ι'м ησт qυιтє нυмαη, вυт ι'м ησт qυιтє α мα¢нιηє {Rue}

[assassinrue]

Valerie felt reality slipping, she could feel a coldness in her toes and fingers that was threatening to attack her limbs and she wasn't positively sure her heart was beating. That was funny... She was sure it had just been working. The violent urge to sleep came back and she felt the rush of the ground coming to meet her but the snap of Aron's firm grip on her good arm kept her from falling and she looked at him in confusion.
"Why is it sooooo hard to stand?"

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"Maybe you shouldn't talk for the next couple of minutes," Aron advised. He didn't want her to embarrass herself further. He lifted her and stepped inside, kicking the door shut behind him, then brought her to his bedroom. He laid her on the bed, careless about getting blood on the comforter. He hurried to the bathroom and grabbed his first aid kit, then returned and sat down beside her.

[assassinrue]

Valerie giggled again and already having forgotten his suggestion she watched him as he sat next to her. "This is a ruse to get me into your bed." She reached up and touched his cheek with the tips of her fingers then let her arm drop tiredly to the bed. "Clever boy."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"Yep, that's me," he said. "Clever." He removed his blood-soaked shirt from her arm and grabbed some antiseptic wipes and a needle and thread. "Stay still, okay?"

[assassinrue]

Valerie gave him and incredulous face but obeyed, watching the ceiling blindy

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron wiped the wound off with the wipes, clearing away the blood and cleaning out whatever bacteria there was. Luckily, being cut with a sharp blade reduced the risk of infection, assuming the blade was clean. Next, he threaded the needle with deft hands and started stitching her up. He was good at it, too. He'd clearly done it many times.

[assassinrue]

She watched him as he worked, somehow barely aware of the pain, but acutely aware of the pull of the thread through her skin. "Why are you so worried?" She felt a little more lucid now but she still couldn't manage to gain control of her tongue

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron paused and glanced up. "What?" His hand hovered over her arm, needle between his fingers, while his other one gripped her wrist.

[assassinrue]

She made a general motion at her prone body. "Why are you so worried about me? Because unless this really is a muse to get me into your bed, I am nothing to you." Maybe not as lucid as she thought.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron fell silent for a few seconds, returning to his work to finish sewing her up. When he was done, he tied off the thread and then looked into her eyes again. "What makes you think you're nothing to me?"

[assassinrue]

Valerie snorted. "I don't have sex with you. I barely know you. We see each other around town and sometimes we have the gall to each with each other at the bar. That doesn't sound like your typical something." She turned her head away from him as best she could on the bed, feeling suddenly nauseous and a wave of exhaustion hit her again.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron wrapped a bandage around the wound and then started packing up his supplies. "Maybe you know even less about me than you think," he said.

[assassinrue]

Valerie watched him move around. "Tell me?" Again it was so quiet she wasn't even sure she spoke out loud.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron glanced up at her, his lips pursed. "I'm not really a big sharer."

[assassinrue]

"You share yours I'll share mine?" She raised her good arm a little as if to reach for him

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron shifted away from her touch. He considered her offer, his eyes searching her face. He was curious about her story, but his was something he'd kept to himself for many years. "I've seen a lot of crap in my life," he said. "A lot of pain, a lot of death. I've tried to teach myself not to feel." He smiled ruefully. "Physical pain doesn't affect me much, but I kind of suck at blocking out emotions, hard as I try." He looked away, gazing out the window. "Kenneth was right. I don't like seeing people in pain. I use and abuse people, keeping myself as distant from them as I can. It's easier not to care that way."

[assassinrue]

Valerie laughed weakly. "In some ways we are opposites. I've kept myself so sheltered that one little knife wound has driven me mad." She looked at him quietly for a moment. "I keep thinking you're pretty." She toyed with the blanket beneath her fingers. "And sometimes I think I wouldn't know an emotion if it slapped me in the face."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron smiled faintly, but it was tinged with sadness. "You think I'm pretty? Not the word people usually use."

[assassinrue]

Valerie scowled. "What's wrong with pretty." She felt weird talking to the side of him. "Please look at me."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron dragged his eyes away from the window and met her gaze. The dying sunlight coming in through the glass caught his bright green eyes and made them glitter. "Nothing's wrong with pretty. I'm just not used to it." He paused, his eyes scanning her face. "You're pretty," he said quietly. "Me? No, I usually don't hear the word pretty."