Cold as Ice, Hot as Fire

Alana opened her eyes slowly as strands of light peaked through the room darkening drapes. Her entire body ached and her head was in a haze from the night before. She didn’t want to think about it, all she wanted to do was pop some aspirin and go back to bed. The crisp sheets and fluffy comforter were calling her name, but she soon realized the bed was empty. She looked over to her left focused on the clock across the room showing 1:38PM. “He must have gone to practice,” she thought to herself while letting out a yawn.

She assumed Kris would be home soon, so she began to try and force herself to wake up. That way when he returned she could ask him for a ride back to Southside. All Lana wanted right now was to regain her normalcy, and she could do that by cleaning up the mess and going back to work the next night. Maybe then she could put that whole argument behind her. Figuring a shower was in order, Lana stepped out of bed walked across the cool wood floor towards the bathroom.

When the light flicked on she turned to face the vanity, her eyes catching herself in the mirror. That was the moment when reality kicked in. Lana stared for a moment; her pale white skin was replaced with purplish bruising around her neck. She slowly moved the collar of the borrowed t-shirt to the side, revealing the same mix of purple and grey on her collarbone and shoulders. She looked down to avoid the sight in front of her, only to see the matching bruises on her wrists complimented by multiple scratches.

Lana’s stomach twisted and her head felt dizzy. Who was this in the mirror? It couldn’t be her; It had to be a dream. Immediately she stripped off the clothes that Kris had lent her, stepping into the tile and glass shower. She turned on the hot water, and it didn’t take long for the room to fill with steam. Lana grabbed the soap and lathered up her body, causing the cuts on her body to sting. She took the loofah and began to scrub away at her skin, but no matter how hard she tried she just couldn’t remove the remnants form the night before.

Memories of the argument, the pushing, and the choking all haunted her. She closed her eyes to try and push it all aside, but Tim’s threats rang in her head. Lana just wanted it to all go away and for it to be a distant memory; but her heart body refused. After holding everything in for so long she just couldn’t stop herself as her body slunk to the bottom of the shower and she started to cry. The tears streamed down her face and the sobs echoed in the tile bathroom. She felt broken, alone, and like a victim – and she hated it.

--

“Go home and get some rest, we need your head in the game tomorrow.”

The words coach said to him at the end of practice repeated in his mind as he drove home from Southpointe ice arena. It normally was easy to push everything aside and focus on hockey, but today was different. Lana was on his mind, and he just couldn’t shake the images in his head. The independent woman he slept with suddenly was the woman he had to save. It wasn’t quite how he expected that night to end; He didn’t want to even speculate what would have happened if he didn’t return to her apartment.

Kris pulled into his garage and entered the house, tossing his athletic bag onto the floor. She wasn’t downstairs, so he headed up to his room to see if she was still sleeping. As he walked into his bedroom he could hear the sound of the shower. He sat down on the bed, pulling off his socks and sandals. But as he tossed them into the corner the sound of crying caught his attention.

He slowly stepped into the bathroom, seeing the outline of her body slouched on the floor of the shower. Without hesitation, he walked around the glass, still fully clothed, and sat down next to her in the shower. Her head was buried in her knees as she continued to cry and muttered, “I’m fine…I just need to be alone.”

“No,” Kris said as he shook his head, “You’re not fine Lana. Talk to me.” Lana’s head darted up revealing her bloodshot eyes, responding in an angry tone, “No? Maybe you didn’t hear me the first time. I don’t want to talk, Leave me alone.” He knew exactly what she was doing; she was pushing him away. He knew it was her way of dealing with things, but that wouldn’t work. Not this time. “I’m not leaving, Lana.”

At that very moment she seemed to snap, standing up in front of him. “FINE! Take a good, hard look. Do you like what you see? Because I sure as hell don’t!” He sat there for a moment, his eyes scanning her black and blue body as her words echoed in the bathroom. Guilt panged in his heart as she glared at him and continued to yell. “I’m a bruised fucking mess Kris. I look like some battered woman and I fucking hate it. I don’t want anyone to see me like this.”

He stood there confused as she continued to vent out all her frustrations. “See you don’t really know me, you think you do but you don’t” she said coarsely. “The last time I was at rock bottom I let someone in, and that person took advantage of me. Manipulated me.” Her eyes were glassed over as she finished, “I don’t care if you’re the same or different. I can’t do that again.” She stood there for a moment before turning away, “I need to be alone. It’s the only way I can deal with this. Do you understand?”

“I understand,” Kris said as he stood up and walked over to her, “You’re a strong woman who can take care of herself.” He gently moved her jaw with his fingers to face him, “but even the strongest person in the world needs help once in a while.” He stared into her eyes as he shifted the stray strands of her wet hair from her face. “Look you can yell, you can cry, you could even knock me down the steps,” he said, “but I am not going to leave you alone. Not like this.”

"You remember the state I was in that night? That was my lowest point" he reminded her, "I was stubborn and didn't need anyone. But somehow you broke me down, and helped me." Kris paused for a moment before finishing, "Just this one time, Let me in. Let me Fix you." Lana stood in front of him frozen, and he watched the anger and anxiety melt from her eyes. Kris’s lips lowered to hers, his hands cupping her cheek as they locked for what felt like an eternity.

Much to his surprise she didn't push away or yell; instead she kissed him back. His immediate reaction was to pull her back into his body, and lock his lips with hers yet again. A series of short, sweet kisses erupted setting off a blaze inside of him. He gently moved from her lips slowly down to the base of her neck, being sure to avoid the painfully bruised areas. Kris could hear her breathing grow deeper, longer with each calculated movement. “Don’t stop,” she said in a whisper.

Normally he would take her right there, but not this time. Instead Kris released his lips and turned off the water. She looked surprised as he picked her light frame into his arms and stepped out of the shower, both heir bodies dripping wet. He carried her back into his bedroom, laying her down gently onto the sheets. Kris stripped off his wet clothes before he carefully straddled her body. He let his hands and lips do the talking, as he gently caressed her body from head to toe. He waited until her panting increased before he moved back on top of her, hovering around her groin. She gazed up at him as he positioned himself, slowly sliding inside. A familiar, wet tight feeling surrounded him, but he resisted the urge to pound her into the headboard. Instead his hips rocked slowly, but with enough controlled force to cause her to lose her breath.

There was no screaming, no nails gripping into his back this time; it was just their two bodies blending together amongst pants and moans. After her body quivered in pleasure he pulled out slowly, releasing onto her thigh. As they both caught their breath he cleaned up his mess before pulling up the covers and wrapping his arms around her. When his head hit the pillow he closed his eyes for a moment, taking in the sound of her breathing and the feel of her soft, dewy skin. "Kris," she started to say - but he put his finger over her mouth while interjecting “Shhh, You don’t need to say it.”

“I promise, things can go back to the way they were before,” he said, “but not until you’re better.” She nodded softly in acknowledgement as she closed her eyes. He felt Lana pull his arms in closer to her body as she said, “Can we just stay in bed like this for a bit?” Kris kissed the back of her head nestled in to her body, getting comfortable on the mattress. He lied there next to her, watching her slowly fall asleep from exhaustion. As Kris started to close his eyes he wondered if he’d be able to keep his promise; because at this moment things just felt so right.

-

'Lights will guide you home, And ignite your bones, And I will try to fix you'