty-five minutes." "And after that?" "Um… well, that's…" "Stiles, I am already going to slap both of you in the head the next time I see you. If you don't want a concussion, you had better damn well answer me." He pauses for a moment, and then says, "He dies after forty-five minutes. But you don't have to worry! Kira's on hand, and we will wake him up on time."

Nixie is quiet for so long, that Stiles seriously worries that he somehow broke her. Then she finally says, "Stiles… you're a damn idiot. Because there is definitely cause to worry here. In fact, there is so much to worry about in this stupid, idiotic, suicidal plan… that I'm giving it it's very own section on the list of things we will forever need to worry about. It's in it's own category of worry, altogether."

Stiles sighs and says, "Well… can I at least try to defend myself a little bit?" "You can try." "So… Scott didn't want to involve you at all. Like… he didn't even want to leave calling you as an option. But I refused on that point, because hey, if we need help to arrive here suddenly, you're the only one who can get here fast enough. Sure, you'll also break the sound barrier to do it… but I'm okay with that today. So… yeah."

Nixie huffs and says, "Fine. I'll hit Scott harder than I hit you." "I'll take what I can get." Then Nixie hears Liam over the phone saying, "Guys. Is it supposed to look like that?" Stiles glances at the screen that has just gone dark and says, "No. No it is not." Kira asks, "Where is that?" "It's on the roof. Someone's gonna have to go check it out."

Then Kira says, "I'll go." Stiles holds the phone away from his ear as Nixie shouts, "Hey! Hold up a minute! What are you guys even talking about?" Stiles shrugs at Kira's shocked expression. Because Nixie wasn't on speaker phone, but she'd still heard Kira and Liam perfectly over the line. Stiles briefly explains that one of the cameras is deactivated, so Kira is going to go check it.

Stiles adds though, "Whoa, Kira. Think a minute. This might not just be a malfunction." Kira simply holds up her katana in reply, "That's why I'm bringing this." And as she heads out, Liam says, "I'm coming with you." Nixie pinches the bridge of her nose again, but then snaps her attention back up when Stiles says, "Okay. And you're both coming right back. Immediately!"

Huffing, he says, "Kids." He'd almost forgotten that Nixie was still on the phone, until she spoke to him again. "Seriously, Stiles? Kira is the same age as us. Liam is only a couple of years younger." "Well, sure, if you're judging it by age." "What are you judging it by?" "Years of experience with supernatural." "Stiles, you've had two and a half. Same as the rest of us. You're practically an infant." "Still older than them though!"

Sighing, Nixie says, "Give me a second." Then she turns to see Lydia and her mom. Waving to get her attention, she then points to her phone and then to her bike to explain that she needs to leave. Lydia gives her a thumb's up, letting her know that she'll be alright here.

Hopping on the bike, Nixie says, "Alright. I'm on my way." "Aren't you with Lydia?" "I was. Natalie is with her now though. And considering Lydia isn't the one in a self-induced coma, or in danger of meeting the Benefactor tonight, I am coming to you." Stiles sighs, "Fine. But… please hold off on the slapping and any yelling until after we wake Scott back up?" "Fine. Though you had best damn well be braced." "Love you too, Nix."

Jordan is sitting in a cruiser on the other side of town. He was out on patrol tonight, meant to catch any speeding drivers that came down this straight stretch of road. It was a common area for short street races, and for the occasional joyrider to push it past one-hundred miles per hour.

It was honestly turning out to be a rather dull night, when his the radio in the car crackled to life. Haigh's voice on the line said, "Hey everybody. Little Miss Haven is back at it again. She just pushed ninety going around a curve. I swear, if she were tilted any further over, she would've been skidding up the road."

Another voice; Cordova, if Jordan is correct, says, "Well, it's been a couple of weeks. It's about time it happened again." Haigh chuckles and asks, "Think I should go after her? Give her a ticket?" "No way, man. Sheriff's under enough stress as it is. Besides, you know he's just gonna let her off the hook. Always does."

Then another officer chimes in, "And that's if you can even catch up to her at this point."

Jordan listens to the conversation a moment more, and then picks up his mike and asks, "Which way was she headed?" Silence meets him for a moment, but then Haigh says, "Well, welcome to the party, Parrish. She was heading down the road into town." Then a fourth voice says, "Probably heading to the hospital. I've got reports that the power was somehow cut there. Aside from that, nothing interesting is happening in that direction."

Jordan thinks about it for one more minute, and then cranks the engine and starts speeding his way back into town. Because if Nixie was speeding again… well, it definitely couldn't be good.

Even with as fast as she was going, when Nixie got to the hospital, the fight on the roof was already underway. A berserker was up there, and Liam and Kira were both struggling to fight him off. Sprinting up the many flights of stairs to the top, she bursts through the door up there and rams herself into the back of the berserker. It was more the surprise than anything else, she knows that. But she did manage to knock him off balance, which allowed Kira to recover her sword and prepare to fight again.

Lowering two of her own daggers down, Nixie asks, "What's the timeframe for Scott?" Kira glances at her watch and says, "Fifteen minutes." "Right. Well… let's see if we can't make this a short fight then, shall we?"

But it's the same as before. These berserkers were incredibly strong, and huge. They were fending him off and holding their own… but that's all they were doing.

As Kira gets thrown to the ground again, Nixie runs up behind the creature and slices her daggers into his back, one for each shoulder blade. She managed to slip between the bone-armor he was wearing and penetrate the skin. Something he definitely hadn't expected, given the pained roar that he let out.

It still didn't matter. He backed himself up at a rapid pace and slammed Nixie into the concrete wall behind her. Groaning, she pulls her daggers out of him and slides to the ground. Then she rolls out of his way as he slams himself back into the wall again, apparently in an attempt to crush her.

The cracks and indentation that appear in the wall when he stands back up straight… well, it makes Nixie believe that he might've actually succeeded if she hadn't moved. Kira leaps at him again, Liam right behind her, and as Nixie joins, they continue to try and at least tire the monstrous thing out.

Kira gets knocked to the side, and as Liam goes down again, the berserker rears back it's arm, aiming to bring down his claw and slice into Liam's neck from the looks of it. And Liam struggles to get up, but can't do it just yet.

Hands land on his raised shoulder and back, and he glances up to see Nixie flipping over his body. Coming down on his other side, Nixie guards him, using her body as a shield to cover him.

The berserker's claw still comes down, and it takes everything Nixie has to not scream from the pain. But she manages it. As it digs a gash diagonally from her right shoulder blade, down to her left side, she reminds herself that Peter had still done worse. It ends just above her hip on her backside, and then the claw is pulled back and the berserker roars again.

Shifting her shoulders, making sure her jacket shifts to cover the blood and the gash, she pulls at Liam's shoulder and says, "Get up! Let's go!" But as she turns to face him again, the berserker takes a step back, and finally walks off and away from them. Kira and Nixie look at each other, wondering what happened. Nixie shrugs and says, "Kate controls them. She must've decided that whatever she was trying to do, wasn't worth it."

Nixie then turns to look at Liam. Putting a hand on his shoulder, her daggers sliding back into their hiding spots, she asks, "You alright?" He nods, though everything about him seems shakier now. He was not fine. Not even close right now.

But Scott was still in danger of actually dying, so they had to move fast. Squeezing Liam's shoulder, she reminds him, "Remember. If you're not fine after this, I'm only ever a phone call away. Got it?" He nods, and then they all rush to hurry back inside.

They meet Chris and Stiles halfway to the morgue. Smiling at Chris, Nixie asks, "What the hell was your demented sister up to?" Chris gives her a small smile in return and says, "I'm not sure. But in any case, I convinced her to leave. Now, someone needs to go check on Melissa and Noshiko." Nixie nods and says, "Get Kira to Scott. Liam and I will check on them."

Hurrying in the other direction now, towards the front, Nixie rounds a corner as fast as she can. And Liam nearly runs into her from how quickly she stopped after that. Looking around her, he sees what she sees. Noshiko is in the floor, lying in Melissa's arms, trying to hold pressure over a deep wound on her stomach.

Nixie stares a moment longer, and then turns to Liam and says, "Get Kira. Go tell her. Now!" He sprints away to find her again, and Nixie takes off up the hall. Shifting her jacket again, making sure Melissa won't see her wound right now, Nixie bends down and asks, "What can I do?" "I need bandages. And a doctor, if you can find one that hasn't run off." "On it."

She finds the supply closet fast enough, and fills a plastic bin with bandages and anything else she sees that might be useful. Then she takes off back up the hall, meeting Dr. Dunbar along the way. Grabbing his arm, she says, "Come on! Someone's hurt!" And to his credit, he wasn't one of the ones that ran away. He follows her dutifully and when they get to Noshiko, he bends down to hurriedly help Melissa start taking care of the wound.

When Kira arrives, for a moment she's too stunned at the sight of her bleeding and fainting mother to do anything. Nixie grips her elbow and says, "Call your dad. Tell him what happened. She is going to be fine, Kira. I promise. Alright?"

A few minutes after that, Jordan and several other officers who had gotten calls from the frightened staff, hurry into the hospital. But all the danger is gone now. Most of what they can do is take reports of what they've seen.

When Jordan finally sees Nixie, she's at the other end of the hall, her arms wrapped around Scott in a fierce grip. Dr. Dunbar is standing to the side, waiting as patiently at he can for her to be finished. Jordan watches them down the hall for a moment, and then decides to leave her be for now. He could ask her about what happened later.

After all… he has her number now.

When Nixie pulls back, Scott isn't surprised when he is immediately slapped in the back of the head. Dr. Dunbar makes to step forward and protest, but Scott holds out a hand to him to stop him. Then he just nods down to Nixie and says, "I know. I'm sorry." "You damn well better be. And if you ever scare me like this again, I'm going to cuff you to my own wrist and not let you out of my sight for a month. Maybe two, depending on how worried you've made me."

Kissing the top of her head, Scott answers, "Love you too, Nix." "Yeah. Love you. Jerk." He chuckles, and then walks away with Dunbar so they can do some tests.

When Nixie gets back to Kira's house, Ken is already packing a bag to leave. Noshiko had to be sent elsewhere for treatment, and he was going with her. Kira was going as well, Nixie knows that. Smiling at Ken, she says, "Tell Noshiko my prayers are with her." "I will. Thank you, Nixie."

Heading down the hall, Nixie pauses outside of Kira's room when she hears Scott and Kira talking. Kira says quietly, "My mom's being taken to a hospital in Palo Alto. They actually put her in a helicopter." Scott asks, "But, she's going to be okay?" "Yeah. Yeah, Nixie was right. She just… doesn't heal like she used to. And… I need to be there with her. Especially if she's still on the list."

Scott nods, "I know. You should go." Then he grins and adds, "I actually still have to go back to the hospital again. They want to do a bunch of tests since I was… kind of… unofficially dead." Kira smiles back, "I guess Liam's dad has a lot of questions." "Yeah." Kira sighs then, and says, "I just… I wish it had all worked. It was a good plan."

They both turn to see Nixie when she says, "Actually, it was a terrible plan. I'm moving it to the top of the terrible plans list." Scott raises an eyebrow, "There's a list?" "Yes. Of all the worst plans we've ever had. And this one, is definitely at the top. And will remain there. Forever." He grins and says, "I can live with that." "Good."

Then Scott says, "I've been thinking about that though. I mean… why no one came to actually 'see' that I was dead? And… well, I actually think maybe it did work." Now Nixie raises an eyebrow while asking, "How so? You know who it is?" "No. No, I don't know exactly who it is. But… maybe we know more about him now."

Kira gives him a puzzled look and says, "But no one came. And no one got visual confirmation, right?" Scott nods, "I know. But that's why it might've worked. I mean… think about it. Who has the power to know when someone's dead, but doesn't need to see the body to know it happened?"

It takes Kira a moment longer than Nixie to get to that answer, which is why Nixie is the one who says in surprise, "A banshee."

And even though that's not exactly great news, both Kira and Scott laugh when Nixie says, "Well, that's just freaking peachy."

Everyone has been gone for hours at this point. It's late. Past ten, at least. And Nixie is still in the bathroom, trying to tend to her wound.

She'd known this one would be trickier than any of the others she'd had before. This one crossed through the middle of her back; which was going to make it a pain in the ass to try and stitch up. Not to mention it was still bleeding a bit. Nixie had bloodied up several of the towels in the bathroom and almost a whole pack of cotton swabs littered the porcelain sink, all stained red from her injury.

Leaning heavily against the sink, taking more peroxide and soaking a new cotton swab in it, she both feels and hears her phone vibrate from the corner of the sink she sat it on. Wearily, she swipes across it to answer, presses speaker, and says, "Yeah. I'm here." "Nixie?"

She pauses at that, and then asks in surprise, "Jordan?" "Yeah. Hey, I'm sorry to call so late." "Oh no! It's fine. I'm not asleep or anything. What's up?" "I… heard about what happened at the hospital. And I just… well, I have a lot of questions, actually. But for now… I just wanted to ask if everyone was okay? I heard Noshiko was pretty badly hurt?"

Nodding, Nixie says, "Yeah. She um… it wasn't good. But Melissa was with her, which was definitely a good thing. And Dr. Dunbar helped when he arrived. They're sending her to Palo Alto… but she's gonna be fine." "Good. That's good. And, um… what about Scott? I heard that he was dead one minute and then… suddenly he wasn't… dead."

A pause, and then Nixie answers, "Yeah. Not sure what happened there myself."

Now the pause is on Jordan's side. Nixie frowns after a moment and asks, "Jordan? You still there?" "Yeah." She's not sure what to make of that, but then freezes when Jordan sighs, "You're a terrible liar. I mean… I know you're probably very good at lying to other people. But you're a terrible liar when you're trying to lie to me. You know that, right?"

Silence again, but Jordan feels his heart swell a bit when Nixie admits, "Yeah, well… that's probably because I don't like lying to you." Smiling, he asks, "Then… why? Why keep me out, Nixie? Why…" "Because it's not just my decision, Jordan."

Sighing and leaning against the sink again, she continues. "If it were just me, only me, and I called all the shots… you'd know, Jordan. You'd know everything, already. I trust you, I really do. But it's not just me. And it's… it can't just be my decision."

Jordan nods, and then smiles again when Nixie asks, "Why am I bad at lying when I talk to you? What do I do?" "Nothing in particular. Nothing you can change, anyways. I can just… hear it in your voice. The fact that you hate lying. I can hear it. You sound more… depressed and dejected when you're trying to lie to me."

He chuckles when she says, "Well… sorry." "It's alright. And… so what about everyone else? Noah was worried about Stiles at one point. Is he okay?" "Yeah, Stiles is fine. Everyone else is completely and totally fine right now."

Nixie freezes again though, when Jordan asks, "What about you?" "Oh, you know me. I'm fine, Jordan." "Nixie… knowing you does not guarantee that you're fine. In fact, if I've learned anything, it's that when stuff like this happens, you are probably most definitely not fine." Nixie grins and says, "Touché. But I am fine."

Jordan doesn't tell her that he knows she's lying again. Instead, he asks, "Well, do you need anything? Melissa mentioned she was worried that none of you had eaten anything in a while. I can bring you some food, if you like." Nixie smiles and says, "Pleasant as that sounds… I'm alright, Jordan." "It wouldn't be any trouble, Nixie. I can swing by the apartments and…" "Oh, I'm not at the apartment anymore." "What? Why?" "Um… I'm staying with the Yukimaras now."

Blinking in confusion, Jordan asks, "Aren't they all gone right now?" When he gets no response, Jordan asks gently, "Nixie… why did you move out of the apartment? What did…" "Jordan… please? Please don't ask me that tonight. Please?"

Nixie squeezes her eyes tightly shut, trying not to cry. She hadn't cried up to this point. It made no sense to feel like crying now. Maybe it was the stress of the past few days finally catching up to her. Or maybe it was just how strongly she felt about not wanting to lie to Jordan anymore. But whatever it was, she needed to get a grip. She had more important things to worry about. Like not letting herself bleed to death. Yeah. That was definitely more important.

Jordan remains silent for a moment, but then finally says, "You're sure you're alright?" Sighing, Nixie answers, "I'm gonna be just fine, Jordan. I'm just… I think I'm tired." "Alright Nixie. Goodnight." "Night, Jordan."

After he hangs up, Nixie takes in a few deep breaths before muttering to herself, "One problem at a time. Just one at a time right now. Is that too much to ask?"

It's thirty minutes later, and Nixie is threading a needle, pondering how she's going to manage to stitch herself up all the way. That's when there's a knock on the door. Frowning, Nixie shouts, "Um… The Yukimaras aren't here. And whatever you're selling, I'm not buying."

The knock simply comes again, and then again when Nixie doesn't answer. Groaning, she slips her bra back on that she'd taken off earlier, and slides her jacket back on and zips it up. She wasn't about to put a shirt on over her wound again. But the jacket had a huge gash in the back now, so she was alright with that.

Coming up and opening the door, she says, "I said they aren't…" "You told me you like Italian, right?" Nixie blinks in shock and surprise when she sees Jordan standing there. His eyes dart down briefly to the deep V she'd left open in her jacket, but she swiftly zips it up further upon realizing it's someone she knows.

After that, he just walks in, not waiting for a response. Nixie stares at him, her mouth hanging open slightly as he moves into the kitchen, a large bag in his hand. Setting it on the counter, he says, "I'm pretty sure you said that Italian was your favorite type of food. Or did I remember that wrong?"

When he still doesn't get a response from her, he glances up from the counter to find her still at the door, just staring at him. Raising an eyebrow, he asks, "Are you gonna shut the door, or do you want to let all the heat out of the house?"

Blinking herself awake, she shuts the door, and then shifts her jacket to better cover her wound again. Still looking completely baffled, she says, "Um… no, you got it right. I like Italian." "Good. Get in here."

Crossing her arms as she comes, she says, "You're not the boss of me. And I don't recall actually inviting you in. And furthermore, this isn't even my house. You can't just…" Jordan gives her a look and says, "I'm the sheriff's deputy. I don't think they'll have a huge problem letting me be here for a little while."

When she gets to the counter, he pulls out three containers of food from the bag. Opening them all for her to see, he says, "I know we talked about it the day the virus broke out in the school, but I couldn't remember exactly what you said your favorite meal was. I just remember that you, very specifically, said that you didn't like any of it with melted cheese on it. So… nothing has cheese. Take your pick."

He meets her confused gaze with a simple tilt of his head. Tilting her own, Nixie asks, "Why are you here? I told you I was fine and going to sleep." "And you're not asleep yet. And I told you that you're a terrible liar when you're trying to lie to me."

Bracing his hands on the counter, he nods towards her and says, "So I'm here. And at the very least, I'm going to feed you. Now, we can do all of this one of two ways." Raising an eyebrow, Nixie asks, "And pray-tell, what exactly are these two ways?" He grins, "Easy and hard."

Nixie gives him a look, but he continues undeterred. "Hard way is; I can pester you with questions that you can't answer yet, since it's not just up to you, as we discussed earlier. Or… easy way; which is… you can eat something. You can tell me why you aren't already fine. And I can see if maybe I can figure out a way to help with that a little. Hopefully without asking you any questions that make you feel like you need to lie to me."

He lets her stare at him a moment longer, and then says gently, "It's up to you." Finally, she reaches forward to take the container of food that is a mixture of noodles, chicken, herbs, and vegetables; all soaking in an Italian sauce. Jordan takes another of the boxes for himself; this one containing shrimp. He pulls out the silverware from the drawer that Nixie points out to him, and then comes around to her side of the counter to join her in eating.

It's not lost on him that, when he comes over, she makes a conscious effort to keep her backside out of his line of sight. He's already seen the tear in the back of her jacket though. And to say that it worried him… well, that was an understatement. For the moment though, he lets her eat a few bites of the food.

Nixie's eyes close as she sighs in relief. She hadn't realized just how hungry she was… not until she'd smelled the food when Jordan brought it in. Jordan takes another bite before asking, "Good?" She nods and asks, "Where'd you go?" "Little place in town called Cuci's. Not very big, and they do mostly takeout. But the food is always good." Nixie nods in approval, taking another bite and trying to make sure she isn't just scarfing it down. Jordan was apparently worried enough already, without her giving him even more evidence that she had been starving.

After another moment, Jordan finally asks, "So… why aren't you already fine?" Nixie pauses, but then swallows her current bite of food. Sighing while she runs a hand over her ponytail, she says, "I'm… not really sure how to explain that to you. Not without… without telling you…" Jordan nods to show he understands. Then he asks, "Out of my own curiosity, it wouldn't have anything to do with the large tear in the back of your jacket, would it?"

Her stiffening was enough to tell him he was right, so he says, "Which explains why you're trying so hard to not let me see it." "I'm not…" "Nixie… no lies tonight. You don't have to explain everything… but no lying." She clams up at that, and to ease a bit of her nervous energy away, Jordan rises and asks, "You thirsty?" Nixie nods, and then points to where the glasses are above the sink. Bringing down two glasses, Jordan fills them both with ice and water.

When he sets one glass before Nixie, he can tell she's still trying to decide how to proceed in this situation. What could she tell him, and what did she need to keep to herself for now. And it wasn't like he was going anywhere any time soon, so he figured he'd give her another minute. Standing up straight, he says, "I'll be right back. Just need to use the bathroom."

Nixie, so caught up in her thoughts, missed what he said for about five seconds. Long enough for Jordan to leave and head down the hall, before she finally snapped herself back to the present and said, "Shit!"

He'll swear up and down that he wasn't trying to snoop around. And he really wasn't. He just wanted to use the restroom. And he'd seen the toilet through the crack in the door, so it had been easy to find at the end of the hall. But he hadn't known that walking in would reveal, at least for the most part, why Nixie wasn't fine.

And she wasn't fine. Not even close. He'd known she had to be hurt, given the hole in her jacket. But he hadn't assumed it was this severe. He'd thought at least half of what had her worried tonight, might just be stress over the dead pool, and keeping her friends safe. But that was definitely not it. At least, not completely. And not by a long shot.

Blood was everywhere on the counter. There were towels in the tub that Nixie had been trying to soak clean before washing them. There were cotton swabs and tissues in the trash can, soaked through with blood as well. There were even drops on the floor, having fallen from where she'd been standing.

This was not even a normal type of 'not fine'. Nixie was bleeding, and bleeding profusely from the look of it. Or, she was at least bleeding and unable to stop it from bleeding. He'd have to do something about that.

He feels frozen for all of a moment, and then he turns sharply, his intention to go and get her and bring her back here. But… Nixie is already there. Her eyes growing watery, darting around the room; Jordan can tell she's trying to think of any reason that could explain all of it away. But she can't.

So instead, she shakes her head and says, "Leave. Just… just leave." "Nixie, you know I'm not leaving. Certainly not now. What… how…" "I can't tell you." The hardness in her voice told him she was going to remain firm on that. There would be no explanation of how it happened or why.

Jordan stares at her for a moment, and then asks, "Where are the others? Why aren't they here, helping you?" Nixie looks up at him again and says, "They… don't know." And upon seeing Jordan's eyes widen to the size of saucers, she exclaims, "And you can't tell them!" "Nixie! That's…" "I'm fine! I really am! Or… I mean… I will be. It… it looks worse than it is! I can't go to the hospital or doctors! I don't… I don't think I can afford it anymore."

Jordan frowns deeply at that, but Nixie keeps on going. "And the others… they… they don't need to know about this. Not yet, and most certainly not tonight. We have enough shit to worry about without adding me to the list. I'm not dying. It's not fatal. I can handle this. I'm fine!"

He stares at her for a moment more, and then takes a breath to help relax his frame. Then he sighs and says, "Nixie… I swear, sometimes you're an idiot." She blinks at that, because that was definitely not the response she'd been expecting. She'd been ready for him to yell or argue again. But she was not prepared to hear him call her an idiot.

Consequently, she crosses her arms and says, "I'll have you know that I have a three-point-seventy-five GPA. And it would be a solid four, if I was a bit better and remembering historical events." Jordan does manage a smile at that, but then he says gently, "You're not fine." "I am." "You are not." "I will be." "Maybe. But right now, you are not fine."

Huffing in aggravation, Nixie asks, "Why are you snooping around, anyway? It's not your house, and it's not mine either. I didn't even invite you here. I told you I was fine." "And you were lying. And I told you that you were a terrible liar when you try lying to me."

Nixie groans in frustration, pulling at some of her hair while she tries to think. She pauses though when Jordan asks, "Why is it so terrible that I know you're hurt? Huh? What damage does it do that isn't already done?" Blinking at him again, Nixie says, "Because… I mean… I can't explain it to you. I told you… what we've done and what we've seen… it's not just my decision." "And I told you that I get it. And I told you when I got here that this could all go one of two ways. Hard way, or easy way."

Coming closer to her, gently reaching out to hold her arms in his hands, he pleads, "Please don't make it the hard way. Don't overthink it right now. Don't complicate it. I told you I wouldn't ask questions that make you have to lie to me. I told you to tell me why you're not already fine, and I'd see if I could help fix it."

He begins pulling her into the bathroom, and then says, "Now I see why you're not already fine. Now… let me try to help fix it. Please, Nixie. You can't… you shouldn't be trying to do this all on your own. You deserve so much better than that."

She stares at him for a moment more, a tear finally running down her cheek. Jordan can hear rain beginning to fall outside, but he pays it no mind. He doesn't let his gaze leave hers, until finally she lets out a long and slow breath. Swallowing thickly, she says, "I… need stitches. Can you…" Jordan nods that he can, and then shuts the door behind them and turns to face the sink.

He removes his uniform shirt, revealing the grey t-shirt underneath. Then he washes his hands thoroughly, using soap to clean all the way up his forearms. Drying off with one of the few clean towels left, he turns back to her to find her still standing in her jacket.

Coming in front of her, he says, "That'll have to come off. Is that okay?" She nods, but then clutches at the zipper of the jacket as though it were somehow protecting her. Tilting his head at her and narrowing his eyes, Jordan puts gentle hands on her shoulders and says, "Hey." She looks up at him again, a tremor running through her, and a nervous look in her eye.

Nixie hadn't ever been half-naked in front of someone before. Hell, even her friends had never seen enough of her to know about all her scars. Only Alison had ever seen all that. She'd been the only one. And even compared to Alison… somehow it mattered more with Jordan. She was in love with the man for Pete's sake. And it wasn't only the fact that she wasn't sure she was entirely ready to be that exposed before him… but she was also terrified that her fear would come true. That he'd see her new wound, and all her old scars, and then he'd run for the hills away from her.

But the look in Jordan's eyes was nothing but reassuring, and Nixie felt it sweep over her as he says, "You know better than to be afraid of me, Nixie. You know better. I'm not going to hurt you." Finally, she nods, and then bites her lip before admitting, "I know you won't. I just… I… might need help."

He nods, and then turns her to face the sink while he stands behind her. Gently, he says, "Go ahead and unzip." She nods and does so, and then Jordan gently takes the end of her left sleep and begins helping her pull it off. Nixie winces a bit at the movement she has to make using her left arm, so Jordan tries to make it so she only moves the minimal amount. It takes a minute, but he finally helps her remove the jacket.

Jordan drops it on the floor by the door, and for a moment he can't do anything, except stare at the gash on her back. From right shoulder blade to the bottom corner of her back, she was torn open and still bleeding a bit. And Jordan couldn't understand it. He couldn't understand how she was still standing her before him, and not sobbing or curled up in the floor in pain.

What the hell had happened to her? And more importantly… who had done it? Jordan didn't really care how important this person might be to anyone else… he would kill them. She could tell him that the president of the United States had done it, and Jordan would still try to kill him.

But… he'd promised her no questions. So he bites his tongue.

Nixie tenses a bit when she feels his fingers finally touch her skin. But in spite of her pain, she can't help but relax at his warm and gentle touch. He keeps his fingers outside of her wound so he doesn't hurt her, but he does trace out the injury, as though trying to gauge just how long and wide it was.

As he does that, he takes note of the other scars he can see. This new one was the most prominent… but it was not the only one she had. Her back has more, and as he lifts his gaze to the mirror, he can see that her front side has even more than her back.

Those are the ones that worry him the most, if he's honest. This one on her back, and then the ones on her front. The scar on her chest, running from her right collar down towards the center of her chest. The one above her right hip. The one at her left shoulder. And worst up there, is the one on her stomach. It rests on the right side, and looks to have been a deep and nasty wound at one point. It's carved crudely into her skin in a half-circle shape, almost like a cruelly done crescent moon.

He feels Nixie tremble, and so he returns his attention to her back. Grabbing the peroxide and a new cotton swab, he says, "Alright. This is going to sting." Nixie nods that she understands. Jordan pushes her ponytail over her right shoulder gently, and then gets to work cleaning out her wound.

Nixie can see him shaking his head in disbelief in the mirror. But when he glances up to meet her gaze, she ducks her head back down to avoid him. The hand cleaning her wound continues to do so, but Jordan's other hand moves to gently rest against the left side of her waist. Moving his thumb in a gentle motion, he says, "Don't try to read my mind, Nixie." "You think I'm an idiot for getting hurt like this." Jordan squeezes gently and says, "No, I do not."

She slowly looks up to meet his gaze in the mirror again. He offers her a gentle smile, and then looks back to her wound while saying, "I… just can't believe you aren't screaming. Or at least crying. I know this hurts." "I have been through worse."

He pauses at that, but then continues and says, "You shouldn't have been." "If not me, it would've been someone else. Someone I care about. That's unacceptable."

Jordan doesn't argue with her on that point. He just works a little longer in silence, making sure the wound is as clean as he can get it. And still, the only reaction Nixie gives is an occasionally tensing at the pain. But she doesn't cry, doesn't yelp, and doesn't scream.

After finally getting the wound clean, he tidies up her skin around the gash, cleaning up the blood where it had leaked down while he was working. Then he reaches past her for the needle and thread that Nixie had clearly been planning to use. "Is it sterile already?" Nixie nods in answer, and then jumps a little when Jordan says, "You're… gonna want to hold your bra up now. I can't stitch if I leave it clasped in the back."

She meets his eyes for a moment, but then nods and places a hand over her chest. Jordan unhooks her bra in the back, moving it completely out of his way now. Leaving it on earlier had been tricky, but he'd wanted to try and preserve what little modesty he could for her. But well, he couldn't see a way around needing to unhook it while he was stitching. He only had so many hands to work with.

Reaching to put a hand on her shoulder, he squeezes gently and says, "Just try and stay relaxed for me." Nixie lets out a huff of air and comments, "Yeah, sure. Because that should be so easy at this point." Jordan grins at her sarcastic tone. She was still nervous, but at least she wasn't quite as nervous as she had been before.

When she tenses as he's about to start, he says, "Just relax. Talk to me." "About what?" "Anything." He glances up to look at her in the mirror, and then asks, "Can you… can you tell me about any of them? Can you tell me where any of them came from?" Nixie knows he's referring to her scars, and she feels him pause when she tenses at the question.

After she relaxes again, he starts working on the stitches. He's only gotten through a few when Nixie finally says, "The scar at the front of my left shoulder." Jordan looks up to see it in the mirror again. It wasn't the worst of her scars, but it did appear to be the most haphazard. All her other scars seemed to be more specific, clean, or purposeful. This one… it just looked mean. It was a jagged line that dug in at the top of her shoulder and came down about three inches.

Nixie fingers it slightly and says, "This… was from my mother. It was the first day that it really started happening. The first day she snapped and became… well, you saw her. She… she broke a glass or a plate, I think. And when I came in, she was laughing. And I wasn't old enough to understand that she… wasn't right anymore. She grabbed a piece of whatever it was she broke and… she came after me. She kept asking if I wanted to play. That's… that's how you really know that it's not her. She asks to play."

They stay silent for a moment, and then Jordan asks, "Do the others know about these?" "No." "Why not, Nixie? Why don't the rest of your friends know about these? I mean… I get not wanting to worry them right now. I still think you should've told someone about this already… but I get it, a little bit. But the others… why haven't they seen them before?"

Nixie sighs, "Because they don't need to." "Yes, they do." "No, they don't." "Nixie… someone should know." Nixie meets his gentle gaze in the mirror, and then draws in a shaky breath before saying, "Al… Alison. Alison knew." Jordan freezes at that, not daring to tear his gaze away from hers. Nixie smiles shakily and says, "She um… had a tendency to barge in on me while I was trying to fix myself up. And after that… well, she refused to not know about them. Helped me patch them up. Helped me hide them." "Why would she help you hide?"

Nixie put a hand to the scar on her stomach, which she still considers the worst of them all. Then she says, "This one was the first one I got when she found out. And it… it was meant as a message. For Scott. And I had no intention of delivering it."

Jordan is about halfway down her back with the stitches. Gently, he says, "Someone else should still know about these, Nixie. They should know what you've endured for them." Nixie shakes her head, "We have… we always have too much to worry about."

Her shoulders slump tiredly, and Jordan looks to her face again in the mirror. Dark circles are under her eyes again, and she just looks completely beat right now. And yet… he knows if she needed to, she could still fly out of here in a heartbeat, if any of her friends called and said they needed her. Sighing, she adds, "We can't afford to worry about every cut and bruise. If they were fatal, I would tell somebody. But they never have been, so I don't. And by the time we reach a point where it might make any sense to tell someone… there's just no point anymore. I've gotten past the worst stage and it just… doesn't seem like I should worry anybody with it after that."

Running a hand through her hair, she says, "I can't add myself to the list of problems we have. Not when it's already huge to begin with. I can't do that. I won't."

Jordan lets another few moments of silent pass between them, nearly done with the stitches on her back. Then he says gently, "You need to show them these eventually. They need to see what you're willing to do for them." "They already know I would willingly die for them, Jordan. It doesn't get much more blunt than that." "Maybe. But knowing something as a fact, even believing it as a fact; and then seeing it proven in reality, are two different things. They know you'd die for them. They haven't seen just how much you've actually suffered for them. And they do need to see these eventually."

She doesn't try arguing with him further. She just waits for him to be finished. Once he is, he pulls out the bandages and works on securing them over the long gash. Then he clips her bra back in place.

Nixie doesn't really know what to do with herself at this point… until Jordan gently grips her shoulders. Pulling her back gently, mindful of her back, he pulls her to rest against him. Her head falls back to land against his collar, and Jordan wraps one arm around her at shoulder height, securing her to him.

The warm breath he breathes out in a sigh rushes down past her neck and over her skin. And it makes Nixie relax further into him. Then he says, "I don't have the same list of problems you and your friends do. At least… I don't yet. And even if I ever do end up sharing all those problems with you… I want you to promise me something." Nixie turns her head in towards him, a sign that she's listening. Then Jordan says, "Let me know about these. Any new ones you get. Let me help you take care of them. Let me take care of you, Nixie. You deserve so much more than that… so please, at least let me do this."

Silence reigns for a moment, and then Nixie answers softly, "Okay." Sighing in relief, Jordan presses a kiss to the top of her head before saying, "Thank you." And he laughs when she asks, "What on earth are you thanking me for? You just stitched me up and didn't run away screaming. No, you are the one that gets thanked. Not the other way around." "Well, then I guess you better hop to it."

Her laughter is music to his ears. Bending to pick up his uniform shirt, he draws it over her shoulders to cover her, and then turns her around so she faces him. Tilting her head up gently with his fingers, he says, "You're not supposed to go through all this pain alone, Nixie. Alison knew that. She knew it wasn't healthy. And you're pretty smart. I'm sure you know it too."

When she nods after a moment, he says, "Always tell me. Always." "Jordan… I'm not arguing. I will. It's just… you might be busy. And I…" Gripping her chin a bit so she can't look away, Jordan says, "I will never be too busy for you. Understand?"

Nixie nods again, and then lets out a shaky breath before saying, "Thank you, Jordan." Smiling, he draws her in close. And as she rests her head on his chest again, he whispers in her ear, "Anytime, Nixie."

And she knows, without a shadow of a doubt, that he means it.

And here is Chapter 8!

And I just realized that I haven't informed anyone as to the number of chapters that will exist in this new version of the story as a whole. Now I deserve to be slapped upside the head. How rude of me.

For those who care, there will be a total of 14 chapters in this new version of the story. Hope you're enjoying it so far! :)