**Angela's P.O.V**
I never thought I would experience horror so great that it's paralyzing. Not being able to move or speak but wanting to get involved. Listening to the snarls and hisses makes the danger very present and real. I didn't think that I would ever witness a fight between two vampires. Two opponents with equal strength and it seemed like the fight had been going on forever but it has only been a minute.
A punch to the cheek, a claw to the chest, a deafening snarl. Jesse defends himself strategically, counter attacking his furious opponent. The fierce man dodges a blow to the ribs, grabbing onto Jesse's arm and twisting.
"Jesse!" I yell in horror as I hear the unmistakable pop! of Jesse's dislocated elbow followed by his cry in pain. I find myself reaching out to him worriedly, wanting to help however I can.
The man glances at me before he knees Jesse's back, making him arch and kneel on the floor. He then lets out a snarl while he kicks Jesse in the stomach. Jesse doubles over but lands on his side, almost completely vulnerable. He groans in pain once more as the man kneels over him and punches his cheek once, twice, a third time.
My eyes burn as tears well up and spill over. Jesse doesn't move and I realize that he has been knocked out cold by this villain. The latter begins to slowly rise and as he does, he stares at me with wild, hungry, angry eyes.
I take a step back, suddenly getting the feeling that I am way past in danger. Wild Eyes keeps tracking my every move, but what concerns me more is the unconscious body laying, now behind, the man approaching me. I can hear the subtle growl of Wild Eyes but I continue to watch Jesse's lying form.
C'mon Jesse, wake up! Heara cries.
Wild Eyes keeps stalking towards me with a predatory look in his eyes. I don't understand why he wants to hurt us. Why? Why here, why Jesse, what did we do wrong?!
He snarls again as he reaches half way. I look at this man's face, scarred across the eyebrow, and see his fangs seep out and threaten to sink into my throat.
A sudden pang of anger floods my emotions. I don't deserve this. Jesse didn't deserve to be knocked out. Heara definitely doesn't deserve to feel this pain.
The only person who deserves anything right now is Wild Eyes, who is now ten feet away from me! I have to do something!!!
Before I realize what's happening, I clench my fists. I can only see red as a wave of rage and adrenaline hits me and I charge towards Wild Eyes.
He hisses and yells, "Filthy hy-!", right as I am about to attack him but in the last minute, Heara takes over, letting out a battle cry of rage and sending me into darkness.
**********
Angela... A voice from afar calls. Angela!... It sounds so familiar but I can't place from where I heard it. Angela!! It's Jesse, wake up! Oh! So it belongs to Jesse, no wonder it's so familiar...but...why does he want me to wake up? I feel so calm and I'm too lazy to get up from wherever I'm laying down. C'mon Angela, I know you can hear me. Darn, now he's coming closer. Don't make me wake you, you won't like how I do it. Hmm... maybe I should just pretend I'm sleeping, he won't know. Dammit, Ange! I warned you.
"Ouch! What the hell is wrong with you?" I nag, sitting up and rubbing my wrist. "You bit me!"
"Yeah, and I didn't want to. Now get up before anyone comes and sees the blood."
My body turns cold as the memories of what transpired only minutes ago come flooding back. I turn to Jesse to find him staring back in sympathy.
"Oh, my God! Jesse!" I throw my arms around his neck and hug him tightly. "Oh, thank the heavens you're okay!"
"Ahh! Not quite, Ange." He says as he twinges in pain.
"Crap, Jesse! I'm so sorry!" I quickly get off of him only to hear him chuckle then whine in pain again. "Crap, we have to get you back," I pull his good arm around my shoulder and help him up. "What were you thinking anyways?"
Jesse looks at me in the eyes and says, "I was thinking about how I should protect you."
I look away from the intensity of his emerald stare and begin to assist him up. He groans under his breath at the same time his fist clenches the sleeve of my shirt. Securing his arm once more, we start walking back to the lodge. I place my arm around his waist to help his balance and try to ignore the prominent muscles under his thin, bloodied shirt.
"Where'd Wild Eyes go?" I inquire. I can't seem to find him anywhere in the clearing.
"Wild Eyes?" Jesse smirks at the nickname I gave our assailant. "Well he's gone. I guess you scared him all on your own." I could hear the little pride in his voice in between the struggle to talk without being in pain.
"Really? I don't even remember what I did." He gives me a look of confusion but before he could say anything, I speak up. "Do you think you can faze?" I have to get him back, it looks like he's not healing as fast as he's supposed to.
"Uh, it'll hurt but I'm already in pain so I'll be fine," he tries to give me a reassuring smile. "Oh, and try to get Samantha to bring Boss out without alarming the others, so we can inform him as soon as possible."
"How? I can't leave you alone and-" I begin in a frantic jumble before Jesse cuts me off.
"Just reach out to her by thinking." He says, tapping my forehead as if I were a child. Man, why didn't I think of that? I almost forgot that she could read minds. Then again, why can't Jesse reach out? "I can't do it myself because one: I'm weak, and two: if I let her read my mind, she has access to everything else in here and some things are just too dangerous to know."
He ends with an undertone of anger. The fact that Jesse's being guarded about letting anybody in makes me think of all the possible secrets he has to keep hidden. I don't know if he feels he can trust me or not, but I really hope that he can. Even if he can't tell me everything from his past, I still want to know what made him who he is today. That is my goal: show Jesse that he can open up to me.
We break through the arsenal of bushes and I glance at him. "Are you ready?"
Jesse takes a deep, labored breath and says, "As ready as I'll ever be."
Here we go... I think to myself before fazing towards the lodge, taking Jesse with me.
I can feel Jesse's entire body tensing and I realize that fazing could be the worst thing for him to do. Then I remember Sam.
Sam!! Samantha, Jesse needs help! I just hope she can hear me. Sam, bring Boss out to the back! Don't cause panic but we've been attacked... Jesse's hurt really bad!
We break through the forest and enter into the backyard. I stop fazing about half way across the yard when I suddenly hear Jesse letting out a cry of pain.
Samantha!!! I scream in my mind as Jesse's weight is pulled to the floor, bringing me down with him. He falls forward, clutching his ribs and trying to resist screaming. Hurry, dammit! I inwardly yell again, kneeling next to Jesse as he struggles with his pain.
Jesse lays on the floor, face red and eyes watering. He takes quick, ragged breaths and is still holding onto his side.
"Jesse, stay with me." I breathe out, looking at him with worried eyes. My heart pounds in my chest and I put my hand on his cheek. "You're burning up," Please tell me you're coming. "Jesse, I know it hurts but you can't pass out on me." I say, trying to sound as calmly as I can. I take Jesse's hand and something very unexpected happens.
Pain surges from his hand up through mine and into my arm. I gasp and tighten my grip on his hand. The pain flows into my chest, almost unbearable. When it reaches my heart, the pain triples and I let out a strained scream. I close my eyes to wait for the pain to subside, clenching my teeth while I struggle with the screams that threaten to escape my throat.
"Angela." I hear Jesse whisper.
I open my eyes to find Jesse staring back at me, eyes filled with emotion. The only thing I feel is a slowly fading tingling. I take in a long, staggered breath as a single tear escapes down my cheek.
I shift my gaze to his curious eyes, my own showing confusion, and say,"What-"
"Angela!" Interrupts a feminine voice.
I turn my head in the direction from where I heard my name. Silhouettes of Samantha and three men come towards me fast. I realize my eyes are still teary so I blink away the water and look up once more.
Oh, thank God! Help is here, my best friend came out to support me, Jesse's hand still in my grip.
I'm gripping Jesse's hand... Oh. My- shoot, stop all thoughts, now! But I look into his eyes, distant and searching. He's looking at me- no... Into me, into what I am. Hell, even I don't know what I am. All I know is that I just prevented him from passing out.
Samantha must have seen something on my face because she pulls me up from where I was kneeling and pulls me into a long, deep hug. My hand is forced to find another source of comfort. "Are you okay?" she probes. Sam looks into my eyes for a long moment.
"Y-Yeah, I j-just want to make s-sure Jesse's get- getting what h-he needs." I stammer. It's weird to see him like that; vulnerable and scared.
As my eyes adjust to the sun, I can more easily see the three men who came with Sam. One is Doctor McCalister, who is wearing a flannel sweater with khaki pants, the second person is unfamiliar to me by sight but not by smell, and the third person was Boss, his face tight and dark with anger. Doc makes Jesse breathe in but he winces in pain again. I hear a low mumbling to the not-so-unfamiliar guy and a barely perceivable "...broken ribs..." by Doc. He then tells Jesse to try and stretch his arm but to no avail. Jesse groans with the pain he receives again, growing exhausted. Doctor McCalister looks at Boss, a fine line in place of his mouth. Boss briefly returns the look with no emotion before turning to look directly at me.
Cold eyes that resemble ice and seem to be looking into my soul darken. I could sense that he was coming to conclusions and I instinctively wanted to tell him everything, to assure him that I did not hurt Jesse.
I open my mouth to talk, still in Sam's arms, when she shifts herself in-between the harsh sea and me. "Let's get you inside?" she states as a question but I know it's more of a command.
"But I nee-"
"You need to rest, Angela. Rest for a little, gather your thoughts, and then maybe we could talk about what happened." Sam interrupts. Her eyes plead and her voice has this authoritative tone. Now that I look back at her, I notice something different about her aura but I can't figure out what it is. At least not now that my mind is swirling in all directions.
I nod an 'okay' and start for the lodge. My hands shake as I'm navigated past a few onlookers. So much for not causing a scene... We walk into the wooden house, up the stairs, and into our room. I sit on my white bed for a second, then begin to cry as I fall onto my pillow, Sam holding me tightly, eventually drifting to sleep.
XOXO
-Janeslove