Never Too Late: A VA Fanfiction

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Disclaimer: I don't own Vampire Academy, Richelle Mead does.

RPOV:

It took maybe an hour for the relief to finally ebb away and the horror of the situation to sink in. By that time, I had been check out by the doctor and was halfway through the debrief. I’d just reached the part where Avery had shown me my worst nightmare when the realisation of how close I had really been to losing everyone had set in.

I began hyperventilating. Immediately, Dimitri picked me up and walked out of Alberta’s office and took me to our cabin.

As he walked rapidly toward the woods, my mind flashed back to the vision and the feel of Dimitri’s arms as he carried me to the infirmary. It’s not the same, it’s not the same, I chanted to myself, but no matter what I thought, tears splashed down my face at the memory of the pain. Sobs escaped my lips, my whole body shaking.

I felt the change in temperature as Dimitri stepped into the cabin and realised my eyes were screwed shut. He set me gently down on the bed near the pillows, then followed. He pulled me into his body, wrapping it around me. My head lay on his chest, my body curled into a tight fetal position, encircling my stomach protectively. Dimitri’s arms wound around me, holding me to his heart. His long legs somehow managed to tangle with mine, keeping us impossibly close.

Putting his lips near my ear, Dimitri began singing a Russian lullaby. He often sang it to me when Ivan’s movement kept me up. He didn’t say a single word, simply held me and sang to me until I calmed down. This took quite a while.

It seemed as though everything from the last month hit me at once. From seeing Adrian and hearing his cruel words to slowly - or, really, rather quickly - losing everyone save for Dimitri from my life. The rumors, the insults, Adrian’s presence looming over me, Lissa’s words, the nightmares, everything. The hormones seized me, making me a babbling, blithering, sobbing mess of tears and emotion. Through it all, Dimitri held me.

“It’s all my fault,” I sobbed out, past the point where wordless sobs were enough. “My fault. I did it to myself.”

“No you didn’t,” Dimitri said, speaking for the first time. His voice was hoarse and filled with emotion. “None of it is your fault. Avery was a psycho.”

“I almost lost Ivan and you and Lissa,” I said, my voice breaking with each and.

“No you didn’t, Roza,” Dimitri whispered. “You’ll never lose me, and I’ll always keep you and Lissa and Ivan safe.”

“You don’t understand. She showed me and she was right.” I could barely breathe. The pain and tears and everything tearing me apart had come to its peak.

“Rose, Rose, Roza, breathe!” Dimitri cried out, pulling away and sitting me up.

My chest heaved as I became light-headed.

“Roza, look at me!” Dimitri commanded his voice sharp.

My eyes darted around before finally focusing on his.

“Roza, focus. Take a deep breath. Focus. With me now.” Dimitri took exaggerated deep breaths, and I did my best to imitate him.

As air filled my lungs, it became easier to focus on Dimitri, to breathe with him.

“Ssshhhh, Roza, calmed down. You need to calm down,” he murmured, peppering my face and neck with butterfly kisses.

I finally calmed and Dimitri pulled me into a tight hug.

“I am so relieved that you are okay,” he whispered fiercely. “Don’t you ever do something as stupid as that, do you hear me?”

I nodded, helpless and completely unable to disagree. I agreed wholeheartedly with him. It was soo stupid of me to do that. I promised him, myself, and my child in that instant that I would never put myself into such danger again.