Love To
Chapter 37:
My eyes fluttered open, but no one paid any notice. Mom was slumped in one of the infirmary beds, Luke curled up beside her. They were both a sleep, my mother looked exhausted as did Luke. I turned my head, seeing Jace a few beds away. His torso was bear. Brother Zachariah was leaning over him, applying some ointment to his ribs and covering it with bandages. I yearned to get up and go sit beside him on the bed but I was still very tired from the night before. Or was it the night before? It didn't matter as I fell back asleep.
I awoke to a dark infirmary. My parents were gone, probably to seek refuge in one of the spare rooms. Shadows were cast along the walls by dimly glowing witch light. I yawned stretching my sore muscles. Jace was sitting at the edge of my bed flipping through my sketch book. How did that get here? I rubbed my eyes, pushing myself up right. I frowned at Jace, his golden eye gleamed from underneath his blonde lashes as he peered up at me.
"I knew that kiss would wake the sleeping beauty." He sighed.
"You know that's private." I reached across the distance, taking back the sketch book and laying it on the table.
"You're very good. But you know that don't you." He smirked.
"It's still nice to hear." I tried not to smile. "Oh God!" I mocked shock.
"What?" He looked alarm, his hands flitting over towards me. Probably thinking I was injured or I was going to throw up.
"You're rubbing off on me! I'm allowing people to flatter me with no form of protest." I covered my mouth with my hand, gasping.
He faked a laugh, a small sneer spreading over his face.
"I'm kidding dear." I smiled, crawling across the bed to rest against the crook of his neck.
He sat unmoving for a few moments and then finally relaxed, draping his arm around me. I snuggled into the warmth of his side. Someone had changed me from my tattered dress into a baggy t-shirt and loose cotton shorts.
"So what happened with your ribs?"
"I broke a few and they didn't heal right away, so Brother Zachariah had to help them along. By the way, thanks for saving me." He nudged me playfully.
"Any time. That is what I'm here for after all." I grin at the wall.
"To save me from your maniac of a brother?"
"That, and to make out with you. We are kind of a team."
"How do you mean?" I peer up at him.
"That's what a relationship is about, team work."
"What's going to work?" He grins down at me.
"Team work." I return the grin. He stands and I let out a whimper of protest. He holds a hand out to me.
"Want to see something that's absolutely amazing?" He raises an eyebrow. A smile quirks at the edges of his lips. I shrug, taking his hand and letting him guide me to the massive infirmary doors.
"What time is it?" I whisper as he dragged me along behind.
"Quarter to midnight." He said without turning to face me.
"Where are we going?"
"You have to see." After about 20 minutes we finally make it to a set of stairs. Okay it wasn't exactly 20 minutes, but it was pretty flipping close.
"What time is it now?" I whined as he unlocked a door at the tope of the stairs.
"Four minutes after the last time you asked." He sighed pushing the door open. And it's been confirmed. I am extremely impatient. Jace led me through the dark room. After a few moments, my eyes adjusted, the only light was coming from the skylight. A huge floating orb loomed above. Oh it was just the moon. The smell of spring was all around. It was like sitting in a room full of fresh cut flowers, and grass.
"What is this place?" I took a few steps along the brick path allowing Jace to come farther into the room.
"This is the greenhouse. No one ever comes here. Maryse and Max only come up during the day to tend to it. Isabelle and Alec have allergies and Robert is never here, so I'm pretty much the only one that visits here when I want to be alone."
"So why are you showing this to me?" I rub a leaf between my fingers.
"Because I think of you as the only person who'd understand." I sit down on one of the benches. Jace sits next to me. "Well you're the only person who really understands me." He smiles to himself.
"But what about your family? Isabelle and Alec know you, as does Maryse and Max." I grab his hand in mine. He starts to play with my fingers.
"They only know me as the smart ass Jace. Not the way you know me. You look at me and see beyond my barriers. You see my pain. The only person who even closely compares is Max and he's just a kid. I can't bear my soul to him the way I can with you. I have to be strong with my family but with you…we're, like you said, dependent on one another. Like a team. You carry me and I carry you." He said, gazing across one of the little ponds, out onto the city.
With my free hand I wipe away the mist that clouds my eyes. He turns as I do so, grabbing my hand in his. He lets go, moving his hand to cup my face. His fingers creep away from my other hand, up my arm and neck and into my hair. He's breathing heavily, as am I as I stare at him, my lips parting slightly. My own hands ease up to his hair, pulling him down to me in one long passionate kiss. His tongue presses to my bottom lip and I nip it lightly, teasing him. He groans in pleasure.
All of a sudden a loud tolling sound makes me start and we jump away from each others lips, but still hold our stances of a locked embrace. I look at him. His hair is messed, and his perfect lips are swollen ever so slightly. His eyes are dark, almost black. They don't hold the dripping honey like quality, but do glint in the dark. We are both panting as we examine each other.
"What was that?" I break the silence.
"Midnight." He smiles, pulling me to my feet, and leading me to a small meadow of flowers. Their multicolored petals folded in on themselves. When the twelfth toll rang, the petals started to uncurl, shedding light like a collection of stars. I gasp as I watch them get brighter and brighter, their smell filling the air. They smelled like it does when it's just rained. A fresh sort of smell.
"They're beautiful." I sigh breathlessly. I realize that Jace is only a few centimeters behind me, I can feel the heat of him radiating on to me.
"I knew you'd like it." He whispers into my ear.
Ah! Don't we just love fluffiness? Three more chapters lovelies;) I was going to update this morning but my sister and I had to go Christmas shopping. I just love buying presents for my nerd friends. I bought my friend Liz a HP shirt that says 'I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good' and my friend Nurit 'Perks of Being a Wallflower'. And I still need to buy my sister a present but I have it picked out, The Hobbit soundtrack. She is a total LotR nerd I swear. So I would like to thank everyone that reviewed, thanks to many of you who liked it. I hope this isn't too sappy. Okay I'm off to have a HP marathon:)
Later Gators! - Emma