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intheheartTitle: Splinter
Rating: G
Summary: Jake meets a girl and gets worried.
Notes: Follows directly on from this.
The girl stared at her hand, blue eyes enormous in her pale face, and Jake stared back, lost for words. It wasn't just that she wasn't talking to him, it was... she looked confused, and worried, and not really about him.
It was just a splinter.
"Can I help?" he asked, and she jerked back, looked up at him as if she'd forgotten he was there. Jake held up both hands, palm out, universal signal for 'I'm harmless.' "My sister used to get splinters all the time," he said. "I'm good at getting them out."
The girl stared at him for a moment, then slowly extended her hand. He took it in both of his. "It's not too bad," he said. "It isn't very deep." In fact, he could probably get it out with his fingernails.
She watched him steadily, something half-afraid in her face. Jake couldn't watch her for long; he bent quickly over her hand and picked steadily at the splinter.
It wasn't how he would have liked to get it out. If he'd had tweezers, or even a potato... but the girl didn't flinch, didn't move at all, and he had it out more quickly than he would have believed.
A little bead of blood dewed her finger. Half-remembered childhood moments crowded his mind, and almost on instinct, he lifted her hand and kissed the tip of her finger, very lightly.
Behind him, the door slammed hard.
Jake and the girl both jumped, and she snatched her hand away from him as though she'd been burned, then ran up the stairs and disappeared into the dark hallway there.
She was...
Who was she?
And where was he?
Rating: G
Summary: Jake meets a girl and gets worried.
Notes: Follows directly on from this.
The girl stared at her hand, blue eyes enormous in her pale face, and Jake stared back, lost for words. It wasn't just that she wasn't talking to him, it was... she looked confused, and worried, and not really about him.
It was just a splinter.
"Can I help?" he asked, and she jerked back, looked up at him as if she'd forgotten he was there. Jake held up both hands, palm out, universal signal for 'I'm harmless.' "My sister used to get splinters all the time," he said. "I'm good at getting them out."
The girl stared at him for a moment, then slowly extended her hand. He took it in both of his. "It's not too bad," he said. "It isn't very deep." In fact, he could probably get it out with his fingernails.
She watched him steadily, something half-afraid in her face. Jake couldn't watch her for long; he bent quickly over her hand and picked steadily at the splinter.
It wasn't how he would have liked to get it out. If he'd had tweezers, or even a potato... but the girl didn't flinch, didn't move at all, and he had it out more quickly than he would have believed.
A little bead of blood dewed her finger. Half-remembered childhood moments crowded his mind, and almost on instinct, he lifted her hand and kissed the tip of her finger, very lightly.
Behind him, the door slammed hard.
Jake and the girl both jumped, and she snatched her hand away from him as though she'd been burned, then ran up the stairs and disappeared into the dark hallway there.
She was...
Who was she?
And where was he?
