Fated - The Scorpion & The Butterfly

t h r e e

The Scorpion

I carried Rosie through the door of my apartment. She'd fallen asleep on the swing, resting her head on my shoulder.

Sitting there I tried to comprehend the fact she didn't remember me. I guess I hadn't realized how bad she'd been hurt in the accident. It was entirely my fault and I wondered if she'd be better off not remembering me. At least for now. After all, I ran off right after it happened. I couldn't face the guilt.

I still felt the connection. Even though we were just two sixteen and seventeen year old kids back then that didn't know a damn thing about the world, I wondered if she somehow felt it too.

Was that why she seemed to try to avoid me?

I took her into my bedroom and carefully laid her down on the bed. My jacket was still around her shoulders. It made me smile. I had almost expected her to push me away when I got closer to her.

"Z..?" She mumbled as she shifted slightly on the bed.

My heart stopped and I glanced at the small "z" tattooed on the back of my hand, just between my thumb and index finger.

She's the only one that's ever called me that. Was she dreaming about me?

I swallowed hard as my eyes landed back on her. She looked so peaceful, like an angel- but her wings seemed clipped for some reason. There was a pang in my heart as I wondered if it was because of me.

I pushed the thoughts away as I moved to my dresser, pulling out a t-shirt that would probably swallow her whole, but I remembered how much she loved oversized clothes.

Hesitating for a moment I thought about how she'd probably kill me in the morning when she realized I'd taken her dress off. I thought about the most respectful way to do it, I knew she wouldn't be comfortable sleeping in that dress. She'd been tugging at it all night.

I gently pulled her up a bit and pulled off my jacket before slipping the shirt over her head, and over the dress. Once I got her arms through the shirt, I lifted the back to unzip her dress. After that, it slid off of her body like a glove which made my mind wonder but I forced back the thoughts.

The shirt was about as long as the dress was on her, meaning I hadn't seen any more skin than she would have wanted me to. I breathed a sigh of relief with a hint of accomplishment, proud I'd been able to successfully change her without waking her.

I gently laid her back down on the bed and pulled the blanket over her and she curled right up with it. I smiled through a soft chuckle.

She was still just as adorable.

I moved into the master bathroom and pulled a washcloth from the self, wetting it with warm water. I hope I'm still good at this. I walked back to the bed and gently wiped off her makeup as best as I could without waking her.

Waking up with raccoon eyes from last night's make up was another thing I remembered she hated, even if she didn't wear much makeup.

I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a glass, filling it with water. Walking back into the bedroom I sat it on the table beside the bed. Then I pulled the drawer open grabbing the bottle of aspirin I kept there along with a pen and notepad.

I sat the bottle beside the water and placed two pieces of paper against each of them that read "drink me" and "take me". I knew after tequila, she'd definitely need it in the morning.

Taking one last glance at her, I turned and walked out of the room. I decided to take a quick shower before going to bed. I was glad my couch was comfortable enough to sleep on. I'd probably passed out on it more than I'd slept in my own bed.

-

The morning came sooner than I wanted. I woke up to the sun beaming through the curtains. I looked over towards my bedroom door, hoping she was still asleep. Pulling myself from the couch, I walked over to peek inside.

She was still out cold. I held back a laugh as I saw how her messy hair was sprawled across the pillow.

Deciding to make breakfast, I made my way to the kitchen. Pancakes and bacon- one of the only things I could actually cook.