A/N: Hey People, ok this is the next chapter, I hope you like it. By the way, last chapter I forgot to ask you all what you thought about Bryan getting nervous about the doctors but I guess you'll all find out in this chapter but I spoke to my friend Demi-Goddess – Queen Of OCs and she was very close.
Chapter 10
Tala stepped into the apartment and looked around the living room. Serenity dumped her backpack onto the floor when she noticed Bryan just standing near the door, leaning against the door frame with arms crossed. She slowly walked over to him and latched onto his arm and pulled him inside closed the door behind him, taking his hand she pulled him further inside the apartment, "Make yourself at home" she whispered, looking up into his blank eyes.
"I don't feel right being here" Bryan whispered, pulling his hand away from hers.
"Why?" Serenity asked softly, crossing her arms.
"Because I shouldn't be here, this is your place, not mine" Bryan replied, "I have to go" he whispered, turning to the door and opening it quickly.
Serenity grabbed his forearm and pulled him near her again and took a grip on his other arm to keep him from moving away and squeezed his arm tightly when he tried to pull out of her hold. "And where will you go? What is your problem with staying here? – You aren't intruding and are more then welcome to stay here so I don't see what could be the problem" Serenity said, whispering so that Tala didn't hear her. Squeezing his forearm even tighter in her grip when he turned his head away from her and making him wince in pain, thinking that he only winced because of the pressure she put on his arm but more pain was happening then Bryan was letting on and more pain had been surging from his arms.
"The problem is that you and Tala belong here but I don't" Bryan replied through gritted teeth and glaring coldly at Serenity.
"What makes you believe that you don't belong here too? You can't think that you don't belong here, you're a smart person and I can't believe that you're mind is actually telling you that you shouldn't be here. You deserve to be here, after all you've been through you deserve to be with friends" Serenity said, angrily at first but softening her voice closer to the end but still kept her voice down to a whisper. "Please stay" she whispered.
Bryan sighed in defeat but still remained tense under Serenity's hold on him. She slowly let go of him and then closed the door. Serenity turned round and slowly walked over to Tala. He was sitting on the sofa, holding a frame and smiling as he looked at the picture. The frame held a picture of a six year old Serenity wearing a pale blue silk dress and lay smiling on a double bed. Her smile was that of a young child, somewhat playful and mischievous
Serenity sat down next to him and smiled at her strange picture, "I looked so weird" she said laughing.
"Not really, I think it's cute" Tala replied, placing the frame back onto the table.
"You're such a liar" Serenity said, narrowing her eyes. "Anyway why don't I show you two to your rooms?" she said getting up.
She led them to their rooms and after showing them around she went to her room and lay lazily on her bed after looking around through her old stuff. She turned in her bed and lay on her side, her thoughts drifting to what Mike would say if she were pregnant. Her worrying thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door bell ringing and she ran out of her room to see Tala already opening the door. In the doorway stood a tall man with dark black hair and eyes that looked similar to Serenity's. Serenity ran to the door and hugged the tall man, who both Tala and Bryan assumed was Mike. "Serenity? How you've changed over the years" Mike exclaimed, embracing the hug.
"You too Mike" Serenity said, moving out of the hug and looking up at Mike and smiling sweetly at him.
"Yeah, a lot changed since you left" Mike replied.
"Not by chose" Serenity said, frowning a little.
"Care to introduce me to your friends?" Mike asked, changing the subject quickly.
"Oh yeah, this is Tala and Bryan" Serenity said, pointing to each of the two bladers in the room.
Mike shook Tala's hand but then he went for Bryan's hand but Bryan just walked off and sat on the couch with his arms crossed and arms crossed. Mike looked at Serenity but she just shook her head and Mike nodded in understanding. "Ok, medics should be here soon enough" Mike informed them.
"So what exactly will they be looking for?" Serenity asked.
"Scars, injuries anything that could confirm what goes on in the abbey" Mike said. "What makes you think it was your housekeeper that sent you there?" he asked Serenity.
"At the abbey we were always told that emotions were for the weak and that is exactly what Lucia had been telling me" Serenity replied, sitting down on the sofa.
"Nothing was allowed there, friendship and love was forbidden and if anyone was found socializing then they would most probably get beaten." Tala continued explaining, sitting next to Serenity on the sofa.
"What does he gain out of kidnapping kids and making them have no feelings at all?" Mike asked.
'The perfect soldier' Bryan thought bitterly.
"He gets brainless warriors that would help him take over the world for him" Tala said spitefully.
"That guy is insane" Serenity said, moving closer to Tala.
"I can tell" Mike said.
Within the next hour the medics had arrived and where settling in the things into the bedrooms, they all went to their bedrooms where doctors tended to each of them. Tala had been the first one out and sat down on the sofa, patiently waiting for Serenity to come out of her room. Bryan came out a few minutes later and stayed staring out the window, ignoring Tala and Mike completely. Serenity took about an hour in her room and Tala's head shot up when he saw her bedroom door creak open slowly. Serenity walked over to the sofa and sat sideways next to Tala so her back rested against his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her waist and looked down at her when she closed her eyes and leaned hr head against his chest. He was about to ask her about the pregnancy test but then Serenity's doctor walked up in front of him and Serenity and had stood next to Mike. "So is she?" he asked, looking up at the young female doctor.
"No, she isn't" The nurse replied simply after sighing.
"So what had happened?" Tala asked, holding onto Serenity tighter when she shifted uncomfortably.
"Radiation started to somewhat effect her body, giving her all the signs of pregnancy which in turn made her feel the affects of pregnancy when she wasn't really pregnant" The doctor explained.
"Radiation?" Mike asked.
"Explains a lot, the abbey is filled with powerful machines and computers. Even scientists have been know for getting sick after working at the computers for too long" Tala explained. "Is it serious?" he asked the doctor.
"Not too serious, many women have been known to have it. It's nothing that a short treatment can't fix" The doctor said.
"Then unless she has any objections, give her the treatment" Tala said, looking down for a second to see if Serenity would object but then turned back to looking at the doctor.
The doctor smiled a little at the love and consideration Tala held for Serenity, "The treatment consists of a low sugar diet and plenty of bed rest" she said.
"You think you can handle that?" Tala asked, looking down at Serenity.
Serenity opened her eyes and looked up a little, "I guess" she whispered in reply.
"This was also brought up by stress and worry so it is safest to keep both of those to a short limit" The doctor continued advising.
"The abbey was all about stress so I'm not too surprised then" Tala said.
"And Serenity could change all she wanted to over the years but she'll never stop worrying about others" Mike said, thinking back to when Serenity was younger.
"I agree, it's what makes Serenity who she is" Tala said, smiling at Serenity.
Serenity sat up a little and smiled at Tala, "I guess it isn't really me if I don't worry huh?" she said laughing a little at the end.
"No it isn't" Tala said.
"If you came here not caring then I would think that there was something terribly wrong with you" Mike said, laughing.
The other two doctors took the things back down to the car and handed Mike three files before they left. He sat down on the sofa and looked through them quickly. "So do you think it will get the warrant?" Serenity asked, snuggling up to Tala on the sofa.
"More then enough, we should be able to get the warrant soon and we'll be able get the FBI to search the place in the next two days" Mike informed.
"That's good" Serenity said, smiling.
"I'll be in my room if you need me" Bryan said, getting off the armchair and walking down the hall to his bedroom.
"What's up with him?" Tala asked.
"I might have an idea" Mike muttered.
"What do you mean?" Serenity asked quickly when she heard the faint words, turning her head from looking down the hall and turning her attention back to Mike.
"Do any of you know about all the wounds the doctor found on him?" Mike asked.
"No, what type of wounds?" Serenity asked, panicking and sitting up quickly.
"All kinds, they seemed really serious, stab wounds and whiplashes covered him everywhere" Mike said.
"Well he did get beaten a week ago and had gotten beaten with a whip so maybe…" Serenity said.
"These whiplashes were fresh and so were the stab wounds" Mike said, shaking his head a little.
"We didn't know about any of it" Serenity said.
"Well they seemed pretty bad, the stab wounds seemed to have done a lot of damage, how could you not have noticed the cuts and stab wounds on him?" Mike asked, placing the files onto the table.
"Actually we were all trained to hide wounds" Serenity said.
"We were always given extra clothes that could hide scars and fresh wounds in case someone had to come to the abbey. Before someone came to the abbey we would have to change and Boris and the guards would check that none of our injuries would show, so none of us are really surprised that he managed to keep them from us." Tala explained, continuing for Serenity.
"The wounds had been cleaned and wrapped but it could have been far worse. The doctor was able to clean the wounds properly since they were widening a little and were bleeding and they have been wrapped but he'll be able to remove them soon" Mike explained, looking through Bryan's file.
"And what about Serenity? - Anything serious?" Tala asked.
"Apart from that pregnancy mistake, nothing much. A couple of scrapes and scars but nothing too much, though you really should have tended to the cut on your knee earlier" Mike said, glaring rather angrily at Serenity.
Serenity just shrugged rather confusedly, "Why? I'm used to it besides, it didn't hurt" she said. "Lets move on to something else, anything on Tala?" she asked, glaring at Tala as if questioning him.
Mike looked at her strangely when she glared at Tala, "Don't you trust him?" he asked.
"Of course I trust him, but sometimes he doesn't tell me when something is wrong or when he's hurt" Serenity said.
"I can't say that you weren't the same way" Mike said.
"What do you mean?" Tala asked, a smile tugging at his lips.
"Shut up" Serenity told him.
"No thanks, I want to hear this" Tala said, sitting forward.
Mike smiled at Tala's sudden interest in Serenity's past, "When she was younger she would never admit to being hurt but she would always expect someone to tell her if something were wrong. She was always caring that way" he said, smiling.
"Some things never change" Tala said, smiling as he shook his head a little.
"You're right some things will never change" Mike said, "And work will never change either so I better get back to it" he said, standing up and picking up the files. He walked over to Serenity and kissed her softly on her head, "Take care sweetie, you know where to find me if you need anything" he said.
"Thanks Mike…for everything" Serenity said, hugging Mike and kissing him softly on the cheek.
"Glad I could help, take care of yourselves" Mike said finally, walking out the door.
Serenity moved closer to Tala and rested in his arms and lay against his chest. "Are you tired?" Tala asked quietly.
"A little" Serenity whispered, closing her eyes.
"Then shouldn't you go get some rest?" Tala asked. He looked down at her when she didn't reply and noticed that she had fell asleep in his arms. He smiled a little at the tired yet peaceful look on her face, he shifted her position in his arms and pushed himself up and carried her bridal-style to her bedroom. He pulled back the white silk covers a little and placed Serenity down and pulled the covers over her again. He walked over to the other side of the bed and sat down for a minute, staring at the ground as he thought. He sighed a little and looked back at Serenity again, his back to her, he lay down next to her and pulled an arm around her waist and held her close to him. He closed his ever blue eyes to rest and slept shortly after.
---Almost Two Hours Later---
Tala had just gotten out of bed and walked out into the hall when the door bell rang. Jake was there and he took the food from him and Jake left soon after, claiming he had to get back to work. He took the things to the kitchen and was about to walk out the front door when a gentle voice stopped him in his tracks, "Where are you going?" Serenity asked from her bedroom door.
Tala turned round and looked at Serenity with a slight sign of sorrow in his eyes, "I'm…just going for a walk" he said quietly.
"Oh…ok. You'll be back soon right?" Serenity asked.
"Yeah, of course" Tala replied, smirking.
"Ok, be careful" Serenity said advising softly.
"Don't worry, I will" Tala said, turning back to the door and walking out.
Serenity sighed and lay on the sofa and pulled a blanket over her. She turned round on her side and just lay there, trying not to think about anything in particular since no matter what entered her mind she would end up worrying anyway. She heard a bedroom door open and she sat up quickly. She relaxed a little when she saw that it was Bryan, he walked over to the kitchen counter and made himself a glass of water, ignoring Serenity or not even noticing her from the beginning. He was about to walk back to his room when Serenity interrupted his departure, "Hey, why don't you stay near me for a while?" Serenity asked, gesturing to the space next to her on the sofa. Bryan hesitated but then walked over to the space near her and placed the glass on the table and sat back on the sofa and rested his head back and sighed, "Are you tired?" Serenity asked, looking at him rather confusedly.
"Not really" Bryan said, it was a complete lie, he had been exhausted for the past few days and lack of sleep was starting to catch up to him though he would never admit it to anyone, especially Serenity.
"Really? – cause you look exhausted" Serenity pointed out.
"I'm fine" Bryan said again, in a slightly more stern tone this time.
"Well ok, if you say so" Serenity said uncertainly. She pulled the cover over Bryan and she fixed a cushion under head and lay down again. "By the way, I noticed that you seemed really…I don't know, scared to see the doctor today, was something wrong?" she asked after about ten minutes of silence. She had just looked up at him in time to see him act a bit more nervous looking. "I asked you a question" Serenity said when he didn't answer.
"I was fine…I'm fine" Bryan said, still acting nervous but managed to keep his voice from shaking.
"I know that voice, you're not ok and I can tell so what is wrong?" Serenity asked sternly.
"I told you nothing is wrong" Bryan said again, he thought that if maybe he convinced him self that then maybe she would believe him, but for now she could see right through his tough façade.
"You know you can tell me so why don't you?" Serenity asked more softly when she noticed some form of pain entering Bryan's eyes. She moved closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder but he just shrugged it off roughly. "What is wrong?" Serenity asked again, her voice holding some sort of coldness to it.
Bryan winced; the cold of Serenity's usually kind and gentle voice gripping at his heart painfully. "Why do I have to tell you?" he asked angrily, looking at her coldly.
"Because I saw how scared you were today and I can help you if you tell me" Serenity said.
"You can't change the past" Bryan whispered.
"No but I can help you take it for the future" Serenity said reasonably.
"Shut up, you can't even help even if you tried" Bryan said, practically leaping out of his seat and glaring down at her, "You can't help everyone" he said, before trying to walk off.
Serenity grabbed his hand and pulled him back, he turned to look at her but she wouldn't let go of him despite his glares, "But I can at least try" she said, standing up next to him. He relaxed a little under her hold and her eyes softening made him calm down and somehow, now a part of him wanted to tell her what he was afraid of but the other part still yelled at him that she would just hurt him. He didn't want to push her away; he couldn't something in him wouldn't let him. Serenity gently pulled him back to sit down on the sofa and she sat down next to him. She held his hand in hers and he just stared at the ground, being sure to avoid her gaze. She then gave his hand a light squeeze, attracting his attention for him to look at her. "What's scaring you, really scaring you?" she asked him gently.
Bryan sighed in defeat a little and rested his head back to look at the ceiling, "Boris used to have his scientists and doctors experiment on me…a lot and I hated it because of all the side affects there were and because I was just treated like a lab rat, not cared for and just used as a science experiment. It had hurt a lot, so toady…" he said, trailing off.
"You were afraid as to what would happen with the doctors" Serenity finished off for him, sparing him of having to continue talking about his seemingly painful past that still seemed to hurt him.
"Yeah" Bryan said, nodding a little before staring back at the ground.
"I'm sorry" Serenity whispered.
"Why? You didn't do anything" Bryan said.
"Yeah but because of my worry I brought up something that's really painful for you. If you would have told me sooner then maybe I could have worked something out with the doctor and maybe you wouldn't have had to go through what you went through today." Serenity said kindly. "But you have to know that the doctors here wouldn't hurt you the way the ones in the abbey did, but…I still understand your fear over it" she said understandingly.
"Thanks" Bryan whispered though still not taking his eyes off the ground.
"Anything else you want to add?" Serenity asked.
"No" Bryan replied simply after thinking a little.
"Ok then" Serenity said, she didn't really believe him, she knew there was more but he had seemed to have taken enough bashing and yelling that night so she just let it slide and pretend like nothing else was wrong. "Why don't you get some rest?" she asked.
"I tried, I couldn't sleep no matter how hard I tried" Bryan replied, shaking his head before resting it back.
"Then stay near me, maybe you'll sleep better" Serenity told him, pulling the blanket over him more.
"Not for now" Bryan said.
"You want to do something?" Serenity asked.
"Yeah but like what?" Bryan asked, looking at her.
"We could watch TV" Serenity suggested. Bryan just shrugged a little and Serenity switched on the TV. They sat there watching a movie for a while but Serenity tended to look at the clock more then the TV, it had been almost two hours since Tala had left and so it was now one in the morning when both Bryan and Serenity fell asleep.
---Next Morning---
Bryan sighed and groaned in pain, slowly lifting his head off the arm of the sofa and looked around. The TV had been switched off and he was now lying on the sofa with the blanket on him. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and threw the cover off him and slowly stood up, losing his balance at first but gaining balance quickly. He sat against the arm of the sofa a little and rubbed his sore neck from the uncomfortable position he had slept in that night. He pushed himself up again and looked around the room for any sign of the other two bladers but saw no sign of any of them. "Good Morning" a voice said from behind him.
Bryan turned round quickly; sleep swirling through his aching head. It was big mistake, his brain was now throbbing in his skull and pain filled his body. His hand moved from his side quickly when he felt faint and his hand grabbed the sofa again to keep him from falling. A horrible pain settled in his chest and he couldn't breathe properly, only letting his breath escape in short gasps and inhaling hurt his chest more. "Bryan?" Serenity asked, running toward him. Bryan winced at the voice that ran through his mind. He pressed his hands tightly on his wounds; he could already feel the blood from his wounds seeping through his shirt. The pain was unbearable and he started to feel like falling when he felt a rush of blood seep out of the stab wounds on his chest and stomach. The doctors had assured him that he didn't have to worry at all about the bleeding and that he would be able to remove the bandages after the antiseptic used had dried up.
Serenity looked at Bryan worriedly and hot tears started stinging her eyes. She helped Bryan sit back on the sofa and she gently slipped her hand up his black top and felt his cold skin covered in warm blood. She pulled her hand out and looked down at the blood and gasped, she looked up at Bryan again and saw him wince in pain, "What's happening?" Serenity asked, whispering.
"I don't know" Bryan said between breaths.
Bryan couldn't keep the pain from showing and he started to grip the blanket on the sofa tightly despite his lack of energy and strength. Serenity sat next to him and took his hand, "What's wrong? What can I do to help?" she asked.
"Nothing" Bryan whispered.
Sobs racked Bryan's slender frame and Serenity tried desperately to stop him from shaking. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly and kissed hot tears from his cheeks. Serenity rubbed Bryan's back gently, trying to calm him down but being careful not to touch the wounds. Bryan had always seemed so tall and so powerful next to her and now he was huddled up in her arms with tears streaming down his face. She hated to see him like this and she couldn't take it. Sobs gathered in Bryan's throat, making it even harder for him to breathe through all the pain. "What did you they do to you?" she asked, holding onto him tightly and trying to comfort him but was hard since she still wasn't sure as to what had happened.
"It hurt…it hurt so much" Bryan whispered, shutting his eyes tightly and wincing in pain.
---An Hour Later---
Serenity kept the phone to her ear as she paced through the living room, patiently waiting for Mike to pick up his phone. Mike picked up his phone and Serenity sighed in relief, "Hey Mike, listen do you mind sending over a doctor?" she asked.
"Why did something happen? Are you alright?" Mike asked worriedly.
"Yeah…I'm fine. It's not me it's Bryan but do you think you could send a doctor over quickly?" Serenity asked again, her voice shaking a little.
"Sure, I'll send one over soon" Mike replied.
"Thanks Mike, bye" Serenity said, before putting the phone back down in its place. She sat down opposite Bryan who lay on the sofa and Tala sat on the arm of the armchair that Serenity was sitting on, "Mike will have a doctor here soon to check on you so till then relax and don't move" Serenity told Bryan.
"I don't need a doctor" Bryan said, though his voice came out sounding rather weak so it didn't help him at all.
"Well whether you think you need one or not a doctor is coming so live with it" Tala said angrily.
"Erm…Tala could you excuse us for a second?" Serenity asked.
Tala hesitated a little, "Sure" he said finally, getting up and walking to Serenity's bedroom.
Serenity sat forward in her seat, "Look, I understand that you're not comfortable with doctors but this time you need one to check on all your wounds. You saw and felt what happened before, that is a result of what is going to keep happening if you don't let people help you" she explained caringly. "If you would have told me about the injuries earlier then maybe this wouldn't have happened" she said.
"I made a mistake, I'm sorry" Bryan said, raising his voice that returned to its cold feeling.
"I know you are but you can at least learn from your mistake and try to let us help you, it isn't easy and I know that but you have to at least try" Serenity said, her eyes holding their usual care and worry. She walked over to him and took his hand, kneeling down on the floor near him. "You're not going to get hurt if you trust us" she whispered. "Come on" she said, standing up. She helped Bryan up and took him to his bedroom and he just lay in bed and Serenity went back to her room. She walked in and closed the door behind her quietly when she saw Tala sitting on her bed and staring at the ground.
Tala turned his head to look at her, as usual his amazing ice blue eyes holding sorrow in them, "I'm sorry" he told her.
Serenity looked at him confusedly and sat next to him, "What for? What did you do?" she asked.
"I should have been here and shouldn't have left" Tala replied.
"You needed some time alone and besides things will be fine now" Serenity said, smiling.
"I hope you're right" Tala said.
"Don't worry, I am" Serenity said. She slowly leaned in and kissed him passionately on the lips, seriously deepening the kiss. Tala moved his hands down to her waist and let the fire of the passionate kiss from his lover consume him. They pulled away a little to breathe and Serenity smiled at him, almost grinning, "I thought you and I wouldn't be kissing like that again for a long time"
"And somehow life goes on" A voice said. Mike had been leaning against the door frame about half way through the kiss, "It's amazing that whenever I see you two you either have your hands all over each other or you're making out" he said, smirking.
Serenity and Tala turned to look at the door where Mike had been standing and Serenity glared and Tala blushed a little and went back to staring at the ground, "Maybe if you ever thought of knocking then maybe you wouldn't always see us like this" Serenity said spitefully, getting up and walking over to stand in front of Mike. Mike was only twenty-seven years old, yet Serenity was still quite tall next to him, she came to just a little lower then his shoulder and her height was quite intimidating.
"Well excuse me" Mike said, in a fake hurt tone.
"Cut the crap" Serenity said, punching him in the shoulder, "Now where is the doctor?" she asked.
"Already checking on Bryan" Mike said, pointing backwards to the Bryan's closed bedroom door before rubbing his shoulder which he swore he felt was bruised.
"Thanks. I really hope he's alright" Serenity said, walking to her balcony door to look outside through the glass.
"Don't start worrying already, you heard the doctor with your own two ears and you're not meant to be stressing yourself out" Mike advised, keeping his distance by the door.
"I agree you really shouldn't be worrying right now" Tala said, walking up behind her.
Serenity turned round quickly and glared at him, "Traitor" she said angrily.
Tala smirked and walked closer to her, she turned her head away from him but he placed a finger under her chin and turned it towards him again, "Am I still a traitor if I am just saying because I care?" he asked.
"Yes because you should be taking my side" Serenity said. Tala leaned in again and kissed her softly on the lips as a way to win her over, he pulled away a little but still kept his close to hers, "You're moments away of sleeping on your own tonight" she said, trying not to let him defeat her.
"If it will protect you then I'll take that chance" Tala replied, kissing her again quickly, he walked out next to the door, "Get some rest, It'll do you good after all that happened" he said, pushing Mike out a little.
"But…" Serenity started, almost running across the room to the door.
"No buts, get some rest" Tala said again before closing the door behind him.
Serenity rolled her eyes and sat down on her bed, sighing in defeat but not seeming too disappointed.
A/N: Hey guys, what did you think of the chapter? I hope you liked it, I put loads of work into this chapter since it was hard but I hope some good came out of all of it. I will try to have the next chapter up sooner then usual since now I have my break for two weeks so I'll try to have a good chapter done. I have two little things to point out, first off I have put the votes together and Bryan will be paired in later chapters. And I also counted the votes for future fics and 'Angel Of Neglect' is the fic I'll work on after this one. Please review this chapter since I tried hard with it and please tell me what you liked and didn't like about it especially from Demi-Goddess since she was really looking forward to this chapter. Please review and by the way I put up a fic called 'Drowning Down The New Year' which I wrote about four years ago and decided to fix it up a little and post it. It is still crap but if you want to read it then please give me your opinion on it. Please review this chapter and thanks.