delicate

57

The cold air surrounded me, making it hard for me to stay unconscious. I could feel eyes on me. The only thing that greeted my eyes was Kai's hand wrapped around mine.

"Hey." His voice was soft and slow.

It only took me a few seconds to realize I was in my bed and he was sitting next to the bed. He brushed his thumb across my fingers. I could feel the dried blood on my body, reminding me of what happened. I sat up quickly and looked at his face. "Jo. Is she -"

"She's okay." He held my hand in both of his, looking into my eyes. "So are the twins." A weight was lifted off of my chest. His hair was messy. There was blood on him. "You were... out for a few hours, Evelyn."

I shook my head. I looked at my, and that was on the bed. Blood. I pulled my hand from his. Blood.

"It's okay." He grabbed my hands as he sat next to me. He held my hands in his, and I looked at his face.

I inhaled sharply. "I need it off. I can't - " The tears in my eyes stung. I closed my eyes, trying to breathe. "Get it off of me." I opened my eyes. "Please get it off of me."

He got up and pulled me with him. He walked me to the bathroom. He pulled his hand away to turn on the shower. He turned back to me. I lifted my arms as he pulled the shirt over my head. I felt like the blood was soaking into my skin. It became harder to breathe. More tears filled my eyes.

"Hey." He cupped my face in his hands. "It will be okay, baby."

I shook my head. I couldn't open my eyes. He moved his hands to my waist. I let him pull me with him as he walked. My breath caught in my throat as cold water washed over me. I moved my hands to his arms, squeezing him as I adjusted to the freezing temperature.

After a few minutes, I was completely soaked and shivering. He walked me backward, stepping me out of the water, which somehow made me feel even colder. He moved his hands off of me for a few seconds. His hands rested at the sides of my face after he pushed my hair back behind my ears. I blinked my eyes open slowly.

His eyes found mine quickly, moving from my lips. The emotion conveyed through his eyes made my heartbeat faster. I could feel his body inches from mine.

"Thank you."

He swallowed as he tightened his jaw. He brushed his thumb across my cheekbone. The light touch made my heart flutter.

I moved my hands to his sides, and he took a step closer, not letting our bodies touch. The water from his hair was dripping onto my chest now. What was once on him was now rolling down my body. I wanted all of him on me.

I moved my hand to his, pulling it to my shorts. I moved my other hand to the side of his neck, pulling him closer. His lips were just over mine. His eyes stayed locked on mine. I pressed my hand flat against his, making his hand spread out. His fingertips dipped into my waistband.

The touch of his skin against mine traveled through my entire body. I could feel his hesitancy to bring himself to kiss me.

I leaned into him as I pulled him to kiss me. His lips moved slowly against mine. His hands moved to hold my hips, keeping his body from pressing against mine. After only a few minutes, he pulled away from the kiss. He stared at my lips for a moment.

"What is it?"

He looked into my eyes, silent for a minute. "Nothing." He looked down as he stepped back. He pulled me back into the water, which was warm now.

He didn't meet my eyes again, focusing on anything other than meeting my gaze.

...

I slid my fingers between Kai's as we continued walking down the hallway of the hospital. I could hear my heart beating in my ears.

It took me an hour after the shower to decide if I should visit Jo or not.

He pushed the door open, walking in before me, but keeping his hand firmly holding mine. I carried myself into the room with as much composure as I could manage. I pushed the door shut before turning back to Kai. I put my hand on Kai's arm.

The sight of her lying, nearly dead, made my head spin. My stomach churned as my throat felt smaller.

Her face was battered and bruised, and there were scars from the cuts on her face. Her arms had scars from where she had been cut. The rest of her was covered by the blanket over her.

"Evelyn." The soft voice of Alaric brought my eyes to him. He was holding Jo's hand and sitting in a chair by the bed.

Kai loosened his hand from around mine. Ric rose to his feet, walking toward me. I met him halfway, at the end of the bed. He embraced me with a hug, holding me tightly. I squeezed him tightly, releasing the breath I was holding and letting my eyes close, shutting the tears out of my eyes.

"Thank you for saving her."

I swallowed the cry in my throat. After a minute or so, we pulled away from each other. He went back to sit at her side. My eyes shifted to her again. I felt them well with tears. My breath caught in my throat.

Kai's hand pressed against the small of my back. I leaned into him as he stepped next to me. He grabbed my hand, sliding his fingers between mine. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"Where are the twins?" Kai asked.

Ric didn't remove his eyes from his wife. "With Caroline. She's bringing them later."

I thought back to their house. Their destroyed, tainted house. She was alone and dying in that house for hours, maybe days. The twins were in that box, too. We should've known.

"How long have you been here?"

Ric glanced over at me, then looked at Jo again. "I met Caroline and Damon here. Damon went to find coffee, and Care took the twins home for a while. I haven't..." He breathed out slowly. He was quiet for a few minutes. I could see the fight on his face as he tried not to lose it completely.

I turned to look at Kai, pulling my hand from his. "Give us a minute." He stared at me for a moment before kissing my cheek and then walking out. He shut the door behind him. I walked closer. I put my hand on his shoulder, "This isn't your fault."

He inhaled sharply. "I should've gone to her first." He shook his head, squeezing Jo's hand in both of his. "I thought it was best to go to Damon after I came back so I could make sure it was permanent. I should have gone to see her. I could have stopped whoever or whatever did this." His voice broke as he bowed his head to their hands.

The hurt in his voice made more tears fill my eyes. I turned my head and wiped the tears off my cheeks. I inhaled deeply before breathing out shakily. I turned to Ric again. I leaned down, wrapping my arms around him.

"No one could have known this would happen, especially to her. No one would ever let this happen if they knew about it. The person who went after her didn't want her. He wanted the twins." I looked at Jo, then the morphine drip and blood bag beside her. Imagining the pain she's in fills me with rage. "I killed the man who did this to her, Ric. I made sure that he suffered before he died." I moved my hands to his shoulders as I stood up again. I stared down at him. I moved my hand to the back of his head. "If anyone else was involved, I swear to you, I won't rest until they experience the pain she went through and end up dead. Even if it kills me."