"Luke, I have to work tonight," Cassie told him the next day; she didn't want to leave him but she had no choice. He was out of bed and walking around a little. "How's your head?" The bruising around his eyes was fading from bright purple to a greenish yellow and his stitches, although still garish looking against his pale skin, were working and the cuts seemed to be healing.

"It's okay. A little sore still." Luke thought for a moment, reflecting on what happened, "Are you okay to go to work? I mean, are you sure?"

"I—I'll be fine. I have to work, Luke." He started to argue, but she stopped him with a question, "As soon as you're able, are you going back to work?"

"Yes. I need to." His answer didn't even require thought.

"Well, so do I."

"Maybe I should come with you?"

"You know you can't do that, Luke. You need to rest. Especially if you want to be back at classes next week."

"I'd like to try and get out for at least a bit today."

"Well, we need groceries. Shall we go shopping?"

"Sure." Luke shrugged, trying to be nonchalant.

...........................

Their trip to the store was difficult. People stared at Luke, his injuries very obvious. Cassie could see how tired it made Luke, how much it hurt him, the effort of walking the aisles. All she wanted to do was take care of him, so she had him sit on a bench for a bit while she got some needed items. Luke insisted on paying for the groceries from one of his envelopes; it was only fair, Cassie had done so much already.

When they got back, Cassie made him lie down while she put away the groceries and fix them a snack. From bed, with the door open, Luke could see Cassie bend down to put things in the cupboards. She really was beautiful and being this close to her all the time was driving him crazy. He longed to touch her, even though he knew he couldn't. Watching her made things stir that shouldn't. He tried so hard to stay in control, but couldn't. Luke could feel his arousal, so he looked away from Cassie and desperately wished he had shut the door because he couldn't roll on his side to hide it. If Cassie looked over now, his situation would be fairly obvious. He pulled the covers up and puffed them around a bit. Under the covers he would be much less obvious.

Cassie knew that maybe she was being a little inappropriate. She was fairly sure Luke was watching, and if he wasn't then it didn't matter. She was bending in a bit of a suggestive manner. When she stood, she could see he was shifting in the bed some instead of napping. She hoped he was interested by what he saw. Cassie wanted to be with Luke and had for a while now, but wanted to be subtle in her attentions. She certainly didn't want to force herself on someone who didn't want her, but it had been so long since she'd had anyone.

Before she left for work, she checked in on Luke. Cassie was wearing her typical work outfit, worn jeans and a blouse, but this time she left her buttons undone a little lower than normal, to Pippa levels. She would do her shirt up fully in the car, but she wanted to see if Luke would notice at all. Leaning over to check his pills, she knew he could see in her shirt a little if he would just turn his head to look at her. "Luke?" she said softly.

"Yes Cassie?" He turned and looked. He wished he hadn't. He could see the edge of lace and the curves of her cleavage, and she was so, so close. A few inches was all that separated them. Forcing his eyes to hers, he kept his face as neutral as possible, although his cheeks might have reddened a little.

"Are you going to be okay? I should be back by 1:30 or so," she almost whispered. She knew he had looked at her breasts and she wished she had the courage to kiss him, just lean a little closer and touch her lips to his.

Luke considered the question. He didn't really want her to go at all. "Just call when you're leaving, okay?"

"I don't want to disturb you."

"I'll be more disturbed if I worry about you," for Luke this was a huge thing to say, to admit he cared.

She nibbled nervously at her bottom lip, "Okay, Luke, I'll call," she said. Cassie stood and walked out, the click of the lock on the front door following her.

Luke groaned deeply as he relieved his arousal, even though he knew he shouldn't. Luke needed the release. It had been over a year since he'd last had sex, been interested enough to pursue someone. He could only imagine how good it would feel to touch Cassie the way he wanted to, but he didn't want just sex. He wanted everything with her. He wanted her more than he'd ever wanted anyone before. Needed her. The energy he expelled exhausted him, plus hurt his bruises, but it had been worth it. Luke removed his sticky shirt and wiped his hands and face with it before tossing it in the laundry bin.

Luke took his pills then fell into a deep restful sleep for hours.

At work, Cassie was falling back into a familiar rhythm. Every time the door opened, she startled a little, but she was pretty sure the pricks that attacked her wouldn't come back so soon, so she took a deep breath and kept going.

"So what happened?" Pippa wheedled. Cassie was annoyed that Pippa couldn't understand that she didn't want to discuss it.

"I was attacked, Luke stepped in and got badly beaten," Cassie summarized for her again.

"But..."

"Look, they were drunk and stupid, okay?"

"No need to get snippy. It's too bad Luke got hurt. I guess he's all looks and no substance, eh?" Pippa stated flippantly, waving her hand for emphasis.

"Luke took on three guys who were trying to rape me against the hood of my car. They could have killed him, they had a knife, but he protected me." Cassie's anger welled in her, threatening to overflow.

Instead of shock, Pippa grinned. "You like him, don't you? You love low-rent Luke."

Cassie was furious. How dare she? "Yes, I do. And don't call him that. His life has been harder than you could ever imagine, but that doesn't mean he's a piece of trash."

Pippa was enjoying the reaction she was getting from Cassie, a girl who was normally so good, so placid. "Ohhh, you really loooove him," Pippa teased while Cassie glared. Pippa relented and stated in a more normal voice, "It must be hard, then, since he's not at work. You won't be seeing him for a while."

"Umm, no. I'm seeing him." Cassie's face flushed. "I mean I'm not seeing him, like we're not seeing each other, but I see him." Cassie fumbled over her words.

"You are, are you?" Pippa grinned and cocked her eyebrow.

"Yes. He kind of got evicted when he was in the hospital and he needs rest so..." Cassie's voice trailed off as she realized what she was admitting to the most indiscreet person she knew.

"He's living with you?" Pippa squealed and clasped her hands. This was the most interesting Cassie had ever been.

"It's just temporary. He doesn't have anywhere to go, doesn't have money for first and last month's rent, and he can't stand for longer than half an hour, let alone work."

"Are you getting any?" She nudged Cassie with her elbow.

"Pippa, he can't even stand let alone anything else. Besides, he doesn't like me like that."

"I think he does."

"He's never said anything."

"Cassie, he never says anything," Pippa said, frustration evident. "I've seen him talk to you more than anyone. He makes you special meals, he watches you when you work, and he almost got himself killed for you. He's totally into you."

"You think?" Cassie's eyes widened and her mouth hung in shock.

Pippa rolled her eyes at Cassie's ignorance. "I don't think, I know. What does he need to do? Actually get killed for you to realize?"

"What should I do?"

Pippa shrugged. "I don't know, I don't float his boat, you do. Just be you."

..........................................

He grabbed the phone as soon as it rang, and was happy to hear her tentative, "Luke?"

"Yeah."

"I'm leaving now."

Fear ran through him. Although he couldn't remember the attack, Bryan filled him in enough that he was worried. "Stay on the phone with me until you're in the car. You don't need to talk, I just want to make sure you're safe."

Cassie was actually happy to make this concession. She was scared of the dark lot, too. The owners promised they would put in another light but hadn't done it yet. "Okay."

He could hear the squeak of the door of the diner open and the change in the background noise as she stepped outside. Her breathing changed as she raced to her car. Luke could almost feel her tension through the phone. Cassie fumbled for a second with her keys, then got into the car and locked the door.

"Luke?" She was breathless.

"Yeah?" So was he.

"I'll see you when I get home, okay?"

He liked the way that sounded and the pounding of his heart slowed a little. "Okay, Cassie."

Luke was waiting up when she came in, and Cassie appreciated it.

"Was everything okay?" She noted the anxiety in his tone.

"Yes." She gave him a small smile. "Pippa says hi and the fill-in chef isn't as good as you."

"I'm glad you're back," and Luke smiled at her in relief. A wide smile. His chipped front tooth showing just a little from between his thin lips.

Cassie's heart beat just a bit faster, "I'm glad, too."

Cassie laid shivering on the sofa bed, knowing Luke was lying just twenty feet away. She wanted to go to him so badly, she wanted to hold him, snuggle to him, touch him, but she knew that he needed to be the one to approach her. He'd been through too much to force him into anything. She wanted him to decide.

"Cassie?"

"Yes Luke?"

"Good night." There was more he wanted to say, but couldn't.

"Good night." She tried to keep the disappointment from her voice.

.......................................

Every day Luke was feeling better, stronger, more back to his old self. He took it upon himself to cook for Cassie, making meals for both of them when she wasn't working. They sat across from each other at her table or next to each other on the couch, but never touching. He wanted to, but he was scared. He already knew he loved Cassie. He was sure he did, but he wasn't sure how she felt and he didn't want to mess it up.

School was starting back up again the next day. Luke refused to reduce his course load but he was concerned about how tired out he would be and the reactions of everyone in his classes. His bruises were fading, but were still quite obvious and his stitches were still in place. He wasn't due to get them out for another few days.

"Where's your schedule?" Cassie asked.

"I don't have it."

"Why not?"

"It's on my email."

"So? Use the computer, it's right there. Print it out so I can put it up. This stuff is important," Cassie said with a huff.

Luke had actually been wanting to check his schedule for a few days, but he didn't want to presume to use her computer. Since she mentioned it, though, he went over, logged in, and got his schedule. Following her directions, he printed it and passed it over.

"Good. We have early classes on the same days. That's great!"

"Why?"

"So I can drive you. You're still not ready to walk all that way and do classes all day."

Luke got his back up. "Cassie, you can't afford parking fees."

"Steve and Bryan bought us a month's worth of parking."

"They shouldn't have done that."

"They care about you. It's what people do who care about each other, take care of them," Cassie said with a shrug, trying to defuse the situation.

Luke thought about this for a minute, and how much Cassie was doing for him, too. He was sure that she was referring to them instead of Steve and Bryan, and that made him smile. He watched as she tacked his schedule up on the fridge right next to hers and he felt warm, like he had a place beside her, like he belonged. It may not have been a big deal to her, but it was to him.

.....................................

Later that evening, Cassie went over their schedules carefully. Luke's class hours were less demanding than hers because she had labs for her program, but most of the time when she had a break, he was off too.

"After your class tomorrow are you going to the library?" Cassie asked as Luke flipped through a book.

"Yes."

"Can I sit with you like before?"

Luke was surprised by the request, did she think he didn't want her around? "Of course," he answered quickly, then added, "I can make us lunches."

"You didn't like my sandwiches?"

"No, I did..." Luke was suddenly uncomfortable. Had he said the wrong thing?

Cassie quickly put him out of his misery, giving him a playful smile, "Relax, I was kidding. I'd love it if you made me a lunch."

Luke let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Okay then." And then he set to work on sandwiches for the next day. He tried to make Cassie's special, he wanted to show her that he cared, too.

..................................

The drive in together wasn't too awkward and neither was leaving for classes, but when they met up in the library, things were a bit odd. Because Cassie had a chemistry lab, Luke kept the sandwiches for them both. When she arrived at their usual table, Luke passed her a lunch bag. He had written her name across it the way she wrote his names on the tip out envelopes.

Cassie was touched by the gesture, but when she took out her lunch, she was confused. Luke was eating a normal sandwich, but Cassie's was a huge affair with vegetables and meats and cheese.

"Uh, Luke? I think there's a problem here." She pushed the sandwich across to him.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"No, it's just you gave me your sandwich."

"No I didn't." Cassie was confused, how could he be this much of an enigma?

"Then why is yours so small?" she pressed. He's bigger, by all rights, he should have the bigger sandwich.

Luke couldn't answer. He didn't know how to tell her, 'I'm taking care of you because I care about you.' Instead he pushed it back towards her. "Don't eat it if you don't want it." He was frustrated, his body language completely closed off, and he ignored her for the rest of the break.

Cassie felt like she failed some sort of test, she just didn't know what it was.