A/N: Welcome to my entries for the TyHil Love Countdown 2023 event! My goal is to keep all of them on the shorter side so I don't overwhelm myself because this should be fun! Which it is, because I'm writing more for Tyson and Hilary. Unless otherwise stated, every entry is independent of one another. Origianaly I thought about making this fic be connected and take place over the course of one day because this year's countdown is themed to the time of day...but then I realized that'd make me stress out trying to think of a good idea to last long enough and I don't need that self-inflicted stress during the holidays! Anyway, I hope you enjoy!
Breathing Dawn
Their breaths collided, curling and twisting in the crisp air of dawn.
He'd never appreciated it, the stillness before the world woke up. How time became suspended, creating infinities between the passing seconds. How the light of the waking sky extended and stretched in slow increments, allowing a peaceful transfer between tranquility and liveliness.
She kept asking him why he chose that time of day, even going so far as suggesting he wanted to hide her. That comment ruffled but the look in her eye hurt. She held her chin up, as assured as always, but he'd always been able to see past the sheen in her ruby eyes. The doubt hidden behind the bolster.
Uncertainty didn't fit her; it sat like a thick, cumbersome shawl, pulling her shoulders down and bundling her tight. She needed more room to take up space, breathe, and exist.
Which, incidentally, was part of the reason he chose the early morning for their sessions.
It took time for her to unfurl, to uncross her arms and relax enough to get sucked into his teachings. Her initial huffs and rolls of her eyes faded way to a quiet concentration he'd seen plenty when she studied or took an exam or…did this. Tried something new, tried to get an understanding of it to make it all fit in her world, tried to get him.
Admittedly, he wasn't that complicated. He lived his life like he floated on the wind, moving along where the day took him. And yet that was still something she didn't understand, couldn't seem to wrap her head around, or so he guessed with all the ways she'd criticized him over the years or shook her head at his antics. It was easier to show her and show her he did.
That's why he chose this time. That's why he chose the dewy drips of dawn. Because it was no one else but him and her, no expectations, no judgment, no pressure, no disappointment. They could be Tyson and Hilary; they could exist and breathe.
"Almost." She shivered against him and he hid the grin threatening to bloom across his face, lest he'd wanted to receive an elbow to his chest. After all, they couldn't mix business and pleasure could they? Or so she claimed. Still he couldn't resist, turning his head so his mouth just barely touched her ear. She shivered against and he let out a low chuckle. She stepped backwards a touch at the sound, pressing her back fully against his front. He closed his eyes, focusing on the heat seeping from her to the delicious floral scent clinging to her neck. Cheater.
His hands cupped her shoulders, gently lowering them down from her ears. "Just breathe," he said. Her body rose and fell beneath his grasp. "Good." He slid his hands down her shoulders, over her arms, and rested them on her extended hands, one finger curled around the plastic loop attached to the launcher in her opposite hand. "If you hold your breath, you won't get the right pull. Everything needs to work together for the launch."
She looked at him out the corner of her eye, lips pursing just slightly. The gloss applied caught the first beam of sunlight and, damn, did she deserve that spotlight. It was as if stardust had been thrown at her and she caught it in her mouth. He'd travel to the heavens to get a taste of it if he had to. Thankfully, he had a full constellation in his arms.
Tyson adjusted her grip a touch, allowing his fingers to drag across her wrists before placing his hands to her hips. She sucked in a breath, the air hissing inwards between her teeth when he twisted her a little to the right, whooshing back out when the tips of his fingers slipped just beneath the hem of her blouse and met with her warm skin.
"Okay." His breath floated out past her cheek, mingling with her short puffs. "Whenever you're ready, let it rip."
She gave a wry smile. "Ha ha."
He also smiled, though it beamed with satisfaction. "That wasn't meant to be a pun but…"
"It's fitting."
Her face relaxed and that look came back. He saw the gears turning in her head, the rapid strings of her putting all the information he'd given her moving into place, figuring it all out. Her grip tightened. Her chest rose and fell with her deep breaths. And her lisp pressed together, tightening, stopping her breath, only for it come out with a soft groan when Tyson pressed a kiss to the junction between her neck and collar bone.
The launcher landed in the grass; its thud softened by the lush blades. Her hand, now empty, reached back and lay atop of his, fingers slotting between when he squeezed her hips.
"That's not fair," she whispered, though he heard the smile in her voice.
He parted his lips just enough to let his tongue drag a quick stripe across her warm skin. "Oh well." He lifted his head and pressed another kiss to the side of her neck, this time beneath her chin. "Means we'll have to train longer."
Humming, she turned in his arms and loosely wrapped hers around his neck, lifting to brush her nose against his. "Unfortunately."
She'd barely finished the word when he ducked his head, trapping it between their eager lips, getting a taste of heaven and of her as they bathed in the light of dawn.