From the Ashes

[42] From the Ashes

Amy and Rob arrived at the hospital before dawn. I had fallen asleep in the cozy chair before they did, and woke up to Amy gently shaking me awake. They were going to go through with Roman's surgery, and I couldn't be in the room for it, I guess. It lasted only an hour or so, but it felt like years to me as I waited out the procedure in the hospital's cafe with the rest of the crew. I had been really anxious to find out if Roman would have more scarring or not, and if he wouldn't have too much nerve damage. During the surgery, I had given Mazie another call from Wim's iPhone, to let her know Roman was being worked on. Talking to her had also helped calm my nerves a little bit. Sage and Wim were good at distracting me as well, coaxing me to play silly little games like "I spy," or tic-tac-toe, or hangman on a small tablet of paper as we sat at a cafe table.

Now, I sit slumped in a chair outside of Roman's hospital room with Amy, Rob, and the boys. Rome should be done soon, and once the doctor comes out to tell us he is, we file inside. My poor Roman looks really drowsy from just waking up, but he's smiling as his mom approaches him with a careful hug.

"Hey, sweetheart," she says as he wraps his arms around her to return the embrace. Wim and Rob circle around to the other side of the bed, and Sage and I line up behind Amy as she greets her son. "How are you feeling?" she asks the question we're all wondering. Roman nods drowsily, a crooked smile forming on his swollen and reconstructed lips.

"I feel alright." Amy places a gentle kiss on his forehead.

We all talk to him for a while, before he says he wants to get out of here. Amy took care of the insurance and paperwork during his surgery, so he gets dressed in the clothes his mother brought for him, and we lead him out. After checking out, Amy asks Roman to ride with her and Rob, leaving Sage to drive Rome's truck with Wim and me. With little shut-eye in my system, sleep takes me like a rapist. Pardon the analogy.

"Allie, we've arrived," a voice floats through my head as consciousness comes knocking. I groan as I crack open my eyes and pry myself off of Wim's shoulder. Muttering a jumbled cuss or two, I blearily wipe at the drool I so kindly deposited on Wim's sleeve.

"Sorz..." I croak. Wim chuckles as Sage pats my leg.

"We're here," Sage says, and the truck rumbles to a halt at the base of the property.

"Thanks," I mumble, rubbing at my eyes.

"I'm gonna drive Wim back to his camp, do you want to come with us, or stay here?"

"I'll stay here, I need sleep," I answer, drumming Wim's leg before he opens the door and moves out of the truck to make access for me. I wrap my arms around his neck as he pulls me into a warm hug, and I thank him for all of his help and support with Roman. I wave the boys goodbye as they pull back out onto the road, and I feel a twinge of worry for Sage, since he hasn't had much sleep either, and he's off and driving to Wim's camp and back.

I head up to the upper cabin, where Roman disappeared, and I climb up to the second floor to find him sitting on the end of his bed. He looks up at me as I rap my knuckles lightly on the doorframe, and he smiles.

"There's my girl," he whispers as I approach him, my heart soaring at his words. He pulls me to stand in between his legs as I drape my arms over his shoulders.

"How are you feeling?" I ask. I kiss his forehead and play with the hair on the back of his neck as he wraps his arms around my lower back.

"Beat," he murmurs into my chest as he rests his face in my soft bosom. "The doctor said I need a lot of sleep, and I don't think that'll be a problem whatsoever."

"I'm exhausted, too," I chuckle, and Roman falls back onto the bed to take me with him.

"Nap time, then," he sighs as he scoots out from under me to lay with his head on the pillow. I crawl after him, wrapping my arms around his body after he pulls me to lie on top of him. Nestling my head in the crook of his neck, I sigh in content and comfort as Roman's hands trail up and down my back gloriously.

"Mm, I love you," I murmur, sleep making my eyes heavy.

"I love you, too, Thea," Roman says as he places a kiss gingerly on my forehead.

"I'm really glad you're alright, Rome," I tell him as I slide my hands up to frame his face, propping my chin on his chest. He blinks down at me for a beat as a tired smirk tugs at his swollen lips.

"Weren't worried about me, were you, angel?" Tilting my head to the side, I lay my cheek against his chest as I close my eyes with a slight smile.

"I just wanted those pretty lips to be fixed," I giggle with an exhausted lightness. Angling his head down slightly, he narrows his smoky eyes with a smile.

"Why's that?" I slide up his chest, which expands beneath me in a slow, silent gasp as my fingers disappear into his hair. I bring my lips close to his, shifting to poise right above him as my sigh graces his skin in a tantalizing way.

"Because I love your lips, your kisses," I breathe with a small, devilish smirk. I touch my lips lightly onto his, which twitch beneath mine as his hands move to my hips.

"Oh, trust me..." he whispers, his voice rough. His grasp moves down to brush over my butt to the backs of my thighs, sending chills of desire through me as he pulls one of my legs up against the side of his body. I bury my hands deeper into his hair as my hips almost involuntarily grind against his. I want to kiss him so badly... I need to kiss him. But I don't want to damage his lips, so I kiss and nip my way across his jaw line and down into his neck as his hands grasp at my thighs, my butt.

"Thea," he groans, his voice, his touch, and his hard buddy underneath his cargo shorts turning me on. I lift my head to cup his face and press my nose against his, his hands holding our bodies so close to one another.

"I am so in love with you," he whispers, his hands sliding up my back to bury into my hair and grasp my head. I move my knees to rest on either side of him, straddling him as I lay with my upper body against his.

"Oh, Roman," I whisper as I kiss the side of his cheek next to my hand, "I love you so much." His hands slide out of my hair as I lean back to sit up on him, my hands gliding across the fabric of his long-sleeved shirt as I feel the contours of the warm muscles beneath. His own hands move to caress their way over my legs, up my sides, changing direction to touch my stomach on their way back down. My hands continue down his torso lightly to slide up and grasp his hands and press them closer against my abdomen. He smiles up at me.

"Little abs," he breathes, his hands moving mine as they inch gently up to feel the soft skin that lies right between the dip where my ribcage meets. I stroke the backs of his hands as I giggle, feeling my own diaphragm move underneath his touch.

"Noooo," I shake my head. He chuckles beneath me as he pulls his hands out from under mine to find the hem of my shirt and softly touch the warm skin underneath.

"Your skin is so soft," he sighs, his fingertips lightly stroking the skin of my stomach, gently exploring the contours of my sharp hips.

"I'm glad," I say with a soft smile.

His hands slide around to my bare back underneath my shirt as he sits up against me, suddenly, his face almost level with mine since I'm straddling his lap. His hands grip my lower back, pressing our hips and our bodies close as I slide my arms against his chest with my fingertips touching his jaw.

We've come so far, Roman and I. Already with a connection and a foundation of trust that I didn't think was possible for two people to share, especially so early. I suppose that's what's possible when two people truly want the same things in a relationship. We aren't the same. We share similar qualities and interest, but we've got our number of differences. But we love the same. And I think that's the most important thing we could share. If Roman and I have come this far already, since the time we were paired in those last days of school... how close can we grow over the rest of the whole summer?

I'm more than happy to find out.