“You are staying with me and Mike tonight, okay?” Vic said as they rolled me out of the hospital via wheelchair (the hospital mandated that any person has to leave in a wheelchair, even though I could kind of walk).

I agreed, knowing that I didn’t really have a choice in the matter, but also not wanting to be alone in my cold apartment, anyway. I haven’t been back there since Jake invaded…

The drive was luckily only thirty minutes with traffic; the show we had played was a hometown, San Diego show.

“Home sweet pineapple,” Mike quoted from SpongeBob when we arrived at their place.

It was later—around eight o’clock at night—and I was tired. I yawned.

Dying a few times in a row must make you tired.

“Come on, you can have my bed, I’ll take the couch,” Vic smiled sympathetically and guided me to his room, which was luckily on this same level. He stayed close to me the entire time in the hospital, always holding my hand or leaning on my shoulder, and now he guided me with a hand lightly around my waist.

“Are you sure?” I protested.

“You don’t have to be so selfless all the time, Claire Bear,” he said. “Here,” he pulled back the blankets, fluffed the pillows, and helped me in. I couldn’t help but giggle. I don’t know why, though. “Do you need anything?”

I shook my head. “No, thank you, Vic,” I said.

Mike popped his head into the room. “’Night, sweetie,” he yawned and then blew me a kiss. I pretended to catch it and held it to my heart, sticking my tongue out at him. “Goodnight, goofball.”

I was sitting up, still not physically ready to lay down on my back. I shivered because I was going to be alone, and I was afraid. It was silly, but I have nightmares. All the time. And now the nightmares will be even worse, they will be about what had happened. And I was scared. Jake will be everywhere.

Vic lingered for a moment, and I decided to be selfish.

“Vic,” I said quietly. My throat was tight, I wished it wasn’t.

He raised an expecting eyebrow at me. “Will you please stay?” I finally asked.

“Of course,” he said, his eyes incredibly warm, as if he was expecting me to say that.

I wanted so much to curl up into a ball against him, to let him hold me, but it would hurt too much. Instead, he sat up with me, then let me lean on him for comfort. I rested my head on his warm shoulder, and he slipped an arm around me. I sighed comfortably. “Thanks for being there for me,” I whispered into the darkness.

“Thanks for staying alive,” he murmured.

I thought back to the beginning of all of this. How I wanted to die, but I couldn’t because I didn’t want to kill my own parents. How I hated this world, how I didn’t fit in exactly right anywhere. How pointless everything seemed. Until Vic and the other guys came around. I’d like to call it fate. They saved me. I don’t understand how or why they picked me, how I got to be so lucky. What did I ever do to deserve these wonderful and real people? I went through the motions of life, but I never was anything extraordinary. “It’s all thanks to you,” I said into his arm.

I suddenly felt Vic’s far arm come across and touch the side of my face, gently bringing it up. And then our lips touched, and there was magic and fire and ice and happiness and I just wanted to dance around and twirl in the wind forever. It was soft, sweet, special. He left his hand on the side of my face and looked down on me, and then I dropped my head back down so I leaned on his shoulder again, and he pulled me in closer. We didn’t say anything else, and I fell asleep quietly in his arms. His presence kept me safe. His presence kept me happy.

Notes

Chapter 7, enjoy :)
This is a pretty short chapter, too, but i think it is a nice one :)

unfortunately this is all i have written (so far) so it may be a little while before i update again!

I've written so much lately that i am actually developing writers block... SO, do you guys have any suggestions? What do YOU want to happen next?

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