Exactly one month had passed since Kricket and Phlix passed through the portal from Ethar to Earth. After some deliberation and going through all the colleges Kricket had been accepted to that were outside of Chicago, they had decided on moving to East Lansing, Michigan. Kricket had gotten a large academic scholarship for Michigan State, so between that and financial aid, she wouldn't have to pay anything out of pocket. Coupled with the fact that it was the furthest school away from Chicago that she'd applied to, it seemed like the perfect choice.
Luckily, Kricket hadn't missed registration entirely, although that late in the fall most of the good classes had been full. Her financial aid only required her to be half time, so she had taken what gen eds she could find and started preparing for her first semester of college.
They had managed to find a cheap furnished apartment near campus that didn't require the occupants to be students. Kricket still wasn't sure what to do about Phlix. She couldn't enroll in college since she didn't technically exist. She had no birth certificate or social security number. Phlix didn't seem too distraught by this, however. She seemed to simply enjoy being free to do whatever she wanted.
Kricket was able to find them both a job at a local bar and restaurant, making money under the table cleaning and bussing tables. Now that Kricket was 18, she didn't necessarily need a job like that, but it was one of the only options for Phlix and she didn't want to leave her alone at her first ever job on a new planet. After Phlix got more settled in, maybe Kricket would look for work elsewhere, but for now it wasn't a bad gig. It was fairly easy work, and they got a share of the nightly tips.
The past week, it had finally felt like everything was falling into place. Classes had begun, both she and Phlix were settling in at their new job, and their two bedroom apartment was starting to feel a lot like home.
It was a Sunday and Kricket had the day off from work for once. Phlix was working, but it was finally to the point where Kricket didn't worry about her being alone in this new world. After lazing around the apartment for the better part of the morning, Kricket decided she should do something productive. She and Phlix had all the chores split evenly and it was Kricket's turn to do the dishes. Their apartment was nice, considering the low rent, but it didn't have a dishwasher. Eyeing the pile of plates, bowls, and pans that were starting to creep their way out of the sink, Kricket sighed. This might take a while. She tied her hair up on top of her head in a messy bun so it would stay out of her face and set to washing.
In a way, she didn't mind doing the dishes. It occupied her hands while leaving her mind free to roam. It was times like this that she let her mind wander back to Ethar. Kricket wondered if her sister Astrid was turning out to be the empress their father had always hoped for. A small, bitter part of her hoped it would all crash and burn. Not that Kricket wanted the position. That was way more responsibility than she ever wanted on her shoulders. But the painful rejection she felt from her family still ate away at her at times.
She envied the family that Trey had grown up with and betrayed her to protect. Hell, if she'd had a family like that, she probably would have done the same thing in his position. Despite the bitterness, Kricket hoped they were all safe. She had once hoped that they would be her family, too.
But then she had been kidnapped by her own father's men and given over to Kyon Ensin to become his consort. At the time she had hated both of them, but looking back now she thought things turned out for the best. Kricket didn't belong with Trey any more than she belonged in Ethar. Kyon had understood her on a level that Trey never could, despite being a psychopath.
What did that say about her, she wondered? That she preferred the love (if he had even loved her) of someone like Kyon. Maybe she was a psychopath too. Maybe if she had stayed in Ethar, they could have been psychopaths together forever. Or at least until her sister and her empire found and killed them both. Her heart ached thinking of both Trey and Kyon, but they had both gotten what they wanted. And so had she.
Kricket was scrubbing a particularly grimy pan when she heard a knock at the door, breaking her out of her ponderings. It was probably one of the books she's ordered for school. The delivery man always left her packages without having her sign, but in this area of town, she didn't want to leave such an expensive book at her front door for long. She put the pan down and dried her hands, then walked quickly across the living room to her front door.
Out of habit, she checked the peephole. It was always better to be on the safe side. She didn't expect to see anyone, but as she looked out, her breath caught. Outside her door stood a tall muscular man with long blonde hair, hair the same color as her own. Kyon Ensin was standing outside her door.
Kricket ducked down as if Kyon could see her through the tiny hole, even if she knew he couldn't. Shit, what is he doing here? Kricket thought frantically, even as some tightness in her chest eased at seeing him alive and apparently healthy. The last time she had seen him, he'd been badly injured and unconscious, but alive. But what was he doing here? She had given him the revenge he'd wanted, and he'd surely figured out by now that she wasn't the prophesized empress he'd thought she was. What more could he want from her? Surely he wouldn't try to drag her back to Ethar and take on Astrid for her throne.
She peered through the peephole again. Kyon was digging through a pocket looking for something. He pulled out a small piece of paper and looked it over then up to Kricket's door, where the apartment number would be. He must've confirmed he was at the right place because he knocked again, louder this time. Kricket felt the vibration of the knock through her fingertips. Her heart hammered away at her chest. She thought it might burst through her ribs at any moment.
What do I do, what do I do, what do I do? A part of her ached to let him in. She had missed him, goddamn her. She had never wanted to care for him, but feelings had developed nonetheless. And yet he scared her too. Perhaps he was here to punish her for running away, that crazy part of him that thought he could control her taking over when he had nothing left.
"Kricket," Kyon said through the door, his forehead leaning against its cracking paint. It was a soft plea, as if he knew she was just on the other side of the door. Kricket's eyes filled with unbidden tears. Could it be that he was here only for her? That he didn't care about the throne anymore. No, don't be stupid, she thought. All he ever really cared about was power. He knocked again, this time with enough force that she was afraid the neighbors might open their doors to see what the racket was.
She had to let him in, she realized. If she didn't, innocent people might get hurt. Kricket ran back to the kitchen and found a knife. She wanted to be prepared for all possible scenarios. Sticking it carefully in the back pocket of her jeans, she walked back to the door and steeled herself before slowly opening it.
They both stood there, staring at each other across the threshold. It's like they were locked in place, neither sure what to do. Kricket couldn't read the expression on Kyon's face, and neither could she tell what her face was doing. So many emotions were running through her: excitement, longing, fear, anger.
Anger won out. "What the hell are you doing here?" she snarled at him. His eyebrows rose and a slight smile touched the corner of his mouth. "I think I made it pretty clear that this is where I want to be, and if you try to drag me back to freaking Ethar, then you've got another thing -"
She was cut off as Kyon lunged forward, hoisting her into his arms and kissing her fiercely. Her lips parted for him, and her anger melted away with each stroke of his tongue against hers. God she had missed this. Their last kiss seemed like a lifetime ago, and yet her lips remembered the softness and curves of his like it was yesterday. Her legs wrapped reflexively around him as he adjusted her against his body.
Kricket suddenly felt a wall against her back. He had gotten the door closed and had her up against it without her noticing. He pulled back from the kiss, leaving her breathless and flushed. "I told you I'd always find you, Kircket."
"I'm not going back with you," she said breathlessly, even as heat pooled between her legs.
"Good, because I'm not going back." Kricket's eyes widened in surprise. It sounded like the truth, though with Kyon she could never be sure. Kyon's lips were on hers again before she had the chance to reply. His hands began making lazy strokes down her sides while the pressure of his hips grinding into hers kept her pinned to the door. A moan escaped her as his hands cupped her breasts through her shirt, his thumbs tracing circles around her nipples.
Kricket decided that she didn't care why he was here anymore, as she raised her arms for Kyon to remove her shirt. It was gone with one swift tug, but the bra caused him a little more trouble. She'd forgotten that they didn't have underwear in Ethar and she let out a giggle as he fumbled first with the straps, eyeing them suspiciously, then with the clasps in the back when the straps showed no promise.
"Here, let me," she said. Reluctantly, Kyon lowered her to the floor. But as he did, his hand brushed over Kricket's back pocket, where the knife was tucked.
"What's this?" Kyon pulled out the knife and examined it, a broad smile growing on his face. "My little savage. Planning on stabbing me again?"
"Just a precaution," she said, taking the knife from his hand and tossing it on the coffee table. "I thought you might be upset that I ran away."
A troubled look crossed Kyon's face. "Kricket… I was wrong before. I don't want you to be afraid of me. I won't hurt you again. I won't be like your foster father. Or all the other people that hurt you in your life." His words rang with the clarity of truth, and she didn't think it was a trick.
Kricket smiled a sad smile up at him. "I know," she caressed his cheek. "I think I knew when you offered yourself in my place to save me from your father." Kricket unclasped her bra and tossed it aside, then slid her jeans and panties to the ground, kicking them away. She had made her choice. Maybe this man before her was a murderous psychopath, but he was hers. He had changed for her, become a better person, even if only a little bit. If he could change so much in a short period of time, maybe there was hope for him yet.
She stood before him, completely naked as he took in the sight of her. "I love you, Kricket." Another truth. One that knocked the breath from her lungs.
Kricket didn't answer. She was pretty sure she had fallen in love with him as well, but it was too soon. She wasn't ready for that yet. So instead she simply stepped towards Kyon and kissed him deeply. This was simpler, this animal need she felt for him.
She felt him harden through his pants and he pressed into her and then picked her up again, hands cupping her buttocks, and pinned her against the door. His kisses became more intense, more eager. When his lips moved down to her jaw and down her neck, Kricket let out a low moan. His lips were tracing soft lines down her body. Kyon moved from her neck to her breasts, his tongue tracing lines around and across her nipples, while his hands massaged her thighs, slowly moving higher and higher.
Kricket was lost in the sensations Kyon's touches were sending through her. She was vaguely aware of running her fingers through his soft blonde hair. Its softness contrasted with the hard muscle beneath his shirt as one of her hands ran down his back. Suddenly, she felt the strong need to feel his skin on hers. She tugged at his shirt, and he briefly stopped his massaging to let her take it off him. He was magnificent, a vision of a Greek god if there ever was one.
She let one hand stroke his hair, while the other danced across his chest, tracing the lines of his muscles from his chest to his abdomen, and further down. Kyon let out a mixture between a moan and a growl as her fingers dipped just below the waistline of his pants. The heat between her legs intensified at the sound. She needed him now.
Kyon must've felt the same, because he now undid his belt, letting his pants fall to his ankles. His hard length rubbed against her clit, causing her to moan again. Slowly, he slid his hands up her arms, pinning them just above her head, all the while grinding against her, driving her crazy as the sensation blasted any other thoughts out of her mind.
Finally, he kissed her again, sliding his tongue between her parted lips at the same moment his hard cock slammed into her, pushing her hips against the door behind her. Kricket moaned into his kiss, his lips devouring the sound, savoring it. He slammed into her hard again and again, hitting that deep spot within her, and within moments she was screaming his name as she climaxed hard, neighbors be damned. He followed soon after, hands gripping her buttocks and he pounded into her faster and harder than before, finally spilling into her, gasping her name in her ear.
They stayed like this for several minutes. Kricket felt his cock grow softer inside her, drained from their love making, but the occasion twitch still sent shivers of pleasure down her spine. "You didn't really come all the way from Ethar just to make love to me, did you?" Kricket teased.
"I would travel further than that, across the universe just to hear you scream my name, Kricket," he rasped into her ear. She felt him grow hard again, and let out a small whimper as he began moving slowly inside her.
"Why don't we take this to the bed this time?" she suggested. She pointed him in the right direction as he carried her, still inside her, to her bedroom and fucked her again until they were both hoarse from calling out each other's names.