I Was Killed, Outta The Closet Now! |Anna!|

[Decadence]

As soon as Sinclair started to sing, Isabelle shut her eyes and allowed Sinclair's soothing, alluring voice to fill her entire consciousness, so that she was aware of nothing except for him and his song. The lyrics were perfect as well, and as he sang them, she allowed herself to consider the slight possibility that he meant every word of it, which brought her a mood of happiness and serenity.

Feeling his fingers brush against her forehead, tucking her loose locks of hair behind her ears, was far more comforting than he could have realized, despite what a small gesture it was. Although she had known it before, it was more plain and clearer now more than ever that she was falling for him. She was sure that she was not the only girl who had ever decided she had fallen for him while he was mid-song. Honestly, he could probably seduce a room full of females with nothing but his voice. It really wasn't fair to the girls, she thought to herself, and then she hoped that he did not think of her as just another groupie whose heart he had stolen without needing to exert more than an ounce of effort.

It's your finger and how I'm wrapped around it. It's your grace and how it keeps me grounded. As he softly sang those lines, a gentle smile managed to find its way onto her lips, despite how close she was to falling asleep. First of all, she possessed about as much "grace" as a duck trying to fly. But more significantly-- Sinclair Gabriel, Bayville's heart throb, being wrapped around anyone's finger seemed like an unlikely idea. The thought of him being wrapped around the finger of a mess like Isabelle sounded almost impossible. She figured that the world had probably anticipated that he would end up with someone who was gorgeous and knew it-- like Kaycee Hunter. Instead, here he was, singing a love song to a girl whose clothes rarely matched, who rambled when she was nervous, who tripped over her own feet, who was known for always saying the dorkiest things, and who had a hidden history that was to be more than frowned upon. There was no doubt that Isabelle was wholly imperfect, so the concept that someone like Sinclair could be in love with Isabelle was hard for her to process. Still, she permitted her imagination to take over. As a result, her heart skipped beats, and butterflies fluttered in her stomach. Her tired half-smile spread into a grin of genuine elation.

"It's not fair to us girls how wonderful you are," Isabelle softly mumbled in a whisper after his song came to an end, just before she drifted to sleep.

[Sinclair]

Sinclair smiled as she said it wasn't fair. If only she knew. He hadn't asked for this, he didn't thrust himself into the spotlight, he didn't take voice lessons, so why should he be wonderful simply because he got lucky? Then again, he wasn't the only one in the world who faced such a dilemma. He might be among the few to actually question it, but that was just Sin. At any rate, he'd take it at face value. If she thought he was wonderful, it was to his benefit.

"Mhhhmmm,"he mumbled passively, just to avoid seeming rude for not answering. He fell silent after that, amused at the sight of her drifting off to sleep. It was almost peaceful, just being there to watch Isabelle in such a relaxed state. It was so different than what he'd see in the daytime, and that variance was what Sinclair appreciated the most. When it seemed she was asleep enough for him to touch her, he shifted, leaning closer so that he could place a soft kiss on her forehead. Finally, Sin could lay back and sleep. He rolled to his back, looking up to the ceiling for a few seconds longer before he finally closed his eyes, inviting sleep.

[Decadence]

{ ;5 hours later; XD }

Staying still was never Isabelle's strong suit-- not even in her sleep. At about eight-thirty that morning, while she was having a pleasant dream that Pluto was once again dubbed a planet, she unconsciously rolled over on her queen-size mattress, where there was normally an empty spot for her to roll freely. That morning, however, she rolled into something... something large and solid... someone... a man.

Wait, what?

Isabelle's eyes suddenly shot open as she became fully conscious in record speed. This was definitely not the first time she had woken up, dazed and confused, with someone strange in her bed, but it was the first time that she could honestly swear to God that she had absolutely no recollection of ever getting hammered. Not to mention, there was no tell-tale hangover. Without moving too much, her gaze shifted back and forth while she lied in place. She noted that she had rolled onto the man's arm, with her head now resting on his shoulder as if they had been cuddling. Oddly convenient... but okay. Even though she felt like a slight creeper, seeing as she had now tucked herself into the arm of someone who was asleep and had no idea that he was holding her, she went with it. She took the opportunity to take a peek at his face, which was turned in the other direction. Craning her head upward just slightly, she peered over at his face, and it was...

SINCLAIR?!

OMGWTHBBQ.Her eyes widened comically as she stifled a high-pitched squeal of shock and panic. What the hell did she do last night? At least she was still fully clothed in sweats and a t-shirt... that was a good sign, maybe. The last thing she remembered was... taking a sleeping pill. And then... and then... Justin, the jerkwad, had woken her up! And then... and then...

Oh yeeeaah. Sinclair had come over, and she had conned him into sleeping with next to her. Nothing happened. Everything was okay. Everything was normal. She quietly let out a sigh of relief, once again rested her head on his shoulder, and smiled as the blurred memories of the night before came to her more clearly. Turning her head a bit, she firmly planted a kiss on his cheek, hoping to gently awaken him.

"Good morning," she whispered.

[Sinclair]

When Isabelle kissed him, he closed his eyes tighter. Aw, hell no. Five more minutes- ten. He didn't care. Just not right now. He would have turned away from the other person, but his arm was heavier than he remembered, and it was too much effort to move it because of the added weight. However, a voice telling him good morning left him realizing that would be easier said than done. He opened his eyes, turning his gaze to her, his expression one of discomfort. She was the reason his arm felt so weird! Well, her laying there was cute, so Sinclair let himself smile softly, his arm shifting so that he could keep her that close to him. He couldn't remember the hours before initially, but he didn't need to. Either this was a dream, in which case he was going to enjoy it, or he really was laying next to Isabelle, and he should enjoy that, too, no matter the reason. Besides, now that he was awake to observe her, she didn't seem alarmed, so why should he?

"It's early. I forgot this early in the morning even existed. Why are you awake?"Sinclair questioned, his tone soothingly calm. Maybe he could lull her back to sleep with just his tone. Maybe. He'd try. As for him saying he forgot that it could be this early, that wasn't accurate. He didn't even know what time it was. But it felt early, regardless as to what any clock said.

"Next time, you're sleeping in my bed." If it was his bed, he could decide when they woke up, right? Sinclair would have gotten up with her in his own room, too, but she didn't need to know that, and if he could convince himself that he didn't know that, either, things would be better for him.

"That's a nice way to wake up, though, I'll give you that."Sinclair chuckled. He wasn't so sure why he felt so compelled to speak, but he did. He wanted her attention, and he was going to get it, but he wasn't going to ask politely. At any rate, if she wanted him awake, she deserved to listen to him, right? "Have you been awake long?" That wasn't entirely relevant, and he wouldn't feel odd if she had. He liked sleep, and he'd been the one up at three in the morning to check on her, so if he slept in later than her, she could just deal with it.

[Decadence]

{Just for the sake of this post not being entirely pointless, I have decided that the walls are thin & the house is echo-y, and therefore Sinclair can hear the conversation between Isabelle and Justin. ;nod nod; }

Isabelle, with her head still upon his shoulder, smiled sweetly while shifting her gaze upward at Sinclair. She widened her eyes exaggeratedly to convey innocence as she spotted his look of obvious discomfort at her laying on his arm. Then his expression appeared to soften, and she felt his arm shift to a more inviting position underneath her to accomodate her presence, so she returned to simply resting. Lying against him felt perfect, so she didn't want to get out of bed either; he definitely could have lulled her back to sleep if he tried hard enough.

"Well, I was having a nice dream about Pluto being renamed a planet, and then I rolled over and found a strange unknown man in my bed. And then I had a panic attack. And then I realized it was just you," Isabelle explained with a small laugh. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have woken you. Go back to sleep," she added with a yawn.

"I'm down," Isabelle agreed passively as Sinclair suggested that she sleep in his bed next time. "But next time, we're locking the door. Those Archangels really don't care for knocking. And I'd rather not deal with one of the Hunter twins storming in mid-cuddle." Isabelle wasn't sure she could handle having another perfect day or night interrupted by a Hunter, particularly the one with two X chromosomes.

"I thought it would be. Much nicer than being forced off of the bed," Isabelle said with a chuckle as she remembered her rude awakening the night before. Then, as her mind processed what he had said just a few moments ago, her eyes lit up with an idea.

"Hey, by the way, I thought you said there wouldn't be a 'next time' unless you kissed me," Isabelle reminded him playfully. She lifted her head from his shoulder and rolled over so that she could easily look him in the eyes, and then she smiled, tilting her head to the side in a puppy-like manner. "Ready whenever you are," she teased, but as soon as the last word left her mouth, loud crashing noises were heard from the kitchen, followed by a frantic shout.

"BELLES."

"Son of a... I'll be right back," Isabelle grumbled, prying herself away from Sinclair and off of the bed. She threw the door wide open and left it that way so that she could jump back into bed as quickly as possible after she finished fixing whatever mess Justin had made this time. Running down the flight of stairs, she made her way over to the kitchen and looked around, scanning the kitchen for a disaster and instead finding just a small pile of pots and pans on the floor next to the counter. "What's wrong?" she questioned confusedly.

"I just thought I'd continue our old Chicago tradition of rescuing each other from bad dates," Justin replied with a smug grin and a shrug. Isabelle laughed at the memory of the countless times that they had pre-negociated ridiculously elaborate potential escape plans just in case a blind date went terribly wrong.

"Appreciate the thought, but I didn't need rescuing. I'll give you the signal the next time that I do. But just for future reference, I will never need saving from Sinclair Gabriel. Thanks anyway." With that, Isabelle turned around and prepared to walk back up the stairs.

"Hey Isabelle," Justin then said, causing her to halt and look over her shoulder inquisitively.[/color] Justin never called her by her full first name unless he had something serious to say, which was almost never.

"What's up?" she asked.

"I just thought you meant it when you said you were going to take the chance to change when you came here. I believe the phrase you used was 'turn over a new leaf'?" Justin explained.[/color] Isabelle turned her whole body this time to face him.

"What are you saying?" she questioned, even though she was fairly sure she knew the answer.

"I'm saying-- waking up next to boys you barely know? Doesn't sound like much of a change from the old Isabelle to me," Justin ventured to explain.[/color]

"I'm gonna ignore that low blow because I'm in a good mood right now, but remind me to slap you for it next time," Isabelle replied in a tone that bordered between calm and cold. Turning back around, she walked toward the staircase.

"What do you think he'll say when he finds out you're not as innocent and perfect as you're trying so hard to make him believe?" Justin challenged, taking a step from where he was standing.[/color] Isabelle paused just before she reached the doorway.

"I'm hoping he'll say, 'Wow, thanks for working up the courage to tell me that yourself, Isabelle. It would have sucked to hear it from someone else, because it would take a real douche to reveal something that personal about someone else's past!'" Isabelle answered.

"And what if doesn't? What if, instead, he says, 'Wow, I wish you hadn't told me that, because it would take a real bitch to do what you just told me you did'?" Justin argued.

"He already knows half the story, and he hasn't tried to crucify me yet, so I'll take my chances. And besides, I really don't think you of all people should be lecturing me about taking things slowly. There's a saying. You've probably heard it. It involves glass houses and stones," Isabelle protested. Justin sighed and walked toward her, setting a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I won't tell him. I promise. I just don't want to see you get hurt. Okay?"

"I'll be fine," Isabelle replied blandly, not bothering to turn around. She brushed his hand off of her shoulder and then proceeded out of the kitchen and up the stairs, returning to her bedroom and once again pulling the door shut, this time initiating the lock. "Sorry about that," she said to Sinclair, putting on a perfect smile to hide the quarrel she'd just had with her other best friend. She crawled back into the warm bed and this time stayed on her side of it while Justin's warning words lingered in her mind. "What were we talking about?" she asked, genuinely not recalling their last exchanged words before the interruption.[/color]

[Sinclair]

"Pluto a planet,"Sinclair chuckled. Of course. Leave it to Isabelle to think something random like that. Sympathy for a planet in itself was a weird thing to think about. He didn't miss Pluto, but he definitely had the urge to ask her if she did.

"Just me."Sinclair nodded after she'd told him to go back to sleep. He leaned closer, kissing her cheek before he grinned."It's always nice to be me- nothing special, just plain old Mystery."

Sinclair couldn't resist laughing when she mentioned locking the door. While he did not want the Archangels near Isabelle, he still found it amusing to picture them hiding out in the Corporation, hoping no one would interfere.

"I have another room, you know. I wasn't always part of the Corporation," In fact, he didn't join the Corporation until Kaycee started toying with Isabelle."And, actually, I think it'd be best to keep you away from Kaycee Hunter, if it's all the same to you. Actually, I haven't spent a night in the Corporation since last time," Of course, no one was happy about that, but Sin didn't care what they said, except when it concerned Isabelle.

"Your friend didn't have to do that,"Sinclair stated, not sounding particularly pleased even though it was old news, and Isabelle could laugh about it. Unfortunately, Sin felt the need to protect her, even if she said she didn't need the protecting.

The comment that followed made Sinclair Gabriel grin. Ah, another chance to kiss a pretty girl? Of course he was going to go for it. Unfortunately for Sin, her friend ruined his opportunity. Damn Justin. As if Sinclair didn't already despise the kid.

"This is the last time I'm sleeping over, Isabelle."Sinclair muttered, his expression one of a pout as he crossed his arms over his chest. All the same, he stayed where he was when Isabelle got out of bed and went to check on her friend. He didn't fault her for going, as he would have hoped she'd help him if he were in trouble.
---

After listening to the argument which seemed to allude to impending doom, Sinclair Gabriel was not in the same cuddly happy mood he'd been in before. Much like the day at the cliffs, Sinclair's 'wall' was right back up. Isabelle was much too close to him for it to do much good, but Sinclair didn't know how else to react. His mind raced, trying to think of his next course of action. He even looked around the room, deciding if he could hide or go out the window. But neither seemed realistic, so he remained on her bed, thinking.

When Isabelle came back, Sinclair had expected to be happy. He wasn't. She got into the bed, so he got off, playing it off as though he had to stretch by placing his hand behind his head.

"I'm not really sleepy anymore, darling."Sinclair stated, his tone emotionless. The emotion returned for his next statement, if only partially, an attempt at humor."Heh, the door. Must trust me to lock me in with you, eh?" Sinclair did not think he was funny, but he didn't have anything else to say, and he had to say something for the sake of his sanity.