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I woke up far too early in the morning and was still tired as I went into the bathroom. I did my usual routine and got dressed before leaving the room. I didn't get very far when Baxter parted from my side with a bark. I frowned some and followed him to the hall bathroom. The door was open and Baxter went inside without hesitation. "Baxter…what is it?" I asked as if the dog could answer.

"Fuck…" I heard someone that sounded like Luca muttered.

"Luca?" I asked warily. "What are you doing? And why is Baxter upset this time?" I asked, stopping by the doorway. I was still a bit upset with him but Baxter only ever barked when something was wrong.

"Apparently sleeping with my arm draped over the side of the tub," he muttered, still sounding sleepy. "And probably because I'm sleeping with what was a bleeding arm draped over the side the tub."

"Luca! You never patched yourself up?" I asked moving forward to find him. My fingers brushed across his arm and I was shocked by how cold he was. "I thought you'd be more sensible than this!"

He sighed and his hand came up to cradle my face. "I seem to lack sense when I am around you," he murmured, still clearly not completely conscious.

"Enough to not tend a wound and let it bleed all night?" I asked in exasperation. I traced his arm gently, trying to find the wound and how bad it was, but his arm was longer than mine and I didn't want to bend half over the tub to find it.

I felt him shrug. "Yeah…I upset you when trying not to upset you," he murmured. "I didn't mean to cut so deep. I guess I'm stronger than I was the last time…"

I pulled back some. "You did this over me?" I echoed, not having realized that he'd done the injury to himself. "Why? I'm just…some blind idiot teenager with too much money."

He sighed and straightened. "How do I say this without sounding like I'm crazy or an asshole?" he muttered. "Cutting... It's a habit when I'm stressed. I'd replaced it with smoking, but I don't exactly have means to do that now. It was more... I stopped caring about whether it stopped bleeding after I upset you for like the hundredth time yesterday."

I was silent for a minute while I absorbed his words. I didn't really have much of a reply for them though. I sighed. "If I bring you the first aid kit this time will you use it?" I asked softly.

"If it'll make you feel better, yes. Otherwise, it's already stopped bleeding," he said, moving his hand away from my face.

"You should still patch it up," I said getting to my feet and carefully stepping over him to leave the bathroom. I hurried to my room, got the first aid kit and hurried back. I knelt down beside him and held out the first aid kit. Of course if he'd just taken the damn kit in the first place he wouldn't be in this situation.

He sighed and took the box from me. I heard him rummage around for a few minutes before the box snapped shut again and he gave it back to me. "There…all patched up," he said softy.

I put the kit on the counter and turned back to Luca. "We need to get you back to bed," I said putting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm not sure if I can move you myself though…are you able to walk, do you think? Or should I go get help?"

I heard him groan and he got up, without waiting for me to help. "If you're not going to bed, I'm not," he said.

"Why can't you let me help you?" I asked, getting to my feet as well. Every time I tried to help him he shot it all to hell. This wouldn't even be happening if he had taken my help. "Am I that repulsive to you?" I tried to keep my voice neutral but the thought that had been plaguing me all night still hurt deeply.

His fingers slid along my chin, forcing me to adjust the angle of my head. I felt his breath against my skin before his lips covered mine. Electricity seemed to spark, making my lips numb as if I'd just had a shot of Novocain. His lips pressed against mine for a moment before pulling away. "I find you very far from repulsive, Aubrey," he murmured, barely far enough for me to no longer feel his lips. "And it's not your help I reject. I tend to reject everyone's help. Thick headed and all that fun stuff."

I tried to think up a response, I really did, but my brain seemed to be out to lunch at the moment and completely inactive. Finally, I managed to close my still tingling mouth and swallow some. "T-that's silly…Your thick skull'll get you killed…" I whispered. My brain finally kicked in enough to reach up and find his face with my hand. I mapped out his expression for a moment before tracing his lips. I wondered if that tingle was just a fluke or if that was just him. Finally, I stood up on my tiptoes and gently met his lips with mine, instantly the spark was back.

His mouth moved against mine and turned the spark into a fire as his hand moved up to cradle the side of my face. I wasn't particularly good at kissing. I hadn't had much in the way of practice. So, I just mimicked his movements as best I could while my eyelids closed to cover my blank stare. I heard Baxter give a whine but ignored him.

Baxter whined again and nudged my side. Finally, I pulled away from the kiss and turned my head. "Baxter, down," I ordered. "You can't be the center of attention all the time." The dog whined before lying down with a huff.

"I can't say I blame him for being upset, Aubrey," Luca murmured. "Even I want all of your attention."

"Well, he'll have to get over it," I replied. "Come on, stubborn mule, you need to get some fluids in you." I nudged Luca in the side gently, trying to get him to move out of the bathroom so that he wouldn't be blocking my way.

He backed away, letting me move from inside the bathroom. "And if I put some fluids in me?" he asked. "Will I get the treat of kissing you again as a reward?"

I tilted my head to the side thoughtfully. "I guess you'll just have to drink something and find out, now wont you?" I asked back as I put my hand out to find the doorframe so that I could leave the room without bumping into it.

Luca whined this time. "Awww, so mean," he mumbled.

I sighed some and shook my head. "I didn't say I wouldn't. But I'm not that easy, Italian. You're gonna have to put a little effort into it if you want me," I said with a tiny smirk pulling at my mouth.

He leaned down so that his head was right by my ear. "As you wish," he whispered before kissing the corner of my jaw.

I shivered some both at how close he was and the whisper. "You're trying to seduce me," I accused softly, turning my head slightly to face him better.

He gave me a quick kiss before pulling away. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," he said. "I misinterpreted what you meant."

"I wasn't uncomfortable…" I muttered, feeling a bit bereft. I couldn't figure out why we apparently couldn't communicate well. Maybe it was because I couldn't see his expressions or because mine were off. But there was definitely a disconnect somewhere.

I heard him sigh. "Shall we go?" he asked, changing topics so fast I could almost swear he was hiding something. "I am sure you and Baxter would like some breakfast by now."

I nodded, though I didn't feel all that hungry. I made my way towards the staircase. I wouldn't push him. It wasn't as if I was unused to being by myself. Other than Baxter I mostly interacted with the others at meal times and rarely anytime else. I could hear him behind me but he didn't say anything. "You wouldn't happen to know what time it is would you?" I asked in an attempt to break the silence. I turned my head slightly so that if I had been able to see I would be looking over my shoulder at him. It had been drilled into my head by my nanny that you always looked at people when speaking to them because that was polite. It hadn't seemed to matter to her that it didn't matter for me and most people found my blank stare uncomfortable.

"Um... If that grandfather clock is right, then it'd be about six thirty," Luca answered. "Because of my cutting habits, I never got used to wearing a watch."

"Well, one of us should probably have a watch…even if you just keep it in your pocket," I said making my way to the kitchen since it was still a bit early for breakfast. But since I'd skipped dinner yesterday it was probably for the best. I opened the door and listened for a moment but I didn't hear Sarah. "Sarah?" I called just to be certain.

"She's not in here," Luca said softly. He laid his hand gently on the small of my back guiding me the rest of the way into the room. "Do you want me to make something for you?"

"No, I want you to make something for us," I said finding the chair with one hand. "I'd help but…well…all I'm good for is peeling potatoes and taste testing things."

I heard him start to go through the cabinets. "So... Are you in the mood for anything in particular? I'm pretty good at anything breakfast related," he said from the other side of the room

I shrugged some. "I'll eat anything you feel like making," I answered.

"Careful about that... I'll have you peeling potatoes so I can make hashbrowns from scratch," he threatened.

I smirked some. "I don't care…it'd give me something useful to do at least."

I heard the counter softly creak after a moment and figured he was leaning against it or had put something on it. "You want to be useful without having to peel potatoes?" he asked. "I can think of many ways to put you to good use in the kitchen without having to do something boring like peeling potatoes."

I shrugged a bit. "I like being useful. How doesn't really matter so much."

"Alright, then you're making French toast," He said and I heard him start to put things on the counter and open the fridge door for a moment or two. "So go wash your hands and we'll get this started."

I raised an eyebrow but did as he told me and carefully got to my feet. I found the counter with one hand and walked along it until I found the sink. I didn't often use this one so it took me a few minutes to find where everything was but I managed easily enough.

"Okay, Aubrey, this is a simple enough task, but it's almost the entirety of making French toast," he said, gently placing a hand on my arm. I felt a slight tingle go up my arm at his touch but pushed the sensation to the side.

I turned to the side he was on. "What would that be?" I asked, holding my hands out in front of me slightly in case I had to hold something.

He took my hand and led me over to the island counter where I had heard him putting things. He placed my hands on the large bowl. "Making the mixture and dipping the bread in it," he said. "I've already cracked the eggs so all you have to do is add everything else to the bowl and then stir."

I gauged the size of the bowl by following the lip of it before moving one hand onto the table and gently feeling what else was around. "And what, exactly, is everything else?" I asked as I found the handle of a wooden spoon. "And is it all here?"

"Milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour. I've already measured it all out, so you only have to add it to the big bowl," he said softly.

"Okay…" I said as I continued to move my hand over the table until I found the first container. It was fairly heavy so I figured it was either the flour or the milk and the lack of shifting told me flour. I gently tipped the container over the middle of the big bowl before setting it back down in as close to the same spot as I could.

"Would you like something with the French toast?" he asked after a minute.

"What did you have in mind?" I asked finding another container. This time it was much smaller so I figured it was the cinnamon.

I heard footsteps and the fridge opening again. "Well, there's more bacon and looks like sausage too... Or fresh fruit if you'd prefer something like that," he said.

"The fruit," I answered carefully starting to mix everything. I went slow, not wanting to spill something over the side. "You're going to have to tell me when this is mixed though…"

"Of course," he replied. "I'm not cruel enough to let you keep stirring forever." I heard him start to chop something. Probably the fruit he had gotten out.

"Oh good. Some people would think that a wonderful practical joke," I said as I continued to stir the mixture. "Like…'let's see how long Aubrey will stand there and erase a clean chalk board' that was a favorite there for a while."

I almost jumped at the feeling of his fingers against my face. I wish he'd told me he was going to do that. It had surprised me. Though, admittedly, his fingers did feel very nice against my cheek. "Kids are horrible to anyone who's different," he said softly. "I've seen it too many times to count. It wasn't in my nature, but then, I never really had the balls to stop them either. But... I couldn't do that to you."

I smiled some. "Thank you for that. I really appreciate it."

His hand pulled back again. "Say 'ah'," he said.

I raised an eyebrow in confusion but opened my mouth anyway. I trusted him not to pull anything unpleasant. "Ah."

He slipped a piece of fruit into my mouth and rubbed his thumb over my bottom lip. I instantly recognized the taste of strawberry. The pad of his thumb made my lip tingle some. I chewed the strawberry slowly and swallowed it before biting lightly on the tip of Luca's thumb. Completely by accident, of course. Mostly.

A soft groan escaped his throat. "Now who's seducing who?" he asked softly, brushing his thumb over my lip again before pulling his hand back.

"Seduction is in the eye of the beholder," I said. "Lucky for me I can't behold anything with these eyes."

He scoffed a bit. "Maybe not with your eyes, but you can behold quite a lot I am sure. Like, I bet you have an idea of what I look like, colours excluded, just from how much you've touched me," Luca said. "Oh, and you can stop stirring now." I heard him put something on the counter beside me.

I smiled some as I stopped stirring. "You have a great jaw line," I commented. "Very strong." I tapped the spoon on the edge of the bowl before putting it to the side.

He stepped up behind me and ran his hand down my arm until it was on top of mine. "Is that all you noticed?" he asked as he guided my hand. I felt the softness of bread under my fingers.

I shivered some and bit my lip as I picked up the bread like he directed me to. "You definitely don't need a nose job…" I said with a slight laugh. "I wish I knew what color your eyes were…or…you know had a concept of color so it would mean something."

"Ah, well, for the concept... I would put them at the darker end of the neutral spectrum," he said as he guided my hand to put the bread in the mixture. "If you had an idea of colour though, it's said they're the same colour as caramel candy." He helped me dip the bread in before turning it over so that both sides were gooey with the mix.

"Well, I've never seen anything so I can't imagine what that color is…but I do love caramel's taste," I said as I let him guide my hands. It felt incredibly intimate and it was strangely comforting to be between his arms.

"Then that means you have a concept, since colors are supposed to illicit feelings in people," he said. "Like... they say blue is calming and people feel angrier around reds and oranges. Most people associate the caramel color with how they think caramel tastes. It also tends to help them remember."

"Is that so…that's a nice thought. I like thinking that I've got some sort of handle on it…of course that means you have sugar for eyes," I teased lightly.

"Well, that's alright. You've got sugar for lips," he murmured. "Very sweet to the taste."

I felt heat sweep across my face. "Thanks. Yours are pretty good tasting too." I picked up another piece of bread at his silent direction. "How many pieces are we making?" I asked curiously.

He chuckled softly at my question. "Depends on how many you will eat," he replied. "We've done five so far."

"I know, I've been counting," I said with a slight laugh. "I have to count everything to not get lost. I'm not too terribly hungry so I probably won't eat more than two."

"Well, then I guessed right. This one and one more and we'll be out of mix," he said softly. "And then you can clean your hands while I fry them up."

"Sounds like you have this all figured out. Do you cook often?" I asked as another piece of bread got dipped in the gooey mix.

I felt him shrug a little. "I've been living on my own for the last six years," he said quietly. "At some point I got bored of eating out and opened up a cookbook. Saved myself a lot more money and few pounds that the other boys put on."

"A bit vain are you?" I asked nudging his stomach with my elbow. "You don't have an ounce of fat on you, I can tell with how much I've had to touch you to figure out where you are."

"I did say I was a bit of a streaker," he said, guiding me over to the sink. "I wonder what people who put on that pudge are thinking when they get naked... Kind of... not cool."

I laughed some at that. "Not cool? And you, the streaker, are the epitome of cool then?" I found the faucet and turned it on to start washing the gooey batter off my hands.

He moved away from me and I heard something sizzle as it was put on the griddle. "Not exactly, but at least I make it look good," he said, laughing some. "I didn't work hard to get this body for nothing. I love stealing attention from the other guys in the family. They hated it."

"Sounds like Baxter," I said with a chuckle. I heard my dog groan and snort some and chuckled again. "Case in point. Can't even hear his name without making some sort of noise."

Luca laughed as well. "I didn't do it so much for the attention," he said, the sizzling sound paused for a minute before returning slightly louder. "Italian women who'd have anything to do with brutes like them aren't the type you really want to roll around in bed with. I did it to piss them off, since they always seemed to want to get on my case about this or that."

"Ahh, so you're an antagonist more than an attention hog," I said turning off the faucet and searching on the nearby handle of the stove for a hand towel to dry off.

A faint groan passed through his lips as the back of my hand accidentally rubbed across him. "Mmm, most of the time. Though there are times when I truly want the person's attention," he said.

"Streaking does do that," I commented. "Well… with most people I suppose. How long does French toast take to cook?" I asked, taking a half step closer. I could smell it cooking and the smell was starting to get me hungry.

"No time at all," he replied as the sizzling stopped again. "All the time is in the preparation of the mix. Go ahead and sit. I'll just put the fruit on your plate and grab the syrup."

I nodded and made my way across the kitchen to the table. Baxter whined some as I sat down. I sighed some, "Baxter, I'll feed you in a little while. Just sit," I commanded with a snap. I knew Baxter would obey. He'd been trained all his life to obey my commands.

Luca laughed lightly. "Give me a minute, Baxter. I'll get you breakfast," he said as he put a plate in front of me. "Toast on the left, strawberries bottom right, cantaloupe top right. Anything to drink?"

"There's a mix in one of the cabinets above the sink that I drink with breakfast. There should be instructions on it. It's banana strawberry flavored this month," I said picking up a strawberry and put it in my mouth. I was a bit impressed I hadn't had to ask him where on the plate things were located. He really was a quick study.

"Alright," he said. I heard the griddle start to sizzle again as the cabinet doors were opened and closed. I heard the fridge open and close and then the blender kick on. I was a bit confused as to what he was doing though. A glass was set in front of me before I heard Luca go back to where the stove was.

"You're being very helpful, Luca…thank you," I said, turning my fork over in my hand absently. "I don't think I've ever had a real breakfast before anyone else got up before…the most I could manage was cold cereal. I really, appreciate it."

He walked over to kiss the top of my head. "I told you, I'd make things up to you," he said. "You're just learning all the things I'm actually good for." He walked over to a cabinet and I heard something get set down on the counter. The distinct sound of dog kibble hitting the bowl followed and I heard the water kick on a few minutes later. "There you go, Baxter. Breakfast's served." Baxter was quickly chomping on it.

I smile a bit and put another strawberry in my mouth and savored the sweetness of it for a moment before swallowing. "I think I like this sort of making up anyway. Where is the syrup?"

"Here you go, beautiful," he said, setting a bottle just in front of my free hand.

I blushed some at the name and muttered a thank you as I took the syrup. I didn't bother to aim the syrup and just smothered the whole plate with it. I had been accused of having a massive sweet tooth before. And I couldn't exactly deny it. I picked up a syrup-covered strawberry and sucked the syrup off of it before putting the berry in my mouth.

"Well, at least I know why you taste so sweet now," he commented as I heard the stove turn off. He poured himself something to drink and sat down in front of me like he had before.

I smiled some. "I do like sweet things," I admitted picking up a piece of melon. I ate it before going to pick up my fork and breaking off a piece of toast.

"Ah too bad I'm not sweet," he murmured.

"I don't know…you seem pretty sweet to me. You made me breakfast after all. You even let me help. Most people get fed up with me when I try to help they end up just telling me to sit down and they do it themselves," I poked at the French toast absently.

"Doing things for you that you could do doesn't really help you," he said. "One of these days, I'll show you how to use the measuring cups. A few labels on spices and boxes, teaching you how to time cooking things on the stove, and you'd be nearly self sufficient. Which is what you want, isn't it?"

"Yes," I said softly. "I'd really like that, Luca. Thank you." I reached over with one hand and found his before giving it a bit of a squeeze. "It's more than anyone else has thought to do. Grandpa tries but he gets so caught up in work he doesn't always remember to help."

He turned our hands over and brought mine to his lips, kissing my knuckles softly. "I'm happy to help, Aubrey," he said softly. I felt myself start to blush at the old worldly show of gentlemanliness. "You've got what, another year of high school? And then college... It'd be good if you could do things for yourself, with occasional help."

"I've always tried to be self sufficient. I don't like it when people worry over me or have to take too much time out to help me," I said, trying, unsuccessfully, not to shiver at the feel of his lips against my skin.

He let my hand go as he sighed a bit. "I'll give it to you, you're doing well," he said softly. "But cooking and laundry are two major factors to being independent. And I know you need taught to cook and probably the same goes for laundry."

I sighed some. "I know how I just haven't been able to translate the processes so that I can do them without sight." I picked up another strawberry and popped it into my mouth. Baxter whined some and I got up to open the door for him. "People just don't realize how hard it is when you can't see the damn measurements or settings."

"I understand it," he said softly. "Which is why I want to help teach you how to do it for yourself. There will probably always be things you need help with, but... I'd hope to get you self sufficient enough to live on your own."

"I'll make a deal with you, Luca," I said turning around to face him again. "You find a way to let me live in a dorm or apartment on my own and I'll consider your debt to me paid in full."

"An apartment," he said. "I wouldn't trust dorm life to not cause you problems or injury. So I guess you should finish eating then. You have a lot of homework to catch up before I can start teaching you other things." he said, getting up to clean up the mess we'd made making breakfast.

I laughed some. "To be honest, I doubt grandpa will let me live in a dorm. But that's a ways off yet. Though homework isn't all that exciting," I muttered taking a few steps over to stand by the table.

"You still have your rewards system," Luca said softly. "And I'm sure you can think of some rewards by now."

I raised my eyebrow some. "Oh really? And what kind of rewards are you thinking of?" I asked curiously. "You know you owe me one for yesterday."

"Well, there are massages, cooking lessons of something not quite good for you, anything else you might want that I can give you," he said, setting the something on what sounded like a drying rack.

I smiled some. "You'd teach me how to make junk food, eh? Sounds like fun. We'll have to try that sometime." I heard a whine at the door and went to open it for Baxter. "I guess we can go upstairs now."

"As you wish, Aubrey," he said softly.

Baxter kept pace beside me as I made my way back towards the stairs. "We can work on math today, I guess," I said. "You need to write it all out for me…and tell me the problems. It's a little more intensive than English."

He followed close behind me, I could tell. "Oh, math... I remember that being a pain in the ass," he muttered. "At least I don't need to solve the problems." He laughed some.

"You think it was a pain in the ass for you? Imagine how hard it is for me. I have to do everything in my head. It's not too bad at first but once you get into longer algebra for instance and geometry it starts getting tricky," I said turning down the hallway towards my room.

"Ah, so no Astro Physics for you then?" Luca asked lightly.

"Not if I don't want to go absolutely stark raving mad," I said in a singsong voice. "I might have to count everything but that doesn't mean I'm all that good at math. As soon as I can stop taking it, I will."

He groaned a bit. "Sadly... I wasn't good at math, so other than writing and talking, I'll be absolutely no help to you," he muttered as I heard him sit down in my desk chair.

I chuckled some and sat down on the edge of my bed. "That's alright. I can manage. Besides I'm supposed to do it myself in the first place. My math teacher is a witch I swear. She can tell if someone helps me." Baxter jumped up beside me and curled up at my back. "She's never failed to say something if I managed to convince someone to help me."

"With a lot of that more difficult math... It's almost like a fingerprint how a person gets to the answer," he said. "It makes it easier to tell when someone cheats."

I shrugged. "She's never been able to prove anything and honestly, there's only so much I can do in my head. At some point, I simply won't be able to do it all mentally anymore and I'll have to get someone to do the math for me. Then all I'll be doing is remembering the procedures. There's a notebook in my bag. Small and with tiny squares carved in the front. My teacher writes down the problems in that," I supplied before putting a hand back and rubbing Baxter's head.

"You know... I've heard about a writing tablet that connects to a computer," he said absently. "You could probably incorporate that with other programs designed for people who can't see."

I smiled some. "Tired of the job already are you? We just started," I teased gently.

He chuckled some. "Never tired of an excuse to be near you," he said softly. "I was just thinking of more ways to help you be independent."

"And I'm not complaining," I said, leaning back against Baxter some. "But, at the moment I just wanna get all these assignments done and put to rest. I hate having homework to do. Especially, if it's built up homework that will linger in the air for while and ruin a bad time."

"Ruin a bad time?" he echoed. "Does that mean doing this built up homework will make things a good time?"

"It'll make things better," I answered. "At least then I won't be worrying about it at all."

He snorted some, but didn't comment. Instead he read off my first math problem. I started to do the problem he gave me in my head. Muttering slightly as I mentally broke down the problem. I finally gave him an answer not knowing if I was right or not and to be honest, not really caring.

He kept giving me more problems and I answered them so that he could record them for me. "All done," he said finally and I heard the chair creak as he shifted.

"Goody," I muttered, now sufficiently drained. "Now…what kind of a reward will you give me for doing all those problems?" I asked curiously.

"Depends on what you would like, Aubrey," he said softly. "It's not a reward if you don't like it."

"Mm," I hummed softly. "Surprise me. I'm sure you can come up with something fun to do."

I heard him walk over and his groan of pain as he kneeled down on the floor. He took one of my feet in his hands and started massaging it, pressing his thumbs into the soft flesh in the arch of my foot. I couldn't help but moan some at the feeling of my feet being rubbed. I let my head fall back on my neck as tingling pleasure spread up my legs from my feet. "Wow that feels great," I muttered.

"I'm glad," he murmured, his fingers rubbing against every inch of my feet. Slowly, he started working up my leg, removing the tightness that was there from stress. His lightly calloused fingers felt amazing.

I moaned again, the pleasure starting to shift and settle in more embarrassing areas of my anatomy. I couldn't help it. I was someone who lived through touch and he was far too good with his hands. "How'd you learn how to do this?" I asked in an attempt to distract myself slightly.

"I honestly don't know," he replied softly. "I only know that I've been doing it since I was a kid. The priest at my church always seemed to need some muscle worked out and he would ask me to do it. At least until I was too old to be an altar boy, anyhow."

"Well…you're very good at it," I muttered as his fingers coaxed my muscles to loosen up.

His fingers moved to the back of my knee, his thumbs working into the sides. "Thank you, Aubrey," he said as I felt my abdomen tighten slightly. "I'm glad you enjoy it." Once he finished on my knee, he moved his hands to my other leg. I bit back my whimper of disappointment. I had wanted to feel those hands slowly work their way higher. But I wasn't about to ask that.

"Thank you," I said, ducking my head to try and hide the heat that had gathered on my cheeks. His hands were starting to really affect me. Another kink was worked out and I couldn't help but moan again. I was getting uncomfortable for a reason other than cramped or sore leg muscles.

He slowly worked his way up to my other knee, making me even more heated. "There we go," Luca said softly, clearing his throat to get rid of the husk in his voice. "All worked out. What would you like to do now?" he asked.

I put my hand out to find his face. He was apparently right there and that made me bite my lip some. I hesitated for a minute before my desire got the better of me and I slid off the edge of the bed and landed in his lap. "To kiss you…" I finally answered his question softly before finding his mouth with my own.

He groaned softly, bringing a hand up to cradle my face as his other one wrapped around me. Slowly he pried my lips apart to deepen the kiss but not invading my mouth just yet. I opened my mouth for him as my hands felt every slight change of plane from his muscles. I wanted to map out every part of his body. Every tiny dip and bump. His skin felt good under my hands and I skimmed my hands over his shoulders, following the lines of his wonderful body.

His tongue slid into my mouth, sensually exploring every hidden place that nobody had ever found before. His fingers kneaded at my hip. I whimpered some at the feeling of fire that sprouted where his fingers were kneading my hip. I couldn't help but move against him. My whole body was too sensitive to touch. Especially his touch apparently. He was driving me crazy. I'd never felt so needy before and I wasn't entirely sure what it was that I needed, other than the pressure in my groin to ease some.

He moaned into my mouth and his hand tightened on my hip. He broke the kiss to suck in some air, moving his lips along my jaw as he slid a hand into my hair, his thumb rubbing the spot behind my ear. "Aubrey..." he murmured breathily as he moved back towards my lips.

I let out a breathy whine as his fingers moved over me. "L-luca…" My hands gripped his biceps as my hips took on a life of their own and pushed against his. I moaned at the friction, pleasure flooding me from the contact.

Luca gasped and pulled me harder against his lap. He captured my mouth in a heated kiss as he ground back against me, groaning deeply. I whimpered as my pants pulled far too much, but I didn't want to remove them. I didn't dare take that last step. My last ounce of self-preservation wouldn't allow it. "Luca…" I whimpered, clinging to him. I managed to pull away enough so that our hips weren't grinding anymore, though I desperately wanted to feel it still. I panted some as I slid off his lap and onto the ground. "I can't…" I breathed. My self-preservation had won out and shaken me out of my fervor. I just couldn't do it. Not yet anyway.

"I understand..." he murmured. He slowly pushed up from the floor before leaning down to help me up. "Come... Get off the floor, Aubrey, and I'll give you some privacy."

I took his hand and used it to help myself up. "Thank you…" I leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I didn't mean to jerk you around like that."

He bent down to kiss my forehead, lightly stroking the side of my face. "You didn't... I was waiting for you to draw your line," he said softly. "I'll be back in a little bit."

I nodded some and made my way towards my bathroom. I had my own little problem to take care of.

Once I was clean and I was fairly sure my mess was gone, I got out of the shower and made my way back towards my room. I slid under the covers and almost instantly; Baxter put his head on me. I chuckled some but didn't bother to move him. He was fine where he was and with how cruel I had been to Luca I doubted he'd be back anytime soon.

I felt myself starting to drift off out of what had become habit but the silence was again getting in the way of sleep. I trembled as I could swear someone was looming over me with his pants undone and reaching for my head. I whimpered some and turned on the radio again. Some sappy love song was playing but I didn't care it was just too damn quiet in my room. I tried to make myself calm down some but it wasn't working. I wanted to be with a human who could tell me for certain nobody was about to orally rape me.

I grabbed my robe and covered my naked body with it as I went to my door and started down the hallway. I quietly knocked on Luca's door but I didn't hear any movement. I bit my lip before silently opening the door and slipping inside. I couldn't hear him and if he was asleep I didn't want to wake him up. I slowly went over to the bed and felt the edge of the mattress some. I could feel the dip in the mattress, telling me he was there.

I quietly crawled up beside him, careful not to wake him up. I curled up beside him and closed my eyes. It was still a bit too silent but having him laying right there assured me nobody would be able to abuse me. It let me slowly drift off to sleep.

Description
I woke up far too early in the morning and was still tired as I went into the bathroom. I did my usual routine and got dressed before leaving the room. I didn't get very far when Baxter parted from my side with a bark. I frowned some and followed him to the hall bathroom. The door was open and Baxter went inside without hesitation. "Baxter…what is it?" I asked as if the dog could answer.

"Fuck…" I heard someone that sounded like Luca muttered.

"Luca?" I asked warily. "What are you doing? And why is Baxter upset this time?" I asked, stopping by the doorway. I was still a bit upset with him but Baxter only ever barked when something was wrong.

"Apparently sleeping with my arm draped over the side of the tub," he muttered, still sounding sleepy. "And probably because I'm sleeping with what was a bleeding arm draped over the side the tub."

"Luca! You never patched yourself up?" I asked moving forward to find him. My fingers brushed across his arm and I was shocked by how cold he was. "I thought you'd be more sensible than this!"

He sighed and his hand came up to cradle my face. "I seem to lack sense when I am around you," he murmured, still clearly not completely conscious.

"Enough to not tend a wound and let it bleed all night?" I asked in exasperation. I traced his arm gently, trying to find the wound and how bad it was, but his arm was longer than mine and I didn't want to bend half over the tub to find it.

I felt him shrug. "Yeah…I upset you when trying not to upset you," he murmured. "I didn't mean to cut so deep. I guess I'm stronger than I was the last time…"

I pulled back some. "You did this over me?" I echoed, not having realized that he'd done the injury to himself. "Why? I'm just…some blind idiot teenager with too much money."

He sighed and straightened. "How do I say this without sounding like I'm crazy or an asshole?" he muttered. "Cutting... It's a habit when I'm stressed. I'd replaced it with smoking, but I don't exactly have means to do that now. It was more... I stopped caring about whether it stopped bleeding after I upset you for like the hundredth time yesterday."

I was silent for a minute while I absorbed his words. I didn't really have much of a reply for them though. I sighed. "If I bring you the first aid kit this time will you use it?" I asked softly.

"If it'll make you feel better, yes. Otherwise, it's already stopped bleeding," he said, moving his hand away from my face.

"You should still patch it up," I said getting to my feet and carefully stepping over him to leave the bathroom. I hurried to my room, got the first aid kit and hurried back. I knelt down beside him and held out the first aid kit. Of course if he'd just taken the damn kit in the first place he wouldn't be in this situation.

He sighed and took the box from me. I heard him rummage around for a few minutes before the box snapped shut again and he gave it back to me. "There…all patched up," he said softy.

I put the kit on the counter and turned back to Luca. "We need to get you back to bed," I said putting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm not sure if I can move you myself though…are you able to walk, do you think? Or should I go get help?"

I heard him groan and he got up, without waiting for me to help. "If you're not going to bed, I'm not," he said.

"Why can't you let me help you?" I asked, getting to my feet as well. Every time I tried to help him he shot it all to hell. This wouldn't even be happening if he had taken my help. "Am I that repulsive to you?" I tried to keep my voice neutral but the thought that had been plaguing me all night still hurt deeply.

His fingers slid along my chin, forcing me to adjust the angle of my head. I felt his breath against my skin before his lips covered mine. Electricity seemed to spark, making my lips numb as if I'd just had a shot of Novocain. His lips pressed against mine for a moment before pulling away. "I find you very far from repulsive, Aubrey," he murmured, barely far enough for me to no longer feel his lips. "And it's not your help I reject. I tend to reject everyone's help. Thick headed and all that fun stuff."

I tried to think up a response, I really did, but my brain seemed to be out to lunch at the moment and completely inactive. Finally, I managed to close my still tingling mouth and swallow some. "T-that's silly…Your thick skull'll get you killed…" I whispered. My brain finally kicked in enough to reach up and find his face with my hand. I mapped out his expression for a moment before tracing his lips. I wondered if that tingle was just a fluke or if that was just him. Finally, I stood up on my tiptoes and gently met his lips with mine, instantly the spark was back.

His mouth moved against mine and turned the spark into a fire as his hand moved up to cradle the side of my face. I wasn't particularly good at kissing. I hadn't had much in the way of practice. So, I just mimicked his movements as best I could while my eyelids closed to cover my blank stare. I heard Baxter give a whine but ignored him.

Baxter whined again and nudged my side. Finally, I pulled away from the kiss and turned my head. "Baxter, down," I ordered. "You can't be the center of attention all the time." The dog whined before lying down with a huff.

"I can't say I blame him for being upset, Aubrey," Luca murmured. "Even I want all of your attention."

"Well, he'll have to get over it," I replied. "Come on, stubborn mule, you need to get some fluids in you." I nudged Luca in the side gently, trying to get him to move out of the bathroom so that he wouldn't be blocking my way.

He backed away, letting me move from inside the bathroom. "And if I put some fluids in me?" he asked. "Will I get the treat of kissing you again as a reward?"

I tilted my head to the side thoughtfully. "I guess you'll just have to drink something and find out, now wont you?" I asked back as I put my hand out to find the doorframe so that I could leave the room without bumping into it.

Luca whined this time. "Awww, so mean," he mumbled.

I sighed some and shook my head. "I didn't say I wouldn't. But I'm not that easy, Italian. You're gonna have to put a little effort into it if you want me," I said with a tiny smirk pulling at my mouth.

He leaned down so that his head was right by my ear. "As you wish," he whispered before kissing the corner of my jaw.

I shivered some both at how close he was and the whisper. "You're trying to seduce me," I accused softly, turning my head slightly to face him better.

He gave me a quick kiss before pulling away. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," he said. "I misinterpreted what you meant."

"I wasn't uncomfortable…" I muttered, feeling a bit bereft. I couldn't figure out why we apparently couldn't communicate well. Maybe it was because I couldn't see his expressions or because mine were off. But there was definitely a disconnect somewhere.

I heard him sigh. "Shall we go?" he asked, changing topics so fast I could almost swear he was hiding something. "I am sure you and Baxter would like some breakfast by now."

I nodded, though I didn't feel all that hungry. I made my way towards the staircase. I wouldn't push him. It wasn't as if I was unused to being by myself. Other than Baxter I mostly interacted with the others at meal times and rarely anytime else. I could hear him behind me but he didn't say anything. "You wouldn't happen to know what time it is would you?" I asked in an attempt to break the silence. I turned my head slightly so that if I had been able to see I would be looking over my shoulder at him. It had been drilled into my head by my nanny that you always looked at people when speaking to them because that was polite. It hadn't seemed to matter to her that it didn't matter for me and most people found my blank stare uncomfortable.

"Um... If that grandfather clock is right, then it'd be about six thirty," Luca answered. "Because of my cutting habits, I never got used to wearing a watch."

"Well, one of us should probably have a watch…even if you just keep it in your pocket," I said making my way to the kitchen since it was still a bit early for breakfast. But since I'd skipped dinner yesterday it was probably for the best. I opened the door and listened for a moment but I didn't hear Sarah. "Sarah?" I called just to be certain.

"She's not in here," Luca said softly. He laid his hand gently on the small of my back guiding me the rest of the way into the room. "Do you want me to make something for you?"

"No, I want you to make something for us," I said finding the chair with one hand. "I'd help but…well…all I'm good for is peeling potatoes and taste testing things."

I heard him start to go through the cabinets. "So... Are you in the mood for anything in particular? I'm pretty good at anything breakfast related," he said from the other side of the room

I shrugged some. "I'll eat anything you feel like making," I answered.

"Careful about that... I'll have you peeling potatoes so I can make hashbrowns from scratch," he threatened.

I smirked some. "I don't care…it'd give me something useful to do at least."

I heard the counter softly creak after a moment and figured he was leaning against it or had put something on it. "You want to be useful without having to peel potatoes?" he asked. "I can think of many ways to put you to good use in the kitchen without having to do something boring like peeling potatoes."

I shrugged a bit. "I like being useful. How doesn't really matter so much."

"Alright, then you're making French toast," He said and I heard him start to put things on the counter and open the fridge door for a moment or two. "So go wash your hands and we'll get this started."

I raised an eyebrow but did as he told me and carefully got to my feet. I found the counter with one hand and walked along it until I found the sink. I didn't often use this one so it took me a few minutes to find where everything was but I managed easily enough.

"Okay, Aubrey, this is a simple enough task, but it's almost the entirety of making French toast," he said, gently placing a hand on my arm. I felt a slight tingle go up my arm at his touch but pushed the sensation to the side.

I turned to the side he was on. "What would that be?" I asked, holding my hands out in front of me slightly in case I had to hold something.

He took my hand and led me over to the island counter where I had heard him putting things. He placed my hands on the large bowl. "Making the mixture and dipping the bread in it," he said. "I've already cracked the eggs so all you have to do is add everything else to the bowl and then stir."

I gauged the size of the bowl by following the lip of it before moving one hand onto the table and gently feeling what else was around. "And what, exactly, is everything else?" I asked as I found the handle of a wooden spoon. "And is it all here?"

"Milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour. I've already measured it all out, so you only have to add it to the big bowl," he said softly.

"Okay…" I said as I continued to move my hand over the table until I found the first container. It was fairly heavy so I figured it was either the flour or the milk and the lack of shifting told me flour. I gently tipped the container over the middle of the big bowl before setting it back down in as close to the same spot as I could.

"Would you like something with the French toast?" he asked after a minute.

"What did you have in mind?" I asked finding another container. This time it was much smaller so I figured it was the cinnamon.

I heard footsteps and the fridge opening again. "Well, there's more bacon and looks like sausage too... Or fresh fruit if you'd prefer something like that," he said.

"The fruit," I answered carefully starting to mix everything. I went slow, not wanting to spill something over the side. "You're going to have to tell me when this is mixed though…"

"Of course," he replied. "I'm not cruel enough to let you keep stirring forever." I heard him start to chop something. Probably the fruit he had gotten out.

"Oh good. Some people would think that a wonderful practical joke," I said as I continued to stir the mixture. "Like…'let's see how long Aubrey will stand there and erase a clean chalk board' that was a favorite there for a while."

I almost jumped at the feeling of his fingers against my face. I wish he'd told me he was going to do that. It had surprised me. Though, admittedly, his fingers did feel very nice against my cheek. "Kids are horrible to anyone who's different," he said softly. "I've seen it too many times to count. It wasn't in my nature, but then, I never really had the balls to stop them either. But... I couldn't do that to you."

I smiled some. "Thank you for that. I really appreciate it."

His hand pulled back again. "Say 'ah'," he said.

I raised an eyebrow in confusion but opened my mouth anyway. I trusted him not to pull anything unpleasant. "Ah."

He slipped a piece of fruit into my mouth and rubbed his thumb over my bottom lip. I instantly recognized the taste of strawberry. The pad of his thumb made my lip tingle some. I chewed the strawberry slowly and swallowed it before biting lightly on the tip of Luca's thumb. Completely by accident, of course. Mostly.

A soft groan escaped his throat. "Now who's seducing who?" he asked softly, brushing his thumb over my lip again before pulling his hand back.

"Seduction is in the eye of the beholder," I said. "Lucky for me I can't behold anything with these eyes."

He scoffed a bit. "Maybe not with your eyes, but you can behold quite a lot I am sure. Like, I bet you have an idea of what I look like, colours excluded, just from how much you've touched me," Luca said. "Oh, and you can stop stirring now." I heard him put something on the counter beside me.

I smiled some as I stopped stirring. "You have a great jaw line," I commented. "Very strong." I tapped the spoon on the edge of the bowl before putting it to the side.

He stepped up behind me and ran his hand down my arm until it was on top of mine. "Is that all you noticed?" he asked as he guided my hand. I felt the softness of bread under my fingers.

I shivered some and bit my lip as I picked up the bread like he directed me to. "You definitely don't need a nose job…" I said with a slight laugh. "I wish I knew what color your eyes were…or…you know had a concept of color so it would mean something."

"Ah, well, for the concept... I would put them at the darker end of the neutral spectrum," he said as he guided my hand to put the bread in the mixture. "If you had an idea of colour though, it's said they're the same colour as caramel candy." He helped me dip the bread in before turning it over so that both sides were gooey with the mix.

"Well, I've never seen anything so I can't imagine what that color is…but I do love caramel's taste," I said as I let him guide my hands. It felt incredibly intimate and it was strangely comforting to be between his arms.

"Then that means you have a concept, since colors are supposed to illicit feelings in people," he said. "Like... they say blue is calming and people feel angrier around reds and oranges. Most people associate the caramel color with how they think caramel tastes. It also tends to help them remember."

"Is that so…that's a nice thought. I like thinking that I've got some sort of handle on it…of course that means you have sugar for eyes," I teased lightly.

"Well, that's alright. You've got sugar for lips," he murmured. "Very sweet to the taste."

I felt heat sweep across my face. "Thanks. Yours are pretty good tasting too." I picked up another piece of bread at his silent direction. "How many pieces are we making?" I asked curiously.

He chuckled softly at my question. "Depends on how many you will eat," he replied. "We've done five so far."

"I know, I've been counting," I said with a slight laugh. "I have to count everything to not get lost. I'm not too terribly hungry so I probably won't eat more than two."

"Well, then I guessed right. This one and one more and we'll be out of mix," he said softly. "And then you can clean your hands while I fry them up."

"Sounds like you have this all figured out. Do you cook often?" I asked as another piece of bread got dipped in the gooey mix.

I felt him shrug a little. "I've been living on my own for the last six years," he said quietly. "At some point I got bored of eating out and opened up a cookbook. Saved myself a lot more money and few pounds that the other boys put on."

"A bit vain are you?" I asked nudging his stomach with my elbow. "You don't have an ounce of fat on you, I can tell with how much I've had to touch you to figure out where you are."

"I did say I was a bit of a streaker," he said, guiding me over to the sink. "I wonder what people who put on that pudge are thinking when they get naked... Kind of... not cool."

I laughed some at that. "Not cool? And you, the streaker, are the epitome of cool then?" I found the faucet and turned it on to start washing the gooey batter off my hands.

He moved away from me and I heard something sizzle as it was put on the griddle. "Not exactly, but at least I make it look good," he said, laughing some. "I didn't work hard to get this body for nothing. I love stealing attention from the other guys in the family. They hated it."

"Sounds like Baxter," I said with a chuckle. I heard my dog groan and snort some and chuckled again. "Case in point. Can't even hear his name without making some sort of noise."

Luca laughed as well. "I didn't do it so much for the attention," he said, the sizzling sound paused for a minute before returning slightly louder. "Italian women who'd have anything to do with brutes like them aren't the type you really want to roll around in bed with. I did it to piss them off, since they always seemed to want to get on my case about this or that."

"Ahh, so you're an antagonist more than an attention hog," I said turning off the faucet and searching on the nearby handle of the stove for a hand towel to dry off.

A faint groan passed through his lips as the back of my hand accidentally rubbed across him. "Mmm, most of the time. Though there are times when I truly want the person's attention," he said.

"Streaking does do that," I commented. "Well… with most people I suppose. How long does French toast take to cook?" I asked, taking a half step closer. I could smell it cooking and the smell was starting to get me hungry.

"No time at all," he replied as the sizzling stopped again. "All the time is in the preparation of the mix. Go ahead and sit. I'll just put the fruit on your plate and grab the syrup."

I nodded and made my way across the kitchen to the table. Baxter whined some as I sat down. I sighed some, "Baxter, I'll feed you in a little while. Just sit," I commanded with a snap. I knew Baxter would obey. He'd been trained all his life to obey my commands.

Luca laughed lightly. "Give me a minute, Baxter. I'll get you breakfast," he said as he put a plate in front of me. "Toast on the left, strawberries bottom right, cantaloupe top right. Anything to drink?"

"There's a mix in one of the cabinets above the sink that I drink with breakfast. There should be instructions on it. It's banana strawberry flavored this month," I said picking up a strawberry and put it in my mouth. I was a bit impressed I hadn't had to ask him where on the plate things were located. He really was a quick study.

"Alright," he said. I heard the griddle start to sizzle again as the cabinet doors were opened and closed. I heard the fridge open and close and then the blender kick on. I was a bit confused as to what he was doing though. A glass was set in front of me before I heard Luca go back to where the stove was.

"You're being very helpful, Luca…thank you," I said, turning my fork over in my hand absently. "I don't think I've ever had a real breakfast before anyone else got up before…the most I could manage was cold cereal. I really, appreciate it."

He walked over to kiss the top of my head. "I told you, I'd make things up to you," he said. "You're just learning all the things I'm actually good for." He walked over to a cabinet and I heard something get set down on the counter. The distinct sound of dog kibble hitting the bowl followed and I heard the water kick on a few minutes later. "There you go, Baxter. Breakfast's served." Baxter was quickly chomping on it.

I smile a bit and put another strawberry in my mouth and savored the sweetness of it for a moment before swallowing. "I think I like this sort of making up anyway. Where is the syrup?"

"Here you go, beautiful," he said, setting a bottle just in front of my free hand.

I blushed some at the name and muttered a thank you as I took the syrup. I didn't bother to aim the syrup and just smothered the whole plate with it. I had been accused of having a massive sweet tooth before. And I couldn't exactly deny it. I picked up a syrup-covered strawberry and sucked the syrup off of it before putting the berry in my mouth.

"Well, at least I know why you taste so sweet now," he commented as I heard the stove turn off. He poured himself something to drink and sat down in front of me like he had before.

I smiled some. "I do like sweet things," I admitted picking up a piece of melon. I ate it before going to pick up my fork and breaking off a piece of toast.

"Ah too bad I'm not sweet," he murmured.

"I don't know…you seem pretty sweet to me. You made me breakfast after all. You even let me help. Most people get fed up with me when I try to help they end up just telling me to sit down and they do it themselves," I poked at the French toast absently.

"Doing things for you that you could do doesn't really help you," he said. "One of these days, I'll show you how to use the measuring cups. A few labels on spices and boxes, teaching you how to time cooking things on the stove, and you'd be nearly self sufficient. Which is what you want, isn't it?"

"Yes," I said softly. "I'd really like that, Luca. Thank you." I reached over with one hand and found his before giving it a bit of a squeeze. "It's more than anyone else has thought to do. Grandpa tries but he gets so caught up in work he doesn't always remember to help."

He turned our hands over and brought mine to his lips, kissing my knuckles softly. "I'm happy to help, Aubrey," he said softly. I felt myself start to blush at the old worldly show of gentlemanliness. "You've got what, another year of high school? And then college... It'd be good if you could do things for yourself, with occasional help."

"I've always tried to be self sufficient. I don't like it when people worry over me or have to take too much time out to help me," I said, trying, unsuccessfully, not to shiver at the feel of his lips against my skin.

He let my hand go as he sighed a bit. "I'll give it to you, you're doing well," he said softly. "But cooking and laundry are two major factors to being independent. And I know you need taught to cook and probably the same goes for laundry."

I sighed some. "I know how I just haven't been able to translate the processes so that I can do them without sight." I picked up another strawberry and popped it into my mouth. Baxter whined some and I got up to open the door for him. "People just don't realize how hard it is when you can't see the damn measurements or settings."

"I understand it," he said softly. "Which is why I want to help teach you how to do it for yourself. There will probably always be things you need help with, but... I'd hope to get you self sufficient enough to live on your own."

"I'll make a deal with you, Luca," I said turning around to face him again. "You find a way to let me live in a dorm or apartment on my own and I'll consider your debt to me paid in full."

"An apartment," he said. "I wouldn't trust dorm life to not cause you problems or injury. So I guess you should finish eating then. You have a lot of homework to catch up before I can start teaching you other things." he said, getting up to clean up the mess we'd made making breakfast.

I laughed some. "To be honest, I doubt grandpa will let me live in a dorm. But that's a ways off yet. Though homework isn't all that exciting," I muttered taking a few steps over to stand by the table.

"You still have your rewards system," Luca said softly. "And I'm sure you can think of some rewards by now."

I raised my eyebrow some. "Oh really? And what kind of rewards are you thinking of?" I asked curiously. "You know you owe me one for yesterday."

"Well, there are massages, cooking lessons of something not quite good for you, anything else you might want that I can give you," he said, setting the something on what sounded like a drying rack.

I smiled some. "You'd teach me how to make junk food, eh? Sounds like fun. We'll have to try that sometime." I heard a whine at the door and went to open it for Baxter. "I guess we can go upstairs now."

"As you wish, Aubrey," he said softly.

Baxter kept pace beside me as I made my way back towards the stairs. "We can work on math today, I guess," I said. "You need to write it all out for me…and tell me the problems. It's a little more intensive than English."

He followed close behind me, I could tell. "Oh, math... I remember that being a pain in the ass," he muttered. "At least I don't need to solve the problems." He laughed some.

"You think it was a pain in the ass for you? Imagine how hard it is for me. I have to do everything in my head. It's not too bad at first but once you get into longer algebra for instance and geometry it starts getting tricky," I said turning down the hallway towards my room.

"Ah, so no Astro Physics for you then?" Luca asked lightly.

"Not if I don't want to go absolutely stark raving mad," I said in a singsong voice. "I might have to count everything but that doesn't mean I'm all that good at math. As soon as I can stop taking it, I will."

He groaned a bit. "Sadly... I wasn't good at math, so other than writing and talking, I'll be absolutely no help to you," he muttered as I heard him sit down in my desk chair.

I chuckled some and sat down on the edge of my bed. "That's alright. I can manage. Besides I'm supposed to do it myself in the first place. My math teacher is a witch I swear. She can tell if someone helps me." Baxter jumped up beside me and curled up at my back. "She's never failed to say something if I managed to convince someone to help me."

"With a lot of that more difficult math... It's almost like a fingerprint how a person gets to the answer," he said. "It makes it easier to tell when someone cheats."

I shrugged. "She's never been able to prove anything and honestly, there's only so much I can do in my head. At some point, I simply won't be able to do it all mentally anymore and I'll have to get someone to do the math for me. Then all I'll be doing is remembering the procedures. There's a notebook in my bag. Small and with tiny squares carved in the front. My teacher writes down the problems in that," I supplied before putting a hand back and rubbing Baxter's head.

"You know... I've heard about a writing tablet that connects to a computer," he said absently. "You could probably incorporate that with other programs designed for people who can't see."

I smiled some. "Tired of the job already are you? We just started," I teased gently.

He chuckled some. "Never tired of an excuse to be near you," he said softly. "I was just thinking of more ways to help you be independent."

"And I'm not complaining," I said, leaning back against Baxter some. "But, at the moment I just wanna get all these assignments done and put to rest. I hate having homework to do. Especially, if it's built up homework that will linger in the air for while and ruin a bad time."

"Ruin a bad time?" he echoed. "Does that mean doing this built up homework will make things a good time?"

"It'll make things better," I answered. "At least then I won't be worrying about it at all."

He snorted some, but didn't comment. Instead he read off my first math problem. I started to do the problem he gave me in my head. Muttering slightly as I mentally broke down the problem. I finally gave him an answer not knowing if I was right or not and to be honest, not really caring.

He kept giving me more problems and I answered them so that he could record them for me. "All done," he said finally and I heard the chair creak as he shifted.

"Goody," I muttered, now sufficiently drained. "Now…what kind of a reward will you give me for doing all those problems?" I asked curiously.

"Depends on what you would like, Aubrey," he said softly. "It's not a reward if you don't like it."

"Mm," I hummed softly. "Surprise me. I'm sure you can come up with something fun to do."

I heard him walk over and his groan of pain as he kneeled down on the floor. He took one of my feet in his hands and started massaging it, pressing his thumbs into the soft flesh in the arch of my foot. I couldn't help but moan some at the feeling of my feet being rubbed. I let my head fall back on my neck as tingling pleasure spread up my legs from my feet. "Wow that feels great," I muttered.

"I'm glad," he murmured, his fingers rubbing against every inch of my feet. Slowly, he started working up my leg, removing the tightness that was there from stress. His lightly calloused fingers felt amazing.

I moaned again, the pleasure starting to shift and settle in more embarrassing areas of my anatomy. I couldn't help it. I was someone who lived through touch and he was far too good with his hands. "How'd you learn how to do this?" I asked in an attempt to distract myself slightly.

"I honestly don't know," he replied softly. "I only know that I've been doing it since I was a kid. The priest at my church always seemed to need some muscle worked out and he would ask me to do it. At least until I was too old to be an altar boy, anyhow."

"Well…you're very good at it," I muttered as his fingers coaxed my muscles to loosen up.

His fingers moved to the back of my knee, his thumbs working into the sides. "Thank you, Aubrey," he said as I felt my abdomen tighten slightly. "I'm glad you enjoy it." Once he finished on my knee, he moved his hands to my other leg. I bit back my whimper of disappointment. I had wanted to feel those hands slowly work their way higher. But I wasn't about to ask that.

"Thank you," I said, ducking my head to try and hide the heat that had gathered on my cheeks. His hands were starting to really affect me. Another kink was worked out and I couldn't help but moan again. I was getting uncomfortable for a reason other than cramped or sore leg muscles.

He slowly worked his way up to my other knee, making me even more heated. "There we go," Luca said softly, clearing his throat to get rid of the husk in his voice. "All worked out. What would you like to do now?" he asked.

I put my hand out to find his face. He was apparently right there and that made me bite my lip some. I hesitated for a minute before my desire got the better of me and I slid off the edge of the bed and landed in his lap. "To kiss you…" I finally answered his question softly before finding his mouth with my own.

He groaned softly, bringing a hand up to cradle my face as his other one wrapped around me. Slowly he pried my lips apart to deepen the kiss but not invading my mouth just yet. I opened my mouth for him as my hands felt every slight change of plane from his muscles. I wanted to map out every part of his body. Every tiny dip and bump. His skin felt good under my hands and I skimmed my hands over his shoulders, following the lines of his wonderful body.

His tongue slid into my mouth, sensually exploring every hidden place that nobody had ever found before. His fingers kneaded at my hip. I whimpered some at the feeling of fire that sprouted where his fingers were kneading my hip. I couldn't help but move against him. My whole body was too sensitive to touch. Especially his touch apparently. He was driving me crazy. I'd never felt so needy before and I wasn't entirely sure what it was that I needed, other than the pressure in my groin to ease some.

He moaned into my mouth and his hand tightened on my hip. He broke the kiss to suck in some air, moving his lips along my jaw as he slid a hand into my hair, his thumb rubbing the spot behind my ear. "Aubrey..." he murmured breathily as he moved back towards my lips.

I let out a breathy whine as his fingers moved over me. "L-luca…" My hands gripped his biceps as my hips took on a life of their own and pushed against his. I moaned at the friction, pleasure flooding me from the contact.

Luca gasped and pulled me harder against his lap. He captured my mouth in a heated kiss as he ground back against me, groaning deeply. I whimpered as my pants pulled far too much, but I didn't want to remove them. I didn't dare take that last step. My last ounce of self-preservation wouldn't allow it. "Luca…" I whimpered, clinging to him. I managed to pull away enough so that our hips weren't grinding anymore, though I desperately wanted to feel it still. I panted some as I slid off his lap and onto the ground. "I can't…" I breathed. My self-preservation had won out and shaken me out of my fervor. I just couldn't do it. Not yet anyway.

"I understand..." he murmured. He slowly pushed up from the floor before leaning down to help me up. "Come... Get off the floor, Aubrey, and I'll give you some privacy."

I took his hand and used it to help myself up. "Thank you…" I leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I didn't mean to jerk you around like that."

He bent down to kiss my forehead, lightly stroking the side of my face. "You didn't... I was waiting for you to draw your line," he said softly. "I'll be back in a little bit."

I nodded some and made my way towards my bathroom. I had my own little problem to take care of.

Once I was clean and I was fairly sure my mess was gone, I got out of the shower and made my way back towards my room. I slid under the covers and almost instantly; Baxter put his head on me. I chuckled some but didn't bother to move him. He was fine where he was and with how cruel I had been to Luca I doubted he'd be back anytime soon.

I felt myself starting to drift off out of what had become habit but the silence was again getting in the way of sleep. I trembled as I could swear someone was looming over me with his pants undone and reaching for my head. I whimpered some and turned on the radio again. Some sappy love song was playing but I didn't care it was just too damn quiet in my room. I tried to make myself calm down some but it wasn't working. I wanted to be with a human who could tell me for certain nobody was about to orally rape me.

I grabbed my robe and covered my naked body with it as I went to my door and started down the hallway. I quietly knocked on Luca's door but I didn't hear any movement. I bit my lip before silently opening the door and slipping inside. I couldn't hear him and if he was asleep I didn't want to wake him up. I slowly went over to the bed and felt the edge of the mattress some. I could feel the dip in the mattress, telling me he was there.

I quietly crawled up beside him, careful not to wake him up. I curled up beside him and closed my eyes. It was still a bit too silent but having him laying right there assured me nobody would be able to abuse me. It let me slowly drift off to sleep.