The most irritating thing, she thinks, is how quickly she notices his foul mood when the party arrives at Flanoir.
The irony was so strong she could almost taste it. Silence. That was all anyone ever demanded of Zelos, be it in the form of a "shhhh" or a "DAMMIT, YOU ROTTEN CHOSEN, SHUT THE FUCK UP!"
And here it was, glistening, golden.
All it makes her want to do is throw up.
The party heads for the inn as quickly as possible (Lloyd leads the way, shouting excitedly about the snow) and she studies him as stealthily as she can, catching seemingly innocent glimpses as often as possible. His head is bowed, and he hasn't spoken more than 5 words since arrival, and only when prompted.
She hates herself for knowing something that specific, and she also hates how no one else seems to notice.
Rooms are booked, food is ordered, and the party occupies the lodge's common area. Sheena is more than happy to sit down with Colette, Lloyd, and Genis and chat while enjoying the fire roaring nearby. Presea sits in the ring of people as well, silently looking on, occasionally smiling. Regal has taken his seat at the bar across the lobby, and Raine has somehow produced a book out of nowhere to read.
It takes her entirely too long to realize he's missing, and when she does, her heart skips a beat in a way that makes her sweat.
Excusing herself as inconspicuously as possible, she begins her search, repeating over and over in her head that she's just getting for some fresh air (and maybe seeking a glimpse of red hair).
A sweep of the hotel produces no results, and her heart sinks into her stomach when she realizes he's alone in his room.
She squeezes her eyes shut and tries to recall earlier—
"Oi," a tap on his shoulder was enough to get him to spin towards her, and the look in his eyes told her that she had his undivided attention— a possible first, she thinks, noting the shiver it sends through her.
Her voice dies in her throat, and she can't choke anything out, despite wanting to ask if he is okay.
She apparently waits too long to speak, and Zelos' face breaks into a wolfish grin. "This is my room, your highness. Yours is further down the hall. You're more than welcome to come in, though. I can think of a few things we could do together."
Think. Think. She focuses on the wall behind him as sharply as she can—
Room 215.
Without a second thought she's walking, no— running, no— sprinting.
The tightness in her chest grows, and she notes it's not from the cardio. What the fuck is wrong with her?
It isn't until she's standing dead in front of the door that her courage disappears. The plaque reading 215 hangs on the wall, taunting her. Inaudibly cursing, she stares down the door. How does one approach interrupting another's private time? Does she barge in? It is Zelos, after all. Privacy isn't his forte.
Then she freezes. What if he has a girl in there?
That's it, she furiously decides, turning away from the door. She had been worried over nothing, and there was no need for her to come here.
The door swings open. She swears time stops.
Finally, an irritatingly familiar voice drawls, "well are you coming in or what?"
She spins on her heels, ready to angrily chide him for being so presumptuous that she wants to come inside, but stops dead in her tracks. Her breath hitches in her throat, something she desperately hopes he doesn't notice. He's shirtless.
She stares for what she knows is too long before skillfully averting her eyes, and speaks while blushing furiously: "I never said I was coming in."
He doesn't move a muscle, his long torso still hanging in the door frame, one hand holding a glass of brown liquid. It hits her that he's drinking.
"Well, you wouldn't be here if you didn't have something to say," he muses annoyingly, now leaning on the side of the frame and feigning intrigue.
Fuck you, she thinks.
"If you want to talk," he continues, turning his back to her abruptly but pushing on the door one last time to keep it open for a few more valuable moments, "you can come inside."
She waits until the last second then grabs the door with an audible "oh, fuck me."
He chuckles darkly, a sound she hates more than anything else.
She sits down on the recliner that came standard in the room, and awkwardly tries to tie together words, frustrated when everything she cobbles together sounds wrong. The silence is palpable as he spoons ice into second glass with his back to her before pouring some of the liquid into it.
Her eyes are on the ground before he jolts her out of her thoughts and back to reality by holding the drink out in front of her.
"I'm underage," she says flatly.
"Yeah, yeah," he responds, clearly not caring. She takes the glass.
He takes a seat on the bed facing her, and she is once again reminded of the fact that he is shirtless. Her heart races and she fucking hates that she wants to touch and expose every part of his torso, deceptively well defined.
"Sheena," his voice snaps her back to reality again, and she looks up to meet his gaze, instantly able to tell that he knows she was ogling him.
"O-Oh," the words stumble from her lips, and she takes a deep breath. Her mind is still completely discombobulated, and she tries to push the image of him shirtless out of her head. Finally sipping her drink for the first time (disgusting, she thinks), she finally manages to spit out: "Something is wrong with you."
The sound of his laughter makes her head want to explode. "You're going to have to be more specific."
"I mean," she can feel her face flushing furiously, "since we got to Flanoir."
He freezes up, and she instantly notes the unexpected reaction. It's fleeting, however, and he hunches back into his relaxed posture.
It surprises her when he takes a few moments to speak.
"I just don't like snow."
The question "why?" dies in her throat as she thinks about how she would feel if someone asked her why she hated lightning so much. In this, she thinks, they can somehow understand each other. Internally, she groans. Hell has frozen over.
Silence permeates the room once more. He's gazing out the window, clearly in his own world. She's never seen him like this.
Is that pain in his eyes?
It is, she quickly realizes, noting that it's identical to her own whenever someone brings up Volt. There's no mistaking it.
Before she knows it, she's set the glass aside and is up and moving, and then she's standing less than a foot away from him, defiantly meeting his confused gaze and desperately trying not to stare at his chest, despite her eyes being drawn to it and his various scars.
He's clearly dumbfounded by both her movements and her proximity, and Sheena thinks to herself that she would pay a million gald to have his expression at this exact moment painted as a portrait.
"Zelos," she breathes in, hating how easily his name rolls off her tongue.
He shifts slightly, his eyes burning.
"Let's have sex." She manages to blurt it out before quickly swerving her head to the side, not really wanting to see his reaction, knowing that her entire face is bright red.
"I— Are you—?" He's spluttering, clearly unable to form a full sentence, completely caught off guard.
"Hear me out," she says as bravely as she can, although it comes out as more of a squeak anyway. "I just— I was thinking— you've been in such a bad mood since we got here, and—"
There's no response from him for a moment, and then he darkly says, "so, sex is what you think a cure-all is for me, then? That's all there is to me?"
"No," she snaps.
His gaze darts up to her face and she can't help but notice how serious his expression is.
Another deep breath.
"Sex with me could be." She finally goes back to staring him straight in the eyes, and watches them smolder at the blatant suggestion.
"Sheena," he says slowly, and she hates how good her name feels coming from his mouth, "you need to think about this."
"I have."
"Not enough, clearly."
Silence, yet again, and then slow movement.
He flinches when she reaches out with a shaky hand and grips his shoulder.
"Do I scare you?" She asks, noting that she almost sounds sad, and hating it.
"No," the response is quick, and the follow up makes her breath hitch, "I'm scared of what I would do to you."
Her face scrunches up in confusion. "Zelos, really, what the fuck does that mean?"
In a flash he's stood up, wrapped an arm tightly around her waist, and grabbed one of her wrists with a vice grip in his hand. He's strong, she notes— stronger than his appearance would suggest.
"I'm saying that you need to think about what you're getting into here," his voice is practically a hiss, his lips next to her ear after he leans forward and places his chin in the dip of her shoulder.
"I have."
"You're a virgin, Sheena,"
She blushes furiously, "how do you know that?"
The smirk he throws her is like a punch in the gut. "Let's just say I'm well aware of and have helped break 'Mizuho tradition' in the past."
Everything she has to say stalls in her throat, before she finally says "I don't care."
"You're not like me," he says darkly, planting a kiss on her shoulder. The area he kisses burns in the best way possible. "Your first time should be special."
More silence. He remains frozen on the same spot, content not to move until she speaks.
"Don't give me that romantic bullshit, you stupid chosen." she finally spits, mind made up. "We could all die tomorrow, you're in a terrible mood, and I'm not dying a virgin."
There's a long pause.
"And you're sure this is what you want,"
"Yes."
That's all he needs to hear.
His movements are swift, and with his right hand he's tugged hard on one of the ends of her large pink bow. The binding piece of fabric falls to the floor, and Zelos is quick to place one hand on her hip, while speedily yanking open her top with the other.
She stands there, her breasts not yet on full display but nestled comfortably in her white bra, blushing furiously. She's always been aware that she's well endowed, but the longer time passes, the more nervous she gets, awaiting some kind of reaction.
Finally, she raises her eyes to meet his, and notices how hungrily he's eying her, like a hunter would his prey.
His next movements are much more carefully calculated. Without hesitation, he reaches up and lets her hair down with his right hand, tangling his fingers in her black locks, and then without warning, pulls down her bra on the left side.
She has half a mind to protest before she feels one of his fingers passes over an erect pink nub and an involuntary whimper escapes her mouth.
Zelos makes a noise similar to a growl and wastes no time yanking her entire undergarment down, not bothering to remove it entirely. She finds him taking her right breast in his hand and rubbing his thumb against her nipple, and attacking her left breast with his mouth, sucking expertly.
Her back arches dramatically and she hates the small chuckle that escapes him as he tugs on her hair and pulls her head back, making it so her breasts are more exposed.
"If I didn't know any better," he says between licking and sucking her nipples, being sure to switch breasts so as to divide his attention equally, "I'd think you like this." She yelps a little when he pinches a nub, rolling it between two fingers.
"That's not— I've never been—" Her protests die as he suddenly withdraws, whirls her around, and backs her up against the bed so that she falls back onto it, breasts now completely exposed to the cold air, chest heaving as she tries to focus and wrack her brain for some kind of sarcastic remark.
She utterly fails when he unexpectedly runs his left hand up the inside of her leg, and presses his mouth hungrily onto hers.
His lips are abnormally soft, she thinks briefly, before she nearly jumps out of her skin when Zelos' hand casually runs over the sensitive spot between her legs. Though still covered by leggings, she curses herself for not wearing underwear today, and also for the wetness that blatantly has soaked through her clothing there.
He clearly notices and she watches a dark expression cross his face accompanied by a smug smirk that she would normally want to slap right off.
"You know," Zelos runs his hand along her leg again, taking time to plant burning kisses on and around her right breast, occasionally flicking her nipple with his tongue, "I've thought about this before."
"About us? H-Having sex?" She struggles to speak and remain her composure while he touches her, think that it's enough but most definitely not enough at the same time.
He doesn't answer, but instead smoothly slides his hand down her stomach and slips it under the top of her leggings. She notices his eyebrows shoot up in surprise at the lack of underwear, and for just a moment Sheena wishes she could crawl into a hole in the ground.
She finds that feeling is fleeting, too, as his fingers expertly find her opening with no trouble whatsoever. Before she can curse his obvious experience, Zelos plunges a finger into her warm folds without a word or warning, and Sheena's hips buck upwards, surprising even her.
He withdraws the digit slowly, and stares her right in the eyes while he licks her off of his finger. She shudders when he finishes, and it does not go unnoticed.
"Fuck, Sheena," he grins in a lustful manner and throws his head back, running one hand through his long red hair, his other hand once again lingering near her pussy. "You're so fucking wet."
There's a pause before she finally asks, "i-is that bad?"
His gaze snaps to her again, and there's a look on his face she can't quite place.
"…It means it's going to be harder to control myself," Zelos finally says slowly, as if he's carefully choosing his words.
"I'm not sure what you mean, Zelos," she says, and for the first time she notes that he reacts strangely when she says his name, almost like his chest tightens, "but if I wanted you to control yourself I wouldn't be here."
In a flash he's on top of her, his crimson red hair cascading downward around them. It smells fragrant, she thinks, and is delighted by the scent. For a moment they stay there, her basking in his pheromones, breathing hard, and him eying her with something akin to yearning.
She's surprised when he gently takes her hand. Carefully he slowly guides it downward, until he makes her brush up against his pants. She sucks in a breath when she feels something hard and thick there. Oh.
"I'm going to ask you one more time," he whispers in her ear almost tantalizingly, "is this what you want?"
Her unexpected grip on his cock is apparently answer enough. A moan slides past his lips and into her ear and wow, she likes that sound.
It takes him mere moments to undo his pants and yank down his boxer briefs, no doubt due to the before mentioned experience. His erection springs free, and Sheena can't help but take a moment to stare at it, noting its size and how it pulses angrily with want.
Then he's moved between her legs, positioning himself at her entrance. He lightly pushes just the tip of his cock against her opening and she lets a loud noise escape her throat. He sucks air in through his teeth and she feels his hands clench her legs hard, clearly affected by her vocalizations.
Her wetness is like a drug for him, and he rubs his cock up and down along her entrance, watching her writhe beneath him, desperately craving something she's never had. He's riding a power high, watching the woman who's always claimed to hate him the most yearn for him even more than that.
It isn't until she instinctively begins to move and grind her hips to push her pussy down over the head of his cock that he finally snaps.
Leaning forward, he places his lips near her ear once more and says in a tone she just might have labeled as gentle if she could rationally think at the moment, "just relax and bear with me, Sheena."
She savors the way her name sounds at that moment and then starts to whine loudly as she feels him slowly begin to slide his cock inside of her. He pauses, seemingly alarmed at the noise, and looks up at her questioningly. She nods, barely breathing, eyes glazed over, silently permitting him to continue.
He inches inside of her, and he loves how she tightens around him, her pussy both pulling him inside and rejecting him at the same time. He groans as he feels himself grow even harder inside her and it takes all he has not to simply slam into her like he would with any other girl.
But this is different, he thinks. This isn't one of his floozies, or some girl he's picked up at the hotel bar. This is Sheena, who can make his heart skip a beat by simply saying his name, who smells of roses and some other delicate floral notes he can't place, who knows him better than practically anyone (although he's sure she would vehemently protest if she heard that).
Once his full length is inside her, he runs his hand delicately up her back, trying to signal her that he's reached the end.
She pauses for a long moment, adjusting and simply feeling, and then wiggles her hips, eliciting a tortured hissing noise from Zelos,
Wordlessly, she pulls his chin up so his gaze meets hers and she brushes his hair aside, giving him a look that says everything necessary.
He withdraws almost all the way, and then plunges back inside of her.
The cry he elicits from her is like no other sound she's ever made, and no other sound he's ever heard. He growls in response and begins steadily thrusting into her, savoring her sweet wetness and the tightness of her walls around him.
She's twisting underneath him, one hand grasping at the sheets desperately and the other tangled in his hair as she alternates between moaning and whimpering based on the speed and pressure of his movements.
It takes mere moments for him to fall into rhythm with the grinding of her hips and she gasps as he hits a spot she didn't even know existed. Her back arches and he curses audibly before silencing himself by taking a breast in his mouth again, this time not only sucking but biting her nipple.
She throws her head back and mewls, clamping her eyes shut, body overwhelmed by all the new sensations.
"Sheena," his voice is thick like syrup when it reaches her ears.
She shudders at how much she likes the way it sounds and then opens her eyes, looking up at him and finally seeing nothing but sheer desire in his eyes.
"I want you to say my name."
She feels herself blushing furiously and looks anywhere but at him, eyes darting around the room, trying her hardest to stop feeling like an embarrassed schoolgirl. "W-Why?"
He rolls his hips casually, hitting that spot within her again and she whines loudly in response. "Because,"
She's about to protest that that's not a real reason when he draws out and plunges into her again, quickly establishing that in this situation there is no doubt that he holds all the power. Without any type of warning he begins thrusting into her again, falling back into the movement of his hips from moments before.
Finally, in a strangled cry, it escapes her mouth almost involuntarily: "Zelos!"
Immediately following the sound, his grip on her tightens and his thrusts grow stronger, faster, smoother, as she whines like a child beneath him, helpless and trapped by her own lust.
"Again," he orders, his tone dark and demanding.
She practically sobs with desire and brings her hand that is not tangled in the sheets to her mouth, biting down on her thumb when he changes the angle of his hips and somehow his thrusts feel brand new.
"Zelos," she says this time, in a passionate whisper she didn't even know she had been capable of.
He grunts loudly and his thrusts start to feel more erratic, more hungry, more desperate, and his lips have suddenly found hers again. Bypassing receiving any kid of permission, his tongue invades her mouth and he bites down on her lower lip, tasting her while trying in vain to contain himself.
She bucks her hips upward and a choked voice reaches her ears, "Fuck, Sheena, I'm going to cum in you."
Too overwhelmed to decipher what he says in any way, she cries out when she feels his cum shoot inside her, giving her a feeling of satisfaction and completion she wasn't sure she had ever felt before. Shaking beneath him, breathing like she's just finished a training session, she feels his cock twitch a few times inside of her, spent.
He collapses onto her, still inside her, breathing heavily.
It takes her a few moments to return to earth, and when she does she takes the time to take in the moment, blissful and peaceful. She can no longer feel a foul aura emitting from him, and feels oddly proud that she seems to have helped his mood.
"Did I help?" She asks, half sarcastically, half genuinely, in that mocking tone she knows he loves to hate.
There's no reply, and she wonders if he's fallen asleep already.
Her question is answered when she feels him slowly move back on top of her and push into her again, his cock already hardening once more, surrounded by her wetness.
"Sorry," he says, not sounding sorry at all, reaching downward with his hand to suddenly find the small pink bundle of nerves that she's only ever touched herself, making her spasm involuntarily and cry out, arching her back, her breasts pressing up against his chest. She feels him harden even more inside her and can tell without seeing his face that he's grinning.
"I just really hate snow."