12. Roman
Chapter twelve
Roman
My body is too heavy. I feel like a thousand-pound weight is pressing me against the mattress.
The mattress?
Where the fuck am I?
The last thing I remember was the restaurant... Tati... that red-pilled prick... my mind feels sluggish and drunk. I flex my hands, trying to get control back of my body when my left hand is squeezed.
“It’s okay, Ro, you’re okay,” Tati says, but she sounds far away.
Okay, prick. Think! The restaurant. The waiter. The waiter, who pulled out a gun. Rushing to Tatiana and covering her. Getting shot.
The smell registers now. And the beeping. And why my veins feel cold. I’m in the hospital. But Tatiana’s here, and so am I.
And with that being enough, I let sleep take me under again.
***
A few hours later, I blink my heavy eyes open. There’s a weight on my arm now, and I look down to see Tatiana’s head resting in the crook of my elbow, both of her hands wrapped around mine.
“Tanya,” I say, but my throat hurts, and I have to clear it a few times.
Her head snaps up, and she rushes to the sideboard and returns with a plastic cup and a straw.
I don’t remember a time I was ever this thirsty, so I take my time sipping the water and clearing my throat again.
As I do, I really take her in. She looks destroyed.
Her eyes are red, her cheeks blotchy from where tears have ruined her makeup.
She’s wearing a set of light blue scrubs that look incredible on her fair skin.
Stop thinking about how beautiful your charge is, asshole!
“Are you hurt?” I manage to get out without coughing once I’ve finished the water.
“A little bruised, but not from you, Ro,” she replies, and her voice is small; shaky. I hate how rattled she looks.
It’s risky, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. I sit myself up as best as I can with the pain in my stomach, and slide to the edge of the bed, lifting my arm and inviting her in.
She climbs into my hospital bed immediately and wraps her arms around me, burying her face in my chest. I rest my hand on the back of her head, and everything in me settles. Whatever happened after I got shot, she’s okay. Nothing else matters.
I don’t know how long we stay that way. Every few minutes she sniffs or shakes, and I know she’s crying, but all I can do is hold her and remind her that I’m okay.
We both startle apart, though, when the door opens suddenly.
Luckily, it’s just Lev.
I didn’t even notice Mik, curled up on a couch much too small for him, sleeping.
“You’re lucky it was me and not Dmitri or Niko,” he says grumpily as he closes the door behind him. He stares at us for an uncomfortable moment before Tati slides off the bed and retakes her chair. I instantly miss her warmth.
Instead of the lecture I know he wants to give us, he taps Mik on the shoulder to wake him. “Hey, can I talk to you outside for a sec?” Lev’s serious. Lev’s almost never serious.
Instantly, I’m more awake. “What’s wrong?” I may not be able to do much physically, but if the threat is still there for Tati, I need to figure something out.
“Nothing to worry your pretty little head over.” He tries to bring some teasing back into his voice, but he fails. Now, I’m even more nervous.
Tati must be too, because she squeezes my hand again subconsciously.
A few minutes later, Lev walks back in without Mikhail.
“What’s going on?” Tati asks, and I hate how small she sounds.
Lev’s looking everywhere but at her.
Shit.
This can’t be good.
“We... uh... they...”
“Spit it out, Lev,” I say, knowing he’s just making her more anxious.
Finally, he levels Tatiana with a blank stare. “I’ve packed your bags and Sparkle. We’re being sent to a safe house until they can figure out who is behind the attack.”
She slumps in defeat. This means no more school. No more dating. No more life as a civilian.
"Da," she says, her voice completely toneless.
“We need to go… now,” he says, and she stands.
“What about Roman?”
He hesitates because he hadn’t considered leaving me. Shit. I don’t even know how long until I can be discharged.
Wanting her safe more than anything, I jump in. “I’ll arrange medical transport as soon as possible. Go. Don’t worry about me.”
She leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek as my eyes flutter shut.
“I want you there tomorrow, Ro, or I’m coming to get you,” she threatens, but she sounds as scary as a mouse.
I squeeze her hand back in return.
“I promise.” I try to smile, but it feels foreign and wrong. “Can’t let my best girl get hurt, now can I?”
Her brow scrunches in confusion, but she walks to the door anyway and lets Lev lead her out into the hallway with a hand on her lower back.