Crazy in Love Chapter Seven
Chapter Seven
When she woke up the cold grey light of morning was streaming through the shades of her window. She stretched out in her bed, feeling better than she had in a while. She reached out, almost unconsciously seeking out Nick. But her bed was cold and the place where Nick had been was empty, the crumpled sheets the only sign he was ever there. Images of the night before flashed through her mind, the way he smelled, the feel of him. She wanted to be glad he was gone. It was better this way, she had been on her own for most of her life, no reason that should change now. She tried not to think about him, the sound of his voice, the way he looked at her. He was a Grimm, it would never work out. She had been playing him and that was all. It was ridiculous she had ever allowed herself to entertain thoughts to the contrary. She got dressed and wondered if she would see him again. She supposed there was a chance she would see him around. Not that it mattered; his absence was a clear indication of how he felt about her. At least it had turned out better than she would have expected an encounter with a Grimm to go. She put her hand against her stomach thinking about what this would mean for their child. She had grown up without a father and she had turned out fine. Maybe not fine exactly, but she was self-sufficient and her child wouldn’t have a mother that was a cold hearted bitch. That had to count for something. She walked out of her bedroom and into her living room.
It turned out she would see Nick a lot sooner than she had thought. The sound of dishes clicking and the smell of something cooking hit her as soon as she entered the room. She walked into the kitchen to find Nick making breakfast. He didn’t look up when she entered the room, but she saw the way his shoulders tensed, the only indication that he knew he was no longer alone.
“Morning.” His voice was still sleep rough and she could guess he hadn’t been up that much longer than her. Her heart beat a little faster when she heard his voice. Her hadn’t abandoned her, it would seem. Someone in her life had decided to stick around, that was a first.
“Good morning. I didn’t expect you to still be here.” Maybe it was a bad idea to admit it, but she wasn’t feeling quite herself around him. She was done trying to play the Grimm, she knew now without a doubt she was no longer the one in control, not since she had started feeling something she couldn’t quite explain for Nick. Or maybe it was something she didn’t want to explain.
“Did you sleep okay?”
“Yes, I did, thank you.” She lied. She hadn’t even gone a day before breaking her promise to be honest with him. “Sorry, quite badly, actually. I barely slept last night.”
His mouth turned down at the corners, “Me neither. I’m not sure what it was, but I couldn’t seem to sleep.” He looked back down at the pan and she slid up onto a chair next to the counter. They both politely didn’t acknowledge how awkward the situation was.
There was a long silence that stretched on long enough for Adalind to start to speak a few times, each time, deciding against it.
“How are you feeling? Any morning sickness?” Nick asked, the concern in his voice sounding genuine.
“No, not all. My mother said she never had a problem with that, and I’ve heard that sort of thing is genetic.” Speaking of her mother made her feel a little sick at the memory of her betrayal and she looked down, trying to hold back the flood of pain she felt. Her mother had taught her to always be strong, and that emotion was a weakness. It looked like Adalind had failed her mother in more ways than one.
He looked back at that, watching her appraisingly. Before looking away again. “We need to talk.”
There it was, the speech she had heard a million times. ‘This was great, you were great, but this was a one time thing. We had something special, but it’s time to move on.’ Usually she was the one giving it, not the one of the receiving end. And usually it didn’t make her stomach drop the way it didn’t when Nick said it. She took a breath and braced herself, she would act like she didn’t care. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing her hurt. Maybe this had all been a game, a way to pull her in just to cut her loose. Maybe he just wanted to hurt her, and maybe she deserved it.
“It isn’t safe for you here. Since you lost your powers you’re vulnerable. And I’m guessing there’s more than one person you pissed off. Once it gets around that you don’t have your powers anymore there might be a lot of wesen who want to take advantage of that. It isn’t safe for you to stay here, especially in your condition. I can’t protect you here. You need to pack a bag and come with me. You can stay with me. With everything that’s happened we need to find a more secure place to live, someone where no one can find us, if we don’t want them to. Until then my house will have to do. And I talked to Rosalee, she said you could stay at the spice shop if need be.”
She didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t phrased like a request. A part of her wanted to argue, to tell him to go to Hell, that she could take care of herself. But she knew he was right, she was vulnerable now, in a way she had never been before. But he was wrong about one thing; it wasn’t losing her powers that put her in danger. For the first time in her life she had something important to her, more important than her own wellbeing.
The thought of being with Nick, of seeing him every day, of not having to say goodbye, it was more appealing than she wanted to admit. She didn’t know if he planned on giving her a choice in the matter, but either way the answer would be yes.
She stood without responding for a beat, and it prompted him to look at her, a question in his eyes. “You want… to keep me safe?” She asked stupidly, it wasn’t the right response, but it was the only one she had at that moment.
“Of course I do. I don’t know what you did to me. I don’t know if it’s the lingering side effects of the spell, or something else. But I can’t stand the thought of you getting hurt. And if you are pregnant then your child is innocent. Whatever you may have done, that will never change.”
It hadn’t escaped her that he had said “if”. He still wasn’t sure he believed she was carrying his child, but all the same, he wanted to keep her safe. In her whole life no one had ever truly wanted to protect her. In her world a person’s investment in her only extended as far as she was able to do something for them. But Nick wanted to keep her safe, because he… what, he cared? The spell was broken, and yet here he was, offering her everything she had never known she wanted.
She didn’t know what to say, so she didn’t say anything, and Nick didn’t seem to need a response. Her corporation seemed a forgone conclusion to him.
They ate breakfast in relative silence. Beyond thanking Nick for his efforts there wasn’t much to say. She still found herself wanting to touch him, move closer to him. She wondered if Nick was feeling the same way. She knew it wasn’t the spell, her powers were gone, and with it the spell she had cast over them. It would appear there was another sort of magic at work here.
After breakfast she started to pack anything she would need. It was mostly just clothes. Packing made her realize how little she had that held sentimental value to her. She had things from her mother, brushes and items for spell work. She took the latter, because it could be valuable, not because of any lingering emotion she held for her mother. There were no pictures that she needed to take, there was no one in her life that she wanted to remember or needed a reminder of, no one except for Nick. And, it would appear, he wasn’t going anywhere. Nick waited for her in the living room. She didn’t know what she would do with the things that remained or with her apartment for that matter. She supposed it would depend on how it all worked out. She would keep it for the time being so that she would have a place to go… just in case. But it felt empty and hollow to her now, devoid of anything meaningful. She had always lived a transient life, never strongly tied to anyone or anything. Looking back now, the idea suddenly felt pointless.
When she was done she had one bag with her clothes and another with what remained of the hexenbeist she had been - vials, books, and the like. Perhaps Rosalee could make use of it.
“Ready?” Nick asked and reached out to take her bags from her. She nodded her assent and followed him outside. She took the time to lock up before she went and took one last look at the home she had known. It felt like she was leaving behind more than just the life she had known, she was leaving behind a part of who she was. It should be sad, but right now all she felt was free.
When she woke up the cold grey light of morning was streaming through the shades of her window. She stretched out in her bed, feeling better than she had in a while. She reached out, almost unconsciously seeking out Nick. But her bed was cold and the place where Nick had been was empty, the crumpled sheets the only sign he was ever there. Images of the night before flashed through her mind, the way he smelled, the feel of him. She wanted to be glad he was gone. It was better this way, she had been on her own for most of her life, no reason that should change now. She tried not to think about him, the sound of his voice, the way he looked at her. He was a Grimm, it would never work out. She had been playing him and that was all. It was ridiculous she had ever allowed herself to entertain thoughts to the contrary. She got dressed and wondered if she would see him again. She supposed there was a chance she would see him around. Not that it mattered; his absence was a clear indication of how he felt about her. At least it had turned out better than she would have expected an encounter with a Grimm to go. She put her hand against her stomach thinking about what this would mean for their child. She had grown up without a father and she had turned out fine. Maybe not fine exactly, but she was self-sufficient and her child wouldn’t have a mother that was a cold hearted bitch. That had to count for something. She walked out of her bedroom and into her living room.
It turned out she would see Nick a lot sooner than she had thought. The sound of dishes clicking and the smell of something cooking hit her as soon as she entered the room. She walked into the kitchen to find Nick making breakfast. He didn’t look up when she entered the room, but she saw the way his shoulders tensed, the only indication that he knew he was no longer alone.
“Morning.” His voice was still sleep rough and she could guess he hadn’t been up that much longer than her. Her heart beat a little faster when she heard his voice. Her hadn’t abandoned her, it would seem. Someone in her life had decided to stick around, that was a first.
“Good morning. I didn’t expect you to still be here.” Maybe it was a bad idea to admit it, but she wasn’t feeling quite herself around him. She was done trying to play the Grimm, she knew now without a doubt she was no longer the one in control, not since she had started feeling something she couldn’t quite explain for Nick. Or maybe it was something she didn’t want to explain.
“Did you sleep okay?”
“Yes, I did, thank you.” She lied. She hadn’t even gone a day before breaking her promise to be honest with him. “Sorry, quite badly, actually. I barely slept last night.”
His mouth turned down at the corners, “Me neither. I’m not sure what it was, but I couldn’t seem to sleep.” He looked back down at the pan and she slid up onto a chair next to the counter. They both politely didn’t acknowledge how awkward the situation was.
There was a long silence that stretched on long enough for Adalind to start to speak a few times, each time, deciding against it.
“How are you feeling? Any morning sickness?” Nick asked, the concern in his voice sounding genuine.
“No, not all. My mother said she never had a problem with that, and I’ve heard that sort of thing is genetic.” Speaking of her mother made her feel a little sick at the memory of her betrayal and she looked down, trying to hold back the flood of pain she felt. Her mother had taught her to always be strong, and that emotion was a weakness. It looked like Adalind had failed her mother in more ways than one.
He looked back at that, watching her appraisingly. Before looking away again. “We need to talk.”
There it was, the speech she had heard a million times. ‘This was great, you were great, but this was a one time thing. We had something special, but it’s time to move on.’ Usually she was the one giving it, not the one of the receiving end. And usually it didn’t make her stomach drop the way it didn’t when Nick said it. She took a breath and braced herself, she would act like she didn’t care. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing her hurt. Maybe this had all been a game, a way to pull her in just to cut her loose. Maybe he just wanted to hurt her, and maybe she deserved it.
“It isn’t safe for you here. Since you lost your powers you’re vulnerable. And I’m guessing there’s more than one person you pissed off. Once it gets around that you don’t have your powers anymore there might be a lot of wesen who want to take advantage of that. It isn’t safe for you to stay here, especially in your condition. I can’t protect you here. You need to pack a bag and come with me. You can stay with me. With everything that’s happened we need to find a more secure place to live, someone where no one can find us, if we don’t want them to. Until then my house will have to do. And I talked to Rosalee, she said you could stay at the spice shop if need be.”
She didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t phrased like a request. A part of her wanted to argue, to tell him to go to Hell, that she could take care of herself. But she knew he was right, she was vulnerable now, in a way she had never been before. But he was wrong about one thing; it wasn’t losing her powers that put her in danger. For the first time in her life she had something important to her, more important than her own wellbeing.
The thought of being with Nick, of seeing him every day, of not having to say goodbye, it was more appealing than she wanted to admit. She didn’t know if he planned on giving her a choice in the matter, but either way the answer would be yes.
She stood without responding for a beat, and it prompted him to look at her, a question in his eyes. “You want… to keep me safe?” She asked stupidly, it wasn’t the right response, but it was the only one she had at that moment.
“Of course I do. I don’t know what you did to me. I don’t know if it’s the lingering side effects of the spell, or something else. But I can’t stand the thought of you getting hurt. And if you are pregnant then your child is innocent. Whatever you may have done, that will never change.”
It hadn’t escaped her that he had said “if”. He still wasn’t sure he believed she was carrying his child, but all the same, he wanted to keep her safe. In her whole life no one had ever truly wanted to protect her. In her world a person’s investment in her only extended as far as she was able to do something for them. But Nick wanted to keep her safe, because he… what, he cared? The spell was broken, and yet here he was, offering her everything she had never known she wanted.
She didn’t know what to say, so she didn’t say anything, and Nick didn’t seem to need a response. Her corporation seemed a forgone conclusion to him.
They ate breakfast in relative silence. Beyond thanking Nick for his efforts there wasn’t much to say. She still found herself wanting to touch him, move closer to him. She wondered if Nick was feeling the same way. She knew it wasn’t the spell, her powers were gone, and with it the spell she had cast over them. It would appear there was another sort of magic at work here.
After breakfast she started to pack anything she would need. It was mostly just clothes. Packing made her realize how little she had that held sentimental value to her. She had things from her mother, brushes and items for spell work. She took the latter, because it could be valuable, not because of any lingering emotion she held for her mother. There were no pictures that she needed to take, there was no one in her life that she wanted to remember or needed a reminder of, no one except for Nick. And, it would appear, he wasn’t going anywhere. Nick waited for her in the living room. She didn’t know what she would do with the things that remained or with her apartment for that matter. She supposed it would depend on how it all worked out. She would keep it for the time being so that she would have a place to go… just in case. But it felt empty and hollow to her now, devoid of anything meaningful. She had always lived a transient life, never strongly tied to anyone or anything. Looking back now, the idea suddenly felt pointless.
When she was done she had one bag with her clothes and another with what remained of the hexenbeist she had been - vials, books, and the like. Perhaps Rosalee could make use of it.
“Ready?” Nick asked and reached out to take her bags from her. She nodded her assent and followed him outside. She took the time to lock up before she went and took one last look at the home she had known. It felt like she was leaving behind more than just the life she had known, she was leaving behind a part of who she was. It should be sad, but right now all she felt was free.