Happy two-year anniversary for this fanfiction! It's been two years since I started this fanfiction, and I had no idea how well this fanfiction would have done. I appreciate all of your support, even though my posting has been erratic this past year. Between school 5 days a week (plus homework on the weekends) and work (5+days a week), I haven't really been able to post much. And honestly, this fanfiction is starting to get mundane and boring for me to write, so I'm hoping to turn it in a different direction that I'll enjoy writing about.

Speaking of posting, I may need to change the schedule to a monthly post. I wish I didn't have to, but writing a thousand words a week with everything else going on in my life just makes me procrastinate and not enjoy writing. Again, I'm hoping to change the course of the fanfiction so there's actually some tension between the characters I think I've made the situations too easy for the characters, which is probably why I don't like writing that much. I have a doc with ideas of what I want to include in this fanfiction, so I hope that will help me stay on task.

That being said, I'm hoping to write more of these "one-shots"-I really enjoy writing from a different perspective; it freshens up my writing. I do have a few ideas, but I don't know if I'll write them. I do plan on posting a Christmas special and a New Year's special, but they may not be relative to the holiday. I may just post a one-shot, but we'll see.

I'm sorry for any plot holes or things that are wrong in this one-shot compared to the actual fanfiction. I was just too lazy to reread my whole fanfiction.

Anyway, I just want to thank you for reading and for all of your support. Even though I can't see how many people are reading (since the stats graphs are broken), I still want to post. So thank you for reading.

-CL

A sharp sound brings me out of my daydream. The rebel alarm. I uncurl from my fetal position on my bed and throw on my robe. I'm in a day dress, but it's usually cold in the safe rooms. I brush my fingers through my hair and get a glimpse of my face in the mirror. Thank God my makeup is fine. The last thing I need is for Maxon to see me less than perfect. I suck in my stomach and rush out of my room, taking a sharp left. I glance around the corner before making a run for the safe-

"Lady Bella, get down!" I hear a male voice shout. I don't hesitate; I throw myself on the ground and put my hands over my head. I hear a gunshot and cringe. I lift my head up and see a rebel's body next to me, a gunshot wound in the back of his head. I stand up, careful of the blood, and start running again. I'm not sure who warned me of the rebel, but-

"Your Highness," I stutter, startled when he walks in front of me. Or more like…limps. I curtsy quickly and slow my pace to walk with him. I'm not sure why he's walking so slowly, but I figure I should stay next to him. It occurs to me that he's the one who saved me from the rebel. "Thank you for saving me, Your Highness." I glance at his face and see the grimace on it. I observe him walking again and notice the limp. So I wasn't hallucinating. I then notice the first aid kit in his arms. "Are you alright, Your Highness?"

"I'm fine, Lady Bella. Please-" he responds but hisses when his back scrapes against the corner of the wall at the turn. He looks about ready to collapse.
"Your Highness!" I grab onto his arm and he leans heavily on me. I blush, remembering the last time we were together. Or when we weren't supposed to be. He still hasn't been able to "meet" me yet. Every time we are about to, something always interferes. Like the rebel alarm today.

"Your Highness, what's the matter? Have you been shot?" I ask, gently helping him walk along. And that's when a rebel appears in front of us. He has a gun pointed at Prince Maxon, and I shove him behind me, using myself as a shield for him. I hear the safety being clicked off and squeeze my eyes shut, aware that I'm about to die. I hear the gun go off and am ready for the bullet…

It's a few seconds later and the bullet still hasn't entered me. I crack open my eyes and see that the rebel who was about to shoot me was on the ground, blood seeping out of his head. I exhale loudly and turn my head to check on Prince Maxon. I notice he's sweating profusely and leaning against the wall. "Thanks," I breathe. I quickly grab his arm again and start guiding him to the safe room. I lean down to grab the fallen rebel's gun, wanting to be able to protect myself. "How much longer until we're at the safe room?" I ask, realizing I've lost my way. Not that I really knew the way to begin with.

"We're not making it to the main safe room," he grits out. "There's one at the end of the hall." I look down the hall but don't notice anything. I stop, wondering if we missed it. "Just keep on going," Prince Maxon instructs. I do, walking slowly enough to make sure he keeps up.

"Stop," he demands when we reach the end of the hall. I can tell that he's in a lot of pain. He keeps his grip on my arm and opens the safe room, pulling me in with him. I gasp from the sharp tug, almost losing my footing. Prince Maxon quickly shuts the door behind me and sinks to the floor. I kneel down next to him, taking in my surroundings. The room is dimly lit and has a bathroom in the corner, and a curtain for privacy. There is a shelf with supplies along the wall and some chairs and a bench in the center of the room.

"Your Highness-"

"Please, just Maxon," he breathes. He lets go of the first aid kit and it clatters to the floor. I pick it up and open it. I gently take everything out and place it on the bench.

"Your-Maxon, what happened? What hurts?" I ask, grabbing a chair. I help him stand up, guiding him to sit-

"No, Lady Bella, backward," he grunts.

"Huh?"

"Sit. Backwards."

"Oh," I say, helping him to do just that. He hisses as he sinks down into the chair, straddling it. "What hurts?" I ask again, my fingers lingering on his arm. You just want to comfort him, that's all. My previous shyness is replaced with genuine concern for him, even though I hardly know him.

"It's-my back," he grunts. I start to touch it- "No, don't touch it," he bites out. "Please."

"How can I help then?" I ask.

"Unbutton my shirt," he says, his voice strained.

I blush immediately. "Is that really appropriate?"

"Please, Lady Bella."

"Bella, please. Just Bella," I say, having him lean back. I work the buttons out of the slits, gently pulling the shirt open, exposing his chest.

"Take it off. Carefully," Maxon instructs. He holds out his arms so I can pull off the sleeves. I do it slowly, stopping whenever he hisses. Finally, his arms are out of his sleeves, and he grabs onto the chair. "Now, peel it off my back. Don't stop until it's off no matter my reaction."

"Maxon, I don't want to hurt you-"

"Just do it. Please. There's no one else around."

"Alright," I say, grabbing onto the shirt. I start gently pulling it off and Maxon cries out. My instinct reaction is to stop, but I remember Maxon's instructions. I find Maxon's hand and squeeze it, allowing him to hold onto it while my other hand pulls his shirt down his back. I finally finish and throw the shirt onto the bench. I can feel Maxon shaking. "Are you alright? Do you need me to do-"

I take in Maxon's back and gasp. "Maxon, what happened?" There are puckered bleeding wounds all over his back, with some bruising starting to form. I open the first aid kit and see what I have to work with. I grimace at the small amount of painkillers-and I guess no water. "Can you dry swallow?"

"Yes," he answers in a shaky voice. "And to answer your previous question…it's my father. He caned me."
"What-? How?" I question. I walk over and kneel in front of his chair, handing him painkillers. "Here, take these. I'm not sure how long we'll be in here, but there aren't enough painkillers for overnight."

"Thank you," he whispers before tilting his head back and swallowing the pills.

I notice his glassy eyes. I grab his hands and he looks at me. "Hey, it's ok to express feelings. You can cry out, sob, or curse. I just want you to be comfortable. I've already exposed a secret part of myself, and even though I don't know you very well, not to mention we haven't properly met yet, but-" I realize that I'm nervously rambling and cut myself off. I clear my throat before continuing. "As I was saying, don't be afraid to show emotion. I'm not opposed to it-I welcome it. You can be yourself with me, Maxon." I keep my hold on his hands but shyly glance at the ground before raising my eyes to his. God knows my cheeks are pink even with my makeup on.

I stand up abruptly, dropping Maxon's hands. "Anyways," I say, rifling through the first aid supplies, "I'll start bandaging your back." I turn and face Maxon, rolls of bandages in my hands. "It'll be easier if you sit on the bench, though."

Maxon nods. I grab his arms, ready to-

Maxon places his hand on my cheek. "Thank you, Bella. Truly."

I blush. "It's no problem, Maxon. I'm happy to help." I'm tempted to inquire more about why his father caned him, but I refrain myself. I grab onto his arms, shouldering the majority of his weight. I stay silent, bearing it. "Ready?"

Maxon nods. He stands up grunting, trying to find sure footing. "Careful, careful," I say. Maxon finally finds good footing-

"Maxon!" I screech, his weight throwing me off balance. He cries out, but I slide myself underneath him, falling on the ground first. Maxon lands on top of me, knocking out my breath. I gasp, desperately trying to get air.

"Oh, shit," Maxon says. He's trying to get off of me, but it is obviously causing him a lot of pain.

"Wait-" I wheeze, starting to shimmy out from under him. He hisses from my jostling, but I finally pull my legs out from under him. I inhale deeply and stand up. "I think-I think I'll just-leave you there," I say between gasps. I shakily walk over to the dropped bandages, hoping that the floor is clean.

I walk over to the sink and wash my hands, grabbing antibiotic ointment from the first aid kit on the way. I walk over to Maxon and kneel next to him. I gently trace his wounds with a damp towel from the sink. Maxon hisses. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry," I whisper, following the towel with the ointment. I feel Maxon tense beneath my touch. "I'm sorry," I repeat.

"It's alright, my dear," Maxon says. "Don't apologize." A warm feeling fills my belly when he calls me "his dear".

"I'm going to have to wrap the bandages around you-lift you up," I say. "Besides if you can put yourself on your elbows? Or maybe I can place blankets under your elbows?" I shut myself up before I ramble some more. Damn anxiety. I go to the shelf and notice that there's only one blanket. I fold it up and place it under one of Maxon's elbows. I take off my robe and place it under his other one. "Is that good enough?"
"Yes, thank you, my dear," he says. He lifts himself up and I quickly, but gently, wrap the bandages around him. He lowers himself back down and I cut off the excess bandaging.

I place the rest of the bandages in the first aid kit and kneel next to Maxon again. "You ok?"

Maxon nods. "Thanks, Bella."

"Do you know what time it is?" I ask. I would like to say it hasn't been more than an hour, but who knows?

"It's close to ten."

"Ten o'clock?!" I exclaim. "We've been in here that long?" As if on cue, I yawn. I quickly cover it with my hand, flushing. I smile sheepishly. "I guess it has been that long then."

"Do you want to try to sleep?" Maxon asks, gently propping himself up on his elbow.

I shake my head. "You should sleep, there's only one blanket…" And it's then that I realize, there truly is only one blanket. "Yes, I'll-" another yawn interrupts me "-stay awake. You can have the blanket."

Maxon takes the blanket out from under him, leaving my robe on the ground. "How about we share the blanket? You can use your robe for a pillow and I'll sleep on the ground."

I shake my head. "You use my robe as a pillow. Are you sure you want to share the blanket?" I blush at the thought, ducking my head to hide it with my hair.

"Come here, my dear," he says, gently grabbing my wrist. I swear my face must be a tomato. I allow Maxon to gently pull me down next to him, covering us with the blanket. I shiver, the floor's chill immediately soaking through my thin day dress. Maxon pulls me closer, my head on his chest. He puts his arms around me and I shiver again. He pulls the blanket closer to me, gently rubbing his hands up and down my arms. He has to see my red face. It has to be as bright as a strobe light. "Is that alright?"

"Yes," I whisper back. "It's perfect." I want to take advantage of the alone time with Maxon, but my fatigue overtakes me. I soon fall asleep, wrapped in protecting, gentle arms.