8: Politics

Warning: Adult language

Gabriella spent a few hours inside the hospital. Nate remained outside, waiting.

"You didn't have to wait for me. I can practically walk home from here." Gabriella said as she approached him.

"With a mugger on the loose? I couldn't do that." he shook his head to emphasize his point.

"It's what I would've done three days ago." she stated simply.

"So, she's okay?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Yep. Still sassy, she'll be fine. She looks like crap though." she said, her calm demeanor crumbling right before his eyes.

Suddenly, she closed the distance and threw her arms around his neck. "Oh, Nate I was so scared. What if it had been the vision coming true? Muggers? I thought that wasn't supposed to happen in small towns. Used to be that you didn't even have to lock your front door, things were so safe." she said as she finally gave up on figuring out what else he smelled like besides leather, and she guessed that was due to being with the horses beforehand. The other must just be him.

Nate felt pleasantly surprised at this unexpected embrace as he didn't expect to be surprised about much of anything with this woman. He felt his arms automatically wrap around her as she molded her body to his.

"Perhaps this means that this vision won't come true?" And does that leave the possibility that others might not as well? he said and thought as his senses were assaulted by her nearness. She felt so nice in his arms. Again, the smell of her hair tortured him, and it was all he could do to not bury his face in it.

"I don't know. The vision wasn't about her being beat up."

"I know, but maybe something happened that caused a change."

She shuddered at all the memories she had when she'd tried to alter the course of the future. Nate's arms tightened around her protectively. She felt him turn his head slightly towards her and breathe in. The atmosphere around them changed instantly.

Disturbed by this, Gabby backed away a step. Nate let her.

"I... I'd better get home. I have to work tomorrow." she stammered.

"Where do you work?" he asked simply, feeling a need to lighten the mood and relieve the sudden tension he felt around them.

"At the mayor's office."

"Ugh. Politics." he groaned, but smiled.

She glanced up at him a second before she looked back down and asked, "What's so bad about politics? Well, other than politicians in general, but my boss is a good guy."

Nate felt the smile leave his face as an old hurt hit once more. "Politics got me into this mess. Stupid politicians wanting more power. If it weren't for them I'd never have had to go into that stupid war, and August wouldn't have been attracted to the smell of blood from the battle and never found me. I could've lived a normal life."

"And be dead now."

"Yes." he answered quickly.

"And yet, you're going to do the same thing to me." she stated bluntly.

Nate stood there quietly for a moment, feeling slightly hurt, before he said, "We don't know that."

Gabriella felt irritated now. "Oh, so we're going down that path again in this conversation? Still thinking it's not going to happen?"

"I didn't say that. I'm saying you say you don't want it to happen."

"I don't."

"But you say it will."

"It will."

"You don't want it to happen because you don't want to be turned. You'd rather die." he stated bluntly, remembering the heart-breaking expression he had in her vision.

"You know as well as I that I've come to terms with that. Well, almost anyway." she snapped, knowing that was a small lie and she hadn't really come to terms with anything.

"Yet you still wish you'd die instead. You hope it doesn't work."

"I've not thought that at all and you know it." she defended herself.

"The fact that you'd rather die means you pretty much have. So, you'd rather hurt me. Because judging from my expression in your 'vision-that-will-come-true', it will."

"That's not what I was thinking!" she gasped.

"No, but that's how I interpret the whole situation. All you can think about is how this will affect you."

"Nathaniel...I...."

"I don't want to think about this at all! All I know is I don't want it to happen! I don't want to turn or die. No, I don't want to hurt you either!"

"Gabriella, I still almost believe it might not happen. I think tonight is proof of that, what with Caitlin not getting shot. The future can be changed." he tried to sound soothing and not desperate.

"Don't go there, Nate." she said and held up her hand. "The future.. it's like it's already happened."

"So there's no hope? How can you say that?"

"Because I've spent way too much of my very short life trying to make stuff not happen and I'm sick of it!" Gabby finally snapped. "It will happen! Stop trying to convince me otherwise!"

"I'm only trying to help! I know you really don't want it to, so I'm trying to figure out a way to make it not! Damn it, woman! What do you want from me?"

"I want you to leave me alone! I was just fine before you walked into that shop!"

Again, Nathaniel didn't expect that, and it stung. He could feel how she really wished she'd never met him. 

"If that's the way you feel, I'll go. I don't know what I was thinking thinking you could ever mean anything to me like you seemed to in the vision. Now I definitely think it's wrong."

"Go then!" Gabriella hissed and worked hard to keep her lower lip from trembling. She convinced herself the only reason she wanted to cry was because she was mad and no other reason.

After a quick, angry look at her, he vanished.