Rose went limp from exhaustion, yet her eyes glared at the man restraining her, finally seeing him as clear as day: dark brown hair, clean cut, and eyes like cinnamon. 

      Her eyes began to dart through the crowd as she tried to find Silas, but she knew she was deluding herself. She began to grind her teeth, speaking in exasperated breaths, "Get your hands off me... I need to find him before someone steals him again!". 

     Cane squeezed her wrists tighter, his face coming close to her as if a shadow had descended above her, rage in his eyes. Rose winced, convinced she was about to get beaten, but they were interrupted by others in the crowd. 

     "Go. We can restrain her until the police get here", a civilian said as he pointed towards Yvette. Cane thanked them and rushed to her side.

      Her blood seeped onto the pavement as people poured water on her to clean her wounds. Cane quickly knelt at her side as he helped take off her coat. Yvette grunted through the pain as she opened her eyes. Her mouth twitched to say something, but she struggled.

     "Don't force yourself. Help is coming, okay. I'm going to be right here", he reassured her.

     A small chuckle escaped her as she reached out with her bloody hand. She cupped his cheek as she forced a smile, her breath visible in the cold air, "I'm glad you're okay". 

     At that moment, Cane felt lightning strike his heart. How could she smile at a time like this? He examined her as people brought towels and more water. He looked at her palm and saw that the knife went through her hand and sliced through the surface of her right side. He quickly assisted the nurse in covering the open wound, tightly bandaging everything. It was sloppy and tacky, but it was good enough for what they had on hand.

     The ambulance and the police finally arrived, making their way through the crowd. The EMTs took Yvette, and the police took Rose. She refused to speak as they handcuffed her and walked her to the police car.

      Rose looked all around as she was paraded about. She saw as people yelled and berated her, and finally, the cold air hit her with the realization, "What did I just do?".  

     She looked back at the scene and took in the crowd's reaction, but she was too tired to react. However, as she scanned the crowd for the last time, her eyes met Canes's. Her eyes went wide in disbelief as she saw him laughing behind the crowd. Rose felt like she was going insane, unable to distinguish what was real. 

     She quickly looked away, afraid of what she would see next, but her questions still stood: Where was Silas? 

     Yvette was taken to the hospital for more thorough treatment. Cane stayed by her side while waiting for the doctor to discharge her. She was in a haze due to the painkillers they gave her; however, she kept eyeing Cane, distraught, as if trying to say something. Yvette then tried to form a sentence, but looked away, ashamed of herself as she whispered, "Sorry." 

     Cane raised an eyebrow and sighed, "You're acting like I got stabbed? Come on, tell me why you can't look at me," he said softly. 

     Yvette looked at him briefly, but her eyes darted away towards the wall, "....Your clothes... got blood all over them", she said as she lowered her head.

      Cane was dumbfounded, but his confusion turned to laughter. "You got stabbed. You have a hole in your hand right now, Yvette. I could poke my finger through the wound if I wanted. Yvette, my sweet, wonderful Yvette, is it just me, or do you have a screw loose?". 

     Yvette blushed but was now able to look at him and laughed as well. Her smile was wide and unsettling as tears poured out. She covered her face with her good arm as she wailed, but laughter persisted through her cries. It felt like a floodgate had opened, and it was never going to dry up. It hurt. Everything hurt. But with Cane here, she felt like it was easier to bear. 

      As the laughter and crying died down, Cane walked over to Yvette. His features were soft as he held her hand. He wiped away her tears and etched every part of her face into his memory. 

     She truly was beautiful in that moment. Cane then placed his forehead on hers as he smiled at the wonderful woman in front of him. "Thank you, Yvette. You saved my life. How can I ever repay you?". 

     Yvette was surprised but gave a warm smile and nuzzled into him. She examined every inch of his face as if searing the details into memory. She wanted to remember him just like this before it was all over. She clenched his hand in hers,  "You already have. From the moment you said, 'Are you alright' that rainy night, you don't know how much those words saved me. I felt like my hunger slowly faded when I met you". 

     Cane was in awe at her declaration. He never knew he could feel such happiness from mere words. Cane gently reached over and cupped her cheek, his heart trying to jump out of his chest.  He leaned closer but quickly leaned back as he heard the door open. 

     "Hello, how are you two? Ms. Yvette, how are you feeling in particular?" The doctor was upbeat and was oblivious to the couple in front of him. The couple grew red in the face as they returned to their seats.

     The examination went as routine, Yvett's hand was stitched up and bandaged. She was then given medication for the pain and was instructed to take it as written. After a few more hours, she was released. 

     Earlier, Cane managed to follow the ambulance in his car, thus leaving Yvettes in the park. She tried to convince him to take her to the park, but Cane refused. He led her to his vehicle, securing and reassuring her that she would be comfortable.

      He drove her through the empty streets as she was slowly falling asleep. "Yvette, why don't I take you to your place? It's near and you can sleep off the pain medication. In the morning, you can call me and I'll drive you back to get your car". Yvette groggily looked over and objected, "Oh.... I don't.... want to impose". Cane sighed and smiled, "It's not a bother at all."

     Cane made it to Yvette's apartment. He led her up the steps carefully and slowly. They reached the second floor and headed to her door. He grabbed her keys from her pocket, and one by one, he tried each key until the door unlocked. 

     Maneuvering her things and her body, he managed to enter the apartment and close the door. He quickly set her down on her couch as he looked around. The room was decorated in lavenders, whites, and greys. Everything looked neat except for the pile of clothes that was not yet folded. 

     He placed his hand on Yvette's face, and she felt a bit warm. He removed her coat and her shoes and looked around the room. He gathered all of the blankets that he could and covered her. 

     He then made his way to the kitchen and opened the freezer. He saw a tray of loose, long ice sticks and took them out. As he rummaged for more, he saw another bag deep in the depths of the freezer. It was somewhat red and had an odd shape to it. He took it out and saw it was bag was a mixture of frozen wine and herbs, but he felt something more, something hard. As he squeezed it, he pushed around, and before him, as plain as day, was a human finger.

     He stood there for several moments as he held it, then he began to shake. He tried to hold it in for as long as he could, but tears began to escape his eyes as he tried to hold in the laughter. There was never a dull moment when Yvette was involved.

       He took out his phone, took a picture, and placed it back where he found it. He then grabbed a plastic bag, put the ice inside, and wrapped it with a cloth he found.

      He lay Yvette down as he sat on the floor before her, holding the bag of ice on her forehead. Her groans began to dwindle into a low whisper as she breathed in and out. 

     She was fast asleep as he held her hand. He felt calmer now as he realized where he was. Cane had dreamt of this day for so long that he thought he couldn't help but feel giddy. 

     It was just like he imagined: From the soft colors that complemented the sophisticated atmosphere to the playful accents. He began to take pictures and aimed at the red purse on a chair, but it just reminded him of the woman who stabbed Yvette. 

     She looked so pathetic, just like the first time he saw her. Why was she so desperate for someone who was using them as a pastime? It was obvious he was never going to leave Yvette. He never even looked back at her after she was arrested the first time. But, also thinking back, he remembered how that pathetic excuse for a man grabbed his sweet Yvette and caused her to get that ugly scar on her forehead. It made him angry thinking about it. He did it so effortlessly, like it wasn't the first time he had done it. 

     As his mind spun from horrible thought to horrible thought, he felt Yvette's hand tighten around his. He rested his head on the edge of the couch and stroked her hair. 

      He began to wonder what she had been through. All alone, navigating the world, or did she rely on him, too? Was she born this nice, or did she want to become someone like this? He wondered what she dreamt of as his eyes also became heavy.

     He felt so warm in that moment, but as he was thinking of leaving, he felt her hand tighten again, and in a whisper, he heard a word escape her lips, "Cane". He couldn't help but melt at his name. He made himself comfortable as he began to doze off. 

     As his mind was swept away, he asked himself a question, "Was that Silas in the fridge?".