Stuck With Me: A Cad Bane Novel

Chapter 15

A/N: GUYS IF YOU DARE SET FOOT IN WOOKIEPEDIA TO SPOIL THIS FOR YOURSELF YOU'RE GONE

Warnings: a bunch of dialogue, injuries, swearing, mentions of traumatic past, orphans?

Word count: 1213

Perching on the toilet lid, Cad leans against the 'fresher wall as you dab meticulously at his shoulder. He'd just cleaned up your knuckles, and now you're insisting on putting antiseptic on his bite - who knows what shit she's got in between her teeth, you'd said when he protested. Closing his eyes and repressing the urge to wince at the cool sting of whatever stuff you're now applying, he rolls his shoulders, and you smack his arm.

'Stop squirming.'
'Stop takin' so long then, li'l lady.'
'Stop getting into cantina fights then, Bane.'
'Stop gettin' in fights with that bitch then, izrin.'
You glance up and shoot him a look. 'Like I could help that. It's your fault first for dating her.'
He snorts. 'Well, if it's like that, then it's yer fault fer not showing up soon enough.'
You raise an eyebrow as if to say oh, it's on, you bastard. 'Your fault for not taking the job earlier.'
'Yer fault fer not...' He cocks his head. 'Okay, ya win, li'l lady. Hope yer happy.'

Rolling your eyes at him, you sigh a world weary sigh and start wrapping a bandage around his shoulder. He hums as your hair brushes against his bare chest, reaching out a hand to catch some of the strands between his fingers. Tugging lightly, he watches as your face twists in irritation and you glare at him, before turning back to fastening the bandage. He continues to play with your hair, fascinated, until a stab of curiosity overcomes him.

'Do ya remember?' He blurts. 'Do ya remember what it was like before Russ took you?'
You finish off his bandages and sit back on your heels. 'No, but I'm told I was taken from Lao-mon.'
His heart clenches for you, and he brushes his fingers lightly over your back. 'Anythin' about yer parents?'
You shake your head sadly. 'No, why?'

He sighs. How does he tell you this? Will you be offended by it if he tells you he doesn't think you're fully Human? And Lao-mon... a jungle planet full of large predators and Shi'ido, the native species, of which not much is known of, since they decided to remain private to the rest of the galaxy. He went there on a hunt once, got a nasty scar from some beast - a reptomammal version of a Nexu - with massive teeth. You cock your head, bringing his thoughts back to you, and he rubs his neck, trying to formulate his half spun thoughts into a sentence as you look expectantly up at him from your spot on the 'fresher floor.

'Uh, ya see...' He trails off and starts again. 'I seen a lot of mixed species in my life, izrin, so I think I know how to spot them.'
You blink. 'What? You think that I'm not a Human?'
He winces at your shock. 'Um... Maybe not fully?'
'Do I - do I look different?' You ask, something on your face which he can't quite read.
'N - no, well, yes, yer eyes are a little wider set than a Human's usually are, and...' He trails off, trying to put his finger on what makes you look not quite Human. 'I don't know what it is,' he sighs. 'But I can see...' He waves vaguely at your face, before huffing frustratedly. 'It might be wrong, izrin, but we could get ya a blood test or somethin' if ya want, jus' to check.'
You look up at him, gnawing absently on your lower lip. 'Really? You have to pay for those, don't you? And book them in advance.'
He nods. 'If it makes ya feel better, li'l lady. I can jus' go on an extra hunt.'

You sit there, staring up at him, brow furrowed. Cad can see you wrestling with the choices, weighing them up, rapidly calculating how much the blood test will cost and whether it will work if you agree to it. Rubbing your cheek absently, you narrow your eyes, still worrying at your lip in a way that makes him want to kiss you.

'I think I'd like that,' you reply quietly. 'I'd like to know about my parents. If it's okay, of course,' you add quickly. 'I - I don't want to be a bother.'
He smiles, tracing the back of his hand down your warm cheek. 'Yer not a bother, izrin. Ya ain't ever goin' to be one.'

Leaning your head on his thigh, you smile up at him, eyes bright, and he finds himself admiring you once again. Running his fingers through your hair, he wraps his long fingers around your shoulder, uttering a quiet but insistent 'come here'. Laughing, you settle on his lap, wrapping your arms around his neck as he nuzzles his rostrum against your cheek, burying his face in your neck. Shivering at the feeling of your warm skin, he closes his eyes, just breathing you in, letting his senses get drunk on you.

'So,' you mumble. 'That hunt you're going on to pay for my blood test.'
He grunts when you don't continue. 'What about it?'
'Can I come with you?'
His grip tightens around you imperceptibly. 'No.'

You don't exactly flinch at the sudden harshness of his voice, but he feels your shoulders tip inwards a little as you huddle marginally away from him. Inwardly, he berates himself for raising his voice at you - Maker, he can't get his mind off you at all, and yet here he is, snarling at you when all you did is ask.

He sighs. 'I've already said, izrin. I'm not takin' ya on a hunt with me.'
You pull back and look at him. 'Why?'
He averts his gaze. 'Ya saw me after that Xexto stabbed me, izrin.'
You huff. 'Well, I didn't die back at the cantina with those three men. Actually, I punched one. I think I broke his nose.'
'Yeah,' he growls. 'And I cleaned up yer split knuckles after.'

He lifts his hand up, letting you take his wrists in your small, warm hands. He watches the fascination bloom on your face as you turn his arm this way and that, inspecting the scars on his knuckles that form hard, blue ridges. Cocking your head, you run a finger along them, brow furrowing in interest as you trace the hills and valleys of his hands.

'Ya see this?' He says, entranced by your fingers on his. 'This is what happens to ya when ya hunt. Not only there too.' He chuckles. 'Ya saw the scars all over me. And there's more than a few inside which ain't so easy to heal.'

You sigh, and he can see that you're deciding whether to press him about it or not. He hopes you don't; he's tired and all he wants is to trap you in his arms and keep you there, no words exchanged, just you and him, warm and cold, soft and hard. Dipping his head, he rests his forehead against your shoulder. He feels you relax as you sigh, one of your small hands rubbing his back before you start fidgeting with the bandages on his shoulder, and he smiles against your shirt. Smiles so hard that his face begins to hurt.

welcome to emotional whiplash because A) cad doesn't know how to be in a relationship and B) because i don't know how to write