"Nasu. Nasu. Nasu."

Kurosaki looked away from the road for a moment at Teru's mutter and found her tapping away on his smartphone. "What are you doing?"

She bit her lip as she clicked away on the tiny keyboard. "I'm looking up the town we're going to."

He swallowed a chuckle as she gingerly poked at the touch screen. He'd long since replaced her original 'Daisy' phone that had gotten ruined on the island, but she'd insisted on a cheap, simple model, one with just text and phone. Because of that (and her being poor), she was unused to such tech except when she fiddled with his. Heck, he was impressed she'd been able to get on the Internet. "It's a town with hot springs," he shrugged. "What's there to look up?"

She sniffed and kept tapping. "Where is it, exactly? What kind of hot springs? Mineral rich? Sulphurous? Milky? Can I get black eggs there?" She rambled, speaking of a typical hot spring delicacy. "Is there anything else there to do like hand gliding or mountain climbing?"

"Um, I think it's called hang gliding," he interjected, amused and relieved at her rambling. She'd been so nervous when he'd stuffed her into the car at the school that she'd been beet red and silent for the first half hour of their trip up north. He'd tried to ease her mood by talking about the ceremony, which had included Rena and Kiyoshi presenting him with a plaque for faithful service (which had made her 'snrk') to the school as it was his last day. He'd talked about the Ministry job and the training period he'd have to endure for most of the summer before he took his official post. He essentially talked about anything but the next week. It had worked, too.

Teru had finally calmed down enough by then to ask him about his new job. She'd reached out and took his hand when he'd admitted that he'd miss seeing her at all hours of the day at school and having a bevy of slaves to push work onto.

He did not seem to appreciate her consoling 'poor baby'.

Now, three hours into the drive, she was finally talking about the trip. He smiled as she talked about everything but 'that'. He understood how her mind worked. She like to plan, make lists, and learn new things. If he'd told her about their destination even a few days ago she would have had entire ream of information ready to go. He also understood that she was keeping herself busy now so as not to focus on the one aspect of their relationship that was going to change this week.

He rolled his shoulders and tried not to think of it either, but for a different reason.

"What's the name of the place?"

"The Green Mist Inn," he told her, then quickly reached out and took the phone from her before she could look it up. "Ah ah," he tucked the phone into his jacket despite her protests. "I want it to be a surprise."

"Please?" Teru put her hands together in supplication. "I won't look up the inn, but I could see what else we could do and what restaurants we could go to and maybe a..."

"Teru."

She closed her mouth and sat back in the seat, aware, as he was, that she had been babbling with renewed nerves. She didn't look at him when he picked up her hand, but she did sigh when he simply kissed her fingers.

"I'm really nervous."

"No!" He said in mock disbelief, smiling as he wove their fingers together. "I'd never have guessed."

"Go bald, Kurosaki," she laughed, and scrubbed her free hand over her face. "There aren't very many of us pure maidens nowadays, you know."

"I know," he said solemnly , even as he nibbled on her fingers. "Believe me, Teru, I know how to appreciate rare and precious things. And trust me when I say that even after,"

He looked away from the road for a moment and met her eyes with a look that made her heart and stomach jump in symphony. "What we have will still be rare and precious."

She squeezed his hand and blinked back tears, grateful that his gaze was on the road once more. "It already is."

"Yeah," he agreed gruffly. "It is."

She took a breath and steeled her nerves. "Um, how will it be different?"

"How will it be different, I mean, between us? Once we, you know... " she stuttered, keeping her eyes firmly on the road ahead. "Will everything change? Will you feel different about me? Will I feel different about you? I mean," she swallowed and clung to his hand and finished softly, "What if you're disappointed?"

He didn't answer for a moment, but he did let go of her hand. She glanced over at him and got doubly nervous when she saw the serious look on his face as he stared at the road. "Kurosaki?"

"One second. Wait one second."

She jumped a bit as he made a sudden turn into a lot by the road, filled with empty trucks and canopied by trees. He parked between two towering semi's and then killed the engine.

"Um," she tried warily as he, still without looking at her, adjusted his seat so that it sat all the way back, then tilted the steering wheel all the way up. "Kurosaki, what are you...eep!" She helped as he deftly unbuckled her seatbelt and then scooped her into his lap.

Kurosaki took his time, moving her around until she sat astride his lap with her legs on either side of his. Even in this position, he was still taller than her, so he tipped her red face up to meet his. "Sorry," he said, lifting a finger to tuck her hair behind her ear. "But I couldn't answer those questions while driving."

"Ah, sorry." Her mind had blanked at his quick ministrations. And his thighs were so hard and hot under hers and she she didn't know where to put her hands, so she wrapped them around herself. "Sorry," she said again when he just sat there, staring at her face and playing with her hair. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

He gave her a loving smile that was wicked enough at the edges to have her legs momentarily clenching around his. That made his smile drop and his eyes heat. Teru could feel her breath coming shorter and faster, especially when his hands dropped down to sit on her waist.

His gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips and he bent forward, only to lean back with a quick jerk when Teru lifted her face in welcome. "Not yet," he said with a shake of his head, and Teru didn't know if he was telling her or himself, but the rasp in his voice did nothing to help her breathing. "You didn't make me uncomfortable, Teru," he told her. "I want you to ask me anything. About anything, understand?"

She nodded and gave him a shaky smile. "Yeah. And you too."

He laughed and leaned his head back against the headrest as he closed his eyes for a moment. "Don't tell me that right now. I'll just ask what color your panties are or..."

"They're white."

Teru was glad his eyes were still closed so he couldn't see the color of red that her face had to be right now. He'd stopped breathing, she realized, for a full second, then she jumped as his hands clenched on her waist hard enough to bruise.

She saw his mouth move and realized he was counting to ten, so she sat very still and tried not to die of embarrassment until he finished.

He opened gleaming eyes and loosened his hands. He cleared his throat. "Sorry, and...thank you," he gave her a quick, biting kiss before settling back. "It's so different from getting punched or being told to 'go bald' that it threw me for a moment." Holding her gaze, he ran his thumb over the curve of her hip, making sure to rasp slowly over the faint ridge of her panties through her skirt. "And that information will hold me for days, so thank you."

Her throat had snapped shut at his brief touch so she just nodded, barely aware that her hands were now braced on his chest.

"Anyway," he coughed. "You had questions, right?" He waited for her nod. "Then here's an answer: If you're in love," he said simply, looking her straight in the eyes, "then making love is a oneness of body and spirit that's not like anything else. It's a whole other way to communicate," he raised a hand to cup her cheek, and felt his heart tumble for the millionth time when she leaned into his touch. "It's a way to say 'I love you',,'I missed you," 'I'm sorry', or 'thanks for taking the trash out'." He dropped his hand back to her waist with a smile as she snorted. "Anyway," he continued, "it can say all those things without saying a word."

She stared at him, her embarrassment at her position and the topic fading away at his words. "That sounds amazing."

He shrugged his shoulders. "There's also the mind-numbing, blissed-out, pleasure factor," he mentioned casually. "And let me tell you," he said with a grin. "That part is aaaaaawesome."

Teru leaned forward and rested her head against his chest as she laughed. "Right. That. I forgot about that."

"Girls always do seem to forget about that part," he murmured, then yelped when she pinched him. "Not that I anything about that, of course."

"Of course," she snickered, then grew quiet. "But you have been with other women. It's okay," she reassured him when she felt him tense up. "You've been a grown man for a long time. But still," she gripped his shirt a little harder. "I don't know anything. How to do anything. I'm an A cup shortie! How will that make you happy at all?!"

"Don't be an idiot," he grabbed her shoulders and leaned her back until they were nose to nose. "Because it's you," he told her fiercely, softly, then briefly kissed her with the same intensity as the words that followed. "Because you already make me happy just the way you are. And the rest," he kissed her again, a simple press of lips that was filled with love and longing. Her head was spinning when he finally lifted his head. "The rest is icing on what's already the best cake in the world."

Her eyes grew damp as he put his hands back on her waist and rested his forehead against hers. "I love you, Kurosaki."

"I've been in love with you for a really long time," he said quietly. "I know your head and your heart better than I know my own. And this week," he kept his eyes on hers as he slid his hands down from her waist to the top of her legs where her skirt rode up her thighs. He wrapped his hands around her outer legs then slid them back, and back, until his hands were cupped around white lace that covered her cheeks. He didn't do anything else, he just reveled in the jerking gasp, then the groan that she gave, then the bite of her nails as her hands gripped his arms. "I'm going to know all of you. Until...," he leaned forward and bit her chin at the same time he traced the ruffled edges of her panties with his fingers, sliding a single finger under the elastic to rub at the curve of,her cheek, and the softest skin on earth. "Until I can map every part of your body by feel alone."

He bent his head and pressed a soft kiss against the junction where her shoulder met her neck.

And then he bit her.

"Kurosaki!" Already panting, lost in a sea of sensation at the feel of his hands, the bite had her flinging her head back as her body began to tremble and throb. She felt the black edges of panic creeping in like they had in the past when just kissing had gotten intense, and she shook her head. "What do I do?" she gasped as his tongue traced where her shirt met her skin. "I feel like I'm going to pass out if we don't stop." She gave a low and shaky moan when his nails scraped against her ass that had him groaning against her throat. "And I don't want to stop," she whispered.

He laid his head on her shoulder and tried to think past the reality of Teru in his lap, in his hands, and the taste of her on his tongue. "Breathe," he instructed. "You have to breathe. And," he told her as he took off her school tie. "You have to remember that what you're feeling is pleasure." He lifted his head a fraction so he could undo her shirt buttons to right below her collarbone. "Breathe," he reminded her in a puff against her skin since she'd already forgotten. "Tell yourself that the heat, the trembling," and could feel her trembling from every point of contact. "The haze that covers your mind until all you can feel is me," he used his nose to nudge aside the edges of the shirt, then simply drew in the scent of her. "It's all exactly what you want." He nuzzled the tantalizing hollow he'd uncovered then kissed his way back up her throat until he returned to her lips. "And you want more," he murmured against her mouth, and then he kissed her.

He was right, she thought hazily as he kissed her hard and deep, she did want more. She wanted this. Him, as his own passions slipped the leash and he all but devoured her. One arm circled her hips to pull her in closer and tighter against him, and the other gripped her hair and held her at the angle he wanted to kiss her deeper, harder, and longer than he ever had before.

So she kissed him back. She kept one hand clenched on his shirt in case, her fevered mind reasoned, he tried to get away, and the other slid into his hair to clench at the strands and pull him closer. She returned his feelings with the kiss, following his tongue with her own when he pulled it back, and echoing the movements he'd made with a softly passionate version of her own.

The result was electrifying. Kurosaki groaned right into her mouth and the sound had her clutching him tighter and slanting her head until she found the perfect fit. Soon even that level of purposeful thought was lost and she gave herself over to the pleasure.

God. Oh god, Kurosaki thought as they broke briefly for air. Then she tipped her head back and opened her mouth and he was nearly sucked back into the vortex. He closed his eyes against the temptation and put his hand on her shoulder to hold her back. That's also when he realized that he'd had one arm completely up the back of her shirt and a hand wrapped around the back of her neck. He opened his eyes as he drew it back out, spreading his hand wide so that he could feel everything on his way, her skin pure silk and the thin line of her bra a desperate temptation. When she closed her eyes and shuddered he had to close his again or risk losing it. He reached up and tugged off the hand that was still buried in his hair. "Teru."

The pure gravel of his tone had her knees going weak and she sat back abruptly, at which they both gave a gasping cry and looked down. During the kiss Kurosaki had slid further down the seat, pulling her closer until she actually raised up on her knees. The end result was that now she'd sat directly on the erection confined within his dress pants.

Teru closed her eyes and fought the nerves, the fear, and even the pleasure that resulted from the contact. She also tried not to move as the slightest movement created nerve-shaking friction that made her feel like she was going to pass out. The lace, with it's textured material, was not helping. "Kurosaki?" He twitched against her and she cried out, her hand flailed for purchase and ending up slapped up against the window. Her eyes closed and she realized she was whimpering. "Are," her throat was shaking so much she had to swallow and try again. "Are we going to make love now?"

Kurosaki opened his eyes and stared at her with a look so hungry that she reached for him once again.

"No." He caught her hand and slowly brought it to his mouth for a kiss. He then deliberately brought it back to her. "Not in that way. Not today." Without warning he picked her up by the waist and deftly plucked her back to her seat. He then scooted his seat back up, and moving gingerly, rested his forehead on the steering wheel. "And definitely not in a car."

She couldn't help but watch him as she waited for the shaking to stop. Then she noticed that the hands clenched on the wheel beside his head were shaking as much as hers. For some reason that both made her feel better and want to touch him once again. She pressed a hand to the hot knot in her belly instead. "Okay." She patted her hair. "Okay." She said again. When she said his name the next moment he raised a finger in a silent request for another minute. "Ooookay," she nodded and concentrated on her breathing.

Kurosaki did the same and tried not to fixate on every breath she took. "One second," he told her suddenly and got out of the car. He didn't go far, but leaned against the door as he waited for his hard-on to go away. Maybe if he repeated some sutras...

Teru looked outside the window, but all she could see was the broad expanse of Kurosaki's back as he leaned against the door.

She would just sit her, she told herself. Nothing was wrong and they did actually have to stop, even, she turned away from the window when she realized she was trying to outline the muscles in his back with her eyes, if there was one else around and they were in the middle of nowhere. Alone.

She smacked her cheeks. "Sutra time!"

Kurosaki opened the door ten minutes later and paused when he saw Teru sitting cross-legged on her seat with her eyes closed finishing an 'ohm'. He closed his eyes in order to avoid the perfect, perfect legs within his view (and reach) and just got in the car.

Teru opened her eyes with a sigh as the car started and unwound her legs. "Are you okay?" She asked shyly after they silently got back on the road.

"Oh yeah," he nodded with a sly grin in her direction. "You?" She nodded and he took her hand. "I didn't mean for that to happen," he told her honestly.

She stretched in the passenger seat and he almost ran off the road. "I'm glad it did," she told him with a very feminine smile. "I'm not nearly as scared as I was. I still am scared," she told him in a mock whisper that made him laugh, "but boy!"

She made a humming sound that she only did when she was curious or excited about something and he felt his blood began to heat once again.

"Is it always like that?" She asked innocently.

"No." He grinned when her face fell. "It's almost always better." And had the pleasure of seeing her mouth drop open.

She narrowed her eyes at him when he laughed. "Are you kidding me? Because Rena says that..."

She was impressed that he could cover her mouth with one hand while diving without aiming.

"I know," he started, "that you've talked to your friends and read about sex. But," he shot her a glance, "that was about sex, not making love. Got it?"

Her wide eyes regarded him for a moment over his hand, then she shook her head.

"That's okay." He moved his hand, touching a fingertip to her lips before returning his hand to the wheel. "I'll show you later."

She thought of what he'd told her earlier about the mind-numbing, blissed-out, pleasure factor and pressed a hand to her stomach in memory of the fiery inferno that has threatened to burn them both down. He was right (she hoped), this part was going to be awwwwwesome.