(no subject)
A few things that Bella might take notice of should she decide to wake up from her slumber in the next few moments.. One, she's been moved presumably from her floor or couch to a more comfortable resting place, in this case, her bed. Two, she's not alone... Cain, who by the graces has managed to infiltrate this room without being noticed, now resides after ensuring the door's been locked to keep away any snoopers, now just seeing to the young looking woman on the bed. Three... Well, it might feel a bit cold around Bella's person, at least around the head and her sides, given the presence of little packs of ice that've been carefully set and wrapped in towels against her person.
It isn't the movement or the man by her side that first grabs Bella's attention. It's the cold. The feel of it pressed against her body. Whatever dreams she might have been having have quickly slipped into the realm of nightmares. Cruel red eyes, sharp pointed teeth, a disturbing grin. The urge to rip that diamond right out of his forehead. " 'Put her in the ice bath' " Cruel words from a cruel man. The ice encasing her body as she screamed. And scream she does. Jolting up from her position on the bed, cold lingering on her arms and legs as she scurries to the edge of the bed, breath like bullets from her lungs, eyes wide and terrified as that tiny body trembles against a bed post. She searches. Essex, he's here. To finish her off this time. No. A different set of red eyes. Cain. Her gaze falls to the bed, ice packs. Ice packs? Not a bathtub in sight. She opens her mouth to speak. ".." it's barely a squeak.
It's not hard to say that Bella's reaction to waking actually leave Cain startled somewhat.. He took the liberty of leaving her in her clothes at the moment, for what little protection they give.. As she wakes, she does indeed find him seated, yet rising, his 'disguise' as it were left neatly settled where it can be retrieved, merely in shirt, pants and shoes for the moment. Her eyes indeed are met with some hint of redness, but not necessarily by crimson irises.. More of a shade of pinkness lining the white of his eyes... Has he been crying? Whatever the case, it's obvious to him what she needs, and it isn't long before he's by her side, the packs of ice forgotten as his arms reach out to embrace her, the warmth of his own body offered as something for her to absorb... He seems strangely silent himself..
Bella's gaze is hard pressed to leave the offending ice packs. It isn't until Cain moves, that she lifts her eyes to his once more, her own still wide and unsure. It's a hell of a way to wake up. As he moves closer, the trembling begins to subside. Now is not the time for weaknesses. Now she must be strong, for Cain, and Brendan, and Fred.. and poor Toad, the hapless victim in all of this. "I'm sorry.." She whispers as he wraps his arms around her. Her fingers tighten against his shirt, face burying itself into his chest as a few tears fall down her cheeks.
Strong? isn't that supposed to be Cain's job? He meets her, settling on the bed himself and drawing her completely against him, an arm securely snuggling her against his warm frame while the other settles at the back of her head and into her hair, his head dipping low as he strokes her hair gently. A grimness lingers in his expression, eyes filled with uncertainty, things he tries to push far back for now, slipping into comfort-mode, as it were.. "You were flushed all over.. Sorry if that hurt you any," he manages.
In a word filled of people who've abandoned her. The people she thought she could trust and rely on. When all of them have turned their backs, Cain is here for her. The thought is startling, forcing Bella's arms to squeeze tighter as she absorbs his heat. Letting the embrace warm the freezing over her skin. "You didn't know. You didn't hurt me." Not physically atleast. It's something she'll get over eventually.
Truly, if Cain had any idea of the mental or psychological aspects of it, he likely may've found a more suitable way to go about things. Fingers continues to rub over her gently, in his own way working to stimulate her blood to warm itself as well as his chest rises somewhat firmly against her cheek, then relaxes in a sigh. The odd thing about it, is there's a hint of a tremble behind it... Still, his voice seems as normal as ever. "So... Where do we go from here?"
Bella finally seems to be warming up beneath his touch. It isn't until he trembles though that she forces herself out of self pity and takes a moment to pull back and truly look at him. Noting the rimmed eyes and the general look on Cain's face, Bella allows her warmth to flood back through him. "Now, I construct you a new face, new fingerprints. Give you a new background, and you're life is yours to do with as you wish. You can continue to fight by my side, or you can go and find your destiny. You're life is yours to do with as you chose."
Cain falls silent, uncertainty still lingering in his expression as he looks upon her. The way her words come out seem to strike a hard chord within him. She makes it sound like she doesn't care if he goes away or not. Doesn't she understand yet? His arms slowly, just drop from her, settling on either side of the bed while his head lowers, mostly just to hide the pain that's drawing on his face... "I... I have nowhere else to go. I have nothing left now... Except you." Lips draw back, trying to replace the building emotion with something more manageable... But damn it all, he can't fight off the wetness that suddenly rolls down the side of his cheeks.
Bella blinks in surprise, gasping as a hand reaches up to catch the falling tear, fingers pressing against the side of his face. "Oh Cain.. oh sweetie." She whispers and caresses his cheek. "You don't have to leave. I would love it more than anything if you chose to stay. But I just didn't want you feeling like you /had/ to stay here with me if it isn't where you want to be." Her assurance as she leans up to pull him into a soft kiss. It has more heart in it, than any of the previous kisses from before. "I wanted you to know you have a choice."
But that's just it.. He DOESN'T have a choice, from where he stands. A makeover and a make-up history to wipe his sins clean? Maybe, but where would he go? It would just be the last 30 years of his life all over again... He can't go back to that, not now, not after all of this... He'd rather die. The kiss is noted, but also notable is the way his arms close around her again, a shakiness in them as something he's rarely ever felt comes over him. It's not long before it's his head that settles above her chest, that flood of fear and despair slowly shaking him at his core, heavy sighs intended to hide what's truly happening laying heavily against her.
Bella feels his arms enclose around her and blinks in surprise once more. It still startles her how such a big, strong man can be such a puppy dog. But the thoughts are stricken from her mind as she worries about soothing his mind instead. His head, pressed tight against her chest is held there by slender fingers. Her hands find their way into his hair, running through it softly. "It's ok to cry, my love." She whispers, leaning in to press a kiss to his head. "I'm here for you. That's never going to change."
Cain's quaking seems to slow gradually, though the emotion is still there as his embrace doesn't let up, squeezing her fondly as she speaks.... "I love you so much.... If I lose you because of this, I..." He cuts himself off as he just lays his head where it's available to her, trying to shake the thoughts from his mind, his body already white hot on the inside from the emotion he's feeling.
Bella holds him as he trembles, soothing her fingers down the side of his face gently. Shhhing and rocking him back and forth. "I love you to dearling. And you won't lose me. I won't allow it." She whispers, assuring him with a soft kiss before nudging him so that she can lean back against the headboard with his head resting in her lap, fingers playing through soft hair. "He won't come after us. I made sure of that. So you should stop worrying. We'll be fine."
Cain seems to be calming down at a steady pace for the time being, though his head takes a rest against her offered lap, cheek turned aside. His wetted eyes dry gradually as they draw across the room. "I wish I understood things more. This whole thing is so sudden." He wonders what happened between the two, though he doesn't want to ask directly.. His hair, A fair bit longer and thicker than when they first met drifts in her touch, his eyes still questioning behind their dampened pools. Are they still fighting for the cause, or is that gone too?
"I wish I did to. It wasn't sudden for just you. Him and I were talking and then things simply got nasty. He admitted that he going insane. I figured that we would be safer here, than we could ever be there, with him." And that's the best explanation Bella can give for the moment Fingers continue to glide, quiet and unassuming, wishing nothing more than to soothe his nerves.
Cain nods... "I trust you, Bella... I'm just concerned.. You may've already thought ahead on all of this..." He's still trying to get himself relaxed. As much as he can appreciate the brushing of his hair, his weight soon takes a less opposing position beside her as he slowly rises up to settle that way, his eyes now level with hers as he sits just across from her... "Anything else on your mind, lately?" An invitation to speak on other things if needed. From the look of her she'd been nearly drinking herself stupid before he came by.
Bella frowns. "I've thought ahead on some of it. The rest is just up in the air, planned on the go kind of stuff." She shrugs and wishes she could offer more than that. The question about stuff being on her minds earns a shake of her head. "Not everything I'm ready to admit out loud. A lot of it is just the pressure of leaving the place that's been my home for so long now. My two best friends turning their backs on me." she sighs. The man her heart belongs to hating her right now. It's all very painful.
From what Cain gathers, there is more... Yeah, he hasn't forgotten lover-boy. Not that he knows the details, but it's still a frustration, not knowing where the two of them stand right now. Hard as it is, it's something else he puts behind him for the time being, letting an arm draw around Bella and let her settle against him again, looking down at her. "Maybe not.. A lot's happened, but maybe this will blow over some eventually."
A lot more, since there were most certainly two drinking glasses out there, and the room smelled faintly of Sean's cologne. But Bella isn't willing to discuss that right now without a whole hell of a lot of alcohol in her system, and with the headache she already has, she isn't willing to drink again just yet. "Maybe. But it won't change the fact that they made their decision. They turned their backs on me. That will never 'blow over'."
Cain had certainly noticed the cologne... Not only that, but he'd noticed the smell of her on their trip here.. Plenty of questions, but an unwillingness to probe for answers.. Perhaps for her sake as well. Fingers brush over her hair and the side of her face, lowering his head to plant a kiss over her own forehead, doing whatever he can to give her the kind of comfort that she seems capable of giving him. "I won't turn my back on you, ever..."
Bella leans against the arm, purring for a moment at the kiss on her forehead. Needy eyes search up, to gaze into his. "I know you won't baby." She assures and slinks deeper against the bed, brushing away the ice so that it falls to the floor with a cracking thud. "I think I would like to go back to sleep now. Would you hold me?"
Cain lets himself sink downward a little so that he mostly straightens. A nod is given to Bella along with a smile as that arm lowers, giving her a little tug over until she comes to settle where he can keep hold of her, free arm drawing the warmth of blankets securely over the both of them. Looks like he intents to stay. Another kiss is offered, this one to her lips, before both arms secure their embrace, continuing to stimulate the warmth in her as they brush softly.