Risk: Chapter Thirteen

Rose's alarm went off at five-thirty on the dot. She hardly felt like she'd rested at all; she actually felt a little restless, thanks to the song of her name running through her head. She didn't like thinking too much about it, but she couldn't help it.

Why did he say her name like that?

She exited her room to first wash her face and brush her teeth, then to check on her house guest. He was already wide awake, watching the morning news.

"This all sounds fake."

"Everyone says that," she said with a chuckle, joining him on the couch. "Anything fascinating happen in the world?"

"They talked about the shooting yesterday," he answered, his voice low; whether because of the topic the conversation had changed to or to keep her uncle from hearing – if he was home – she wasn't sure. "There were three casualties; he managed to escape."

"Oh, no." Then she added, a little panicked, "Does Bunni know?" She stood up then, rushing back to her room to get to her phone. Levi was following right behind her.

She'd never had a boy in her room before, let alone a grown man, and something about that made her feel a little sheepish – but she couldn't press on that too long. Her friend's safety might be at stake.

She first called Bunni – straight to voicemail. Then she texted her. 'Hey, are you awake?' Setting down her phone on its home on her desk, she turned to Levi, still riddled with panic. "I think… I should leave early for class and check on her."

"Alone?" He crossed his arms, eyes narrowed. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"But you don't know… here. It's safer for both of us if you stay here."

By the softening look on his face, it seemed she'd made her point.

"Now, get out. I have to change." She shoved the older man out of her room, rather roughly, and shut the door as soon as he crossed the threshold. She looked around her room as if for the first time, then; wobbly wooden desk, equally as wobbly desk chair, plain white walls with no pictures except one of her parents, a queen sized bed that was actually a hand-me-down from Bunni when she had upgraded to a king (she really shouldn't have taken it, knowing Bunni's… history, but she had been on a twin for such a long time she was a little desperate for a bigger bed), and a closet with a mirrored door. Nothing special, not even a dresser.

Embarrassing.

Shaking her head of it, she changed into a sailor suit of sorts – blue shorts, white top, short blue tie – and some long white socks, finishing the look with those same black tennis shoes from yesterday. She grabbed her backpack, remembering then that her laptop might be in shambles thanks to Levi – at no fault of his own, she knew, but still – but disregarding it for now as she had bigger things to worry about.

"Do you have any actual clothes?" Levi commented, raising a brow at her outfit.

"What – these are clothes, Dad, just not the ones you're used to." She rolled her eyes at his remark, waving her hand, disregarding it. "Anyway, I'm going to visit Bunni. Wait –" She looked him once over. "You should probably change clothes."

"Huh –" He seemed confused by her sudden shift in conversation. "Why?"

"Because, you need to blend in while you're here. You and my uncle are kind of the same size." Give or take a couple inches. "Why don't you wear something of his?"

They tentatively entered his room – only to discover he wasn't, in fact, not home. That was a good thing, for now at least. They had a few minutes, if not longer, to find something for Levi to wear. Her uncle rotated clothes so often due to his… job that she doubted he would miss a few articles.

After picking out a plain pair of black pants and a white button down, something he would be accustomed to wearing already but it was made of fabric from this century so it was a little more chic, Rose left Levi to his own devices.

"I'll be back in a few hours. Please – please – don't do anything while I'm gone."

"You got it, boss," he answered in a flat tone, his attention back on the television.

Though Rose worried about leaving Levi alone for an extended amount of time, she worried more about Bunni and if she was safe. She arrived at her friend's dorm, the campus slowly coming alive with students on their third day back to school. Exiting her car, she bounded up the steps to her friend's door and knocked – loudly.

Her roommate answered.

"Hey – is Bunni home?"

"No, she left like ten minutes ago. Had to meet some dude?"

"You have to… do you know where she went?"

The roommate seemed to sense Rose's urgency and came outside to talk to her instead. "I'm going to assume the campus coffee shop or the library? That's where most girls rendezvous with their boyfriends before class."

"Right, thank you!"

Leaving quickly, she got back in her car and raced to campus. There, chaos had seemed to ensue. People were running all over the place, there was screaming – it sounded awful.

Parking crookedly, not caring if she got a ticket, she ran from her car to the middle of the pavilion, trying to assess where best to find her friend. People were running from the library, it seemed, so that would be her best bet, right? Her heart beating like wildfire in her ears, she made her way through the throng of screaming students to get inside the library, only to see her friend being held hostage by Malcolm.

The next thing she remembered doing was lunging.


Beeping. What was that beeping?

Rose blinked once. Twice. Again. Trying to adjust to the bright light above her. Was that the portal? No, it was too… fluorescent.

Suddenly, it was like the moments before she'd blacked out came back to her: Bunni being held hostage at gunpoint; Malcolm pointing the gun at her friend's head, as if he was ready to fire; all those panicking, screaming students trying to push passed Rose as she tried to go toward her friend.

And Rose lunging onto the gun, onto her friend, onto either of them to save Bunni from getting hurt.

"Uh…" Rose opened her mouth to speak, but it was like her mouth was full of cotton balls, it was so dry. How long had she been here?

"Is she awake?" Was that Bunni's voice?

"I hope so, I have some things to say to this idiot." That was Levi's.

"Give her a break, she was shot at," she heard her uncle say to him.

Who all was in here? Where was she?

"Levi… Bunni?" She managed to say, turning her head to search the room for where their voices seemed to be coming from.

Bunni was crying – a very rare sight, Bunni never cried – and Levi looked visibly angry, but seemed to hold his composure well despite the situation.

"Wha… happen..ed?" she asked, heaving a heavy sigh as if it was a large burden to utter any words right now.

"You got shot, you imbecile," Levi answered first, hovering closest to her.

"Levi –" Bunni scolded, wiping at her face. "You saved my life, Rosie." Reaching for her hand, her friend squeezed reassuringly. "You saved a lot of people's lives. Because you got on the gun, and rendered him kind of useless for a little bit, the cops were able to apprehend Malcolm."

"They caught him?" She swallowed thickly, relieved. "Good. I'm glad."

"At your expense," Levi reminded her, shaking his head disapprovingly. "What were you thinking?"

"I… wasn't," she admitted.

"No kidding," he muttered, his arms crossed. But it appeared like he was letting up on his scolding, if only a little bit.

The rest of the night, the nurses came in and out to check her wound – she'd been shot in the abdomen, missing any major organs, thank goodness – and her fluids, as well as helping her to the bathroom when she needed to go (that was probably the most embarrassing, but no one seemed to comment on that).

After two days of hospital hell, she was discharged home. Her uncle, as he said, would stay home and take care of her, but he had so much business that he unfortunately had to catch up on, and the work never truly sleeps.

Or something like that.

Leaving Levi on nurse duty.

It was probably for the best that they were left alone, for as Levi just got Rose into bed did that awful, familiar pull of a portal appear before them – on her closet door.

"Oh, come on," she muttered.

"You stay here," he demanded. "You're in no shape to be dealing with titan business."

"Like hell," she argued, pushing herself up again. "Levi, it comes when I'm needed. It's just going to keep showing up 'til I walk through."

He narrowed his eyes at it, then at her. "Fine. Come here." He reached around her to pick her up, one arm under her knees and the other behind her back. "Do not let go of me, do you understand?"

"Did you forget you're injured too?" But he ignored her, making his way to the portal and slowly – terribly slowly – walking right through.