Author: Moon Roses or Moony
Rating: R for language
Disclaimer: Don't own anything.
Feedback: Not necessary but greatly appreciated.
Recap:Shorty laid her head down on her stretched out arm again and closed her eyes. She heard Leon sigh and felt him molding himself against her body. Throwing a leg carelessly over her own his arm slid around her waist and pulled her to his chest. Kissing her shoulder softly his lips were warm on her skin and lingered there for a few blissful seconds before he laid his own head down and his eyes closed too.
ChapterTwelve
Shorty kept her eyes closed, feigning sleep. What else was there for her to do? She could not get involved with him, even if her head and heart told her to. What happened if it didn't work out? The thought of not having Leon around to tease her, hug her, smile at her. Well it was devastating. She wondered silently when her feelings had gone from just platonic friendship to something more.
She had never felt this sort of stirring in her heart. It was a completely foreign thing to her and she was not afraid to admit that it scared her. Terrified her actually. She had dated plenty of men in her twenty three years but she was one of the boys. Through and through. A player at heart. She toyed with men. Met them, had them falling in love with her soon after and left them broken hearted. It was a game for her. A simple game of cat and mouse. She pounced, played for a while and then lost interest. But she could not see herself even considering doing that to Leon. There was just something about him that drew her in.
Her heart fluttered every time she caught him looking at her. Her mind reeled every time she saw him smile at her. She felt lightheaded every time he walked past her smelling so damn good. Everything about him made her happy, and it only took one random fight and a Motel 6 to let her in on this. She realized now that the feelings had been there for a long time, but had kept themselves hidden from her. Why though? Was she secretly scared that karma was going to catch up with her and leave her broken hearted just like the men she had played? Shorty knew that had to be it. Because eventually karma caught up with everyone, and there was no way to outrun it.
Turning her head gently, she faced Leon. It had been some time since his breathing had slowed and become shallow. His lashes rested lightly against his cheeks and fluttered gently while he dreamt of things unknown to her. His lips where moist from his tongue flickering out and running along them seductively. He looked so peaceful and carefree when he slept. The creases of worry, or life as it be, had vanished from his forehead and he seemed younger.
Shorty could stare at Leon all night but if she did not move soon she was going to either lose all feeling in her body or jump him. And as good as the later sounded; lying on her stomach with his weight spread across her was just a tad suffocating. She felt trapped, and she sure as hell did not like that. Trapped in a damn Motel 6 dump with a delicious body next to her that could make everything better.
Shifting her legs as lightly as possible she slid them out from underneath Leon's and took a deep breath before challenging the next step. In his sleep he had pulled her tighter against his chest and unravelling herself from his grip was proving to be more difficult then she could have imagined. Prying his hand from her stomach as gently as possible she lifted it a fraction and detached herself from his warmth. Rolling away from him she stood quickly and glanced down at him to make sure he was still sleeping. If he had not been sleeping, no doubt he would have dragged her right back and all that trouble would have been for nothing.
Rolling her head on her shoulders Shorty crossed to the window and gazed out at the deserted parking lot. The dark lot seemed so dangerous. Especially to someone who was hiding out until she got the head's up that everything was good and she could go home. Pulling a chair to the window and moving the long curtain to the side she sat and stared at the sky.
The moon was bright as it appeared from behind a few passing clouds and Shorty wished she could call her brother. She knew he was probably sitting by the pool dangling his feet in the water and staring up at the same sky. It was something the both of them had picked up in Mexico. Their mother used to sit on the beach behind the house when she was worried about something. The sound of the ocean combined with the inky darkness, it had just washed away all their worries.
Shorty turned from the window and let her eyes linger on Leon's sleeping form at the foot of the bed. Well, if he was going to sleep so was she. With that thought in mind and her eyes drooping shut every few seconds she stood from her place at the window. Stretching silently she crossed the short distance and slowly pulled the covers back from the pillows. Slipping in between the sheets trying her hardest not to wake Leon she sank onto the uncomfortable bed. Throwing the quilt off her and pulling the sheet around her arms she turned onto her side and stared at the wall.
As tired as she was though, Shorty could just not seem to fall asleep. Soon she could have sworn the shadows on the wall started to resemble Hector. And the more she stared at them the guiltier her heart felt. How could she leave him hanging like this? How could she not call him and tell him she was alright? How could she do this to Vince, her best friend? How could she do this to Letty? How could she do this to her own team and the rest of the DT team? And how in the hell could she do this to Leon? How she managed to drag her friends into the shitty situations she got herself into was beyond her. She just had a natural talent. One that she would probably never break.
Shorty was still musing to herself when she finally drifted off into an uneasy slumber. Her dreams came but brought no ease to her guilt. She was soon running towards the ones she loved and all she could do was watch as each turned their backs to her. Hectors eyes were pleading. Vince, Leon, Beto, Marvin, Letty. They all made the same decision. One by one they all walked away from her. Her troublesome lifestyle was too much for them.
She was released from her nightmares when she felt the bed lift suddenly as Leon stumbled to the bathroom. Her heart was beating horribly fast as he pushed the door open. Still half asleep he did not bother looking for the light and she could hear him trying to quietly grope for the toilet. The sound of liquid on liquid reached her ears and Shorty grinned despite her recent shock. Typical guy. Leaving the door open for all to hear him.
The toilet flushing brought her back to reality and she cursed herself. Shorty could hear Leon trying to find his way back to the bed in the pitch black and his legs hitting the mattress alerted him to his where about. Shorty stayed completely silent and refused to move a muscle. She was not facing him but she knew that he knew she was awake and that she was just trying to avoid him. He stood for a few seconds wondering what to do and she could just imagine the wheels turning in his head. The sound of Leon's zipper and his pants falling to the ground sped her heart up again just a minute after it had returned to normal. His beater followed and he drew the covers back and slid into the bed.
He worked his way to her slowly, probably scared he would frighten her away. Normally she would not have been the least bit worried but this was different. Because she wanted to be in his arms, and that thought alone frightened her.
Shorty could have sighed in ecstasy when Leon pressed his warm chest against her back and pulled her tightly against him. His fingers found their way under her beater and splayed across her stomach to trail in slow circles. And his hot breath on the back of her neck would have sent her into involuntary shivers had she not been trying with all her might to keep up the facade of sleep. "Shorty, you asleep?"
Damn. Shit. Fuck. "Yes." Smooth. Very smooth. Like that was really going to shut him up.
"Where'd you get your name?" Leon whispered against her ear.
Blinking her eyes she stared at the wall again. "My pops named me. He wanted to name the first born but my Mami promised her Papi she would name the baby after someone in our family. Pops was pissed," Shorty laughed softly. "I was a surprise though, cause she only wanted one kid. My pops claimed the right to name me the minute she told him she was pregnant again." Shorty grinned into the darkness remembering the story of how she had gotten her name. "She went into labour while they were watchin' a movie. And my pops hadn't even thought of a name yet... so when I was born he named me the first thing that popped into his head."
"Michael." Leon answered for her.
"Yup. They were watchin' Halloween."
Silence descended over the two of them and Shorty felt Leon nuzzle her hair out of the way and lay his forehead against the back of her neck. Her heart had settled down long ago and her eyes had fluttered shut without her permission. Sleep came quickly for her and the nightmares of her family and friends leaving her did not return. Maybe it was because she felt safe or maybe it was because she had come to an unspoken conclusion. She knew what she had to do now.
Fingers gently prodding her stomach and the feel of warm flesh on her stomach woke Shorty the next morning. The sunlight filtered as best it could through the heavyset material of the black drapes. Squinting her eyes in the direction of her stomach she found her beater pushed up and resting just under her breasts. Leon's head was propped on her stomach and his fingers were still prodding the same area.
"It's a bullet wound," Shorty croaked at him in her freshly woken voice.
"I know," answered Leon as his eyes met hers. Green and gray stared at each other before Shorty looked away. "When were you shot?"
Shorty shifted slightly and folded her arms behind her head. "A long time ago."
"Ok. Why were you shot?" Leon urged her on.
Sighing heavily she could not believe she was going to tell him. She had not even told Hector the story. "I took a bullet for a friend. He was the closest thing I had to a brother in New York. We were both working for the same guy. Gabe was a big time dealer along the East Coast. It was Billy who introduced me to Gabe actually. Gabe said I reminded him of his cousin so I was in right away. Me and Billy were his right hand guys. He had Billy dealing on the streets, and I scouted potential customers," she yawned, rubbing her eyes.
"It was just a deal gone bad. I usually didn't go with Billy when he was selling but we were gonna catch a movie after. The dude was sketching out. Just freaking. He sat me in the corner once the guy started getting violent. He wasn't really doing damage cause he was to strung out but Billy didn't take shit from no one. So, he went for his knife. He was just pulling it from his pocket when the dude whipped out a gun. I didn't even think. I just reacted. I wasn't about to let this strung out fuck take my buddy. So, I jumped in front of him. The bullet just grazed Billy's ear after it came out my side. Now that's the luck of the Irish if I ever seen it," Shorty joked ending her story.
"Jesus. So where's Billy?" asked Leon as he gazed more closely at the faint scar on her stomach.
"He came to me in the hospital one night and told me he was out. Gabe gave him leeway, told him he loved him like a brother and let him go. Billy asked me to go with him, but I said I couldn't leave my team there. He left without me. He said he didn't want to wake up one morning and find out I was dead in a gutter somewhere. Told me I was his best friend but he never wanted to see my face again. Kissed me and left. He lives in Atlanta now. Got a wife and dog. I have Gabe's PI check up on 'em twice a year. He's happy."
Leon stayed silent for a few minutes just watching Shorty as she struggled with the memories. Saving his life but losing him anyways. "I bet he thinks about you."
"Yeah. Maybe," Shorty shrugged.
Shorty's phone rang seconds later and she reached over and picked it up off the nightstand. Checking the caller ID she saw Spence's cell number and breathed a sigh of relief. "Spence man. What's goin' on?
Leon laid his cheek against Shorty's belly again and listened to her as she talked. "Yeah. So it's all good?" Leon could hear her draw in a deep breath and hold it, in hopes that everything was fine. "That's good news bro. Yeah. For sure. Well meet you at Toretto's in forty five minutes." Shorty hung up the phone and chucked it to the foot of the bed. "Let's go Leon. Time to face the wrath of Hector, Vince and Dom."
Leon groaned but dragged himself off the bed and grabbed his clothes from the floor. Pulling his jeans and beater on he went into the bathroom and snatched the First Aid kit from the counter. Shorty slipped into her own baggy jeans. Sliding her cell into her pocket she shoved her feet into her skate shoes and pushed Leon out the door.
The drive home flashed past in one fast blur and when she pulled onto Toretto's street she was suddenly not so eager to get home. Her team's cars were parked along the street haphazardly as if they had rushed out of the cars before they had even stopped. Two black Land Rovers were parked by the curb and Shorty recognized them as Spence's. Everyone was here.
Creeping to a stop right in front of the house Shorty and Leon slid from the car and quietly shut the doors. No need in angering the patrons of the house before they had time to think up an excuse or at least prepare themselves for the yelling that was surely coming.
Shorty opened the screen door to find everyone in the front room. Her team was dishevelled and their eyes all held worry. Leon's team looked exactly as her own. Like they had not slept in a month. Spence and his boys were standing beside the window waiting for the arrival of Shorty and Leon silently. The minute the door creaked open every head in the house snapped to attention and over to them. Jaws dropped, faces lost color.
Nothing was said. Not a syllable uttered. The house was silent except for a clock ticking in the kitchen. Shorty moved farther into the living room and waited for the explosion of voices. It did not come though. All that came was Hector standing and walking quickly to her and enveloping her in a tight hug. His eyes were watering and she could see it resting along the brims as he struggled to contain the tears. Shorty buried her face against her brother's chest and wrapped her arms around him, unable to let go. She could have stayed in his comforting hug all day had Beto not dragged her from it and replaced it with one of his own. Shorty winced as they all hugged her tight, the bruise on her back screaming at the pressure.
Shorty heard Dom and Leon talking before the screen door opened again and she was transferred back into her brother's arms. Hector was going to be mad as hell but right now all he wanted was to be sure his baby sister was good. Mentally. Physically. What had happened the night before she considered child's play but he had no idea the things she had seen while living in New York. The screen door opened again and Shorty still stayed locked in the embrace.
"Shit! Miss Shorty! Your boys are goin' at it," Spence's voice broke into her thoughts and she looked up.
Quickly glancing around she did a mental check of all who should have been in the room and were not. And there was Leon and one other missing. Fuck. Springing out of Hectors grip she swivelled around and bolted for the door, slamming through it. The site that greeted her set her blood boiling.
Jumping off the stairs and running across the lawn she skidded to a stop, "Vince! Stop!" The First Aid kit Leon had gone to retrieve from the car was lying on the ground open with contents spilled along the grass. Vince and Leon were throwing punch after punch at each other.
"You should have stopped her!" Vince yelled as he landed a punch across Leon's jaw.
"FOR FUCK'S SAKE VINCE! STOP! STOP IT!" Shorty shouted and pushed Vince's side. He shoved her out of the way and continued. She was surprised Dom had not broken it up and she definitely didn't have time to wait for him to end it. So she did the next logical thing.
She stepped in front of Leon. It wasn't the first time she had willingly stepped in front of someone and took their hit. But it was the first time the on-coming fist belonged to her best friend. How ironic. The shouting from the steps stopped immediately when Vince's fist slammed into Shorty's jaw. It fucking hurt. That was for sure. She would never have stepped into a fight Vince was in unless it was absolutely necessary. Shorty could handle anyone she came into contact with but she even she was scared of Vince when he was mad. And he was beyond pissed, he was livid.
Vince stepped back in shock as Shorty brought her hand up to rub her tender jaw. "All done V?"
"Shit, you ok?" Leon asked from beside her as he spit blood from his mouth and turned her jaw towards him to take a quick look at it.
Pushing his hand off her face she turned towards the stairs. Everyone was open-mouthed again and seemed unable to move at all. "Mia. Take Leon upstairs and clean him up."
As she spoke to Mia everyone seemed to come alive. Hector and the rest of her team came rushing down the steps and towards her. "Vince. Get in the fucking car." Shorty glared at him until he turned and slid into her passenger's seat, slamming the door behind him.
"You ok Shorty?"
"I'm gonna fuck that son of a bitch up."
"Count me in too, vato."
"No shit brotha."
"Guys! Calm down! I'm fine, I've been through worse. Ok? It's all good," Shorty calmly answered as Dom, Letty, and Jesse made their way to the small group.
"Shit," Letty laughed. "He got you good Boo."
At least one person could find amusement in this situation. Shorty laughed with her and shook her head. "Spence man. Wait for me by your cars," she faced her brother again before continuing. "I'm gonna go see how Leon's doing. Just a sec."
Jumping the stairs two at a time she found the Mia and Leon in the bathroom. The sink had a few spots of blood and Leon held a cup of water in his hand while Mia searched for whatever it was she needed. She was concentrated; hands flying over the contents of the kit expertly and Shorty had to grin. "Mia girl. Let me take over. I know how to handle this fool."
Mia stood and handed her the bandages she had collected before shutting the bathroom door behind her. "So, I'm a fool now?" Leon joked as he took another sip of water.
Shuffling through the bandages in her hand she selected a large gauze pad and uncapped a bottle of peroxide. "Yeah. What kind of fool tries to fight V? Besides he could have seriously injured your charming personality."
"Right. I'm sure that's the only reason you stepped in. It has nothin' to do with my dashing good looks."
"Nah. It's your ass. But for real you know Vince didn't mean that. He's just pissed and you seem like the most likely target," Shorty searched his face happy to find no hate towards her best friend.
"I know. He cares about you a lot. He's still my brother. Ain't no female ever gonna come between us. Not even you," grinning from ear to ear Leon took another sip of water.
"Yeah." Shorty mumbled as she concentrated on the cut across Leon's lip. She held pressure until the bleeding stopped then she stepped away and admired her handy work. "All fixed, I gotta bounce though. Hector and the boys are waitin' for me. Later Rocky Balboa."
Shorty crumpled the bloody gauze into a ball and threw it in the trash by the toilet. Her mind was screaming at her as she grabbed hold of the doorknob and pulled the door open. She glanced over her shoulder and grinned at Leon before leaving the bathroom. The stairs seemed to go on forever and behind her she could hear Leon climbing off the counter and turning the water on. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. She was being pulled in two different directions and she hated it.
Spinning around quickly she jogged back up the stairs and stopped at the bathroom door. Leon was leaning against the counter with a fresh cup of water in his hand and looked slightly shocked to see her standing there again. Shorty stepped into the bathroom and walked towards him, reaching behind him. "Forgot something." Pulling the first aid kit from behind him she saw his eyes flicker in disappointment.
"Well now. You can't forget that, not with all the trouble you get into," Leon grunted as he shifted.
Zipping the kit up quickly, she nodded. Her heart was pounding now. Pounding in a good way and she loved the feel of it. Shorty grinned up at Leon, capturing his lips between her own before he knew what she was doing. His lips were softer then she could have ever imagined and they fit perfectly against her own. She felt Leon slide his arms around her waist and he pulled her to him, moving his lips against hers. Shorty allowed him access to her tongue and he gratefully took advantage of it. His tongue ran along her own, tasting her, memorizing the confines of her mouth. Shorty's tongue moved in synch with his and she dipped into his mouth, running her tongue along his teeth and lips.
Bliss. Beautiful. Perfect. Those were the words she was able to form in her mind. Everything else, even her University schooling had just flown out the window the moment she had pressed her lips against Leon's.
Breaking away from the kiss was one of the hardest things Shorty had ever done. His lips were just so damn perfect and he tasted amazing. She had to laugh however when Leon groaned loudly, voicing his disappointment. "That's what I forgot. Not the stupid first aid kit." She winked and pecked him softly before turning and heading for the door. Looking over her shoulder at Leon she grinned, "And thanks for having my back. Later."
Shorty left him leaning against the sink, seemingly still in shock about what had just happened and bounced down the stairs. She emerged into the morning sunlight with a huge smile on her face, which quickly disappeared when she remember what she had to do now.
As she walked across the lawn Vince stepped from the car and met her on the sidewalk. No words were needed and he knew she had forgiven him even before his fist had connected with her jaw. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sighed in relief. They were still good. They would always be good. She would never do to Vince what she had done to Billy. She would never have him tell her he never wanted to see her face again. He was too important to her to lose. "V. I gotta do something. It'll only take a minute."
"Ok," Vince answered and pulled away. He got back into her car and shut the door.
"Hector, I'll be one more minute. Then we can go home," Shorty said to Hector and he ushered the rest of the team to their respective cars.
Shorty walked slowly towards Spence and his crew. They were all waiting and some looked slightly worried. Spence seemed to know what was coming because he stepped up and held her shoulders, his eyes flickering over her face. He memorized every feature before she even got her first words out. "You know I care about you," Shorty stopped and massaged her temples gently. "But I can't do this. You saw Hector. He was on the verge of tears... and I never seen him cry before. Ever. I can't risk the lives of my family. They're the world to me," she stopped and gazed around at all of the men standing around before letting her gaze fall on Spence. "You know what I'm talkin' about. Spence man, you'd never do this to Jamie. And I won't do it to Hector or my boys. I love you guys but I can't see you anymore."
Spence nodded. He knew exactly what she was talking about. He would never have been able to worry Jamie like she had done to her team. He smiled at her before hugging her quickly. "We're leaving town. If you ever need us, you'll know where we are," he replied and handed her a small sheet of paper with an address.
"I guess I do," she nodded and hugged all the men in turn. She handed the sheet back to Spence and they said their goodbyes quickly and slid into their vehicles. She would never see them again, nor would they have contact. This was the last time she would probably ever talk to them. Leaning in the window she ruffled Spence's hair, "Tell Jamie I said name the kid after me." The men in the car laughed before the SUV's pulled away from the curb and drove out of her life.
She watched them until they turned the corner. What an interesting 12 hours. First she had been in a fight, then she had survived the coming home with Hector, Vince and Dom. She had kissed Leon, and said goodbye to a bunch of friends she enjoyed having around. Life sucked sometimes.
Life did suck sometimes, she mused to herself. But at least she got to kiss Leon. She grinned at nothing before jogging to her car. Waving at the Toretto crew who were still standing on the porch she shouted, "Lett! Call me later!" Sliding into the driver's seat she started the car and followed her brother and team back home.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed that chapter, and if you did please let me know. Also I posted this one earlier than planned because I completed Ch. 22. I figure each time I complete a chapter I'll post one here. Ch. 22 = Ch. 12. Completing Ch. 23 = me posting Ch. 13. And of course, a little nudge from the readers will help me write faster.
I'm totally pumped that you're all liking the interaction between the characters. And I agree with you guys, I would have jumped the poor man as well. Thanks again to my five kickass reviewers; you know who you are. My ego grows with each review, and I'm fine with that. Also, does anyone find Daryl in The Walking Dead incredibly sexy? I realize that was random.