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But they were right… I try to pull away, and he grips me tighter. “Everyone is watching.” My words come out too quickly. I pull back again, but there’s no use. “Cain!” I whisper yell, swallowing when I meet his eyes inches from mine.

“Let them look.” The deep vibration reverberates off my cheek… My lips. Then he presses his lips to mine. My breath becomes choppy, my heart thundering like a hundred wild hoofbeats through the valley. Electricity tickles my lips and shoots straight to my stomach, knotting so tight and butterflies fluttering so chaotically it’s almost painful. He licks along my lips, and they part for him. Something’s different…

“Mm!” A quiet squeal escapes me as Cain’s tongue swirls with mine in two different directions. I pull away, my eyes wide, but he is smiling. “What was that?” He sticks his tongue out, circling the two halves in different directions before tucking it back inside. “W-why would you do that?”

“I hadn’t had my fill of pain being away from you… Besides.” Cain leans down so his lips are an inch from mine. “I can think of a little activity it’s suited for. Tickling the ivories, so to speak.”

“I don’t recall you coming to the clinic…”

“Dahlia did it for me,” he whispers. Then his lips meet mine again, and I match him for every motion. Every brush of his lips, every flick of his tongue. He pulls back, and I chase him on instinct before stopping myself. We sway to the music, his hand firm on my waist. And I just… Fall into him. Into us.

Whether or not he’s changed his mind, or we will ever really be together, there will always be something of an us. We will always have our baby.

We may not be together, but it’s wrong to keep his baby from him.

“Cain… I have something to tell you.” I swallow as he slides his hand over my arm, runs his fingers through my hair, and gently holds me.

“I have something as well…”

He twirls me, then, with my hand in his and his fingers gripping my waist, we turn and start our way through the ground to the door to the wings.

“No! No! No!” Pru shouts, my gaze jumping to where she stands in the center of the dance floor. She shoves at Cal, and he holds his hands out towards her, coaxing her back to him. “Let me go!” she shouts when he touches her.

Releasing me, Cain makes a path through the crowded dance floor, and I follow him. Pru has already drawn more attention than she wants, dancers giving her space as they watch her with wide eyes. She will never admit it, even in her right mind. But it bothers her that she scares people.

Pru’s gaze jumps frantically around the room, her eyes jumping from one person to the next. Who knows if she even sees them as people... Cal barely touches her shoulder, and she swats him away, and she locks eyes with us. “He’s too beautiful… Everything is too beautiful…” Her voice quivers as tears stream down her cheeks.

“Whenever he’s around, that’s when the butterflies come out. They’re everywhere… He’s so beautiful.”

“What do you see when you see me?”

“I just see you… You and Cain are the only people whom I always recognize, no matter what. You two are always real.”

I asked her that a few months after Cal took the job as her security. She started to change for the better once they were spending all their time together.

Pru’s lips part slightly; her chest heaving in a deep rise and fall as she pants. “I need you to take me home!”

“Of course.” I reach out, taking her hand in mine. Cain steps behind her and places his hands securely on her shoulders. I glance over my shoulder at Cal; his jaw, his whole body, is tight as he forces himself not to go to her.

I lead the way through the crowd, holding her hand while Cain guards her back and Cal takes his place next to her. I wish she wouldn’t push him away; it’s not that he scares her or that she doesn’t want him. In her own words…

“He’s too beautiful to be real.”

Slowly turning the knob, I get Pru’s door shut without a click. I take a deep breath and roll my shoulders back to release any tension left over. I’m grateful that we got her down without needing any sedation. As always, we change her surroundings slowly. Cain leaves first, then I stay until she’s allowed herself to be helped by Cal. He massaged her hands with the soft clay he uses for sculpting until she fell asleep.

“You ready?” I jump and spin around at his voice, as deep and dark as the shadow he hides in.

“You left an hour ago… You didn’t go to bed?”

“No, we have things to talk about.” He rubs his finger back and forth over his matchbox. Nothing is lit now, but I can smell the herbs from his cigarettes; he must have been smoking out here.

“It’s late; we’ll talk tomorrow.” I step back on my heel.

“What I have can’t wait until tomorrow?” He pushes off the wall, taking a slow step forward.

“Do you need medical attention?” I tilt my head and smile, only lightly joking in case he really does need to be checked out.

“No.” His lip twitches.