I woke with a start. The bed was empty next to me. I sat up and looked around in the dark. There was no sign of Aris. I moved to the edge of the bed and stood up. I checked the bathroom. Still no Aris. I made my way to and down the stairs. I heard noise coming from the kitchen and followed it. At this point, I was still feeling pain, but it was a lot better than before. I entered the kitchen and slowly made my way to Aris. I kissed him on the cheek, then, "What are you making?" "Steak and cheese burritos," he answered, "I hope you like them." "I'm sure that I will," I responded. "If you give me a few minutes, we can go smoke," he told me. "Okay," I agreed, sitting down at the table.

After a few minutes, he put the burritos in the oven. He carried me to the hot tub room and sat me down in one of the chairs. He sat in the other, then lit me a cigarette and one for himself. "Is the pain better?" he asked. "Yes," I answered, "a lot better." "I will make it even better after dinner," he promised me. We finished our cigarettes and he carried me back to the kitchen.

I sat down. He brought our drinks and chips and salsa to the table. The oven timer sounded and he got the burritos out. He plated them and brought the plates to the table. "This smells so good," I complemented. I took a bite and closed my eyes. "It tastes just as good as it smells," I complemented again. We ate mostly in silence. When I finished, he offered to get me another one. I agreed and he got it for me. It tasted even better than the first. I finished it and pushed my plate away, full. I waited while he finished.

"I am going to take you upstairs for a warm bath. I just want you to soak," he told me, "I will be back up when I have finished cleanup." I nodded my agreement. He picked me up and carried me to the bathroom. He started the water. I had the skin put my hair up in a bun and remove the nightgown. He held my hand as I descended into the bath. I let go of his hand and sat. I leaned back and closed my eyes, suddenly tired. I relaxed. I heard him leave the room.

"Jade, it is time to get out," Aris said. My eyes shot open, "sorry, I must've fallen asleep." I sat up straight. "It is fine," he said getting my robe from the closet. I stood up and he offered me his hand to help me out. I took it and climbed the steps. He helped me into the robe and carried me to the bed. I sat on the edge and waited while he got ready for bed. I was mostly dry when he was ready, so I put on a blue nightgown and handed him the robe. He took it into the bathroom and came back.

I scooted over to the middle of the bed and laid down. He got in next to me. "Are you wearing panties?" he asked me. "Yes," I answered. "Take them off for now," he told me, "I am going to cover you with my hand and see how much better I can make it." "Okay," just the thought of him touching me gave me a thrill. I removed them. I felt his warm hand slide down my belly and between my legs. My body convulsed with orgasm just from him touching me. He kept his hand in place as I rocked. When I quieted, "I'm so sorry. I...." "It is okay. I expected it," he interrupted me, "try to sleep now." I felt the push, then exhausted, I fell asleep.

"Nooooo!" I screamed, bolting upright. I was covered in sweat, sitting in bed alone. I looked around for Aris. I didn't see him. The bedroom door swung open. "Jade!" it was Aris. He came to me and sat on the bed next to me. He put his hand on my cheek, "Are you okay?" I nodded my head yes, still panting, trying to get my breathing under control. "Would you like a cool bath?" he asked. "Yes," I answered. "I will be back in a minute," he got up and went to the bathroom. I heard the water turn on and he came back to sit next to me.

"Do you remember what it was about?" he asked. "I was running from someone, or something," I lied, "I can't remember anything else." The truth is that I was running from him. He was going to kill me. "You know that dreams are just dreams, Jade," he told me, "You just tell me about it later, when you have realized that." Of course he knew that I was lying. I didn't say anything. "Are you ready for your bath?" he asked. "Yes," I answered.

We got up and he led me to the bath. I took off the nightgown and got in. It felt marvelous. I went under to wet my hair, then floated. He put the shampoo, conditioner and soap on the edge of the bathtub. He decided to take a shower while I was in the tub.

I washed and conditioned my hair, then washed my body. Then I decided to float some more. After a few minutes, I realized that he was taking a really long shower. I got out, put on a robe and twisted my hair up in a towel. I got his robe and a towel and met him at the shower.

He made no move to get out. I peered in. He was standing with his back to me, facing the spray. There was no steam. Is he standing in cold water? "Not cold enough," I barely heard him say over the noise. "I have your robe," I said, over the noise. "Leave it. Give me a few minutes," he told me. I hung the robe and towel on a hook by the shower and took the hairbrush with me to the bedroom. I sat on the bed and brushed my hair. I put on a mint green nightgown and left the robe and towel on the plush chair in the corner.

I took his cigarettes and lighter off of the nightstand and made my way down to the hot tub room. I took a seat at the table and lit my own cigarette for the first time in l don't know how long. I was done with it by the time he found me. "Did you get tired of waiting for me?" he asked. "No," I answered, "I just decided to give you the time that you need." He lit me another cigarette, that I gladly accepted, then one for himself. "Are you in heat too?" I asked him. "No," he smiled, "I just have a physical response to your heat. It is harder to control sometimes." "Is there something that I can do to help?" I offered. "Not tonight. I am not going to touch you tonight. You still need to heal," he answered. "I could give you a massage," I offered. "No," he decided, "I will not be able to stop with that."

We smoked in silence for a few minutes. "Want some chocolate?" I asked, "I read that chocolate helps curb sexual urges." "We could try it," he agreed. We finished our cigarettes and went to the kitchen. He got out a chocolate bar. "We need more than one," I grabbed another one. He lifted me up onto the kitchen island. I opened mine and broke off a piece. I held it up to his mouth and he took it. I broke off a piece and put it in my mouth. Chocolate is so good. I broke off more for him, then me. We ate in silence until both bars were gone. "Is it helping?" I asked. "I do not know," he answered, "I just took the coldest shower that I have ever taken. It is hard to tell." "Same here," I smiled, "maybe we should try it before we take the cold baths next time." "Probably," he agreed.

I smiled at him and started laughing. "What?" he smiled. "We're really just a hot mess," I laughed again, "literally." "Definitely," he agreed. "Are you still suppressing me?" I asked. "Yes," he answered. "Is that hard?" I asked, "you can stop if it's too much." "I can not stop until you are healed," he answered, "I will tomorrow. Then I will be all over you." "You will be?" just the thought of it rocked something within me. "Sorry," he apologized, "I am flattered that just my words affect you so. I will try to be more careful with what I say until tomorrow." "Then you can say whatever you want to," I told him, "I think that we might need more chocolate."

He got two more bars out of the refrigerator and handed them to me. I opened the first one and held a piece up to his mouth. He took it and closed his eyes. I think I saw a little bit of ecstasy on his face. I put a piece in my mouth and closed my eyes. I didn't open them until the chocolate had melted away. He was watching me intently, "I think that it helps." "I do too," I agreed. We finished the two bars.

"Will you tell me about your dream now?" he asked. "I was running from you," I told him, "You wanted to kill me." He was silent for a moment. "Like I told you before, it was only a dream," he reassured me. "But they seem so real," I told him. "I know. Mine do to," he agreed, "nothing would ever make me want to kill you." He came forward, kissed my forehead and hugged me. "Do not ever feel like you can not tell me anything," he told me, "I want you to always feel like you can talk to me." "What if Ripley has sworn me to secrecy about something?" I asked. "As long as the secret does not pose a danger to you, you keep it," he answered, "You and Ripley need to have trust in each other too." "Okay," I agreed, respecting Aris even more. He was so wise. I guess I should expect his level of wisdom, due to his age.

"What do you want to do now?" I asked. "I would like to dream walk," he answered, "I have something very important that I want to show you." "In a dream?" I asked. "Yes," he answered, "It is going to be a bit messy and I do not want anyone but you to see it. I can control that while dream walking." "Okay," I agreed reluctantly.

He helped me down off of the island and led me upstairs to the bedroom. I climbed in bed. He slid in next to me and covered us up. "Look into my eyes," he told me. I looked into his eyes and saw the colors start to swirl slow, then fast, slow, then fast again. I couldn't keep my eyes opened. "That is my girl," I heard him say just before I dropped of.

Jade. It was Aris saying my name. I sat up. He was sitting up watching me. It was strange because he was laying down with me but also sitting up with me. "Jade!" he shouted. I looked at the one who was sitting up. "Come with me," he said. We got out of bed. He took my hand and led me to the bedroom door. I turned back and saw us laying, still asleep. He tugged on my arm lightly. I turned to face him and he led me downstairs to the kitchen.

"Have a seat," he pulled out a chair for me and I sat down. He took the seat across the table from me, "give me your hands." I reached up and took his hands. "Rules," he started, "do not invite anyone else into this dream. What I am going to show you is shocking, but I assure you that everything will be fine. You just have to trust me. Do you trust me Jade?" "Yes," I answered faithfully. He hasn't let me down yet. "Remember do not invite anyone. Do not ask for help. Try not to scream," he told me, "just do as I say and everything will be fine. Remember it is just a dream, so it is not really happening. I am just showing you a possibility."