The phone couldn’t ring fast enough for him as he laid on the ground, the pain continuing to grow now that he had powered down. As a senshi, it was unbearable. As a human, he was biting through his lip.
“Phe…” He whined into the phone once when it sounded as if the ringing had stopped. He didn’t hear a voicemail so maybe…
“Phe I ******** up. My arm…” He hissed out,looking down at his hand which he could barely take out of the form of a fist. It was shaking violently now. So much so that he wasn’t sure he could will it to stop.
~~~
“Jasper?” Phedre dogeared the corner of her book before tossing the covers off her and swung her feet off the side of the bed. “What the hell happened?” Worry etched her voice as she glanced over at her alarm clock on the nightstand. It was late, too late for him to be out at this hour especially in his condition.
“Scratch that, just tell me where you’re at and I’ll come get you.” Quickly she slipped her feet into a pair of fuzzy slippers and made her way across the bedroom to grabbed the red silk bathrobe hanging on the back side of the bathroom door. With haste she pulled it on for the sake of modesty before grabbing her purse and keys of the ottoman at the end of her bed and making a v-line for the garage door..
~~~
“The boulevard off Central.” Jasper groaned out, hearing the woman on the other end. “Near the gardens…”
He was trying to pick himself up. With the phone against his other shoulder, it was harder to even raise his head. Motions put pressure on his shoulder and he would fall back down. Part of him wanted to lay there. To give up. It was hopeless after all. He’d just damage again whatever good was left in there.
“A white moon...she…” He stopped knowing fully well that she had gotten away because he was an idiot. Now he paid for it. “She got away. Damnit Phe…”
~~~
Naturally he was far enough away that she’d need to get on the freeway for at least three exits. “Just hang tight” While waiting for the garage door to open she turned the key in the ignition and quickly shut the radio off least it blare music in his ear. “I’ll be there in about twelve minutes.”
“If you can get up and move to some place safe then do so otherwise just stay on the line and don’t call attention to yourself.” The last thing he needed was for for her to return and finish him of.
Thankfully the street lights were on his side and there were no cops around to pull her over for all those California stops she pulled otherwise she wouldn’t have been able to shave a solid four minutes off her estimated time of arrival.
Cutting the engine Phedre got out of the car and locked the doors. “Ok I’m here, where are you?” Even with the streetlights illuminating the garden paths, it was still dark out making it difficult to see anything at a distance especially if it wasn’t moving, or in his case, likely laying down.
~~~
“About half way down.” He answered back. Most of the now eight minutes she had him on the phone had been spent listening to him groan and curse as he had put the phone on the ground next to him to try and sit up. Jasper was pretty sure she had heard him use curse words that even sailors didn’t use anymore.
In the end though, the battle had been for nothing as he was still on the ground and at this point, the feeling was completely gone from his arm. The shaking had subsided but the numbness had taken its place.
That scared him more than anything.
Feeling nothing meant he couldn’t use it. Feeling nothing and he was back in the hospital being told he would never have movement again. Feeling nothing meant…
He was worthless. Useless. A waste of ********…” He cried, tears appearing in his eyes.
~~~
“Give me a second, I think I can see you…” A second later she hung up, the light on both their phones shutting off but not before she knelt beside him.
“Hey…” Phedre’s voice had calmed down significantly now that she had finally found him. “Let’s get you out of here ok? I have a blanket in the car and the heated seats are turned on. With the seasons rapidly changing so too did the temperature outside. Thankfully it wasn’t raining otherwise he would have been royally screwed.
Mindful of his bad shoulder, Phedre carefully slid one arm behind his neck to help him sit up the same way her chiropractor often did after adjusting her neck. “Come on.” she gently coaxed him while trying not to jar him too much.
~~~
Jasper felt his body go limp as he let her guide him upright. He had been with enough therapists now to know that fighting them was a horrible idea and resulted in more work on his part. Or painkillers. He had been getting off those after fearing addiction but sometimes he wondered if addiction wasn’t so bad. Just costly.
Rising up into a sitting position, Jasper carefully inhaled as he felt the pinch of pain where his shoulder and neck connected. That was at least one good sign.
“Phe...I’m…” He started to say as he tried now to get his legs under himself. “I’m sorry for making you come...ow…” he winced, using his good arm to pull his bad towards his body as if it was in a pretend sling. “Out here….I...didn’t know who else to call.” The tears sat in his eyes as he tried to look back over at her. Out of everyone, she was the one person he felt he could still trust not to act like he was a broken baby. At least around her he felt like he could still have some dignity. Not much but some.
“You are the only one I can trust now.”
~~~
“Don’t apologize, it’s fine.” While their level of friendship was up for debate it did feel nice to be trusted.
“Heh, I admit… when I saw your number I’d thought you’d finally taken me up on my offer.” An unabashed smile spread across her moonlit features leaving next to no room to wonder which offer she meant. However the gravity of the situation quickly sombered her up and so Phedre quickly changed the topic.
“Anywho it’s freezing out here. I’m still in my pajamas and you’re not wearing anything much warmer than what I have on. So, before anyone starts accusing me of being a prostitute trying to pick up a homeless man let’s get in the car so I can drive you to the hospital.”
Jasper didn’t know if he needed to laugh or groan. “Never going to let that go are you?” He managed to make out with a half smile before wincing again as he reached out to use her as support. Even though the source of the pain was one piece of him, his entire body felt like it was going to explode.
“Look, hospital isn’t going to do anything more than put me on morphine and tell me to stop being an idiot. If you can just get me home…” He trailed off as he finally got to his feet but still didn’t let go of her even though for the first time he noticed what she was wearing.
“Phe, do you have anything on under that?”
~~~
Instead of straight up confirming or denying if she was wearing anything under her chemise Phedra simply smiled and shrugged her shoulders almost as if she was daring him to figure it out on his own. On one hand she knew he wouldn’t but on the other hand it offered a distraction from his discomfort while they slowly made their way back towards her car.
“Do you really think going home is the best idea? I won’t make you go to the hospital but are you sure your father won’t if he sees you walking in the door looking like this?” Even though it went against her better judgement, he knew his body better than anyone. It really wasn’t her place to force him to seek medical attention however parents could be a bit more forceful when it came to their children's health or safety.
“You can stay in my guest bedroom. It’s clean! And.. I will do my best to make sure my dog doesn’t wake you.” Duke had a routine, so long as she was awake to let him out in the morning and take him on a quick run he would be happy the rest of the day.
~~~
Shaking his head at her look only made Jasper wince. Yet it was enough to get him to drop the topic because in all truth, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. It wasn’t as if he had something he could offer her in return to cover her decently. Afterall, he did look ‘homeless’.
“I don’t think it is the best idea to go home and worry Dad….let alone Amelia. She’s already…” The words dropped from his mouth as if they were a lead weight. His sister. The one person who had always mattered was scared of him. Not that he blamed her. Sometimes he scared himself now too. His rage took control too often nowadays but it really was the only time he felt...alive.
“I didn’t want to intrude but if you don’t mind, I would like to take you up on the bedroom. Clean or not, just laying down now with a heating pad would be welcomed. Unless you have a bottle of tequila I could down.”
--
Phedre pushed the unlock button on her key-fob and opened the passenger door for Jasper. “The best I can do is make you a rum and coke unless you’d like me to stop by the grocery store.” If she actually had roommates chances are there would have a few more choices but as it was, living on her own, she didn’t want to clutter her kitchen counter with things that would take forever to get through.
Once he got into the car Phedre pulled the seatbelt out so he didn’t have to turn to grab it. “Here. I’ll get the blanket for you in a second.”
~~~
“That will have to do then.” Jasper offered her a rather weak smile, clearly trying to force it as he turned to slide into her car. Bending into it made his arm start to shake again. His shoulder, up through his chest jerked into a twitching motion that seemed to then travel down the arm he held so close to him. A groan escaped his throat as he banged his head back against the seat’s headrest, silently cursing at the fresh way of shock and pain. It was not on the same level that the impact of the punch had caused but it had re-tweaked the muscles into waking up. Damn things just couldn’t leave him alone.
“Don’t worry…” He hissed again through the moving pain. A second groan that sounded more like a grunt before he closed his eyes. “Don’t worry about the blanket. Let’s just get back…” He was breathing hard, trying not to show the pain as small beads of sweat seemed to form on his face. Mentally he was telling himself to fight it and it was only making him more tense.
Screw anyone who told him to relax.
~~~
“Ok.” Worry was written all over her face as she carefully shut the door. Never had she seen him react so violently to the pain before. Clenched fists and an angry scowl were one thing but this was on a different playing field all together and it scared her.
After getting into the driver's seat Phedre started the car put the it into reverse. “If you think it’ll help I have Extra Strength Tylenol in the center console and a water bottle in the door by your feet.” She offered despite knowing that he’d probably reject it anyway.
A part of her wanted to refuse to leave unless he took something but she had no idea mixing over the counter drugs with whatever the doctor prescribed would ******** things up even more. To be frank, it wasn’t a risk she was willing to take and so she backed out of the parking spot and drove them to her house about 15 minutes away.
~~~
Several long, rather loud breaths later and Jasper’s hand reached over to the center console to fish for the bottle. Going in blind made it take longer but in a moment, the sound of a bottle of pills rattling around caught his attention and he fished out the all too familiar red and white child safety container.
With his thumb he lined up the arrows before pushing the lid off and dumping more than the recommended dosage into his hand. Six pills at once wasn’t even cutting it close to the stronger items he had at home but he just needed that edge gone. One hand closing the bottle, he dropped it into the cup holder before stiffly and loudly rolling forward to grab the water bottle at his side.
Six pills in, one large glup, and back Jasper leaned against the chair.
“God I was an idiot…” He sighed out, seeming to relax at the very idea he had meds in his system. “She should have been child’s play. The senshi was tripping over her own two feet!”
~~~
“Tell me about her.” Phedre glanced over at him when he put the bottle in the cup holder before making a left. “This senshi, what did she look like? Her magic, do you know what she can do?” Any details that could help her identify this Order Senshi would be of use especially if he had any information that could help her be prepared for the battle that was inevitably to come of this anticipated encounter.
While she wholeheartedly wanted to go pursue the b***h tonight once he got settled in, Phedre had a feeling that if Jasper caught wind of her plans he would want to come along and honestly that simply would not due. Not tonight, not in his condition.
Until recently the two of them had been acquaintances, co-workers that ran into each other while on patrol every so often that liked to flirt. He had been the first to not roll his eyes at her playfulness and actually one up her on two occasions. Even so, their interactions never went past that, especially after his accident. Either way there was a kinship there, a comadre between two corrupts shunted to the lower rung of the negaverse hierarchy; hell even youma were above them in some regards.
If she didn’t have his back, who would?
~~~
“Thick accent. Scared out of her mind. Looks like she could have come out of some Asian temple thing.” Jasper started, his head falling against the headrest as his eyes watched the road lights go by. The motion of the car was overall soothing except when she hit a bump. The small ones he could hold back the curse. Anything that made the car visibly rise though and a few “Shits” might have escaped as he tried to bring himself back to neutral. The shaking was slowing but the throbbing…
“Her attack….” The thought back to it made him huff. “Her attack name had something to do with sparks. I just remember cursing my luck at running into another electric possessing white moon but when I got it, it was more like….paper cuts?” He hadn’t considered it until then but that was most likely the best way to think of it. “Hundreds of tiny paper cuts.”
“And if you think you are going after her, I’m going with you.”
~~~
Phedre raised a brow, “Like hell you are.”
“You talked me out of taking you to the hospital, that’s one thing. But I’m not going to be responsible for you getting killed.” She reached up to push the garage door button clipped to the back side of her visor.
“I know you hate the White Moon more than anyone, but rushing back out there looking for a fight won’t do you any favors. Once we get inside why don’t I help you get out of that shirt you have on so you can take a shower, relax and let the medicine kick in?”
With a sigh she cut the engine and closed the door behind them. “There’s nothing more we can do tonight, but once you’re back to at least ...60… 70 percent we’ll find her.” If he could wait that long…
~~~
Her quick response made him turn his head head to look at her, the motion too quick for his arm and he had to wince. “What are you going to do Phe? Tie me…” He didn’t finish the sentence. The answer was yes. He knew the answer was yes. She would tie him down with chains, ropes, and anything else she could find.
Beautiful and stubborn.
“Fine.” He let out a long breath as he listened to the door close behind them. “You win. Shower and relaxing it is. But I make no promises about tomorrow.”
Reaching across his body, Jasper used his left hand to open the door and slowly, stiffly slide out of the car. “Should I expect to be pinned by a dog before or after the shower?”
~~~
“Fair enough.” She smirked unabashed by how he somehow knew what lengths she’d go to make sure he did do anything stupid to make his condition worse.
“And no, not unless you decide to lay on the floor. Duke is a French Bulldog who can barely jump up on the couch. Usually I have to pick him up if I want some lap company while I watch Netflix. But if you’d prefer I can put him in my room so he doesn’t bug you.” He was a good dog though, very well behaved save for the odd habit of pulling socks out of the hamper and bringing them to her to get attention. Could be worse though, he could knock over the garbage can and trash the place or eat her shoes.
From where they were in the garage she could hear his nails tapping against the hardwood floor on the other side of the door eagerly waiting for her to come inside. However, before opening the door she grabbed one of his dog treats from the shelf on the right. “Hey there buddy, see I wasn’t gone long.” Phedre leaned over to hand him his snack and pat him on the head.
The little grey dog’s nub of a tail wagged excitedly as he devoured the treat. Twice he barked at Jasper when he walked through the door before prancing over to smell his feet and pant leg “Leave him alone.” Phedre’s voice took on a motherly scolding tone. “Go on, go lay down.” she used her foot to usher him towards the living room.
“The guest bedroom is up the stairs on the left, first door on the right. The bathroom is at the end of the hallway. I’ll be up in a moment to help you out.”
~~~
“Why did I picture you having something like a Great Dane?” Jasper offered, a weak half smile on his face when he saw the little mutt running up to his mistress. Had he felt better, he might have bent over to give the pup a pet or two but as it was, the idea of bending was flat out.
“He’s alright.” Jasper offered, moving past Phedre towards the direction she had instructed. “As long as he doesn’t pee on my shoes, we won’t have an issue.” Looking back slightly at her, Jasper gave her a soft nod as if to express ‘Thank you’ before he excused himself wordless up the stairs. Taking them slowly to both not fall on his face or jerk his arm was a challenge but it was going to be the easiest one of the night.
He ignored the bedroom she had mentioned and headed straight to the bathroom at the end of the hall. Hand slipping on the handle, Jasper let out a curse and lightly kicked the door open. Quant was all he could think as he eyed the toilet lid and sat down on it. Now he had the hard task of getting out of his clothes.
Shoes he kicked off towards the wall. Socks he used one hand and piled them on top. Pants he could one hand but he would wait on those because he refused to do the ‘remove the shirt dance’ while hanging out.
Two deep breaths and he reached over his head with his left hand and began to yank at the back of his shirt. It would give some but the angle of the pull resulted in his arm rolling forward and cursing. “What I wouldn’t give for a pair of scissors…” He mumbled, fabric over his face.
~~~
Phedre chuckled as she stepped into the doorway. “If you think it’d help I can go get a pair. But then you’d be out a perfectly good shirt.” A large part of her felt bad for his situation but there really was no denying the humor of his current position.
“How about this.” She walked over to him and carefully tugged the hem of his shirt to pull it back down. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself trying to get undressed. So why don’t I go get you a pair of sewing scissors and while you’re in the shower I’ll drive over to Krogers and get you a few button up shirts.” Phedre attempted to be the voice of reason despite knowing he would more than likely reject her offer but she had to try regardless of the looks he gave her. “Unfortunately the mall is closed or I’d get you something nicer.”
~~~
“If you have either a sweatshirt or something I can borrow then I don’t care about the shirt.” Jasper offered, releasing the shirt to her hands as it slid back down his back. With a long sigh, he gave up his frustration at trying to pull it off without cursing worse than a sailor. “You have already done enough for me tonight so I cannot accept...no, I refuse to accept you getting me spare shirts. Just go ahead and cut it off. Worst case, I walk into the house shirtless tomorrow. I’ve done worse.”
Walking into the house bloody, bruised and whining. He had been such a pansy. That wasn’t pain. That had been his ego more than anything. Now he knew pain. Mental. Physical. Down to his core.
With a long sigh, he sat back down on the toilet seat and ran his left hand through his hair. “I’m such a ******** mess. Just when I think I’m fine, everything comes spiralling back to remind me I’m an idiot….”
That was when he looked up at her and found her eyes. “I ******** up Phe. I ******** up royally.”
~~~
Leaning back against the sink countertop Phedra crossed her arms over her chest. “Why do I get the feeling this isn’t just about what happened tonight?” She had known for a while now that there was tension at home, especially with regards to his father. The details were vaughe but she had an idea of the cause.
But that look in his eyes, and the way he held himself, spoke of a different story; one of regret and guilt. Yes he had ******** himself over when he powered up and went on patrol alone. Be it pride or idiocy he would live with the consequences of that choice for the next few days; sadly for him there was no escaping the physical pain without the use of heavy medication which she thankfully didn’t have any on hand.
“Talk to me. I won’t judge.”
~~~
“You won’t but you most like should.” Jasper sighed again, arm dropping into his lap as he looked down on the floor once more. He was tired and he looked it. He was trained and wore out. Frankly he looked and felt as if he had been in the bus accident all over again but this time the pain was all internal. “I chased away the one window to light I had because I didn’t want to curse her with me. She...deserves better and I can’t will myself to see her suffer with me day after day.”
A small, half laugh came from his throat and he picked up his head, lips curled in a false smile. “I was a different man before. No I was a boy before the accident. She and I were never a thing though I wanted to be. But I always got the vibe that she...she never saw me as anything more than a friend to run and shoot the breeze with.”
Shadows passed over his eyes and he looked towards the mirror. “Then the accident happened and she was there. Magically she was there through it all. My anger, my rage. She stood by it all until one day I just…..snapped. I couldn’t take the worry or the care anymore. I couldn’t take the feeling that I couldn’t do anything to help her...that I would always depend on her. I lost it.
So I lost her. No….I forced her away. Looking at her made me happy but being with her killed a piece of me inside. She was light and I darkness. She….” Tears formed in the corner of his eyes and he couldn’t look up at Phedre anymore. “She’s the reason I have never accepted your offer. My heart has belonged to her since before I realized it and before I stopped being a commitaphobe playboy. I could not even consider having sex with you and facing her again knowing I was sharing your bed. You both deserve better than that.
Better than me.”
~~~
“I see…” Phedre fell silent for a few minutes to simply study him. He couldn’t let go so he made her be the one to walk away. It made sense, not that she particularly agreed with it but it made sense nonetheless. “I will admit that hearing that has drastically changed my plans for the evening, and no.” she leveled her gaze with Jasper’s when he dared to looked up “it did not involve sex.” Close but not quite; she was, after all, more like her sphere than she’d admit out loud.
“Joking aside.” Phedre walked over so she stood in front of him. Nearly toe-to-do she knelt down on the tile floor so they were almost eye level. “As cheesy as it sounds, darkness can’t survive without the light. One cannot exist without the other. Whether you choose to believe that is up to but what I’m getting from this is she is your other half and I’m kind of a placeholder.”
Before Jasper had a chance to argue she held up her hand to stop him, “No hard feelings. It’s fine, trust me.” She waved her hand to dismiss the topic entirely and moved on. “You thought she deserved better, but… I have to be honest here. That really wasn’t your decision to make.”
“Maybe she is one of those girls who gets off fixing people who are broken, I don’t know. But if she was there before AND after the accident then I suspect it’s not the case. Either way, however you choose to move forward is entirely on you, whether you choose to go fix the damage or just let it go on move on. I can’t make that decision for you but for now… I’m the one you called, so I will warn you now.” A smile tugged the corner of her lips “I’m not going to give up. Things between us haven’t changed.”
Phedre reached forward to touch his dirt stained cheek and leaned forward. She understood the turmoil he felt inside so dare not kiss his lips as she did that Lieutenant but his forehead was fair game.
~~~
-Her words were both expected and unexpected. He knew she was going to tell him that wasn’t his decision to make and she was right. What had been his choice was realizing that as long as he was like this, he couldn’t bare to look at Mei let alone hold her gaze. It broke him at a deeper level than he wanted to admit. Not just because he was hurting her but because everytime he looked at her, he felt like a failure. A worthless failure of a man who should have died in that accident.
But how did he explain that to someone? That the woman he had loved….loved...made him want to jump in front of a moving bus? God he was ******** up.
It was Phe’s kiss on his forehead that made him realize why he called her. “Good.” Was all he managed to say out as he angled his eyes to look up at her face. Phedre had appeared when he was at his lowest. She had reminded him how to be...human. That he wasn’t worthless just because he was a failure of a senshi and damaged as a human. She might not ever understand just how much of a guardian angel she had become as well.
“If it wouldn’t be poor timing, I might have to kiss you right now.” It was a weak attempt at a flirt but it was true. He would love to move her head onto his lips but that would be...well, against the point he was just saying. She wasn’t a placeholder. She was her own person.
“Instead, why don’t you just cut this off me so I can take a cold shower and go to bed.”
~~~
“Okay.” Phedre shrugged as she stood up. “If that’s the order you’d prefer to do things in we can do it your way. Or…” She paused in mock contemplation. “Nah, you’d never go for it.” There was a mischievous twinkle in her eye as she disappeared into the hallway only to return a few minutes later with a silver pair of sewing shears.
A part of her wanted to make one of those classic lollipop jokes and rather than ask ‘how many licks to the center of the tootsie pop’ instead say something to the effect of ‘how many cuts until the shirt falls off, but… that would probably be in bad taste given the current circumstances. “So, what’s the best way to go about this? Would you prefer to turn around or…” Her eyes traveled down the front of his torso.
“Fair warning, if you choose the later I will kiss you.” Being that close with his breath stirring the hair atop her head, poor timing be damned she would claim his lips.
~~~
Half laughing as he stood up, Jasper began to turn around so that she could help him with the shirt. When his back was facing her, he finally said “I don’t know if I should take that as a compliment or a threat.” He joked before closing his eyes and forcing a smile to his face. “But I have a third option for you.
Slowly he turned so his left side faced her and lifted his arm to put his hand resting on the back of his head. There was a quick moment what if she had been watching, she might have caught him attempt a flex. He wasn’t as fit as he used to be but the physical therapy did help him work on getting some of it back since he had been stuck in a bed for so long.
“Go up the side and through the sleeve. That way I can just let it drop off the other side. It also means you get neither my back turned to you nor my front. So while I can’t stop your eyes from wandering, I can make things more...difficult.” He shot her a quick glance, very glad to be in jeans.
~~~
“You are such a tease, but I accept.” Stepping forward she took ahold of the bottom of Jaspers shirt and began slowly cutting along the side seam. The back of her fingers brushed against his side in a not-so-innocent manner.
Sure she should have probably made quick work of removing his shirt but she kind of like having him hold the pose. It kind of reminded her back in her first year of college modeling for the fashion design class. With a little bit of soap and hair styling gel he would be back to his hunky looking self in no time that’s for sure.
When finally she finished cutting up the side she moved on to the upper sleeve to his collar with careful precision as to avoid accidently cutting any of his already short hair. While the short style looked good on him she much preferred when he was powered up and while she would never admit it out loud she did have to resist the urge on a few occasions to run her fingers through his long ponytail.
~~~
Jasper rolled his eyes up to look at the corner of the wall as Phedre took her sweet time. Oh she was enjoying this alright. Not that he could blame her but her hands along the side of his body were starting to tickle. It took alot of control not to wiggle away since she had blades in her hands.
“I’m a tease?” He offered when she switched to his collar. “Says the one who seems to be enjoying removing my shirt way too much. I never knew someone could make cutting fabric so...appealing?” He dropped his arm when she finished, using it to then slide the fabric off the right side of his body only wincing once when he lifted his shoulder ever so slightly to get the sleeve unstuck.
Dropping the now useless piece of fabric on the floor, Jasper made a point not to look in the mirror as he turned to face the tub. Scars were all over his body, small ones from metal and glass. But it was the area around his right arm that looked as if it had been rip to shreds, chewed up and put back. Front and back bore marks of the damage that had been done and though the wound had closed, he would carry the mental pain of it with him for a long time to come.
“Alright. I can get the rest.” He offered with a smile towards her. “If I’m allowed a towel.”
~~~
When he had turned his back Phedre had to physically stop herself from reaching out to touch the scars the littered his body. It was a startling sight to behold but oddly it did not scare her as one might think. She had tried to get a glimpse of them before, only to be stopped before she could remove his vest as Arabia. Now she knew why…
“I’ll get you one in a moment.” She replied when their eyes met. “Turn around. Just for a second. I want to see-” touch… lay a kiss upon them to take the pain away. Perhaps it was an odd desire to have but he had been so closed off when she had tried to take a peek in the past that she saw the full extent of the injuries.
Seeing them as they were, some a darker skin tone that have mostly healed while a few of the others were still an angry red; likely from the incident that happened today. If anything the display served to strengthen her resolve in finding that senshi b***h for whatever happened before she arrived.
~~~
The request caught Jasper off guard.
His eyes widened in surprise as he looked back at her only to then narrow once more as he jerked away to gaze at nothing in particular. “Phe…” He started to say, started to try and talk her out of it. The scars weren’t pretty but he knew that to someone who had never seen them before, it was almost impossible not to look. How many doctors had done double takes after he had left the hospital?
But she wasn’t a doctor. She wasn’t going to stand there and throw out scientific terms and question their healing. Not to mention she also had him trapped. He wasn’t Arabia at the moment but Jasper stuck in her spare bathroom trying to take a shower.
With a long, drawn out sigh, Jasper slowly turned around so she could lay eyes directly on the front of his chest. This was the worst of the two. The entrance point after all. Minced Meat was all it made him think of.
“Do you understand my want to never let you see now? It’s….not good.”
~~~
“It might not be pretty to look at,” Phedre reached out to feather a touch along several of the scars. “But it’s evidence of your strength and proof that you’re a survivor.”
“Things may seem dark now but whether you choose to admit it, Jasper, you have a will to live and overcome this. It’s just that your anger and frustration hasn’t allowed you to accept help and your resolve to do this alone has been strengthened by your stubbornness.” She poked him in the side with a pointed finger so he’d turn around and look at her.
“Thank you for letting me finally see.” Phedre reluctantly dropped her hand to her side, and with the pair of shears in her other hand she took a step away. “Anyway, I’ll go get you the towel before I do something stupid.” She chuckled to herself as she turned to exit the bathroom and grab the towel from the linen closet just across the hall.
“Take your time ok? Relax, and just come out when you’re ready. There will be a clean set of clothes on the guest bed otherwise I’ll be in the living room if you need me.” She offered him an almost apologetic smile, partially because she felt as if she may have overstepped the boundaries of their friendship.
~~~
Her pointed jab to his chest made him glance back at her, a look of disbelieve in his eyes before he rolled them to look at the ceiling. “Thanks Phe.” He mumbled, waiting for her to to finish shutting the door behind her before he dared to moved again. Alone with his thoughts, Jasper finally let out the groan he had been holding in for about the past 5 minutes. “God she makes it so hard…” The words were breathy as she glanced towards the door, almost expecting her to reopen it trying to steal a look. It would have been just like her, not that he wouldn’t have been tempted himself.
Leaning into the tub, Jasper cranked the hot water on, ignoring the cold knob for now, to get it warming up. He needed the steam and the heat for his muscles and his arm. It was going to sting getting it. It always stung. But once he was red from the bounding hot water, his muscles always felt...better. Though sometimes he wondered if it was just because they were not able to feel anything for a time.
Stalling a little bit longer, he moved to the sink to grab the towel and place it closer to the tub while debating if he should lock the door. Twice he looked back, twice he shook his head before daring to finally one hand drop trou.
Phedre had more of an affect on him than she might have known. Mentally and verbally he continued to say no, even doing the dickish move of admitting to her that he had fallen in love with another woman. Physical...well he glanced down at how his body considered her. “Yea yea I know. You want another chance to try again.” He mumbled, stepping into the shower and wincing as the water attempted to burn his flesh.
Standing there leaning against the tile as he adjusted the head of the shower to work straight on his shoulder, Jasper let his mind slip away. He had been serious when he said he wanted to kiss Phedre. He had also been serious when talking about Mei. He loved her. The words had been locked away within his heart because he refused to breathe them and be rejected. After their last meeting….
“Yea buddy, you ******** up alright. And now you ******** up again sharing this s**t with Phedre. Open mouth, insert foot.” Glancing down his body, he eyed himself and corrected “Open mouth, raise d**k.”
By the time he flipped the hot water to icy cold, Jasper was pretty sure he had burned off every ounce of flesh on his body. Now he was shocking his system back into action for a moment before turning the shower off. His shoulder was still throbbing but the true jarring pain had finally passed. He could feel the edge of it sitting somewhere ready to strike again but for now, it had retreated.
Shanyume
