Well, it's syllabus week here at College, so i have a lot of free time. Therefore, here is another pretty-freaking-great chapter.
Sometime during the car ride home, Piper had become conscious enough to demand they take her to the Museum. Van had chuckled, telling her she was woozy from bloody loss, to which she replied he would also be suffering from if he didn't take her to the fucking Museum.
He had exchange some annoying look with Bran before agreeing to change directions. When they'd arrived, Piper had reached for the door, just as the sound of the locks clicking sprung to life. Van and Bran both turned toward her.
"What are we doing here, Piper?"
"Would you believe me if I said there's a Monet I really wanted to see?"
"No." Van declared, forcing Piper to come clean. She told them about the Kid, earning sympathetic looks from Van and hostility and confusion from Bran. The two other men in the car, Radcliff and T.J. kept quiet.
"Piper," Van said with Pity, "You can just take this kid in like some stray, he's a Red."
"He isn't a stray, he's a human. And he's not a Red, they picked him up off the streets."
"It's dangerous," Bran spoke, for the first time since he'd found her.
"I don't care what either of you have to say, I'm not part of your pack."
Bran looked away, Van practically scowled, "How dare you say that after everything we risked tonight!"
"Van, I didn-"
"Yes, you did. Quit being a brat and accept you're part of us."
Piper could admit she was part of them, she had felt it since the night Van had folded her in his arms after Mac's death. She couldn't, however, admit how wrong it felt taking orders from them. SHe would never be abel to cow to their pack structure, it just wasn't in her.
"I'm sorry, you're right. But i'm not playing by the same rules. I'm helping this kid with or without you."
"Why are you doing this?"
"Van, you know why..."
He looked away, a muscle in his jaw ticking. "Fine," he unlocked the door, "but he makes any trouble and he's out."
She climbed out of the car, scrambling up the steps only to be stopped by Bran. "Here," he said, tugging her toward him, "You look like hell." Gently he used a handkerchief to wipe away the blood and dirt. Piper had completely forgetting about it before he'd done it.
Quietly, he asked, "What's this about, Piper," he nodded toward the Museum doors.
It was one part of herself, she had kept from Bran. Piper had gladly told him everything else. But this, this was so deep, so personal, that she hadn't been ready to expose the hurt. Piper still wasn't sure.
"I- I can't talk about it." Bran nodded, disappointed, "You can ask Van if you want, it's just...painful to-"
"I understand," again he nodded toward the doors, "Let's go get your kid."
It had taken about thirty minutes of convincing Kid that she wanted to help him before he was relaxed enough to ask questions. She had assured him that he'd be okay, that the Reds wouldn't come after him. She had even promised not to let the wolfs hurt him, something she wasn't sure she could altogether keep. He had agreed to come with her, eat and spend the night. The wildness in her eyes reminded her of herself the night Rick had found her.
He clung to her the entire night, eating three helpings of spaghetti and giving a few smartass comments when people asked rude questions. Piper, walked him to his room, realizing how fond she'd already grown for him. When he'd asked to talk, some part of her knew what was coming.
To ease things she'd asked, "I'm guessing Kid is not your name, unless if you're parents had a thing for westerns?" He shook his head, "Then, what do you want to be called?"
"Brady," he said. "My name is Brady."
Piper nodded, waiting for him to speak again. "I just, I wanted to say thankyou."
"No problem, Brady."
He chuckled, "it's been so long since someone called me that."
"What happened to your parents?"
He fidgeted with the bed, "I know you heard about my mom," he said, "I heard from a dealer she died a few months back, my dad died when I was a baby."
"I'm sorry Brady."
He shrugged and Piper decided to fill the next silence with her own story. Something, as hse had told Bran earlier, was extremely painful to talk about. With all the pain Brady was in, Piper figured she could also get through it.
"My dad died when I was ten," he looked toward her, "My mom, got in a real bad way afterward, she dated some bad guys." Piper tried not to wince at the memories of fists hitting flesh, her mothers screams, Mac's crying. "One of the guys beat her so badly, she ended up dying. My brother and I were out on the streets by the time we were thirteen."
"What happened?" Mac asked
Piper shrugged, remembering the smells, the coldness, but most of all remembering the smiles she used to go to such lengths to see on Mac's face. "We got by. When I was sixteen, some guy caught me stealing from the fridge in his garage." Piper remembered how calm he'd been. Through the darkness, Rick had only smiled and asked her to grab him a Coke.
Brady looked horrified, "Holy shit. What did he do?"
A smile worked it's way onto her lips, "he adopted me and my brother," tears formed in her eyes, "he taught us everything about life and combat and how to be good people. We loved him."
Brady nodded, and a silence grew between them. Piper wondered if she'd told too much. Finally, he said, "So is that what this is? A pay it forward kind of thing?"
She supposed it could be seen as such. "Maybe," she shrugged, "Or maybe I just know how it feels." Piper smiled at Brady, before leaving him alone to his thoughts.
Piper's bedroom was dark, full of shadows and silence. The last two days played across her vision like a gag reel. Getting captured, being beaten, meeting Brady, killing the men, seeing Bran, it was all overwhelming, and yet, Piper felt like she was doing the absolute right thing. A peace had found itself somewhere inside of her and she was happy for peace stretched out before her, as she watched shadows splay across her ceiling.
When the knock came, Piper realized she had known it would come, had waited for the moment since that first moment in the Sandbox. Since that moment, Bran had barely looked, touched or spoken to her all night.
Despite it, a part of her knew he would come. The door opened, alieving the room of some of the shadows. Bran let himself inside and with his presence the peace she felt fled in the wake of butterflies.
Bran said no words, maybe there was nothing really to say. Instead, he came to the bed as Piper folded back one side of the covers and climbed in. He wrapped his arms around her, still neither of them speaking.
A part of Piper marveled on how good it all felt, how much she'd missed him in the short time. She had never felt so completely happy with a man, not even Mac. Bran was everything to her. Bran was home. Piper didn't know when it had happened, but she realized, she loved him so severly it scared her. She wanted forever with him. But more importantly, she wanted him now, badly.
He pulled away after a few moments, to look into her face. His hand came up to gently brush across the black bruise on her brow, then down to the one on her chin, and finally come to the split in her lips.
Absently, Piper took bit his finger, the sensation lighting her on fire, she wondered if this is how it felt to burn.
A small frown wormed itself between Bran's eyebrows, "I know, now" he said.
She nodded, figuring Van had filled him in on her past. A part of her marveled that despite knowing he was still here. He wanted her, damage and all. Piper leaned into him, letting his warmth soak through her clothing.
Tonight, she didn't want to be rational, she didn't want to be careful. Tonight, Piper wanted to feel safe and loved and to pretend Bran felt the same way about her, pretend she was his mate.
She reached her lips up to his, marveling at how wonderful he tasted. As the kiss grew hotter, Bran continued to hold onto her, tenderly, as if she'd slip away from him. And in that shadowy bedroom, Piper gave all of herself to him, marveling at how easily it went.
Soo, FINALLY, right? WRONG.
No spoiler, but lets just say THIS IS NOT THE END. stay tuned.
I HOPE EVERYONE REVIEWS THIS CHAPTER, at the very least.