Chapter 413: The Circle Of Life
This time when I woke up, I knew exactly where I was, which seemed to be a nice change after everything. "Are you okay?" asked Tank. His face was a picture of concern as he looked down at me. I was wrapped in his arms, my head on his chest, as he clutched my shoulder.
I could practically smell his fear and desperation... and while I would probably have been more concerned before, now I was just too tired to deal with him.
That probably wasn’t a good thing. With all my luck, I’ll end up alienating all of my guys and end up an old lady with too many cats. Wait... how many cats are too many? If I collect reptiles instead of cats, like dinosaurs and gators, does it still count as being a crazy cat lady?
"Why wouldn’t I be?" I asked when he squeezed my shoulder hard enough to pull me out of my thoughts. He didn’t hurt me, he never would, but he still got my attention. Then again, Luca hadn’t physically hurt me at all, but he, too, still got my attention.
"Because you were in excruciating pain?" grumbled Tank, kissing my forehead. "I’ve never seen you collapse like that. I banged on the door to demand that someone come and look at you, but I was told that no one would enter the room until tomorrow afternoon. If you were still alive by then, then clearly it wasn’t that big of a deal."
Shrugging my shoulders, I smiled up at him. "Technically, they aren’t wrong. Most of the people who get sick here do it because they are zombies. Why would they take the chance?"
"Not acceptable," growled Tank low in his chest. That sound, along with the sound of his heartbeat, was starting to ground me. I was no longer floating away, thinking only about paths and what I needed to do next. I had Tank beside me, and that was enough.
"I need a non-pain-induced nap," I answered him. With a yawn that was so big that tears started to form in my eyes, I rolled over so that my back was pressed against his side. Pulling him with me, I forced him to become the big spoon. "I’ll be fine when I wake up."
Okay, so that was a lie, but it was close enough for Jazz.