"You're too drunk to play," Helo had tried to tell Kara as he gently escorted her outside the mess, Apollo hanging off her shirt-tails.
"Karl!" She put a hand on his chest and leaned in to whisper conspiratorially in his ear. "It's 'k. I'm not really drunk. I'm just pretendin' so my buddy Lee here won't feel so bad." She gestured over at the glazed and happy man who was still hanging onto the hem of her tanks with a lax grip. She leaned in even closer. "He's wasted." Gleeful laughter bubbled out of her.
"Well, then maybe you better take him out of here and put him to bed." He flinched at his choice of words; her eyebrows raised.
"That was dirty, Karl. You're a dirty boy." She switched to a pout, as Lee's head began to droop down to her shoulder. "I was on fire back there, Helo. Had those basters right where I wanted 'em. They didn't see this comin'." She held up her fists and landed a fake punch on his jawline, but couldn't quite manage to hold herself up during the follow through. Helo had to fight back his own laughter as her fall caused Lee to smack his head against the ship's walls. He jerked awake and smiled bleerily at Helo before turning to Starbuck.
"Kara? Wha's goin' on?"
"They're kickin' us out, pal. Let's go somewhere where people appreciate us." She took his hand and started dragging him away, running her shoulder into the wall as she turned a corner. Helo could hear giggles all the way down the hall as both she and Apollo seemed to find this hilarious; he headed back into the mess. Racetrack dealt him a new hand.
"Did they put up a fight?"
"Starbuck a little, but Apollo is out of it. Lords help him in the morning."
Ten minutes later, after much staggering and smacking into things, they'd made it back. Kara couldn't stop laughing at the confusion on Lee's face.
"Kara, how drunk am I?" She just smiled impishly and pushed him all the way into the room, closing the hatch behind them. "Kara . . . 'm so tired." His eyes were drooping shut again; he hardly even registered when Kara pushed him backwards towards his bunk. The back of his knees hit his bed and he collapsed downwards, pulling Kara with him. Her hand was still entwined with his.
"It's 'k, Lee. You go to sleeps. I'll stay up and make sure you don't die or somethin'." From down where he lay, Kara heard a faint mumbling from where his face met pillow that she took for another "'k."
When it looked like he really would be sleeping, Kara soon grew bored. She wasn't that tired, and her brain had a fuzzy pleasant feeling towards it. She contemplated getting out of Lee's bunk to head to her own, but couldn't muster up the energy. Instead, she pulled his curtain shut. On the way back, her hand brushed against Lee's stomach, and he let out a muffled giggle.
"Oh, so's your awake now," she said. "Let's wake you up some more." She was fascinated by the way his stomach shuddered with the laughter, and the more he gasped for air, the more she wanted to continue assaulting that unfamiliar terrain. He sat up abruptly, grabbing her wrists and pinning them on top of her thighs. He was plainly trying to give her his most intimidating look, but it only ended with both of them collapsing back down in fits of uncontrollable laughter.
They landed with Kara flat on her back, Lee beside her. He lowered his head to rest down beside hers. "Now you've done it," he said. "I'm all awake now . . . kind of," his head inching towards her shoulder again.
"And now I'm kinda sleepy," Kara yawned. She liked the way that Lee's warmth felt against her side, like a heavy blanket. She nudged closer towards him, one of her legs coming to rest between his own. If she had been more awake, she would have inched closer still, giving in to the urge that was now consuming her, the need to become so entwined with her surprise bedmate, swaddled in his heat and comfort, that she could sleep forever, drowning amongst his limbs. Fortunately he seemed to be having the same feelings as she sensed him bring his arm around to rest on her stomach, and his forehead touched hers.
"Mmm, this feels nice," he murmured, breath tickling her ear. She didn't respond, even when she felt his hand smoothing over the slight convex of her belly. Soft rhythmic strokes, like a child petting a puppy. She let out a sigh. His index and middle fingers were moving in soft circles and figure eights, but he seemed to want more. Slowly his fingers moved lower, and for a second she thought he was heading for the promised land, a jolt of sudden adrenaline coursing through her, but no. His fingers dipped upwards, raising her tanks an inch above her belly button, before resuming their rhythmic circles on newly bared skin. Her fuzzy brain accepted these actions, even as Lee spoke, half sighing his words and fighting off sleep.
"Your skin. So soft." He flattened his palm out gently so that its entire warmth was covering her belly. She felt absurdly calm and happy as it made the barest of movements. There was an impassive innocence to it all and she wasn't alarmed in the slightest by Lee's apparent need to touch her. To feel the softness of her skin. She was feeling something similar herself.
She shifted slightly and moved her tank just a little bit higher; she was feeling distinctly langorous, almost feline. Lee's breath was still brushing against her ear and she could tell his eyes were closed without even looking, but his hand was still undulating gently against her, his thumb idly rubbing up and down. She felt like purring. He stopped for a second, as if realizing for the first time that what he was doing might not be appropriate.
"Kara?"
"Mmm?"
"Do you mind me touchin' you like this?"
She didn't hesitate, didn't even think about it. "No, feels good. Feels warm." She wanted more, even, and, acting on pure instinct, she inched her tanks up even further, bringing them over her head. Lee raised up slightly to help her off with them. "You, too," she said, finger poking his abdominals, as she simultaneously begin peeling away her bra. "Warm skin," she sighed.
"Warm skin," he agreed, aping her motions.
When both of them were bare chested, Kara scooted over onto her side so that she was facing Lee, their legs still entwined. "Closer," she murmured. He obliged by pulling her to him so that their chests were flush. One hand splayed over her lower back, the other arm snaking underneath her right breast, hand coming to rest tangled in her hair. Kara felt her skin rise into gooseflesh as her nipples came into contact with his sparse chest hair. It tickled, but only for a moment. Then it just felt right.
His hands had resumed their quiet motion, but Kara could tell that he was once again growing sleepy by the slowing of his strokes. She sighed against the underside of his neck and let herself fall into the warm and spinning haze of sleep.