Two days went by and Rin was still unconscious. It made Karen a little worried, but Dr. Graves had been by again and had declared everything to be fine, so it wasn't like there was anything she could do about it. As for her brother, although his first day back had been really nice, with the whole family managing a real sit-down meal to the delight of Mrs. Frost, she'd barely seen him during daylight hours after that first day. It was rare that Marcus was so near the head offices, so he was spending most of his time there checking up on everything and then he was off again to the airport and it felt like he'd barely been there. Even his promise that he'd be coming back again soon felt bitter-sweet. Still, it had been nice to have him in the house. It made Karen feel a little nostalgic for when things had always been that way. Maybe that was why she'd finally agreed to go on a date with Evan.

She was supposed to be getting ready for it now because it was already six o'clock, but she was having a hard time leaving Rin alone by himself like this. Maybe, if her dad was home or her brother, maybe then she wouldn't be so concerned, but as it was, only Mandy remained in the house at the moment. Now, it wasn't that she didn't trust her mother to act if she was needed, it was just that... well, Mrs. Frost wasn't known as the most responsible or vigilant person.

Karen sat at her desk, staring at the clock as the minutes slowly counted down to seven, wondering if she should cancel or if she was overthinking things a little. When it got to 6:45, she finally decided to go and get ready. She checked on Rin one more time before rushing over to her room. She didn't really care too much about how she looked, so she just grabbed the first dress that caught her eye and went with it. It was a red silky dress that stopped just above her knees, with a scoop neck that transitioned into a lattice of straps that climbed up to her throat. Her hair had dried a little wavy, but Karen liked it that way, so she only had to apply a little make-up before she was satisfied. She was actually surprised that she'd managed to get ready in just a little over ten minutes.

As she started to walk towards the hall she decided to make a stop. She knocked on the door of her parents' room, waiting a few seconds before opening the door and taking a step inside.

"Yes, sweetie?" Mrs. Frost looked up from where she was reading in her bed.

"I just wanted to make sure that you remember to check on Rin tonight," Karen reminded her, feeling a little embarrassed. "Because I'm leaving now,"

"Yes, I'll remember sweetie, don't worry about him," Mandy gave her a sympathetic look that made Karen feel even more self-conscious.

"Right. Good. I'll um, see you later then."

Karen quickly left the room and headed back downstairs, only just hearing her mother's voice call "have fun!" after her.

She sighed. It was times like these she envied her mom's carefree attitude. Karen began to walk in direction of the door which turned out to be good timing since once she reached it the doorbell rang. She opened it, revealing Evan standing there holding a bouquet of red carnations. When he saw her face, he smiled and pulled her into a sweet embrace. She pulled back and he held out the flowers for her.

"They're for you," he said with a slightly bashful smile.

Karen felt a slight stab of regret from her earlier thoughts of canceling on him and the way she had rushed to get ready, as she accepted the flowers. It was clear that Evan had put a lot of effort into this date. He almost never got her flowers like this. And he'd even remembered that she liked carnations (although white were her favourite, it was close enough).

"Thank you," she said in a soft voice, "You look very handsome."

She leaned forward to give him a brief kiss.

"And you are breath-taking," he complimented her.

Karen could not help but blush at the comment. She quickly excused herself for a moment while she went to put the flowers in some water, taking a moment to compose herself once more. It was then that she decided to push aside all the arguments they'd had recently and to simply enjoy herself tonight and his company. Yes, for her sake and for his, she was going to have a good night tonight. It would be just about her and Evan. Karen would not let anyone else crawl into her mind and distract her.

-W-

The rest of the date more than lived up to its start. Evan had taken her to a very nice restaurant downtown where the food was excellent and for the first time in a long time, he managed to keep an intelligent and enjoyable conversation with her. Usually, he would always end up talking about sports or training and Karen would nod once in a while, but mostly just zone out and start thinking about her plans for upcoming projects at work or something. Not tonight though.

If he was trying to impress her then he was definitely succeeding.

For the first time in a while, Karen allowed herself to be optimistic about their relationship. Maybe things were finally going to work out for them and perhaps she could stop doubting them all the time. Evan had put a lot of work into tonight to make sure everything would be perfect for her and apparently that was all that was required for him and Karen to share a perfect evening. With a little effort, their relationship might actually survive through all this.

As much as she was enjoying herself, after a few hours she couldn't hide how tired she was feeling anymore. Evan tilted his head with concern at her after she failed to hold back yet another large yawn.

"Maybe we should call it a night?" he suggested. Karen pouted, wishing that she hadn't gotten up so early that morning. Evan chuckled slightly at her expression, "What's that face for? It's not like we can't do this again."

Karen's expression brightened, and she reached over to grasp his hand in hers, "I'd really like that."

It was like suddenly she felt like the same teenager she was when she first met Evan. She raised her head and saw the soft smile on her boyfriend's face and it made her stomach flip a little. By looking at them it was hard to tell that a few days ago, she was considering breaking up with him.

Evan tightened his grip on her hand as they walked together towards the car. The night was warm and you could even see a few bright stars dotting the inky blue sky above them.

As they got to the car they paused.

"You know... you still haven't kissed me tonight," Karen said tentatively, trying to act casual, "I'm starting to think you don't like me or something."

Evan smiled playfully, "Well, we don't want that now, do we?"

He leaned down slowly, his hands moving to Karen's hips, careful not to push things any further. It wasn't a long kiss, but Karen actually did feel a little something in the pit of her stomach this time. It wasn't much, it was barely there but it was something. She wondered if that meant they could bring back what they used to have if they tried. The night had been magical. Evan really earned back some of her trust, and although she still felt the distance between them, it didn't feel completely un-crossable anymore. Maybe that was all they needed; a couple of good nights.

Karen broke the kiss but kept their embrace going a little longer. Eventually, Evan stepped back and opened the car door for her and she entered it, smiling at him. "Thank you," she softly whispered.

As he started the car he noticed Karen kept glancing at him, trying to catch his eye. "I had a really good time tonight," she said sincerely. "Thank you for all you did."

"It's because... I love you."

The words caused an unpleasant twist in her chest. She tried not to let it show on her face and looked away. Because she didn't believe him. She couldn't believe him. You didn't do what he had done to her to someone you love. You didn't— No, she had said she wasn't going to think about all that stuff tonight. It was going to be a fresh start. Still, she had to say something.

"I love you, too." The lie tasted unpleasant on her lips. She hoped it sounded sincere and she prayed he failed to notice her shaking voice.

When he turned his head and smiled at her, she realized he hadn't noticed the pain those words had caused her. Although her good feelings had turned to ice in her stomach. They drove in mostly silence until they reached Karen's home. She did appreciate Evan for not bringing up the fact that she still hadn't talked about moving back in with him, and was reminded again of how much effort he was putting in. it didn't completely restore her good mood, but it did warm her a little bit. She gave him one more parting kiss before getting out of the car.

"I'll see you soon," he said before driving off.

Karen stood there for a while and waved at him. It had been a good night, she reminded herself. She would not let her own self-doubts ruin that. Finally, she turned and walked up the steps to her front door, and was unexpectedly greeted by her mother. She wondered what she wanted before suddenly realising that it was probably about Rin.

"He is fine, sweetie! He only dreamt a couple of times and I think he said your name," she reassured her, probably reading her expression.

Karen's eyes widened; he called for her again? She wondered why she was on Rin's mind so much while he's asleep because he seemed to despise her so much when he was awake. Why did he keep dreaming about her?

"How did it go with Evan?" her mother asked as Karen started to take off her shoes.

"It was fine," she answered, her mind already distracted.

Mrs. Frost smiled at her daughter in amusement. Young love, she thought. Although she was fairly certain she knew who her daughter was thinking about right now, and it probably wasn't her boyfriend. Oh well, Karen was a smart girl, she was sure to figure these things out for herself eventually. She giggled to herself quietly as she headed back to the living room.

Karen headed upstairs, her brain buzzing with all sorts of things. Almost unconsciously, she ended up outside Rin's room. Unable to resist the temptation, she slowly opened the door and let herself in. There he was: asleep as usual. She wasn't sure what she was expecting when she came here. She sighed, lowering herself into the desk chair in the corner of the room, feeling incredibly drained.

She knew that she should be going to bed, but she also didn't want to go to sleep just yet. Despite her intentions of staying up, she soon found her head drooping to rest on the desk, and her eyelids became heavier. Finally, she fell asleep.

-W-

Rin's consciousness returned to him like ice water running down his spine: sudden and sharp. As his eyes opened, he felt disoriented and confused. His vision was foggy, and he didn't know where he was, or what had happened. Trying to sit up, he found his movements restrained by various wires attached to him, wires he was aware were used to monitor his condition. Still not entirely awake, for a moment he thought he'd been captured again and was back in one of The Company's compounds. With less grace than he'd have liked, he started disconnecting himself from the various tubes, not giving any attention to the noise it was making.

It was the flat-line alarm that woke Karen.

Her eyes blinked open, searching for the source of the incessant beeping. She winced as her neck was stiff from her less than ideal sleeping position, draped over a desk, but all thoughts of her own discomfort vanished as she realised what was happening.

"Rin!"

She bolted forward, staggering slightly as her body began to wake up, Causing Rin's attention to fall on her. He recoiled at first, but then seemed to calm a little as some clarity came back to him. Of course, he was at the woman's residence. He had not been captured, he had been recovering from the explosion he'd caused. He let this knowledge wash over him and relaxed slightly.

"What- when— What are you doing?" the woman stuttered over her words, unsure which question to ask first. She came to sit on the edge of his bed and Rin realised that he was not in the room he had come to call his own. He allowed Karen to gently guide his hands away from pulling out any more tubes, trying to process the situation.

He tried to say something, but his throat was too dry, making him cough. This annoyed him to no end as it caused the woman to look at him was an expression way too close to pity. She handed him a glass of water from the bedside table, which he reluctantly accepted. Ignoring the woman's advice to take it slow, he downed the whole thing in one and only almost choked on it. He refused to show any more weakness in front of her. Clearing his throat, he tried to speak once more.

"What time is it?" His voice had a raspy quality to it, but Rin thought it was close enough to a growl that he didn't mind.

Karen seemed a bit taken confused by his question but answered anyway. "It's coming up to eleven in the morning," she gestured to the digital clock on the desk.

Rin frowned. He must have been out for almost a full day then, if the explosion had happened yesterday afternoon. That was way too much time wasted. He began trying to get up again, only to have the woman block his movements.

"Woah, woah, woah! Where do you think you're going? You've been unconscious for a week, you can't just wander off!"

Rin stilled.

"A week?"

"Well... yeah," Karen confirmed curiously. "Today makes one week."

A week?! That was insane! Sure, it had been a pretty intense explosion, but with his abilities, damage like that should have taken a couple days, at the most. But a whole week? That was unheard of.

"Is that not normal for you?" The woman had that look again. That concerned look. He didn't like it.

"No," he said reluctantly, "it's not."

Karen bit her lip. So, it was as she had feared. Whatever The Company had done to Rin went further than he had thought. It was more important than ever now that they find a way to fix what had been done. But still. Rin was awake. At least there was that.

"What the hell are you wearing?" Rin asked, his gaze lingering on the dress Karen had been wearing on her date the night before. Crap, she'd forgotten she'd fallen asleep in here right after. She blushed involuntarily at Rin's look.

"This? It's uh... I was just... It's none of your business, alright!" Karen stood up suddenly, trying not to let her embarrassment show. This only added to Rin's growing confusion. He'd seen the woman in some ridiculous outfits before, but this one was particularly... memorable. For its stupidity, of course. All those straps couldn't be practical.

"Look, just stay here, okay? I'll call Doctor Graves." And get changed, she added silently.

Before he could protest anymore, Karen left the room, leaving him to contemplate. A week. Doing nothing but sleeping. And he still didn't feel fully recovered. It was unsettling, to say the least. Because if his healing was being affected by the same thing his shifting was, then The Company had weakened him far more than he'd ever realised. He yanked the I.V. out of his arm, barely even noticing the sting it caused.

This was not good.

-W-

Doctor Graves looked over her notes once more as she finished her check-up. Karen was impressed with the way the doctor was managing to completely ignore Rin's death glare, not many people could do that on their first meeting with him. Although she supposed this wasn't exactly their first meeting. Just the first one where Rin was awake. Still, it was impressive nonetheless. Then again, Karen had yet to see Doctor Graves phased by anything. She wasn't entirely convinced that the woman wasn't some highly advanced robot, after all. Finally, the doctor looked up from her clipboard and addressed them both.

"From what I can tell, everything seems to be working fine, and your injuries have almost completely healed. If I didn't know any better, I'd be tempted to call it a miracle." Her severe expression remained unchanged as she spoke. "Still, I must stress that you shouldn't push yourself too hard for the next few days or so. Your wounds may have healed, but you'll still need to regain your strength before you try any more science experiments."

Both Karen and Rin had to restrain themselves from arguing with the doctor on that point. Even Rin could tell that this wasn't a woman who was contradicted. When Doctor Graves left, Rin couldn't help but feel a little relieved. She had reminded him a little too much of the kind of doctors at The Company, and it had creeped him out more than he cared to admit. He turned his gaze on Karen, only just catching the fact she'd been staring at him before she quickly looked at everything except him.

Rin wasn't sure what to think of the woman's strange behaviour. She'd been odd before, but since he woke up, it was like she was trying to avoid him while also never letting him out of her sight. It was, among other things, incredibly annoying.

"What?" he asked gruffly, fed up with her evasiveness.

"Nothing! It's nothing. I'm just..." she sighed, unable to meet his eyes. "I'm just glad you're okay."

Rin snorted, "Of course I'm okay! Who do you think I am?"

Karen let out a short laugh, "Who do I think you are? The idiot that got himself almost blown to shreds, that's who! You could have died."

"I've survived worse," he stated matter-of-factly.

"That's not the point," she said quietly. A small smile formed on her lips, "How about I promise to stop worrying about you, if you promise to not blow yourself up again?"

Rin looked at her with a combination of surprise and embarrassment at her words. His expression caused her to flat out laugh. Rin glared at her and then looked away, crossing his arms, "Do what you want, woman," he said, moving past her. Karen took this as his agreement. She hated to admit it, even to herself, but she'd missed this. It was scary how fast someone like Rin had become a person she actually cared about.

Scary, yet fascinating.