Gerard frowned. He was never a huge fan of puking, even when he had spent days leaning over bushes doing it himself. He smoothed his hands over Dom’s hair, keeping it out of her face as she leaned into the toilet bowl and dry heaved. Her body trembled and she let out an exhausted groan, resting her head against the seat.

“How is she?” Mikey popped his head around the bathroom door.

“Fucking peachy, Mike,” she grumbled into the bowl before letting loose another wave of sick.

“Should I call Nat?” he asked and Gerard shook his head.

“No, I’ll take her home,” he smoothed his hand through her long hair again.

Nodding, Mikey watched as Dom wiped the back of her hand over her mouth and sat back. Gerard let her hair fall from his grip and she rested her head back against the bathroom wall. Her skin was sallow and her eyes rimmed with red. She looked miserable.

“That fucking prick,” she sniffed, trying to catch her breath. “God I can still feel it, Gee.”

Her bottom lip trembled and she hugged her knees to her chest. Sliding off the edge of the tub, he joined her on the floor but she pushed him away.

“No.”

“Dom—”

“Please, just take me to my studio,” she muttered, pulling herself to her feet.

“Okay. Yeah.”

He followed her into the dark living room of his parents’ house. Mikey jumped up from the couch, ready to follow them out the door when Dom stopped. She stared at them for a few seconds before rushing to Mikey, hugging him hard. Gee had to keep himself from laughing at the surprised but euphoric look on his younger brother’s face as Dom clung to him. Slowly he wrapped his arms around her, returning the embrace.

“It’s okay, Dom,” he whispered into her hair. “You’re not going to fall back into that life. I know you.”

“God I hope you’re right,” she sniffed and pulled away. “Shit, sorry.” She wiped at the wet spot on his shirt with a sheepish smile.

“Eh, it’s fine, it needs to be washed anyway,” he chuckled, rubbing a thumb over the spot. “Go get some sleep and I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

Dom nodded and smiled, “Thanks guys.”

“You know we’re here for you,” Mikey kissed her cheek and she made her way outside to get in the car. As the front door closed behind her Gerard turned to his brother. He scratched the back of his head awkwardly and sighed.

“She might want me to spend the night.”

Mikey frowned. “Why?”

“I don’t think she wants to be alone, that’s all,” Gee shrugged.

“Yeah, true.”

“I just don’t want you to get the wrong idea,” Gerard mumbled and Mikey nodded. He wanted to hang his head in shame. How could he be pretending to look out for Mikey’s well being when he was already screwing the girl he loved? Some brother he was.

“I understand, go get her home before she gets sick again. She needs to sleep off the affects of that pill.”

Gee gave a slight nod and followed Dominica outside. He smiled at the sight of her forehead leaning against the window of Nat’s car, her hair ruffled and her eyes half closed. She offered him a weak smile when their eyes met and he jogged to the driver’s side and climbed in.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to back to your apartment?”

“No, studio,” she muttered, clutching her arms around her middle. “I don’t want to deal with Nat’s questions tonight.”

Nodding, Gerard kept his mouth shut and started the car, easing away from the curb. He glanced back to see Mikey standing in the window, a concerned frown across his face. Swallowing hard, Gee looked away from his brother’s retreating form and turned his attention to the groaning female beside him. He slid his hand over her back, massaging between her shoulder blades.

“Don’t freak out, Dom. Just relax,” he soothed but she flipped him off and bent forward, pressing her forehead to her knees.

“I just don’t want to be numb, Gee,” she muttered into her pant leg. “I don’t want the feeling to go away.”

“I know,” was all he could come up with so he returned to rubbing her back and trying to focus on the road. Easing the gas, he slid through New York traffic until finally they pulled up in front of her studio.

The second the car was parked, Dom slid from the car and rushed inside. Sighing, Gee rested his head back on the headrest and closed his eyes. He knew she wanted space, but he also knew she didn’t want to be alone. When he’d picked her up from the club she simply stared silently out the window only revealing that she’d been forced to take a pill and she was scared shitless. Granted he was scared shitless just the same, he needed to know what was up.

Climbing from the car, Gerard combed a hand through his hair before gathering his courage and following Dominica inside. Ringing the doorbell a few times, he waited for her to unlock the front but the reply buzz never came. Since her landlord rarely ever stayed in the studio on the first floor, Gee grumbled a low curse and made for the stairs, climbing the three flights to Dom’s floor. Her door was ajar when he finally made it into the hallway and his eyebrows pulled together in concern.

“Dom?” He poked his head around the heavy steel and eyed the empty apartment. Taking a few steps into the space he glanced around, closing the door behind him. He knew she was in there. “Dominica?”

Taking a moment to listen to the quiet he picked up on the sound of the shower running in the bathroom. Making his way to the noise he shrugged his jacket off, tossing it on the bed before trying the closed bathroom door. Finding it locked, Gee let out a quiet curse before brushing his knuckles against the wood.

“Dom?”

“Go away.”

“What are you doing?” he called.

“Gee, just go away.”

He frowned. Her voice sounded hoarse under the rushing from the shower. She was crying. Unable to give up, Gerard leaned against the wall, letting his weight pull him to the floor. He rested his arms on his knees and leaned his head back on the brick wall.

“Dom, talk to me.”

“Stop.”

“No.”

“Fuck off!” her voice rose and he saw her shadow under the bathroom door. Bracing himself, he watched the darkened spot eagerly, willing her to open the door. He knew she was too stubborn to do what he wanted, especially when she was upset. Instead of pushing the issue he kept quiet, knowing his silence would drive her insane.

He tried to remember their first fight, the first time he really felt her anger and a grin drifted across his face. She’d been doped up and feeling destructive so she’d picked an argument with him about Mikey. They’d snapped at each other for nearly an hour before she finally came out and socked him in the gut, wanting a reaction. He’d been so shocked he kissed her to see what she’d do. His eyes glazed over remembering how rough she was high. Now she was just fragile. Close to breaking.

Shaking his head, he braced his head in his hands and sighed. What the fuck was she doing in there? He knocked a little harder only for the bathroom door to creak open slightly, the shower sounds still mingling with her incessant sniffing. Jumping to his feet, Gerard eased the door open, peering around it cautiously. The sight made his heart skip a few beats.

“Dom, hey, what are you doing?” he whispered.

She sat in the middle of the tub, her long hair soaked to her face and down her naked back. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her legs and she rocked back and forth, the tears mixing with the scalding water streaming from the shower.

Trying to avoid tripping over her mound of clothes in the middle of the floor, Gee knelt down beside her, the heat from the shower bringing a thin layer of sweat to his forehead.

“Dom.” He kept his tone soft, afraid to reach out and touch her flushed skin.

“Don’t touch me, please,” she finally whispered and turned to look at him. Her eyes swirled with emotion, the color a dark gray he’d only seen during her recovery. She was hurting.

“I won’t I promise,” he smiled. “But I need you to tell me what happened.”

She shook her head and her lip trembled. “I can’t.”

“You know you can.”

“No,” she sobbed. “Gee, I can’t. He’ll hurt me.”

“Who?”

“Luke,” she whispered before dissolving into a fit of sobs, her shoulders seizing with the force of her tears.

Biting back a curse, Gee leaned closer to the tub, his arm slicked with hot water. He struggled with the temptation to pull her into his arms and hold her until she felt better. The feeling was so powerful it scared him. He needed her to be happy and warm.

“Gee,” she broke the silence.

“Mmm?”

“He touched me,” she whispered, clutching her arms closer to herself. “He violated me while he forced me to take that pill. He fucking touched me,” her voice broke and she sniffed. “Fucking prick.”

The anger exploded in Gerard’s chest. For a split second he swore he saw red before the room went back to normal. He had to keep his cool for her but he wanted to find Luke and inflict serious damage. In his struggle to contain his sudden rush of rage, a growl rumbled in his throat and she looked at him, dripping eyebrows raised.

“If I wasn’t so fucking traumatized, I’d be so turned on right now.” A shadow of a smile drifted across her face and the tension snapped. They both chuckled quietly and Gee stood up, turning the shower off and holding his hand out to her.

“Come on, dry off and get some pajamas on.”

She eyed his hand before taking it, letting him pull her out of the tub. She wrapped a towel around her shivering body and smiled when he stepped from the room to give her some privacy. When she finished pulling on a hoodie and sweatpants she joined him on the bed, curling up beside him on top of the covers.

Resting his head back on the mass of pillows, Gee smiled. She was so warm. Dom wrapped her arms around his middle, her head resting against his abdomen. He pulled her hood away, running his fingers through her soaked hair. Even wet it was silky and smooth, the waves long and luxurious between his fingers. He felt her hands squeeze him gently, her silent gesture begging him not to leave. In response he toed his sneakers off and got comfortable, pulling the throw she kept at the foot of the bed over them.

“Gee?” she adjusted her position so she could look up at him.

“Hmm?”

Instead of speaking she sat up so her face came level with his and rested her head on his shoulder. He watched her eyes, getting lost in the confused swirls of gray and silver. She licked her lips and leaned close, pressing them against the side of his neck. He shivered, loving the shot of heat from her touch.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime, sugar,” he smiled and she snorted, burying her face in his chest and closing her eyes, enjoying the closeness after a hellish night.