((OOC: this thread takes place right after the brawl, once Tarin and Lee get back to their apartment.))


For some reason, Lee just didn't feel clean yet. She'd already been in the shower...well, she wasn't exactly sure how long; she'd washed her hair three times already, scrubbed with soap and the hot water coming from the shower head four times. She couldn't see any blood on her any more, but she could feel it on her skin. Her fingers had long since turned to prunes, she'd been under the water for so long.

Lee didn't even know that she was crying until a sob broke from her throat. The tears had probably been running down her cheeks, mixed with the water from the shower, for minutes unnoticed by the time the first sob broke through. And then another.

Columbia had been bad, seeing Tarin get stabbed, seeing him bleeding, the life pouring away from him before Slate had healed him...

And then there was Florida...

But today had gone so much beyond those, so much beyond what they were like combined. It was like the breakout from the camp all over again, only Lee had actually seen people dying this time, had held them as they died...And if it hadn't been for Slate being there...

Another sob, louder than the rest, tore through Lee's throat as she felt her legs start to shake. There was really only so much that a person could deal with, and while Lee prided herself on being a strong person, with how short a time period everything had happened to her recently was just too much even for her.

Lee reached for the soap and started scrubbing at her arms again. Why did it feel that the blood was still there, even though she couldn't see it? She couldn't feel it with her fingers, but against her skin she could feel it sitting there, drying, pulling uncomfortably as she moved.

And then Lee's scrubbing reached the already forming bruise on her shoulder from where the skull had hit her. Inhaling sharply at the pressure the soap put on the bruise, yet another sob emerged as Lee saw again the head flying toward her, felt it hit her shoulder, felt and heard the blood splattering over her....

Shaking her head, Lee went to take a step back in the tub. Maybe if she wasn't standing right under the water, the soap would work better, would be able to lather more and get the blood off before it was washed off her skin. Lee's legs didn't listen to that idea, though. Well, they did, her left leg started moving backward, but as soon as her weight was off her foot, her right leg wouldn't support her weight any more. Collapsing to the floor of the tub, the soap fell out of her hand and hit a second later with another thud of its own before sliding back and forth a few times.

That was it, though. Rather than attempting to get back up, Lee simply sat there, sobs racking from her throat as the tears streamed down her face, mingling and getting lost in the water that was still hitting her from above.

Tarin had decided quite some time ago that he was far too good at washing blood off of himself. The clothes that Tarin had worn to King Pharmaceuticals were ruined and would be thrown in the trash as soon as he got out of the shower, Tarin decided as he rinsed the second wash of shampoo from his hair before turning the water off. There was no point in keeping them, the blood wasn’t going to come out. Thinking about the blood made Tarin remember the kind of shape Luke had been in before the spirit had taken him to Slate. It had been bad, he shuddered. So many people had gotten hurt, and if it hadn’t been for Slate… Tarin took a deep breath and grabbed his towel, drying off before wrapping it around his waist and making his way out of the guest room and across the apartment into the master’s bedroom.

Lee was still in the shower, but Tarin didn’t think anything of it, she’d been dealing directly with the wounded girl…and that girl had bled a lot. The ride home had been quiet, like it always was after things like this happened. Lee hadn’t been talking and Tarin had watched her carefully for a while before giving up and wondering why the ride seemed so much longer on the way home. Out of the dresser Tarin pulled a pair of shorts and a white undershirt, already deciding that they weren’t going to open the shop up the next day. There would just be a few phone calls to make. Then he heard the solid thud of a body hitting the ground, followed by a smaller thud and sobs.

Tarin stood in one place for a moment, Lee never cried. Something was seriously wrong, then he launched into motion, flying into the bathroom. Luckily Lee had left the door unlocked and as soon as he made it into the room he realized the sound had indeed been Lee’s body hitting the floor of the tub.

Into the shower Tarin went, completely oblivious of the fact that he was still clothed and that the water was still running. “Lee! Lee, are you alright…what happened?” he said, voice quiet as he wrapped his arms around his wife and slipped slightly too, ending up on his rear in the bottom of the tub, still tugging her into his lap as she sobbed.

Tarin was at almost a complete loss, Lee didn’t break down like this, what was he supposed to do? Instinct kicked in slightly, though, and he rocked her, reaching up to slowly turn the water off, even though they were both soaked. “It’s alright…” he said, over and over, hoping she would calm and looking to see if he could find Lee’s towel.

Lee didn't hear the door opening to the bathroom, and wasn't paying attention enough to notice the energy she was siphoning growing as Tarin got closer to her. If she was alone, it was normally an automatic reaction feeling someone getting closer, but she was just too distracted this time to feel it.

She didn't even fully notice the shower curtain being pulled aside as Tarin looked in at her. She had curled up into a ball on the floor of the tub, her arms wrapped tightly around her legs as she continued to cry.

And then Lee felt arms around her, pulling her. At first she jumped, but then she saw through her tear blurred eyes that it was Tarin, and without even thinking about it she threw her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder, as she started to cry harder.

She didn't fight him getting her into his lap, but other than her arms going around his neck, her body didn't exactly seem to want to listen to her at the moment.

The water had probably been off for a minute or so, Tarin rocking her back and forth, before she had noticed that fact, and she only did because she was getting cold. Without the hot water constantly hitting her, the room felt chill.

Sniffling, Lee reached her hand up and wiped the water and tears from her face, despite the fact that they were still falling. She was starting to shiver as they sat there, too. "I c-can't get i-it off..." Lee said, her arms tightening around Tarin, though her words may or may not have been understandable through the crying. "The b-blood won't go aw-way."

It didn’t work, the rocking and the shushing and the petting didn’t work. Wasn’t that supposed to work when your wife was crying in the bottom of your tub? Lee’s arms wrapped around his neck and Tarin found himself struggling slightly to breathe, she was still charged up from the fight and was holding tight. His arms wrapped around her bare back and Tarin just held Lee close for a while, hoping she’d manage to cry herself out. It didn’t happen. If anything, Lee was crying harder than she had been before.

Tarin started to worry, he had no idea how long she’d been crying like this, but something was seriously wrong with Lee. It had finally happened, what Tarin had worried about since Colombia, she’d snapped. Lee had completely snapped and Tarin didn’t have a clue what to do. Lee shivered and leaned back and started wiping at her face, water and tears mingling together as she scrubbed her face with the palms of her hands. Then she started rambling, rambling about blood and how she couldn’t get it off.

Tarin leaned back slightly, eyes roaming over Lee’s body, there was nothing sexual in the act, he was simply seeing if what she said was true. It wasn’t. Real fear ran through him then, but Lee was already so inconsolable he didn’t want to make it worse. “It’s okay Lee, you did get it off…let’s get you out of here.”

That said, Tarin gently unwrapped himself from Lee and climbed from the tub, reaching back in and picking her up and out of the tub. From there, he stood her on her feet, still supporting her weight and grabbed the towel Lee had gotten when she’d come in to take a shower. Once she was wrapped up, Tarin picked her up and carried her out into the bedroom, sinking down on the bed to resume the cuddling that had started in the bathroom. “What can I do?” he whispered into her hair after a few moments, he hoped she had an idea…because Tarin was clueless.

Lee heard Tarin say that she'd gotten all the blood. She simply shook her head, the tears starting to fall heavier as she felt him moving away from her. At least the sobbing wasn't returning in full force.

"Can still feel it," she said, still shaking her head even as Tarin was climbing out of the tub. Then he was lifting her up and out of the tub, standing her on her shaky legs as he wrapped a towel around her. That was a bit better, at least, a bit of warmth against the chill of the bathroom. It was probably a very good thing that he was supporting her weight, otherwise she would likely have hit the floor once again.

And as she stood there, while Tarin was wrapping the towel around her, Lee started rubbing her hand up and down her arm. Firmly. "It's still there," Lee told Tarin as she felt him picking her up in his arms again. The tears were still running freely down her cheeks, but at least her words were becoming easier to understand. "It wouldn't wash off," she continued, now both hands rubbing up and down her arms.

Then as Tarin sat them down on the bed, his arms wrapping around her once again, Lee looked up into his eyes. "I can still feel it."

He was hugging her now, though, his arms wrapping around her, and his lips pressed against her wet hair. Lee's arms, meanwhile, were pressing against her stomach, her hands running up and down still. Then she heard Tarin's question.

Squeezing her eyes closed, more tears started running as she bit her lip. "Make it stop," Lee said, her voice barely a whisper. "I can't do it any more. I don't want to remember it any more..."

Lee kept repeating over and over again that she could still feel the blood on her. Tarin had looked, there wasn’t blood anywhere on her body…but Lee didn’t get it, she was rubbing at her arms over and over talking about how it was still there and she could still feel it. God, she was still crying too.

Tarin was soaking wet, shuddering slightly from either the chill in the room or from what was happening to Lee as they sat in their room alone. Lee looked into his eyes and commented again that she could still feel the blood on her and Tarin realized that she was dead serious… he looked away, “Okay Lee…it’s okay. You’ve got to stop rubbing at your arms though…you’re going to hurt yourself.” Tarin’s words were true, Lee’s arms were bright red from where she’d been rubbing them through the towel. As always when Lee had a lot of energy, Tarin had a feeling he wouldn’t be able to stop Lee from doing something she really wanted to do, but hopefully she wasn’t thinking about that.

Her hands left her arms, and Tarin thought for a moment that maybe he’d gotten through to Lee, only to see her wrap her arms around her stomach and start rubbing there. The she was asking him to make it stop, to make her stop remembering what had happened. Suddenly, harsh and horrible guilt washed over Tarin like a tidal wave. His wife was having some sort of nervous breakdown, and it had to be from the stress of everything that had happened over the past months…hell the past couple of years. Normal people could only take so much.

“Oh Lee, I’m so sorry…” he said, finding her wrists and pulling her hands from her stomach, “You’ve got to stop this though. You’re just tired, you need to calm down, it’ll be better in the morning…” Tarin didn’t know if he was telling his wife the truth, and he almost hated himself for not knowing if he was telling the truth…this was extreme though, something had to give.

Tarin ran through who he could call in his head, Slate was out of question because he had to be working at the battle site still, the Doc at the mansion was surely in the same boat. He’d wait until morning…everything would be better by morning. It had to be…until then, he’d just have to do what he could to calm her down. “Tell me what to do…”

Tarin was telling her that she needed to stop rubbing her arms. But how else was she going to get the blood off? It hadn't washed off in the shower, even though it always had washed off in the shower before. Always before, she would have a shower after things happened, and the blood would be gone, that was it.

But not this time.

Scrubbing with soap four times, shampooing three times hadn't gotten rid of the blood, rubbing her arms now wasn't making it go away.

The only reason Lee let Tarin grab her wrists and pull them away from where she was rubbing was because she didn't know what else to do to get rid of the blood on her.

Then Tarin was telling her that she was just tired, that things would be better in the morning. For a moment, she just sat there, looking at Tarin, his hands holding her wrists with tears sitting in her eyes. Then she shook her head again. She wasn't tired, though. She had too much energy to sleep, even if she'd be able to handle having her eyes closed for that long anyway. Plus, she'd slept the night before, hadn't she?

Well, she was pretty sure that she had slept the night before. That memory was rather hidden behind all the horrors that were flashing in front of her eyes, but she seemed to recall having slept the previous night. Not that it was overly restful, but then again sleep never really was restful for her; that was difficult when you couldn't wake up feeling rested from the sleep. But she had slept.

Then Tarin was asking that question again. Hadn't she told him what to do? She'd said for him to make it stop, that was all she needed. That and for the blood to go away.

But Tarin was still holding her wrists, so as the tears started running again, silently this time, she leaned over, her head resting on his shoulder, her forehead pressing against his neck. Her eyes were wide open, though. To close them only brought the images into clearer focus.

"I just want it to go away," Lee finally said, a wobble coming into her voice again. He was asking what to do, that was the only thing that she needed none, and she couldn't seem to do it herself.

Nothing was working, Lee was still rambling about the blood, and there was a frantic look in her eyes that told Tarin that nothing he was saying was getting through. Lee was sitting still, eyes practically vacant as they sat on the end of the bed and she worried about invisible blood that wouldn’t come off of her. She wasn’t calming down, and Tarin realized with a sick, sinking feeling that she wasn’t going to calm down any time soon.

He’d asked what he could do to, and all that Lee could tell him was that he needed to make it go away. The words were smothered slightly by his shoulder and shirt, but the message still got across. How was he going to help her, though? Slate was busy, and Doc Prof had to be in the same position at the mansion. Then a thought occurred to him, the labs. He and Lee had been there recently for the business meeting with Slate. There was surely a doctor there somewhere…maybe they could do something Tarin couldn’t.

Lee was still inconsolable, and Tarin kept his arms around her tight and rocked slowly back and forth as he argued back and forth with himself over what he should do. Taking Lee outside of their home meant openly admitting that he couldn’t help her. Lee was his wife, he knew her better than anyone else in the entire world…and he was completely useless to help her. That made the decision.

“Lee…I can make it go away…” Tarin said softly, voice slightly choked with emotion. “We just have to get you dressed.”

That said, he moved, setting Lee gently to the side and rising to grab her clothes. “Put these on…” he said, then quickly changed his own clothes, opting for Jeans and a simple t-shirt, then heading for the phone.

Ten minutes later, the arrangements had been made and the cab was on the way to take them to the labs. Tarin had explained who he was and almost immediately someone had appeared to help, all they had to do was get there.

“Come on Lee…” Tarin said, returning to the room, “I found someone who can help you get rid of the blood.”

Lee blinked and stiffened up slightly when Tarin said that he could make everything go away. If he could do that, why hadn't he yet? He'd been asking what he could do, and she told him. So if he could make everything go away, why was it all still there?

Then he said that she had to get dressed for him to make it go away, and Lee straightened up, frowning at Tarin. Why did she have to get dressed? Couldn't he just make everything go away for her here, now?

He was already moving her off his lap, though, standing up, moving over to her dresser. And then he was back with jeans and a tshirt, handing them to her. But she didn't take them right away. "It'll just get all bloody too," she told him in a slightly defeated voice. Really, how was she supposed to do anything if she would ruin anything she put on because of the blood?

But when she didn't grab the clothing from his hand right away, Tarin set in on the bed and turned back to his dresser.

He said he could help if she got dressed, though. That he could make it all go away. She just needed to get dressed.

Lee glanced at the clothing sitting beside her, then as the blood she still saw covering her arms, that was on her shoulders and legs because it had soaked through her clothing. She didn't want to have to ruin another outfit, but if she could only get rid of the blood by getting dressed like Tarin said...

Glancing up, Lee saw that Tarin wasn't in the room any more. She could hear his voice, though, which managed to stave off the panic that he'd left without her. Glancing back down at the clothing, Lee had a thought; the towel Tarin had wrapped around her was already covered, but maybe she'd be able to get at least some of the blood off before she got dressed so she didn't make as much of a mess.

And so Lee pulled the towel from around her body and started wiping, and then started wiping harder when she saw that the blood wasn't coming off.

By the time that Tarin had come back into the room, most of Lee's skin was reddened from the towel, her arms actually rubbed raw, as she stood there beside the bed. Tears, both of frustration and of slight pain, were standing in her eyes as she heard Tarin's voice. Biting her lip, Lee turned, the towel falling from her hand as she held her arms out to Tarin.

"None of it's coming off," she complained, her eyes absolutely brimming with tears again. "I'm going to ruin more clothing, and none of the blood is coming off."

Everything was set in motion. A car was coming from the labs to pick them up, Tarin was dressed and gathering a few things from around the apartment for Lee and she was getting dressed. At least that’s what Tarin thought was happening, until he walked back into the bedroom and realized that he never should have left her alone.

“Oh my god” Tarin said, stopping in the doorway of the bedroom and taking in the sight before him. Lee hadn’t gotten dressed at all. She was still standing in the middle of the room, completely nude and she’d rubbed her arms completely raw. “Okay…” he said, more to himself than to Lee, “It’s going to be okay…” then he moved into the room. The car was on the way, and somebody at the labs was going to be able to help.

Into the room, Tarin moved and took the towel from Lee, assuring her over and over that it was okay that the blood was getting onto things. The more he talked, the more helpless Tarin felt and the more upset he got. Getting her dressed was another small struggle, but finally Tarin managed to get Lee into the clothing he’d picked out before hand…but only after assuring her that even if the clothing was destroyed it would be okay because it was old and they could just throw it away.

Out of the apartment they went, Tarin grabbing the little sports bag he’d packed and guiding Lee out into the hall and down the stairs. Once at the car, there was another small argument when Lee was afraid to get the car dirty…but finally she was in the car and they were on their way to the labs.

Queens was a long way from where Tarin and Lee’s apartment was and Lee never settled down on the way, this was bad…really bad…and Tarin struggled to figure out exactly when the meltdown had occurred. Lee hadn’t exactly been fine after the fight, but she’d been the same as she always was after something bad happened. Tarin ran a hand through his hair and shook his head. Then the car stopped. They were at the labs…and there was one man in a lab coat waiting for them outside the doors.

“We’re there Lee…and that’s the man who’s going to help.” Tarin said, saying a little prayer that he was actually telling the truth.

Lee was fighting an internal struggle just as Tarin was fighting an external one trying to get her dressed. He had said that she needed to get dressed so that he'd help make everything go away. That was important, Lee knew that she needed to get dressed. But the problem was she was still covered, absolutely covered, in blood, despite the shower, despite all that rubbing with the towel.

When she had to clean up blood, she always threw on her oldest, rattiest clothing if she was able. If what she was already wearing wasn't already bloody, anyway.

That thought sent an image of a blood soaked bedroom before Lee's eyes, and she shuddered hard. At least that time, it had just been blood. An ungodly amount of blood, but just blood. However, after today, Lee's imagination was adding things to that image. Lee shuddered again as the image of the head was transposed to the memory of the bedroom when she had returned from Toronto.

Tarin was now pulling the tshirt over her head, and Lee protested, struggling slightly. If she had to ruin something, it should be old. This shirt wasn't old, was it? Lee thought she had only bought it a few months earlier.

By this point, Tarin already had the shirt over her head, though. There was already blood on it. It was too late. She stopped struggling.

Not much longer after that, Tarin was taking her down the stairs. At least that was good, the stairs were cement, they could be hosed off if any blood dripped. Not like the elevator.

Lee was biting her lip almost the entire way down. What if someone else came into the stairwell, what if they saw her covered in blood like this? What would they think, what would they do? So Lee kept trying to wipe the blood off her arms, wipe off the splatter she felt on her face, but every time her hand touched her skin, sometimes even before the contact, Lee felt Tarin's hand grabbing her, stopping her.

And then they were outside, and there was an expensive car waiting for them. Lee had gotten used to seeing these expensive cars sitting out front of the building, it was a richer area they were in now, but she faltered, and then pulled back when Tarin started leading her toward it.

This was too much. She would not ruin a car like this. Then she glanced around and flinched as she saw the number of people standing around. She couldn't ruin the car seat, but she couldn't stay out here, there were too many people. Some had already starting glancing their way, the rest would follow soon.

Even after she was sitting in the car and they were heading down the street, Lee didn't know how Tarin had gotten her there. She'd been so against getting in the car. But the images, and the feelings, and the memories...every time she blinked, there was something there. She needed to get rid of them. She needed to get this blood off her. Nothing was working, and every time she tried to wipe more off, Tarin would stop her, grabbing her hands.

Lee was actually crying about that, quietly, but still crying, by the time that the car stopped and Tarin said that they were there.

They were there and there was someone who could help her?! Looking out the window, Lee saw a man in a white coat standing there not far from the car.

Lee turned her teary eyes back to Tarin. "He can make it all go away?" She asked, completely oblivious to the fact that she sounded like a six year old at the moment.

Tarin was starting to have trouble dealing with what was going on. Lee was jabbering the whole way about the blood, getting the blood on things, and people seeing her covered in blood. Stress, Tarin had seen before. Hysterics, Tarin thought he could probably handle. Hallucinations…this was turning into a whole new ball game. Lee was convinced that she could see blood everywhere, even convinced that she was getting blood everywhere. The raw spots on her arms looked angry, and somehow all the way to the labs Tarin managed to keep Lee’s hands off them.

They were finally there though, and as they got out of the car, Tarin gave the driver a grateful look. The man didn’t even look back and Tarin had a feeling that discretion was one of the strong points of working with the labs. The man in the lab coat was standing there, waiting, and looked utterly nonplussed with the situation.

Lee looked at Tarin and asked him if the man could make it all go away and Tarin looked helplessly from his wife to the Doctor.

“I think I can.” The Doctor said, then instructed Tarin and Lee to follow him into the building.

The last time Tarin had been in this building had been for the business meeting that Slate had invited him and Lee to. Lee had been perfect that day, all haughty and full of good questions. Nothing had suggested that just a few weeks later she’d be in the grips of what appeared to be a full nervous breakdown. At least she was more quiet now, maybe trusting that the people here at the labs were going to be able to help her. Finally, after what seemed like long walk into the bowels of the labs, they were in the infirmary.

It took some convincing to get Lee to even sit on one of the beds, but she finally did and Tarin walked away as she spoke with the Doctor for a few minutes. Walked away and found a chair to sink into while trying to deal with everything. The next time he looked up the doctor was there…explaining that they were going to sedate Lee and asking if Tarin wanted to go and sit by her while they did it. Tarin simply nodded mutely and made his way back to Lee.

“Hey darlin’” He said, sitting next to her on the bed and wrapping his arms back around her with no preamble and trying to talk over the huge lump in his throat, “The doctor is ready to help you out. You ready?”

Lee was growing nervous as they moved into the building. She needed rid of the memories, didn't want them flashing up in front of her any more like they were. And she needed help getting the blood off her. Almost unconsciously at that thought, Lee's free hand reached up to rub at her upper arm, trying to shed some of that blood.

Tarin said this man could help, could make it go away. But he was in a lab coat. Lee remembered all the doctors wearing lab coats that her parents had taken her to. They'd all said they thought they could help too. And all they'd done was poke needles into her, and then give excuses.

They hadn't helped at all.

Then there was DocProf in that coat of his. Trying to help, but not doing a thing while Tarin had laid in a coma for a month. Lee sniffled.

Finally, they were in an infirmary room. Lee couldn't be sure whether it was the same one, but she had an image of Tarin laying there, on the far side of the room, unconscious. Unconscious because she had siphoned more energy from him than she had at any other time. Covered in blood, and mud, and who knew what else from when they had collapsed to the ground repeatedly.

Lee shuddered at that memory.

At least they were out of white, sterile looking hallways, she couldn't get those dirty any more. But Tarin was trying to get her up on the bed.

The white, crisp, clean bed. Lee shook her head vehemently. But Tarin pointed out that hospital beds were made to get dirty, were expected to get bloodied. How else would the doctors help people?

It made sense, and reluctantly Lee got up on the bed. Only to have Tarin walk away as the doctor started talking to her. Asking her questions. And actually voicing those answered brought the tears back. But he could help, right? Tarin said he could. The man kept saying he could.

And then the doctor told her to just relax, and went to go talk to Tarin. But how could she relax when every time she closed her eyes she saw images of blood, of gore, of death?

Of Tarin laying there in the hot dust, bleeding to death in her arms. A soft sob tore through her throat as Tarin got back to his feet.

And then Tarin was there, wrapping his arms around her. "He's going to make it all go away, right?" Lee asked, turning her tear filled eyes up to Tarin again. "No more blood?"

How was he supposed to look at Lee, panicked and tortured as she was and promise that the doctor was going to be able to help her, make the blood go away. That’s not what was going to happen, they were going to sedate her and hope that rest would help the situation kind of solve itself. Tarin knew what he had to say, though, and he nodded his head slowly, “Yes Lee…he’s going to give you a shot, and it’s going to make you calm down enough that the other things the need to do will work.”

Lee didn’t like the idea of the shot, and for a moment Tarin thought that he was going to have to hold her down as the doctor approached, but she stopped fighting and held still at the prime moment. The sedative worked fast, and before Tarin could really think about much of anything, Lee’s eyes were starting to get heavy and she was sagging against him.

With as strong as Lee was most of the time, it never ceased to amaze Tarin just how tiny she really was. Her arms looked so thin and so raw where they poked out from underneath the short sleeves of the t-shirt he’d gotten for her, and she felt like nearly nothing as she leaned against him.

“Mr. Brooks…” The Doctor said, from where he was hovering next to the bed, and Tarin struggled to remember the name he’d given as he looked up. “I’m sorry, but I need you to get up.” Tarin frowned, but nodded and took a few steps away from the bed after making sure Lee was comfortably situated. Then he watched in mute horror as the doctor moved forward and wrapped soft looking cuffs around Lee’s wrists. “What the hell are you doing?!” he exclaimed, moving forward. The doctor was again, nonplussed and simply shook his head, “Mr. Brooks, you see her arms as clearly as I do. If she wakes up and is lucid, we’ll simply remove them. Otherwise, this is best for her.”

The man was right, as damming as it was, the man was right and as he walked away, Tarin sank down into the single chair next to Lee’s bed and tilted his head back against the wall, she’d be okay when she woke up. She had to be.

Tarin was there. He was there and telling her that the doctor had to give her a shot so he could do things to make her better.

Lee shook her head. She didn't like needles. She could deal with them, but didn't like them. Why did the doctor have to give her a needle? Couldn't he just make everything go away? Isn't that why he was a doctor?

She was still shaking her head as the doctor approached with that needle. But she needed everything to go away. If this was how they had to do it...

With her lower lip quivering a bit, a remnant of the crying combined with her not wanting the needle, Lee stayed still until after she felt the stabbing of the needle disappear.

Not long after the needle, Lee felt her eyes getting heavy. She shook her head, feeling her cheek pressing against Tarin's shoulder as she moved. She hadn't been leaning on Tarin, had she? He'd just been holding her, right?

But her eye lids were getting heavier and heavier, harder to keep open. "I don't want to sleep," she murmured, her words slightly slurred from the sedative. "Don't want to see what's there..."

Lee didn't have much of a choice, though, since a few moments later she sunk completely down into unconsciousness.

*********

It felt like Lee was under water. Or maybe buried. It was dark. It was hard to get a breath. She couldn't move. But somehow, despite that, it felt like she was raising, moving up. It was still dark, but not as dark as it was. Maybe a dark grey now, instead of solid black.

She still couldn't move, though.

And then Lee felt something on her face. Something light, but it tugged slightly, almost as if she had walked through a cobweb and a strand was still stuck across her face.

With a start, she remembered the blood that had splattered across her face, and Lee sat up. Or at least she tried to. When she moved, she got dizzy, light headed, and she couldn't move her arms, they were just kind of stuck to her sides. But there was light now. Bright, blindingly white light.

"Where am I?" Lee asked, her worry and slight panic marred by her grogginess. She tried to move again, and found that her arms wouldn't reach up to her face. She could move them now, but there was something around her wrists, holding them. "Tarin? What's going on?"