"It's none of your business," Darius shot back. "I don't tell anyone about your secrets, don't ask questions about them." The friend looked at Darius, then the woman held protectively to his chest. He frowned some, then turned.
"Fine. I'm still stealing your tv, though." Darius let out a breath, shaking his head. He looked down at Mara, carefully uncurling his fingers so she was sat on his palm.
"Are you okay?"
Mara was curled up and shaking like a leaf in his hand from the experience. She looked up at him with wide eyes and shook her head. Physically she was fine, just terrified.
"I…" Darius glanced up at his friend. He couldn't really set Mara back down in her home, in case he got an idea again… So, Darius held Mara close to himself, doing his best to calm her as he moved to leave the room and head into the bedroom
With her eyes closed tightly, Mara forced herself to take slow deep breaths as she felt herself being moved. She could almost still feel those fingers wrapped around her. It was a minor relief that she hadn’t been unable to breath when she was grabbed.
Darius moved as fast as he dared, so careful of the woman in his hands. When he did finally get to the bedroom, he moved to the bed, letting Mara lay down on his pillow.
"There, he won't come in here…" Darius looked up to the door, to make sure his words were true, before turning back to Mara.
"I'm so, so sorry…"
Mara jolted a little when she felt the change in surface beneath her as well as the slight sinking sensation. She looked up at Darius at his words, her breathing going back to a more normal rhythm. “Th… Thank you.” she almost whispered. “Who… Who was that?”
Darius had to lean close to hear Mara's voice now, still giving her the room he could. He spoke even softer as well, not wanting to startle or hurt her.
"That's… James. He knows where the spare key is, so he always comes in whenever he wants to use my things. I've let him before, mostly because I was lonely… I'm regretting it now, though."
Mara nodded, still shaking a little. “H… He must be a really good friend.” she reasoned, considering he could come and go freely. Though she was having a hard time picturing a good friend using her things whenever they wanted but she figured things were different for them.
"He's… a friend," Darius said carefully. He didn't really have many. He knew they used him for his money, but James was a nice guy. He had his… secrets, but he at least trusted Darius with them. That trust meant a lot to Darius; he also knew James was a friend since when he put his foot down on something, like holding Mara, James respected it. Didn't get all huffy and drop the friendship like a hot pile of shit.
Mara nodded again, rubbing her arms up and down. “Thank you again for getting him to let go of me.” she said, finally speaking more normally.
Darius nodded some.
"I'm sorry that he grabbed you," he said in turn. "I was terrified he was going to hurt you… and I'm sorry I had you drop to my hand. I should have been more careful."
“It’s… It's not your fault. I was terrified too. I should have run before he reached for me.” Mara said. “Besides you didn't know he was coming over.” Honestly, she really didn't blame Darius for his friend's actions.
Darius nodded. He was relieved, knowing Mara wasn't upset at him.
"I think it might be best for us to stay in here until James leaves," the man said, sitting up a bit as he looked out the door again.
“That sounds good to me.” Mara agreed, trying to relax a little more. Darius' action back there did make her feel safer around him and she definitely appreciated that fact that he cared for her safety. “He won't tell anyone about me, will he?”
"No, I highly doubt it. I've got too much dirt on him, he knows if he spills our secret I'll spill his." Darius shifted on the bed carefully, his back resting on the headboard with Mara and her pillow beside him.
Mara tilted her head slightly at the phrase of having dirt on another but was assured by the rest of his words. “That’s a relief.” she said, trying to get comfortable in the overly plush surface.
"Yeah, it is…" Darius let out a soft breath.
"I am sorry, though, about the sudden trip to my room," he said, looking down with a weak smile.
“No, it's ok. I’m glad to be away from… from him.” Mara said, ending a little softly, hoping that it wasn't rude of her to say that. “Honestly, I don't really remember the, uhh, the trip.” she admitted.
"Oh…" So she didn't remember any of Darius holding her, then.
"Well, I'm glad we're away from him too. It must have been terrifying… We'll need to be more careful when it comes to surprise visits."
She could vaguely remember Darius holding her, and she knew that he was gentle, but she was just so shaken at the time that the memory was more of a blur. “It was.” she confirmed, shaking her head to try to push the thought out of her head. “How can we do that? If we don't know when they’ll happen?” she asked.
"Well… We should have some kind of plan in place besides freeze and your they don't spot you," Darius pointed out. He sighed some, thinking.
Mara actually chuckled at the simplicity of the statement but nodded. “Yeah, it should be better than that since it didn't work this time.” she smiled faintly.
"Yeah." Darius chuckled some in turn, looking down at Mara.
"The first thing we need to figure out it how we could cover the hole up, especially if I'm not close enough to get the picture up. And how to get us to actually move."
Mara nodded a little. “Maybe I could make a curtain or something that matches the wall and I can release it so no one sees me.” she suggested thoughtfully. “Normally, I should move pretty quickly… I just froze this time.”
"A curtain would work," Darius said, nodding. "It'd have to be thick, though, so it looks like a wall." The man offered a smile, thinking.