La Guerrera del tiempo by Starsea

la interrupción imprevista

Theme: Truth

She watched him from the blankets, cosy in the nest he'd made before getting up. The blankets smelt of him. If she pressed her face into the linen, she could smell his cologne and his sweat and his skin. But she didn't do that, because then she would have to forego the delicious pleasure of watching him naked. Some people did not look right completely naked; their bodies took on an awkward, unconstructed look, like machines that hadn't been put together properly. He seemed at ease, the muscles flowing under his skin as he moved from the bedroom to the hallway to the kitchen. When he came back in and turned to close the door, Setsuna propped herself up on one elbow and savoured the view of his buttocks, small and taut, the perfect ending to his slender back.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" he said without turning around.

"Very much," she answered, grinning. "I have the most perfect view."

"A view which I will have to spoil, I'm afraid," he said, turning around.

She pretended to pout in disappointment. "Can't you stay like that just a little longer?"

"'Fraid not," he answered, walking towards her. "You'll have to settle for full frontal."

"Oh well," she sighed as he got back into bed. "I suppose that's not all bad. Especially since you've got me chocolate as well."

He smiled and snapped off a piece. "Is that my cue?"

"Clever boy," she murmured, opening her mouth and closing her eyes as he placed the chocolate on her tongue.

They took turns feeding each other pieces of the chocolate until their hands were coated in it. "We'll get it on the sheets," she sighed.

"They'll wash," he whispered, taking her hand and gently sucking on each finger, pulling on something deep inside her belly. She tipped her head backwards, swallowing a moan as he licked her palm and nipped the skin of her wrist. The words came out of her throat almost as an afterthought, floating up from somewhere deep inside.

"I love you..."

He paused and she suddenly realised what she'd just said. Shit. Shit shit shit, shit in a bucket. She opened her eyes and saw his face, stunned, the mouth slightly open. Eminently kissable. Stop it. You have to think, not fantasise about his lips. She sat up, her mind racing to think of an escape plan, anything to blot out those words, wipe them away. He straightened, still staring at her. She wanted to scream at him, throw a pillow in his face.

Don't look so surprised!

"I'm sorry," she said, making her voice light. "I don't know what came over me..."

"The truth, obviously," he said, startling her. His voice was calm, almost dispassionate. His mouth was closed now and those green eyes were taking her in, every inch of her. She wanted to pull the blankets up around her body, but she didn't give into the impulse. What was the point of hiding herself after saying those words? Words that she'd never said to any man.

"Do you want me to tell a lie so that you can forget it?" she asked, holding his gaze.

"No," he answered quietly. "So few people tell me the truth... thank you."

He was thanking her? For saying 'I love you'? She couldn't believe this. "Thank you?" she repeated. "Is that all you have to say?"

"No... I don't know what to say. I've never had a woman say that to me before." He ran a hand through his hair, tugging at the strands in a familiar shy gesture. "They don't usually speak to me that much in bed, you know. I'm there for my body, not my brain."

Setsuna took a breath, feeling her anger start to drain away. Instead of being defensive in turn, instead of choosing to argue, he'd simply made himself as vulnerable as her. How could she attack him now? He'd just laid himself open. Clever boy. "Well, I've never said that to a man before," she told him. "So we're even."

"Even? That's a strange way of putting it." He looked at her, smiling a bit. "I prefer 'equal'. The truth makes us all equal."

She tipped her head. "Who said that?"

"Me." He slipped an arm around her shoulders and she turned into him, refusing to think about what had just happened. Better to breathe in his skin, kiss the crook of his neck, revel in the warmth of his body. Self-analysis could wait.


Title: Unexpected Interruption

DISCLAIMER: Meioh Setsuna belongs to Naoko Takeuchi.

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