It hadn't crossed Alexia's mind once that Jason may get his memories back. Which is stupid as hell, because doctor Malone had explained this to everyone a billion times. Numerous scenarios had played in her head and she was truly perplexed when Ryan had called her and filled her in on Jason's newly developed hunt to find out everything that had been happening to him.

To top it off, she realized she wasn't scared. She wasn't angry. She wasn't pissed because of Jason's statement—she was partly thrilled. It was almost like she wanted him to find out, and it just made her loathe herself. If Jason remembered, he would undoubtedly put his life on the line again, and she was not there for it. He deserves a normal life without being stalked and nearly assassinated.

She stood by that.

She also stood by the fact that trying to live without him was hard. Very hard.

So far he hadn't shown up on campus again, but she was certain that he would in the future, and she wasn't ready.

Just like how she wasn't ready to face him again. Alexia shifted her weight from her right to her left leg, awkwardly grabbing the pole on the McCann's porch. It was the first day of June and the sun shone brightly all over the state, lukewarm wind swaying through the air. The breeze was balm and pleasant. Cat had talked Alexia into taking care of herself again, putting effort into her appearance and cleaning up her act. Alexia was hesitant, but promised her sister to try. Cat lend her her clay sport suede Diane Von Furstenberg caracas, matching Alexia's jeans and her Nude Lucy top. In an honest manner, she really wasn't feeling it.

Her appearance just wasn't that important to her anymore. It used to be, but now she couldn't care less about her clothes. There were other things now.

It was almost like Sola could feel the tension. The little Doberman was quiet and still in Alexia's arms, her cropped ears perked up and her claws wrapped around Alexia's arm.

Alexia kept Sola tightly pressed against her chest, softly pecking the top of her head. Sola's warmth soothed her. She didn't want to let go of Sola, but she knew that keeping Sola was unfair to Jason. Even if he didn't know he had a puppy.

Cautiously, Alexia fisted her hand and knocked on the door. Her heart thumped as she took a step back, nervously caressing Sola's fur. Another wave of tepid air hit her, causing her sweaty armpits to increase. It was very unladylike but sweating was natural and right now she couldn't seem to stop.

She knelt down and put confused Sola on the ground. Sola gaped at her with big eyes, her tongue slightly hanging out of her beak. "You're going home, baby. Daddy's inside." Alexia whispered, brushing her back.

Sola's head cocked.

The door flew open and Sola sharply turned around. In a split second, the puppy got up on all fours and whizzed inside. Alexia widened her eyes, also entering the house. "Sola! You can't just do that!" she followed Sola to the living room, her eyes plastered on the dog. "Shit. Bad girl! Bad doggie! Get over here, Sola!"

But Sola was ecstatic. Jason stood in the middle of the living room, bewilderment taking over his entire face, though Alexia depicted a teeny tiny bit of adoration. Sola jumped on her back legs, her paws desperately trying to grasp Jason while she continuously barked and cried. Her tail waggled joyfully, and when Jason crouched down and petted her, she went ballistic. It almost looked like the puppy was crying in happiness.

"God, I'm so sorry." Alexia murmured, "She wasn't supposed to run in like that. You trained her better."

Jason looked up for a mere second, gazing at her with something she didn't understand before he went back to hugging and kissing Sola. "It's fine." He responded, "She's adorable."

Alexia averted her gaze. "She's yours."

"What?"

"She's yours." She repeated with a simple shrug, her eyes on Sola—who looked contently tucked in Jason's arms as he lifted her up. Jason frowned, "Mine?"

"Yours."

There was a silence. Jason winced and closed his eyes, stumbling towards the couch. Alexia jaunted over to the couch too, carefully putting a hand on his shoulder. He looked in pain as he kept his eyes closed, subconsciously veering into her touch. She clenched her jaw and extended her arm over his back, softly rubbing circles. He looked like he calmed down and slowly opened his eyes, putting Sola on the floor.

Alexia didn't remove her arm, she didn't want to. It felt good to finally touch him again. Jason raised his eyebrows, "You were with me in Mexico."

How the hell did he know that? How the hell did he know about Mexico in the first place? "Excuse me?"

"Don't give me that polite shit. We're more than exes and you know it. We had sex in Mexico." His tone was gruff. This time it was Alexia's turn to raise her eyebrows. They did more than 'have sex' in Mexico. They fucked all day and night, she rode him like he was a horse and she was a cowgirl. He fucked her until her gaze was blurred and happy tears streamed out of her eyes.

"Did we?" let's play dumb. It's always better to play dumb. Alexia had no idea what to respond to his revelation.

"Yeah, we fucking did. We fucked—and not once, too. We acted like a couple... it's all clear now. Why the fuck was I in Mexico with you? Who's the blonde? Why was your damn brother there?" Sola was sniffing around the living room. Jason kept his eyes locked on Alexia's sternly.

Alexia shrugged. There wasn't much she could say now that Jason knew. She wouldn't lie and tell him it wasn't true, that much was certain. "It's over now."

"Not to me, it isn't." he snapped irritably, shuffling closer to her on the couch. Alexia's breathing hitched when he cupped the side of her face. "Don't play with me. I went to Mexico on spring break, and it's June now. This was just two months ago, not even. I remember, Alexia. You put off your engagement ring."

"What is it to you now? Clearly things didn't work out between us, otherwise we wouldn't be here." She hissed back, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Jason dropped his hand and narrowed his eyes. "Bullshit, babe."

"That's all you say. 'Bullshit' this, 'bullshit' that, but you never elaborate. Tell me, Jason, if we had worked out, would I still be engaged? Would you be single?" her words were complete and utter bullshit, just like he'd stated, but she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of being right. Besides, she had to protect him.

He set his jaw, "Don't know. You seem to forget that I lost my memories."

"You remembered Mexico."

"Just Mexico. And me meeting my parents after a month or something, apparently I had been missing. I was gone for over a month, Lex. No phone calls, no texts, no warnings—nothing. Why the hell would I do that? That's not me!" he knit his eyebrows together. Alexia sighed and shook her head, "You had a reason."

"I won't ask you why, you will just lie to me anyway."

"Right."

"Fuck you for that."

"Fuck you, too."

"For what? I didn't do anything wrong." Jason growled. Alexia pursed her lips into a firm line, "I know, I just said it to say it. You've been irritating the shit out of me, Jason."

"I haven't fucking seen you in nearly a week, don't blame me. You're pretty annoying too." He scoffed, "Dumb ass." He tentatively peered at her, catching the simple smile that graced her lips. "Why the fuck are you smiling like that?"

"Nothing." She mumbled, but she couldn't help but laugh at his attempts to insult her. Though she was insulted easily, whenever Jason did it, it had no effect. She knew he didn't mean it and she knew that he tried his hardest. Jason drew in a sharp breath, "God, you really are annoying."

Alexia let out a bitter chuckle. "So I've heard. You're an asshole anyway."

"Only to you."

They both snorted at the same time. "Fuck," Jason murmured softly, "I miss you."

Her heart skipped a beat and she grit her teeth, longing rushing through her veins. She just wanted to cuddle up to him and make out with him, but obviously they couldn't do that. Gingerly, Alexia narrowed her eyes and leered at Jason. His knee slightly brushed against her own. His legs were wide and he had his elbows propped against his thighs, his head in his hands. Alexia stifled the urge to reach out and run her fingers through his untamed golden locks, strands of hair were peaking wildly to the sides.

His arms were flexed and she could spot the outlines of his biceps, her hands itching. He was too handsome for her to fathom. Heat radiated off of him which meant that he was alarmingly close, but Alexia remained in her spot whilst their knees proceeded to touch.

When he looked up at her, her heart leapt again. The three scars running down his face were obviously permanent and kept on reminding her of his accident and of the fact that it was her fault. She couldn't help but feel like she wanted to kiss his scars and apologize.

"I know." She murmured strangled. Jason pushed his tongue against the insides of his cheeks, "You miss me too."

"If you say so, then yeah."

"I know you do. It's written all over your face." He spoke, straightening his back and putting a hand on her hip. Alexia took a deep breath, "Like I said—whatever you say."

"Say you miss me."

"No."

"Jesus." He hissed, harshly pulling her on his lap. Alexia let out a noise of delight and then immediately mentally smacked herself for it. She was supposed to stay away, for God's sake.

"Say you miss me." He repeated again, his mouth by her ear. His breath alighted her skin and she shivered, her throat closing. Fuck, she really did miss him and his stubbornness. "I don't miss you." Alexia whispered, but she of course meant the complete opposite.

Jason's deodorant wafted around them and Alexia subtly whiffed the air, completely captivated by his scent. Who the fuck smelled sexy like that?

"You're a shit liar, Alexia." Jason stated, his hand trailing up her thigh. Alexia licked her lips and looked down, watching as he squeezed and knead her skin all the way up to her ass. "I'm not lying." Such a liar.

Jason sighed and leaned forward, and in just a bat of an eye, his lips were against hers.

Christ.

Alexia willingly kissed him back, her hands tangling into his hair. Jason excitedly moved against her lips.

She felt vibrant and alive, her body undoubtedly responding to Jason's gentle but rogue touches. Her knees weakened and she wrapped her hands around his neck, straddling him. His crotch brushed against her own and she hissed into the kiss, which caused Jason to growl. His body heat enveloped her as he tucked her as tight as possible, almost like he was afraid to let her go.

Alexia pulled away from the kiss, her chest going up and down. "Fine, you've made your point. I do miss you."

A wicked smirk curled Jason's lips. "I knew it." He said, squeezing her butt again. Alexia chuckled, shaking her head. "Whatever it is that happened, I'll fix it. You know damn well we should be together." He continued.

"I'm engaged."

"Fuck that. I'm better than your fiancé." His confidence was clear. Alexia laughed again, gently cupping his cheek, "God, you are." Jason and Damian shouldn't be compared. Looks aside—though Jason topped Damian in that section too, without a doubt—Jason had a heart of gold whilst Damian was nowhere near being even nice. With all the blood Damian had on his hands, he was all the way in the bottom, together with professional assassins and cold-hearted murderers. Which really, is the same as what he was.

"Then why are you fighting it, Lex?" Jason nibbled at her lower lip, but a forlorn expression crossed his face. Alexia frowned, not wanting to start the argument. "It's just complicated, Jase. We can't be together."

"How can you be fine with this?"

"Because I know you're safe this way." She shrugged, "If we were together again, you'd be dead by now." A shiver ran up her spine, faint memories of her night in the hospital with Damian flashing through her head. No. For as long as she lived, she'd protect him from her horrifying fiancé. That's the least she could do.

Jason didn't reply.

-

It turned out that Jason was heading to campus as well. It was Sunday, the day he'd arranged his return to college. Alexia didn't understand of what use these last weeks would be to him, especially since he wasn't taking the exams, but Jason shrugged it off. He told her that he didn't want to miss out anymore and since his dorm room with Chaz was already paid for, he claimed to better take advantage of it. Besides, exams or not, even those last upcoming lectures could come in handy.

Alexia nicely offered to drive him and Jason happily took her up on the offer, grabbing his bags, Sola and all of her necessities.

"You're an idiot for taking her to the dorms. You know dogs aren't allowed, right?" Alexia scolded, sliding into the driver's seat. Jason climbed in shot gun and held Sola tightly on his lap. "Who the fuck cares. You said I trained her well."

"She can't be scooped up in that damn room for weeks!"

"I'll walk her. Calm the hell down, nothing will happen to her." Jason rolled his eyes and bit his lip, looking down at the puppy in his lap. "Daddy will take care of you, right baby? Don't listen to mommy."

Mommy. The word pierced through her head, a wave of nausea and need hitting her. That's how he used to call her while talking to Sola. Did he remember? Was he aware of what he'd said? Or did it just slip out without him even realizing it?

She tried to mask the emotions inside, but Jason noticed and his eyebrows rose ever so slightly. "You a'ight?"

"You said mommy." She whispered, her fists clenching around the steering wheel. Jason drifted his eyes from Alexia to her white fists, and then back to Alexia. "I know. Hey, relax, okay? We don't want another almost-car-accident."

"What do you mean?" but Alexia did loosen her grip on the steering wheel and puffed out a breath. Relax.

Her head, though, was still spinning. Again, did it just slip out or was he referring to that one time they were a millimetre away from getting into a car accident? The afternoon of the fire? The day Alexia found out about the gun he'd been hiding?

"I don't know." Jason mumbled, puzzled. He looked thrown off balance, staring at the road in front of him as he repeated, "I don't know."

Alexia decided to let it go. Jason looked flummoxed as it was, he didn't need her constant prying too. She fixated her eyes on the road and carefully took a turn, not wanting to land them in an accident. Jason had had enough of car accidents, she was certain.

"Are you okay?" she then just spat out, already cursing herself for it. She wasn't supposed to ask him, but she couldn't help but worry. Jason glanced at her, "I'm okay. I'm okay now." His voice was low and rough as he studied Alexia's profile, his eyes glowing.

Alexia swallowed.

"You guys are idiots for thinking you can keep shit from me." He proceeded, "Every time I'm with you, Lex, I remember something. Apparently we've been close in those months, very close." He was breathing hard and fast, his voice nothing more than a hoarse rasp.

Alexia kept her eyes firmly on the road. "Maybe. It doesn't matter now, Jase."

"You keep saying that but it's not even about you." He was almost panting—why was he panting? "It's about me. Me and you. It's about us."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Jason's eyes were dark, intently raking her. "You know exactly what the fuck I'm talking about." He roughly hissed. Alexia uncomfortably pressed her legs together, annoyed by her body's reaction to his harsh words. How was it possible that every time Jason got angry or pissed she just got wet?

His pupils are wildly dilated.

"You're being vague," she murmured, "Stop it." The car stopped for a red traffic sign and Alexia took the opportunity to look at him, really look at him. Jason was sitting straight up, his breath cragged and uneven. She was flooded with longing again, holding his gaze. That is, until she dropped her eyesight and spotted what had him so wound up.

Jason was sporting an erection—correction, a massive fucking boner. The bulge in his pants looked so big, she was afraid his jeans would rip in half.

And man, how she wanted to help him out. She was squirming in her seat, ordering herself to sit tight and not look at it anymore.

"You're hard."

"I can't help it." He responded gutturally. "Whenever I remember fucking you, I just get hard. Like right now, for example."

Oh, God.

"Then stop remembering!" Alexia snapped, frowning.

"I don't want to." He snickered bitterly, raising his eyebrows. Alexia groaned loudly, her eyes darting from his face to his erection.

"You can't stop looking at it."

"Shut up."

"You can't, though. Admit it."

It was true. "It's fucking gigantic, Jason, it's literally requiring all the attention!" that was true, too, but Alexia couldn't look away mainly because this got her too aroused.

Jason laughed again, "It's all yours, you know."

His eyes were so dark and so wild that Alexia had to do a double take, her heart thumping against her chest like she was some little, stupid, virgin. His moods change fast today. Doctor Malone had completely informed them about his mood swings and extra feelings, but so far she hadn't experienced it firsthand. That is, the night at the hospital aside—when he'd gone ballistic about a nightmare.

He was jumpy and speedy now, a lazy smile tugging at his lips while staring at her. Alexia took a deep breath and ripped her gaze away from him, her hands shaking. The cars behind them horned obnoxiously and she pressed her foot against the gas pedal as they sped forward.

"Take care of it." She ordered, "I swear, I'll crash us. Take care of it."

"You want me to jerk off? In your car? While you're driving?"

"Take care of it."

"Noted."

It was all but silent with Jason's gruff moans and hisses. What made it worse was that he lipped out her name with such horniness that she unwillingly moaned too, which caused him to growl. Alexia had her eyes plastered on the highway and didn't dare to turn around, but she could hear everything. The slapping of his skin, all the sounds that escaped his lips...

"Jesus Christ, you're making a lot of noise." She tried, but Jason ignored her and continued to pant and groan.

The low and satisfied moan he'd let out next was so delightful Alexia gripped the steering wheel tight again, realizing that he was coming. There was some shuffling and grumbling again until he murmured, "You can look now."

When she looked, Jason's dick was still hanging out of his underwear. Alexia widened her eyes and averted her gaze, "Jason!"

He laughed loudly, squeezing her shoulder. "You're too easy to mess with!"

"My God," she shook her head, the image burned in her mind. She tried really hard to discard it because this was not the time to get all hot and bothered. "I didn't want to see that."

"Yeah you did." He retorted, tucking his penis safely back into his underwear. Alexia noticed the pile of tissues on the ground but kept silent, praying that he'd just toss them out once they arrived. She couldn't argue with him, he was right.

"Yeah, I did."

Jason puffed out a breath. "Nothing will stop me from finding out."

"Jason—"

"Don't. I'm not trying to argue again, but I'm just telling you. I will find out what happened, I will fix it and we will get back together again."

And when Alexia glanced at him, the determination in his eyes was so thick she just had to look away. Now, she was scared.

-

(a/n): Hi babes! I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. There's 8 chapters (with the last chapter split in two) and an epilogue left and then it's the end of Animal :( Don't forget to vote & comment! Love, M