Content Advisory: Sex
◈Chapter 11: Something Between Us◈
I shivered in the cold as I watched Zyaire cautiously come down the crooked staircase and flip on the light. He froze as he spotted me through the glass door and, for a horrible, gut-wrenching clock-tick, I expected him to turn and head back up the stairs. I wasn't exactly sure where we had left things…where I had left things…the last time we spoke. However, after his stunned pause, he strode over to unlock the door and quickly usher me inside.
"Poppy, it's freezing out there. What in Oz are you doing here?" he asked in a bewildered tone. He was clearly dressed for bed, wearing a cozy pair of pajama pants and an unbuttoned mismatched flannel thrown over an undershirt.
"Thank Oz you're still here, I wasn't sure when you were going back to The Emerald City," I exhaled, stripping off my gloves and shoving them into my coat pockets as I stepped further into the warmth of the building.
The scent of the shop hit me like a huge wave, triggering the memories I had of that summer to flood back all at once. It was as if a time-capsule had preserved this place exactly as I had remembered it. Not a dust speck had changed. Zyaire and I seemed to be the only things that had been touched at all by time.
"Well, actually—" he started to say, but I cut him off in order to keep my nerve up.
"Zyaire, I have something to tell you…" I said with a breathless determination as I turned to face him.
"I actually have something to tell you too…" he replied, advancing a few steps towards me.
"I'm moving to Vilnius."
"I broke off my engagement with Royce."
We had both shared our news at the precise same moment, which caught us both off-guard. We paused for an instant before speaking over each other once more—
"You broke off your engagement?"
"You're moving to Vilnius?"
We stared at each other with an astonished expression as we soaked in the information and pieced together what it meant. What it meant for us.
"You are?" I asked in a hushed tone, unable to tear my eyes away from his. He just nodded; his lips slightly parted.
"You did?" he questioned softly in turn. I nodded and slowly held up my ungloved hand which now bore no ring.
Silence rang again and we wordlessly took another step towards each other, our hands moving slightly as if they wanted to reach for one another but were being held back by an unseen force.
"Zyaire…" I whispered hoarsely, feeling my heart positively thunder in my chest in a way that it never had before. "Can I kiss you?"
He didn't answer right away, and my heart halted its thundering to plummet in panic. Had I misread things? Was I mistaken?
"I'm sorry—" I apologized at once, feeling my face redden violently. "I felt like…I still felt like…I thought there was something between us—"
Then he kissed me. His warm hands captured the sides of my chilled face and he pressed his lips to mine thoroughly and ardently, a far cry from the innocent goodbye kiss we had shared as teenagers. After a long, long moment, we reluctantly drew apart for breath, and the look in his eyes expressed all I'd ever need to know about how he felt about me.
"There was something…there is…there always was…" he breathed, his thumbs gently stroking my flushed cheeks.
I said nothing. Having gained all of the courage and permission I needed; I simply pressed my lips back to his in a frantic kiss born out of years of desperate longing. He buried his fingers into my windswept curls and passionately returned my affections with the same, indescribable urgency. I knew that we were both thinking the same thing. We had waited years for each other…we weren't about to waste another moment.
His kiss was sentimental. His kiss was nostalgic. In the dead of winter on a freezing night…his kiss felt like summer.
Something about this moment felt so utterly inevitable that it now seemed ridiculous that I had ever worried at all. It was always supposed to be here, it was always supposed to be now, it was always supposed to be us. Our story had never been that of two histrionic teenagers sharing a soon forgotten summer romance. It had always been, and still was, authentic. It was rare. It was special.
He clutched at my waist to pull me flush against him and I tightly wound my arms around his neck. Our embrace soon devolved into hurried, frenzied, short kisses as if we just couldn't manage to get our fill of each other after so much lost time. In a moment of romantic clumsiness, we both stumbled backwards and my back made contact with the counter. As my hand reached out to steady myself, I accidentally knocked over a file filled with receipts and sent them scattering to the floor.
Zyaire and I then, unable to help ourselves, clung to one another tightly as we burst out laughing over the amorous calamity.
"We're the most destructive thing to ever happen to this shop," I declared breathily between laughs.
"Well, we might as well lean into it," he decided boldly, sweeping an arm over the countertop to knock off the remaining receipts. Then, in a surprisingly effortless maneuver, he lifted me up and placed me onto the very counter that I so often used to perch. Emboldened by my new vantage point, I leaned down to caress the sides of his face and pulled him into a slow, stirring kiss.
"Negaliu patikėti kad tai vyksta…" I murmured in a throaty whisper upon pulling away. (I can't believe this is happening.)
"Oz Poppy, I have no idea what you just said but that's the hottest thing I've ever heard," Zyaire confessed, staring up at me with an enthralled expression.
"I'll remember that," I muttered flirtatiously, tracing my index finger along his jawline.
His hands drifted from the sides of my face down my shoulders and arms to rest on my hips. I made a small sound as I shivered at this touch, a trail of goosebumps emerging where his fingers had glided. Our eyes met in an intense gaze and I unconsciously fidgeted in my seat as my body awoke, a new unspoken thing between us all but screaming now.
"Come here…" he muttered hastily, indulging in yet another kiss. Lips still pressed to mine, Zyaire hoisted me off of the counter and into his arms with astounding ease, and I instinctively wrapped my legs around hips to hold steady. He broke away for just a moment and his eyes met mine intently.
"Is this okay?" he asked gently.
"Yes," I whispered back eagerly.
He held me securely as he carried me up the crooked staircase and into the tiny, empty apartment that resided above the shop. The bedroom had faded wallpaper and on a heavily slanted low ceiling was a large skylight overlooking Vilnius that hovered over an unmade bed. Zyaire gingerly set me onto my feet and we shared a meaningful look. Neither of us said anything, but instead moved to take each other's hands and rest our foreheads together.
"I'm nervous…" I confessed in a whisper.
"We can stop, we don't have to—" he assured me at once, but I gently pressed my fingers to his lips to stop him from speaking.
"No, Zyaire. I want this. You can't know how much. I'm just nervous because…it's you," I explained softly.
"I'm nervous too," he revealed quietly. He carefully took my hand and placed it over his chest. I could feel his anxious breath, the tremor in his hand as he placed it over mine, and his heart pumping furiously just beneath my fingertips. "That happens whenever I'm around you…"
"It happens to me too," I stated in wonder.
"You're right…it's me. It's just me, Poppy," he said simply. "Just us."
It was just him. Just us. My hands slowly reached for his shoulders as I moved to delicately slip off the flannel shirt he was wearing.
"Is this okay?" I checked.
"Yes."
We wordlessly undressed each other, stealing soft kisses as our clothing dropped to the freezing apartment floor. He rested me down onto the bed with a profound sense of care and tenderness, and I melted into him with complete trust and fervor. I granted his whispered request to touch me without an inkling of resistance, and he did not disappoint. He handled me as if it were a privilege to see me undressed, to caress me, to enter me. I handled him the same. I peppered featherlight kisses along his jaw, neck, shoulders and danced my fingers along his chest as our hearts raced in sync. His name unconsciously escaped my lips in breathy ecstasy and our eyes met in awestruck splendor as we made love to each other.
There, twisting in his bed sheets as moonlight spilled over us from the skylight above, I experienced all that I had been lacking before. I felt safe with Zyaire, safer than I had ever felt with anyone, and I also felt so much more. I felt desired, valued, bold, passionate, alive. All of the things I thought I'd learn to live without. Now that I had gotten a taste, now that I realized what I had been missing out on, I knew that there was no going back.
I rejoiced in this feeling as I collapsed naked into his arms, my wild hair splayed across his pillow as I recuperated from the euphoria that had overtaken me minutes before, the likes of which had been unknown to me until tonight.
"Did that really just happen?" I moaned quietly once I found my words.
"I'm not sure…I think I may be dreaming," Zyaire panted in a daze, his fingers drifting lazily up and down my spine.
"Do you want me to pinch you?" I mumbled.
"Don't you dare. If I'm dreaming, I never want to wake up…" he sighed luxuriously and closed his eyes.
"Tu gražus žmogus…" I exhaled affectionately, sluggishly propping myself up on my elbow to better admire him. (You beautiful man…)
"That's not fair…you know I don't understand you," he muttered, his eyes still closed.
"All the more reason to learn Vinkun, especially since you're staying in Vilnius," I pointed out, languidly dragging a finger along his chest. "You are really staying in Vilnius, aren't you? You didn't just tell me that to get me into bed?"
His eyes opened to meet mine and he nodded with a soft smile, gently reaching up to brush his fingers across my cheek.
"I am really staying in Vilnius. I'm actually moving in here now that it's vacant," he gestured around to the modest apartment. "I mean it's no castle but…"
"Well so far I'm a big fan of it," I flirted happily, pressing a kiss to his shoulder and cuddling against his chest again. "But why? After all of this time…why move to Vilnius now?"
"I don't know…you'll just laugh at me," he sighed, rubbing his temple.
"Most likely, yes," I confirmed before looking up at him expectantly. "But you know you have to tell me."
"Well, I guess things changed after I saw you in The Emerald City, to tell the truth. It just kind of hit me that I was an adult. I wasn't living with Mom, I wasn't in college, I just…didn't have much keeping me there anymore. Then catching up with you made me remember the summer I spent here and…well Oz help me, Poppy, you really did sell me on Vilnius. I found myself missing Dad, and Great Grandmother and, well, I missed…you," he admitted before letting a tiny, disbelieving laugh escape. "But I never thought that you…that you and I would…I mean I'd be lying if I said I hadn't hoped but—"
"You did?"
"Of course, I did. Have you met yourself?! You're like this beautiful, witty—I don't know—enchantress who can make me feel so flustered and nervous," he shook his head agitatedly.
"Well, you certainly seemed confident earlier," I replied in a mockingly seductive tone.
"See?! Like that. You just…mesmerize me," he groaned before pressing an exasperated kiss to my forehead. "Poppy, I've had a pathetic crush on you since we met. I mean, it's not like I spent years doing nothing but pining after you—I did see other people—but it's almost like, ever since that summer, you were always kind of in the back of my mind. Then when I saw you in that library it all just kind of rushed back…but of course—then I saw you were engaged so…"
"Yeah…" I sighed. I wondered when we'd get around to talking about that. He turned onto his side so he could face me, draping his arm over my waist.
"So…what happened there? If you don't mind me asking. I mean, don't get me wrong—I'm thrilled—it just seemed like the last time we talked that…" he trailed off awkwardly. "You are really done with Royce, aren't you?"
"Oh, I am really done with Royce," I confirmed, rubbing a thumb over the still visible ring line on my finger. "Official as of this afternoon."
Zyaire went quiet and he furrowed his brow as if suddenly deep in troubled thought.
"What is it?" I frowned.
"Poppy…I'm not your rebound, am I?" he asked nervously. "If this has all happened too fast, if you need more time to get over him, we can pause. I'll wait. I just want to make sure this…means for you…what it does for me…"
"Oh, Zyaire…no. No, no, no. Listen, Royce and I weren't right from the start. I was already desperate for a way out of my engagement before you and I even ran back into each other. Yes, I officially ended things with him this afternoon, but trust me when I say that it was a long time coming. Besides, I never felt about Royce the way I feel about you. I've never felt about anyone the way I feel about you. This…us…what happened between us tonight…it means everything," my heart spilled out in a great flood of words before I could stop it.
My face immediately reddened after my impassioned speech. I had really laid it all out there, hadn't I?
"Sweet Oz…I'm sorry if that was too much too fast. That doesn't scare you, does it?" I asked in a mortified tone.
"It scares the hell out of me…because I feel the same way," he responded faintly.
"Well, that's a relief," I whispered blushingly. "Because I…I had a crush on you too, you know?"
He smiled softly and we lapsed into a comfortable, affectionate silence. Our burgeoning romance felt as natural as our friendship always had. However, things had changed since those days. We were adults now. We had jobs, responsibilities, and in my case, the entire Vinkus watching my every move. I felt my stomach twist with anxiety as I started to think this out. What were we getting into? What was he getting into?
"Zyaire listen, if we do this, it is not always going to be easy. As a Tigelaar, my life is complicated. There's rules and obligations and, well, my private life is rarely actually private. If they find out you're—well—associated with me, you're going to start getting attention. I'm already about to be the face of a huge scandal for ending my engagement. So, if you decide right now that you want out…I promise that there are no hard feelings. What happened here tonight can be a onetime thing, just one short night. One wonderful night," I emphasized softly. "I just wanted to prepare you for what might come, so…so you can decide if you really want to do this."
He mulled this over for just a moment.
"But…I get to be with you?" he clarified softly.
"Yes…you get to be with me. If that's what you want," I affirmed.
Then, he simply pulled me into a deep, lingering kiss. I smiled into it, accepting it as both his answer and his permission, and my heart glowed with optimism. After years of bad timing, there was no distance, no fiancé, no pitiless mother to keep us apart. This was our chance. Our chance to actually be together.
I wasn't sure when we had fallen asleep, but I awoke the next morning to pale, winter sunlight streaming through the skylight. The night had been cold and the mattress uneven, but after spending the night in Zyaire's arms, I had never felt quite so well rested. We kissed each other good morning and I begrudgingly left his warm embrace to dress in my discarded clothes from the previous night. I looked in dismay at my reflection in his mirror as I attempted to tidy my rumpled curls. It was a lost cause.
"Maybe I can take some of the less crowded streets home," I commented as I buttoned up my dress. Zyaire came up to me and wrapped his arms around my waist from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder.
"Well, like you said, you're already going to be in the newspapers before too long. A walk of shame can't change too much, can it?" he teased.
I turned to face him and wound my arms around his neck.
"How I hate to go and leave you lonely," I pouted. "I've got a busy day at the castle, Mom and Dad are really putting me through the wringer with this training stuff. Can I see you again soon?"
"Name the time and place, your majesty," he agreed. "I'm going back to The City tomorrow for a few days to get my things, and when I return, I'll be an official resident of The Vinkus."
"Well, if you ever need anyone to show you around town, I know a few spots…" I grinned.
"From what I hear, you know this place like the back of your hand," he grinned back, stealing a final chaste kiss before handing me my coat.
We joined hands and started heading down towards the repair shop, chatting loudly as we descended the crooked staircase. However, when we reached the landing of the shop, we both stopped dead in our tracks upon finding it very much open for business. Ike and his brand-new wife were behind the counter and Great Grandmother Alusia was in her rocking chair as always. All three of them stared at us silently as we stood with our hands linked, glued to the spot as if we had been caught in the act at the scene of a crime. There could be no doubt that I had stayed the night, and the state of my hair alone was a dead giveaway of what we had been getting up to.
"Labas rytas…" I embarrassedly waved to the room. (Good morning.)
"Labas rytas…" the three of them repeated back to me.
I pointed to the door and looked back to Zyaire. "So, I'm just gonna—yeah. Talk to you soon?"
"Yeah…talk to you soon," he muttered awkwardly, giving me a hasty kiss on the cheek.
"It was—uh…great to see you all again," I addressed the shop with a nervous laugh, my face burning hotter than ever, before hurriedly fleeing the shop.
As I exited onto the street, I heard the voice of Great Grandmother Alusia whoop triumphantly to the rest of the shop.
"Aš žinojau tai! Aš žinojau tai! Susimokėk, Ike!" (I knew it! I knew it! Pay up, Ike!)
