Beautiful Monster(31)

That stopped me, and I stared at her. She was so beautiful, so healthy, and strong. How could she possibly be infected as well?
              “Really?”
              “Yep,” she said, with a sad smile, as she reached to examine my arm. “Years ago. Dirty needle.” She winced as she looked at the wound. “This is going to need the first aid kit. I’m going to get it.” She stood up, looking at Liam, who had backed up a bit to lean against a desk. “You alright? I’ll be fast.”
              “Sure,” he seemed a bit more sober now, although his eyes weren’t as intense as they normally were. “Go ahead, Porsche, I’m not going to eat her.”
              “Uh huh,” the dancer seemed un-amused, and headed off down the hallway, breaking into a jog as she got a few feet away. Curling my knees against my chest, I turned to look at Liam. He was looking right back at me, sympathy playing across his face.
              “Are you alright?” he asked me, and I nodded.
              “Yes, I was just careless.”
              “If anyone was careless tonight, it was me,” he said, sitting down beside me.
              “Are you alright?” I cocked my head at him. “You look…sorry, you look terrible.”
He laughed, glancing up at the clock.
              “It’s just time for me to go to bed,” he said, and I raised an eyebrow at that.
              “A former Hollywood party boy, wanting to sleep at 9pm?”
His face darkened at that again, and I saw his mouth twitch. I blinked twice, trying to clear my head. His teeth were white and perfect inside his mouth, but tonight they looked almost menacing.
              “There are things the darkness does to me that you don’t know, Amy. Things that you don’t want to know.”
              I would have laughed at that, but there was something about the tone in his voice that made me lean closer, my chest tight with empathy.
              “Like what?”
He waved his hand, dismissingly.
              “We all have our demons in the dark. I’m sorry that you have to…see me like this. The booze helps, believe it or not. But then, you’re 18 and young, you should believe it,” he gave me a wry smile, and I shrugged.
              “I’ve lived a pretty boring life.” I said, quietly, pulling at a thread on my shirt. “But Liam…” There was something about his face, the way he was almost folded in on himself, looking so vulnerable, that made me continue to speak. “You’ve given me so much help while I’ve been here. You’ve given me everything. A year ago, I never would have even dared to dream my life would be like this. So…” I trailed off, meeting his dark eyes. “If there’s anything I can do to help you…I know it’s not my place, but...” What stopped me this time was what I thought I saw in his eyes; the tears welling up as he spoke, shaking his head.
              “You’re a good kid, Amy. You shouldn’t be mixed up in all this.”
              “I’m not a kid,” I said, immediately, and he met my eyes, a tender smile on his face. He raised a hand to my cheek, and I let him touch it gently.
              “Indeed you are not.” He said. “You are a beautiful young woman, and any man would be blind to refuse you.”
              I was lost in his eyes, their watery depths flooding into my soul. I had seen his face a thousand times, on the screen and in the magazines, and I couldn’t believe it was now inches from mine. Slowly, his other hand rose to my other cheek, and he dipped his head. Without even realizing what was happening, I kissed him.