She was no longer laying on her back. He hooked up the IV bag back up and scanned her slowly. her hair had been pushed back, the blankets shifted positions. Her breathing had changed and her eyes open just enough that he saw her watching him. He sat back in the rocking chair took a shaky breath and spoke;
"I know you're watching me Cassie." Her eyes opened, he saw a spectacular color he couldn't put a name to. Her lips were cracked and dry. He immediately regretted not putting chapstick on her lips. No he thought. It was too much. Too creepy. To tempting. He had been hydrating her through the IV but… was that enough? She must need food and water. Seeing as she hasn't really been able to eat or drink for the past week.
"How do you know my name?" She asked dryly.
"Drivers license." This is awkward. She probably knows that I cleaned her up and, well.. yeah. He kept his head lowered slightly, embarrassed for bathing his star. "I'm Evan. Evan Walker."
"Hi." she responded delicately.
Funny, I think we're past normal greetings, as the human race is on the brink of extinction."Hi" They talked for a while longer. They revealed each of their family's state of living and Evan pried into whether or not Cassiopeia knew that he was the one who shot her. Her voice was raspy and sounded like she was brushing off the dust with every word after not speaking for so long. She needed to drink but, when Evan offered her water, she declined. He pried further about Wright-Patterson and if her brother had been taken there. The shadow within Evan knew all there was to know about the operation at that now not abandoned air force base, and that if Sammy was indeed there, getting him out would take extensive planning and mischief.
His star was sassy, but it relieved him to know she had enough strength to have an attitude. When Cassie began to look weak again, Evan remembered she hadn't had any actual nourishment for over a week, so he went to the kitchen and brought back a bowl of warm, venison broth. The smell reminded him of the times his mom brought the same dish to him when he was sick. The memory stirred the shadow inside him but he shook it away. The last time he climbed the stairs with venison broth was when the plague hit his sister. I wasn't able to save her, but I will save Cassie. I have to. He opened the door to the room and set the bowl on the nightstand next to the bed. After helping her adjust, he handed her the bowl and saw the look of suspicion on her face as she took a sip of the she finished drinking down the broth, she looked sleepy again. Evan didn't want to see the magnificent eyes of his lovely star close ever again, but he knew she needed her rest to get better.
As he got up to take the dish back to the kitchen, a worried look crept up Cassie's face. "Did you have to-"
Oh, crap. Too much pain medication. "No! No, it just grazed some muscle tissue. It'll take some time to recover but I stitched it up and cleaned it before it could get infected."
"Oh." Her eyes drooped as she sighed with relief. Evan continued out the door, this time without interruption. As he washed the bowl, he wondered what he could do to make her more comfortable there. Mom always said the way to a girl's heart is chocolate. I think there's still some chocolate stashed in mom's closet. Evan walked quietly up the stairs to his parent's room. The room was dusty. Evan hadn't been in there since he lost his sister. He ran a hand along the dresser to pick up some of the dust and wiped his hand on his pants. When he reached the closet, he felt sneaky and guilty; as if he were going for an early peek at Christmas presents. He pulled the door open and shifted some jackets to the side and sure enough, four bags of Hershey Kisses were sitting on a shelf. He grabbed all four and went to the kitchen to store them in the pantry. After putting them away, He opened the first bag and grabbed a handful. He tiptoed back into Cassie's room and placed a single Kiss on her nightstand. He unhooked the IV and decided to let Cassie rest until she awoke again. In the meantime, he had some cleaning to do in his parents' room.