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[fixeswatches]

Angela's talk with him ended up being orders. She told him that he and Elle were going to be sent on assignment together. That the only way he would really learn control would be to test it in real life situations. After all, he had proven time and time again that he wouldn't kill Elle, so her showing off her power to him wasn't a significant test of his control.

He wasn't even sure he wanted control, but he kept that part to himself and took the orders, along with the suit he was apparently supposed to wear.

They were being sent to take care of a bank robbery. The perpetrator had a power, of course. He could create fire. Gabriel couldn't help but shiver a little as he thought about that idea. What a wonderful, useful power that one could be.

And then he reminded himself that he was supposed to bring the man, Flint, in alive.

What a disappointment.

He stood in front of his mirror, adjusting the tie of his suit. He couldn't help but feel like a fraud. He didn't really want to do any of this. But for now, it seemed he had little choice if he wanted to stay close to Elle.

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[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

She dropped her face to his neck, unmoving as he tore through her shirt. She blinked quietly against his skin, and her voice sounded far away when she spoke. "Gabriel, the police," she whispered against his skin.

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

At her voice of concern he brought his hand up and twisted it, locking the doors to the bank via his telekinesis.

"They can wait," He answered softly, bringing his lips down to bite against her skin.

It had taken so much progress to get her this comfortable with him again, if they paused now...everything might just regress.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

She closed her eyes and let out a shameful little gasp against his pulse as he marked her. His, she thought, detached. He was claiming her. The unease grew, snaking up into her heart, but he felt good. If she could just concentrate on that...

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He licked at the wound on her neck, his line of thought about the same as hers. His. She'd realize it soon enough, he was certain of it. She had been his since they first made love in his bed.

But what was happening now as his hand slipped down her pants, fingers brushing against soft golden curls, it wasn't making love. It wasn't sweet or tender or innocent the way it was before.

No, it felt more primal, more urgent to him now, so much that he barely registered the fact that for once, she was not an active participant.

Instead she was lying there like another victim.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

She wanted to feel something, anything, when he touched her--love, desire, something, but she didn't feel anything, and a few more tears seeped out of her eyes.

She didn't want this. She didn't want it; it wasn't like before. She felt a numbing rush of panic and weakly shook her head. "Gabriel," she cried softly, "please don't hurt me."

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He stopped in his tracks at her words, as if genuinely shocked by them. And he was, somehow.

"I would...never hurt you, Elle," He whispered softly, suddenly feeling more vulnerable then he has since...

Since the night he killed her father.

"I hurt you enough already. I'm not going to do it again."

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

She lifted her head to look in his eyes and bittersweet pain swept over her at the vulnerability she saw there. She sucked in a racking breath and looked deeper, blinking down more tears. He looked like Gabriel, her Gabriel, and she reached to hold his face in her hands with trembling fingers. "But I hurt every time I look at you."

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He closed his eyes as her hands reached for him, savoring the sensation for what it was worth. Who knew when she would touch him like this again, with such a painful tenderness to her touch.

"I don't know how to fix it," He admitted softly, more to himself then to her. "I usually know how things work, how they fit, what to put in the right place to make them run....but this..."

He didn't know. In all honesty, he was mostly going by impulse, trying to see what would work, because he doesn't know.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

"I'm not a watch, Gabriel," she said softly, furrowing her brows. A sob caught in her chest, placed pressure down, heavy, hard into her chest as she confronted the truth. "You can't fix me."

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He wanted to protest. He's fixed people. He had fixed Brian.

But he couldn't break Elle's head open and try to see where things aren't fitting. It wasn't quite that simple.

"But I want to," He replied softly, eyes opening to look into hers once more.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

"I know. But you can't," she repeated sorrowfully, and pushed aside his hair.

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He buried his head into her neck for a moment, inhaling her scent. He remained silent for a few moments after that before finally murmuring against her skin, speaking in such a low tone that it would be easy to miss.

"I'm sorry."

And he meant it. He was sorry he had hurt her, that he had broken her so completely. But mostly, he was sorry he couldn't fix her. He couldn't seem to find a way to make things right.

Because he felt like he should be able to.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

And she believed him. For the first time, she believed he was sorry; she heard it in his voice. "I know," she replied, and held him tight.

For the first time in what felt like so long, she felt free. Of anger. Of hate, for just a moment. She felt... like she'd be okay, and she sucked in air at the calmness that spread throughout her body.

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He fell silent, just taking solace in her embrace. He knew they would have to leave soon (and he would have to make up an excuse, something about Flint) but for now, he just let her hold him.

"I wish I could promise I would never hurt you like that again..." He finally spoke against her skin.

But how could he make a promise he wasn't sure he could keep? What if he just let her down again?

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

"There's nothing else you can do to me," she told him quietly, and short of taking her life, she believed it. She shut her eyes and rested against him, because for the first time being close to him didn't make her want to die.

It shouldn't feel like a comfort, none of it--that there wasn't anything else or his embrace--but it did.

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

"I suppose not." He muttered, running his fingers through her hair. At least they weren't much else to take from her, though he shouldn't find solace in that fact, he knew he shouldn't.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

She sighed and let him run fingers through her hair for a moment. It shouldn't feel so... peaceful. "Angela's not going to like this," she said gently.

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

He glanced over Elle's head to briefly look at Flint's corpse. "Probably not."

He wondered what his "mother" would do about him slipping up. Lecture him like a child? Give up on him? Drug him up again?

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

"We should go before they decide to come in," she said, but she didn't move.

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

"They couldn't come in if they wanted to, not until I let them." He moved his hand away from her hair in order to reach around before grabbing her shirt from the ground. It was a little torn, but still wearable.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

She took it and gingerly pushed off of him to her feet, slipping it on and buttoning whatever she could before dropping her hands in defeat. She glanced over at Flint. "We can just tell them..." she sighed. "I think we're better off just calling this in and sneaking out."

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

"Probably the best idea," He conceded with a nod. "I'll explain to Angela what happened...that I wouldn't let you stop me."

Because it was the truth. Elle didn't need to get in trouble over this.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

"It won't make a difference," she said plainly, and reached into her pocket for her phone, sighing when it was completely inoperable from her... episode. "Or we'll just sneak out."

[justgabriel.livejournal.com]

"Just sneaking out works too," He replied with a nod, taking her hand into his own.

[electrocutesy.livejournal.com]

Her lashes fluttered at his touch, and she stared blankly at their clasped hands for a moment--his big and covered in blood, hers small and clean.

She extracted it to wipe the tears from her face, and walked past him for the back without a glance, and the action made her feel empty... alone.