KIWI

My eyes flutter open.

Then closed.

Open again.

Closed again.

Jesus, what’s wrong with me?

I open them again and I see someone, someone I haven’t seen in years. “Am I dead?” I breathe.

“Why would you think that?” the voice I hear is my brother’s though it’s raspy and gravelly in a way that makes me think of my dad.

“Because you’re here,” I say.

“I’ve always been here,” he says.

“You look like you,” I say and then I try to move. “Ow, oh my god, ow, ow.”

“Don’t do that. You’ll hurt yourself.”

“What the hell happened?” I ask, a little irritation in my voice.

“You don’t remember?”

I close my eyes. My head is pounding, my face is on fire. My ribs feel like I’ve been railroaded, then the night before flashes through my mind. Rooster, revenge, bed, Loki. No, it wasn’t Loki, it was Gunnar. I shudder. “Ow,” I say again. Then my mind flashes to the room, the guy, I shiver again. “Dammit,” I breathe through the pain. “I remember,” I murmur.

“Good,” Kellen says.

“What did you do to yourself?” I ask him.

“Which part?” he asks.

“You look like you, except that scar.”

“I took out the contacts, cut my hair, and got my cut back,” he says with pride. My eyes roam over his chest, and the air in my lungs freezes.

“President?” I ask.

Kellen smiles wide. “Voted on this afternoon. Rooster is in custody, Gunnar is dead, thanks to you,” he tells me. I smile but my cheeks hurt.

“Loki?” I ask.

“Veep,” he says and I give him a smaller smile that doesn’t hurt.

“Piper?” I say, sadness creeping into my tone.

“At home, safe, with Emily.” I notice a rush of breath escape him when he says Emily’s name. I narrow my eyes at him.

“What about Emily?” I ask.

“Don’t worry about it,” he says with a tone he used to use when I was younger and he wanted me out of his business.

“Nice try, jerk.”

“She’s a fucking hot piece of ass, okay?” He blushes, like, he actually turns red.

“Uh huh, she is,” I tell him. “She’s twenty-three, you know?”

He shrugs. “Since when do I care.”

I laugh. "Ow, oh god, don’t do that,” I grumble.

“You’re the one who laughed, silly girl.”

“I know. But Emily? Really?”

He shrugs again. “I’ve met her once,” he grumbles, but I think there’s more to it than that.

“Uh huh, sure.” If I could and it wouldn’t hurt, I’d shake my head.

“Don’t be like that,” he argues.

“Like what?” I ask.

“All little sister on me.”

“Oh, believe me, you ain’t seen nothing yet. But I will warn you, she’s the best fucking babysitter on the planet, if you fuck her up so much she runs off, I will kill you myself.” I narrow my eyes and my head roars.

“Yeah, yeah,” he mumbles.

“Where’s Loki?” I ask him.

“He was gonna stop by the house, see Piper. She’s really a great kid, Lily.”

“Stop making me smile, it hurts,” I tease him. “She’s an amazing kid,” I tell him. He nods. “She okay?” I ask.

“Perfectly fine. Emily knows what’s up, and I’m assuming Loki is giving an update.”

“I want to see her,” I say.

He takes a deep breath. “That’s not the best idea, bean.” He uses my old nickname and my heart skips in my chest.

“Why not?” I snap.

“Because your face looks like it’s been used as a punching bag.”

“Oh,” I breathe.

“Give it a day or two, let the swelling subside, then one of us will bring her up,” he tells me.

“Okay,” I say quietly.

My eyelids start to get heavy and I start blinking.

“Go back to sleep,” Kellen says. “Heal up. You’ve got work to do.”

“I do?” I ask sleepily.

“Yup, but we’ll talk about it later.”

“S’oka…” I slip back into sleep.

I don’t know how long it is before I open my eyes again. My hand is sore and yet really warm. I wiggle my fingers trying to figure out why, when there’s a shift on the bed. “Kiwi,” a voice whispers.

I turn toward it and my eyes take a moment to adjust. Loki is staring down at me. “Hi,” I breathe.

He stands and leans over me, gently placing his hand on the pillow beside my head. “Hi,” he breathes. I can see relief in his eyes as he looks down at me. “How are you feeling?” he asks.

“Tired. I hurt like a bitch,” I groan.

He stands up straight, pulling his hand away from me and I pout. “What happened?” he asks.

“Gunnar happened. Him and some other piece of shit,” I grumble.

“His brother,” Loki tells me.

“That’s one sick motherfucker,” I snap.

“He’s dead,” he tells me.

There is a gentle calm, a peace and sweet relief that washes through me as his words register in my mind. “Did I…” I don’t finish.

“Don’t worry about that,” he tells me.

I don’t argue with him. I’m not in the mood for it. “So, what’s wrong with me?” I ask him.

“You have two cracked ribs, one’s broken.” I figured as much. “You have some damage to your wrists and ankles, but I think they’re going to be just fine.”

“I remember he bit me,” I whisper and Loki’s face turns blood red with rage.

“Don’t worry about it. The plastic surgeon said he can fix it.” I nod slightly. “Did he do anything else to you?” his voice is strained.

I lift my right hand, the one that doesn’t hurt as much and I see the bandage around my wrist, no doubt from the cable ties, and I press my palm to his cheek. “I won’t give you details, because you don’t need that in your head,” I tell him softly. “But no. I took him out before he got the chance.”

“Thank god.” His voice is soft but relieved and he leans down, kissing my forehead.

“I’ll be okay,” I reassure him and he nods his head.

“You don’t have a choice,” he tells me.

“What do you mean by that?” I scowl at him. It hurts so I let it go.

He doesn’t say anything as he brings his hand down to rest just above my pelvic bone.

“Oh, god.” I breathe. “Seriously?”

He smiles so wide it lights up the entire room. Tears prick my eyes and then one escapes before I can stop it. He leans down and gently kisses it away. “They drew blood, and ran some tests. The doctor said it’s really early, but the signs are there.”

“Loki, I…”

“Shhh,” he hushes me. “It’s alright. I told you before, I didn’t care.”

“But I do. I won’t do it again, alone,” I tell him.

“You’re never going to be alone again.” He gently presses his lips to mine. I kiss him back as best as I can. He pulls back, his eyes are alight with wonder and desire and so many unnamed emotions that I can’t possibly put into words.

“Okay,” I breathe. I nod slightly. “Okay,” I repeat.

He smiles wide before pressing his lips to my head. “I love you,” he whispers.

I suck in a gasp and pain shoots everywhere. I groan, “Ow," and I breathe through it.

He gives me a smirk. “That’s not the first time I’ve said it.” His smirk turns to a grin and I raise an eyebrow in question. “Granted, you were passed out…” he chuckles.

“So not fair,” I tease him.

“It’s true,” he tells me. “I’ve loved you since you came home from the hospital. I just didn’t know it then. When I named you Kiwi at three, I was twelve and I knew that one day I was going to marry you.” He takes a deep breath and continues, “That night, in the garage, I knew I would have my colors on your back, no matter what the cost.” He kisses my forehead again. “When you walked back into my life, I knew it was meant to be.” He reaches for my hand.

He lifts it gently and I look down as he slips something on my ring finger. His eyes flash to mine. “Now you have my ring, my patch and my brand,” he says in a commanding tone.

“Caveman,” I mutter.

He throws his head back with laughter.

“It’s not funny,” I tell him deadpan.

“What did I do wrong this time?” he asks through his laughter.

“You can’t even propose to me right.”

“I’m not giving you the chance to say no,” he snickers and presses his lips to mine again but pulls back before he gets too carried away. “Now heal, I need my woman.”

“Caveman,” I breathe.

Sleep consumes me again shortly after that.