Authors Note:

I am so thankful to all of you who are reading and reviewing my story.

It truly amazes me every time I get a review saying 'this was great' or anything of the sort. It makes me so happy.

Thank you so much!

I hope you enjoy this chapter too!

Chapter 6

"Focus." Cobb breathed out the word, as he watched Ariadne close her eyes. "One, two, three." He spoke the words quietly, watching the grey stoned building in front of them.

She inhaled, the sweet mixture of Dom's newly applied cologne and of the ocean salt water, making its way into her nostrils. She opened her eyes and asked "Anything?" She was hopeful. She truly was. This had been the fourth time she had tried this and nothing had happened in the other instances.

Dom shook his head at her and sighed, placing his hands across his newly clothed chest. He had created himself a pair of black standard pants and nice casual black shirt. And for Ariadne, he imagined the usual for her. A pair of dark blue jeans with a white colored blouse.

She had been more than happy to him for giving her the new outfit. She really had been embarrassed the entire morning with him because of how little clothing she had had on. Dom didn't mind it. Which man would have?

Ariadne groaned, her hands smoothing her hair with her fingers. She had picked up dream building so easily. Why did building in Limbo have to be so hard? She wasn't going to give up though. She had to make herself useful while she was there.

"Do you want to stop? Take a break?" Cobb asked, looking up at the burning sun.

"No. I have to learn." She spoke the words with determination.

Dom nodded back at her and watched her for a moment. She was biting on her lip, closing her eyes and trying again. The task that he had given her was simple. Change the color of the building from grey to white. But for some odd reason, she couldn't concentrate. Maybe her wound was creating a blockage of thought in her mind.

He circled her, standing a few steps behind her while he spoke lightly "Close your eyes again, Ariadne." And she did as she was told. "Think of the color white. Only the color, nothing else."

She nodded her head once, her feet firmly on the sand below her. He took a step towards her and continued "Now think of the building changing in your mind." He stopped himself, his warm breath hitting the back of her neck, before asking "Do you see it?"

She nodded again, her eyes still closed but her eyebrows cringing every time he took a breath. He spoke again, this time more loudly "Now... change it."

She tightened her eyes and thought about the color of the building. The differences between the two colors. How white was a better shade for such a building. How white was more classy and modern and how white-

Dom smiled as he watched the building change color. He smirked at her and spoke "Now, open your eyes." And when she did, her small smile turned into a large grin, beaming with happiness.

She laughed happily, seeing that the building was now completely white. She had finally did it.

"I'm impressed." Cobb said with a smile tugging on the corner of his lips.

She turned around to face him and asked in a baffled tone "Is that sarcastic?"

Dom shook his head and replied honestly "No. It took me three days, the first time around, to figure out colors."

Ariadne grinned, tremendously proud of herself. Her heart was beating so quickly, she couldn't wait to create something else. She took a large step, her stomach wound suddenly stretching. She let out a small scream, Dom's eyes widening as he saw her fall to her knees.

"Are you alright?" He asked, falling to his own knees as well. She was holding her stomach and her white blouse was covered in blood.

"Shit." Dom muttered, his voice becoming extremely tense. "Lay back, Ariadne." But she didn't budge. She was fine. It was just some bleeding. That was expected when she had a blood wound that was so large.

When she didn't listen, he touched her shoulder softly and said in a calm tone "You'll be fine. I just need to check it." And she couldn't do anything to stop him. The next thing she knew, she was laying down on the sand again. And Dom was pushing up her top so that he could inspect the rip of skin.

"One of the knots I made has come undone." Cobb stated, one of his hands holding up her shirt and the other resting on her stomach.

"It's okay. I'm fine." Ariadne reassured him. But he just shook his head at her and whispered something about how he should have tortured Vito to death for doing this to her. She chuckled at his conclusion and whispered "Thank you for saving me."

His eyes looked down into her small browns while he asked, confused "Why would you say thank you for something like that?" Of course he would help her. After everything that she had done for him- what? Did she think that he was going to just leave her there? Alone?

"To be honest, I didn't think you could do it." She replied and then let out a small hiss, Cobb smoothing out the thread on her cut.

"I would never let you sacrifice yourself like that, Ariadne." Dom spoke the words softly to her, watching her lips part into about four different expressions before stopping on a small smile.

"Thank you" she echoed. She was extremely thankful and she wanted him to know it. She had thought that she could give herself to Vito but she couldn't. She wasn't in love with him. She didn't even lust for him. She despised him and she was happy that he was in the real world now, probably cursing the two of them endlessly.

Cobb flashed a two second smile and then re-arranged her top, placing his hand on the blood patch. He closed his eyes, her watching him confused as to why he was still holding her stomach. But when he removed his hand, the blood stain was gone. She gasped at the sight. He really needed to teach her that trick too.

xxx

The day had went by tremendously quickly. Most of it was spent building apartment buildings, wild flower gardens and parking lots with absolutely no vehicles parked in them. Ariadne had been extremely proud of herself. She was learning very quickly. Well, it helped that she had a great and very patient teacher.

She was standing on the porch of a beach house Dom had designed for them to stay in while they healed. She was holding two empty plates in her hands that he had already conjured up. It was her time to shine.

She thought of the perfect meal. Her eyes widening when she looked down at the plates that now had mashed potatoes and piece of steak on them. Wow. She was really getting good at this.

She walked down the beach, towards the night sky and towards the fire that was burning. Cobb was sitting a few meters away from it, staring at the ocean waves crashing. She knew that he was thinking about something important. Probably, Mal. She let out a small breath and walked towards him, carrying the plates in her hands.

"Hey." She softly spoke to him, his head turning around to her. He smiled at her as she passed the plate to him, while she said "I thought that maybe you'd be hungry."

He held the plate in his hands steadily and smiled at Ariadne before she sat down next to him. "You made this?" His eyebrows were knitted together.

She nodded at him and replied "Yes, I imagined it all by myself." He laughed at her sentence. It was so honestly true, it was funny.

"Do you want me to picture a table too?" She asked, grabbing two sets of forks and knives from thin air.

She passed his set to him and he shook his head, smirking. "This is perfectly fine. Thanks." And then he placed the plate onto the sand before him and cut a piece of stake, taking a bite.

"Any good?" She asked interested. Hopefully it didn't taste like dirt. She had tried her best to picture the smell, taste and texture of the piece of cooked meat before she created it.

He swallowed and chuckled "Best piece of food ever imagined." And she laughed along with him at the phrase. How strange the world of Limbo was. It was as if she had magical powers.

"So, what would you like to drink?" He asked her sweetly, waving his hand over the sand and picking up the newly created crystal glasses.

"You choose." She smiled at him and he shrugged his shoulders at her.

He bit down on his bottom lip and picked up a small pebble on the beach while muttering "Watch this." He held the pebble in his hand and closed his eyes shortly. Ariadne's mouth fell open when she saw that the pebble had suddenly turned into a bottle of red wine.

"It's called 'transformation'." He smiled. He honestly couldn't stop smiling. He was having a pretty good time talking to her.

"Show off." Ariadne murmured at him while he poured her some of the wine into her glass. Cobb snickered at her claim and nodded. Maybe he was showing off. He should really stop. After all, she was better at dream building than she gave herself credit for.

She took a sip of the red wine and asked Cobb, while cutting her steak "So, I have a question for you."

"Okay." He took a large sip from his red wine and waited for the question.

"Why don't Eames and Arthur like each other?" She asked, dipping her fork into the mashed potatoes.

Cobb shrugged his shoulders once and replied "I think its because Eames believes him to be too young for the dream world."

This caught Ariadne's attention. She was slightly offeneded so she mentioned "But he's two years older than I am."

Dom nodded, took another sip from his glass and replied "Well, I'm sure he has other reasons as well. But I just don't know them."

"Am I too young?" She asked him with small eyes. For a moment, she didn't know what she was asking. Too young for what exactly?

He didn't know either so he just shook his head and whispered "You are wise, Ariadne."

"I am?" She asked, her throat drying and her heart pounding.

"Yes. You make good decisions. I've seen you and I honestly-" he stopped himself and looked down at his plate.

"What?" She asked, she was completely interested in what he had to say.

He placed his fork and knife down on the plate and turned to her while saying "I honestly would trust you with my life."

He stared into her eyes then, knowing that it was the truth and nothing but it. She let out a small smile at him and couldn't help but realize that that was the nicest thing anyone had ever said to her.

"Thank you, Dom." She whispered to him, still in shock from the revelation.

He grabbed his wine glass and proposed a toast "To life." And she clinked her glass against his, drinking down the rest of her wine.

xxx

The sun was shinning so bright that Dom could practically feel the heat on the inside of his body. His feet were burning in the sand as they made their way to the beginning of the ocean. He mentally smiled every time the waves hit his bare legs. It felt so wonderfully cool that he decided to take a quick dip.

He had already removed his clothes and was left in dark blue swim trunks that he had imagined. He had a pair like them exactly at home. 'Never create from memory' his words to Ariadne rang in his ears. He shrugged his shoulders and whispered "Too bad." Before walking into the ocean, letting the cool water hit him higher upon his body with every step he took.

He inhaled from the pain, his shoulder crashing into the water but then he took a deep breath out and smiled. Swimming as lightly as he could in the perfectly clean salt water.

He closed his eyes for a moment and put his entire head underwater, relishing in the icy pleasure of it. And when he stood up slightly, his eyes opening above water level, he saw Ariadne swimming towards him.

She was wearing a red bathing suit that he assumed she had just finished creating. He smiled at her, waving slightly while she made his way to him. It was truly strange, the water was particularly salty this morning. Wouldn't she be screaming in pain?

"Good morning." She said to him, standing a few meters away from him and he echoed her greeting.

"How's your cut?" He asked strongly. It was really odd how she was splashing her way in the water.

She let out a small smile and replied "To be honest, I'm trying not to think about it right now."

He chuckled at this and understood her reasoning fully. The water was just too inviting to pass it up. He placed his hands into the water and whispered "We have to stay here until we heal, Ariadne." His shoulders suddenly felt heavy and he found himself moving them slightly backward.

She lifted herself out of the water, the sun beating her slim body as she asked "How long do you think that will be for?"

He bit down on his bottom lip and stood up as well, while explaining "It depends. Probably two weeks." He moved his shoulders back again, this time using his right hand to massage one of them.

She took a deep breath in and asked, a playful smirk on her features "And what will we do to pass the time?"

He turned his away from her smile for a moment. Was she flirting with him? No, she couldn't possibly-

"I, for one actually have a few ideas." She walked towards him, the statement flowing off her tongue with a gentle ease.

"Name one." Cobb asked, his eyes widening at himself. Was he seriously playing this game? But all he knew is that he felt compelled to say those few words. He moved his shoulders back again. Why exactly did they feel so heavy?

She swam towards him, passing him slightly before standing directly behind him. His eyes widened as he felt her small hands on his shoulders, applying pressure. "I could do this." She spoke the words in a whisper, her warm breath hitting his back.

He took a deep breath in, extremely baffled at the situation he was in. On one hand, he knew that Ariadne was probably out of her mind doing this to him but on the other, it felt so good that he didn't want her to stop.

"How does that feel?" She asked, her hands moving slightly forward down his neck, towards his chest. He closed his eyes at he feel of her hands on him. She was amazing at this.

He moaned in both shock and bliss when she ran her fingers down his chest slowly towards his middle. He suddenly could feel her smiling against his back, letting her tongue take a very long and slow lick. "Turn around" she cooed, teasing the elastic of his swim trunks with his fingers.

He did as requested, even though his mind kept screaming for him not to do this. She bit down on her bottom lip and whispered "I want you to be my first." And then she kissed him passionately, her tongue slipping into his mouth filled with lustful power. "Dom.." she muttered against him, his hands running down her back. "Dom-"

xxx

"Dom!" Ariadne was screaming, shaking him awake. She was terrified. Had he died while she was sleeping? What was going on? Why wasn't he waking up? "Dom!" She yelled, this time even more loudly. His eyes suddenly opening, she sighed in relief.

"Ariadne?" He asked, staring at her with wide eyes. Had he just dreamed? He got up slowly and placed his hands on his eyes, rubbing them. He had dreamed? He hadn't been able to dream for-

"Are you okay?" She asked, kneeling down on the sand and placing her hands on his arms. She had tried to wake up him for minutes. She had been completely terrified. What if he had decided to leave her alone to find Saito?

"Yes. I'm-" he stopped himself and looked directly at Ariadne who had a look of distinct worry playing on her lips. He shook his head suddenly and whispered "I was dreaming."

Her eyebrows rose as she sat down beside him on the sand and asked happily "Really?"

He took a quick glance over at the ocean, where his dream had taken place. "Yes." He replied, a large smile appearing on his face.

She laughed shortly and asked "What did you dream about?"

His expression suddenly went blank. He turned to Ariadne, suddenly aware that her hands were on his arms. He cleared his throat, moved his arms away and replied "Nothing," in the most emotionless voice that he could generate.

"What do you mean, nothing?" She asked sourly. And then she sighed and whispered "Did you dream about Mal?"

Cobb shook his head at her question. No, he hadn't even thought about Mal for what it seemed like- months, even though it had only been a couple of days. Minutes in reality.

"Then what did you dream?" She asked, tilting her head to one side. She was truly interested. This was a great breakthrough for him.

"I dreamt-" he took a deep breath in and contemplated telling her the truth. He scoffed at the thought and lied "I dreamt that we found Saito."

"Oh." Ariadne's tone was low and full of disapointedment. She looked down at herself, her white blouse swaying in the soft breeze before asking "And when do you think we will heal enough so that we can actually do that?"

He thought back to his dream and the answer he had given her. He had said 'two weeks'. That was pretty reasonable, even though it could be more or less. "Two weeks" he answered, his voice suddenly thin.

"And what will we do to pass the time?" She asked, her eyes wide. Two weeks? That was a really long time to be stuck in the same place.

She had asked the same thing in his dream, he couldn't help but note. He took a deep breath in and replied "I can teach you other things. Like 'transformation', 'decoration' or even 'exageration'."

Ariadne eyes narrowed at the last one "What is 'exageration'?"

He let out a small smile, lifted himself up and said "I'll teach you that one today." He put out his hand for her to take it and she gladly reached out and grabbed his hand.

"And for the rest of the time?" She asked, her feet now firmly on the ground.

"We'll figure something out." He nodded to her, suddenly noticing that she was still holding his hand. He let go of it quickly and asked "Breakfast?"

Authors Note:

Thank you so much for reading!

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