When Tasha woke up she was in shock. Her body aches and she could taste blood in her mouth. Shakily she sat up, looking around her as the memories began to flood back into her mind. She sobbed as she grabbed her phone, dialing the first number she could see; there were over ten missed calls.

Almost immediately there was an answer.

"Tasha?"

Tasha couldn't stop her sobbing as she held the phone to her face. "Gavin— please, help— me."

"I'll be right there, sweetheart."

Gavin rushed to her house, putting the sirens on so he could go as fast as he needed to reach her house. When he got there he hurried through the front door, his feet halting when he saw the broken lampshade on the floor, along with Tasha's clothes. He could hear faint sobbing coming from her bedroom, and as soon as he saw her he felt like he could cry.

Tasha was leaned back against the wall, holding her legs to her chest as she sobbed into them. There was blood everywhere and she had bruises forming on most visible parts of her body. As he neared her he then noticed she had no clothes on. His heart dropped as he realized what happened.

"Tasha?" Gavin said softly as he knelt in front of her.

Tasha didn't look up at him, her body shaking. "I — he, he — "

"Shhh," Gavin said quietly as he tentatively rested his hand on her shoulder. "Don't talk, alright?"

Tasha slowly looked at him, shock and fear written all over her face, "Gavin, he — he —"

She flinches when he touches her. "Tasha..." Gavin's voice was so quiet as he felt tears in his eyes. His hand held her shoulder a little tighter. "Can I help you up?"

Tasha nodded slowly, allowing Gavin to pull her to her feet. Gavin ignored her bare body, instead focusing on the broken look on her face. Gavin placed Tasha on the edge of the bathtub while he quickly grabbed her clothes, helping her put everything on.

"Thank you." Tasha said quietly, grasping Gavin's arm tightly as he pulled her into a standing position.

"You don't need to thank me." Gavin helps her to his car. "We need to get you to a hospital."

Gavin takes her to the hospital, but he never leaves her side. Once they patched her up and did their tests, they sat in his car. Tasha was staring at her hands, seemingly lost in thought.

"I can't go back there, Gavin..."

"Don't worry, Tash." Gavin smiled at her, starting the car before linking his fingers with hers, hoping to comfort her. "If it's alright with you, I was thinking we'd go back to my place? I get it if you'd rather to go Hank's or—"

"Your place sounds great, Gavin." Tasha said quietly, a ghost of the tiniest smile on her face.

•••

When Tasha crossed the threshold of his apartment she was immediately greeted by a grey cat that meowed up at her.

Tasha's facial expression immediately brightened up as she let out a small squeal. Gavin was surprised for a moment due to the change in atmosphere surrounding her, but he knew Tasha well enough to know she would repress that nights events and her feelings towards it until she couldn't hide it any longer. "You didn't tell me you had a cat!"

Gavin couldn't help but smile as she knelt down to pet the cat. "I have three."

"I haven't had any cats for a while." Tasha said as the kitty purred, rubbing against her hand. This was a very welcomed distraction from her evening.

"His names Pounce. The other two are probably sleeping somewhere." Gavin chuckled as Tasha began to talk to the cat, calling him handsome. "I think he likes you."

"Of course he does. I'm just that awesome." She managed to tease.

"Why don't you have any? We both know you're a crazy cat lady."

"Ha Ha." Tasha rolled her eyes. "After all of my family cats died I ended up fostering for the local shelters and I really enjoy it. Ive wanted to adopt a cat of my own but I haven't done it yet."

Gavin knelt down next to her, petting his cat.

Tasha smiled at the sight. "I never pictured you as such a cat person."

"There's a lot of things you don't know about me." Gavin said as he looked at her.

"Well, then I'm excited to know everything." She smiled at him before standing, glancing around his apartment. "I'm surprised."

"At what?"

"Honestly? I assumed you'd have a girl over."

"No. It's been—" He sighed. He couldn't remember the last time he had spent the night with a girl. At best months ago he would try to fuck any girl he could, hoping it would stop his feelings for Tasha, but it just made his heart hurt more because he didn't want any of those petty girls. He wanted her. Not just in a sexual way. He wanted to know her. Inside and out. Her biggest fears and darkest secrets. He had one serious relationship before, and it didn't end well. It left Gavin cold and heartless. But when he met Tasha, something changed. They instantly clicked and no matter how hard he tried, he could never stop it.

"You don't have to tell me. It's none of my business."

"I told you I would be honest with you. After what I did," He saw her jaw clench at his words. "I promised that to you."

Tasha shrugged. "Everyone knows you're a bachelor. You enjoy the chase."

"I used to." Gavin said as he grabbed a glass from a cupboard, filling it with water.

"What changed?" Tasha asked, turning to look at him. She thanked him quietly when he passed her the glass, eagerly drinking the cold liquid.

"I met you." He admitted, not looking at her. Instead he leaned his arms against his kitchen counter. "I know I ruined whatever trust you had for me. You have no idea how badly I wish I could take it back, Tash." Gavin sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "But I care about you. You can yell, you can scream, you can hurt me and you can try to push me away, but I'm not going anywhere. I'm gonna support you, whatever decisions you make."

Tasha smiled slightly, "Do you actually mean that?"

"Yeah, I do."

Tasha walked over to him, leaning her side against the counter. "I'm not saying that I'll ever be able to trust you like I did, but I don't want to hate you either. We're partners but more than that. We both know it. It just..." She took a deep breath. "After everything that's happened, I— I need you. You're my family, yknow? And yeah, it sucks that you took me on a date and made out with someone else but if tonight has taught me anything, it's that I can't spend my life holding grudges."

"Tasha—"

"I know that for what happened tonight I should probably be screaming and crying but I'm not. I don't feel it. It's like... when you brought me here I felt safe. I felt like I was home. I feel like it didn't really happen — I know it did. My body tells me that every second but I don't feel it. It's what I do. It's what I've always done. The feelings towards the event go so far away, I never deal with it. It's not healthy, but I don't want to think about it. Being here with you, you have no idea how thankful I am for you talking to me about stuff that I know is hard for you to admit. If it helps, it does make me trust you."

"Everyone deals with bad experiences in different ways." Gavin said softly, "I'm here for you, whatever you need. I may be an ass, but I can be a good person when I put my mind to it."

Tasha laughed for a moment. "And there's the Gavin I know and love." She turned from him, her eyes gazing over at his living room. "Hey, do you mind if I snoop around?"

Gavin snorted, "Be my guest, sweetheart."

Tasha didn't look at him, but she could feel his grey eyes watching her. This was a pleasant distraction from the pain of the night, and not only was it a distraction — she was seeing a side of Gavin she had never saw. He was so gentle and wasn't boastful at all.

Maybe I did judge too fast.

Tasha looked around his place a bit. There were some clothes laying around and some cutlery but nothing too crazy. "I'm impressed. I assumed you'd be a lot less organized."

"You haven't seen my bedroom yet." He winked, causing Tasha to roll her eyes.

"Take me on a couple dates first, Reed."

"Are you saying you'll allow me the privilege of taking you out on a proper date?" He smirked at her, "I promise to be a complete gentleman."

"I'll believe that when I see it." She shook her head.

While her clothes were clean, Gavin could sense she was uncomfortable in them, probably due to the fact it reminded her of what happened. Gavin wasn't sure how he felt about what happened— of course he was upset but it was something much deeper than that, which only got worse as he saw that her usual bright eyes were still dull. He made a silent vow to himself that he would find Jeremiah and do terrible things to him. His anger quickly vanished as Tasha smiled slightly, nodding her head.

"Yeah, I'd — I'd appreciate getting out of these clothes, even though I was just —" Tasha stopped herself before making a badly timed joke about the encounter earlier. Tasha put her hand to her face, shaking her head. She didn't want to believe it was real. She knew it was, but she couldn't let herself think of it. No, she had to focus on anything else.

Gavin frowned, but said nothing as he lead her to his bedroom. It was a bit messy, like the rest of his house, but she didn't mind. After everything that had went on, the least of her concern was how clean his apartment was. She was thankful for Gavin being so hospitible to her after how she had treated him recently, though she did not regret her actions, because he was the one who hurt her.

Tasha sat on the edge of his bed as Gavin rummaged through his clothing drawers. Most of his clothes were dirty, but he was able to find an old worn out tshirt and a pair of boxers for her to wear.

"Here."

Gavin held out a the clothes to her. She smiled a little more as she took them from him.

"If you need help, I'll be right outside." Gavin said softly as he rested his hand on her shoulder.

Tasha looked up at him. "Thanks."

Once he left the room Tasha took a deep breath. His bed was incredibly comfortable, and she couldn't help but blush as she pulled his boxers and shirt on. While both are far too big on her small frame, Tasha found it VERY comforting to be in his clothes.

"How do I look?"

When Tasha came out of his bedroom wearing his clothes, Gavin couldn't stop staring. His heart began beating a little faster as she walked over to him, sitting beside him on the couch.

"Perfect..." Gavin said quietly. "Do you want something to drink? Are you hungry?"

"I'm okay for now." Tasha said as she moved a little closer to him. "You don't have to fuss over me. I'm alright, Gavin..." Her voice trailed off but she leaned her head back against the couch, her eyes closed.

Gavin glanced at her, smiling slightly when he noticed she was nearly sitting against him. He slowly wrapped his arm around her waist, allowing Tasha to rest her head against his chest.

"Thank you for being there when I needed you today. I'm sorry that I yelled at you the other day, I just — " She sighed. "I guess I was upset that you kept telling me I shouldn't be with him, when you were the one who —" Tasha shook her head against his chest. "Actually, I don't want to talk about it right now. I just want to sit here, with you, and try to forget tonight." Tasha leans her body into him more as Gavin gently rubs her waist with his thumb. "But Gav?"

"Yeah, Tash?"

"Please don't hurt me again... I don't want to lose you."

"I'm not going anywhere, Tash." Gavin pressed his lips to the top of her head. "I promise. I'm so sorry."

Tasha smiled slightly pulling back just enough to look at his face. He was gazing down at her, his grey eyes practically staring into her soul. "What are you staring at, princess?" Gavin rested both of his hands on her back, allowing Tasha to move even closer to him.

Tasha smiled, leaning down to his ear, her lips lightly brushing against his jawline. "You."

Gavin flushed slightly as Tasha pulled back, but before she rested her head again he placed a gentle kiss to her cheek, earning a beautiful smile from her. One he hasn't seen in a long time.

Despite what happened that night, Tasha refused to let it upset her. She repressed it, more and more as she forced herself to focus on the feeling of being in Gavin's arms. The steady rhythm of his heart lulling her to sleep easily.

Slowly, Gavin carried her to his bed, tucking her in before taking his clothes off and putting on his PJ pants. Before he could leave the room, he heard Tasha mumbling something.

"Gavin?" She asked sleepily.

"Yeah, princess?"

"Stay with me. Please."

Gavin slowly crawled into bed next to her, at first he tried keeping his distance but Tasha moved so she was right against him, resting her head on his bare chest.

"Is this ok?" She asked quietly. She had to keep repeating in her head to focus on anything but what happened.

"Y-Yeah." Gavin stuttered as he felt her hot breath against his chest. It also didn't help that he could feel her chest against him through her shirt. "It's perfect."

Tasha smiled slightly. He had been so gentle and caring — she knew she had been far too harsh on him for what he did, but she was consumed by the anger. Now she wished she would have never met — Her thoughts drifted away as she curled as close as she could against Gavin, placing a delicate kiss to his chest before falling into a deep sleep.

•••