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"I can't stop thinking about you."
Fenris' eyes go wide, per brows drawn as pe turns to per friend beside pem. Expressionless, and all the more expressive for it, Isabela does nothing to tell pem those words were not hallucinatory. All sie does is drink the wine pe teasingly made hir pour for hirself.
It's not that the words are out of character - Isabela is more than happy to flirt, winking and purring about a night sie'll never forget, an experience they simply must relive. It's hir tone that shakes pem, because it's not flirtatious at all. It's confessional.
When sie turns to pem, hir eyes are sad. Tired. They don't shine wetly in the firelight, but the emotion in them is genuine regardless.
"I'm sorry," sie says, then laughs. It's bitter sounding, like it's sour over hir tongue. "Actually, I'm not sorry, but it would be a shame to lose this to resentment - or anything else. I- I'm going to be honest with you, Fenris, because I think you deserve it."
Sie takes another long swig of hir wine. Pe watches hir, ignoring the nervous shake to per heart.
"This isn't just sex for me anymore. When I'm with you, Fenris…" Sie shakes hir head. Sie won't meet per eyes.
Pe… doesn't know what to say.
"It's alright if you don't want to sleep with me anymore. We can find you someone else, someone who won't get attached-"
Fenris raises a hand, holding it in front of pem. "Wait. Why tell me this? Why now?"
Isabela laughs, but there's so little humor in it, it sounds like it came from someone else. Not a stranger, per se, but not quite the carefree person pe's gotten used to knowing either.
"Because-" Sie huffs. "Have not enough people taken advantage of you? Have you not suffered enough under dishonesty - under someone else's selfish desire? I won't go lying to you, not with this. And-"
"...And?"
"And for my sake as well. Fenris, I-"
Sie pulls away, standing straighter in hir chair. The way hir eyes find pem, stick to per face and don't look away…
"I think I'm falling in love with you. Your stupid, grumpy, adorable face and all your boring history books that you swallow up like fresh biscuits and the funny little laugh you do when you feel safe…" Sie buries hir face in hir hands. "I deserve better, too, than to make love to someone who isn't making love back. I deserve to be happy. So… I love you, heh. And if you don't want to sleep with me anymore because of that, that's okay."
"... And? "
"'And'?!" Hir head whips per way, hir sea of thick curls tumbling over his shoulders. "And- And I'm not sure I can stand to sleep with you if you don't love me! To the Void with you! Is that what you wanted to hear?"
"Yes." Hir expression grows all the more bewildered. "I had to know you could be truly honest with me."
Fenris stands, stepping towards hir quickly. Hir reflexes are good - better than per own - but sie's frozen, staring up at per with wide eyes as pe approaches.
Pe clasps a hand behind hir neck and kisses hir, as practiced in it now as pe is in anything. Sie moans into it, a quiet, hopeful sound, and it turns into a sigh as pe pulls away.
Per lips brush past hir lips, past hir round cheek, to push hir curly hair aside and find hir ear. "You have occupied my mind since that first time I saw you in the Hanged Man, fighting with such passion and ease, but lately, 'Bela, I have thought of little else but you."
Pe pulls away, just enough to stare into hir eyes. Pe's gauging hir reaction - and letting hir know per feelings are genuine. That pe loves hir in return, even if pe can't quite wrap per tongue around the words.
"Oh," sie gasps. Sie looks at pem with unhidden desire and poorly hidden emotion. "That smolder…"
Pe ducks per head and grins, before rising per gaze again to stare - to smolder - with further intensity. Hot and cold, was it?
If hir grin is any indication, then pe's gotten it right this time.
"Okay?" pe asks. Are we okay? Are you okay?
And sie nods. "Okay. Now… clothes off to celebrate?"
Fenris is the one laughing now, pressing per nose against hirs with a smile. "You always do have the best ideas."