Burning Up

Heal me

Hey guys, we're coming to an end of 'burning up', only a few chapters left! <3 Thank you so much for all your support. Let me know what you're thinking of the story, and drop me a vote if you've got this far 💗
Finally a chapter with some old Iago and Mila fluff, not nearly as much angst as the last few 😘

"Rough night?" Niko asked, setting two cups of tea on the coffee table in front of me.

I rolled my eyes but returned his soft smile, reaching forward from where I was curled up on the sofa to pick up the cup.

"You could say that." I answered, leaning back into the cushions of his velvet sofa as I let my fingers wrap around the porcelain. It was almost hot to touch, but I held it tight, allowing the warmth to bleed into my fingers.

"I was worried I would make you jump." He said, keeping his voice soft, as though he was hesitant to speak over the dawn's chorus.

"You didn't." I answered, finally letting my eyes meet his. He looked tired. His normally animated face dragged down by the events of the previous night. But his cheeks rose minutely at my response, making the corners of his eyes crinkle.

"Is he still sleeping?" The question caught me slightly off guard but I nodded, turning my head unconsciously in the direction of the spare bedroom where Iago was lying. "Did you?"

"Enough." I replied, averting my gaze even as I turned back to face him.

In truth I'd passed out on the floor beside Iago's bed for five hours before I was awoken by my own screams. I hadn't wanted to sleep beside him - some strange combination of being scared of hurting him, whilst also being scared of being hurt, kept me leaning against his bed frame; his hand held tightly in mine as the sleeping pills dragged him into unconsciousness. I knew it wasn't fair, my need to be close and keep my distance simultaneously, but it was all I could seem to manage.

"Does it still hurt?" Niko asked, his eyes fixated on the bandage wrapped tightly around my arm.

It had taken a while for me to even acknowledge the burn that enveloped my forearm, so busy focusing on how wrecked Iago was that I'd nearly forgotten it. Niko was far more observant, his tone growing strict as he refused to let me sleep until his skilled hands had covered it in salve and wrapped it.

"No." I half lied, wanting to move it from sight. The burnt skin seemed to heat up under his gaze and I could feel the tightness of where it would scar.

Niko frowned, but let it go, leaning forward to set his drink back down.

"This place is beautiful." I said, once the silence had stretched on too long. I could tell by the way he was looking at me that he wanted to ask me something, his mouth opening and closing almost imperceptibly with each few breaths.

"My little slice of heaven, I suppose." He replied, leaning back against the back of his chair, mimicking my posture.

The silence resumed.

"Will you forgive him?" He said, after another few attempts at getting the words to leave his lips.

"Forgive him for what?" I asked. Part of me knew exactly what he was talking about; the bruises on my face, the coke hidden in my room, the scars that would litter my body for the rest of my life. The other part argued that there was nothing to forgive him for; we were just two kids, caught up in the wrong mess, both of us needing saving.

"You know what for."

"It was all just such a mess, you know? I sit here and I think about it, but it's like none of it really even happened."

"That's completely normal. You're in shock."

"It's not- I'm not- I don't even think I'm mad, not about everything that happened. The only thing I can think about is what he said about me, how he- how he used me."