|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 12, 2012 23:00:26 GMT -8
Marcus fought desperately hard not to giggle right then and there, which only served to wrack his body with more pain of course, and hid his smirk underneath a meaty palm. If she kept that up, she'd shake herself apart before long and Marcus didn't feel comfertable with the idea of her splayed out on the carpet when he was sitting in a nice warm bed. It just wasen't....gentlemanly!
"Hey, don't go breaking yourself more than you already are lil' lady." He frowned after speaking. He just wasen't used to hearing his voice sound as brittle as paper.
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 12, 2012 23:12:10 GMT -8
"Hey, don't go breaking yourself more than you already are lil' lady."
"Broken? Is that what they call this?" She struggled for a second before she flipped over on her back, hissing in pain as her injured shoulder jarred itself slightly. "It feels like I gave birth to a brick wall. And then it beat me up." she managed a small laugh that quickly turned into a coughing fit with a healthy dose of "ow"'s thrown in between.
Delilah lay back on the carpet, just breathing for a moment before tilting her head back to look at Marcus. "How do you feel, big guy?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 12, 2012 23:30:16 GMT -8
Hearing Lilahs quip about the brick wall, Marcus seemed to sputter and make sounds that were one part cries of pain to another part snickers of laughter. His face going red, he looked at her with mock reproach.
"Are....are you trying to make me pop a stitch woman? Well, I definatly feel better than I should be consdering I was hit by a car, beaten, stabbed, clubbed and wrecked. Thanks for pulling my bacon out of the fire there Lilah. I seriously owe you one."
What he didn't mention was how gross he felt inside. Like that feeling you get when you eat something that doesen't quite agree with you, but in his entire body. It made him feel fidgety, which only served to make his body ache.
"Besides, after seeing you in action, that brick wall shouldn't have stood a chance."
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 12, 2012 23:53:10 GMT -8
"Are....are you trying to make me pop a stitch woman? Well, I definatly feel better than I should be consdering I was hit by a car, beaten, stabbed, clubbed and wrecked. Thanks for pulling my bacon out of the fire there Lilah. I seriously owe you one."
She had the decency to blush here (although it was hard to tell under all the bruises) and she managed to lift her uninjured hand to feebly wave away his thanks. "Don't even think about it. I'm sure you would have done the same." she said that with frank honesty and confidence in the kind of person she thought Marcus was.
"Besides, after seeing you in action, that brick wall shouldn't have stood a chance."
This actually caused her to burst into laughter, peppered with coughing, gasps of pain and minor weeping until it died away, leaving her breathless and sore. "Ah, you're sweet. Dropping a building on myself? Not so sweet. And not super well thought out.
"You though. You get run over, stabbed, torn to shreds and you still went toe to toe with that weird guy leading that gang. You thought I was good? Take a look in the mirror, my friend."
With that, she forced herself (painfully) into a sitting position. Grabbing the side table for support, she pulled herself to her feet, hissing as joints and ligaments that did not want to be disturbed stretched and popped. After a minute or two, she stood above him shakily, hands on her hips.
"Time to change those bandages. Or, you can have a shower before you do that. Your call." She had done what she could to get rid of the blood and dirt and grime that spattered him, but short of cleaning his wounds, it simply hadn't been a priority.
So many priorities...
|
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 13, 2012 0:32:45 GMT -8
"You though. You get run over, stabbed, torn to shreds and you still went toe to toe with that weird guy leading that gang. You thought I was good? Take a look in the mirror, my friend."
"You keep that up and you're going to give me a swelled head."
In more ways than one. Which, unfortunatly as Marcus soon realized was in fact the case. He tried to shift so it wouldn't be so noticable.
"Besides. You bust you're arm, get cut up, slammed into the ground at a hundred miles and hour and then had a building drop down on you. You outsmarted that wierdy guy with a rather cleverly hidden set of smoke bombs and instead of leaving me behind, you dragged my carcass to safety AND You reclaimed Lady!
THAT speaks volumes of the kind of person you are when the chips are down Lilah."
The fact of the matter was simple. Marcus was beyond grateful for everything that she had done for him today. It also didn't help that he was feeling stupidly pleased with himself with all of her flattery. As she stood, he had to admit she looked damn cuddly in that sweater. Especialy the way it hung so irresistably to her in all the right ways.
'Ok, OK NOW. Down boy! You don't have hardly enough blood to run both brains at once at the best of times!'
"Time to change those bandages. Or, you can have a shower before you do that. Your call."
'Oh this is just THE WORST TIME!'
The last thing Marcus wanted to do right now was to have the blankets pulled away. If he had pants on, the effects Delilah was having on him wouldnt be so damn.....apparent. Right now all he was in was his scivvies and that buldge wasen't going anywhere anytime soon.
"Think I might have to wait on the shower. I don't really trust myself to stand right now. Still woozy. Sorry if the 'man funk's' getting to you."
All he could do right now is let her work from the top to the bottom while he focused on baseball and cold winter days and anything else flaccid inducing.
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 13, 2012 1:04:44 GMT -8
Delilah at present"  "...THAT speaks volumes of the kind of person you are when the chips are down Lilah." She couldn't help but look sheepish at his praise which had very much touched her. It wasn't often her...work, if you wanted to call it that, was appreciated. And by someone who knew his way around a fight too. She put a light hand on his shoulder, smiling at him. "Thank you, Marcus.""Think I might have to wait on the shower. I don't really trust myself to stand right now. Still woozy. Sorry if the 'man funk's' getting to you." She tilted her head slightly to the side at that. Was that a little forced? Considering his injuries, she thought perhaps not, so she went with it. "Bah, a little sweat never hurt anyone."
Her tired mind almost half-assed an inappropriate thought to go along with that statement before she promptly crushed it.
She turned from him for a moment to unwind the gauze from the roll sitting on the night stand and shred it into strips with her hands. She did the same with several pieces of cotton cloth, two strips of which she soaked in alcohol. Assured she had her supplies, she sat down on the edge of the bed with her upper body turned towards his. Gently, she rolled down the blanket covering him and had a look at the bandages lining his torso, flicking her blue eyed gaze up to his, sympathetic. "I won't lie. This is gonna hurt," she would say as she started to peel the gauze and the cotton bandages off the areas that had severe road rash. The skin and the wound around it would lift as she pulled the fabric, prying it up as gently as she could to prevent too much tearing of the new skin that was trying to grow.
"There we go," she said as she pulled it all off and put the dirty bandages on the bed beside her. She began dabbing lightly at the wounds (which had looked worse with all the dirt and rocks and blood in them last night, but they still made her bite her lip in sympathy), using butterfly light touches to minimize the pain as much as she could. "How'd you sleep?" |
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 13, 2012 1:45:56 GMT -8
'Not gonna lie. Out of all the times I've ever had the chance to flirt with a girl, This is the first time under such.....interesting circumstances.'
"I won't lie. This is gonna hurt,"
"Heh, good thing pain and I are old friends."
This badass boast was immediatly ruined by a long keening yelp that escaped Marcus. It was like ripping a bandaid off but a thousand times worse! His entire body shuddered from the pain as he began to breath deeply through clenched teeth, emitting a low almost dangerous sounding hiss. The fresh air just made the surface of his tortured flesh ache with a dull burn and even under Delilah's delicate ministrations he winced and spasmed each and every time Delilah dabbed his wounds.
"How did I sleep?"
Marcus repeated with a shrug. So focused on keeping the pain at bay, He almost didnt hear her question and had to rely on the age old trick of repeating what he last heard back at her. He turned to her just in time to see her bite her lip, which got him all tingly feeling all over again.
"Like a babey oddly enough. I blame the ocean. Speaking of! So this is a safe house huh? I've been in a safehouse before and it was a bloody dump. This place? This place should be in the next episode of 'Cribs'. I mean dayum girl, I feel like I gotta worry about paying the damage deposite just sitting in this bed."
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 13, 2012 2:01:33 GMT -8
"How did I sleep? Like a babey oddly enough. I blame the ocean. Speaking of! So this is a safe house huh? I've been in a safehouse before and it was a bloody dump. This place? This place should be in the next episode of 'Cribs'. I mean dayum girl, I feel like I gotta worry about paying the damage deposite just sitting in this bed."
She chuckled, an action that seized the aching muscles surrounding her ribs. Wincing, she brought a hand to her side before returning to her work, trying to ignore the spasming. Marcus was clearly having a tough time of it himself and he was coping. A good example to follow.
"Yep. It used to belong to my family: a weekend beach home. I don't remember if I mentioned, but my parents were loaded. When 'Unfettered' and his crew broke me out of the mental asylum, I gave them the house as a thank you, and then he joined the Crows, so it became theirs.
"It's different from the other safehouses as those are just meeting places. One is an old cafe, the other is a run down fish merchants shed, places like that. This one is for emergencies and extended stays: in case an operative gets trapped in Barker territory, they have somewhere to go and hide out for a day or two.
"But you said you'd been in a safehouse before? How did that happen?" she had started absently wiping the bits of blood and grime from his chest and neck with the alcohol soaked pads, working her way up to his jaw.
|
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 13, 2012 2:34:25 GMT -8
Well shit! So she was a crow to boot? Marcus searched his memory banks to see if she had mentioned this before, just in case but came up negative. He had to admit though, it was getting harder and harder to think what with Lilah getting alittle more intimate with her cleaning duties so to speak. It was funny, in any other situation this right here, her cleaning the wounds on his chest, neck and whoops, even his face could be considered romantic in a rather oddball way.
Wait a minute, what the fuck mental asylum?!!??!?!?
Marcus looked visably surprised at that, but tactfully kept quiet.
Lilah was lucky though, if she hand't mentioned Unfettered already, then Marcus would have been far more evasive in answering her question out of respect for the Crows.
"Heh, that's actualy a rather interesting story. Met up with this guy in a wheelchair who turned out to be 259's ex principal his name was.....something middle eastern.....Asif? Asiv? Something like that. He had muscle with him. Some guy in a mask named John. Next thing I know a joker in a black longcoat and fedora come flying in out of nowhere and says his name is Green. He chats with Asiv for awhile before claiming we were all in danger and had to go with him. Next thing I know, Seaside Warehouse safehouse that used to belong to Barker. Still coated in a fresh layer of blood and gore in fact. Green and Asiv spew some exposition for awhile when suddenly weigh hey! In pops Unfettered. We shake hands, hammer out some odds and sods and before I know it, I'm an official unoffical Member of the Crows."
Marcus was now painfully aware that he was staring into her ocean blue eyes. He knew this was kinda on the far side of rude but it was hard not simply allowing yourself to just get lost amongst the depths of her eyes.
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 13, 2012 12:30:08 GMT -8
The second Marcus mentioned Asiv, Delilah looked up at him sharply, earning her a stern protest from her aching back. That went away when he mentioned "Green" who was a dear friend of hers and she smiled at that: "Green" Must have thought Marcus was quite the man, too.
Her face split into a lopsided grin as he brought up "Unfettered". Well, well. It looks like Marcus had already been scouted and picked up. That wasn't surprising, but it warmed her greatly to know that it had been dealt with. She'd seen him in action herself, and the wily German had files upon files of everyone and everything in the history of ever. Their meeting might have been an accident, but having him join, she knew, was not. Leon's protege, handsome in a rugged sort of way, smart, hilarious and with a wicked sense of adventure and improvisation. Who wouldn't want him? A question she was asking herself right now.
She noticed a few seconds too late that her stare was lingering on his mellow brown eyes, her hand resting lightly on the nape of his neck where she had stopped her work. She found herself leaning forward slightly, her heart rate quickening, a warm flush on her cheeks.
Then her injured arm - the one she had been cleaning him up with- went into severe spasms and she withdrew with a cry, her face screwed up in pain as she clenched the injured limb tightly. Delilah would sit there a moment, her breath hissing between her teeth as she pulled the sleeve of her shirt down off her shoulder and massaged the area before slowly reopening her eyes.
"Uh...I think I've let the wounds air out enough now," she would say in a slightly higher pitched voice. Still blushing furiously (and furious with herself for many reasons), she focused on re bandaging him with the single minded attentiveness that came with someone who had too many PRIORITIES.
|
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 13, 2012 23:14:26 GMT -8
"Actualy yeah, I was gonna say if you had an ice pack, that it would be the best thing for that shoulder, huh. Ya know....keep the swelling down."
Actualy she might want to make it two depending on how his bad his groin was considering he had pulled it earlier. Marcus had to admit, he was definatly liking the direction this was going. Delilah seemed pretty 'in' to him which definatly gave his self confidence a boost. He was patient though and luckily so, cause it seemed to be the best approach for her. Still, he was THAAAAAAAT close to getting that kiss.
'Awwww, she looks so cute when she's flustered!'
Who was he to judge though, he went mighty red when he felt her hand caress the back of his neck.
He chuckled deeply and good naturely at her as she continued to rebandage him. He kind of wished he didnt let slip about his folks though, thinking about them put him in a sombre mood. Plus it seemed that all he had ever talked about was depressing things anyway. He needed to boost the overall mood alittle.
"Ya know I have to admit. Meeting Unfettered for as short a time as I have, I like him. Very cool customer like. And he's got that 'Don't worry, everythings gonna be alirght' kind of aura about him."
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 13, 2012 23:42:44 GMT -8
"Actualy yeah, I was gonna say if you had an ice pack, that it would be the best thing for that shoulder, huh. Ya know....keep the swelling down."
"Not a bad idea, but I think I'll finish working on you first." she said with a light chuckle as she started to regain herself. Either Marcus hadn't noticed her little lapse of control or he was too nice to bring it up.
Fuuuck, am I in troubllllleeee.
"Ya know I have to admit. Meeting Unfettered for as short a time as I have, I like him. Very cool customer like. And he's got that 'Don't worry, everythings gonna be alirght' kind of aura about him."
Well of course she smiled at that. It resonated with her own thoughts about the white haired man quite nicely. "That was what drew me to him in the first place, to be honest with you." she admitted as she continued her work. "Well that and my then boyfriend had joined 'Militia' to keep his little sister safe," she winced for a moment here, not from pain but from a memory. She pushed it into the back of her mind. "At the time, I didn't want anything to do with gangs or wars or any of that. But I changed my tune after I had a couple chats with him. He earned my respect and my trust and I haven't looked back since. He was there when I was half-dead when they got me out of the asylum and he was there when I gave birth to Oliver. That man is like a brother to me. I owe him much.
"There," she declared as she finished wrapping the gauze around him to secure the new bandages. "You're all sewn up again for the time being." She looked back at him, a small, shy smile adorning her lips. "Anything else you need me to tend before I take a quick shower?" she jerked her head in the direction of the ensuite bathroom.
|
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 14, 2012 0:08:50 GMT -8
Marcus nodded along to the story Delilah was weaving. He felt a pang of familiarity with her 'then' boyfriend, knowing full well the kind of decision came with wanting to protect someone you loved. His ex Kelsie was a woman he devoted almost his entire school life caring for and trying (in vain if truth be told) to keep her safe.
When a shadow from a memory passed over her face, Marcus didn't hesitate to slowly reach out and give her hand a reassuring squeeze. As he had said before, he was no stranger to pain. Even the kind that came from memories.
When she brought up the asylum again, it perked the man's curiosity so hard that he finaly made up his mind and figured he might as well ask about it at the next oppourtunity.
"There, You're all sewn up again for the time being."
He had to admit, he liked the clean feeling of fresh bandages. It's like putting on a fresh pair of underwear that just came out of the dryer. Marcus looked up at his host and quite literaly felt his heart swell and tighten at the ABSOLUTLEY HRRRRRRNNGGGG INDUCING WAY SHE WAS SMILING AT HIM!
If he could somehow find a way to weaponize such cuteness, then Barker didn't stand a chance.
Like His best friend Silk had said. Marcus had traveled for months alone to get to California and though He WAS aching for some company, this was like spraying a thirsty man with a fire hose.
"Anything else you need me to tend before I take a quick shower?"
Marcus didn't even miss a beat.
"Nothing that wouldn't catch me a good slap, or worse."
He said gently with a good chuckle.
"Though I have to admit, that's the second time you mentioned an Asylum and seriously, you piqued my interest with that."
|
|
|
|
Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 14, 2012 0:49:38 GMT -8
"Nothing that wouldn't catch me a good slap, or worse."
And que the blush.
So. He was looking at her that way. It hadn't been her imagination or just the fact that a guy hadn't looked at her like that in a really long time. What was more, he found her appealing?! Of course, that had made sense in Stu's case as she was weird and he was into weird, but Marcus was flirting it up with her and she was returning the sentiment and he didn't even balk at it which was so far out of her area of expertise she was surprised she was actually lacking in that area. It had just been so long since she had that kind of attention, she just...forgot what it was like. AND on top of that, she was a mother of one. Usually, that made girls a social pariah of sorts, the kind most guys stayed away from.
Looking down at the large hand covering her slender one, she could almost safely say that it was a good feeling, but she still felt like something was holding her back. Still, she made no move to take his hand from hers.
"Though I have to admit, that's the second time you mentioned an Asylum and seriously, you piqued my interest with that."
OH GLORIOUS SUBJECT CHANGE WHERE WOULD WE BE WITHOUT YOU?
She blinked as she realized she had mentioned it twice. Well, it was worth an explanation. It was kind of a depressing story, but she was over it now. It was okay for her to tell. "Remember when I mentioned I'd been to prison? Well, my cell mates...they ah, lets see how to put this. Took advantage of me? Yeah, I guess that fits. Anyway, I went berserk. Killed one and seriously injured the other two. Thing was, it messed me up so bad that I blocked it out. The wardens were understandably worried: It was the first time I killed anyone period, and I had been calm up until that point. After, I started attacking anyone and everyone who came near me, just lashing out. So, they sent me to the asylum to make sure I wasn't insane.
"I was there for about a week, getting better, less angry. I still didn't remember what happened, but that was probably for the best. Then I went for a group therapy session, and who should I see there but my mother..." she laughed, a dry hollow sound with absolutely no humour. Still, she wouldn't look upset. "I overheard the conversation before they figured this would be a bad idea. She had my dad killed when I was younger so she could pay off a debt of some kind. I'm not sure what it was, but I do know I was included in that deal. I managed to avoid it at the time. She didn't have the guts to do it again, so she faked her own death and I had to arrange the funeral in England. I was seventeen.
"So, imagine my surprise when I see her sitting there, pretty as you please, explaining this to the group and that the guilt made her insane. I saw her as I went into the room and she saw me. I snapped, again. I nearly killed her and the two guards trying to restrain me. That's how I got this one," She pointed out a long gash on her arm. Her eyes had the far away look of revisiting an old memory, not the pleasant kind, but not the kind that could hurt you any more either.
"But then I remembered. All of it. And I suddenly couldn't live with myself. I ate because they made me, I moved when they wanted me to, but for three weeks, I had nothing to live for anymore and I started to waste away. You should have seen it, I looked like an Auschwitz victim. 'Unfettered' sent his people for me before it was too late and gave me that tiny bit of hope all that crap had snuffed out. I made it out with them, although it was pretty damn hard to walk. My muscles had atrophied a lot by then. Not long after getting out, I found out I was pregnant, and the rest you know." she shook the memory free of her mind and looked back at him, smiling again but with raised eyebrows.
"Does that answer your question?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Marcus Prasad on Oct 14, 2012 3:00:35 GMT -8
"And how."
The man said quietly. Well that was definatly alot to chew over. Most people would probably feel pity for the young woman. Instead what Marcus felt was something more akin to the kind of respect two grizzled soldiers share during drinks in a legion pub after swapping stories, reaffirming to each other that yes indeed, they have both gone through hell and back to get to where they were today.
Realizing he still had his hand on Delilahs, he gave it another squeeze before running it through his shaggy mane of hair, which immediatly reminded him that he had no clue where his clothes were. Well, that wasn't quite important right now.
"Alright. You should go shower. I'm gonna see if a nice nap will be just what I need to get me on my feet and at least shuffling around. Gonna have to zombie walk for a few days after this......Hey, could you put on another pot of soup for me before you go? I can feel my appatite starting to wake up again."
|
|
