After getting off the phone with his mother, Sean went to clean himself up. He showered, shaved needlessly, and even put on a spritz of some old cologne he had found in the medicine cabinet. After slicking his wet hair back, he settled on a pair of clean pajamas and made his move.
Hip dramatically cocked and ready for love, the young redhead rapped briskly at Fern's door. With his forearm against the doorframe, he pursed his lips and did his best James Dean impersonation.
No response. He frowned. Maybe she was still in the shower? He checked the handle and found the door locked. After a few seconds, he tried again. Then again after that.
Frowning, Sean pressed his ear to the door.
It was silent on the other side, no foot falls, no running water. Not even the telltale rustle of pages or the radio.
"Uh, babe? You in there?"
A soft *thup* sounded, light footsteps, and the telltale *click* of a lock being slid out of place before the door peeked open. A luminous blue eye regarded him through the crack.
Sean's stomach tightened. "Fe?"
His voice made her scales twitch; quick, scattered jolts of color across her cheeks. Her gaze drifted over him, from the top of his head, down to the very tips of his bare toes. Her stomach twisted, sharp and nauseating.
She still wasn't sure.
"How do I know it's you?"
Sean blinked. "What?"
"Really you," she amended, gaze raking him up and down again.
"Open the door, babe."
His words were simple, his tone easy, it felt right, and Fern obeyed. Sharp teeth worried the inside of her cheek. Arms crossed, she forced herself to meet his gaze.
His blue eyes were painfully earnest as a freckled hand reached out to cup her side. The cotton of her a-shirt was soft, the flinch she gave only slight. Touch very light, as light as he could manage, his thumb traced the edge where her scales gave way to scar tissue.
At the soft repeat of her name, the young woman threw her arms around his narrow shoulders. Dial soap and cheap cologne greeted her and she felt a sob well in her throat. No more doubt. Not with Sean. She would never mistake him again.
The redhead blinked as her scaled biceps scratched his neck, her grip almost choking him before he caught his balance and settled his heels back on the carpet. It didn't sting, not quite, but it was a shock, much like the cold droplets from her wet hair.
"I'm sorry," the girl croaked, unable to let go for a long moment before she pulled back to cup his face.
He's so pretty, Fern thought, as she took in his bright eyes and freckled skin.
He shuddered at her saetae. Licking his lips, he had to clear his throat before he asked what happened.
Fern rubbed his arms. With a harsh swallow and a shake of her head, she stole a quick kiss from him. Just one, before she pulled him into the bedroom.
Sean watched as she shut and locked the door behind him. "Fern. What happened? What'd she do to you?"
What did she say while wearing my face, he thought.
For the first time, Raven's ability frightened him. For the first time he realized how dangerous it could be. How easily it could be used to manipulate people. He had always known, of course, (how couldn't he) but he had never considered that she might use it against them.
Disappointment grew into disgust as Fern shook her head and tried to smile for him.
"It was just a prank." Her black skin streaked with color, across her cheeks, her chest-
"A prank?" Sean asked, far too gently to be labeled something as nasty as doubt.
"A gag, a laugh, whatever." Her arms wrapped around his shoulders again. The scales of her nose tickled as she swiped it up his cheek.
Sean bumped their noses together.
A hand rose to his cheek and she thumbed his temple, desperately trying to memorize every freckle on his face. Voice soft, Fern shrugged, "Guess it just spooked me a little, having her so close."
A ginger brow rose. "How close is so close?" The hand on her side slid over her waist. Sean's long body pressed against hers, he dipped down to put his mouth under the soft curve of her jaw. "This close?"
The young woman felt him smirk against her neck and smiled before she hummed. "Maybe."
Her scales shimmered, he could feel it. The ghost of change as inky black gave way to the queer oilslick swirl and he followed it down the slope of her neck, to where twin glands sat at the hollow of her throat. He lifted a hand to them, but didn't touch.
"How about…"
With his lady love distracted, Sean's hand dipped down to squeeze her butt.
"Not that close!" Fern squeaked, bouncing on her tiptoes with a giggle.
"Good." It was also good that she let him keep his hand there. Even better, she was rubbing his chest; he could feel the ripples of her fingertips through the cotton of his shirt. Sean bumped their brows together. "Because only I get to oogle the goods."
"Is that so?"
Blood rushed to his face. "I like to think so."
"Mhm?" She poked the flushed apple of his cheek before fluffing his damp locks.
"Mhm," He agreed, far too content to fluff her short hair right back and fucking smile at her.
A stern finger poked him in the chest. "You're probably right, but you don't have to be so smug about it."
"Don't I?"
Fern steered him toward the bed. "You think this is a good play? You think this is gonna get your tongue in my mouth?"
"I'd like to get it in a lot more places than that."
She planted a foot on his stomach and shoved him onto the mattress. "Gross."
The bed bounced as he flopped backwards, legs spread and fingers beckoning. "It's not gross, we're in love."
Fern grinned and crawled on top of him.
He nuzzled his nose against her cheek, the sensitive skin turning pink from friction.
The soft scales went a flurry of shades and flickers of color; violet, teal, cyan, over sleek black. Fern squirmed as he tried to kiss each stripe, each swirl- "You you can't just say that-" She smacked his chest then pulled him closer.
The young man groaned as she pressed her hips to his.
Fern murmured as his body heat settled into her side, "and be gross, that's-"
"Love." When she only scoffed, Sean continued, "You watched me pee, we shared a toothbrush, and we are fighting the world's biggest asshole tomorrow. Trust me, we're in love."
Fern grumbled and swung a long, muscular leg over him. Hands planted on his chest, she settled her weight, pinning his lean body down with ease. It felt good, having him under her. Feeling his heart hammering against her palm, the shake of his hands on her waist, the flush across his pale cheeks.
At Sean's swallow, Fern grinned and peeled her shirt off.
His mouth went dry. The sight of her, the love of his (admittedly short) life, perched on top of him. Her black scales shimmered softly, as if preening at his attention and she rolled her hips, slow and careful, over his crotch.
Realization hit him like a truck.
"Oh my god, I won-" He moaned into her kiss.
Warm fingers pulled her close. Sean's body ran hotter than Fern's; the heat eased her on. It was a sweet, intoxicating sensation, wonderfully full of life and she couldn't help burying her face in his neck a moment.
Her nose twitched, then wrinkled.
"You smell weird," she muttered, all her appreciation for that cheap cologne gone. She nipped at his jaw. Licked down his pulse to the hollow of his throat, she sucked a hot, wet bruise into the freckled skin.
Sean's Adam apple bobbed. Eyes fluttering, he managed, "Yeah, I, uh, found-"
He shivered as her nipples teased across his chest. The grip on her waist tightened, his hips flexing along with his fingers as he dragged them down to her ass.
Fern chirped softly but allowed it. The squeeze felt good. Her hand slipped under his shirt.
"Take it off."
He chuckled. "Fe."
"Please, take it off, Sean." The young woman swiped her nose up his neck, her leg pulling him closer still, until the crotch of her white jockeys ground against his hip.
She moaned and did it again, tangling her hand in his shaggy hair and pulling him close so she could do it one more time.
Christ, Sean licked his lips at the heat of her sex. He hadn't thought they would get this far, sure as hell hadn't thought she would be the initiator-
He smacked a kiss to her forehead and struggled out of his shirt like a cat trying to escape a burlap sack. When he finally managed to squirm it off, he made the mistake of trying to throw it off the bed in a careless, sexy manner that came off far too eager.
But Fern liked eager. Liked that he was smiling as wide as she was, that he was blushing and fawning over her, that he couldn't stop staring-
She had never liked being looked at before.
The hands that ran across his chest were gentle, the scratch faint, and Fern couldn't resist following them with her mouth.
"So fucking pretty, babe."
"Fe!"
"I mean it." Clawed fingers circled his nipple, teased the pale skin of his chest, enjoying how expressive it was. A simple touch could turn him pink.
A simple word could turn him pink.
Sean buried his face in her neck. "You're not s'pposed to call boys pretty, Fe."
"Whoever said that ain't seen you."
He swallowed. Sean couldn't remember the last time anyone complimented him so sincerely. Pink crept up his neck, blossomed even darker across his chest. "You're so fucking weird."
She grinned. "Good weird or bad weird?"
"The best fucking weird."
The kiss was fierce as he pulled her to his mouth.
The brush of her skin, the rare bit of it she had, against his made her moan. Fern shivered and pulled him closer, she had never felt anything like it before-
Sean shivered as Fern's nails teased the nape of his neck.
Their passion ended up getting the better of them, and soon it eclipsed midnight. A soft chime from a wind up alarm clock let them know, but Fern paid it no mind at all. She had been quite content to see just how sensitive his freckled skin was. His neck and shoulders were splotchy and pink; partly from her scales, partly from her saetae, and frankly, partly from her enthusiastic abuse. She licked her plumped and throbbing lips, and fingered the bite mark on his pale shoulder. She liked how it complimented his skin, how Sean had gasped into her ear when she gave it to him, how he had rutted against her hip-
The young man sighed, losing his train of thought again as she teased her nails over the bare skin of his stomach. That was new. That was nice.
Fern hadn't been too keen on being touched, but damn if she didn't seem willing to give him every ounce of her affection-
Fuck, fuck, fuck, get it out now before your dick gets the better of you-
"I know it's hard to pass up the last night on earth line but, I wanna wait." He held her face close to his, not wanting to part from her mouth, not wanting her to think he was rejecting her, Christ no- "Gotta have time to do it right, Fe, babe, I promise-"
The kiss she offered was little more than a headbutt. A hard clack of their mouths together, probably to shut him up, with too much teeth and too little tenderness, but Sean craved it all the same.
Their last night on earth.
He flinched, but followed her mouth like a drunk chasing a bottle, kissing her once twice, and moving to roll on top of her in an attempt to steal a third, before she planted a knee in his belly.
"Babe-"
Fern cupped his cheeks and regarded him for a long moment.
He looked young. Probably too young to drink, sure as hell too young to die for a country that didn't deserve him, for a world that would label him a freak.
His eyes were so blue.
"What makes you think I was gonna fuck you, anyway, Cassidy?"
He snorted into her mouth. They kissed lightly a moment before he pulled back to lay beside her. Shoulder to shoulder, they stared at the plain white ceiling.
Fern licked her lips. "My tongue's cramping up."
"Mine, too," Sean sighed.
She took his hand. "How did things go with your ma?"
"Can we not talk about my mother when I have an erection?"
"That's gonna eat up a lot of our time."
It was impossible to say when the two drifted off to sleep, but it was only dawn when Charles woke them. He did so with a surprising amount of gentleness, a light touch to the back of their minds and a brief greeting before bidding them off.
They stared at one another for a long moment.
Sean almost didn't want to go. He touched her cheek and smiled as the flicker of her scales. Beautiful. He could lay there, with her, for the rest of his life. Let the world end. It didn't have any love for them anyways, he figured.
She kissed him tenderly.
But if he wanted to keep waking up with her, they had to go.