A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you for the reviews. They inspire me so much!
Marko laughed heartily as Dwayne snorted, "Jesus, that's the worst waltz I've ever seen!"
"Worse than mine?" Marko asked, the top hat he was wearing looking ridiculously out of place on his head. Elizabeth had pulled it from on the of trunks she'd found in one of the many alcoves and while it was a little weather worn, it was still stiff and regal looking.
"Christ yes.." Dwayne said, looking at Paul as he goofed around with Elizabeth. To be honest, they were both far too tipsy, far too high and far too inexperienced to do anything other than stumble around, laughingly imitating a dance.
"Paul! Hands on her hands-" Marko shouted over the wobbly music, the record player scratching a little. Paul laughed as Elizabeth giggled, and he removed his hand from her hip and held hers awkwardly.
Both Marko and Dwayne burst into laughter, "OK, other hand on her arm!"
Paul laughed again and removed his other hand from the curve of Elizabeth's neck and rested on her bicep, grasping the material of Dwayne's jacket rather than her actual arm.
He and Elizabeth made eye contact and burst into laughter, shaking their heads and leaning on each others arm for support.
It was so ridiculous!
"Jesus, and I thought I was shit at this..." Marko laughed.
Dwayne turned off the record player and it screeched loudly, the soft rock music still playing from Paul's boombox.
"OK..." he moved to stand behind Elizabeth and she froze when she felt Dwayne's chest against her back. She turned her head and smiled up at him, holding a laugh as he softly used his hands to maneuver her head forward, so she was facing Paul.
"He's got his teacher face on" Paul mock-whispered before snorting another laugh.
"Back straight..." Dwayne told her, ignoring Paul and brushing his hands down the length of her back, "and arms out-" she moved her arms out without thinking, letting them jut out high and to the side and Dwayne laughed a little, "not like a chicken, like this..."
Paul giggled as he met Elizabeth's eyes and she giggled again, too.
"This isn't gonna work" he said and she nodded. She knew they were both far too high to take it seriously.
She let Dwayne lower her arms a little, liking his body pressed against hers.
"This is the frame, OK?" he told her, squeezing her shoulders as her arms locked in front of her, "you keep the frame"
"You, too-" he told Paul, "don't invade her space"
Both Paul and Elizabeth bit their lips to suppress their laughter.
"Aw man..." Paul laughed as David came and began adjusting his arms, too, "..this is way less sexy"
Marko laughed heartily and David smirked, "you'd be fucking lucky, Paul"
Elizabeth closed her eyes and tried to take a soothing, steadying breath.
It was fun to see David come and join in their goofiness.
"...whatever dude, just don't press your dick into my ass like Romeo over there.." Paul said with a firm grimness and Elizabeth almost collapsed as her laugh exploded from her.
"Keep the frame!" Dwayne laughed behind her, his chest rumbling against her back. He corrected her form once more and again, she loved the feeling.
"This is a lost cause" Marko said, standing near the record player.
"It was a lost cause the other night" Elizabeth reminded him through giggles as she shook her head. She'd given up dancing on the beach and she didn't even remember when they had started dancing again this time. Probably after she had found the old gramophone and they had discovered it didn't work anymore. Paul had rustled up an old vinyl player instead..yes. It had started from there-
"-move with me, OK, Space Cadet?" Dwayne said fondly to her and she nodded, trying not to look at Paul in his eyes.
She would lose it if she looked at the playful blonde.
"Keep the frame, Paul" the brunette advised his friend as David took a step to the side.
"On three?" David asked and she felt Dwayne nod.
"We got this, girl" Paul said and Marko started the music again. It just about drowned out the rock.
"One, two, three..." David said and Elizabeth let her feet follow Dwayne's, let them move in the same direction Dwayne's did. She was dancing with Paul but Dwayne was leading.
"Keep the frame, Paul" Dwayne warned and Elizabeth stumbled as she laughed at the blonde's mimicking reaction.
"'Meh, keep the frame Paulllll'" he mimicked, looking like a petulant child and Elizabeth bit her lip, trying to keep it together.
"Keep it going! One, two, three..." David clapped a little in time with the beat and Elizabeth let Dwayne lead her once more.
"We're doing it!" She told Paul with a laugh and he nodded, "see? We got this, girl!"
And Marko shook his head, "Dwayne's fucking doing it!"
"Paul, keep the frame!" Dwayne ordered and Elizabeth smothered her laugh again. She could feel her partner's arms becoming slack and with each reminder from Dwayne, Paul stepped a little closer to her, "stop invading-"
Elizabeth laughed as Paul broke the frame completely and wrapped his arm around her waist, slung one around her back and pulled her in a disorienting and spinning twirl. She squealed and wrapped her arms around him as she cave spun around her. She could hear the boys laugh as the record screeched off once more and she yelped again in shock when Paul dropped her, crouching down on one knee and supporting her body, just inches away from the floor.
"I invaded your space" he told her, eyes dancing, "now tell me that's not sexier than a waltz-"
She laughed.
"Come on, girl! Tell me this is more romantic than Mr Brooding's 'frame'!" Paul told her, eyes dancing with pent up laughter.
"Whatever you say!" she laughed, still clutching on to his neck, "just don't drop me!"
He stood up fully once more, bringing Elizabeth with him. She released his neck and he released her body, grabbing her arm with a laugh and a "whoops-" when she stumbled a little.
"We can't dance, can we?" she asked him a little breathlessly and he grinned, "not for shit"
She looked over at Dwayne who was watching them with a bemused smile, "how can you dance so well?" she asked, looking at David, too.
They didn't seem the type.
"I was brought up dancing" David shrugged and Dwayne nodded, "I was taught how, too..."
She looked at Marko, hearing Paul plop down onto the sofa as he opened another beer can.
"I wasn't allowed to.." he told her through a smile, "strict parents"
"Oh..." she said with a nod, looking down at Paul.
He laughed, "who the fuck has time for that shit?!"
She shook her head and giggled with him.
"People would waltz here..." David said, looking around the cave like a king surveying his realm.
"But better than you two.." Dwayne said with a grin and she smiled over at him, still a little breathless from her twirl around the room, "wanna see the other rooms?"
"Yes!" she said with an eager nod.
"Want another smoke?" Paul offered and she shook her head with a happy, no.
She was perfectly content, she was the absolute right balance of high and drunk.
"Drink?" Marko offered and she laughed, shaking her head, no, again.
"You want to explore?" David confirmed and she laughed, nodding.
She liked them all so much.
"Come on..." Dwayne said, scooping her hand up with his as he passed her, "left or right?"
"Ummmmmmmmmm..." she glanced over at Paul and saw him lazily wave the fingers on his right hand, "right?"
"Good choice" Dwayne nodded, leading her towards a shadowy corner of the room. There was a big poster draped over the wall, she saw clearly as she neared...it was some old, art-deco advertisement that had been covered in graffiti and doodles. She had seen the big Jim Morrison poster pasted to a wall but this one was different. It was bigger, older. Definitely older...she couldn't even tell what it had been advertising, once upon a time.
"It's pretty..." Elizabeth shrugged softly, a little underwhelmed and Dwayne kissed her temple.
"Touch it"
She looked up at him with an indulgent raise of her eyebrows and he grinned down at her, "trust me on this.."
Nodding, she reached out her hand and brushed the material before her, a little surprised to find it was actually a thick canvas.
"Huh? It looked like paper.." she said with a little nod and Dwayne laughed, placing his hand over hers, "I meant really touch it..."
She could hear Marko and David chatting a little, though she couldn't make out their words fully. There was a light smell of weed in the air and she knew that Paul had lit up once again. It was strange, here, in this little corner of the cave she felt like she was alone with Dwayne.
"Hey..." she whispered, looking up at him.
"...hi" he whispered back, matching her.
"...I love you"
A smile broke out on his face and she felt her heart swell.
"What?"
"I love you" she told him again, a sincere smile dancing across her face.
She didn't know why she had chosen to admit her feelings at that very moment, huddled with him in a far corner of the cave, hands pressed against an old and actually kind of damp canvas poster, but it had felt right.
She just wanted him to know.
She needed him to know.
She loved him with all her heart.
He kissed her gently, softly, "I love you, too, Elizabeth" he assured her, "more than you could know..."
"Dwayne..." she smiled against his lips, hating to ruin their moment but her hand was starting to feel slimy.
"...Elizabeth?"
"...the canvas is kind of wet"
He smiled, too, "I know...here" and softly, gently, he pushed at her hand.
She frowned, turning to look as the canvas caved a little under the pressure.
"There...it's-" she grinned up at him in amazement. There was something behind the canvas! That's what he had said by 'really touch it...'.
He nodded and stretched around her, using his free hand to tug on the heavy material. It opened a little and a whoosh of chilly air blasted out.
"This place is amazing..." she told him, shivering a little as he removed his hand from hers and gently nudged her with a soft, full squeeze of her bottom.
She slipped under his extended arm and shuffled sideways into what she realized was a narrow and pitch black corridor. He followed her closely and, as he let the material fall back into place, they really were plunged into pure darkness.
"You OK?" he asked and she felt for his chest, nodding.
She opened her mouth to reply but her words were lost as his lips fell upon hers. Her eyes fluttered closed as his body, pressed flush against hers, pushed her into the cold, unforgiving stone wall behind her. She let him lead the kiss as her hands roamed up his neck and through his hair, his hands roaming her chest, down her waist, pulling her close to him, so close she thought she would pass through him.
"Dwayne!" she gasped as she felt him press hard against her crotch.
"Elizabeth, I love you so much.." he told her, trailing kisses down from her lips and to her neck.
She whimpered a little as his hand brushed against her nipple, "Dwayne.." she whispered throatily as she felt him move his hand down towards her thigh instead, pushing the material of her dress upwards, "..Dwayne..."
He slowly stopped his kisses, pressing his temple against hers and she could feel his reluctance to stop.
She was, reluctant, too.
"...the guys..." she whispered, thigh twitching a little in anticipation as his fingers rested just inside the line of her underwear.
She ran her hand through his soft, thick hair again.
He nodded his understanding and she asked, a little nervously, feeling herself redden and glad for the darkness, "...is...you said there were rooms..."
She had never been so forward before.
"Elizabeth..." he said, his voice barely a whisper, "I don't deserve you"
She smiled at his words and he captured her chin with his hand. She immediately missed it, missed the heat of his hand against her thigh, but she felt a nervous, needful flutter in her stomach as he angled her chin with his deft hands. It was like he could see her, despite the dark, if felt like he could see into her very soul.
"..you've got me, either way.." she said, shifting her body a little.
His hand left her chin and cupped her cheek before leaving her completely. She felt his body push away from hers and she bit her lip, feeling cold and solitary without him close to her.
There was a click, loud in the stillness of the narrow space and she blinked against the dancing flame curling above him thumb.
"Oh..." she muttered, understanding washing over her.
It was a lighter.
As the flame flickered dimly in the darkness, casting an admirable if not weak orange glow about the tight space, she looked up at Dwayne, righting her dress a little as she did.
"Is this enough light?" he asked and she shrugged, taking a single step towards him and wrapping her arms around his free arm. She trusted him to lead the way.
She nodded and he grinned down at her.
"Come on..." he said, his voice quiet and serious.
He began walking and she could see that the space they were in really was tight, big enough for just their two bodies, close together as they were. The ceiling was low, she couldn't quite touch it if she stretched her hands but maybe, maybe if she just tiptoed a little, she could.
It didn't feel entirely claustrophobic but she was aware that they were going quite deep into the cave.
There was a dip in the wall, up high, and she saw it was a a deep crack filled with small and thick white, candles. He lit them easily enough and the corridor brightened a little, though nothing special was illuminated. Just a stone floor and stone walls, the occasional wooden detailing, some patches of brick.
But..Elizabeth smiled.
There was a door to the left, the frame kind of warped and cracked. She saw the door didn't fit into the frame anymore and it creaked loudly as Dwayne nudged it fully open with his foot, "...um, stuff..." he told her with a little shrug, extending his arm into the room.
The dim flame from the lighter cast a few feeble shadows around the room but otherwise, aside from some trunks and wooden boxes, some tall bookshelves and bureaus, there wasn't much to see.
"I think there's some clothes in here?" he told her, "we can light it up for you..." he offered and she nodded.
She knew he meant in the future.
She let him direct her back into the narrow corridor and he closed the door as well as it would close, before showing her another space a few paces forward and to the right. There was no door, just an open expanse of black, dimly visible against the light of the candles and the lighter in his hand. It looked like the gaping, toothless smile in a skull and Elizabeth paused.
He kissed her head, "tons of trunks in there - nothing else.."
She nodded and he led her straight on. The ground was smooth, there were no pebbles or stones, nothing to make her fall or stumble. It felt as if they were walking through the hotel, not a collapsed hallway. They passed a few more openings but Dwayne only stopped when they came to a deep and wide crack in the stone of the wall.
"Through here" he told her, showing her where to step.
She followed his lead, wondering just how many twists and turns were housed in the space before her.
Dwayne had even offered her, left or right.
The cave must have been huge, the tunnels and rooms immense.
"Has anyone ever mapped this place?" Elizabeth asked.
"Huh?"
"..the cave?"
He laughed a little and she saw him shake his head, no.
"It's kind of spooky now" she told him, the little offshoot of a path they were walking down containing nothing but stifling darkness and he paused, "..but I trust you"
She didn't want to turn back, not yet.
"It's beautiful, I promise. Worth the walk.." he said, and she looked behind her at the corridor they had just left. The glow from the candles he had lit was barely visible but it proved a beacon all the same, showing the way back and out.
"Here-" he freed his arm from her body and she looked at a long, hanging curtain, a cover of some kind. She couldn't see where it was attached, the light was too dim for that, but she saw it was a deep, blood red, "can you wait? For just a second?"
She nodded, "OK..."
She was plunged into darkness as he pulled back the curtain and stepped beyond it. Not knowing what else to do, Elizabeth softly pressed her back against the rugged wall, not feeling the cold thanks to his jacket. The air felt strangely clean, earthy and fresh and she inhaled deeply.
She felt so isolated and alone here, deep in the cave, and it was strange to think that she had been laughing and dancing and that there were three boys milling around in the main area. It felt like she was alone, like she and Dwayne had the whole world to themselves-
"Elizabeth?"
She jumped and gasped a little and Dwayne's chuckle met her ears before the light did, "...sorry"
He had pushed back the curtain again and stretched his free hand out into the darkness where she waited.
Elizabeth held it tightly and he pulled her forward. She ducked a little as the hand that held the curtain open wrapped around her back instead, the thick and musty velvet almost brushing her head as it fell heavily shut.
"Oh my God..." she breathed for the hundredth time that evening, stopping to look at the room before her.
"..you like it?" he asked, a hint of nervousness in his own voice this time and Elizabeth exhaled an awed laugh.
Like it?
"Dwayne this is...it can't be real!"
As she looked around, studying the multitude of candles that had been lit, she found herself caught in the ethereal, glittering beauty of the room.
There was a wide, iron sleigh bed pushed against one wall, covered in a rich velvet throw of deep yellow with pillows of differing shapes and sizes providing a barrier against what she knew was a cold wall. The wall itself was a mixture of exposed stone, exposed and peeling plaster and areas still covered in its original paper. She could make out an intricate vine design on the off-white paper that remained.
It was small with just enough room for the bed and a broken vanity, the mirror hopelessly cracked but still in its frame. There was even some jewelry scattered over the table.
She heard an odd click and saw that behind the velvet curtain remained a door, a functioning door, despite the gash down the center of its splintered wood.
"This..this should be in a museum!" she breathed, moving forward to run her fingers over the softness of the bed, "this..Dwayne, this is so beautiful-"
"It's yours" he told her decisively.
"Dwayne-" she protested weakly, fingers dancing over a ruched, circular pillow. It was too much, he couldn't just gift her a room, let alone something as surreal and expensive as this one must be. She picked up the pillow and inhaled deeply, laughing softly in amazement at it's oddly fresh smell. Nothing smelt old or wet or moldy. They were in a cave, how could this be?
"It's yours" he insisted.
"It's too beautiful..." she told him, replacing the pillow carefully.
He shook his head and he stepped towards her with a smile, "not as beautiful as you..this is yours, Elizabeth. Yours. Use it whenever you want.."
"It's too much" she protested weakly again, closing her eyes as she accepted his kiss.
"It's not enough.." he insisted, his hands resuming their painfully skilled ministrations from their moment beyond the secret, canvas doorway.
"How did I get so lucky?" she asked as he nudged his jacket down her shoulders. She moved her arms and let it fall to the floor.
"...I forgot about this..." he murmured against her lips, hands running down the thin sweater she was wearing over her dress.
"Dwayne.." she asked, pausing in their kisses as he tugged the sweater up and over her chest. She followed his silent commands and raised her arms, letting him peel the sweater from her body, "Dwayne?"
"Mmm?" he asked and she gasped a little, turning red when his hand freed her breast up and out, liberating it from the confines or her bra and dress.
"I.." she closed her eyes as he kissed her nipple gently, "the..."
She had wanted to protest the room further, to query about the others, to ask just how far the rooms in the cave went, how many there were, to ask how it could be possible that such a place could exist, which one of them owned the deeds and why, how..but all logical thought lost her as he devoured her nipple with breath taking reverence.
It was so open, so brazen the things he was doing. It was new, exciting...
"This dress is very much in my way.." he whispered, his voice a husky, deep growl and she moaned gently.
She had never felt so wanted before.
She opened her mouth to protest, to ask her questions, she knew she had some questions...but, as he began to tug at the dress, capturing her mouth once more, she moaned in delight, letting herself shuffle out of it. She heard the zipper of his pants and the rustle of denim as they slid down his legs and to the floor, resting forgotten with their other items of clothing.
When had he kicked off his shoes? She didn't know.
"Oh..." she breathed as he claimed her breasts once more.
He unhooked her bra with a thoughtless efficiency and she clutched his body as the chill of the room met her fully, "let me warm you up.." he said, pushing her back onto the deceptively soft bed.
The glow of the room was so beautiful and soft, Elizabeth blinked as she looked up at the figure before her. She gently ran her fingers down his chest, not knowing when he had shed his shirt, either, but thankful that he had.
She closed her eyes, feeling shy despite her longing and he softly, delicately hooked his finger though the top of her underwear, pulling them down gently. She could feel the effects of the weed, of the alcohol adding to the intensity of her feelings.
It was indescribable...
"It hurt? Last night..." he murmured and she opened her eyes, sluggishly.
In the delicate glow of the room she could see the blood staining her underwear quite clearly and she felt herself flush, sitting up, intending to retrieve her stained underwear "I-oh..sorry, I-"
He moved his body towards hers once more, using it to push her down into the plush mattress as he kissed her, "I didn't want to hurt you"
She looked into his eyes. He didn't care..she had no reason to be embarrassed.
The depth of his words, his actions, the feeling of his body against her front and the velvet on her back, it was close to being overwhelming, "I'm glad it was you" she told him, meaning it with all her heart.
"I love you so much.."
His hands met her breasts again and he placed a kiss on her lips, "I love you, too" and, with a dominance that made her heart stop for a second, he added, "let me love you..."
And with that, he began to trail kisses softly over her neck and breasts, moving them slowly and without falter or pause down to her stomach...
She bit her lip with another soft gasp as she realized what he meant to do.
"Nobdoy..Dwayne I...nobody-"
Nobody had ever done that.
"-good..." he told her, understanding her meaning fully. Her toes curled a little at the possessiveness in his tone.
"I...I.." his kisses trailed down to her thighs and she clenched them a little, feeling nervous, shy despite the need she felt, too, "maybe..the blood..."
She heard him inhale deeply and, while she felt herself flush a deep red at the action, she also felt the heat pool low in her stomach.
"Oh my God..." she plead softly as his hand stretched up sensuously to dance across her breast.
He kissed her thigh patiently, "Dwayne the..the blood.." she mumbled, her resolve and shyness ebbing away with each delicate kiss.
"Open for me, Elizabeth.." he commanded in a husky, needful whisper and she whimpered, her fist clutching the velvet throw.
She did as he asked, tentatively opening her legs.
He rewarded her with more soft, patient kisses and true to his word, despite the chill of the room, her whole body felt like it was on fire.
"Dwayne...Dw..." she cried in a breathless, low moan, arching her body reflexively as he showed her gently, but without mercy, just how much he wanted her, how much he needed her.