Blood. So much blood.

It covered the ground around me.

I blinked through my tears, fighting against the unrelenting, raw pain that threatened to tare me apart.

I dropped to me knees, the force of my fall enough to rip my jeans, but I didn't care. I only had eyes for the source of all of this anguish.

Before me lay a man, face down on the bricks of the sidewalk we had traveled only moments before.

I continued to sob uncontrollably, and pulled his heavy body closer to mine.

Somehow I knew he was gone. I could feel it.

Where once I had felt whole- complete, now only pain remained. Hollow, empty, nothingness consumed me.

I buried my face in his still warm neck and screamed through the pain.

In all my life, nothing had hurt so much.

"I will do anything!" I sobbed, turning my face up towards the grey sky, praying to whatever god may be listening, "I will die in his place. Just bring him back."

Just bring him back.

~~~~~

"Anastasia? You have to wake up now, Anastasia."

I groaned, attempting to roll to my side and stop the light assaulting my eyelids, but I didn't budge. Assuming I was still so tired I was unable to get my body coordinated with my brain, I lay there with the light in my eyes.

My head pounded in rhythm with my pulse and within seconds my chest had started to constrict with panic. What happened to me?

"Anastasia..." The unfamiliar voice growled.

"Go away." I tried to snap but it came out as more of an inaudible gurgle. What the hell?!

Squeezing my eyes shut tighter against the sudden increase in throbbing that coursed through my head I tried to focus- to remember how I had gotten here.

My head was near the point of bursting.

"You need to drink this or you will only feel worse."

My entire body went cold, suddenly recalling where I had heard this voice before. It was him... But what was he doing here? In fact, where was I?

Cracking an eye open my suspicions were confirmed when I found Jayce looming over me, pale golden eyes fixated on my face with an annoyed scowl. Above him hovered blue skies, cast in the mystifying early morning glow.

Was I dreaming? No, I concluded seconds later, if I were dreaming Jayce wouldn't be scowling.

My mind flew into orbit with questions, fears, various scenarios to place why Jayce was here, why I was unable to move, and why my head felt like it was being split open with a battle axe.

Without my consent Jayce grasped my lifeless forearm and drug me up into his lap, forcing me into an awkward upright position where I was more or less propped into a haphazard slouch.

I opened my mouth to speak but no words would come out and when I tried swatting him away my arms remained limp at my sides.

What was this?!

My panic grew by ten amd my heart threatened to drum right out of my chest the more I struggled to speak- to move away from Jayce. Nothing I done seemed to work and I only lay completely still, propped up against his chest, my head begining to droop to one side.

"You need to drink this," Jayce repeated, holding a small glass bottle up to my lips, "it will counteract the sleeping drug."

I again could not give my consent before he was forcing the bottle past my parted lips and dumping the awful tasting contents down my throat.

I started to cough, my entire body trying to force the nasty liquid back up before it could be ingested.

Jayce tossed the bottle aside and clamped my mouth shut, leaving me with no other choice but to swallow the substance back down.

I coughed more and he done nothing to help ease my discomfort or prevent me from choking to death.

"You will be fine soon enough." He assured in a gruff voice, laying my limp body back on the hard, gritty surface below.

If that was meant to assure me, let me assure you, it did not help.

Back on the ground I forced my eyes to focus, but wished I hadn't moments later when I realized what seemed so off about my bed; I was not laying on a bed at all, I was laying on sand.... In fact, everything as far as I could see was covered in sand. We were in the desert.

I shivered, both from the chill of the early morning air and the fear that had crept its way into every nerve of my body.

For the time being I was just thankful for the warmth of the sun caressing me, providing it's comfort when I could find it nowhere else.

How I had gotten here and why Jayce was with me was still a mystery, and I had a horrible feeling forming in the pit of my stomach that, somehow, I had played a very key role this.

I lay there unmoving long enough to watch the sun reach into the sky. Jayce was nowhere in sight which led me to wonder if he had left me here to die.

I had to have been awake three hours and he had not spoken- not come into view once.

Maybe the drug he had given me had not done what he had hoped, so he left me?

I don't know which seemed mute terrifying. Being left in the desert alone, or with Jayce.

If I could just remember what happened, it might help me come up with a plan to escape whenever I was able to move again.

With nothing more to do than think surely I should have been able to come up with something and yet I was still no closer to understanding what had happened or how I had come to be in this mess.

What had I done? Where was Tony? I prayed he was alright.

I lay there another forty-five minutes before I was able to twitch my fingers. It wasn't much and it was all I could do to force them to move but it was more control than I'd had over my body in hours.

"I told you the drug would start helping soon." Jayce took a seat cross legged on the sand in front of me, his face expressionless.

I forced every muscle in my face to etch itself into a scowl as I stared up at him from the desert floor. "W-what h...ave y-y-you d-d-done?"

It was dry, raspy, and nearly inaudible, but these were the first words I had spoken in who knew how long. Had it been hours? Days? I really could not tell.

Jayce remained indifferent. "What I had to, Anastasia. You are too much of an asset to leave behind, and I feared what they may do once they realized you are the one who woke me and made it possible for my escape."

If it were possible for my stomach to sink any lower than it already had it just did. Jayce was saying I had been the one to wake him, which meant I had no one to blame for the mess I was in but myself.

What had I done?

He brushed sand from my cheek, showing the first form of emotion I had ever seen besides anger. He looked remorseful. "I truly am sorry you had to involve yourself in all of this, Anastasia. I had hoped it weren't so but, I do believe I will find myself regretting having taken you prisoner sooner rather than later... They are sure to have discovered us missing by now and they will undoubtedly be putting together where it is I plan to go."

I stared up at him from the desert floor, my hopes that I could escape diminishing. "B-ut... w-why?"

"I must reach my people, Anastasia. Whether you choose to go willingly or by force, you will accompany me. I will protect you and you will help me. My people need to be made aware of the truth."

The truth? What truth? Who were his people? Did he even know? He had been locked away for so long how could he possibly know what he was going to do? I had so many new questions.

"Want.... to go.... h-home." I forced out, ignoring the lone, hot tear that rolled down my cheek and dripped onto the sand.

That was what I truly wanted right then. I would gladly go back to the facility even. If it got me away from Jayce and back into the comfort of normalcy and safety of the scientists, I was willing to return to that.

"We have no home, Anastasia." Jayce spoke matter of factly. "Not here. I have no family here, your parents are dead. We have no one we can trust."

I lay there for a moment, processing the full weight of his words and then I sobbed, the bitter, unsettling truth hitting like a ton of bricks. It hurt so much because it was true; I had no one. I did not have my parents, my friends, uncle Tony, even Jayce had betrayed my trust.

I was completely alone.

"We must go now."

I lay there, helpless and stifling tears as Jayce stood and pulled my body effortlessly into his arms.

I had enough strength returning to keep my head from lulling around, but could do little more to move or even fight him off of me like I so desperately wanted to do.

"Where are you t-taking... me?" I stuttered out, my speech coming a little easier than it had before.

"US Mexican National Radio Astronomy Observatory VLA. They have a satellite transmission system capable of reaching my planet." Jayce explained, trekking deeper into the desert at a pace that had him near sprinting. "That is where we must go."

"Mexico?! B-but we are in C-California... We w-will never make it on f-foot." I spluttered, eyes wide. How were we supposed to get to this place on foot?! How did a guy who spent his entire life locked away in a top secret facility even come into the knowledge of such things?

He looked unimpressed. "I know my latitude and longitude, Anastasia. I have calculated the time/distance an on foot journey will take."

I openly gaped at Jayce while questions continued to plague my mind. How intelligent was this guy? Did the scientists teach him this stuff or was he just that gifted?

While I was at it with the questions... How the hell had he heard of such a place? How could he memorize such a long name and how did he know where it was, or even what it was for that matter.

We fell into a silence that lasted through the rest of the morning and into the late afternoon, only breaking after Jayce came to a stop under the shadows of a rocky cliff.

In all that silence I had only managed to come up with two believable theories. 1: Jayce had been there before (which sounded impossible when Tony swore he had spent his entire life in the facility). 2: Jayce had someone helping him from inside the facility.

"We will rest here. You need to move or you could remain in a state of paralysis." Jayce spoke in his signature monotone voice, while setting me down in the hot sand.

I honestly was just hoping there were no scorpions or snakes hiding under here. Who knew how far we must have been from a hospital... Or anything for that matter.

He was right though, my body was incredibly sore from its inability to move for so long.

I stretched out my aching shoulders and neck, finally feeling enough strength to sit myself upright and then stretch my legs which felt just as cramped as everything else.

"So, was this what you had planned from the beginning? To lure me in with your pretence of being nice and innocent minded then kidnap me when I let my guard down?" I don't know where the sudden bravery was coming from, but it would seem I really had nothing to lose, so I went with it.

His head snapped around so fast I thought his neck might break, anger flashing in his eyes. "No. This was never my intention. I may have withheld things from you, but I had not planned this. You merely presented an opportunity I could not refuse."

I glared, crossing my arms over my chest, not even bothered to care that I was acting childish and pouting. "Right. So was the whole having no feelings thing all a lie? Or your refusal to talk? Because you seem quite expressive now-"

"I have done what I had to do for survival, Anastasia. Do not take me for something I am not. I appreciated the compassion you've shown towards me, but I never wanted you involved like this. You are nothing but a liability now."

I swallowed back everything I wanted to say and kept silent. If I were a liability that meant he would have no problem disposing of me. Or at least that was what kept running through my mind.

Maybe he really didn't have feelings.

"As I said before," Jayce continued, anger still reverberating through his voice, "you have become a liability and I will regret taking you sooner or later."

It kinda hurt that he viewed me as nothing more than a liability when, at one point, I had begun to consider him my only friend.

"Then maybe you should have left me!" I yelled, losing whatever shred of resolve I had to stay alive. Clearly I was a professional when it came to throwing caution to the wind.

He nodded, the reflection in his pale yellow eyes stating that he truly agreed with me. "You are right, Anastasia. I should have."

Five minutes of heavy silence passed before Jayce got to his feet, scooping me up without so much as a single word.

I kept my jaw locked tight, glaring out into the scorching desert as Jayce took off at a pace so fast everything began to blur. It was inhuman and, honestly, it freaked me out just how fast he could move.

If ever there were a time when I wished I could just travel back in time and slap myself it was at that moment. I had allowed myself to foolishly believe this man could be anything but what he is and, as anyone could have guessed, I was very wrong.

The sun was literally setting before we stopped again, Jayce plopping me in the dry, dead, desert grass before taking a seat beside me.

My stomach rumbled, reminding me I had likely gone well over twenty-four hours without eating, but I could hardly notice my stomach pains past the dryness of my mouth.

I was so thirsty that, by this point, I was willing to kill for a drink of water- like I may die if I did not have it soon. Jayce, however, looked totally unbothered by our lack of water and food.

He looked as healthy and ready to go as he had this morning. Stupid alien.

I forced my shaking quivering body up onto my feet and stood, stretching out evey cramped muscle and joint. Jayce copied my movement, getting to his feet in one swift movement, making me jealous of his near perfect movements. Just another reason to hate aliens.

"We must keep moving. You can walk for now if you'd like."

I rolled my eyes, giving the one finger salute to his back as he stalked off.

He hadn't even bothered check if I would follow. Insensitive, arrogant, asshole, check check and check.

But, what choice did I have? I wouldn't last the night on my own.

Grudgingly, I followed, making sure to keep a spacious gap between us. I kept close enough to feel safe, keeping in mind the fact that any closer and I would be right back in the danger zone.

With the setting sun came the rush of cool air hitting my bare arms and ceasing a burn that, until then, I had not realized was there.

Glancing down I stared at my arms in shock for a moment. My arms. My poor arms. Extended out before me, in a near glowing intensity were a pair of bright red arms, completely sunburned after being exposed to the blistering desert sun all day without any form of protection.

Oh that was going to hurt come tomorrow... Except that now that I was aware of their burned state they really hurt already.

Just when I thought my situation could not get much worse...

I had not noticed Jayce slowing his pace until he was falling in stride beside me.

"Why does your skin do that?" He asked, gesturing down to my arms I was not through inspecting.

"Because I was in the desert in the sun all day. It is burned." I hissed while glancing up at him sharply.

"But it will heal, yes?"

"Eventually. But it is going to hurt like hell, first."

"Look," Jayce sighed, running a hand through his short dark hair, "I am sorry for what I said, Anastasia. You are not just a liability, I just- I- you have helped me more than you will ever know."

I stopped walking, staring at Jayce with wide eyes. Had I heard him right?

He turned, realizing I was no longer beside him. The determination that he always seemed to hold in his eyes ebbed, being replaced by a more timid, unsure look that was completely out of place on him.

"Anastasia, I am being sincere." He turned his head to stare out into the desert, watching the final sliver of sun disappear behind the horizon. "I just thought it would be beneficial for us to stick together."

"Well you never asked me first, so... I don't know what you want me to say." I mumbled, thinking he had not heard me.

The look on his face as his head snapped back around to look at me said otherwise. "You do not need to say anything, Anastasia. I just ask that you give me the chance to prove I am not a bad man. I am not what the facility made me."

The breath caught in my throat as, in two long strides, Jayce appeared right in front of me. His rough hands cupped my face, forcing me to look up into his now smoldering eyes.

I swallowed, the sudden rush of butterflies in my stomach hinting at what was to come.

Faster than I was capable of reacting Jayce closed the already short distance between us and pressed his lips against mine.

My entire body froze and a sudden repulsive feeling rose up in my stomach the longer Jayce held my mouth captive.

The feeling continued to rise until it could no longer be contained and in a move based off sheer impulse I reared back and slapped Jayce across the face, hitting him hard enough to make my hand sting.

As if being brought back to reality Jayce leapt back away from me, eyes wide in a look of absolute bewilderment and horror.

To be fair, I had startled myself a bit as well. I was never the aggressive type and I certainly had never hit anyone before.

"What was that?" He asked, shaken and breathy.

"I slapped you jack ass!" I yelled, stumbling back a step and bracing myself encase I needed to do it again. I would do it again.

"No," he shook his head, appearing unfazed by my assault on him, "before that."

I glared even harder back at Jayce, my frustration growing to a near hazardous level.

Throwing my hands up in the air I began to shout. "Oh I don't know Jayce. What the hell was that?!"

His expression fell flat. "You are upset... Was what I done wrong?"

I rolled my eyes and gave him a look I hoped could kill. "Yes Jayce. It was very wrong. You never kiss a girl unless she has given her consent!"

He nodded, but I could see I had only caused more questions to stir in his eyes. "But... What was that?"

I blew out an exasperated sigh. Sometimes I felt like I was dealing with a child rather than a highly intelligent ailen. "It is called kissing, Jayce. Normally people only kiss someone they are attracted to."

Which brought another question to mind.

"Why did you kiss me?"

He looked away then and I swear I could see red creeping to the surface of his face. "I... I really don't know. I merely meant to silence you- to make you see I was speaking the truth."

I stared on in disbelief. He did not make a convincing statement and judging by the look on his face he knew it, too.

He ran a hand through his hair, looking more distraught than I had ever seen him. "Well fuck!"

Well fuck was right.