Back for more I see? Well, this chapter will surely make up for that little Aradia scare the past two chapters. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Homestuck things.

Chapter 13

Everything was dark. Aradia could sense things were going on around her, but could not yet see or hear anything. Suddenly, a hand picked her's up and she felt lips pressed softly against it. Like magic, her other senses started to come back.

Aradia fluttered her eyes open slowly. "Sollux?" She asked, voice weak and course. "Sollux, is that you?" Her vision cleared, revealing the boy whose name she had just called out, standing there in shock.

"Aradia? You're okay! Oh thank God you're alright." The boy put his hands over his mouth, clearly trying to choke back some tears. He turned around, pouring her a glass of water. "You should probably drink something, get some more fluids in your body. Can you sit up?"

The girl nodded, and carefully got out from under the thin sheet that was draped over her and sat upright, crossing her legs. She politely took the cup of water the boy had handed her and took a small sip. It felt good to have the cold water hit her tongue, as if she hadn't had water in weeks.

Sollux sat next to her on the makeshift bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Well, I'm still pretty drowsy, and my arm hurts pretty bad, but otherwise I'm okay." Aradia said, taking another sip of water.

"That's good." The boy replied. "So, how much do you remember of what happened?"

The brunette considered this for a minute. "Um, you were in a fight with the Midnight Crew, and I saw that woman pointing a gun at you, so I ran out and yelled towards you. Then, the woman fired a shot at me, I guess hitting me in the arm, then ran away." She subconsciously grabbed her arm tenderly where she was shot. "After that, you came running towards me and carried me back to the base. I started to black out, so the last clear thing I heard was your voice asking someone to do something. Next thing I know I wake up here."

Sollux nodded and sighed. "Look Aradia. What you did was totally uncalled for. You could have died! Do you realize that?"

"I know." The girl responded. "I know what I did was bad and I'm sorry Sollux. I didn't mean for anything bad to happen, I just didn't want to see you get hurt."

"I understand," the boy put his hand on top of hers. "But seeing you like that, bleeding and unconscious, was worse than anything imaginable. You mean so much to me, Aradia. I don't know if you fully realize that, but you do. I… I love you Aradia."

The girl stopped, looking directly at him. "Sollux, I-"

"No. Listen for just a minute." The boy said. "I love you Aradia Megido, and I haven't said that to anyone in a very long time. I had given up on love, knowing that it could only cause me pain. But that's the thing, pain is what needs to happen to make love stronger. You helped me figure that out. I would go to the ends of the earth just to see you smile. I want to protect you, never let you leave my side. I want to hold you and know that you are mine and I am yours. I want you to be able to fall asleep in my arms at night and know that I will do anything to make sure you are safe. I am concerned for your safety and future, but I don't want to see my future without you in it. I want you to be my future."

The brunette girl started to tear up. "Oh Sollux. Even with your lisp, that was the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me." She smiled.

Sollux chuckled. "Hey. It's the best I can do. So, will you, Aradia Megido, allow me to be your one and only protector, but more importantly, your boyfriend?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Aradia asked, while leaning towards him, pressing their lips together. She felt Sollux's arms wrap around her waist, pulling them closer together. She felt him smile into the kiss as she cupped his face with her hands and held him there. Their lips melted together as one, moving in perfect harmony, but before long, the kiss was broken, both of them taking a big breath. "So," he said. "Shall we go outside? Only if you're good enough to walk."

"Yeah. I'm fine. Let's just take it slow. I'm still a little woozy from the whole thing." The girl said.

Sollux grabbed her waist and helped her stand up from her bed. He took her hand in his and smiled as they exited the room and walked into the main hall, where most of the gang had gone back to their normal activities, save a few critically injured.

Across the hall, Karkat saw the pair and stood up, grinning and walking towards them. He opened up his arms, and Aradia let go of Sollux's hand to allowed him to accept the hug, since they were rare from the short redhead. "Hey Sollux. Everything good?" Karkat asked.

"Yeah." The older boy responded, taking back Aradia's hand. "Everything's good. How's the rest of the gang?"

The redhead sighed. "They'll live. No one is beat up too badly, all things considered. In other news, Sollux, am I right to assume that… well, that I was right? Judging by the…" he trailed off his voice, gesturing to the two holding hands.

Aradia blushed, knowing what he was referring to. She looked over at Sollux, whose face was redder than a tomato. "Yes, Karkat. If I am guessing correctly, you were right about things." She smiled, looking at the older boy. "Sollux asked if he could be my one and only protector. Oh, yes, and more importantly, my boyfriend." She blushed even more as she felt a kiss placed on top of her head.

"Fantastic! Congrats bro." Karkat exclaimed. He then turned around and shouted. "Hey, Kanaya. I was right. You owe me ten bucks now!"

"Damn it! Well, regardless, congratulations Aradia and Sollux!" The raven shouted, then immediately returned to mending a gang member's arm.

The brunette girl giggled, turning back to the two boys. Suddenly, all the blood drained from her face. "Oh gosh. It's been so long hasn't it? Since I came here? Oh Aunt Lynn must be worried sick about me. I have to-"

"Already took care of it." Sollux interrupted. "While you were unconscious, I grabbed your phone and called your Aunt. I told her you fell asleep at my place and asked if you could stay the night, since I didn't want to wake you up. She happily agreed, since she knew how tired you have been lately and she trusted I would take care of you."

Aradia looked at her boyfriend, slightly in shock. "Impressive. She doesn't warm up to people very easily. So, I guess I still have awhile until I have to go back, but I kinda want to spend time away from all of this." She gestured to the scene around her. Though it was mostly back to normal, pieces of the previous battle still remained. "Can we actually just go back to your place for a little bit?"

"Yeah sure thing." The brunette boy responded. "I'll go find EQ and ask him if he will drive us home. Karkat, you want to come too?"

The younger boy pondered this for a second. "No. I don't think this time. I should probably call Dave and tell him I'm okay. That was our agreement, that I would call him anytime there was a fight just so that he knew I was safe."

That's so sweet. It's good that they are so worried about each other's safety. Aradia thought to herself.

"Alright then. See ya later man." Sollux responded, saluting his friend with two fingers before turning back to Aradia. "Ready to go?"

Aradia nodded. "If it's with you, always." She responded, smiling. She lifted the hand that was intertwined with the boy's and gave it a quick kiss before they went to find Equius.

So, does this suffice for a romantic-ish chapter? I hope so, cause I really liked it. Anyway, see you in a few weeks.

~Jane