A/N: Hello, everyone! Few warning about this chapter.
1: It's the longest chapter I've written so far.
2: The latter half of it contains a very lemony lemon. If you don't enjoy that sort of thing, feel free to skip it when you get there. I don't know why you're in a M-rated story if you don't like that sort of thing, but what do I know?
Enjoy!
Chapter Twenty-Three
Finally talking to Axel about what happened the night I was kidnapped turns out to be very cathartic. Ever since that night, I've felt something inside me healing. It's as though talking about it allowed me to let it go and start to move on. I finally experienced a proper grieving period during the first few weeks after I told him, spontaneously crying and yelling. He remained supportive and understanding through it, and I eventually got through it and began chippering up. I think him being there for me created more of a closeness between us. I'm much more affectionate towards him now, often initiating touches, kisses, and the like. He's noticed this and has also stopped holding himself back. There have been many times where things have gotten heavy between us, but I've stopped him each time, never quite ready. Then my birthday came.
"Happy birthday, beautiful," Axel says against the back of my neck when I wake up on July first.
"Thanks," I yawn.
"What do you want to do today?" he asks, kissing my neck softly.
"Mmm, can we go to the beach?" I ask, enjoying the feel of his lips against my skin. Unfortunately, at my words, he stops.
"The beach?" he asks. He sounds slightly upset. I turn over to look at him.
"Yeah. What's wrong with the beach?" I ask, bringing a hand up to trace his jawline.
"I…Alright, it's stupid, but I can't swim," he announces, trying to sound nonchalant. His face turns slightly red, though, so I know it's a bit embarrassing for him. I stifle a grin.
"It's not a big deal. You don't have to swim at the beach. Most people just wade in or sunbathe anyway. We could always have a mini bonfire when the sun sets. You know, roast marshmallows, make s'mores. That sorta thing," I say. I can tell he's thinking rather hard on it and he finally sighs.
"Alright. If you really want to, I guess we can," he says, making it sound like I just asked him to go get his teeth extracted. I grin up at him.
"Well when's your birthday?"
"August eighth."
"Alright. We can do whatever you want on your birthday next month then, okay?" He fixes me with a grin and a leer.
"Anything?" he asks suggestively. I roll my eyes.
"Just get up, you pervert," I say while sitting up. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me back down, quickly climbing on top of me.
"Who are you calling a pervert, missy?" he asks, grinning down at me. I press my hands against his chest, but I know I can't move him.
"You," I answer simply. He takes my hands and pins them on either side of my head. He leans down and runs his nose along the length of my neck. He kisses here and there softly.
"That's odd. Last I checked, you've been enjoying it." His voice is soft and husky, his breath gentle against my neck. I feel warmth pool in my lower abdomen, and I know I'm losing my resolve. I've been losing it for a while, actually.
"Axel," I try to say threateningly, but it comes out breathy and whiny.
"Hmm?" he hums against my skin.
"Stop, please," I say.
"Are you sure you want me to?" he asks against my ear.
"Yes," I say, and that stops him. He knows when to draw the line, and that's just another thing I appreciate about him.
"Alright," he groans, releasing my hands and lifting himself off of me.
"Thank you," I say cheerfully as I sit up. He ruffles my hair.
"Anything for you," he says. "That's why I'm going to the damn beach," he adds in a mumble. I grin widely at him.
"It'll be fun. Just wait." He nods, but it's not very convincing. He walks into his closet and I hear him talking to himself.
"Do I even have swimming trunks?" he asks himself exasperatedly. I roll my eyes and snort slightly.
"In that expansive closet? I'm sure you do," I mumble.
A few hours later, I have my bare feet buried in the warm sand while I bask the rest of me in the sun. I'm wearing a plain violet bikini and a pair of large sunglasses. My hair is piled on top of my head. I look over at Axel and smile. He's laying on his stomach with his eyes closed, a small smile on his lips. He managed to finally find a pair of black swimming trunks with flames on them this morning, but he may as well have worn regular shorts; I haven't gotten him in the water once, but I don't really mind. I've been having a great time.
Axel flips over onto his back and puts his hands behind his head. My eyes travel down his torso, stopping to stare at his defined abdominal muscles. I bite my lip as a wave of desire rolls through me.
"Like what you see?" he asks lowly, and I snap back to my senses. I smirk and toss a handful of sand onto those distracting muscles of his.
"You wish," I say.
"Oh, yes I do."
"Was this large of a fire really necessary?" I ask later that evening, taking a long drink from the beer bottle in my hand. I have my hair down and one of Axel's button up shirts wrapped around me. He grins, the flames dancing in his eyes.
"I may've gotten a little carried away," he replies, twirling a marshmallow in the fire. When it's perfectly toasted, he holds it out towards me, and I smush it between the graham crackers I'm holding. I bite into the s'more and groan.
"Mm! How do you toast it so perfectly? All of mine come out charred and terrible." It's true. I haven't been able to roast a marshmallow without scorching it, yet Axel's all have come out golden brown and amazing.
"It's an art," he says with a cocky grin. I roll my eyes.
"I'm sure."
"Hey, you have no room to talk, Miss-I-can't-properly-roast-a-marshmallow," he teases while finishing off his fifth beer.
"I could always set one on fire and attack you with it," I threaten with a glare. His smirk turns into a grin.
"Kinky," he says playfully while popping open another bottle. I down the rest of my fourth, trying to keep up with him. I pop open a fifth and take a sip.
"This really is the crappiest beer I've ever drank," I announce with a grimace. He grins, a buzzed look in his eyes.
"I know. I figured it'd be appropriate. Everyone always drinks crappy beer when they go to the beach, right?" I laugh and scoot closer to him. He drapes an arm around my shoulders. "So did you have a good birthday?" I look up at him with a mischievous expression and kiss his neck, emboldened by the alcohol in me.
"It's not over yet, is it?" I whisper in what I hope is a seductive voice. He swallows despite the fact there's nothing in his mouth. His fingers trace slow circles on my arm through the fabric of the shirt I'm wearing.
"That depends on whether or not you want it to be," he says measuredly. I grin, lean up, and kiss along the shell of his ear before trailing my kisses down the side of his face and back onto his neck. I nip gently at the soft skin and he shivers. "I think it's time to get you home," he says quietly.
"I think you're right," I whisper.
We crash onto his bed in a flurry of lips and teeth and tongues. He detaches his lips from mine and connects them to my neck. He makes his way to the spot where my neck and shoulder meet and bites down. A groan escapes my lips, and I angle my head to give him better access. His other hand skims down my side and latches onto my hip. He pulls away from my neck and rolls us over so I'm straddling him.
I sit back to catch my breath and look down at him. His eyes are glassy, his cheeks slightly pink, and his lips are parted slightly. I'm sure my expression is similar. I run my fingers softly down his torso, marveling at the sculpted feel of his muscles. He grins up at me before shifting to where he's sitting up too. He places one hand at my lower back and the other comes up to undo the buttons on the shirt. He undoes them with antagonizing slowness, looking into my eyes the whole time.
When all the buttons are undone, he brings both hands up to push the shirt off my shoulders. He tosses it to the side and runs his fingertips down my arms. I shiver, causing him to smirk. He leans his head down to kiss the exposed skin above my breasts just once. He brings his eyes back up to mine. Each of his hands come up to grab a different tie on my bikini top. He checks my reaction and, satisfied, pulls each tie loose. My breath catches just slightly as he tosses it to join the shirt on the floor. His breath catches as well, but I'm sure it's for a different reason. He hugs me to him to flip us back over.
He starts kissing my neck again as his hands knead and massage my breasts. Slowly, his mouth travels down to gently kiss and lick at one of my nipples. I moan and arch my body slightly. He smiles against my skin before repeating the action a few times on each of my nipples. I feel heat building up at the apex of my thighs and the rest of me feels like I'm on fire. I moan again and arch my body more. He gets the hint and continues his journey down my body. His tongue dips into my belly button and I shudder before threading my fingers through his crimson hair. At my bikini line, he sits up and hooks his fingers into the sides of my bikini bottoms and looks at me. I give him a slight nod, and he pulls them down my legs. He stares down at my body, drinking in every inch of me. A blush creeps onto my skin and I turn my head away, embarrassed. He leans over me, tilts my face to look at him, and kisses my lips softly.
"Don't be shy. You're beautiful," he whispers. I smile and pull him in for another kiss. His tongue licks at my bottom lip and I give him entrance. He massages his tongue against mine as his right hand draws patterns delicately against my side and stomach. He brings one of his legs up to nudge mine open, and I let him. His hand continues its patterns, but lower and lower. Soon enough, his fingers make contact with my clitoris and I jump slightly. He pulls away from my lips and looks at me. "Alright?" he asks.
"Y-Yeah, just surprised me," I mumble in response. He smiles. His fingers twirl around my clitoris, and I moan softly. Slowly, he dips his finger into my folds and grins.
"Someone's eager," he mumbles, and I force his lips back against mine, shyness seeping through me. A chuckle rumbles in his throat. He pushes one finger inside of me, and I'm pleasantly surprised at the lack of pain it causes. Slowly, he pumps that digit in and out of me before adding a second. This one causes just a tad of stinging, but it goes away almost immediately as pleasure takes over. Encouraged by the noise that comes from my mouth, Axel picks up the pace, pulling moan after moan from me. I grab onto the sheet tightly with one hand and his hair with the other as I feel my climax approaching. My breath starts coming out in pants and my eyes roll backwards. Right before it hits me, though, Axel pulls his fingers out of me. My eyes fly open to look at his with distaste as I groan in protest. He chuckles at my response. "Sorry," he says while getting off the bed to stand up, but I know he's not sorry at all.
He gets off the bed and drops his swimming trunks without a trace of shame or embarrassment. I quickly avert my eyes and my face heats up. The bed shifts as he climbs back on. His hands nudge my legs apart and he settles himself between them to lay across me. I feel his member against my belly and keep my eyes averted. His face is suddenly looming over mine and he rests it against his hand. His other hand comes up and strokes my hair out of my face.
"You okay?" he asks. I nod. "Are you really?" he asks immediately after.
"J-Just nervous," I answer quietly. He leans his face down and kisses each of my cheeks in turn.
"You don't have to do anything you don't want to. I won't be mad," he says. I snap my eyes to lock with his.
"No, I want to. I'm just scared it's going to…to hurt," I say, hoping for reassurance. He nods.
"It's gonna hurt a little, but I'll go really gently and stop or pause whenever you want me to, okay?" he says. I know it's the best he can offer me, so I nod.
"Alright," I reply. He smiles down at me and plants a single kiss on my lips. He leans over me to the night stand. He pulls a condom out and leans back.
"Do you want to…get acquainted…before it's actually inside you," he asks. I can hear the laughter in his voice. I turn bright red and shake my head quickly. He releases a chuckle. "Fair enough. Maybe some other time." I hear the rip of the wrapper and there's a moment of silence as Axel rolls the condom onto his erection. He settles back between my legs and positions himself at my entrance. He locks eyes with me. "Ready?" he asks. I take a deep, calming breath and set my resolve.
"Yeah. Ready," I say with as much confidence I can muster even though I'm freaking out on the inside. He keeps his eyes trained on mine as he slowly pushes himself into me. I bite down on my lip and wince as I feel a sharp pain. He gets in a little farther when tears sting at the corners of my eyes and I turn my head away. He stops where he's at to give me a moment. He takes each of my hands and places them on his back one by one. I look up at him questioningly.
"What're you doing?" I ask.
"It's not fair for only one of us to be in pain. Feel free to tear my back up," he says loftily, and I smile at him. He returns the smile as he pushes himself the rest of the way inside me. I dig my nails into his back and scratch while I grit my teeth and screw my eyes shut.
After a longer pause to let me adjust to his size, Axel starts moving. The first few thrusts sting and are slightly painful, but give way to pleasure soon enough. A few thrusts later, I slacken my assault on his back and moan. Axel seems relieved and relaxes slightly, picking up his speed just a bit. I throw my head back, another moan escaping my lips. I tilt my hips up to meet his and he hits something deep inside me that makes me groan in ecstasy.
"Oh, God," I call out breathily. Axel chuckles.
"Close, but not quite," he says back huskily. I can't bring myself to glare at him since there's a fire building up rapidly in my lower belly. My breathing becomes quicker and I start grinding my hips up to his sporadically and desperately. I'm soon meeting him thrust for thrust, my fingers digging into his back again and my head thrown back. Soft groans start emitting from Axel. He clamps one of his hands down on my hip and his other comes up to cup my face. "Look at me," he grunts, and my eyes fly open in compliance. His eyes burn into mine and I feel myself start to quicken.
"A-Axel," I pant out. "I-I'm going to-" I'm cut off by my orgasm crashing through me. I scream out and pull Axel down to me. I clench my thighs tightly against his sides and feel them start to shake. My toes and fingertips go numb, stars erupt in my vision, and I feel like I'm about to die the most amazing death. He releases another groan before crashing his lips onto mine as his orgasm rocks his body as well. We ride out the aftershocks raking through our bodies together, our breaths coming out in pants and residual moans.
After what feels like an eternity, he props himself up on his elbows and kisses my lips softly.
"Good?" he asks, and I can't stop the giggle that escapes my lips. I can't bring myself to speak yet so I just nod at him with an obnoxious grin on my face. His answering grin is equally obnoxious. "Good." He pulls out of me gently, rolls over, and pulls me to his chest before covering us both up with the comforter. I trace patterns on his stomach absentmindedly while he twirls his fingers through my hair.
"Do you love me?" I whisper. To my surprise, he chuckles.
"It's taken you this long to ask?" he replies. I smile.
"Well do you?"
"I do," he says. "Do you love me?" I nod against his chest.
"Yeah…Yeah, I do."