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The fire is crackling quietly in the hearth, and a few candles still illuminate the room faintly. It would be pitch black without them. And you could probably hear a pin drop if it weren't for the wind outside, and the guy's faint snoring. Villanelle lies in bed with her hands under her head, watching them on the other side of the room. They're cuddled close peacefully, and sound asleep.
Eve is pissing outside. She didn't seem too bothered by sharing the narrow bed, or masked it well.
The door opens and the wind howls. A gust blows the candle that sits on the table, and Eve disturbs the atmosphere further with her excessive shudders and teeth chattering as she rushes inside. The old door creaks and Eve shuts it with a push of her shoulder.
Villanelle rolls her eyes, breathing in deeply and fixing her gaze on the ceiling.
"So cold," Eve hurries to the bed and plops on it.
"Stop it, you'll wake them up," Villanelle whispers sternly.
Eve eyes the couple as she takes off her shoes as quietly as she can. Then she stands up, taking off her long jacket.
Villanelle is watching without moving her head as Eve slips her cardigan off and hangs it over the chair. The glow from the hearth illuminates her from behind, accentuating her slight silhouette under the thin cotton t-shirt. Motionless, Villanelle watches as she unclasps her bra swiftly, pulling one strap over her elbow before she takes it out of her sleeve. As she leans forward to put it away with the rest of her clothes, Villanelle can make out the shape of her breast and stomach under the material, highlighted by the fire. It's obvious that Eve is cold.
Then Eve starts getting out of her pants and Villanelle has to swallow before she can say, "You should leave your clothes on, Eve." She moves her eyes to the spot on the ceiling again.
"My skin needs to breathe, I sleep best in all cotton," Eve fumbles with her pants for a moment before she steps to the bed; their eyes meet.
Eve looks down at her with a blank face and Villanelle's eyebrows twitch up briefly, a hint of a smile pulling at her lips.
Eve just blinks in response, sits down and slips under the sleeping bag. The back of her head bumps Villanelle's elbow as she lies on her side, Eve grunts, annoyed, and pushes back with her head.
"You're taking up too much space," she complains, and Villanelle moves her arm away begrudgingly.
Apparently, it's not good enough and Eve squirms and tsks, and finally reaches for her coat and folds it as a makeshift pillow. Villanelle gives her an impatient look but Eve says nothing until she finally settles on her side; a pleased sigh follows, and she tugs the cover over her shoulder.
Villanelle tugs it back, casting her a side-eye glance.
"Stop acting like a baby." Eve tuts.
"You did this to yourself, Eve."
Whether she means her getting out of her warm clothes or the state of their relations at the moment is left to Eve's interpretation. They lie in silence after that. She can almost hear Eve's mind working; her breath is calm and steady, but there are sighs in between. Her own breath - she's very aware of it.
"I thought they would never shut up, or go to sleep," Eve says in a low voice.
Villanelle moves her head to look past Eve at them, still in their sweaters and hugged close, then her eyes focus on Eve. She has her back to her and curls into herself. If she asked her to scoot closer, Villanelle would.
But Eve doesn't, so she lets her freeze.
"How would you kill them?" Eve asks after a moment out of nowhere.
"I would beat them to death with a poker," Villanelle replies in a whisper.
"Why?" Eve inquires.
"It would take longer and would be really satisfying."
Eve smiles and hums in understanding, and Villanelle smiles too. She's only half-serious, as annoying as they are, she doesn't feel particularly violent towards them, at least at the moment. "You?"
"I'd hire you and watch," Eve chuckles.
"No," Villanelle says, smiling as she shakes her head. "How would you kill them?"
Eve thinks for a moment. "I don't know, I would probably stab them in the neck with something sharp. Lame?" her voice is low and throaty, and she turns slightly, waiting for Villanelle's verdict.
"Quick and effective," Villanelle says softly, eying Eve's back for a moment. Suddenly, she feels a strong need to reach out and touch her. "When done right," she turns to look at the ceiling with a frown instead.
She can tell by the sound of Eve's hum that she smiles, and her heart swells a little.
There's a cold wall pressed to her side and on the other, the warmth emanating from Eve's body beckons her. She moves her head carefully, craning her neck, and breathes in deeply through her nose.
Villanelle closes her eyes, Eve's hair smell of wind and rain, and Eve herself, it's familiar and lovely. She can hear the quiet thumping of her own heart in her ears.
She tried to be done with her, and when Gunn mentioned cutting the rot out, she thought about it. But she can't, not when it has taken up her vital organ.
When she saw Eve on that island, it was more than clear to her at that very moment. How joyful Eve's sight made her before she could even process it fully. And when she saw Eve clawing Gunn's eyes out, in all her animal fury and glory, her other organ chimed in too, settling the dispute - she wasn't done with Eve, not even close to it. And since then, her resolve has been melting away. And she welcomed it because she was becoming more and more bored and unhappy the longer 'being done with Eve' lasted.
She's not as angry nor as hurt anymore, but she's not going to let Eve completely off the hook just yet. For one, Eve hasn't redeemed herself sufficiently, and two, she enjoys Eve's attempts at warming up their relations, masked as they are by her grumpiness. Also, Eve is not one to squirm and beg for forgiveness. She would probably enjoy it very much if Eve did, but they're both stubborn though, unlike Eve, she has every right to be in this situation.
And now, Eve's just a few inches away, and Villanelle is drilling a hole in the back of her head with her eyes, willing her to turn around and just kiss her. To roll on top of her and into her arms. She yearns for it with every fibre of her body but wants it to come from Eve, always has.
She's getting a little restless and impatient, Eve seems tense too. She hasn't moved for quite some time, but Villanelle can tell she's awake.
She casts glances at her as they lie in silence for a while, then holds her breath when Eve shifts in bed and finally says.
"I'm really sorry."
It's followed by a long squeaky sound of a fart coming from under the covers, and Villanelle looks to her side at Eve with her eyes wide open and brows furrowed, meeting Eve's dumb face looking straight at her while it lasts.
Holding Eve's gaze, she breaks into a breathy fit of laughter.
"God, I've been holding it in forever," Eve chuckles too, and they both shake with laughter, trying to be quiet enough not to wake up their annoying company.
Just when they think it's over, it takes one shared look, and they burst into laughter again, and it feels so good. If it weren't for Eve's stupidity, she would be kissing her face all over now in this narrow bed, in this shabby hut.
Eve sighs when their laughter subsides, wiping a tear out of her eye.
Villanelle is out of breath and her cheeks hurt, but then her brows furrow and her smile falls. "You ate popcorn?"
Eve stills.
"You can tell that from a fart?" Her whisper is higher in pitch in surprise.
"When?"
Eve looks at her for a second, before she sighs and confesses, "I found it in the cupboard. When Maggie was reading from your palm."
"You didn't share," Villanelle whispers, appalled.
"It was only half a bag, and stale. Couldn't stop stuffing my mouth with it anyway," Eve chuckles, looking at her shocked face. "You didn't miss much," she tries to assure her.
"Better than their thin vegan stew?"
"Yeah, it was," Eve admits apologetically.
"Thanks, Eve," she squints at her threateningly, but an unruly smile tugs at her lips.
Eve chuckles a little, it's a low deep sound, and looks into her eyes with her beautiful twinkling ones. Villanelle's eyes drop briefly to Eve's smiling lips before she turns her head away, trying to hide her own smile.
They lie in silence again for some time, Villanelle is more relaxed and it's nice.
Then Eve yawns and asks casually, "So, did you have fun on that island?"
"Yes," she says simply.
They both turn their heads and their eyes meet.
"Really?" Eve sounds both surprised and disappointed, looks like a kicked puppy.
Villanelle raises her eyebrows at her, leaving it to Eve's imagination. She lets her stew on that thought for a moment before she asks without looking at her, "Did you have fun with Hélène?"
Eve falters for a beat. "Not as much as you did," she tries to dodge it.
"Making out in a bath seems like a pretty fun time," Villanelle shrugs.
Eve sighs. "We didn't make out in a bath," she says tiredly.
"No? What did you two do, then?" She has so many questions but tries to keep her tone neutral.
Eve looks at her with her mouth open, then just says, "I'm too tired for this, right now," before she turns on her side away from her.
She looks at Eve for a little longer before she turns her head, fixing her squinting eyes on the ceiling.
"Did you headbutt her, too?" she asks after a beat.
"Good night, Villanelle."
Of course, Eve had to ruin the moment, Villanelle turns her head away with a scowl.
She's tired, but she can't sleep. She doesn't know how long she just lies there, thinking about the past and the present, but by the time she makes herself almost sick with her mind whirling, Eve seems to have fallen asleep.
They have to get to London, but they may be miles away from the nearest station. The dingy camper van might be their best bet. The thought that she can't wait and doesn't want this to end at the same time makes her frown.
A short, shy pfft comes from under the covers, and Villanelle closes her eyes.
Then exhales with a smile, and her chest shakes for a beat with soundless laughter; this woman won't even let her be mad at her for too long.
She looks at Eve for a moment, then moves to lie on her side, gently not to disturb her. Eve's still, close presence makes her feel all warm in her chest, and it eventually calms her too, for once.