TIGERLILLY- THE BRAVO BOYS [book two]

Chapter NINE

Frankie Xiao

The sunrise and sound of River groaning stirs me awake and I sit up to see him still sat at the foot of the bed, now stretching his brawny arms above his head to ease the tension in his neck and shoulders..

I feel so sickeningly guilty for telling him lies about myself and keeping secrets, especially after everything he has done for me.. But really I lie to keep him from becoming deeper entangled in danger..
I can't lose the comfort and safety he provides now that I have found it.. And if he goes looking for Li Jun, he will die in a way so terrible I can't bear the thought..

Li Jun would cut out his eyes.. He would take his tongue and his teeth.. His fingernails.. His flesh.. He would dismantle him, piece by piece until there was nothing left..

No! Never!
I won't allow it!
Not River..

"Master River? You ache?" I ask, rubbing my eyes into focus before crawling down the mattress towards him..

Spooked by the sound of my croaky voice, he shoots to his feet, backing away from me slowly.. "Nah-- Uh-- it's-- I'm fine."

"But-- you have pain?" I run my fingers down through my pastel kinks, detangling my hair back into place.. "I can see."

"Only when I've been sleepin' on the floor.." He chuckles with a well humoured smile.. "C'mon, let's get us some coffee before Lovey wakes up."

I slide from the bed in his oversized sweatshirt and for a second his gaze dips down to my bare legs before he averts his eyes, looking away from me to focus on the hallway instead..

"I can fix." I point to his shoulder as he rubs at it tenderly..

He grins.. "I doubt you can do what six surgeons and sixteen surgeries couldn't, Wallflower."

I nod determinedly, taking a step towards him.. "I can fix.. Let me."

He tips his head with an amused twinkle in his jade stone gaze, obviously entertained by my offer.. Amused or intrigued maybe, I'm not sure which.. "O.. Kay? How?"

"Please.. Sit.." I tell him and he perches hesitantly on the end of the bed..

I blush at the forwardness of my own requests, feeling a little bolder today than yesterday.. A little braver, a little stronger..
A little safer.. "Um.. Show to me?"

He eyes me suspiciously, before conceding.. Reaching over his head to pull the soft grey shirt from his back.. The sight revealed beneath is terrifyingly beautiful.. Muscle and scar adorned in inky designs.. Pain and perseverance written on his flesh by needles, scalpels and something else..

He is a dazzling canvas of intricate artistry and tormented destruction..

I take a small step closer, reaching out to gently stroke along the thickest of his scarlet trails.. The disfigurement follows a track from his collarbone, all the way down his ribcage, over his toned abdomen to finish at his bellybutton.. "Oh no.. Why?"

He turns his face away, closing his eyes as though he can't stand to look at his reminders.. "Uh.. It was an accident, I s'poze.."

"Accident?" I am pained by the evidence of his agony.. My own scars seem so small..

What kind of accident leaves scars this deep?

He shrugs.. "Aye.. Not very pretty, I know--" The discomfort in him is as distinct as the definition of his abs, or the veins that creep across his peachy-fair..
That skin that is smooth like milk-tea and cream, blooming with the warmest ginger undertones..