Chapter Text
“Let go of all the guilt that you hold inside,” says the Cardinal. He sweeps the hair from your face and continues to bathe you. Droplets of water fall from your hair and roll down your cheeks. The Cardinal places his hand gently on your shoulder and guides you backward. The surface of the tub untouched by warm water, sends a shiver up your spine as he encourages you to lean back and relax. He kneels by the edge of the tub with a gold basin. Flower petals float in the tub as he worships you.
“You’ve nothing to fear. Not here,” he promises.
You turn to him and blink through wet lashes. You tell yourself that its simply from the water but the Cardinal sees right through you and dries your eyes with the pad of his thumb.
“Why do you cry, my dear?” he asks solemnly.
“I’ve never been treated so kindly,” you admit in a hushed tone. You turn away from his worried gaze, trying to ignore the pang in your heart.
“You still believe it to be a lie…” he utters softly. He places the basin of water on the floor and slowly shrugs off his robe. “That you are unlovable.”
“Not unlovable,” you snap. He pauses as his robe hits the tiled floor, brows raised and mouth agape. “But…not whole. Not real.”
You turn your gaze away yet again, the guilt settling in once more. You feel guilty that he cares, guilty that you’ve burdened another person once more.
The Cardinal can sense it clear as day and continues to undress, slowly as if not to provoke you yet again. You listen as his clothes hit the floor and sneak a glance, wondering what in the Unholy Hell this man is up to.
“Let me in,” he whispers. “Let me take care of you.”
“Is that not what you’ve been doing?” you ask, half jokingly. You turn to face him once more only to feel a blush immediately spread across your cheeks. He’s about as pale as his makeup but the Cardinal is in good shape. His happy trail is endearing and though his stomach had softened, you yearned to place kisses along his belly. To kiss his hips and between his thighs. There are some odd scars that hadn’t quite healed just above his left hip but before you can inquire further he gestures awkwardly.
“May I?”
You bring your knees up to your chest as he clumsily makes his way into the tub with you. He slips and grabs for something, bringing the curtain down with him followed by a splash. Flower petals litter the floor and some essential oils have spilled in the tub. You quickly free the Cardinal from the curtains and check his head to see if there was any blood from the collision with the curtain rod.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes, yes. I am fine. Are you?”
“Yes…”
the Cardinal smiles sheepishly and you can’t help but do the same. He tosses the rest of the curtain out of the tub and draws you against his chest, nosing your neck.
His embrace is warm. You trace the hairs along his arm absently and smile when he presses a kiss against your cheek.
“You are whole,” he murmurs. “You are real. And you are mine.”