I wake up and I can't breathe. Warner is standing in front of me, trying to calm me, but I can't be calmed. I'm gasping for air. Warner is telling me to breathe, but I can't, I just can't.

And I'm thinking, I'm dying all over again. I'm having spasms all through my body. Warner is hugging me tight, trying to get me to breathe again. And then, all at once, I take one big breath and I can breathe again. I don't know how this is happening, I don't know what just happened, but I'm scared that it might happen again and I won't be so lucky. I've experienced this before, but it was never this bad.

Warner leans his forehead on mine and he looks into my eyes. "Are you okay, love?" he kisses my forehead and cups my face in his hands. "Oh god, what happened?"

"I don't know. I just… I don't know. I couldn't breathe." I'm telling the truth, but leaving some out. I'm afraid to tell him what Adam did, but I know I have to. "Aaron?"

He looks at me with sympathetic eyes, "Yes?"

I close my eyes, take a deep breath and ask him. "What was Adam doing up here? I thought that none of them were supposed come up here, at all."

He stands up and looks a little dazed. He has to hold on to the wall for support. He runs his hands through his hair, over his face, and to his back. "I told him that he could come up here for anything that he and James needed. I know they have what they need downstairs, but I couldn't really think of anything better to do for them. They're my brothers. However, I think I should set some boundaries."

"You think? Adam nearly killed you!" he looks at me as if I just shot him again. "What's going on, Aaron? You seem really off lately and it's starting to scare me just a little bit. Why didn't you defend yourself? Why did you leave me alone in here with him?" I want answers, and he's going give them to me. I make it a point to look irritated, angry even.

"I had to take care of some business." He's not telling me the truth.

"What business?" I ask. "What business could you possibly take care of at a time like that? You left me alone."

He hesitates. He shuts his eyes for a minute and looks to the wall. "I was downstairs talking to Castle about something."

"About what?"

"I'm not allowed to tell you yet." He says smiling at me. "It's a surprise."

I know he is not lying so I just give up. "Fine don't tell me. I can wait." Something isn't adding up, but I decide to just let it go for the time being.

"I'm sure you can." He sits down next to me on the bed. "Are you feeling sick? You've practically been a sleep all day." He looks worried about me.

"Oh," I'm surprised. I had no idea. "What time is it?"

"It's 9:00 at night, love. Everybody has been working and you're the only one who wasn't down there. Kenji was getting worried about you."

"I think I'm ok. I'm just really tired."

"Okay. Well, we have to go downstairs for the meeting."

"Okay."

He helps me out of bed and we go into the elevator. Once the doors open, I see everybody sitting in a circle in a corner of the room. They are staring at me like I just rose from the dead.

Kenji gets up and moves towards me. Then he stops. "J, what the hell happened? You were sleeping all day long. You didn't talk to anybody."

"Yeah," I say, still tired. "I realized."

"Well? Are you okay? We don't need you shutting down on us now. If you go, your little boy toy over there will most likely kill us all."

"For the record," Warner joins the conversation, "I will not be addressed as her 'boy toy'." He says with air quotes. "And you can have this conversation at another time, but for the time being, we should talk about the things that are more important at the moment."

"Yeah," Kenji rolls his eyes, "We could do that, because apparently, everybody around here has lost their shit. So let's just get this over with."

Warner and I find a spot in the circle.

"Ms. Ferrars," Castle says, "You haven't been doing what you had planned on doing. You said that you would take over, but it seems like you are afraid. I was thinking that Mr. Warner would take over instead. He seems… more composed than you at the moment. We discussed this earlier today and we think it would be best. Do you have an opinion?"

I freeze. I never did live up to what I said, but that doesn't mean I am not going to. "I'm sorry that I didn't. I going to admit, I actually nearly forgot but –"

"How do you nearly forget something like that, Juliette?" Kenji snaps. "You don't just forget to take over practically the entire freakin' world. You need to get your shit together."

I ignore Kenji and continue. "But," I take my time to carefully think this through. "I am afraid. I'm afraid of what I might do to the world, to the people. I'm afraid I will just this world a much more dangerous place than it is already. So, I think Warner should take the position as Supreme Commander instead of me. He would do a much better job and he can make this world a much safer place. I don't think I could do that."

The room stays silent for a while. Everybody is looking at me and almost making me feel uncomfortable. "Alright," Castle says, "Since we have that handled, we have a lot of things to do in able to fulfill our duties towards the people. First thing in the morning, Kenji and I will go to base and tell the soldiers and the people what is going on. Juliette, you and Warner will be patrolling. This is the only time that you will be patrolling because I think Warner should keep a low profile for now. Warner," his gaze is set on him now, "You will still be busy, but Kenji and I will notify you about everything that goes on down there." He looks around the group. "Does anybody have something to say?"

"Actually," I dared not to look at Adam this entire time but his eyes are examining me; looking for where I became broken. Looking for the girl he once knew and not the girl that is sitting in front of him. He sounds like he is confident in saying this; like he's trying to get revenge. "I have something to share with the group." I see Kenji trying to move towards Adam to prevent him from what he's trying to say.

"It's about this girl here." I can feel Warner tense up beside me. "Juliette. Now, as you all know, she has dumped me. But what you don't know is –"

"That's enough, Kent." I hear Kenji say. I dare myself to look up, but I can't. I keep staring at my hands. I know what Adam is about say but I really don't want him to say it. Not in here. This can't be happening.

I look at Warner and he looks very mad. His nose is flaring and his face is red. I want to reach out to him to comfort him, but I know it is not the time or place for that.

"No," Adam says to Kenji, "I think everybody should know, right? You know, since Warner is on our side and so is Juliette. What's the need to keep secrets?" Adam told Kenji. That explains why he spoke like that to me. But I know he's not angry; because if he was angry, he wouldn't be defending me right now.

"It was never a secret," I blurt out. "I never kept anything from you guys. I just didn't tell you some things. That's not a crime." I'm trying to stay calm for peace sake, but Adam is obviously not getting it.

"So what? I never said you were keeping a secret, Juliette. What you don't realize is that the things that you do affect other people. It affects me. Why can't you realize that?" He opens his mouth to speak again, but swallows his words. "When I saw you with him this morning…. It really threw me off guard. I tell this dude that we are brothers and I'm over here thinking everything is going to be great now." Winston, Alia, Brendan, and Lily are looking at us like we are on a very dramatic reality show. I don't blame them; it feels a hell of a lot like one. "But then I see you with another dude. Not just another dude, my own goddamn brother. Warner."

I can't deal with this much longer. I can't sit here and take his insults and criticize my love life.

So I get up and walk away.

As soon as the elevator doors open, Warner strides in and we go upstairs together. We walk into his bedroom and neither of us has said a word.

"I'm sorry," is all he says as we sit on the bed in silence.

"For what?"

"For everything. I don't agree with the things that he is saying about you but… I feel like I am just ruining you. Like I'm taking you away from your friends. I don't want to be the one to make you sad, love."

"You are not making me sad. You could never do that." He turns to me and looks me in the eye for reassurance.

He climbs on top of me and pins me down on to the bed. "I would never want to hurt you, Juliette. I love you."

He kisses me with such intensity that I have to hold on to him for dear life. "Aaron," I whisper. He breaks away to take of my shirt, then he takes off his. He is kissing my neck and taking off the pants I'm wearing and tosses them to the ground.

In less than a minute, we are both completely naked. Warner is still on top of me, drinking in the sight of me.

But I can't stop looking at him either. He is so perfect. His perfectly formed face, muscles, abs, and legs. Everything about him is perfect in a way that is so nice.

"Are you ready?" he asks me. He begging for entrance. I want him, all of him. I need him. And moments like this, are the moments that I never want to forget.

I can feel him everywhere. I close my eyes. He is kissing me again. His tongue slowly moves into my mouth. He taste like peppermint and I love it.

I can't even describe what happens next. I feel him go into me and I have to have a really good grip on the sheets to keep me from screaming my head off. He leans his forehead on mine. He goes in harder and harder and harder,

Until we finally drift away into sleep…