Saving Superman [Complete]

3

When she comes back in, Cade is dressed from the waist down, leaving his chest exposed.

He has a defined six pack, the kind that seems to fade into a perfect V-line. His shoulders are broad and thick veins are popping from his neck. His body is damp and shimmering in the early sun light, wet hair dripping down his bare back.

Her mouth falls open.

Cade visibly blushes, but they're on two completely different pages.

"What?" He finally asks. And Brooke, for the first time, relents.

"You're Caden Belmount." She states.

Cade looks around, as if there is something he is missing.

"Yeah?"

Brooke feels her feet start to pace again.

"The Caden Belmount. Like the Legend, the military hero, the new Chris Kyle."

Cade's face falls. It feels like a stab in the chest.

He shakes his head.

"I'm not any of those things." He says.

His lip starts to quiver and he chomps it between his teeth.

"Brooke, those guys had families. Wives, kids." He screams, then falls onto the bed.

"Cade, it's okay to feel hurt, but feeling guilty for something you couldn't control. It's not your fault."

Cade closes his eyes.

"I don't live with the guilt that it happened. I live with the guilt that I lived."

Brooke sighs and lays down next to him. His hands are balled into tight fists.

"Even Superman couldn't save everyone."

Cade doesn't seem to have a response to that. He turns his head toward her and opens his eyes, silently begging. For what? She's not sure she knows.

"You know, there is a reason for everything. You're meant to be something, someone."

Cade laughs.

"I couldn't go back even if I wanted to. I killed so many people. Out of protection, I get it, but I don't think I could-"

Brooke cuts him off.

"Not as a Marine, Cade. Maybe you're meant to be somebody's daddy, somebody's uncle...somebody's true love."

Cade's face goes completely white. He looks back up at the ceiling.

"Very poetic, aren't you?"

She flashes him a side smile.

"I'm serious, you know."

"I know you are. I'm sorry." He relents.

Brooke doesn't take it to heart. Cade has probably never really had emotional support and if responding with sarcasm is his way of coping, she would take it anyday. She can't really blame him.

"We should go back to sleep. Not like we have to get up in the morning."

Cade shakes his head.

"This was a mistake. Next time it'll be in your bed. I can't." He shakes his head.

"So what if it is? You act like this is the end of the world."

"It's just embarassing. I'm 26 years old. It's not normal." He shies away from her, turning away slightly.

She decides words aren't getting her anywhere. She debates asking him to leave, for a split second. As awkward as it is, she can tell he doesn't want to go anymore than she doesn't want him to.

So she takes a different route. She gently pushes him onto the bed. Then  lays a hand in the crock of each of his shoulders, on either side of his neck.

He looks up at her. His hands are linked, rubbing against eachother. She separates them, setting them at his sides. She puts her hand on his head, pulls his hair, just a little too hard.

She closes her eyes and shudders, scared for a moment. Then she leans down, until she is eye-level with Cade.

She nudges him back gently into the covers. She covers his legs then shuts off the light. She throws an extra pilloe on the other side and gets in the bed next to him. She doesn't cuddle close. She keeps her distance, taking his hand in hers in the middle of the bed.

"Why do I feel like you're about to shatter my whole world?" He asks quietly.

"The peices can't get any smaller, Cade. I'm here to put them back together."