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[flyingsolos]

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[flyingsolos]

[ They could be at this for a good while, if Rion has any say in it.

When she has to turn her head a little to catch her breath, she's absentmindedly stroking his back. And, still very much breathless, with a rough note to her voice-- ]

You can touch me, you know.

[purrtagonist]

[that gets him to pause]

[he opens his eyes, gaze lidded and dark, chest heaving with every inhale he takes and back still arching into her hands. he watches her, head tilted to the side as she tries her catch her breath, cheeks red and hair disheveled and falling into her face and gods, she's gorgeous. he likes her so fucking much his heart aches with it]

[. . .]

[but his hand stays where it is, but he presses it more firmly against her skin as he brushes another kiss against her jawline]

. . . I want to take you out again first.

[and another kiss, closer to her ear]

Let me cook this time.

[flyingsolos]

[ She could say it's a rejection, in a sense, but his answer is more like a "To be continued" than anything else. It's not anything that hurts her, at any rate, and Rion presses her palms more firmly to his back in response.

He's beautiful right now, with a gaze that dark, obviously affected but ultimately determined. And of course he'd always been attractive, but she knows more of him now, the Akira who talked her down from a fever dream, the Akira who had survived a brutal interrogation-- the Akira who had been through so much that she hadn't ever expected.

Knowing that, it's somehow made him even more endearing in her eyes and Rion breathes out slowly.

Dangerous on multiple levels, she's starting to think. ]

Of course you can.

[purrtagonist]

[it's not a rejection, in any sense of the word. he just knows how he wants to go about this, and chasing it because of an instinctive desire for pure and raw feeling isn't it. he's happy to feel her warmth again, happy to kiss her and happy to drag his fingers across as much skin as she'll let him. but he also wants to romance her, first. they've grown a lot closer within the past few weeks, but there's still so much ground to cover. and the thought of doing just that is pretty exciting]

[he tilts his chin down and catches her mouth in another kiss, eyes fluttering shut again]

We have a lake now. . . [he mutters in between kisses] . . . I bet it's beautiful at night.

[flyingsolos]

The lake...

[ It's difficult to look thoughtful between soft, brief kisses, but Rion is doing her best.

It's... nostalgic. Not the same lake as back home, but... ]

I like that plan. [ the next kiss she holds a little longer, to draw out the sense of warmth, as her hands slip free to cradle his face. ]

I want to sing for you. I think the lake at night... is probably an incredible stage.

[purrtagonist]

[. . . you know what, he bets she's right. he smiles, expression soft, before he slips his hand out from under her shirt and rests it gently on the bed next to her head]

Trying to serenade me, are you?

[flyingsolos]

You're a tough customer. If I don't pull out a private concert, I don't think you'll be wooed.

[ She brushes her thumbs over the curve of his cheekbones affectionately, before she releases him-- just in case he wants to move. ]

[purrtagonist]

[he doesn't. not really. and he lingers even when she lets him go, pressing his mouth against hers in one last stolen kiss. but eventually. . . he reluctantly pushes himself up, back arching as he stretches, which-- uh. he's not wearing. . . a shirt, so. enjoy that view, Rion]

A private concert is a perk, but I assure you I'm already wooed.

[oh]

Extremely wooed. Couldn't be more wooed if you were the best wooer in the entire Temple.

[flyingsolos]

[ Rion has been shamelessly enjoying this view ever since he got his shirt off, and she will miss it but hold the memory close in her heart.

Rather, she's still staring appreciatively as she sits up and scoots back enough to rest her back against the headboard. With a small wince, because that wall earlier was rude. ]

I think I get the point. But if that's the case, then I still want to do it... just because I want to.

[purrtagonist]

[he scoots right up next to her, not even bothering to put on a shirt, so she totally gets to enjoy the view for a little bit longer. his shoulder rests against hers, and when she winces, he gives her an apologetic look. sorry for kabedoning against a stone wall, Rion. . .]

I think that’s reason enough.

[truly]

I’m really looking forward to it.

[flyingsolos]

[ Rion smiles softly, one hand seeking out his to lace their fingers together. It's fine, Akira, her back will recover. ]

Yeah, me too. It was driving me crazy when I was sick, that I couldn't even hum without coughing.

[purrtagonist]

[brushes his thumb against the back of her hand, touch gentle]

Next year. . . let’s remember our flu shots.

[he jokes, because they both know flu shots wouldn’t have prevented them from getting sick]

[flyingsolos]

[ Rion snorts at that, quietly. ]

Do you think we'll still be here next year?

[purrtagonist]

[. . . oh. she turned his joke into a serious question]

[Akira opens his mouth to answer, but then realizes he isn’t really sure how he should. or how he wants to, even]

[. . .]

[he plays it safe]

I. . . don’t know.

[flyingsolos]

Oh--

[ Rion sits up a little straighter, apologetic. ]

Sorry, don't mind that. It just sorta slipped out.

[purrtagonist]

No no, I want to—

[lifts his gaze to meet hers, searching]

Talk about it.

[because they sure haven’t up until now. and that was mostly because everything was so new and fresh (still was, still would be for a while), but. . . it is a pretty glaring wrench in their dating plans, isn’t it? even if neither of them have acknowledged that out loud before now]

[flyingsolos]

...

[ Rion meets his eyes, with a hint of solemnity. She'd thought about it before. She'd talked to Kou about it before. But talking it over with Akira is vastly different.]

Okay. We probably should, anyway.

[purrtagonist]

[a light laugh]

Kind of weird on the timing, huh. . .

[considering they just, like. made out a lot. but he continues nevertheless, albeit slowly]

. . . is it fair to assume we both want to go home?

[flyingsolos]

Yeah. We both have things-- people... to return to. If we were given the choice, I'm pretty sure we'd both pick to go back home.

[ She misses the breathless kissing already, but this is important. ]

[purrtagonist]

[just as he thought. Akira gives an understanding nod, before he thunks his head against the headboard]

That doesn’t change anything on my end.

[which is probably extremely obvious, but. . .]

So. . . I don’t really know if we’ll be here next year or not. But— [a small shrug] I’m not thinking about next year.

I’m thinking about now.

[flyingsolos]

Kou-kun asked me about it once. Since we're pretty much from different worlds, there's definitely going to be a time where we can't... be like this.

[ Rion closes her eyes, searching for her words. ]

But I don't want to regret this. I want to treasure it and make the best of it. No matter what happens.

[purrtagonist]

Okay.

[wow, this conversation was way easier than anticipated. possibly because they're both on the same page-- have likely been that way since the very beginning]

Me too.

[flyingsolos]

... Wow.

[ Rion releases a breath-- and with it, a soft laugh. ]

I thought that was going to go way differently.

[purrtagonist]

Wait-- really?

[????]

How did you think it was going to go?

[flyingsolos]

Us just sitting there awkwardly and then trying to change the subject, or one or both of us getting upset about inevitably saying goodbye, or deciding on a breakup date, or--

[ she waves a hand lightly. ]

I should've known better, though. We kind of think alike on things like this.