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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer: See chapter one
~~~~~~~
Turn Evil Into Good
Part 8
Recovering
Jarod awoke with a start and looked around frantically.
Parker’s hand came up to land on his side. “Hey, it’s ok. We are safe,” she mumbled incoherently.
Jarod breathed deeply and turned towards her.
She was lying besides him, her eyes still closed. She was half asleep and had yet reacted upon his fright.
He grimaced. During the night he had awoken several times due to one or another nightmare, sometimes screaming. Parker had been there for him each time.
“Come on, lie back down,” she mumbled.
Jarod relaxed and let himself be drawn back down into the mattress from her.
Parker had coaxed him out of the studio and up into her bedroom. They had held each other during the night. Jarod, glad that he was not alone and that Parker was there to help him and Parker, glad that she had found Jarod and that she could be there for him.
Parker had called Jay and Ethan sometime after Jarod and herself had calmed down following Jarod’s revelations.
Ethan and Jay had been relieved about her call, telling them that Jarod was aware of his surroundings again.
She hadn’t told them anything about what Jarod had shared with her. It was something that he would have to do if he wanted them to know.
Jarod quietly observed her face and reached up with one hand to touch her cheek. Parker’s lips curled into a smile, when she felt the feather light touch and her eyes open slightly.
“Hey,” she smiled.
Jarod’s face lit up. “Hey yourself,” he mumbled and stretched to capture her lips with his.
“Hmm, that’s a greeting,” Parker murmured with her eyes closed again.
Jarod chuckled.
“How are you?” she asked, her eyes now open and piercing into his.
“Better,” he said. “I’m just glad that you were here. I don’t think the night would have been that manageable without you.”
Parker barely kept from grimacing at that thought. The night had been interrupted several times and she didn’t really want to think about how it would have been if he had had to endure it alone.
“How did you cope with those memories when you were alone?” she swallowed.
Jarod’s smile faltered slightly. “Why do you think you got all those calls in the wee hours of the morning?” he asked back.
Parker scoffed. “What time is it?”
Jarod turned to the clock on her nightstand. “Nine o’clock.”
Parker didn’t reply but just stretched lazily and yawned.
“What did you tell Ethan when we will meet with him at the Centre?” Jarod asked.
Her eyes snapped back over to Jarod’s face. “I hope you didn’t mean that,” she growled.
Jarod quirked an eyebrow. “Why shouldn’t I?”
“You don’t mean to tell me that you want to go into the Centre today?!?” she snarled in a somewhat dangerous tone.
“Why not?” Jarod quipped back.
“Why not?” Parker barked incredulously. “Did you forget what happened yesterday?”
“No, we didn’t get half as far with our tour than we wanted to,” Jarod stated calmly.
“That’s not what I mean and you know it,” she snapped.
Jarod nodded. “I know that you didn’t mean that but we have to continue the tour.”
“That can wait. You should give yourself some time to get over what happened yesterday,” Parker directed firmly.
“No, I want to return there today,” he said and then quietly he added: “I have to.”
Parker’s eyes narrowed.
“Look, the earlier I return there and face that building again, the better. There is a saying that once you fall off of a horseback, you have to mount the animal again, the minute you are back on your feet otherwise you will loose the courage to do so entirely. This is no different,” he reasoned.
Parker contemplated that. “Not SL-24,” she relented. “That sublevel is off limits!”
Jarod smiled. “Agreed.”
“And the moment you don’t feel well, we stop the tour and go,” she requested.
“Ok,” Jarod replied although he didn’t intend to do so. He knew that if they stopped when he didn’t feel at ease with the situation, he wouldn’t set a foot into the building; neither today nor tomorrow or the day after.
“I will keep an eye on you,” she grumbled.
“I hope that you do,” he replied easily and grinned sheepishly at her.
“Then I call Ethan and tell him that we meet him there at eleven o’clock. He will have to take a cab,” Parker acknowledged still not entirely pleased with the venture.
“Ok,” Jarod replied and got up to walk over to the bathroom.
Parker shook her head at his retreating back.
~~~~~~~
“Jarod, Ethan, Melina,” Danny came towards them when they stormed through the Centre’s entrance doors to shut out the reporters still besieging the area.
“Danny,” Parker greeted him.
“I didn’t think you would come today,” he said and looked closely at Jarod.
“He insisted,” Parker grumbled with a nod of her head in Jarod’s direction.
Danny nodded. “He can be quite persistent.”
“It’s more like he is as stubborn as a mule,” Parker groused.
Everyone chuckled.
“So, SL-23 it is?” Jarod asked, shooting Parker a glance.
“Let’s go,” she growled through clenched teeth.
To be continued…
~~~~~~~
Part 8
Recovering
Jarod awoke with a start and looked around frantically.
Parker’s hand came up to land on his side. “Hey, it’s ok. We are safe,” she mumbled incoherently.
Jarod breathed deeply and turned towards her.
She was lying besides him, her eyes still closed. She was half asleep and had yet reacted upon his fright.
He grimaced. During the night he had awoken several times due to one or another nightmare, sometimes screaming. Parker had been there for him each time.
“Come on, lie back down,” she mumbled.
Jarod relaxed and let himself be drawn back down into the mattress from her.
Parker had coaxed him out of the studio and up into her bedroom. They had held each other during the night. Jarod, glad that he was not alone and that Parker was there to help him and Parker, glad that she had found Jarod and that she could be there for him.
Parker had called Jay and Ethan sometime after Jarod and herself had calmed down following Jarod’s revelations.
Ethan and Jay had been relieved about her call, telling them that Jarod was aware of his surroundings again.
She hadn’t told them anything about what Jarod had shared with her. It was something that he would have to do if he wanted them to know.
Jarod quietly observed her face and reached up with one hand to touch her cheek. Parker’s lips curled into a smile, when she felt the feather light touch and her eyes open slightly.
“Hey,” she smiled.
Jarod’s face lit up. “Hey yourself,” he mumbled and stretched to capture her lips with his.
“Hmm, that’s a greeting,” Parker murmured with her eyes closed again.
Jarod chuckled.
“How are you?” she asked, her eyes now open and piercing into his.
“Better,” he said. “I’m just glad that you were here. I don’t think the night would have been that manageable without you.”
Parker barely kept from grimacing at that thought. The night had been interrupted several times and she didn’t really want to think about how it would have been if he had had to endure it alone.
“How did you cope with those memories when you were alone?” she swallowed.
Jarod’s smile faltered slightly. “Why do you think you got all those calls in the wee hours of the morning?” he asked back.
Parker scoffed. “What time is it?”
Jarod turned to the clock on her nightstand. “Nine o’clock.”
Parker didn’t reply but just stretched lazily and yawned.
“What did you tell Ethan when we will meet with him at the Centre?” Jarod asked.
Her eyes snapped back over to Jarod’s face. “I hope you didn’t mean that,” she growled.
Jarod quirked an eyebrow. “Why shouldn’t I?”
“You don’t mean to tell me that you want to go into the Centre today?!?” she snarled in a somewhat dangerous tone.
“Why not?” Jarod quipped back.
“Why not?” Parker barked incredulously. “Did you forget what happened yesterday?”
“No, we didn’t get half as far with our tour than we wanted to,” Jarod stated calmly.
“That’s not what I mean and you know it,” she snapped.
Jarod nodded. “I know that you didn’t mean that but we have to continue the tour.”
“That can wait. You should give yourself some time to get over what happened yesterday,” Parker directed firmly.
“No, I want to return there today,” he said and then quietly he added: “I have to.”
Parker’s eyes narrowed.
“Look, the earlier I return there and face that building again, the better. There is a saying that once you fall off of a horseback, you have to mount the animal again, the minute you are back on your feet otherwise you will loose the courage to do so entirely. This is no different,” he reasoned.
Parker contemplated that. “Not SL-24,” she relented. “That sublevel is off limits!”
Jarod smiled. “Agreed.”
“And the moment you don’t feel well, we stop the tour and go,” she requested.
“Ok,” Jarod replied although he didn’t intend to do so. He knew that if they stopped when he didn’t feel at ease with the situation, he wouldn’t set a foot into the building; neither today nor tomorrow or the day after.
“I will keep an eye on you,” she grumbled.
“I hope that you do,” he replied easily and grinned sheepishly at her.
“Then I call Ethan and tell him that we meet him there at eleven o’clock. He will have to take a cab,” Parker acknowledged still not entirely pleased with the venture.
“Ok,” Jarod replied and got up to walk over to the bathroom.
Parker shook her head at his retreating back.
~~~~~~~
“Jarod, Ethan, Melina,” Danny came towards them when they stormed through the Centre’s entrance doors to shut out the reporters still besieging the area.
“Danny,” Parker greeted him.
“I didn’t think you would come today,” he said and looked closely at Jarod.
“He insisted,” Parker grumbled with a nod of her head in Jarod’s direction.
Danny nodded. “He can be quite persistent.”
“It’s more like he is as stubborn as a mule,” Parker groused.
Everyone chuckled.
“So, SL-23 it is?” Jarod asked, shooting Parker a glance.
“Let’s go,” she growled through clenched teeth.
To be continued…
