Chapter Four

.

Please let me know if you're enjoying this. Don't forget to review! There are so many people reading this, and so few reviews... Makes a girl's heart hurt... LOL. Thank you to the one guest reviewer, Webelongtoeachot. I know you're reading on Tumblr now, but I very much appreciate your input on this.

Oh, yes, it's more Soul Bates! This chapter is very smutty too, as a warning/promise. I really do try to keep them in character in this, so please let me know if I'm making them OOC, I'd hate for that to happen. Happy reading!

.

"...One man loved the pilgrim soul in you,

And loved the sorrows of your changing face."

.

"You'll do no such thing!"

Norman stood before her, a sheet of paper drooping in his hand, lips pursed together slightly. "I turned eighteen last week, Mother," he said, voice rising, "You can't stop me!"

Covering her face with her hand, Norma dropped down onto the couch, overwhelmed and conflicted. They'd been dancing around each other for weeks now; they were like magnets, circling opposite poles, hoping somehow their compatible sides would meet. Norman was giving her space, never pushing, never complaining. "I love you," he'd tell her sweetly, fingers lingering on hers, and then he would back away. These new feelings she was aware of were overwhelming her, consuming her every moment, and accompanying them was a hefty amount of self-loathing and guilt.

How could they proceed with their affair? It was considered immoral by most, and it was certainly illegal in the their home country. Assuming she could put aside her guilt, assuming she could accept the feelings she now knew they both had for each other, they could never be public with their relationship. So she waited, she hoped and prayed that they could go back to the way things were, but it wasn't to be.

She loved him more every day.

Despite all that had changed, she still felt the need to stop him from making what she deemed unwise choices, and this certainly met that criteria in her eyes. "Norman, you are not dropping out of high school, and that's final!"

"It's too late, it's already done!" He held the paper out to her, nostrils flaring and jaw clenched. "I already took the GED test and passed. I signed the paperwork today. It's over."

"Oh, Norman!" She took the paper, running her free hand through her hair and pulling on the ends. "What about your grades, getting into college?"

"I did this for us, Mother," he said, visibly attempting to keep himself calm. "Now that I'm done with school, I can help out more around the motel, work on my taxidermy and writing. You can go back to school now, like you always wanted."

Scanning the sheet he had handed her, she covered her mouth, trying to make sense of the blurring letters. "You can't just throw away your life for..."

"I'm not throwing it away, I'm starting my life, Mom. With you." The cushion dipped beside her, and his hand cupped her cheek. "Don't you see?"

Norma let herself be turned to face him, and for the first time since they'd almost been caught by Dylan, she allowed herself to fully feel her attraction to Norman. No one had ever done anything like this, giving up everything to be with her, so she could do what she wanted. She leaned in, gaze flickering between his eyes and his lips as his hand heated her cheek, heart pounding inside her chest. "Norman?" she whispered.

"Yes, Mother?"

His voice was soft too, and he was so close to her she could feel the little puffs of his breath against her again. She thought about that night so many weeks ago, when he'd unabashedly spread her legs and pleasured her with no shame, when he had pushed her where she'd always wanted to go. "Kiss me," she said, half an order, half a plea.

Norman leaned forward and kissed her sweetly, almost chastely but for the sure caress of his tongue against her lips. Pulling back, he searched her eyes. "Was I moving too fast before?" he asked softly.

"I... Yes, maybe. I don't know!" Shaking her head, Norma laughed at herself. "I'm frightened, I guess."

"Me, too." He pulled her with him, stretching out on the couch and leading her to lean against him. "But not all that much has changed, has it?"

"Everything's changed. I have something else to lose now." Her voice was deceptively quiet as she laid her head on his chest. It was inevitable, this change, no matter how she fought against it, as inevitable as the passage of time, as the fall of the rain. As inescapable as death. "You're my whole world, Norman. I love you."

His long, thin arms tightened around her, and his chest rumbled under her ear. "I love you, too, Mother. Always."

.

"There will be time to murder and create,
And time for all the works and days of hands
That lift and drop a question on your plate;
Time for you and time for me..."

.

Norman managed the hotel during the day while his mother went to school. She was blossoming in a way he'd never seen before, bursting with achievement and excitement. He loved how happy and fulfilled she looked when she finished a new project or came home with a perfect score on her test. How she twirled around the house happily, still going through the motions of making dinner and dusting shelves, but it was different. She was different; bright, shiny, new.

It was quite the role reversal.

When she'd made it home, they would let Emma take over the office and retire to the house where he worked on his latest project- a book. It was a thriller, a murder mystery, and his own newly remembered experiences added a bit of realism to the imagery, which he tried not to dwell on. Norma would have dinner on the table by six o'clock sharp, just like always, but since Dylan had finally moved out, Norman would sweep in as she finished laying out the dishes and give her a kiss.

Things were perfect really, better than Norman ever thought they could be. They were sweet and loving with each other, never lacking in physical affection, though they both held themselves mostly in check when it came to the more intimate side of their romance. Norma still felt guilty, and Norman didn't want to scare her off again.

For now, they were happy.

.

"I asked him for it.

For the blood, for the rust,

for the sin..."

.

They proceeded with caution down their path, confining kisses and caresses to the safety of their home, moving forward in small steps to where they were comfortable.

The waiting was beginning to tire them both.

Norma hadn't meant for it to turn out this way; there was something about the blue flowered dress she was wearing that seemed to draw Norman in. So she playfully teased and flirted, even before they'd returned to their home, backing off slightly as she received their new customers, at least until they were alone again.

By the time Emma arrived to relieve them for the afternoon, he was fidgety, watching her quietly from the parlor, where he was slowly filing away receipts. As soon as Emma entered, he jumped up and closed the box he was organizing, startling Norma out of her greeting. "Mom and I have something we need to take care of at the house," he said, posture stiff and voice tight. He took her arm and pulled her out of the office.

"Oh!" Norma exclaimed. "Yes, of course! I'll come back and check on you later, Emma, dear!"

Norman's grip tightened on her elbow as he rushed her up the stairs. "Norman, what's-"

"You've been teasing me all day, woman!" he hissed. "I can't take it anymore!"

He urged her up the stairs and into her bedroom, and somehow, a few minutes later, she was on her back in the bed they now shared. Her chest heaved, naked between the edges of the open top of her dress. Her legs were spread, and her skirt was hiked up, her son's hand disappearing between her thighs. His fingers curled and slipped inside her, making her shudder and arch as his lips caressed her neck. "I want you to come now," he murmured in her ear, increasing his pace. "Come for me, Mother..." His use of that word shouldn't make it even better, but somehow it did. She gasped and clutched and shuddered, spinning outward into the universe with a grateful oath as her body shook and clenched around the intrusion.

As she calmed, breath steadying, her legs spread invitingly and her body begged for him. The dominant man who had worked her to her peak and then instantly moved between her thighs was suddenly gone, and replaced with an unsure boy whose hands were frozen on his belt buckle, all wide eyes and trembling limbs. "Is this- I mean, do you- we don't have to, if you don't-"

Norma felt something blossom in her chest at his words. No one had ever cared only for what she wanted, and she felt strangely like crying. Instead, leaning up on her elbow, she ran her fingers soothingly through his hair and then cupped his cheek. "I want to," she said, and he smiled as her hand dropped to his. She helped him as he frantically unbuckled his belt and pushed his trousers down around his thighs, gently stroking the flushed, hot length that emerged. Then, she guided him into position, and he pushed inside her with a hopeless groan.

She hadn't had anything that size inside of her in months, but though it was overwhelming, it wasn't painful, and she reveled in the sensation. "Norman," she breathed, clutching his arms tightly. It wasn't until she began to wonder why he wasn't moving that she noticed her son shaking over her. "Honey, what is it?" she asked quietly, wrapping him completely in her arms and legs. Her heart sped with concern that they had finally gone too far, that he'd never be able to truly love her again.

His voice was strained and breathless. "I won't last long," he admitted, despairing. "I'm sorry..."

A soothing balm covered her heart, and she peppered his face with kisses. "It's fine," she breathed, squeezing her muscles around him and smiled at his low grunt. He started moving, slowly, with jerking movements. "That's right. That's my good boy," Norma breathed.

Norman had been truthful. He lost himself in a frantic, rough rhythm, biting her neck, and she only held him tighter. Within minutes, he went rigid over her, growling into her skin like a feral beast and pushing into her hard until he was spent. Norma didn't mind; feeling him lose himself inside her filled her with a deep satisfaction she had never known with any other lover. "Oh, sweetheart," she whispered happily. "That was amazing."

Norman rolled to the side, and she took the opportunity to completely remove her dress before turning to open his button down shirt. "I'm sorry, Mother," he said again, breathless and ashamed, but so unable to look away from her.

She shushed him, easing his arms out of the sleeves and pulling his pants and briefs all the way off his thin legs. "I already told you, I don't mind," she whispered, crawling under the covers with him. "I love you," she sighed happily, watching the anxiety on his face changing to pure joy. "There'll be many more times for you to prove yourself."

Laughing, her son pulled her into his embrace. "I love you, too," he said against her hair.

The the angle of the sunlight streaming in the window slowly changed as they cuddled and talked. They already knew as much about each other as another person could, but now they confessed their secret fantasies; being "out" together in public, living somewhere they wouldn't need to hide, somewhere no one knew them, where the worst anyone would have to say would be about their age difference.

Norma looked up in surprise when her son mentioned wanting children. "What?" she asked, turning to him in shock. "What do you mean children?"

"I mean kids, Mom," he said, smiling at her expression, "Like, you know, smallish people that you take care of while they grow? I'm fairly sure you have one or two..." His joking tone faded as she turned away from him, curling in on herself. "What did I say?" he asked, mimicking her posture so his body sheltered hers and she would feel secure.

Norma felt tears gathering in her eyes. She should have known this would be temporary, after all. Norman was still a young man, he'd probably move on eventually. She should just enjoy this while she could, and try to move on too, when it was over. "We can't ever have kids together."

.

"Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom..."

.

"Of course we can, you silly woman!" Norman said, smiling. He kissed under her ear and rocked her gently. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on, Norman!" she said, hiding her face, clearly trying to sound matter of fact and falling miserably. "I'm thirty-nine years old! I can't be having more babies in a few years. We both know that."

"Then we'll start early, or we'll adopt somehow," he asserted.

"Norman..."

"I already know you're the best mother in the world." His voice was soft and sweet as he stroked her flank gently. "Who else would I want helping to raise my own children?"

His mother finally relaxed a bit. "Let me think about it." Her voice was tiny, quiet in a way it never was. She was thinking about something she wanted but didn't think possible.

The image of her with a swollen belly, carrying his child, did something to Norman's insides, made them quiver with unfamiliar yearning. His manhood was responding to the thought too, and he softly cupped her breast, giving her time to stop him if the contact was unwelcome. "Mother," he murmured mischievously, fingers teasing her pert nipple, "I think I might be ready to try to prove myself again..."

Norma shook herself and smiled, eagerly arching her back as she set aside the issue, burying it in her subconscious.

.

To Be Continued

.

Quotes taken from:

"When You Are Old" by William Butler Yeats

"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S. Eliot

"Persephone Speaks" by Daniella Michallen

"Sonnet #116" by William Shakespeare

.