Hi there! This is one of my first one-shots that I'll be posting, aside from my one drabble. I hope you enjoy, and reviews are always welcome!
Waking up next to Seymour was her favorite part of the day; his chest made the softest pillow, his arms the warmest blanket.
As soon as Audrey opened her eyes, she turned in his arms, like every morning, and lightly kissed his lips. "Good morning," she whispered with a smile to her husband. "Good morning," he replied, tightening their embrace. Audrey almost felt guilty about how big their bed in their little tract house was, since they used so little of it, but she wasn't about to not cuddle with Seymour.
"How long've you been up for?" she asked, snuggling her head into his chest.
"Oh, I don't know. I had a weird dream and then I couldn't get back to sleep, so I just sorta laid here."
"Aw Seymour, ya should'a woke me!" she said, pulling away from their embrace to look at her husband. "No no, it's okay! I like watching you sleep. Besides," he added with a grin, "I've got you now." And with that, he gently kissed her lips.
Audrey smiled coquettishly at him. "And," she said between very many kisses, "you've got me to ya'self all day." Audrey caught his lips once more, and all chances of the two of them talking ended. She snaked her arms around his neck, bringing herself even closer to him. Seymour gladly returned the kiss, wanting nothing but to have Audrey as close as possible.
Suddenly, Audrey rolled onto her back, pulling Seymour on top of her, nestled between her legs. Their kiss continued for what felt like infinity, neither of them willing to break it or to even move on from it. Everything was perfect for the little couple in their little house. Somehow, they managed to disrobe, a sheet the only covering for the pair. Everything was passion and sweetness and gentility.
Then, something for Audrey began to feel wrong. The kiss abruptly became rough. Seymour's body was starting to crush her, his hands had this tight grip on her arms, and he was biting at her lip, to the point where he was drawing blood. She broke away for just a moment. "Seymour, please, you're hurti—" she opened her eyes then,and saw, not her loving husband, but an all too familiar and infinitely less loving face.
Instantly she began to tremble. He had her trapped, just like before. "Oh God, Orin…" she regretted it as soon as she said it, because she knew what was coming. "What did you call me?" he demanded. She hadn't even opened her mouth to correct herself before he continued, "What, did you forget all about me? Didn't even miss me, didja?" she knew she was caught there.
All the confidence she'd gotten since he'd disappeared, the voice she was finally starting to use, it all flew from her the moment Orin had her in his clutches. "I'm sorry doctah," she muttered, looking down to avoid his glare.
"Uh huh," he slapped her across the face, "stupid slut." Tears were welling up in Audrey's eyes. She thought it was over, she thought she'd never have to go through this again. Seymour promised he'd never let anything hurt her. He promised…
But the cruel hands, the force, the prison that is Orin was back, and he was back for revenge. Audrey knew what was coming. He had moved his hands—he knew she'd stay right where he held her—to force open her legs. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for what was about to happen. It was so familiar, the pain, the shame, the fear.
Somewhere, she heard a quiet voice saying her name over and over again. "Audrey! Audrey!" it cried distantly. "Audrey…"
Suddenly, Audrey opened her eyes. The spacious bed in the tract house was gone; she was on a small, lumpy cot in a Skid Row basement, and someone behind her was shaking her, crying out her name. She turned around, there was Seymour, kneeling over her, looking more worried than she'd ever seen him. "Audrey are you okay?! You were crying and shaking and—" Audrey let out a small sob "—what's wrong?" he asked. She sat up, and he wrapped his arms around her still-trembling body, trying to draw her close. She fell into his embrace, and he lightly stroked her hair, hoping he was comforting her.
"It," she squeaked, "it was just a bad dream. You were there…and we were…but you…turned into Orin and—" "Shhh," Seymour couldn't hear any more, "don't worry Audrey. You're okay. He can't hurt you." He lightly kissed the top of her head, trying to stop her, but she was shaken.
"What if he comes back?" she asked. "No one knows where he went, so what if he comes back and sees us and tries to—oh god! He'd kill you, and me, but first he'd…I don't wanna even think about it!" she fell back against Seymour.
"Shh, don't even think about him Audrey. He won't come back. He won't hurt you. I won't let anyone or anything ever hurt you again," Seymour was determined. Audrey looked up at him with wide, tear-filled eyes, unable to say anything. The two sat in silence for a few moments, and Audrey let her boyfriend envelop and comfort her. Seymour, for his part, held her close to his heart to keep her safe and warm. He meant when he said that nothing would hurt her.
Eventually, Audrey moved from her boyfriend's arms and looked up with him with a tear-streaked smile. "Thanks, Seymour," she said, kissing him gently on the lips.
"Do you wanna get back to sleep?" he asked. Audrey shook her head, "Nah, not yet. You can though." She smiled at him.
There was a moment's pause, before Seymour said with a goofy grin, "Did I ever tell ya about the time I dreamed Mr. Mushnik was a butterfly?"
He succeeded; Audrey started to giggle uncontrollably. "No!" she cried, "what happened?!"
That was how they spent the rest of the night, talking and joking, Seymour doing everything he could to keep a smile on Audrey's face. And when she finally drifted off to sleep, her dreams were of Seymour's goofy, loving smile.