Author's note: Hi everyone, this chapter is a little late but here it is! Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, it seems like that specific scene was long overdue, wasn't it? ;) So I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! - hannahorgrace


Chapter 7

She wakes up the next morning entirely naked, the rays of sunshine making their way through the window and gently warming her skin. She turns over to find Will, lying on his stomach, arms around the pillow under his head.

Alicia likes Will. She likes him a lot more than she thought she would, about four months ago, when she first met him. She likes him because she doesn't have to think about how to be around him, she doesn't have to think about how to act, and she likes how she feels when he's around.

She thinks about the previous night, about how it felt to have him touch her, to feel his fingers brush over her skin. She closes her eyes and she can feel his lips against her neck, his hands on her hips, his body all warm and strong against her own.

She feels the weight change on the bed, so she opens her eyes and muffles a scream when she finds Will very awake, arms braced on both sides of her head.

"You scared me!" she scowls, sinking into the mattress as his weight shifts around her.

"What were you thinking of?" he whispers, the edges of his lips turning into a smile.

"Nothing, just— Will, wait," but he interrupts her with a kiss that has her fighting for air in a matter of seconds.

"Good morning," he breathes into her neck.

She smiles, all forms of anger dissolving right away. How does he do this? How does he make her feel so warm and soft on the inside?

She moves under him so their bodies line up and he shivers at the proximity it creates.

"Hey," she whispers.

He leans in to capture her lips in between his again. She lets her hands slide up his chest and over his shoulders, pulling him closer to her. His skin is warm under her fingers, and she can't help but let her hands run over his back, up to his neck, sliding her fingers into his hair.

He kisses her deeply, breathing in at the same time, capturing her lips and then nibbling softly.

"I think I want you again," he whispers in her ear, and she feels the words so intensely, it's as if they make their way inside her body all the way to the center of her bones.

He sees the effect his words have on her and smiles, dragging his teeth softly below her ear and on her neck, down to her collarbone, where he presses his lips again.

She stays silent, letting him do the work, taking all the affection he gives her, and all she wants is for him to tell her, to show her, how much he wants her.

He drags his lips over her stomach softly, leaving warm, wet kisses here and there. She raises her head when she feels him moving away for a second, and then she feels his lips again on the inside of her thigh, hand stroking her other leg gently, slowly rubbing circles against her skin with almost no pressure at all, and it feels so soft and yet so powerful.

"Can I?" he asks. "Have you again?"

She feels him breathe against her thigh, and when his warm breath meets her skin, it sends shivers all through her body. She shuts her eyes to keep the overwhelming sensation under control.

He watches her hand curl against the sheets of her bed, and runs his tongue over her.

"Oh…" she sighs, in a mix of pleasure and surprise.

He smiles. "Again?" he whispers.

She nods, eyes still shut, and he makes sure to never forget the image.

He repeats the gesture and again, he feels her fingers curl tightly around the sheets as her breath quickens.

He finds her hand then, untangles it from the sheets and laces their fingers together. She holds on to him tight, her other hand finding the top of his head, running her fingers through his hair.

He kisses her there, softly, running his lips over her, until he sees her frown, in an effort to keep her hips on the bed. Her leg rises up slowly, bending at the knee, then slides back down and rises back up, until he stops it with a hand on her thigh.

"Hey," he whispers, resting his chin on the top of her thigh. "Do you have somewhere you have to be?"

She breathes out softly, missing his warm touch against her body. "Yes, actually," she starts, and he moves up so that he's hovering above her, hooking her leg around his hip, "I'm a little bored, I was thinking of going to the library—", but then he pushes into her quickly, deeply, making her gasp.

She shuts her eyes and purses her lips, and he feels her fingers grab onto his arm tightly.

He freezes.

"Are you okay?" he asks, worried.

"Mmh," she nods, opening her eyes, breathing out slowly.

"Did I hurt you?" he questions, searching her eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't—"

"No," she interrupts, her hand sliding up to rest on his neck.

"I'm sorry," he says, pressing his lips against her cheek, then her forehead.

"Will, I'm okay," she smiles. "You didn't hurt me."

He scans her eyes, moves slowly inside her, making sure she's all right.

Her eyes close slowly, her mouth opening partly.

"Good?" he asks, cautious.

"Uh-uh," she nods, licking her lips. "Good."

He smiles. He props himself up on his elbows so that his chest rests against hers and kisses her gently, his movements soft and slow.

"Feels good?" he asks, barely a whisper.

She nods but keeps quiet, and he wonders if the proximity, the intimacy somehow bothers her. It's not as dark as it was the night before, the sun making its way through the window and filling her room with a shy morning light. He can see all of her now, but he keeps his eyes trained on hers.

Alicia is a little more cautious, a little more restrained than she was the night before. She feels as if the previous night is stuck in time, as if his kisses and her sighs could be hidden away in her memory, safe and sealed like a secret, out of time and out of space. But she's naked under him again, and he's moving inside her again, and it feels good, it feels so good, but it feels so real, different from the night before.

She thinks of her and Will, and she doesn't know her but she thinks of Helena, and Will and Helena, and she wonders if she's the reason why he broke up with her. Will has never talked much about Helena or their relationship, at least not to her. But she knows that they had been together for a while, and a sudden guilt fills her chest at the idea that she might be the reason he ended things with Helena. Yesterday, it felt like a dream, out of time, out of space, out of reality. But right now is real and she feels the pressure of it like a weight on her chest, and suddenly, it all becomes too much.

"What's wrong?" Will asks, sensing the change in her.

She doesn't answer, so he searches her face for an answer, but her eyes are shut and her lips tightly pursed. "Alicia?"

She shakes her head from side to side, the rest of her body frozen. He frowns and slips out, coming to a sitting position and pulling her up with him.

"What's going on?" he asks, his worried eyes searching hers.

"Nothing," she breathes, her cheeks burning with shame and panic. "I just…"

She finds his eyes and he's definitely worried, like when he thought he'd hurt her before, or when he found her sitting in front of his door the other day and he grabbed her hand and saw that she was freezing. She remembers that he'd stared into her eyes then, and she must have looked devastated and pathetic because the only thing she remembers seeing in his eyes is pity.

"I have to…" she whispers, eyes moving frantically across her room. She gets up suddenly and makes her way to the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

She hears him follow her but he stays behind the door, doesn't try to open.

"Alicia," he starts, his voice full of worry and remorse. "Please talk to me?"

She doesn't answer, just sits on the toilet, and she feels stupid and childish and suddenly, she wants— she needs to be back in his arms, and that scares her even more. She doesn't know why this situation is upsetting her, scaring her even, when all she wants is to feel his body against hers. She's never felt so confused about her own feelings before, and it's driving her crazy.

She hears his footsteps in the next room, and her heart rips apart at the idea that he's walking away, and she's right to be scared because this whole thing was stupid, Will is her friend and they should never—

"Alicia," he says, knocking softly on the door. "If you don't say something I'm going to come in."

She opens her mouth wide, walks to the door, ready to close it, but before she has time to turn the lock, he's opened the door and he's standing in front of her.

She moves past him swiftly and goes to sit on the bed, her back to him, pulling the covers over her body.

He moves around the bed and sits next to her.

"Hey," he asks, leaning in to catch her eyes with his. "What was that?" he whispers.

She keeps her eyes trained on the wall in front of her. "We're being stupid," she says, voice low.

He shakes his head. "I don't think we are."

She turns to look at him, eyebrows pursed in a frown.

"Will, we're friends, we're not… I like what we have—"

"I know what we are—"

"—and I don't want to lose that," she says, voice shaking, lip trembling.

"You're not, Alicia, you're not going to—"

He wraps her in his arms then and she lets him pull her body against his, arms automatically wrapping around his shoulders, head tucked in the crook of his neck.

"I don't want this to mess us up," she whispers.

"It won't," he says running his hand up and down her back through the sheets that are still wrapped around her. "That's not gonna happen. Okay?"

She nods, pulling away gently. "So, we're friends?"

"We are," he smiles, "but," he adds, brushing the hair behind her ear, "I think maybe there's more?" he asks. "Don't you think?"

She pouts, bites her lip, eyes looking everywhere but into his.

"You're afraid it's gonna mess us up?" he asks, using her words.

She nods, but then finds his hand and grabs it, bringing it to her, holding it against her stomach. "I don't want to ruin it," she says, looking down.

"But it won't," he says, voice hopeful. "We won't. We'll take it easy, and slow, and it'll be good, okay? We'll be good."

She smiles, a little sheepish, so he pulls her into his arms again.

"Okay," she whispers.

"Don't go hiding from me though, okay? I mean, I think it's better when we talk, you know?"

She chuckles. "Okay."

He runs his arms up and down her back again, taking in her scent.

"We have to study," she says.

He smiles against her hair. "Okay, let's go then."

"Wait," she says as he's about to move from the bed.

His eyes are questioning, and full of care, and she doesn't know when she'll get used to it but she feels her heart fill with affection, her chest so tight from the feeling. She kneels on the bed in front of him, takes his face in her hands and captures his lips between hers. Slowly, he lets his hands rest on each side of her waist, and kisses her softly, letting her find a rhythm she's comfortable with. Her hands travel to his neck, his shoulders and his waist, and he kneels in front of her to bring their bodies closer together.

"I thought we were studying", he whispers.

"We are," she says, but instead of stopping, she brings her lips softly to nibble at his neck.

He sighs deeply, letting his hand climb slowly up her chest until he's cupping her breast.

"Or we could go read for Criminal Procedure, if you want," she breathes, and he can feel her lips turn into a smile against his skin.

He finds her mouth with his again and kisses her deeply, until they're both out of breath and have to pull away for a minute.

She smiles, lets herself get lost in his eyes, his warm chocolate eyes that break down all her barriers and make her lose her mind, and his smile, that puts it all back together for her, that tells her it's all going to be fine, that they're going to be fine.

They're going to be fine.


Author's note: Hi again, thanks for reading! Thanks again to everyone who reviewed and welcome to the new readers :) Please let me know what you think of this chapter, I love reading your reviews :) I'll have the next chapter up next Monday. Thanks again for reading! - hannahorgrace