I woke up in a less-than-wonderful mood, which was reasonable under the circumstances.

The position of the sun told me that I had slept in, so I quickly dressed and made my way down the stairs. The kitchen was unusually quiet, but I happily flopped down at the table, drumming my fingers on the worn wood.

"Good morning," I chirp, and Olena doesn't even turn around, but I can hear the smile in her voice.

"Good afternoon, Roza."

I smile to myself and get myself a glass of orange juice. "Quiet, today," I point out, enjoying the short, sweet conversation with her.

"Viktoria's out shopping for school supplies with Karolina, Soyna's at work, and Dimitri and Paul are still sleeping," she explains.

I can't help but raise my brows in surprise. "Dimitri? Really? Dimitri Belikov? Sleeping in?"

She laughs. "You'd be surprised. I practically had to pull him out of bed on school mornings."

I loved the way her eyes light up when she thinks of her children, as children. "Did he stay up late last night?"

She shrugs. "Must have. He was still up pacing when I went to bed."

I smile to myself. "Always was a worrier."

As if summoned, Dimitri stumbles in, his chest bare. "Mama," he greets, then looks at me, his face falling ever-so-slightly. "Rose."

I blink in surprise at his tone. "'Afternoon," I mumble. He doesn't reply.

I narrow my eyes, and can see Olena's wide eyes looking between us. She looked no more confused than I was.

"I'm..." she flusters, "Going to grab something from the store. Watch Paul." And shes gone. Poor woman, always trying to avoid a fight.

Dimitri ignores, me pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"I said, Good Afternoon."

He sighs and drinks his coffee, staring out the kitchen window.

"What is your problem?" I cry, losing my patience. He spins with a fury, his muscles tense and tight.

"My problem? Do you want me to just pretend last night didn't happen?"

I roll my eyes. "You can't control my every movement! It was just a party! One party!"

"I'm not talking about the party!"

"Then what the hell are you talking about?"

He groans and sits down on the chair across from me, burying his head in his hands. "You don't remember. You don't remember. Oh, Rose, I can't do this anymore. I just can't."

It breaks my heart to see him like this. "Dimitri, we had a fight again, didn't we?"

He just shakes his head. "I don't know what happened. We managed a civilized conversation. But then you just... I don't know. Please, Rose, I'm not trying to blame this on you, I just-"

"It's alright. No, I can believe that it was my fault. I'm sorry, I hope I didn't say anything to hurt you."

He smiles, a pain-filled smile. "Rose, how can you be worried about me? Why are you always worried about me, even after-"

I take his head across the table, feeling the familiar rush. "The same way you worry about me, after everything that's happened."

He squeezes his eyes shut, tiliting his chin downwards. Paul comes into the room, smiling broadly. "Morning, Pauly," I tease, and he sticks out his tongue at me for the nickname.

"Mornin'." He pours himself a bowl of cereal and sets it on the table, where Dimitri's and my hands formally had been joined.

I gaze at him, still wondering how he could only be six. When I first saw him, I was sure he was at least ten. But with Dimitri's height, I suppose it's no suprise.

Karolina had him when she was only twenty, but the vampire world tended to get married and have kids very early in life. When death and destruction hid behind every corner, no one knew whether there was a tomorrow; there was no reason to wait.

Viktoria crashes in the door. God, it's just a building party, isn't it?

"You're up!" She says happily. "All danced out?"

I shake my head, hoping she doesn't bring it up.

She does.

"Gonna call him for more?" she teases, and I groan. Dimitri looks at me, bewildered.

"Who?"

Viktoria realizes her mistake, but it's too late.

"Nothing, Dim-"

"Viktoria..."

She sighs, looking at me with an apologetic face. "She just danced with a guy, Dimitri. It's not a big deal."

Oh, yes it was. A guy. A guy who I had only danced with because he reminded me entirely of Dimitri. How desperate was I?

Dimitri nods, but I can tell he's not happy a about it. Too bad. I was entitled to a life.

At this point, even I could tell my defensive side was coming out. I could completely shut myself away, and no one could win an arguement when I was in that mood.

"How was shopping?" I say weakly, diverting the focus.

She smiles, and holds up bags of binders, paper, and who knows what else. "Good."

She sets them down and sits between us. "You both woke up late."

We nod simultaneously. "Yeah, late night," I reply, watching him, although he makes no effort to have eye contact.

I can tell by her eyes that she knows something's up. I had always been able to read those eyes.

"I should get changed," Dimitri whispers, and quietly leaves the kitchen. I groan and sink back into the kitchen chair.

Viktoria grabs my hand. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

I shake my head. "No, Viktoria. It's not you. It's Dimitri."

I turn my head to stare after him, although he's long gone. I smile smally at Viktoria and follow him.

...

"No. No. She's fine."

I can hear the whispered voice through the door, deep and throaty, like he has something to hide.

"At my house. Yes. I don't think that's wise. What if-" A long pause stretches over several moments. "Are you sure? I promised I'd bring her back, didn't I?"

Oh God, oh God oh God. All I could think of was 'I was hired to bring you back.'

"Yes, Abe, calm down. She's fine. A broken arm, that's it... Yes, you're right, it is a big deal. She... Look, we'll discuss this in a few days. Bye."

I can't breathe, can't move as a dark feeling creeps into my stomach, but Dimitri opens the door, and sees my expression.

"How much did you hear?" Is his only question.

I narrow my eyes. "You were hired by my father? My dad!"

His shoulders sink. "It's not what you think..."

"Like hell," I hiss. "How much is he paying you?" I demand. "How much do you get for bringing me back?"

"Rose-"

"No," I choke, tears filling my eyes. "No, nevermind. I don't want to know."

"Rose, please," he starts forward, but I quickly back down the hall, and try to nonchalantly jump down the stairs. But Viktoria catches me as soon as my feet hit the bottom step.

"Roza...?"

"Rose!" Dimitri calls, quickly coming up behind me.

I take a step towards Viktoria, seperating us. "No, Dimitri."

At this ideal moment, Olena enters the house. "Roza-" she freezes in the doorway, looking between us.

"Dimitri? What's going on?"

I raise a brow, trying to keep my eyes from watering. "Care to explain?" I put on a false smile.

He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. He rubs his face, avoiding our eyes.

"Rose, please, just listen to me," he begs, and I nod sharply in response.

He squeezes his eyes shut. "Rose, I'm so sorry, but when I told you I was hired to bring you back, I may have...exaggerated."

I can hear Olena's intake of breath, and Viktoria booms, "Hired?"

But his gaze never leaves mine. "Rose, yes, I am bringing you back to your father. But he technically didn't hire me."

I scoff. "Technically?" I question, and he sighs, rubbing the back of his neck, as if embarrassed. He shoots a glance at his family, as if pleading for privacy, but Viktoria crosses her arms and plants her feet on the ground.

Turning back to me, he answers, "Rose, I... I offered. He was going to send some of the people who worked for him, he would have come himself had it not been for Janine. But I offered to come and get you. I told him I wanted to, that he would have a better chance of finding you."

"How much," I demand, "Is he paying you?"

Dimitri just shakes his head. "Nothing. He's not paying me anything, Rose. He offered to, but I turned him down."

I cannot believe what he's said, after all this time. "You... turned him down?"

"This isn't a job, Rose, not to me. This is something personal. I wanted..." he continues to run his hand awkwardly over his hair. "I wanted to find you myself. I wanted to make sure you were alright."

I bite my lip, tears springing to my eyes once again.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I whisper finally, and he lets out a shaky laugh.

"Because... Rose..." he can't seem to come up with a response.

"I'm sorry," I whisper. "I'm sorry I keep picking fights with you."

He uncrosses his arms, and I slowly embrace him, the guilt welling up within me. He obviously didn't expect it, because he tenses up. But unlike last time, the stiffness drains from his body, and he rests his palms gently on my hips.

"Oh, Roza, I'm sorry, too."

I kiss his cheek, and when we pull away, I see that Olena has tears in her eyes.

Dimitri gives me a small smile. "I should..."

He doesn't finish his sentence, but he begins to lean forward. I prepare myself, but he doesn't kiss my lips, or even my forehead. He seems to change his mind, offering only a smile before heading back up the stairs to change.

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