Hi everyone!
I have to admit that I'm still amazed by all the comments and flattering reviews that you guys left in my previous short stories :D Really, I can't believe the response that I have received from you all and I don't know how to thank you, so I might have come up with another little something to say how much I appreciate all the kind words you left :D
This one-shot is an idea that came to me not long ago actually, and I decided to give it a try. As you have noticed, it's rated M - surprise surprise, lol - and there is a reason for that, but don't expect anything as strongly explicit as my other Vauseman stories. There is less smut in this one and a little more fluff for a change :P I definitely thought that it fitted the tone of the story much more this way :)
But I'll leave you guys to find out :)
As usual, I apologize for eventual grammar mistakes, english is not my first language.
Enjoy
It has happened before.
Not often... Just a few times.
Back when you were in college, and the anxiety about a particularly difficult exam paired with long sessions of study ended up depriving you of entire nights of proper sleep.
Of course, it was a stressful period, where you spent most of your days and late evenings crunched over books, squinting over words that after a while started losing sense, and not being able to sleep after those seemingly endless hours of exhausting study was annoying like very few things can be.
Now, however, your current sleepless state isn't up to that level of annoyance, but you still feel pretty much frustrated about it.
Because while your mind is split in two different places and time zones, definitely tired, exhausted even, your body disagrees, buzzing with that distinctive energy of excitement that comes with being in a new place, in a different country, and more specifically, in a beautiful tropical island, with your lover.
You are aware that jet lag can have those sort of effects, especially if you are not used to travel and have just been on an eighteen hours flight, but it's still hard try to rationalize when all you want to do and the last thing you are able to do right now is just... sleep.
You turn once again on your side and exhale, silently, through your nose.
Of course, Alex doesn't have that kind of problems.
She has been doing this whole globe-hopping thing way before you even met her.
It doesn't stop you however to envy the peaceful look on her face as she sleeps, blissfully, right next to you.
You consider changing position once again, flip the pillow to its cool side, turn on your other side, maybe rest on your belly, but after the tenth time in as many minutes it's has become pretty clear that the fuss is going to be utterly pointless, and the last thing you want to do in your hopeless search for a position that will ease your purpose, is wake up Alex because of your constant tossing in bed.
So, with a long silent sigh of defeat, you regretfully disentangle yourself from the arm that Alex has wrapped so lovingly around your waist in her sleep to keep you close.
She stirs a little bit in the quiet movement, unconsciously trying to pull you closer - which only makes give up that loving embrace so much harder - but luckily she doesn't wake up when you succeed to slip out of it.
You miss the warmth of her body in the instant you get out of bed however, and nothing - not even your current frustrated state - can keep you from smiling tenderly, adoringly, at the sight of her, so calm and content in her sleep. A sight that for how simple and ordinary, never fails to fascinate you, every single time, always succeeding in making your heart do a little flip inside your chest.
She's just... so beautiful.
You have to force yourself to divert your gaze from her before you get too tempted by the idea of tucking that errant strand of dark hair that has fallen and is caressing the side of her face, behind her ear, reminding yourself instead what has made you get out of bed, and from your lover's safe embrace, in the first place.
You rub your face and groan under your breath as you tiptoe out of the bedroom of the magnificent beach house that Alex has rented for your stay in this corner of paradise in Indonesia. Deciding to grab a book in the living room before heading outside, to the vast patio, on the side of the house that faces directly the private beach and the endless expanse of the ocean.
The sight out here is nothing less than absolutely breath taking. Even at night.
There are so many stars visible from this unspoiled corner of the world. It's the first thing that you notice tonight.
Glimmering. Glittering.
As if the sky had been sprayed with dust of diamonds.
It feels so quiet and calm out here. The exact opposite of how your body is feeling instead. Buzzing with that persistent, annoying nervous energy.
For a moment you consider going out for a walk, a short one on the shore, thinking that maybe it will help to wear you out a little, but it's really late, so you just lay down on one of the sun loungers, grabbing a blanket in case the pleasantly breezy salty air will get chilly, sighing inwardly again as you open your book, knowing that, eventually, sleep will come, just like it always did those few times you had trouble sleeping in preparation of an important exam back in college.
Staying outside in the open air with the quiet night wind caressing your skin and tossing lightly your hair, bringing the breeze of the essence of the ocean in front of you does something. It's naturally soothing, just like the echo of the crashing waves on the shore, and you hope that those relaxing sensations combined with some reading, will be enough to trick your body and force it into submission at the same tired level of your mind.
It's still incredibly frustrating though. Waiting for sleep to come and lull you gently into its realm when that keeps being the only thing you can think of.
But that's why you have a book, to distract yourself from that thought, although you probably should have chosen something a little more boring instead that the Sydney Porter's collection of short stories.
They are very entertaining, so much that you go through the first couple ones without even realizing it, and the humorous tone that you find in them reminds you of Alex.
Alex...
A smile tugs at your lips, more at the thought of your lover than for the comic epilogue of yet another story, this one about a kidnapped boy.
You bite your lip thinking about how you left her, about how much a great part of you still wants to get back inside and more specifically into her loose embrace, but at the same time feeling conflicted at the thought that you don't want to wake her up by getting in bed only to start turning all over again, while at the same time feeling a bit bad in case she would wake up and get worried if she doesn't find you there.
But it seems like you don't have to take a decision after all.
You get brought back into the present by the distinctive sound of the sliding doors that lead to the patio getting quietly opened.
You turn with a little start and...
There she is.
Leaning casually against the frame with an amused beautiful sleepy smirk.
"There you are, kid." She greets you, voice particularly deep and slightly raspy with sleep.
"Hey," You greet her back, smiling softly, and then frowning slightly when you wonder what might have woken her up. The question, and silent doubt, must be all over your face, because without you having to say anything Alex simply offers you an obvious, "Your side of the bed was empty... And cold."
You sigh at that, sliding forward in the sun lounger when you see Alex making her way towards you.
"I'm sorry," You apologize, feeling strangely a bit guilty for indirectly waking her up just like you were afraid to, and probably for worrying her a little, too, even if she wouldn't admit that openly. "I just..."
"Couldn't sleep?" She guesses knowingly as she takes a seats on the little space behind you before pulling you against her front, and you whine in confirmation, closing your book and tilting your head back to bury your face in the sweet spot where her neck and shoulder meet, inhaling her distinctive heady scent, a gesture that earns you a deep, throaty chuckle and a tender kiss on your temple.
"It's okay," She reassures, wrapping her arms around your frame, and you snuggle further, instinctively, into that warm cozy embrace. "It used to happen to me, too. It's normal when you travel."
"Mmh, I thought that was the case." You agree with another long sigh, "But you don't have to stay here, Al. I don't want to keep you up if you are tired." That's the reason why I came out here in the first place, to not disturb you, you want to add, but there is no need to. Alex already knows why you came out here, and the answer she gives you is one you already expected from her.
"You are not keeping me from anything Pipes." She assures you, although there is the undeniable note of sleep lingering in her deep slightly husky voice, but you know that her words are sincere, that she means it; that she is here because she wants to and not to convince you to come back to bed or else she wouldn't have sat behind you and taken you in her arms like this.
She is right where she wants to be.
You remain comfortably silent for a minute or so before you curiously ask her, "You said it happened to you too when you first started traveling?"
She hums in confirmation and kisses your shoulder.
"And what did you do when you couldn't sleep?"
She thinks about it for a moment and then lists you a bunch of things, including the one that has been your most tempting idea - go for a walk - and of course the one that you have ended up following. Reading a book.
"Now, however, I know that the real trick to get used to the local hour of the place you visit is jump into a cold shower as soon as you arrive. That will keep you awake until night time. Although I really don't even need that method anymore either." She reveals in the end, and at that, you pull back just enough to turn and glare at her with a flash of accusation for not having shared such important information with you earlier.
"Now you tell me that?"
She just smirks at you, and god, even when she is half asleep she still manages to make that little smile look so incredibly annoying... and absolutely gorgeous.
Ugh.
You hate how much you love that unapologetic smirk.
"There are however other options that could be of help." She offers trying to sound helpful.
"Such as?" You grumble, more than ask, and then laugh, sincerely, when the first thing she suggests is a teasing, "A glass of milk?"
"Or maybe a shot of tequila," She prompts, earning another amused chuckle from you. "Or..." And at that her hands start to travel up your arms, slowly yet purposefully, until they come to rest on your shoulders, "I could give you a massage." She offers softly, almost tentatively, "You feel particularly tense."
She is right, but you still scoff.
"What? Alex no, you don't have to..."
And just like that, when Alex digs her thumbs, both firmly and gently, on either side at the base of your neck, massaging the indeed tense muscles result of a way too long plane flight, with a precise circular movement that makes your shoulder slump and relax a little at the time, the words die in your throat, turning into a low rumble of unmistakable appreciation that you can't suppress, just like you can't keep your eyes from fluttering shut at the undeniably pleasant sensation.
"I'm sorry, were you saying something Pipes?"
You don't have to turn around to see it.
You can perfectly hear it in her voice and clearly picture it in your mind, the little, overly pleased smile that is definitely tugging at her lips right now upon hearing your hums of delight at her wonderful ministration.
You are not even one bit surprised that she is so good at this.
Those hands are capable of the most amazing things.
You know that.
So skilled.
So talented.
A soft moan falls from your lips when she goes a little lower to repeat the same circling motion where the tension seems to have nestled right between your shoulder blades.
Yeah... She is so very, very talented.
"It seems like I'm doing something right." She says teasingly and this time you really don't care about the smug mischievousness filling her voice and just answers her with a truthful, "You have no idea."
"Good," She whispers, pleased, right against the back of your neck, making the thin hair there stand on end at the feeling of her warm breath caressing your skin, humming then when she places an impossibly soft kiss against the same spot.
It's definitely working.
You can feel it.
The way your shoulders start to lose some stiffness, dragging the rest of your body along, inch by inch as Alex applies the perfect amount of pressure on all the right points for the entire length of your back until you are practically slouching. And the sweet compelling warmth of her hands when she guides them underneath your shirt, getting rid of the obstacle of the thin fabric to touch you directly, only makes your muscles melt further.
It is exceptionally pleasing when she reaches your lower back and the pressure of her thumbs at each side of the base of your spine, combined with that same steady circular movement, have you release a deep moan.
You can feel her smile against your shoulder, and feel it widening when she repeats the delightful motion, earning the same response from you.
It's more than enough for her to keep doing it, and you are so lost in the feeling, in the way Alex carefully tries to loose that little, slightly painful knot at the left side of your spine, that at first you don't fully realize when her right hand abandons its position to travel along your side, grazing your ribs, down to your hip, tracing the jut of the bone there, slowly, until - and it is only then that you register it - her fingertips slip, barely an inch, under the waistband of your night shorts and panties.
But even then, the touch is so light that you don't think much of it, until she ventures a little lower, just enough to tease the patch of your neatly trimmed hair.
You don't exactly stiffen at the touch - you don't think you ever could when it is Alex the one touching you - but you surely become more... aware.
"Alex?"
"Mmh?"
"What are you..." But the rest of the words, not for the first time tonight, die in the back of your throat when you feel her slip her hand lower, slowly, for those remaining inches and cup your sex, giving a small, very gentle, very tentative stroke across your clit with her middle finger.
Your entire core flutters in response, recognizing immediately that impossibly considerate touch while your lips part at the undeniably pleasant feeling to breathe out a faint, "Oh..."
The sound so hushed and quiet that it almost gets lost between the gentle hiss of the breeze and the echo of the crashing waves on the shore, and Alex's voice is just barely more audible when she asks you, oh so softly, "Is it okay?"
A beat and then, just as quietly, and somewhat tentatively she adds, "I'll stop if you want me to."
Your heart swells in your chest, fluttering almost painfully with emotion, like it always does whenever you hear that foreign note of uncertainty tinge her usually confident voice, at hearing her ask for your consent.
Alex knows that she can touch you, anywhere, everywhere, whenever she wants, however she pleases. You thought you had been very clear about that. Not with words of course, because you and Alex don't need much of them to understand each other like no one else has ever understood you before. But still, hearing her "ask" if it is okay for her to touch you, it's just... So impossibly tender. And considerate. And also... So very damn sexy.
Every time.
And even this time, your answer could have been only one as you turn to face her.
"Please... Don't stop."
Don't ever stop.
She smiles and then dips her head just enough to kiss you. Gently, tenderly, and you return it with the same emotion. Without eagerness. Without urgency.
When you break it after a minute, reluctant to give up such closeness but unable to keep going in order to breathe, you just tuck your head on that sweet spot on Alex's neck and close your eyes like she suggests you to. Allowing yourself to get lost in the soothing sounds surrounding you and in the familiar sensations building inside you as Alex touches you. Drawing slow accurate circles over your clit. Not to torment you or tease you, her touch is purposeful, but calculated, wanting to make you feel each single stroke.
It might not be exactly passionate or anywhere near the level of scorching desire that most of the times threatens to consume you both. But it still is incredibly sensual. And it definitely still feels absolutely amazing.
It's perfect.
So soft, and gentle, and careful and patient that it doesn't even feel like a sexual thing at all.
It pretty much feels like she is just continuing the massage that she started on your back a few minutes ago, only instead of focusing on the tension lingering in your back, this time she focuses on the one trapped inside your body, pairing such loving attentions with a steady slow rhythm that your hips end up following, instinctively. Rolling forward but with no demand, lifting just the tiniest bit, more to complete the movement together than to seek eagerly for the next one.
Inevitably, you grow wet. Just enough to help her movements be a little more smooth without making them too slippery, feeling the pressure in your lower abdomen grow, so steadily and exquisitely.
Even with Alex's simple, constant, expert, soft circling motion limited exclusively over your clit, without her venturing further down towards your entrance with the intention of pushing gently inside of you.
It still reaches a point, after long blissful minutes, where you feel the need to let such pressure unfurl. When you know it's becoming too much for you to hold it all in.
But you don't have to.
Your breathing gets a little more shallow but you still manage to whisper Alex's name, brokenly, as in some sort of warning, a totally unnecessary one that is met with a reassuring, "It's okay Pipes" and a whispered encouraging, "Let it go."
You seek for her free hand, the one that she has decided to rest innocently on your stomach, under your shirt, and when you grasp it in yours, she doesn't wait a second to intertwine your fingers together.
And maybe it is that gesture, or the reassurance of the solidity of her body pressed behind you so safely, or the "I got you" that she whispers against your jaw a heartbeat later...
All you know is that as soon as she utters those few simple meaningful words and then kisses that sweet spot behind your ear, you let go.
Completely.
With a long sighed breathy moan that falls mutely from your lips as your body tenses for a few hot seconds.
It's so different from all the other times.
But also the same all at once.
You are so used to experience orgasms that hit you so forcefully, so violently, during the apex that sometimes you briefly lose consciousness for how overwhelming it is receiving that immense load of sensations, like a million of lightnings piercing you with pure unaltered pleasure all at once, shooting from your core and spreading all over your body in sparks of electricity through every nerve endings, shaking your entire being and leaving you breathless for the whole duration of it; endless seconds that stretch into full minutes. A heart stopping devastation that makes you feel so wonderfully alive.
This time, however, when your orgasm hits you, it comes more like in long soothing rolling waves, and you feel it, starting from your groin and spreading in the deepest places inside you but in a much softer much more sweetly tingling sensation that leaves you slightly breathless but doesn't threaten to drown you.
Not that is any less amazing than usual. On the contrary. You have the sensation that it might last even longer.
Alex draws it all out, shudder after shudder, slowly, thoroughly, until you have nothing left to give her, feeling drained from everything but is such a wonderful way that makes you still feel full somehow. Rich, and with a familiar warmth that lingers in your chest.
You don't have to catch your breath afterwards - not like you are used to - but you still find yourself breathing in deeply through your nose, until your slightly racing heart starts to slow down to a more quiet rhythm as if making space for the deep sense of pleasant heaviness that you can feel start settling right into your bones, making you sink further against Alex's front. And it is right then that your mouth is forced open by a first long yawn.
You don't even realize it at first, but only when you feel Alex's chest rumble with deep chuckles against your back you get a little startled, and then - as realization sinks into you - more than a bit embarrassed as you cover your mouth.
Alex, however, is far from offended.
"Looks like that did the trick." She says as she withdraws her hand, resting it lightly against your hip bone, and even if she does sound a bit teasing, you can only agree with her.
"It seems like it." You hum with a light blush coloring on your cheeks and a smile stretching across your lips under that layer of embarrassment before you turn her kiss her.
"Thank you." You whisper when you pull back, having every intention to return each one of those wonderful attentions in the morning.
She chuckles again, shaking her head in that "you certainly don't need to thank me for that, kid" but she more than happily dips her head again to return the kiss. "Anytime."
Your body melts for the rest of the way against Alex's. Boneless. Exhausted at last.
Drained from that energy that was making it buzz so relentlessly before. Finally matching the state that will allow you to drift off, and Alex knows that, even before your eyelids start to flutter shut and your body gives a little twitch during your mid-fall into oblivion.
"Pipes?"
"Mmh?"
"We should get back inside babe." She suggests, and she is right.
Although even in your half asleep condition you can't help but notice that she doesn't make a move to unwrap her arms from around you and get up.
You take advantage of her clear reluctance to let you go to curl yourself further against her, as if anchoring her there with you, and even if form coherent words takes an eternity, eventually you manage to mumble a slurred, "Just a few more minutes."
It's a lie.
You know it, and Alex spots it immediately, and yet she decides to indulge you, because you know she can never resist you.
You can feel the smile tugging her lips when she kisses you goodnight.
You fall asleep right there. Resting between her parted legs, with your head on her chest, her heartbeat and breathing getting steadier and calmer and deeper beneath your ear, and with her arms wrapped around you to keep you safely close.
And the last thing you think about before sleep claims you, is how could you have thought about being lulled into it anywhere else but in her arms.
Right where you belong.
The air gets a little more chilly during the night, but you don't get the chance to shiver the tiniest bit at the slight change of temperature, that a blanket gets wrapped carefully around you.
And when you wake up, blissfully rested and relaxed, not having moved an inch for all night long, you realize, as soon as your eyes flutter open and land magnetically on Alex, that even with the seemingly endless vastness of the breath taking ocean in front of you, for how simple, there is no other sight that you love more and makes your heart flutter with stronger emotion and places the most adoring smile on your lips, than the one of your peacefully sleeping lover being gently caressed by the first rays of gold of the rising sun.
It came out pretty gay, I know. Gayer than Alex's written playlist. What can I say... I was in a mood for some Vauseman cuddles and fluff. Mostly for Alex to be the giant softie that she actually is. Anyway, thanks for reading everyone :)