Hunter never really liked thunderstorms. The sound of rain was nice, but the screaming of thunder always made him tense. But, tonight that did not phase him. He had his arms wrapped around the girl that made his life worth being brave for, the two of them snuggled in the guest bedroom of her home, blankets drawn tightly around them.
Willow had been sleeping on and off for the past hour, drifting into the light start but being woken up when the loud claps of thunder inevitably shook the house and stirred her from the beginnings of slumber. Whenever this would happen, however, Hunter would hug her tighter, pressing his lips against her head in comfort as he stared out the window to the thundering boil that kept the two teens from fully accepting sleep.
"How long do you think the storm will last?" Willow asked, rubbing at her eye as she moved to look up at Hunter's blurred face. He had long carefully removed her glasses and sat them on the bed stand.
" The news on Penstagram says it might last the rest of the night." Hunter replied, moving to rest his cheek on Willow's head. He was used to staying up long nights like this, but was worried about how the storm would keep her awake. He was searching his mind for any ideas that might help her sleep better, but nothing came to mind.
" This one is really loud." Willow sighed before a crash of thunder filled the room, making the teens jump slightly. The plant witch shifted, reaching over to her glasses on the bed-stand to put them on before turning to look out the window. Hunter frowned to himself, Willow had been laying on his chest for so long that it created a pleasant warmth that was now being attacked by the bitter cold of the room. " Do you want to go to the living room and watch the crystal ball or somethi-" Willow was cut off as Hunter reached out to wrap his arms around her waist and pull her back into him, cuddling his cheek back into her head with a smile. Willow giggled slightly, shifting to look up at him with a raised brow.
" You're warm!" Hunter said, stubbornly tightening his hug around her. " The room is cold…" Willow smiled, unable to argue with his logic as she snuggled down into his chest again, resting her head against his collarbone as she looked back out the window, watching the flashes of lighting in the distance that were soon followed by the rumbling of thunder.
"I remember when I was little, I used to count the seconds between the flash of lighting and when the thunder hit." Willow mused as another strike of light filled the room. Willow couldn't help but count the seconds, but lost count when Hunter spoke up.
" I used to do that too. My nanny told me that if you count the number of seconds between the flash of lightning and the sound of thunder, and then divide by 5, you'll get the distance in miles to the lightning." The rumble of thunder hit, Willow felt Hunter's fingers moving against her slightly as he quickly did the math in his head. Was he really counting while he spoke? " About two miles on that one, rounded up."
" You are super smart...I don't think I can do that kind of math in my head." Willow looked up at him, smiling as he flicked his ears.
"It just takes practice." He shrugged, smiling back down at her, his ears flicking again. Willow shifted around, making Hunter whine slightly as the warmth of her body disappeared from him again as she sat in front of him. " Willow, please, it's really cold in here-" Hunter was cut off as Willow pressed her lips into his. He froze for a few moments, before closing his eyes and pressing his back into hers, moving his hands to the back of her neck and head to keep her there as she rested her hands on his shoulders. After a few moments they parted, Hunter felt his ears flicking wildly around, his brain going blank as he stared love-drunk at the girl who set his soul on fire. He didn't register the first few moments as she giggled, moving her hand to her mouth as she watched him. "W-wha?"
" I love it when your ears flick around!" Willow giggled, bringing Hunter back to reality. He fixed her with a look, pouting.
"D-did you do that only to make them wiggle?" Hunter moved his hands to his ears, stopping them but he could feel the muscles still twitching around in an attempt. Willow gave a laugh, taking his hands into hers to free his ears.
"Maybe I did." Willow smirked at him.
"You are going to be the death of me."
"Perhaps...there isn't much you can do to stop me tho-OUGH!" Willow yelped as Hunter lunged, wrapping his arms around her waist again and pulling her down to his side, half-pinning her on the bed next to him as he smirked down at her.
" Go to sleep, Willow!" Hunter said, making her giggle again. Hunter let her go, shifting into a more comfortable position as he found Willow's head back on his collarbone, one arm resting on his chest as she smiled up at him.
"As long as you sleep as well." Willow argued, finally nuzzling her head into his shoulder as she closed her eyes. Hunter reached up, carefully taking her glasses off her face again.
"Deal." Hunter said, folding the arms of the frames in and setting them on the mattress next to him. The two soon fell into slumber, holding each other in their arms, and unaware that the storm had stopped.