Wake Up

Please enjoy my newest chapter.

-luky

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Chapter Six

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Old Friends

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It had been almost four months since they had returned from Spain but she’d spent a lot of her time being chauffeured around by various different agents to the places she needed to go. On the rare occasion she was able to drive herself somewhere, and she appreciated that freedom, but her father had technically had her licenses revoked until she was better-- until her doctor said she was okay to drive. That didn’t matter; she hadn’t wanted to go anywhere anyway, not really.

She had already moved into her new apartment which was unlike any place she’d ever stayed at. Sure, she’d been afforded only the largest of luxuries her whole life-- but this was different-- this was so much more. It was security enabled in every aspect of her apartment, even in her coffee maker. She’d moved back too Massachusetts despite her reluctance to be near the place where she was initially captured be cause her school was there and it served as the quickest way for her to get back into the swing of things and forget what happened.

Her father had purchased the apartment, more like a studio, right near the school grounds, overlooking the water and the street. But she didn’t have any interest in decorating. She might have at a different time but not now-- not anymore. She wasn’t even interested in going to back to school this semester either but she hadn’t wanted to move into the White House and that was the best of any excuse she could give him. She was a little upset that all her hard work, going to college early, had all been for nothing.

But despite herself, she couldn’t get upset about it-- she was alive and if she never graduated, she’d be happy.

The apartment had a huge balcony and large windows that opened out to the view of the beach. It was sparsely decorated-- mostly things that she had mentioned she’d like moved specifically. It had been a sudden discharge and so they hadn‘t had time to bring everything over yet. Things that were familiar to her, like her bed and her mother’s antique mirror and her chest of drawers were the first things that were brought over.

The thought of buying all new things wasn’t even the least bit of exciting to her either. She‘d rather stay with the familiar then throwing herself into too many new things after her ordeal. The most important thing for her now was to try and rest-- and sleeping in her own bed was going to be quite the blessing after everything that had happened.

Stepping onto the balcony, she placed both hands on the wrought iron railing, letting the salty sea air sweep across her face, lifting her hair into the wind and whipping it around gracefully. She didn’t think she’d want to be near the water again but for some reason, being close to a beach had been oddly important to her. If there was anywhere that was calming to her, it was the sound of the great Atlantic crashing against the shoreline.

Closing her eyes she soaked in the warmth of the sun that she hadn‘t gotten the entire time that she had been in the mist filled areas of Spain. It hadn’t been sunny the entire time they had been in there and it was like a perpetual black fog had rolled in over that place. They never could catch a glimpse of warmth during the night time either. It was terrible to be trapped in the dark-- terrible to be caged like an animal-- without Leon she knew she would have died, or worse.

‘Leon…’ she thought as she remembered his face as clearly as if he were standing right there next to her, looking great in whatever material that shirt he had been wearing. It was hard to imagine him in anything else but the dark tones went great with his overall look-- and his eyes… She loved the determined glint in his eyes that could be so friendly and so warm when in the face of danger.

She didn’t want to remember Spain but she couldn’t run from it and didn‘t want to run from the memories of Leon. No matter how much sunlight there ever exists, there would never be enough to bathe her wounded soul in it and she knew it. There was no getting away from her misery-- even in this brightly lit, happy place; it was still possible to fear the light as much as the dark.

Feeling a sudden chill, she rubbed her hands up and down her arms and turned to walk back inside, leaving the balcony doors open. She wasn’t much for the heat but the weather always seemed nice here and she loved to have the windows open on a breezy night-- at least she did after coming home from her ordeal. Now she always had as many doors and windows she could have open as possible. Maybe that was a bad thing.

‘I’ve really got to get out of the house, it’s not helping me to just sit around here all the time groaning about and not eating.’ she walked into the kitchen, deciding again that she wasn’t hungry. Since they’d left Spain she’d lost a lot of weight and had kept to herself while in the hospital and at home. Her only real contact had been her father’s visits, a nurse, and Doctor Midori. Other then that, it had been quite the lonely time.

‘Sitting in this apartment… being medicated to sleep… when did I get so pathetic?’ she asked herself, surveying her dungeon with a grimace, ‘I need company… I’m all alone here like a damn hermit. I’m pitiful…” she thought sadly as she threw herself against her bed with a heavy sigh. She knew that if Leon saw her he just might think she was the sorriest thing he ever saw.

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Three days earlier…

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Casually walking to the White House wasn’t something that the average person was able to do. Since 9/11 there were officers stationed at various strategic points prepared to shoot anyone that advanced on the place without invitation. The very air around it was dark and heavy, as if you were walking on pins and needles-- but for someone like Leon, well, he’d been coming to the White House for months and it had kind of lost its splendor.

The attacks hadn’t been too long ago, and it was no wonder they had stopped the general public from viewing the facility. Only rarely were tours given and even then they were only given to a select group of people who had solicited a congressional representative and submitted an extensive background check first. It seemed almost silly to do that, but when it came to the life or death of the president, or his daughter, the Secret Service wasn’t playing games-- that’s where his specially trained unit came in.

“Leon, so we finally meet in person.” said a brown haired woman from the corner of the room as he entered it. His eyes swept her from the floor up, like most men did, and noticed the fine, muscular legs beneath the simple pencil skirt before he zoned in on her face. He recognized her immediately and smiled, extending his hand. She was wearing her glasses again.

“Hunnigan, how about that phone number?” he said with a chuckle, a bit of laughter in his voice for the first time in… well, months. The woman was quiet pretty, but her features were rather plain despite how dangerously intelligent she was-- and that in a woman was incredibly sexy. He hadn’t meant the offer for real-- it was more of an inside joke at this point. He had to face reality and realize he had too many women he was bouncing between.

“Now Leon, we’re still on duty aren’t we? Plus I’ve got my glasses on.” she said pointing at the circular spectacles with a cute smile, shaking his hand with her other. There were a lot of things you could tell by a person’s handshake. It was always comforting to know you were working with a woman, who had a stronger paw shake then you. Something about a woman who could kick your ass was interesting. Maybe that’s why he was so attracted to Ada…

“Never stopped me before.” he said, instantly wincing as one of her brows rose quizzically. He mentally punched himself, unsure of why he’d said it like that. He would be out of a job if they knew some of the things that had happened in Spain. He’d be more then happy to keep all the “free feels” and “pervert” comments to himself-- not to mention the intimacy was something he needed to forget on his own.

“I see…” she said, eyeing him up and down, well aware that he was referring to Ashley, “let’s hope that hasn’t been an issue lately, hmm? You remember the team, don’t you?” she asked, motioning towards the group of people sitting at various points in the room, some talking and others just sitting quietly talking. He recognized some of the men as people he’d trained with, most of them much older then he. They’d trained specifically at the Academy each for their own separate reasons-- as bodyguards for the president and his family.

“We’re just waiting at this point-- how did you like your vacation-- not too much time to make you crazy right?” she said with a laugh. Their vacation time was indeed laughable… if you could call a few days a vacation. And he didn’t even get to take his shoes off before he’d had to check out the letter that had been pinned to his fridge (all of his food had expired except his tobacco sauce). He had quite the science experiment living in there at this point.

The letter informed him that they were relocating him and that he would have a moving service coming in to pack all of his things. He’d declined the offer-- it wasn’t like he’d accumulated too many things to pack and he wasn’t a wimp, he could carry his own furniture and put them in a moving truck. It wasn’t difficult.

He’d received the orders to meet at the white House in the Red Room less then 5 days later, where the president often had tea parties in the past, but where he’d always been told to report to for his missions. It was in this room he had been informed of his mission to rescue the president’s daughter-- to rescue Ashley. If he’d known all that training was going to put him in Spain, would he have done it?

‘Hell yes…’ he thought, ‘I would have done it for Ashley… She’s so much more then a rich little snob-- even if she does have the most annoying screams in the world.’

“Hey, Leon!” came a cry from a lean man who was sitting in an antique chair across the room looking oddly comfortable Without thinking he smiled and stepped towards the man, both of them getting close and hugging each other like long lost brothers. He wasn’t a big guy and he was probably a quarter of Leon’s weight-- but he’d gotten three PhD’s before he turned 20-- and strategically he was more of a brains type of entrance then Leon.

“Seth, how are you? It’s been a little while since we’ve seen each other now, hasn’t it? He said with a laugh giving the dark haired man a glance. He hadn’t changed; he looked exactly the same as he did when they’d first met back in training.

“Well yes it has-- but the time must have passed pretty quickly for you in Spain, is that right?” he said with a smile, a dangerous glint in his eyes. Leon knew damn well everyone in this room knew about the issue with the Los Illuminados-- and Seth wasn’t any different. He was a tall man, but he was the kind of person that seemed to blend right into the crowd, friendly and inconspicuous. He was assigned to the president personally and acted as both his intelligence and his protection.

“It sucked-- but you knew that didn’t you?” he said with a look. The man simply patted him on the back and then wrapped an arm around his shoulder and walked forward towards a window. A little sun was nice after his little “trip” anyway.

“I don’t suppose you have a smoke do you, Leo?” he asked giving him a knowing smile.

“Damn it Seth, you know I hate that nickname and sorry. I’ve got gum-- stopped remember?” He pulled his jacket back, exposing a pack of Wrigley’s sticking out of his pocket. He’d lost his rabbit fur jacket… so he simply had a leather jacket instead. He watched his friend laugh and smiled, “but then again, I don’t think you can smoke in here anyway. Don’t you know smoking makes you an easier target-- not to mention, it kills you? Didn’t you remember that from training?”

“Are you kidding? More then half the population smokes at this point, I‘d blend right in. Plus, I think I saw a baby puffin’ on one the other day-- no surprise huh? Not to mention there is no way I‘d quit smoking, I figure a bullet will kill my ass before any cigarette does” he said shaking his head. They had trained together and despite Seth’s humble beginnings, he was the true image of a man who earned every inch of what he had-- and there wasn’t a man he respected more for that.

“So we’re all here-- I imagine we have this meeting because of what happened in Spain, am I right?” he asked. He gave a short nod, and Leon could have sworn in anger. He wanted nothing to do with America’s end of the situation. Mind control was a weapon and if the American government was able to get a piece of that, would they use it? Not to mention-- doing that meant going against Ada again and he wanted to do that on his own time.

“That’s right, Agent Kennedy,” came a voice from an opening door from the side of the room. He turned to look, seeing the president himself standing in the door frame. He noted the impressive way the man seemed to capture the room-- it must have been why he was elected. American people were always looking for strength and the democratic candidate didn’t have it.

“We’re here to discuss Spain but first, you are to come with me, and we must speak privately…” he said, turning away and motioning for Leon to follow him. He nodded to Seth and turned to leave as his friend made a phone motion to the side of his face, indicating that he should “call him“. Following the president he left the room, pretty sure of what this private meeting was about. He just hoped it didn’t turn out the way he thought it would.

Closing the door behind him, he found himself in the blue room. He wasn’t much for decorating, but having specific rooms designed to match a color scheme seemed suffocating. He never liked that idea ever-- and each room had an odd way of making him feel claustrophobic. He was surprised to see that nobody else was in the room and no secret service especially. Then again, he was above them anyway.

“I want to thank you for what you’ve done, son, you’ve done me a great favor…” he started, extending his hand towards Leon and clapping him on the shoulder before turning to find a seat. He was silent, unsure of what action he was to take. “Please have a seat, I wish to speak to you in regards to Spain.”

“You see… you’ve done the greatest favor for me, Agent Kennedy-- you’ve brought my daughter back home to me. That kind of presidential favor isn‘t something I‘m likely to forget. There is nobody in this life who as important to me as her, and without her… well, I wouldn’t be a very happy man right this moment.” he paused, his fingers tracing his short beard in a similar fashion to Ashley‘s nervous fingering of her clothes. Looking at the man now, he could see where Ashley got some of behaviors and mannerisms from.

“My staff and I have decided to place the Spain issue as top priority-- we don’t want another Raccoon city, as you know. Now, your report has identified this conflict to be more then simple zombies-- but mind control. I’m sure you’ve seen this first hand of what a valuable tool that could be for some kinds of people-- but it isn’t my wish to recover those samples. The creator was murdered, is that correct?”

“That’s correct, Luis Sera was killed by the Los Illuminados, sir.” he felt a twinge of guilt. They hadn’t known each other long-- but the ladies man had been genuinely sorry for his actions and despite his words about being a hero-- he was willing to die to be a hero one last time. Maybe it was to ease his guilt as he said, but it felt like he really just wasn’t appreciated as a cop. He understood that feeling all too well.

“And so there goes the knowledge of the cure,” the president sighed, “but that’s okay. We’ve been keeping this issue as closely under wraps as we possible could. The whole issue of Ashley’s capture has been entirely secret and with your information we were able to figure out which branch in our office had betrayed us-- for that I thank you as well. All other rumors from your arrival at the beach have been affectively squelched as well…”

“Only a few select people know the truth about Ashley’s disappearance and we’ve explained everything to her school in Massachusetts as far as a cover story and we’ve been rolling with it.” he said, and he almost looked a little sad.

“Is that where Ashley is now?” Leon asked his voice and his expression betraying the professional detachment he was trying to portray. He knew as soon as he asked that it was obvious that he was curious to where she was. Despite his need to get away from any woman, especially those who were as tempting as Ashley, he wanted to see her again-- he couldn’t explain it.

“Yes and there hasn’t been anything about Spain where she is-- nothing.” he said, eyeing Leon with interest and watching him carefully. Leon was more then capable of keeping his emotions hidden. He shifted in his chair. Surely there hadn’t been any stories circulating about that event. Anybody who’d touched them on the beach would have been quarantined anyway. He eyed the president carefully, waiting for him to continue.

“…and you’ve confirmed that the actual sample of the T-virus has been stolen by an unknown task force, possibly under a stray Umbrella faction. We’re going to be deploying some men that are personally selected for the mission to see if there are any remnants of the virus in Spain as well as follow that groups movements. We’ve yet to notify their government of the issue-- we don’t want to cause any alarm. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to go back to Spain-- you do have the experience..?” he trailed off.

Leon stiffened at the mention of it, instantly denying that possibility in his mind. He was willing to follow their movements… but not if it sent him to Spain. He‘d find Ada on his own, or she‘d find him; “I’ll do whatever you want me to do sir. We are your task force after all…” he said.

He seemed to pause and consider Leon’s answer-- and for an awful instant he seriously thought he was going to say that he wanted him to go back to Spain to find traces of the T-virus. His seemed to change his mind about what he was going to say next and stood up and turned away from him to walk towards the other side of the room. He seemed to sag with tension with each step.

“My Ashley… she seems…” he paused, trying to find the right words, “to trust you implicitly. Do you have any special reasons for that?” He turned then, to look Leon straight in the eyes. Those eyes were so unlike Ashley’s… he could tell that this was definitely her birth father-- they shared the same expressions since she‘d mostly been raised by him. It seemed to be some sort of challenge-- but Leon was finished with games.

“She and I went through a great deal while in Spain-- It is only natural for a special kind of trust to have formed in that situation.” he said, if he asked him about his feelings about Ashley-- he didn’t know what he’d say. He cared about her? He wanted to bang her while they were there? That wouldn’t be the best answer to the man who determined how long he’d be living…

“Indeed…” he said, eyeing him again. He seemed to accept his answer before turning to the window to gaze out on the lawn. Even from here Leon could see the huge gates that were erected around the White House and the sniper towers. Living here had to be more like a prison then a home and he would never any to be a president because of it. He liked his freedom as much as he set himself up with jobs that didn‘t allow it.

“My daughter is the most important thing in the world to me, Leon, you must know this. And she has had some adverse side affects from your brief time there… Things that I can’t help her with. She’s been set up with one of our finest contracted military psychiatrists who is actually, ironically based in Massachusetts but I don’t think she’s able to really help her…”

Leon watched him as he seemed sadden by the whole thing. He would be to, if he were a father and had to deal with the fact that his position was what got his daughter all messed up. He was careful as he spoke again, his voice dripping with regret, “Did you know my daughter sings, Leon? She has the most beautiful voice yet she seems unwilling to offer a single tune since she’s returned.“

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They had stopped again; she was too exhausted to continue any further and he knew it. They were both testing their limits and he‘d been going for more then 72 hours in a row now and he wanted to sit. To think. He hadn‘t been in contact the Agent Hunnigan in hours and he hadn‘t figured out a way to get out of this hell whole. He was more concerned about Ashley’s mental state then anything at this point-- she seemed to be cutting a little loose.

She sat on the floor waiting for him to remove the bloody sheets from the bed so she could at least lie on the Spanish moss filled mattress. She had wrapped her slender arms around her skinned knees. He could tell she was going to bruise but she seemed not care. She was staring out the window when he heard a strange sound.

He stopped, turning to look at her in surprise, her lips pressed tightly together and her eyebrows slightly rose as if she was curious about something. Her hair which probably hadn’t been washed in several weeks partially hid her face but he could tell that she was the one making the strange sound.

‘She’s… humming?’ he had thought-- and it seemed a little odd because the tune she hummed was rather upbeat. It wasn’t something he’d expect to hear her humming-- let alone her humming at all. He turned to her and sat on the bed and felt a shiver wrap down his back at the chilly night air. He hadn’t built a fire-- it drew too much attention.

“That’s a nice song, where did you hear it from?” he asked, startling her. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened slightly in surprise. She licked her lips nervously and he couldn’t help but follow the motion as it darted out, moistening her mouth.

“I wrote it.” she said, her voice dripping with exhaustion. She cleared her throat because she was slightly dehydrated and needed some water. Reaching around his hip he pulled out a water bottle from his pack and tossed it to her. She caught it eagerly and opened it to down as fast as she could.

“You wrote that? Do you like music?” he asked, hoping to fill the nervous air with something other then tears like the previous night.

“Not too much… I collect music boxes-- I never had the strength to perform in front of a group of people like my mother did-- and she really loved music so it kind of happened to me by default.” and then she bitterly muttered, “Not like it matters here anyway…”

He watched her eyes flutter closed in pain and he wondered what he could do to comfort her. Standing up he walked over to her, holding out his hand-- “When we get out of here-- I think I’d like to see you perform somewhere, I bet you’d be great with a voice like that and I only heard you humming!” he said, pulling her to her feet and leading her to the bed.

“You think?” she asked, laying on the uncomfortable bed and rolling onto her side. She looked up at him, her eyes watering. It had been the only time she’d ever even mentioned her birth mother-- and he knew that to be true, since the first lady wasn’t a singer and didn’t support music programs.

“Hell yeah-- I bet you’d be… good… … …” he trailed off as he watched her eyes brim with tears as she looked up at him. She looked so pitiful and small that all he wanted to do was stop her crying. He hated that-- he hated that sound because there really wasn’t anything he could do to help her but sit with her and wait for her to finish.

As she put her fists into her eyes and started to sob quietly he sat down against the wall beside her. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders he pulled her against him so she could cry. He’d done this before and it had helped and it made him feel better too. Being with a woman in this hell was tiring on the heart and on the body. He hated hearing her cry but he let her-- she needed it.

A few moments later she had almost cried herself to sleep and her tears were still leaking from her eyes but she was only sniffling now, and softly hiccupping from the lack of oxygen. Taking the cue, he shifted over her and picked her up, carrying her to the bed where he’d made as clean of a spot as he could for her. Laying her down she looked up at him weakly, sleepily and the look made his heart hurt.

“Are you going to lie down?” she asked innocently and her voice was almost musical. If it were a song, it would be the song that would make you cry when you heard it because the emotions it brought forth were so strong.

“I think I’ll stay up and keep watch for now--” he told her gently, sitting down against the bed and looking at her over his shoulder. He was going to be up all night since they were still in the castle and who knows what God awful things were creeping around in here. Smiling at her reassuringly he said, “get some sleep sweetheart…” he trailed off, seeing that she was already fast asleep, passed out from exhaustion.

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The sound of the president‘s voice interrupted his thoughts and he was surprised to find that he had still been speaking, “…her only melody seems to be a constant depression… and night terrors. Was this true in Spain?”

“Yes sir.” he said with a curt nod, his jaw stiffening as he was snapped back into reality. It had been a fond moment, one of the few but his words now seemed to disturb him-- she was still having nightmares? Those terrors has been so horrific, he wasn’t sure whether or not she’d be able to wake up from them Where her night terrors better then the reality? He wasn’t sure. He frowned, his mind clouding with the memory of her screams. He hadn’t liked them-- they seemed to cut into his very heart each time-- it was like she was being murdered.

The president eyed him and he liked what he saw. It was comforting to see the splay of emotions on the young man’s face. He’d hoped for it. As much as he didn’t like the idea of his baby girl growing up-- he was humble enough to know he simply couldn’t protect her from the world. He hadn’t-- but this man had protected her from more then the world-- he’d also saved her from her nightmares as well, he had been told.

He was banking on those abilities., He didn’t know that he was signing the man up with his daughter when he’d first picked him to be her personal bodyguard-- he almost wished he’d selected a young woman, like Ingrid Hunnigan to protect her-- but then again, the ending could have been different-- but would his daughter have been screaming for her daddy in her nightmares to save her if he had? He wasn’t willing to accept the pain of not being able to protect her. He’d almost wished he hadn’t become the president-- maybe this never would have happened.

He just hoped that this man that she seemed so devoted too wouldn’t end up breaking her in the end. She needed to heal and he seemed just the cure. Not even drugs have been able to stop his daughter’s nightmares-- but a minute with Leon in quarantine had immediately caused the screams to cease. He had already arranged everything-- he only hoped that he’d made the right choice. He prayed he could make his daughter well again-- and if it meant giving her this man, he’d giver her him and a hundred others if that was what she wanted.

Clearing his throat, Leon looked up at the man, a shocked expression on his face as he saw the glistening tears in his eyes. ‘Tears?’ He must have heard those screams-- he must have seen her in that terrified state. Had the president heard her scream my name? Had he heard that from her? What is he thinking?’ he wondered.

“Leon, may I call you Leon?” he asked and Leon nodded a ball of both excitement and dread curling in his stomach over the look. He knew damn well what he wanted-- but would he be able to do it-- could he do it? He wasn‘t so sure of his abilities at this point. The temptation was too great-- surely he knew what kind of feelings would have been spawned in him, from protecting a woman like his daughter-- surely he knew what it was like to protect a woman-- to hold her away from him when all he had wanted to do was protect her from everything, but himself?

“Then Leon… I would like you to continue your duties that were assigned to you upon your arrival here, from the academy. I‘m entrusting my daughter to you, in more ways then one…” as he spoke his deep voice seemed to ache with a hidden grief-- an understanding that went further then what Leon thought he might know. Somehow… he knew more about their “relationship” then he was letting on.

Leon felt his stomach clench. ‘What the hell does that mean?’ he questioned, knowing damn well what he meant. It was just a question of whether or not he was going to be willing to accept that idea of taking care of Ashley, both protecting her physically and maybe even in other ways. He didn’t think he wanted that but oddly enough, sitting with the president had made him rather fancy the idea.

“Don’t screw this up. I’m counting on you.” he said, coming beside him and extending his hand to him.

Standing Leon wondered if he was shaking his head for another reason other then protecting his little girl, who was by any means, not little, but took his hand anyway. His grip was firm but his eyes still held the same, steely gaze on his. Despite the nervousness he felt, he felt oddly happy-- for what, he wasn’t so sure. He was pretty sure he was damming himself but he didn’t care… he wanted her too and he hated to say it, but he’d missed her a lot while he’d been alone.

“You got it.” he said, and meant it.

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So how did you like this chapter?

It took me a long time to get satisfied with this chapter because the workings behind it aren't revealed until later of course. Why in the world would the president just freely give his daughter to Leon in the way he did? What makes him allow this to happen when he knows damn well how they must feel to each other. As a father, I would be pissed-- I know mine would. They shake hands, an age-old symbolism for greetings and trust that has died apparently in modern times, and he seemingly does what he feels best by having Leon protect her more. He's doing as a brother would have done-- one that cared. Leon is excited about protecting Ashley even though lately he's been wanting to get away from her-- inability to accept his feelings I guess.

More developing of each others character and then-- one more chapter to go before they meet. I know it's been a long wait but you'll love it!!

Review, please-- I really do need the motivation and the support.

-Luky