Chapter 28

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"I can't believe we just did that," I whispered.

"Neither can I. Do you regret it?" Jace asked, rolling me over so that I was looking him in the eye.

"No, I don't, not at all. I love you, and doing that... it made me surer that we are right for one another."

"I don't regret it either; just wanted to put that out there." Jace smiled. "That was amazing. You are amazing. I love you." I smiled and nuzzled into Jace's chest. We laid there for a few more minutes, soaking up the euphoria before we were supposed to go and face the real world outside of our bubble.

"You know, I never really got you cleaned up. I think a shower is in order," I announced. "And this time we will actually get clean."

Jace laughed and looked down at his chest, blood having smeared all over it. "I agree." As he stood, he winced and pulled me to my feet along with him. I stood and tenderly pressed my lips to another new bruise rising on his cheek. I frowned and opened my mouth to say something, but closed it, thinking it was better not to say what I had been thinking. He was so happy and carefree right now and I couldn't bear to ruin his mood. Later, I told myself.

I drained the tub and turned on the water as Jace and I quickly cleaned ourselves off. I took a washcloth and gently cleaned the wound on his chest; Jace wincing at each touch of the cloth fabric and my hand, making me wince as I watched him. "Sorry," I said, finishing quickly, sparing him any pain I possibly could.

"It's okay; it looks better at least. I'll just get you to wrap it up and then we'll be all good," he replied, his breathing heavy as he tried to play off how much he was hurting. He climbed out of the tub and handed me a towel while he wrapped one around his waist. Jace sat on the edge of the tub as I bandaged his chest. We quickly dried ourselves off before heading into my room to get dressed in pajamas.

"What do you want done with your clothes?" I asked, as I threw mine in the laundry and went to retrieve his from earlier.

"Just garbage 'em," he called.

I nodded and threw them in the garbage, trying to shove them into the bottom so no one would see; the last thing he needed was someone questioning. When I walked back into my room, combing my hair as I went, Jace was sitting on my bed, head hanging down. I went and sat down beside him, rubbing slow circles on his back. "Are you hungry?" I asked, knowing that he hadn't eaten all day. I wanted to do whatever I could to make it better for him. "Can I make you some soup, a sandwich, grilled cheese...?"

"Nah, I'm okay."

"Jace, you should really eat something," I begged. "You've been through a lot today; it'll do you some good."

He sighed in defeat. "Okay. How about your famous grilled cheese?" A ghost of a smile played on his lips.

I smiled in response, "Sounds good, come on." I pulled him off the bed and down the stairs with me. Now that he was cleaned up he didn't look too bad. When we entered the kitchen, I could see that Dustin, Levi and Reagan were still where I had left them, still playing Mario Kart. "Who's winning?" I asked as I set about making Jace a grilled cheese.

"I am!" Dustin called, making me laugh as I set Jace's sandwich in the pan.

I turned my attention back to Jace and his now cooking sandwich. He sat slumped over at the breakfast bar. I set a glass of milk in front of him and told him to drink it. He looked at me but he gulped it down anyway, finishing just as his sandwich was ready.

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