DISCLAIMER: Trigun and its characters belong to Yasuhiro Nightow.
The sky was violet by the time they were back at the hotel. The night was slowly coming to an end, daylight preparing to lay its claim.
Padded up the stairs and quietly let themselves back into the room. Meryl was still halfway in a dreamlike state from her night with Vash. There was so much she had discovered about him in the course of one night, and so much she had yet to find out. He was still very much a mystery to her.
She liked kissing him, though.
They lay down together, Meryl nestled against Vash in the crook of his arm. He absentmindedly twirled her hair.
"Why do you always call me 'insurance girl'?" she murmured.
"Because that's what you are."
Her free arm went around his midsection, and she wished in spite of herself that his coat and clothes weren't between her skin and his. "It's not who I am."
"You want me to say your name?"
"I do. It would be a nice end to a nice night."
"The night's not over yet," he observed with a seductive smile and gleam in his eyes.
Meryl raised her head. "I want you to say my name. Nothing else. I told you before, I won't be hurt again. And anyway, we just shouldn't –"
He placed a finger over her mouth, shushing her. "We definitely should. But we won't. Not tonight.
"Someday, though, we will. Once I've gotten some things settled. Once time shows you I won't hurt you. Someday."
"Someday," she agreed, privately looking forward to that day, whenever it might be.
Head cocked as another thought came to her. "Out there – you said it was only part of why you run. What's the other part?"
Right before he kissed her again, he whispered his secret confession in her ear: "I like it when you chase me…Meryl."