By the time Katia got back to her room, the hand towel she had wrapped around her hand was needing to be replaced. She walked into the room to find the lamp on and Andrew asleep. She quickly went into the bathroom and unwrapped her hand, turning on the faucet and putting her hand under it. The water that hit the sink immediately turned pink. She took her hand from under the water hoping to see it had stopped the bleeding, but a pool of blood simply gathered back.

"Shit." She said with tears in her eyes.

She was starting to worry she wouldn't be able to stop the bleeding on her own and finally decided to wake up Andrew. She re-wrapped her hand with a new towel, walked into the room and lightly patted Andrew's shoulder; she called his name until he opened his eyes.

"Kat...you okay?" he asked sleepily.

"No." Katia said as the tears in her eyes fell down her cheek.

Andrew immediately sat up. "What's wrong?"

Before she could answer, Andrew noticed her towel wrapped hand. "What the hell happened to your hand?"

"I had a fight with John." Katia sniffed as she sat down on the bed.

"John did this to you?"

"No...it was an accident...I cut myself with a broken bottle...and now my hand won't stop bleeding."

"Let me see the cut." Andrew said as he gently unwrapped Katia's hand. "A broken bottle, Kat?" he asked without taking his eyes off her hand.

Katia winced as Andrew finally saw the cut. "It looks pretty deep...you'll probably need at least a couple of stiches. We need to get you to a hospital." Andrew said as he wrapped her hand again. "Let me go get Mal."

"Andrew, please don't tell him what happened...with John."

"What did happen, Kat?"

"It was an accident. I told you. He broke a bottle and I fell on it."

"How did you fall, exactly?"

"John grabbed my arm to push me out of the room and he let go at the same time that I pulled away. I lost my balance."

Andrew sighed. "Why don't you want Mal to know."

"I don't want anyone to know what really happened. Cynthia and John were fighting when I got there. Cynthia walked out crying and I...well...I argued with John about how he was treating her." She said looking down.

"Kat! What were you thinking? Did you see how drunk John was when he left the restaurant?"

"I know...but I was so angry for how he treated Cynthia."

"We'll talk more about this later...we need to get you to the hospital." Andrew said as he began walking towards the door.

"Andrew...what are you going to tell Mal?"

Andrew thought about it for a moment. "We'll say you slipped in the bathroom and knocked over the glass pitcher. Does that work for you?"

Katia nodded.

"I'll be right back. And keep putting pressure on that cut."

Andrew and Mal were back within five minutes. As Andrew quickly changed, Mal called the reception desk and asked them to have a car waiting for them. They spent the next three hours at the hospital. When they arrived, Katia was taken in to stop the bleeding, she was given pain killers and then saw a doctor for stitches. They got back to the hotel close to 4 the next morning. She thanked Mal for taking her and asked about the hospital bill. He told her not to worry about that and to get some rest.

"Four stitches, a bandaged up hand and plenty of pain killers...that's what I have to show for tonight." Katia said as she sat on the bed.

"How does your hand feel?" Andrew asked as he stretched out on his bed.

"It's still numb. The doctor said as soon as the anesthesia wears off I am going to have to start on the pain killers again. I'm so tired...you're probably exhausted too."

"I could use some sleep. You should get some rest too."

"That's what I'm planning on doing." Katia said. She didn't even bother changing out of her clothes. She simply took off her shoes and got into bed.

"Good night...or good morning...or whatever it is." Katia said to Andrew as she laid her head on her pillow.

***

Katia woke up to someone knocking on the door. She looked over and saw that Andrew wasn't in the bed next to her. She looked over at the clock and saw that it was a little past noon. As she got up, she felt a pinch of pain come from her hand. She walked over to the door as she patted her hair down a little.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"It's John, love."

Katia contemplated for a second letting him in.

"Please Kat. Let me in. I really need to talk to you and I don't want to do it through a door."

Katia unlocked the door and opened it slightly before starting to walk back to the bed. She heard John step inside and then close the door behind him. Katia didn't turn around and instead grabbed the bottle of pills on the nightstand. She hadn't realized it would be a bit difficult to open it with one hand and as she struggled to get the top off, she heard John's voice next to her.

"Here, let me do it."

She handed him the bottle knowing very well she wouldn't be able to do it herself. Katia finally looked up at him. He had a pitiful look on his face. His eyes looked tired and his hair tousled. Apparently, she hadn't been the only one who had a long night.

"How many do you need to take?" he asked softly.

"Two."

"Here." he handed Katia the pills.

"Thanks."

John walked over and got her some water.

"Thanks." Katia replied as she sipped on the water to swallow the pills.

There was silence in the room for about half a minute.

"So..uhhh...how is your hand doing?" John finally asked pointing to it.

"It's alright."

"I...uhh...heard from Mal about you going to the hospital last night..."

"Yeah. We got back early this morning."

"And...about the...ummm...about the pitcher of water." he continued.

"Clumsy me, huh?"

"Kat, I'm so sorry about last night." John finally said as he sat down on the bed next to her. "Half of the things I did and said I didn't mean...especially not that." he said looking down at her bandaged hand. "I was so drunk."

"Yeah...you were."

"Kat, you have to know I didn't mean for anything like this to happen. You know I wouldn't do anything to hurt you. I don't know what happened...I mean I know I was trying to get you out of the room, but when you said I was hurting you, well I immediately let go of you and you just went crashing to the floor."

"I think I pulled away at the same time you let go of me. It caught me off balance."

"Why didn't you tell Mal the truth?"

"I didn't think it was necessary. Nobody needs to know what really happened."

"But you told Andrew."

"How do you know that?"

"Because he came to talk to me about an hour ago."

"He did? What did he say?" Katia inquired.

She never thought Andrew would actually go talk to John about what had happened.

"He said he wasn't going to make a big deal about what happened last night because you had asked him to let it go...but if it happened again, he wouldn't be so understanding."

"But it's not going to happen again..."

"No...of course not. Kat...I can't believe I did this to you."

"It was an accident, John."

He nodded. "I'm sorry."

"I know you are." she smiled.

"So...are they keeping you drugged up with these?" he asked shaking the pill container.

"Don't you be thinking of taking these from me. You have enough of your own."

"Yeah...and just so you know, I'm willing to share mine if you need them." John responded.

"Thanks." she chuckled softly.

After a small pause, she sat up and faced John. "Can I ask you something?" she questioned softly.

He nodded.

"If this half..." Katia said holding up her hand, " is the half you didn't mean, what half did you mean last night?"

"The half about me knowing I am a bastard to Cyn; the half about her deserving someone better than me; the half about her deserving something better than this whole fuckin' Beatles situation; the half that I don't know what to do. That half." John spoke softly, steady and with such sadness.

"Did you talk to Cynthia last night?"

"Yeah...a few minutes after you left, Ringo came to the room. He convinced me to go talk to her. And I did."

"And?"

"Same thing that always happens. I say I'm sorry. She forgives me and then we have great make up sex." He said half chuckling.

"John...you can't solve whatever problems you two are having with sex."

"It's worked for a long time."

Katia sighed. " If it had worked, last night wouldn't have happened."

"You're right, Kat. I know you're right. But what am I suppose to do? I can't help what I do. I don't want to treat her like that, but I do anyway. I just can't help it."

"Then maybe you should ask for help."

"Never asked for it, never wanted it."

"Maybe you need to reconsider that."

"Maybe...but anyway, what did the doctor say about your hand?"

"Well he put in four stitches, said to keep taking the pain killers and keep it bandaged up for a little bit. It's not so much because of the cut, but because it's the palm of my hand, the bandage gives me a little more protection, you know?" John took Katia's hand and looked at it. He started gently running his fingers over the bandage. Katia looked at him and after a few seconds, he looked back at her.

"Kat...I know you know this...but I am going to tell you anyway...I'm going to be honest with you because that's the kind of relationship you and I have always had."

"Okay."

"I am incredibly attracted to you."

Katia's heart just about skipped a beat. All speculation was gone. And Katia had no idea how to respond to it.

"And don't tell me it comes as a shock to you because all women know when they have a man's attention." He continued.

"John you and I-" Katia started.

"Let me finish, Kat. It's nothing you've done...not on purpose, that is. You're just an amazing girl...it'd be hard not to be attracted to you. I feel comfortable with you. You let me be myself but at the same time you don't put up with me and tell me the truth. I love that about you. Aside from what happened to your hand, as strange as it sounds, I loved having that fight with you last night."

"You did?"

"In a weird way, you turned me on more than ever...because you stood up to me. Cynthia's not like that. She cries and complains and never tells me what she wants; only what she doesn't want. You, on the other, you challenge me...and that's one of the things that really attracts me to you."

There was a long pause. Katia wasn't sure if John had finished, but when he didn't say anything else, she felt the need to say something...even it she didn't exactly know what.

"John...I uh...I don't know what to say." she laughed nervously. " I mean I love being around you and we have so much fun together...but I guess I stopped seeing you as a possible love interest the day I met Cynthia. That simple fact is what categorized you as just a friend. I could never to that to Cynthia...you know...get involved with you on that level. I have enough trouble with Jane in the picture...and then there's Paul...he and I..."

"I know Paul's always been your favorite." John smiled wryly.

Katia didn't answer. She didn't know what to say. Yes, Paul was the man she had fallen in love with, but John...John and Katia had gotten so much closer since she saw the boys again and Paul and Katia had...well that relationship had gotten so confusing.

"Let's just put it this way...if Cynthia had not been in the picture and I hadn't heard about the bet you and Paul made back in Liverpool...you would probably be my favorite...and you probably would have won the bet." she smiled.

"That's all I needed to hear." John said standing up.

"Just don't ever tell Paul that." Katia warned laughing.

"I won't." he smiled. "I better get going. The others will be wondering where I am and Paul might come in throwing punches if he sees me in here; he has jealousy running through his veins right now."

"Does he know...I mean what you told me just now?"

"About me being attracted to you?"

Katia nodded.

"It's never been confirmed by me, but he swears it's true. I just go along with it, just to mess about with him. It's quite entertaining." John started walking towards the door, but suddenly looked back.

"Kat, you and I could never be more than friends."

"Why's that Lennon?" Katia asked thinking she would get some classic, sarcastic remark from John.

"Because I could never hurt you like I've hurt Cyn. I couldn't do that to you too."

That last statement felt like the nicest compliment anyone had ever given Katia and possibly the most caring side of John she had ever seen. Katia didn't know what moved her exactly, maybe it was the fact that they would only stay friends, but she walked towards him, gently grabbed his face and gave him a small, tender kiss on the mouth.

"What was that for?" John asked surprise.

"Consider it your consolation prize for losing that bet with Paul all those years ago." Katia replied.

"Okay..." John smiled and started walking towards the door again.

Katia started walking back to the bed when she heard John walking back towards her. She turned around to find him face to face with her. He grabbed the back of her neck, pulled her in close and gave her such a passionate kiss that all she could do was respond back with the same passion. When the kiss was over, he simply said, "Consider that your consolation prize for Paul winning the bet all those years ago."

Katia watched as John walked out of the room and touched her lips. "Wow." she whispered to herself. She could feel her heart pounding and thought of Paul's words from the other night. If she hadn't felt her heart racing that night at the club, she sure felt it now.

Katia showered and changed as quickly as she could considering her injury and headed down to the lobby. She asked at the reception desk if she had any messages and sure enough, Andrew had left one for her telling her they would be at the lobby restaurant. When she walked in, she saw Andrew sitting in the back with the boys. She smiled and walked over to them, noticing that John was not with them. Ringo was the first one to notice her and waved her over.

"Kat...Mal told us what happened. How's you hand?" Paul asked as he pulled a chair out for her.

"It's doing better...I took some painkillers about an hour ago, so I should be fine for a few more hours." she smiled.

"Why didn't you wake me up? I would have gone with you guys." Paul remarked.

"I knew you would be filming early today and Maureen and Cynthia would be leaving too."

"Well so much for filming. John didn't even bother showing up this morning. In fact, we haven't seem him all day. We thought he'd gone to drop off Cyn, but turns out only Ringo took the girls." George added.

Ringo didn't say a word. He knew exactly what had happened between John and Cynthia last night.

"Who knows." Katia shrugged.

Katia ordered a sandwich and as she was finishing her lunch, John came into the restaurant. He had cleaned up since he was last in Katia's room. His hair was now combed and he seemed to have a better demeanor than before.

"Johnny! Where have you been?" George asked.

"Around...just getting some things resolved this morning, that's all. How are you Kat? How's that hand?" He said walking over to Katia

"It's doing better" Katia smiled. "I just need to keep off the alcohol and on pain killers for a couple of weeks."

"Well, we can have fun without the alcohol; I'll make sure of that." He winked and looked over at Paul.

"Why the long face Macca, you'll have fun too! I promise." he laughed.

"Sod off!" Paul scowled.

***

Katia was still tired from the night before and didn't really feel like going out. The boys were going to try to shoot for a couple of hours to make up for the lost time that morning, anyway.

"John came to talk to me...before I met you for lunch." Katia told Andrew when they got back to their hotel room.

"Did he?"

"Yeah...he said you had gone to talk to him."

"Yes. I did go talk to him." Andrew replied.

Katia knew she was lucky to have someone like Andrew in her life. He took care of her, protected her without overstepping his boundaries...and she appreciated that.

"Thanks." she smiled at him.

"There's no need to thank me, Kat." he smiled. "So did you two get things straightened out?"

"Yes...we did..."

"Good." he smiled.

Katia thought whether to tell Andrew about kissing John, but she decided not to. Somehow keeping the kisses between just her and John made them even more special.

"He came out and told me that he's attracted to me." Katia said.

Andrew looked at her surprised. "He said that?"

"Yes. He was so...upfront about it. So honest about it."

"But Cynthia..." Andrew reminded Katia.

"Yes, I know...and I made it perfectly clear that he and I...we could never be more than just friends...he understood it."

"And you believe that?"

"Yes...I do."

"Okay." Andrew said a bit skeptical.

"What is it Andrew?"

"Why would he confess that to you if he didn't have any intention of pursuing it? It makes no sense."

Katia shrugged. She hadn't really thought about that, but after what he had said about not wanting to hurt her the way he'd hurt Cynthia, he believed him.

"Just...be careful, alright? I don't want you to get hurt...by Paul or John."

"I will." she promised.

Katia laid down and took a short nap; she was awoken by the phone ringing about an hour later. Andrew answered and spoke briefly with the person on the other end.

"That was George." He said as he hung up the phone. "A few of the crew members are going to meet up for some drinks and he asked if we'd like to join them."

"Why don't you go on ahead...I'd much rather stay in and get some rest."

Andrew hesitated for a bit.

"I'll be fine...you'll have a better time there than babysitting me here." she smiled.

"Alright...maybe for a little while." he said as he got up to put on his shoes.

"Have fun." Katia waved from her bed as Andrew closed the door.

About a half hour later, there was a knock on the door. Katia turned down the volume to the documentary she was watching and walked to open the door.

"Paul...hi." she greeted him. "I thought you'd be down with the others getting drinks."

"Nah...I'd much rather come and see how you're feeling."

"Well that's sweet. Thanks for checking up on me. How was filming?"

"It went alright. No one was really in the mood to do much of anything. Can I come in?" he smiled.

"Oh! Sorry...yes." Katia chuckled, not having noticed that she had Paul still standing in the hallway. "I was just watching a documentary that I found....there's not that many channels that are in English. Want to watch it with me?"

"Sure." he said as he walked in. Katia sat down on the bed and put her feet up, leaning against the headboard. Paul stretched out next to her.

"So Andrew went down with everyone else, then?"

"Yes. You should go too. I doubt being stuck in a hotel room with me all night will be much fun."

"I wouldn't mind being stuck in a hotel room with you all night. I think it'd be a lot of fun, don't you?" Paul laughed.

Contrary to feeling daring, like she did when John flirted with her, Katia felt shy and nervous around Paul.

"It could be, I guess." She said not taking her eyes off the television screen.

"You guess? I think I might just have to prove it to you." Paul said as he shifted his body so he was facing her. Katia also turned towards him and could feel her face getting hot as she looked at him.

"Why are you turning red? There's nothing to be embarrassed about...it's just me." he chuckled softly.

Katia was about to say something, but stopped herself.

"What's going on? You can talk to me, Kat."

"I know I can talk to you...I just can't seem to talk to you about..." she trailed off.

"Sex?" Paul asked casually.

"Us." Katia falsely corrected him.

Sex was exactly what she couldn't bring herself to talk to him about. Although she was able to talk to John about her lack of experience in the area, it had been between friends, but that wasn't the case with Paul. There was a real possibility of intimacy with Paul and that was what was making her nervous.

"Oh...well sex comes into play if we're talking about us, no?" He looked at Katia with pleading eyes.

"I... guess." Katia answered hesitantly.

"You guess too much Kat. You need to be certain...I can make that crystal clear for you." Paul said as he leaned in and began kissing Katia's neck and then moved to her lips. He slowly moved his body so he had her pinned against the headboard of the bed. His hands began roaming around her ribs and Katia could feel his breath getting heavier.

"Paul...wait a minute..." Katia said softly.

"Shhh...Kat...just enjoy it..."

"Please Paul..." She once again tried to stop him but he put his mouth on hers with such passion that it reminded Kat of the kiss John had given her not long ago. Katia couldn't help but respond to his kiss, but was still too aware of his hands, which were now roaming south.

"Paul..."

"Mmmm?"

Katia was having trouble forming sentences while Paul started nuzzling her neck, then going further down only to be stopped by her shirt. She could feel his frustration at having encountered it. Katia was now very aware of his hands, which were now caressing her legs. This was far more than she had ever done with anyone and she began to get even more nervous. A few seconds later, one of Paul's hands slid between her legs and Katia felt it start to move higher. Without warning, memories of the night in Hamburg where Edgar had tried to rape her rushed into Katia's mind. She suddenly felt scared as she remembered fighting against Edgar to get away from him.

"No!" Katia suddenly cried as she struggled to get out of Paul's hold and pushed him away with her one good hand.

Katia curled up against the headboard, bringing her knees up to her chest. She looked at Paul, who was clearly startled by her reaction. He was breathing hard and the look on his face was that of disbelief.

"What? Why? " he managed to say as he regained his breath.

"Because." was all Katia could say.

Paul sat in front of Katia; he didn't look angry; he looked confused.

"Why won't you let me touch you? You don't let me get close to you and you push me away whenever we are intimate with one another. Kat...I'm not angry, I just want to understand. I won't do anything you don't want to do, but just a few seconds ago it looked like you wanted this as much as I do. I don't understand. Why do you push me away...did you do this with all the other men in your life or am I the only unlucky bastard who can't get you to make love to him?"

Katia didn't know what to say so she didn't say anything.

"You're not going to say anything?" he asked again with a firm voice.

Katia had never told Paul what had happened with Edgar that night in Hamburg. Nobody had known except Stuart, Astrid and Ringo. She hadn't realized how traumatizing it had been until now; this was the first time she had found herself in bed with a man, about to have sex.

"I don't know... what to say." she finally answered.

"Just tell me the truth. Should I take it personal that you don't want to make love to me? Or is it that you've ne..." but before he could finish, the realization of what he was about to ask showed on his face and there was no need to continue the question.

He sighed closing his eyes. "I'm so stupid...I should have known by the way you were acting...I should have realized...I'm...I'm so sorry, Kat. I must have looked like an animal to you...and you...I just never thought that you were still a virgin." he apologized.

Paul had just realized Katia was a virgin and Katia had just realized the reason she was still one.

"I...uh...I didn't know how to bring it up. I mean it's not something you advertise to the world."

"You could have told me Kat..."

"Well now you know...I feel kind of dumb...I mean you've probably been with girls that knew exactly what to do and I...I don't." Katia confessed.

"Kat...don't be silly. Come 'ere..." Paul said as he took her into his arms. She took in a deep breath as she nuzzled up to Paul's chest.

"How about we just finish watching that documentary?" Paul said pulling away and smiling at Kat.

She nodded.

"What's it about again?"

"World War I." Katia answered.

"Wonderful...that should do the trick as much as taking a cold shower would." he laughed.

Katia laughed too as she and Paul moved the pillows so they could watch the television comfortably. Katia didn't know exactly when she fell asleep, but the next morning, she woke up to Paul's 5 o'clock wake up call. He got up a bit unsteady and told Katia to go back to sleep. Katia looked over to see Andrew's bed was empty. She hadn't been sure before, but now she knew Paul's plan was to have sex with her last night...he had even managed to keep Andrew away.

Katia woke up for a second time that morning , this time to Andrew opening the door to their room. She shifted to her side and looked over at him.

"What the hell happened to you last night?" Katia asked as she propped herself up into a sitting position.

Andrew was looking pretty rough. His hair was disheveled and it was obvious he had slept in his clothes. He shuffled across the room and laid down before answering.

"Too much alcohol." he groaned.

"I don't think I've ever seen you hung over." Katia remarked.

"I don't think I've ever drank so much. Ringo and George kept passing me drinks. I don't even remember leaving the bar...that's how drunk I was. I ended up waking up in George's room this morning. I think I actually may still be drunk."

"I think that plan may have had a hidden agenda." Katia said.

"What do you mean?" Andrew turned to look at her as he held his head.

"Paul stopped by yesterday...shortly after you went down to the bar..."

Andrew slowly sat up. "He did?"

"Yeah...and I think he was planning on getting lucky last night."

Andrew cleared his throat. "Did he?"

Katia smiled. "No...we just watched T.V. and fell asleep...but he did get a 5 o'clock wake up call this morning to the room...that's what makes me think he put George and Ringo up to getting you drunk...so you wouldn't come back to the room last night."

"Fuckin' bastard..." Andrew mumbled. "You mean to tell me I'm miserable this morning because he wanted to try and get you to sleep with him?"

"Pretty much." Katia replied trying to hide a smile.

"And you...don't laugh...I was a victim in all of this."

"Sorry..." she chuckled.

"Be nice..." Andrew groaned. "My head is about to explode. The one thing that makes this worth it is that Paul's little plan backfired on him." he smiled.