Lina...
Nick's voice was raw and desperate in her head. She didn't feel pain, but he *needed* her. Without a second thought, she abandoned Jane Austen... and got caught in swirling, dark need. Nick clawed at her mind like a drowning man panicking against his saviour, drowning them both. She had a sudden urge to go to him *now*.
It took a colossal effort, but she pulled far enough away to think before he overwhelmed her. Immediately she knew what was going on and her stomach turned.
He was having sex with *her*. Images of exactly what they were doing flashed through the connection into her mind. She was going to be physically ill. It was another of those nights, nights where alcohol and Mandy's arrival on tour served to drown Nick's loneliness. Inevitably, when alcohol and sex mixed Nick couldn't keep his mind off Lina.
It would have been flattering, exciting, a small victory over the rival she had practically pushed Nick at, except for the images, textures, sounds, tastes that flooded her mind. It was a reminder of a fact she tried her very best to deny. The few other times it had happened, she had clued in before she got so close, been able to ignore it, relegate it to a separate part of her mind.
Tonight she'd been too distracted, his need too great... he was getting closer and she had to,
NICK STOP!!!
He sobered up instantly, pushing away from Mandy in time. Horror and regret flooded at her, but she let the connection dwindle to almost nothing, fleeing his babbled apologies. She needed to be alone right now, alone with her loneliness and her tears.
"Okay, *stop* already."
"Sorry. Unfortunately, all the stuff you really don't want to know is the main part of my problem." Nick grinned as his friend groaned.
"Explain to me why your girlfriend is in your head while you're asking for sex advice?"
"I'm not, exactly. And I need her. I mean, the problem is... sort of... her, but she's still... having her with me is still the most comforting thing I know. And being with me is keeping her sane right now."
"Twisted."
"I said that already."
"Are we getting close to the part where you ask my advice?"
"Soon, o wise one. Still stuff you need to know."
"Hurry up."
"The problem is the emerging part. That's pretty literal, as far as we know. It's not usually a complete reliving of however each partner emerged, but it's pretty close. I started with... well, I basically yelled and woke up half the planet."
"That's going to be embarrassing."
"I'll live. Everyone on the Net.."
"The CB radio thing?"
"Huh? Oh right." Nick had explained the Psychic Net to Brian as a sort of CB radio community, only telepathic. "Yeah, that. Pretty much everyone on there knows us anyway, so they'll know when it happens, if they hear or not."
"And I thought the media was bad."
"My embarrassment is so not the problem. The problem is how Lina emerged."
"Well?"
Lina cringed as Nick opened his mouth. "She set things on fire."
"You have a problem."
"She's terrified she's going to set *me* on fire."
Brian was speechless. He stared at Nick for a full two minutes before grabbing the basketball from him and taking shot after shot after shot. Ten minutes later Nick was still watching him.
"This isn't working." Brian announced suddenly. "Can we go somewhere I can really yell at you, without worrying you're going to drop a sheild?"
Nick nodded slowly. "Yeah." He got up, released the sheild and called over to the bodyguards. "Hey guys? Quitting time."
After leaving the Do Not Disturb sign on Brian's door and locking it, Nick teleported them both back to Florida, to his new house. Brian was so upset he barely registered the weird factor.
"Are you telling me you're thinking of *killing yourself* for her???"
Yes.
"We're not really sure what will happen." Nick argued with both of them. "She was angry, she wanted to hurt people... she's not going to want to hurt me."
"But fire will be involved somehow?"
"Yes..."
"You're an idiot."
"Look, Frick, it's this or nothing. We're actually at the point where we had a reason to meet in real life, everyone knows we're attracted to each other, the only barrier to what we've wanted in forever is the chance I might get hurt. If we don't do it now... we nearly lost everything a few months ago, neither of us can go through something like that again. It's all or nothing. And I don't think I can take nothing." Nick kicked a spare box. "Try to understand."
"I don't want to understand! I don't want to understand that if you can convince yourself, I might not see you tomorrow."
"I know..."
"No you *don't*! I won't say "Yes, go risk your life for love." I love you too much, Nicky."
They were both crying by this point, yelling through the tears.
"So does she!"
No I don't.
"What do you mean you don't? You made sure I knew about this, you're making me make the decision..."
Isn't it obvious? I've already made mine.
"What's she saying? I want to know what she's..." Suddenly Brian grabbed Nick by the arms. "Come out here and say it to me!"
Lina loosened her hold on Nick's mind and teleported in, sitting on the floor. "I said I don't love him enough. I knew the risks, but I let him convince me, didn't I? I'm here, amn't I? I actually gave him the choice! If he says "Let's try it," I'm actually going to go through with it. I don't love him enough to stay away, to save him from me."
"Is that what you want?" Nick asked, suddenly quiet.
"I'll go with what you..."
"Tell me what you want!" he insisted.
"I don't want you to leave me."
Brian found himself back in his hotel room, alone and very afraid.