My eyes flutter open and when I try to get up, I groan in pain. I look around the room and realise that I'm back in Kylian's house in Italy.
He found me.
The last thing I remember was passing out in his arms. I can't believe he saw me like that. All vulnerable.
My thoughts get stopped as the door opens and a very confused Elio steps in. The confused look quickly gets replaced with a smile as he rushes towards me.
"You're awake," he grins. "Water, please?" I ask and he doesn't hesitate to give me the glass of water on the bedside table. A hi woulda been better but gosh I'm thirsty.
"Never scare me like that again, speedy," he breaths out in relief. A chuckle manages to leave my lips. "I'll try not to, Elio."
His smile falls and he immediately goes into big brother mode. "Are you feeling okay? Do you need anything? Should I get the doctor? I can-"
Before he can continue, I interrupt his rambling. "Elio," I say softly, playing my hand on his shoulder, "relax, I'm okay. I'm here, with you."
He lets out a sigh that looks like he's been holding on for weeks. "You're right," he agrees. "Do you want me to bring in Isiah, Riley, Kylo, and Bella? They've been so worried."
I nod my head, "Sure." He named everyone but Kylian. Where is he?
He leaves and shortly after, my friends enter the room. "Look who finally decided to wake up," Isiah says with a big grin on his face.
"Gosh, we missed you," Bella squeals, pulling me into a big hug which I wince at. "She's still hurt, Bells," Kylo laughs and pulls her away from me.
"You're just jealous she's all over me and not you," I pout teasingly and he rolls his eyes at me. This feels good. It feels good to be with them and make jokes.
"Gosh, I've missed your jokes," Riley sighs, giving me a small smile. "And I've missed you," I reply.
I never really was the type to have many friends. After I found Isiah, we just stuck together. It was always us two, just a duo. But meeting Riley, Bella, and Kylo made my life so much better. I guess we just became like a family.
"Hey, what about me," Isiah grumbles and ruffles my hair. Not the hair. "Seriously," I look up at him with a glare.
Bella plops down onto the couch. "It was so boring without you, Ivy," she says. "Kylo was driving me crazy too." He gasps at her words, placing his hand on top of his heart. Dramatic.
"I mean," I sigh exaggeratedly, "I know you guys missed my jokes, my laugh, my presence." Who wouldn't?
"I just missed my wife," Riley replies, earning a laugh from me. I can't help but notice Isiah's glare at her words. Oh?
"Guys she just woke up, let's give her some rest," Kylo chuckles. Riley looks at me for reassurance if she can leave and I nod my head.
"We'll be back soon though!" Bella says before walking out of the room. "With snacks!" she adds.
"Hey, Isiah," I call out before he could leave. "You and Riley..."
A small smile plays on his lips as he hears my words. Yep, this man is head over heels. "I'm not gonna lie, Ivy. I like her so much," he confesses.
"Has Isiah finally met the one?" I ask in a dramatic tone. Isiah was never the type to go on dates or try to meet someone. He always thought that when the time was right, he'd meet the girl he'd want to spend the rest of his life with. "Bro," he lets out a breath, "I think she is."
A smile plasters itself onto my face. "No way!" I practically yell out of excitement. "I knew it. I called it since day one, I swear!"
"I don't know, there's just something about her," he shrugs and I can tell he's hiding a smile. Awh.
"I'm happy for you, Isiah," I grin at him. So happy to finally see him like this. Ugh, when's my turn though?
"Thanks, Ivy," he says, ruffling my hair again. "Ugh, stop!" I yell, trying my best to push him away, which he starts laughing at.
"Isiah," I say seriously, my tone changing, "I have something to ask you though."
"Shoot, Ivy," he plops down onto the couch, imitating a gun with his hands.
"Where's Kylian?" Does he even know I'm awake? I mean, he saved me of course I'd want to see him and I just want to annoy him. That's all.
The expression on his face changes. "Yo, Ivy," he says sternly. "You know I can't lie to you so let me just tell you straight up. You've been in a coma for three days and he's been by your side this whole time but... this whole thing really messed with his head, all he's doing is working and interrogating people to try to find Madeleine Morozov. If you ask me, it seems like he feels guilty as shit."
"Oh." My brows furrow at his words. What? Why would this mess with him? Most importantly, why would he feel guilty?
"Can you tell him I'd like to see him though, please?" The words slip out of my mouth before I could even process what I was saying.
"Yeah, sure," he nods, standing up. "Anything else, my queen?"
"Nope, thank you," I respond and he gives me a wink before leaving the room and closing the door.
I don't think Kylian should feel guilty. None of this is his fault. I chose to agree to our alliance and I went to the ball with my own free will. Why would he feel guilty?
Ugh. I just want to see him right now. Especially after what Isiah told me. Is what he's saying true?
"Come in," I say after hearing a knock at the door. My hopes that it's Kylian crumble when his personal doctor walks in instead. "I see you're finally awake, Mrs. De Luca."
My brows furrow, taken aback by her choice words. "Oh, I'm not Kylians wife," I laugh and her cheeks blush in embarrassment.
"I just always see you guys together and he's been so worried about you," she says then clears her throat. "Never mind, let's just check you out then I'll be on my way."
"Dr. Arya, right?" I make sure and she confirms. "So, how fast will I be able to go back on missions?"
She opens my eyes and checks my pupils with a torch. Gosh, I immediately shut my eyes tightly. "Too bright?" she asks. "Definitely," I mumble as I rub my eyes from the pain.
"Well after being in that dark room for five days with no sleep and in a three-day coma, that's considered normal don't worry," she tells me. "Oh, and at least six weeks. You don't have any serious physical injuries like anything broken, just lots of cuts made by knives, and overall your body is in a fragile state right now so it's best to not make it worse."
I hum, nodding my head at her words. The more she talks about my time with the Russians, the more memories come flooding my mind. I don't ever want to be there again.
She hands me two bottles of pills, one orange, and the other white. "Take two of the orange pills in the morning, then two of the white pills before you go to bed. Oh, and don't forget to change the bandages on your cuts so they don't get infected. I can do those for you if you want, just meet me at my office," she offers kindly.
"Thank you," I give her a small smile in return. "Also you don't have to stay in bed for those six weeks, I recommend you do definitely for next the four days but after that feel free to walk around, just be careful."
"Got it." Ugh, definitely don't got it. Too much information at once and I just woke up.
She lets out a laugh, catching my lie. "Go back to sleep, you need the rest even though you've been asleep for three days straight."
"I will, thank you for the help," I tell her. Can't imagine being a doctor. It's way too much work so I got to show my appreciation. "No problem. Goodbye!" she waves at me and leaves the room, closing the door after her.
Yep, definitely taking a well-needed sleep.
***
Just as my eyes were about to close, freezing cold water splashes onto me. I haven't slept since I've come here and I think I'm going crazy.
I can't stop my body from shivering as the cold water sinks into my bare skin. They left me in just my underwear and bra. What assholes.
"You know why I keep splashing cold water on you?" he asks me, obviously wanting to explain. "Go ahead, tell me," I mumble.
"It's a torturing method," he says. "One that the Italians used on me before Madeleine saved me." Um, I don't care. What's that got to do with me? Am I Italian, dumbass?
"It also keeps you awake and sleep deprivation is one of the worst forms of torture." I can tell...
"How about you have a change of heart and let me go?" I joke because clearly, he's not going to.
"You're not talking," he mutters, walking towards me. He places a hand on my waist, slowly bringing it down to my hip. "Maybe I have to try something else."
I feel a hand tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear, causing me to wake up. As my eyes adjust to the darkness of the room, I make out a silhouette of a man walking away.
"Kylian?" I call out. He turns around, wiping his hand down his face. "Shit, I didn't mean to wake you up. I was just leaving."
Leaving? "Can't you stay?" I practically whisper.
"I don't know if that's a good idea, Rory," he mutters. Oh.
"Please?" I ask him softly before a grunt of pain leaves my lips as I struggle to sit up.
"Whatever you need, princess," he gives me a slight smile before getting into the other side of the bed.
He stays frozen but I wrap my arms around his torso and pull him closer to me. "Every time I close my eyes, I'm back in that dark room," I whisper to him, resting my head on his chest. "Do you think it will ever go away?"
His hand weaves into my hair and his thumbs move in a circular motion, messaging my head and slowly putting me to sleep. "Let's hope they do, okay?"
I hum in response as my eyes close. Whatever he's doing is working, because I'm 90% asleep now.
"But you're safe with me now, love."
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| authors note |
their relationship is developing sm 🥹🥹 MY LIL CUTIESSS
hope you guys liked thissss
word count | 1851