CHAPTER FIVE.
As the minutes passed, Phoenix began to gain her confidence back. The sobs slowly ebbed away into sniffles as she lifted her head. It had only been half an hour by the time she was coherent again. Her blonde hair was messy and frizzy from the assassin's stroking and caressing and it only made her feel worse. Her eyes were red and puffy, her cheeks tear-streaked as she rested her head against Jax's shoulder. Just trying to process everything for a moment.
"You're okay," Jax said softly as he pressed a kiss to her temple. Phoenix nodded, the numb feeling settled in her heart as she took a hold of his hand. Their fingers tangling together as she took a few more deep, calming breaths. She just wanted to be okay and make sure that she felt okay.
After a moment, Phoenix moved off his lap. The tears had stopped falling but she was left looking like a mess. Red nail marks were pressed into the skin of her neck and shoulder. It wasn't very obvious and was sure to fade overnight but Phoenix knew it was there. She could still feel the cold blade against her skin as if he was still lingering behind her.
"How did they get in?" Phoenix asked after a long moment of silence. Jax stared at her as he watched her move under the covers. The frown on her lips and he just watched. Not sure if she wanted him near her or would rather that he stayed away. So he just watched and waited.
"I don't know," Jax said as Phoenix looked at him. Her eyebrow quirked slightly at his words and she knew he was lying. He was a good liar, she had discovered, but not always. Gently shaking her head, she moved to lie down. Her hand caressing her throat before she looked at him.
"You saw him leave, what happened? I didn't even notice him come in," Phoenix said as she looked at him. Jax sighed and rubbed his face with his hands, sliding off the bed. If he was going to tell her, he had to actually close it. He didn't get the chance before he picked her up and took her away from the room.
"You opened the window, the big one at the end of the room. I saw it open enough and it seemed like he had a hover-car," Jax explained as he grabbed his dressing gown. He slipped it over his shoulders and Phoenix watched him leave the room. Not bothering to protest, she just lay down in bed. The soft white and red sheets pulled up to her chest as her head rested into the mountain of pillows. Her gaze on the ceiling that was a simple dull grey colour.
Phoenix wasn't sure if she had slipped into sleep or time was passing quickly but she was startled back to reality when the door closed to the bedroom. She jumped slightly before she sat up quickly. Her whole body shooting upwards making herself dizzy but she was relieved to see it was just Jax.
His grey fluffy dressing gown wrapped around him as he walked back into the room. He had a small smile on his face but looked slightly flushed. Phoenix then fell back to the bed, her thumping heart slowing down as she rolled over onto her side. Jax walked over to the bed and took off the dressing gown before he got into bed beside her again.
"I closed the window and checked that he was gone," Jax said as he shuffled closer to her. Phoenix was reluctant but allowed him to wrap his arms around her. She tried her best to relax but it was hard and instead closed her eyes. Her mind tried to drift to more positive things before Jax spoke up once again, "We need to tell someone," He muttered and Phoenix shook her head. She kept her face buried in the pillows and put her hands over his.
"We don't need to. It's fine. They didn't hurt me. I'm fine," Phoenix responded. He sighed softly against her neck, his breath fanning across her skin which in turn made Phoenix shiver. Her mind jumping back to the attempt on her life not an hour earlier and she suddenly wanted to keep Jax as far away as possible.
She felt suffocated in his arms and began to fidget. Not wanting to say anything explicitly to him so instead, she just tried to get comfortable. Her chest tightened as he continued to breathe against her neck. The sensation made her want to run away or cry, either one sounded like a good idea to her.
After a few minutes of fidgeting, Jax moved his arms from around her and shuffled further back. Clearly, he realised it was him and he instead turned over to face the wall. Too tired to ask what was wrong, already slipping into sleep. Phoenix, however, was not so lucky and instead ended up staring up at the ceiling. Her hands rested on the covers as she stared at the dull grey.
It was another sleepless night, she knew it.
-
Phoenix woke up the next morning to a bed that was for once not empty. Jax was sat up, leaning against the headboard with a book in hand. His hand rested on his face as he read through the pages. He didn't seem to notice that she was awake until she rolled over and looked up at him. His freckled face looked adorable in the early morning sun and a small smile appeared on her face.
But then her mind brought her right back to the previous night. The attempt on her life and she just felt gross again. Her body felt sticky and dirty. Her hair felt greasy. A shower was all that Phoenix wanted at that moment. She sat up and then moved off the bed. Not saying anything to Jax as she grabbed her dressing gown. Slipping the white gown around herself before she walked towards the ensuite 'fresher. His gaze stayed on her until the door closed.
The feeling of him watching her only succeeded in making Phoenix feel more insecure and conscious of everything around her. It felt weird and she didn't like the idea of him making her insecure. They were going to get married. She couldn't worry about what he was thinking of her.
Stripping down, she got into the shower and washed her hair first. Then, she turned to her body. She washed most of her skin without a problem but when she got to her neck, she felt an incessant need to scrub the patches the assassin had touched. Just in an attempt to remove the feeling of his fingers. If she could just remove the feeling, everything would be fine and go back to normal, surely.
By the time she was done with the shower, she had scrubbed the patches he had touched at least 4 times without soap and another 4 with shower gel. But none of it would get rid of that feeling. The feeling of being dirty and the reminder that he had touched her. No matter what he was thinking of doing.
As she stood in front of the mirror, she could see the nail marks he had left behind on her skin. It wasn't as red as it had been last night but it had begun to bruise. It would be a small bruise but it was still there. Phoenix wanted it gone so badly but there was nothing she could do. Well, she could use bacta but it would be an unnecessary. A stupid use. One that was not worthy of the doctors time. Then there was a knock at the door and she looked over.
"I got breakfast, I don't want it getting cold," Jax called through the door. Phoenix sighed and dried herself down. Pulling her clothes on for the day before walking out of the 'fresher. Jax was on the bed with two trays of breakfast food. The one he wasn't currently eating had her favourite breakfast on. Egg and soldiers or more commonly dippy egg and toast. A simple dish her father made but was always nice. There was also various fruit and a glass of orange juice on the tray too.
"You remembered my favourite," Phoenix said softly as she walked over to his side. He smiled and nodded, gesturing for her to join him. Phoenix gladly did, glad she hadn't picked her dress for the Senate yet. She had just opted for a simple long dress and she was going to change just before her first meeting of the day.
"What kind of fiance would I be if I forgot?" He teased as he looked up at her. She smiled softly and then grabbed the first piece of toast. Dipping it in the egg that he had already cracked for her. A smile spread across her face as she ate it. The actions just took her back to being a child, the simplicity made her smile.
The silence grew between them for a little while before eventually, Jax spoke up again, "I'm going to accompany you to the Senate today. In case anyone else tries anything. It'll be safer," Jax said as he looked up at her. Phoenix's head shot up and she placed the slice of toast down on the plate, swallowing what she already had in her mouth.
"Jax it's not necessary. I'm serious. I'm in meetings all day and will come straight back here after they're done. I'll be fine," She attempted to argue but he shook his head clearly not having any of it. He didn't want to leave her alone especially in case she got hurt. He worried about her no matter how unnecessary or misplaced that worry was.
"I've already contacted everyone you're having a meeting with and they all allowed me to join in if I pleased. They know who I am and they think I could have a good perspective," Jax shrugged. Phoenix looked up at him and gently shook her head, pushing her wet hair behind her ear. She still needed to brush it and maybe blow dry it depending how long it took to dry today.
"They're just going to listen to your perspective more," Phoenix muttered under her breath. Her hands moved to slowly take the next slice. Mulling over the fact that Jax had inserted himself into her meetings and the possible trade deals. She didn't understand why he had to. It wasn't like another Senator was stupid enough to try and kill her during a meeting. They would obviously be a suspect.
Plus if they had considered buying an assassin to try and kill her, they would not want to get their hands dirty. It felt ridiculous but now that they knew, they wouldn't accept Jax not being there. She had no choice but to allow him to come despite her annoyance at him for even suggesting that he should go with her. It was unnecessary. And it was just another way for him to inject himself into her business.
"I won't talk. I just want to observe and make sure you're safe," Jax responded, noticing the frown on her lips. She shook her head and finished off the slice of toast. Her hands rested in her lap as she moved to sit up straighter. Needing to at least look better in front of her fiance, she couldn't be seen as weak.
"You're going to be asked and forced to talk even if you express your want to simply observe. They value a man's opinion more than they do mine and I was elected for this position," Phoenix almost snapped but managed to catch herself and tried to put a softer edge on her voice. Her hands moved to the slice of melon, picking it up and biting into it once it was at her lips. Melon was never her favourite but she needed the energy and the natural sugars if she was going to stop feeling so grouchy.
She wasn't sure how much sleep she had even managed to get. It was either a few hours or ten minutes. There was no in-between. Jax looked at her for a moment, his eyes flicked across her face, trying to work out whether she was joking or annoyed at him. Once he was satisfied, he sighed and didn't know what to say so instead just stayed quiet. Phoenix finished off her breakfast and then grabbed her datapad to check all her meetings for the day. Working out when she should get ready and when Jax would be with her which was basically all day.
She wanted to say something but decided against it and instead just began to get ready. Her first meeting was in just over an hour and Jax would be accompanying her. They both should be getting ready but he seemed to go back to lounging around as she picked out a dress for the occasion.
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NOTE; so we got some emotional feelings and dealing with the aftermath of the attack and also jax being just slightly overbearing which we love to see... i honestly did really enjoy writing the start without obi since it allowed phoenix to develop a little more than usual but obi will be here soon! do not fear! but i hope you enjoyed this chapter nevertheless <3