When Sky opened the door to Cody's room, he was sitting on his bed, wearing a pair of sweats and a T-shirt, leaning his back against the headboard, his legs crossed at the ankles. He still had bruises on his face, but he looked a lot better than a couple of days ago, and there was a smile on his lips - a wide, happy genuine smile. With a jolt, Sky realized how much she had missed it.

She also realized he wasn't alone.

On the floor next to the bed sat a chubby boy with sandy-colored hair holding a large book in his lap, and on Cody's bed, there were two girls. Both of them were eyeing Sky with a curious look that was anything but friendly. The blond had two long braids as thick as Sky's arm, the other girl had a dark pixie haircut and huge glasses and both of them had the aura of being smart and artsy, the kind of girls who always had paint on their fingers after art class, or a pen stuck behind their ear so that they could write poetry whenever the urge hit them.

"I'm sorry," Sky stammered, frozen in the doorway. "I— I didn't know you had company."

"No, it's okay—" replied Cody, his smile lighting up the room. "Come in."

Sky's cheeks flushed. Suddenly she felt awkward, standing there in the doorway, staring at Cody's smile like a fool, holding the bouquet of pink flowers in her hands. The stupid flowers. She had just wanted to bring some color into his room, something pretty - it was so damn white and lifeless! But now—

Well, the way the girls on Cody's bed were eyeing her, made Sky painfully aware of how this must look like.

Both of the girls snickered and the blond leaned towards the black-haired one, whispering something in her ear, something that earned a smirk from the other girl. Sky's blush deepened.

"You are clearly busy," she said, turning her eyes to Cody. "I'll come back when you're alone."

The girls laughed again and the blond rolled her eyes, but this time Cody reacted.

"Hey, cut it!" he snapped at the girls, glaring at them with an annoyed frown. "What's wrong with you?"

"Sorry," the girl with the glasses said with a tone that told she wasn't sorry at all, if anything, she seemed bored. "But aren't we in the middle of something? Maybe it's best if your girlfriend just leaves."

"I'm not his girlfriend," Sky cut in before Cody had time to reply. "Not that it's any of your damn business, but I just came to check on him."

Cody leaned forward on the bed, ignoring his companions completely as if the only thing in the world he had eyes for, was Sky.

"We're almost done anyway," he said. "Please, Sky– just stay."

The girls glanced at each other and a short silence followed Cody's words as if he had dropped a bomb in the room.

"Sky?" Said the boy who was sitting on the floor. "Wait— so this is the girl—?"

"You are Sky? Oh my God, you have some nerve coming here—!" exclaimed the dark-haired girl, clearly furious. "It's your fault Cody is in this shape—"

"Jess, stop it!" Cody snapped. "It's not her fault!"

"Yeah, right! So it wasn't her boyfriend who beat the crap out of you?"

"My ex-boyfriend," said Sky, her cheeks heating. "It's hardly my fault that he's a violent asshole - that's why I dumped him. Not that it's any of your business."

She stepped into the room, but not to stay. She didn't even look at Cody's friends as she walked in and snatched the vase that held the flowers she had brought a couple of days ago. Swiftly she made her way to the bathroom, threw the old flowers away, filled the vase with fresh water, and placed the bouquet of pink lilies in it. Her cheeks were still burning and her hands were trembling slightly, she could taste the tears that wanted to break free. What did these girls know about her and Cody and Hawk? They knew nothing. They didn't know the color of Cody's blood on the bathroom floor when she washed his hair, they didn't know the sound of his strangled breathing when the hot water and the shampoo burned in his wounds. They could judge her all they wanted to, but it was nothing compared to how much Sky blamed herself. No matter how many times she came to visit, how many hours she sat on Cody's bed reading a book to him, running her fingers through his soft, dark hair as he rested his head in her lap— none of it mattered. She had messed up. She had brought this on him and she could never make up for it. His friends were right to be angry with her, but still, it hurt.

She wiped the couple of silent tears that had fallen to her cheeks, blew her nose, and took her time arranging the flowers in the vase. She heard muffled voices from Cody's room, but couldn't make out the words as the water was running, melting the individual words together and hiding their meaning.

When she finally returned to his room, the vase in her hands, everyone fell silent.

Sky placed the vase on Cody's desk, not looking at the girls or Cody on the bed, but feeling their eyes on her nevertheless.

"I just came to bring these—" she said silently. "Your room has so little color."

Cody cleared his throat and spoke: "Thanks— Sky, please stay. I'd really like that."

Sky glanced at the other people in the room but didn't say anything. The silence was so thick you could have cut it with a knife, and finally, it was too much for the blond girl, who let out a reluctant sigh. "Sorry, we might have overreacted a bit."

"Yeah," said the boy. "We're just… you know. Worried about Cody."

"And we were in the middle of a reading, so your timing kinda sucked." added the girl with the glasses and dark hair, the one who was sitting the closest to Cody.

It was clear that they only apologized because Cody had told them to - which in Sky's book meant that she didn't have to accept that apology or respond to it. Instead, she turned her eyes to Cody.

"A reading? What are you reading?"

His eyes turned soft, he flashed her a smile. "Shakespeare. For the drama club."

"It's on Fridays," noted the blond girl. "And as Cody couldn't come to the Drama Club today—"

"—the Club came to him," said the other girl. "Or, parts of it anyways."

"That's Tom—" said Cody, pointing towards the overweight boy who sat on the floor. "And this is Jess–" the girl with the pixie hair cut, "-and Savannah," the girl with the blond braids. "We're the greatest talent of West Valley High and the leading force of our beloved Drama Club."

"And the school paper," noted Tom with an awkward smile. "Don't forget to mention the school paper."

"He's the editor-in-chief," explained Cody. "And also the only reason why that paper publishes any of my writing."

At that, Tom laughed, and Sky couldn't help a small smile. That boy had an easy laugh and a kind smile, and of all Cody's friends, he felt like the least threatening one.

"I like your writing," she said to Cody. "And I bet I'm not the only one."

"You read the paper?" he asked, a small blush on his high cheekbones.

"Occasionally."

"Seriously, he's so talented it's annoying," spoke Savannah, rolling her big, blue eyes. "Makes the rest of us look like amateurs."

"We are amateurs," pointed Tom out. "Cody included."

"Amateur actors and wannabe writers who hang out Friday evenings reading Shakespeare," Sky noted. "Wow. You're really living on the edge."

"Not just any Shakespeare. It's Othello," Cody spoke, showing Sky the book he had in his lap. "And as it happens, we are one person short."

"So… if you are not in a hurry, maybe you could fill in? We need a Cassio," added Tom.

Sky glanced at the girls, who didn't seem to be all too thrilled about this, but at least they weren't protesting - probably because Cody had told them not to. But what did their opinion matter? She wasn't here for them, she was here for Cody, and if he wanted her to stay, then so she would, no matter how much it annoyed these girls who thought they were better than her.

"Cassio?" She asked, arching a brow. "I don't get to be Desdemona?"

"Sorry, she's dead already—" muttered Savannah. "And I read Emilia. So you're going to have to be a dude."

"Oh. Well, that's okay. I can do that. And who is Othello?"

Everyone turned their eyes to Cody. Sky wasn't even surprised - of course, he would have the leading part, with that face and that charisma. And he had said he wanted to be an actor, so he probably took this club more seriously than the rest of these kids.

Sky took a seat on the floor next to Tom so that she could read from the same text as him. "Isn't Othello supposed to be black, though? Cody looks kinda white for the part."

"It's just a reading," Tom replied. "For practice. We're not gonna actually do this play. I think."

Sky glanced at him. "Too bad. It's always been one of my favorites. I love the ending."

"Ah yes. I get to kill myself," spoke Cody with a crooked smile. "What's there not to like?"

"Cheers to that," said Jess, sounding bored and annoyed. "Can we just get this done and over with?"

Tom let out a sigh, but started reading, pointing at the right spot on the page so that Sky could follow as he read: "Wrench his sword from him!"

"I bleed, sir; but not kill'd." exclaimed Jess, dramatically overacting her simple line.

Cody replied: "I am not sorry neither: I'ld have thee live; For, in my sense, 'tis happiness to die."

His voice was smooth, melodic and it was impossible not to look at him as the words fell from his lips, each and every one a work of art. He delivered the line to perfection, as if they weren't in his room, but on Broadway, as if he wasn't just reading with his friends, but performing on stage, or even more, as if this wasn't a role at all, but as if he indeed was Othello, the tragic hero ready to die for love.

There was still some huskiness in his voice, something raw, but the words flowed with ease, he barely had to look at the book on his lap at all. During this week, Sky had only seen him miserable and hurting, lying on the bed or sitting on the floor of the shower, battered and beaten, and the cuts on his lips and in his mouth had made it hard for him to speak. She had almost forgotten how beautiful his voice was, what grace he possessed.

"Oh, wow," Sky breathed, unable to take her eyes off him. "You're really good."

"That's not your line," Cody replied softly.

Sky blushed. She hadn't meant to say that out loud in front of these people. Quickly she looked down, to where Tom was pointing at, and spoke: "Dear general, I never gave you cause."

"I do believe it, and I ask your pardon—" replied Cody, and just like that they were reading again, and this time Sky could keep her eyes on the text. It was the final act of Othello, and there weren't that many lines to deliver. She got through her part as Cassio decently enough - even if acting had never been her forte - and enjoyed listening to the others read their parts, but there was no denying it, Cody was the star and the way he delivered Othello's dying scene went straight to Sky's heart.

"I kissed thee ere, I kill'd thee: no way but this," he spoke, his voice clear and soft. "Killing myself, to die upon a kiss."

But then he turned it into a joke, dramatically fake-stabbing himself in the chest and falling on the bed on his back, overacting his death in a gruesome way that earned giggles from the girls who sat by his side.

"Jerk–" laughed Jess. "Must you always do that?"

"But that's the best part," Cody said, opening his eyes and sitting back up. "Let me have some fun with it."

They finished the reading, Sky and Tom delivered their last lines, and when they were done, Sky felt oddly emotional. It was a tragic play, and even if Cody had turned Othello's death into a humorous act, it still left a shadow on Sky's heart. She had bittersweet love for Shakespeare, for the way he described human emotions, the unbearable sadness of being alive and being in love. It always hit a bit too close to home. Was there any play in which no one committed suicide? Sky couldn't even remember.

Othello's death made her think about last summer. About the row of pills on her desk, the calling of the other side, and about Hawk—

No, I'm done thinking about that asshole!

She took a sharp inhale, trying to drive his image off her mind, and she couldn't help it, her eyes were drawn to the pill bottle on Cody's nightstand. OxyContin. She hadn't had any today - she was running low and needed to buy more soon, but how could she ask that of Cody now, after what Hawk had done to him?

He probably wouldn't want to sell her anymore, and she couldn't blame him.

"Sky, are you okay?" asked Cody, and Sky snapped out of her troubled thoughts. She looked up, to notice that the girls and Tom were on their feet, gathering their things.

"I'm fine. You know - just Shakespeare sadness."

"You should join the drama club," said Tom with a smile. "You were a decent Cassio, and we could use some new blood."

Sky answered his smile as she got up on her feet too.

"Thanks, but no thanks. Acting isn't my thing." Her anxiety issues would blow up if she ever had to act on stage. She had never been the girl who craved attention, that had been Kat's thing, not hers. "But it was fun. Thanks for letting me read."

"No problem," said Tom and raised a hand to a wave, and then he left with the girls, leaving Sky and Cody alone in the room.

Sky waited until she couldn't hear their voices anymore before she turned to look at Cody. He closed the large volume of Shakespeare's complete works that had been on his lap, and placed it on his nightstand, suddenly looking a bit nervous.

"I'm sorry about my friends," He spoke. "They were a bit—"

"—dicks?" Sky arched a brow. She took a seat on his bed now that there was room, but it felt different than before. She could still scent the other girls even if they weren't here anymore. There was a scent of lavender in the air, and she hated it. This room, this bed - they should have his smell - cotton and coffee and books, not this weird girly scent that made her uneasy.

"I was gonna say rude," Cody laughed. "But yeah. They were kinda dicks."

Sky let out a sigh as she leaned her back on the headboard. "I understand that they are mad about you getting hurt. They have every right to blame me—"

"No, they don't. What happened to me wasn't your fault."

"It was." Sky said with a tone that killed any counterargument Cody might have had in mind. "I started this thing by kissing you at that party. Hawk never would have attacked you if it wasn't for me. And I get that your friends are pissed at me because of it. But— to be honest, they kinda disliked me the moment they saw me, even before they knew who I was."

"Ah. Well—" Cody looked a bit awkward, he ran a hand through his hair. "That's nothing personal. It's just that— You know. They tend not to like the girls I date."

"You're not dating me, though."

"I know that." He sighed. "But they didn't. You showed up at my door, looking absolutely gorgeous and bringing flowers. What were they supposed to think?"

"I don't know. Why don't they like the girls you date?"

"Does it really matter?" Cody made a face as this topic clearly made him uncomfortable.

"I guess not," Sky shrugged, even if she was a bit curious. "Are you dating anyone at the moment, by the way?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

He swallowed, the nervous movement of his sharp Adam's apple drew Sky's glance to his throat. He had a beautiful neck, a fine jawline, the bruises on his throat were fading.

"Because," She leaned closer to him. "I don't wanna be the girl who sleeps with someone's boyfriend."

He let out a soft sound that was no word and ran a hand through his dark hair, pushing the undisciplined strands off his forehead.

"Oh? So, are we still sleeping together?"

It was a valid question. They hadn't done anything, not even kissing, since the morning Sky had woken up at Cody's place after the Halloween party almost a week ago - and they hadn't really talked about it either. Sky hoped they could still go back to the way things had been between them - but on the other hand, if Cody wanted nothing to do with her after what had happened, well she would understand.

"I don't know. Would you… like that?" Sky asked, laying her hand gently on his chest. He took a sharp inhale, and red spots emerged on his cheekbones. When he turned to look at her, his eyes were wide, his lips parted.

"I— I would absolutely love it."

"Nice," Sky breathed, snuggling closer. Her hand was still on his chest which was now rising and falling rapidly.

"But Sky—" he breathed. "I'm still not in any shape to have sex—"

"Who said anything about having sex?" She grinned, her hand traveling down his stomach, the touch of her fingertips light as a feather so that she wouldn't hurt him. "Maybe you can just relax and enjoy a bit?"

His breathing was getting uneven, it hitched in his throat, and that made Sky's smile widen. She loved how responsive he was, how easily her touch could turn him on. She had wondered, during this week, if what had happened last weekend had been a one-time thing only, if they would ever do those things again, but now—

Well, it sure looked like she wasn't the only one who felt this spark between them, this sexual tension, the need to be close.

"What—?" he sighed. "You mean like—?"

"Yeah. Or do you object?"

Her hand was now on the waistband of his pants, and moving down. He did nothing to stop her when her fingers reached the front of his gray sweats, and gently palmed him through the fabric.

"Sky, you don't have to—"

"I want to."

He moaned when she began to move her hand, his eyes half closed in pleasure, and he was beautiful, even with the bruises on his face, he looked like an angel - and Sky couldn't wait to see how he came apart under her touch.

"Why— do you want to do this?"

"Because it's fun," she breathed, bringing her lips closer to his: "Or don't you think this is fun?"

His chest rose with a fast breath and Sky felt how his dick turned harder under her touch. It made her grin widen. Fun. Gods knew they both deserved some fun after this Hell of a week. Her mouth went dry with wanting as soft moans and sighs began to drop off Cody's lips.

"Oh—" he sighed, his voice suddenly a bit throaty. "Oh, damn—"

"You like this?"

He didn't answer, but his hands were on her shoulders, then cradling her face and he pulled her closer. Their lips met and the kiss was slow and sweet, his lips were soft, and he didn't taste like blood anymore, he tasted like peppermint toothpaste and orange soda and he whined into the kiss when Sky gripped his dick a bit harder through the sweats.

That made her chuckle into the kiss. She loved how needy he was, how much he wanted her. His dick was rock hard by now, she could feel the shape of it clearly through his pants and she wanted him, she wanted to feel that cock in her hands, she wanted to suck it deep into her mouth, all the way to her throat, and hear the sounds he made when he came like that.

"Sky—" he sighed when she broke the kiss.

"What?"

She flashed him a teasing grin, as she started to ease her fingers under the waistband of his sweats.

"Wait—" he placed a hand over hers, stopping her intention. "Just, wait a sec—"

"Why? Don't you want this? "

She frowned, a bit confused, because the way he reacted to her touch clearly told her that he wanted this, that he wanted this very badly. And indeed, he didn't resist when she continued pushing her hand into his pants. A soft whine left his lips and his hips twitched when she palmed him.

"Just— tell me why?" he breathed, failing to keep that voice even. "Why— are you doing this?"

Sky shrugged. "Because you've had a pretty shitty week? And I wanna make you feel better?"

"Not good enough."

"Because the way you read Shakespeare left me all hot and bothered?" She asked teasingly. "And I'm in the mood to give a handjob to a cute guy?"

"Okay—" he moaned softly. "Fuck—!"

His head fell back against the headboard as Sky gripped him a bit harder, her fingers curling around his thick member. Damn, he had a big one, and Damn, Sky fucking loved it. Just remembering how he felt inside of her, made her rub her thighs together.

If only they could do it for real—

But of course, he was right, he was still healing, he was in no shape to have sex, and obviously, she didn't want to cause him any pain or distress. What she wanted to do was to give him something nice, a moment of pleasure, because fucking Hell, he sure deserved it after everything that had happened.

She began to move her hand, pumping him slowly, her hand still in his sweats, and his breathing turned fast, shallow, his chest was rising and falling rapidly—

He brought his hands to the waistband of his pants to push them down— but at that exact moment, the door opened.

Sky gasped and pulled her hand away from Cody's pants with lightning speed, but it was too late.

Tom stood in the doorway, his eyes widening. His jaw dropped.

"Shit. Sorry." His round cheeks turned crimson. "I—"

"The fuck, dude?" Cody groaned. "Get out!"

"Forgot my Othello—" Tom mumbled, pointing at the book that lay on the floor, then took a hesitating step closer and snatched it. "I'm sorry. Truly sorry. Leaving now—"

He was out of the door in a heartbeat, yanking it close as he went.

Sky buried her face in her hands. Her cheeks were burning, but she couldn't help but giggle.

"Oh my God—!"

"Jesus Christ—" Cody still sounded more annoyed than amused as he ran both hands through his hair, and Sky couldn't blame him. He still had a tent in his pants and his chest was rising and falling rapidly with his breathing. He glanced at Sky with a question in his eyes, but Sky bit her lip and shook her head.

"Sorry," she said. "He kinda ruined the moment."

Cody let out a deep breath. "Yeah, he kinda did," and then, after a short silence. "I'm gonna kill him."

Sky laughed. "Come on, don't kill him! He seemed nice. Besides, you need him to be Lodovico. But— He's not gonna talk, is he?"

"Tom? No, no—" Cody shook his head. "No, he's not like that."

"He's so gonna think I'm your girlfriend, though," Sky noted, leaning her back on the headboard.

Cody swallowed. He looked down to his hands that lay in his lap, then back to her face, and his eyes were huge, they were full of unnamed emotion, his lashes were long and cast moving shadows on his high cheekbones.

"When I'm— not looking like a monster anymore—" he spoke, a bit hesitant. "Maybe next week. Would you… would you want to go out with me?"

"Oh—!" Sky looked down, her cheeks flushed. "Out, like— on a date?"

"Well, yeah. Would that be so bad?"

She blinked a couple of times, starting to panic. To go on a date? With a boy who wasn't Hawk? To put her heart and her hopes out there, just to be hurt again, to be lied to again, to be treated like a stupid slut who didn't deserve any better?

No. No, she couldn't do it. She couldn't date Cody, she couldn't date anyone, she would never give anyone that much power over her again.

"I— I can't." She breathed. "I can't, I'm sorry— Why— why would you even want to go out with me?"

He cast his eyes down, and for a moment his jawline turned hard. He looked like he was about to say something, but then didn't, and swallowing those words took a moment.

"I just… want to do something nice for you," He said, after a short silence. "You've been here every day, taking care of me. You didn't have to do this, any of this. I— I just want to thank you."

"Well you can just say thanks. We don't have to start dating because you feel like you owe me."

"I know, that's not what I meant. Tell me you didn't enjoy the time we had the milkshakes—"

"I did. But that wasn't a date either. I'm just… I'm not— I can't date you."

Cody was silent for a moment and Sky couldn't read the look on his face at all. Why did he want to date her anyways? The thing he had said about wanting to thank her felt like a half-truth at best. Did he think he had to take her out on dates so that she would keep having sex with him?

"You know, we can still keep doing this stuff," she said. "We can be like… friends, with benefits? If that's something you still wanna do—"

"Of course," Cody sighed. "Of course. I'm sorry, let's just keep things as they are."

"So, no dates. But - there is something I wanna do with you—"

"Oh, what's that?"

"Watch Cloud Atlas," Sky flashed him a soft smile. "I mean, we have almost finished the book and I have the BlueRay. You haven't seen it, right?"

"No, I haven't." He replied, and there was something sad in his voice - but maybe it wasn't sadness, maybe he was just tired. Now that Sky thought about it, he must be exhausted after the Drama Club. This was the first day he had been doing anything but just resting, so it must have taken a toll on him.

"So - a movie night? At my place? Sometime next week?" She asked.

"Sounds great. Can't wait," he replied and brought a hand to brush Sky's hair behind her ear. That hand lingered there for a couple of heartbeats, his touch was soft as if he was touching a flower, scared of crushing it.

"You want me to read to you now?" Sky asked, and something in her voice was getting caught in her throat. "We could finish the book."

"Please, do."

She picked up the book from the nightstand and opened it. Cody laid down on the bed as if sudden tiredness had overtaken him, and when he laid his head on her lap, she ran her fingers through his hair. The words started to fall from her lips and he closed his eyes, let out a soft sigh, his face relaxed. He looked like there was no place in the world he'd rather be.