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Through the fog of white steam clouding above the water, the moon gleamed warm and bright. Alice couldn’t take her eyes off of it. Every muscle relaxed, each breath slowed, she slipped up to her chin into the hot water. Letting herself lean back, her feet rose a touch off the smooth stone floor and she let the languid current take her.
And there she floated and did not fall, for the moon had no pull over her here.
A voice chiming with gentle amusement called out to her. "Are you falling asleep on me?"
The surface of the water rolled in a smooth wave as Edgar closed the gap between them. The white steam, the navy sky, and the golden moon gave way to a pair of brilliant jade eyes. Edgar’s hair was wet and flat against his head. He must have gone under when she wasn't looking.
A smile pulled at Alice’s lips and she righted herself, checking the security of her towel in the process. "No. Did I look like I was?"
He smiled in turn. "It was far too graceful to be a slip, but I can carry you out if you're feeling dizzy."
She hummed thoughtfully as the heat of the hot spring swept her at last. Dizzy was one word for it. Hugging the towel tight to her breast, she rose from the water. At the same moment, Edgar's hand reached out to her. A soft touch grazed her elbow. Not one strong enough to help her up but well positioned for if she slipped.
"It's because I've become an expert on slips, you know," she said. "They are all done with grace now."
Edgar looked up at her as she stood above him. Delighted curiosity played in his eyes. "Are you saying you've been practicing?"
Alice moved with careful steps to the edge of the hot spring. Edgar drifted beside her, keeping an easy pace at her side. "I've fallen to Cradle and for you. Perfect practice makes perfect." Perching on the rocky edge, her legs remained in the hot water. While even the stones were still overly warm against her skin, the air cooled the heat from her face and neck.
Edgar followed her up out of the water but it wasn’t the ledge he coasted up onto but her. His bare arms crossed over her exposed skin and his chin rested in the dip between his thighs.
And the way he looked up at her -- getting out of the water didn't help much with the heat at that point.
"I... Mm..." he started, and he stopped.
And she waited in her embarrassment and yet not embarrassed enough to take it back. Her fingers threaded through his damp brown hair, pushing his bangs off his forehead. He leaned into it with a soft look in his eyes, with a red flush to his cheeks.
"You look relaxed," she noted, carding her fingers through his hair again. Her legs and feet pressed against his chest and stomach as he pressed in closer. He had a towel of his own down there, she knew, but as she caressed his shoulder, she marveled at the warm glow of his skin and the heat radiating off of him.
"I am," he said with a smile. A smile to crinkle the corner of his eyes.
It was more than that. "You look happy."
"I am. Right now. With you."
Silence became them with soft breathes and the trickling of water overflowing the edge of the spring.
Playing with his wet hair was nice, Alice mused. “What were you going to say before, Edgar?"
His arms opened to wrap around her waist. Her wet towel had become a second skin but she felt every inch of his embrace. "You might have to teach me."
She trailed her thumb over his collarbone. "Teach you what?"
"How to fall for you with grace. I trip over myself every day, you see."
Spoken with such a straight expression, it took her several expedient heartbeats before the words tumbled from her lips. “Trip my way then.”
And as her hands cupped his face and his mouth met hers halfway, he did.
(Falling up instead of down. Not all moons that pull the tide are in the sky.)