Guest: Thank you for your review, I was ecstatic to read such lovely words. Every story needs a slightly bitter and infuriating counterpart, unfortunately, Abi fills that role wonderfully and I have no love lost for her. She's a bearable character in my opinion. Each to their own in regards to her. I'm glad you're liking Sebastian, it's hard to write a character that is… essentially a broody bastard and not have that define him!

Chapter Five: Reassurance

Abigail looked at him blankly, 'excuse me? What do you mean that you're not going?' She repeated. Sam looked disheartened but he knew to wait to hear Sebastian's reasons before getting upset.

'It isn't on purpose,' Sebastian sighed as he continued to try and get the blood out from under his fingernails. 'I want to go but… Tyrell needs me,' he said quietly. Sam lowered the beer he had been carrying and walked over to see what Sebastian was doing in the sink.

'Is that blood?' He asked in worry, 'fuck man, it's on your neck as well,' he said as he put down the case and grabbed a cloth. 'Is Rina, okay? Yoba, that's a lot of blood,' Sam said giving a worried look to Abigail, who, to be fair did look concerned. Sebastian tilted his head and let Sam help him get rid of the stain on his skin. He must have touched himself while worrying, he hadn't realised.

Once he was clean, he began to tell them what happened. 'She came over to give me a birthday present,' he said, 'she got attacked by one of the cave bats and didn't think anything of it.'

'Because she can't come to the gig tonight? Damn, that sucks, you try to do a nice thing and get hurt for it,' Sam muttered and he opened one of the beers and took a sip, not caring that it was supposed to be for later.

Sebastian nodded; he made purposeful eye contact with Abi whose posture seemed tense. 'Yeah, it's a real shame,' he said slowly and deliberately. 'If she were going, she would have just given me the gift later,' Sebastian knew what Abigail had done and he wasn't happy. His mood hadn't improved seeing as Abigail didn't even look ashamed, even though it was obvious that she knew he was on to her.

Abigail shrugged a shoulder, 'it's unfortunate that she got hurt, really. Doesn't mean that you can't go out. She'll just stay here with Maru and you can still come. Maru has medical training at least and can look after her, what are you going to do?' Sebastian almost snapped at her but he spotted Maru, Rina and Robin walking towards the kitchen.

Robin was still fussing and Maru walked past with a brief greeting to everyone to wash her hands. Rina had a cloth pressed to her head, 'Abi has a point, Sebastian. I appreciate the thought but I don't want to ruin your night. I've got to take a shower and Maru has still got to stitch me up yet anyway. Go enjoy yourself,' she said with a wince as she moved her head by accident. 'I'll just have to free up some time the next time something is planned,' she said in a sickly-sweet voice to which Abigail couldn't help but roll her eyes towards.

Sam shook his head, 'that farm keeps you really busy,' he muttered.

'True,' Rina nodded. Robin told her to take over so she could make a phone call for her. 'Robin is going to call Marnie to check on my animals in the morning, so I might as well have come seeing as I won't be able to do it tomorrow regardless,' she added causing a certain someone to almost look away from her direction. Rina ignored her and looked at Sebastian, 'honestly, I'll be fine. Please, go enjoy yourself. I'll be here. I even have my phone,' she assured. 'You know it works, you gave me it yourself,' she teases lightly as she manages to make eye contact through her hair and bowed head.

Sebastian reluctantly chuckles and then sighed as he walked over to her, gently placing his hand on her upper arm. 'Stay in my room at least. Maru still talks in her sleep. Message me if you need anything,' he said quietly.

'I'll be fine, Sebastian. Go on. Have fun, for me too,' she smiled brightly at him and he knew he had lost. 'I'll finish my book if I can't sleep,' she adds.

A genuine smile dances over his lips and he has to truly admit defeat. It was clear that she would feel immense guilt if he stayed at home. He nods and Sam whooped loudly. Sebastian gives her a glance, 'there's more books on the shelf,' he adds.

'Go,' Rina said firmly, giving him an encouraging and playful middle finger. Sebastian rolls his eyes and they said their goodbyes. He motions for her to call him and she simply waved until the door shut. Robin came back and guided her to the bathroom where she was going to wash her hair over the bath.

'He cares about you, you know,' Robin said quietly.

'I care about him too, Robin. We're just not like that,' Rina said with a wince as the cold water gently ran over her head.

'It would be easier on you both if you were,' Robin laughed lightly as she gently attempted to massage the clumps out her dark hair.

'Ha, if only it were that simple,' Rina snorted. 'There are some things that just can't be forced or faked,' she muttered more to herself. Robin chattered idly to her to distract her from the pain and uncomfortableness. It didn't take long after that for Maru to easily assess and sew up the wound, it didn't look quite so bad once all the blood had been washed out. By the time that Rina got back to her phone in Sebastian's room, she had received a couple of messages from him.

"Hey, just letting you know we're here, safe. Don't be upset if Maru attempts to wake you in a few hours, she's just gotta make sure you're okay."

Then another about ten minutes after he had sent the first:

"Try to get some sleep, ice pack if needed. Find something in my wardrobe to wear to bed. I don't mind what, as long as you're comfortable. We're gonna be staying in a hotel so we won't be back till the morning. Night, Rina."

Her smile was treacherous. It was rare for him to use her name and it showed just how worried he was about her. With a deep inhale she put down her phone, unable to reply as it wouldn't sound sincere. She was pretty sure that he knew she had lied about the situation with Abigail and that girl was starting to frustrate her. Apart from this strange pettiness that appeared at times, Rina got on really well with her, at least she thought she did. Without sparing Abigail another thought she walked over to his wardrobe and took a look at what was inside. Sebastian was a fair bit taller than her and so all of his clothing would be larger and comfortable. Seeing as she had free rein over what to choose, Rina couldn't help but grab one of his favourite t-shirts, it had a band that they both loved on the front. Black but with bright purple and blue stylized text and emblem. It hurt a little to pull off her dress and she draped it neatly over his computer chair before pulling on his top.

The dress hadn't been forgiving when it came to a bra, even a strapless one so Rina had resorted to the magic secret of skin tape. It was something she had used in the past when she lived with her father so she was used to wearing it. Thankfully she could take a moment to peel it off and roll her shoulders as the natural weight of her chest returned. 'Ugh, thank Yoba,' she moaned happily feeling a lot more relaxed. Sitting on the edge of his bed, she pulled off her shoes and stretched out. Her head was a thudding ache, nothing too annoying but noticeable for the time being. She felt so stupid, the bat had clearly collided with her hair and scalp but once she had knocked it aside and swung at it with her sword, it had flown off. She hadn't felt any new instances of pain and was frustrated with herself that she hadn't even checked for injuries.

'Yoba… I could have ruined his whole night,' she muttered to herself as she held the hem of the top that rested mid-thigh on her body. 'Stupid girl,' she scolded. He would have understood if she had just come over the following day. 'No, I had to try and be stubborn and get my own way as usual. Sometimes, I'm my own worst enemy,' she sighed and gently moved back onto his bed. She grabbed a towel and placed it over a pillow so if there was any more blood, she wouldn't stain his bedding. Lying her head down sideways so she didn't put pressure on her wound, she pulled his other pillow closer as she hugged it tightly. The cool air of his room was pleasant but not enough to make her wrap up in the quilt. 'I'll have to apologise again, tomorrow,' she said quietly as she closed her eyes and squeezed his pillow once more.

-x-

'She's doing; okay?' Sebastian asked Maru as he had stepped outside of the venue to speak to her and indulge in a cigarette.

'Yeah, she was a little groggy when I woke her up but she didn't want any more painkillers and answered all my questions easily, if not a little reluctantly,' Maru replied down the phone line. 'She's gonna be fine by my book though I would really suggest getting her to go have it looked at by Dr Harvey. I have training but I'm no expert,' she said honestly.

Sebastian nodded and looked at the time on his phone before returning the speaker to his ear. 'Okay, I'll make sure that she does,' he promised.

'Alright… well… have a good night,' Maru said a little awkwardly. Their relationship had gotten better over the last year but it wasn't perfect.

'I will… and Maru?'

'Yeah?'

'Thank you,' Sebastian said softly. 'I really appreciate all that you've done,' he said honestly. 'I'm… lucky to have a… sister like you,' he mumbled, shuffling his foot as he felt like an ass saying what he had.

There was a pause at the other end of the phone before Maru spoke in reply, her voice was thick with emotion, 'hey, no problem, Seb. What are siblings for, huh?' She said in an attempt to joke. Sebastian chuckled and they both said goodbye before ending the call. Sebastian looked at the time again, it was the early hours and it would take about an hour to get home. Suddenly, he didn't really want to be out all night. He pondered what he was going to do while he smoked, would it be unfair to the others if he left? Sam would understand for sure. Also, at this moment in time he didn't really care what Abigail thought, she had pissed him off tonight what with her immature attitude.

With his decision made, he returned to his friends, they had met up with a few more that lived in the city and it was a fairly large group. 'Sam!' Sebastian pulled him to one side and had to speak quite close to his ear as he explained that he was going home.

'Y'sure dude? Rina sounds fine if Maru says so,' Sam said as there was a natural lull in the music around them.

'I would just feel better if I was there. Maru has work tomorrow and it's not fair to have to ask her to wake every few hours to check on Tyrell. I have the day off tomorrow regardless, so it makes more sense if I grab a nap in the afternoon,' he said honestly. Sam nodded. It made sense.

'Fair enough, man. At least I get more of the bed to myself later,' Sam laughed making Sebastian roll his eyes. 'Get back safe, drop me a message when you're home. I'll let everyone else know, go now while they're distracted or you ain't gonna get away,' he joked, semi-serious. Sebastian shared a hug with his best friend and patted him on the back before slipping out the hall and away from all the noise and light. He checked the timetables on his phone, there was a train in about half an hour, he only had to get there. Thankfully, he travelled light, just his phone, keys and cigarettes. Anything else he had left at the hotel; Sam would bring home for sure.

A couple hours later he let himself into the house and quietly took off his shoes, he spotted Maru at the top of the corridor and quietly made his way over. 'Go back to bed, Maru. I'll keep an eye on her,' he whispered.

Maru yawned, 'I thought you were out all night,' she mumbled, rubbing her eye.

'Nah, you know me,' he said making her smirk.

'You gotta make sure that it's not started bleeding again, and if she's speaking clearly and easily woken up, like, y'know, to an extent, then there's no need to worry,' she said through another yawn. 'Alright, I'mma head to bed,' she nodded sleepily. Sebastian hesitated before gently hugging his sleepy half-sister.

'Thanks,' he mumbled as he let her go.

'I'm too tired for this,' she teased but gave him a smile to assure him that she didn't mind. He nodded and tried to be as quiet as he could be while walking down to his room. He opened the door quietly so not to disturb Rina and slipped inside. He looked at the sleeping form in his bed, his heart beating a little faster as he saw her. She hadn't gotten under the quilt and was hugging his spare pillow. With a small smile he got changed into a pair of tracksuit bottoms and pulled his shirt over his head, throwing it towards his washing basket. Silently he walked over to the edge of his bed and crouched down, reaching out a hand he gently touched her shoulder.

'Tyrell,' he whispered, the only light in the room was from his computer tower which hummed to itself happily. It didn't take long for his eyes to adjust and he could see everything pretty easily. 'Hey, wake up,' he said a little louder, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

Rina woke with a jolt and her eyes fluttered. 'Maru… I'm alive… go back to bed,' she mumbled as she moved her hand sluggishly towards him in an attempt to bat him away.

'I'll let her know,' Sebastian chuckled.

Rina registered the baritone in the voice that replied to her and her eyes opened slowly and realisation. 'Sebastian?' She said in a quiet voice as she pushed herself up onto her elbow. 'Is it morning already?' Rina looked around, trying to figure out the time.

'Sssh, no, it's not. It's really early. I came home instead of going to the hotel. I'm just checking on you,' he said softly as he stopped her from sitting up. 'You can go back to sleep if you want. I'm gonna be on the sofa,' he said. 'If you need anything just wake me.'

'What?' Rina said as she woke up properly. 'No, Sebastian, don't go to the sofa… you'll have a shit night's sleep,' she said simply and then shuffled over. 'Get in. It's your bed,' she yawned. Sebastian gave her a look which she completely ignored and instead reached out and grabbed his wrist. 'Come on, I'm tired, get in already.'

It was hard to argue with her and he had no choice but to climb into the bed with her. He did insist on pulling the quilt over them both though, he needed the weight of it in order to sleep. Rina turned onto her side and pulled her hair over her shoulder so that it wouldn't suffocate him as he moved closer. 'Stubborn,' he muttered making her smile and snort.

'Clue is in the name,' she replied drowsily. Sebastian also turned onto his side; facing her back and was totally unprepared for when she reached around and grabbed his hand again, pulling it over her waist, forcing him to lie against her. 'Can you feel me breathing?' She mumbled. There was a moment of adjustment where he slid his arm under her pillow to make the position more long lasting.

Sebastian mentally screamed. 'Yes,' he replied, that and more, he thought, trying to ignore the shape of her body against his. Being attracted to his best friend was normal, she was a very beautiful woman. Understandable that in situations like this, it would feel more… intense than it usually did. It didn't mean anything. At least that's what he kept telling himself.

'Cool, assume I'm alive unless I stop, don't wake me for anything else,' she murmured with a little giggle. 'Goodnight, Sebastian,' she whispered, squeezing his hand with hers.

He shimmied a little closer to be comfortable and pressed a light kiss against her shoulder, 'Goodnight, Rina,' he whispered in reply, feeling his body relax as he dropped off, Rina wrapped up in his arms. A peace he didn't know existed.

I will try to make regular updates but between my ADHD and Night shifts, they may be random and i apologise for that.

Also, I edit on the go so if there is something that you would like to read/have added, just let me know and if the idea sparks any goblins in my head, I'll for sure write it in!