The Stampede ~Vash x OC AU~

Chapter 26: White Dress

Kanyon

~4 Days Later~

"Roberto and Wolfwood are going to get the new battery," Meryl says as she slides into the empty seat next to me.

We are seated outside on the patio with the umbrella drawn out, shading us from the suns of No Man's Land. But even so, the desert planet's intense heat still swirls around us, riding on the dry breeze.

I pop a chip in my mouth, lifting a brow. "Already? I thought it was going to take a week." I try to keep my tone steady and not show my relief.

She stabs a fork into her food, shrugging, "The mechanic called and said one came in early, so Roberto jumped on it." She looks at me. "I'm just happy I didn't have to go."

"Maybe, but it beats being stuck here."

For two and a half weeks – roughly, anyway – I have been with the Stampede, and for those seventeen days, I have been held up in this hotel. Migrating over and over between my room and the patio, maybe venturing to the dining hall whenever I'm particularly bored, but never leaving the grounds.

And it's all because of my ribs.

However, they are healing. With each passing day, the bruise fades more and the more tolerable I become at touching where the broken bones are. It's still tender and still vulnerable if I jerk or twist too much or too fast, but compared to before, I'm doing much better. I can even walk and stand for longer durations than before.

But even so, I have been held up here like some kind of fragile little thing, and it is starting to wear on me. I'm bored and with Vash withdrawing sex, I now have little to distract me.

Vash.

Honestly, even though he's withdrawn all sexual acts and contact, my heart still sputters whenever our eyes meet. It leaps and jumps, and the air becomes electric. And if he touches me, even if only to ensure I am steady on my feet, I feel as if the world stops turning. And I think I see those same observations in him.

The longing. The want. The lust. It's all still there. It never left. It had nowhere to go because it never wanted to go. Still, despite that, we always end up going our separate ways, creating a distance to keep us at bay.

But that fire continues to call my name.

Meryl observes me, then knits her brows. "What do you mean?"

I shrug, tossing back another chip. "I'm bored. It's cliché and lame, but I feel like a bird trapped in a cage. I'm in the hotel all day every day, and there's not really a whole lot to do."

She studies me, her dark eyes surveying me, then: "Well, you seem to be moving around better. You're more steady. If you ask me, I'd say you're healing pretty fast."

My lips twitch into a smile, recalling how Jonas had said similarly many times before. That I heal fast. That my body gets hurt and reacts right away. It's nothing new to me.

A bright smile bows her lips as her eyes light up. "How about a girls' day? We can go into town and look at the shops. Maybe even do some shopping. How does that sound?"

It's not something I usually do. Not because I never wanted to, but because there was always something more pressing. A new lead to follow, or a new target that might have information. But now, I am currently at the mercy of the Stampede, and if we're already here...

"Sounds great," I say, "but we should probably stick with cheaper places. Between the hotel stay and the battery, I don't think any of us are raking in the cash."