Shifters (Feline english version)

Chapter 13

It was only when I woke up that I realized that I had fallen asleep. Fear followed by a feeling of shame briefly overwhelmed me when I realized that anyone could have come in and attacked us without me knowing it.

I remembered fighting stubbornly against my exhaustion, but it had eventually won the battle. Without thinking, I looked down at my knees and realized that I no longer had the knife. I suddenly straightened my head to look around and saw Jude sitting a little further away, between me and the door, with the weapon within reach. He noticed that I was awake and gracefully got up to approach me. He was shirtless and even if I didn't have much to compare with, he was worth a look.

Realizing that I was staring at him stupidly, I suddenly turned my head and looked at my knees instead. I didn't dare cross his eyes, for fear he might have noticed my reaction. In addition, my face must have turned a lovely shade of red. God, I must really be horny to react like that. Or is it fatigue and stress? Yes, that's probably what it was!

He came to sit almost in front of me and leaned against our makeshift fortress wall. He stretched out his arm and gently lifted my head up with his index, then stared into my eyes with his dark gaze.

- 'Thank you,' he breathed in a very soft voice.

I didn't know what to say, both embarrassed by his unusual kindness and his physical proximity. I gently pulled my chin away and looked elsewhere, anywhere rather than in his direction, and said the first thing that came to my mind.

- 'How do you feel?' I stammered, then realized the absurdity of my question.

- 'Good... and it's all thanks to you. Thank you again,' he smiled. 'Are you going to tell me why you look so embarrassed in my presence all of a sudden? Did something happen? Something I don't remember?'

- 'What? No... but no... uh... not at all! It's just... you're shirtless... and it disturbs me, that's all,' I replied instantly and blushed even more brightly.

- 'It's your fault, you know!' he said, laughing softly.

- 'It was for a good cause,' I argued. 'At the time, I didn't really have any other choice.'

He got up, with his eternal grin on his face, and went to get his rather damaged jacket, which he put on and buttoned. This slight movement allowed me to see that his wounds were completely closed, but that he would certainly have scars. The wounds were still red and swollen. Not very beautiful, actually.

I also noticed a nasty burn mark on his left shoulder. The scar, although old, looked deep and seemed to form like a pattern. It must have been a pretty serious injury for him to have had such a mark. The first thing I wanted to do was questioned him. First out of curiosity and second to draw attention away from the present conversation that I found embarrassing. However, something stopped me and I just kept quiet, as he finally came back a little more dressed.

- 'You could have just taken off my shirt instead of ripping it off, you know?' he said, his eyebrows raised with a questioning look. 'Plus, I wouldn't have been so cold!'

His slightly mocking tone pushed my buttons right away.

- 'But you'd be dead! Not to mention that you would have been in agony first. Sorry about your clothes and your body temperature, next time you'll manage on your own!'

- 'I was joking,' he smiled, raising his hands. 'I don't blame you for anything, quite the contrary. Without you and everything you've done, I would have died.'

His suddenly serious voice made me look up and he took the opportunity to look me in the eye again.

- 'About that, by the way... Why did you give me your blood?'